Threads of Silver and Gold
The next step was clear. "We can't remain ignorant of our homeland's affairs forever."
Three years had already passed since I became a hostage. The boy who had been nine was now twelve. The time I'd spent with Zheng was approaching two years. If I counted carefully, I'd taken her in around the middle of my tenth year, so it was closer to a year and a half. "It's still early February, so rounding up, two years feels about right."
Time had flown. Then again, so much had happened in that span. The incident with Nuo Gu Tian and Huan Chi, persuading the Lord of Xinling to establish the merchant guild, the assassination of the enemy general... When I thought about it, perhaps the time had only seemed short because of how eventful it had been.
In any case, I had adapted to hostage life and secured a modest position for myself. It was time to consider returning home.
"So the Zhao headquarters will become the main branch, and you'll establish a Yan branch?"
"That's the plan."
"Then who will you assign to the branch? Zhang Yi? If you're running the main branch yourself, you could send Nuo Gu Tian."
"There's something I'd like to discuss with you regarding that before we decide."
"If you're asking to borrow talent from among my retainers, I'll refuse."
Zhang Yi's background was still hidden, so that was fine, but those whose abilities had been proven around the Lord of Xinling were already known. She had no desire to make it obvious that she held direct influence over the guild. I had no intention of placing any of her close aides in the guild either. Bringing one of her loyalists into an organization I controlled would only weaken my authority—what would be the point?
I hadn't sought out the Lord of Xinling to borrow talent, but to seek her agreement on the personnel I had already chosen.
"In truth, I already have someone in mind to lead the Yan branch."
"Jing Ke, I presume?"
"Yes, Jing Ke—wait, how did you know?"
I cried out in surprise at how she had guessed before I could even finish. The Lord of Xinling chuckled softly.
"Who else is left around you besides your brother-in-law, myself, and Nuo Gu Tian? You wouldn't bring anyone from the Lord of Jianshen's circle. That leaves only Jing Ke, the retainer you exiled."
It was a painfully simple deduction. Given my limited social circle, it hadn't been difficult to predict.
"You're right. Even after her exile, I kept in touch with Jing Ke to some degree. It seems she's returned to Yan."
"Not a bad choice. Very well. But from what I recall, Jing Ke is cut from the same cloth as Nuo Gu Tian. Won't you need someone to handle administrative matters the way Zhang Yi does?"
"Ah, you needn't worry about that."
Jing Ke had two close friends. Wumyeong, the butcher who had discarded his own name, and Gao Jianli, the musician who played the zhu. She often mentioned them in her letters. The butcher was one of the two people she had once said handled a sword better than she did, and Gao Jianli, though a musician, was versatile and skilled with numbers.
"If Gao Jianli manages the guild's administration and Wumyeong handles security, that should be sufficient."
"You have everything planned out. Impressive. Yan is your homeland, so you don't need my permission. Do as you wish. However, when you eventually expand into Wei, I'd appreciate it if you used some of my people."
She was offering to hand Yan over to me completely in exchange for letting her handle her own homeland of Wei. The Wei market was larger in terms of population, but it would be far more stable and easier to grow under her direct management. I had no reason to refuse.
"As you say."
"Enough business for now. The hour is late—shall we dine together?"
I had told the others to eat first, anticipating a long conversation. Thanks to how smoothly and quickly things had gone, we still had plenty of time. When I accepted her invitation, the food arrived shortly after. The spread was far more befitting of royalty than what we had eaten before.
"Ah, by the way, what is that on your wrist?"
The Lord of Xinling asked abruptly. While we had been talking, my sleeve had covered it, but as I moved my arm to use my chopsticks, the bracelet on my wrist had become visible. I pushed my sleeve up slightly and showed her my wrist.
"This bracelet, you mean?"
"Yes. I don't believe I've seen it before."
Of course she hadn't. It was newly made.
"Zheng's birthday was recently. I made this as a gift. When she received it, she asked me to teach her how to make one. So I showed her, and she made this matching pair as a gift in return."
I turned my wrist, proudly displaying the bracelet. It was a knotted cord bracelet made from silk thread. I had learned the craft in middle school in my previous life and used to make them whenever my hands were idle. Though my mind had forgotten the method, my hands remembered. After a few failed attempts, the feel came back to me.
But the Lord of Xinling's reaction was less than favorable. She seemed more concerned with who had made it than with its form or beauty.
"Ying Zheng made this?"
"Yes."
It had been endearing to watch her small hands diligently working the knots. I had chosen silver and gold thread to match Zheng's hair and eyes, and she had made hers with black and blue to match mine.
"I know the two of you are close, but as you're aware, Ying Zheng is no longer some discarded collateral royal."
After the death of Zheng's great-grandfather, the King of Qin—now referred to as King Zhaoxiang—the throne had passed to her grandfather, Lord Anguo. Her father, Ying Yiren, born to one of Lord Anguo's concubines, had been adopted by the principal wife, Lady Huayang, becoming Ying Zichu and thus rising from a concubine's son to a legitimate heir. Zheng was no longer collateral royalty; she was direct lineage. And not just any—she was the eldest daughter of Ying Zichu.
"For now, since King Zhaoxiang's funeral rites aren't yet complete, she hasn't been formally enfeoffed. But once the mourning period ends, Ying Zichu will become crown prince."
"But it's been so long since Ying Zichu was legitimized. The fact that he still hasn't sent for them suggests that his time as a hostage in Zhao is something he'd rather not revisit. Besides, I hear he's had other children..."
Even my strongest point of confidence failed to change the Lord of Xinling's expression. If anything, she seemed to regard it as obvious.
"Though Ying Zichu has become a legitimate son, his time as a hostage in Zhao prevented him from building any real power base. He gained legitimacy through Lady Huayang and power through marriage. In that process, Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng, left behind in Zhao, are of no use to his ambitions."
"Then, just as I said—"
"But things are different now."
"Pardon?"
"Once Ying Zichu becomes crown prince, the situation changes. From that moment on, the power dynamic reverses."
Until his appointment as crown prince, Ying Zichu had to watch the factions supporting him. But the instant he ascended to that position, those same factions would have to watch him. That was the Lord of Xinling's argument.
"The only people Ying Zichu needs to concern himself with now are his father, King Anguo, and his adoptive mother, Lady Huayang. As long as he maintains their favor, he can act as he pleases without being swayed by other factions."
"Then do you believe Ying Zichu will bring Zheng and Zhao Ji back to Qin?"
"It's not certain, but the possibility is high."
As always, the Lord of Xinling spoke with confidence. And as always, she had reasoning to support her claim.
"Ying Zichu's support comes from two main pillars."
"Two pillars?"
"One is the family of his second wife. The other is Lü Buwei, the great merchant of Han who has supported him since his hostage days."
His wife's family compensated for his weak connections to Qin's aristocracy, while Lü Buwei provided the funds necessary for his activities.
"His wife's family will reject Zhao Ji and Ying Zheng, while Lü Buwei will want to bring them back."
From the wife's family's perspective, Zheng was a rival for the succession. From Lü Buwei's perspective, if the succession fell under the wife's family's control, he would be pushed aside—so he would try to bring in Zhao Ji, the woman he had introduced to Ying Zichu.
"At first, the wife's family held the advantage, but now Lü Buwei's influence is greater. With his immense wealth, he has even risen to the rank of guest minister in Qin. Ying Zichu cannot easily disregard the wishes of his greatest patron."
Everyone's calculations revolved around power. And the Lord of Xinling's ability to uncover and analyze all of it was remarkable. There had been an incident that illustrated her intelligence network even when she was in Wei. While playing Go with her half-brother, the King of Wei, news arrived that Zhao forces were being deployed along the border. King Anxi, believing it to be an invasion, had panicked and rushed to respond, but the Lord of Xinling had remained calm, continuing their game. When the king asked why she was so composed, she replied, "It is not an invasion. The King of Zhao has merely gone hunting." And indeed, that was the case. When the king asked how she had known, she answered, "I have someone among my subordinates who keeps me informed about the King of Zhao." Displeased by such extensive intelligence, the king had gradually excluded her from state affairs thereafter.
That formidable intelligence network of hers remained intact. The way she read Qin's internal power structure as if it were written on her palm proved it.
The thought that Zheng might return to Qin left me feeling suffocated, as if my chest were being squeezed tight.
Is Zheng truly going to become the First Emperor...?
Regardless of my anxiety, the Lord of Xinling spoke quietly.
"Once the Lord of Jianshen returns, we'll know for certain."