A Facade

Early the next morning, just as Bai Jingyan had predicted, Bai Qingyun left the city with the people he had brought along when he delivered the four hundred and fifty thousand taels in silver notes. He was headed back to Suyang.

Before departing, he had told the two Xiaonoye to stop by the Duke Estate one more time that day and set out for Suyang the following morning.

Before midday had even passed, four imperial edicts set out from the palace. When the people of Dadu heard their contents, they all fell to their knees and bowed, cheering that the Emperor was wise beyond measure.

The Grand Princess led the entire household of the Bai family to kneel at the gate and receive the edicts. The Xiaonoye, who had not yet departed, turned pale with shock, exchanging wary glances as unease washed over ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠them.

For the Emperor to posthumously elevate the Duke of Zhenguo to a king meant that not only did he not despise the Duke Estate and intend to cast it aside — he was bestowing imperial grace upon it!

A king! A king of a separate estate! True, it was a posthumous honor, but there could be no denying it was glory beyond compare.

Kneeling before the spirit tablets, Bai Jingyan offered incense to the Duke of Zhenguo and bowed with the utmost solemnity. When she raised her head again, her face was already drenched in tears, and it felt as though her chest would tear itself apart.

"Grandfather! Father! The traitor Yu Huanzhang's clan has been exterminated. King Xin has been reduced to a commoner and exiled to Yongzhou, never to return to court again. Heaven has aided our Bai family and proven the innocence of our men! From this day forward, every man of the Bai family stands upright and unashamed — loyal, righteous gentlemen who committed no crime against the people! Though the men of the Bai family have perished, their souls will endure forever! Uncles, rest in peace now. Brothers, rest well at last!"

Bai Jingyan bowed deeply.

Behind her, the Bai sisters knelt as well, tears held in their eyes, and bowed in unison.

The moment the commoners outside the gates of the Duke Estate heard the words rest in peace, they beat their chests and wailed aloud. The immense grief buried in their hearts seemed to spread from one to another as if by contagion, and the sound of mourning shook the very heavens.

In this life, her grandfather would not be buried beneath the disgrace and humiliation of having "recklessly led the army to ruin."

And yet — what good was being elevated to a king? Would a posthumous title bring the loyal men of the Bai family back to life?

Never again would she let the Bai family's survival, its honor or disgrace, rest in another's hands.

She would seize power. She would hold authority!

The Bai family had no intention of becoming fish on someone else's chopping block ever again.

The Emperor had dealt King Xin a far harsher punishment than what he had promised Bai Jingyan in the great hall.

Now she could be certain. The Emperor had decided to send her to the Southern Border — and that was why he was showing such favor. It might even be called concession and compromise.

But there was no telling which imperial prince the Emperor would send. A mere titled prince would be tolerable, but if it was Prince Liang—

Staring at the flickering candle flames inside the mourning hall, Bai Jingyan radiated a deep chill. Very well then. She could hand the military glory over to Prince Liang — but that ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wretch would have to be finished off for good in the Southern Border.

His remaining in Dadu City was a problem in itself. She could not rest easy simply sending him off like that.

Which meant she needed to think further. Should Prince Liang die in Dadu City — or should she carry his miserable life all the way to the Southern Border?

"Though His Majesty has elevated him to King of Zhenguo, the dead cannot return to life. Let the funeral rites be kept simple!"

Clutching the edict in her hand, the Grand Princess looked over the coffins laid out in the courtyard, then closed her eyes. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Let the heroes of the Duke Estate close their eyes in peace as soon as may be."

At the sight of the spirit tablets of the Zhenguo Duke Estate, the guilt within the Grand Princess swelled larger and larger.

If only she had sent imperial guards to protect her husband in secret before he marched to war — surely she could have saved even one of them.

"Buliu, His Majesty has not forgotten your merits. Nor have the people forsaken the grace you showed them. So go in peace. I will protect the Bai family in your stead! I will… protect…"

Before she could finish, the Grand Princess — her face ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sallow and drained of every trace of color — could no longer hold herself upright. She swayed backward.

"Grandmother!"

"Mother!"

"Your Highness, the Grand Princess!"

"Quickly! Summon the imperial physician!"

The Grand Princess's sudden collapse threw the mourning hall into chaos. The mourners gathered before the gates of the Duke Estate felt their hearts leap into their throats once more.

Please — no more misfortune must befall the Duke Estate!

The mourning hall was being watched by Jin Lang alone. His thoughts were a tangled mess. He worried for his father, Zhongyong Marquis Chen Dexiao, and he could not stop worrying over the Grand Princess either. Her complexion had been simply dreadful.

Longevity Courtyard, by contrast, was crowded with people.

The imperial physician and Physician Hong had delivered their diagnosis: the Grand Princess had merely fainted from going so long without proper sleep, compounded by worry upon worry. Only then could those gathered in the room breathe easy again.

"Lady Crown Princess, please do not worry yourself. I shall prepare the medicine myself. What Her Highness needs most is rest."

The imperial physician spoke to Lady Dong with the utmost deference.

"Thank you, Physician."

Lady Dong nodded, the rims of her eyes red.

"Now that we know Mother is unharmed, why don't we send the girls back to the mourning hall? Second Sister-in-law is all alone in there — it must be terribly hard on her."

Third Madame Lady Li dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief as she spoke to Lady Dong.

"Nanny Dong, Mother is fine now. Tell the girls to go to the mourning hall — they shouldn't wait around here."

Lady Dong instructed.

Nanny Dong gave her answer, withdrew from the main room, and hurried to the side chamber of Longevity Courtyard, where she relayed the physician's words to the young misses.

Bai Jingyan nodded.

"What a relief. Nanny Dong, please tell Mother this: my sisters and I will keep watch over the mourning hall, so we ask her and my aunts to look after Grandmother with care. Grandmother is the pillar of this household — she absolutely must not collapse."

Bai Jingyan took Chun Tao's hand and rose. Then, looking at her young sisters whose faces had gone white from the cold, she said:

"Have Jinshao, Jinhua, and Jinse rest here another hour or so. Warm up some milk for them, and give them something to nibble on as well. They're at the age when they're growing fast — they mustn't go hungry!"

Nanny Dong, still wiping her tears with her handkerchief, nodded again and again.

"Yes, Eldest Young Miss. Do not worry."

Bai Jinxiu, who had left Longevity Courtyard and come to Bai Jingyan's side, frowned as she spoke.

"Eldest Sister, the contents of the edict punishing King Xin are different from what you told us when you returned. I've thought it over carefully — the Emperor is certainly after something. But no matter how I turn it over in my mind, I simply cannot imagine what—"

"The Southern Border has met with defeat. The Emperor requested a peace settlement, and for now the situation has been stabilized. But yesterday, before the palace gates closed, the Emperor summoned the Minister of Revenue. He intends to secretly begin the war anew."

Bai Jinxiu's eyes went wide.

"Then could it be—"

Bai Jingyan nodded.

"That day in the great hall, I told the Emperor I would campaign in the Southern Border. And that I would yield the military glory to one of his imperial sons."

"Eldest Sister!"

Bai Jinxiu's heart plummeted, and she seized Bai Jingyan's hand in a tight grip.

"Why you, Sister?!"

Bai Jinchi could hold back no longer. She strode up in front of Bai Jingyan and cried out:

"Eldest Sister, why would you hand the military glory over to a prince?!"

"Lower your voice!"

Bai Jindong yanked Bai Jinchi back.

"Be quiet!"

Bai Jindong knew. She knew that no matter what, by one means or another, Eldest Sister was bound and determined to go to the Southern Border.

Bai Jingyan smiled and patted Bai Jinxiu's hand soothingly.

"I've already lost my martial cultivation. Even if I go, all I can do is devise strategy — nothing more. Don't worry. The fact that the Emperor dealt King Xin ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠such a heavy punishment this time is a gesture of goodwill toward the Bai family."

Hadn't the Emperor's whole reason for sending a prince to supervise the army been his desire to hand the military glory to one of his sons? Bai Jingyan's concession was precisely what the Emperor wanted — there was no way he would refuse it.

"But why you, Sister?"

Bai Jinchi asked through gritted teeth, her eyes rimmed with red.

"You're not even well, Eldest Sister, and you'd win the military glory just to hand it to that dog of an Emperor's son!"

Even as she watched Bai Jinchi flare up, Bai Jingyan's heart was perfectly calm.

Before the Emperor, Bai Jingyan had made a pretty excuse of it: she would go to the Southern Border because this land, defended by the Bai family for generation upon generation, had to be protected even if it cost her every bone in her body — and the military glory, she said, she would gladly surrender with both hands.

But the truth was that she went to the Southern Border to sink the Bai family's roots deep. Bai Jingyan would say it to the Bai Family Army, to every soldier of Great Jin: the Bai family would stand with them through life and death, always.

"Once everything is settled and I return from the Southern Border, I'll offer the military glory to the Emperor in exchange for a petition — that your Second Sister be invested as the first noble lady of super-first rank in all of Dadu to hold an imperial patent. Even the Emperor won't be able to refuse that request. We lose nothing by it, either."

"Eldest Sister?"

Bai Jinxiu's face showed her astonishment.

Bai Jinchi, who had been frowning, flinched too — and the crease between her brows smoothed away.

If Second Sister becomes a super-first-rank patent lady, then Jin Lang would be—

Sharp-eyed Bai Jindong asked in a low voice:

"So you mean to win the Zhongyong Marquis title for Second Brother-in-law?"

"Chen Dexiao laid his hands on nothing less than the army grain bound for the Southern Border. Isn't it likely he was in league with Yu Huanzhang, the man who sold out the country? Yu Huanzhang deceived Grandfather, claiming the grain was tied up at Fengcheng. The march records even show that Yu Huanzhang lied, saying the grain would be transported directly from Fengcheng's granary officials to the camp. And you'd have me believe the two of them had no connection whatsoever?"

"That's right!"

Bai Jinchi's eyes sparkled.

"How else would Yu Huanzhang have known there was a problem with the grain? Chen Dexiao and Yu Huanzhang were in league together — they must have known it all along!"

Bai Jingyan looked at Bai Jinchi with a smile.

"There, you see. Even Fourth Sister can see it. Perhaps people do think alike after all."

"But if that's true, wouldn't Second Sister get implicated in the whole affair too?"

Bai Jinchi asked again.

"Chen Dexiao is hardly a man of extraordinary cunning — but he isn't so hopelessly stupid as to be beyond saving, either. He would never simply let the Zhongyong Marquis estate tumble into the abyss."

"Eldest Young Miss, the carriage is ready."

Nanny Dong approached holding a black hooded cloak and gave a curtsy.

"Eldest Sister, you're going out? Where?"

Bai Jinxiu asked.

Bai Jingyan held out her hand and took the cloak from Nanny Dong.

"I'll be stopping by the Court of Judicial Review prison to see Zhongyong Marquis Chen Dexiao. Keep the mourning hall well."

Watching Bai Jingyan leave, supported by Nanny Dong, Bai Jinchi could not rest easy and swiftly followed after her.

"I'm coming with you, Eldest Sister!"

At the sight of Bai Jinchi looking so tense, Bai Jingyan's resolve softened.

"A prison wall will stand between us. Do you really think he could lay a hand on me? Besides, both of my shadow guards will be following. They're all men of considerable martial skill."

"Then… then at least let me see you off."

Bai Jinchi wound her arm through Bai Jingyan's.

Bai Jingyan did not argue her out of it any further, and let Bai Jinchi tag along. Only when they reached the entrance of the side gate did she speak.

"Now that the edict has come down elevating Grandfather to King of Zhenguo, the great families of Dadu will be coming to pay their respects. If both you and I are absent, it will be far too conspicuous — and if your eldest great-aunt asks, your Second Sister and Third Sister will have a hard time talking their way around it."

Bai Jinchi opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end she only gave a reluctant nod.

Bai Jinchi watched for a long while as Nanny Dong helped Bai Jingyan into the carriage, then offered a fist-and-palm salute to the Xiao Ruogang brothers.

"Take good care of Eldest Sister."

Xiao Ruogang and Xiao Ruohai returned her salute with a deep bow.

"Do not worry, Fourth Young Miss."

Watching the carriage recede into the distance, Bai Jinchi bowed her head and sank into thought. Calamity had struck the Bai family hard, and her eldest great-aunt and Eldest Sister were holding the family up by sheer strength of will.

Bai Jinchi had decided: since Eldest Sister had reached an agreement with the Emperor to go to the Southern Border, she would follow Eldest Sister there. At the very least, she would be able to protect her.

Her hand drifted unconsciously to her waist — and only then did she remember, belatedly, that Eldest Sister had reclaimed her whip.

Bai Jinchi pressed her lips together tight. All this time she had carried the whip out of fear that, through some careless mistake, she might cost someone their life. But if she was going to the Southern Border, the Red-Tasseled Spear would suit her far better!