Chapter 308

It was not that Wang Xiujin was overthinking; rather, the minds of the ancient were too unpredictable. Having lived two lives, he knew better than to believe he could outmaneuver them. If he was not careful, he might well dig his own grave.

Looking at the Minister of Rites, Wang Xiujin, harboring all manner of suspicions, naturally said little. He used a roundabout manner to see the man off. He had already offered an idea, which was more than enough. As for what came after, he was not a historian; how could he know the proper way to build a stone stele?

After sending the minister away, Wang Xiujin arranged for Shopkeeper Wang to deliver the goods, then left the grain shop. He felt that the Minister of Rites would likely come looking for him again. Since he had been keeping an eye on the shipyard these past two years, he began to wonder whether he should return to Wang Village for a while. That would let him avoid the Minister of Rites for the moment, and by the time he came back, the Ministry of Rites would probably have come up with a proper countermeasure. The more Wang Xiujin thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

So he sent someone to the military camp to ask Li Lingshan to return home, while he first went to the Censorate to tell his father about the Minister of Rites seeking him out. He also said that he planned to go back to Wang Village and might need to take a detour to the Li family ancestral home first, so Li Lingshan could pay respects there before going on to Wang Village. Lord Wang did not stop him, only reminded him to be careful. Wang Xiujin nodded in assent.

Leaving the Censorate, Wang Xiujin did not hurry home. He first went to the Wang household and reported to his mother before departing. By the time he returned home, Li Lingshan was already back. Wang Xiujin told him about the day's events and spoke plainly: to avoid trouble, he intended to make a trip to Wang Village. He asked whether Li Lingshan had time. If they went together, they would first need to stop at his ancestral home. After returning victorious from war, one ought at least to pay respects to one's ancestors. If one had never left the capital, missing the ritual could be overlooked, but once outside the capital, it would be somewhat improper not to go, especially after receiving imperial rewards.

Li Lingshan said he would accompany him. He would go request leave, and they would set out the next day.

The two parted to attend to their own matters. Li Lingshan went to ask for leave, while Wang Xiujin went to explain the trip to the elders. The Li family elders did not object. Wang Xiujin had many properties in Wuxian, and there had been precedents of making a trip there in previous years. With Li Lingshan accompanying him, there would also be someone to look after him. Hearing that the two intended to first make a circuit by the ancestral home, Grand Marshal Li said nothing. Though he had little fondness for the old family home, it was proper for the younger generation to pay their respects. "Take Yachang with you as well. Let him bow to the ancestors."

Wang Xiujin had already intended to bring his son along. With the old master's permission, there was no need to bring it up again. Returning to the courtyard, he packed the clothes and belongings, thinking that they would have to stay in Wuxian for some time, and that the round trip alone would take more than a month. The journey would be long. Naturally, they could not go back to the village empty-handed. They would need gifts for the families they were close to, and for those they were not so close to, there was the risk they would come clinging on anyway, so he would have to prepare some modestly expensive items that would still look presentable. He also needed to prepare everything required for the ancestral rites.

In ancient times, preparing to travel far took several days. For someone like Wang Xiujin, who was leaving in such haste, it was unusual. Fortunately, he had plenty of money and did not mind spending it. There were many servants in the household, so there was no shortage of people to run errands. Once the steward gave the orders, everything was ready before nightfall.

At the Wang residence, the Minister of Rites arrived with some tea cakes in hand. During the day he had failed to gain access to the imperial merchant route; after returning home and thinking it over, he set his sights on Lord Wang. They were both officials in the court, so they ought to look after one another. Lord Wang should not shut him out. If he could establish some connection, that would be best. With Lord Wang making the introductions, he could ask the imperial merchant for guidance. Even if he offended the imperial merchant, the merchant would not be able to come after him directly. If no connection could be made, then at least no offense would be taken, and it would simply count as a visit among colleagues.

The Minister of Rites had thought it through rather well. Who would have expected the servant who answered the door to say that Lord Wang was still at the yamen and had not returned, and that Lady Wang had not been feeling well lately, making it inconvenient to receive guests? The Minister of Rites looked at the servant. The servant kept his head bowed and dared not say more, inwardly worrying that his master had not bothered to ask properly before coming out, and wondering whether the blame would fall on him.

Looking at the tightly shut gate, the Minister of Rites guessed how much truth there was to the words coming from inside. "To the Censorate," he said. He wanted to see whether it was true or false.

He had not expected to be turned away at the Censorate as well. But it did confirm that Lord Wang was still at the yamen and had not returned home. The Minister of Rites wondered whether he should wait there. He did not believe Lord Wang would stay the night. Then again, he worried that doing so might anger Lord Wang. What place was the Censorate? There were not many in court who would want to provoke it.

After pacing about the entrance to the Censorate for a while, the Minister of Rites went back home.

When Lord Wang heard that the Minister of Rites had left, he shook his head. He had guessed correctly after all. He put his things in order and waited a little longer before going home. By tomorrow, once his son had departed, even if he should meet the Minister of Rites, he would have words to answer him with.

After court was dismissed, the Minister of Rites had intended to step forward and exchange a few words with Lord Wang. Unexpectedly, before he could even approach, Lord Wang was summoned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation by one of the emperor's attendants. The minister had no choice but to return to his yamen and send for the ritual official who had welcomed the army back with Wang Xiujin. After all, they had worked together before and ought to have some rapport. He was not asking them to point him to the right path, merely to light a lamp for them. That would be better than stumbling around blindly. Then he went once more to the Censorate, hoping to catch Lord Wang before he left the yamen.

The ritual official, in truth, was deeply unwilling to have much to do with Wang Xiujin. But he could not disobey his superior, so he could only brace himself and make a trip to the grain shop. Yet when he arrived and asked, the shopkeeper said the master had not come by today. The ritual official pressed him, asking where he might find the man, and the shopkeeper grew quite vexed, for there was truly no clear answer. The ritual official was likewise speechless. The imperial merchant had no small number of properties in the capital. If he were to visit each one in turn, finding him would be terribly troublesome. So he left a word: if the imperial merchant arrived, send word to him. After the ritual official left, the shopkeeper snorted. With that attitude, he was certainly not going to tell him that the master had already left the capital that morning.

Unable to find anyone at the grain shop, the ritual official could not simply return to the yamen either. If his superior asked, that would certainly not be good. So he found a teahouse closest to the grain shop and chose a seat facing directly toward the entrance. If he saw someone, he could go out at once.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Rites waited more than two hours at the gate of the Censorate and still saw no sign of Lord Wang. Unease began to gnaw at him. Could it be that the emperor was investigating some other unfortunate soul again? Was someone else in the capital about to incur His Majesty's displeasure? Having nothing else to do, the minister began mentally sorting through the people who had angered the emperor in recent days. After much thought, he still found no clue. Unless this matter was being handled in secret. If that was the case, his heart tightened. Though the Ministry of Rites was not a great source of illicit gain, if one wished to line one's pockets, it was not impossible. He did not consider himself a clean-handed official. The more anxious he became, the more he thought, and the more he sat like a thorn had been driven beneath him.

Inside the palace, Lord Wang was not discussing any grand affair at all. He was playing chess with the emperor, talking casually about matters outside the palace as they moved their pieces. When the emperor mentioned his younger son, Lord Wang merely said in passing that the boy had gone to Wuxian. The emperor did not ask further, and Lord Wang did not volunteer why his younger son had run off to Wuxian.

They played chess all morning. The emperor found it still unsatisfying, so he kept Lord Wang in the palace for lunch. Only after another game did he finally allow him to leave. One of the emperor's attendants immediately stepped forward with a cup of tea. The emperor drank while brooding over something, then at last smiled, shook his head, clasped his hands behind his back, and returned to the imperial desk to begin reviewing memorials.

By the time noon came and still the Minister of Rites had not seen Lord Wang return, his face had turned very unsightly. Feeling uneasy, he went back to the Ministry of Rites. He did not even ask whether the ritual official had returned. Instead, he ordered the subordinates to quickly investigate whether there had ever been any precedent for erecting memorial steles. If they could not find one, then everyone would have to think up a rule together.

The officials in the Ministry of Rites exchanged glances. Seeing the minister's pale face, could it be that he had been frightened by Lord Wang at the Censorate? Those with sharp ears soon got wind of the truth: the minister had not even seen Lord Wang at all. After court had dismissed, Lord Wang had been summoned straight to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. The officials wore strange expressions. Not even seeing Lord Wang and still being frightened into this state? From the sound of it, he had not even gotten inside the gate. What guilty deed had the Minister of Rites committed?

The ritual official, sitting in the teahouse, waited until the grain shop was about to close and still did not see Wang Xiujin. He had not even glimpsed the Li family carriage. In the end, he had no choice but to return to the yamen. By then, it was long past the time everyone had dispersed, yet there were still many officials inside. The ritual official found someone he usually had a few words with and asked about it, but the other man was busy flipping through books and had no time for him, only saying, "If there's time, we'll have a drink and talk then."

Seeing that the other man was occupied, the ritual official asked no further. He went instead to his superior's room and reported that he had not seen Wang Xiujin. The superior waved him out and ordered him, like the others, to search through records concerning stone steles. The ritual official saw that his superior was also reading books and could only obediently return to his seat and slowly flip through several volumes. Yet inwardly he found it strange. Why had his superior's attitude suddenly changed?

Early the next morning, Wang Xiujin and Li Lingshan set out from the capital with their son. They first headed to Li Village, where they would stay for two days before continuing on to Wuxian. The road from the capital to Li Village was not far, and the roads had been well repaired, so they arrived before noon.

Upon hearing that someone from the Li family in the capital had arrived, the village head immediately changed clothes and came out to receive them. Seeing that the visitors were Li Lingshan and Wang Xiujin, he did not dare slight them. He hurriedly invited the two men and the child inside, and after asking why they had returned to the village, he promptly sent people to prepare for the ancestral rites to be held the next morning. He then asked after the grand marshal's health and spoke of various matters in the village. The village head was not seeking any favors; he merely wanted to maintain the already somewhat distant ties between the two sides. After chatting for a while, he arranged for the three of them to rest, then called his wife to prepare a good meal.

Do not be fooled by the fact that Wang Xiujin had spent a long stretch of time in the countryside in ancient times; he still was not accustomed to farm meals. It was not that he was fussy, only that he truly could not bear the smell of animal fat. These days, farm households could afford other oils, but in their custom, using rendered animal fat to entertain guests was still considered the best choice.

Looking at the table full of greasy dishes, Wang Xiujin felt a little helpless. To eat or not to eat? Eating was hard to swallow; not eating would make it seem as though he looked down on them.

"Come, come. This is your sister-in-law's finest dish. Try it and see what you think." The village head, thinking Wang Xiujin was merely embarrassed to pick up his chopsticks, nudged a dish closer to him. "Once you're here, it's just like being at home."