As soon as he stepped into General Wei’s room, even with a mask on, I recognized him right away. He knew I have recognized him as well. I have suspected him working for Xiongnu, but when the suspicion turned into reality, it still shocked me. Now I can totally understand why he was not happy when he made lots of money with the order of saddles and I also understand why killing Mr. Huang was not a big deal for him either. I do not want to know what else he has done. It is not up to me to judge him.
When he sneaks into my room through the window, he is still wearing the same black clothes.
“Are you all right?” I watch him sitting down on my bed.
He just nods without saying anything. He looks exhausted.
“Do you want something to drink?” I ask him again.
He shakes his head, still without saying anything.
“Do you want to clean up?” I ask him again. “I have hot water and clean clothes prepared for you.”
When I was preparing for the emergency escape, I bought clothes for everyone in my family. Zhao Yan should be able to wear the clothes I bought for Jinu.
He nods and I lead him to the bathroom where the hot water is ready.
He looks better when he comes out. I wait for him by the table with the food my parents left for me.
He is starving. I pour him tea while he gulps down all the food.
“I have to leave.” He finally says to me. “One of the guys has been caught. I do not know if he will sell me out. But it is safer to leave first.”
I agree with him. “I can send you out tomorrow morning when the city gate opens.”
“They will search for everyone going out of the city.” He says. “The city gates have been locked early tonight.”
“My carriage has floor compartment. You should be able to hide there while I sit on top it. It might not be comfortable until we get out.”
He pulls me into his arms. “Go with me, Shiaonu. We can go back to Xiongnu Steppe. You will like it there.”
“I can’t.” I push away from him a little. “You have to take care of your responsibilities while I just want to coast along and have an easy life. Like I said before, it will never work.”
He sighs. “I have promised you that I will only have you from now on. Why can’t you just trust me?”
“I do trust you.” I smile at him. “That’s why you are here.”
He lowers his head and kisses me on my forehead. “I will not be able to see you for a long while. I have been asked to go back for quite some time now. I do not know how soon I can come back, or if I can come back at all.”
I wrap my arms around his waist as well. I will miss him too. Although he has lost his control that night, I still cannot forget all the times we spent together.
It might even be our last time seeing each other ever. Without internet, phone or even the post office, there is no way to keep contact. And I also do not forget about the fact that, according to history, in three years, Huo Qubing and General Wei will sweep Xiongnu and will drive them all the way to the north of Xiongnu Steppe. Some of the Xiongnu will become citizens of Han. But I doubt Zhao Yan will be one of them.
“If you are going back to Xiongnu,” I tell him. “Remember to move further north as much as you can.” Huo would lead his troops chasing Xiongnu army all the way to Han Hai, which is now Lake Baikal in Siberia in Russia.
“Why is that?” He raises one eye brow. “And, how did you know our plan tonight?”
“I did not know your plan.” I tell him. “I just happened to have dinner with General Wei.”
“You have been going to his place quite often recently.” He complains.
“Yes, because of the bad dreams I had. In my dreams, he was killed and you were chased.”
“Anything else in your dream?”
“Nothing else. But you know the war is going to continue and it might even get worse. Han has been bullied by Xiongnu for too long, they will have to get even to make sure their border is safe.”
He sneers. “Han can never win the war. Our soldiers are much better.”
I do not want to argue with him. “As long as you move further north, I will feel much better.”
I force him to sleep while I stay up all night. By dawn, he has already hidden in the floor compartment of my horse carriage.
The security at the city wall is very tight. The guards there search every carriage and every containers. I have been nervous until I hear my coachman tells them my name.
“Oh, General Wei has ordered us to let Ms. Zhao go out without any delay.”
We bypass everyone and go to village without any trouble.
When we arrive to the village, I sent the coachman away to rent a water buffalo for us. My plan is to let Zhao Yan ride my horse away and I can go back to the town with water buffalo pulling my carriage.
I then let Zhao Yan get out of the carriage and dig out the belts I buried.
“Open the button at the end of the belts and you can slide gold ingot out one by one.” I tell him. “It should be enough for you until you go back.”
Then I realize something. “But you cannot ride the horse. Somebody might recognize you. Take the carriage then. Hire someone at the next town to be your coachman. You will be safer stay inside.”
After a quick hug, he gets on the coachman’s seat.
“Shiaonu,” He turns to me before he rides away. “When I come back and you are not married, I will take you with me, no matter you want it or not.”
General Wei was dispatched to the border two days after the assassination. Xiongnu has been harassing bordering cities. Huo went directly to front from kingdom of Huainan.
A couple of weeks after General Wei’s departure, Emperor Wu started the massacre of his court.
For the next two month, at the center of West Market Place, a daily show of someone be beheaded has been continuously played at noon. Ponu took me there once, but I was too scared to watch. Covering my ears with my hands, I buried my head into his arms during the whole episode.
The public executions and massive arresting of officials and military leaders ordered by Emperor Wu surely led the political convulsion. King Huainan committed suicide. His family members have all be publicly executed. Thousands people have been arrested, tortured, and questioned. Anyone who has anything to do with the King Huainan’s plot against Emperor Wu have been hanged, beheaded or been cut in half at the waist.
Chang’an, shadowed by dark clouds and white snow, has become a silent city, except the harsh and bleak cawing from black crows.
When Emperor Wu’s order came for me to go to see him, I was in the middle of a class at Imperial University.
I do not know what to expect, given the repressed political environment in Chang’an recently. My classmates, as well as my teacher and counselor quietly watched me walking out of the class room and following the eunuch away.
I quickly sort through every possible reasons that Emperor Wu wants to see me.
The very first thing comes to my mind is my relationship with King Huainan and Zhao Yan. If this is the case, my head should be the next one at the West Market Place tomorrow. But there is no indication that Zhao Yan has been exposed. The assassin who was caught killed himself before they could question him. Zhao Yan’s business, including tanning store, brothels, and the perfume stores are all business as usual. The joint business of liquor with my family is fine as well. As for King Huainan, Emperor Wu knew about him giving me those book scrolls. So it’s unlikely there will be any questions arose from my connection with them.
The other possible reason he wants to see me is about General Wei, who has told him about the assassination. In this case, I really do not need to have any worry at all.
When the eunuch shows me the door to Emperor Wu’s bedroom chamber, I become really uncomfortable. Although I do not believe Emperor Wu has any interest in me, it is still quite odd for him to see me in his bedroom chamber.
“Shiaonu.” I hear his bellowing voice coming from
inside. “Hurry up come in. “
I step inside and see him sitting in front of a huge desk. I am also relieved after I give a quick glance of the room.
It is more like a private office, a very messy office. Book scrolls and silk maps are everywhere. The only thing can remind me of a bed is a large platform covered in silk blankets.
“You looks surprised.” He says. “It is not what you expected?”
“Not at all, Your Majesty.” I bow down in front of him. “Please forgive me to say this, but your room is really messy. At least it is messier than mine.”
He starts laughing and gestures me to stand up. “You are the first one dare to say that to me. But it is true. I just do not have time and I do not want others to move things around.”
My own room has been the messiest one in my family. I have too many stuffs and I don’t let my maids move anything either.
“I am the same way. I won’t find a thing if anybody else move my stuff. But once a while I have to organize my room, otherwise the mess of the room keeps me awake.”
“You have problem sleeping too?” Emperor Wu looks surprised.
“I do.” I admit to him and at the same time feel strange about us talking about my insomnia. “I find it helpful taking naps instead of following a rigid schedule. “
“How many Shi Chen per day you sleep?” He asks. One Shi Chen is two hours.
“About two Shi Chen.” I usually only need four hours of sleep.
“I admire you on that.” He sighs. “I will try to take naps seeing if it will work for me.”
Is his summon about his insomnia? With the revolt and the subsequent political purge，no wonder he has hard time sleeping. But I dare not say that to him.
“You Majesty.” I cautiously ask him. “You summoned me for…”
“Uh…” He seems like just remember why he ordered me to be here. “Look at all these.”
He points to a wooden tray on his desk piled with bamboo scrolls. “I have asked my Department of Works and the Navy Preparatory Group to come up with suggestions on the Navy training base. I don’t like any of their ideas. None of these get to the point. Not only they did not get my plan, they also missed my intension of using as least money as possible. And your suggestion of killing multiple birds with one stone…” He shakes his head. “They just don’t get it at all.”
I begin to see that I am not going to be able to get out of business of the lake expansion.
“Do you want me to meet with them?” If I cannot get out of it, then take the control on how much I need to be involved. Hopefully a couple of meetings are all needed from me.
“That’s not enough.” He says. “I would like you to lead the whole effort.”
I kneel down in front of him. “You majesty, I can’t. I am sorry. But the responsibility is too big for me. I am only sixteen. I can offer my ideas and suggestions, but I cannot be the lead. Plus I know nothing about Navy.”
He stands up from his desk and walks towards me.
“Shiaonu.” He stops in front of me while I still kneel down in front of him. “I became the Emperor when I was sixteen. Now I am thirty five years old, I still remember the fear of becoming Emperor. You never know what you are capable of until you run out of other options.”
“But, you majesty.” I continue. “I have no desire of becoming anyone. I just want to be myself. Learn things I am interested in. Cook food I’d like to eat. Have fun whenever I can. But your suggestion of me leading anything… even the thought itself scares me.”
He laughs. “Where is that kitesurfing girl? Or the girl covering General Wei in front of assassin? The day we watched you kitesurfing from top of the hill, General Wei said if there was any girl in Han had the guts to do that, it had to be you.”
“But that was for fun. What you suggested is real official business.” I continue my struggle.
“Then treat it as a fun thing to do.” He smiles.
“But can you imagine me working among thousands men digging the lake? And…” I can see he becomes impatient with me. So I stop.
“That is something I have not thought through.” Unexpectedly he agrees with me. “How about you come up with a detailed plan and I will assign it others to work on it?”
It looks like this is the best offer I can get from him.
“If I make mistakes, will you please give me your words that you will not punish me? Such as chopping my head off, or cutting off a limp something, or sending me to jail. None of those?”
He bursts out laugh. “That has been what you are worrying about. Of course, you have my words. I won’t punish you.”
“I will come up with the detailed plan, then I will present it to you and your officials. My responsibility will end once you approve my plan.”
He gives me a stare. “Don’t you know an Emperor never change his words? I have told you I would not punish you.”
I bow down immediately again. He looks like he is losing his patience with me.
“You majesty, please forgive me for being so petty. This is too big a responsibility that I have to be very careful. Like I said when we were by the lake, it will benefit so many people for so many years. I do believe it can become something memorable even in history. And there has been no Navy in history. By building up a specialized new military force, your name is going to be marked not just in our history, but also in the world history as well. This is the first step, a small step comparing with the grand plan you have shared with me, I can see the significance of it. Good beginning half done. I want to make sure it is going to be a good beginning.”
“You are still the only one who gets it.” He looks smoothed by my words and then he becomes very serious. “Not only I will have the dominate force on land, I will also have the most powerful force on water. Only then, the safety of my empire is guaranteed.”
I keep my head low. Everything he just described would have been fulfilled under his reign. He will successfully expand Han’s territory to Korea and Vietnam. Navy force is going to be the main force when he conquers those places later.
“I am ordering you to be the Imperial Envoy for the planning of Navy training base. All imperial departments will support you. You will keep your status as the student of Imperial University. But you will have the freedom to decide how and when to continue your study there.” He gives me the oral decree.
“It is my honor, Your Majesty.”
When the written decree is announced at my home next day, I have already told my family about the meeting with Emperor Wu.
“It is going to be something benefiting people around here.” I try to ease their concerns. “And there are a few financial advantages for us too.”
After I sent Zhao Yan away, I realized he has taken all the gold in the carriage as well. The worst part is he did not even know. But it was too late to catch him.
When I finally told my family about the gold, I came up with the story of a needing friend. Everyone stayed quiet until Papa finally spoke to all of us.
“That is good too.” He said. “I have always worried about having so much gold in our home anyway. Giving to a needy friend is a good way to spend it.”
I felt awful that no one blamed me at all. They did not even asked me who the so-called friend was. I guess by now my family has already got used to my absurdity. “I will make sure we earn all the money back.” I promised them.
“We cannot make any profit from an imperial affair.” Jinu says. “It’s against the law.”
“It will be legitimate. In fact Emperor Wu has already granted us the exclusive right of fish farming in the lake as well as the usage of surrounding land.”
“Shiaonu. Don’t worry about money.” Jinu says. “We can recover very soon. More liquor stores are opening. There is no need to find more ways of making money. Go do something else, something that will benefit others instead just our family. Your gift should be appreciated by more people.”
21 Prince Liu Ju
When Huo comes back
to Chang’an, I have been working with a group of experts from Department of Works, Department of Agriculture and Department of Water Transportation. It is a new organization called “Navy Planning Group”. The old Navy Preparatory Group has been dissolved.
I shared with them the vision of Emperor Wu and my plan. With their help, all kinds of historical information has been collected and compiled. Then we started the verification process by visiting the locations and interviewing witnesses.
“You look terrible.” Huo says to me when he comes into the hall in one afternoon.
“On the contrary, you look great.” I laugh. I can never expect any compliment from Captain Huo. But I am really glad seeing him. We have not seen each other for about four month now.
“How come you are here at Imperial Archiving Center?” I ask him. My group has been residing here for a while now. It is much easier for us to retrieve archived records.
“Emperor Wu told me you are here.” His answer alerts the two colleagues I have been working with. I see them exchange looks to each other.
“Have you been sleeping well?” He continues as if those two are not there.
“Uh... It has been very busy.” It is not a comfortable topic to raise in front of others. So I try to switch topic. “When did you come back?”
“Last night.” He looks around. “When are you going to finish?”
“What for?” I ask him.
“You need to sleep. And I need to get something to eat.” He says it as if they are valid reasons. I fail to understand the logic here.
“Uh…” I do not know what to say to him.
“Ms. Zhao.” One of my colleagues helps me out. “Why don’t we call it a day? We can meet tomorrow again.”
Other than agreeing with him, I can think of nothing else. Huo gives that guy a look of approval. As always he is self-centric as well as dominating.
After both of them carry the bamboo scrolls away. I stand up and walk towards Huo.
“You grow beard now?” I stop right in front of him and notice hair start growing on his chins and above lips. I reach out touch them. “They are like thorns.”
My Soul is in the Sky Page 21