Chapter 41#

On the sixth day of the first lunar month, the imperial carriage and the carriages and horses of countless noble kinsmen and high officials of Chang’an wound their way to the pleasure grounds at the Li Mountain detached palace.#

The detached palace lay north of Xiu Ridge. Among evergreen pines and cypresses and tier upon tier of peaks, palaces and watchtowers stretched in succession. But His Majesty had little interest in the hot springs; what he enjoyed was the hunt. South of the detached palace were vast imperial hunting grounds, where rare birds and strange beasts were raised, exotic flowers and herbs planted, and many pavilions and terraces built. The officials of the hunting grounds catered to the emperor’s tastes and had everything prepared long in advance. Many noble young men also rushed to sign up. Golden ropes marked off a stretch of mountain forest a hundred li in circumference; within it tigers, leopards, bears, and brown bears could all be hunted, and one could camp by wild streams and cold springs, returning to the detached palace two days later for rewards.

On the seventh day, the hunting grounds were thrown open. His Majesty, in red robes and golden armor, rode a Ferghana steed and stood at the very front of the many nobles. Banners fluttered, canopies gathered like clouds, and heavy drum and horn notes sounded, echoing dully through the layered mountains and deep valleys.

Feng Bing was by status a commoner; being allowed to accompany the imperial progress was already an exception, so naturally he could not take part in such a grand event. In a forest several dozen zhang beyond the golden ropes, he cracked melon seeds idly with a group of octogenarians from among the common folk. The old men—whether because they were too ignorant of the world or too worldly-wise—not one came to pry into his private affairs. They looked him up and down, then asked how he kept his youthful looks. He could only answer truthfully, “I am thirty this year.”

The old men made sounds of sudden understanding and went back to chatting about other things.

One said, “The snow this winter is thick, unlike previous years. Even if the detached palace’s ground is warm, once you go deep into the mountains, I’m afraid it won’t be too comfortable.”

Another said, “What do you know? His Majesty is strong and healthy, full of vital energy; he won’t fear a little wind-cold.”

“Hmph! Full of vital energy.” The first was quite dissatisfied. “The ancients said, hunting must be done in season. How can there be any reason to hunt in early spring? Those pregnant female beasts and birds, killed in the hunt—is that not doing evil?”

“Worrying over nothing,” the latter scoffed. “Imperial hunts are like this every year, and I don’t see any species of bird or beast going extinct.”

……

Amid the chattering voices, Feng Bing felt quite at ease. Gathering his sleeves, he walked a few steps outward. Today the sky was clear and bright; in the distance snow lay white, peaks rose towering, quite magnificent. In the nearby forest hid hot springs, spreading soft, hazy mist, which made things instead unclear. Hearing sharp drum and horn calls ring out in succession, followed by the angry sound of whips raised, ten thousand horses galloped out in all directions, making the stretching mountains seem to tremble.

In fact, even in the past, when Feng Bing was frail and sickly, he had never taken part in the princes’ hunts. —Envy, perhaps he had felt it, but not deeply; only when he looked at his three elder brothers’ iron armor and golden saddles would a faint melancholy arise.

Today his third elder brother, Feng Yan, would also accompany the imperial carriage into the mountains. He walked to a rock and looked out; he saw that behind the emperor’s yellow banners and purple canopies followed the Prince of Zhao’s ceremonial escort, all with attendants before and behind. Other generals and ministers did not receive such treatment; they merely mounted fine horses, brought a few personal servants, and went their separate ways to seek prey.

Though they were far apart, Feng Bing still spotted Pei Dan at a glance.

In the winter-spring transition, the mountain forest was sparse in grass and trees. Pei Dan seemed unwilling to compete for game and only rode slowly. For easier concealment, he wore black armor and an iron helmet, which made him look somewhat clumsier than usual. Suddenly he bent low over his horse and slowly drew a long, slender feathered arrow from the quiver at his thigh.

Had he found prey? So quickly?

For some reason, watching Pei Dan’s tense movements, Feng Bing himself could not help holding his breath. Pei Dan nocked the arrow on his bow and slowly drew it back. Suddenly, he clamped his legs around the black horse beneath him, and the horse immediately raised its hooves and galloped off—

Feng Bing could see nothing anymore.

He did not understand what Pei Dan was doing. Because he had failed to see the ending of this little drama, he felt somewhat disappointed.

He simply turned and leaped down from the rock, going straight off with those old men to look for the hot springs.

Before Pei Dan had even entered the depths of Li Mountain, he encountered the emperor’s summons.

At that time he had dismounted and parted the grass to find a dusty-gray hare. The little thing was no longer than his forearm, its hind leg injured, dripping blood. Seeing a stranger, the hare immediately bared its teeth and screeched, then without hesitation bit Pei Dan’s hand.

Pei Dan did not mind at all. He saw that its leg wound looked like a graze from an arrow; perhaps it was game that had escaped from some noble’s hands. A moment ago he had also wanted to shoot it, but now, seeing it fierce in appearance but weak within, he instead felt it would be an unearned victory. He gave a soft laugh, picked it up by the scruff with one hand and carried it to a small stream, washed its wound, then spent considerable effort restraining its desperately kicking limbs, and used the medicine he carried to stop the bleeding and bandage it.

Despite his kind treatment, the little hare still glared at him with a pair of round, red eyes.

If it were not that young beasts were not hunted in early spring, being glared at like this by a rabbit, no matter how good-tempered Pei Dan was, he would have stewed and eaten it.

As soon as the bandaging was done, the hare immediately leaped from his arms, agile and swift, tracing a beautiful arc through the air. Yet the moment it landed, it actually sprained its foot.

Pei Dan: …

Just as Pei Dan reached to grab it by the scruff, Meng Chao’en arrived. He had no choice but to wrap the little hare carelessly in a cloth handkerchief, tuck it into his bosom, and follow Meng Chao’en to an imperial audience.

The emperor was resting in a secluded little pavilion. He seemed to have already completed a hunt; below the pavilion were placed the carcasses of a deer and several mountain pheasants and wild hares, all already cleaned, with red markers stuck in their heads indicating the emperor’s game. Pei Dan only glanced hastily. Among the game was a female hare with a bulging belly, seemingly pregnant, which made him frown at once.

This was not a good omen.

But His Majesty bore the Mandate of Heaven; perhaps he did not care about omens at all, otherwise he would not have chosen to hunt in early spring. Pei Dan walked into the pavilion. Li Fengtao was wiping his gold-hilted longsword and greeted him with a smile: “Chancellor Pei has arrived. Please sit.”

Pei Dan saluted and took a seat.

“Chancellor Pei is widely read and must know that hunting and martial practice are matters of great ritual importance,” Li Fengtao said. “I have also set up prizes for the Northern Bureau armies. The Longwu, Shenwu, and Yulin armies, including my Shence Army, will compete with one another.”

Pei Dan said, “Your Majesty is farsighted.”

Li Fengtao scrutinized him. Pei Dan in military attire was a rare sight, but not entirely incongruous, because his father had once been a highly renowned great general. Had it not been so, he would not have incurred the jealousy and hatred of Crown Prince Youke.

“Recently I often think of General Pei Zheng’s valor,” Li Fengtao said with a hearty laugh. “The six armies of the Northern Bureau, according to the former emperor’s arrangements, were originally to be given to General Pei. Who knew he would die in service in Goguryeo, that Heaven would not grant him years… Had it not been so, today, whether the Shence or the Yulin, perhaps they would all bear the surname Pei.”

Pei Dan knitted his brows; he roughly knew what the emperor was going to say. But this little pavilion was surrounded by imperial guards, and several civil and military ministers were present. The atmosphere was harmonious, the security strict. Everywhere it was evident that the emperor was timid; even if he meant to provoke, in the end he did not dare confront Pei Dan alone.

Pei Dan bowed slightly from his seat. “Your Majesty is the one of heroic bearing and brilliant talent, to whom Heaven’s mandate returns. Whether my late father, this humble subject, or the six armies of the Northern Bureau, we are all but tiny stars guarding Your Majesty.”

“Even so, I am not the equal of the former emperor,” Li Fengtao said, lowering his eyes. “I always worry that I will fail the rivers and mountains the former emperor entrusted to me… Chancellor Pei, you must keep supervising me.”

Pei Dan laughed in alarm. “How would I dare?”

“What would Chancellor Pei not dare to do?” Li Fengtao said. “Chancellor Pei is capable in both civil and martial matters. The late emperor valued you, the common people rely on you. Your only regret is that you divorced my fourth brother, and so to this day you have no choice but to assist me.”

A dead silence fell over the pavilion; even the cold wind halted its steps.

The other ministers sat as if meditating, eyes on their noses and minds on their hearts, wanting only to pretend to be invisible. But they merely thought the emperor intended to reopen the wound of Chancellor Pei’s divorce; they did not know there was a deeper meaning in his words.

Pei Dan knew.

The reason Li Fengtao had been able to stand out in the crown prince’s rebellion was that he had taken control of the Shence Army. But at that time the Shence Army was under Pei Dan’s command. Had Pei Dan not been seriously wounded himself, Li Fengtao could never have taken it over under the pretext of “assisting in quelling the rebellion.” The Shence Army was the most important part of the Northern Bureau imperial guards, and the Northern Bureau imperial guards—the emperor’s most elite personal troops—had originally been firmly in General Pei Zheng’s grasp.

Li Fengtao narrowed his eyes and stared at Pei Dan. He had never warmed to the Pei family, not only because Pei Dan held the post of prime minister, but also, in no small part, because he feared the Pei family’s influence over the Northern Bureau.

But now, with Li Fengbing’s arrival in the capital, the situation at court had changed again, and he could no longer entirely hold back.

Since the current emperor’s accession, Pei Dan had dealt with many conversations like this. He thought this time would be no different; either way, he could only answer: “My divorce from Li Fengbing has nothing to do with court politics. Crown Prince Youke committed many unrighteous acts and inevitably destroyed himself; the late emperor naturally favored Your Majesty. I merely obeyed orders.”

“If it was merely obeying orders,” Li Fengtao suddenly said in a cold voice, “then tell your family to conduct themselves carefully!” As he spoke, he tossed a memorial directly in front of Pei Dan. With a “clack,” everyone present jumped in fright.

Pei Dan broke the seal on the memorial. It was an impeachment document from the Censorate, saying that several minor local officials had colluded with one another, preparing to bribe the chief examiner of this year’s spring examination. This was originally a minor matter, but those minor officials were surnamed Pei, so the Censorate had no choice but to submit it for the emperor to hear.

The little hare poked its small head out from his bosom, and Pei Dan pushed it back down.

He resealed the memorial, left his seat, and knelt. “I beg forgiveness for my two cousins who do not know their place. Examination fraud is by no means a small matter. I request Your Majesty to investigate this case thoroughly and restore justice to the examination candidates of the realm.”

Li Fengtao, seeing him speak with righteous severity, could not help giving a cold sneer.

This top scholar was truly stubborn. With only a dead man’s letter in hand, did he still think he could protect his entire family for a lifetime?

“What should be investigated will naturally be thoroughly investigated,” Li Fengtao said with a smile. “Perhaps Chancellor Pei should also reflect carefully on the principle that to govern one’s state, one must first regulate one’s family.”