Chapter 56 The Regent Dowager

The main gate of the Wu family estate was magnificent. Painted in bright vermilion and studded with bronze nails, it featured two fierce lion-head knockers holding copper rings in their mouths.

At this moment, one of the copper rings was being gently tapped. The servant boy knocking on the door wore short, dark garments, carrying a cloth bundle and a newspaper in his hands.

"Coming, coming," the gatekeeper hurried over to open the door.

He felt puzzled inside, as he had heard nothing about any visitors scheduled for today.

In a prominent and influential clan like the Wu family, formal visits always required sending a calling card in advance. Only after the family replied and consented would the visitor arrive, allowing the hosts to prepare properly and avoid being caught off guard.

As the gatekeepers, they were usually the first to know about any such news.

He pulled the door open, looked the visitor up and down, and realized he did not recognize him at all. Judging by his attire, he certainly did not look like a person of high status. With a perplexed expression, he asked, "How may I help you?"

The servant boy cupped his hands in a polite salute and smiled, saying, "I am a servant from the Shanhai Bookstore. A letter written by the honorable noble of your household was published in our newspaper, and my master has sent me to deliver the writing fee."

What letter? What newspaper? The gatekeeper could not make sense of what the servant boy was saying. He frowned and said, "I have never heard of such a thing. You must have come to the wrong place."

"Perhaps the honorable noble simply forgot? I am sorry to trouble you to ask inside. The address provided in the letter matches this place precisely, so there cannot be any mistake." The servant boy looked distressed. He was merely carrying out instructions to deliver the message; what would he do if they refused to accept it?

The gatekeeper grew impatient. The fellow did not even look at his own station—how could he presume to bother the noble members of the family?

As a servant to a powerful and wealthy household, he possessed a natural arrogance and held merchants in deep contempt, let alone their errand boys.

"Go on, go on, get away from here. You must have found the wrong address. A household like ours is not somewhere just anyone can wamealtz in," he said with disdain, and moved to close the door.

At that exact moment, a tall, sturdy steed suddenly appeared at the mouth of the alley where the Wu residence was located. Atop the horse sat a spirited and dashing young lady.

She skillfully guided the mount as its hooves clattered against the ground, galloping straight toward the front of the Wu family estate.

With a firm pull on the reins, she slowed the horse down. Its front hooves lifted and then planted back onto the earth, letting out a long neigh before finally coming to a halt.

Wu Jiong let go of the reins and vaulted down from the saddle. Seeing the two people locked in a stalemate at the entrance, she asked, "What are you two doing? Why are you blocking the doorway?"

The gatekeeper stepped forward to lodge a complaint, saying, "Young Mistress, this fellow came to the door spouting all sorts of nonsense, claiming he wanted to deliver some kind of writing fee. This humble servant figured that our masters certainly do not lack that bit of money and would never lower themselves to earn writing fees, so I told him to clear off at once. Who would have thought he would shamelessly linger here?"

"You let him linger just because he wanted to? With such meager competence, how on earth did you manage to become a gatekeeper?" Upon hearing the reason, Wu Jiong lost all interest and felt too impatient to listen to his grievances.

The servant boy felt profoundly wronged, thinking that this errand was truly miserable. "You misunderstand, Young Mistress. Among the letters your household sent to the Shanhai Bookstore, one was selected and published in the newspaper. According to the bookstore's rules, selected contributors are given a writing fee."

What? Her writing had been published in a newspaper?

Wu Jiong had not anticipated this twist at all, and she was utterly astonished.

The story she wrote was indeed exceptionally brilliant. The author of the original book must have been completely captivated by her talent, struck with awe upon reading it.

Unable to maintain her usual poise, the corners of Wu Jiong's lips curved upward into an irrepressible smile. "So that's how it is. Such a matter indeed exists. It seems I wronged you."

Without waiting for the servant boy to reply, she asked eagerly, "Where is the newspaper? Let me see it quickly."

The servant boy presented the newspaper with both hands.

Wu Jiong unfolded it impatiently, flipping through the pages to search for her article.

Finally, she found her continuation of the story in a prominent spot. It occupied a large section of the page and looked extremely eye-catching.

Someone had even written a line of recommendation for her right at the beginning of the article, stating that although her prose style was somewhat youthful, it was devoid of any lack of spiritual flair and was well worth a read.

Youthful? She was not youthful at all! What she wrote was utterly magnificent, wasn't it?

Wu Jiong thought indignantly to herself, assuming that the original author simply could not write such a marvelous story and was forcefully trying to salvage his own dignity. Well, seeing as he had published her writing in the newspaper, she would let the matter slide.

Without even stepping back into the estate, Wu Jiong stood right where she was, scanning her article from top to bottom at lightning speed. After finishing it, her eyes and brows curved into a delighted smile.

Whose story was this anyway? How could it have been written so wonderfully?

Oh, right, it was hers!

Wu Jiong let out a dazed, delighted chuckle.

Wait a moment! Her story had been published in the newspaper—did that not mean everyone in Chang'an could read it? Had she not thereby become famous throughout the entire city of Chang'an? A deeper sense of pride swelled within her heart.

Noticing that the young lady was losing herself further in her delight and abandoning all semblance of composure in front of an outsider, Hongtang could no longer hold back. She stepped forward to intervene and said, "Young Mistress, perhaps we should return inside the estate to read it."

"Oh, right, right. Hongtang, quickly give him a reward." Wu Jiong still remembered that she had wrongly accused the messenger earlier.

Since the servant boy had brought such joyful news, a reward was naturally in order.

Seeing how happy the young lady was, Hongtang boldly reached into the pouch at her waist, grabbed a handful of the golden melon-shaped coins typically used for tipping, and shoved them into the servant boy's hand.

The servant boy was left completely flustered. He had come to deliver money—how was it that he had ended up receiving a substantial reward instead?

"Young Mistress, I came here to deliver money," he said awkwardly, holding up the small cloth pouch in his hands, which contained a string of copper coins.

Such a trifling sum of money was not even worth mentioning to the Wu family.

Hongtang was just about to tell him to keep it for himself when she heard her young mistress speak.

"Hongtang, accept it. This is the first time I have ever earned money myself. I must buy some gifts for my mother and father so they can rejoice along with me."

And so, without even returning to the courtyard first, the two of them set off straight from the front gate to go shopping in the West Market.

***

However, the Wu household was exceptionally opulent. While this sum of money was a vast fortune to others and could last a long time, to Wu Jiong, it was merely the cost of one or two dishes. Therefore, she supplemented it with her own money to fund several banquet tables, having them delivered straight to the Wu residence.

That very evening, the Wu household was exceptionally lively.

Everyone was rejoicing for Wu Jiong's sake.

"This is truly remarkable. Even our Ah Jiong is able to earn money now," Madam Wu said, her face beaming with a wide smile.

Master Wu had consumed a few cups of wine, and his tongue felt somewhat thick as he spoke, "I knew from the time she was little that our Ah Jiong was bound to accomplish great things. Look at how it has turned out just as I thought! The articles she writes are published in the newspapers, and right now it's only circulating in Chang'an and Luoyang. If it spreads even further, people across the entire realm will be able to read it."

As he spoke, he picked up another mouthful of food with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth. "Ah, to partake in a meal provided by our Ah Jiong today! Your father looks forward to the day our Ah Jiong brings even greater glory to our lineage."

The lavish praise of those around her made Wu Jiong feel as though she were floating on clouds. Intoxicated by her own excitement, she raised her wine cup and toasted every single elder present at the table.

Finally, she even ran to the center of the hall to dance for everyone and sing a toast.

After Wu Jiong stepped down, Master Wu could no longer remain seated either. He sprang to his feet and began to dance as well, dragging not just himself into the performance but also rounding up the younger generation of the household to join in.

Amidst laughter, merrymaking, and playful chaos, the festivities continued late into the night before finally subsiding.

***

In the city of Luoyang, newspapers had become an essential household staple. Inexpensive and capable of conveying a multitude of novel happenings through a tiny slip of paper, many commoners were more than willing to purchase them.

Meanwhile, in Chang'an, the newspaper was equally a novelty, blazing in popularity over the past couple of days.

Thus, anyone who had read the newspaper noticed the serialized continuation of the story, and readers nodded approvingly after finishing it.

Aside from a small minority who remained hung up on the notion that a prodigal returning to the righteous path was worth more than gold, the majority of people heartily approved of the ending.

After all, the practice of noble women in the Tang dynasty keeping male concubines was already a well-known fact to everyone; it was hardly a rare or shocking occurrence.

Besides, hadn't General Su mended his ways in the end? There was no need to constantly harp on a person's past mistakes.

With most people harboring such sentiments, they did not hold excessively high expectations for what Xu Chengyue might write next, figuring that the story would likely end right there.

Did they not see that Mingyue had also penned a commentary on it? That clearly indicated the author himself approved of this conclusion.

***

Old Man Xue sighed heavily as he looked at the reddish sugar in his pot, which had solidified into a stubborn lump.

He had tried the method described in the book numerous times, yet none of his attempts had succeeded.

He had no idea where he was going wrong. Was the heat too high or too low, or was the so-called "yellow mud" not actually yellow soil at all, but rather a specific type of earth found only in a particular region?

Perhaps he should just give up; continuing to experiment any further would merely be a waste of money and time.

Hesitating, Old Man Xue wondered whether he should persist.

No, he had already tried so many times—how could he give up halfway? Besides, it was not as though he had made no progress at all. At the very beginning, what he produced was a dark brown clump that was completely inedible.

Now, at least, the substance tasted somewhat like brown sugar and was edible after a fashion.

Granny Xue walked in through the front gate, her expression a mix of disdain and lingering dissatisfaction as she said, "When you couldn't make any money, everyone was eager to kick us while we were down. Now that you're trying to make money, they come crawling over to butter you up. Have they no shame?"

Her gaze shifted, landing on Old Man Xue bustling about in the kitchen. In his hands, he was manipulating strange tools she had never seen before.

Granny Xue instantly understood what he was up to.

He was messing around with that so-called white sugar thing, yet there wasn't a trace of white to be seen.

Anger flared within Granny Xue.

"You old fool, you throw away money without a care in the world. How many batches of sugar is this that you've ruined? Do you really think our family is some sort of wealthy estate that can withstand this kind of waste?" Granny Xue snatched the wooden spoon straight out of his hand, wishing she could just toss him out.

"Hey, wait, wait just a moment. Let me try a few more times!" Old Man Xue hurriedly blocked her, terrified that she would throw away the tools he had labored so hard to make.

"You're still going to try? Do you even know that the eldest son's wife is already growing resentful of you? She doesn't dare say it to your face, but she has grumbled about it plenty behind your back. I heard every word—she was deliberately saying it loud enough for me to hear."

"Let her grumble. As long as she doesn't come here to stop me, it's fine," Old Man Xue said, putting up a stubborn front even though his heart faltered a little.

"You stubborn old man, are you determined to tear this family apart?" Granny Xue grew even angrier.

She could not fathom why this foolish old man had suddenly become so obstinate. Even if he actually managed to research whatever white sugar was, what good would it do?

Would their family still not have to farm the fields and scrape by? Would it lift them up to the heavens so they could become government officials?

Old Man Xue himself did not know where he had found the confidence and determination to believe he would eventually succeed. But this was the first time in his life, from childhood to old age, that he had stubbornly persisted in seeing something through to the end.

Since the color of the sugar was gradually becoming lighter, it proved that the method was indeed effective. It was merely that his execution must have been flawed somewhere, which was why he had not yet produced white sugar.

Through repeated experimentation, he had accumulated a wealth of experience and gained a deeper understanding and comprehension of the operational steps, including what the text referred to as settling, layering, and filtering out impurities.

Seeing that he had plunged back into deep thought once more, Granny Xue shook her head, sighed, and walked away.

Lying on the heated brick bed that night, Old Man Xue spent half the night pondering and came up with some new ideas.

The next day, he resumed operating his tools, testing out certain notions he had conceived the previous day.

He repeated the process several times. In the end, although the resulting sugar was slightly lighter in color, it still did not achieve the pristine, snow-white purity described in the book.

Old Man Xue could not help feeling a pang of disappointment. He had pinned high hopes on producing white sugar.

He had ignored the disapproving voices of his family and stubbornly clung to his own convictions.

Now, after repeated and continuous failures, his confidence took a heavy blow, leaving him at a loss as to what to do next.

Perhaps the method for making white sugar was simply something the author of the book had conjured up at random just to highlight the protagonist's exceptional abilities.

The higher the expectations, the greater the disappointment; Old Man Xue felt utterly defeated inside.

Ah, forget it, forget it. Making this stuff was expensive to begin with, and it was not something a humble family like theirs had any business meddling with.

Looking at the dark reddish sugar paste in the basin, he sighed and prepared to make one final attempt. If this failed, he would truly stop for good.

He plugged the small hole at the bottom of the funnel-shaped pottery vessel with dried grass, poured the sugar paste into the vessel, and after letting it cool and solidify slightly, he pulled out the grass and slowly poured the prepared yellow mud water over it.

Filled with discouragement, he figured this attempt would likely fail as well. But once the yellow mud water finished draining through, a thin layer of white sugar remained inside the vessel.

Unable to believe his eyes, Old Man Xue stretched out a finger, lightly dipped it into the white powder inside the pottery vessel, and tasted it on his tongue.

It was genuinely sweet! Overjoyed, Old Man Xue hugged the pottery vessel to his chest, his hands trembling slightly.

Heaven rewards those who do not give up; he had actually made it.

Although he did not know what use white sugar served, nor did he understand the broader significance of its creation, the simple fact that he had accomplished something entirely through his own efforts and achieved success was enough to fill him with boundless joy.

***

The atmosphere at the morning court session today was somewhat solemn. High-ranking officials who usually wielded immense influence slunk into the background, tight-lipped and uttering not a word.

The few standing at the very front, clad in scarlet and purple robes, wore frozen expressions and burned with indignation.

The Minister of War, Lord Tian, whose face was covered in a thick beard that masked his emotions, stepped forward first. Raising his court tablet, he addressed the throne, "Your Majesty, every year our Great Tang expends vast amounts of wealth to purchase rock honey from Tianzhu, bestowing countless favors upon them. Yet when we recently dispatched General Wang to Tianzhu to learn their methods of producing rock honey, not only did they fail to treat us with hospitality, but they even dispatched troops to plunder and assault our people. This act is a blatant provocation against our Great Tang and must not be tolerated under any circumstances."

"Oh? And what brilliant strategy does Minister Tian propose?" A slow, slightly deep female voice drifted from behind the gently swaying beaded curtains.

She sounded like someone who had occupied a position of supreme authority for a long time, her speech carrying an unforced, majestic aura.

Minister Tian raised his head, not daring to look directly at the person behind the curtain, keeping his gaze lowered slightly to fixate on the court tablet in his hand.

His words were not meant for the Emperor's ears alone, but since the Emperor remained silent, he could not force him to speak.

A woman ruling the state—how could things go on like this in the long run? The Emperor had already reached adulthood and participated in affairs of state, yet he showed no noticeable growth and lacked the courage to speak in front of the Empress Dowager.

Minister Tian felt a heavy sense of worry, though this was not the most pressing matter at hand.

"In this humble minister's view, we should dispatch troops to attack Tianzhu, so as to display the might of our Great Tang and ensure those petty fools never dare to provoke us again!" Minister Tian said firmly, every word ringing clear.

The others who had remained silent were left speechless. Every time a problem arose, his only solution was to wage war—he truly had a fondness for armed conflict.

Minister Tian did not actually like warfare, knowing well that it drained the people and depleted the treasury. However, having initially risen through the ranks via military merits, he believed that direct military suppression was the simplest and fastest way to resolve many problems.

Someone nearby could no longer hold his tongue, terrified that the Empress Dowager might momentarily lose her judgment and agree with him. He stepped forward to argue against Minister Tian, saying, "Your Highness, this must never be done. Tianzhu lies a vast distance away from our Great Tang. Attacking them yields no benefits whatsoever, nor would it be convenient to govern. Furthermore, raising an army requires careful and deliberate discussion."

Seeing someone else speak out, the rest could no longer sit still, and one after another they stepped out of the ranks to voice their opinions.

"Your Highness, the root of this entire affair is that we desired Tianzhu's sugar-making recipe and thus dispatched General Wang. Now that they have been attacked, it is the dignity of our Great Tang that has been violated."

"Instead of war, why not send envoys to negotiate a peace first, demanding that Tianzhu hand over the sugar-making recipe and release General Wang and the others? We could then let bygones be-fucking-with-it—ah, let bygones be bygones."

Everyone talked over one another, turning the imperial court into a bustling marketplace.

Sitting upon the imperial throne, the young Emperor darted his eyes back and forth, watching the court officials quarrel as if he were simply enjoying a good show.

Oh! Look at that—the fellow over there looks like he's about to raise his tablet and strike someone!

Quickly! Start a fight; he loved watching brawls.

And the one standing by the pillar—he was practically about to rip the other man's sleeve right off! Causing a disturbance in the imperial court was a serious offense, surely! Was this perhaps the legendary *cut-sleeve* affection?

The Emperor was thoroughly enjoying his front-row seat to the drama.

Watching the court officials argue and even come to blows was his absolute favorite pastime. Catching a good spectacle like this could keep him happy for days on end, far better than the dreary, rigid routine of normal political reports.

The Empress Dowager, who had remained silent behind the beaded curtains, finally deigned to speak. "Emperor, what do you say should be done about this matter?"

She did not raise her voice, yet her words possessed a piercing clarity that echoed through the entire court, causing everyone to instantly halt their movements.

The Emperor, seated the closest, heard it with crystal clarity. Just like a student called upon by his tutor during a lecture, his entire body stiffened.

What, what should be done? He had no idea either!

Not daring to ponder for too long, he hurriedly stammered out a response, "About this matter—in my view—um—perhaps we should—ah—I think—"

He stammered for ages without offering a single concrete answer.

Those standing below, who had been eagerly awaiting his reply, felt a deep sense of exasperation, wishing they could shake some sense into him.

Heaven does not bless our Great Tang! It was one thing for His Majesty to be like this in his youth, but he had grown up without showing a shred of improvement. Were they expected to let the Empress Dowager hold absolute power forever?