Chapter 134: Planning the Statutes

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The task of gathering intelligence on Manichaeism had all been entrusted to the Bad Men. By now, the Bad Men of Chang’an were subordinate to her, making theirs a relationship between commander and soldiers.

The only thing she could not understand was Zhang Heng’s strategy of feigned weakness. She had originally intended to help the Bad Men deal with the small-scale clashes breaking out within the city, but before he had fallen unconscious from poisoning, Zhang Heng had issued an order: endure for the time being and conserve their strength.

In truth, Wu Yue Ling felt that they still lacked sufficient intelligence. If they failed to uproot the enemy completely and allowed them to rise again from the ashes, it would lead to trouble. In any case, certain actions of the Manichaeans had already crossed her bottom line. The trafficking of children, in particular, was something she could never forgive.

Once these matters had been arranged, all that remained was to wait patiently.

Over the following days, several minor disturbances arose.

After secretly notifying the Manichaeans, she also had the assassin Nightbane of the Tenth Alliance dumped in the wilderness beyond the city walls.

She secretly dispatched Cen Shen, Gao Shi, and a thousand members of the militia to lie in wait in the mountain forests, ensuring that those who came to collect the corpse would suffer dearly.

Although they had failed to capture the enemy, giving them a painful lesson was not a bad outcome. She hoped they would stop colluding with the Manichaeans. The Princess’s Residence had already made its position unmistakably clear: it would not dispatch the Bad Men to convey messages.

If the assassins of the Tenth Alliance learned of this and still continued to aid the Manichaeans, then they too would be wiped out. The only drawback was that her plan to break apart the Manichaeans’ current fighting strength would have failed.

Once all this was done, the day agreed upon with Elder He arrived.

When she reached He’s Pavilion, she saw the old man fishing by the lake from a distance. He still possessed an otherworldly air, dressed in a Taoist robe.

The only regrettable thing was the state of his health. His vitality had declined greatly from before. Even the faint spring breeze made him cough. If she had not needed his help, she would never have allowed an old man to travel such a jolting road in a horse-drawn carriage.

Upon entering the pavilion, she habitually nodded to A-Xiang in greeting. The sorrow in the woman’s eyes was plain to see.

A-Xiang was worried because Elder He’s health was deteriorating by the day. He was simply too old.

She searched through her memories for methods of preserving one’s health. Apart from taking tonics, there was only moderate exercise. But the man was already over eighty; in this ancient era, living to such an age was itself a miracle.

“Princess, you have arrived.”

Elder He unexpectedly spoke first. It seemed he had noticed her arrival long ago. Usually, he would be found staring blankly into space with complete concentration.

“Ah, I’m sorry to trouble you, Elder He!”

Her gaze shifted from the unfamiliar middle-aged man to Elder He, and she smiled as she spoke.

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“No, in truth, it is I who have always troubled the princess. Before long, I shall resign and return to my hometown!”

After hearing Elder He speak with such seriousness, she found herself momentarily at a loss for words. Resign and return home? There was nothing wrong with that. When one grew old, one ought to return to one’s roots.

“Haha, judging by the princess’s expression, it seems you cannot bear to part with this old man!”

His long white beard swayed gently as Elder He displayed his customary gift for lively conversation.

“Indeed. The princess is truly a person of deep feeling and loyalty!”

The elegant middle-aged man beside him had been observing the atmosphere. Seizing the opportunity, he offered the princess a flattering remark.

With a faint sigh, she arranged her face into an expressionless mask, revealing neither pleasure nor displeasure. Kneeling on the mat, she looked toward the middle-aged man who had just paid her the compliment. He had thick brows and wore a handsome official cap; his entire face carried the air of one who had endured the vicissitudes of the world.

Judging by that face alone, he bore a striking resemblance to her history teacher from university. Perhaps people with similar tastes really did resemble one another.

“As the youngest of the Eight Immortals, I am not only the junior in seniority, but also the weakest drinker. Elder He is the head of the Eight Immortals. Since you are going to resign and return home, Yue Ling will naturally be reluctant to see you go.”

Her heart and her words were in agreement, but in reality, there was no feast that did not end. Besides, Elder He’s hair was already white. If he did not return home now, when would he? All she could do was sigh once more.

“Still, Elder He is advanced in years. Returning home to enjoy his remaining years is not a bad choice. When the time comes, Yue Ling will certainly bring fine wine to Yongxing in Yuezhou and pay you a visit!”

“Hahahaha! It is enough that you have such kind intentions, my young friend. Yuezhou lies a great distance away. Chang’an still needs its Princess Protector of the State, so I hope you can set the court’s affairs straight as well!”

Elder He laughed heartily, every word spoken from the depths of his heart. Yuezhou lay by the sea, and the journey from Chang’an to the east would take at least half a year. Having served the nation and its people for more than fifty years, he could depart this life without regret.

She shook her head with an amused smile. The court’s affairs? If she could set them straight with one hand alone, the Left Chancellor would never have been demoted. In the end, everything still depended on her adoptive father. Yet he was unlikely to heed her counsel in matters of government. It would be better to approach the matter indirectly through her adoptive mother.

She promised aloud that she would do her utmost, while inwardly grumbling that the old man had dumped such a heavy burden upon her.

If she wished to save the common people wandering homeless in an age supposedly blessed by peace and prosperity, the obvious solution was to help them with her own resources, or perhaps reform the land system. But none of that would cure the root of the disease. At its core, the problem lay in feudal rule.

History had already proved that imperial government was a dead end. No matter how one proceeded, it could never produce a good result. To serve the nation and the people, one had to abandon all ease and comfort. She had originally been nothing more than a carefree university student, accustomed to living without a care in the world.

“Then, Elder He, may I be introduced to this gentleman?”

He Zhizhang set down his fishing rod, turned around, and settled himself properly before solemnly introducing the impeccably dressed middle-aged man.

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“This is Wei Jian, Director of the Bureau of Law, whom I mentioned to you before.”

If the laws were to be amended, this was the man she had to find. He would have to draft the revisions himself, after which the Hall of State Affairs would review them. They would then require the emperor’s approval, undergo further examination by several offices, and only afterward be incorporated into the Tang Code and proclaimed throughout the realm.

Elder He had already taken care of the connections within the Hall of State Affairs, allowing them to bypass the Right Chancellor. As for the emperor, she could only rely on her own efforts.

The matter concerned the relationship between master and servant. It would no longer be a situation in which the master held every advantage while the servant stood at an absolute disadvantage, but rather one in which both sides were bound together by mutual interests.

A master might spend money to purchase a servant, but would be forbidden to subject that person to various forms of punishment. Regardless of whether the servant was male or female, they would still possess their freedom, even though they remained the master’s property in name. This was the rule of freedom within shackles that she had arrived at after long consideration.

Most important of all, servants would be entitled to holidays. They could take leave during certain major festivals, and if they were required to work instead, they would have to receive compensation. That was the welfare provision.

Besides these two principal amendments, there were several others...

After reading through the proposed revisions, Wei Zijin could not help being startled. His impression of the princess changed instantly. She was learned—truly learned. Despite her young age, the princess was nearly the equal of a half-fledged national scholar such as himself!

Yet all these new ideas elevated the status of servants, especially women.

In the households of great officials and wealthy gentlemen, attractive maidservants were often taken by their masters as concubines. If they pleased their masters, they might even be elevated to secondary wives. That was already considered fortunate. His own household was much the same.

Still, the princess must have had her reasons for acting in this manner. After examining the proposals carefully, he found no serious flaw. Apart from granting servants a certain measure of freedom, the provisions also clearly protected the interests of their masters. They would not provoke any major conflict.

“The princess is remarkably learned. You have studied the laws thoroughly and even set down your own new ideas. I shall attempt to draft a formal proposal. As for whether it can pass, that will depend on the princess’s efforts!”

His willingness to do this was also motivated by pity for the concubine he had taken.

She had been forced by poverty to sell herself into servitude in order to survive, and whenever they were alone together, she would weep and pour out her innermost feelings to him.

He was therefore somewhat partial toward the princess’s reforms. Moreover, the request came from He Gong, a venerable elder of the court. Naturally, he agreed at once.

“Then I must thank you, Director Wei!”

She clasped her hands in gratitude. The three of them continued talking for quite some time, growing increasingly at ease with one another. They did not part until nightfall.

Wu Yue Ling returned to the Princess’s Residence carrying two fish. She did not know that Elder He would leave without saying farewell, leaving letters of departure for his fellow immortals in Chang’an.

Even when war later erupted on every side, and during the early years of the Wu-Tang era, Wu Yue Ling would continue to regard the matter as one of her deepest regrets.