Volume One: The Hidden Dragon in the Abyss Chapter 87: The Noble Consort

In the southern reaches of the Kingdom of Jin, there stood the old capital.

The weather was fine, the sky high and cloudless.

Inside a room laid with exquisite carpets, a woman in court dress poured herself a cup of tea, then suddenly frowned.

She sipped it, let the flavor linger, and found it seemed not quite equal to the tea offered in the imperial palace.

In a place like this, nothing was good; it was even more desolate than a palace of confinement.

“Wang Chuan has returned to the kingdom. Your imperial father welcomed him back in person. And you? The southern frontier has been pacified for many days, the Tang army has been driven off, yet no decree has come for you.” The woman let out a cold laugh.

“What does Father mean, then? Has he truly abandoned me?” asked the Fourth Prince.

“A weakling without talent or resolve, a coward raised in an enemy land who learned only to read faces and bow his head—yet somehow he has become the foremost master of martial arts in all the world.” The woman in court dress said, “You should not blame your father for choosing him.”

“Mother, do I really have no chance?” the Fourth Prince asked hastily.

He cared little for some so-called foremost martial expert. In a fight, of course he could not win, but seizing power was not only about force. Personal strength, however great, was still limited; it could not withstand armies by the tens of thousands. So he still had his advantages.

In the Kingdom of Jin, he had been cultivating support for many years. There were no shortage of people backing him.

Especially his mother’s family—everyone was tied together by the same rope.

From childhood, he had known clearly what blessings came with becoming emperor, and what troubles must be borne.

And as for how to achieve that goal, they had made so many arrangements and so much effort over the years—how could they possibly lose to Wang Chuan?

To strike while he had only just returned and his foundation was not yet secure should have been the best chance. Yet for some reason, the ruler of Jin seemed to be supporting him.

That father of his—what, exactly, was he thinking?

“When your father fought for the throne, he was also alone. Perhaps now he believes that only a lone wolf that can survive the brutal forest is fit to lead the pack, and so he sent Wang Chuan to the Kingdom of Wei to confuse them,” said the imperial consort. “But many people know that his victory ultimately depended on the support of my natal family. Men like him believe that if someone can endure and grow on his own before the age of twenty, surviving trials of cruelty and danger, then after twenty he must rely on his own efforts to win the recognition and support of more people and become the leader of the pack.”

“I have heard that in his youth he was persecuted by other royal offspring and cast out into the wilderness, where he faced a lone wolf by himself. It was after that that his temperament changed greatly; many know nothing of that old story.”

“So it was all tempering?” the Fourth Prince said, still unwilling to accept it. “If I had been given such a chance, I would not have been much worse than Wang Chuan. Why does Father not believe in me?”

The consort gave a faint, mocking smile. “You truly think so?”

“Mother, do you not believe in me either?” he asked.

Her expression suddenly turned sharp. “Would he choose you? Could you, Wang Yan, endure such hardship? Could you play the part of one who bears humiliation, feigns foolishness, and hides his edge?”

“And besides, where would I find you another Kingdom of Wei?”

The Fourth Prince sighed, speechless.

“If I am not mistaken, if Wang Chuan had fallen in Wei, the place your father would have sent you is the northern frontier—to resist the barbarians,” the consort went on. “You are not Qi Hao; you would not be there to train troops for him. You would go alone, command the local soldiers and civilians yourself, find your own way to recruit men, solve grain and weapons on your own, and figure out how to withstand the northern savages. Regrettably, we still could not help you. The moment we intervene, you lose, and your father will abandon you completely!”

“Do you really think he has feelings for you? He has more than a dozen sons. At worst, he will simply temper the next one until he finds his heir. He is still in the prime of life, strong and vigorous—at worst, he can simply have more children...”

The Fourth Prince looked ashen.

If he were placed in such a situation, would he still have any chance of turning things around?

Resist the northern barbarians?

Make him start from nothing and resist the northern barbarians?

What, just because he was a prince of Jin?

Would the others simply retreat obediently?

“It is unfair. Wang Chuan has already attained divine mastery in martial arts...” the Fourth Prince said indignantly.

“Has he ever defeated anyone with martial arts since leaving Wei?” The consort angrily slammed down her teacup. “Have you forgotten how he left Wei? And when it was that his martial arts finally reached perfection and shook the world!”

By then, he was already in the state of Yu.

“Mother, calm yourself. It is my fault.” The Fourth Prince hurriedly admitted his mistake.

“You are inferior to others in martial arts; do you think you surpass them in anything else? If you go on like this, you will never understand that you have no chance at all. You gave up on yourself—why, then, do you still blame your father for not giving you a chance?” said the consort. “You have simply not seen enough of the world; you are ignorant. From childhood I have urged His Majesty to let you go out, but he said the time was not yet right. Was it not I who took you out to see the world? People cannot be compared all in the same way. In some things, if you are not as good as another, then you are not as good as another. Under heaven, there is no one who surpasses others in every respect and claims every advantage.”

“Since you were born with a life of ease, then you should think carefully about how to enjoy it. That is a blessing countless people would envy and never be able to obtain. Do not forget, this has never been a simple matter! There is no need to waste your energy scheming over empty ambitions. With your father here, a person like Wang Chuan will not tolerate you being there, but he will not seek your complete destruction.”

The Fourth Prince froze, tears streaming down his face. “Mother, have I disappointed you? All these years I have known that Father may not favor me, but I thought that if I still had your support, that would be enough. I hoped that one day I could become your pride. But now, even you are giving up on me?”

“My son, this road is truly too exhausting—far, far too exhausting. Great ambitions are too heavy a burden.” The consort let out a sigh.

“Mother, I still want to continue. Until the very end, nothing is certain,” said the Fourth Prince.

“From childhood, you were all the ones who taught me how to become an emperor. After all these years, after everything we have done, how can you be the first to say we should give up? It was my fault. I should not have grown complacent and lost my composure.”

He was filled with shame.

“You still remember how we taught you at the beginning? Your father rose step by step from the lowest ranks as well, and now he has made Wang Chuan do the same. You have lived in the deep palace, in a place of privilege, and it is hard for you to see what lies beyond. That is why I begged His Majesty to let you go into the army and temper yourself, to let you experience the hardships of the common people. I did not mistreat you on purpose—I only wanted you to understand what the people needed. A little kindness is often enough to satisfy them. You have spent many years in Yangcheng, and under your father’s protection, you have never been able to win over the people. Not like Wang Chuan, who won their gratitude and devotion with such ease. When he returned to Yangcheng, all the people came out to welcome him, while you can only hide here and crouch in the corner.” The consort said, “Whenever I had the chance, I would secretly take you out of the palace and walk among the streets of the capital, so you could see more clearly how poor families rise, how wealthy families fall, how fools survive, and how the clever die. Every person has his own way of living, his own strengths and weaknesses. I only wanted you to see this world clearly, to see all these different kinds of people. Yet you never learn. Under heaven, anyone who accomplishes great things must have a firm foundation hidden in dark, unseen places.”

“Now it is plain that you cannot compare with Wang Chuan. Even without martial arts, you would have no hope against him—only utter defeat. You spent all those years reading so many biographies of emperors; have you simply become stupid from books? With your narrow vision and weak temperament, with that little skill you have in handling men, how could you possibly support the principles written in those books? And you still want to compare yourself to Wang Chuan—look at yourself, and tell me what there is left to compare.”

The Fourth Prince stood up in silence, thinking long and hard.

Yet there was not the slightest trace of resentment or bitterness. He accepted the lesson humbly.

This path was truly far too difficult.

The consort sighed in sorrow and sat back down in her chair. Looking at her son, who still refused to take a seat, her gaze was exceedingly complicated. “Yan’er, it is your mother who is incapable. I could not bring you to the throne. I am not as capable as that woman, and now I have even let her son stand above you.”

“Mother, do not speak like that. It is my fault; I am useless.” The Fourth Prince stepped forward and took her hand. “The struggle for the throne is perilous beyond measure, but I do not regret it. As long as there is even a sliver of hope, we should not give up.”

“If you can think that way, then good. In that case, we are not without a chance. Wang Chuan is not without flaws either,” she told him. “What we need is an opportunity, and one that comes when your father is unable to spare the attention. If we do not have full confidence, do not act rashly. Otherwise, we will never have another chance.”

“Mother, I understand.” The Fourth Prince nodded.

“When you return to Yangcheng, you must get along with him properly. At the very least, do not fall short in manners toward that elder brother, and show him due respect in everyday matters,” said the consort.

“Yes, I understand.” He nodded again. “I can endure anything.”

All humiliation borne in the present was for the final victory.

How could I possibly fail?

How could I do worse than him?

“By Wang Chuan’s side there is a man named Yang Hao, and he can be considered one of his chief aides. Since you still have no way to deal with Wang Chuan himself, first see whether Yang Hao has any flaws,” the consort added.

Back then, the ruler of Jin had sent the Zhao Merchant Guild to look after him, but now Wang Chuan had drawn to his side an even better one on his own.

Not only could such a man offer strategy and win hearts, he was also adept at social maneuvering and charm.

Such a foundation would become the bedrock of his rise.

“Mother, then... what kind of woman is that empress?” the Fourth Prince asked curiously.

“Her? I have not seen much of her. Back then I had not yet married your father. I only heard that your father ascended the throne with her help.” The consort thought for a moment. “For a man like your father, why would he alone be willing to yield to her?”

“How could that be?” the Fourth Prince said in astonishment.

Even for someone like Wang Chuan, who had already attained divine mastery in martial arts, the ruler of Jin would still have his pride and might not necessarily yield.

Yet back then, how had she done it?

“It seems they made an exchange: after your father took the throne, he immediately sent troops into Wei to help suppress their internal chaos. And at that time, he was also the one who personally returned the state of Yanzhou. It seems that because the empress was there, your father did not dare take so much as a single brick or tile. But years later, only after the empress was gone, did he dare send troops to seize Yanzhou. He went through so many twists and turns. Apart from fearing that empress, what other reason could there be?” The consort herself did not know much more.

That person seemed to have become taboo; many deliberately avoided speaking of her.

The ruler of Jin had also kept her sleeping chamber, her place, reserved for her all along.