Chapter 61: What About Him?
Wen Yu hadn't slept well the previous night. Returning from the government office, she was utterly exhausted, yet she forced herself to stay alert and continued reviewing the memorials Chen Wei had sent over.
Zhao Bai noticed her constantly massaging her temples and advised, "It's still early, My Lady. Would you like to rest a bit more?"
Wen Yu's gaze remained fixed on the memorial as she shook her head. "It's nothing. In these turbulent times, I cannot afford to rest. I used to think that governing the world was the burden my father and brother should bear, so I never seriously studied state policies and current affairs. Now that this responsibility has fallen upon me, I must reclaim all that I neglected in the past."
The Changlian Wang's residence had always been at the center of political storms, which sharpened her sensitivity to the current situation and gave her some insight into employing people through constant exposure.
But when it came to truly governing and discussing state affairs, she still had much to learn.
What she had previously learned from Yu Taifu while attending her brother's classes was insufficient to support her in ruling a city or a nation. In these pressing times, she needed to quickly mature into a seasoned player of power.
Zhao Bai understood Wen Yu's concerns. After their previous conversation, she also realized why Li Yao and others showed her no respect. "The Grand Tutor is immensely knowledgeable. After Fengyang fell, Pei Song confined the Grand Tutor separately, likely trying to persuade him to surrender. If the Grand Tutor were still by your side, My Lady, you wouldn't have to endure such hardship."
With Yu Taifu's prestige, not to mention one Li Yao, even ten more such obstinate individuals wouldn't dare act disrespectfully in his presence.
Wen Yu's hand, turning the page, paused slightly. Thinking of the many old officials still detained in Fengyang, her heart grew heavier. She wondered how many of those ministers remained after the recent assassination attempt on Pei Song.
Weary, she closed her eyes for a moment and said, "Zhao Bai, brew me a pot of strong tea."
Zhao Bai acknowledged the order and left. When she returned with the tea, she found Wen Yu had already fallen asleep on the chaise lounge, still holding the memorial.
The spring sun was warm and gentle. Outside the threshold window, a row of thin bamboo blinds hung at varying heights, allowing sunlight to stream through the gaps, illuminating the green sandalwood desk and Wen Yu's hand holding the scroll. The light filtering through her thin gauze sleeves cast a shimmering glow on her fair arm, like rippling water.
Zhao Bai couldn't bring herself to disturb Wen Yu. She quietly set down the teacup and withdrew.
When a maid in the courtyard walked too briskly, Zhao Bai gestured for silence.
The maid looked at her apprehensively, and Zhao Bai said expressionlessly, "The Lady is asleep. Do not disturb her."
The maids nodded in unison, moving with extreme lightness when entering or leaving the main courtyard. For a while, only the chirping of sparrows could be heard outside the window.
Xiao Li, having extricated himself from Fan Yuan, returned to see Wen Yu. By then, it wasn't Zhao Bai guarding the main room but a maid assigned by Chen Wei to attend to Wen Yu.
After Xiao Li stated his purpose, the maid hesitated, unsure. "The Lady has been asleep since returning from the office. Miss Zhao Bai ordered us not to disturb her. Perhaps... you could come back later?"
The threshold window wasn't tightly shut, only covered with thin bamboo blinds to block the light, lest the room become too stuffy. Xiao Li glanced inside and caught sight of a section of ornate silk skirt trailing down from the chaise lounge.
The fragmented sunlight through the blinds fell in stripes upon the skirt, the gold-woven embroidery dazzlingly brilliant, like the radiant glow on a phoenix's feathers.Xiao Li withdrew his gaze and said, "It's fine. I'll wait here until the princess awakens."
The maid didn't know what matter Xiao Li needed to report to Wen Yu, so she dared not dismiss him outright. She brought a chair for him to sit, yet Xiao Li remained standing. With his back to the latticed window beneath the eaves, he stood from high noon until the sun dipped below the western hills.
The wind scattered pear blossoms across the courtyard like falling snow, dusting his shoulders with petals. He merely leaned against the pillar with lowered lashes, unusually quiet and melancholic.
Passing maids couldn't help stealing glances at him, yet restrained themselves from staring too long due to his status.
When movement finally sounded from the chamber summoning attendants, the waiting maid hastily entered with a washbasin.
Burdened by recent worries, Wen Yu had slept deeply. Upon waking, she noticed the dimmed light in the room and felt stiffness in her neck from sleeping too long on the chaise lounge.
Taking the towel offered by the maid, she asked, "Why didn't you wake me?"
The maid replied anxiously, "Lady Zhao Bai said you rarely sleep well and instructed us not to disturb you."
This was indeed something Zhao Bai would arrange.
Wen Yu massaged her temples. "Where is Zhao Bai?"
The maid answered, "Lord Li Xun seemed to have some matter and summoned Lady Zhao Bai. She hasn't returned yet." After a pause, she added, "Martyr Xiao has been waiting outside, saying he needs to see you. He's been there all afternoon."
Wen Yu wiped her hands with the towel and gazed through the open latticed window at the tall, straight-backed figure outside.
"Bring him in," she said.
The maid acknowledged the order and respectfully withdrew with the bronze basin.
Soon, Xiao Li entered.
Wen Yu remained reclined on the chaise, picking up a memorial to read. Hearing his footsteps, she gestured to a round-backed chair nearby. "Sit."
After seating himself, Xiao Li noticed the bright red seal stamped on the memorial in her hand, indicating it had already been processed. "You're reading reviewed memorials?"
Wen Yu glanced at him. "I'm not omniscient. To learn governance, studying past prefectural memorials is the fastest method. Everything follows patterns - once you understand them, you'll know how to handle similar challenges in the future."
Xiao Li was momentarily taken aback. This was the first time he'd heard Wen Yu admit there were things she didn't know.
Perhaps because she always appeared so effortlessly capable, he'd nearly forgotten she was once merely a noble princess meticulously sheltered by her parents and elder brother.
Only after the fall of Great Liang and the massacre of the Wen clan had she been forced to rapidly grow protective scales.
For a fleeting moment, Xiao Li felt she no longer seemed so unreachable.
The cold moon seemed to soften within its flowing moonlight.
He lowered his gaze. "With your intelligence, My Princess, you'll surely master it quickly."
Wen Yu's tone held a hint of self-mockery. "What people call intelligence is merely a desperate struggle when backed into a corner."
Her eyes returned to Xiao Li. "You've waited half a day outside. Is there urgent business?"
Quietly observing her dignified weariness, Xiao Li said, "Nothing urgent. I merely thought since I'm joining the army, I should bid you farewell in person.Wen Yu fingered the memorial, hesitating to turn the page, and finally said, "Go then." Don't waste time on such formalities hereafter. You have many pressing matters to attend to now."Xiao Li sat with his legs apart, leaning slightly forward, his sturdy elbows resting on his knees. His long lashes drooped, concealing the expression in his eyes. "I won't let you down, nor do I think coming to bid you farewell in person is a waste of time."
After saying this, he strode out.
Zhao Bai, returning from Li Xun's place, happened to see him leaving Wen Yu's room. The two exchanged a glance under the eaves, both wearing indifferent expressions.
Zhao Bai stepped aside, waiting for Xiao Li to leave before entering the room. He asked Wen Yu, who was sitting on the couch reading memorials but clearly distracted, "My Lady, why did he come…"
"He's going to the army soon. I gave him some instructions," Wen Yu interrupted Zhao Bai, then asked, "What happened with Lord Li?"
Recalling his reason for leaving earlier, Zhao Bai's expression darkened. "After the morning meeting, Lord Li Xun has been trying to persuade Li Yao. But Li Yao is arrogant by nature and spoke some highly disrespectful words about you, My Lady. Lord Li Xun feared trouble might arise, so he sent me to intimidate them."
Wen Yu's expression remained calm upon hearing this. After a moment's thought, she said, "Although Li Yao doesn't submit to me, he's completely loyal to the Prince's estate. He likely won't cause major trouble. Keep an eye on those advisors who follow him blindly or remain indecisive—they're the ones prone to foolish actions."
Zhao Bai nodded in acknowledgment.
Wen Yu closed the memorial in her hands and looked at him. "Additionally, I need more personnel."
Ten days passed in the blink of an eye.
Military life was monotonous. The daily drills made Zhao Youcai and his companions complain incessantly, though their physiques visibly strengthened.
According to military regulations, new recruits should be reorganized regardless of their origins. However, the five hundred soldiers brought from Xinzhou belonged to Wen Yu, so Fan Yuan couldn't easily incorporate them all into his own Military Camp.
After Xiao Li began working in the army, commanding only those five hundred soldiers seemed inappropriate, so Fan Yuan assigned him two thousand additional troops.
Upon taking command, Xiao Li didn't maintain Fan Yuan's clear distinctions. Instead, he reorganized the new recruits with the assigned Pingzhou troops.
In daily interactions, he treated the martial generals as brothers, sharing drinks and seemingly opening their hearts to each other. Yet there was always an unspoken, insurmountable boundary between them.
Those generals were Pingzhou's commanders.
And he was Wen Yu's man.
Though he had merged the five hundred soldiers with the two thousand Pingzhou troops, eliminating any sense of alienation among the lower ranks, Xiao Li gradually felt a growing restlessness within this unbreakable iron barrier.
It was through these subtle details that he suddenly understood Pingzhou's overall attitude toward Wen Yu.
Pingzhou acknowledged Wen Yu as their leader because Chen Wei recognized her as his master.
This meant Pingzhou's military forces weren't at Wen Yu's direct disposal as her own troops. If she wanted to deploy them, she still needed to consult Chen Wei.
All this hinged solely on Chen Wei's personal loyalty.
Or perhaps, even if Chen Wei's loyalty wavered, as long as the current situation made acknowledging Wen Yu as his leader still the most beneficial option for him.
Xiao Li didn't know if Wen Yu had already considered all this. That day in the government office meeting hall, she had proposed borrowing Southern Chen's forces for a northern expedition, with Pingzhou acting as the bolt on the gate.
But from another perspective, if Pingzhou showed any disloyalty, Southern Chen could attack from both front and rear.It seemed she had never fully trusted any faction, consistently employing the art of balance from start to finish.
Xiao Li recalled what Wen Yu had told him at the Bodhi Temple—how many matters, once touched by power, would grow complicated.
A thought suddenly arose in his heart: What about him?
Was she also constantly weighing the pros and cons regarding him, or did she trust him unconditionally?
Unable to reach a conclusion, Xiao Li buried himself in the vast sea of military strategy documents.
Wen Yu was also studying governance by reviewing past official reports from Pingzhou, which, in a way, strongly motivated him.
He began to realize that Wen Yu wasn’t born all-knowing either—she too could feel lost and encounter things she didn’t understand, but she would only push herself to learn.
If he wanted to catch up to her, he would inevitably have to study more diligently and work harder than she did.
The martial generals who often trained troops with him, having been "consulted" by him too many times, all ended up with dark circles under their eyes and sallow complexions.
When the news reached Fan Yuan, he tactfully suggested to Xiao Li, "Since Brother Xiao is so eager to learn, why not hire a strategist to assist you?"
Xiao Li thought it was a good idea, but before he could find a strategist, news broke that Wen Yu had been assassinated on the street.
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