Chapter 10: Warming Wine, Striking the Bell, and Viewing the Scenery Again

White Fox Face went into seclusion again. The moment he stepped into the Tide-Listening Pavilion, the lake surface outside shattered. Not only that, the entire lake began to sway, and countless koi carp leapt out of the water, leaving Yu Youwei in a daze.

Shangyin Academy's curriculum was diverse, yet it strictly forbade talk of ghosts and gods. But faced with the bizarre spectacle before her, Yu Youwei found it impossible to believe it was humanly possible. Even Jiang Ni, who was accustomed to seeing thousands of carp leap skyward, furrowed her brows, unable to fathom the reason.

Xu Fengnian pondered for a moment, muttered a low curse, and tossed in the cucumber he had chewed down to its end.

The stableman, Old Huang, trotted over, hands tucked into his sleeves, shivering slightly, likely to join in the excitement.

This old servant held a unique position in the princely manor. He had no relatives, but because he had cared for the Crown Prince and Second Princess's horses for many years, even the grim Head Butler Shen would slow his pace and nod upon seeing him. Old Huang, no matter who he met, always maintained his unchanging, simple demeanor: a wide, gap-toothed grin and a silly laugh.

Xu Fengnian waved Old Huang over to sit down. The lake surface had already calmed.

He instructed a servant to prepare a covered boat so he could go to the center of the lake with Jiang Ni, Yu Youwei, and Old Huang to boil wine and enjoy the snow. Old Huang, whose main interests were feeding horses and occasionally sipping some wine, happily trotted along, his old face beaming with smiles.

Inside the boat, Old Huang set up a stove and added dry kindling at the right moment. The wine was not yellow wine, but a local specialty from Lingzhou, a new brew from one of the manor's outlying estates. Its surface was marred by unattractive dregs, and its color was faintly green, with tiny sediments like ants. It was dubbed "Green Ant Wine" by the impoverished scholars of Lingzhou who couldn't afford better vintages. It was a humble drink, yet the Grand Marshal himself had a particular fondness for it.

Green Ant Wine truly gained fame, however, because of the Second Princess of Northern Liang's poem, "My Brother Appreciating Snow," written when she was ten. Its opening line, "Freshly brewed green ant wine, a small red clay stove," was highly praised by scholars in Liang and widely circulated. Many renowned literary figures in the capital were astonished by its brilliance, and for a time, a trend of warming green ant wine in winter emerged.

King Xu Xiao of Northern Liang had two sons, Xu Fengnian and Xu Longxiang, and two daughters, the elder Xu Zhihu and the younger Xu Weixiong. The Second Princess, Xu Weixiong, had a name utterly devoid of femininity. She was exceptionally intelligent from a young age, achieved mastery in swordsmanship, and her poetry was strikingly brilliant. She possessed great strategic depth. At sixteen, she entered Shangyin Academy to study geomancy under Han Guzi. Her only flaw, despite her astounding talent, was her ordinary appearance, far less striking than that of the Elder Princess or the Crown Prince.

Jiang Ni still refused to drink, as she detested Green Ant Wine and everything associated with that woman. Her level of animosity was second only to that she held for Xu Fengnian.

Yu Youwei drank several bowls, while Xu Fengnian and Old Huang generously finished the rest.

At the Tide-Listening Pavilion, an atmosphere of intense readiness prevailed. The Grand Marshal, clad in a thick fox fur coat, watched the group board the boat. With a raised hand, he signaled, and six or seven shadow experts within the manor slowly withdrew; three of the five Pavilion Guardians also departed.

With the wine having gone to his head, Xu Fengnian, eyes hazy with intoxication, pointed at Jiang Ni, then at Yu Youwei, and chuckled:

"You, and you," he began, "in truth, you have no deep grudge against each other, yet you act as mortal enemies. Kill me? Fine, Jiang Ni, take out your divine talisman, and I'll let you stab me. I want to see if my Black Kui armor is tougher or your dagger is sharper. Or how about a bet? If you win, the outcome goes without saying. If I win, you give me a smile, Princess Taiping. What do you say, is this a good deal?"

Jiang Ni narrowed her beautiful eyes, eager to try.

The surname Jiang. Divine Talisman. Princess Taiping.

Yu Youwei, whose mother was once the late Emperor's sword attendant and whose father was a minor official of Western Chu, trembled, causing Wu Meiniang in her arms to let out a lazy meow.

Xu Fengnian cast off his thousand-gold white fox fur coat, tearing open the inner lapel to reveal the dark blue treasured armor he hadn't removed since his travels. He bared his chest and said, "Come, stab me."

Jiang Ni hesitated, waiting for an opportunity, like a young leopard.

Old Huang wasn't worried about bloodshed. In his first three years out, the young master had suffered from his lack of worldly experience and was often discomfited, but later on, he grew increasingly cunning.

Ultimately, she gave up the tempting opportunity and sneered, "You'd make a losing deal? I'd rather believe in ghosts than in you."

Xu Fengnian swiftly donned his clothes and put on his white fox fur coat again, laughing heartily. "Thankfully, thankfully, I'm drenched in a cold sweat! This wine really shouldn't be overindulged. Old Huang, let's pole the boat back; we've retrieved a life from the gates of hell."

Jiang Ni's eyes were filled with annoyance.

Old Huang kept chuckling along with the young master.

Once ashore, Jiang Ni walked away in resentment.

Yu Youwei hadn't put on the mink coat he sent to her courtyard, so he handed her the white fox fur coat she was wearing, the only one of its luxurious kind in the entire princely manor. As he stroked Wu Meiniang's small head, he seemingly casually remarked:

"You learned the Fengzhou accent to deceive people, but in the Banana Courtyard, a small test revealed your true identity. On the boat, a half-truth about being Princess Taiping of Western Chu lured out your fox's tail. Youwei, you truly aren't suited to be an assassin or a death warrior. From now on, just relax and be a caged bird, a canary. See? I didn't lie to you, there's an extremely beautiful snowy landscape here."

After speaking, Xu Fengnian shouted a highwayman's jargon, "Danger, flee!" and ran off with his servant, Old Huang.

Yu Youwei, draped in the thousand-gold fur coat, stood rooted to the spot, indistinguishable from the white fox fur coat or the snow and wind around her.

On the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month in the sixth year of Qianyuan of the Liyang Dynasty, King Xu Xiao of Northern Liang and Crown Prince Xu Fengnian set off at dawn. Apart from Chen Zhibao and Chu Lushan, all four other adopted sons accompanied them, along with three hundred iron cavalry, journeying mightily towards Mount Jiuhua within Kunzhou territory.

Although this mountain was the sacred site of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, the Liyang Dynasty had always revered Taoism and suppressed Buddhism. Furthermore, Mount Jiuhua was remote, with no large temples or Buddhas to worship. Most importantly, in recent years, the Grand Marshal had intentionally driven away idle devotees, making Mount Jiuhua appear particularly desolate.

At the summit stood the Thousand Buddha Pavilion, with a colossal bell weighing ten thousand jin on its roof. The ringing of this bell followed a strict ritual: it was struck exactly one hundred and eight times a day, no more, no less. The morning bell and evening bell each consisted of eighteen rapid strikes, followed by eighteen slow strikes, then eighteen strikes at a moderate pace. This sequence was repeated twice, totaling one hundred and eight strikes daily, corresponding to the twelve months, twenty-four solar terms, and seventy-two climatic periods of a year. In Buddhism, it symbolized the eradication of the one hundred and eight roots of affliction.

After the Princess Consort's death, Xu Xiao, who had never taken a concubine in his life, even resolved never to marry again. Every year on Qingming Festival, Double Ninth Festival, and the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, he would personally come to the Thousand Buddha Pavilion on the mountaintop to strike the bell twice, in the morning and evening.

Before even reaching the mountain gate, everyone tacitly dismounted and removed their armor. Xu Xiao and Xu Fengnian walked side by side, while their four adopted sons—Yuan Zuozong, Ye Xizhen, Yao Jian, and Qi Dangguo—kept a respectful distance, not daring to overstep.

Among the four, "Left Bear" (Yuan Zuozong) was a vanguard-type general capable of taking an enemy commander's head from amidst ten thousand soldiers as easily as reaching into his own pocket. His martial prowess was peerless, and his tactical deployment of troops was also outstanding.

Ye Xizhen was a scholarly general, skilled in overt strategies and planning from behind the scenes, completely unlike Lu Qiuer, who favored devious schemes.

Yao Jian was from a minor branch of Taoism, adept at geomancy, always carrying a well-worn copy of *The Book of Geography and Green Pouches*. When idle, he enjoyed squatting down and tasting the soil. Qi Dangguo was the standard-bearer for the Xu family's royal banner of the Northern Liang Iron Cavalry.

As for Chen Zhibao, the eldest of the six adopted sons, known as the "Little Butcher," his lifetime achievements were so significant that one could discern autumn from a single falling leaf.

That night, the six men stayed in the ancient temple at the mountain's summit. On the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, the Grand Marshal Xu Xiao personally struck the bell one hundred and eight times, morning and evening. Before descending the mountain, at dusk, Xu Xiao and Xu Fengnian stood in the corridor of the Thousand Buddha Pavilion. The Grand Marshal gently said, "When you come of age, you will strike the bell from then on."

Xu Fengnian nodded and uttered an affirmation.

A sudden mountain breeze arose, scattering the sea of clouds in the twilight. The mountain ranges appeared like islands of immortals in the sea. As the wind picked up again, they were once more hidden within the undulating clouds, presenting a magnificent spectacle. Occasionally, amidst the sea of clouds, a dozen or so thick, mushroom-shaped pillars of cloud would surge skyward, then slowly fall and disperse, transforming into wisps of drifting clouds—a unique sight on Mount Jiuhua.

Xu Xiao extended his hand, pointing towards the mysterious scene, and said:

"Very few people can enjoy decades of unchanging smooth sailing; ups and downs are the norm. Even those venerable three-dynasty elders in the court, with one foot already in the grave, are no exception. Your father's glory and wealth were won through countless high-stakes gambles. Therefore, I dread hearing anyone say, 'the higher you climb, the harder you fall,' fearing that if I fall, I'll drag you all down with me. As a military general, to be enfeoffed as a king with a different surname is the pinnacle; as a civil official, Grand Marshal is also the ultimate achievement. Such immense honor has been exceptionally rare in the four hundred years of the Liyang Dynasty."

In the father and son's view, the scene was like waves rising from the vast sea, or snowballs rolling across the ground.

The Grand Marshal's voice was rich and steady, carrying the distinctive intensity of Green Ant Wine.

"Here, it's just you and me, father and son, and at most, your mother in heaven. There are no outsiders, so I'll speak plainly. Li Yishan was right: it's easy to achieve success, but difficult to withdraw one's name from prominence. I'm already in a predicament, like riding a tiger."

"Three years ago, the imperial court intended to summon you to the capital. His Majesty even wished to bestow his most beloved Twelfth Princess upon you in marriage, at which point you would go to the capital to become a son-in-law with an empty, splendid title, effectively a hostage. But I politely refused and sent you on a three-year journey, walking six thousand *li*, which only temporarily silenced the court. However, this is still merely a stopgap."

"I'm waiting. If His Majesty still won't give up, then Xu Xiao, at ten, wielded a knife and killed, and has spent forty years in battle without reading many moralistic texts. If it comes to that, then Xu Xiao cannot be blamed for disloyalty or injustice! With three hundred thousand Northern Liang Iron Cavalry under the Xu family's royal banner, who would dare to face us head-on?"

Xu Fengnian gave a wry smile. "Old man, I have no interest in the imperial throne. You're old now; don't do something so foolish as painstakingly conquering an empire just to make your son emperor. Even if I became emperor, it wouldn't necessarily be more comfortable than being the Crown Prince."

Xu Xiao glared. "Then are you willing to be a worthless son-in-law? To become a caged bird, just like that girl surnamed Yu?"

Xu Fengnian rolled his eyes. "Even if we rebel, you couldn't become emperor. The Liang region has never had the 'dragon's feng shui' for producing an emperor. When has anyone from here ever unified the realm?"

Xu Xiao sighed. "Li Yishan said the same thing. If you were just a good-for-nothing like Li Hanlin, your father wouldn't mind. Being a son-in-law wouldn't be an issue; living under someone else's roof, at least it would be under the palace eaves."

"What your second sister told me before she went to Shangyin Academy was spot on: a family that appears prosperous, flourishing, and grand on the surface is useless. Most are hollow inside, especially worrying about having no worthy successors. The richer and more powerful a family, the more terrifying it is when its descendants decline with each generation, far more so than simply running out of money."

"So your father isn't afraid of your extravagance at all. But Fengnian, you've presented your father with an enormous dilemma. Give your father a straight answer: do you have any intention of wielding the Northern Liang military tally in the future? If so, your second sister could be your strategist, Huang Man'er could charge into battle for you, and with your father's six adopted sons, even if your father dies, the three hundred thousand iron cavalry won't be in disarray or scatter."

Xu Fengnian countered, "What do you think?"

Xu Xiao playfully argued, "Your father is old now and has painstakingly built up this immense family fortune. Shouldn't you, unfilial son, at least leave your father with some hope?"

Xu Fengnian declared grandly, "As for that, no problem at all. It's just squandering the family fortune, my specialty."

At that instant, the Grand Marshal's stooped back seemed to imperceptibly straighten.