Chapter 9: The Salt Route (III)

“I heard that that wretch An Lushan has once again asked the imperial court for rewards for his troops?”
Li Kuo suddenly remembered something and asked, tapping his fingers lightly.
Dou Qing nodded and replied respectfully, “That’s correct, Commander. As far as I know, An Lushan recently led his generals Shi Siming and Tian Chengsi to defeat the Khitans, killing over two thousand of them. To boost morale among his troops, he submitted a report requesting rewards from the court based on their achievements.” (Note 1)
There was nothing wrong with that, after all, border governors had the authority to appoint officials below the fifth rank directly. They only needed to fill in the names of those to be appointed on blank forms and submit them to the court. As for the Ministry of War, once the emperor approved it, it was merely a formality.
The Tang Dynasty’s border armies emphasized rewarding those who made achievements, and it was only fair to reward soldiers for their merits. However, giving all such power to border governors could lead soldiers to be more loyal to their governors rather than the court. Over time, lower-ranking officers would inevitably develop less loyalty to the court and instead trust their governors more, who offered them promotions.
If it came to a point where people only recognized generals and not the emperor…
For some reason, Li Kuo could never feel even a hint of goodwill toward An Lushan. Despite the emperor’s favor for him and An Lushan’s recent adoption of the imperial concubine as his godmother, rushing to the palace every time he returned to the capital, Li Kuo still saw him as hypocritical.
A truly principled border general would focus solely on governing his troops and defending against enemies—how could he have time to engage in flattery? Yet the current emperor still considered An Lushan loyal and straightforward. Well, hopefully he was just overthinking it.
“Dou Qing, go check the training ground again. Make sure those kids aren’t slacking off! I’ll visit Zimo Pavilion tonight. You take care of arranging everything first.”
Li Kuo sighed softly and gave orders with a shake of his head.
“As you command!”
Dou Qing bowed respectfully in a military salute and slowly stepped back. …
Just after putting on her makeup, she applied a little sandalwood perfume. A hint of lilac scent revealed itself, accompanied by a gentle song that seemed to awaken the blossoms of cherries. Tears glistened, but she quickly wiped them away; her red sleeves concealed her charm as she turned. Her melodious voice brought spring to the air, and she was skilled at using wit to charm others. With delicate kisses and gentle whistles, she further enhanced her allure…
Inside Zimo Pavilion, a beautiful woman sat alone before a mirror, lost in thought.
Since parting with Li Kuo, Huangfu Yun’s life had not been easy. Logically, her job was to rely on others for support, singing and performing for entertainment, so she shouldn’t feel so melancholic. But ever since she met Li Kuo once, Huangfu Yun was completely captivated.

Her brows arched like crescent moons, her eyes shone like shooting stars. Her nose was like a hanging gallbladder, her teeth like rows of shells. Such a beautiful young man was also a valiant general full of masculinity! Why did all the good things in the world seem to belong to him alone? Was this what was meant by fate?

She was merely a singing girl with slightly better looks—how could she be worthy of such a peerless man? Enough, enough; it was just her own delusions.

Huangfu Yun lazily removed her purple gauze shawl and prepared to get ready for bed. Just then, the wooden door was suddenly pushed open.

“Miss, it’s bad! It’s really bad!”
The maid, Chisu, gasped heavily, speaking urgently, “He’s here, with many men…”

Huangfu Yun frowned. “Who’s here? Who did he bring? Speak slowly; don’t rush.”

Chisu was so anxious that sweat dripped from her forehead as she waved her arms frantically. “Miss, it’s that damned Prince of Gaoyou! He brought many generals into Zimo Pavilion, demanding that you come out to see him.”

“That Prince of Gaoyou is so rude! Where is Mother Sun? Will she just stand by and do nothing?”

At that moment, Huangfu Yun still hoped that the madam, Sun Fangfang, would step in to reject the Prince of Gaoyou. After all, Zimo Pavilion had considerable influence—even a prince couldn’t act recklessly here.

But Chisu said, “I don’t know what’s gotten into this prince today, but he’s radiating murderous intent. How could Mother Sun dare to stop him? Besides, they’re all armed. Even if Mother Sun gave the order, the guards in Zimo Pavilion wouldn’t risk their lives to confront them!”

“What should we do? What can we do…?”

Huangfu Yun bit her lip and paced back and forth in her room.

“Miss, maybe we should run away. You’ve saved quite a bit of silver over the years, enough for us to live on. Let’s leave Zimo Pavilion and start our own lives. We can marry whoever we like, without having to cater to others’ wishes.”

Chisu’s suggestion momentarily moved Huangfu Yun. Ever since she was bought by Sun Fangfang to be trained as the top performer, she had lived in tears. From initial resistance to eventual compromise—what hardships hadn’t she endured, what ups and downs had she faced in this trade over the past seven or eight years?

Now, this Prince of Gaoyou wanted to take away the last thing she still held onto. Could she continue to endure?

But this idea vanished within seconds as she dismissed it herself. Run? With such strict security in Zimo Pavilion, could she even get out? Even if she somehow managed to escape, where could she go?

Though the world was vast, was there still a place for her, Huangfu Yun?

“Never mind. This is our ‘home’; we won’t leave. Go and welcome him in, be polite.” Huangfu Yun said coldly with a stern expression.

“Miss!” Chi Su, the maid, was anxious to see Huangfu Yun yield to impulse and stamped her feet repeatedly to urge her.

“Come here and listen closely,” Huangfu Yun sighed and waved at the young maid.

Chi Su shyly stepped closer to Huangfu Yun, ready to follow her master’s orders.

“Here’s the plan: when he arrives later, I… and then you… do you understand?” Huangfu Yun explained the plan calmly, causing the maid to clap in delight. “Miss, that’s truly brilliant! I thought you’d give in after all.”

“Stop talking. Go and welcome him in.” …

Since being humiliated by Li Kuo, the military commander of Jianghuai, Li Yi had harbored resentment. Later, he turned to his Seventh Prince uncle, hoping to use his influence to deal a proper lesson to this arrogant man. But to his surprise, the Seventh Prince advised him against causing trouble.

How could Li Yi swallow such humiliation? Since you humiliated me in front of Huangfu Yun, I’ll repay you tenfold—I’ll crush your face!

Determined, he ignored the household managers’ warnings and led a group of thugs to force their way into Zimo Pavilion. If you want to protect Huangfu Yun, I’ll just take her by force and turn this situation around—let’s see how you handle it!

With anger in his heart, his attitude was naturally hostile. He kicked over several guards standing in front of Huangfu Yun’s chamber before leading his thugs up to the second floor.

However, the scene that greeted him surprised the Prince of Gaoyou. Dressed in a red brocade robe that trailed on the floor, with her hair styled in a delicate cloud-like bun, adorned with flowers and rouge, Huangfu Yun sat affectionately on the embroidered bed, looking at him shyly.

Hiss!

Even Li Yi, who had grown up surrounded by beauty, couldn’t help but swallow hard at this sight. Previously, Huangfu Yun had always appeared before him as an icy beauty—fair-skinned and graceful, but seemingly distant. Yet now, the woman he longed to possess was dressed up, waiting for him.

Ha! He knew it! How could a prince of the Tang Dynasty be outdone by a mere military commander? Yun was just momentarily confused; now that she saw the truth, she’d surely return to his side.

“Cough, cough!”

Li Yi coughed lightly a few times to hide his embarrassment and waved at Huangfu Yun, saying, “Yun’er, you’re still awake at this late hour. I happened to pass by, so I came to see you.”
Huangfu Yun smiled gracefully and replied, “Your Highness is joking again. How could I sleep without you by my side?”
Although Li Yi felt Huangfu Yun’s attitude had changed too quickly, he didn’t suspect anything and laughed heartily, “Good, then I’ll stay with you. I certainly won’t let you stay alone in your room.”
With that, Li Yi rubbed his hands together and walked toward Huangfu Yun.
It seemed that no matter how much he pursued her, he couldn’t win her heart. But today, by using force, he would make her obey. Ah, women in this world are all so pretentious!
“Yun’er, I’m coming to be with you right away!”
As soon as Li Yi sat down on the embroidered bed, his hands started to touch Huangfu Yun’s chest recklessly. Just as he was about to kiss her and fulfill his long-held desire, he felt a sharp pain at the back of his head and cried out in shock.
“Ah!”
Li Yi’s vision went black, and he fainted instantly.
“Hmph, still trying to take advantage of my lady? Now you’re done!”
The maid Chi Su came up from behind with a jade pillow, casting a disdainful glance at Li Yi, who was lying limp on the ground.
Someone like him deserves to be a prince?
Huangfu Yun let out a sigh of relief. As she wiped the sweat from her forehead and thought about what to do with the unconscious Li Yi, she accidentally saw a letter scattered from his chest.
“Chi Su, give me that letter to take a look.”
“Oh!”
The young maid replied softly and pulled the letter from Li Yi’s chest, handing it to her lady.
Huangfu Yun gently broke the seal and slowly read the letter. At first, her expression remained calm, but when she saw a line of ink, she felt as if struck by lightning, her face turning pale instantly.
Note 1: Tian Chengsi was born into a military family. At the end of the Kaiyuan era, he served in An Lushan’s army. Later, he joined An Lushan’s rebellion against the Tang dynasty. After the rebels were defeated, he surrendered to the Tang army and was appointed as the governor of Wei Bo, becoming one of the three regional warlords in Hebei during the late Tang dynasty.