Chapter Sixteen: A Candlelit Night Conversation
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Yun Qi arrived at the study door and saw that there was still a bright light inside, knowing that Yang Ziting was still waiting for him. Standing outside the door, he took a deep breath, now more sober, and knocked on the door first, shouting: "Master, I'm here."
"Come in." A somewhat deep voice came from inside, Yang Ziting's.
Pushing open the door, Yun Qi walked in and saw Yang Ziting holding a book scroll in his hand, but his eyes were looking at him, with a somewhat intriguing gaze. He asked cautiously: "Sir, are you looking for me?"
"Please sit down." Yang Ziting pointed to a chair beside him.
After Yun Qi sat down, Yang Ziting slowly opened his mouth and said: "What did the Crown Prince say to you when you entered the palace today?"
Yun Qi thought for a moment, looking into Yang Ziting's eyes, and felt that it was better to tell the truth, so he said straightforwardly: "The Crown Prince has granted me an official position."
Yang Ziting suddenly spoke in a serious tone: "Tell me about it in detail."
"Yes!"
Yun Qi detected a hint of urgency in Yang Ziting's tone and thought to himself that as the current book boy of the Yang Manor, he should inform his master Yang Ziting about being awarded an official title. With this in mind, Yun Qi began to recount from the beginning: "Early today, I went to the Crown Prince's East Palace... afterwards, the Crown Prince insisted on keeping me for a meal."
When Yun Qi was narrating, Yang Ziting listened quietly without making a sound. Yun Qi also detailed the matter of the crown prince's appointment, but concealed the matter of the crossbow, although he knew that Yang Ziting would eventually find out that the crossbow was his invention. He didn't want to reveal everything at this time, lest the old man, with his poor health and heart condition, get overexcited and pass away suddenly.
After a long time...
Yang Ziting didn't speak for half a day, seemingly still immersed in the words Yun Qi had spoken earlier. It wasn't until after a while that he said: "Hmph... I didn't expect that our household would produce such a talented individual, Yun Qi... these past few days... having you serve as a book boy for Zi Lu... is somewhat an insult to your abilities."
Yun Qi detected the sarcasm in Yang Ziting's words and saw that his face looked somewhat unpleasant, so he cautiously said: "Master, Yun Qi has never thought of it this way."
"It doesn't matter whether you want to or not, now that the Crown Prince has appointed you to office. I don't have any other intentions, but do you know that the dangers of officialdom are not something ordinary people can imagine? The waters here are very deep, and if one is not careful, losing one's official position is a small matter, but losing one's life is also possible. Han Xueyan's father was wrongly killed at home after offending the current Prime Minister, I suppose you know this too."
Originally, Yang Ziting meant this, but Yun Qi felt that he was a bit too serious. Being an official is not easy in Yun Qi's original world, and it was already known that every day, the news would report on how much money some corrupt official had embezzled before being thrown into prison, and tomorrow another bureau chief would be exposed for having multiple mistresses. But Yun Qi's position was just a humble hundred-man commander, without even a rank, so why would anyone bother to harm him, a small-time official?
Looking at Yun Qi's fearless expression, Yang Ziting knew what he was thinking and coldly snorted: "Do you think that a mere hundred-man commander would not do as I said? Judging from your expression, I can tell what you're thinking."
Yun Qi's innermost thoughts were exposed, and he chuckled awkwardly for a moment.
Yang Ziting continued: "The prince's identity is something you should be more aware of than I am. Although you are now a hundred-man commander, you are the red man by the side of the crown prince, and your troops are also the direct subordinates of the Eastern Forbidden Guard under the crown prince. Although the Eastern Forbidden Guard has only about 2,000 people, they are all the confidants of the crown prince. If the crown prince points to someone, the entire Eastern Forbidden Guard will definitely use their full strength to respond. It can be said that this Eastern Forbidden Guard is one of the few special troops in the Southern Country's military department. You are in their camp and also a person who came out from my Yang Mansion, so you will naturally attract attention from others. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Yun Qi never thought of this step, but now that the old man has said it out loud, he feels that it's also true. In the officialdom, there are opportunities for officials, and even a small official like him has a hundred or so people under his command. However, thinking back, since coming to this world, he had never had any desire to fight for power or position. He only agreed to lead the troops with the prince because he saw that the Shu army was about to march south to attack the Southern Kingdom, and also because of a deep-seated military sentiment in his heart. Once the crisis in the Southern Kingdom is resolved, he will resign from office.
After Daisuke told Yang Ziting what he thought in his heart, Yang Ziting didn't say much either. He just said one sentence "Take care of yourself". After Daisuke left the study, Yang Ziting looked at the empty and quiet courtyard outside the door and let out a long sigh.
The second day...
Yun Qi was idle and had nothing to do, so he simply stayed in the mansion. Yang Ziting went to the palace early in the morning and only returned at noon. He called Yun Qi over and told him that he would be returning to the South soon, but for now, this house in Huadu would be left to Yun Qi to temporarily reside in. Yang Ziting also took the opportunity to pass on a message to the Crown Prince, roughly saying that he should go to the East Forbidden Guard tomorrow to take up his post, and everything was already prepared.
Yun Qi felt that Yang Ziting was really good to him from the bottom of his heart. According to his original thoughts, those old masters in ancient times were all selfish and never had a good face for their subordinates, calling them over with a wave of their hand and dismissing them with another wave. However, when he truly entered this era and arrived at the Yang residence, everything about the treatment he received was not as he had imagined. Young Master Yang Wenguang never put on airs around him, and Yang Wenxin, Madame Yang, and others were all very concerned about him. Thinking of this, Yun Qi, who had no relatives or friends in this world, felt a little moisture in his eyes.
At this time, Yang Ziting took out the cigarettes he had obtained from Yunqi some days ago and handed them to Yunqi, saying: "You are new to officialdom and also hold a military position, so you must have more hardships. These things that relieve fatigue were given to me by you that day, now I return them to you, if in the future you feel tired and want to relieve it."
"Old master......this......" Yun Qi felt embarrassed to receive it.
Yang Ziting, however, insisted that Yun Qi take it: "I'm letting you have it, so just take it. Remember, you were originally a member of the Yang family, and no matter what happens in the future, you will always be a member of my Yang family." After finishing speaking, he turned around and walked out of the house, starting to instruct the servants to make arrangements for Yun Qi's return to Cinnabar South.
Yang Ziting's words were full of meaning, and Yun Qi felt a warmth in his heart. He knew that Yang Ziting was telling him that the gates of the Yang mansion would always be open to him. Sincerely, he said thank you from the bottom of his heart, and also joined in helping with the things Yang Ziting needed on his busy journey.
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(This chapter is a major turning point, Old Mo had a hard time writing it and revised it many times. It's not written well, please don't blame me.)
