Chapter Thirty-Four: The Non-Dualistic Method

In the study of the Yongzhou villa, Huairou stared blankly at a stack of letters. She had maintained correspondence with Yunji, vividly describing the customs and culture of the northern border, the progress of the trade, and even the rare stones and wildflowers he had acquired, all to let her "son" far away feel her concern and support. However, ever since the shocking emptiness of the Yongzhou granary was discovered, a sense of powerlessness had haunted her. Even with evidence proving that Yongzhou's grain reserves should have been sufficient, she still couldn't directly clear Yunji of the stigma of "embezzlement."

She had considered going directly to the royal hunting grounds to count the number of cattle and sheep. But what would that do? The livestock in the hunting grounds included newly acquired animals from Yunji's recent trade, old livestock that had been raised by the royal family, animals that had been transferred for military supplies or allocated for disaster relief, animals that had died or been injured due to normal losses, and even animals that might have ended up in the markets… With such a massive volume of transactions, every link could be manipulated, not to mention the accounts obtained through various connections, which were a confusing mess of truth and falsehood. Trying to use such a muddled account to deduce the actual number of cattle and sheep Yunji had added in the grassland trade, and thus prove his innocence, was simply unconvincing and unlikely to gain the trust of the watchful officials in the court.

Thinking of how Yunji might have poured his heart and soul into the Northern Frontier, yet had to bear such an unjust accusation, and how she seemed powerless to help, Huairou felt a familiar, throbbing pain in her chest, as if an invisible hand had gripped her heart. Her face paled slightly, and she silently got up, locking herself in her room. The depression and anxiety that had accumulated over the past few days almost overwhelmed her.

The Emperor keenly sensed Huairou's dejection. She was no longer as lively as she had been a few days ago, and the unique sparkle in her eyes had dimmed considerably. Without making a sound, he declined several less important official duties that afternoon, went to her door, and gently knocked.

“Huairou, Yongzhou has a lantern festival today, and the market is quite lively. Would you like to come for a walk with me?” His voice came through the door, gentle yet firm, carrying a calming power.

A moment of silence fell over the room, then the door creaked open. Huairou stood inside, her face still somewhat pale, but her eyes had regained some clarity. She looked at Jiancheng, tall and elegant, standing outside. Today he wore a more ordinary indigo robe, which made him appear less imposing and more like a composed scholar. She nodded and said softly, "Okay."

The two left the villa side by side and quickly blended into the bustling city of Yongzhou.

Just as Jiancheng had predicted, today was the local traditional Lantern Festival. Even before dusk had fully fallen, the long street was already ablaze with lights, a dazzling display of various lanterns illuminating the street as bright as day. The shouts of vendors, the laughter of children, the drumming of street performers, and the aromas of various snacks filled the air, creating a vibrant and lively scene. The crowds were dense, shoulder to shoulder, as if the entire city had flocked to the street.

Huairou initially kept a cautious half-step distance from Jiancheng, but she was soon jostled by the surging crowd. Just as she was about to be bumped by a burly man carrying a candied hawthorn stand, a warm and strong hand firmly grasped her wrist, then slid down, firmly enveloping her slightly cool fingertips.

"Stay close to me." Jian Cheng's deep voice rang in her ear, leaving no room for argument.

Huairou's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively tried to pull her hand away, but the force was just right—enough to prevent her from breaking free without hurting her. He held her hand, nimbly weaving through the crowd, using his tall frame to shield her from the jostling and bumping. His back was like a steadfast rock in a turbulent river before her eyes. The surroundings were filled with the clamor of voices and dazzling lights, but holding his hand tightly, feeling the dry warmth of his palm, the slight panic in Huairou's heart caused by the crowd strangely subsided. A long-lost sense of security, a feeling of being carefully protected, welled up within her, and even… a secret joy, one she herself didn't want to delve into, quietly spread through her heart.

As a dragon dance troupe passed by, the crowd grew increasingly crowded and restless. Jiancheng looked around and his gaze settled on a rather elegant restaurant built by the river on the side of the street. He gently pulled her closer to his side and whispered, "It's too crowded here. Let's go upstairs for a meal and enjoy the view from the railing."

Huairou looked up at the restaurant's signboard, then at Jiancheng, who was holding her hand, and nodded obediently. That fleeting intimacy was like a pebble thrown into a lake, rippling outwards.

The elegant seats by the window on the second floor of the restaurant offer a perfect view of the brightly lit street scene below and the lotus lanterns floating on the river, while also isolating the view from most of the noise.

Jiancheng seemed to have a good understanding of Huairou's cuisine, as the dishes he ordered were all light and delicious, including a purslane soup, a Jiangnan-style dish she had mentioned casually a few days ago. He personally served her the food and poured her warm tea, his movements natural and fluid, without the slightest hint of condescension, only a perfectly appropriate and comforting warmth.

“Huairou,” he put down the teapot, his gaze gently falling on her face, his voice very soft, “What…do you want to do in the future?”

This question came somewhat suddenly. Huairou's hand, holding the chopsticks, paused slightly. She had never seriously considered this question before. All along, the meaning of her life seemed to revolve around Yunji: ensuring his safety, assisting his growth, and witnessing his strength. Whether as Ji Moli or as Guo Huairou, in one life-changing event after another, and in the transformation of her identity, she seemed to have never truly taken the initiative.

When she was Ji Moli, she didn't have a distinguished background or stunning looks, nor the power to achieve instant fame and defy fate, nor the charisma to navigate the complexities of society. She never even considered using marriage to achieve upward social mobility. She simply met a similarly lonely soul, married the orphan who was her only support, and gave him the meager warmth she possessed. Married life was uneventful, neither particularly good nor bad. She resignedly accepted her "ordinary" life amidst the daily grind and midlife crisis. Until her son's sudden death shattered all her remaining hopes for the future.

"What do I want to do..." Huairou murmured, repeating the question, a bitter smile playing on her lips. For Ji Moli, this was a dream too luxurious to ever be realized. She paused for a moment, as if sorting through thoughts spanning two lifetimes, finally raising her head, her gaze distant yet carrying a rare seriousness:

"If I could live my life again, I would want to be a doctor, to heal the sick and save lives, at least... to protect those I want to protect." She thought of Yuan Ya, of Yun Ji's frostbitten feet, and of her son.

“If fate could be a little better, I would like to open a school, to educate all without discrimination, so that more children, regardless of age or gender, can read and understand principles, and have the possibility of choosing their own lives.” She thought of the school in the North, the seed she had sown through Yunji.

“Maybe… with a little more effort,” her voice was even softer, but carried an almost imperceptible persistence, “I want to do something that truly has a positive impact on society and on others.”

After speaking, she fell silent. The noise outside the window seemed to be shut out, and only the crackling of the candlelight remained in the private room. She suddenly realized that not only in this era, but also in her own time, how could a middle-aged woman refresh her resume and regain social acceptance? Her words might sound like unrealistic fantasies to others. She lowered her eyelashes in annoyance and quickly added, with a hint of self-deprecation and concealment: "Jiancheng, you mustn't laugh at me. Wanting to do something and being able to do it are two different things."

The emperor gazed at her quietly, his face showing no sign of disdain or indifference. Instead, a gentle, almost indulgent light shone in his deep eyes. He placed a piece of her favorite stir-fried vegetables into her bowl, his voice low and warm:

“The world is in ruins,” he paused, looking at her slightly widened eyes, and slowly continued, “Huairou is all about mending and patching. If there is anything I can do to help in the future, please, little tailor… just ask.”

"The world is broken and tattered, Huairou mends and patches it up..." Huairou repeated the phrase in a daze, a huge surge of warmth unexpectedly breaking down the dam of her heart. She had never heard anyone describe her like this, affirming her seemingly unrealistic "delusions." She was amused, but her eyes welled up with tears, an indescribable joy and emotion filling her heart. It felt so good to be understood and valued. Before, Yunji was the first person to unconditionally trust her and need her, but Jiancheng was the first person to so solemnly affirm her worth.

The emperor had seen too many beauties in the world, too many noblewomen of high birth and possessing both virtue and talent. Like exquisitely crafted jade, they held the stakes of marriage, calculating the maximum benefit they and their families could gain amidst their charming smiles and poetic recitations. They might be proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, their embroidery and needlework exquisite, some even possessing horsemanship, archery, and swordsmanship skills comparable to men, and able to recite classical texts fluently. However, no matter how radiant their outward appearances, at their core was a cold, calculating weighing of interests. For themselves, for their descendants, for their families… this was the unspoken, unspoken pattern of their interactions.

Huairou, however, is like an alien. She is gentle as water, yet her emotions are as clear as a child's, always adhering to the principle of "loving what I love." She does not depend on any power, but instead repairs this "broken and shabby" world in a unique way.

Jiancheng decided to say something to Huairou to guide her out of her current confusion. He put down his chopsticks, turned his gaze to the bustling crowd outside the window, and spoke in a calm yet magnetic voice:

“Huairou, look at the crowds outside the window, like a swarm of locusts crossing a river. They seem chaotic and bustling, but their purposes, in essence, are nothing more than a few.” He pointed, “Look at the merchants hurrying along, for profit; those couples holding hands, for love; those elderly people praying for peace; those children playing, for joy. Don’t just stand at the bridgehead counting people, and don’t just stand at the city gate observing the movements. You need to learn to think about a person’s identity, their position, where they come from, and where they are going. Every action they take carries their original cause and effect and their initial purpose.”

Huairou followed his gaze and nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Jiancheng continued, steer the conversation to its core: "Yunji's problem is that while he has a pure heart, he lacks the wariness to guard against others, making him easily manipulated. In the future, if he were to handle crucial matters such as transporting grain or handing over supplies, he could send absolutely trusted confidants to personally inspect the quality and verify the quantity, creating independent records and evidence. This would greatly reduce the possibility of him being framed later. Going further afield, as a prince, even if he doesn't want to compete, he must always be wary of potential open and covert attacks from those around him, especially... from his brothers."

These words were quite blunt. Huairou's eyes sharpened upon hearing this, and her expression became extremely serious.

“And your problem, Huairou,” Jiancheng’s gaze returned to her face, scrutinizing and guiding, “lies in the fact that when investigating problems, you pay too much attention to the superficial ‘techniques,’ such as counting numbers and checking accounts, but neglect the inner ‘principle.’”

"The Dao?" Huairou asked softly.

“Yongzhou is the territory that Prime Minister Lu’s elder brother, Lu Lian, has managed for many years. Even Lu Binghui, if he were here, would have to respectfully address him as Uncle. The city’s defenses, the storage and transportation of supplies and grain, and the water and land transportation hubs are all firmly controlled by the brothers and nephews of the Lu family.” Jiancheng’s tone became serious. “Such a huge amount of grain, with such a major oversight in the transportation and storage process, it’s impossible that they, as the actual controllers, were unaware of it. Therefore, the only explanation is that this considerable amount of grain has been used for other purposes.”

He paused briefly, allowing Huairou to process this information, before continuing his analysis: "Deliberately raising grain prices is merely a pretext to incite public resentment under the guise of the floods, cleverly shifting the blame to the northern trade thousands of miles away, and pinning the responsibility on Yunji. In the past two weeks, I have personally visited the riverbank multiple times to investigate the so-called water conservancy renovation project. I have seen large numbers of laborers and craftsmen seemingly busy, sweating profusely, but I have not seen any truly groundbreaking measures that can permanently eliminate the floods. You should know that the funds allocated by the court for flood control this time are by no means small."

A sudden thought flashed through Huairou's mind, as if a thin mist had been blown away. She blurted out, continuing Jiancheng's unfinished words: "So, they never really intended to control the floods! They were just putting on a show for the local people and the imperial court, pretending to work hard to provide disaster relief, while in reality allowing the floods to persist intermittently, and perhaps even... deliberately creating or condoning certain dangerous situations, so that 'disaster relief' could become a continuous excuse to reap huge profits, and even... cover up other, bigger schemes!"

"A promising young woman!" Jian Cheng's eyes flashed with admiration, and he lightly tapped his fingers on the table, making a crisp sound. Looking at the woman before him, whose eyes had suddenly brightened and whose understanding had vanished, he felt a surge of satisfaction. But he quickly composed himself, regaining some of the reserve and caution befitting a "secret envoy of the imperial court," and gently yet firmly drew a line: "However, I am, after all, here on a secret mission. Many things require evidence. I will leave it at that; the remaining clues and investigations will be up to you to discover and verify."

Huairou felt a sudden sense of clarity; her previously blocked thoughts instantly cleared. Looking at Jiancheng, she was filled with indescribable admiration and gratitude. He had not only given her a sense of calm during her panic, but also acted as a wise mentor when she was lost, clearing away the fog and pointing her in the right direction. This feeling of being guided, protected, and enlightened filled her with immense peace and strength.

She tried hard to maintain a calm demeanor, concealing the surging excitement within, when in reality she wished she could immediately transform into his little follower and respectfully call out:

"Master, please accept my bow!"

This thought lingered in her mind, and when she looked at Jiancheng, in addition to the original closeness and trust, there was a greater sense of heartfelt, almost worshipful dependence. She thought to herself, "Having skills but no principles is limited to skills, but having principles but no skills can still be pursued."