Chapter 30
Cui Yunshu felt that her heartbeat had finally achieved a strange synchronization with the sound of the abacus beads being turned.
*Smack*
Another profit has been recorded.
*Smack*
Another box of goods has been counted.
*Smack*
We are one step closer to freedom.
The study was filled with the mingled scents of new ink and old books, along with unidentified spices brought back from the South China Sea. She had casually placed them in a corner burner, too lazy to light them, letting out a dry, distant fragrance, carrying the scent of sunshine and the salty sea breeze. This smell brought her peace of mind.
This is her world.
A world comprised of ledgers, numbers, nautical charts, and business plans, absolutely secure, and completely under her control.
The profits brought back by the Kunpeng far exceeded expectations. Every gemstone, every bag of spices, transformed in her eyes into stronger planks, wider sails, and sharper rams. She unfurled a huge nautical chart, her fingers gently tracing its surface, from the coastline of the Great Qin Dynasty, eastward, then southward… The texture beneath her fingertips was rough parchment, yet she felt as if she were touching cool, moist seawater.
Two more times.
No, if she could just have one more successful voyage like this, she could assemble a large enough fleet. Not to transport goods for anyone, not to make money for anyone. Just to carry the entire Cui family, all their gold and silver, all their hopes, to this unknown land that is not yet named on the sea chart, at a time when no one can predict.
Go to a place where there is no emperor, no crown prince, and no that damned book.
She loved this feeling.
A sense of control—the feeling of snatching the threads of fate one by one from others and then weaving them into the shape you desire.
The clamor outside had subsided, the guests celebrating the return of the Kunpeng had long since departed, and the Cui residence had returned to a weary tranquility. But Cui Yunshu knew that this was merely a brief, suffocating calm before the storm. The emperor's reprimand would come sooner or later, and that high and mighty hand would never allow anything to escape its grasp.
She just didn't expect it.
It will happen so quickly.
And in a way she had never imagined—the gentlest, yet the cruelest.
...
The study door was suddenly kicked open.
It wasn't pushed open, it was smashed open.
With an air of panic and despair, like a cold wind, it instantly dispelled the peace and fragrance of spices that filled the room.
It was the butler. He stumbled in, his face pale, his lips trembling, unable to utter a complete sentence.
"Miss...someone has come from the palace..."
Cui Yunshu's heart skipped a beat, like the feeling of misaligned abacus beads. Immediately afterward, a cold, sticky premonition, like a venomous snake, crawled up her spine.
She put down the wolf-hair brush, and the ink smeared on the rice paper, leaving an ugly black dot, like an ominous eye.
She stood up and walked out of the study.
The sky above the entire Cui residence changed color.
Just moments before, there had been only the weariness of the hustle and bustle, but now a heavy, almost crushing silence enveloped everything. All the servants and guards in the mansion stood frozen in place, as if under a spell, their faces showing the same terror and bewilderment.
A group of people were standing in the courtyard.
The leader was a eunuch, pale-faced and beardless, with slanted eyes, holding a roll of bright yellow silk in his hands. The fabric of his clothes was of the finest quality, gleaming dimly in the afternoon sun. The scent he carried, a mixture of precious spices and musty aromas from the palace, domineeringly dispelled all the fragrance of flowers in the courtyard.
The scale of the operation was enormous.
Cui Yunshu's gaze passed over him and fell upon her father, Cui Wen, her mother, Song Shi, and several elders of the clan, all kneeling on the ground.
The father's back was no longer as straight as it used to be; instead, it slumped slightly, like a stone statue eroded by wind and rain for a thousand years. The mother knelt beside him, her body taut like a fully drawn bow, her usually gentle and smiling eyes now filled only with anger and unease.
Cui Yunshu stopped in her tracks.
She didn't step forward, but stood quietly at the back of the crowd, in the shadow of the pillars.
She knew the real drama was about to begin.
The eunuch who delivered the imperial decree cleared his throat, his shrill voice sounding like fingernails scratching glass, piercing the eardrums with pain.
"Imperial edict has arrived! Cui Wen, receive the edict!"
Cui Wen's body trembled violently, and he lowered his head even further.
"Your subject, Cui Wen, receives the imperial decree."
His voice was hoarse, as if it were being forced out of his throat.
The eunuch glanced with satisfaction at the people kneeling on the ground, slowly unrolled the bright yellow silk scroll, and began to read it aloud in a melodious, theatrical tone.
"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees:"
The imperial edict began with nothing new—a blatant compliment.
It is eloquent and full of flowery language, brimming with praise.
The text praises the Cui family's unprecedented voyage, which expanded the Qin Dynasty's maritime territory and enhanced my country's prestige.
They praised the Cui family's merchant ship "Kunpeng" as a vital national asset, sailing against the wind and waves, and making great contributions to the country.
They praised Cui Wen for his effective parenting, commendable loyalty, and exemplary conduct as a subject for all officials...
Cui Yunshu listened to these words with a blank expression, but inwardly she was sneering.
Sugar coating.
The sugar coating is so sweet.
She saw that her father's shoulders seemed to relax slightly, and the anger on her mother's face melted away, turning into confusion.
Only she knew what was wrapped under that sugar coating.
It's arsenic.
It was arsenic, a highly poisonous substance that could have killed the entire Cui family.
really.
After offering praise, the tone of the conversation abruptly changed.
"...However, the seas stretch for thousands of miles, turbulent and unpredictable, with Japanese pirates and sea bandits frequently raiding. I have been working tirelessly day and night, always mindful of this. Although the Cui family has the advantage of merchant ships, fighting alone is not a long-term solution. To strengthen the coastal defenses of my Great Qin and to enhance the prestige of my Celestial Empire, I have decided to establish the 'Royal Shipping Bureau'!"
They've arrived.
Cui Yunshu's pupils suddenly contracted.
The eunuch's voice suddenly rose, carrying an unquestionable air of authority.
"...To govern all maritime transport under Heaven, thus demonstrating the Emperor's boundless grace! The Cui family's 'Kunpeng' and its fleet are all national treasures, and should rightfully be nationalized and managed by the 'Royal Shipping Bureau' to ensure the success of the mission! This is both a sign of reliance and trust! Considering the Cui family's merit in donating the ship, I hereby grant the Cui family the special privilege of retaining 30% of the Shipping Bureau's profits as a reward!"
boom--
Cui Yunshu felt as if something had exploded in her mind.
Not anger, not shock.
It is a pure, physical pain, like being smashed head-on by a boulder.
nationalize.
30% profit.
What a high-sounding reason, what a nonchalant act of plunder!
That wasn't just a ship, it was her life! It was an escape route she built with three years of hard work, countless sleepless nights, countless sums of money, and countless plans!
The emperor, with just a flimsy imperial edict, took it away.
No, it wasn't taken away.
They were "granted" permission to offer it.
They are expected to be grateful and take back only what is rightfully theirs, a pitiful 30%.
This isn't over yet.
The eunuch's shrill voice continued, like a poisoned knife, slowly torturing the nerves of everyone in the Cui family.
"...Cui Wen has educated his son well and is loyal to the emperor and the country, which greatly pleases me. I hereby bestow upon Cui Wen the title of Honorary Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, with the salary of a third-rank official, and assign him the exclusive responsibility of supervising the construction of the Imperial Western Garden. I hope that you will diligently perform your duties and share my burdens. This is my decree!"
Honorary Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.
Supervised the construction of the royal gardens.
A nominal position with no real power, where one could only stay in the capital and accompany the emperor in building the garden.
Cui Yunshu smiled.
Inside, I was laughing so hard I almost cried.
ruthless.
That's fucking ruthless.
Cut off their source of income by removing their financial resources.
A bird in a golden cage is deprived of its freedom.
This imperial edict was neither a reward nor a warning.
This is murder.
Use the sweetest knife to slay the most desperate heart.
"Minister Cui, shall we receive the imperial decree?"
The eunuch closed the imperial edict, looked down at Cui Wen, and a hypocritical and arrogant smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
The entire main hall of the Cui residence fell into a deathly silence.
You could hear a pin drop.
Cui Yunshu could clearly hear her heart, which was no longer in sync with the abacus beads, beating wildly and erratically inside her chest.
She saw her father, Cui Wen, slowly raise his head. His once well-preserved face was now devoid of color, ashen and pale as dried tree bark. His lips moved, but no sound came out. The weariness and regret in his eyes had been swallowed up by a vast, overwhelming despair.
She saw her mother, Madam Song, trembling all over. Not from fear, but from extreme rage. Her nails dug deeply into her palms, her eyes fixed on the eunuch delivering the imperial decree, like a mother beast poised to pounce and tear the enemy's throat.
To receive the imperial decree?
How do I connect?
Accepting the offer would mean handing over the fleet—the result of generations of effort by the Cui family and now Cui Yunshu's only means of survival—to someone else. It would mean her father would be completely sidelined, trapped and dying in the glamorous cage of the capital. It would mean the Cui family would henceforth be nothing more than meat on the emperor's chopping block, to be cut and chopped at his whim.
Disobeying the imperial decree?
That's even simpler.
The crime of treason warrants the execution of the entire family.
This is a dead end.
A dead end woven with imperial power, so seamless that you have no room to struggle.
There was no way to retreat.
There is no way to avoid it.
Standing in the shadow of the pillars, Cui Yunshu felt as if the blood in her body had frozen instantly. The afternoon sun was clearly warm, but when it shone on her, she felt no warmth at all.
She finally understood.
What the emperor wanted was never a fleet of ships or rare treasures from overseas.
What he wanted was for the Cui family to submit. And for Cui Yunshu to submit.
He had long seen through all her little tricks, and he saw through her heart, which was unwilling to be imprisoned. He was like a hunter on high above, watching with great interest as she, the canary, jumped and leaped in the cage, trying to peck open the door.
He watched her accumulate wealth, watched her build connections, watched her think she was getting closer and closer to freedom.
Then, just when she thought she had the victory in her grasp, he casually issued this ultimatum.
He didn't intend to kill her.
He wanted to tell her: Your life, your freedom, everything you have, are in my hands. I want to give them to you so you can have them. If I don't want to, you don't even have the right to dream.
I'm too lazy to think about it.
All plans and preparations are a joke in the face of absolute power.
The eunuch grew impatient, his smile fading, and a chill crept into his voice: "Minister Cui? His Majesty is waiting for you to express your gratitude."
Cui Wen's body jolted again, as if he had been jolted awake from a nightmare. Slowly, in an almost convulsive posture, he stretched out his trembling hands.
At that moment, Cui Yunshu's fingernails dug deeply into her palm.
The sharp pain instantly brought her back to her senses.
No.
We can't just accept it like that.
If you don't even have the thought of resisting, then you're truly dead.
She looked at her father's hands, which were about to receive the imperial edict, at her mother's fiery eyes, and at the smug face of the eunuch.
A cold, destructive flame suddenly surged up from the deepest part of her heart.
That wasn't the docility he usually feigned, nor the calmness he displayed while calculating.
It's a primal, animalistic instinct that arises when someone is driven to the brink of despair.
Do you want to lock me back in the cage?
You want me to accept my fate?
You think that's the end of it?
Cui Yunshu stood in the shadows, her face still expressionless, but a terrifying, cold light shone in her dark eyes.
She looked at the bright yellow imperial edict as if it were an inanimate object.
The game isn't over yet.
You've set up your game, so, what's next...?
It's my turn to make a move.
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