Chapter 64: Consequences

The fire was not particularly large, merely reducing a single residential courtyard to ashes.

Such fires were hardly uncommon in Mayi.

Yet when news of it reached Li Jing's ears, it carried an entirely different significance.

A trusted confidant sent a confidential message to Li Jing, secretly accusing Wang Yuan, the Military Merit Administrator, and Li Zongfang, the Civil Merit Administrator, of conniving with their families in a property dispute, and reporting that Lu Junda, the brother-in-law of Li Zongfang, had resorted to arson after failing to seize the disputed property.

Li Jing smiled upon hearing this.

It was like being handed a pillow the moment one felt drowsy; he simply had to laugh.

Wang Yuan hailed from the Wang family of Jinyang, a lineage of extraordinarily ancient origins. Very few families in the realm could trace their ancestry back further.

Naturally, what made the Jinyang Wang family illustrious was not merely their antiquity; they were currently a first-tier aristocratic powerhouse in the Jinyang region.

"Descendants of the Yellow Emperor, bearing the surname Wang"—this was said of the contemporary Jinyang Wang clan.

Sharing a common ancestry with the Wangs of Langya in Shandong, they were both clans with histories spanning a millennium.

No matter how turbulent the world might be, the Jinyang Wang lineage remained unbroken, as if they were the true masters of the Jining territory, while everyone else was merely transient guests.

Such deeply rooted and flourishing local tyrants could not be easily shaken. Even if Li Jing were more than just the Vice Administrator of Mayi Commandery, even if he were to become the Prince of Jinyang himself, there was little he could do against them. In the hearts of the people of Jinyang, the Prince of Jinyang could only ever be the Jinyang Wang family; no one else could ever replace them.

A family of refined gentry, a clan of a thousand years—the Jinyang Wang family was well worthy of the title.

Fortunately, Wang Yuan, the Military Merit Administrator of Mayi, was merely a collateral descendant of the Jinyang Wang clan, nothing more than a parasite clinging to the family tree, making him easy to deal with.

Though he occupied the post of Mayi Military Merit Administrator, he was profoundly ignorant of frontier military affairs. In his idleness, he preferred to discuss literature and painting with others, rendering him utterly out of place amidst the rugged folk customs of Mayi.

It was evident that the Jinyang Wang family, much like many ancient and prestigious noble houses, was steeped in the twilight of its glory, still indulging in illusions about the elegance of sages dwelling in forests, yearning for it without end.

One had only to look at the past few years to realize how few of those who held the shifting banners of the northern frontiers truly hailed from such profound and illustrious aristocratic houses.

When the various aristocratic factions of Guanzhong lorded over the realm and looked down upon the heroes of the world, these gentry clans could only lower their heads and bow as subjects, daring to do no more than mutter sour words behind closed doors about how barbarians were unworthy of counsel.

Indeed, in an era where martial might ruled the world, these illustrious Han noble families gradually lost their brilliance, still lingering within the confines of the Nine-Rank Zhongzheng system, entirely oblivious to the fact that the heroes of the realm were all stirring with ambition.

Naturally, Li Jing, whose bad luck had plagued him for over a decade, had no intention of easily crossing such a colossal entity.

However, his nephew, Li Zongfang, the youngest son of Li Duan, was an entirely different matter.

Li Zongfang fit the mold of a proper scion of a Guanzhong aristocratic family.

He possessed physical strength, delighted in archery and horsemanship, enjoyed hunting, cared little for female beauty, but was fond of the contents of the wine cup.

As for competence? Hardly. In Li Jing's eyes, if this nephew were cast out to fend for himself, he would amount to nothing more than a county garrison commander—in other words, a chief bounty hunter.

Now in his early twenties, he sat comfortably in the post of Mayi Civil Merit Administrator, highly pleased with himself.

He had accomplished few matters of consequence, but whenever friends gathered to ride out of the city for leisure, he was always among them. Having lived so carefree up to this point, he had likely long forgotten his father's instructions to keep a watchful eye on his uncle.

This fire had broken out at precisely the right moment, and Li Jing would not show the slightest shred of mercy when dealing with this nephew.

Without even returning to Mayi City, a fast courier delivered a secret missive back and forth, and soon someone else came forward to accuse Li Zongfang, the Mayi Civil Merit Administrator, of forging merit records, planting cronies, gathering mobs for merrymaking, holding a sinecure while eating the state's grain, and utterly neglecting public duties.

This time, Li Jing stood on no ceremony and pushed the matter straight to the Daizhou General's Office.

Having served as an official for many years, he was certainly not lacking in political acumen; he immediately recommended Wang Yuan, the Military Merit Administrator, to take up the post of Mayi Civil Merit Administrator.

Turning around, Li Jing dispatched a messenger to deliver a letter to Wang Yuan, sternly reprimanding him for conniving with his family in the property dispute and for the growing indolence in the Military Merit Office since he assumed office.

Only at the very end did he add a few words of consolation, before mentioning his recommendation of him for the post of Civil Merit Administrator.

This combination of a stern reprimand followed by a sweet reward left Wang Yuan utterly bewildered.

Yet the prospect of the Civil Merit Administrator's post held irresistible temptation for Wang Yuan. Considering himself a literatus, not only did he find his stay in the Military Merit Office exceedingly uncomfortable, but the Civil Merit Office was also the foremost among all government departments. If he could truly secure the position, it would amount to a promotion.

A mixture of shock and joy prompted him to consult with others, after which he first dispatched a letter to the Daizhou General's Office, and then briskly summoned his cousin, subjecting him to a thorough scolding and ordering him to stay obediently within the military camp, forbidden from setting foot inside Mayi City by even half a step without cause.

Consequently, the reply from Yanmen arrived exceptionally fast.

Much like Li Jing years ago, Li Zongfang had not yet recovered his wits before the post of Mayi Civil Merit Administrator had inexplicably slipped through his fingers.

When Li Zongfang had first come to Mayi to serve as an official, Li Jing's elder brother, Li Duan, had written a lengthy letter to his younger brother. The missive had been filled with earnest affection, brimming with fraternal sentiment, and subtly hinted at a desire for Li Jing to personally guide and instruct Li Zongfang.

At the time, words could hardly describe the depression Li Jing felt.

The two brothers had not seen each other for years; did this elder brother really still view him as that ignorant youth who, mindful of fraternal bonds, constantly wrote letters urging his brother to keep away from Shi Wansui?

Forget about taking the nephew as a disciple; merely laying eyes on this nephew filled his heart with revulsion.

Perhaps for Li Duan, who resided safely in the capital, the passing years had been peaceful, and by not pushing his younger brother to absolute ruin, he had fulfilled his fraternal duty to the utmost.

Yet for Li Jing, nearly twenty years of his life—how many soaring ambitions had been steadily worn away? How many times had the flourishing splendor of the capital appeared in his dreams?

Had he been in the capital, given twenty years of time, he might now have been within reach of the position of Supreme Pillar General, and the Li clan would have grown prosperous because of him.

Twenty years! Twenty years! In Li Jing's eyes, his own blood brother had not only severed his path of advancement in officialdom but had also cut off the rise of the Li family. It was truly a misfortune for the house, and Li Duan was undoubtedly the primary culprit behind the Li clan's current state of living under others' roofs and barely clinging to survival.

Now, it was his turn to write a letter to Li Duan.

All the bitterness of the past years surged into his mind at that moment. Yet Li Jing was no longer the spirited youth of yesteryear; he had now reached the age of unperplexed wisdom, an age where he would never act rashly on impulse.

Thus, this lengthy letter bore many similarities to his brother's letter from years past.

After expressing fraternal sentiments, he lamented his own failure to properly discipline his nephew, which had led to his dismissal from office and subjected the young man to the biting winds of the frontier without gain, leaving him too ashamed to face his elder brother. Therefore, he had no choice but to send the nephew back to the capital, leaving him to be personally instructed by his father, and so on.

By this point, the turmoil in Mayi had largely drawn to a close.

The traces left behind in Mayi by Shi Wansui, Li Duan, and their associates were cleaned up one by one by Li Jing. In turn, he drew closer to the Jinyang Wang family, rendering himself unafraid of open blades or hidden arrows from the capital.

The fire set by Li Po had left Li Jing feeling immensely gratified—something Li Po could never have imagined in his wildest dreams.