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Wang Yun pondered the matter, and his gaze suddenly fell upon Fei Qian once more. A flash of inspiration seemed to ignite in his mind, and a new idea took shape. He said, "As for the two requests of Yu Fuluo, after the Grand Sacrifice, I shall petition for an imperial decree, appointing the Palace Counsellor Cai Yong as an envoy to formally invest him as Chanyu."
Was it not a formal investiture they wanted? Was it not a great Confucian scholar they wished to hear lecture on the classics? By sending Palace Counsellor Cai Yong, both desires could be perfectly satisfied at once! What was more, if Cai Yong was made to travel the route through Hedong, Fei Qian would necessarily be forced to exert his utmost to guarantee the success of the plan to block Budugen's Xianbei from advancing south. After all, the first person to be directly affected by any failure would be Cai Yong himself!
Not only that, this opportunity could also be used to openly transfer Cai Yong out of the capital, keeping him far removed from the court. Although Cai Yong had never shown himself to be particularly zealous about participating in political deliberations, he was, after all, still a member of the Shandong gentry. If he were to leverage the immense prestige of his Xiping Stone Classics and openly oppose Wang Yun's agenda, it would be decidedly troublesome.
At present, it was simply better for this court to speak with a purer, more singular voice...
Wang Yun very nearly applauded himself for this stroke of brilliance that had suddenly sprung into his mind. It was a scheme that killed several birds with one stone—truly an inspired masterstroke!
"My teacher is advanced in years... Your Excellency... this..." Fei Qian appeared stunned for a long moment before he managed a dry, halting protest.
"Ziyuan need not worry over this matter. This old man will certainly weigh the considerations carefully..." Wang Yun waved his hand dismissively. "...There are still some supplies and equipment in the imperial armory. I shall also allocate those to you. It is just that..."
Wang Yun's voice turned stern and severe as he said, "Matters of military and state must be handled with the utmost secrecy. Without the court's permission, you must not speak a word of this! Ziyuan, you may proceed according to plan... But if the Xianbei are allowed to break into Hedong, you alone will be held accountable!" This was Wang Yun's bottom line. If the frontier commanderies were ravaged, so be it. But Hedong, that grain-producing region, absolutely could not suffer invasion. His words were thus spoken with harsh finality.
"This humble official... obeys!" Fei Qian cupped his hands with an air of resignation. "I take my leave..."
Wang Yun lifted his chin, signaling that Fei Qian was dismissed. As he watched Fei Qian's departing figure, he gave a soft, contemptuous snort. Then, he turned all his thoughts back to the Grand Sacrifice...
In any event, if Fei Qian proved incompetent, then as a last resort, he could always issue a pardon to the Xiliang officers, with the condition being...
That way, everything would be assured!
Having been sleepless the entire night, Wang Yun rubbed his throbbing, aching head and ordered the servants to prepare some food. Then, reclining against the bosom of a beautiful maidservant, he surrendered himself to the gentle massage of several pairs of soft, white hands. Only then did his weary body and mind find a modicum of relief...
Wang Yun summoned one of his personal guards and gave an order. Then he had someone fetch a brush and paper, wrote a few lines, and told him to deliver the note to the Imperial Secretariat. He further commanded, "Dispatch a few men to keep watch on Fei Qian, Fei Ziyuan. Report any and all of his movements immediately!"
"At your command!" The guard accepted the order and withdrew. Only then did Wang Yun close his eyes in peace, sinking into a fitful, shallow rest...
×××××××××××××××
By the time Fei Qian emerged from the residence of the Minister Over the Masses, daybreak was already approaching.
Fei Qian let out a long, deep breath. He, too, was exhausted to the bone, but at last, his objective had been achieved.
Fei Qian stood still, allowing a trusted personal guard to drape a red cloak over his shoulders. Then, grasping his horse's reins and stepping into the stirrup, he swung himself up into the saddle. Flanked by his guards, he began to ride slowly down the main thoroughfare.
He cast a sidelong glance at the gently swaying lanterns hanging on either side of the Minister's gate, each bearing the character for "Wang." The corner of his mouth curled upward ever so slightly.
This was how certain matters worked. Push too hard, and you might achieve the opposite of what you intended. But if it became the other person's own choice, well...
It was like two cavalrymen charging at each other. One might brandish a great blade and deliver a single, earth-shattering, mountain-splitting blow, cleaving both man and horse into four pieces. Such an act was tremendously morale-boosting, heart-stirring, and eye-catching. Yet, by merely holding a long spear at an angle, setting its posture correctly, and waiting along the opponent's inevitable path for their throat to meet the spearhead, one could achieve the exact same lethal effect.
It was simply not flashy, nor particularly pleasing to the eye.
If one takes the offensive, raising the great blade high, then the area from the chest down to the abdomen is inevitably exposed with many openings. But now, all such openings were concealed and covered by the opponent's own words and deeds...
The only moment of genuine surprise came right at the end, when Wang Yun suddenly spoke Cai Yong's name. Fei Qian had felt like he might need to expend more effort on that point, but instead, it was as if the solution had simply been delivered right to his doorstep.
And it wasn't just Wang Yun. Most people in the court at present probably had no idea that Fei Qian's network of connections was no longer limited to a single commandery or county, but now spanned the greater part of the entire northern frontier—from Xihe to Hedong, from Shangjun to Shangdang!
Who would willingly stand against the flow of wealth and coin?
Thank the heavens for the Han Dynasty's backward communications and primitive bureaucratic documentation system. It was riddled with loopholes, and in Fei Qian's eyes, it was about as tight as a sieve...
Ah, but still, his own methods had involved a certain lack of forthrightness...
Fei Qian reined his horse to a halt in the middle of the street and pondered for a moment. Then, he turned his mount and headed for the northern gate. It was best not to inform his teacher, Cai Yong. He had to guard against the possibility that, upon learning the details, some slip in manner or speech might reveal something. Exposure at this stage would be disastrous.
Judging by the current situation, his teacher Cai Yong's safety should no longer be an issue.
In the annals of history, a simple, plaintive sigh could be twisted into a criminal charge—a blatant case of cooking up an accusation. But now, since they needed Cai Yong's services, Wang Yun would likely pretend to be deaf even if the old man sighed three or five times over...
Heh.
Wang Yun fancied that he was using Cai Yong as a hostage to guarantee that Fei Qian would truly undertake that near-suicidal, nine-in-ten-chance-of-death mission. But in reality, as long as his own actions in this direction remained undetected by Wang Yun, they would instead transform into a protective umbrella for Cai Yong.
There were not many people about in the early morning, so Fei Qian's party encountered no obstruction. They rode directly to the northern gate and waited there to one side for it to be opened.
Next, he would lead his troops northward...
After the Grand Sacrifice, his teacher Cai Yong, bearing the imperial credentials for the investiture, would travel the Hedong route...
Then, he would send someone to fetch Cai Yan, using the pretext that with Cai Yong far from the capital, it was inconvenient for her to remain alone in the residence, and that she wished to return to her hometown...
Then, the great task would be fully accomplished.
And with Wang Yun's dazzling reputation as a shield, with the auspicious omen as a topic of excited chatter from court to common folk, and with the prickly, in-your-face problems of the Xiliang and Shandong troops...
Beneath such fiercely churning and swift currents, who would still have the spare attention to notice this one small ripple that he himself had stirred up?
As for the intelligence on the Xianbei, Wang Yun was certain to delay its release for as long as possible. He would not lightly disclose it before the very last moment and create trouble for himself, or throw obstacles into his own path of controlling the court.
Of course, in Wang Yun's mind, if things truly reached a point where the news had to be announced to the world, then Fei Qian would be the perfect scapegoat. Dismissal from office and stripping of rank would be the lightest of punishments!
At last, the appointed hour arrived.
The gates of Chang'an slowly creaked and groaned as they swung open...
Fei Qian turned his head for one final look at the Weiyang Palace, its form faintly visible and half-hidden in the morning mist. He was silent for a moment, then turned back and gave the order: "Move out." With those words, he spurred his horse forward and took the lead.
The clatter of iron horseshoes striking the grey flagstones shattered the stillness of the autumn dawn breeze and sent the red of Fei Qian's greatcloak rippling and billowing behind him, like a bright crimson banner unfurling, or like waves surging upon a sea of blood.