Chapter Seventy-Four: The Courier Inn

After Mu Changfeng departed, Kong Sheng began to pack his belongings. In truth, he possessed little—apart from a few changes of clothing, there was only the Broken Barbarian Sword gifted to him by Yang Xueruo and the official imperial edict of his appointment.

By afternoon, Yang Kuan, the chief steward of the Yang household, personally arrived, bringing with him two robust household servants in their thirties as well as ten thousand coins for travel expenses. Grateful for Yang Qi’s generosity, Kong Sheng accepted only the money, politely declining the two servants.

To take in Yang’s men would be tantamount to allowing Yang Qi to plant two spies at his side. How could Kong Sheng agree to such a thing?

Not long after, Hong Mian arrived bearing a handwritten letter from Yang Xueruo and Tian’er. When Kong Sheng learned that Yang Xueruo wished for Tian’er to accompany him as a personal maid to attend to his daily needs, he was somewhat taken aback. Though he sensed the tenderness and thoughtfulness of his beloved, he still shook his head and declined.

At dawn the next day, he would leave Jiangnan, traveling day and night—determined to reach Suiyang and assume his post in the shortest time possible, ready to face the coming storm. The journey ahead was fraught with peril and distance, and it would be inconvenient and unsafe to bring along a frail girl like Tian’er.

Yet, considering Yang Xueruo’s enduring affection, Kong Sheng could not bear to refuse her entirely. So he made an agreement with Tian’er—he would go to Suiyang first to settle in, and once he was established, he would send for her.

Hong Mian also arranged with Kong Sheng to meet outside the east city gate at the hour of chen the next morning, as Yang Xueruo wished to personally see her lover off.

With his luggage ready, Kong Sheng turned his thoughts to a delicate question: should he call on the grand eunuch Li Fuguo, who was presently at the courier station, gleefully receiving gifts and properties, to take his leave?

Kong Sheng had nothing but contempt for Li Fuguo, who would one day bring calamity to the nation and plunge the court into chaos. If given the chance, he would eliminate him without hesitation for the good of the realm. But for now, it was unwise to provoke this powerful eunuch.

History recorded Li Fuguo as sinister and ruthless, wild in conduct, narrow-minded, and extremely vengeful. He had come as the emperor’s envoy to Jiangnan; if Kong Sheng left without bidding farewell, perhaps Li Fuguo would not notice, but should he arouse the eunuch’s suspicion, the consequences could be dire.

A true man must act with flexibility and adaptability; only then can he find a way forward. To accomplish great things, one cannot be constrained by minor details—at least for now, it was not the time to cross Li Fuguo. Besides, as a minor county magistrate not yet even in office, what could he use to contend with an imperial favorite?

At three quarters past noon, Kong Sheng slipped quietly out and went to the government-run money exchange near the inn. Using his credentials, he obtained two drafts, each for one hundred strings of cash, totaling two hundred strings. He had previously sold his ancestral home to the Yang family for three hundred strings, and after recent expenses, he had spent about a hundred—this was nearly all he possessed.

Copper coins were heavy, and travelers or merchants could not possibly carry large sums with them. Decades earlier, official or semi-official institutions similar to modern banks had already emerged, providing remittance services. In a few years, this business would become even more sophisticated and would be known as “flying money.”

Without hesitation, Kong Sheng tucked the two drafts close to his chest and hurried straight to the courier station. The place was heavily guarded, with soldiers openly and covertly stationed there by Yang Qi. After all, Li Fuguo was the emperor’s envoy—should anything happen to him in Jiangning, Yang Qi would face accusations of treason.

Of course, for Yang Qi, this was also a form of surveillance. In Jiangnan, no one could escape Yang Qi’s secret control.

Standing outside the station, Kong Sheng glanced around and saw, besides the visible guards, many hidden sentries. He sighed inwardly.

He knew Yang Qi was still waiting to see how things would play out. As for the imperial order for him to lead the Jiangnan army across the river to support Guo Ziyi in suppressing the rebellion, he would certainly feign compliance while delaying troop movements under the pretense of reorganizing and gathering supplies.

If the Tang court prevailed, Yang Qi would be compelled to add his troops to the victory; if the opposite happened and the court was defeated by An Lushan’s rebels, chaos would erupt across the land. Yang Qi might well station his one hundred thousand Jiangnan soldiers along the Shannan and Huaiyang lines, carving out an independent Yang kingdom in Jiangnan.

If Yang Qi were to declare himself king in Jiangnan, Li Fuguo, as the so-called imperial envoy, would undoubtedly be his first target.

So although Li Fuguo strutted about Jiangning City, enjoying his power, he was in fact playing with fire, oblivious to his own peril. It was little wonder—he could never have imagined Yang Qi harbored ambitions against the Tang.

With this in mind, Kong Sheng let out a long breath and handed over his calling card to the guard, bowing with a smile: “Sir, I am Kong Sheng, humbly requesting an audience with His Excellency the Imperial Envoy. Please be so kind as to announce me.”

The guard already recognized Kong Sheng, who was a renowned figure in Jiangning, now a magistrate and a favored scholar of the emperor. The soldier dared not slight him and immediately returned the bow, promising to report inside at once.

When Li Fuguo heard that Kong Sheng had come, he was momentarily surprised.

Though he had announced Kong Sheng’s appointment, he had never thought much of him and could no longer recall his appearance. A mere young scholar from Jiangnan, with a bit of talent and passion, appointed as magistrate in war-torn Henan—he was unlikely to meet a good end.

The title of “scholar favored by the emperor” sounded impressive, but in truth, it was worthless. If you couldn’t even keep your life, what use was any title, even tutor to the emperor?

These past days, Li Fuguo had been receiving gifts to the point of exhaustion and paid no attention to Kong Sheng’s comings and goings. Besides, he’d heard Kong Sheng was destitute and living in a humble inn—he never expected the young man would come to pay his respects.

Still, courtesy breeds respect, and since Li Fuguo had nothing pressing, he decided to see what this young man was made of.

The guard soon reappeared and said to Kong Sheng with a smile, “Magistrate Kong, please come in. His Excellency has received your card.”

Kong Sheng smiled and nodded, making his way inside. As he brushed past the guard, he quietly slipped him a string of coins. The guard, without a change of expression, tucked the money away, his opinion of Kong Sheng rising considerably.

These days, as soldiers assigned by Yang Qi to guard the courier station, they had received many such benefits. Most of the local nobles and merchants visiting Li Fuguo would openly or covertly offer small tokens of appreciation.

If this could continue, it would be a most lucrative assignment. These soldiers could only hope Li Fuguo would stay in Jiangning for a long time, so they might continue to benefit as well.