"As for the Tartars... to my knowledge, last year’s end saw Tartar envoys visit Yang Erlang at the Yuelai Inn, where they were unceremoniously turned away by him. Perhaps seeing that they couldn’t win over Yang Erlang, they tried to sow discord between him and the court."
Emperor Xiping looked up at him, smiled faintly, and said, "You see, isn’t this ’conclusive evidence’? What, has the Northern Town Prefectural Commissioner’s chair become so uncomfortable that you’re eager to try out the seat at the Ministry of Punishment?"
Although he was smiling as warmly as a spring breeze, Shen Fa felt a chill as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over him in the dead of winter. He hurriedly clasped his hands in salute and bowed deeply, "Your humble official acknowledges his guilt!"
Emperor Xiping looked down at him with a smile that was not quite a smile and softly asked, "I heard that you had the shop assistant deliver a few words to Wang Jiangling? Telling him to proceed slowly and not to push them into a corner, as that would make them desperately fight back?"
"Your Majesty, that is indeed the case!"
Shen Fa clenched his teeth and said, "I had this intention and, after discussing with him, borrowed his mouth to convey the message to Lord Wang, asking Your Majesty to assign blame."
"Assign blame? For what crime?"
Emperor Xiping let out a laugh, "For your crime of loyalty and service to the country? Or for that scoundrel’s crime of meddling in affairs?"
Shen Fa: "I am terrified!"
Emperor Xiping once again strolled leisurely with one hand behind his back, shaking his head and sighing softly, "It is hard to know a man’s heart from his face, as hard as painting a tiger’s bones through its skin..."
Shen Fa neither dared to respond nor rise.
After a while, Emperor Xiping finally said without lifting his head, "Rise."
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Shen Fa: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"
Emperor Xiping: "What you just mentioned, does the shop assistant know about it?"
Shen Fa hesitated slightly, then shook his head, "It should not have reached his ears yet. While the outer world’s reach is long, it still can’t extend into the official court... But I reckon it won’t be long. That fellow has spent a lot of money for a thorough investigation by the outer world. Although Zhou Yin, the rebel, has a good relationship with Yang Potian, he’s likely unable to withstand that fellow’s pressure."
Emperor Xiping took a deep breath and said softly, "Then hurry up and tidy things up. What we can do ourselves, we shouldn’t bother that fellow with. If we trouble him over and over, he’s likely to throw in the towel and roam the world."
Surprised by his words, Shen Fa gave him a look and thought, ’When did you two get so in tune with each other?’
As if Emperor Xiping hadn’t noticed his astonished gaze, he continued nonchalantly, "By the way, what do you think of sending the Crown Prince over to learn from him for a while?"
Shen Fa was even more shocked, stammering in response, "Is, is that really necessary?"
Emperor Xiping looked at him quizzically, "What do you mean not necessary? Didn’t I previously decree him to be the Crown Prince’s Grand Tutor, and he didn’t refuse, did he?"
Shen Fa: ’You’re waiting here for that fellow?’
He pondered for a moment, then spoke up earnestly, "Your Majesty, do you want to hear the truth?"
Emperor Xiping waved a large sleeve, "Speak freely, I pardon you of any fault!"
Shen Fa with a face that said ’this is what you wanted’: "Based on what I know of that fellow, when Wei went to decree the edict, he probably didn’t listen to a single word."
Emperor Xiping’s expression darkened, "There’s no need to be so straightforward... Anyway, the decision has been made. I’ve even sent his salary; Yang Erlang, being the best in the world, surely can’t just eat his fill and deny the obligation, can he?"
Shen Fa hurriedly saluted, "But Your Majesty, what will the Crown Prince learn from him? Surely he can’t learn how to run an inn, can he?"
Emperor Xiping frowned, "Are you feigning ignorance? What capabilities does that fellow have? Aside from me, only you, Shen Zhonghe, are fully aware, aren’t you?"
Shen Fa nodded as if pounding garlic: "I am aware, but Your Majesty, how much talent he has and how much he’s willing to teach are two different matters. Even setting aside whether he would accept the Crown Prince, if the Crown Prince went, he would end up carrying plates and washing dishes. Should the Crown Prince dare utter a word of refusal, he would immediately teach the Crown Prince what it means to understand the hardships of the common people!"
When Emperor Xiping heard this, his cheeks twitched involuntarily, as if recalling some regrettable memory.
After a while, he ground his teeth and hissed through them, "A raw jade must be carved to shape!"
Shen Fa was utterly startled, thinking ’Even tigers do not eat their cubs, and you’re sending the Crown Prince straight into the tiger’s mouth?’
He had come to understand that the Emperor had been pondering this matter for more than a day or two, and persuasion was definitely beyond the scope of a subject like him.
Yet he could imagine, without even using his head, the scene of Yang Erlang’s furious reaction if the Crown Prince were sent to the Yuelai Inn—let alone himself, Shen Fa, perhaps even the Emperor might not escape a sound thrashing...
But how could he say that out loud? He certainly couldn’t bluntly say, ’Your Majesty, I advise you to think twice, for if you push that fellow too far, he might indeed come to the capital to beat you up!’
If he dared to utter such words, he didn’t know whether the Emperor would take a beating, but his own beating would definitely be guaranteed!
In an instant, Shen Fa was caught in a brainstorm and blurted out, "Your Majesty, even if we are to send him, we ought to choose the right time, shouldn’t we? That fellow is currently troubled as it is, and if the Crown Prince goes at such a critical moment, isn’t that asking for trouble?"
Emperor Xiping paused, thinking there might be some sense to Shen Fa’s words, back to meticulously drawing a tiger, "What has that fellow been busy with recently?"
Shen Fa: ’How could I possibly tell you that he’s been preoccupied with perfecting a dish known as ’hot pot’ recently?’
However, as if Emperor Xiping could read minds, no sooner had he questioned than he lifted his head and answered himself, "Don’t tell me he’s been fussing over that laborious hot pot for most of this past month?"
Shen Fa: ...
"How are his cooking skills?"
Shen Fa, not entirely sincerely, replied, "Your Majesty, I’m not too certain, but it seems... passable, I guess!"