The Child Emperor

Wang He had called upon two of his most trusted subordinates as assistants, and for two consecutive nights they went to investigate the situation at Ugly Wang’s residence.

Wang Jianhuo had a distinguished reputation but was not wealthy. He owned three mansions, two of which stood empty, with only his ancestral home being occupied. The place was quite large – half had been abandoned while the other half was filled with all sorts of people: male relatives of his own family, those who came seeking help, those who admired his fame and sought to befriend him, and some who said nothing at all but simply wanted to stay for a few nights. When mealtime came, no one needed to stand on ceremony – whatever the Wang family had, everyone ate together, with no distinction between close or distant relations, noble or humble. The only difference was that certain guests could receive private audiences.

The three guards searched the Wang residence thoroughly. One guard even posed as a guest and stayed overnight, but they found nothing. The Wang residence had no female family members, so naturally there were no so-called inner quarters. Guests could go anywhere, and there was one room piled with scattered gold, silver, and copper coins that anyone could take from or add to.

What was remarkable was that the money in this room was never completely empty. Visitors were very conscientious about taking only appropriate amounts – no more, no less.

The guard who had pretended to be a guest made curious inquiries and heard several vague stories. It was said that someone had once become greedy and taken all the gold and silver from the room, but such things could not be hidden. In just three days, this person’s reputation was ruined and even his own relatives disdained to speak with him. Only when Ugly Wang personally intervened was the man forgiven, but he never recovered and no longer dared appear in the pugilist world.

Another version claimed that Ugly Wang had saved many powerful officials and heroic pugilists, and even great bandits. After these people prospered again, they sent servants and food to the Wang residence. One of the servants’ duties was to watch over the gold and silver room to ensure it never became empty.

Sharing the same surname Wang, guard Wang He came to admire Wang Jianhuo greatly and decided to abandon his mission. When the deadline arrived, he would go confess his failure to the Emperor. However, shortly before midnight, when he went to his tent to pack his belongings, he discovered the imperial seal lying on his bed, unwrapped and unconcealed.

Wang He immediately carried it to the Emperor’s tent and recounted the entire sequence of events without any concealment, even confessing his earlier intention to abandon the mission.

Han Ruzi did not know whether to be pleased or angry. He first summoned Chief Overseer Liu Jie, who had served as Keeper of the Imperial Seal for many years and was most familiar with it. Liu Jie recognized it as genuine at first glance, but to be cautious, he held it in both hands and examined it carefully in the candlelight from a distance before finally saying, “It is the imperial seal.”

“During the tour, the imperial seal shall remain in your custody,” Han Ruzi said. Liu Jie bowed in acknowledgment, took out a cloth, carefully wrapped the imperial seal, tucked it into his robes, and protected it with both hands like a woman who had just learned she was with child.

A tacit yet widely known wager in Luoyang came to an unremarkable end. The Emperor had won, yet felt no joy whatsoever as he looked at guard Wang He and judicial officer Zhang Jing kneeling before him, shaking his head inwardly.

Strictly speaking, it was not Zhang Jing who had recovered the imperial seal, but he had predicted the time of its reappearance – so he had neither rendered meritorious service nor had committed wrongs.

“Zhang Jing, you have already met Wang Jianhuo, have you not?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I visited the Wang residence this morning.”

“Is it truly as Wang He described – open to anyone’s entry?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I entered without announcement, nor could I find anyone to announce to. I went directly into the mansion and easily met Ugly Wang. It is said he rarely goes out, and on the rare occasions when he is absent, he always leaves a note or has someone relay a message, clearly stating when he left and when he will return.”

“Heh.” Han Ruzi gave a cold laugh. If put that way, then Ugly Wang’s coming personally to see the Emperor was indeed showing great respect. “What kind of person do you think Wang Jianhuo is?”

Zhang Jing was momentarily bewildered, then kowtowed heavily and said with lowered head, “He truly deserves his reputation as a great hero of Luoyang.”

“Because he preserved your official position.”

Zhang Jing kowtowed repeatedly, not daring to respond.

Han Ruzi dismissed the judicial officer and asked the guard the same question: “What kind of person do you think Wang Jianghuo is?”

Wang He also kowtowed, saying, “I dare not make hasty judgments.”

“Does he know martial arts?”

“From what I observed, Ugly Wang often discusses martial skills with guests and practices boxing himself, but only for physical fitness – he is definitely not a master.”

“When you went to investigate the Wang residence, you were discovered. This means either the Wang residence secretly harbors martial art experts, or one of your subordinates leaked information.”

”I can stake my life on it—the three of us absolutely did not leak a single word.”

“Then there must be experts around Wang Jianghuo. But the imperial seal was placed in your tent—how do you explain this? Were his experts so skilled that they could bypass layers of guards and sentries, or has someone in the military camp been bought off by him?”

Wang He could not answer, nor did he dare to answer. He could only kowtow and beg for forgiveness.

Han Ruzi waved his hand to dismiss the guard commander and thought silently for a while. Then he said to Liu Jie, who remained by his side: “If they can send the imperial seal back, they can naturally take it away again. What can we do about it? You served the Martial Emperor—have you encountered similar situations?”

“I have.”

Hearing this answer, Han Ruzi was slightly startled. “Must this matter also be kept secret?”

Liu Jie shook his head. Still protecting the seal against his stomach with both hands, he squinted and thought for a while before saying: “It was in the spring of the Martial Emperor’s twenty-fifth year. I was still a young eunuch in the imperial stables. The Martial Emperor was in his prime and loved riding horses. When the weather was good, he would spend at least an hour on horseback almost every day. The Empress Dowager at the time often scolded us eunuchs for this, thinking we were leading His Majesty astray from his duties and constantly putting him in danger of injury.”

Recalling the past, Liu Jie revealed a slight smile, but quickly composed his expression. “As it turned out, what we feared most came to pass. The Martial Emperor was in good spirits that day and summoned many guards for a horse race. Everyone else knew to yield to and protect the Martial Emperor, but there was one young man who didn’t understand the rules and got ahead of the Martial Emperor. The Martial Emperor was not to be outdone and ran three laps in a row. In a moment of carelessness, he fell from his horse and lost consciousness.”

Liu Jie’s expression changed slightly. Even after all these years, he still felt afraid. “There were more than a hundred people present, and they were all terrified. We eunuchs busied ourselves rescuing the Martial Emperor, while the guards seized the young man who didn’t understand the rules and wanted to execute him on the spot.”

“What happened next?” Han Ruzi listened with fascination, even overlooking that this had little in common with the imperial seal incident.

“Fortunately, the Martial Emperor soon regained consciousness. He demanded that no one tell the Empress Dowager about the incident, then ordered his own mount to be put to death.”

“What?”

“I still remember what that horse looked like—completely black with four white hooves. The Martial Emperor had named it ‘Black Dragon’ and it was one of his seven most beloved horses. But the Martial Emperor said this horse was all appearance and no substance. Throwing its master was not a crime, but being unable to outrun ordinary horses was a capital offense.”

“What about the young man who didn’t follow the rules?”

“Oh, I remember it clearly. Several guards pressed down his head while a crowd of people berated him, ordering him to kowtow and beg forgiveness from the Martial Emperor. I even joined in the shouting and kicked him in the rear—not for any other reason, but because he had nearly gotten us all killed.”

Han Ruzi couldn’t help but laugh, finding it hard to imagine the upright Liu Jie taking advantage of chaos to vent personal grievances.

“But this man refused to submit.” Liu Jie unconsciously straightened his posture, as if possessed by that arrogant young man. “He was forced to kneel but refused to bow his head. Instead, he shouted loudly, saying he was innocent, saying things like ‘A race is a race—with all this yielding back and forth, Your Majesty will never be able to pick out a truly powerful horse, and your horsemanship will never improve.’ How absurd.”

“But what he said made perfect sense,” Han Ruzi sided with the young man.

Liu Jie bowed as usual and smiled slightly. “The Martial Emperor said the same thing, so he pardoned the man and even made him a general, putting him in command of troops.”

“Then he must have become a famous general?”

Liu Jie nodded. “Perhaps the most famous general of all. His name was Deng Liao, one of the greatest contributors to pacifying the Xiongnu. Unfortunately, he died young. If not for the Martial Emperor’s keen eye for talent, General Deng would have remained obscure his entire life.” For original chapters go to novel{f}ire.net

Han Ruzi was stunned for a long moment. “So that’s how General Deng caught the Martial Emperor’s attention.”

“Yes, what the Martial Emperor valued in Deng Liao was not his arrogance, but his persistence in doing the right thing. The Martial Emperor once said privately that battlefield conditions change in an instant, enemies constantly scheme, and even one’s own people could hold different opinions, rarely reaching consensus. Often one person thinks about provisions, another about military merit, someone else about reserve forces, and still others only care about rank and title. A commander must be like Deng Liao—someone who remains unmoved, focused solely on winning battles. Someone who would promote those who could fight and demote those who couldn’t, regardless of status or nobility. Someone who would not accept it even if the Emperor himself personally intervenes.”

”This is what a truly great general should be.” Han Ruzi praised sincerely. He had no such person by his side. Chai Yue and Fang Daye could be considered talented generals and commanders, but they still fell far short of Deng Liao’s unwavering dedication.

Han Ruzi was filled with yearning admiration. After a while, he asked, “But what does this have to do with the imperial seal and Wang Jianhuo?”

Liu Jie knelt down while holding the imperial seal in his arms, first apologizing for what he was about to say, then continued, “Your Majesty is correct—the person who could deliver the imperial seal could also steal it again. But thinking about it differently, perhaps such a person would be the best choice for protecting the imperial seal.”

Han Ruzi immediately shook his head. “He’s from the pugilist world, not someone who serves emperors. Moreover, his pugilist methods cannot be applied to affairs of state. Even the Martial Emperor massacred these pugilists and never made important use of any of them.”

Liu Jie knelt on the ground without speaking. Han Ruzi couldn’t help but ask, “Do you know Ugly Wang?”

“I’ve never met him, nor had any dealings with him. I was merely recounting a story from the Martial Emperor’s time. As for whom to use and how to use them, that is the art of emperorship. I spent all those years by the Martial Emperor’s side in vain and learned nothing.”

“It was We who overthought things. Lord Liu, you may withdraw. Select ten guards to be specifically assigned to protect yourself and the imperial seal.”

“By your command.” Liu Jie rose and slowly withdrew from the tent.

Han Ruzi had long harbored murderous intent toward these pugilists, and this had not changed. However, he understood that the Martial Emperor’s brutal methods would not work—they had only cleared the path for a new generation of pugilists.

Ugly Wang was indeed an extraordinary person. He had made a wager with the Emperor, yet quietly returned the imperial seal in the final half day, handing over victory. Not only had he failed to save the Tan family, but he had also doomed his own family and caused many gamblers who had bet on his victory to lose everything.

He had placed all initiative in the Emperor’s hands, leaving Han Ruzi unsure how to choose.

There was also Meng E. Han Ruzi’s greatest confusion was how the imperial seal had passed from Meng E’s hands to Ugly Wang’s.

It was already late. Han Ruzi called in Zhang Youcai and Ni Qiu, having them prepare his bed. After changing into his sleeping clothes, he suddenly asked, “What can someone with the audacity to defy heaven accomplish?”

Zhang Youcai didn’t understand what he meant. Ni Qiu laughed and said, “Well, defy heaven, I suppose.”

Han Ruzi smiled slightly, planning to summon Wang Jianhuo first thing in the morning to resolve this matter completely.

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