Spring Remains the Same - Chapter 16

The “golden house” is an allusion. It speaks of an emperor who, in his youth, was fond of his older cousin. In front of everyone, he declared that if he could one day have this cousin, he would build a golden house to shelter her. Several years later, he did indeed marry his cousin and make her his empress. As for whether the golden house was ever realized, that remains unknown.

Few were unfamiliar with this allusion when it was brought up, and Wei Xiu naturally knew of it as well.

The moment the words left her lips, Puyang saw Wei Xiu’s expression stiffen slightly. Although she recovered in an instant, it did not escape Puyang’s eyes.

Although the two in the story were both children, later generations mostly regarded it as a romantic affair. This was vastly different from her and Wei Xiu’s situation.

Even if they were to become a celebrated tale, it would be one of a ruler and a subject in perfect accord.

However, it was common for scholars of the time who felt unrecognized to compare themselves to beautiful women. If one were to stretch the point, her words could, with some effort, be interpreted as a gesture of honoring a worthy individual.

Puyang only wanted to tease Wei Xiu, not truly anger her. Just as she was about to smooth things over, she heard Wei Xiu say, “There is no need for Your Highness to trouble yourself. I have my own residence in the capital.”

Puyang was speechless. It seemed she had already angered her.

After that, Wei Xiu turned to proper business. “The most important thing is for Your Highness to first establish yourself.”

Her words were consistently calm, each one spoken unhurriedly, yet they carried a resounding weight. As Puyang listened intently, she couldn’t help but wonder, Perhaps she isn’t angry after all?

According to Wei Xiu, to establish herself, she must first move out of the palace. Within the palace, everything was inconvenient. In any case, no one would stop her from entering the palace, so there was no need to worry about growing distant from the Emperor. Moving outside the palace and having her own mansion would be akin to having a symbol. Given the Princess’s favor, without any need for announcement, people would naturally come to her door seeking official posts or favors.

As for whether to grant them, Wei Xiu said no more. Puyang had her own calculations in mind.

This was the reason she had brought up the matter of a mansion with the Emperor today.

It was already late. Puyang walked into the inner chamber, and several palace maids came forward to help her change. Their movements were gentle yet deft. When their hands occasionally brushed against her, they felt exceptionally soft.

Puyang lowered her gaze slightly and saw a palace maid place her hands on the sash of her inner robe, preparing to untie it. Her hands were slender, fair, and tender, her fingertips nimble and graceful, possessing a gentleness unique to women.

Puyang suddenly thought of Wei Xiu’s hands. Though also a woman’s, her hands were not like this. They were long and fair with distinct knuckles, yet not as rugged as a man’s, merely giving an impression of being exceptionally clean and pleasant.

Puyang found the female Wei Xiu far more pleasing to the eye than when she had appeared as a man. After several encounters, she also felt they were quite compatible. Moreover, a person like Wei Xiu was ten thousand times better as a friend than an enemy. Even for her own sake, Puyang had to treat her well.

Lying on the couch, she somehow recalled Wei Xiu’s words again: “There is no need for Your Highness to trouble yourself. I have my own residence in the capital.”

Was she angry? Or was she just speaking the truth?

Puyang lay flat on her back, shaking her head inwardly. It certainly wasn’t the truth. She herself had been the one to bring up the matter of her lodging, only to then claim she had her own residence. She must have been angry.

But Wei Xiu’s magnanimity didn’t seem like the type to take such an obvious joke seriously.

Neither explanation seemed to fit. Sleepiness, however, began to creep in from the darkness.

After a day of rushing about and mental exertion, Puyang closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep. In the final moment of hazy consciousness, as if struck by a sudden enlightenment, she figured it out. Sir was perhaps just shy. She was a woman too, after all. The “golden house” was what that emperor had said to tease his cousin. No matter how one tried to embellish the words, they carried an undeniable ambiguity.

For the next several days, a continuous drizzly rain fell.

The deed given to her by the Emperor specified the mansion’s location, with a few brief notes on its interior. After studying it carefully, Puyang intended to take some people out of the palace to see it for herself. The descriptions on the deed were cursory; seeing it with her own eyes was better than any account.

Puyang’s movements were, in fact, quite unrestricted. As long as she brought enough guards and stated her destination, the Emperor did not confine her. It was the same this time. The only difference from before was that, due to the recent scare, the number of guards accompanying her when she left the palace had doubled. In the past, she could still stroll about in plain clothes, but now that was absolutely out of the question.

Land in the capital could be described as being worth its weight in gold, especially in the few wards near the Imperial Palace, which were priceless. It was no small feat for the Emperor to have selected several options for Puyang to choose from.

Puyang inspected them one by one. They were all excellent locations. Most required some renovation, but their layouts were very good. In truth, even if the layout was poor, Puyang wouldn’t mind. She could just tear it down and rebuild; after all, the one thing she did not lack was money. What mattered was the location, the surrounding households, and the size of the estate.

The mansion she had lived in during her previous life was among the options. It was currently in a state of ruin. This had been the ancestral home of a great family, convicted of treason and punished with the extermination of three generations of their clan. A once-illustrious family, which had shone with brilliance and stood unafraid before princes and marquises, was destroyed overnight, their ancestral home confiscated by the government.

Coupled with the fact that this was also the place where her soul had perished, Puyang did not much like it. But she came nonetheless.

She walked through the main gate, stood for a moment in the front courtyard, and then walked out. The attendant eunuch was puzzled. “Does Your Highness not like this place?”

The Emperor had selected five locations in total, and this one was the largest. Not only that, but the estate also contained a clear and beautiful pond, making it the most comfortable and pleasant.

Puyang frowned involuntarily and shot the eunuch a cool glance. The eunuch immediately lowered his head, trembling, and dared not speak again.

She had visited four of the five locations. The Emperor had chosen them with great care, and even Puyang, accustomed to fine things, could not help but praise them. This, in turn, put her in the same difficult position as the Emperor, unsure which one was the best choice.

There was one last location in Taiping Ward. Within the ward lived two other aristocratic families, both quite powerful at court. The Prince of Jin lived in the adjacent ward, and the Wang clan was not far away. Not to mention the numerous private soldiers and servants of these powerful families, the Five Garrisons Command patrolled this area with extra manpower, making it very safe and reliable.

Furthermore, the estate was large and its layout was well-ordered. But what moved Puyang the most was discovering a bamboo grove deep within the property.

The grove seemed to contain several varieties of bamboo. Just among those Puyang recognized were arrow bamboo, peach silk bamboo, and water bamboo. Different bamboos had different characters; some were more slender, while others appeared sturdier. They had not been planted by simply scattering seeds but were arranged with a certain design. The mansion had been deserted for many years, and the bamboo had been left untended, yet it grew lush and verdant, looking utterly vibrant at a glance. One could imagine that with just a little effort, it would once again become a place of refined elegance.

Puyang looked at the bamboo grove from the outside, then inspected the rest of the property. Finding no other flaws, she decided on this place immediately.

Wei Xiu liked bamboo; this place was perfect.

Once she had made her decision, she returned to inform the Emperor. The Emperor immediately summoned the relevant officials and had the property transferred to Puyang’s name. He then summoned the Ministry of Works, ordering them to draw up blueprints and begin construction as soon as possible.

Several more days passed like this, and then a major event occurred at court.

This year, the rainfall was abundant. It had been drizzling for half a month, and recently there were often torrential downpours, causing water to accumulate on some of the palace paths.

Insufficient rain causes drought, but excessive rain is no good thing either. The Emperor worried that the prolonged rain would lead to flooding and waterlogged fields. He first discussed countermeasures with his ministers, considering how to respond if there was indeed no harvest this year. Taxes of all kinds would need to be reduced. He also dispatched officials to inspect the capital’s outskirts and issued edicts ordering local officials to implement flood prevention measures.

This should have been a thorough response. Natural disasters were unstoppable, and all the court could do was try to minimize the losses. Who would have thought that just as the edict left the capital, disastrous news would arrive?

In a commandery built against a mountain, mud and rock had slid down, and half the commandery was buried beneath a mountain torrent!

The seat of this commandery was only a day’s journey by fast horse from the capital. For such a thing to happen in the vicinity of the capital immediately shook the court and the country.

The Emperor was furious. He first issued an edict ordering the local officials to begin disaster relief immediately, then commanded Chancellor Wang to lead a team and swiftly draft a plan.

Disaster relief was never a simple matter. People and supplies had to arrive, the disaster had to be controlled, the victims had to be settled, and uncooperative or even disruptive officials below had to be managed.

Chancellor Wang proved himself worthy of being a pillar of the state. In just six hours, he drafted a comprehensive plan. The Emperor reviewed it carefully and deemed it feasible. The only thing missing was a minister to take charge of the matter.

The Emperor’s gaze swept across the court, and he named the Prince of Jin.

Because of the incident with Puyang, the Prince of Jin had been keeping a low profile at court. Even when the Prince of Zhao provoked him, he endured it, cultivating an image of tolerance and benevolence, which had earned him considerable praise both inside and outside the court.

Caught off guard by the Emperor’s summons, the Prince of Jin was first stunned, then overjoyed. For an imperial prince, disaster relief was a great opportunity to gain prestige. Moreover, if handled well, there was a fortune to be made.

The Prince of Jin immediately stepped forward. Just as he was about to guarantee he would handle the matter properly, he heard the Emperor add, “Minister Zhang will go as well.”

The moment the Emperor named the Prince of Jin, Chancellor Wang had already raised his jade tablet, intending to request that the Emperor appoint someone else. The disaster was severe, and the Prince of Jin had never handled such matters; he feared he would not manage it well. Before he could step forward, he heard the Emperor also order Zhang Daozhi to go. Chancellor Wang silently lowered his jade tablet and stood at the head of the officials, staring quietly at the floor tiles without a word.

Zhang Daozhi was a capable minister. Even if the Prince of Jin failed, with him there, there was no need to fear any major trouble.

The Prince of Jin, however, felt as if a basin of cold water had been poured over his head. Zhang Daozhi was the Grand Judge of the Court of Judicial Review who had presented the evidence against him for harming Puyang. What did his father mean by sending him along? Was it a warning, or a coincidence?

The Prince of Jin felt a sense of unease, but he was not one to show his anger in public. Seeing Zhang Daozhi also step forward, he took the opportunity to bow and accept the order.

The disaster was urgent and could not be delayed. After returning to his residence to make brief preparations, he immediately left the capital.

The funds in the national treasury were already allocated for various purposes. Apart from these, the remaining surplus was small, and the amount that could be squeezed out for disaster relief was very limited. Only a tenth of the funds were sent with the Prince of Jin and Zhang Daozhi to the disaster area; the rest was still being gathered. The Emperor was overwhelmed with this matter. The severity of the disaster far exceeded the court’s expectations. The death toll was rising daily. This had happened in the capital region; if handled poorly, refugees could very well flood into the capital.

While busy managing the disaster relief, the Emperor also issued edicts to other prefectures and commanderies to take precautions. In just a few days, he had grown considerably haggard. Puyang’s heart ached for her father. She currently had no one under her command at court and could not do much to share his burden. After thinking for a long time, she summoned the Ministry of Works, took out the already drawn blueprints, deleted several sections, and ordered them to return the surplus funds to the national treasury. She also took out a considerable amount of her own money to donate to the disaster victims, having it sent with great fanfare.

The other princes and princesses often looked to Puyang’s actions as a guide. Being by the Emperor’s side, she best understood his intentions. Seeing her donate money and goods, the imperial sons and daughters assumed this was Puyang’s way of currying favor with the Emperor, and they too opened their purses. Puyang then had this publicized, earning widespread praise from the people of the capital.

With them taking the lead, the imperial clan, great families, and nobility felt it would be improper to just stand by and do nothing. Whether compelled by public opinion or genuinely wanting to contribute, they all donated wealth and goods.

With everyone contributing, in a matter of days, they had managed to raise nearly all of the disaster relief funds that the national treasury was still in the process of tallying.

The Emperor was greatly surprised when he learned of this. He ordered Dou Hui to investigate and discovered that the source was Puyang, who had not once tried to take credit for it with him. He smiled. “They privately complain that I dote only on Seventh Lady, but when it comes to being considerate, which of them can compare to her?”

He had Dou Hui recount the story again, and he couldn’t help but laugh aloud. After laughing, however, came an even deeper sense of regret. Why must Seventh Lady have been born a princess?

The Emperor’s regret was never revealed; not even Dou Hui knew of this thought. Another ten days or so passed, and the disaster situation finally eased.

Puyang then took a full contingent of guards and went to Mount Mang.

When they were apart, it wasn’t so bad; she rarely thought of Wei Xiu on ordinary days. But upon arriving at Mount Mang and seeing Wei Xiu, Puyang felt that after a month’s separation, she had missed her quite a bit.

Author’s Notes:

Princess: ╮（￣▽￣）╭ It’s been many days, I’ve missed you so, Sir.

The high scholar lowers her head and reads her book.

Princess: (￣?￣) Have you been well lately, Sir?

The high scholar turns her wheelchair around, her back to the princess, and continues reading.

Princess (aggrieved): (＞﹏＜）Why are you ignoring me, Sir?

High Scholar (faintly): Oh? I heard someone say the “golden house” was just a joke?

Princess: (＃°Д°)