Gambling Memoirs

In the early autumn of the fortieth year of Yuanhua, the war between the Chu territory and the Northern Rong ended, and a peace treaty was signed. Situated at a crucial strategic gateway on the border, Yin Commandery seized the first opportunity and established a mutual market in the northern part of the city the year before last.

The once dilapidated small town had now transformed into a bustling border city, with merchants and travelers coming and going endlessly, and a continuous stream of carriages and horses.

Recently, Yin Commandery had lifted the curfew, and the rising and falling cries of peddlers and trade filled the nights. It had already become common and unremarkable to encounter a foreign guest every three steps or run into a barbarian merchant every five paces.

Just as night had fallen, various flags and banners were hung early along the streets. Within the span of a mere quarter of an hour, the roads became thoroughly congested, and exotic spice scents mixed into the air, making people sneeze repeatedly.

Xia Yunhe had originally been riding in a carriage hurrying toward the Prefect's Mansion. Seeing that the road was blocked by the crowd, she got out of the carriage, instructed Zhenniang, who was driving, to watch over the vehicle and horses, and proceeded toward the Prefect's Mansion on foot.

In her previous life, she had spent half a year in Yin Commandery, wandering through every major street and small alley, so she naturally knew the exact location of the Prefect's Mansion.

Turning into a dim alley, passing a row of abandoned old houses, she arrived behind the former Office of the Chief Administration Commissioner, located south of the center of Yin Commandery city. This place was desolate; amidst the night, only a turtledove perched on the eaves, emitting a "coo-coo" call.

Xia Yunhe felt a chill run down her spine and quickened her pace to leave the area. Walking forward for a short distance, she caught sight of the plaque reading "Prince Qin's Mansion" in the distance. She was quite astonished. The former Office of the Chief Administration Commissioner had actually been converted into Prince Qin's Mansion—something that had absolutely never happened in her previous life. She found it strange, very strange, as if some invisible force were quietly driving everything forward.

For a fleeting moment, she felt dazed, thinking of what she had turned into after her death, and fell silent. Between heaven and earth, most things were profound and mysterious; all one could do was "exhaust human effort," while as for destiny, one should naturally take it as it came.

With this thought, she let out a breath, pulled herself together, and cleared her mind of distracting thoughts.

Walking another half-section of the road, she looked up and saw an imposing main gate. The roadside was crowded with carriages and horses of various colors, and lanterns hung before the gate, where servants stood guard to inspect identification documents.

Xia Yunhe handed over her calling card. After verifying it, the man smiled and led her into the courtyard. Passing through covered corridors and crossing countless courtyards enclosed by high, ridged grey walls, they turned past a row of whitewashed walls and arrived at a small courtyard. Plum trees were planted in the yard, but unfortunately, it was not yet time for them to bloom, leaving only gnarled branches stretching out disorderly.

Warm yellow light emanated from inside the room. A servant lifted the bamboo curtain, and as Xia Yunhe stepped forward, a wave of warm fragrance rushed to her face, cloying enough to make one's heart flutter uneasily.

It was an exquisite warm pavilion, mostly filled with unfamiliar faces. The moment she stepped one foot into the pavilion, she heard the pageboy at the entrance announce loudly, "Prefect Xia has arrived—"

This cry caused everyone to pause with their chopsticks and turn their heads uniformly toward the entrance to look at her. Xia Yunhe nodded and saluted the gathering. Qu Sheng emerged from somewhere, smiling as he disrupted everyone's line of sight, and led her toward a table.

There, she saw a lean old man sitting in the seat of honor, dressed in a loose cyan round-collared robe. His cheekbones were high and prominent, a pair of white eyebrows drooped down to the corners of his eyes, and beneath the brows, his dark, shining pupils made him look very amiable. Yet Xia Yunhe knew clearly that Prefect Mi was not an easy person to get along with.

She paid her respects to Prefect Mi, who smiled warmly and said, "Truly of refined spirit and elegant bones, like a being from the heavens."

The others echoed a few words, and before long, conversations started up again, exceptionally noisy. Xia Yunhe lowered her gaze and looked around, failing to catch sight of Prince Qin. A sense of doubt arose in her heart, but not daring to make it too obvious, she smiled faintly and responded to everyone's inquiries.

Wang Yanyu, standing nearby, noticed some clues and asked, "Is Yiyi looking for Prince Qin?"

Hearing this, Xia Yunhe turned to look at Wang Yanyu, a trace of mischief flashing in her eyes. She suddenly smiled and said nothing.

Seeing this, Wang Yanyu covered his mouth with his hand and lowered his voice further, "Prince Qin has always had friendly relations with Prefect Mi; he will definitely come."

Before his voice had even faded, a high-pitched announcement echoed from the entrance, "Prince Qin has arrived—"

The banquet instantly fell into absolute silence. Everyone stood up successively, knelt toward the entrance, and chanted in unison, "Greetings, Prince Qin."

No human voices were heard, only the crisp rustle of leather boots and the billowing of robes. Xie Yi stepped into the room carrying a gust of winter chill. The young man stopped in front of Prefect Mi, supported the old man up with one hand, and then turned to stop before Xia Yunhe. Bowing slightly, he supported her up with both hands and said in a low voice, "Please rise, Sir."

After helping Xia Yunhe up, Xie Yi straightened his posture, swept his gaze across everyone present, and spoke in a calm, unquestionable tone, "Since Prefect Mi is hosting the banquet, I am also a guest. Do not let my presence cause all of you to stand on ceremony."

Everyone broke into smiles. Immediately following, attendants filed in carrying various dishes: golden goblets, glazed cups, amber wine in jade vessels. Amidst the clinking of cups, two exquisite young maids, around fourteen or fifteen years old, entered the room. Both wore small hair buns, pearl earrings, and red silk tassel skirts. The one on the left cradled a pipa in her arms, while the one on the right held a small fan. The sounds of stringed and wind instruments gradually rose, and the two maids sang a tune of *Painting Hall Spring*, their warbling voices clear and melodious, tender and enchanting, carrying even a hint of decadent Jiangnan charm.

Someone asked, "I heard that Prefect Xia is a native of Jiangnan?"

Xia Yunhe answered, "Yes."

That person asked again, "The scenery of Jiangnan is picturesque, and its melodies are gentle and alluring. Only Jiangnan could produce someone like Prefect Xia, who looks as refined and striking as a young maiden..."

"Hahaha... Ah—"

The man's laughter stuck in his throat as he abruptly covered his face. It turned out he had been splashed right in the face with hot soup. He looked up at the person who threw the soup, his eyes filled with disbelief. Soup dripped from between his fingers, looking utterly comical.

The music and dance had stopped long ago. Everyone stretched their necks to look toward this side, not daring to draw a loud breath. They saw Xie Yi holding a soup bowl, stroking its rim, raising an eyebrow with a half-smile, "Oh, my hand slipped. You should go and change your clothes. Prefect Mi, don't you agree?"

Mi Su smiled warmly and said, "His Highness speaks reasonably. You should step down."

The man became stubborn and stiffly tried to argue with Prefect Mi, "Uncle-in-law, I..."

Prefect Mi glared fiercely at the man and ignored him further, turning instead to say to Xia Yunhe, "My nephew speaks without thinking. If there has been any offense, I hope Yiyi will be magnanimous."

The onlookers were so shocked their jaws almost dropped. Who had ever seen Prefect Mi bow his head to anyone? Today was the first time in history. Come to think of it, he was merely giving Xia Yunhe three parts of face out of respect for Prince Qin. The prefect's nephew resentfully covered his face, harboring deep resentment in his heart, and could only retreat in disgrace.

Xie Yi sneered, rebuking Prefect Mi, "How could such an undisciplined person appear at a welcoming banquet? Prefect Mi, do not let irrelevant individuals ruin your reputation."

"Yes, yes, Your Highness is entirely right." Prefect Mi put on an expression of careful caution, while inwardly unimpressed. A mere half-grown child was pointing fingers at him—what did royal nobles amount to? When he entered officialdom, this Prince Qin didn't even know where he was wandering among the mountains and rivers!

Xia Yunhe smiled and said, "Your humble subordinate has been misunderstood since childhood because of my appearance. It's nothing more than a trivial matter; I'll just take it as listening to something rare."

Qu Sheng also chimed in, "That is indeed true. When your humble subordinate first saw Prefect Xia, I also thought she was a woman, and only later discovered otherwise."

Wang Yanyu stood up and instructed people to bring clean water for Xie Yi to wash his hands, conveniently replacing his tableware with a new set. Smiling, he said to Prefect Mi, "Lord Mi, since this is a welcoming banquet, shouldn't the music and dance continue?"

Prefect Mi nodded cheerfully, glanced sideways at Xie Yi, and seeing that the latter's thoughts were wandering and he had no interest in the banquet, he instructed Wang Yanyu to restart the song and dance so as not to disturb Prince Qin's elegant mood. For a time, cups were exchanged, flutes and songs rose to a climax, and it was exceedingly lively.

Amidst the drinking and merry-making, someone came over to urge Xia Yunhe to drink. She merely raised her cup and took a shallow sip. After this happened twice, the others stopped crowding around.

Seeing this, Prefect Mi asked her out of curiosity, "Does Yiyi not excel at drinking wine?"

Xia Yunhe replied, "Your humble subordinate has been sickly since childhood, keeping company with medicine and stones year-round, so it is inconvenient to drink much."

Prefect Mi let out an "hmph" of realization, seeming to understand. Stroking his beard and pondering for a moment, he continued, "On Pipa Mountain outside the city, there is a physician surnamed Zhang who specializes in stubborn and difficult ailments. At my advanced age, my body remains light and healthy entirely thanks to this physician. Later, I will write a calling card, and you may visit him when you have leisure."

Xia Yunhe quickly stood up to thank Prefect Mi, provoking envious looks from the crowd.

"Surnamed Zhang? Could it be Zhang Su, the legendary master physician who has lived in seclusion in the mountains for a long time?" Qu Sheng asked, only to see Prefect Mi smile and nod. Qu Sheng sourly remarked, "Yiyi, if you are going to visit Physician Zhang, take me along; I want to go and see the world as well..." Qu Sheng paused, raised a hand to point at Wang Yanyu, "And take Zizhao along too. Zizhao's wife has been bedridden for a long time, and he is also urgently in need of a good remedy for treatment."

Xie Yi glared at Qu Sheng, his gaze like blades, and uttered a cold, flat remark, "Noisy."

Seeing that Prince Qin's expression was unfavorable, Wang Yanyu patted Qu Sheng and said, "Brother Qu, what are you joining in the excitement for?" Then he smilingly asked Xia Yunhe, "Is Yiyi still staying at the post station outside the city?" When Xia Yunhe truthfully stated that she was currently looking to rent a house, Wang Yanyu said, "There is an empty residence in the east of the city. The house is not large, but its advantage lies in being quiet and having a good orientation. Since Yiyi's constitution is frail, you certainly need peace and quiet for recuperation. You might as well rent that place."

Xia Yunhe thanked Wang Yanyu for his kindness, inevitably exchanging another round of polite pleasantries, which made it appear quite harmonious between host and guest. As they were talking, a sudden commotion broke out.

Someone roared: "Qidiaowei! He's dead!"

Xia Yunhe looked in the direction of the voice and saw two drunken men wrestling. One shouted, "He embezzled military provisions and fled from justice—he deserves to be eaten by wolves!"

The other, slightly younger, had reddened eyes. He straddled the man and frantically clamped his hands around the other's neck, letting tears and mucus smear across his face as he cursed in a hoarse voice, "Bullshit! My brother-in-law was upright and impoverished his whole life; clearly, you are the parasite who profited and framed an innocent person."

"What system of behavior is this!" Prefect Mi lost his temper, pointed at Wang Yanyu, and said, "Zizhao, go, chase these two fellows out!"

Wang Yanyu received the order, shouted, and commanded the servants to seize the two men and drag them outside. Soon, the sound of clubs echoed, accompanied by overlapping screams from the two men, which ceased after a short while.

He returned gracefully to soothe the guests, "Merely two drunk junior clerks who had accumulated some grievances on ordinary weekdays; it's nothing major."

Xia Yunhe asked, "Wasn't Qidiaowei's whereabouts unknown? How was he found?"

The banquet instantly quieted down. Prefect Mi smilingly took up the conversation, "Old General Shen discovered him while patrolling outside the pass. There was only half a sleeve and a jade pendant, surrounded by wolf feces and paw prints—not even a trace of bones was left. He embezzled money and grain, so this can be considered retribution."

Xie Yi let out a cold laugh, stood up, and said, "Lord Mi, I still have military matters to attend to, so I will take my leave."

Seeing that Prince Qin was about to leave, everyone hastily stood up to see him off. Watching the moon rise to the center of the sky, Wang Yanyu excused himself on the grounds that his wife was ill and left early; not long after, the banquet broke up and the guests dispersed. When Xia Yunhe was about to leave, she was intercepted by a pageboy of the Prefect's Mansion, who said Lord Mi still had a letter of introduction for her.

Thinking it was the matter agreed upon during the banquet, she stayed behind. After waiting for barely a quarter of an hour, someone came to summon her. Xia Yunhe followed the person to a large hall. The lighting was dim and flickering, and a sense of foreboding welled up in Xia Yunhe's heart.

She saw Prefect Mi standing inside the hall, smiling warmly as he looked at her. He drew the pre-prepared letter of introduction from his sleeve and handed it to her, then clapped his hands twice. From behind a folding screen, two maidens slowly emerged. Xia Yunhe looked closely and was startled to find they were the two maids who had sung *Painting Hall Spring* at the banquet. The wind outside wailed mournfully, yet these two wore thin garments as if entirely unaware of the cold.

Prefect Mi said, "These two girls are from Jiangnan and can barely be considered Yiyi's fellow townspeople. When you have leisure, they can chat with Prefect Xia to relieve your homesick sorrows."

Xia Yunhe's temples throbbed violently. She naturally understood what Mi Su meant. Unfortunately, his calculations were wrong. A flash of coldness flickered in the corner of her eye, and Xia Yunhe felt a jolt of alarm—were there actually executioners lying in ambush here?

What did this Mi Su want to do?

She flicked her sleeves, bowed twice to Mi Su, and smiled, "Your honor jests. As Scholar Su said, 'Where my heart finds peace is my hometown.' Though this is a bitter and cold place of exile, looking up to see the moon is seeing my hometown."

Prefect Mi's eyebrows twitched, but he remained silent.

Suddenly, hurried footsteps came from outside the hall, followed by a pageboy's report, his voice trembling, "Master, His Highness Prince Qin is still waiting for Prefect Xia outside the mansion, saying... he still has matters to discuss with Prefect Xia."

Prefect Mi's expression shifted slightly. He clasped his hands behind his back, looked at Xia Yunhe, squeezed out a smile with the wrinkles on his face seemingly exerting force, stared complexly at Xia Yunhe, and finally said in a deep voice, "Good, good, you... go ahead."

Xia Yunhe suppressed her smile, flicked her sleeve, and stepped out of this den of tigers and wolves.