Sun Chuanting was in no mood for subtlety.
He stood atop the training building of the Yellow Pole Military Academy, staring down at the grounds he had carved out of nothing but stubbornness and faith. Every brick, every drill formation, every young cadet barking commands in the yard below carried his imprint. To leave it behind now felt like cutting off a limb.
And yet he understood the situation too clearly to pretend otherwise.
Shaanxi was no ordinary province. It was the cradle of everything Dao Xuan Tianzun had quietly built, the ideological hearth of a new age. If he refused the appointment, Emperor Chongzhen might very well send some clueless bureaucrat to take over. That would invite friction, interference, and a thousand petty struggles with the court. The resulting mess would benefit no one.
Still, knowing the right choice did not make it pleasant.
As he brooded, movement at the edge of the training ground caught his eye. A familiar figure was sneaking along the wall with exaggerated caution, shoulders hunched, steps light, as if the fate of the empire depended on not being seen.
"Flat Rabbit," Sun Chuanting called out coolly. "What are you plotting now?"
Flat Rabbit jumped as though struck by lightning. He spun around and snapped to attention, both hands immediately flying behind his back.
"Nothing! Absolutely nothing."
"Hands in front."
Flat Rabbit coughed theatrically. "I suffer from a rare ailment. If I put my hands in front of me, I will perish on the spot."
"Then turn around and face the other direction."
Flat Rabbit froze. After a long pause that contained all the dignity of a caught thief, he sighed and brought his hands forward.
Sun Chuanting leaned in and looked.
In Flat Rabbit's grip was a book. On the cover, in bold, dramatic characters, were the words: Huashan Sword Techniques.
Sun Chuanting blinked. "There is such a thing in this world?"
Flat Rabbit puffed out his chest, pride radiating from him. "This rabbit searched far and wide. I combed through bookstores across the city. I finally found it hidden in a dusty corner of a tiny, crumbling shop. Just from how carefully it was concealed, you can tell it must be a supreme secret manual. Once I master it, I will sweep the martial world. My sword will split the heavens."
Sun Chuanting held out his hand. "Let me see."
Flat Rabbit passed it over with great ceremony.
Sun Chuanting flipped it open casually, his eyes first landing on the author's name.
Gao Sanwa.
A strange silence descended.
"Did you even open it before buying it?" Sun Chuanting exploded. "This is not a sword manual. It is a comic story about a Huashan swordsman's heroic adventures. It has nothing to do with actual sword techniques."
Flat Rabbit stared. "What?"
He grabbed the book back and flipped through it frantically. The more he read, the more his ears drooped.
With a soft thud, he collapsed onto the ground and curled into a tight ball of misery.
Sun Chuanting exhaled slowly. "Everyone has their illusions, I suppose."
Flat Rabbit peeked up at him from his miserable knot. "Principal, you sound troubled yourself. What happened?"
Sun Chuanting hesitated only briefly. "The court has appointed me Governor of Shaanxi. If I take office, the Yellow Pole Military Academy will be left without its head."
Flat Rabbit rolled onto his back and stared at the sky for a moment, as though considering the structure of the cosmos.
"Is that all?" he said finally. "Then open another Yellow Pole Military Academy in Xi'an. As for the Puzhou campus, appoint a new sub-principal later."
The words were so simple they felt almost insulting.
Sun Chuanting stood still.
Then he laughed, a wry and self-aware sound. "When it is your own dilemma, you cannot see the path forward. Yet from the outside, the answer appears obvious."
Flat Rabbit sprang up immediately, as though his earlier despair had never existed. "Then I will go to Xi'an with you. I quite like Xi'an."
Sun Chuanting looked at him skeptically.
Flat Rabbit placed his hands on his hips. "I am not exaggerating. I once served as Grand Steward of Xi'an, personally appointed by Dao Xuan Tianzun."
Sun Chuanting felt as if a cool breeze had blown across his face. "You?"
He studied Flat Rabbit carefully, as though trying to reconcile this chaotic creature with the idea of administrative responsibility.
"You were capable of being a steward?"
Not long after, Sun Chuanting set out for Xi'an to assume his new post, accompanied by Flat Rabbit and Zheng Gouzi. It did not take long for his skepticism to soften.
As they walked through the streets of Xi'an, poor townsfolk bowed to Flat Rabbit with genuine warmth. Some even called out greetings as if welcoming back an old benefactor.
A richly dressed merchant approached and bowed deeply. "Flat Rabbit, you have returned to Xi'an. It has been far too long. I have missed you greatly."
Flat Rabbit squinted at him, then burst into laughter. "You have prospered well. Back then you were begging for scraps. Now look at you."
The merchant straightened, emotion evident in his voice. "It was thanks to you. Those three copper coins you gave me allowed me to fill my stomach and regain my strength. I found work, saved what I could, and eventually opened a small business. Bit by bit it grew. Everything I have today began with those three coins. Since fate has allowed me to meet you again, I must treat you to a proper meal."
Without waiting for refusal, he ushered Flat Rabbit, Sun Chuanting, and Zheng Gouzi to the top floor of Xi'an's finest restaurant.
As soon as they sat down, he declared, "Bring us your newest seafood set."
Sun Chuanting frowned. "Seafood? In Xi'an?"
The merchant smiled. "Recently introduced. Dao Xuan Tianzun arranged for it to be transported from the coast by great ships. It is extraordinary. Even a modest meal for four would cost no less than a hundred taels of silver."
Flat Rabbit nearly fell off his chair. "A hundred taels? I gave you three copper coins. How can I let you spend a hundred taels on me?"
"If not for those three coins," the merchant replied earnestly, "I would have died. What is a hundred taels compared to my life? Please do not refuse."
The waiter acknowledged the order and hurried away.
Sun Chuanting watched all of this with quiet astonishment. Who would have imagined that Flat Rabbit, of all people, had left behind so many threads of goodwill? How many struggling souls had he nudged forward with some careless act of kindness? This prosperous merchant was clearly not the only one.
His thoughts were interrupted by movement at the stairwell. Another group was ascending to the top floor.
Three children.
The eldest was nearly a young man, Han Chinese, dressed simply but in fine cloth that spoke of wealth without ostentation. The two younger ones wore traditional Mongolian attire, marking them immediately as non-Han.
Sun Chuanting murmured softly to himself.
The eldest boy spotted Flat Rabbit and Zheng Gouzi at once and approached with an easy smile. "Uncle Tu, Uncle Gouzi, you are dining here as well?"
Flat Rabbit blinked. "Who are you?"
"It is me," the boy replied brightly. "The son of the 'Rich as Oil' man. Handsome Enough to Bubble."
Flat Rabbit and Zheng Gouzi exchanged a look. They were not particularly close to Liu You, yet this boy addressed them as if they were family elders.
Liu Maopao slid into familiarity without hesitation. "What fortune to encounter Uncle Tu and Uncle Gouzi here. Shall we share a table? And who might these two gentlemen be?"
"I am Sun Chuanting," Sun replied evenly.
Liu Maopao's eyes widened instantly. "Principal Sun of the Yellow Pole Military Academy?"
He bowed properly this time. "Uncle Sun, this junior did not expect to meet you here today and came unprepared with a proper gift. That is truly disrespectful. I will visit your residence another day to make amends, and I will personally deliver the finest wool sweater from our factory."
Sun Chuanting regarded the boy carefully.
He had attached himself within moments, addressed everyone appropriately, and offered a calculated but polite gesture of goodwill.
This kid truly was sharp.