Inside the tent, the candlelight was dim and warm. A long table was covered with countless maps and documents, and more than a dozen commanders sat on chairs along both sides.
Shen Changyin sat behind the table, her fingertip lightly tapping the surface as she listened with lowered eyes to her subordinate's report.
Her subordinate said that three hundred and twenty tenant households had been recruited, six hundred mu of wasteland had been cultivated, and preparations for the spring drought were underway.
Shen Changyin asked if the tenants were following their regulations.
The subordinate replied that thanks to the Third Princess, even those elderly farmers who had some complaints were obediently doing as instructed.
A sudden commotion came from outside. The officers inside the tent rose to their feet, and Shen Changyin also stood and walked toward the noise.
Outside, a few tenants were shouting at a young soldier in charge of management.
A square-jawed, sharp-eyed officer gave Shen Changyin a quick nod before heading over, gesturing for the onlookers to disperse.
As she walked, she said, "Why so noisy? What are you all doing?"
The young soldier immediately stepped forward, looking aggrieved. "Sir, these new tenants from the southern district refuse to follow orders. They won't let us carry out the hygiene inspection."
The tenants grew anxious and upset. "Sir, we only came because we heard this place works for the Third Princess. We just want a peaceful life."
"We haven't even received any payment yet, and you're already asking us to take off our clothes and hand them over. How does that make sense?"
Whether removing clothes was humiliating or not, they were tenant farmers with no land of their own, barely any money, and only one set of presentable clothing. To them, that outfit was a valuable asset. How could they hand it over so easily?
The young soldier also felt helpless. She was only following orders from her superior. And in her view, since these tenants would be working for the Valiant Army, a thorough inspection was necessary.
Each side had its reasons, each felt right and wronged, and the argument was about to flare up again.
One of the instructors beside Shen Changyin feared she would be angry and was just about to explain, but she silenced her with a simple downward gesture of her hand.
Her pale face remained calm, as if she had seen such scenes thousands of times before. And indeed, she knew exactly what was going on.
New tenants entering camp had to remove their clothes to check for fleas or lice. Their clothing also had to be heated and dried at high temperature to prevent pests from hiding inside.
It was a rule she had personally established at the start of the army's formation. All new soldiers and hired tenants went through this same process.
These city tenants were simply frightened because they had never encountered such procedures.
Shen Changyin quietly watched her subordinates handle the matter.
The officer first calmed the tenants. "Sister, you said it yourself. You're here for the Third Princess. Do you really think she cares about your one set of clothes?"
"We provide food and housing here. If someone sharing your room has fleas or lice, wouldn't that be unbearable for you?"
"The Third Princess told us to treat your living conditions with care. That's why we must carry out the inspections."
The tenants protested again. "We're respectable people. We always keep ourselves clean. Why treat us like filthy beggars?"
The officer blinked and chose not to keep explaining the logic behind unified inspection.
She was a veteran from the lower ranks, experienced from years of dealing with older women like these, whether in the northwest or now in the capital. She already knew that reasoning with them wasn't always effective.
The logic they could accept was limited to only a few ideas.
And military farming was busy. There was no time to waste.
So she slapped her thigh dramatically and said:
"My dear sister, have you forgotten whose work we're doing? The Third Princess. Someone that noble despising us common folk a little is nothing. As long as we get paid, what does it matter?"
The tenant's expression shifted instantly. Being looked down upon by upper-class people for not being clean was something she understood perfectly. She even gave a tolerant little smile. "That's true. Our princess is of noble birth. Of course she'd be particular. Thank you, little sister. I hadn't thought of it that way."
The commotion dissolved almost at once.
The other new tenants who had been watching quietly from the side also relaxed and went to report to the recruiting soldiers.
Shen Changyin observed the entire situation. Seeing the officer still helping the soldiers organize the tenants into lines for the pest inspection, she turned her head slightly and spoke to Old Jin. "That one… I remember her surname is Wei."
Old Jin nodded. "Yes. She's been with us since the northwest. Sharp mind too."
Shen Changyin gave a small nod.
Old Jin understood her immediately. "She's indeed capable. We'll keep an eye on her for the next promotion."
She added with some emotion, "The title of Third Princess is truly useful."
Shen Changyin glanced at her but said nothing more. Instead, she asked whether they had found the person.
"Not yet. We found silver ingots with our mark in the southern district. The ones you gave the Third Princess. But she must have traded them multiple times, so we can't trace her path or what she bought."
"But the spies at the city gates reported that they didn't see her leave. The Third Princess should still be somewhere in the southern district."
Shen Changyin said, "Increase manpower. Once you find her, do nothing. Come back and notify me first."
"Yes, sir."
Shen Changyin looked at the bustling scene before her. This place would become the foundation of her power, supplying her with a steady stream of fresh resources for her operations in the capital.
Yet every single task here seemed to bear Xie Yu's name.
She inhaled slowly and turned to Old Jin. "Also, don't let her know anything about this place."
Old Jin saw her expression and immediately grew solemn. "I won't let the Third Princess discover a thing."
—
In the days that followed, Shen Changyin attended court and handled government affairs as usual.
Her transfer of power with the empress had reached its final stage.
During negotiations, the empress had promised many benefits, but a large portion of them wasn't under her control, instead scattered among aristocratic families.
Those were things Shen Changyin had to seize for herself.
Now, at the final stage, only the hardest pieces remained. The battle over remaining power and interests grew even fiercer.
And assassination attempts on her became frequent.
Outside her bedroom, layers of soldiers guarded the night, turning the courtyard into a fortress.
Yet every night when she opened her door, the other half of the room remained empty.
In the main room stood that small round table only two feet wide.
When Xie Yu was still here, she would always complain that the table was too small, barely enough space for dishes for two people.
Especially when they ate stewed tofu pot. With various vegetables and dipping sauces crowding the table, she constantly shifted bowls around, wrinkling her nose in frustration, only to accidentally drop a bowl anyway.
But now Shen Changyin dined alone, and even that tiny table felt spacious.
Until a certain midnight a week later.
The candle flame quivered gently. Wax dripped and hardened again. The iron tree silently grew in the corner.
Shen Changyin was studying maps. A small bowl of medicine on the table still released faint heat.
She covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief.
Her chest felt torn open, and her face paled rapidly.
A maid knocked and entered, panicking at the sight of her coughing. She hurried over. "General, are you alright?"
"It's nothing."
Shen Changyin straightened her back. "What is it?"
The maid explained that the Household Bureau had delivered a set of clothes for her to choose for the engagement banquet. They would take the chosen set back and have royal cloud patterns embroidered. The rest would stay for her daily use.
Shen Changyin shook her head, picked up her maps again, circled several areas that didn't match her memory, and without looking up said, "You choose. Anything is fine."
Outside, orderly footsteps approached again, accompanied by the low hum of blades.
Old Jin returned with her team, entered, and bowed. Her voice was loud and respectful. "General, we found the Third Princess."
Shen Changyin closed the map. The paper made a crisp sound.
She looked up. Her dark eyes reflected the flickering candlelight. "Speak."
Old Jin couldn't help laughing before reporting. "The Third Princess is in the southern district working as a Taoist priest, telling fortunes. Twenty coins per reading. And she's actually pretty accurate."
"Where is she staying?"
"In a broken temple in the south. Living with a little beggar we caught last time."
"How old is the beggar?"
"About fourteen or fifteen."
Shen Changyin's brows relaxed a little. She lifted the bowl of lukewarm medicine and drank it all.
The bitterness lingered on her tongue, but it was tolerable.
Old Jin asked if they should launch a surprise operation that night.
"No." Shen Changyin answered. "She should already be asleep."
She glanced out the window. The sky was cloudless, with only the bright moon and stars.
Tomorrow would be good weather.
She told the maid to have the bedding taken out to sun in the morning and to take a few stalks of dried mugwort from storage to sun as well.
Old Jin blinked, not understanding the purpose of mugwort.
The maid already understood and smiled. "You truly think of everything. A ruined temple isn't a proper place to live. It's only right to cleanse the dust for her. I'll prepare hot water and clean towels at all times."
She then asked at just the right moment, "General, shall we pick a set of clothes from what the Household Bureau sent? They're all suitable for spring. Wearing them tomorrow to greet the Third Princess would be perfect."
"Mm, let them bring it up. And tell the small kitchen to stew the chicken tonight."
The maid beamed with joy and swiftly took care of everything.
A few eunuchs entered in a neat line, carrying eight sets of clothing folded perfectly.
Shen Changyin's expression relaxed. She walked around, touched the fabric with her hand, and finally stopped in front of a fresh, bright green robe.
"Barely acceptable." she said.
"This color is lovely, my general." the maid quickly added. "You forgot. Our Third Princess loves this shade. She even has two robes in this very green. When she wears them, she looks just like a lively youth of seventeen or eighteen."
The candles inside the room crackled, like a harmonious melody.
Shen Changyin found herself thinking, terribly out of place, that if Xie Yu were here right now, she would once again imitate the candle's crackling with her mouth and make strange noises.
"This one then."
"Old Jin." she suddenly said. "Rest well tonight. Tomorrow you will come with me to welcome the Third Princess back."
Old Jin responded heartily. "Yes!"
The next morning, the breeze was gentle and the sunlight spilled over Shen Changyin, illuminating the green robe like the fresh buds of early spring.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, feeling the long-absent vitality of spring.
Little Sweetwater Alley was just ahead, and she could already see the line of people.
A clear and youthful voice came from within the crowd. "Am I accurate? Of course I am. What do you want me to read? I can check your palm."
Soldiers with long blades at their waists moved silently along the crowd, tapping shoulders. Old Jin held out her waist token for them to see, and the crowd parted like Moses parting the sea, revealing a path.
At the end of that path was a half-baked fake Taoist, head lowered, drawing talismans, exposing a black, fluffy crown of hair.
The fake Taoist was busy drawing fake charms, vermillion smudging her hands completely. She had no idea what was happening, only felt a shadow fall across her and said, "No cutting in line!"
Shen Changyin sat down in front of her stall, her right hand lifting the wide sleeve of her left arm. She extended her pale palm. "I didn't cut it. I want a palm reading."
When the person looked up at the sound of her voice and showed a face full of shock, Shen Changyin waved her hand a little, displaying the faint pinkish lines on her palm.
With a smile she said, "I want a reading about my marriage fate."
—
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