Chapter 149: Du He Makes a Drunken Scene

"The work is naturally to be done by people like us. Why would the Prince of Yue, with his precious and noble status, need to do everything himself? He only needs to burn books and make a proclamation to the heavens. Only he, possessing an immortal rank and being immune to all evils, can remain unafraid of the locust demon's curse."

"Since that is the case, your minister implores Your Majesty to grant permission for the Prince of Yue to burn books in sacrifice to the heavens, to preside over the eradication of the locust demon, and the entire Secretariat will undoubtedly strive to assist the Prince of Yue to the utmost."

Fang Xuanling's words were resounding and firm, exceeding everyone's expectations. The ministers wore solemn expressions and respectfully bowed to Du Ruhui. Only a person of such lofty virtue could command such immense influence.

Du Ruhui looked at Fang Xuanling with a complex gaze; he had not expected Fang Xuanling to finally let go of his stubbornness.

Fang Xuanling smiled silently. "Fang's plotting and Du's decisiveness—the world speaks the truth. This old man is not as decisive as Keming; in decisiveness I am inferior to you, and in plotting I am also inferior to you. Come then! This old man also wishes to see if the locust plague can be eradicated, if only to pave the way for those who come after."

"Good! With the assistance of you great sages, why should our Great Tang worry about not ushering in a prosperous and peaceful era?" Li Shimin wiped away his tears and said with a hearty laugh.

"Li Tai, step forward to receive your imperial investiture. I appoint you as the Locust Eradication Envoy to preside over the locust eradication and heaven-proclaiming ceremony, praying for peace and prosperity for our Great Tang. Fang Xuanling, Cai Cong, hear my decree: the two of you shall serve as the left and right vice-envoys, in charge of specific matters. This time, our Great Tang vows to eradicate the locust scourge. Li Chunfeng, I appoint you as the Grand Astrologer; may you diligently serve the country."

"Your Majesty, what shall this old minister do?"

"You? You shall properly recuperate for me. Listen, everyone in the Secretariat: keep a close eye on Du Keming, and by no means let him overexert himself. Keming, ah! There is no end to the affairs of the world; rest more. I hope that in two years you will be able to kick open the doors of the Cai estate, cursing him with a full breath for making inaccurate calculations! I still wish to drink wine and sing with you old brothers in this grand hall after I have grown old."

"Haha... This junior also sincerely hopes that two years from now, Elder Du will block my doorstep and hurl curses."

Cai Cong said sincerely, and the ministers burst into bold, hearty laughter. Undaunted by vitality itself, what was a mere locust plague?

After the morning court session, the ministers immediately busied themselves. After all, having partaken of a little metaphorical chicken soup, people always found it easier to muster motivation for work than usual. Each and every one of them braced themselves, a nameless strength swelling in their hearts, simply yearning to accomplish something.

Seeing Cai Cong emerge, Xu Jie immediately called for the sedan chair to be properly set down for him to enter.

"Return to the Marquis's estate; we are not going to the military camp tonight," Cai Cong said with a solemn expression. Lacking foresight indeed! In the end, he had still been dragged onto the thief's ship by the Daoist sect; the Buddhist sect would likely not let the matter rest easily.

Seeing Cai Cong's expression, Xu Jie did not dare to ask too many questions. He instructed the servants to steady the sedan and headed toward the Marquis's estate.

Sister Cai was chatting with Cai Cong's aunt when she saw Cai Cong return, feeling somewhat puzzled. Had he not said there were matters at the military camp?

"Mother, I'm sleepy and going to bed. Later, if anyone from the Du family comes, no matter what they do, do not be surprised. Your son cursed their family head to live no more than two years; they might come and splash dog's blood on our gates."

"Rest assured, Mother knows how to handle it! Go on to sleep now, look at how tired you've been made," Sister Cai said to Cai Cong with a heart full of distress. Her son was really something—that was a high-ranking official of the imperial court, how could he curse him?

However, since the deed was done, they would bear the consequences. At worst, they would just change the gate and paint the wall; it was not such a big deal!

"Aunt, will this cause any trouble?" Hanhua asked softly, watching Cai Cong walk away. She was now living a life of silk and fine food, something she had never dared to imagine before.

Yet she knew that all this wonderful life was not given by the old man, nor by her son, but by Cai Cong. If anything happened to Cai Cong, their good days would come to an end as well.

"It should be fine. It's just blocking the door and shouting curses, nothing of consequence. I heard Dalang received an excellent evaluation at the academy this time, so as his aunt, I must send him something. Later, sister-in-law, you can take a large mirror back with you for him! That is a fine treasure; it reflects people as clear as day, and you can even see the fine hairs on a face distinctly."

"That simply won't do. I asked someone about the small mirror you sent last time, and they said a single mirror is worth fifty strings of coins. Just how much must this large mirror cost?" Hanhua waved her hands to indicate her refusal.

"We are a close-knit family. Nowadays, among the cousins of the Cai family, there is only Dalang from Gangzi's household, and among the second cousins there are just your two children. There is no need to calculate so clearly."

"Aunt values family ties, how could I, your sister-in-law, not know? I am only afraid that kindness in a peck breeds resentment, while kindness in a bushel breeds enmity! Although those two children hate their father, yet... yet after all, he is their father. Even though their father was not killed by Cai Cong, Cai Cong was involved in it after all.

"I do not wish for you to be so good to them, lest they mistake this for some sort of compensation and grow ungrateful in the future, mistakenly believing that you still owe them something."

Hanhua said with a face full of worry. Great-grandfather always said he would treat the two children strictly, but each time he could not harden his heart and gave them whatever they asked for. Fearing the children would be spoiled, she had sent them directly to the academy, forbidding them to return home except during holidays.

"Although sister-in-law is someone who has never read books, you make me deeply admire you when it comes to matters of great principle. How could the character of children raised by you be anything less? I believe they are all good children."

The two of them chatted about domestic trifles, and eventually, two servants carried a mirror taller than a person and left in Hanhua's company.

In the evening, a greasy-faced young man, accompanied by a dozen household servants bearing torches, stood outside the Cai estate.

With misty, intoxicated eyes, he looked as though he had consumed quite a bit of alcohol. The servants behind him carried several tubs of oil, their legs trembling incessantly so that they could hardly stand steady.

"Is this the home of that bastard? God damn it, he actually dared to curse and revile my father. Shall I burn your house down?"

This young man was Du He, the second son of Du Ruhui. Day in and day out, he frequented brothels—a true case of a formidable father begetting a worthless son.

Today, while drinking and carousing in a brothel, he had repeatedly heard people mention that the Marquis of Chang'an had cursed Duke Cai to his face, wishing that he would live no more than two years, and that Duke Cai had not even dared to talk back. Infuriated, he had overturned a table, summoned his servants, and resolved to burn down the Marquis's estate to let everyone know that Duke Cai's estate was not to be bullied lightly.

"Pour that oil on, then set it on fire! He dares curse my father? I'll burn him to death." Du He's tongue was somewhat tied as he spoke, pointing to the bare wall and demanding the servants start the fire.

"Second Young Master, you'd better not! This is the Marquis of Chang'an's estate. If we burn his residence, he will kill us." The servants were nearly crying, stepping backward one by one and not daring to step forward at all.

"So what if he's the Marquis of Chang'an? I want him to know that I, Du He, am not afraid of him! Burn it, set the fire, a blazing fire! Otherwise, this young master will sell you all to the fighting arena."

Hearing the words "fighting arena," the servants' legs turned to jelly. They were terrified of it on ordinary days; if they were sent inside, would they not be torn to pieces alive?

At this thought, several men hoisted the oil tubs, looking back three times with every step as they walked to the wall. Gritting their teeth, they splashed the oil onto the wall, dropped the torches, and fled.

On top of the wall, a few household servants of the Cai estate poured down sand, instantly extinguishing the fire. Sitting atop the wall, they watched this group of fools, wondering if this was the first time they had ever seen anyone attempt arson without bringing firewood. Did they seriously think they could scorch the Marquis's wall black?

"Smash the door! I'm going to kill that bumpkin. A mere yellow-haired youth, and I will finish him off."

Seeing the gazes of the Cai estate servants, Du He felt his mind flood with rage. He would not stop until he had beaten Cai Cong to death.

Swaying in his drunken madness, he pounded on the grand gates, and receiving no response, in his anger he relieved himself right at the entrance.