Chapter 25: Audacious Beyond Measure

“Sir, I acted impulsively today. If I broke any laws, please deal with me according to the law. But I ask for a little time to make arrangements for these people.”

“Go ahead! Later, come to the Chang’an County Office to receive your punishment. Knowing the law and breaking it is a greater offense. I think you won’t escape paying ten strings of copper coins!” Fang Xuanling replied with a cheerful smile, not taking the matter seriously at all.

“I take my leave.”

“Go and fetch a physician to the temple. The little girl is quite ill and needs a doctor’s prescription,” Cai Cong said, then led the group toward Ci’en Temple.

Back at Ci’en Temple, Cai’s second sister, seeing so many pitiful people, hurried off to prepare food. Yet she was stopped by women from their village; now that her son was an official, she shouldn’t be doing such work—let them handle the cooking.

Most of the villagers of Cai Family Village were inherently kind-hearted. Seeing these thin, pallid children, how could they not feel sympathy? Soon, all sorts of food were brought forth.

Only Cai Tian watched coldly. The brothel had shut down these last days, so he had nowhere to go. Even if there were places open, he had no money left; it was already spent.

They treat these beggars so well, but whenever I ask for a bit of money, they refuse. Hypocrites, pretending to be good people.

“Hey, Cai Cong, you’re giving good food and drink to these beggars—can’t you help your uncle, too? I’m so poor now, I can barely afford a meal!” Cai Tian sat beside Cai Cong, grinning shamelessly as he spoke.

“You can’t eat now?” Cai Cong didn’t even look at him, blowing on a spoonful of meat porridge and feeding it to a child not yet three years old.

Cai Tian’s smile froze, but he swallowed his curses, saying with a bitter face, “Well, I can eat, but I have no money. It just doesn’t feel secure.”

“So it’s about money, is it? Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Cai Cong put down his bowl, as if he finally understood, and spoke with mild reproach.

“Well, an uncle asking his nephew for money isn’t exactly dignified. I really couldn’t bring myself to ask,” Cai Tian said excitedly, rubbing his face with both hands as images of the women from the secret brothel flashed in his mind.

“Weiguo, Weiguo, come here for a moment.”

“What is it? I’m busy feeding a child.”

“Nothing much, really—do you have any money on you? Give me two big coins.”

Hearing this, Cai Tian felt a sense of foreboding. Sure enough, Cai Cong took two big coins and pressed them into his hand, “Uncle, now you feel secure, right?”

“Cai Cong! This is an insult. Do you even respect me as your elder?” He sprang to his feet, roaring, gripping the two coins with heat rising from his neck to his face, shaming his ancestors.

“What’s wrong? Uncle, why do you see me this way? I gave you exactly what you asked for—two coins, not one less,” Cai Cong replied calmly, continuing with his task.

“Well, well, what a good nephew...”

“It’s not that the nephew is too generous, but the uncle is too shameless. Nowadays, everyone keeps grain to survive these difficult times, but you and your lot sell your grain for money to gamble and whore. If it weren’t for charity, your family would have starved long ago.”

Cai Cong eyed him coolly, despising those who forget their roots the moment they have a little money. Even with the Turks attacking, they exchanged grain for cash to indulge themselves—utterly oblivious to danger.

“Sir, they’ve returned, but as soon as they entered the city, the palace guards took them away. It doesn’t look good,” Pei Dong rushed over and spoke quietly.

“It’s fine, you may go.”

“But, sir—”

“I knew this would happen from the outset. Say no more. Leave now, so you won’t be implicated.”

“But sir, you haven’t done anything wrong! Alas…” Pei Dong turned and left; in matters this serious, he wasn’t even qualified to be implicated.

“Baolai, leave things here to them. Take me to the Chang’an County Office.”

Inside the palace, the ministers listening to the trembling squad leader kneeling on the floor felt cold sweat trickling down their backs, remaining silent.

“Bold and reckless! Your Majesty, Cai Cong’s actions must be punished severely to warn others!” Duke of Changping, Zhang Liang, was the first to step forward, speaking righteously.

Fang Xuanling glanced at him, sighing inwardly. He had ability but a narrow mind. Didn’t he notice everyone else was silent?

“That’s how things went. Once it was confirmed the Turkic army had withdrawn, Duke Cheng led the army back to Longyou. On the way, they fought the Turks and slew over a thousand. To prevent escalation, I said it was the Divine Army of the Imperial Advisor. The Turks called us madmen and retreated.”

The squad leader finished, remaining kneeling, understanding finally dawning. He seemed to realize his trip to Longyou was under false imperial orders. Sweat poured from his brow.

“Your Majesty, I have a question: where did Cai Cong get an imperial edict? Cheng Yaojin may be crude, but he can distinguish real from fake. He wouldn’t be deceived,” Chancellor Changsun Wuji stepped forward, voice ringing out. He needed to know about the edict—otherwise, it would be hard to judge Cai Cong’s crime.

Li Shimin, who had been silent, finally smiled. “That boy said to me that acting without authority was improper. He insisted that if he was to do something so great, he deserved even a provisional edict. Little did I expect his audacity.”

When the officials heard the emperor refer to him as “that boy,” they understood: the emperor was not angry—in fact, he seemed in good spirits. But some, blinded by their own motives, failed to notice.

“Your Majesty, Cai Cong was audacious—he invoked the emperor’s name and mobilized the army. He deserves execution,” Zhang Liang’s booming voice echoed through the hall, making others frown. Is it really necessary to take such drastic action against an eight-year-old child?

“Report—”

At that moment, a young eunuch entered and knelt. “Your Majesty, we could not find Master Cai Cong at Ci’en Temple. Later, we learned he had surrendered himself and is now imprisoned at the Chang’an County Office.”

“How could he be kept there? What if someone rescues him? He should be taken to the Grand Court for strict interrogation. He might be a Tibetan spy, intending to provoke war between Tang and the Turks.” It must be said, internal strife brings out the wildest speculation.

Yet Zhang Liang’s words made everyone present feel he took them for fools. If Tibet knew Tang had such a cunning figure, they would have dealt with him long ago.

“I haven’t even decided his guilt, and he’s already locked himself up,” Li Shimin said with a smile, showing no intention of punishing him.

“Your Majesty, Master Cai said he tore up the sale contracts between Duke of Changping’s servants and others, forced the clerks to destroy the documents, and assaulted the duke’s servants. He knowingly broke the law and should be imprisoned and tried.”

So that was the issue. No wonder Zhang Liang fought so hard to ruin him. The others looked at Zhang Liang differently now—such a small matter, and he sought to destroy a man. How petty.

“He’s truly bold—daring to tear up contracts. What’s the story here?” Li Shimin’s expression darkened instantly. He could tolerate Cai Cong’s cleverness and loophole-seeking, but could never allow anyone to trample Tang law.

“I know something about this, Your Majesty—I happened to be present,” Fang Xuanling spoke calmly. As a civil minister, he could not stand by while the military bullied a promising young civil official.

“So you were present, Xuanling. This must be an unusual case. Tell us in detail,” Li Shimin was shrewd—if Fang Xuanling was there yet didn’t intervene, there must be more to the story.

Fang Xuanling spoke up immediately, his eloquence drawing listeners into the scene. He did not embellish, but recounted the facts plainly. After hearing him, everyone fell silent. In such troubled times, who could say the Zhang family was wrong? After all, buying people meant giving them food and a chance to live.

But a child sold for ten big coins—that made no sense. Ten coins wouldn’t buy even a decent sheet of paper, especially now, when grain prices in Chang’an had soared. Giving only ten coins meant leaving families to starve in the streets. And to beat them in such circumstances—was there any humanity left?

“Judging strictly by the law, Master Cai broke it. Yet he just saved tens of thousands from the Turks. To expect him to watch those people become slaves, beaten and starved in the streets—his feelings must be terribly conflicted,” Fang Xuanling now changed his form of address, for in court, rank mattered more than age.

“Bah! If it were me, I wouldn’t hesitate—beat those villainous servants to death! To rescue these people, so many risked their lives, even the emperor himself faced danger. And now, their families are to be destroyed? Didn’t your Ministry of Revenue say you’d open the granaries? How is it people are being forced to sell their sons and daughters?” Yuchi Gong spat thickly at Zhang Liang’s feet—being straightforward, he saw no reason to mince words.