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[Chapter 1 – Murder in the royal capital] Yes, these are the guestrooms of the Xi Nan Manor

Notes: Xi Nan literally means South West.  I will use Xi Nan when referring to the place or the king and South West when referring to the direction etc.


In Xi Nan, there is a mountain named Luo Xian.

‘Luo Xian Mountain’ sounds pleasing, and the scenery there is also beautiful. During the months of March and April, the plains of the mountain are entirely covered in vibrant green seedlings; after the mist-like rain falls, flowers will take just a night to bloom. With the plants swaying as the wind rushes by, it lends itself to a carefree and relaxed feeling; this is certainly an excellent place to take a trip.

It is simply unfortunate that once this place is mentioned among the locals living at the base of the mountain, nine out of ten will shake their heads, and even advise travelers to never go there. When asked for the reason, however, no one will be eager to say. Only when some reckless people who insisted on going in, is the truth revealed. A few years ago, Luo Xian Mountain was occupied by someone calling himself the lord of the mountain. The mountain chief is called Wang Da Bao and he has a group of underlings with him. Each of his subordinates are brutal and unreasonable; armed with swords, they are killing and beating up people at every turn. The locals have been terrorized by them a few times, and do not dare to go into the mountain to discuss a solution. They only treat the bandits like the plague, hiding from them as much as possible and only asking to have a peaceful daily life.
It’s lucky that there are lots of mountains in Xi Nan, and the absence of this one does not matter much.

However only the locals want peace; Wang Da Bao does not.
He is a tyrant originally from the country of Chu; his family has land, houses and a martial arts hall; he had a comfortable everyday life. Used to showing off while in the martial arts hall, he carelessly caused a murder on the streets; this even drew the attention of the emperor who was out on a trip that time. In order to protect his own life, he absconded in the night, and arrived in the territory of Xi Nan and became a bandit. Suddenly arriving in this backwater town after a life of abundance, he laid low for a while. After some time, however, he started reminiscing and began to think of ways to restore his former life.

At this moment, he is currently sitting in a sedan, and being carried by people towards the Xi Nan manor – everybody knows, for Chu, the Xi Nan King, Duan Bai Yue, is but a minor and insignificant presence.

When Chu Yuan ascended the throne, he was just barely eighteen. At that time, the officials in the royal court formed factions; in Xi Bei, bandits began to appear everywhere. Only Xi Nan barely managed to suppress them, and even helped to maintain peace and order; the royal court naturally rewarded Xi Nan with fiefdom and gold to placate and commend them. A few years have passed, and all the troublesome vassals have been eliminated. Only the Xi Nan King, Duan Bai Yue, did not suffer any losses, but was also rewarded with sixteen prefectures near the border, expanding his territory to the borders of Chu.

The ministers in the royal court discussed this matter with barely disguised disapproval and dissatisfaction; they felt that Duan Bai Yue has been given more than he should be entitled to; he has heavily armed troops under his command, so they cannot help but guard against him. Commoners were also spreading rumors in private, saying that the Xi Nan King is violent and evil, and no one can say for sure that he won't lead his troops to the north, and cause a headache for the emperor.

Wang Da Bao has also heard of this rumor.

Since he is in Xi Nan, the biggest supporter he can get naturally has to be the Xi Nan King. In order to seek a rapport with him, the first thing is to find out and do what the king likes. His arrival happens to coincide with the completion of the Xi Nan King’s new manor, and so Wang Da Bao spent half a month to concoct a congratulatory gift; he then buried it in the mountain for a month. He dug out the treasure in anticipation, and carried it all the way with him to Xi Nan.

After getting out of the sedan, Wang Da Bao followed the housekeeper inside. The design of the Xi Nan Manor is unlike an ordinary official’s residence, and built as well as a palace(1). If it is said that the Xi Nan King does not have intentions of treason; one is afraid that even a fool will not believe this.

Approaching the garden, he can see that there is a young lady in pink and white sitting at the stone table, seemingly engrossed in something; the housekeeper reminded him in a whisper, “That's a master of this manor, do not look around freely”.
After hearing this, Wang Da Bao lowered his head, but the lady has already seen the two of them, stood up and curtly asked, “He’s a guest?”

“Yes.” The housekeeper replied. “He is here to see the lord.”

The lady sized him up. Wang Da Bao, seeing that she did not speak for a long time, took the initiative to praise, “It is as if young miss is a flower, and like jade; your looks are like that of a goddess.”

The moment he ended his sentence, the housekeeper’s face immediately paled; the lady furiously said, “Try saying it one more time and see what happens!”
Wang Da Bao was startled, and thought to himself, it’s possible that she found those verses too vulgar, and she wanted more elegant praise? Heavens take mercy on him, he is only a crude leader of the bandits, and not very cultured.

“Young master, please forgive him, this guest came from the mountains, and is unfamiliar with the world.” The housekeeper urgently smoothed things over.

“…” Young master? Wang Da Bao is shocked.

“Humph!” the lady, or should he say, a boy, turned away angrily and went to the house.

“Nonsense!” The housekeeper glared at him. “You’re fortunate that young master is unwilling to argue with you, when meeting the lord later, if you’re still unaware of your surroundings, be careful that your head will fall!”

Wang Da Bao is unhappy and yet cannot express it. Rumors among the common folk all say that in the Xi Nan manor, there is a younger lord whose temperament and instinct is the same as the Xi Nan King; who knew that he will show up in this way; isn't there a chance that the Xi Nan King also has such interests – a tendency to wear feminine clothing and parade in the courtyard.

Carrying with him a sense of unease, Wang Da Bao was led straight to the antechamber, and sat down to drink some tea for a while.

Thirty minutes later(2), he finally heard footsteps approaching from the outside.
“Lord!” The guards in the courtyard saluted in unison.
Wang Da Bao quickly stood up and bowed: “Subject pays respect to the lord.”

“You are the one who dug up some treasure?” Duan Bai Yue sat down at the main seat, and asked him.
“That is me, that is me.” Wang Da Bao, unable to contain his pleasure, offered up the courtesy gift, and stole a glance at the legendary Xi Nan King. His five features are elegant and he is of tall height; the purple outfit he wears is made of expensive, soft fabric; his aura is different from that of ordinary people; one look and one can see that he will be a good ally to have.

Duan Bai Yue opened the box, then frowned, “A stone?”
“Yes, it’s a stone, but it’s not a normal stone.” Wang Da Bao said with an air of mystique, and pointed it out to him.

Within the vague lines on the rock, there is a fierce Xi Nan tiger, and being held under its paw is a golden dragon; the meaning does not need to be said.
The Xi Nan King raised an eyebrow but remained silent.
Wang Da Bao, meanwhile, is full of anticipation.

“Very good.” After a long pause, Duan Bai Yue finally said a sentence.
Wang Da Bao’s heart finally falls back from his throat to its rightful place; it’s as if he can already foresee a beautiful future of riches.
“What are your thoughts on this?” Duan Bai Yue asked him.
“Destiny should be followed.” Wang Da Bao approached him, “if this stone is also seen by the commoners, it will be of great benefit to you, lord.”
Duan Bai Yue listened to his words quietly, and let his head come nearer, till their heads are almost touching each other.
“I wonder what are the lord's intentions?” Luckily Wang Da Bao stopped in time, and avoided getting chased away with a slap.
“Not bad, it’s certainly worthy of this guest from the great Chu.” Duan Bai Yue nodded, “you can stay in the Xi Nan manor after this.”
“Really?” He did not expect to join Xi Nan manor so easily; Wang Da Bao could barely contain his happiness, and even almost fainted.
“Really.” Duan Bai Yue nodded, and shouted outside, “Yao-er!”
“What’s the matter?” The youth, encountered in the garden previously, walked over.
“Bring this guest to the guestroom to rest.” Duan Bai Yue said, “If there’s no permission from me, he is not allowed to go out. “
“Let’s go.” The boy did not spare him one glance, “Quickly, I still have other things to do. “
“Yes yes yes, thank you very much Xi Nan King, thank you very much young master. “ Wang Da Bao couldn’t care less what “no permission then he is not to go out” means, and quickly followed the youth outside.

The youth looks frail, and yet his steps are quick; Wang Da Bao was initially jogging, and in the end he was sprinting wildly. He became dizzy and breathless, and even almost fell down.
“We have arrived.” The youth stopped walking, and impatiently said, “Go in already.”
Wang Da Bao stared at the prison cell in front of him, stunned.
If he didn’t remember wrongly, what the Xi Nan King said just now, is…a guest room?

“Is there a misunderstanding here?” Wang Da Bao asked derisively.
“There’s no misunderstanding, believe it or not, these are guest rooms of the Xi Nan Manor.” The youth clapped his hands together, and turned to go outside, “Rest easy, you won’t be starved.”
“Young master ----“ Wang Da Bao wanted to ask him to explain some more, but guards have already approached him, dragged and locked him into the dungeon.

“Lord.” In the antechamber, the housekeeper came in and reported, “there’s a letter from the royal capital again. “
“Oh?” The Xi Nan King seemed very interested, and carelessly threw the stone away, and went to the study.

At the same time, a few thousand miles away, the mood of emperor Chu Yuan is not all that good.
“Your Majesty,” Eunuch Si Xi, his personal caretaker, said, “it’s time to take your meal.”
“No appetite, just ask the imperial kitchen to disperse. “ A bit irritated, Chu Yuan placed the tea cup in his hand to one side.
Eunuch Si XI sighed internally, and after bowing and leaving, closed the door quietly.
Two years after ascending the throne, the life of the emperor is still stressful…

After half an hour, Chu Yuan threw down the report from the court, angrily found a few guards, and got them to dig up a plum tree from the palace courtyard, and dispose of it as far as possible.
After receiving the order, everyone methodically spread out the work; you take the shovel, I dig; not only must they work fast, they must ensure the soil is brought along, and even more importantly the roots of the plum tree must not be harmed --- because in three days or less, the emperor will send down an order to retrieve the tree and plant it back in its original place --- and even demand it to bloom in the winter. These seven, eight years of digging and replanting, being unrelentingly tossed to and fro; if it is an ordinary tree it would have withered a long time ago; and yet this plum tree bloomed even more extravagantly year after year; it’s a rare sight to see.

Although it is not winter now, the nights in the royal palace are still cold. Every house has closed its doors tightly, and have long went to sleep. With the spring rain falling, this is initially a good time to sleep, and yet a shout sounded in the capital, breaking the silence: “This is disastrous, there has been a murder!”

A moment later, the patrol guards have rushed to the scene. The alley is full of blood splatter, leading people to panic; a man is lying face down on the ground, a sharp knife in his back; it seems like he has been long dead.
The guard flipped the corpse over; and startled upon seeing his face; after verifying it one more time, replied, “Reporting to leader; the deceased seems to be the prince of the country of Ah Nu. “

T/N:
(1) as well-built as a palace :金殿 (Jīn diàn) means a building that was built to the highest specifications, in this case I compared it to the palace.
(2): thirty minutes later here is written as ‘time taken to burn an incense stick’ as it is referred to in the past.

Feel free to comment if you notice any mistakes!

Correction: it should be SOUTH West and not North West.

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