Chapter 415 — Keeping a Cat

Song Yan and Dou Yan both understood that this was because Gu Yu's reputation had gone before him: Empress Wan feared he would bungle whatever he set his hand to, and would rather keep him idle at home until the business of the Prince of Liao was settled. No matter who approached the Empress on his behalf, she would never let Gu Yu take office.

In truth, both Empress Wan and the Prince of Liao had always looked after Gu Yu kindly.

In the life before, once the Prince of Liao took the throne, Gu Yu — barely twenty, just capped — was made Seal-Holding Commissioner of the Five Armies Commission, and held at the same time the post of Chief Commandant of the Standard-Bearer Guard. His star blazed so brightly that for a while no one at court stood near him.

Song Yan, of course, knew nothing of any of this. He had his own ways of dealing with Gu Yu.

"When all's said and done, it's that 'Little Tyrant of the Capital' reputation of yours that's dragging you down," said Song Yan. "Don't sulk about it. Didn't the Empress say you weren't 'steady' enough? Go and do a few steady things for her to see, and naturally she'll stop standing in your way."

Gu Yu's interest kindled at once. "Then what am I supposed to do?" he asked eagerly.

"I've taken over a shipyard down in Tianjin," said Song Yan, "and I'm at my wits' end for a man to run it. Why don't you go and manage it for me? Once you come back, everyone will look at you with new eyes!"

"You can't be serious!" Gu Yu's face fell in utter disappointment. "You want me to go and be your steward?"

"No wonder the Empress doesn't feel easy about you," said Song Yan. "Eyes set high, hands kept low — what could a man like that ever accomplish? Don't be fooled by how fine I look now. At twelve I was already reconciling accounts with the head merchants of the Thirteen Hongs of Guangdong. If I hadn't had that much skill in me, do you think those head merchants — every one of them able to hold his own ground — would have bowed to me?"

Gu Yu sat there squirming and said nothing more.

To be set all at once to a steward's work — the drop was a little steep.

"A grown man," said Dou Yan, "must be able to stoop as well as stand tall. If you can't stomach even this much, how will you ever accomplish anything great?"

The truth was that Gu Yu had never known a single hardship in his former life; he had lived out his whole span in bright silks and spirited horses, free and unfettered to the end.

If Gu Yu ever learned that it was all coaxing on her part, would he glare at her in fury and never speak to her again?

Dou Yan turned the thought over in her mind.

But Gu Yu sprang to his feet. He paced several turns about the room, then came to a stop, his face set with resolve, and said through gritted teeth, "Fine — I'll go to Tianjin! I refuse to believe a trifle like this can get the better of me!"

Dou Yan heaped praise on Gu Yu.

Gu Yu rolled his eyes. "Don't imagine I don't know you're all sweet-talking me into going off to buy you cheap labor. It's only that the capital bores me, and this is a good excuse to clear my head."

Dou Yan and Song Yan burst out laughing.

Gu Yu promptly forgot that Song Yan had schemed against him, and said with a grin, "I hear there are rare treasures overseas. Why don't we build a great ship and sail off around the world?"

Song Yan did not know whether to laugh or cry. "The craft of building those oceangoing ships is held entirely by the Ministry of Works. Ordinary folk never even get a look at one, let alone build one privately — that's against every regulation."

Gu Yu nodded and muttered a reluctant assent, but the eagerness in his brow was hard to hide.

Song Yan looked at Dou Yan and sighed.

Sending this heedless creature off to Tianjin — who was to say whether it was right or wrong?

Song Yan had meant to go and have a word with the Earl of Yunyang, but before he could, the Liaodong caravan arrived in the capital the very next day.

Besides two great chests of furs, Jiang Sunbai had also sent Song Yan a letter of greeting.

Song Yan received the caravan's head merchant with courtesy, and with Zi Aifeng keeping him company, entertained him to a meal at the Duke of Yingguo's mansion. He himself lingered until lamp-lighting time, then took the letter and went back to his study, posted Wuyi and the others outside the door, and stayed within alone for a long while without coming out.

Dou Yan grew a little worried and went to the study.

The study was ablaze with lamplight. Song Yan sat bolt upright before his desk, staring blankly at the octagonal palace lantern upon it.

On the desk, besides a letter lying open, there was a copy of The Thousand-Word Poem.