Chapter Ninety-Seven: Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel

Yu Lang could tell at a glance that this man was not merely putting on an act. He was truly the sort of fool who had no idea what he was worth, yet spent every day imagining himself a peerless genius. For that, Yu Lang found himself unexpectedly admiring him; to possess such a heart swollen so full of self-assurance was a rare and astonishing thing indeed.

After a careful look, he saw that although the beggar’s clothes were in tatters, their original fabric had been of excellent quality. He did not look like someone who had never read a book, either. He must once have come from a respectable family that had since fallen on hard times, and that stirred a little pity in Yu Lang’s heart.

But the beggar clearly had no need of anyone’s pity. “Stop looking at me like I’m an idiot. It’s just that you people are too inept to appreciate my talent. When the whole world is foul, I alone remain clean; when all men are drunk, I alone am sober.”

“Fine, then. Since you are so lofty and self-reliant, settle the thirty taels of wine you owe first.”

The beggar’s face fell. “I’ve fallen on hard times at the moment and don’t have the money to repay you yet. Put it on account. Once I pass the imperial examination and become an official, I’ll repay you double.”

Though Xie Zhiqian was kindhearted, he was also rather scrupulous, and he could not stand this man’s repeated arrogant talk. “You have hands and feet, you’re not old, and your mind is still fairly sharp. If you set your feet on the ground and worked honestly, you would have a bright future. Why must you spend your days lost in impossible dreams?”

The beggar wore a contemptuous, unwilling-to-debate expression. “Save your lectures. Do you really think you’re some champion of justice? You’re nothing but a partisan, eager to attack anyone different from yourselves. You simply can’t stand an oddball like me.”

Yu Lang knew full well that if they kept tangling with him, they would never get the silver back. So he magnanimously decided to let it go for the moment. “Then let those thirty taels count as a debt to me. When you make your fortune later, come repay me in Chongren Ward.”

The beggar nodded. “All right. Remember this: my name is Zheng Yuanhe.”

With that, he turned to leave. Only then did the others notice that one of his legs had recently been broken, and he was forcing himself onward by bracing his hands on the ground and inching forward with great difficulty.

Du Fu could not bear to see a scholar brought low. He sighed. “Young Master Zheng, if you do not mind, you may come back with me to Chongren Ward and stay there. Rest your injuries first, and it will not be too late to prepare for the imperial examination afterward.”

Xue Wenyang, whose medical skill was the best among them, glanced over and said, “The injury to your leg may be minor or severe. If it is not treated in time, there is a risk you could be left lame. Right now you have no money at all, and it would be very easy for the illness to worsen.”

There was emotion in Zheng Yuanhe’s eyes, but even more than that, resolve. “I appreciate your kindness, gentlemen, but a gentleman does not accept charity without merit.”

Each person had his own will. Since his departure was so determined, the others could hardly force him, and so they could only watch as he slowly dragged himself away.

After wandering for most of the day, the four of them also felt somewhat tired, so they returned to Du Fu’s residence in Chongren Ward to rest.

Everything that had just happened had been watched by a master and servant sitting in a teahouse not far away.

“Sir, is it not too heartless to treat the young master this way?” The servant had watched Zheng Yuanhe grow up and, seeing the young master who had been raised in luxury and ease suffer such hardship, could not help feeling sorry for him.

The man addressed as Sir was Zheng Yuanhe’s own father, Zheng Renyang, who had recently been transferred from his post as Prefect of Changzhou to the capital to serve as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.

Zheng Renyang lowered his head and took a sip of fragrant tea. “If that unfilial son is not given a hard enough beating, he will never grow up. I have always said he is a fine steed from our household, and I placed great hopes in him. Who would have thought the older he grows, the more reckless and unruly he becomes?”

He recalled how, ten days earlier, that unfilial son had knelt before him and threatened death unless he were allowed to spend his life with a courtesan named Li Yaxian. His anger only rose higher. That very day he had personally broken both the boy’s legs with the family discipline staff and driven him out of the house. The Zheng family was a house of officials and scholars; if the legitimate eldest son married a courtesan, the family’s reputation would be utterly ruined.

If it were not for this son, Zheng Renyang would never have accepted the invitation of his teacher, the Minister of Personnel Chang Kuan, to come to the capital and serve as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. To outsiders, it might seem a plum appointment, but his teacher, Pei Kuan, was a thorn in the eye of the current Grand Chancellor, Li Linfu. One careless step, and he himself could easily be dragged into ruin. He had entered the Ministry of Personnel for the sake of his only son’s future. Without someone making arrangements in court, it would be unimaginably difficult to pass the jinshi examination, and even if one did pass, there was no guarantee of obtaining a real post. Yet this unfilial son could not appreciate even a scrap of his father’s painstaking care and instead spent his days in pleasure quarters, with no thought for honor or advancement.

After calming himself for a while, Zheng Renyang looked again at the miserable sight of his son dragging himself along on the ground, and in the end his heart softened. “Old Dong, this unfilial son will certainly not accept help from me. I can see he has some good feeling toward those young people in Chongren Ward. Later, take a generous gift and go to Chongren Ward. Ask them to find an opportunity to take Yuanhe in and nurse his injuries. Be sure to tell them they must never let that unfilial son know this came from my hand, or he will never accept it. And say that I, Zheng Renyang, owe them this favor.”

A favor from the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel was no small thing.

Old Dong answered at once in delight; he knew the master would not truly be so cruel to the young master.

...

Back in Chongren Ward, Yu Lang continued his cultivation in the rear courtyard. Cultivation and study were much the same: the most diligent person was not necessarily the strongest, but the one who did not strive would surely achieve nothing at all. Yu Lang had come this far on extraordinary tenacity and insight; his natural talent was not especially high, so he did not dare slack off even for a moment.

Du Fu watched for a while, then frowned. “Your inner energy is rather mixed. Aside from the Vermilion Bird Dao Seal, it seems there are several other forces still tangled within you?”

Yu Lang trusted Du Fu completely, and so he concealed nothing, telling him about how Guo Lusheng had used the Seal of Life and Death to seal away part of his power.

Du Fu thought for a while. “Guo Lusheng’s method works quickly, but it does not address the root of the problem. If such a force remains bottled up in your body for long, it may harm you as well. As the saying goes, it is better to drain than to block. We need to think of a way to guide the excess power out of your body.”

“There is actually a very simple method,” Du Fu said. “Find a great cultivator beyond the Upper Three Realms to sort out your internal vital flow.”

“That’s easy for you to say. Where am I supposed to meet such a person?”

Du Fu smiled. “You know him, in fact you could even say you know him very well. He is none other than the Sword Saint of Great Tang, Pei Wen. With your father Yu Jiaao’s bond of master and disciple with him, this may not be impossible.”

Yu Lang, however, felt the matter was far from simple. “The Sword Saint may know that Yu Jiaao has a son named Yu Lang, but he has always come and gone without trace, drifting like duckweed at the ends of the earth. Where am I supposed to find him?”

“There is one person who will certainly know.”

The two of them exchanged a look.

Yu Lang spread his hands. “Ah, so in the end we still have to go find Uncle Taibai first. Only after finding him can many things be answered.”

Ababa came from the front courtyard carrying a gift.

Merely by looking at the quality of the gift box, Du Fu knew it must be an extraordinarily valuable present. He clicked his tongue in admiration. “I’ve been in Chang’an so long, and no one has ever sent me a gift. You arrive and at once one comes knocking. You truly are my lucky star. Who sent it?”

Ababa replied, “The man says his surname is Dong. He claims to be the steward of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel’s household and wishes to request an audience.”

“Someone from the Ministry of Personnel, then. Let’s go take a look. This may be an opportunity for you too. If you can land a proper official post, entering and leaving the Great Bright Palace will not be nearly so difficult.”

Du Fu clapped his hands and led Yu Lang from the rear courtyard back toward the front.