Chapter 413: Chapter 414: Starting Preparations

Now that the moment had truly arrived, even with all her mental preparation, she inevitably found herself in a frantic rush.

Jin Qianqian wolfed down a few quick bites of her meal before leading several maids to the storeroom to start rummaging through their things.

It was already the dead of winter, and much of the road ahead would likely be covered in snow. That meant they needed to pack more changes of clothing, and thicker ones at that.

Then there were the boots. Neither Ancient Wen Heng nor his entourage could afford to let their feet get frostbitten. From combat boots to deerskin boots, Jin Qianqian drew up several designs, and soon everyone in the estate who could handle a needle was busy.

In the outer courtyard, Ancient Wen Heng met with the guards who were willing to accompany him. He had thought half of them would be more than enough, but to his surprise, they all showed up. Housekeeper Fu stood to the side, explaining with pride that every single guard was present; not one had stayed behind.

Ancient Wen Heng said, "Housekeeper Fu should have explained the situation to you. I recall some of you have only recently married. It’s not too late to withdraw."

"Master, we’ve all discussed it amongst ourselves. We are all willing to accompany you," said the head of the guards, Lin Dapeng, who had just married Qingzhu a month ago.

Ancient Wen Heng said, half-joking, "You, boy. I seem to recall you just married Madam’s personal maid, Qingzhu. What’s this? The honeymoon period isn’t even over and you’re already eager to run off? Careful, or Qingzhu might go and lodge a complaint with the Madam."

No change was visible on Lin Dapeng’s tanned face, but a closer look revealed that his ears had turned bright red. He mumbled, "My wife was the one who told me to go. As a couple, we have received immense kindness from the Master and Madam. Naturally, we should stand with the Master through thick and thin."

Besides, he’d had a dream since he was a child: to go into battle and fight the enemy. Now, an opportunity was right in front of him. He was willing to take it, even if it only meant getting a little closer to a real battlefield.

In the end, Ancient Wen Heng only selected a small number of men, trying his best to pick those without families. Even so, the group numbered a dozen or so.

"Master, perhaps you should take more men?" Housekeeper Fu felt the number was too small and couldn’t help but urge him.

"This is already a good number," Ancient Wen Heng replied. "I don’t know how many men the other officials are bringing, but I imagine it won’t be a large contingent."

"Go to the horse market first thing tomorrow morning and select some good horses. Preferably, we’ll have one for each man."

*

The next morning, Ancient Wen Heng had just stepped out of his estate when he saw He Nan’s carriage already waiting outside. Seeing him emerge, He Nan, wrapped tightly in a cloak, immediately left his own carriage and boarded Ancient Wen Heng’s.

He Nan looked at him, his face etched with worry. "Why you? Shouldn’t they have sent more experienced officials? How did it fall to fledglings like us, who’ve barely entered the world of bureaucracy?"

Ancient Wen Heng tucked his hands into his sleeves. "This is quite good, actually. At least I’ll be a city’s parents official. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t even dare to dream of such an appointment."

He Nan knew the decision was final. He could only sigh. "Time is short. If there’s anything you don’t have time to arrange, leave it to me.

If you’re short on manpower, I can lend you some of my men as well."

Ancient Wen Heng declined his kind offer. "Don’t make it sound so dire. I’ll get everything arranged. If I’m truly in need, you know I won’t hesitate to ask."

The moment he stepped into the Hanlin Academy, Ancient Wen Heng noticed his colleagues seemed unusually idle. Despite the biting cold, they were all standing around in the courtyard, chatting.

As he walked in, most of them wore expressions of pure schadenfreude, though a flicker of concern flashed in the eyes of a few.

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Ancient Wen Heng had no desire to guess their true feelings. ’I have better things to do than waste time getting tangled up with them. It’s better to finish my work quickly so I can focus on my preparations.’

They watched as Ancient Wen Heng walked past them, his expression unchanged. He even greeted them one by one, just as he always did, as if his current predicament had no effect on him whatsoever.

Only after he had gone inside did Ning Yuchen speak, his voice dripping with malice. "Sometimes a quick promotion isn’t necessarily a good thing."

"However, judging by Mr. Gu’s confident look just now, perhaps he’s secretly pleased with himself."

This time, Liu Shijiang didn’t just give him a cold glance as he usually would. Instead, he looked at him with open contempt. "At least he can shoulder such a heavy responsibility, while you’re still stuck in place, achieving nothing."

Without a second glance, he turned and walked away, thinking to himself, ’This Ning fellow clearly has too much time on his hands. It seems I’ll have to find him more work to do.’

The crowd that had gathered to watch the drama, finding that the main players had all disappeared, had no reason to keep standing in the cold wind. The courtyard quickly fell silent once more.

Jin Qianqian looked at the hides she had on hand and decided it still wasn’t enough. First thing in the morning, she sent people to the furrier to procure another large pile.

She had two sets of boots and clothing prepared for every member of the entourage. The journey would be a hurried one, so she also began preparing ingredients for easy-to-make trail food.

Perhaps because word had gotten out, several of the families she was friendly with sent messengers over, asking her to just say the word if she needed any help.

Jin Qianqian politely declined all their kind offers and threw herself back into her organizing.

She was well aware that she couldn’t follow him on this trip right away, so all she could do was make the arrangements for him as comprehensive as possible.

She also had the housekeeper visit the various escort agencies to inquire if any escort teams were heading to Lu City in the near future.

After making the rounds, only one Leader Li promised he would arrange for an escort team to head in that direction soon. The departure time wasn’t set, however; it could be sooner, or it could be later.

Jin Qianqian was more than satisfied with this. She knew this was his way of helping them, and she made a mental note of the kindness.

Knowing an escort team would be heading out soon, Jin Qianqian no longer held back and began preparing as many provisions as she possibly could.

When Ancient Wen Heng returned to the estate, he found the entire side hall was nearly piled high with goods.

In the harem, Empress Zhou had also received the news. The harem was not to interfere in politics—a rule she had always strictly followed, doing her best to prevent palace staff from inquiring about court affairs.

She only learned of it because the news had already spread throughout the entire imperial court, which was why she now sought an audience with the Emperor.

"I know what you have come to say," the Emperor said. "Empress, you need not worry. I have already had this Ancient Wen Heng investigated. While his experience may be somewhat lacking, I trust he will not hold your elder brother back."

"Holy Emperor," Empress Zhou replied, "I do not doubt Mr. Gu’s ability to handle this great responsibility. It is only that he once saved my brother’s life. I implore Your Majesty to allow me to send two of my own guards to protect Mr. Gu."

Hua Shunming knew that Empress Zhou had a contingent of men at her command. They were loyalists left behind by the old general—her father—to ensure her safety. Even though she now resided deep within the Imperial Palace, these men remained on standby outside.

On the very first day she entered the palace, Empress Zhou had confessed this to him, even handing him the roster of men to allay any suspicions he might have.

In truth, Hua Shunming wasn’t particularly concerned by her small force of men; he had merely glanced at the roster before handing it back to her.

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