Joy of Life

In the depths of spring in the 10th year of the Qing calendar, Fan Xian came to Ten Family Village for the first time. The place he called Fish Guts was an isolated mountain village. It appeared quiet deep in the mountains, but the lantern lights in the night were dazzling. It even covered up the vast sky full of stars. It moved one’s heart.

There were more than 10 families in Ten Family Village. On the path toward the hollow of the mountain, there were far more than 10 farming families by the fields and springs. Those farmers were also not real farmers. They were used to separate the inside and outside of the mountain. They were scouts who protected the secret in the mountain.

Fan Xian was able to bypass these defenses and easily enter Ten Family Village because he had single-handedly made the defenses and meticulous arrangements for safety. Joining together the countless plans for defense from countless officials of the Second and Sixth Bureau, it was indeed powerful. When Fan Xian was making the plan, the officials of the Overwatch Council only knew bits and pieces. They had no idea that in the North, these plans had become reality outside a small mountain village.

Walking in along a small path in the mountain, just after passing a pond, one could see the densely packed buildings in picturesque disorder that showed their true colors under the starlight. Fan Xian’s heart jumped slightly. He stood quietly moved. He thought that even if an outsider accidentally entered, looking at just the outside structures, they would probably think it was wealthy family who had built a massive country estate in the mountain.

He stopped. His figure was exposed under the starlight. A dozen crossbows emerged from the darkness and took aim at him.

Fan Xian lowered his head and hid his appearance in the darkness. He then flipped up the hood behind his robe to cover his head. Only then did he take out a small token and flash it toward the dense and murderous crossbows.

A person who looked like he had worked here for a long time walked out of the dark night and carefully approached Fan Xian. He took the small token and looked at it intently for a long time before waving his hand and making the crossbows behind him in the darkness disappear.

The worker took the lead and led Fan Xian through the stone paths around the estate to an isolated place. After confirming that there was no one around watching them, he knelt on the ground and said excitedly, “Greetings, Commissioner.”

Fan Xian looked at him with a slight smile. He was part of the first batch of members of the Qinian Unit and a capable worker Wang Qinian had helped recruit.

It had been two years since they met. It was clear that this secret agent had not thought Sir Fan junior would suddenly appear in Ten Family Village and was having difficulty suppressing his excitement.

“It’s been hard on you these years,” Fan Xian said. “Don’t let the news I’m here get out for now. First, take me to see the old shopkeepers.”

“Yes.” The worker bowed respectfully. He then suddenly said, “The old master came a few days ago.”

Fan Xian was surprised and asked, “When was that?”

“Eight days ago.”

“Quickly take me to see him.”

…

…

Two silent figures wove through the buildings of Ten Family Village accompanied by the starlight. Fan Xian couldn’t resist glancing at the structures, which were not the same height as regular residences. He looked at the specially designed doors and windows, as well as the ventilation system, and wondered if it was empty inside or already filled with items.

Although everything in the village had been built bit by bit with the silver he had provided, it was important. Fan Xian had completely cut himself off from everything here for the last two years. No one, including his most loyal subordinates in Jiangnan, knew that in a corner of the mainland, he had such a village hidden away.

This was also Fan Xian’s first personal visit, so he felt moved and sentimental. He also couldn’t help but be curious as to what the village had become after the people, money, and plans were mixed together along with two years of time.

The two of them came to a little courtyard deep in the village. A dim light was still shining in the room. Its light cast a long, thin shadow behind Fan Xian that landed on the stone steps. Fan Xian quietly said something to the secret agent of the Qinian Unit. The secret agent smiled and left. He did not arrange for anyone to stand guard. If anyone was actually able to penetrate deeply into the Ten Family Village and be a threat to Sir Fan junior, no matter how many people he sent, it would be pointless.

Fan Xian tidied his clothing outside the room and walked in. He knelt toward the honest and stern middle-aged man behind the table and performed a great bow. In a sincere voice, he said, “Greetings, father.”

For the retired Minister of Revenue Fan Jian to not be in Danzhou showing filial piety to his old mother or traveling with Lady Liu and instead appear in this small mountain village between Dongyi and Northern Qi was a truly unexpected scene.

Minister Fan looked at his son. Surprise flashed through his heart. Smiling gently, he helped him up. It had been more than two years since the father and son had met. Such a greeting was warranted. However, the previous Minister knew his son was not someone who liked to kneel. From this kneel, he seemed to faintly sense something.

Fan Jian did not ask, and Fan Xian did not speak, about the tragic price that he guessed the Fan manor had paid for his life from his sister’s words, as well as the story of the past.

“Father, why did you come personally?” Fan Xian helped his father sit in his chair. Looking at the faint white hair on his father’s head, he couldn’t help but sigh in his heart. Going by age, his father should be retired at home. Because of his business, his father had been toiling hard for two years. In particular, his father coming personally to Ten Family Village surprised him slightly.

Fan Jian smiled slightly and said, “Although I am in Danzhou, I could still remotely control the building that happened here. After three years of cumulative effort, the preparation work for Ten Family Village should almost be done. If you really have the drive to build another palace treasury here, there was no way I would feel reassured if I didn’t come personally to watch over things.”

A second palace treasury? Who would have thought that this isolated Ten Family Village was sustaining the weight of such a great ambition of Fan Xian’s?

Since the Jingdou rebellion, Fan Xian had secretly saved and ferried a number of old Qingyu Hall shopkeepers out of the capital. In addition, he had controlled the palace treasury for a long time and made a copy of the techniques in the palace treasury in North Min. Furthermore, with his present wealth and power, as well as the innate things in his time-traveling spirit, if he was actually given 10 years of time, he could probably change this isolated mountain village into a second palace treasury.

What was the palace treasury? It was the foundation of the Qing Kingdom’s 30 years of military superiority. It was an endless resource the Qing Emperor used to supplement the national treasury and people. It was not exaggerating to say that the palace treasury was one of the two great resources of the Qing Kingdom. Naturally, the other was the Emperor himself.

But, Fan Xian wanted to build another palace treasury outside of the Qing Kingdom.

Without question, this was the most important decision Fan Xian had made in his life. If this decision truly became reality, the entire world would change because of it. The Qing Kingdom would never again have the natural right to smile proudly at the world.

What did Fan Xian want to do?

…

…

There were numerous and complicated situations in the world. This was a major matter that shook a vital part of the foundation of the Qing Kingdom. During the past two years, Fan Jian and Fan Xian had acted secretively and progressed slowly. They desired to not draw the attention of anyone or hope for speed.

If a second palace treasury actually appeared outside the Qing Kingdom’s borders, one knew without thinking what harm it would bring to the Qing Kingdom’s strength and how powerful an assault it would be. Thus, Fan Xian hid it from everyone. He only dared to carefully discuss it with his father in secret.

“There might be talk if you leave Danzhou for too long,” Fan Xian said worriedly instead of hurrying to discuss problems of the second palace treasury.

Although Fan Jian had already retired, looking at how the Emperor had borrowed another’s sword to kill a hundred Tiger Guards, it was clear the Emperor did not particularly trust the friend with whom he had grown up. Presumably, there were many eyes sent by the Palace stationed in Danzhou. If Fan Jian was not happily retired in Danzhou, news of him leaving would immediately be sent to Jingdou.

“Your Overwatch Council made a sweep through Danzhou, as did my people,” Fan Jian said with a smile. “The Emperor does indeed appear undefeatable. In the end, he is not an immortal. There is an end to his energies. It is impossible for him to know of all the details and changes, particularly as you are secretly keeping it from him. As for me leaving Danzhou, the purpose was to travel to Dongyi for fun.”

The smile of the previous Minister seemed amused. “Before I joined the Ministry of Revenue, I was a famous libertine in Jingdou. Now that I have retired to my hometown, it is natural for me to go to such an extravagant place as Dongyi to draw some beauties. The Emperor cannot be angry at such a reason.”

“It’s still not good.”

“I just come occasionally to see how things are progressing.”

Fan Xian looked at his father. Amongst the worry, there was also a hint of remorse. He had not wanted his father and Chen Pingping to participate in such a dangerous matter. In the beginning, he had nowhere to start concerning the Ten Family Village matter. How could he rebuild a palace treasury from nothing? He was not his mother, Ye Qingmei. Although he had old Ye family shopkeepers at hand who had experienced the building of the palace treasury in North Min, a large pile of files of the process of producing various goods, and a thorough a knowledge of the design of the three workshops in the palace treasury in North Min, he still felt confused and timid building a new palace treasury.

Before he left Jingdou, Minister Fan talked with him the entire night and resolved many of his questions.

When Minister Fan discovered that his son was going to use the matter of the Eldest Princess’s rebellion to rescue the old shopkeepers from Jingdou’s Qingyu Hall, he knew what Fan Xian was thinking. Thus, he spoke frankly to his son.

“To build another palace treasury is more difficult than you imagine. At its core, it’s a fearful thing that would shake the foundations of the Qing Kingdom and change the situation of the entire world.” That night, Minister Fan spoke to him sincerely and earnestly. “I am a subject of the Qing Kingdom. I don’t wish for you to do this, but if you can convince me, you can let me deal with the initial matters.”

Fan Xian had not wanted to completely separate from the Qing Emperor. He didn’t want to become a criminal of the Qing Kingdom or place the Qing Kingdom he was born and raised in into danger. He still unconsciously began to excavate the foundations of the Qing Kingdom. He convinced Fan Jian with two sentences.

“This is not a palace treasury. This is something that mother left for this world. If mother was still alive, she would not want the Emperor to use what she had left behind to fulfill an individual’s ambition.”

“But, your mother also hoped to unite the world.”

“I don’t understand those profound things, but I understand women.” In that silent night, Fan Xian said, “I know that if mother was alive, she would not want the wealth she left behind to forever be held in the grasp of the man who killed her.”

Minister Fan was silent for a long time and then nodded his head.

…

…

Two years had passed since this nod. This father and son, through whose hands a great deal of silver had flowed, began to secretly carry out this matter that was destined to shock the world. Perhaps what they were doing was so unbelievable, which was why no one sensed anything.

This was also a consequence of Fan Xian’s great caution. Other than the secret flow of money, he had not used any power at his disposal to help the Ten Family Village grow. This little village was like a child allowed to run freely, slowly growing among the green grass in the mountain. As for whether he could continue to herd sheep or be given free reign, it was a matter for many years in the future.

Fan Jian didn’t ask him what Fan Xian would use the Ten Family Village to do if, many years in the future, a second palace treasury really did appear in the world. Fan Xian also didn’t ask his father why. As a subject of the Qing Kingdom, he would make that choice because of the matter between his mother and the Emperor.

The old Qingyu shopkeepers who had escaped from Jingdou came to Ten Family Village. The trade secrets Fan Xian stole from the palace treasury came to Ten Family village. Minister Fan’s most hidden strengths came to Ten Family Village. The money Fan Xian sourced from all over the world also came to Ten Family village, a depression deep in this mountain.

Secrets, money, and martial power silently fermented in this tiny place for two years. Even though the Fan father and son were careful, the Ten Family Village was ready to expand. They had finished all foundational structures and were prepared to become a second palace treasury.

That was why Minister Fan had asked the black-clothed man to bring a message to Fan Xian asking for a large amount of silver.

This timing was actually far ahead of what Fan Xian had originally estimated. From the beginning, he had not thought he could be on par with his mother Ye Qingmei. She had not needed many years to build the palace treasury because she had the entire Qing royal family supporting her and Uncle Wu Zhu protecting her. Plus, her abilities far surpassed Fan Xian’s.

Minister Fan clearly saw Fan Xian’s confusion. He said with a gentle smile, “Those old fellows of the Qingyu Hall were all old hands who had participated in the creation of the palace treasury. The second time around is always easier.”

Fan Xian shook his head with a smile. “It’s still much faster than imagined.”

“When the palace treasury was created…” Minister Fan seemed to have thought of the fiery scene on the wasteland of North Min many years ago and smiled. “Your mother was impatient and did not want to deal with those details. Lao Wu was more so a person who would only speak once a year, so these details were left to me to do.”

He had been the head foreman when the palace treasury had been constructed many years ago. It was no wonder the Ten Family Village had developed so quickly. Fan Xian looked at his father. An involuntary admiration rose in his heart. He thought that there was indeed reason for the Emperor to be so fearful of his father, to the point of sacrificing a hundred Tiger Guards to scrap clean his father’s power in the capital.

“Furthermore, Ten Family Village is in a good location. You’ve never been before, so I never had the opportunity to tell you.” Minister Fan continued to smile, but his bloodshot eyes revealed his tiredness. After all, he was getting on in age. No matter whether it was in Danzhou or here, this previous Minister of Revenue’s energies had been exhausted in being single-handedly responsible for the matter.

Fan Jian laid out a large map on the table and flattened it out. Fan Xian moved over and looked at the markings on the map by the dim lantern light. Because of the markings, he was easily able to find the tiny Ten Family Village in the mid-east of the mainland map.

His eyes gradually lit up. The position of Ten Family Village was just as marvelous as his father said. If the passage to the southeast could be opened, it would directly reach the shores of the East Sea. It would be simple to get in contact with Dongyi. If Ten Family Village stayed quiet, it was impossible for outsiders to know what was happening inside.

“If we act immediately, there is certain to be a lot of materials coming in. We can no longer be like ants moving house as we have been the past two years. It will certainly draw the attention of many people. Once the money has reached your account, there is no need to consider if you should act,” Fan Jian reminded him with a smile as he saw the faint excitement in Fan Xian’s heart.

Fan Xian’s smile immediately turned bitter. If he really wanted to turn Ten Family Village into the palace treasury in North Min, hiring workers was a given, as was bringing large amounts of materials. Simple high-temperature furnaces and iron structures could not be hidden from even a fool’s eyes. Everyone would probably be able to guess what was happening.

Given the importance of the palace treasury to the Qing Kingdom, if the court discovered any strangeness, the Emperor would send troops North without hesitation and forcefully attack Dongyi at all costs to destroy the fledgling palace treasury in Ten Family Village.

“Even if the Emperor sends troops to attack, the position of Ten Family Village is special. It is easy to ask for help but not easy to assault.” Fan Jian’s thinking was not like that of a subject of the Qing Kingdom. Instead, it was like a rebel. Coldly, he said, “Ten Family Village was once the Ye Family Village. Most of your mother’s subordinates came from this village. In order to protect the secret of this place, the name was changed slightly and became the present Ten Family Village.”

“This village was the first place your mother had chosen for the building of the palace treasury. Because of some other reasons, she relocated the palace treasury into the Qing Kingdom. We re-picked Ten Family Village because we trust your mother’s vision.” Fan Jian looked calmly at Fan Xian. “Other than your mother and Lao Wu, only I knew about this place. Easy to hold and difficult to attack was a given. Most importantly, this was a place that none of the three powers could wholeheartedly attack.

Fan Xian was silent for a long time. He then said, “It’s better to be careful, cautious, and slow so the Emperor can’t grasp any loose ends.”

“Your mother is no longer here. Even though we have many innate and advantages conditions, to create a palace treasury from nothing in Ten Family Village cannot be done without years of effort and the strength of a country, much less just the two of us.” Fan Jian closed his eyes. “You conceived of this scheme to move the palace treasury out of the Qing Kingdom as a pretense to threaten the Emperor. Caution at the beginning is a necessity.”

Although his intentions had been seen through easily by his father, Fan Xian was not surprised. Quietly, he said, “Even if it’s a pretense, it has to be as real as possible. Furthermore, no one know what will happen in many years. After all, the Emperor is not an immortal. There will be a day when he dies.”

“That is why I began to suspect the moment you agreed to put a large amount of silver into Ten Family Village.” Fan Jian opened his eyes and sighed heavily. “Do you think the Emperor will actually move against Chen Pingping?”

Fan Xian was silent for a moment. He then said, “I don’t know.”

Fan Jian’s gaze pressed him icily, “What if the Emperor truly moves against him?”

Fan Xian was silent and did not reply. He only thought about the Ten Family Village his cloth shoes were standing on.

The village was quiet. In the future, it would be glorious and dazzling. Regardless of how things developed internally in the Qing court, regardless of whether or not there would be a great war, Fan Xian always maintained one attitude in his heart.

The palace treasury was not a palace treasury. It came from a remote world. It should create happiness for the people of the time. It could not become the logistics department for someone’s army.

Presumably, Ye Qingmei had also thought like this. He killed her, yet her things still had to help him conquer the world. If Ye Qingmei knew about this, her heart would certainly be in great pain.

Fan Xian felt a great tenderness for the mother he had never seen. The more tenderness, the more he didn’t want her heart to hurt. If it didn’t work, destroying it was fine.