043. Joys of the Inner Residence

Page 1 of 3

In the rear courtyard of Xinye, beside the cool pavilion, green bamboo leaned in elegant disorder, and a gentle breeze brought a refreshing chill.

Master Cao lounged atop a fragrant bamboo couch, dressed in a short jacket and silk trousers, his bare feet exposed.

“Yuniang, Liniang, I haven’t yet asked what brings you to Nanyang so suddenly,” he asked, eating grapes as he spoke.

A soft laugh escaped from Zou Liniang as she cast him a sidelong glance. “Sister, do you hear what the General says? We’ve been here three days, and he only now remembers to ask why we came.”

“Just answer the General, or you’ll get a scolding,” Gan Yuniang replied with a smile lingering on her red lips.

“Yuniang is right. I’ll dole out a scolding later,” Master Cao teased.

“No!” Liniang blushed, clinging to his arm and giving it a gentle shake. “General, a merchant named Yang from Hanzhong saw that our wines and spices are of exceptional quality and wants to cooperate with our trading company. Sister and Madam Ding discussed it and decided that Hanzhong is wealthy and promising, so they agreed. The caravan hadn’t even set out yet when the news of your victory over the 30,000-strong Jingzhou alliance reached Xuchang. Sister was worried about you and wanted to come see you, so I accompanied her.”

“If I was worried about you, weren’t you even more so? The moment I mentioned it, you nearly jumped for joy and almost hurt yourself,” Gan Yuniang playfully teased.

“General, see—Sister’s teasing me again. She’s the one who deserves a scolding most,” Liniang said, pointing at Yuniang.

Master Cao burst out laughing.

(Eight hundred words omitted)

“General, I’m ignoring you!” Liniang’s cheeks were crimson as she stamped her embroidered shoe, twisted her waist, and retreated to the side room.

Cao Xin and Gan Yuniang exchanged a smile, then began discussing the family business—white spirits, soaps, perfumes, floral waters, and roasted teas—all of which were doing well. With new trade routes added, monthly earnings had risen from twenty to thirty thousand coins.

As for the chest wraps he’d proposed earlier, production remained limited because they couldn’t find comfortable, sturdy, and affordable materials.

Page 2 of 3

Yuniang and Liniang had only made a hundred or so sets, giving them to close friends such as Madam Ding and other ladies to try on. For now, there was little profit, but as gifts, they were well-received.

Cao Xin nodded in satisfaction; earning this much was more than enough. Though he had some knowledge of making white paper, salt drying, and movable type printing, these were troubled times—goods were scarce and people impoverished. However many inventions he might make, they would not bring in much profit now.

Better to wait for peace to return, then earn more and hire mercenaries to wage war abroad and seize treasures.

“General, sister-in-law came by a few days ago to say the Prime Minister has run out of tobacco. She asks that you send him more,” Gan Yuniang said softly, leaning against him.

He laughed. “Send him another pouch, and say it’s the last. If he wants more, he’ll have to send someone to the mountain villages in the southwest—there’s plenty there.”

“Very well!” Yuniang replied with a gentle laugh.

“General, someone’s calling for you outside. Should we answer?” Liniang called from her window.

“Ignore them. I only wish to enjoy myself here and care nothing for trifles right now,” replied Master Cao, holding his beauty and refusing to be disturbed.

“General, you should go take a look. If it’s not important, they would not dare trouble you,” Gan Yuniang coaxed him gently, her voice tender.

He laughed and said, “I’ll do as Yuniang says.” Rising, he donned a brocade robe and wooden clogs, then strode toward the front gate of the rear courtyard.

Several men stood at the gate—Dian Wei gnawing on a chicken bone, Scribe Yi Ji with a worried expression, and Liao Hua, Li Yan, and others looking less concerned.

“General, you’ve finally come out,” Yi Ji cried, stamping his foot and hurrying up the steps, only to be blocked by Dian Wei’s great iron halberd.

“What’s this about? I said I’d ignore all affairs for three days. Why are you so desperate to get me out?” Master Cao asked, stretching as he descended the steps.

“General, you said three days, but this is the fifth day,” Yi Ji exclaimed, slapping his thigh.

Page 3 of 3

“What?” Master Cao was taken aback. He looked at Liao Hua and Li Yan in disbelief. “I’ve been in the rear courtyard for five days?”

Everyone nodded in unison.

With a smack to his forehead, he exclaimed, “My fault entirely. I’ve been raiding county seats and reorganizing the army lately. I was so exhausted I overslept. Please forgive me, gentlemen.”

He had been fighting battle after battle, utterly drained in body and soul. To cure the aftermath of war, he had slept day and night, inadvertently losing track of time.

As Prefect, Cao courteously apologized to Yi Ji and Li Yan; both were men of managerial talent and needed careful handling.

“General, you’re too kind. With so many affairs to manage, it’s only right you rest. How could we blame you?” Li Yan replied, bowing.

“Nonsense! How can it be ‘only right’ at a time like this?” Yi Ji shot Li Yan an irate look. “General, the Jingzhou army has brought 50,000 men to our gates. Will we defend or retreat? Please make a decision at once!”

“Oh? They arrived so quickly?” By his calculations, it should have taken the Jingzhou army ten days to reach Xinye from Xiangyang via Caiyang and Huyang. How had they arrived days ahead of schedule?

“General!” Pei Yuanshao stepped forward. “News from Chen State: six days ago, Yuan Shu’s army suddenly withdrew, so the Prime Minister won without a fight. Three days ago, the Jingzhou army quickened its pace, heading straight from Zaoyang to Xinye. They are now less than five li from the city.”

“Fifty thousand men? Excellent. Let’s go up to the city walls and have a look,” Master Cao declared with a wave of his hand. Leading the others toward the walls of Xinye, his heart beat with excitement. Fifty thousand enemies—how many attribute points could he gain this time?