By the time all the furniture in Jun Huailang’s room had been replaced, it was already nearly noon.
When Jun Huailang returned to his room, the servants and maids in the courtyard began putting his belongings back in order. He sat down at the table and looked around the room. For a moment, he felt somewhat unaccustomed to it.
But he could also tell that the furniture in the room was the very same furniture that had been aboard Xue Yan’s ship that day.
It really seemed they had been his own belongings after all.
Jun Huailang looked at the perfectly good huanghuali furniture being carried out of the room, a helpless smile appearing at the corners of his lips.
Just then—
Clatter.
Something suddenly fell out of the small box Fuyi was holding.
Jun Huailang looked over and saw a wolf fang lying on the floor, tied to a short leather cord.
He suddenly remembered.
This was what Xue Yan had given him on New Year’s Day.
After accepting it, he had been afraid he might lose it, so he had entrusted it to Fuyi for safekeeping. He hadn’t expected it to have been brought all the way to Jiangnan with them.
Seeing that something had fallen, Fuyi quickly set down the box and bent over to pick it up. Only after picking it up did he realize that it was such a crude animal tooth.
“Huh?” Fuyi examined the wolf fang curiously. “Young Master, where did you get this?”
Jun Huailang raised a hand, and Fuyi placed the fang in it.
Jun Huailang held the wolf fang and brought it closer.
The last time he had accepted it, he hadn’t looked at it carefully. Only now did he notice that the leather cord tied to the fang showed mottled signs of wear. The wolf fang itself was smooth as well, rounded from being held and rubbed countless times.
Jun Huailang unconsciously closed his fingers around it.
The smooth canine tooth was cold against his palm, but before long, it had absorbed his warmth.
He suddenly remembered that when Xue Yan had given it to him that day, he hadn’t said much. He had merely told him it was a canine tooth from a wolf he had hunted.
But now that he thought about it, this was clearly something Xue Yan carried with him every day. To him, it should have been more precious than even that stack of silver notes.
Jun Huailang’s thumb moved slightly, gently rubbing the wolf fang.
“Young Master, shall I put it away for you again?” Fuyi asked after watching him fiddle with it for a while, following Jun Huailang’s usual habits.
Jun Huailang hummed in response, but his gaze remained fixed on the wolf fang.
For some reason, he suddenly remembered the knife Xue Yan kept beneath his pillow. Then he thought of the faintly dancing flames in Xue Yan’s eyes when he had given him this object that day.
“This is supposed to be… something worn around the neck?” he asked.
Fuyi froze.
“Young Master wants to wear this?”
Jun Huailang lightly toyed with it without answering. Instead, he untied the leather cord and looped it around his neck.
Fuyi hurried forward to tie it for him.
His young master might not say so ordinarily, but everything about his daily life—food, clothing, shelter, and travel—had always been refined and particular. That noble air was carved into his very bones. How could he possibly wear such a rough ornament?
“Shall I replace the cord for you?” Fuyi suggested.
His young master normally disliked wearing anything around his neck. Even when he did, he would use a light, soft silk ribbon.
A family of such distinguished wealth and status might not flaunt gold and silver on their bodies like nouveau riche, and might even appear simple and understated, but in truth, everything from head to toe was exquisite.
Yet when his young master heard the suggestion, he didn’t hesitate in the slightest.
“No need to replace it,” he said. “Use this one.”
——
After that day, although Xue Yan had objected, Jun Huailang still went to Linjiang Academy every day.
The embankment was extremely long and broad. If he alone went to inspect it, it would inevitably take a great deal of time and effort.
But on one hand, he couldn’t casually tell anyone about his rebirth. On the other, when it came to water conservancy, there was no one who understood more than he did now.
So he had no choice but to personally handle the inspections, going there every day.
However, after he had inspected most of the embankment, the area around it was suddenly fenced off, and construction began.
According to the nearby residents, the official road near the northern city gate was too narrow and rough, so the government had decided to repair it all at once. That stretch of road happened to run alongside the embankment, so the surrounding river dikes had been fenced off together with it.
Now Jun Huailang could no longer get close to that section of the embankment.
Because of this, he made a special trip to the Jinling government office to find his father.
“They say it’ll be finished in a month,” Duke Yongning said. “A few days ago, they discussed it and agreed that the roads in the north were uneven. Since merchant ships traveling north and south mostly use the waterways, repairs to the land routes have always been put off. Now that we have sufficient funds, the prefect and the others thought they might as well take this opportunity to repair the roads.”
Jun Huailang hesitated.
Repairing the roads was certainly a good thing, but this year was exceptionally unusual. In a little over two months, the embankment would burst. Rather than spending money on road repairs now, it would be better to save the funds.
But he couldn’t tell his father about what had happened in his previous life.
“What is it?” Duke Yongning asked when he saw his hesitation. “If you have any concerns, tell your father.”
Jun Huailang asked, “Will repairing the roads cost a lot?”
After all, once the embankment burst, grain prices in the city would inevitably soar. The grain stored by the government would need to be released from the granaries to the people, while the craftsmen and officials would also need to be fed. If the supplies proved insufficient by then, they would have no choice but to spend money buying grain from merchants.
Hearing his question, Duke Yongning said, “They’re only leveling the roads. It won’t cost too much. Besides, the surrounding villages and towns may be able to use the roads for transportation. The benefits should certainly outweigh the expenses.”
Only then did Jun Huailang relax.
Since his father said it would be finished in a month, there should be enough time.
Once the road was repaired, he would have sufficient time to inspect the remaining section of the embankment and would surely be able to find any hidden problems.
And once the road was completed, even if they couldn’t prevent the flooding, they could use the newly repaired roads to transport grain from the surrounding villages and towns and evacuate the people.
Thinking of this, Jun Huailang finally felt reassured.
It was just that he would have some free time again during this period.
“That’s good.” Jun Huailang smiled. “Repairing the official roads is also a good thing for the people.”
Duke Yongning nodded, then asked, “In a few days, your father and Prefect Shen will be going to Yangzhou on an inspection tour. Would you like to come along?”
“Go to Yangzhou?”
Jun Huailang remembered that Shen Liufeng had just mentioned the same thing to him and couldn’t help being stunned.
Duke Yongning nodded.
“There has been too much rain this year, and Yangzhou is crisscrossed by waterways. It may well be at risk of flooding. So your father discussed it with Prefect Shen, and we’ll go to Yangzhou to inspect the area and see whether there are any hidden dangers that could lead to disaster.”
Jun Huailang remembered his previous life.
Jiangnan had been thrown into chaos by the flooding, yet Yangzhou, which was covered in a dense network of waterways, had somehow remained completely unaffected.
The floodwaters of the Yangtze River had actually been blocked entirely by Yangzhou’s embankments.
Hearing this, Jun Huailang became interested.
“If it’s convenient, I’d like to go with you.”
Duke Yongning smiled faintly.
“Of course it’s convenient. Your uncles all like you very much.”
Naturally.
During the year he had spent in Jinling, Jun Huailang’s original intention had been to investigate the important officials of Jinling thoroughly, so that if anything happened later, he would know how to follow the chain of responsibility and get to the root of the matter.
That was why he often went to the Jinling government office to help.
In his previous life, he had spent several years serving in court and was capable of handling all kinds of government affairs. The officials who accompanied his father were naturally pleased to see how quickly he picked things up and how willing he was to help.
Jun Huailang smiled and nodded, thereby settling the matter with his father.
That very night, the news reached Xue Yan’s ears.
“Prince, is there anything we should prepare?”
Seeing Xue Yan sitting at the desk in thought, Jinbao approached carefully and asked, always quick to understand what was going on.
Xue Yan paused.
“I won’t ride a horse,” he said. “Prepare a carriage that’s a little more spacious.”
Jinbao understood immediately and withdrew with a broad smile.
Thus, two days later, early in the morning, Jun Huailang accompanied his father to the entrance of the Jinling government office, only to discover that there was one carriage fewer than there should have been.
The regulations for officials’ carriages were extremely strict. Who rode alone and who shared a carriage with whom had all been arranged in advance.
And so, when the carriages were lined up, Jun Huailang had somehow been left out.
For a moment, the officials at the government office panicked.
The carriages for a journey out of town had all been prepared two days in advance. There were many officials going on this inspection tour, and now there were no more carriages ready at the office.
If they started preparing one now, they would probably have to delay their departure until nearly midmorning.
The minor official in charge of the carriages was drenched in cold sweat. He kept apologizing while hurriedly ordering his subordinates to find another carriage.
Hearing the commotion outside, Duke Yongning lifted the carriage curtain and asked what had happened.
The minor official hurriedly explained that one carriage was missing.
Duke Yongning hummed and said, “Don’t trouble yourself. Huailang, get into your father’s carriage.”
Just then, a carriage came majestically down the road in the distance.
It was spacious and imposing, completely unlike the ordinary carriages provided by the government. It was the kind of carriage reserved exclusively for a commandery prince.
Surrounding it were dozens of Imperial Guards mounted on tall horses, dressed in splendid uniforms and looking extremely imposing. From far away, the surrounding commoners hurriedly moved aside to make way.
All the officials quickly got out of their carriages and bowed toward it.
The curtain of the carriage shifted. Before long, a handsome, refined eunuch stepped forward and asked the carriage official in an imperious tone,
“The Prince asks, what is going on here?”
The minor official’s legs nearly gave out beneath him.
Duke Yongning had always been easygoing and had more or less solved the crisis for him.
Yet now there was a wolf in front and a tiger behind.
Before he could even breathe a sigh of relief, he had somehow attracted the attention of the Prince of Guangling.
The minor official hurriedly fell to his knees before Jinbao. He stammered for quite some time before finally managing to explain that it was his own incompetence—he had failed to prepare one of the required carriages.
Everyone said the Prince of Guangling had a violent temper and was ruthless and decisive.
Could he possibly lose his head over something like this?
The minor official trembled like a leaf, while the corner of Jinbao’s lips lifted almost imperceptibly.
Of course it was his fault.
To make sure the man would “fail” at his job, Jinbao had deliberately sent people to question him yesterday, first telling him to add another carriage, then telling him to remove one, going back and forth until the poor official was thoroughly confused.
Only then had he been able to make the man miscalculate the number and prepare one carriage too few.
Jinbao looked down at him condescendingly, then turned around to report back.
The minor official’s legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed onto the ground.
The imperial clan was nothing like ordinary officials.
No matter how high an official’s rank was, he still had to act according to the law. On the surface, he did not truly possess the authority to decide whether someone lived or died.
The imperial clan was different.
Before them, his life wasn’t even worth mentioning.
Seeing the man’s terrified expression, Jun Huailang understood what he was afraid of.
He said quietly, “It’s fine. It’s only one carriage. If the Prince of Guangling is angry, I’ll plead with him on your behalf.”
The minor official looked at him gratefully, practically ready to kowtow to him.
Jun Huailang smiled and shook his head.
A short while later, Jinbao returned.
“The Prince says there will be no second offense.”
He looked at the minor official, his tone icy.
The minor official hurriedly kowtowed, admitting his guilt and thanking him for his mercy.
But Jinbao merely raised a hand, signaling for him to get up. He then walked straight toward Jun Huailang.
“His Highness the Heir, please.”
He bowed with a beaming smile.
Jun Huailang was puzzled.
“Hmm?”
Jinbao’s smile was positively radiant, and behind his narrowed eyes was the unmistakable delight of someone who had gotten exactly what he wanted.
“The Prince says his carriage is spacious enough, and he invites His Highness the Heir to ride with him.”