Chapter 7: Third Prince Xiao Ze

The capital of the Great Xia Kingdom was built around the Imperial City at its core. The Imperial City faced south, with the Vermilion Bird Street connecting north and south, and the Black Tortoise Street linking east and west, thus dividing the Capital City into four major districts.

The area northeast of the Imperial City was the Eastern District. Moving clockwise, the next were the Western District, the Southern District, and the Northern District.

Among these, the Southern District was where high-ranking officials, nobles, and members of the royal family lived. The Northern District was mostly inhabited by merchants and commoners, with low-ranking officials also settling there. The Western District was largely populated by the poor, while the Eastern District was primarily markets. Nearly a million people gathered in the vast Capital City, and one could imagine how large this city was.

With a population of one million, calculated at about seven people per household, that amounted to roughly one hundred and fifty thousand households. If each person consumed half a pound of vegetables per day, the total would reach five hundred thousand pounds. Even if transported by cart, it would require hundreds or thousands of carts. Add firewood and grain, and one could imagine the constant stream of merchants entering and leaving the Capital City every day, and thus how bustling the markets in the Eastern District were.

The Eastern District was further divided into twelve market areas. The shop Gao Quan purchased was in the sixth market, the most central location in the Eastern District, close to the Northern District, the Western District, and the Imperial City, making the price naturally expensive.

Fifteen thousand taels of silver was all the wealth Xiao Rui had saved. He had not yet opened his own estate or been enfeoffed as a prince, so he received no official salary. His food and lodging were funded by the Inner Court Administration. The stipend rice he could receive, when converted to silver, was pitifully little. Unlike Xiao Jing and Xiao Yan, who had support from their maternal relatives and lived comfortably.

Taking a carriage to the sixth market, Xiao Rui saw the shop he had purchased.

The location was excellent; both sides of the street were filled with rice shops, flour shops, cloth stores, and so on, with extremely high foot traffic. The shop itself was not very old; it had been a restaurant with very good business, sold only because the owner urgently needed money. With a bit of renovation by a carpenter, it could open directly. The tables and chairs inside were still there, included by the previous owner.

“Maybe I should just open a restaurant.”

Unfortunately, Xiao Rui was not a graduate of New Oriental, nor was he a top chef like Xiaodangjia; he couldn’t create a map of the seabream continent.

Never mind, he should think of other opportunities.

Actually, it wasn’t that Xiao Rui had no ideas, but rather he had too many. After all, as a transmigrator, he shouldn’t be worse than those who became live-in sons-in-law upon transmigrating. Ideas like new styles of ladies’ underwear, highly purified liquor, improving papermaking techniques, improving printing techniques…

Wow, Xiao Rui felt a bit carried away. Was he heading towards becoming the number one merchant under heaven? If the respected Emperor Xia knew, would he disown this son?

“Wait a bit longer. If I’m going to earn money, it should be a business with huge profits.” Thinking this, Xiao Rui wasn’t in a hurry anymore.

So he wandered around with Gao Quan to kill time.

All kinds of people and a wide variety of goods created the prosperity of the Capital City. Xiao Rui often came out to wander, feeling the simple, bustling atmosphere of this era.

Coincidentally, as he passed by the Listening Sound Pavilion, he ran into Third Prince Xiao Ze.

“Seventh Brother?” Xiao Ze looked at Xiao Rui dressed in plain hemp clothes and asked with a smile, “Aren’t you supposed to be at home preparing for tomorrow’s test? You still have the leisure to come out and play?”

Xiao Rui stepped forward, cupped his hands, and smiled, “Coming out to play is for a better test tomorrow. What if tomorrow’s test is about understanding the people’s sentiments and knowing their hardships?”

“You’re still sharp-tongued. Come on, accompany me inside to listen to some music.” Xiao Ze said with a laugh.

Xiao Rui did not decline and went in with him.

Third Prince Xiao Ze was enfeoffed as Prince Wu and held no official position, idle in the capital. Compared to the other princes, he publicly showed no interest in the Imperial Throne, was passionate about music, came to the Listening Sound Pavilion every day to listen to tunes, and also loved immersing himself in landscapes. He had applied to Emperor Xia many times to travel out with beauties.

Whether the other princes believed this attitude or not, Xiao Rui didn’t know, but Xiao Rui was very envious.

Entering the Listening Sound Pavilion, they came to a quiet private room.

The room was elegant and quiet, a wooden structure with wooden floorboards. An ancient pine tree was planted in the center, with white pebbles arranged around its roots.

Xiao Ze led Xiao Rui inside. Soon after, several women entered carrying guqin, guzheng, and jade flutes. They sat around the ancient pine and began to play.

The music started, melodious and pleasant.

Xiao Ze brewed tea and pushed a cup toward Xiao Rui.

“I heard you were in a poetic mood this morning and gave Dr. Jin a hard time?” Xiao Ze asked.

Xiao Rui smiled. Sure enough, even though he was a down-and-out prince, his every move was watched. This time he had been high-profile; he wondered what his other brothers would think.

“Dr. Jin always picks on me. It felt great to embarrass him this time.” Xiao Rui looked smug.

Xiao Ze, however, said, “You, acting without thinking. With this stunt of yours, what will our other brothers think? Eldest Brother is gentle, no need to say more. What about Second Brother, Fifth Brother, Sixth Brother?”

“I don’t care what they think. After all, I’m not a worm in their stomachs.” Xiao Rui pretended to be proud. “Can my situation get any worse?”

Xiao Ze was stunned for a moment, then sighed.

Indeed, with no backing from the imperial harem and no favor from their father, what was the point in targeting him?

“It will be better once you open your own estate.” Xiao Ze said with a smile.

Xiao Rui caught the hidden meaning and said on purpose, “Better how? I’m afraid I won’t even have the money to hire servants. Third Brother, you know the ways of the Inner Court Administration.”

Xiao Ze said, “This time it’s different. I heard some rumors. You, Eighth Brother, and Ninth Brother are only a year apart in age. Father intends for you three to open your estates at the same time, and then all nine of us brothers will be sent out to serve as officials.”

“Hmm?” Xiao Rui sat up straight.

Emperor Xia had kept all the imperial princes confined to the capital for so long, and now he was finally preparing to send them out as officials? And all nine princes at once. This inevitably made one wonder if Emperor Xia was doing it on purpose, as a test to select the Crown Prince, observing each prince’s performance.

“That would be best.” Xiao Rui said, pleasantly surprised.

Xiao Ze looked at Xiao Rui and sighed. “Is it really good? Seventh Brother… when that moment truly comes, the days won’t be peaceful.”

Xiao Rui remained silent. He was only seventeen years old, firmly remembering the principle that he was young and understood nothing.

Xiao Ze added, “For tomorrow’s test by Father, if you can perform well, do so. After all, where we get posted in the future depends entirely on Father’s will. I’ve thought about it too. Best would be Yangzhou, lots of beauties, and a nice environment.”

Xiao Rui rolled his eyes and said, “Third Brother always picks the good places.”

“Hehe, my aspirations lie among mountains and waters.” Xiao Ze said happily.

“Among mountains and waters… isn’t that just the realm under heaven?” Xiao Rui blinked and asked.

Xiao Ze’s laughter stopped abruptly. He quickly poured tea for Xiao Rui to shut him up. And he resolved never to talk about immersing himself in landscapes again.

After a piece called “Sunny Spring, White Snow” ended, Xiao Ze waved his hand to dismiss the musicians.

“I heard Fourth Brother introduced you to a marriage prospect, the second daughter of the Loyal and Brave Marquis’s family?” Xiao Ze asked.

Xiao Rui nodded. “I took five thousand taels from him, hehe…”

Xiao Ze stared at Xiao Rui. “If you really did it for the money, that might be fine, too. Third Brother also advises you: don’t have other ideas. Haven’t you noticed? Of the Twelve Marquises of War, who have made their names fighting north and south, only the sister of the last one, Marquis White Tiger, is in the imperial harem?”

The last of the Twelve Marquises of War was Marquis White Tiger, and his sister was the current Empress. Actually, originally there were only nine great marquises. Marquis White Tiger, relying on his sister the Empress’s influence, was included among the Twelve Marquises of War along with Marquis Crimson Flame and Marquis Blazing Flame.

To prevent interference from maternal relatives, Emperor Xia, from the earliest times, did not take daughters from marquis families into the palace. If Xiao Rui really married the daughter of the Loyal and Brave Marquis, who knew what Emperor Xia would think?

I did it for the Advent Points!

Xiao Rui wanted to say this, but he figured Xiao Ze wouldn’t understand.