Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Sudden Imperial Decree

Uncle Ma looked at the copper coins in his palm, feeling somewhat at a loss. If he accepted them, this Daoist Zhang’s words were unheard of; if he refused, the man was, after all, a Daoist capable of summoning a mountain god.

Shen Jifeng, observing this, pulled Uncle Ma aside and whispered, "Uncle Ma, the Daoist sects are complex, and it is not as if there is only Daoist Zhang’s lineage. We do not have to settle for him. What do you think of the Shangqing Palace or the Yanzhen Temple in Bianjing? If you do not care for the Daoist path, the Buddhist schools are also fine. How about Xiangguo Temple?"

Uncle Ma’s eyes lit up. Xiangguo Temple—the state temple of Da Ning. He had long wanted to request a longevity tablet there for his son, but because it was the state temple, spots were incredibly difficult to secure; he had been on the waiting list for two years without success.

Understanding Uncle Ma’s intent, Shen Jifeng did not linger. Daoist Zhang watched the three of them walk away, still unwilling to give up. "I can perform rituals, divination, and choose auspicious dates for the mine! I have immortal pills, too—well, they haven't been fully refined yet, but given time, success is certain!"

The young acolyte sighed. "Master, you turned away business that came to your door, and now that they are leaving, what is the use of peddling yourself?"

"Oh, dear, oh dear!" Daoist Zhang stamped his feet on the bricks, the sound echoing sharply. "It is all the fault of that furnace of pills; it fried my wits. A miscalculation, a grave miscalculation."

On the way back, Wei Xiao suggested going into the mountains to help Uncle Ma find a location for the charcoal kilns. Shen Jifeng, knowing he was a hunter from the Tianmeng Mountains and familiar with the terrain, agreed readily.

The Tianmeng mountain range stretched for hundreds of miles. Uncle Ma had never seen such vast mountains. He craned his neck to gaze at the ridges that seemed to touch the horizon, sighing in admiration.

Wei Xiao walked in front, his machete occasionally hacking away vines blocking their path, his gait as steady as if walking on flat ground. Ever since entering the mountains, Uncle Ma’s eyes had brightened like an old wolf scenting prey, and his breathing had grown heavier.

"Uncle Ma, does this mountain meet your standards?" Wei Xiao asked with a smile, looking back.

Uncle Ma rubbed his calloused fingers and grinned. "A fine place! I’ve burned charcoal in Bianjing for half my life, and I’ve never seen such a spot. The mountain terrain is undulating, and the forest is dense—a treasure trove for charcoal production." He pointed to a sunny slope in the distance. "See that? Most of the trees on that slope are hardwoods with thick bark; the charcoal burned from them will surely be durable."

Wei Xiao looked in the direction he pointed and nodded. "That side is sheltered from the wind, and the soil is firm, so digging the kiln won't cause a collapse. But it’s a bit close to the water source—won't it get damp?"

Uncle Ma chuckled. "Neither too far nor too near, just right." He gestured, "A kiln cannot be too close to water, lest it get damp, but it cannot be too far either; if a fire breaks out, it must be extinguished in time." He narrowed his eyes as if calculating something, then added after a moment, "However, we must still check the earth’s veins."

"The earth’s veins?" Wei Xiao raised an eyebrow. This wasn't selecting a burial plot or checking feng shui—did burning charcoal require checking the earth’s veins, too?

Uncle Ma explained, "The elders say that a kiln site must not suppress the earth’s energy, otherwise, you won't be able to produce good charcoal."

"And you must avoid ancient tombs and old temples to avoid offending the spirits. By the way, where did the mountain god manifest last time?"

Wei Xiao thought to himself that this mountain god business was never going to end. He had watched Shen Jifeng pull off her ruse, and now he was forced to help her maintain the lie.

"That way," Wei Xiao pointed randomly.

"The east? Then the previous location won't clash," Uncle Ma said, full of excitement. "Let’s go, let's explore a bit further. If there’s no better place, we’ll choose that one."

Seeing Uncle Ma so methodical, Wei Xiao couldn't help but laugh. These intricacies of charcoal burning were far more interesting than hunting.

"General, you won't be staying at the mine forever, will you?" Once the two were deep in the Tianmeng Mountains, Uncle Ma finally asked the question that had been lingering in his mind for days.

"I won't be here much longer. Once the kilns are dug, I will find a reason to resign from the Princess's service."

Uncle Ma knew there must be a special reason for a man like Wei Xiao, the commander-in-chief of the Zhennan Army, to condescend to act as a lowly guard at a mine.

However, this was not for him to speculate. Wei Xiao held onto the bond of brotherhood he shared with his deceased son, calling him 'Uncle Ma' and visiting him several times a year with enough money for his expenses; that was already the height of benevolence. If he truly took himself for the man's elder and tried to pry into his secrets, he would be both tactless and arrogant.

"I am no longer the commander of the Diannan Army," Wei Xiao said calmly, his expression neither sad nor joyous. "The Emperor will likely give me some idle post. I will be in Bianjing often from now on. Uncle Ma, rest easy and burn your charcoal here; the Princess will not mistreat you. When things are settled here, come find me at the General’s Mansion."

"This... this..." Uncle Ma’s mouth hung open, unable to utter a word for a long time. From a renowned commander-in-chief to an idle post in the capital—this was clearly a case of discarding the bridge after crossing the river, a stripping of military power!

All that glory won through so much blood, tears, and human life—gone just like that.

"How can the Emperor be so unjust?" Uncle Ma asked timidly, his cracked lips trembling.

Wei Xiao patted Uncle Ma’s thin shoulder with his large hand. "Uncle Ma, the Diannan Army still exists. I have no grievances. I promised you back then that I would bring your son home, and in the end, I broke my word."

Murky, aged tears fell from Uncle Ma’s eyes. "It’s all fate. Why would I blame you? Let’s not speak of it."

Uncle Ma wiped away his tears and strode onward into the mountains, with Wei Xiao following close behind.

The kiln site was finally set at the spot Uncle Ma had first chosen, nestled in a mountain hollow, a certain distance from the mine, yet not too far. There were no roads in the mountains, so a location too remote would make road construction a burden, and transportation would be time-consuming.

Shen Jifeng had no objections. She had always followed the principle of using people she trusted and trusting the people she used. Having observed her over these days, Wei Xiao was deeply impressed by her boldness and breadth of mind in management.

The selected sunny slope could accommodate five kilns. Li Leqi allocated ten miners, and with many hands, the work progressed quickly. By the second day after confirming the location, three kilns had already been excavated.

"Uncle Ma, do you think the thickness of the kiln wall is sufficient?" a young craftsman asked, wiping away sweat.

Uncle Ma jumped into the pit and tapped the wall with a pickaxe. "Ram it another three inches thicker, or it will easily crack during the later stages of burning."

He turned to Wei Xiao and explained, "These kilns must withstand seven days and seven nights of intense fire; there can be no carelessness."

Wei Xiao noticed that Uncle Ma’s eyes were much brighter than they had been in Bianjing, and even his hunched back had straightened a little. The air of misery that had always permeated him seemed to have been drawn out by these kilns.

That night, the call of an owl echoed around the mine once again.

Shen Jifeng happened to be sleeping in the duty room that night. Hearing the sound, she tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She would never forget that the night she killed the scarred man, the ghostly cry in the woods had been exactly the same.

Lacking experience, she had thought it was something unclean. Later, after hearing it again, Zhang Lao-han told her it was just the cry of an owl.

Wei Xiao followed the sound and found Fifteen.

"General, the Emperor has issued an edict for your immediate return."

Plans could not keep up with changes; the parting had come sooner than expected.

"A sudden summons? Is there trouble in the capital?"

Fifteen replied solemnly, "Remnants of the previous dynasty were discovered in Chao County, plotting rebellion. The Emperor is furious and has already had several people executed. It is said that Prince Chu was given twenty strokes with a heavy staff for his negligence."