Nightwatcher

# 191. Xu Qi'an's Seven Letters

In the night, the cold wind blew, making the entire pond of red lotuses sway, resembling a surging sea of fire, beautiful to the extreme.

Xu Qi'an silently took a deep breath, inhaling the fragrant scent.

"Yunzhou is mountainous, but unlike the jungles of the Southern Marches, it is not covered in dense forests and miasma. The mountains are rich in medicinal herbs and other resources," Ziyang Jushi continued, gazing at the pool of red lotuses:

"Yunzhou also has fertile farmland and ample water resources. Although its annual rice production doesn't match that of Yuzhou[^1] and Zhangzhou, the breadbaskets of the Great Feng, Yunzhou’s annual rice yield is more than enough to feed two provinces."

*...It sounds like Yunzhou terrain should be rolling hills.* Xu Qi'an nodded in realisation.

*Among the basic landforms, rolling hills are the most fertile and resource-rich. In my previous life, the so-called land of fish and rice was in the Jiangnan hills.*

Yuzhou and Zhangzhou, the breadbaskets of Great Feng, were grasslands, whilst the Southern Marches were mountainous, with high mountains everywhere and very few fertile fields.

Ziyang Jushi continued in a serious tone: "Yunzhou has another geographical advantage; it borders the Southern Sea, so there's no need to worry about being attacked from both front and back. If worse comes to worst, one can always set sail.

"The conflicts between the Church of the Warlock God and the Great Feng are becoming more frequent at the border. If they want to create internal chaos and distract Great Feng, choosing Yunzhou is a wise move."

*Hearing this, why do I feel like this trip to Yunzhou is going to be a journey of total annihilation? Psh psh, children’s words, children’s words…*

"Don't worry," Ziyang Jushi seemed to see through Xu Qi'an's concern and smiled. "Although the Great Feng has serious problems, it is generally still stable, and the authority of the court remains intact.

"Even if the Church of the Warlock God is scheming in Yunzhou, they will only act in secret and never openly. In this time in my office at Qingzhou, I have had the spare time to train some messenger eagles. I’ll give you one later. If anything unexpected happens in Yunzhou, you can use the eagle to send a message. It’s faster than using the postal route."

*But even then, it would still take several days to get a response... Indeed, a world without mobile phones feels so insecure. It would be great if everyone had a fragment of the Earth Book.* Xu Qi'an gratefully replied, "Thank you for your kindness, Teacher."

After a pause, he asked, "What should I do once I get to Yunzhou?"

"Just focus on investigating the case and protecting Zhang Xinying. As for the social interactions in the officialdom, you don’t need to worry about them," Ziyang Jushi said with a smile. "Since Wei Yuan appointed Zhang Xinying as the Inspector General, he must be someone exceptional."

Xu Qi'an nodded.

Having finished discussing official matters, Ziyang Jushi pondered for a moment before saying, "I often exchange letters with Jinyan, and he frequently mentions you in his letters. You can be considered half a student of Yunlu Academy... I heard that a few months ago, the academy was filled with a surge of clear energy?"

*Who is Jinyan? Oh, it’s Second Brother’s teacher, Great Scholar Zhang Shen...* It took Xu Qi'an a few seconds to realise who "Jinyan" was, as he wasn’t used to addressing people by their courtesy names.

*What does Ziyang Jushi mean by this... Didn’t Yunlu Academy tell him the truth? Or is he hinting that he knows it was me but just didn't say it outright? Maybe it's because the letters can’t ensure secrecy, so the great scholars of Yunlu Academy mentioned it but didn't reveal the truth?*

He cautiously replied, "It seems that the academy has classified this matter as top secret. The Lesser Sage Temple remains sealed, and no one is allowed to enter."

At this point, Xu Qi'an couldn’t help but think of the Lesser Sage, the one who made a deer out to be a horse. He was truly a great man because he always stood behind his wife.

Ziyang Jushi nodded slightly and didn't ask further.

Xu Qi'an, however, had some questions he wanted to ask this grand scholar. After thinking for a while, he decided to ask the first question:

"Teacher, due to the Sangpo case some time ago, I challenged myself to study at night and read historical books. I discovered that before our academy’s Prime Minister suppressed Buddhism, he shouted the slogan ‘If buddha does not die, then all will be buddha.’

"Subsequently, that Prime Minister advanced to the Realm of Mandate Seeker. I wonder, even if Buddhism has its flaws, it is still a respected tradition. Isn't ‘If buddha does not die, then all will be buddha’ too extreme?"

Xu Qi'an didn't know how the Buddhism in this world compared to that of his previous life. In this world, there was no one Siddhartha Gautama, rather the Buddha was a title, the one who stood at the top of the Buddhist house.

But regardless, Buddhism shouldn’t be considered a cult.

"This matter involves a great secret, which even I do not know," Ziyang Jushi replied.

*How can you say it involves a secret if you don't know?* Xu Qi'an forcibly held back his retort.

Ziyang Jushi chuckled, "The Dean knows."

Xu Qi'an's second question was about why there was a Confucian sage's statue in the Abyss of the Southern Marches, but he decided not to ask.

As someone stationed in the capital, Xu Qi'an shouldn't know about the statue at the bottom of the Abyss. Even using the phrase "I have a friend" wouldn't work.

Not even the Nightwatchers Constabulary could possibly know about this matter.

…

Returning to the station, Xu Qi'an took a cold bath and then sat cross-legged in his room, practicing his breathing exercises and visualisation.

Qingzhou bordered Yunzhou. From here, with fast horses, it would take three to five days to reach Yunzhou. Even considering that Inspector Zhang's health was frail, they would still be able to reach the Qingzhou border within a week.

*I can use this time to try and break through to the Refining Spirit stage. Not sleeping for ten days is no big deal; back when I was just an ordinary person, I managed to stay up for 72 hours straight in an internet café...*

The next day, Commissioner Yang Gong gathered stonemasons to inscribe the warning poem for officials on the stele in the front yards of various government offices in Qingzhou.

From the Qingzhou Prefect to the ordinary clerks, everyone could see these four lines of the poem every day as they entered and exited the government offices.

"What does it say?"

"*Your food and your money,*

*flesh and blood of the people.*

*The people are easy to abuse,*

*the heavens are hard to cheat.*"

"What a great poem. I haven’t read much, but I can say this: fuckin’ hell, it’s written well. It must have been written by our honorable Governor."

"It wasn’t written by the Governor. It was written by someone named Xu Qi'an. Oh, there's a small note next to it: 'Mentor Yang Gong.' Ah, so it’s our Governor’s student."

This poem was indeed written by Xu Qi'an, but Ziyang Jushi added a clever touch by having the words "Mentor Yang Gong" inscribed next to Xu Qi'an’s name.

If the three grand scholars from Yunlu Academy were present, they would be outraged and exclaim: "Shameless old fox, taking credit like this?"

Many upright officials were highly impressed by this poem, silently remembering the name Xu Qi'an.

Xu Qi'an’s name quickly spread through the officialdom of Qingzhou. Many scholars and officials soon discovered that the person who composed these poems, hailed as the brightest light in Great Feng's literary world in the past two hundred years, was indeed Xu Qi'an.

What left people most astounded was that he wasn’t a scholar, but a Nightwatcher.

Regardless, both the officials and scholars in Qingzhou admired Xu Qi'an’s talent and the spirit expressed in his poems.

The women of the Jiaofangsi, upon hearing this news, were filled with excitement and fervor. Each of them fervently wished that the great poet Xu Qi'an would visit them and leave behind a couple of his verses.

They were willing to do anything for this chance.

…

Outside Qingzhou City.

Ziyang Jushi, accompanied by a group of high-ranking officials from Qingzhou, personally escorted the Inspector’s team out of the city.

"Parting here, who knows when we will meet again. Take care, Teacher." Xu Qi'an saluted as a disciple.

Ziyang Jushi nodded slightly, feeling somewhat wistful. He had just accepted a new student, and now he was leaving before he could even warm up to him.

"On this trip to Yunzhou, handle the case well. Always remember to serve the court and the people of the realm," Yang Gong said solemnly.

*Serve the people of the realm…* Xu Qi'an silently repeated these words in his heart.

…

Several days later, at the Qingzhou border, at an inn.

At 2 a.m., after finishing his breathing exercises and visualisation, Xu Qi'an, who hadn’t slept for seven days, walked out of his room holding a candle.

It was late at night, and the inn was quiet. He walked along the corridor to the end and then went downstairs.

By the counter in the lobby, an oil lamp burned quietly, and the inn servant was sleeping soundly at the desk, a bit of drool glistening at the corner of his mouth.

Government-run inns and stations operate 24 hours a day, because some officials travel overnight due to urgent business and may need lodging at any time.

Knock, knock...

Xu Qi'an gently tapped the counter, making a dull sound.

The inn servant woke up, wiped his mouth, and got up, "Sir, what can I do for you?"

"Give me some envelopes and letter paper. This official needs to write some letters," Xu Qi'an requested.

The inn servant immediately took out a sheet of letter paper and an envelope from the cabinet. Xu Qi'an shook his head, "Not enough."

"How many do you need?"

"Seven envelopes, and as much letter paper as possible."

It was the first time the inn servant had seen someone write seven letters in one go. Mumbling to himself, he obediently handed over seven envelopes and letter paper.

Taking the envelopes and paper, Xu Qi'an turned and went upstairs, back to his room.

He laid the envelopes on the desk, took out red lotus petals from a small jade mirror, and pressed five petals on five envelopes. Then he spread out the paper, placed the paperweight on it, and began to grind ink to write letters.

The first letter:

*Princess Huaiqing*

*As I write this letter, I have arrived at the border of Qingzhou, and am about to enter Yunzhou province. When leaving the capital, I originally wanted to discuss this matter with you, and hear your wise words.*

*However, your subordinate did not realise that he has offended Your Highness, and made you shut him out with such cold heart.*

*Passing through Yuzhou, your subordinate discovered a case of embezzlement… from this case, we discovered that the corruption the Warlocks have made in the court is deep-seated, and they have trained many spies and insiders. It is said that a dam of a thousand li can fall from mere ant-holes — this must not be taken lightly. I hope Your Highness can talk to His Majesty, to strive to make the nation more prosperous, and revitalise the power of the court.*

*Another thing, there is a flower in Qingzhou called a red lotus, that opens in the dead of winter. The flower’s aura: it comes from the earth yet is not dirtied by it, it sparkles in the water yet does not try to enchant, it is full and straight without tangled branching, its fragrance spreads far and lingers in the air. It is to be admired from afar, and not to be disrespected.*

*Your subordinate picked a lotus petal for you, and enclose it within this letter, to express my kind regards.*

The second letter:

*Princess Lin’an.*

*The night is long, and I’ve no heart to sleep, Your Highness’s smile seems to appear before me, and your laughter echoes in my ears. It has been over a fortnight, and I miss you dearly.*

*The road to Yunzhou was not lonely; on the way I saw many strange and wondrous sights. I discovered that in the waterways were water spirits — one night a guard stepped onto the deck, and suddenly heard his late mother calling him. He jumped into the canal, as if possessed.*

*The water ghost clutched tightly at his foot, trying to drag him to the canal floor. Thankfully, your subordinate noticed something was awry, and undaunted by the dangers I jumped into the river, exchanging over three hundred blows with the ghost, until the river frothed and foamed so greatly, before I could save the poor solider.*

*On the way from Qingzhou to Yunzhou, we passed by a village. A strange thing happened in the village — one villager’s late wife suddenly arose from the dead, walking day and night around the room. She grew long and frightening white teeth, her nails grew sharp and black, and as soon as she saw someone, she would bite.*

*Thankfully, your subordinate was there to see it, and immediately saw there was a reason for her body’s undeath. After a thorough investigation, I found the truth — in reality the husband had had an affair with the widow of the past village chief, and wanted to divorce and remarry. His wife wasn’t willing, and so he brutally murdered her.*

*His wife died with resentment still in her, and so her soul didn’t dissipate, hence her body “arose from the dead”.*

*One more thing, there is a flower in Qingzhou called the red lotus — it is enchanting like fire, and always makes your subordinate think of Your Highness’s fiery red dress, and your unmatched beauty.*

*~~It is almost a spitting image of Your Highness’s bitch qi~~* (Struck out) *It is graceful like the spring wind, and tall and upright like an arrow, yet when the wind blows over, it shyly lowers its head. Suddenly a phrase comes to mind: That softness with which she lowers her head, is like a lotus’s modesty even in the cold winter wind.*

*Your Subordinate spoke too rashly, and accidentally offended Your Highness. It’s just that Your Highness is too beautiful, I have not seen any better.*

The third letter.

*Miss Caiwei:*

*A day apart is like three autumns, and totalling everything up, we’ve not seen each other for over half a month. How is the progress with the chicken bouillon? Are you able to progress into a Master of Alchemy?*

*There’s a delicacy in Yuzhou called napa steamed ham — ham is a food unique to the south; it is difficult to find in the north.*

*And it’s easy to make, too: take a cured leg of ham and cut off the skin, keeping only the lean meat. Then, use chicken stock to simmer the skin until it is tender, then the meat, then add the centres of napa cabbage, cut with two inches of the root left. Add honey, wine and water, and simmer for half a day. In the mouth it is sweet and savoury, both meat and vegetable are tender and delicious, and whilst the cabbage root is soft, the vegetable still holds its shape. The soup is also delicious.*

*Qingzhou also has several delicacies, I’ll list them out for you here…*

*Oh, and one more thing, there’s a species of flower in Qingzhou called red lotus. It’s got a lively and vibrant beauty, and opens with the wind. As it sways in the wind, the flower almost seems like it’s smiling, and that beautiful smile reminds me most of Miss Caiwei.*

*~~You’re just like a simple-minded and innocent~~* (Struck out) *You’re a girl who brings everyone joy, with not a care in the world, innocent and unaffected by the dark corners of the world. And your bright and shining eyes, looking into them makes one forget all their worldly woes.*

The fourth letter:

*Miss Fuxiang:*

*~~Half a month has passed, and I miss you oh so much. Thinking of your smile, thinking of your dress, thinking of your plump soft boobs and the scent of your body~~* (Struck out)

*Half a month has passed, and I miss you oh so much. Now I’m just reaching the border of Qingzhou, tomorrow we head into Yunzhou. On the road, my colleagues have many times invited me to the Jiaofangsi, but I turned them down, because a Jiaofangsi without you is boring beyond measure.*

*I can’t help but recall back to our passion-filled nights, when I would whisper into your ear: “Is my aim not proficient?”[^2], and you would lower your gaze in embarrassment. Oh, what beautiful times.*

*The trip to Yunzhou was more tiring than I expected, and there is long to go before we meet. I know that you’re going crazy waiting for me, and when you miss me most, please remember to take care of your nails.*

*One more thing, there is a flower in Qingzhou called the red lotus. Its petals glow like fire, like the fire of your passion, a vibrancy that’s hard to forget.*

Xu Qi’an finished all of the letters for his fallback girls, and blew dry the ink. Staring that the paper full of corrections, strikethroughs, and blacked out bits of text, he sighed helplessly.

This is what it is like to handwrite, as you write you inevitably will make mistakes, write wrong characters, or write things you shouldn’t have written. When he was writing essays as a young boy, he would make the same mistakes.

Oh well, they knew each other inside out anyway, they wouldn’t think poorly of him because his letters were a bit scruffy.

As for the contents, he was rather proud — tailoring each to each woman’s personality. Huaiqing liked politics and government, and so he wrote about the criminal case.

Lin’an liked stories, and so he wrote about the strange tales he had witnessed on the road.

Chu Caiwei was a foodie, and so he wrote about food.

As for Fuxiang, they’ve been under the covers so much already, the letter might as well be flirting, what more was needed?

Afterwards, he had to write letters for his family. Xu Qi’an left this until last, and after thinking for a long time, put some ink on his brush.

The fifth letter:

*Dear Lingyue,*

*Your brother is well out in the country, but I do miss you. From so young your brother hasn’t left your side for more than a couple days. Of course, I’ve also never left uncle and auntie.*

*Are you getting used to life in the inner city? The cost of living there is high, much more than the outer city, but don’t be hard on yourself. Make sure to go out plenty, have a look at the silks and jewellery.*

*When I left, I left auntie three hundred taels of silver, that should be enough for the family for a while. Mm, when big brother is not at home, and second brother is in the academy, you need to make sure to take the initiative on matters, don’t always listen to your silly mother.*

*If auntie suggests that you marry, then you get her to give that three hundred taels of silver back to me, get her to give the silk back to me. Big brother doesn’t want to return home only to discover that you’ve already married.*

*One more thing, there’s a flower in Qingzhou called the red lotus. It’s as beautiful and graceful as you, as soft and delicate.*

The sixth letter:

*Auntie:*

*Please look after Lingyin well!*

*End of letter.*

The seventh letter:

*Uncle:*

*I’m very well at the moment. As of writing this letter, we’ve reached the border of Qingzhou and Yunzhou. As for what will happen in Yunzhou, I do not yet know.*

*Don’t worry about me — men will experience ups and downs anyway eh? Didn’t you and my dad fight your way out of the battlefield?*

*Recently, I’ve been attempting to reach Refining Spirit. I hope that when I return, uncle has also successfully reached this rank. When the time comes, the two spirits of Xu sounds mighty fine.*

*One more thing, I just remembered that you don’t know too many characters right, so you wouldn’t have been sending letters to Cijiu. I had always thought that as a father your heart would naturally be on your son, so I didn’t think to leave him a note saying we’d moved… oh well, it’s been half a month anyway, Cijiu should know now where we’ve gone.*

*Hopefully, it’s just me worrying too much.*

Once he had finished, Xu Qi’an folded up the letter paper, and with the five red petals put them into their respective envelopes.

-----

[^1]: There are two Yuzhou: 禹州, which Xu Qi’an just passed through, and 豫州, which is the one mentioned here. Neither are _particularly_ important places so we won’t distinguish them.

[^2]: This has another layer in Chinese: “to aim” 射 is also to fire (e.g. a bow), and “proficient” 精 is the same word as “vitality”, or “vital essence”, Hence 射精 “to fire off vital essence” … perhaps you get what that may be?

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