Chapter 294 — Claiming the Reward
Purple Streets of Chang'an · Page 1 of 4
Song Yan pulled out the letter and skimmed it. It was full of reproaches, and only at the very end did his father ask how matters stood now. Suddenly he thought of how Dou Yan had seized the tally in the midst of the chaos, and something stirred in his mind. He wrote back to Song Cen, saying that in the past it had all been his own fault for being so narrow-minded, carrying only Yizhi Hall in his heart and forgetting that Yizhi Hall was but a part of the Yingzhen Ducal Estate. Now, having heard his father's teachings, he had reflected deeply on his errors and resolved to shoulder the responsibilities of the Heir of the Yingzhen Ducal Estate—to exercise the Duke of Ying's authority in his father's absence. He went on to report, point by point, that he had ordered Tao Jun to repair the burned buildings within fifteen days, that he had temporarily set aside fifty thousand taels as a reward for the capture of the thieves who had broken into the estate, which the Emperor had endorsed, and that he had obtained from His Majesty's own hand three places in the Imperial Guard, and so forth—all told to Song Cen in full. Then he instructed Song Cen's courier: "Six hundred li by express, day and night without pause—put it in the Duke's hands at once."
This was truly pouring oil on the fire!
Even a seasoned strategist like Yan Che could not help wiping the sweat from his brow, let alone anyone else. Only Gu Yu, who never feared a stage too high for the drama, asked with a grin, "Brother Tianci, those men are mostly after those three Imperial Guard places, aren't they? If those three places were gone, they probably wouldn't be half so eager. Are we really just going to let those thieves off?"
"In two months, the Shuntian Jing'an City Garrison will have to give the Emperor an accounting," Song Yan said mildly. "If we keep offering a heavy reward, aren't we putting Magistrate Huang and the Earl of Donglin in a difficult spot?"
"That's true!" Gu Yu scratched his head and laughed. "The Garrison's men are already saying all the thieves have been caught. If we're still posting rewards, it's as good as accusing the Earl of Donglin and Magistrate Huang of killing innocents to claim credit. If the Emperor hears of it, they're finished." At this he opened his eyes wide. "Brother Tianci, what about the reward money? We can't just hand it over to the Shuntian Jing'an City Garrison for nothing, letting Huang Qi and Zhou Shaochuan play the good men, can we?"
"If they dare come to claim the reward, then I dare to keep offering it," Song Yan said proudly. "I've already given them a way out. If they won't take it and instead try to climb higher on the pole, they can't blame me for showing no mercy!" He added, "That way, both the lawful and the lawless will know exactly what's going on. We'll stage another little scene—have someone deliver a thief's corpse—and we'll pay out the silver according to the reward as before. When the time comes, there will be men eager to help me hunt the thieves down. Anyone who dares set his sights on the Yingzhen Ducal Estate had better be ready to be hunted for the rest of his life." He turned to Xia Lian. "Spread that word of mine."
Xia Lian answered reverently that it would be done.
When Huang Qi and the Earl of Donglin got wind of it, they breathed a long sigh of relief.
"Song Yantang may be a bit reckless, but he does know where to draw the line!" the Earl of Donglin said to Huang Qi with feeling. "I say let the Yingzhen Ducal Estate handle this reward business. Didn't the Emperor himself grant the Heir of the Duke of Ying three banners as a mark of favor?"
The implication was that since even the Emperor approved of what Song Yan had done, he should not cling stubbornly to his own views.
Huang Qi smiled bitterly.
Matters had come to this pass. What good would it do to object?