As soon as Little Bird climbed into the carriage, he had Pei Du close the curtains and shutters, transforming into a completely different person with effortless naturalness.
Shen Xinian rummaged familiarly through the carriage compartment for clothes and changed into them. Keeping his head lowered as he tied his sash, he remarked, “Staying at an inn is so uncomfortable, with all those people coming and going. It’s hardly convenient.”
“The estate here in Gusu has plenty of space. I already told the steward to prepare everything ahead of time.”
The carriage compartment was indeed roomy, allowing Shen Xinian to dress without any awkward fumbling.
“But why are the clothes red… Did Mother arrange this beforehand?” Shen Xinian lifted the outer robe and examined it from every angle.
It was red, to be sure, but there was nothing garish about it—a rich, true red with the luster of gold leaf, its subtle patterns embroidered in silver thread. Luxurious without ostentation, it proclaimed its elegance boldly and without apology.
Pei Du handed him the dark jade sash from the seat beside them. “It looks good on you.”
This was Suhang territory, after all, where even the finest silks and satins outshone those of the Capital by a considerable margin.
“I think so too.” Though he had questioned it moments before, Shen Xinian truly liked the outfit. “Oh, right—Fuguang, there’s something I wanted to mention.”
“Hm?” Pei Du helped him secure the jade sash.
The warm tone of the jade provided a striking contrast to the red robe, muting its fiery vibrance while lending the youthful wearer an uncommon air of steadiness.
It was attire perfectly suited to Shen Xinian’s position as head of the family.
“Well… I asked Zhong Bo, and your maternal grandfather’s family should be right here in Gusu.”
Shen Xinian weighed his words with care, but he did not shy away from the subject. He reached out to clasp Pei Du’s hand, meeting his eyes with solemn sincerity.
“Should we send a calling card in the name of the Shen Family? You could write a letter, and I’ll have the steward deliver it along with the card.”
Pei Du had not mentioned his maternal grandfather’s grave illness to Shen Xinian.
After all, the Lin Family had first lost a daughter to marriage into the Sui Family, then suffered the tragedy of a massive fire that claimed two more daughters in one fell swoop. The Late Emperor had held them accountable for failing to properly educate their girls, and their departure from the Capital had been a humiliating spectacle.
Over the years since Elder Lin’s retirement to his hometown, the Lin Family had cut off all contact with both the Sui and Pei Families.
If his grandfather had no desire to see him, Pei Du would simply act as though the connection did not exist, preserving their mutual distance. There was no reason to trouble Shen Xinian with it and dampen his spirits.
At times, Pei Du’s instinctive actions stirred a pang of sympathy in Little Bird, prompting displays of even greater affection.
Such favoritism never failed to fill Pei Du with an intensified sense of being cherished.
Yet when faced with matters beyond his own control, he would instinctively conceal the turmoil, shielding Shen Xinian from the knowledge that even he could falter in his calculations or composure.
Perhaps because the love he had known had always been so shallow, Pei Du failed to grasp that someone who truly held him dear wished to anticipate and address every possible concern on his behalf.
Shen Xinian wanted more people to love Pei Du.
No matter what had transpired in the past, the Lin Family remained the only close blood relatives Pei Du had left, aside from Sui Ziming.
Even if they chose to keep their distance and refuse him, what of it?
He would always stand by his Benefactor’s side.
But if the Lin Family’s reticence stemmed merely from their own hardships rather than cold indifference, then Pei Du would gain a living elder—a bond Shen Xinian could never provide.
He hoped that once Pei Du had fully shed the struggles of his youth, he might once again know the care and shelter of an elder’s love.
“Fuguang, let’s give it a try, all right?”
Shen Xinian’s gaze brimmed with honest intent, his candid words unburdened by the thousand qualms churning in Pei Du’s mind.
“No matter how it turns out, it’ll be fine. I’m right here.”
Pei Du felt the warmth of Shen Xinian’s palm against his own and gave a faint lift to the corners of his mouth. His thumb brushed gently over the back of Shen Xinian’s hand as he murmured, “All right.”
“I’ll do as Xinian says.”
Shen Xinian fought the urge, but the corners of his mouth still quirked upward.
Who could understand!
The sheer thrill of pampering a powerful minister at home—like hiding your benefactor in a golden house!
Pei Du took in the shift in Shen Xinian’s demeanor, lost in thought.
Jiangnan was indeed a different world for Shen Xinian.
To call him a fish in water would be no exaggeration.
The foundations of power in Jiangnan had indeed been bequeathed by Xie Jingtang, but they were rooted even more deeply in Shen Xinian’s own sense of self.
Here, he commanded wealth and influence. It might not rival the Prime Minister Pei Du’s heaven-spanning authority, but with great rivers separating them, the ancient adage held true: even a dragon from afar could not press down a native serpent.
When Pei Du had journeyed south to investigate the Canal Gang Case years ago, he had courted the favor of many Jiangnan magnates. Though they refrained from outright aid for their own reasons, they had extended certain conveniences.
Those small favors had been a tremendous boon to Pei Du at the time.
Thus, for all that Jiangnan lay within Prince Wu’s domain—and the Canal Gang bore his shadow—the region’s merchant clans wielded such formidable clout that it was hardly his to command alone.
Noticing Shen Xinian struggling to bind his hair, Pei Du plucked the ribbon from his fingers. “Let me?”
“Oh, sure.”
Shen Xinian turned his back to him and obligingly tilted his head up a fraction.
He had not dyed his hair aboard the boat, of course. Pei Du recalled how, before their departure from the Capital, Shen Xinian had taken special care to wash out the hair dye—plainly intending to present his true appearance in Jiangnan from the start.
Pei Du gathered Shen Xinian’s locks, smoothing the faint grayish-white strands neatly into his palm. “This hair color will do?”
Shen Xinian waggled a finger. “Heaven’s high above and the emperor’s far away—money makes even the devils push the grindstone.”
“The steward we met just now was only from the docks. We’ll switch to one from the estate midway. No one will breathe a word about an extra passenger in the carriage.”
Merchants might amass fortunes, but they ranked at the bottom of the four estates. Those born to trade, absent some extraordinary stroke of fate, could never sit for the Imperial Examinations—so they guarded their sway in Jiangnan all the more fiercely.
On the surface, Jiangnan belonged to Prince Wu. The Canal Gang squeezed the populace on his behalf, hoarding wealth and secretly mustering troops, while local traders paid him tribute in gold and silver at every festival.
Yet in truth—as the very name of the Five Roads Chamber of Commerce suggested—the true lifelines of Jiangnan’s five great trade routes had never rested in the hands of princes or officials.
Shen Xinian had not yet held his Capping Ceremony; he still wore his hair bound in the high ponytail of youth, its taut arc concealing the keen edge that set young men apart.
Pei Du selected a ribbon about a finger wide. After wrapping it around to bind his ponytail, he left two inches of tassel dangling to one side of the bound hair. It swayed gently as Shen Xinian turned his head to admire it.
He humbly sought Shen Xinian’s advice. “Does the Family Head know what the Jiangnan merchants are most likely to do if Prince Wu rebels and raises his army?”
Shen Xinian glanced at Pei Du, thoroughly pleased by the form of address. He lifted his chin slightly. “That depends on how things stand between the court and Prince Wu—and who can offer us the most satisfying benefits.”
“The Five Roads Chamber of Commerce wasn’t founded in the beginning to monopolize wealth and trade routes. It was to protect our homeland.”
“We are merchants, it’s true. But we support countless common folk beneath us. It’s their trust—our fellow townspeople—that has allowed our five families to endure in this land of Jiangnan down to the present day.”
In this moment, Shen Xinian no longer spoke as Young Master Shen of Pei Mansion. He spoke as the head of Jinling’s Xie Family in Jiangnan.
“Whoever can spare the people of Jiangnan the grind of power struggles and the agonies of war—whoever can ensure that Jiangnan’s great and small merchants can hold on to what they have, or even look forward to something better… that is who we will choose.”
Just as the Chamber had quietly smoothed the way for Pei Du in the past, reining in Prince Wu so he dared not let the Canal Gang run too wild, the Five Roads Chamber of Commerce was more than its five leading families. It encompassed countless merchants concealed amid Jiangnan’s rivers and streams, its highways and byways. Together, they formed the veins of Jiangnan, ceaselessly ferrying sustenance to nourish the land.
The existence of the Five Roads Chamber of Commerce was no secret. Pei Du had considered reaching out to its five heads before, but he had never found a way through the door.
Pei Du sighed softly. “If you side with Prince Wu, all five roads will open to him. His grain and supplies will flow without hindrance, leaving him no worries at his back.”
Shen Xinian knew exactly what was on Pei Du’s mind.
Truth be told, Pei Du did not care who ended up on the throne, so long as it was not Zheng Shi. But Prince Wu would die at the hands of his heir, Zheng Min—and the Heir of Prince Wu, whose bloodline and origins were a mystery, could never hope to hold the realm steady.
When that day came, with the Capital fallen and Jiangnan engulfed, where in the land would remain an eternal haven?
If Pei Du truly lacked the power to avert it, that might have been bearable. But the torment lay in knowing he could have changed it.
Shen Xinian hooked his little finger around Pei Du’s. “Come now—the river will guide us to the bridge when we reach it. We have plenty of time to mull over the future.”
“For now, though, there’s a more pressing matter to settle.”
Pei Du made a soft sound of acknowledgment. “Hm?”
Shen Xinian leaned in close, his cheek nearly brushing Pei Du’s. His eyes curved in a smile, sparkling like stars.
“Since we’re delivering the invitation to Lin Mansion in the name of the Xie Family… on what pretext, exactly, should I pay a visit to your maternal grandfather?”
