Chapter 139

“Has it begun?” Shuiqing asked uncertainly once more.

Hurrying into the courtyard, Fan Jin nodded gravely.

While Shuiqing had mentally prepared herself for the imperial decree to reduce the power of the regional lords, hearing the news firsthand still unsettled her. After all, they had lived for so long in times of peace, where their concerns upon arriving were initially just about securing their basic needs, not about personal safety.

Now, with the situation outside becoming uncertain, memories of the brutalities of war flashed through her mind.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm her tumultuous emotions, and said, “Call all the children back and remind them carefully.”

The days of calm and tranquility were surely gone for good now.

“Alright.” Having witnessed firsthand the unsettled atmosphere in the capital, Fan Jin also believed it was necessary to caution the children.

They couldn’t afford to be naive and ignorant. It wouldn’t benefit them at all, and might even put them in harm’s way.

Before long, all six children, including Ling Ran, were gathered together.

The family convened in the tea room.

A tea room had been set up on the left side of the new main house—spacious, bright, with tables, chairs, tea, and pastries neatly arranged. It was the perfect place for discussions and meetings.

At this moment, a few types of pastries were laid out on the long table, and tea had been prepared and left to cool according to the number of people present.

Preparations for the discussion were thorough.

“It’s only early April, and the new emperor hasn’t been on the throne for a year yet—it does seem rather hasty,” Ling Ran hurried into the tea room, furrowing his brow.

Fan Jin tried to relay the rumors and discussions from outside as comprehensively as possible to his family. “There’s a lot of support for the new emperor, especially among scholars and students. I’ve heard many praising the emperor’s actions in several taverns.”

Fan Jiang, straightforward as ever, asked, “Dad, isn’t reducing the power of the regional lords a good thing? Before this, you mentioned they were uncles of the emperor, very numerous, and held many fiefs;

The emperor wants to reclaim those lands, isn’t that a good thing? Can they refuse?”

“It is a good thing, but it’s happening too hastily; some of these princes aren’t just idle nobles. They fought alongside the late emperor!” Ling Ran said solemnly.

Seeing Fan Jiang’s wide-eyed, curious yet confused expression, Fan Jin continued, “These princes not only held lands but were instrumental in founding the dynasty. Why else would the late emperor grant them these territories? It was a reward for their service.

The late emperor was their father, and he passed away less than a year ago. The new emperor has been on the throne for less than a year and now wants to reclaim all these rewards in one fell swoop. Do you think they would be willing to accept that?”

Yan Qiuxing, Jiang, He, Hu, and the other five thought for a moment before shaking their heads.

If they had worked hard to acquire their family’s properties—fields, shops, and houses—before their father passed away and then shared these out among them, they would not be willing to return them all to one person, even if it was their nephew.

This principle applied to both the entire realm and small families.

However, Fan Hu thought for a moment and said, “If they offered me a substantial sum of money, it would be like buying them back, and I might agree.”

Ling Ran quickly glanced at Fan Hu.

Despite his young age, he was remarkably sharp.

Shuiqing looked at Fan Hu and deeply agreed with that saying: the dragon gives birth to nine sons, each different.

Fan Jiang, too naive and simple, might only ever be suitable for academic research work even if he performed well in his studies; he couldn’t step into officialdom.

But based on his progress over the past half-year, she wasn’t worried that Fan Jiang would pursue officialdom.

Because Fan Jiang simply wasn’t cut out for scholarly pursuits.

But Fan Hu was.

Not only was he good at reading and writing, but more importantly, he possessed this keen insight.

Fan Jin looked at Fan Hu and sighed softly, “If they offered money, Dad wouldn’t have to worry about those lords rebelling.”

Fan Jiang, with his straightforwardness, asked again, “They didn’t offer? Shouldn’t they give some compensation?”

“No compensation at all, which seems rather unfair,” Fan Jin shook his head. “Not only did they not compensate, but the first prince who was stripped of his powers, Prince Zhou, and his entire family were escorted back to Jinling, stripped of their titles and reduced to commoners. We don’t know if they’ll be exiled or imprisoned.”

A heavy silence fell over the tea room.

Exile and imprisonment—neither option seemed favorable.

Ling Ran, with his eyes lowered and his tone even, stated matter-of-factly, “In the past, Emperor Wu of Han didn’t directly strip the regional lords of their powers; instead, he issued the ‘Exemption Edict’ to gradually reduce their influence in terms of wealth and manpower. Now, the new emperor’s actions may push those lords towards rebellion.”

Whether reducing the powers of the regional lords was good or bad, the common folk like them couldn’t decide. They only knew that war was something to be avoided. Once war broke out, life would be worse than that of pigs and dogs.

“Let’s wait and see. Perhaps it’ll only be this one prince affected for now. Maybe the others won’t act, or they might only strip one prince every few years and handle it properly. It wouldn’t be so bad then,” Fan Jin suggested, not wanting his children to worry excessively, trying to imagine the best possible outcome.

Shuiqing knew this was just the beginning.

Next, this new emperor would strip three princes within a month!

One was exiled, another imprisoned, and the third, not exiled or imprisoned, was accused of treason without evidence. How could he prove he didn’t do something he’d never done? To clear his name and fearing the fate of exile or imprisonment, he chose to set his palace on fire and die.

But the new emperor didn’t care at all. Within two months, he had stripped several princes.

And with three princes stripped within a month, the second prince might already be starting, with the notice yet to be posted in Guangning Prefecture.

Now those scholars and students might still talk high and wide, but the businessmen who received the news were probably already preparing.

No, they might have started preparing before the New Year.

At least Bai Ziqian, the richest man in the South Capital, and his father Bai Manshan were already planning.

Thinking of Bai Ziqian, Shuiqing also thought that if it was already April and they hadn’t come, waiting for the notices to come one after another in the coming years might be difficult, and it might be years before they saw each other again…

In the room, Yan Qiuxing and several children were still discussing whether the future would become more serious or tend to be peaceful.

Divided into two factions, they debated.

Shuiqing and Fan Jin did not interrupt, it was good that the children had ideas, they could not stifle them.

She announced the decision she had made in advance: “Yan Qiu, starting tomorrow, you don’t have to make rice wine. The rice wine in the house can be sold until it is all gone.”

Others did not know, but she did know.

The reduction of the fief would not stop. Even if the court had not issued a ban on brewing wine, it was still a matter of sooner rather than later. In these days, the restaurants and taverns were the most lively. There were many scholars and students talking about it, and the risk was also great.

Don’t talk about national affairs is not just talking, maybe the bailiffs rushed in to catch people!

Selling rice wine often has to come in and out, the current money is enough, or not taking risks for good.

Yan Qiu listened obediently: “Good!”

“Ling Ran, you and Dajiang go to the prefecture to get everything we need. Make a list and buy everything. Buy as much as possible, better use it than not have it when it can’t be used.”

These two months were still safe, but in the coming years, their entire family should stay home as much as possible, and if they didn’t have to go out, they shouldn’t!