Volume One: The Hidden Dragon in the Abyss Chapter Nine: The Young Qilin of the Han

It was none other than the Censor Liu Tao!

He took a few steps toward the couch, ignoring the towering armored guards beside him, and bowed deeply to Liu Heng, who was struggling to rise.

Bending his waist low, he said, “Young Marquis! Tao was wrongfully imprisoned and had resigned himself to death. If not for Your Highness risking your own safety to argue justly before the Emperor and attributing the merits of the Essential Strategies to me, I fear I would have perished in prison by now! Such a favor is life-giving, akin to the kindness of parents—I, Tao, shall never forget it!”

His voice trembled slightly with emotion, sincere beyond measure.

Liu Heng looked at this loyal minister, who had earned a reputation for integrity in history yet ultimately took his own life in despair. He saw genuine gratitude etched on the worn face and a flicker of hope in the eyes. His heart swelled with complex feelings.

He struggled to return the bow. “Master Liu, you honor me too greatly. Please, rise! I... I merely did what was right. Such grand gestures are not warranted.”

As he moved, a sharp pain surged through his back again, beads of cold sweat forming on his brow.

Liu Tao quickly stepped forward and gently pressed Liu Heng’s shoulder. The touch revealed the youth’s frail frame, igniting in him a deeper pang of pity and guilt. “Young Marquis, do not move recklessly! Your injuries are severe; you must rest and recover.”

He sat beside the couch with a sigh. “If not for your saving me, Marquis, how could you have suffered such harsh lashes… My heart is truly uneasy.”

“Master Liu,”

Liu Heng caught his breath and lowered his voice, cutting straight to the point. “I will repay the life-saving favor later. Right now, the epidemic prevention is urgent. I was reckless before the court and, by fortune, the Emperor consented, but the real burden rests on your shoulders! Just now, I heard from Jing Bo that you seem to have encountered difficulties?”

His gaze flicked toward Chen Junhou standing nearby—his meaning clear.

Liu Tao, a man of great stature, immediately understood. The gratitude on his face faded into solemnity as he lowered his voice. “Your Highness is perceptive. Though the Emperor ordered me to oversee the effort alongside the Imperial Medical Office, a clever housewife cannot cook without rice. The supplies needed—herbs, lime, cloth, money—all must be allocated by the Treasury. Today, I bore the Emperor’s decree to negotiate with the Treasury…”

He paused, bitterness and helplessness shadowing his features. “But the Treasury officials say the coffers are empty, the demands numerous, and it is difficult to gather funds. Each request must be reported and scrutinized in layers before approval. Though their words are polite, their intention to shirk responsibility is clear! Someone is deliberately obstructing and delaying. If this continues, I fear the decree will hang unfulfilled!”

Clearly, the Treasury was filled with eunuch lackeys of Zhang Rang. Their intent was obvious: to stall until Liu Tao failed, the epidemic was unchecked, and the Emperor rescinded his orders.

Liu Heng’s eyes darkened.

As expected! Zhang Rang’s counterattack had arrived. This old fox dared not openly defy the decree but resorted to bureaucratic red tape—“empty treasury,” “layered approvals”—to stall.

Delay Liu Tao, delay epidemic control, and delay me, the so-called “Deputy Director.” Time was lives. Each day lost meant countless souls succumbing to plague.

“Empty treasury?” Liu Heng sneered. “Perhaps all ‘emptied’ into someone’s private coffers? Master Liu, I foresaw this, which is why the Emperor’s decree includes ‘offering goods in lieu of taxes’ and ‘merit in exchange for plaques.’”

Liu Tao’s eyes brightened. “You mean… bypass the Treasury and directly source from localities and the people?”

“Exactly!”

Liu Heng’s eyes gleamed with newfound fire. “The Treasury claims to be ‘empty’ and demands ‘audits’? Fine! Let them audit at their leisure! I never intended for them to provide funds or supplies. Master Liu, you must immediately issue orders, as the chief epidemic prevention minister, to all provinces and commanderies! Emphasize the core of the Emperor’s decree—offering goods to offset taxes, exempting conscripts from duties, donating money and grain in exchange for plaques—write it in the most stirring language!”

“Highlight that this is the Emperor’s benevolence, a life-saving grace for the common people! Command the prefects, ministers, and magistrates to publicly announce this to all under their jurisdiction—wealthy households, local gentry, merchants, especially those hoarding grain and medicine! Inform them that the opportunity for redemption has arrived! The court does not take their goods without return but offsets taxes and grants honorific plaques!”

Liu Tao nodded repeatedly. This was indeed a strategy that struck at the root. Yet he frowned again. “This method is excellent, but… the transmission of documents and local enforcement will also take time. Moreover, not all local officials are conscientious; many may be in Zhang Rang’s faction.”

“Time waits for no one!”

Liu Heng interrupted sharply, eyes resolute. “The orders must be swift! Meanwhile, Master Liu, Luoyang is key! Luoyang is the foundation. We must first tear open a breach here, in this city, to show the world!”

“Luoyang?” Liu Tao asked, puzzled.

Liu Heng turned to Jing Bo, who had stood silently nearby.

“Jing Bo!”

“I am here!” Jing Bo straightened his stooped back instantly.

“I recall our Yangwu Marquis’s mansion lies west of Luoyang city, near the Gold Market. Isn’t there an old vacant house there? Quite a large place?”

Fragments from the previous owner’s father’s words surfaced in Liu Heng’s memory.

Jing Bo paused, then nodded vigorously. “Yes, yes! Your Highness remembers correctly! There is such a property, bought when the late Marquis was alive. It’s large, with three courtyards and a sizable backyard! But it’s somewhat remote, a distance from the Gold Market, unoccupied for years, and somewhat dilapidated…”

“Dilapidation doesn’t matter! As long as it’s spacious!” Liu Heng’s eyes flashed brightly. “Jing Bo, go at once! Take my seal and Chen Si to prepare that house for me! It need not be perfect, just habitable. Clear and tidy the yard!”

“Then take my card and visit the herb, cloth, and lime merchants in the Gold Market! Tell them that Yangwu Marquis Liu Heng and Censor Liu Tao, under imperial orders, will establish the first ‘Epidemic Relief Center’ west of the city! We require large quantities of herbs, quicklime, strong liquor, and clean cloth—whatever they have!”

“Tell them to deliver goods to the old mansion in the west, where everything will be registered on the spot and receipts issued! These receipts can be used to offset their market taxes and other levies for the year! If wealthy merchants donate money or grain, record that as well. The top ten contributors will be jointly petitioned by Master Liu and me to receive the ‘House of Virtue’ plaque!”

Liu Heng finished in a breath, panting heavily, his face even paler. “Jing Bo! Be clear: this is the Emperor’s decree! A chance to save lives and to profit! Most importantly, it accumulates merit for these merchant families—first come, first served! If they delay… the tax offsets will be gone!”

Jing Bo was stunned. He had never imagined that this young marquis—born into luxury, hot-tempered, fond of beating servants—after passing through the gates of death, would transform so completely. This was boldly establishing a new front under Zhang Rang’s nose, snatching food from the tiger’s mouth!

But seeing Liu Heng’s burning gaze and Liu Tao’s gradually brightening expression, an old fire surged in the old man’s heart.

“Understood! Your Highness, rest assured! I… I will risk this old life to make it happen for you!”

Jing Bo straightened his bent back, his dim eyes suddenly bright as if rejuvenated by ten years. He saluted Liu Tao as well, then strode out briskly.

“Go slow, no need to risk yourself…”

Chen Junhou’s cold eyes by the bedside flickered with a trace of change, and he looked at Liu Heng deeply.

Liu Tao watched Jing Bo rush off and then looked at the pale-faced but steely-eyed Liu Heng on the couch. His heart churned. This young marquis was no mere teenager of noble birth—he was a fledgling dragon of the Han!

Bold! Meticulous! Ruthless! Skirting the Treasury, using tax offsets and honorific plaques as bait, seizing supplies in Zhang Rang’s sphere!

“Young Marquis… this plan… is perilous,” Liu Tao said solemnly, worry clouding his tone. “It may fully enrage Zhang Rang. And that mansion…”

“Perilous?”

Liu Heng twisted his lips, a savage glint emerging. “Master Liu, do we still have a way out? The Treasury chokes us; the local authorities wait to see. The plague waits for no one! We can either sit and die, watch the people perish, then be blamed for failure and killed—or do you want to go back to prison?”

“Or… damn it all and fight to tear a bloody path! That house west of the city is my private property! I will use my own place, under the Emperor’s decree, to collect supplies—completely legal! If Zhang Rang dares send men to snatch it, to destroy the Emperor’s authority, let him try!”

He caught his breath, eyes blazing on Liu Tao. “You are the chief! You must immediately issue orders to the Medical Office to mobilize all doctors and workers knowledgeable and willing to fight the epidemic. Then, in your name, appeal to the virtuous and wealthy in and around Luoyang to donate money, grain, and manpower to fight the plague! Build momentum! Let everyone know the Emperor’s decree stands, and the great Doctor Liu is in action! Once we move, the hesitant local officials and merchants oppressed by Zhang Rang will naturally respond!”

Liu Tao looked at Liu Heng, at the resolve and clarity piercing the crisis. The spirit that had nearly been crushed in prison was fully rekindled. Indeed, with no retreat, only a desperate fight remained.

“Very well!”

Liu Tao stood abruptly, his haggard face glowing with renewed vigor. “As you command, Young Marquis! I will set to work! I have some old contacts at the Medical Office. As for the appeal…”

A flash of sharpness lit his eyes. “I have some standing among Luoyang’s scholarly elite. I will personally make the calls!”

He bowed solemnly to Liu Heng. “Rest and recover, young marquis! Leave the outside matters to me! I will make this first spark burn fiercely!”

Without delay, Liu Tao turned and strode out, his steps unsteady but his posture upright.

Watching Liu Tao’s departing figure, Liu Heng’s taut heart loosened slightly. He slumped back on the couch, gasping hard, the wound on his back seeming to bleed anew. Damn… this is exhausting!

…

West Luoyang, near the city wall, stood an obviously long-abandoned mansion, now unusually bustling.

Jing Bo stooped over at the mansion’s gate.

Before him, several laborers hired from the street were busily clearing weeds and piled debris.

“Faster! The Marquis commands that before nightfall, the front and back yards must be cleared!”

Clutching a scroll and a card stamped with the Yangwu Marquis’s seal, Jing Bo’s voice carried an authority unknown before.

The laborers hurried their work.

Soon, Jing Bo’s presence and his rallying cries of “imperial order to fight the epidemic,” “calling for supplies,” and “receipts for tax offsets” fell like a thunderclap among the Gold Market merchants, stirring great waves.

First to respond were a few struggling small herb merchants.

These men, already crushed by large firms and powerful merchants backed by eunuchs, were forced to sell herbs at ruinous prices amid the plague. Now hearing “tax offset,” their eyes reddened.

“Sir! Is it true? Can the Yangwu Marquis and Doctor Liu really make this happen? This receipt truly offsets taxes?”

A worried middle-aged merchant pushed forward, voice trembling.

Jing Bo straightened his back and raised the scroll high. His voice rang out: “Absolutely true! Here is the Emperor’s decree! Yangwu Marquis Liu Heng and Censor Liu Tao are ordered to lead the epidemic prevention! All who donate needed supplies may use receipts to offset taxes! This is the Emperor’s grand grace! Offering medicine to save lives is virtue and answering the Emperor’s call! The Marquis says all will be registered on the spot with immediate receipts—no delays!”

He pointed to a makeshift table where a down-and-out but literate old scholar sat solemnly, ink and brush ready, with a blank bamboo slip before him.

“See? Mr. Wang is registering here! Bring your goods, names, origins, what is offered, and quantities—all written immediately, sealed with the Marquis’s private stamp and Doctor Liu’s temporary signature! Fair to all ages!”

The merchant eyed the modest setup and then the Marquis’s official card in Jing Bo’s hand. He bit his lip. “Very well! I trust the Marquis and Doctor Liu! I’ll have my shop staff bring some goods.”

Soon, several assistants pushed carts laden with herbs onto the temporary mats.

“Good! Mr. Wang, record this merchant!”

Jing Bo called out, a pleased smile spreading across his face.

With the first brave soul stepping forward, other hesitant small vendors and even some mid-tier merchants could no longer hold back. Tax offsets! The lure was overwhelming! Especially for struggling small traders, this was a lifeline!

Moreover, it was responding to the Emperor’s call, an act of charity! The prestige was appealing! And with the Emperor’s bestowed “House of Virtue” plaques—symbols of honor and family glory—who would dare insult them as lowly riffraff?

“I have coarse hemp cloth, clean and ready!”

“Lime! I have quicklime, just arrived!”

“Sir! I’ll donate ten dan of millet! No need for receipts! Just want the honor! Please record my name, Marquis and Doctor Liu!”

A well-dressed grain shop clerk pushed forward, clearly acting on his master’s orders.

In no time, a long queue formed outside the dilapidated mansion west of the city.

Various herbs, cloth, lime, even grain poured in.

News reached the large merchants swiftly and soon spread behind the high walls of the Treasury.

Inside the Treasury office,

A portly middle-aged official wearing Treasury attire respectfully reported to the Treasury Director, who leisurely sipped tea at the head of the room.

“Sir, on the west side, the Yangwu Marquis’s old servant is openly collecting supplies under the banner of imperial epidemic prevention, promising tax offsets… causing quite a stir, with many small merchants going there…”

The Treasury Director was one of Zhang Rang’s confidants.

He paused, fingers tightening on the tea cup lid, a cold smile curling at the corners of his mouth. “Oh? Yangwu Marquis? Liu Heng? And that recently released Liu Tao? Acting quickly… setting up a site on private property? Using tax offsets as bait? Clever move… a slap in our Treasury’s face.”

He set down his cup, leisurely wiping his mouth with a silk handkerchief, his gaze sharpening to a blade. “Go. Tell the major merchants with stakes in the Gold Market… that someone is breaking the rules, trading with imperial taxes in the Gold Market’s territory, undercutting the Treasury… Ask them if they still want to do business in Luoyang.”

He paused, lowering his voice. “Send our men to check out the west city site. Remember, only to observe—verify if those receipts and registrations are truly ‘compliant.’ Check if the relief center has any ‘irregularities.’ Understand?”

“Yes, sir!” The subordinate nodded and bowed before departing.

The Treasury Director lifted his tea again, blowing off the foam, his gaze toward the west city filled with mockery.

Young Marquis? Liu Tao? Interesting indeed!