First Entry into Chaoge

Lu Chuan suppressed a laugh and said respectfully, "May I ask, sir, on which day is the auspicious date for Old Master Jiang's wedding?"

Song Yiren pondered for a moment and said, "I have already paid the betrothal gift; there is no time like the present. My dear brother... how about today?"

"No, no, that won't do today, brother. It's too soon, much too soon..."

Jiang Ziya shook his head like a rattling drum and hurriedly pinched his fingers to calculate in his sleeve, quickly adding, "Besides, the divination for today says it is not suitable for marriage."

Song Yiren asked, "If today is not suitable, then how about tomorrow?"

Jiang Ziya performed the calculation again, but after finishing, he could only offer a bitter smile and remain silent.

Song Yiren was a man who had spent a lifetime in the business world, and he was most adept at observing expressions. One look at Jiang Ziya's face told him exactly what was going on.

"Very well, then I shall make the decision for my brother's marriage; it is settled for tomorrow."

Song Yiren made the call on the spot. Once the matter was finalized, he said to Lu Chuan, "Go and inform your father; tell him to prepare, for the mansion will be hosting a wedding tomorrow."

"Yes!"

Lu Chuan gave an honest smile, turned, and ran off.

"Xiao..."

Jiang Ziya raised a hand, intending to call Lu Chuan back, but the boy had already vanished from sight. He could only shake his head with a helpless smile.

Although Song Yiren was not his biological brother, he treated him better than any kin. Jiang Ziya was no three-year-old child; naturally, he could not reject Song Yiren's kindness.

And so, the marriage was now a settled affair.

Song Yiren nodded and smiled, "Since Xiao Chuan has become clear-headed, he has turned out to be an honest and diligent child. Not bad, not bad at all."

Jiang Ziya bowed in gratitude, "In that case, I thank you, brother."

Song Yiren pulled Jiang Ziya into the main hall, laughing as they walked, "Why speak of thanks between brothers? Come, with such a joyous occasion today, we must drink to celebrate. My dear brother, you must toast me, your matchmaker, three times."

Jiang Ziya replied, "Forget three cups; even thirty would be only right..."

"Father, Father..."

After leaving the front courtyard, Lu Chuan quickly found Lu Liang and smiled, "Father, the Old Master told you to prepare; the mansion is going to host a wedding again."

"A wedding?"

Lu Liang asked in surprise, "Whose wedding?"

"It's like this..."

Lu Chuan quickly explained what had just happened to Lu Liang.

"So, Old Master Jiang is getting married? Old Master Jiang is a benefactor to us both; this matter must be handled well."

Lu Liang pondered, "I will go to the kitchen first to give them instructions and see what is needed or missing so I can report it to the Old Master... I might have to make a trip into Chaoge City."

"Chaoge?"

Lu Chuan's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly said, "Father, I want to go too! I've been awake for so long, but I haven't stepped out of the gate even once..."

Chaoge was the capital of the Great Shang Dynasty, the very lifeblood and nerve center of the empire.

Legend had it that the infamous King Zhou and Daji resided in the Royal Palace within the city.

Now that he had arrived in this world, how could he not go and see it for himself?

Lu Liang looked at his son's eager and hopeful face, realizing that it was true, as Lu Chuan had said; he hadn't left the gates of the Song Mansion since waking up.

After a brief moment of hesitation, Lu Liang said, "Fine, go wait for me at the gate."

"Thank you, Father." Lu Chuan went off, grinning.

"This kid..."

Lu Liang smiled and headed toward the kitchen.

The Song Mansion was located thirty-five li outside the South Gate of Chaoge, in a village called Song Family Village.

There were over a hundred households in the village, though not many actually carried the surname Song, save for the family of Song Yiren.

Without a doubt, however, Song Yiren was the wealthiest man in Song Family Village.

Lu Chuan stepped out of the gate and looked left and right, noticing that the Song Mansion was indeed the largest and best-constructed house in the village.

He waited at the entrance for about the time it takes to brew a pot of tea before Lu Liang emerged carrying a bundle. At the same time, a servant arrived driving a horse-drawn cart toward the gate.

Upon seeing the cart, Lu Chuan was happy for a moment, but then the smile on his face gradually faded.

The cart that had arrived was not one of those carriages with a cabin seen on television, but a simple flatbed cart without any enclosure.

Though a bit disappointed, he figured that having a cart was still much better than walking all the way to Chaoge.

Father and son climbed onto the cart, and the servant drove them out of Song Family Village, heading all the way toward Chaoge.

The scenery along the road was beautiful, completely free of any traces of modern pollution.

This was Lu Chuan's first time traveling away from home. Seeing the landscape, untouched by modernization, he gazed around in every direction as they traveled, his spirits lifting with every passing mile.

The driver was a man in his thirties, a middle-aged fellow who appeared honest and steady.

Seeing Lu Chuan looking left and right with wide-eyed curiosity at everything since they had set off, Lu Liang began teaching him to identify the various birds, insects, fish, and other sights they encountered along the road.

In truth, Lu Chuan recognized many of these things, but since he did not yet know how to name them in the local tongue, he listened intently and studied them well.

Half an hour later.

The three of them had covered over twenty li and eventually arrived at a tall mountain. Exhausted and with the horses worn out from the journey, they stopped here to rest.

"Is this... the legendary Chaoge City?"

Lu Chuan stood on the mountain peak, murmuring as he gazed at the magnificent, massive city below.

A towering, grand city appeared before his eyes; its sheer scale and the majesty of its architecture were impossible to describe with words.

Today, this city had left him thoroughly awestruck.

Lu Liang walked over with a smile, resting a hand on the shoulder of the youth who was nearly as tall as he was.

Gesturing with his other hand, he laughed and said, "Chaoge City is over three thousand zhang long from east to west and over five thousand zhang from north to south. How about that? Is it big enough for you?"

Lu Chuan looked at the magnificent, colossal city and nodded in a daze.

Looking at this era, the scale of Chaoge was undoubtedly the largest and most majestic city in the world.

After letting the horses rest for a while, Lu Liang checked the sky and said, "Now that we've rested, let's move quickly. Once we've finished our purchases, we still have to make it back tonight."

The group resumed their journey.

"Move aside! Move aside! Keep up, those in the back..."

Just as they neared the city gates, a loud shout suddenly erupted from behind, and the people on the road scattered to both sides.

The driver hurriedly pulled the cart to the side of the road.

Lu Chuan looked back and saw a general clad in armor riding toward them, followed by a troop of about a hundred soldiers.

The flags within the unit bore the character "Huang."

Soon, the general led the troop past Lu Chuan and his companions.

"So, those were soldiers under the command of the Martial Accomplishment King, Huang Feihu."

The pedestrians returned to the road, whispering as they watched the troop enter the city ahead.

This was because the Nine-Tailed Fox had conspired with the treacherous official Fei Zhong to frame and murder Queen Jiang. And the Queen's father was none other than the man who guarded the east of Great Shang, commanding two hundred small vassal states—one of the four great lords of the world:

The East Earl, Jiang Huanchu.

Fearing that Jiang Huanchu would revolt once he discovered the truth, King Zhou struck first, luring the four great lords to Chaoge. He executed the East Earl and the South Earl, and imprisoned the West Earl, Ji Chang.

Ji Chang was none other than King Wen of Zhou, and the King Wu of Zhou who would later overthrow the Great Shang and establish the Zhou Dynasty was his second son.

The sons of the two executed lords had since succeeded to their titles and raised armies in rebellion, seeking vengeance for their fathers.

The world was already showing signs of chaos, which was why Huang Feihu had begun training his troops day and night, preparing for what was to come.

Lu Chuan looked at Lu Liang.

Lu Liang spoke to the two of them in a low voice: "Keep your mouths shut, don't concern yourselves with other matters, and just focus on our own business."

The driver nodded and steered the cart through the South Gate and into Chaoge City.

Once inside, Lu Chuan saw shops lining the streets like scales on a fish. People moved to and fro, and the cries of vendors rose and fell in a chorus of bustling prosperity that left him dazzled.

Lu Chuan felt an irrepressible itch of excitement and smiled, "Father, could I go off and look around for a while on my own?"

"Not today. For one, it's getting late, and for another, we mustn't delay Mr. Jiang's affairs."

Lu Liang shook his head and said, "In a couple of days, when I've freed up some time, I'll bring you to Chaoge for a proper visit. How about that?"

Lu Chuan thought about it and realized it wasn't the right time to play, so he nodded.

There were many restaurants in Chaoge. They went to one of them to procure the wine and food needed for the banquet, then drove back the way they came, though they were joined by a head chef from the restaurant on the return trip.

Even with their haste, it was pitch black by the time they reached the Song Mansion.

Lu Liang called for the servants to unload the purchases, while Lu Chuan headed straight to his room.