New Nobility

New Nobility

"...Are you two interested in the sea salt business?" Qin Mo asked his two closest friends with a smile.

"Of course we are. But Qin Mo, how much sea salt do you have after taxes every year?" Qin Yuanze shifted gears the fastest and immediately began discussing business with Qin Mo. The other bear could only prick up his ears and stand to the side, playing the soy sauce man.

"As much as you want. How about the three of our families work together to sell sea salt to the grasslands? I'll provide the salt at half the market price as capital, and we'll split the profits equally. What do you think?"

"Mozi, you're my own brother... I have several cousins—both paternal and maternal. They're as beautiful as flowers and willows, graceful and alluring. Interested? You could take one as a concubine." The bear directly wrapped an arm around Qin Mo's waist. Too bad Qin Mo was dressed as a man, or the scene might actually have looked rather harmonious.

"Will your sisters be built like you?" Qin Mo was not above teasing people. Qin Yumu wanted to introduce him to girlfriends—now that was something he could get behind. He was no longer the Qin Mo who knew nothing. As a virgin steeped in countless Fusang action films, he still yearned deeply for pretty girls.

"Red flowers, green willows, every kind you could want. Mozi, what kind do you like?" A lecherous grin appeared on the bear's face. No matter how one looked at him, he resembled a pimp with highly distinctive characteristics.

"Long, straight legs; big, lively eyes; a slim, supple waist; a proud chest, lifted hips; fair, delicate skin." Qin Mo rattled it all off, while his two close friends grimly counted on their fingers and recorded every point. The Elven Race's standards of beauty really were bizarre. Just the preference for long legs alone ran contrary to Great Xia's aesthetic ideals. Long legs meant greater height. If a woman was too tall, how could she make the man beside her appear mighty? What sort of sight would that be?

Even so, the two still intended to write home after returning and let their elders decide whether to form a closer relationship with Dayuan. As for the sea salt trade, every adult male of the great clans had some power of his own. They could first test the waters under the family banner.

The fourth year of the Zhaowu Era of the Great Xia Empire, the twenty-eighth day of the ninth month. Favorable for filial rites and promotion. Fengtai Camp erected a high platform, preparing to appoint generals and send them forth to war. Every heir and eldest son of the noble houses would receive an honorary military rank, as low as Commandant or Colonel, and as high as General of Resolute Valor.

After the appointments, the military would dispatch a campaign commander to lead the armies north to Ulan City. As for the highest-ranking commander in the north, he had remained stationed in the wasteland and had never returned to the imperial capital. Qin Mo had learned that the campaign commander taking them to Ulan City this time would be Chen Xuanji, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Central Military Office. His prestige and martial prowess were both exceptionally high, enough to suppress these unruly private armies of the nobles.

Several hundred heirs and eldest sons of noble families filled the center of the great parade ground, with the platform for appointing generals before them. Qin Mo stood at the very front of the noble scions, beside Qin Yu, heir to the Prince of Ji. Qin Yu was somewhat older than Qin Mo, and he still wore that dead man's face, looking like a bird that warned strangers not to approach.

The other noble houses—the princes of commanderies, dukes, marquises, counts, viscounts, barons, and the like—were arranged in sequence along both wings and behind them, forming a square formation as they awaited the Emperor's inspection.

Qin Mo and the others had arrived at the parade ground early in the morning and waited for a full shichen. Just as everyone was beginning to grow impatient, the distant sound of hooves reached them. Yellow ceremonial banners appeared in the distance, and when that bright yellow imperial canopy entered their sight, every murmur fell silent.

Seeing all those second-generation scions who normally bowed to no one turn into stunned fools, Qin Mo could not help sighing. "No matter what society it is, the oppression of class has boundless power. The notion that imperial authority stands above all has already seeped into the depths of every person's soul."

Emperor Qin Zheng of the Zhaowu Era ascended the platform amid a throng of civil and military officials. Under the guidance of officials from the Ministry of Rites, he began the elaborate ceremony of appointing generals. After sacrifices to Heaven, Earth, and the ancestors, the sons of noble houses were called up onto the platform and granted military posts.

Qin Mo was the second to ascend. The first was Qin Yu, heir to the Prince of Ji, who was granted the title of General Who Pacifies the Distant. Qin Mo was granted the title of General Who Brings Peace to the Distant. Both were fifth-rank generals. Though the titles were honorary, they still made others green with envy. After all, generals were not so numerous in the Empire. A mere Colonel could command several thousand troops; if a general received an actual post, he would be considered a major figure.

Qin Mo accepted the seal and general's attire from Emperor Zhaowu. The Emperor offered him several words of encouragement, nothing more than urging him to serve the imperial clan faithfully and not tarnish Qin Lan's name. Emperor Zhaowu looked quite young, yet his speech and bearing were steady and generous. Qin Mo felt an inexplicable pressure and thought, So this is the Emperor's aura bonus?

Qin Yuanze was granted the rank of Zhaowu Commandant, while Qin Yumu was granted the rank of Commandant Who Shakes Might, both sixth-rank positions. From then on, whenever they discussed matters in a military tent or attended important occasions, the two would have to salute Qin Mo according to military protocol.

It was not until after noon that the hundreds of nobles finally finished receiving their honors. Then Chen Xuanji, the overall campaign commander, accepted the marshal's seal, and the appointment ceremony was considered complete. Chen Xuanji was responsible for delivering these two hundred thousand-odd soldiers to Ulan City in the north and handing them over to the Empire's Northern Expedition Camp. Elsewhere in the north, another commander of the Northern Expedition Army oversaw military and administrative affairs.

After receiving the seal authorizing him to command the army, Chen Xuanji began addressing the troops. It was nothing but tedious talk about discipline, responsibility, honor, and the like. His wording was as convoluted as ever, and Qin Mo had to rack his brains before he could vaguely grasp the meaning.

"Tch!" An incongruous snicker sounded near Qin Mo's left side. Without even turning his head, Qin Mo knew it was Qin Yu and that dead man's face. The last time the generals had gathered, Qin Yu had already shown Chen Xuanji no good expression. Now he was mocking him beneath the Emperor's very nose. He truly had the gall to swallow the heavens.

Fortunately, there were not only nobles present, but also officers from the three imperial guards—the Wuwei Army, Wusheng Army, and Wuning Army. The crowd was a chaotic jumble, and no one noticed his breach of etiquette. As a bystander, Qin Mo also watched his mouth and nose and guarded his heart, lowering his head in silence. He did not utter a sound until everyone dispersed.

That evening, when the three discussed the journey north, Qin Mo voiced his doubts about Qin Yu. Qin Yuanze truly was a man who could dance with eight sides, and he knew the entanglements among the noble houses best of all. A major force like the Prince of Ji's residence naturally commanded his attention.

Qin Yu had been named heir at the age of ten, and this year was also the first time he had been summoned to head north. By rights, he should have had no connection with Chen Xuanji, the newly promoted Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Central Military Office. However, his younger brother had some old grievances with the faction behind Chen Xuanji.

Chen Xuanji came from the Qingzhou Chen Clan. The Chen Clan had originally been obscure, merely a third-rate noble family within the Empire. Yet after the new Emperor ascended the throne, Chen Xuanji was heavily promoted, rising twice in three years. His personal strength was indeed formidable, but without the Emperor's favor, he would never have had the chance to squeeze into the center of Great Xia's government.

In the second year of the Zhaowu Era, a large number of nobles jointly submitted memorials demanding the abolition of the ancestral rule requiring heirs and eldest sons to lead armies. Emperor Zhaowu directly accused them of scorning the rites and laws left by their ancestors, then banished them all to the Northern Wasteland, forbidding them from returning to Great Xia's heartland. Many of those nobles had held important positions in the Great Xia court, so their banishment naturally left many vacancies. The numerous old-established noble clans immediately fixed their eyes on this large, fat piece of meat.

Yet Emperor Zhaowu directly promoted large numbers of talented men from humble families, second-rate clans, and even third-rate clans into those positions, delivering the old noble houses and even collateral branches of the imperial clan a solid, muffled club blow. Chen Xuanji had been exceptionally promoted under such circumstances, rising several ranks in succession.

Qin Yu's younger brother, Qin Ying, Baron of Yishui County, had been among the banished nobles. Qin Yu naturally regarded people like Chen Xuanji as opportunists and upstarts who had gained rapid advancement through favor. They clearly knew that having heirs lead armies was slow suicide for the noble houses, yet they still supported and upheld this ancestral rule. Of course Qin Yu looked down on him.

After hearing this explanation, Qin Mo felt a faint unease. He was a shut-in who had absorbed countless melodramatic plots on Earth. Emperor Zhaowu's series of measures reminded him of one possibility: reducing the power of the feudal lords.

And if the feudal lords were to be weakened, then Dayuan, isolated overseas—would the court leave it alone... or kill the chicken to scare the monkeys... That depended only on the thoughts of certain people.