That night, at Yuan Prison.
Yuan Prison was the prison used during the Shang Dynasty. Most people could not pronounce the character "yuan," but that hardly mattered. Just call it Earth Prison.
As for Youli, where Ji Chang was imprisoned in the novel, it was a more specialized prison for holding particular individuals. Really, though, it merely occupied more land. These were simply different names for the same kind of facility, like prison, jail, or correctional institution.
Inside Earth Prison, Su Hu cursed Huang Feihu nonstop.
He was a warrior by nature and had inherited the title of Marquis of Jizhou, but he had barely studied as a child. Otherwise, he would not have been so fiercely bent on rebellion in the novel. King Zhou had not offended him then; he had merely asked for his daughter's hand.
When You Hun arrived dressed in black with his face covered, he heard all sorts of unspeakably vulgar expressions.
His thoughts could not help wandering. Could that beauty Daji be like this too?
As beautiful as a celestial maiden on the outside, yet forever greeting other people's ancestors whenever she opened her mouth.
You Hun thought it over. The emperor's family affairs were none of his business. He had better concentrate on completing the task King Zhou had assigned him and release Su Hu.
But with his mind wandering all the while, he failed to watch his footing. The ground inside Earth Prison was uneven, and he fell.
Fortunately, he had already reached Su Hu. He stood up, brushed off the dirt, and lowered his voice.
You Hun told Su Hu when the prison wardens-the guards of Earth Prison-changed shifts. After opening the cell door, he left.
Su Hu had barely warmed his seat before discovering that someone had come to break him out.
He picked up the jade pendant You Hun had dropped. Seeing the Dark Phoenix design on it, he realized that King Zhou was the one letting him out.
"I wondered why that man suddenly fell! So it was to pass this jade pendant to me. His Majesty cannot openly help me, but he could still use this method to show that he has not forgotten me!"
Su Hu was delighted. King Zhou was indeed a wise ruler. He had seen through Su Hu's intentions at a glance, even sending a trusted aide to get him back to Jizhou and leaving a jade pendant so he could act as circumstances required.
There was no need to worry about Daji and his deputy general, who remained in Chaoge, either. Once he returned to Jizhou, Daji would surely enter the palace. Nothing could go wrong.
Su Hu waited until the prison wardens changed shifts, then pushed open the cell door and made his escape. This time, he had learned his lesson and did not take the South Gate.
You Hun returned to the palace to report to Zi Shou, who was very pleased. Although You Hun had no talent, he could still handle this sort of task well. And because he was not particularly bright, he would not draw legs on a snake like the others.
Now this was a proper minister for a muddleheaded ruler-a true lackey.
You Hun received his reward and returned home. As he prepared for bed, he suddenly discovered that the jade pendant King Zhou had given him a few days earlier to command the Royal Guards was missing.
That was something the emperor carried on his person.
Lost? You Hun jolted. He had probably dropped it when he fell in Earth Prison. It should be in Su Hu's hands now.
You Hun's limited brain capacity could not work out what consequences this might have, so he simply stopped thinking and went straight to sleep. King Zhou had never asked him to return the pendant. He had probably forgotten it.
You Hun had no intention of confessing his fault, either. What if he were convicted of a serious crime? He would enjoy whatever happy days he had left.
The next day, Zi Shou emerged from the Western Palace feeling refreshed and went to court.
He announced the establishment of the Northwest Protectorate and promoted Huang Feihu to Northwest Protector.
The assembled ministers had no objections. It required neither money nor grain, only granting a title and marking out a stretch of land near the North Sea.
A sharp gleam, however, flashed through Wen Zhong's eyes.
King Zhou was preparing to deal with Gui Fang. The Gui Fang tribes had plagued Great Shang's borders for centuries.
Wen Zhong considered it carefully. During Wu Ding's reign, Great Shang had already waged a large-scale war against Gui Fang, driving them farther away. Yet this had only deepened the hatred between the two sides, leaving Gui Fang to harass Great Shang's borders from time to time.
The Northwest Protectorate and the Three No's Principle proposed by King Zhou, however, were the exact opposite of how successive Kings of Shang had handled Gui Fang. No fighting, no troublemaking-just maintaining friendly relations.
Was that possible?
It was, and it was not.
Wen Zhong did not know how it would turn out, but none of the previous kings had managed to pacify Gui Fang completely. There was nothing wrong with trying a new approach.
At that thought, Wen Zhong felt gratified. King Zhou had truly matured.
Just then, someone suddenly arrived to report that Su Hu had escaped from prison.
Su Hu.
Hearing that name, Wen Zhong grew gloomy again. Whatever wise decisions King Zhou made, forcibly seizing a vassal lord's daughter, nearly driving the man to his death, and ultimately pushing him into rebellion remained a hurdle Wen Zhong could not get past. He had heard that King Zhou would even bring Daji into the palace in a few days. A wise ruler really should not behave this way!
It was as though he had been possessed, his soul hooked away by Daji.
Su Hu's jailbreak was a serious matter, and the court ministers began discussing it.
What would happen when a vassal lord who had recited a Rebel Poem, been thrown into prison, and made clear his intention to rebel against King Zhou returned to his fief?
Anyone with eyes could see it. He would surely proclaim himself king!
Chong Houhu stepped forward. "The eight hundred Feudal Lords now all disregard royal commands and run rampant. If Your Majesty's commands cannot reach the Feudal Lords, that is a road to chaos. I request permission to lead an army and quell the rebellion in Jizhou."
Chong Houhu had devised so much for Su Hu's sake. This time, he was considering his own interests.
No one could have imagined that Su Hu would still be allowed to leave Chaoge after openly revealing his rebellious intentions. Once he left Chaoge, he would rebel and carve out his own domain. This was precisely the situation the traitors at court most wanted to see. They could not possibly stand by and watch Chong Houhu suppress the rebellion; they would surely speak up to stop him. Once King Zhou saw through them, he would certainly reward Chong Houhu for using his proposal to lure them out.
Ji Chang did indeed want to prevent troops from being sent, though he doubted Chong Houhu's military ability. Could this fellow win a battle?
Still, to leave nothing to chance, he said, "The people wish only that we take up no weapons and carry out no slaughter, so that all may share the joy of an Age of Yao. Moreover, armies are ill omens. Wherever they pass, there is bound to be looting and harassment. Exhausting the people and wasting wealth, squandering our strength on ceaseless warfare-none of these belong in a flourishing age."
This time, Ji Chang did not speak in Su Hu's defense. The Rebel Poem was undeniable proof of rebellious intent. Supporting Su Hu again would make his purpose far too obvious: he longed for chaos across the realm, with every vassal lord proclaiming himself king.
Ji Chang merely used the common people as grounds for his remonstrance, repeatedly stressing that marching troops would disturb them and that supplying provisions would also place a burden on them.
Having just won the people's hearts with the Wan Nian Calendar, King Zhou would surely be unwilling to launch a major campaign and trouble them.
If Su Hu successfully established himself as an independent ruler, it would diminish King Zhou's standing among the Feudal Lords and weaken their impression of Great Shang's might.
Chong Houhu spoke again. "Your words certainly have merit, my lord, but who dares defy the august words of Heaven? He has brought the crime of deceiving his sovereign upon himself. We must send an army to punish him."
Seeing that the two were about to argue, Zi Shou spoke from his seat above them to stop it. "Su Hu is merely one vassal lord. I doubt he would dare rebel against Shang. In three days, we shall welcome his daughter into the palace and thereby pardon his crime."
What he meant was that once Zi Shou took Daji into the palace in three days, Su Hu would surely not rebel.
Send troops? How could I possibly send troops? Let Su Hu rebel. It would be even better if he spread my evil reputation far and wide in Jizhou.
Chong Houhu naturally understood the twists beneath the surface. King Zhou's next step was to quell rebellion, but his target was not Su Hu. Rather, he would move against traitors like Ji Chang, who were itching to act and had exposed their cloven hooves.
Ji Chang found it strange. How could a wise ruler fail to mend the roof before the rain? Su Hu had already inscribed that Rebel Poem. Could he really refrain from rebelling?
Suddenly, he fell silent. It seemed he had walked into a trap.
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