Exposed

"Young Master Wang? Young Master Wang?" Black Han's voice pulled Wang Yang back to reality.

"May I ask, young master, what exactly does the reign name Yongming mean?" Black Han asked.

Ding Jiu yawned, thinking, You, a soldier household pauper for eight generations, are actually taking an interest in scholarship?

What does the meaning of a reign name have to do with you? Why the hell ask? Besides, Yongming is only two characters. Can he really make flowers bloom out of them?

Wang Yang felt gloomy and answered offhandedly, "Everlasting brilliance."

Black Han said, "So that's what it means." There was a hint of disappointment in his voice.

Ding Jiu chuckled inwardly. Just as I thought. He hasn't said anything much either.

Silence fell around them. Wang Yang immediately remembered that he was still impersonating a member of the Langya Wang clan. Details decided success or failure; he could not afford carelessness. He cleared his throat and said:

"The Book of Songs: Major Court Hymns says, 'Shining brilliance spreads abroad; lofty and radiant, it reaches a worthy end.' It also says, 'May the noble lord live ten thousand years, forever blessed with heirs.' Songs of Chu: Summoning the Soul says, 'Orchid oil feeds bright candles; splendid faces stand arrayed.' Thus the ancients carried candles on their outings, wishing to prolong the night."

Black Han and Ding Jiu both froze.

"All who rejoice wish their joy to last; all who see light wish its radiance to endure. Thus drinking through the long night never ceases, and blessings of ten thousand years fill the ears. This so-called 'Yongming' truly expresses the blessings a gentleman holds in his heart: the hope that our Southern... ahem... that our great Qi's radiant virtue will blaze forth, and its reign endure forever!"

Wang Yang had become so carried away showing off his learning that he almost called the current dynasty "Southern Qi." But "Southern Qi" was a name given by later generations. The southern dynasty of this era considered itself the legitimate ruling power and would never tolerate adding "Southern" before its dynastic name.

Fortunately, Wang Yang caught himself in time. Otherwise, even if he had not exposed himself, he would still have been guilty of disrespect.

Wang Yang spun out a whole speech laced with classical quotations. Black Han listened with shining eyes, then bowed down in worship. "Your learning is profound, young master! You've truly opened this humble man's eyes!"

Although Ding Jiu still resented Wang Yang for exposing his shortcomings earlier, he would not let this chance to flatter him slip by. He hurriedly knelt and clasped his hands. "You're incredible, young master! Your belly is full of learning, and every word that leaves your mouth is a polished composition!"

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded. More than twenty men approached at a brisk pace, their torches flickering in the darkness.

Wang Yang's heart jolted. Here they come!

At their head was a stubbled man. He, too, wore none of the armor so often seen in historical dramas. Instead, he wore a wide-sleeved robe reaching his knees, its hem resembling a skirt, and a small cap on his head.

To modern eyes, this outfit would have looked rather incongruous, hardly suited to a soldier. In fact, however, robes were common military wear during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. As for the little cap on his head, it was also called a "flat scarf cap," a style often seen in television dramas set in the pre-Qin era.

The man sized Wang Yang up as he approached. Wang Yang noticed that there was not the slightest reverence in his eyes.

Wang Yang waited until the man drew close. Before he could speak, Wang Yang snatched up the waterskin with his right hand and hurled it straight at his face!

Everything changed in an instant!

Clearly caught unprepared, the man hastily dodged backward. The waterskin struck the ground and burst!

The soldiers all stood stunned. Wang Yang rose and unleashed a torrent of abuse:

"How do you command your men? His Majesty issued an edict long ago: 'The frontier defenses must be strengthened, and the watch maintained with utmost vigilance!' A northern spy stayed in your jurisdiction for two days, yet you discovered nothing! Do you let the emperor's words blow past your ears like the wind?!"

Splashed all over with water, the man flared with anger and was about to erupt. Then he suddenly heard Wang Yang invoke an imperial edict and froze.

How could a lowly military officer like him ever have heard an imperial decree? At the final question, panic seized him!

He could never bear the charge of ignoring the emperor's words! He immediately dropped to one knee. "This humble man would never dare! This humble man knew nothing!"

The so-called imperial edict was, of course, something Wang Yang had invented.

The man had come charging in so aggressively that Wang Yang feared he would be difficult to handle. So he invoked the emperor, slapped a charge on him, and struck first.

Wang Yang snorted. "Count yourself lucky. Had your men not earned merit by killing the spy and rescued me as well, even ten lives would not have been enough to answer for this! Still, since the northern spy is dead, I won't pursue the matter."

"Thank you for your generosity, young master!" the man hurriedly replied. Then he suddenly felt that something was wrong.

Wang Yang gave him no time to collect himself. He walked up to him and continued his reprimand:

"Let me ask you this! You knew I was here, so why did you take so long to arrive? And you didn't even bring a single horse! Am I supposed to walk? Do you hold the Langya Wang clan in such contempt?"

A squad leader was a junior military officer of the time, with each squad numbering anywhere from several dozen to several hundred men. Generally, an infantry squad had fifty men, while a cavalry squad had thirty.

Strictly speaking, a squad leader was not even an official, since the position had no formal rank. At best, it could be considered the lowest military appointment.

Serving under the powerful naturally lent a man more standing. But rootless men like Squad Leader Xue, posted out in the wilderness, were as plentiful across the country as tiny shrimp. He dared not offend the Langya Wang clan; indeed, even a single hair shed by any aristocratic clan was thicker than his waist.

Squad Leader Xue protested in alarm, "Never, never! How could this humble man dare neglect you, young master? There are simply no horses in camp. There truly is nothing I can do!"

In a society ruled by aristocratic clans, standing depended on the prestige of one's surname. Whether or not a member of the Langya Wang clan held office, a man of common surname like Squad Leader Xue had to call himself a humble man before him.

Horses were scarce south of the Yangtze, and warfare relied chiefly on infantry, with an extremely small proportion of cavalry. Sometimes a fighting force of tens of thousands had only a few hundred cavalrymen, scarcely enough to amount to anything. Seeing that even Squad Leader Xue had arrived without a mount, Wang Yang had already guessed the reason. He was merely finding an excuse to accuse him and frighten him. Had Squad Leader Xue actually brought a horse, Wang Yang would have needed another excuse. After all, he could not ride.

Wang Yang asked coldly, "What is your surname? Your given name? In what year and month did you become a squad leader?"

"Your subordinate's surname is Xue, given name Ling. I was promoted to squad leader in the fourth month of the sixth year of Yongming."

"Do you know how many years you've been a squad leader?"

"Yes, yes. In another ten-odd days, it will be exactly two years."

Wang Yang had finally teased out the current date: the fourth month of the eighth year of Yongming!

He said coldly, "At least you remember you've been a squad leader for two years. You're fortunate it's me. If it were my elder clansman, he'd simply find a charge and have you dealt with. You wouldn't even know why you died."

"Yes, yes, yes." A chill crept down Xue Ling's back, and he could only murmur his agreement. In all his life, he had never met nobles from great clans like Wang, Xie, Yuan, and Xiao. From imagination alone, he felt that what Wang Yang described was entirely possible. After all, in the eyes of such exalted people, his life was probably worth no more than a blade of grass.

"Still, your men did save me, and I'm not someone who forgets a kindness. Enough, get up. I'm tired. Find me somewhere to rest."

As though granted a pardon, Xue Ling hurriedly escorted Wang Yang back to camp. The farther they walked, the more wrong it felt. He had come to question the details and determine whether the claim was genuine. How had he failed to ask a single question and ended up being "questioned" himself instead?!

Judging by the man's speech and bearing, he did not seem to be an impostor. Leaving everything else aside, even if Xue Ling repeated that line from the imperial edict word by word, he probably could not say it smoothly. Yet this young master had rattled it off without hesitation. There had to be something to him.

Besides, if he really were a fraud, he would surely try to escape or invent some excuse to send Xue Ling and the soldiers away. Yet he was following them back to camp as bold as could be, hardly looking guilty.

Better wait until Clerk Wang returns to camp. That old fellow has at least had some schooling. Let's see whether he can make anything of this.

In truth, how could Wang Yang not want to leave?

He had even considered simply ordering Xue Ling away and forbidding the men from following him. But that would certainly arouse Xue Ling's suspicions! To keep him reassured, Wang Yang could only return to camp with him first and think of a way out afterward.

The night was cool as water.

Inside the tent, Clerk Wang and Squad Leader Xue sat behind a battered desk. The leader of ten stood before them, bowing as he spoke.

"Wait. Say that again. What office did he say his second uncle holds?" Clerk Wang leaned forward.

The Squad Leader struggled to remember. "Something like Mounted Attendant... some kind of Attendant?"

"Attendant Gentleman of the Cavalier?"

"Oh, yes. Something like that."

"Something like that?" Clerk Wang frowned.

"I think... I think that was it." The Squad Leader's gaze gradually grew firmer.

"Are you certain?" Clerk Wang stared hard at him.

The Squad Leader nodded. "More or less."

"What is it? Have you discovered something?" Squad Leader Xue asked anxiously.

Clerk Wang remained silent in concentration, then told the Squad Leader, "You may leave."

The Squad Leader saluted and withdrew from the tent.

Squad Leader Xue demanded anxiously, "If you've figured something out, say it! Are you trying to worry me to death?"

Clerk Wang's gaze settled. "This man is most likely an impostor!"

"What!" Squad Leader Xue sprang to his feet, his eyes round as saucers. "Are you serious?!"

"Would I joke about something like this? I've just returned from the prefectural seat. The current Attendant Gentleman of the Cavalier is Xiao Rui, the Prince of Nanping, who also holds the post of Swift Cavalry General. He isn't a member of the Langya Wang clan at all!"

Crash!

Squad Leader Xue kicked the desk over.

Note: The form of address "Huangshang," meaning "His Majesty" or "the emperor," was already widely used during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. For example, Yan Yanzhi's "Eulogy for Attendant Yang" states, "His Majesty praised and mourned him, wishing to preserve exceptional favor for him." Sima Jiong's "Reply to the Princes and Court Nobles" states, "I humbly read His Majesty's decree: its principles are subtle, its phrasing rich, its purport reaches the utmost depths." The same held true in the northern dynasties. A memorial in the "Biography of Yuan Fan" in the Book of Wei states, "Since His Majesty succeeded to the throne with sagacious brilliance, his influence has taken firm hold and his transforming power reached afar..." Du Bi of Northern Qi wrote in his "Proclamation Against Liang," "His Majesty took up the ordained succession and received the mandate, overseeing all like Heaven and reflecting all like the sun..." During the Han dynasty, "Shang," meaning "the one above," was often used to refer to the Son of Heaven. Antiquity also had the tradition of the Three Sovereigns, or "Huang," and ancient writings frequently paired "Huang" with "Heaven" and "Di," meaning "emperor." Thus the title "Huangshang" emerged.