Wei Leaves Home, Finding His Place in the World

That night, after leaving the Wei Residence.

In a modest guest room at an inn somewhere in the Capital.

The furnishings were simple-a bed, a table, and two stools-but the room had been cleaned well.

Wei Nisheng sat on the edge of the bed. On the small table before him lay banknotes worth five thousand taels.

The banknotes were stacked neatly and wrapped tightly in cloth.

Wei An was preparing water for him to wash his feet.

Steam rose from the wooden basin. He tested the temperature with his hand, then added a little cold water.

Outside the window lay the bustling streets of the Capital.

Dusk gathered on all sides, and the evening lamps had just been lit. In the distance, vendors' cries, laughter, and the rumble of carriages mingled faintly together.

But none of it had anything to do with them.

Wei Nisheng stared at the banknotes in silence for a long time.

Five thousand taels.

It sounded like a great deal, but this was the Capital, the heart of Great Zhou.

A decent courtyard residence would cost at least ten thousand taels.

As for homes beneath the imperial city walls, there were prices but no sellers. Even money could not buy one.

So buying a house with five thousand taels was out of the question.

Nor would Wei Nisheng be foolish enough to pour all his money into a house.

Now that he had left the Wei Family, he would need money for his studies, social connections, and arrangements. Every turn would bring another expense.

But he could not stay at an inn forever.

As Wei Nisheng pondered this, Wei An brought over the basin, set it by his feet, and crouched to take off his shoes.

Wei Nisheng stopped him. "Uncle Wei, I can do it myself."

Wei An paused at those words, then smiled without insisting.

He simply sat on the little stool beside him and watched Wei Nisheng remove his own shoes and socks, then soak his feet in the hot water.

The water was just hot enough. Warmth rose from his soles, so comfortable it almost drew a sigh from him.

"Young master," Wei An suddenly said, "we actually needn't worry about a place to live."

"Oh?" Wei Nisheng looked up at him questioningly.

"Haha, young master, I told you before-you needn't take the poor scholar's road. Don't forget that the old master was once a grand secretary and Minister of Revenue!"

Wei Nisheng's eyes lit up.

That's right! If he hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten. I'm not taking the poor scholar's road now. My grandfather was a former Minister of Revenue!

Seeing realization dawn on Wei Nisheng's face, Wei An smiled.

"During the years the old master served in the Grand Secretariat as Minister of Revenue, the Wei Residence wasn't his only property."

Wei Nisheng's eyes brightened, and his feet stilled in the basin. "Uncle Wei, what do you mean?"

"Haha, back when the old master was Minister of Revenue and a grand secretary, officials and wealthy merchants seeking his help were everywhere."

"Gift bearers nearly wore through the threshold. Gold, silver, jewels-the old master wouldn't accept them. Farmland and title deeds-he wouldn't take those either."

"But some things couldn't be turned down, nor was it wise to refuse them too firmly..."

Wei Nisheng caught the meaning beneath his words. "Houses?"

"Exactly." Wei An nodded. "Some people figured out the old master's temperament. Rather than give things directly to him, they used the eldest young master's name."

"That year, the eldest young master had just passed the Autumn Provincial Examination and become a provincial graduate. He was riding high. Someone came to the house and announced before everyone, 'This is a congratulatory gift for the eldest young master.'

"However upright the old master was, he could hardly throw a congratulatory gift out in front of everyone."

Wei Nisheng's gaze shifted slightly. "What happened afterward?"

"Afterward, the old master returned some of them. But he kept one place because it was small and out of the way," Wei An said.

"And the house remained in the eldest young master's name. Later, the old master passed away, and so did the eldest young master. By rights, it should belong to you now."

Something stirred in Wei Nisheng's heart. "Where is the house?"

Wei An answered plainly, hiding nothing. "Outside the imperial city's West Peace Gate. Just across the bridge."

"West Peace Gate?" Wei Nisheng paused.

Southern Capital, the capital of Great Zhou, was centered on the imperial palace, with four gates marking its four directions.

East Flower Gate was where the names of the emperor's first-class metropolitan graduates were proclaimed. The Wei Residence lay in that direction, not far away.

Great Ming Gate and Upright Sun Gate were the main southern gates, through which ministers entered for court. The powerful and noble clustered there. The Feng Residence stood near Great Ming Gate, on a street lined with vermilion gates and high walls.

Black Tortoise Gate was the northern gate, where the Capital's garrison was stationed. Ordinary people were forbidden to approach.

West Peace Gate was the western gate. Beyond it lay the outer city, and farther west were the market streets and alleys where ordinary commoners lived.

Small merchants, peddlers, craftsmen, porters, errand runners-people from all three teachings and nine streams lived there.

At that thought, Wei Nisheng looked at Wei An. "West Peace Gate... that really is out of the way."

"It is." Wei An nodded. "That's why we were able to keep it back then. No one coveted it, and it wouldn't attract attention."

"Besides, no one has looked after that courtyard for years. I'm afraid it may already be filthy and in complete disrepair.

"Collapsed walls, broken tiles, weeds taller than a man-all of those are possible."

"What's a little dirt and disorder?" Wei Nisheng smiled. "Compared with paying rent, a free place to live is nothing to turn my nose up at."

He paused, then asked, "But Uncle Wei, how big is the courtyard?"

Wei An thought for a moment. "A small courtyard with two sections. Not large. The front courtyard has three main rooms and two side rooms. There are a few small rooms in the rear courtyard that could serve as storerooms. Altogether, only a dozen rooms or so."

And that isn't large? As expected of Grandfather's childhood study attendant and confidant-he's a man who's seen life at its peak!

Still, Wei Nisheng nodded, already forming a plan.

"Then we'll go take a look tomorrow."

"Of course, young master."

With their lodging settled, Wei Nisheng remembered something else. "Oh, Uncle Wei.

"That courtyard hasn't been lived in for years. It'll certainly need cleaning. The two of us can't manage all of it."

"And I'll need to study from now on. You won't be able to handle everything alone. We should hire a few people."

"You're right, young master." Wei An nodded. "Only..." He paused. "I'm not very familiar with how to hire people."

"There's something even you don't know, Uncle Wei?" Wei Nisheng looked at him. "Then how were the servants brought into the Wei Residence back then?"

Wei An smiled. "Young master, when I followed the old master, we dealt with important matters.

"Most of the servants at the Wei Residence were house-born servants or had signed death contracts.

"The household steward handled the rest. I didn't need to concern myself with such things.

"But we can't afford servants on death contracts now. We'll have to hire temporary workers."

"That's what I was thinking too," Wei Nisheng agreed.

Under Great Zhou law, ordinary households hired workers by signing tenancy contracts.

They could last one year, three years, or five. Once the term ended, workers could renew them or leave.

The servants' household registrations remained with the authorities. They did not belong to their employers.

There were even temporary workers paid by the day, who might come to work today and not return tomorrow.

Wei Nisheng considered it. "Where would we find people like that...?"

Wei An thought for a moment, then raised his eyes. "Young master, I do have someone to recommend."

"Who?"

Wei An smiled. "Cui Fu."

"Cui Fu?"

"That's right, young master. Although Cui Fu serves his elder sister, he and Cui Shi aren't of one mind."

"Cui Shi was born to the principal wife, while he was born to a concubine. He was already treated poorly in the Cui Family. His elder sister treats him as little more than an errand runner."

"Last time, you frightened him badly. When he returned, Cui Shi pressed him for answers, but he still didn't dare tell her the truth."

"And Cui Fu may not be particularly capable, but he's quite skilled at working the angles.

"He knows the people at the brokers' offices, the street thugs, and even the idlers who run errands and deliver things for others."

After hearing Wei An out, Wei Nisheng paused, then chuckled.

If Wei An had not mentioned him, he would have forgotten that such a man existed.

Cui Fu, Cui Shi's younger half brother-the coward whose silver Wei Nisheng had seized after turning the tables on him.

And Wei An's suggestion was sound. They knew his background inside out. Going to him would indeed be more reliable than approaching a stranger.

"He's a good choice," Wei Nisheng replied with a nod. "Then find an errand runner to take him a message, Uncle Wei."

"What we need right now is precisely someone who can work the angles." With that, Wei Nisheng dried his feet, rose, and walked to the window to look out at the streets.

Night had fallen, and the evening lamps had just been lit. Great Zhou's curfew was loosely enforced, and the Capital was even livelier at night than during the day.

People streamed through the streets. Red and yellow lanterns hung outside the shops, stretching into an unbroken sea of light.

Faint singing drifted from a distant tavern. It was a lively scene.

Cui Fu... he can be useful, but I'll have to keep him firmly in hand.

When I see him tomorrow, I'll give him a little sweetness first, then show him that following me offers a brighter future than following his sister.

With men like him, greed isn't the worry. It's whether they have the nerve to be greedy.

The night deepened.

Wei Zhong helped Wei Nisheng settle into bed, then lay down on the small couch beside him.

Wei Nisheng lay with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling.

Today, he had walked out of the Wei Residence.

Tomorrow, he would inspect the house his grandfather had left behind and seek out Cui Fu.

Everything was proceeding according to his plan.

Yet everything had only just begun.

And one thing Wei An had said was quite right.

He did not need to take the poor scholar's road. His grandfather had been Minister of Revenue, and his father in name had been a "Classical Laureate" who had placed first in two successive examinations.

Ten years was neither a short time nor a long one. He needed to pick up those connections again, little by little.

With those thoughts, Wei Nisheng slowly closed his eyes and sank into sleep.

Outside the window, moonlight flowed like water over the bustling Capital.

And over the young man whose new life had only just begun.