Bao Si

Having roughly untangled the Royal Domain's rather serious problems, Luo Cheng met with the Luo Clan's allies within the domain, his heart heavy.

The Lords of the Royal Domain were now entirely different from those of a century earlier. Back then, their holdings had been mere fiefs, each less than fifty li across, and the Dukes and Ministers and nobles had wielded power chiefly through hereditary offices.

But as successive kings granted away land within the Royal Domain, compounded by rampant land consolidation, the Lords of the Royal Domain had become true territorial rulers.

They controlled vast stretches of land, held noble titles, and occupied governing positions within the domain. In practice, they were already no different from the lords outside it.

Naturally, Luo Cheng needed their support if he wanted to accomplish anything.

Meanwhile, ever since the palace banquet, Luo Jiang had frequently entered the palace to speak with Shen Jiang, chiefly to reassure her and send everyone a signal.

The Luo Clan would guarantee Ji Yi's position as crown prince.

This move proved quite effective. With Ji Yi absent from Haojing for so many years, those with ulterior motives had naturally stirred many undercurrents.

Now all those activities had gone underground.

But this drew Bao Si's attention. Her conflict with Shen Jiang and her son would end only with one side's death, so she naturally could not tolerate the situation.

Yet she knew the Luo Clan's reputation too, and could only fret and seethe in secret. A woman gradually losing her reason was terrifying, and something Luo Cheng had never imagined came to pass.

That day, Ji Nie came to Bao Si's palace and found her weeping behind the curtains.

Ji Zhao had seen Bao Si when she was born. Her beauty was not something the mortal world could produce; she was someone sent down by Heaven, bearing its fortune.

Even beauty that could topple cities and kingdoms could not describe one ten-thousandth of hers. Now, with tears streaming down her face, even Heaven would have pitied her-how much more so Ji Nie?

Ji Nie came to Bao Si's side, took her soft hand, and said with aching tenderness, "My beloved consort, what could have made you weep?

"I possess all within the four seas. Whatever you desire, I can obtain it for you."

Bao Si slipped gracefully into Ji Nie's embrace and sobbed, "King, I was originally no more than a woman from a small state on the western frontier of the Zhou State.

"To have the good fortune to marry the King was a blessing bestowed by Heaven.

"Because I undeservedly received your favor, and then unfortunately bore a child, the queen grew jealous of me.

"My status is lowly, and I feared troubling the King, so I dared not argue with the Queen. Yet she only became more excessive.

"Recently, the lady of the Luo State has been visiting the queen's palace, and the queen's words have been filled with bitterness and resentment.

"She even said she would summon the crown prince back to avenge her. After all these years in the Shen State, the crown prince hates me.

"If he returns, my son's life and mine will hang by a thread.

"My life or death does not matter, but Fu is your prince. Please, King, uphold justice for my son and me."

Ji Nie cupped Bao Si's face and wiped away her tears, saying gently, "My beloved consort, do not worry. As long as I am here, Ji Yi will remain in the Shen State forever. I will not let him return to Haojing.

"As for the Marquis of Luo, though he is powerful, the Luo Clan prizes rules above all and strictly observes the proper relationship between ruler and subject. He will not harm you."

Bao Si clung to him for a while, then lamented, "Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven. Naturally, no one can disobey your commands.

"But after Your Majesty passes away, the crown prince will become king. When that day comes, my son and I will surely die without even a place to bury our bodies."

With that, she began sobbing, her streams of clear tears seeming to fall straight into Ji Nie's heart.

Holding Bao Si, Ji Nie recalled the Shen State's disrespect and control over him, and hatred swelled in his heart. He sighed. "My beloved consort, I have long wanted to depose Shen Jiang. How can that daughter of the Rong People be queen?

"Besides, Marquis Shen relies on his state's strength and his marriage ties with the Rong People to treat me with disrespect.

"If I could, I would make you queen this very moment and appoint Fu crown prince. What a splendid thing that would be.

"But Shen Jiang was installed by the ministers who served King Xuan. She has committed no offense, so if I strip her of her queenship, I fear the ministers will not agree.

"The Marquis of Luo in particular will surely invoke the Rites of Zhou to remonstrate with me. What should I do then?"

A cold gleam flashed through Bao Si's eyes, then swiftly vanished as she gently raised her head from Ji Nie's embrace.

Her slightly reddened eyes were still veiled in tears and filled with a desperate longing to live. She said softly, "King, the Rites of Zhou says that for subjects to obey their ruler accords with the workings of Heaven's Way, while for the ruler to obey his subjects is wrong.

"Subjects should remonstrate with their ruler, but the ruler should make the final decision.

"Even if the subjects are unwilling at heart, they should obey their ruler's decision. Only then do they observe the rites.

"If the ministers seek to remonstrate, you can refuse to see them. That way, you will not damage the affection between you and your subjects.

"Once matters settle down, surely no one will remonstrate with you anymore."

Ji Nie felt that her words spoke directly to his heart and said in delight, "My beloved consort is so clever! These words are truly penetrating wisdom. Tomorrow, I will inform Guo Shifu and proclaim it to the world."

Guo Shifu was the only one of the Three Dukes currently in office. Under the established system, he could indeed issue an edict directly.

Usually, however, the ministers would first be assembled to deliberate, a decision would be made, and only then would the formal process begin.

Now, prompted by Bao Si, Ji Nie actually issued the edict directly, giving no thought whatsoever to the consequences.

Only then did Bao Si break into a smile. At that beautiful sight, Ji Nie was overjoyed and grew all the more pleased with himself.

The following day, a decree emerged from the Heavenly Official Bureau and spread in every direction.

"The king decrees:

"Queen Shen Jiang was originally a woman of the Rong People. Only through the grace of the late King Xuan was she able to become queen to the Son of Heaven of the Zhou State and receive the favor of the Mandate of Heaven.

"Yet she showed no gratitude for the royal house's kindness. Instead, because Ji Yi was not at her side, she uttered resentful words against the Son of Heaven and even cursed him.

"How vicious!

"Can a woman so lacking in virtue be permitted to serve as queen?

"Nevertheless, I remember that she bore me Prince Yi and thus contributed to the bloodline of the Ji family.

"In accordance with the rules of my ancestors, I strip her of her position as queen and consign her to the cold palace to reflect upon her conduct.

"The Zhou State cannot go a single day without a queen. Lady Bao Si is a virtuous woman born in a state of All Xia. Heaven favors her, and I therefore invest her as queen.

"The Sage King established the Lineage System: the legitimate son is Heaven's gift, entitled to inherit his position.

"Since ancient times, sons have derived their noble standing from their mothers' bloodlines.

"Shen Jiang is now no more than a criminal, and Prince Yi no more than a criminal's son. For him to remain crown prince is contrary to the Rites and Institutions.

"Ji Fu's mother is queen, making him my eldest legitimate son. To appoint him crown prince must surely meet with Heaven's approval.

"I invest the queen and crown prince for the sake of the Zhou State's altars of soil and grain.

"Let this edict inform the states of All Xia, so that every lord under Heaven may know and celebrate the Zhou State's new queen and crown prince."

This edict was like a meteor crashing into a tranquil lake. Not a single ripple appeared on its surface-because the entire lake had been obliterated!

The Luo Clan residence.

Ever since the banquet at the Royal Palace had ended on bad terms, Luo Cheng had been meeting with his allies, but had not met Ji Nie.

He listed the influential lords and Dukes and Ministers of the Zhou State, marking them off one by one and selecting those he needed.

One person alone could accomplish nothing. To achieve a political objective, the first task was to form a political group. Luo Cheng was now choosing his people.

As for Queen Shen Jiang's affairs, he had merely entrusted them to his wife.

He believed that once Ji Nie saw his stance, he would not act rashly so long as he still had a brain.

He was in his study working through possible developments when his wife Luo Jiang suddenly entered, looking anxious.

"My husband, the King has just issued a decree deposing Queen Shen Jiang and Crown Prince Yi, making Bao Si queen and Prince Fu crown prince."

"What?"

Even someone as composed as Luo Cheng froze, unable to believe what he had heard.

He reached out to take the decree his wife had brought and read it hurriedly, only to discover that it was indeed a legally valid edict.

"He bypassed the lords and Dukes and Ministers and directly ordered the Heavenly Office to issue the decree?"

"He not only deposed the queen, but openly insulted the Shen State?"

"Has Ji Nie gone mad?"

Such outrageously disrespectful words came straight from Luo Cheng's mouth. He could no longer concern himself with propriety.

For someone as levelheaded as him, even ten days and nights of thought would not have explained why Ji Nie had issued such an edict.

Had he gone mad?

Did he truly not know which mattered more, the Shen State or the Bao State?

Never mind the other ministers-his own father had explained the Shen State's importance to Ji Nie when he was in Haojing!

It had all happened far too suddenly. With his insight, he immediately recognized the grave danger lurking within it.

There were reasons he had been willing to uphold Shen Jiang's position and Ji Yi's status as crown prince.

First, these were stipulated by the lineage rules, and he was duty-bound to uphold them.

Second, the Shen State, ruled by Shen Jiang's father, Marquis Shen, occupied an extremely important place in his plans for his future administration.

For at least ten years, Marquis Shen absolutely had to be kept steady!

Even if he resented the marquis using his Rong connections to bolster his own standing, dealing with him would have to wait.

Luo Cheng needed to win Marquis Shen over by protecting Queen Shen Jiang and Crown Prince Ji Yi. Now it had all gone up in smoke.

Seeing her husband's grave expression, Luo Jiang grew alarmed too and asked urgently, "My husband, what should we do now? Is there still any room to mediate?"

Luo Cheng set down the edict and sighed softly. "The decree has been issued, and its procedure was flawless. Everything is now settled.

"Though I loathe Ji Nie and Guo Shifu, I cannot trample the Son of Heaven's dignity underfoot so openly.

"Besides, this insulting decree has surely already been sent to the Shen State. Even if another edict were issued now to rescind it, it would be too late to undo this.

"My dear wife, Haojing will inevitably become a place of turmoil. I will arrange for soldiers to escort you back to the Luo State shortly. There may be danger here, and I cannot watch you fall into peril."

Seeing that Luo Cheng had already begun arranging an escape for her, Luo Jiang realized that matters must truly be dire. She said tearfully, "The Sage King said that husband and wife are one.

"Now you face danger, yet you ask me alone to take shelter. Would you have me become a base creature without virtue?"

"My dear wife, there is no need for this. With the blessing of our ancestor, the Sage King, I can turn calamity into good fortune. Go ahead and return home to teach our Descendants well. That is important too."

Only after Luo Cheng repeatedly comforted and persuaded her did Luo Jiang depart in tears, returning to the Luo State with the soldiers.

As Luo Jiang's figure disappeared from view, Luo Cheng's expression instantly turned cold, his brow tightly furrowed.

He summoned several personal guards, swiftly wrote several letters, and handed them over to be delivered to several lords.

Ji Nie's actions had been the equivalent of tossing a torch straight into a powder keg already on the verge of exploding.

Many vassal states surrounded Haojing's Royal Domain. To the east lay the Jin State, the Zheng State, whose migration was not yet complete, and states originally enfeoffed by Duke Wen of Luo, such as the Zhou State and Li State. To the west lay the Fei State and other vassal states of the Ying Lineage; to the southwest, the Bao State and others.

Together, these lords defended the Son of Heaven against the Rong and Di on every side.

But none of these vassal states mattered as much as the Shen State to the present Royal Domain.

The Shen State's geographical position was crucial: it lay northwest of the Royal Domain.

Of all the Rong Tribe forces surrounding the Royal Domain, the Dog Rong in the northwest were the strongest.

The Shen State had survived there for two reasons. First, it was powerful. Second, its ruling family bore the Jiang surname and originally came from the Jiang Rong, so marriages between the Shen State and the states among the Dog Rong were commonplace.

Through the Shen State, the Royal Domain had eased its conflicts with the northwestern Dog Rong. The two sides had therefore avoided war in recent years, freeing the Royal Domain to deal with Rong Tribe forces in other directions.

Of all the sharp swords thrust toward the Royal Domain from every side, the sharpest had been blocked by the Shen State.

Thus, the Shen State was the shield that kept the Royal Domain alive.

Another state in the northwest was the Zeng State, but it enjoyed close relations with the Shen State, and the two had always advanced and retreated together.

Once the Shen State turned against the Royal Domain, the entire northwestern gateway would be thrown wide open.

Perhaps Ji Nie had never witnessed a northwestern Dog Rong invasion and lacked any firsthand sense of the Shen State's role, which was why he treated it so lightly.

Most of the Dukes and Ministers who understood the Shen State's circumstances had been demoted by Ji Nie or had simply left him.

Luo Cheng wrote to the lords precisely because he feared that if the Shen State joined the Dog Rong in attacking the Royal Domain, the consequences would be beyond imagining.

This was no alarmist talk on Luo Cheng's part. Given the fragile trust between the Shen State and the Royal Domain, it was very likely to happen.

The Shen State had originally been a great noble house that migrated out of the Royal Domain during Duke Wen of Luo's time.

Over a generation, they had endured immense hardship to carve out a state along the Jing River. It had now become a large state several hundred li across.

Furthermore, the Shen Clan members who remained in the Royal Domain had been one of the Zhou State's foremost great lineages. Over the following century and more, however, the two branches gradually grew distant, and later the Shen Clan within the Royal Domain lost power.

Communication between the Shen State and the Royal Domain gradually diminished. As the Shen State expanded through Western Rong lands, intermingling of bloodlines with the Western Rong tribes was inevitable.

Besides, the Jiang lineage had originated among the Western Rong in the first place.

Because of certain frictions, the Royal Domain had attacked the Shen State and even insulted it by calling it the Shen-Rong Alliance.

From then on, relations between the two sides had become a standoff of drawn swords and taut bows.

The Marquis of Luo at the time had been left speechless by this affair. It was practically a repetition of the incident involving Xiong Dun more than a century earlier.

The only fortunate point was that the Shen State had no god of war like Xiong Dun, so the Royal Domain had not been defeated.

But a bitter feud had taken root between them, and that period also saw the fiercest Dog Rong incursions.

Only after mediation by several parties, Queen Shen Jiang's marriage into the Zhou State royal house, and her subsequent birth of the eldest legitimate son, Ji Yi, had relations finally eased.

In recent years, the Shen State had maintained marriage ties with both the Dog Rong and the royal house. The northwest had remained relatively stable, greatly reducing the external pressure on the Royal Domain.

Now Ji Nie's outrageous maneuver had destroyed it all in a single stroke.

The letters Luo Cheng had just sent to the lords were calls for them to bring troops to defend the king.

If Marquis Shen truly rebelled, they would face not only the allied armies of the Shen and Zeng states, but also the Dog Rong, surging in like a tide.

"In ancient times, Jie favored Mo Xi and brought down Xia; Zhou favored Da Ji and brought down Shang. Now the king favors and trusts Consort Bao. The deeds of Jie and Zhou appear once more today, and the calamities of Xia and Shang will not await another day." - Chronicles of the Eastern Zhou States