CCWAD – Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Chapter 17: The Conspiracy by Jinming Pool

Quote:

“After her heart was cut out on a snowy night, she took me to Jinming Pool. Pointing at the frozen lake, she said: ‘Look, this Great Song is like this ice layer, seemingly solid, but it shatters with a single blow.’ Then she handed me a list—on it were twelve disgruntled generals holding military power.”

—

The dissection of hearts on a snowy night had torn away the last veil of ambiguity between them. After that, Li Shishi no longer communicated through Mozhu or invitations. Instead, under the cover of night, she would personally visit Yan Qing’s secluded courtyard. Sometimes she brought copies of hard-to-obtain court dispatches, and other times, just a pot of clear tea, and they would sit and chat, their conversations often revolving around the general trend of the empire, the advantages and disadvantages of military and political affairs.

Yan Qing gradually let go of her initial wariness and discomfort. She discovered that Li Shishi, stripped of her “famous courtesan” aura, possessed a sharp mind and broad knowledge, with insights into the court, military matters, and even local popular sentiment that far surpassed that of ordinary men. The ambition and hatred hidden beneath her cool demeanor both startled Yan Qing and drew her in irresistibly.

This night, Li Shishi arrived again, stepping on the snow. However, she was no longer wearing a heavy cloak but a sleek black outfit, suitable for action, covered by a matching cape. She appeared capable and mysterious.

“Put this on and come with me,” she said, tossing a similar set of black clothes to Yan Qing, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Yan Qing didn’t ask further questions and complied. The clothes were slightly loose, but when cinched, they fit well, concealing her slender frame somewhat.

Li Shishi led her, like two shadows blending into the night, avoiding the patrolling night watchmen and soldiers. They traversed streets and alleys, eventually arriving at Jinming Pool on the west side of the city.

In winter, Jinming Pool was already frozen. The lake was covered with thick snow, which shimmered with a cold light under the sparse moonlight. Silence reigned supreme, with only the mournful sound of the cold wind whistling through bare branches. The once bustling and prosperous scene of the imperial garden was now reduced to boundless desolation and a killing chill.

Li Shishi walked to the edge of the lake, gazing at the miles of frozen landscape before her. She remained silent for a moment, her exhaled breath dissipating quickly in the frigid air.

“Look at this Jinming Pool,” she suddenly spoke, her voice remarkably clear on the vast expanse of ice. “Every spring and summer, pleasure boats are like woven threads, and songs and dances fill the air. It’s the most prosperous place in the Eastern Capital. But once winter arrives, it becomes this dead silent scene.”

She turned, her gaze sharp as she looked at Yan Qing. “This Great Song is like this frozen lake. Official Zhao and his favored ministers are still dreaming of a prosperous era of ‘abundance and joy,’ believing this ice layer is indestructible. But they forget, or perhaps are unwilling to think, that beneath the ice, the undercurrents are turbulent. As long as one finds the weakest point and strikes it lightly…”

She extended a gloved hand and made a striking motion, her voice icy cold. “It will be… like breaking rotten wood, the ice melting and snow disappearing.”

Yan Qing stood beside her, feeling the biting cold, yet her heart burned with her words. She understood that Li Shishi had brought her here not merely to admire the scenery and draw parallels.

Indeed, Li Shishi took out a flat object, tightly wrapped in oilcloth, from her embrace and handed it to Yan Qing.

Yan Qing took it; it had a slight weight. She unwrapped the oilcloth to reveal a simply bound booklet with worn corners. Under the faint moonlight, she could barely make out that there was no writing on the cover. She opened it with a sense of confusion.

Inside the booklet, there were no jewels or diagrams of troop deployments as she might have imagined. Instead, it was a list, with dense, small-print annotations following each name.

She quickly scanned the names and annotations, her shock growing with each one!

The list contained twelve names, followed by their current or former official titles—most were commanders of provincial armies, defensive envoys of border prefectures, or even former powerful military governors who had been sidelined! These individuals were, without exception, figures who had once held real military power but, for various reasons, were either ostracized, suspected, or frustrated, scattered across different regions like dulled blades.

The annotations meticulously recorded each person’s background, career history, personality traits, political leanings, relationships with major court factions (such as Cai Jing, Tong Guan, etc.), and even included some little-known vulnerabilities or urgent needs (such as financial hardship at home, the future of their nephews, old grievances with superiors, etc.).

This was practically a detailed dossier of… “potential collaborators” or “forces to be won over”!

“This is…” Yan Qing looked up, her gaze incredulous as she turned to Li Shishi. How could a woman confined to a pleasure house obtain such detailed and sensitive military intelligence?

Li Shishi seemed to read her thoughts and said calmly, “Don’t underestimate pleasure houses. They are the most well-informed places in the Eastern Capital, and also fertile ground for countless secret transactions. Those disappointed military officials also have desires and weaknesses. In these years, I haven’t just been playing the zither and singing.”

Her tone was calm, yet it carried the confidence of someone who had orchestrated events from behind the scenes. Yan Qing finally realized that this woman had long since transformed Fan Lou into the core of a vast and secret network of intelligence and connections.

“You mean… contact them?” Yan Qing asked, suppressing her shock.

“Not yet,” Li Shishi shook her head. “The time is not right, and we don’t have enough leverage. This list is a seed; it needs suitable soil and time to sprout.”

She pointed at the list, her eyes burning. “We need an ‘East Wind,’ a ‘East Wind’ that can make these dormant volcanoes see hope and be willing to take a risk. And Liangshan… might become the first spark to ignite this East Wind.”

Yan Qing’s heart trembled violently! Li Shishi had finally directed the spearhead of her plan clearly towards Liangshan!

“What do you want Liangshan to do?” Yan Qing’s voice tightened slightly.

“It’s not what I want, but the trend of the times,” Li Shishi’s gaze returned to the frozen lake. “The court’s discussion of recruiting Liangshan has never ceased. But what about after recruitment? Will they be dispersed and slowly weakened, or used as cannon fodder in battles against Fang La or other forces? Song Jiang might harbor illusions, but Official Lu and you should see more clearly.”

She paused, then continued. “Liangshan needs a better way out, a path that preserves its strength and allows it to truly control its own destiny. Rather than being slaughtered after recruitment, it’s better to… proactively become the catfish that stirs up this stagnant water.”

“How to stir it up?”

“Show strength, not weakness,” Li Shishi’s tone was decisive. “In front of the imperial envoys seeking recruitment, display a power that makes the court wary, even needing to rely on! Make those scholars sitting in the imperial court understand that Liangshan is not a lump of clay that can be molded at will, but a double-edged sword that could harm oneself or the enemy! Only by making them feel ‘needed’ will we have the right to negotiate terms and have the opportunity… to steer Liangshan’s power in the direction we desire.”

She looked at Yan Qing, her eyes filled with expectation and an unyielding pressure. “And this matter requires someone who has influence in Liangshan, understands the rules of the Eastern Capital, and can gain my trust to promote it. Yan Qing, you are the most suitable candidate.”

The cold wind whipped snow, stinging her face.

Yan Qing clutched the heavy list in her hand, feeling its weight was more than a thousand pounds. Li Shishi’s plan was bold and insane, a dance on the tip of a blade. One wrong step would not only lead to her own ruin but could also plunge the entire Liangshan into an abyss of despair.

However, the path Li Shishi envisioned, a path to escape a passive fate and potentially shake the entire era, held a fatal allure.

She looked at the frozen Jinming Pool before her, as if seeing the hidden cracks beneath the stiff shell of this vast empire.

After a long while, she slowly raised her head, meeting Li Shishi’s gaze, her voice unusually clear and firm in the wind and snow:

“What should I do?”

—

(End of Chapter 17)