Chapter 348: Uncles

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It feels good to be back in the Storm Dragon Empire. Here, the people do not think he is a terrible villain. While his sudden ascension to the throne caught everyone by surprise, the effects of his rule have been largely positive. Save for a few setbacks caused by rebellious nobles with too-high opinions of themselves, the country has been inching towards prosperity thanks to everyone’s hard work, and that has influenced the public’s opinion of him.

Though Liu Jin is confined to the palace, having so many of his friends with him makes the experience far less burdensome than it’d otherwise be. Additionally, the palace is literally made for his bloodline. There is no place where Liu Jin feels more at home.

However…

“The price of rice…”

“Your Majesty, he made his festival in my territory! Those were my trees he chopped!”

“According to the Treaty of the Three Tigers…”

“So you see, increasing the price of grapes was absolutely necessary, Your Majesty!”

“My daughter will soon visit the capital. She’s very excited to meet you, Your Majesty. She is a fantastic dancer, so I was wondering if…”

Liu Jin has not missed having to hold court.

Hearing the nobles complain about the slightest thing is always a trial. Though Liu Jin knows he could probably leave all of this to General Nie Dan and Minister Chu, he has been absent from the Storm Dragon Empire for the entirety of the Crimson Cloud Tournament and even before that. There is only so much he can neglect his duties before people start having opinions about what he should or shouldn’t be doing.

He did strongly consider leaving this task to his copy, but that felt inappropriate for various reasons.

“The Eternal Flame Clan has pledged five hundred Inner Disciples to your cause, Your Majesty,” Feng Zhuo reports one day. The announcement causes a stir among the nobles in attendance.

Most of it is positive.

“Five hundred!”

“Amazing!”

“The Emperor is truly well-connected! Even the Eternal Flame Clan rushes to his aid!”

“Well, of course! After all, Lady Lu Mei is…”

Some of it is not.

“Only five hundred?” one of the nobles says, his voice louder than the others. “They mock us!”

Liu Jin and Feng Zhuo turn to the noble at the same time. To his credit, the man does not cower even as he feels the public turn against him.

“The disciples of the Eternal Flame Clan have strength beyond reproach,” Liu Jin says. “Even a single one of them is worth more than a hundred men. By sending five hundred, they might as well be sending fifty thousand men to reinforce our borders. I ask that you not be ungrateful. Of course, if you wish to verify their strength suits your standards, that could be arranged.”

Feng Zhuo grins.

“I will happily demonstrate the strength of the Eternal Flame Clan if the duke desires it,” Feng Zhuo says. His Qi rises softly, reminding everyone in the room that, in General Nie Dan’s absence, not one of them surpasses his strength.

“I…that will not be necessary,” the duke says, grimacing as he backs down. “Forgive my outburst, Your Majesty!”

That is the end of that, for now. Liu Jin knows he will have to do something to make sure the nobles understand that he is not favoring the Eternal Flame Clan over them later. Already, there are pro and anti-Eternal Flame Clan factions among them. Lu Mei told him all about it one day. She had been giggling, as she’s technically the head of the pro-Eternal Flame Clan faction.

People are so very difficult. Liu Jin’s eyes glaze over as more matters are brought to his attention, all of them varying degrees of unimportant.

“-regretfully wishes to inform you that he will not be coming to the palace.”

“Wait,” Liu Jin says, holding up his hand. The messenger flinches. His forehead gets closer to the ground. “I gave the command for my uncle to present himself to the palace.”

It was not a request. Liu Jin leaves it unsaid, but the entire court hears it just fine.

His Uncle on his mother’s side, the man who is his namesake, might lack Qing blood, but it is widely known that he is related to him. As such, he is an obvious target for anyone who has set his sights on Liu Jin, which at the moment includes the entirety of the other side of the Dead Plains. Upon arriving at the Storm Dragon Empire, Liu Jin immediately gave the order that his Uncle present himself to the Storm Dragon Palace.

“Y-your Majesty did that, yes,” the messenger says. He sounds so scared that Liu Jin has to make sure his Qi has not flared by accident. It hasn’t. “However, Colonel Liu Jin says that he cannot possibly abandon his position at such a critical time. He thanks His Majesty greatly for his concern and kindness, but says that he must remain with the Brotherhood of Thunder.”

Liu Jin stares at the messenger, who absolutely refuses to lift his head.

“Were those the exact words my uncle used?”

The messenger flinches.

“They were,” the messenger lies.

Liu Jin resists the urge to sigh. Knowing his Uncle, his message was probably far more hostile and verging on insulting. The poor messenger must have been trying to think of a way to soften it during his entire trip to the palace.

After the civil war, his Uncle’s Brotherhood of Thunder was absorbed into the army as a mostly independent unit. Because of their reputation as a resistance force that fought against Murong Bang and because their commander is the Emperor’s Uncle, the Brotherhood of Thunder gained the reputation of being an elite unit. That attracted several outstanding talents within the empire, so now, it essentially is that.

In that sense, his Uncle is not altogether wrong. The Brotherhood of Thunder will have an important part to play in protecting the Storm Dragon Empire in the battles to come. It is important for the unit to operate at full efficiency, and his Uncle is the commander of that unit.

However, his Uncle could have easily appointed an interim commander! Nothing happening right now makes his presence an absolute necessity! Liu Jin wants to yell that, but it would accomplish nothing other than scaring the poor messenger.

“You are free to leave,” Liu Jin says.

The messenger does.

Liu Jin closes his eyes and takes a deep breath.

It is another day in the Storm Dragon Empire.

~~~~

“How has my Uncle been?”

Qing Guo frowns as he looks at him. At first, Liu Jin thinks it is because he has interrupted his cousin’s calligraphy practice.

“Are you…” Qing Guo waves his calligraphy brush in his direction, “Really yourself?”

“I am myself,” Liu Jin replies. “Keeping my copy around all the time was starting to cause trouble, so I decided to recall my soul fragment.”

“Do you want people to be scared of you?” Shi Qingxia shouted at him yesterday. “No? Good. Then stop letting that thing walk around. Do you have any idea how many servants have come crying to me? Just when the rumors about your experiments were starting to get better, too.”

Maybe his reputation here isn’t as good as he thought it was.

“I see.” Qing Guo sighs in relief. “I mean no offense, but talking to a copy of my cousin would have been too…Wait, you say, you retrieved your soul fragment. Does that mean the body is still out there?”

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“Well, yes,” Liu Jin says, not seeing the issue. “It took a long time to make. I’d rather not have to do it again. Besides, I left it in my room. No one will have to see him-”

A shrill scream cuts through the palace.

“Except the maids who clean your room,” Qing Guo says at the same time as Liu Jin’s palm meets his face. “For someone so brilliant, you have an incredible talent at missing what is obvious to many, cousin.”

“That’s not important right now,” Liu Jin says, already knowing Shi Qingxia is going to complain to him about this. “I asked you a question. Has my Uncle been well?”

Qing Guo is suddenly very interested in his calligraphy.

“Is there any chance you are asking about your other uncle?”

Liu Jin frowns. He already sent another letter to his Uncle Liu Jin, but he doubts that it will change his mind. The man is unreasonably stubborn.

Why is his family so full of troublesome people?

“Stop trying to avoid the subject,” Liu Jin says. Qing Guo sighs.

“I apologize,” he says. His lips form a flat line as he considers what to say. “Well, you know my father…”

He trails off. Liu Jin waits for him to continue.

He does not.

“That’s it?” Liu Jin asks.

“What do you want me to say?” Qing Guo asks, throwing his hands up. “He talks to me sometimes. When he does, it means he’s having a good day. He’s been painting for the past few months. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing, but it’s better than the alternative. There are times when he just…meanders around or sleeps the whole day. It’s depressing to look at!”

Qing Guo slams a fist against the table. The inkwell trembles, but it does not tip over. He takes a deep breath.