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"Fei Qian, Fei Ziyuan of Heluo?" Li Ru pinched Fei Qian's name card between his fingers, slightly puzzled. In his memory, this Fei Qian had gone to study in Jingxiang and had even been appointed as Biejia by Liu Biao.
Why had he suddenly returned? Could he have been sent back under Liu Biao's orders?
This wasn't due to any shortcomings in Li Ru's intelligence network—it was simply that his focus was currently on the influential eastern gentry clans. Someone like Fei Qian, who hadn't yet made it onto his radar, naturally didn't draw much of his attention.
At first, Li Ru was inclined to refuse the meeting. In his view, Fei Qian, with whom he had little interaction, suddenly paying a visit at such a time was unlikely to be for nostalgic reasons. Nine times out of ten, it was for some ulterior purpose. And right now, Li Ru was swamped with work—how could he spare the mood for an audience?
However, after glancing at a military report on his desk, Li Ru reconsidered and ordered Fei Qian to be summoned. The report had been sent by Xu Rong and Hu Zhen, stationed southeast of Luoyang. It mentioned that Sun Jian's forces seemed to have suddenly received a large shipment of provisions...
This was a clear signal that they were preparing to advance.
Li Ru wasn't afraid of Sun Jian's movements—what worried him was the possibility of simultaneous activity on two other fronts. The Xiliang army, due to their proximity to the Qiang and Hu tribes, had a relatively larger cavalry force. A swift hundred-mile raid was their specialty. But if they were surrounded on three sides, losing room to maneuver, even the most numerous cavalry would be no different from foot soldiers.
To smoothly carry out his plan to relocate the capital, he couldn't afford to be bogged down by these three fronts—they had to be crushed. Yet, the forces currently at his disposal weren't strong enough to confront all three armies head-on simultaneously. Therefore, he had to find their weaknesses and exploit the cavalry's mobility to shift the battlefield rapidly...
For now, there was no movement from the eastern front at Suanzao or the northern front at Henei, but Li Ru was certain that hostilities in these two directions wouldn't be long in coming. After all, if they didn't act now, it would mean giving up entirely...
Fei Qian had come from Jingxiang, and Nanyang was an unavoidable passage. So, meeting him might provide some insight into the situation regarding Yuan Shu in Nanyang, Liu Biao in Xiangyang, and the gentry clans of Jingxiang.
Before long, Fei Qian arrived at the hall. Li Ru studied him for a moment and noticed that this Fei Qian seemed different from before his departure to Jingxiang—there was a newfound steadiness and confidence about him.
Fei Qian, too, stole a glance at Li Ru and was startled. Though Li Ru still wore his usual wide-sleeved robes and tall hat, his face had grown gaunt. The healthy flush in his cheeks had been replaced by a sickly grayish pallor, and dark circles under his eyes betrayed a severe lack of sleep...
Li Ru's appearance had undergone a drastic transformation—from the poised and elegant demeanor of a sage to a sinister and almost ghastly visage. It was clear that the pressures he had been shouldering lately were immense.
"Greetings, Chief Clerk," Fei Qian saluted. Back when Dong Zhuo was still Inspector, Li Ru had served as Chief Clerk. Now that Dong Zhuo had ascended to the position of Chancellor, Li Ru remained Chief Clerk—only now, he was Chancellor's Chief Clerk instead of Inspector's Chief Clerk.
"Heh... cough..." Li Ru tried to speak but was seized by a dry, hacking cough. He gestured for Fei Qian to take a seat before continuing, "...Ziyuan, it seems you have gathered abundantly on all sides this time..."
Every conversation with Li Ru required Fei Qian's utmost vigilance. Upon hearing this seemingly simple remark, he immediately began dissecting its meaning in his mind.
"Gathered abundantly on all sides" (zuo you cai huo) sounded like a compliment at first glance, suggesting that Fei Qian had achieved great success during his time in Jingxiang.
But would someone like Li Ru casually choose such a phrase without deeper intent?
Why not use terms like "bountiful harvest" or "rich rewards," but specifically this one?
This phrase originated from the Odes of Zhou and the South: Guan Ju, where the original lines read:
"...Of floating-hearts the patchwork rare,
Now left, now right, we gather there..."
The "floating-hearts" (xing cai) referred to a type of aquatic plant found in southern rivers, lakes, and ponds. It was edible and non-toxic but had a slightly bitter taste.
The very next lines in the poem were:
"...The lovely maiden, loth to part,
We'd meet with zither and with lute..."
Fei Qian sighed inwardly. Had he not experienced so much in recent times, he might not have fully grasped the layers of meaning behind Li Ru's words...
Li Ru's statement carried at least three implications:
First, the surface meaning—acknowledging Fei Qian's fruitful gains in Jingxiang.
Second, as someone not particularly close to Fei Qian, Li Ru couldn't openly discuss matters like marriage. But the hidden reference to the next lines—"the lovely maiden, loth to part, we'd meet with zither and with lute"—carried a teasing undertone. The "zither and lute" (qin se) often symbolized matrimonial harmony, implying that Fei Qian hadn't just gathered "floating-hearts" but had also "befriended a fair maiden" with music...
Third, and most profound, was the suggestion that what Fei Qian had gathered were merely "floating-hearts"—edible but bitter, far inferior to the sweetness of "rich rewards." This was a veiled critique of Fei Qian's choice to decline Li Ru's earlier offer to serve under Dong Zhuo's faction, opting instead for Liu Biao's bitter "floating-hearts" as Biejia...
Fei Qian clasped his hands and replied, "Though I have gathered these, I often awake and sleep with thoughts of duty, longing to repay your kindness, Chief Clerk."
Upon hearing this, Li Ru's hand, which had been stroking his beard, paused briefly. His eyes narrowed slightly in approval—this Fei Ziyuan was indeed quick-witted and adept at rhetorical exchanges.
The phrase "awake and sleep with thoughts of duty" (wu mei si fu) also came from the Classic of Poetry and belonged to the same poem as Li Ru's earlier reference. Here, "fu" (服) was pronounced like "bi" (毕) in ancient times, meaning not "clothing" but "to bear in mind." As stated in the Doctrine of the Mean: "When one obtains a single virtue, he cherishes it earnestly and bears it in mind, never to lose it again."
Li Ru had teased him, and now Fei Qian was subtly turning the tables. Given Li Ru's current sleeplessness due to overwhelming affairs, the phrase "awake and sleep with thoughts of duty" was particularly fitting. Moreover, the preceding line in the poem was "longing for but not obtaining" (qiu zhi bu de), which was why Li Ru inwardly praised Fei Qian's clever response.
Fei Qian was subtly implying that he had come seeking something, while also suggesting that Li Ru himself was in pursuit of something—yet both were currently in a state of "longing for but not obtaining," hence the "awake and sleep with thoughts of duty"...
Li Ru smiled faintly and said, "Might I ask why Ziyuan has come today?"
—What I seek may or may not be obtained—that remains uncertain. But what you seek here today? Whether you obtain it or not lies in my hands!
Fei Qian knew better than to let Li Ru steer the conversation. Instead of addressing his own request, he spoke clearly: "I have a strategy that may lend you aid, Chief Clerk..."