They finally made it back to Tanyang County just before sunset.
Gu She’s carriage dropped Tao Mo off at the county yamen. After agreeing to come pick him up later that evening, Gu She continued on to the Gu residence.
At the sight of the county yamen he had not seen in so long, warmth welled up in Tao Mo’s heart.
But the moment the yamen runners at the entrance saw Tao Mo, one of them immediately whipped around and ran inside, leaving the other staring at Tao Mo excitedly. “My lord!”
Tao Mo asked, “Has everything at the county yamen been all right?”
“Well…” The runner hesitated.
Tao Mo immediately had a bad feeling. “What happened?”
“Master!” Guided out by the runner, Adviser Jin hurried over and bowed. “Master, you’ve had an exhausting journey!”
Tao Mo quickly said, “Not at all. Adviser Jin has been working day and night to handle everything at the county yamen. You’re the one who has worked hard.”
Adviser Jin smiled bitterly. “I’m afraid I failed the task Master entrusted to me.”
Tao Mo’s bad feeling came true. “What happened?”
Adviser Jin glanced toward either side of the entrance. “Let’s go inside and discuss it properly.”
Full of questions, Tao Mo followed him all the way to the study, only to find Cui Jiong there as well. The moment Tao Mo entered, Cui Jiong hurriedly rose and bowed.
“What exactly happened?” Tao Mo could no longer hold back.
Adviser Jin said, “It’s a long story. Half a month ago, on the twelfth day of the fourth month, Madam Yang, née Liu, together with her daughter Zou Qiong and son-in-law Liu Bao, filed a complaint against her husband, Yang Tianyuan, accusing him of withholding Zou Qiong’s dowry and refusing to return it.”
Tao Mo was confused. “Madam Yang’s husband is surnamed Yang, so why is her daughter surnamed Zou?”
Cui Jiong explained, “Madam Yang’s previous husband was surnamed Zou. After he died, she was left alone with her daughter and found it difficult to support them both, so she remarried Yang Tianyuan, bringing along the property left by her former husband. Before the marriage, she and Yang Tianyuan agreed that this property would serve as Zou Qiong’s dowry. Yang Tianyuan would merely keep it in trust and return it when Zou Qiong married.”
Tao Mo said, “I see. This case is easy enough to judge. I’ll hold court tomorrow and order Yang Tianyuan to return the dowry.”
Adviser Jin and Cui Jiong exchanged a glance.
Adviser Jin gave a dry cough. “There’s more to it.”
“Please continue, Adviser.”
Adviser Jin said, “Under the laws of our dynasty, from the first day of the fourth month through the thirtieth day of the seventh month is the busy farming season. During that period, the yamen does not accept minor disputes involving households, marriage, land, and similar matters. Only major cases are heard.”
Tao Mo frowned.
“What’s more, Master wasn’t at the yamen at the time. So I took it upon myself to reject their written complaint on those grounds.”
Seeing the uneasiness in his expression, Tao Mo asked, “Then what happened?”
Cui Jiong said, “When Madam Yang saw that the yamen wouldn’t accept a minor dispute, she steeled herself and jumped into a well!”
“Ah!” Tao Mo cried out.
Adviser Jin hurriedly said, “Fortunately, someone found her and pulled her out. She injured her head, but it wasn’t serious.”
Only then did Tao Mo relax. “Why go so far? She could have filed the complaint again after the thirtieth day of the seventh month.”
Adviser Jin said, “Because Yang Tianyuan has taken a liking to another family’s daughter and promised Zou Qiong’s dowry as his betrothal gifts. The wedding is set for the third day of the seventh month. Meanwhile, Zou Qiong’s husband, Liu Bao, repeatedly pressured mother and daughter to come forward and demand the dowry. He even threatened that if Yang Tianyuan refused to return it, he would demand the return of his own betrothal gifts.”
Tao Mo shook his head repeatedly. “Yang Tianyuan and Liu Bao are both awful. Madam Yang and her daughter are the ones to be pitied.”
Adviser Jin asked, “What does Master intend to do?”
Tao Mo said, “I imagine the reason our laws suspend minor cases during the busy farming season is so that the people can devote themselves to farm work. But after suffering something like this, how could Madam Yang and her daughter possibly put their minds to anything else? Madam Yang can be pulled from the well once, but no one can save her forever. If we truly want to save her, we need to settle this case as soon as possible. I promised the Emperor that I would govern Tanyang County well, so I have to do it!”
“The Emperor?”
Adviser Jin and Cui Jiong exclaimed in unison.
Tao Mo scratched his head. “That is also a long story. Let’s finish talking about Madam Yang first.”
Adviser Jin said, “If Master has decided to accept this case, then my advice is this: better handled quickly than slowly, sooner rather than later, and quietly rather than with fanfare.”
Cui Jiong summed it up in one sentence. “Adviser Jin means we should hear it quietly, without making a public affair of it?”
“Exactly. Master’s intentions may be entirely good, but there is no guarantee that someone won’t seize upon the laws of our dynasty and make an issue of this. So we need to settle the case before they have the chance.”
Cui Jiong sensed Adviser Jin glance at him almost imperceptibly after saying this and understood at once that the “someone” in question included him. He hurriedly said, “Adviser Jin is absolutely right. Tanyang County may presently enjoy favorable weather and harmony throughout the yamen, but there is no telling what unexpected accident might occur. My lord should therefore resolve this as swiftly as possible.”
Since both men said the same thing, Tao Mo immediately made up his mind. Remembering that Gu She had promised to pick him up later that evening, he asked only a few brief questions about official business before hurrying out.
Sure enough, Sang Xiaotu was waiting at the entrance with the carriage.
When Tao Mo returned to the Gu residence, he discovered that Gu She was actually waiting for him before eating.
Feeling both distressed and guilty, Tao Mo said, “It’s already late. Why wait for me on an empty stomach?”
Gu She drawled lazily, “Who said my stomach was empty?”
Only then did Tao Mo notice the plate of pastries in front of him, one piece missing. “Actually, if you’re hungry, you can eat first.”
Gu She placed a piece of red-braised pork into his bowl. “I didn’t get married so I could eat alone.”
The fragrance of the pork filled Tao Mo’s nose, while sweetness filled his heart. Even the knot of worry over encountering a troublesome case the moment he returned to the yamen was promptly tossed aside.
After dinner, a Go board was set between them.
Without meaning to, Tao Mo began talking about the case, then looked eagerly at Gu She and waited for his opinion.
Gu She remained entirely focused on the board, seemingly uninterested in anything else.
Growing uneasy at his silence, Tao Mo asked, “Is there something improper about what I’m doing?”
“What is improper about it?” Gu She asked.
Tao Mo could not quite say. Only after a long while did he answer, “The court established that minor cases shouldn’t be heard during the busy farming season. What I’m doing doesn’t conform to the law.”
“So?” Gu She asked.
“Well…” Tao Mo was speechless. If he knew what came after “so,” he would not have made the decision in the first place.
Gu She raised his eyes and glanced at him. “Whatever you think, say it. There’s no need to be cautious around me. In any case, I have no intention of writing you a letter of repudiation in this lifetime.”
Tao Mo’s face reddened. He said softly, “I only thought that because you didn’t say anything just now, perhaps I had done something wrong.”
Gu She said evenly, “You haven’t caused trouble, nor have you encountered some obstacle you cannot cross. Why would I need to say anything?”
The hand Tao Mo had raised with a black stone stopped in midair.
Seeing him staring without moving, Gu She caught his hand and gave it a little shake.
Tao Mo’s fingers loosened, and the black stone fell onto the board with a clack.
Gu She calmly continued playing.
“The reason I wanted to become a good official wasn’t only to fulfill Father’s dying wish. It was for myself too. I didn’t want anyone else in this world to suffer the same misfortune I did. But I understand now that the person who was truly unfortunate was my father. He spent his whole life doing good, yet he ended up with a son like me.” Tao Mo paused, his eyes fixed firmly on Gu She. “I’m the fortunate one. I had a father like him, and I have you as my lifelong companion!”
Gu She raised an eyebrow. “You only realized that now?”
“Uh.” A rare spark of inspiration suddenly flashed through Tao Mo’s normally sluggish mind. “I merely understand it more deeply now.”
“Flattery.”
“Words straight from my heart.”
“Even so”—Gu She pointed at the board—“I’m not going to go easy on you.”
“Of course.” Tao Mo cheerfully picked up another black stone. He was about to place it when he suddenly discovered that the situation on the board had changed completely from what he remembered. “Th-this stone… When did I play it?”
“Just now.”
Tao Mo remembered the stone he had accidentally dropped and immediately broke into a cold sweat.
Gu She teased him without so much as a ripple in his expression. “Destroying one of your own eyes—is this what they call putting yourself on deadly ground in order to live?”
Elio’s Notes: In Go, an “eye” is an enclosed empty point or space within a group of stones. Two true eyes generally make a group impossible to capture. Tao Mo has accidentally ruined one of his own.
Tao Mo thought very hard for a long while, then resigned. “There probably is a way to play like that, but I certainly don’t know it.”
The faintest smile seemed to hover at the corner of Gu She’s mouth. He tapped the board lightly with one finger. “Another game.”
“All right.” Tao Mo enthusiastically began clearing the board.
Gu She leisurely drank his tea.
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