Chapter 36: Father and Son Bestowed Titles, Showing Respect to the Virtuous

Because they had risen early, it was just around the hour of the Snake (9:00 AM) when Lu Wu finished escorting his father back to the Lu estate.

"Father, you have been through much shock these past two days, and you rose quite early today; you really should get some rest. I shall return to Wutong Manor now."

Having said this, Lu Wu turned to mount his horse, Black Spirit, intending to go back for a nap. However, his father grabbed him by the trousers, preventing his escape.

"If you are not here, when the King of Wu bestows his rewards, who will accept the royal decree?" Lu Jinhe said with irritation. He could not believe this child wanted to slack off at such a moment!

"Can't you accept it, Father?" Lu Wu was indifferent. In truth, had he not heard from his third sister that the Lu estate was under siege, Lu Wu would never have bothered to intervene. As for the subsequent chain of events, they were merely the result of circumstances; Lu Wu himself had no interest in titles or rewards—he was quite satisfied with his current life and had no intention of changing it.

"Absolutely not! Fifth Son, other rewards might be trivial, but if you are ennobled, our Lu family will be reborn. This concerns the thousand-year foundation of our house; it must not be taken lightly."

"But—" Lu Wu hesitated. He detested trouble above all else. A man who would decide to kill Prince Jiu simply to avoid the trouble of protecting the bloodline of Prince Yuan—how much patience could he be expected to have?

"Fifth Son!" Lu Jinhe was heartbroken. How could this child be so oblivious to what was important? If such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity were missed for such a ridiculous reason, Lu Jinhe felt he would have no face to meet his ancestors in the afterlife.

"Fine, fine, then I shall wait," Lu Wu sighed helplessly. "Father, is my courtyard still being kept for me?"

"Of course it is being kept for you. Just go and sleep," Lu Jinhe breathed a sigh of relief. He had truly feared that the stubborn lad would insist on returning to Wutong Manor.

However, the expected reward did not arrive immediately. It was not until midday that an official from the Ministry of Rites came to inform them that Lu Jinhe and Lu Wu were to present themselves at the royal court the following morning to receive their titles.

Only then did Lu Jinhe realize that the King of Wu’s favor was not like a head of cabbage to be delivered at will; significant honors required an appearance at court. Lu Wu’s mouth twitched, and his expression soured instantly.

The official from the Ministry of Rites, however, possessed great tact. He pretended not to notice, chatted with Lu Jinhe for a while before taking his leave, and left behind a junior clerk to instruct the father and son on the proper etiquette for meeting the King of Wu. Before arriving, he had been warned by others not to provoke the hot-headed Lu Wu; he knew that even if Lu Wu had turned and walked away, he would not have dared to utter a word of protest. Of course, when the official departed, his sleeves were laden with the "sincerity" Lu Jinhe had gifted him.

Lu Jinhe was exceptionally excited. He had originally expected only his son to be rewarded for his great merit, never imagining that he would share in the honor.

***

The next day, at the hour of the Dragon (7:00 AM).

The bell tolled seven times, signaling the first morning court of the new King of Wu. The Emperor’s bell tolled nine times, a King’s seven, a Marquis’s five, and an Earl’s three—this had been the custom since ancient times. Although the state of Wu had declined, its ritual vessels remained intact, allowing it to maintain the standards of a kingdom.

The court officials entered the great hall from both sides and took their respective seats. First came the proclamation of the amnesty for the state of Wu, followed by the rewarding of meritorious officials. The first was, naturally, the Great General Luo Gan, and the second was the Grand Tutor Zhang Guan—both of whom had played pivotal roles in supporting the new King's ascension.

By the time Lu Wu and his father were summoned to the hall, they were already past the tenth position.

"The Lu clan of Nanhe has raised their kin well. The son possesses loyalty, righteousness, and courage that surpasses the world; he is a pillar of the state. Thus, he is named a Grand Master of Zhanghua."

"Lu Wu of Nanhe is resolute and decisive, his courage peerless. He turned the tide when all seemed lost and propped up the collapsing mansion. Such extraordinary merit is difficult to repay, yet he is still young, and his rank cannot exceed that of his father. He is provisionally named a Golden Martial Grand Master."

"Furthermore, Lu Wu is appointed Deputy Commander of the Golden Guard, to stand watch over the royal city and serve as the King’s wings."

As the attendant finished reading the decree, King Ke Tu of Wu descended from the throne. He walked over to Lu Wu, placed his hands on his arms to pull him upright, and whispered, "Brother Lu’s merit in turning the world around is worth far more than this, but with the ministers pulling at me from all sides, I can only offer this for now. I shall make it up to you in the future."

(Although chairs were beginning to come into fashion, formal occasions were still dominated by kneeling, so the concept of 'kneeling' as a submissive act did not exist; the standard form of greeting was a deep bow.)

Lu Wu also whispered back, "I have no desire to be a Deputy Commander of the Golden Guard. I would rather be at home sleeping."

Beside them, Lu Jinhe was desperate to cover his son's mouth. Who barters with the King like that? The position of Deputy Commander of the Golden Guard had always been reserved for the King's most trusted confidants—otherwise, if such a force guarding the royal power were not under absolute control, the King would not be able to sleep soundly. The former Deputy Commander, Tong Zhi, had backed the wrong side; though he had switched allegiances just in time, he could no longer hold his post and had been sent off to guard the southern frontier.

"That was my oversight. But Brother Lu, please, stay in the royal city and assist me for a few days. I will find a way later—now that I have just ascended the throne, I need people I can trust to guard me," Ke Tu said in a low voice, his attitude so deferential that even Lu Wu found it hard to refuse.

However, this was not the place for private conversation. Having said his piece, King Ke Tu patted Lu Wu on the shoulder and returned to his throne.

Lu Wu had no choice but to sit with his father on the right side of the hall. No matter how lazy he was or how much he wished to avoid the whirlpool of court politics, he was trapped. Lu Wu wore a sour expression, while Lu Jinhe was beaming—after centuries of effort, the Lu family had finally fulfilled their wish and stepped into the ranks of the nobility. Though they were not 'Qing' (Ministers)—that had been a fantasy he never truly expected—they were now Grand Masters.

An official of the rank of Grand Master was different from a common scholar. A Grand Master’s son, whether an heir or not, held at least the title of scholar, ensuring that even the non-lineal descendants had a status—which was crucial for the family’s prosperity. Moreover, Grand Masters held fiefs, whereas scholars only held subsistence land without fiefdoms.

To be named a Grand Master was reward enough for any merit, let alone the fact that the Lu family had been granted two such titles at once—a rarity unseen in a hundred years. Especially since the new King of Wu had addressed the Fifth Son as "Brother Lu"; such favor was truly unheard of.

***

In the royal palace, the rear chambers.

Although the morning court had dispersed, Ke Tu remained ecstatic. Sitting on the throne of Wu for the first time, looking down upon the ministers and exercising his power—the feeling was intoxicating. The panic and exhaustion of the previous days seemed to have been washed away. He walked quickly toward the Wuyou Palace, eager to share his thoughts on handling state affairs with his mother. Now that he was the King of Wu, there were few people left with whom he could truly confide.

"Tu'er, you did well today, but you were perhaps a bit too unconstrained," the Lady Ming Ji said after listening to her son's account.

"Please, Mother, enlighten me."

"You did many things well, but there is one thing: recruiting that Lu Wu is indeed important, but how could you step down from the throne in front of everyone and whisper to him?"

"But Mother," Ke Tu said, bewildered, "was it not you and Grandfather who insisted that I must firmly secure Lu Wu?"

"Winning over Lu Wu is indeed wise. He is a warrior the likes of which Wu has not seen in a century; his strength alone can suppress a region. You must hold him tight! But you have just ascended the throne, and the ministers are all watching. If you walk down from the throne during court, what will they think? If you call him 'Brother' in the royal hall, and if that causes Lu Wu to grow ambitious, it will become another source of instability."

Lady Ming Ji said, her heart filled with worry. The throne was not a place where one could simply sit and expect everything to go well. With internal troubles, external threats, and the delicate balance of power, the true test for Ke Tu had only just begun.