บท 17: Jade Laughing Dove
Even the delegation from Northern Xi could not compete with the Inspector of the Whistling Pines. That is, a new book in the series was released and so no one had any attention left to spare for Northern Xi. There were roughly 100 copies disseminated this time. As usual, the supply was much lower than the demand. Many nobles had to once again grit their teeth and try to curry favor with their superiors for a chance to get a copy of the book or even just allow one of their servants to copy down a chapter or two for them to read.
It was at these times particularly that everyone in the capital fiercely debated the identity of the mysterious author once again. Clearly, this person was not interested in wealth or fame. Despite the series' popularity, they never tried to produce more copies in order to sell more. Once those original copies sold out, that was it. The only ways someone could read the book afterward were through begging, borrowing, or stealing. If it was fame they were after, why use a pen name? The pen name Jade Laughing Dove was just too strange and gave no clues on their identity. Over time, people decided that whoever this Jade Laughing Dove was, perhaps they simply enjoyed writing and creating mischief.
"This person must be a nobleman! They write about nobility as if they live that life themselves!"
"Maybe the author is a peasant who is trying to drum up interest before grandly revealing themselves to reap the most rewards."
"It could merely be a noble miss from some marquis house. Heaven knows those ladies of the boudoir don't have anything better to do. Why wouldn't they write novels about a handsome government official?"
There was no one to deny or accept such hypotheses, but it was still fun just to discuss conjectures. Without anyone realizing, Inspector Yu had become something of a national treasure--a uniting figure who brought everyone in the capital together despite political factions, age, or gender. The story had mystery, action, humor, and even a hint of romance in the latest installments. There was something for everyone.
All anyone really knew was that every 2-3 months or so, suddenly copies of the next installment would be sold in bookstores throughout Yinchuan. There was no set release date or frequency, nor a guaranteed number of copies per store. If you happened to be around at the right time, you might be lucky enough to snag a copy. If not...better luck next time! Even for people who weren't interested in the book itself, this was a great way to make money by reselling a copy of the book.
In other words, the entire capital was currently seized by a huge fervor once again.
Yan Qiu Yue was perhaps one of the most fortunate people in the capital, though she didn't realize it herself. Ever since the series had caught her attention around volume three or four, she had always been able to secure a copy of the new books for herself. Thus, she had come to take this for granted. Though she realized that the book was hard for people to procure, she never bothered to learn just how valuable each book was. The gathering at the Marquis Xu estate last time had further reinforced her complacency. If that daughter of a marquis could gather that many copies, surely anyone could. Only that poor Marquis Xu knew how difficult it had been to get those books, only for his daughter to fritter them away for a bit of showing off!
On the day of release, one of Yan Qiu Yue's servants would always bring the book to her in the early afternoon. She never questioned it and figured that her father owned one of the bookstores or something. That way, he'd always been able to set aside a copy for her.
This was actually impossible. Setting aside the fact that Duke Ning did not own any bookstores, there was an unspoken rule amongst the capital's bookstores that they could not reserve any copies of the book for themselves. The books were mysteriously delivered the night before and they had only to sell the book normally the next day without making a big deal out of it. The few shopkeepers who had tried to keep the books or hike up the prices found that they would no longer receive future shipments. It would seem that Jade Laughing Dove was watching them from somewhere. All the bookstore owners in Yinchuan came to realize that whoever they were, this Jade Laughing Dove was not one they could afford to offend. All of those bookstores who had violated these unspoken rules had quietly but swiftly gone out of business in the end. Of course, this was secret industry knowledge only, so Yan Qiu Yue had no way of knowing.
So it was yet another mystery as to how she always had a copy, but because of her relatively small circle of acquaintances, this never became widespread. Afraid that even the emperor did not enjoy such a privilege!
A few hours earlier before Yan Qiu Yue began excitedly reading the latest installment, Tian Ao was just beginning to embark on his own journey.
"This is ridiculous. Inspector Yu is a junior official in the Ministry of Justice, but he himself gets the least amount of justice. How could that duke maintain his position as the head minister?" Tian Ao grumbled. He was in the middle of reading volume three.
"The duke maintains his position precisely because he is always taking credit for Inspector Yu's accomplishments, of course." A young man sitting opposite Tian Ao responded drily. This young man was Yi Cheng Rui, the first son of Duke Gui. Duke Gui was the father-in-law of the second princess, so his household had enjoyed a bit of a boost from this connection. The second princess was, after all, the daughter of the emperor and the empress, so she was particularly noble. Duke Gui's second son Yi Qiang Li was now a prince consort and could not hold any official position in court, but it seemed to be a rare happy marriage. This second son, who had never had lofty ambitions anyway, was a good match for the reportedly even-tempered second princess. It would be a lie to say that Duke Gui had only considered Qiang Li's future happiness, but the thought that his son was doing well married to this princess still let him rest more easily.
Yi Cheng Rui had no idea why, but his father had ordered him to accompany this Tian Ao during his stay in the capital. He had been instructed to make friends with him and keep him entertained. They had hung out a lot over the last couple of days and surprisingly got along well. Yi Cheng Rui was reserved and calm in temperament, so he appreciated Tian Ao's cautiousness and occasionally sharp wit. Since the two had now tired of hitting the town and going out, Yi Cheng Rui had offered to let Tian Ao read the Inspector of the Whistling Pine series. He was proud to say that he owned all of the books. That being said, at this point he was not yet aware that a new book had been released today.
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LanLan
LanLan A little bit more about the Inspector of the Whistling Pines, plus Tian Ao and a friend! Tian Ao will start to become more important over time. Those things in TWG's synopsis will happen in the relatively near future.
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