Reprimand
Tangxi Zhui hurriedly embraced him, but Pei Yanci pushed him away with one hand, then flipped his palm and slapped him across the face.
“Get lost. I’m annoyed just looking at you.”
Tangxi Zhui embraced him again, kneading his side waist with neither too much nor too little pressure.
Pei Yanci let out a muffled grunt, feeling cool kisses spreading from his neck to his collarbone, the memories deep within his body of having tasted this pleasure being teased and provoked as if present yet absent.
The snow-white inner garment on his shoulder slipped down. He pushed at the person pressing down on him, yet in a gesture of feigned resistance and secret welcome, embraced his neck.
His crescent-moon eyes slowly filled with mist, his gaze gradually becoming unfocused as he tilted his head back, body tensing.
“You, you don’t… I’m still angry with you, you, you’re not allowed to touch me, mm…”
His throat rolled, immediately enveloped by warm lips and tongue, slowly sucking, occasionally nibbled lightly by sharp teeth.
The hand resting on those broad shoulders suddenly clenched tight.
His palm had just felt the solid muscles beneath tense and relax, each muscle seeming to come alive. Then his body was lifted, the small of his back nestled into a palm, his entire being sinking into a cool embrace.
Yet this did nothing to reduce the heat burning within him at this moment.
An entire morning passed in such confusion.
When he woke, the crisp clatter of horse hooves sounded by his ear, and breath of varying depths washed over him, carrying the warm, spicy scent of orchid musk.
“Have we left Duzhou?”
“Mm.” Tangxi Zhui let him pillow on his thigh, holding him while reading a book with one hand.
Beside them sat a specially made brass stove designed for use in carriages, its top hollowed out with cloud and lotus flower openings through which one could faintly see red-hot coals. A kettle perched on top, wisps of steam gently rising from its spout.
It was the scent of tea.
Recently Tangxi Zhui had taken to enjoying the smell of brewing tea. He didn’t drink it, just let it slowly steep in the carriage, filling the cabin with nothing but drifting tea fragrance, warm and comfortable.
Beneath him lay an ornate Persian carpet woven with blue-green patterns, over him a smoke-green satin quilt, and beside him a whole sheet of snow-white fox fur.
He stretched his feet and encountered a still-warm hot water bottle in the bedding.
Tangxi Zhui took a cushion and placed it behind his waist as he sat up.
Having slept too much, his head felt somewhat dizzy. A pair of hands immediately supported his forehead, slowly massaging.
His gaze drifted toward the person beside and behind him.
Tangxi Zhui’s eyes were half-lowered, his expression slightly subdued, black hair scattered but not messy, falling across his swollen cheek bearing the mark of a palm print and across his forehead, concealing the upturned corners of his eyes—virtuous and pitiful.
“Stop being angry, all right?” His crimson diamond-shaped lips bore tooth marks with broken skin, gently exhaling fragrant breath.
“Mm.” Though Pei Yanci held myriad displeasures in his heart, just looking at this devastatingly beautiful face made wretched because of him, all his anger dissipated.
“Bring some food.” He hadn’t eaten anything since morning, and it was already nearly afternoon.
He lifted the curtain to check the weather outside. The carriage had already been fitted with wooden windows papered with new paper, leaving a crack for ventilation. As soon as he opened the window, howling wind mixed with tiny snow particles blew in.
The sky outside was dark and heavy, distant mountains having become enormous shadows. They traveled through them, appearing infinitely small.
He quickly closed the window.
The wind had blown away some of that dizzy feeling.
Tangxi Zhui had already brought over food, tea, and fruit, serving Pei Yanci as he ate.
“What about that evidence?”
“I’ve already had the Elu Bureau retrieve it.” Tangxi Zhui refilled another bowl of ham and shark fin soup for him. “We ordered them to retrieve it only after we left.”
Last night Pei Yanci had only obtained a small portion of Wu Congyi’s evidence. As Ji Huaiyong’s trusted confidant, he surely had more than just this little bit on hand.
But rashly stealing the evidence would certainly arouse Wu Congyi’s suspicion. At that time they were still in Duzhou, isolated and weak. If Ji Huaiyong decided to kill them, they would have no recourse, so they could only wait until after leaving Duzhou.
He hadn’t yet spoken of it, but Tangxi Zhui had already done it for him.
Two days later, the Elu Bureau sent news from Duzhou that Wu Congyi had committed suicide, leaving behind a final letter before his death.
Pei Yanci read the letter. It stated that Wu Congyi had discovered they had stolen evidence of the salt and iron smuggling, and fearing Ji Huaiyong’s blame, could only inform him of the matter through this letter, hoping that in consideration of his death, his family would not be made to suffer.
He burned the letter and asked, “What did Ji Huaiyong think of Wu Congyi’s death?”
The Elu Bureau guard replied, “Only some doubt and anger.”
“We’ll ride horses back to the capital.” Pei Yanci said immediately.
The next day, they abandoned the carriage and galloped south all the way, taking six or seven days to reach Anjing.
Before even entering the mansion, carrying a body full of rain, snow, and wind-chill, he first went to the palace to report on his recent travels.
The Emperor had just exploded a furnace of elixirs, his wide sleeve corners stained with black ash, his complexion very ugly.
“Look at what you’ve done!”
Having just finished his greetings, Pei Yanci was immediately berated.
“Do you know what you went there to do! What, instigating those Military Governors to rebel against Zhen? Where did you get such audacity! Now look, after one trip south, all the Military Governor offices know there are loopholes in the Regional Command to exploit. Now five or six hundred thousand troops supposedly chasing rebels are running wild everywhere. Tell me, how do you clean up this mess!”
The Emperor swept all the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone from the table toward Pei Yanci. After clearing the table surface, he pointed at him and cursed for a full quarter hour before the rage in his heart dissipated somewhat.
He looked down to see Pei Yanci kneeling on the ground, his forehead stained with a spreading patch of ink, a trail of blood flowing from it, dyeing his moon-white robe with a black-red patch of filth, his appearance miserable and wretched.
From beginning to end, his upper body remained upright, unmoved like a mountain, eyes lowered and obedient, neither servile nor arrogant, not saying a word.
“Playing deaf and mute for whose benefit!” The Emperor, having nothing left at hand to throw, pointed at him and cursed.
Only then did Pei Yanci respectfully speak, “Yes, it was this subject’s lack of consideration.”
“Is that all you have to say?”
“Creating the current chaos,” Pei Yanci said, “and having to let General Jiang clean up this subject’s mess—it’s all this subject’s fault.”
“Good that you know. Originally I thought you were steady, but in the end you’re still too young, don’t know what’s important, able to poke such a big hole.”
The Emperor’s fury dissipated somewhat. Actually, he had also wanted to use this pretext to vent the anger in his heart over his stagnant progress in achieving the Dao. In truth, long before things spiraled out of control, he had already sent an imperial edict to Jiang Yi.
Great Yu’s system of rotating generals for garrison duty and training separated generals from soldiers, preventing the formation of absolute loyalty to any particular military official, which also meant those soldiers were only loyal to the Emperor.
And the fish tally was the Emperor’s symbol.
Before the Grand Military Governors and the fish tally, the generals leading soldiers would only be loyal to the fish tally.
Therefore, before the Grand Military Governors began having other thoughts, with Prince An and Li Shoucheng’s attempt to exploit the Regional Command’s loopholes to rebel as a cautionary example, and Jiang Yi’s call for deployed troops from all Regional Commands receiving absolute support afterward, those regional Military Governors had made no major moves.
And those soldiers were also gradually returning to their original Regional Commands. In another two or three months, everything would return to calm.
What Pei Yanci had done before seemed like wasted effort.
And indeed it was.
He had originally thought that once those soldiers left the Regional Command, left their own states, those commanders would have other intentions, and he could seize victory from chaos.
Now it seemed their obedience to the imperial authority symbolized by the fish tally was exceptionally high.
Moreover, a few days ago the Emperor had issued an edict, broadly distributed to princes throughout the realm: henceforth, besides the fish tally, no one else had the authority to mobilize a single soldier from the Regional Commands. If borders were invaded again or internal rebellions occurred, express messengers would rush eight hundred li to Anjing.
Imperial power was once again concentrated in one person’s hands.
Pei Yanci’s eyes concealed their sharpness as he immediately thought of the other side of this matter.
“This subject is willing to make amends!”
“How can you make amends?” The Emperor’s voice slowed, unhurried as usual, but because of his earlier loud shouting, his tone was even more hoarse, full of oppressive force. “Have Minister Zheng wipe your ass?”
Wasn’t what the Emperor wanted just to use him to implicate Zheng Qinglai, suggesting that these actions were all instigated by Zheng Qinglai?
“I’m afraid…” Pei Yanci hesitated with difficulty, immediately drawing the Emperor’s violent rage.
“You two truly have such deep father-son affection—not blood-related, yet better than blood-related.”
“No, in this matter even blood father and son must righteously eliminate their kin.” Pei Yanci said, “Actually, this time this subject didn’t only go south, but also went to the border.”
“You actually dared disobey Zhen’s decree and travel in secret!”
“This subject is guilty. This subject knows this was improper, but this had to be done, otherwise within five years, Great Yu will perish.”
“This is seditious talk worthy of beheading!”
“This subject has experienced this…”
Halfway through speaking, he seemed to realize this matter couldn’t be spoken of externally, looking up in panic toward the sovereign above.
“This subject meant to say, meant to say… In any case, this matter concerns Great Yu’s imperial foundation.”
How could the Emperor not see through his panicked confusion and deliberate concealment? He said, “What have you experienced?”
“Nothing, nothing.” Under those widening, frightening eyes, Pei Yanci grew increasingly flustered. “Your Majesty, this subject knows that those commanders at the border have been smuggling Great Yu’s salt and iron, selling it to Great Xi. That’s why these years, apart from the young and spirited General Jiang who refused to collude with them and won battles, in all the other large and small battles, our Great Yu has never won.”
“You’re saying they colluded with Great Xi, fighting fake battles!” The Emperor’s expression was actually calm at this moment, far less violent than his earlier shouting to beat and kill Pei Yanci.
Calm and expressionless, with an inescapable sinister air.
“Yes. If we won consecutive victories, they wouldn’t need to keep guarding the border, and that smuggled salt and iron couldn’t be sold to Great Xi.”
“Do you have evidence?”
“Yes.” Pei Yanci pulled out an account book from his breast. “Though it doesn’t explicitly indicate, these people have all more or less received Minister Zheng’s favor and are disciples of the Zheng family.”
The Emperor looked at the accounts inside and actually laughed once.
“Embezzling Zhen’s salt and iron, fattening the enemy’s troops and horses, who then turn around and kill Zhen’s people! Good, good, good!”
This account book was from three years ago. At that time, relying on smuggling salt and iron, they had already earned several million taels of silver.
“Zhen never knew that you officials are actually richer than Zhen the Emperor!”
He swept the account book to the floor. “You might as well be Emperor instead!”
Every one of them claimed to have no money, yet made fortunes rivaling nations by selling the country’s salt and iron.
So they were all hiding it from him, not giving him money to use!
Pei Yanci watched him calmly, as if watching a child throwing a tantrum over not getting candy.
The Emperor was more irritable today than he had imagined.
In the depth of winter’s cold, the Emperor worked himself into profuse sweat.
Suddenly, he quieted down again.
His gaze emptily surveyed the mess in the great hall, stunned for a moment, as if unable to remember why he had been angry.
“What kind of look is that?”
The Emperor had never seen such a look on Pei Yanci before.
Loving, kind, worried—like an aged elder approaching the end of life.
Absolutely not something an eighteen-year-old youth’s body and experience could produce.
This look made the Emperor feel disgusted and horrified.
The unease in his heart magnified further, but what followed was a terrifying thought.
Could there be a soul that had weathered a thousand storms beneath this young shell? So he had just let it slip—that he had experienced this matter.
Soul possession?
Wasn’t this also a form of immortality?