Xiao Chiye didn’t look at Li Jianheng. He slowly adjusted the tea lid with his fingers and said, “Patience.”
Li Jianheng, shaken to the core, sank back into his chair. Then he heard the Empress Dowager ask, “The imperial carriage is here, the patrols are strict. How could someone just drown under such circumstances?”
Ji Lei reported, “Your Majesty, I have already sent men to bring the body for the coroner’s examination. The details will be known shortly.”
“What do you mean by that?” The Xian De Emperor, long bedridden, had a furrowed brow heavy with gloom. “Could it be a suspicious death?”
Ji Lei said, “Your Majesty, when the man was retrieved, his body was covered in bruises, clearly beaten. Little Fuze may be a palace eunuch, but he holds no position in the Twenty-Four Offices—he is only Your Majesty’s personal attendant. If he was abused before death, the perpetrator’s scheme must have been significant.”
The Xian De Emperor braced himself on the desk and rose, his voice cold: “I just left the palace, and already someone acts with such impatience?”
“Your Majesty,” Hai Liangyi stepped forward and knelt. “Today, with the Jinyiwei exchanging patrol duties with the Eight Battalions, if the murderer truly had a scheme, would they act so carelessly? Little Fuze often goes out on errands, so it’s not impossible he incurred personal grudges.”
Elder Hua Sijian of the Flower Pavilion sat unmoving but said, “Ren Shi, your words are mistaken. Anyone daring to strike here in front of the Emperor clearly holds neither you nor the assembled ministers in regard. What commoner outside the palace would have such audacity?”
Xiao Chiye remained seated, his mind racing.
Little Fuze had been dragged into the forest at the third quarter of the morning hour. Within the brief span of an incense stick’s burn, palace attendants delivering food and the Eight Battalions passing for patrol could all have crossed paths. Everyone present today was a person of power; leaving one’s seat to change clothes, sip tea, or visit the antechamber would go unnoticed. Not only that, the accompanying soldiers and eunuchs all had access throughout the garden. A single gentle shove, timed perfectly, would be enough for Little Fuze to drown in the pond.
Observing the situation now, the tricky part wasn’t explaining the bruises, but that Ji Lei had already steered the narrative, turning this murder case into a suspected rebellion.
Xiao Chiye’s fingers tapped the tea lid.
This fire must never reach Prince Chu.
The Emperor’s illness was severe, and no one could predict when he might call upon the Dragon Banquet. But Xian De Emperor had no heirs; if the crisis occurred suddenly, Li Jianheng would be first in line.
Today’s events were entirely due to Xiao Chiye’s lack of foresight; Li Jianheng’s bold departure from the hall could not be glossed over.
The Xiao family walked on thin ice. If suspicion touched the throne, Li Bei’s twelve thousand troops would be like a sword poised over Xiao Jiming’s neck.
The situation was urgent; it could not be allowed to flare further.
Suddenly, Xiao Chiye smashed the teacup, the sharp “clink” drawing every eye.
Li Jianheng, anxious, said, “Ce… Ce’an…”
Xiao Chiye rose and strode quickly to the throne, kneeling. He spoke loudly: “Your Majesty! I dare not conceal the truth—this person was beaten at my command.”
The Xian De Emperor stared at him. “He is a mere palace eunuch. What grudge could you possibly hold to strike him so mercilessly?”
Ji Lei also cast a glance at him: “Lord Xiao, this is a matter of grave importance. Do not let personal feelings dictate your actions.”
“What grave matter is this?” Xiao Chiye replied arrogantly. “Besides, I do not consider it a crime. A lowly eunuch—so what if he dies? Am I, the esteemed Second-Rank Commander of the Imperial Guards, to endure humiliation from a contemptible dog-slave?”
“Second Young Master, your rage seems exceptional,” Hua Sijian said. “Yet Little Fuze had no dealings with you. Why such anger?”
“You wouldn’t know,” Xiao Chiye said. “A few months ago, I rode to the training grounds. That wretched eunuch blocked my sedan chair. He swaggered so arrogantly I thought he was Pan Gonggong himself. I scolded him, and he spoke insolently. For a man, to be publicly humiliated by a vile eunuch—anyone else would not have endured it.”
Pan Rugui, serving outside the main hall, listened as Xiao Chiye kept calling him a “eunuch,” wiping sweat from his brow for him.
The Xian De Emperor pondered, and the Empress Dowager spoke first: “Even so, killing over minor grievances is not the act of a gentleman.”
Pan Rugui, as if struck by sorrow, knelt with tears: “We are all lowly servants. How could we compare with Second Young Master? The Empress Dowager’s kindness is heaven-sent. Little Fuze is usually spoiled and undisciplined. When encountering palace soldiers, he shows no respect. Receiving instruction from Second Young Master yet failing to reform… the fault lies in our negligence!”
He pleaded humbly, but eunuchs, when facing ministers, were required by law to dismount and kneel.
The Empress Dowager, devoted to Buddhism and averse to killing, said to the Xian De Emperor: “Since ancient times, even the Son of Heaven is not above the law. Xiao Chiye’s recklessness cannot be lightly pardoned. The Xiao family is loyal and virtuous; if Li Bei’s son is placed here and indulged without restraint, one day they may fail the trust bestowed upon them.”
Ji Lei, unwilling to let the matter slide, said, “Second Young Master has always been friendly with Prince Chu. Acting thus, Your Highness—”
“I have more to say. I ordered the beating, but I did not kill him. Your Majesty, I initially intended to kill him in anger, but Prince Chu intervened, urging me not to. The assault today was carried out quietly by the guards I summoned, but who knew Prince Chu would notice midway and personally save Little Fuze? With him present, even my boldness could not override his face, so I let him live. As for how he drowned, I am puzzled. Who would take revenge for me in such a reckless manner? Ji Lei,” Xiao Chiye turned to him, eyes gleaming faintly, “the Jinyiwei are usually meticulous, yet today he lay at the roadside, slipping past patrols into the pond… perhaps he stumbled, blindfolded, losing his way.”
Hai Liangyi said, “Indeed. Such a large man falling into the pond, with Jinyiwei patrolling constantly, yet none noticed. Were there assassins in the West Garden today, the guards would have been none the wiser.”
Ji Lei dared not muddy the waters further. He kowtowed hurriedly. “Your Majesty! The Jinyiwei acted helplessly. Patrols rotate with the Eight Battalions; spacing is fixed. If someone planned it, they could exploit the gap. This may be a personal grudge of the eunuch; it should be investigated thoroughly.”
Xi Guan’an, commanding the Eight Battalions, also knelt: “Rules are rules; we cannot be negligent. During the rotation, if someone memorized the timing and struck, it is possible. The eunuch’s private enmities must be traced carefully.”
“Investigate!” The Xian De Emperor sneered, suddenly hurling the teacup at Xi Guan’an, enraged. “A man dies under your watch, yet you shirk responsibility! Have I entrusted safety to you… and you—”
The Emperor’s throat was hoarse; he clutched his mouth and coughed again, bracing on the table as he leaned back.
“Your Majesty!”
The court ladies cried out sharply; the hall erupted in chaos.
“Summon the imperial physicians!” the Empress Dowager commanded.
Li Jianheng, seeing Xiao Chiye again, felt as if he were seeing his own brother. “Brother! You scared me just now!”
Xiao Chiye said, “Kneeling so long makes one hungry. Here, take some refreshments.”
Li Jianheng waved to have them brought, standing beside Xiao Chiye under the West Garden corridor, watching the lit hall.
“If the Emperor wakes, he will ask for you,” Li Jianheng said. “How did he just die? I’m truly unlucky!”
Xiao Chiye nibbled on the snack with herbal tea.
This matter was hard to explain.
Little Fuze had always been favored by Pan Rugui. If someone intended his death, how could it coincidentally coincide with Li Jianheng’s beating? If it wasn’t premeditated, a sudden killing would yield fewer benefits than leaving him tied and threatened.
But Pan Rugui and Ji Lei had reacted too quickly. Now that the man was dead, they used it fully. If it could implicate Prince Chu, it would serve two purposes.
“Has the Emperor been summoning companions lately?” Xiao Chiye asked casually.
“Yes,” Li Jianheng replied. “Recently, the most favored is a woman of the Wei family; even the Empress Dowager likes her.”
Xiao Chiye’s expression grew thoughtful.
Night had fallen, yet no one dared leave, standing in small groups along the corridor, waiting for the Emperor to awaken.
Xi Guan’an left midway, returning with the Empress Dowager’s orders to wait inside. After half an hour, Xiao Chiye suddenly saw the Eight Battalions’ guards escorting a plainclothed, clean-looking laborer through the side gate.
“Who is that?” Xiao Chiye asked.
Li Jianheng peeked: “A laborer? There aren’t many in the West Garden. Why bring one here?”
Xiao Chiye, squinting in the lantern light, noticed the laborer’s face was disfigured, bearing burn scars. For some reason, his heart thumped; a foreboding feeling lingered.
“A laborer in the West Garden,” Xiao Chiye said. “This is a place for the Emperor’s reception; attendants are usually handsome. Where did someone like this come from?”
After a while, Pan Rugui stepped out, announcing loudly: “Summon the eighth son of the Shen family, swiftly, to await an audience!”
The ministers erupted into discussion.
Though the Shen family’s treason had not yet been formally concluded, their name was already infamous across the land. The wounds of Zhongbo had not healed, the defeat still blamed. The surviving Shen heirs, clinging to life, already drew unrest along the border. How could they now be permitted to appear?
“What’s going on?” Li Jianheng said, panicked. “Did they uncover something? Ce’an, you have a grudge; seeing him might ignite it. For the sake of the Xiao family’s honor, he should not be allowed out!”
Xiao Chiye said nothing, only fixed his gaze on the doorway.
Within half an incense stick’s time, the vanguard guards entered, followed at a measured distance by someone else.
After five years, this person’s hair had grown long, tied with a coarse wooden pin, without a crown. An old, wide robe concealed his wrists, revealing porcelain-like skin. Lantern light obscured Xiao Chiye’s view at first, but when the man stepped forward, the teacup in Li Jianheng’s hand slipped.
Li Jianheng whispered, unnerved: “You never told me he looked like this…”
Xiao Chiye pressed his thumb lightly.
Shen Zechuan passed in front of the corridor. In that instant, their eyes met—a gaze deeply etched in memory.
His eyes were narrow, the outer corners lifted in a faint arc. They held a divine light, like hidden stars, even under the lantern’s dim glow.
In that fleeting moment, Shen Zechuan seemed to smile at Xiao Chiye. But it was so faint, like a wind in the night—thin, cold, and impossible to trace once passed.