CT - 68

Ye Tingyan looked up at the rising moon on the branches and said, “Grand Tutor...”

“I know what you want to ask me,” Yu Qiushi interrupted him, smiling, “From the moment we first met on the Red Spot Terrace, I knew your intention.”

He put down his wine cup and seemed lost in thought, his voice becoming ethereal: “Alright, I’ll tell you what you want to know... When Youzhou and the Erzhan tribe went to war back then, I happened to be in Pingcheng, beside the Youyun River. That war lasted six months, extending far and wide... If Erzhan broke through the Youyun River, they could go straight into Pingcheng and massacre the twenty thousand residents in the city. I was an obscure minor official then, defending Pingcheng. In late June, the war reached us, and the one leading the troops to meet the enemy... was your eldest brother.”

“Later, the battle of Youyun River was lost, but Erzhan retreated. I heard your eldest brother defected and died, but fortunately, the defending general Liu Yun was vigilant and led the remaining forces to escape, thus preserving some military strength. Thereafter, Liu Yun made a big show of things in Pingcheng, claiming that the army was well-fed and horses strong in that battle, and if it weren’t for your eldest brother’s defection, they would not have lost. The ignorant people didn’t know the truth, and for a while, everyone felt grateful to General Liu and reviled your eldest brother. The war report was also sent back to Bianjing this way.”

Ye Tingyan listened, lowering his gaze: “And then?”

Yu Qiushi continued: “Although Pingcheng was temporarily saved, Erzhan had not retreated, and the war had to continue. I knew some Erzhan language, so I disguised myself and crossed the border, trying to gather some information from the Erzhan people. Later, I indeed met an Erzhan general, and from him, I learned of a transaction—”

“During the Battle of Youyun River, the leader of the Erzhan tribe had a vendetta against your Ye family for the murder of his father. To exact personal revenge, this person secretly met with Liu Yun. He told Liu Yun that if he simply withheld reinforcements from your elder brother and let him die under a tarnished reputation, he could persuade his subordinates to feign a tribal rebellion after crossing the Youyun River and not enter Pingcheng to massacre the city. Liu Yun was a treacherous man, and your elder brother, being young and impetuous, already had a rift with him. The Erzhan person and Liu Yun hit it off immediately, leading to the calamity of the Ye clan.”

“And you?” Ye Tingyan clenched the wine cup in his hand tightly. “What did you do after you found out?”

Yu Qiushi slowly shook his head: “Me? I did nothing.”

He continued: “Although sacrificing the good name of the Ye family for the lives of twenty thousand citizens of Pingcheng was a truly worthwhile trade, betraying a general for peace is too dishonorable. If this matter were widely known, the imperial court’s reputation in the northern regions would be severely damaged. The generals defending Youzhou would inevitably be in a state of alarm, falling into conflict and suspicion. Who would still truly defend the nation? Who would still entrust their lives? Moreover, Liu Yun had built such a good reputation for himself; would the common people then believe that the late emperor was suspicious of a good general because Liu Yun had grown too powerful?”

He asked three questions in a row, his voice growing higher with each. Ye Tingyan listened, and suddenly felt a suffocating pain in his chest—he suddenly understood why Song Lan had said yesterday, “It’s not just the Grand Tutor’s fault, but also the royal family’s fault.”

“There must always be sacrifices. Since things have come to this, why struggle.”

Seeing his silence, Yu Qiushi lifted his eyelids and glanced at him: “Third Young Master, are you enlightened?”

Ye Tingyan suddenly asked, “Did you do nothing at all? Liu Yun was later transferred back to Bianjing and died by falling into the Bian River after getting drunk—this was your compensation. Why don’t you mention it?”

Yu Qiushi replied calmly, “What compensation? That person deserved to die, and I never claim credit.”

Ye Tingyan fell silent. After a long pause, he finally asked, “Did the late emperor... know about this?”

Yu Qiushi was startled, and a long laugh escaped his throat: “The late emperor—”

“When the military report came back that year, Liu Yun presented clear evidence of your eldest son’s treason along with it. Even so, the late emperor still refused to believe it. After some thought, he feigned a beating of the Crown Prince in the imperial garden, allowing the father-son dispute to spread widely, which at least cleared your Ye family of guilt. Otherwise, you would have died after the branding; how could you be alive today? How benevolent was the late emperor! If he had known the whole truth, it would have been another agonizing struggle for him, so I simply didn’t tell him. Why bother a living person with a matter that has no surviving witnesses?”

Ye Tingyan’s face was pale, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

Yu Qiushi didn’t notice his subtle movement: “I know you wanted to hear this. On the pavilion over the Bian River, when you brought up old matters, weren’t you testing how much I knew? Today I’ve told you, and I also want to advise you, Third Young Master, after hearing this today, you should swallow this matter whole as well. The current Emperor is not the late emperor; he has no time to care about old affairs. If you are dissatisfied with the court because of this matter, you might as well resign early and leave, lest you meet a bad end. My deliberate obstruction on the Red Spot Terrace was to make you retreat from difficulty—don’t force yourself into a dead end, or it will be too late for regret.”

The cold wine flowed down his throat, bringing a pungent sting. Ye Tingyan put down his wine cup, seemingly hearing a young voice from the void.

“Saved by your grace... I shall dedicate my life to Your Highness.”

“Your Highness, I have no other wish... If one day the injustice to my Ye family can be fully revealed, I will die without regret.”

“Go quickly, go now, Your Highness... you and I, lord and subject, shall meet again in the next life!”

Those voices echoed in his ears, chaotic and incessant.

Finally, amidst the clamor, he heard two dull “clangs.”

Yu Qiushi dipped his finger in wine and flicked the golden-bronze wine cup twice, scattering liquid.

“Our business is done, we’ve talked for a long time, consider it thanks for this pot of wine... The moon hasn’t set in the west, it should be my good time.”

“How short is life, a flick of a finger, gone in an instant. The world loves me, hates me, resents me, slanders me; what is there to fear? I don’t need the world to know me. I only regret that I embarked on a misguided path, my aspirations unfulfilled, never destined to be seen. The spring blossoms have faded, the autumn fruits have not ripened. Alas, how painful!”

The moon was at its zenith. He reached out and grasped the short knife, and a fierce wind suddenly rose.

Ye Tingyan sat in his original spot, asking indifferently, “Do you have any regrets?”

“Why do you also ask this question?” Yu Qiushi looked up at the sky, his previously confused gaze gradually sharpening. “Since being promoted by the late emperor, for twenty-three years, how could I be faultless? But looking back, if I were to choose again from the beginning, I would still tread this path. Therefore, I have faults, but no regrets!”

Ye Tingyan sneered in praise: “What spirit.”

There were no clouds tonight, a cold, ghostly moon. Yu Qiushi stared at it blankly, tears seemingly welling in his eyes: “My hands have never touched blood in my life, yet I have killed countless people. Today, with the moon sending me off, heaven truly has compassion! Oh heaven, compassion ages one quickly! The great earth contains form, laboring life, resting old age. Let me rest, in death, perfect my life, perfect my death!”

He drew the knife across his throat and fell heavily to the ground.

Ye Tingyan sat in his original spot for a long time before rising and bowing to the corpse.

“I should have called you ‘Teacher’ too. Though I never formally bowed to you, I learned too much, too much from you, whether for good or ill.” He smelled the bloody stench around him. “But if you knew who I truly was, wouldn’t it be to your liking, even if your soul returned to the heavens? I have returned from the endless abyss, and now I am also the one you chose.”

Blood touched his forehead. Ye Tingyan wiped it away, chuckling softly. The bloodstain on his pale cheek made him appear alluring, like a beautiful ghost.

“Although your words were magnanimous, your heart was ultimately restless. But if you knew my identity, even if your soul ascended to heaven, you would be delighted—I selfishly don’t want you to have a peaceful end.”

________________________________________

Under the same moon, Liu Mingzhong hurried into Qionghua Palace and reported in a low voice to the Empress, “The Grand Tutor has departed. His Majesty said he will stay in Ranju Tower tonight, burning incense throughout the night, so he will likely not come to the imperial harem.”

Luo Wei was silent for a moment, then said, “This consort understands.”

Liu Mingzhong hesitated for a long time: “There is one more matter...”

Luo Wei said, “You may speak freely.”

Liu Mingzhong knelt forward, prostrating himself: “Princess Changshou Shkang and her consort have been under house arrest in their residence, always safe and sound. But tonight, probably around the time the Grand Tutor departed, the consort suddenly suffered excruciating heart pain, like a madman, and finally grasped Her Highness’s hand, plunging a sharp object into his own heart.”

Luo Wei was startled and exclaimed sharply, “There are no sharp objects in the Princess’s residence! What did he use to harm himself?”

Liu Mingzhong replied, “It seemed to be a sharpened wooden hairpin. The hairpin was originally blunt, but who knows how long the consort sharpened it to be able to kill with one blow. Her Highness was startled and wanted to enter the palace late at night, but finally gave up, only sending this humble servant to deliver a message to the Empress.”

Luo Wei closed her eyes and took a deep breath: “Enough... And the Imperial Concubine?”

Liu Mingzhong bowed: “The Imperial Concubine is in Pifang Pavilion. Besides the serving palace maids, there are Imperial Guards, so not even a blunt object, let alone news, can get through. His Majesty’s intention is that the Imperial Concubine has always been frail, and learning of her father and brothers’ affairs would inevitably startle her. It would be bad if the dragon’s fetus were harmed. Everything can wait until next year.”

Luo Wei held her forehead and sighed: “You may go.”

Liu Mingzhong hastily said, “Empress, please take care.”

Yu Qiushi committed suicide at mid-戌时 (7-9 PM), and Liu Mingzhong departed at 亥时 (9-11 PM). She had slept for three hours in the afternoon, and now felt no sleepiness at all.

Luo Wei lit a candle by the window, then leaned over the table, patiently watching the wax peel off layer by layer, turning into a puddle of soft, melted red clay.

When the candle was half-burnt, familiar footsteps sounded from outside the lattice window.

For some reason, he didn’t rush to open the window, so Luo Wei also remained still. She watched as the other party reached out and brushed the paper of the window, then asked with a smile, “What are you touching? My shadow?”

He recited lazily from outside the window, “When shall we trim the west window candle together...”

Luo Wei murmured, “But I can’t see your shadow.”

For a moment, she even wondered if it was truly Ye Tingyan outside the window, or the wandering spirit of an old friend from her imagination?

Ye Tingyan stood quietly outside the window, motionless and silent.

Luo Wei suddenly didn’t want to open the window. She looked at the blurred shadow, and for a moment, she had so many things she wanted to tell him: “Autumn clearly hasn’t arrived, yet old friends are falling like leaves. Even if they haven’t completely fallen, they are clinging precariously to the branches. I stand beneath the tree, powerless to resist the bleak autumn wind, and can only watch them depart.”

The person outside the window sighed, his voice light as the wind: “Withered orchids send off guests on the Xianyang Road...”

Luo Wei’s eyes moistened, and she continued, “If heaven has feelings—”

Just then, a drop of hot wax suddenly fell on her hand, making her shiver.

Luo Wei abruptly sobered up and suddenly stopped speaking.

She pressed her temples, calming herself, then thought through what she had to do tonight again. She hardened her heart, and reached out to push open the lattice window.

Ye Tingyan stood quietly outside the window, watching her. Seeing her look at him, he said, “You haven’t finished reciting.”

The summer night had a breeze, rustling the leaves, and the cicadas chirped incessantly. The moonlight was perfect. Amidst this scene, she felt a spiritual annihilation where all things were alive.

Ye Tingyan leaned on her window lattice, his voice sounding distant: “Withered orchids send off guests, Xianyang Road. If heaven has feelings...”

Luo Wei smiled at him.

“If heaven has feelings... heaven too grows old.”