Undercurrents stirred

After court was dismissed, Tan Ziwen, Deputy Minister of the Imperial Clan Court, walked out through the palace gates. His coachman had been waiting for some time. Tan Ziwen boarded the carriage but did not go far, stopping beneath a nearby tree to secretly watch the officials emerging one after another through a gap in the curtain. Only when nearly everyone had left did he, his brows tightly knitted and his mind laden with worries, tell the coachman to take him to Dingding Avenue.

Dingding Avenue was the liveliest place in the imperial capital. Shops lined both sides of the street: teahouses, taverns, pawnshops, inns, butcher shops, workshops, government offices, and more.

Pedestrians streamed endlessly along the street-some hurrying along with carrying poles, some hawking their wares, and others traveling in carriages. A few ladies lingered among the cosmetics shops, reluctant to leave.

The faint afterglow of sunset spilled over red bricks, green tiles, and the upswept eaves of lofty buildings, lending the thriving expanse of Luoyang City a hazy, poetic air.

Tan Ziwen changed into plain clothes inside the carriage, then hastily ate and drank a little at a tavern called the Drunken Immortal Tower. Afterward, he bought several boxes of pastries at the Fragrance-Gathering Studio, boarded his carriage, and followed Dingding Avenue to a small alley off Vermilion Bird Avenue.

The alley was deep and quiet, with a few clusters of slender bamboo and neatly arranged houses. Holding the pastry boxes, Tan Ziwen gently knocked on a black-lacquered gate. After a long while, the gate opened a crack, and a man who looked like a steward poked his head out. Tan Ziwen said something to him. The man shook his head, accepted the gifts, and shut the gate again with a clang.

This was the residence of Lord Wang Shutong, Deputy Censor-in-Chief. Just last month, Wang Shutong had sent someone to tell Tan Ziwen how highly he regarded him. Soon afterward, Tan Ziwen had entered his patronage.

Wang Shutong had come from the Knowledge and Practice Institute. At court that day, the emperor had supported the Cui Family of Fanyang Commandery in establishing the Dragon Gate Academy. Keenly sensing something unusual, Tan Ziwen had come expressly to call on Wang Shutong, only to be told by the steward that he was not at home...

That evening, at the prime minister's residence on Dingding Avenue, Prime Minister Ding Fengyuan was already advanced in years and had frequently suffered shortness of breath and coughed up blood over the past six months. The emperor had granted him special permission to recuperate at home without attending court and had sent the imperial physician Hua Zhong to stay at his residence and tend to his health.

Ding Fengyuan had originally been the governor of Chengdu Commandery under the previous dynasty. When the late emperor Zhao Zhen first raised his rebel army, Ding Fengyuan had led his forces to join him. He actively persuaded officials of the former dynasty to surrender, trained soldiers, gathered provisions, and managed military affairs, personally attending to every task. Upright and unyielding, he worked tirelessly without complaint, winning the late emperor's deep appreciation and trust. Later, when the Great Chen Empire was founded, his appointment as prime minister had met with universal approval.

At that moment, Ding Fengyuan reclined on a luohan couch in the reception hall. Seated below him were a group of veteran officials: Pang Tiande, General of the Guards; Huang Jiulang, Remonstrance Counselor; Su Zan, Colonel of the Supporting Standard; Pan Changzai, Supervising Secretary; Xu Panshan, Counselor of the Personal Guard; Liang Daoming, Secretariat Drafter; Guo Huairen, Hanlin Academician; Jiang Mao, Imperial Son-in-Law Commandant; Wang Shutong, Deputy Censor-in-Chief; and Yu Huazhu, Minister of Rites, among others. Qin Lie, Censor-in-Chief, was conspicuously present as well, one cheek still badly swollen. Nearly all the court's leading ministers had gathered there.

Stroking his beard, Remonstrance Counselor Huang Jiulang said, "When our Great Chen Empire was first founded, the late emperor ordered the State Preceptor to establish the Knowledge and Practice Institute, gathering worthy talent from across the realm and selecting people without rigid constraints. Its students were not merely the sons of officials; outstanding scholars from among the common people made up the majority. Over these past dozen or so years, many of the gifted men who emerged from the institute have become pillars of the court. His Majesty's establishment of the Dragon Gate Academy this time... I fear... it does not bode well!"

Su Zan, Colonel of the Supporting Standard, grinned and chuckled, shaking his large head like a pellet drum. "No good, no good. They say each new sovereign brings his own ministers. Has His Majesty grown tired of us old servants?"

Pang Tiande, General of the Guards, glared at him. "Old Su, what nonsense are you spouting? Disaster comes out of the mouth. Watch what you say!" Su Zan smiled sheepishly and fell silent.

Xu Panshan, Counselor of the Personal Guard, smiled. "We are only chatting. This is not the court, and everyone here is a close acquaintance of Prime Minister Ding. Speak your minds freely. There is no harm in it, no harm at all!"

He looked around, then continued, "The Cui Family of Fanyang Commandery has deep pockets and throws its weight around. With a single golden utterance, His Majesty granted them eight hundred mu of land... Dragon Gate Academy. Dragon Gate, academy... heh, the name plainly marks it as an imperial annex! Who knows what the State Preceptor and the Knowledge and Practice Institute intend to do? Some matters require preparations well in advance..."

Hanlin Academician Guo Huairen said, "The Master has stayed out of court affairs for many years. Even the institute's disciples rarely get to see him. There is a rumor that he traveled alone to Western Liang not long ago..."

"Oh..." Everyone present grew animated.

The late emperor Zhao Zhen had always addressed Li Xingzhi as "Master," never calling him directly by name. He had said that, given Li Xingzhi's knowledge of past and present and his abilities beyond the fathoming of gods and ghosts, only the title "Master"-one born before heaven and earth-could express his reverence. After overthrowing the tyrannical Liang dynasty and founding the Great Chen Empire, the late emperor had appointed Li Xingzhi State Preceptor. Both princes had also observed the courtesies of disciples whenever they met him, addressing him as "Master." The disciples of the Knowledge and Practice Institute usually called Li Xingzhi either "Director" or "Master."

At Guo Huairen's words, everyone immediately understood. Although the State Preceptor had kept away from court for years and seldom appeared in public, he remained as healthy as ever. He had even traveled alone to Western Liang recently. The roads through the wider world were long, difficult, and dangerous; the State Preceptor surely had some great undertaking in hand...

Jiang Mao, Imperial Son-in-Law Commandant, said, "If the State Preceptor is in the capital, he will certainly hear what happened at court today. With his venerable standing, if he remonstrates directly with His Majesty... perhaps His Majesty will change his mind and rescind the decree!"

Narrowing his eyes, Huang Jiulang spoke again. "How long has it been since His Majesty summoned the State Preceptor to the palace? The palace eunuchs whisper that His Majesty and the State Preceptor are at odds... Once His Majesty's golden words have been spoken, they are hard to take back. There is something faintly troubling about this affair..."

Qin Lie, Censor-in-Chief, who had remained silent until then, said, "Hmph... I sensed something amiss at court today. That old scoundrel from the Cui Family of Fanyang Commandery positively smothered His Majesty with flattery. The academy will be built in the southern outskirts, only a few dozen li from the Knowledge and Practice Institute. Where does that leave the State Preceptor? On such a major matter, His Majesty made his decision so quickly, without even waiting for us to discuss it. Beforehand... someone must have arranged this in secret.

"Especially Cui Yingtai, Chancellor of the Imperial College. He fawned shamelessly and harbored unfathomable intentions. Hmph... If I had not come to blows with that old scoundrel Liu Daxia, I would certainly have demanded a clear explanation. Ow... why does talking make it hurt again!" He frowned and cradled his swollen, reddened cheek, drawing sharp breaths through his teeth.

Prime Minister Ding Fengyuan began coughing violently. After a wrenching fit that seemed to tear at his heart and lungs, he covered his mouth with a handkerchief and wiped it, then said in a slightly hoarse voice, "We should devote ourselves to assisting His Majesty, not concern ourselves with personal gains and losses. Let us face heaven and earth with clear consciences; history will judge our merits and faults. You must all guard against such disparagement of colleagues, so that what the court hears and sees remains upright..." Before he could finish, he covered his mouth with the handkerchief and began coughing again...

Qin Lie's face flushed faintly with embarrassment. He lowered his head and said no more.

Deputy Censor-in-Chief Wang Shutong spoke. "Since ascending the throne, His Majesty has applied himself tirelessly to his ambitions. Recovering Qinzhou Commandery has never been far from his thoughts. Last time, when provisions were being gathered for an expedition against Western Liang, the ministers argued endlessly over the matter. It was said that someone sought the State Preceptor's opinion, and he was not particularly supportive either... Later, His Majesty secretly had people investigate who had opposed the proposal, and many of them proved to be from the Knowledge and Practice Institute. Perhaps... that was when His Majesty first began considering this..."

Supervising Secretary Pan Changzai picked up the thread. "Indeed. This year's Autumn Examination is about to begin. In previous years, Dong Zeju, Vice Minister of Rites, and I served as chief examiners. Just a few days ago, His Majesty suddenly decreed that the Imperial College would take charge, with its chancellor, Cui Yingtai, serving as chief examiner for the Autumn Examination..."

Ding Fengyuan reclined on the luohan couch with a padded quilt draped over him. Hearing this, he suffered another violent coughing fit. A servant of the prime minister's household quietly approached and carefully stoked the brazier beside him a little higher. As the charcoal blazed, the room gradually grew scorching hot.

Listening to the assembled officials analyze His Majesty's various actions that day, Ding Fengyuan's face grew flushed. He thought, He spent so many years as a prince, always held down by the late emperor and always beneath the eldest prince. He has endured in silence for over a decade... His Majesty... is finally about to make his move...