WangXian Forever Book 10

Chapter 22: Steps

Huaisang looks really uncomfortable, but he stops fanning himself and actually puts it down. Before he begins to speak, there's a knock on the door and the rest of the family comes in.

Cheng Daiyu bows to everyone but quickly snags the seat next to Lan Zhan, who politely ignores her.

Once Cheng Fan and Shen Lijuan take their seats, Wei Ying activates the silencing talismans again.

"So I don't have any evidence of this, but I always wondered why Waigong's visits to the Palace were so regular. If one was going to visit a friend, wouldn't it be more random than an organised meeting? Unless the Emperor was too busy and had to schedule him in at a certain time every week.

"But sometimes, he went twice a week, and even three or four times. The frequency of his visits depended on what was going to happen." Huaisang chugs down the rest of his tea, not really looking at anyone else.

"You know, this might be the first time you've been so forthcoming when asked." Wei Ying says with approval. "Now, A-Sang, please explain that because I'm confused. Wouldn't the visits have increased AFTER something had happened, say for example, the flooding?"

"See, that's what I thought, too. But then I noticed a pattern."

Cheng Fan pours him some more tea. Food is on the table but all ears are eagerly listening to Huaisang and what he's about to say. The Cheng family know that they've walked in on a very important discussion, and no one interrupts him, but it is clear that they have some questions of their own.

Right now, Huaisang is being stared at as if he's grown another arm.

"When would you have noticed a pattern? When were you ever visiting for that long to do so?" Hao Bai demands.

"Um...so, it wasn't just me. People like to talk, especially when wine loosens reluctant tongues; I have friends who like to keep me up to date with things. I'm not going to apologise for that, Waipo. I can't, because I believe in protecting my family, and really, all of you are all I have left. After Da-Ge..." Huaisang's voice cracks, "well, let's just say, I learned my lesson the hard way." His trembling fingers reach for his fan, but he changes his mind and looks down, hands folded in his lap.

"You're basically saying you have a network of spies here, right? I'm not surprised," Wei Ying admits.

"Out of necessity. After what happened with Waigong, I'm not taking any chances." Huaisang's eyes are fierce.

He reminds Wei Ying of a phoenix, just as elegant and beautiful to look at, but hiding a terrible secret; the immortality of dying and being born again, a resurrection that occurs again and again.

Lan Zhan might have summed it up perfectly earlier by saying that he and Wei Ying had gone through extensive shit, but wasn't that the same for Huaisang? First, his mother and father pass away, leaving a child with only his older brother left, and this extended family. Huaisang had already lost his brother, so could any of them actually judge him for wanting to keep tabs on those he loved?

"It's alright, Haizi. Well, it's not, but then caught between your spies and those of the Emperor, I'd rather have yours. Carry on, what did you find out?" Hao Bai just looks exhausted now.

"My friends informed me whenever Waigong went to the Palace to meet his friend, he usually went directly to the Emperor's personal quarters, which are accessible through the Eastern gate. But on the night he was killed, he had gone straight to the main gates facing north. I didn't think anything of it then, but I'm wondering why? Since it was an unscheduled meeting, and given the hour, surely his friend would be in his private quarters, no? And regarding the pattern of events, my grandfather always, always increased his visits before some calamity.

"There were several incidents that occurred, which made me wonder at what exactly Waigong was doing for the Emperor. He'd go see his friend, and then the following week, a noble would suddenly pass away, or there'd be an uprising in another part of the Kingdom and it would suddenly come to light that the people orchestrating the coup were subdued in a timely manner, so less lives were lost.

"It took me a long time to put two and two together. I figured that he must be working for the Emperor in some kind of capacity, because that line of thinking made the most sense, right?" Huaisang looks up and his hazel eyes meet silver ones, staring right back at him. "What other reason could he have?"

Wei Ying nods encouragingly.

"But if it was in an official capacity, then why was he working in secret? My uncle and aunt, and my grandmother had no idea what he was doing, but he kept going on long trips, often to these places where the disturbances would be reported the following week, which led me to believe that my grandfather was a spy for the Emperor himself."

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Breakfast is served among themselves, and the meal is spent quietly eating, each individual lost in their own thoughts.

That's a huge jump from an innocent visit among two friends, to a relationship between the Emperor and his spy, and something tells Wei Ying not to treat this lightly. Something else that's really bugging him is the fact that Cheng Maoji refrained from using his usual entrance when going to see the Emperor, whom he trusted.

Was he intercepted? If so, then by whom? It could be somebody else working for the Emperor, or another person entirely, but one thing is absolutely clear. He waits until everyone finishes eating before speaking.

"I think we have to find a way to talk to the Emperor."

"I sent a servant with a petition to do that last night. We must wait for the reply." Hao Bai tells him.

The cup she's holding rattles when she sets it down.

"Okay, to begin with, let's try things your way. But no matter how we look at it, I don't think this matter can be finished as quickly as we like, and I want to thank you for your hospitality, but we have to let the people back home know what's going on. We'll definitely come back, probably this afternoon." Wei Ying tells them.

"Then, in the meantime, we'll get the door to my husband's office open and see if we can find something more to help us." Hao Bai says firmly, a new determination shining in her eyes.

"And I will keep you updated," Huaisang promises.

"You better," Hui Gai says, and it sounds like a threat.