After the meal, the Sixth Imperial Prince showed not the slightest intention of leaving. Compared to the cold and quiet of the imperial prince’s household, he simply wanted to stay by his master’s side. There were always so many people around his master, always good things to eat, always the sound of laughter — it was as though even the very air around his master was warm.
Hua Zhi made no move to hurry him along. Instead, a thought for testing him came to mind. “In your estimation, is what Wei Cong Wen has done an act of allegiance — or is it a trap?”
“I’ve been turning it over in my mind the whole way here, and I think either is possible.” The Sixth Imperial Prince shared his thoughts. “Not long after the new year, you were the target of an assassination attempt, and when it was traced back to Wei Cong Wen you called off the investigation and let the matter pass. Wei Cong Wen is a shrewd man — he would have understood afterward that no matter how things turned out, there was nothing in it for him. If it succeeded, Gu Yanxi would never let him off. If it failed, he would be the one left holding the blame — from beginning to end, the Fourth Imperial Brother treated him as something disposable. Even if the Fourth Imperial Brother truly rose to the top one day, it would likely mean nothing good for Wei Cong Wen. For his own sake, and for the sake of the Wei Family, he must find another path — and I am that path. So it is that he wishes to offer his allegiance to me.”
The Sixth Imperial Prince looked at his master, uncertain whether his reasoning was right.
Hua Zhi lowered her head and lifted her teacup. “Continue.”
“Yes.” The Sixth Imperial Prince gathered his thoughts. “And yet a trap is equally possible — half and half, at least. Wei Cong Wen is openly known as the Fourth Imperial Brother’s man, so it would be entirely plausible for him to set a trap on the Fourth Imperial Brother’s behalf to harm me. But because of the reasoning I just gave — that he clearly knows there is nothing to gain from the Fourth Imperial Brother’s side — he would likely not make a genuine effort to do his bidding. So even if this address truly is a trap, he would certainly have left some clue within it to help us find our way out.”
Hua Zhi turned the teacup slowly in her hands. “Knowing the kind of person he is — would you dare use him?”
“Yes.”
“Oh?”
The Sixth Imperial Prince pressed his lips together. “I’ve investigated Wei Cong Wen. Though he has always been overshadowed by Elder Hua, he himself is a capable man — it is simply that he is too eager for quick results. He is always looking for shortcuts. A man like that can be used, but must be kept under a firm hand.”
Hua Zhi smiled. A child’s growth truly was astonishing — most striking when you had not seen them for a stretch of time. “When I used to play chess with my grandfather, he would sometimes speak of affairs at court. On the rare occasion Wei Cong Wen came up, he would always shake his head and say what a pity it was. As far as I know, Wei Cong Wen has a mother who lacks good judgment, and his wife is the old lady’s niece — same temperament, same manner of thinking as the old lady. His son is decent enough, and though somewhat short-sighted and not fit for great things, he can lean on the Wei Family’s standing to secure a modest official post and make his way along steadily enough. But his only grandson has already been ruined by those two women. With no capable successor, how could he not be anxious? Setting aside those external factors — he is actually half of a capable official.”
After a pause, Hua Zhi added: “That is my grandfather’s assessment of him.”
The Sixth Imperial Prince smiled. “Elder Hua has a truly magnanimous heart — Senior Official Wei has not spared any effort in opposing him over the years.”
Hua Zhi shook her head with a light laugh. Her grandfather was magnanimous, certainly — it was true he bore no grudge against the Wei Family. But in private he had not been short of grumbles about their unseemly household conduct. That sort of thing would damage her grandfather’s image, so she would not mention it. “Things cannot go on like this. We are too much on the back foot. Only when we force them into anxiety and disorder will they make mistakes. We cannot let them sit comfortably at their leisure while we are the ones scrambling.”
“Yes.”
Just then, Chen Qing came running back, so out of breath that it was clear just how urgent matters were. “What happened?”
Hua Zhi stood up. “How was it?”
“A whole building full of grain and weapons — even imperial regalia had been prepared!”
So it had come to this after all. Hua Zhi felt little surprise. From the moment she had seen that address, she had half suspected as much. The other side, though holding the upper hand and in possession of the Emperor, could not allow the Emperor to remain hidden from sight indefinitely — the court officials would not stand for it, and if the banner of “clearing the Emperor’s side of treacherous advisors and rescuing him” were truly raised, their opponents would not be able to escape the consequences. But if her own side held steady and gave the other side no opening to exploit, the other side would have to manufacture one.
“When you went — did you see anyone there?”
“Yes. I also saw one of the Fourth Imperial Prince’s most trusted men.”
Hua Zhi’s brow knitted as she thought it through. “If you were making the decision, what would you do right now?”
Chen Qing answered without a moment’s hesitation: “Naturally, we would bring people to catch them with the evidence in hand!”
Hua Zhi’s eyes lit up — she understood now what the other side intended. “Report it to the authorities at once.”
Chen Qing did not follow. “Report it to the authorities? But if we cannot catch anyone, reporting it will do nothing to harm them at all.”
“We won’t be catching anyone. If we bring people there right now, we will be walking straight into their trap. They will turn it around on us — cry thief and accuse us of having prepared those things ourselves in order to stage a rebellion. Let us turn their scheme against them instead. The Emperor has not appeared in a long time, and the court officials are already uneasy. If those things are uncovered now, they will feel an even more urgent need to see the Emperor — and they will grow suspicious.”
Hua Zhi’s eyes grew bright with clarity. “They will begin to suspect that someone harbors treacherous intentions. The longer the Emperor fails to appear, the more they will suspect that perhaps the Emperor has already met with misfortune. And then…”
Chen Qing understood now — there was nothing left he did not grasp. He pressed his fist to his chest and bowed. “I will go and arrange this at once.”
“Remember to use people who have no visible connection to us. We cannot give them anything to use to pour blame upon our heads.”
“Yes.”
Hua Zhi walked to the candle, lifted the glass shade, and used the snuffer to trim the wick so that the flame burned brighter. Then she drew out Wei Cong Wen’s slip of paper again and examined it carefully. Her thinking matched the Sixth Imperial Prince’s — having already turned away in his heart, Wei Cong Wen would not commit himself entirely to the losing side.
When her fingertips brushed against something small, hard, and smooth, she felt a measure of calm settle within her. It had been dark at the time — she had been careless.
“Master — did you find something?”
Hua Zhi ran her finger along that spot and gestured for him to look. The Sixth Imperial Prince felt along it. “Wax?”
“It feels like wax.”
The Sixth Imperial Prince carefully scraped the spot with his fingernail — a very thin layer — beneath which, written in charcoal, were two characters: BEWARE — TRAP.
“Senior Official Wei truly does mean to offer his allegiance. If we were to go to him and ask about the Fourth Imperial Brother’s affairs, he would be willing to speak.”
“Even having turned away in his heart, his knowledge will be limited — but even a little is something. Someone, go and call Chen Qing.”
Someone acknowledged the order and left to fetch him.
Chen Qing had been nearby arranging matters; the moment he heard himself summoned he did not dare delay and came in at once.
“Please make one more trip to the Wei household. Tell him that the Sixth Highness has received his warning, and ask whether there is anything else he is able to share with us. Wei Cong Wen knows you — if anyone else were to go, he might not feel comfortable trusting them.”
“Yes. I will go at once.”
The rain had still not stopped. Hua Zhi walked to the doorway; the wind lifted the hem of her skirt. “The imperial examinations will be upon us soon.”
The Sixth Imperial Prince took up a cloak and stepped forward to drape it over his master’s shoulders. “In your view, will they go ahead as scheduled this year?”
“That is hardly something I have any say in. If the Emperor is well, all will be as it should — but if…”
Silence fell between them. The Sixth Imperial Prince spoke: “The examination candidates have already been making their way into the capital.”
“Have you spoken with the various officials about how this matter should be handled?” Hua Zhi turned to look at the young man standing straight and tall as a silver birch. “Go on back now. Keep your head clear, and don’t act impulsively.”
“Yes.” The Sixth Imperial Prince gave a bow of proper respect. “You have been working too hard. Please rest, and let your mind rest as well.”
“I know.”