Two men were chatting in the corridor. One, a middle-aged man in vermilion robes, appeared to be a Vice Minister from the Ministry of Justice. The other, dressed in blue, seemed to be a minor official. Rather than a conversation, it was more the middle-aged man speaking ill of Mei Zhuyu, with the minor official agreeing and flattering him.
“That Section Chief Mei is truly cunning, not leaving a single weakness to exploit. Let’s see if he can always be this lucky.”
“Vice Minister Xu, why be so frustrated? Even if you can’t catch Section Chief Mei making a mistake, can’t you still cause trouble for him and make him miserable? Your rank is higher than his. If you want to torment him, it would be easy.”
“It’s not that simple. Don’t be fooled by his facade of integrity. He only got this position as Section Chief in the Ministry of Justice through his connections with the Noble Consort. Don’t think he’s some simple-minded person. Who knows what he’s like in private? Besides, if he didn’t have some powerful connections, how could he marry Lady Wu, the second daughter of Duke Yu? She’s the Empress’s sister.”
“Speaking of that, I have to admire Section Chief Mei a bit. To curry favor with Duke Yu and Her Majesty the Empress, he even dared to hold his nose and marry Lady Wu. Just for that alone, we lesser folk can’t compare to his broad-mindedness. I wonder if he’ll have to exchange his black gauze hat for a green one.”
The blue-robed minor official’s tone was full of contempt and disdain.
Wu Zhen, crouching on a nearby rockery, swished her tail.
Vice Minister Xu gave a derisive laugh, stroking the small mustache under his nose. “I think they’re a perfect match. Our Section Chief Mei never visits pleasure houses or brothels. Think about it – what normal man behaves like that? I suspect he has a fondness for cut sleeves. As for Wu Zhen, she’s always dressed in men’s clothing, hardly like a woman at all. She’s always unclear with the ladies from the brothels, often taking them out on excursions. In her younger years, every marriage arrangement fell through. Who knows, she might have a taste for polishing mirrors. These two, they’re both sick. Aren’t they just made for each other?”
Wu Zhen rested her head on her paws, looking down at the two men… and their little mustaches. Recently, it has become fashionable for men in Chang’an to grow facial hair. Young and old alike sported identical mustaches. Rumor had it that many men were secretly competing over their mustaches. Wu Zhen couldn’t understand what was attractive about those eyebrow-like whiskers. She found them an eyesore. Fortunately, her young lord hadn’t grown a mustache. Otherwise, she might have been unable to resist making him shave it off.
Disgusted by the short mustaches of the two men before her, Wu Zhen calmly continued listening to their conversation.
“If Vice Minister Xu wants to make things difficult for Section Chief Mei, why not give him that suppressed case to handle? That would surely torment him to death.”
“Hmph, I’d like to, but if I push Mei too hard, he might go crying to his Noble Consort aunt. Then I’d be inviting trouble for no reason.”
“That’s true. Even if he doesn’t go to the Noble Consort, he could turn to Lady Wu. Given Lady Wu’s personality, if she meddles in our affairs, it could be even more troublesome than the Noble Consort… Um… Vice Minister Xu, do you think Lady Wu would intervene on his behalf?”
Vice Minister Xu wore an expression of superior insight. “I don’t think Lady Wu would necessarily help him. She doesn’t have the time for such things. This marriage is ultimately just for show. Duke Yu was ashamed that his second daughter remained unmarried for so long, so he found a man he could control to marry his daughter. And Mei is spineless, looking for a powerful backer. Wasn’t it a perfect match? Do you think there’s any affection between them? Even after her engagement, Lady Wu still frequents brothels. I bet she’s never even looked at Mei.”
The two continued talking, but Wu Zhen had lost interest. They kept repeating the same few points without any fresh gossip. Bored, she stretched on the rock of the artificial mountain and leaped onto the wall, leaving the Ministry of Justice compound.
That afternoon, as the officials of the Ministry of Justice prepared to leave work and return home, they noticed a brightly dressed woman at the entrance of the compound. She wore a vermilion robe adorned with precious ornaments, a golden belt with eight accessories, and cloud-stepping boots. In her hand, she held a gold and jade-inlaid horsewhip. She leaned casually against a chestnut horse, playing with the whip in her hand and occasionally glancing up at the main gate of the Ministry of Justice.
Passing officials couldn’t help but steal glances at her, whispering among themselves.
“Who is that? What woman would wait at the entrance of our Ministry of Justice? Are ordinary women even allowed here?”
“Are you stupid? Look at her unconventional attire. Who else could it be but the second daughter of the Wu family, the Empress’s sister? Who else would dare to dress like that?”
“This is my first time seeing the famous Lady Wu. She’s much prettier than I imagined.”
“Pretty she may be, but could you handle a woman like that?”
“I heard recently that our Ministry’s Section Chief Mei is going to marry her. Could she be here to see him?”
“Must be. Wonder what she wants with Section Chief Mei. Maybe she’s here to personally inspect her future husband. Ah, let’s come back later and see if she’s satisfied. If not, we might get to see her whip someone.”
Wu Zhen could hear the surrounding whispers. She casually glanced around, seeing the officials and clerks all looking at her with various expressions – curiosity, contempt, fear, or anticipation.
After a while, Wu Zhen saw Vice Minister Xu and the blue-robed clerk who had been speaking ill of her earlier come out. Coincidentally, Mei Zhuyu emerged not long after them.
Wu Zhen smiled suddenly and urged her horse forward, then abruptly increased speed. Many clerks paled in fright, hurriedly moving aside. Vice Minister Xu and his companion, realizing Wu Zhen was charging straight at them, were terrified and unable to react in time. Wu Zhen’s horse was already in front of them.
As Vice Minister Xu and the blue-robed clerk’s legs gave way and they fell backward, Wu Zhen’s horse leaped over their heads, landing steadily right in front of Mei Zhuyu.
Mei Zhuyu remained calm, looking up at her with a neutral expression.
Though he hadn’t spoken, Wu Zhen seemed to understand what he wanted to say. She smiled nonchalantly and said, “Galloping in front of a government office, that’s a fine of ten taels, isn’t it? If I remember correctly.” As she spoke, she took out a heavy silk purse from her bosom and tossed it into Mei Zhuyu’s hands.
Mei Zhuyu: “…There were no injuries. A fine of five taels would suffice.”
Wu Zhen spoke affectionately from atop her horse: “Then keep the other half for yourself. I noticed you seem to have lost weight again in just a few days. Is the food at the Ministry of Justice so terrible? Next time, you should go out to eat on your own.”
Mei Zhuyu considered his answer carefully: “Actually, it’s not too bad.”
The two of them conversed as if no one else was around, their manner surprisingly natural. This astonished the crowd of observing colleagues. Most of them had assumed the pair had barely met and were unfamiliar with each other, but judging from today’s scene, it seemed they often saw each other.
Vice Minister Xu, who had just been helped up by a nearby clerk after being frightened by Wu Zhen’s horse, witnessed Mei Zhuyu and Wu Zhen’s conversation. His face alternated between red and white, presenting quite a spectacle.
Wu Zhen then smiled at Mei Zhuyu again and said: “My lord, on your next day off, how about we go to Azalea Mountain at the foot of South Mountain for an outing?”
A look of anticipation appeared in Mei Zhuyu’s usually calm eyes. He nodded, agreeing without hesitation: “Alright, I have a day off in three days.”
Wu Zhen hadn’t been sure if Mei Zhuyu would agree when she asked. It wouldn’t have mattered either way, as she was just making a gesture. But seeing him appear so happy, Wu Zhen felt inexplicably pleased. Her smile brightened even more, “Good, I’ll come find you then.”
Mei Zhuyu stared at her overly bright smile, suddenly dazed, gazing at her in a stupor.
At this moment, the onlookers all felt they shouldn’t be present in this scene, as if they were intruding. Of course, some quietly rubbed their eyes, feeling they were seeing a fake Section Chief Mei. Who was this person standing awkwardly, staring dumbly at the lady on horseback? It couldn’t possibly be the usually cold and taciturn Section Chief Mei. They must be seeing things. How could Section Chief Mei ever show such an expression?
Due to this scene at the entrance of the Ministry of Justice, a new wave of rumors about Mei Zhuyu and Wu Zhen quickly spread. Vice Minister Xu, who had witnessed the scene and suffered a loss of face, was so angry he couldn’t sleep all night. The next day, hearing people in the office discussing the incident again – including his embarrassing fall when frightened by the horse – he nearly smashed his inkstone in rage.
“Vice Minister Xu, please calm down. Why bother with people like that? How about we go to Pingkang Ward this afternoon after work and find some understanding ladies to drink with?” the sycophantic clerk suggested.
“Fine, let’s go to Madam Wu’s place as usual.”
That night, at Madam Wu Ye’s brothel in Pingkang Ward, Vice Minister Xu and the blue-robed clerk were drinking and listening to music, attended by two courtesans. Next door, Wu Zhen sat with her legs crossed, humming a tune with a contented expression. Below her, her group of little brothers were noisily playing a drinking game, tossing dice back and forth.
“Sister Zhen, what are we playing here today?” Mei Si asked, coming over.
Wu Zhen smiled, putting down her wine cup and saying leisurely: “We’re playing with two mustachioed gossips.”
The night passed, and the next day, as Mei Zhuyu was eating lunch at the Ministry of Justice, he heard a fresh rumor. Their Ministry’s Vice Minister Xu and his subordinate clerk had been discovered in a compromising position, half-dressed and embracing each other in Pingkang Ward the previous night.
“I never would have guessed that Vice Minister Xu was into cut sleeves. Tsk, you really can’t judge a book by its cover.”
“Indeed. I heard they were caught red-handed by a group of young lords. How embarrassing. If they have a passion for cut sleeves, why go to a brothel? And they even asked for Madam Wu’s company. Madam Wu isn’t cheap. What a waste of money.”
Amidst the crowd of people whispering and chuckling, Mei Zhuyu sat alone, eating seriously as if he were in another world. He finished his meal and left, walking out of the sea of gossip, completely disregarding the irrelevant people and news in the rumors. At this moment, he was thinking of only one thing.
In one day, he would be going on an outing with Wu Zhen to Azalea Mountain.
Mountain forests were often home to tree spirits. He seriously considered whether he should go there tonight in advance to clean up the mountain a bit.