The following day, Mu Fulan departed Yue City under Yuan Handing’s escort. The party traveled south toward Lian City. Once they arrived and had settled Xi’er in, Mu Fulan entered the Sanmiao territories and began her work.

While she was thus occupied, far away in the capital, Zhang Ban received that night a reply letter sent from Changsha. After reading it, he understood that he had walked straight into the Mu woman’s trap. Her present attitude made it perfectly clear that she felt entirely secure in her position — whether or not she would help him gather evidence of Xie Changgeng’s rebellion was entirely up to her. He could only blame himself for being too impatient, for losing his composure at a crucial moment and being led astray by her beauty. He had swallowed this silent loss, and with no leverage to retaliate, even if he wanted to make a scene, it was not possible.

Zhang Ban was seething with pent-up frustration when a servant came to knock at his study door. The servant presented a calling card and said that a visitor had come calling in the night seeking an audience.

Zhang Ban assumed it was yet another person showing up uninvited after dark to petition him for a favor, and barked, “I will not see them!”

The servant said quietly, “The person claims to have come from far away, sent by someone, with an important matter that cannot be delayed.”

Zhang Ban paused. He took the calling card, unfolded it, and glanced at it. A look of surprise and suspicion crossed his face. He steadied himself, then changed his instructions and told the servant to bring the person in.

A moment later, he heard footsteps outside the door as the servant led the visitor in. Zhang Ban immediately composed his expression and took his seat behind the desk.

The visitor was of medium height, with a bamboo hat on his head and nothing remarkable in his appearance. Yet when Zhang Ban looked at him, he had a vague sense of familiarity — as though he had seen the man somewhere before — but for the moment could not place him.

He suppressed the uncertainty in his heart, dismissed the servants, and said in his official tone, “Military Commissioner Xie is stationed far away in Hexi, yet he sends you here to meet with me in the capital privately. If this concerns public affairs, it would seem to violate court protocol. If it is a private matter, then you might just as well have come in broad daylight. Coming to my door in the middle of the night like this — what is the meaning of it?”

The man bowed to him and said, “This matter is both a public and a private affair. Because of its particular nature, the Military Commissioner feared that if handled improperly it might damage his relationship with you, and out of caution he first sent me to meet with you.”

“What matter exactly?” Zhang Ban asked with a frown.

“To be frank with you, Minister, some days ago, the Military Commissioner captured several spies in Hexi who had been gathering military intelligence. The spies confessed under interrogation that they had been acting on your orders, Minister. An incident of this kind naturally had to be reported to Empress Dowager Liu.”

Zhang Ban was shocked. He shot to his feet. “Nonsense! This is a fabricated accusation! I know nothing of this matter!”

The man replied, “The Military Commissioner did not believe it either, and so personally conducted an investigation. What came to light was that the spies had in fact been sent by Prince Qi.”

Only then did Zhang Ban exhale. He took out a handkerchief and dabbed at the fine beads of cold sweat that had broken out on his brow, then said with barely concealed anger, “Prince Qi and I have always kept our distance from one another. He goes and spies on his own, and that is his business, but to frame me on top of it — trying to drive a wedge between me and Commissioner Xie. Fortunately, the Commissioner has a discerning eye, and the scheme did not succeed!”

The reason Zhang Ban had been so alarmed was that an accusation of this kind could be treated as a grave offense or a minor one. If Xie Changgeng were to insist it was he who was responsible and bring it before Empress Dowager Liu, given Xie’s current standing, Zhang Ban would come off far the worse for it.

The man continued, “Minister Zhang, the Military Commissioner also has something he has asked me to convey. He says that you have been guarding against him all this time, but that your efforts have been misdirected — you have been watching the wrong person.”

Zhang Ban’s hand, still raised to wipe his brow, stopped abruptly. He lowered it slowly and forced a smile. “What do you mean by that? I do not follow.”

The man smiled faintly. “The Military Commissioner is being completely candid with the Minister, so you need not pretend to misunderstand what you already understand. The Commissioner says that he has no interest in the inner court, and even less intention of competing with you over official positions at court. Your true adversary, Minister, is not the Military Commissioner — it is Prince Qi. Consider this: should Prince Qi succeed in fabricating charges to bring down the Commissioner, he will inevitably take the Commissioner’s place and be favored by the Empress Dowager. At that point, why would Prince Qi be posted to a distant region? He would remain at court. Two tigers cannot share one mountain. At that point, Minister, it is you who would truly have no foothold left to stand on!”

Zhang Ban thought it through carefully, and the more he thought, the more alarmed he became. He looked at the man and said, “The Military Commissioner sent you to tell me all of this — what exactly is his intention?”

The man did not answer at once. Instead, he walked a few steps forward and came to a stop beside the candlelight. He raised his hand and removed the bamboo hat from his head and smiled. “Minister Zhang, you truly are a man who forgets faces easily — do you no longer recognize me?”

Zhang Ban leaned toward the candlelight and examined the man closely once more. Suddenly a person came to mind, and he blurted out in shock, “It’s you!”

He had finally recognized the man. The figure before him, smiling at him now, was none other than a minor clerk from the Ministry of Personnel named Liu Guan — one who had made a lasting impression on Zhang Ban for being exceptionally capable. He recalled that the man had later, it seemed, offended a superior and been convicted and sent into exile.

No wonder Zhang Ban had found him faintly familiar at first glance. So many years had passed, the man’s appearance had changed somewhat, and Zhang Ban had not paid close attention — which was why he had not recognized him at first.

“You still remember me, Minister. Liu Guan pays his respects.”

Zhang Ban stared in bewilderment. “You — how did you come to be with…”

He had been about to ask how Liu Guan had come to be in Xie Changgeng’s service, but then, thinking of Xie Changgeng’s origins, the answer dawned on him and he stopped short.

Liu Guan smiled. “The Military Commissioner says: in the future, the Minister oversees internal court affairs, and the Commissioner oversees external matters — each fulfilling his own role and jointly serving the Empress Dowager. Would that not be far better than the mutual suspicion of former times?”

Zhang Ban’s gaze flickered unsteadily, and at first he did not speak.

Liu Guan lowered his voice.

“To be perfectly honest, never mind the matter of the Minister’s covert dealings with Changsha in speaking on the Mu clan’s behalf before the Empress Dowager — even older affairs, going back further, have also come to the Commissioner’s attention. Yet knowing all along of the Minister’s ability and talent, he has wished to cultivate ties with you. In that light, what does any of it amount to?”

Zhang Ban was utterly taken aback.

He had never imagined that Xie Changgeng had already learned of his acceptance of bribes. It now seemed likely that Xie Changgeng had also been fully aware of his covert machinations against him in the past, and had simply been biding his time, revealing nothing.

Cold sweat broke out rapidly across his back. He was at once mortified and frightened and could not find words to speak.

Liu Guan watched the ashen-faced Zhang Ban and gave a faint smile.

“Minister Zhang, since the Military Commissioner has sent me to call on you, surely you cannot still harbor doubts about the trust he has placed in you?”

Zhang Ban hesitated no longer. He stepped forward and seized Liu Guan’s hand with both of his, breaking into a smile. “I am ashamed! In the past, I did not know what manner of extraordinary man the Military Commissioner truly is. I trouble you to go back and relay this: from this day forward, I am wholeheartedly with the Commissioner. I am willing to work together with him to support the court and serve the Empress Dowager. Wherever the Commissioner has use for me, he has only to speak.”

Liu Guan leaned in close and whispered a few words in his ear.

Zhang Ban agreed at once. After a brief pause, he suddenly recalled something. He asked Liu Guan to wait a moment, went to his desk, took up his brush and wrote a letter, sealed it, and passed it over, saying, “I trouble you to deliver this letter to the Commissioner.”

Liu Guan took the letter, bid Zhang Ban farewell, then turned and departed.

After Liu Guan left, Zhang Ban sat alone in his study, slowly wiping away the last of the cold sweat from his face and brow. He remained lost in thought for a long while.

……

Five days later, an imperial decree from Empress Dowager Liu was dispatched by courier from the capital, traveling day and night at eight-hundred-li emergency speed to the Military Commissioner’s office in Hexi.

In her decree, the Empress Dowager said that upon receiving Xie Changgeng’s memorial, to which a confession from the captured spy had been attached, she had been extremely furious. She had summoned Prince Qi to be confronted with the evidence, and he had confessed his guilt on the spot. Ordinarily he should have been severely punished, but considering that his actions had also been born of loyalty to the court — that he had been misled by slander and had acted foolishly in a moment of confusion — this time the punishment was set at reprimand and censure.

The Empress Dowager offered reassurances to Xie Changgeng and said that should anything of the kind occur again, no matter who was responsible, she would not treat it lightly. She had already issued stern warnings to all officials at a court assembly. She urged Xie Changgeng by no means to lose heart and become disheartened on account of this. Rewards for him were already on their way and would arrive before long. As for the letter of resignation that had accompanied his memorial, it was being returned to him intact and unopened — the Empress Dowager commanded him to remain loyal to his duties and continue serving the court.

Some days after the decree arrived, Liu Guan also returned to Guzang in secret. That night, he met with Xie Changgeng in the study of the Military Commissioner’s office. Weary as he was from the journey, still travel-worn, he bowed before Xie Changgeng and then recounted the whole of his trip to the capital.

Following their meeting with Zhang Ban, the next day the Empress Dowager had received a memorial from Xie Changgeng, sent from Hexi.

It was also a letter of self-incrimination.

In it, he wrote that some days prior, he had captured a number of spies in Guzang. Believing at first that they were sent by the northern peoples, he had initially paid little attention. Upon further investigation, however, signs emerged, and he came to learn that they had been dispatched by a certain prince of the inner court, who apparently suspected him of harboring rebellious intentions. He wrote that he found this deeply distressing and troubling. In order to prevent further suspicions from accumulating against him in the future, he had, after deep reflection, removed his official seal from the Commissioner’s office, submitted his resignation from his post, and sent this memorial to the court and to the Empress Dowager confessing his error and seeking to prove his innocence.

After receiving the memorial, the Empress Dowager summoned Zhang Ban into the palace at once for a discussion, and Prince Qi’s confession followed from there.

Recounting all this, Liu Guan was in high spirits.

“My lord, we had long since had our eye on Prince Qi’s spies. But before, when you made no move, I was somewhat puzzled. Now I see — it was saving them for this very moment. One arrow, two targets. Not only was Zhang Ban brought into line completely, with his eyes now fixed solely on Prince Qi from here on out, but Prince Qi himself will not be having an easy time of it in the days ahead.”

Xie Changgeng smiled faintly, the light in his eyes flickering briefly. He then asked, “What about Zhao Xitai’s business in Changsha?”

Liu Guan replied immediately, “I gave Zhang Ban a hint. When Zhang Ban spoke before the Empress Dowager, he specifically mentioned that Prince Qi’s Young Lord was at that moment in Changsha, and that this may well have an ulterior purpose. The Empress Dowager was most displeased. She questioned Prince Qi on the spot, saying that if it was merely for medical treatment, why had he not invited the physician to the Prince Qi estate, and why had he let the Young Lord make the long journey himself while sick? Prince Qi was greatly flustered and made all manner of explanations. After leaving the palace, he immediately sent word and recalled his son at once.”

As he repeated the account he had later heard from Zhang Ban, Liu Guan was still a little puzzled at heart. He could not quite understand why the Commissioner had been keeping such a close watch on Zhao Xitai, unwilling to let him remain in Changsha for treatment.

He finished speaking and looked at the Commissioner. Seeing his expression calm and composed, Liu Guan watched as he simply gave a slight nod and said with a smile, “You have worked hard these past days. It is late, and there is nothing more that requires you here. Go and rest.”

Before Liu Guan withdrew, he retrieved the letter that Zhang Ban had asked him that night to convey, and passed it up.

Xie Changgeng remained alone in the study. He broke open the seal, and the moment his gaze swept over the contents, his expression turned deeply unpleasant. The mood that had been, at best, marginally tolerable shifted abruptly to foul.

He read it again, then slowly folded the letter and tucked it away. Suppressing the anger within him, he composed himself for a moment, rose from his seat, and walked out of the study.

He returned to his sleeping quarters, but his heart was still smothered with a dark, suffocating rage that could not be relieved. Knowing that sleep was out of the question that night, he simply went out, ordered his attendants to ready a horse, and set out under cover of darkness for Xiutu City.

The next day he arrived at Xiutu City. His deputy, Liu An, was informed of the Commissioner’s arrival and rode out of the city with his men to meet him.

Xie Changgeng rode out to the border, climbed a high ridge, and gazed into the distance. The view stretched on without end — grass and trees lush and profuse.

He asked what the northern peoples had been up to recently.

Liu An replied, “There is actually something I was meaning to send word about to consult with you, my lord. Fittingly, you have arrived yourself today. The northerners have not had any particular movements of late, but I have been uneasy about the area around Ma River Valley. It is also a place where local tribespeople are concentrated, and it poses a hidden risk. In my humble view, it would be best to have the tribespeople there relocate entirely, and to quickly construct a garrison — otherwise, should battle break out in the future and the northerners think to use Ma River Valley as their point of breakthrough, bribing the locals to let them through, their cavalry would charge straight toward us. That would be extremely disadvantageous for the garrison forces on this side.”

“Have you tried making contact with them?”

Xie Changgeng gazed into the far distance, toward the direction of that river valley, and asked.

Liu An nodded, then shook his head.

“I went myself. They would not let me past the entrance.”

He glanced at the Commissioner and said quietly, “It has been some time since the lady left, has it not? Why does the Commissioner not bring the lady back…”

Xie Changgeng looked at him. Liu An immediately fell silent.

“Let us go. Let us have a look at Ma River Valley.”

Xie Changgeng paused for a moment, then spurred his horse and rode on ahead.

The next day, he returned to Guzang. He sat for a moment in the study of the Military Commissioner’s office, then without further hesitation, took up his brush and wrote a letter. He sealed it, called for the manager, and instructed him to dispatch a courier at the fastest possible speed, to carry the letter to the Kingdom of Changsha and deliver it to Mu Fulan.

The manager hurriedly took the letter and then handed up another letter that had just arrived, before turning to go.

Xie Changgeng saw from the distinctive seal mark on the envelope that it had been sent through the particular channel he had established with Zhu Liuhu, who had been left behind in Yue City.

He had been waiting for it. Yet after so long, only now had another letter arrived.

A slight dissatisfaction stirred in him. He broke the seal and read.

In his letter, Zhu Liuhu reported that the Kingdom of Changsha had shown nothing out of the ordinary of late. Only that some days prior, the Sanmiao territories to the south had suffered famine and pestilential miasma and had come seeking aid. Mu Xuanqing had lent them grain to help them through the disaster, and furthermore, the princess had herself gone south to Lian City to practice medicine and treat the sick. He had at the time mingled in the crowd and witnessed the scene of the princess departing.

The princess had with her a boy of about four years. He had made inquiries from multiple sources and learned that the boy was called Xi’er — an adopted son the princess had taken in. By the reckoning of time, he appeared to have been encountered on the road when she was returning from Hexi.

He had also observed on that day that Yuan Handing had departed together with the princess, apparently as a traveling companion.

Xie Changgeng’s gaze came to rest on the final few lines of the letter. He narrowed his eyes, concentrated, and remained unmoving for a long while. The letter crumpled in his hand.

He rose slowly to his feet and walked out, instructing the servant woman outside, “Send for the manager to come back! Make ready for me — I am going away on a trip!”