The Walking Boy by Lydia Kwa

Author:Lydia Kwa
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Arsenal Pulp Press
Published: 2019-12-16T16:00:00+00:00

MYRIAD SPRINGS HALL THE OUTER PALACE AT TAIJIGONG NORTH CENTRAL CHANG’AN

In the dim light of a single lamp, the desires and fears on their faces are heightened by shadows. Sansi has arranged for this late-night meeting in a rarely used antechamber adjoining the Myriad Springs Hall. He leans back into his chair, watching First Minister Wei, Minister Su, and Princess Wei with a touch of amusement as they confer at the round marble table.

First Minister Wei begins. “Those two favourites of Nü Huang are obstacles. If not for their interfering presence, the succession of the Crown Prince to the throne would occur imminently without any concerns for our lives. I am of the opinion that removal from their position of influence may be necessary.”

His unwavering voice, albeit kept to a near-whisper, shows no signs of fear. He hasn’t changed. His boldness makes the rest of them confident that they can succeed in this venture. They remember that he had been the one who refused to sign a false confession while being tortured by Lai Juanchen’s henchmen years ago, and such fortitude engenders their trust.

“It’s outrageous, the extent to which our sovereign indulges those half-brothers. This is surely not the same woman who would not tolerate the slightest hint of ingratitude or insubordination?” Princess Wei’s voice trembles with rage.

Sansi pours himself another cup of plum wine and gulps it down quickly. He can see the hatred in the consort’s eyes—that she can’t forgive Nü Huang for killing her children, especially Zhongjun, her flesh and blood. He quips, “The one who told Taizong she would tame the horse with an iron whip and an iron mace, failing which she would use a dagger to cut its throat?”

“How our sovereign has changed! These past five years, ever since the brothers became her lovers, Her Majesty seems determined not to recognize the blatant corruptions, the briberies, the selling of coveted positions to members of the Zhang family,” whispers Minister Su.

First Minister Wei glances around at everyone. “Remember the extent to which she indulged that lover of hers, the fake monk Xue Huaiyi?”

They are silent for quite a while, pondering the consequences of their ruler’s carnal indulgences. This sovereign of theirs, so fiercely powerful yet so malleable in her lovers’ hands.

Princess Wei’s eyes gleam fiercely in the lamplight. “How long is she going to drag on before she steps down from the throne? She relishes torturing us with her slow, declining health. Simply outrageous, dragging us away from important affairs in the Eastern Capital. She knows the Crown Prince must ascend the throne in Luoyang. I fear for my own life with each day we languish here in Chang’an. If she could execute her own grandchildren for merely gossiping against Changzong and Yizhi, she also could decide on a whim to do away with any one of us. Every moment those foolish boys are in her bed, we are in grave danger.”

First Minister Wei taps the edge of the marble table, as if following the rhythm of his private thoughts.

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