Chapter 148: Director of Royal Wardrobe (Conclusion)

Fushou, the Prince of Luling's Mansion.

Li Xian, the Prince of Luling, kowtowed to accept the gracious reward from the Empress Mother, instructing the estate officials to properly host the Junior Monitor from the Palace who had come to promulgate the imperial decree. He then personally rummaged through the rewarded items, selecting a few rare delicacies favored by his Princess consort and young daughter: a jar of crimson grape wine, several golden pearl fruits, and fiery crystal persimmons. Holding them in his arms, he walked cheerfully toward the inner courtyard.

His Princess consort, Lady Wei, was perusing case files at her desk, her slender willow-leaf eyebrows tightly knitted. Kneeling beside her was a dainty little maiden carved of pink jade—Princess Anle, Li Guor'er. Only six years old, with eyebrows and eyes like a painting, she already possessed city-shoving beauty. Usually pampered by all in the household, she had a very lively and mischievous temperament. Her daily routine of ransacking the house turned the mansion upside down, and she could only behave somewhat obediently when kept by the side of her stern-tempered mother.

Stepping through the door and seeing his wife and daughter, Li Xian's lean face revealed a gentle smile. He took a few quick, hurried steps to Lady Wei's side, placed the red grape wine and fruits near the desk, retrieved two crystal cups, poured a cup of wine for Lady Wei, and handed it to her brightly colored lips. "You've worked hard, my beloved wife. The Empress Mother sent some fine treats. Have a taste and see if this red grape wine is authentic."

Disturbed in her thoughts, Lady Wei furrowed her brow deeply and shoved him away. "Drink it yourself, I still have things to do." Flicking her sleeves, she strode out in a flurry.

A few drops of the crimson grape wine splashed out, blooming across the papers and dampening a name: Wang Tongjiao.

Li Xian did not take offense. He cleared the case files to the side, scooped Li Guor'er into his arms, peeled a golden pearl fruit for her, and fed it to her petal by petal. After just a couple of bites, Li Guor'er lost interest. She struggled down, snatched the golden pearl fruit into her hands, threw it on the ground, and hopped up and down, stamping on it with her feet.

*Splat.* The crystalline juices splattered everywhere, even speckling Li Xian's face. He merely chuckled cheerfully without restraining her.

After hopping a couple of times, Li Guor'er slipped and landed squarely on her bottom, letting out a wail of tears.

On the other side, Lady Wei summoned her trusted confidants to discuss Wu Yanji's recommendation of Wang Tongjiao for the post of Imperial Attendant at the Luntai Desk. Suspecting that Wang Tongjiao harbored ulterior motives, she decided to retreat in order to advance by returning the correspondence between Wang Tongjiao and the Prince of Luling's Mansion, leaving him to choose his own course of action.

Behind this superficial magnanimity, Lady Wei gnashed her teeth in curse: "If this scoundrel still has a shred of conscience, well and good; but if he has turned black-hearted and ungrateful, I will surely make him pay a bloody price. In my domain, anything can be traded, except regret medicine!"

At the same time, in the Divine Capital of Luoyang, at the residence of Censor Wang Qingzhi, Wang Qingzhi was entertaining an esteemed guest.

This esteemed guest was neither his superior nor a noble of high rank, but merely a merchant. His surname was quite peculiar—he was surnamed Ai, with the given name of Ali. He had come to the Divine Capital from afar, possessing vast wealth and spending lavishly. Wang Qingzhi treated him with utmost respect. Unlike other officials, he was an official motivated by profit who never discriminated against merchants. Whoever paid him received his memorial; whoever he was paid to impeach, he impeached. Merchants had money but lacked a voice in the court, making them his most ideal clients.

"Grandpa Wang, this old man has long heard that you are devoted to righteousness and most willing to speak for the common people—simply the finest censor there could be." Ai Ali was past fifty, with grey hair and beard, and his eyes burned with indignation. "This old man has only one favor to ask: please impeach Wang Tongjiao, Lord Wang."

"Wang Tongjiao?" Wang Qingzhi pinched the bridge of his nose, a sharp gleam flashing in his murky, triangular eyes. "Why does the elder wish to impeach the Palace Aide?"

"That wretch is no better than an animal!" Ai Ali struck the ground heavily several times with his walking stick, his nostrils flaring with intense anger. "I hear the court intends to recruit female *qianniu* guards to serve closely by the Emperor's side. This old man has no sons, only a single daughter. Because her appearance is somewhat flawed, she remains unmarried to this day. Finally finding a respectable path to a living, this old man would bankrupt himself to secure it for her. Yet this wretch submitted a memorial in opposition! Now the matter has stalled. How can this old man not hate him? How can I not hate him?"

"Oh? So that's how it is." Wang Qingzhi appraised Ai Ali, estimating inwardly that, given the man's age, his only daughter must be well past thirty. No wonder he was in such a rush. A smile appeared on his face, though he did not agree outright, dangling him with words. "Although Palace Aide Wang has expressed opposition to the matter of the female *qianniu*, it has not yet been settled. Why doesn't the elder patiently wait another couple of days?"

"Lord Wang, this old man is willing to offer fifty thousand strings of cash just to vent this foul grievance." Having rolled long in the marketplace, Ai Ali naturally understood that this speech meant quoting a high price to be bargained down, and instantly offered a jaw-dropping sum.

Hearing this, ripples formed in the teacup in Wang Qingzhi's hand. This price was by no means low, but since he could offer this sum, he could naturally offer more. "I empathize deeply with the elder's heartfelt love for his daughter. But frankly speaking, Palace Aide Wang is merely arguing the matter on its merits, making it truly difficult to impeach him on this ground. Moreover, his personal conduct is exemplary and his handling of affairs rigorous; it might be hard to find an opening."

"An additional fifty thousand strings," Ai Ali said without blinking, dropping another heavyweight bomb. "If Lord Wang can help maneuver this and ensure the matter of the female *qianniu* is successfully finalized, this old man is willing to add another hundred thousand strings of cash to repay this kindness of a second birth."

Wang Qingzhi's heart pounded violently; he dared not play hardball any longer. With this much wealth, one could make ghosts push millstones. If he flirted with hesitation too long, everything might fall through. "Very well! In my view, the safety of Her Majesty is heavier than Mount Tai and cannot be perfunctorily delayed under any pretext. The matter of the female *qianniu* must be pushed through. Wang Tongjiao has a facade of gold and jade but is rotten within; he appears upright yet harbors treacherous designs. Do not worry, Elder. Once I leisurely lay out my plans, I will surely secure justice for you."

Ai Ali expressed boundless gratitude and immediately left behind five thousand strings of cash as Wang Qingzhi's retainer fee.

Huaihua Market was located near the East Gate of the Divine Capital, Luoyang, right beside the eastern city wall. It housed a vegetable market. Because most of the vegetable merchants here were peasant farmers from the eastern suburbs, vegetable prices were much cheaper than anywhere else within the city. Residents with slightly poorer conditions in the city mostly came here to buy vegetables, along with stewards and servants from wealthy and noble households. Their masters naturally did not lack money or silk, but the servants did. By walking a longer distance, the money saved all went into their own pockets.

A servant from Wang Tongjiao's household was among them. Even though prices here were generally cheap, every stall had its own variations. He inquired about prices all around until he reached a lean, wizened old man whose quoted vegetable prices were exceptionally low—half the usual rate—and the vegetables were fresh and tender. Hurriedly, he picked out the vegetables, had them weighed, calculated the total, handed over the copper coins, and prepared to leave with his vegetables.

Unexpectedly, in the blink of an eye, the old man went crazy. He lunged forward onto the ground, hugging the servant's legs. "Great official! Great official! This won't do! Little old me relies on these vegetable earnings to scrape by; this price simply won't do!"

The servant had been calculating his gains happily, but seeing this, he stiffened his brows and shouted angrily, "Hey! You unreasonable old wretch, the price was already agreed upon. How can you change it on a whim? Get up quickly!" As he spoke, he kicked out twice.

The old man refused to let go. Having taken two kicks, he lunged forward again, weeping and making a scene. "It won't do! Are you trying to force me to my death?"

The place was bustling with people coming and going, a mixed crowd of dragons and fish. Seeing trouble break out, they gathered around, pointing and whispering. Unwilling to relent, the servant delivered two more vicious kicks, trying to wrench his legs free.

It was precisely these two kicks that brought about a massive disaster. Nobody knew where the old man had been struck, but dark blood gushed from his mouth, his eyes bulged wide, and in a flash, he stopped breathing.

Seeing that the situation looked ominous, the servant dropped the vegetables and tried to flee. But the buyers and sellers in the vegetable market would not allow it; they blocked his path and dragged him off to the Luoyang municipal government office.

The news spread like wildfire. The Luoyang municipal government office was once again dealing with Wang Tongjiao after a short interval. Wang Tongjiao held official rank and could not be casually touched, but his servant did not share such good fortune. After a preliminary round of torture—clubs and finger-squeezing vises applied together—half the servant's life was already gone.

Early the next morning, Censor Wang Qingzhi submitted a memorial impeaching Wang Tongjiao, listing numerous charges against him: "A great hypocrite resembling loyalty, a great fraud resembling truth; hypocritical and affected, secretly plotting treacherous crimes"; "lax in family discipline, conniving with wicked servants to murder people in broad daylight"; "using public office for private ends, harboring treacherous designs, ignoring Her Majesty's safety, and obstructing the vital affair of the female *qianniu*", and so on. He spent a vast amount of space painting the benefits of the female *qianniu* in glowing terms, and even dug up the past incident where Wang Tongjiao had publicly rebuked Quan Ce, labeling him as someone who "fishes for fame and feigns integrity to frame the loyal and capable."

With money clinking merrily, Wang Qingzhi's impeaching prowess was brought to perfection. Weaving this and that together, three parts truth and seven parts falsehood, he left Wang Tongjiao with no room for defense.

The bitterness in Wang Tongjiao's heart was beyond description: Wu Yanji's inexplicable recommendation, the distrust from Fuzhou, the bullying and betrayal by his own domestic servant, and most deeply felt of all, this final strike. He had kept himself pure and walked the path of righteousness, yet he ended up soiled and in disarray. Heavy volleys of overt and covert arrows assailed him, making him feel as though he were sitting on pins and needles, his heart turned to ash.

"So be it, so be it," Wang Tongjiao muttered helplessly, letting out long sighs for a long time. He took up his brush, wrote a memorial resigning from his office, and submitted it. Then, a thought flashed to him of how Quan Ce had argued with him on the road to the Fengchan sacrifices on Mount Song, his face red and neck thick. "Retribution comes so swiftly! Unable to clear my name with a hundred mouths—unable to clear my name with a hundred mouths—such is the way of the world."

The Empress Dowager's decree was issued in an instant: approving the Eastern Capital Qianniu Guard's selection of twenty female *qianniu* to enter the palace for duty, and demoting Wang Tongjiao out of the capital to serve as the Adjutant of Merit Evaluation in Fuzhou.

*(End of this chapter)*