The Kingdom That Never Sleeps CH 117 The 15th Of August
On the 15th of August, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, Su Wenyun, returned to the capital to report on his duties.
Tang Shen, no longer serving at Qinzheng Hall, made a special visit to the Court of Judicial Review because of the matter concerning Cui Xiao, the cavalry officer from Jinling. Cui Xiao, being only a minor sixth-rank official, had already been impeached, with the formal accusation arriving from Jinling a few days prior. Normally, such a case would require three months of deliberation, during which Cui Xiao would remain in prison. However, upon Tang Shen’s request, the officials expedited the case, and it was immediately brought to trial.
Upon leaving the Court of Judicial Review, Tang Shen encountered Su Wenyun.
Seeing Tang Shen, Su Wenyun was visibly surprised. Glancing at the plaque above the entrance to confirm he was indeed at the Court of Judicial Review and not mistakenly at the Censorate, he remarked sarcastically, “I thought I had entered the wrong place and arrived at the Censorate instead. I must congratulate Tang daren on your promotion to Court Gentleman Consultant. It’s been a while since we last met, and you seem to be in high spirits and quite at ease.”
Su Wenyun’s tone dripped with mockery, leaving Tang Shen puzzled as to how he had offended this troublesome figure once again.
Tang Shen saluted respectfully and said, “This lower official greets the esteemed Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works.”
Su Wenyun replied with a smirk, “After enduring the winds and sands of the border, returning to Shengjing feels like a breath of fresh air. Does Tang daren share the same sentiment?”
Tang Shen lifted his head to meet Su Wenyun’s gaze. After a moment’s pause, he responded calmly, “Indeed, I feel the same. I wonder, since my departure, how the bandits that disrupted the peace outside Youzhou have been dealt with.”
Su Wenyun raised an eyebrow, “All matters have been resolved.”
Still polite, Tang Shen said, “Then, I shall take my leave.” With that, he turned and walked away without further ado.
This brief encounter marked their first meeting since both had returned to the capital.
After Tang Shen left, Su Wenyun handled his affairs for a few days before the thought of Tang Shen resurfaced. He summoned an official from the Court of Judicial Review and asked, “Why did Tang Jingze visit a few days ago?”
The official, eager to please, disclosed everything about the case involving Cui Xiao.
Su Wenyun was momentarily stunned. After pondering for a while, he chuckled and said, “A cavalry officer from Jinling? Bring him here for me to see.”
The official wiped the sweat from his forehead and hesitated before responding, “That criminal Cui Xiao has already been transferred to the Ministry of Justice prison.”
Su Wenyun’s brows furrowed deeply. He paced back and forth for a moment before abruptly stopping. Looking out the window at the clear blue sky, he recalled the confrontation he had with Tang Shen two years ago at the Yuzhou prefectural office. With a cold sneer, he turned on his heel and headed for the Ministry of Justice prison. Upon arrival, he summoned an official and ordered Cui Xiao to be brought for questioning. To his shock, the official reported, “Cui Xiao took his own life by ramming his head against the wall a few days ago.”
Su Wenyun was shocked.
By now, he had a clear inkling that Cui Xiao’s presence in the capital might be tied to Tang Shen—or even to the late Liang Song, who had died five years prior. He also knew about Liang Song’s secret attempts to rescue Zhong Taisheng in his travels across various regions. This wasn’t exactly a closely guarded secret. As one of the emperor’s most trusted enforcers, if Su Wenyun had truly wanted to deal with Tang Shen, he could have merely mentioned it to the emperor two years ago, and the latter would have kept Tang Shen under scrutiny. Perhaps it wouldn’t have led to Tang Shen’s downfall, but it certainly wouldn’t have resulted in the emperor placing so much trust in him now.
Back then, Su Wenyun had treated it as a favor to Tang Shen, partly to repay the debt of nearly getting him killed when he had used Tang Shen as bait in Yuzhou. However, with Cui Xiao’s sudden death in prison, Su Wenyun mused, “Could Tang Jingze really be this ruthless?”
Moments later, he came to a realization and scoffed, “Tang Jingze’s influence hasn’t yet extended to the Ministry of Justice; he’s only been in office for a few years. It must have been Wang Zifeng. Oh, Wang Zifeng, what a doting senior brother you are!”
But that’s a story for another time.
At this moment, Tang Shen remained unaware that Cui Xiao would die in the Ministry of Justice prison within a few days.
On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Tang Shen carried a box of mooncakes to visit Wang Zhen, with whom he had arranged to enjoy the festival and admire the moon at the Minister Residence.
By mid-August, the autumn breeze was cool and refreshing. In the courtyard, Wang Zhen had set up a small table amidst the fragrance of blooming flowers and the serene moonlight. The tranquil setting was enough to lift one’s spirits. The two of them sat in the courtyard, enjoying mooncakes and sipping fruit wine. After tasting the wine, Tang Shen remarked in surprise, “This wine is sweet and fragrant, refreshing yet smooth. It’s rare to come across such fine wine. Does Senior Brother have more of it at home?”
Wang Zhen raised his cup and smiled, “Yes. If Little Junior Brother likes it, take two jars with you when you leave.”
Delighted, Tang Shen responded, “That would be wonderful.”
In his previous life, Tang Shen hadn’t been fond of drinking. In this life, he was forced to drink on occasion, but ancient wines often disappointed him—they were either too weak or too coarse. Only Wang Zifeng seemed to have access to the best wines, so whenever Tang Shen came across wine he enjoyed, he made sure to indulge.
What Tang Shen didn’t know was that, despite its pleasant aroma, the fruit wine packed a potent aftereffect.
As they continued to drink and recite poetry under the moon, Tang Shen began to feel dizzy after finishing two jars. Blinking blearily, he gazed at Wang Zhen and murmured, “I’m seeing two of you, Senior Brother.”
Wang Zhen hadn’t expected Tang Shen to get drunk either. After a moment of surprise and before he could react, he heard Tang Shen suddenly call out in a solemn tone, “Wang Zifeng!”
Wang Zhen’s heart skipped a beat, and he felt a twinge in his scalp before chuckling in amusement. “You rarely call me by my courtesy name; you always call me Senior Brother. Who would have thought that after getting drunk, you’d finally dare to use it? This is a rare moment—why not call me that a few more times?”
Seeming to understand his words, Tang Shen repeated the name several times in succession.
“Wang Zifeng…”
“Wang Zifeng!”
“Wang Zifeng!”
Hearing him call his name repeatedly, Wang Zhen felt an odd warmth spread through him. He set down his cup and, with a bemused smile, watched Tang Shen’s drunken antics.
“Wang Zifeng.”
“En?”
“Say something.”
“…What do you want to hear?”
Tang Shen thought for a while before replying, “Sing me a song.”
Wang Zhen froze. A song?
With a helpless smile, he said, “I didn’t know I could sing. I can play tunes, though. Would you like to hear something? I’m good at Phoenix Seeking His Mate and Eternal Longing.”
Tang Shen gazed at Wang Zhen steadily before murmuring, “I feel so dizzy. I want to sleep now.”
Wang Zhen frowned, about to say something when Tang Shen abruptly declared, “Ah, I’m asleep!” and collapsed, sound asleep before Wang Zhen could react. After a moment of stunned silence, Wang Zhen couldn’t help but feel amusement and exasperation. He called for his page boy, intending to have Tang Shen carried to bed. When the page boy arrived and began to help Tang Shen up, Wang Zhen suddenly stopped him.
The page boy paused, looking at his young master in confusion.
After a moment’s contemplation, Wang Zhen said, “I’ll carry him.”
Surprised, the page boy helped lift Tang Shen onto Wang Zhen’s back. With Tang Shen’s arms draped loosely around his neck, Wang Zhen rose and carefully carried him toward the guest room. He paused briefly near his own quarters but ultimately chose to head for the guest room, where he laid Tang Shen down to rest.
Tang Shen was thoroughly drunk, utterly unaware of his surroundings.
Wang Zhen stood by the bedside, gazing down at Tang Shen for a long moment before reaching out to pinch his cheek lightly.
“Say ‘Wang Zifeng’ one more time?”
Tang Shen’s only response was the steady rhythm of his breathing.
Wang Zhen chuckled softly and, after a brief moment of indulgence, left the guest room to attend to matters brought to him by the steward. What he didn’t expect was that shortly after his departure, Tang Shen’s eyes fluttered open. Though still groggy, a sudden clarity overtook him.
He raised his hand and touched his cheek, the spot where Wang Zhen had pinched him moments ago. Tang Shen’s heart surged like waves, refusing to calm down. The moment he closed his eyes, the image of Wang Zhen holding a cup of wine and looking at him reappeared in his mind. Bathed in moonlight, Wang Zhen no longer seemed like a mere mortal, appearing ethereal and otherworldly. Yet the depth of emotion in those eyes unsettled Tang Shen, leaving him bewildered.
When he first blurted out “Wang Zifeng,” it was purely under the influence of alcohol. The moment the name left his lips, Tang Shen himself was startled. He inexplicably called out “Wang Zifeng” a few more times. Later, when sobriety crept in, he realized he should not have acted so flippantly, potentially offending Wang Zhen. Yet to his surprise, Wang Zhen didn’t seem annoyed but rather appeared to enjoy it.
Thus, things gradually unfolded in that manner.
Tang Shen closed his eyes, and Wang Zhen’s gentle, soothing voice echoed in his ears. Suddenly, Su Wenyun’s words flashed through his mind:
“Because Wang Zifeng has a preference for men.”
Those words exploded in Tang Shen’s mind like thunder.
Back in the Youzhou prefectural office, Su Wenyun had been persuaded that he had misunderstood Wang Zhen. However, a seed of doubt had already been planted in Tang Shen’s heart. That seed had since taken root and grown. Now, as he touched his cheek, the skin beneath his palm burned with an uncontrollable heat, while his heart pounded with a storm of emotions he could not comprehend.
“Wang Zifeng…” he murmured, his voice hoarse.
In that moment, emboldened by the lingering effects of alcohol, Tang Shen let his thoughts run wild. He really was unable to decipher Wang Zifeng’s true nature.
Meanwhile, Wang Zhen entered his study, having changed into a white silk robe after removing the wine-scented clothes he had worn earlier. The new attire lent him a refined air, shedding the bureaucratic mundanity of the court and giving him the appearance of a noble scion. Upon entering the study and seeing the person there, he was neither surprised nor hesitant, merely asking, “What did you find?”
“Gongzi, after several months in Jinling, I have indeed uncovered some matters.”
“Speak.”
This man was the servant Wang Zhen had specially sent to Jinling several months earlier. Jinling, the Wang clan’s stronghold, rarely harbored secrets from Wang Zhen. However, because Liang Song had acted with such discretion five years ago, it had taken considerable effort for Wang Zhen to uncover the truth. Upon hearing the servant’s report, Wang Zhen sat quietly, unmoving, for a long while.
After the servant finished his account, he added, “There is one more thing.”
Wang Zhen remained silent.
The servant glanced up and called out instinctively, “Gongzi?”
Wang Zhen snapped out of his reverie. “En?”
The servant respectfully continued, “A few days ago, just as I was about to leave Jinling, I happened to spot someone on the street—Tang gongzi’s servant, Yao San. I recognized him as having been at Tang gongzi's side before, so I kept an eye on him and spent a few days investigating his purpose in Jinling.”
This servant had been with Wang Zhen since childhood, handling matters with such meticulousness that he seldom needed explicit instructions. It was for this reason he had been chosen for this mission.
He reported, “Yao San went to Jinling to investigate a cavalry officer named Cui Xiao. Upon digging further, I discovered that Cui Xiao is notoriously corrupt and appears to have been impeached. He left Jinling half a month ago and headed for Shengjing.”
Wang Zhen’s expression changed slightly. “You’re saying he arrived in Shengjing half a month ago?”
“Yes, gongzi. I verified it using the Wang clan’s connections directly with the Jinling prefectural office.”
Wang Zhen paced the study twice before pausing. “Did Yao San see you?”
“No, gongzi. Besides, Yao San doesn’t know me.”
Wang Zhen let out a long sigh. “I understand. You may go.”
“Yes, gongzi.”
The next morning, Tang Shen pretended to be truly hungover, appearing remorseful as he said to Wang Zhen, “I drank too much last night and don’t remember what happened. When I woke up, I found myself in the guest room. I’ve never been drunk before, so I don’t know how I act after drinking. I hope I didn’t say or do anything inappropriate to offend you, Senior Brother?”
Initially, Wang Zhen hadn’t given the previous night’s events much thought, genuinely believing that Tang Shen had simply gotten drunk. However, hearing Tang Shen’s obviously guilty explanation, Wang Zhen suddenly grew suspicious. He scrutinized Tang Shen carefully for a moment before smiling. “You didn’t.”
Tang Shen let out a breath of relief. “That’s good.”
After Tang Shen left, Wang Zhen summoned a servant and asked about Tang Shen’s behavior that morning. Unfortunately, there was too little information for him to determine whether Tang Shen had been pretending to be drunk.
Wang Zhen didn’t mind, chuckling lightly. “If he was pretending, that would not be bad.”
He then began his investigation into Cui Xiao in Shengjing. Meanwhile, after the morning court session, Zhao Fu summoned the three princes to Chuigong Hall.
Sunlight streamed through the glazed windows, casting a soft glow, while the scent of ambergris filled the quiet hall. As Zhao Fu flipped through the memorials on his desk, he said, “I have ruled for thirty-one years, yet I have few heirs. Now, only you three remain. In recent days, you’ve handled some court affairs well, and the Empress Dowager’s memorial service was conducted to my satisfaction. Last night, I thought it over: keeping you constantly by my side may not be a good thing. Henceforth, you shall leave Shengjing and handle real affairs on your own!”
The three princes were struck dazed.