by Jeremy Han
Rather you than them, my friend.
He turned the snake toward his neck and squeezed it hard, startling the fanchantou. It darted and bit Yin’s neck deeply.
Venom shot through his blood stream.
“NO!” Ji Gang shouted. The man would be a vital prisoner for interrogation. Ji Gang darted forward and at the same time Yin instinctively threw the snake at him. Ji Gang’s iron fan cut the snake’s head off in mid-air and the butchered reptile fell, its blood writhing and soiling the sanctity of the sacred hall.
The imperial agent rushed forward but Yin had already fallen. The poison started to attack his nervous system and lungs as the assassin started to convulse. His respiratory system slowly failed, and he felt his lungs turn to stone as he tried to draw breath.
So this is how it feels….
His eyes rolled, and before long he was released from a life of emotional and physical torment.
87
A lone figure approached the Eastern Depot’s safe house, drawn toward the swaying faded red lanterns like a moth to light. The street was dark but the man walked without hesitation, his steps urgent but not jittery. He knew where he was going, and why.
The wind blew and lifted bits of powdery snow off the ground. Pairs of eyes watched him, ready to kill him if he proved a threat, but otherwise they made no move. He was expected by those inside the inn, and despite the forlorn look of the place its security was as tight as any palace.
Wang knocked on the door and stood there patiently, his face cast in a reddish glow under the lanterns. Ji Gang opened the door and he stepped in without a word. The larger man observed his visitor silently, and noticed a new confidence in him. It was not unexpected.
Word had spread that the empress dowager would be announcing the eunuch’s promotion to the position of Imperial Tutor. It seemed that after all that had happened, she felt that the eunuch was someone she could entrust her son to and Wang floated on a new found arrogance. Ji Gang looked at him with wary, hooded eyes. In the past he would have ordered a man assassinated if he was a threat to the Dong Chang, but rising eunuch power was a reality he had to contend with.
The director of ceremony, Kong Wei, had demonstrated how eunuchs could subvert military and internal security for its own ends, even side-lining the Eastern Depot. He was practical enough to know that the time had come when he had to secure the alliance of the eunuch base so that the power of the Eastern Depot would never be challenged again. Today, he had to do business with the castrate who would no doubt become the most powerful eunuch in the empire. They would seal an alliance that would make both their positions complete.
Zhao Qi was in the room when Wang entered. The commander had an interest in the coming trial of the grand eunuch and his assassin. He had to find a way to bargain for Zhu Wenkui’s life, and he would need the two men’s support. What could he offer for that?
Wang was surprised when he saw Zhao. He thought he would be negotiating with Ji Gang only.
“Why are you here?” Wang asked.
“To get the crown prince,” Zhao said. “That has always been my mission.”
The eunuch shook his head. “There is no way the empress dowager would consent to that.”
“That is why I am here,” Zhao said as he glared at him assertively, stressing, “to get the prince.”
Wang looked at Ji Gang with curiosity in his eyes. The commander of the secret service read his intentions. “I have given him my word. And you will too.”
“Why? He holds no power,” the eunuch said confidently.
“Because you would have died if not for them,” Ji Gang said as he referred to Zhao and Li. “Remember that. And also because the Imperial Bodyguard reveres him.” He pointed at Zhao. “You will want their support. Or at least, you don’t want them to be your enemy. At the very least, he still holds your written confession.”
The eunuch scowled at the threat and glared at Zhao. When it was known that Zhao had returned the Jinyi Wei had been abuzz with excitement - their legend had returned. The only man who had ever defeated Ji Gang was back, and he had saved the emperor! There was talk of offering him a commander’s post again but Zhao had no interest in it. All he wanted was to go home, but not without the crown prince.
Wang looked at both men before he sat down. The two older men took their places, already noting the self-important eunuch but business was business. They did not have to like who they traded with. Ji Gang opened the discussion.
“I will tell her Majesty that you are a deep agent sent to infiltrate Kong’s camp. That’s why you sent us the report to come back to the northern capital. You were all along our eyes and ears in the enemy camp.”
“We will not mention you are Kong’s mole,” Zhao added and after a pause said, “if you play ball with us.”
Wang swallowed visibly. This was the one thing that could destroy his bright future. His past association with Kong could destroy him, even though he had been an unwilling party to his plans. His voice tightened as he asked,“What do you want in return?”
“Admit that you are my spy,” Ji Gang said, “so that her Majesty will think she made a mistake banishing me to the south for perceived failure. It was because of that that she created the Western Depot. She must be made to think highly of the Dong Chang again so that we will be the pre-eminent power in the Ming again. You must make her think that I had foreseen the plot and had thought ahead. She must be made to feel that she had wronged me.”
“So she will believe in the undefeatable Ji Gang again,” Wang said sarcastically.
“Yes.”
“And when all this is over?” Wang asked, tilting his chin.
“We will form an unwritten alliance. You will bring the eunuchs under control again, and I will ensure that the Eastern Depot will not be surpassed. Together we will hold power over the military and the civil service.”
Power struggles between three institutions, the eunuchs, the military and the civil service were rife. Each organisation wanted the trust of the emperor and they were often at each other’s throats. The Eastern Depot loomed behind the scenes but their power could be curtailed by any of the powerful organisations and Ji Gang did not want that. He wanted the Dong Chang to remain directly under the throne, giving them unquestionable powers over the others. If he could reach a concord with the eunuch, who was about to become the closest person to the emperor, he could ensure that outcome. Everyone knew that the boy emperor would grow up hanging on to every word from the eunuch’s mouth, and in every sense the once-humble Wang Zhen would become the most powerful man in the empire.Wang knew this too, but he had also seen how devious Ji Gang could be. The commander could still arrange an ‘accident’ for Wang if he wanted to.
He sat back and took a deep breath. He relished the feeling of being courted, making him feel powerful. The feeling of being insignificant, of being totally at other people’s mercy was gone. He had the most dangerous man in the Ming seeking an alliance with him, and while he hated Ji Gang for who the man was he was also practical. He had to ensure his own promotion to Imperial Tutor first more than anything, and he could still deal with the Eastern Depot years later if there was a need to, after he had consolidated his own power of course. As for Zhao Qi, he knew the former commander would leave once he got what he wanted.
The price of his silence was the life of the assassin, and to Wang Yang’s life was nothing.
He smiled at the two men.
“Deal.”
88
The Forbidden City was unusually quiet. Flocks of pigeons wandered around the vast courtyards, pecking leisurely at the ground as though they were royalty. They had more freedom than any of the occupants in the imperial palace.
There were no comings and goings of eunuchs or officials throughout the grounds - it was as though the palace had become a tomb and the pigeons were undisturbed by the only human presence around the imperial grounds.
Guards lined every wall and alley like statues. The palace was heavily guarded, and nobo
dy was allowed in. All activities ceased as the greatest trial of the decade took place.
After Yin had died the doors burst opened. Western Depot agents and imperial bodyguards led by Kong had entered the Hall of Great Harvest. By then Kong had known something had gone wrong, but he did not know what. He ordered the agents to seize Ji Gang and Zhao Qi on the grounds that they had violated the sanctity of the Temple of Heaven, but the empress dowager countermanded the order. Instead she had commanded the Jinyi Wei to arrest Kong and with the imperial bodyguards there, the Western Depot stood down.
Now, four weeks later, they appeared before her Majesty. The grand eunuch Kong Wei, now disgraced, knelt before the throne. Yang was next to him. Ji Gang stood by her left, while Zhao took the right. The boy-emperor sat next to his mother and for once he was solemn as he faced those who tried to kill him.
The room was heavily guarded by tall, broad men in the dark red tunics of the Imperial Bodyguard that ringed the hall. Another battalion of troops loyal to the throne were on standby inside the Forbidden City. All eunuch battalions had stood down though, and were now confined to barracks. Battle hardened battalions commanded by princes were recalled from the northern border to guard the city. Generals patrolled the city on horseback while elite troops locked down the Forbidden City, and cannons pointed outward from the gates of the palace.
The last four weeks had been hell for the conspirators as the Dong Chang, with their restored powers, cracked down on all enemies of the throne, real or perceived. Ji Gang had had his revenge. Scores of men were tortured and killed and only the mastermind and his disciple were left for the final trial. The only eunuch guilty that remaining untouched was Wang, and today he stood by the side of the emperor puffing with self-importance.
Her Majesty spoke.
“Speak, Kong,” she demanded. “Now is the chance for you to explain your treachery.”
He sneered back at her. Finally he could speak his heart. He had been preparing this speech for decades and he was not afraid at all. All pretence of obeisance was gone.
“Do you think that you, a mere woman, and your brat are fit to govern this great empire?” he said, but before he could continue a guard came forward and slapped him for calling the empress dowager ‘a mere woman’ and the emperor ‘a brat’. The thwack echoed across the great hall. Kong spat blood, unperturbed by the blow as he continued.
“This empire needs a man, a leader to govern. A rightful ruler. You,” he pointed at the Zheng Tong Emperor, “have no claim. You did not even descend from the rightful ruler of the Ming. Your great grandfather Yong Le was not even anointed to the throne. He seized it illegally. Heaven does not recognise you!”
The Empress Dowager fumed. “What audacity!”
“Shut up, woman!” he screamed at the top of his voice. “Only the seed of Jian Wen deserves to sit on the throne!”
An imperial guard drew his sabre and Kong yelled, “Halt! I have not finished.”
The empress lifted a hand, and the man withdrew. “Do not hasten your own death, eunuch,” she said. “Both of you will meet your appropriate ends at the execution ground before the end of today.”
“You can take my pitiful life,” he growled, “but you have no right to kill this man.” He lifted his chin at Yang.
“Why?”
Kong took a deep breath and his whole body quivered. Revealing a secret he kept for more than thirty years was not easy. “This man has the true blood of the dragon in his veins,” he said, and his shoulders heaved as though a heavy weight had been lifted.
The empress dowager’s eyes widened. “The Dragon’s blood?” she echoed as she turned in disbelief, staring at Yang. “He is a common eunuch just like you,” she spat.
“No! He is indeed the son of Jian Wen! The one appointed by the founder of the Ming to lead, not his usurping uncle. His line is purer than your son’s!” Kong shouted back, and his protest echoed across the vast throne room.
She fumed back at him, her eyes wide in her anger. She had almost ordered Kong’s immediate execution when the man on her right spoke.
“Majesty, permit me to speak,” Zhao said as he came forward.
“Yes, Commander,” she answered as she controlled herself.
Zhao spoke with some hesitation. “The grand eunuch is telling the truth. The assassin has imperial blood in him.”
“What lunacy are you spouting?” she demanded as her eyebrows arched, her long red finger nails pointing at him. “The crown prince from hell is just a ruse like the woman with many hands! Do not forget whose court you are in, Commander Zhao.”
Zhao walked over to the crippled man and ripped his tunic, exposing the birthmark over his chest. “When I promised the JianWen emperor to find his crown prince, he told me to find a man with this mark. This man, Majesty, is Zhu Wenkui indeed.”
Yang was as shocked as the empress dowager, and he stared at Zhao before slowly turning toward Kong Wei. The fallen eunuch looked sadly at his protégé.
“It is true. You are the crown prince,” he admitted, then the eunuch turned towards the throne. “I have the documents to prove it. Before Jian Wen’s empress died, she handed me his birth records, and indeed it is stated in it that the crown prince is born with the mark on his chest.” He closed his eyes and sighed heavily, knowing he would be meeting the deceased empress whom he loved soon.
How do I tell her I failed?
The empress dowager glared like a hawk. “You have the documents? I thought they had all been destroyed.”
Kong smirked back at her. “That’s what you wish isn’t it? Unfortunately, even the usurper wasn’t omnipotent. I hid the documents all these years, waiting for the day to unveil the true claimant to the throne.”
“No…Zhu Wenkui was only a rumour to draw the imperial forces south. That’s what you told me. You told me it was all a ploy,” Yang stammered. Confusion spread across his face.
Kong’s head dropped. “No, Highness. It is true. You are the prince. I sent you south to learn how to command, how to survive, and you did it brilliantly. I was preparing you for the day you would rule in your father’s place. I promised your mother that I would make you an emperor, a leader who commands respect, a monarch who could hold a sword unlike your weak father who let your mother die. Not some brat who can’t even hold a joss to heaven without pissing in his pants!”
Yang shook his head, unable to accept the revelation. “But Jian Wen’s sons are dead. You told me yourself!”
“Your brother is, your Highness, but I saved your life. And I promised your mother I would do everything I could to restore you to your rightful place. Your mother loved you to the end.” After a long pause, he added softly, “And I love her too.” Choking on the words he said slowly, “I am sorry I lied. I had to conceal the truth, because it would have destroyed you.”
Tears flowed down the grand eunuch’s sagging cheeks as he remembered the past. He had a faraway look to his eyes. He could see himself kneeling by her bedside, swearing to her that he would restore her son to the throne. He recalled her pale face, her fading smile, and the exact moment her eyes had closed for eternity. He closed his eyes and wept.
I love her!
A shout from Yang broke his reverie. “But you had me castrated! Do you know how horrible that was? How could you say you were preparing me to rule when you had me mutilated! What emperor in history has ever been castrated?”
“I castrated you to save your life. After your brother died the only way I, a eunuch, could explain taking a boy with no past into my care would be to groom you as a eunuch. Your presence would be easily found out by the Eastern Depot.” He glanced at Ji Gang with hatred as he continued, “and you would have been executed even though you were only a toddler. Their orders were to exterminate your clan. Exterminate! I know what castration is like. I bear the horrible scars too, but I did it to save your life and to allow me to keep you close. Don’t forget this devil,” he stressed as he pointed at Ji Gang, “led the hunt for your father.�
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Turning back to the empress dowager, he shouted, “Just because we are eunuchs does not mean we are not human beings! You imperial class imprison us by destroying our bodies, but we have feelings too. We may not feel sexual desire anymore but we yearn to have families too. We too would risk everything for those we love, for those we care for. The imperial system may rob us of our organs, but it does not make us any lesser as a human being! We are ren ‘people’ too!”
Yang spoke again. “All those lives you sacrificed, like Yin’s… how do I know I am not one of your sacrificial bulls too?”
“Because if we succeeded you would be emperor!” he said shrilly. “You are the only one left, Highness! Yin was damaged goods right from the start. A useful tool, that’s all. He is better off dead.”
“And the Mongols I led?”
“All part of the price for your ascension,” Kong insisted. “All empires are established by shedding blood. Your father’s was taken away with blood and yours would be restored by it. Make no mistake, your Highness, nobody is safe, even me, from being expended to secure your place on the Dragon Throne. That was my pledge to your mother.”
Yang knew instinctively that Kong Wei had spoken the truth. The scale of his gamble, the years of preparation, and the actual execution of the plan was breath taking, not to mention the monumental risks he had taken plotting the rebellion right under the nose of the emperor. Kong was not bluffing when he said he had done everything he could to return Jian Wen’s son to the throne, and he was humbled by what the eunuch had done for him.
In truth, he had known that Kong had always treated him differently from the rest. He was given the chance to command, to strategize, while others merely carried out orders to kill. He lowered his head and shook it slowly, still unable to accept the full magnitude of the revelation.
“Enough said,” the empress dowager spoke. “Take them to the dungeons and prepare them for execution. No one must ever think they could plot against the Son of Heaven again.”
