~ * ~
Slamming down his cup, General Xin looked over at Shang. "You know what my men keep saying, General Li?' With a shrug, Shang drank from his own cup, knowing he was going to be sick in the morning. "They say they don't know what they're losing sleep for, keeping guard late at night. They say they're tired of serving an emperor they never see, he's always in his bedroom making heirs with that Meifei. Hurts morale and I can't keep discipline anymore without some cocky son of a bitch answering back, asking me why we even bother. Look at us even, we've been drinking all night. The Tujue could move right on us, and would we give a damn?" Taking a long draught, he broke into rough laughter.
Lowering his cup, Shang glanced around him. He did not usually drink this much, but the fact was he was bored, and Mulan did not seem to want him around tonight. There they were, four officers slumped outside against the Palace Wall, just as lazy as new recruits. It was true Longji had been rather scarce these past few weeks, and Mulan had said she'd hardly talked to Meifei at all, the Emperor never let her out of his bedchamber. And when she did see her, Meifei wasn't happy at all and hardly felt like talking. Mulan spent the weeks worried about her, even when they had gone home for Tie-lin's wedding.
"Really," Tai-shan laughed, sprawled at Shang's side. His new brother-in-law was so full of liquor he was barely coherent. "Tie-lin would beat me with her slipper if I neglected my duty. That reminds me, Shang, you remember that night at the Wall when we found the girls again? Tie-lin let me wash her hair, and rub her feet that night." He rolled over on the ground laughing as if it were the most hilarious thing in the world. Shang glared at him, then kicked him in the side.
"So anyway," Captain Liu shook his head at Tai-shan, as did everyone else. "We've got to do something about this Meifei, maybe eliminate her before this Empire falls apart. Start losing control of our troops and you get officials with big ideas. The army is what holds Xuanzong's power, it's been that way from the start. He loses that and he's just as dead as his father, and what? For a girl? She must be a witch, maybe another Empress Wu."
Shang blinked, taking another sip from his cup. "She's an eighteen year old girl who was raped in the garden when he was drunk. She's not to blame."
"Hmm," General Xin looked thoughtful. "Pity for her. And who's to say, if she were gone, that he wouldn't find another woman, or man. The fact is he's a pervert." Looking around cautiously, he dropped his voice. "Heard my father say that when the Emperor was a boy, living in the west with some general or another, the general's wife let her manservent have his way with him. He was eight years old at the time. Father said when the lady died he spat on her coffin and cursed her all the way to the grave. The general thought he was mad, so he gave him to another general. Makes you almost feel sorry for him. He's been tumbling everything he can into his bed ever since."
"A man?" Tai-shan sat up, rubbing his head and snickering. "You should have seen him a few weeks ago with our favorite general here." Shang swore as Tai-shan threw himself on top of him, knocking them both to the ground. "Oh, I love you, cousin!" he purred dramatically, pressing a sloppy drunken kiss to Shang's cheek. "Let me call off my guards so we can consummate our passion!" Locking his arms around Shang's neck, Tai-shan rolled himself under him while the other two howled in laughter.
Wrenching his arm free, Shang balled his hand into a fist and punched his friend in the eye, pulling out of his hold and sitting upright again, leaving Tai-shan writhing on the floor in wheezing laughter.
Captain Liu refilled his cup with an amused grunt, then topped off Tai-shan's cup as well, not that he needed it. "Well I don't care if he was the plaything of the entire army or if the Jade Emperor snatched him away in a dream. The point is, this is trouble. My father died fighting for him, my father hoped this corruption would end and the empire would be stable once more. This is dishonor. He's supposed to be the Son of Heaven, a father to his people, not make the Palace a whorehouse! Well when the rebellion starts, and the Tujue come again, I won't lift a sword for him and it won't be my disgrace."
"Me neither," General Xin nodded. "It would have been much better if the throne had gone to you instead, Li Shang."
He stiffened, this was conspiracy and treason on the other man's tongue, and not idle either. "The country is doing well now actually." Shang looked around him, choosing his words carefully. He was not too drunk to forget that Li Longji might have spies about.
Captain Liu lowered his voice. "Only because the eunuchs manage the officials and everything else for him, and it's only because the other generals respect you that the military is strong. That keeps any ambitious official from making a move on Xuanzong. You may not know it, but you are holding the Empire together, Li Shang. But the moment you lift your sword against Xuanzong, you'll find an army behind you. Longji won't have a chance and they'll cheer his death as they do every other traitor. And yes, I say he's a traitor, abusing the Mandate of Heaven to pamper and pleasure himself, when he promised us something more. It'll bring us all down someday. Think on it."
"More to drink anyone?"
The words made them all jump, remembering the danger of the discussion through their stupor. Shang turned his head dizzily in the direction of footsteps, then leaned his head back when he saw it was only Zhong Xiong. Come the morning, sick was going to be an understatement, Shang did not even think he could stand, and the same went for his companions for that matter.
Setting down a pitcher, Xiong lowered himself to sit across from Shang, tugging his mustache as he leaned in closer, his voice hushed. "You know what General An supposedly sent from the border? The Turks are building their army again, even after Shan-yu's death. Isn't that something? They're getting money from good trade. And us? The money the army should be receiving has gone to buying Meifei gold threaded robes and furnishing her with all this feasting and jewelry. You know, instead of sending us to the border to protect our people, he sends my men to guard his bedchamber door while he enjoys her, and he'll only have the most elite soldiers for that duty mind you."
"You think that's bad?" Lieutenant Xin challenged, glaring into his cup. "He ordered my men to guard her while she picks flowers, to hold her parasol over her head so the sun won't burn her white skin. We're soldiers, not handmaidens. I'm tired of this. Li Shang you've got to do something?"
Setting his cup aside for good, Shang tried through the heady fog of his stupor to reason out the situation. He had known for some time that his attention to Meifei was at the least unwise for a new Emperor, but he had endured it to keep the peace. That peace was precious, even if he found himself covering for Longji from time to time, seeing matters taken care of for him because he simply did not trust him to remember. It had not mattered that he had gained some power in the process, that had never been important to him. He had done this out of piety for Taiping, it gave him a new sense of contentment, easing his guilt that surrounded her death. But the seeds of rebellion had sprouted on their own, and it was still on his hands. The fact was, if Longji failed, he failed Taiping as well, she had entangled their fates now. Longji, such a puzzle, he wanted power but not responsibility, glory, but he was afraid of suffering. Maybe Taiping had misjudged, maybe her love for him had blinded her into choosing the wrong man. But who was left? Him? He shook his head that was beginning to throb already.
Lifting his cup in a toast, Captain Liu gave a dazed smile. "I'm willing to toast you the new Emperor of China, Li Shang. You've saved us from the Turks twice already, you and General Fa. If you were Emperor, I know you wouldn't turn your back on your people. If it's civil war you're worried about, that'll come if you do nothing. Show Longji a sword, and he'll back down."
"Here, here!" General Liu and Xiong both joined in, and then Tai-shan too after a moment.
Folding his arms, Shang sighed, looking up at the sky. Ch'ang-an, long lasting peace Taiping's words seemed to echo from the grave. At her funeral, he had made a promise to himself, that he would dedicate his life to seeing her dream realized, peace in the city and in the Court. She had left him with enough authority to do it, the army to balance out Longji and the politicians. He had chosen to honor her as a student would his master, or a son his mother. Her dream was for peace, and now Longji was feeding the dissension anew. The very worst thing was that his cousin did not see it, how he dishonored her memory with his appetite for excess. The country may be well now, flourishing even, but as they say the sun sets on everything. One day, Longji's decadence would lead the empire into ruin.
~ * ~
Shang recoiled as though a sword had pierced through his skull when Mulan drew back the curtains the next morning. Burying his face into the cool pillow next hide, he tried to find relief from the intruding daylight.
"It's almost noon," Mulan reminded with a false patience. "Shouldn't you be up?" For the first time, he felt like shaking her. He was feeling horrible, and she knew it too.
"I don't feel well," he mumbled into the pillow. "I don't think any of my expected to see me today."
Grabbing his shoulder, she managed to roll him over to face her. He flinched and immediately shielded his eyes with his hand. "Well maybe if you hadn't come stumbling in here in the middle of the night! It's amazing you didn't kill yourself just trying to go to bed."
"Look, I'm sorry, Mulan," his eyes were becoming accustomed to the light now. "There's trouble." Rubbing his head, he sat up groggily.
Finally showing some sympathy, she sat down beside him and let him rest his head on her shoulder. "Since when did you drink when there was trouble?"
"I have. I was just better at hiding it." Sighing, he frowned. "It's your friend, Meifei. The soldiers are unhappy with Longji for the way he dotes on her. The Turks are building their army again and he is draining the treasury. They hint at overthrowing him, they expect me to do something."
"Something?" Mulan repeated quietly. "Why not talk to him, remind him of Taiping's wish."
Taiping, his head throbbed with the name. She was the only link of understanding between he and Longji, and that one spark of bitter contention.
"I don't know," he closed his eyes. "You see the problem though? Something has to be done. It'd make you want to drink too."
She gave him a wry look. "In case you've forgotten, I'm pregnant." He patted her stomach, already beginning to swell. She slapped his hand away playfully, not appreciating the patronizing gesture. "I think it's going to be a girl. I don't know how I know, but I can just sense it."
Shang shrugged. "You would know better than I." Climbing out of bed at last, he untied his hair and rubbed his head again. "I guess I should try and find him today."
~ * ~
Shang swore as he strode back into his apartments that evening. For seven hours he had tried to talk to Longji. Tai-shan had told him earlier it was becoming dangerous, some officer was bribing a servant to poison Meifei's wine, while another officer had bribed another servant to drown her in the bath. Tai-shan was remarkably adept at acquiring information.
The impending struggle was the most frightening. After Meifei was dead, they would push him to usurp Longji's position, and if he refused he would die along with Longji if it came to that. It was tiring, this cursory loyalty.
Mulan was sitting at the table when he came in, dressed in full armor, her face painted with worry as she concentrated on the piece of paper in her hand. She looked up when she saw him and set the paper down. "It's Meifei. She's runaway, I think to drown herself, she left me a poem that mentions the River Wei. She says she is filled with shame for what she has caused."
Caused? Shang shook his head. She was an innocent woman who found herself the plaything of a too indulgent Emperor, nothing more. "They have been plotting to kill her," he told Mulan quietly.
"We have to stop her!" She did not seem to hear him.
Sighing, he sank into the chair across from her. "That could be dangerous, Mulan, there's already enough scandal surrounding her as there is."
"What?" Crumpling up the paper, she fed it to the candle flames, her attention so fixed on him he had to pull her hand away before her fingertips were seared. Jerking it out of his hold angrily, she stood up. "Well I'm not going to let my friend die. If you're not coming with me, than fine. But don't try to stop me."
He watched her a minute, rubbing his head. The sad truth was, it be much easier if Meifei died, he gained some new respect for her in that. But it was still a wasted life, not just a spark that ignited these troubles. She was Mulan's friend, he sighed again, dreading to imagine what contempt his wife must hold for him now.
"Alright," he relented. "I'll come with you. I'll even get Tai-shan."
~ * ~
Gazing at the figure on the bed in dazed rapport, Longji permitted himself a smile. It was only a moment ago that Li Shang had been writhing under his sword, and now he lay still as Longji spread the white sheet over him. His only family, and greatest rival had died at last. In that, he found such a sense of satisfaction.
His fingers reached up of their own accord, trailing lightly across the stilled features through the thin cloth. He remembered well that handsome face, almost like his reflection in the mirror, those solemn dark eyes. Slowly, he withdrew the cloth again, wanting to be certain the man was really dead.
When the cloth slid away he jumped back. The face that regarded him was painfully familiar, a face that had not fled his thoughts for a moment during these weeks. He dropped to his knees on the rug, under those eyes that were so full of anguish and reproach.
"Longji," Taiping moaned sadly, the cry of a mortal drawing her final breath. "You have roused me from the grave. I had hoped to leave this world in peace and now there is only more strife."
"No," The Emperor shook his head, there were tears in his eyes and he could not bear them. "Taiping, don't leave me again." He reached for her hand, but just before his fingers could grasp hers she was dissolved into the air. Only the white shroud remained. He clutched in pitifully, letting it soak up his tears.
"Your Majesty!"
Something called him back to the other world, the world of reality. He opened his eyes with a groan of pain, not knowing what was worse, to see the torment on her face or to be trapped in a world where he could not see her face at all. But the rousing voice of his servant held an urgency which demanded his attention.
"You must come quickly, Your Majesty."
A candle flickered alight, a pale sheet of parchment laid in his hands. He unfolded it carefully, reading the words, before storming out of the blankets to find his clothes.
~ * ~
Mulan was ahead of Shang as she ran through the mist, the night bore a sharp chill, but her blood was warm from their haste. Her gaze slipped between the trees and she spotted the river, a ribbon of muted aqua now against the dull moonlight, spotted with shadows like water stained silk. Up and down she combed the riverbank with her eyes, until she found the figure she had been searching for.
"Meifei!" It was a cry of pleading and relief. "Shang! Tai-shan!" She called over her shoulder. "I've found her!" Then running again she dropped to her knees beside her friend.
Meifei appeared startled when she raised her head, so intent on staring the water. Mulan found herself staring at it too, still and tranquil before her. "Mulan," she spoke at last, reaching out one white hand to clasp her friend's warmly. "I never thought you would follow me."
"You don't have to do this," Mulan urged quietly, meeting her eyes that were very lost. "There must be somewhere you can-"
The bitter laugh stopped her. "I would be executed. It is just better this way. Isn't that true, Li Shang?" Her eyes fixed themselves just beyond Mulan.
She turned to see Shang kneeling close at her shoulder, with Tai-shan standing behind him, arms folded. Both men wore a puzzled look of guilt. "It isn't you, Meifei, its Longji, and he's not worth throwing your life away for."
"The strange thing is that I love him," she mused to no one in particular, tracing her fingers in the grass.
Mulan was shocked. "How could you?"
"Well, you still love your husband, don't you? You told me he almost executed you."
Behind her, Mulan could Shang's mood shift with the reminder of that unpleasant memory. They had tried to put it past them. But it was not at all the same thing as being raped, not at all. It was Shang who first spoke though. "If you love him, Meifie, that's your affair. Go back, teach him to do right and remember his responsibilities. Consider it part of your duty as a wife, and to the Empire."
"But I-" she stopped, a shout from the other side of the river interrupted her.
"Li Shang, you will die for this!"
On her feet now, Mulan followed Shang's eyes across the river. A flicker of light appeared between the trees, a drawn blade, and then a dozen armored riders. Longji was leading them, aiming his sword at Shang while his escort held crossbows on the rest of them. Mulan stood frozen, along with Shang and Tai-shan. Only Meifei stepped forward.
"Stay where you are or I'll drown myself!"
"Meifei... " Shang protested quietly.
Longji dismounted, coming forward, though his men did not move. "Li Shang, if she dies I'll see to it you're whole family will join her!"
Without a word, Meifei leapt forward, diving into the river. It happened so quickly. Shang barely turned around, waving a hand at Tai-shan and all of a sudden he had Mulan's arm and was dragging her away back through the trees. She heard another splash, but had no choice but to keep running.
~ * ~
It was a soldier's instinct that made Shang jump after Meifei into the water, saving a life was a reflex that had been ingrained in him for some eight years. He drew in his breath. The icy shock of the river burned through his skin as he crashed through the water, trying to concentrate on pushing through those freezing depths. Meifei would drown within a few moments and Mulan would never forgive him.
He managed to catch her garments, the silk stretching under his fingers before he could get an arm around her waist. She clung to his neck as they broke the surface, frightened and struggling for breath. He held on to her as he tried to turn back, but Longji was already in the water.
"You're a fool, Li Shang," he chuckled as he pried Meifei out of Shang's arms, locking one arm around Shang in a hold the general could not shake. Shang kicked, struggled, the other man was trying to force him back in the water, to drown him. Twisting one leg around the other man's, Shang managed to hold fast to him long enough for them to reach to shore, the wrong shore. But he had a better chance of fighting the guards than surviving in the icy water for long.
Somehow Meifei disappeared from his vision, though he could hear coughing, freeing the water from her lungs. He was still entangled with Longji, legs and arms, weighed down by wet clothing. They wrestled furiously there on the river bank, kicking and struggling for dominance in the fight.
Shang thought he had won, finally, sprawled on top of Longji and pinning
him with his elbow twisting behind his back, holding Longji down with his
knees. But then there were footsteps behind him, just a whisper on the
soggy grass. Something struck Shang on the back of the head and he was
dragged into darkness.