The food at the Jia residence was far inferior to what was served at the Marquis of Xuanwei's manor, yet Zhang Quan ate with unusual contentment.
"Next time I'll bring Grandfather some of that stir-fried dish. It's really fresh."
"I haven't visited in a while… Winter in Ye City is bitterly cold. I wonder if Grandfather is used to it?"
"Grandfather, could the residence prepare an empty room for me? The Marquis's manor feels far too deserted."
He chattered nonstop as he ate.
Across the table, Jia Xu did not even lift his head. One hand held a letter, while the other occasionally picked up a small bite of food and delivered it slowly to his mouth, as if he were using the letter itself as seasoning for the meal.
Carefully shifting his posture to relieve the numbness in his legs from kneeling, Zhang Quan finally had time to examine the jade pendant.
Having grown into a seasoned connoisseur of food and pleasures after his father's death, Zhang Quan could tell at once that the jade was of extraordinary quality. It was most likely palace workmanship. If intact, it might have been worth several hundred thousand coins.
Why would something so fine be kept so poorly?
He felt an inexplicable pang of regret.
But this crack…
It almost looked as if it had been cut in two.
Before he could study it further, Jia Xu reached out and took the broken luan-and-phoenix pendant back. He rubbed it gently, sighed, and placed it carefully into the letter pouch. Only then did he set down his chopsticks.
"Speak."
"Speak… speak about what…"
Zhang Quan glanced upward, mumbling,
"It's getting late. Grandfather should rest earlier…"
Jia Xu stared at him for a long moment, then nodded.
"Very well. Then we shall not speak of that. Let us talk of something else."
Zhang Quan let out a breath of relief.
He watched as his grandfather lifted a cup of tea, gently swirling it as he spoke in an offhand tone,
"If your body cannot be recovered in one piece…
then we shall bury your robes in your place. Would that be acceptable?"
The tone was as casual as asking about the price of vegetables, yet the words sent a chill racing down Zhang Quan's spine.
That chill sharpened his mind.
He remembered his father's long sighs before submitting to Cao Cao.
He remembered the unfinished lessons given after they settled in Ye City.
He remembered the words spoken the night before his father departed for war, as if he had sensed his fate.
Among all those memories, aside from their homeland of Liangzhou with its windswept pastures and herds of cattle and sheep, there was one constant figure.
His grandfather. The man who never joked.
Zhang Quan abruptly rolled aside, expertly circling the low table, and clutched Jia Xu's feet, tears streaming down his face.
"Grandfather, save me!"
Taking a sip of tea, Jia Xu replied slowly,
"I think it would be easier to arrange Ping'er's funeral instead. That would save effort."
"Grandfather…"
Zhang Quan's voice grew mournful.
"Quan'er is foolish. If you will not save me, so be it. But at least let me know why I must die without even a whole corpse."
Jia Xu took another sip of tea, not even looking at the weeping young man at his feet. His sigh was heavy with helplessness.
"Ye City is guarded by six armies.
The palace is held by eight guards.
"In your undertaking, not one army has pledged loyalty. Not one guard has offered submission. How do you expect success?"
"If this matter is launched, whether it succeeds or fails is uncertain. But the number who will lose their heads is beyond counting. How could you possibly escape?"
Now that the subject had been opened, Zhang Quan defended himself in a small voice.
"About the palace guards… Wei Feng told me he has a close friend named Chen Yi, the Commandant of the Changle Guard…"
Bang.
Jia Xu set his cup down sharply and pointed at Zhang Quan.
"What sort of man Chen Yi is, you likely do not know. So let me ask you instead. Do you know what the Changle Guard Commandant truly is?"
Zhang Quan hesitated.
Of course he knew.
Among the three great palaces of the Han court, Weiyang, Changle, and Jianzhang, each had its own ministers. The Changle Guard Commandant was one of them.
But that was clearly not what his grandfather meant.
He saw the faint, meaningful smile on Jia Xu's face.
"When the King of Changyi was made heir, his Chancellor Anle was transferred to become Commandant of the Changle Guard.
"Later, when Huo Guang and the Empress Dowager went to the Chengming Hall, an edict was issued forbidding the Changyi faction from entering the palace. Commandant Anle followed Huo Guang's intent and cut off the emperor's access to aid, allowing the deposition to proceed smoothly.
"Now, there is endless controversy around Chancellor Cao. The man he appoints as Commandant of the Changle Guard… how can you trust that a mere claim of 'close friendship' will make him risk his life for you?"
Jia Xu's explanation twisted in circles, yet Zhang Quan had once been forced by Zhang Xiu, whip in hand, to study the classics. Understanding it was not difficult.
Back then, Huo Guang dominated the court and carried out the deposition of an emperor. When Liu He had been King of Changyi, his chancellor Anle had been Huo Guang's appointee. When Liu He was elevated, Anle returned to the capital and became Commandant of the Changle Guard under Huo Guang's influence. Later, when the Empress Dowager was persuaded to depose the emperor, Anle, who should have been loyal to the Son of Heaven, instead obeyed Huo Guang and isolated the emperor, sealing his fate.
And now…
Who was playing the role of Huo Guang today was obvious without being spoken.
The Commandant appointed by Chancellor Cao…
Did he truly side with Wei Feng out of shared ideals?
Or…
Zhang Quan's thoughts were a mess. Yet strangely, he also felt a bit relieved.
If Grandfather was willing to explain this much, then perhaps there was still hope.
But when he pressed further on what to do next, Jia Xu fell silent again. He only told Zhang Quan to take a letter back with him.
In the end, Jia Xu did not let him stay the night. Instead, he really did lead him to a low wall and made him climb over it himself to leave.
That night, Zhang Quan tossed and turned. Strange and shifting visions filled his dreams.
One moment he returned home in glory, his father's coffin carried back to their homeland in Wuwei, the villagers looking at him with admiration.
The next, he hung from the city gate, looking down at citizens pointing and whispering while stray dogs tore at his corpse.
"Ah!"
He woke from the nightmare to see Wei Feng smiling at him.
"It seems the Marquis of Xuanwei's exhausted and careworn state shows that he already understands the great cause we carry."
Zhang Quan rubbed his face, then poured out everything Jia Xu had told him about Chen Yi almost in one breath. The smile on Wei Feng's face slowly faded.
"Many thanks to Grand Tutor Jia for pointing out this flaw. Is there anything else…"
Zhang Quan pulled out the secret letter he had kept close to his body and handed it over solemnly.
"A reply."
Seeing the smile return to Wei Feng's face, Zhang Quan sighed and spoke honestly.
"After Grandfather's warning, I no longer seek fame. I only hope… not to die without even a place to be buried."
Wei Feng shook his head.
"A true man, if he cannot dine from five tripods in life, then he shall be boiled in five tripods in death."
He tucked the letter carefully into his robes.
After several changes of carriage and horse, the letter finally arrived at a place thick with the scent of medicine.
It passed from Wei Feng's hands into those of an old man, then was carefully slipped into a hidden layer of a medicine chest.
The old man slung the chest onto his back and boarded a carriage. Passing through layers of guards, a heavily fortified estate came into view.
This was the "imperial palace" of Ye City.
As they proceeded further inside, the guards, familiar with him from frequent visits, only conducted a cursory inspection before one of them said,
"Physician Ji may go in on his own. The Empress is already waiting for the consultation."