Taiheiki

Chapter 235 Letter
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The night outside the window was deep, and the table inside was littered with cups and saucers. All three of them were a little tipsy.

"Want some more?" Kuai Sheng asked, picking up the wine jug.

"Good!" Muhan's dark face had turned a peculiar purplish-black, just like his robust physique. He also had a good tolerance for alcohol: "This wine is really good! This is the first time I've ever tasted it!"

"It's a mixture of three kinds of wine!" Kuai Sheng explained as he poured wine into Muhan's cup, "Sugarcane wine, coconut wine, and grain wine are mixed in a certain proportion."

"Sugarcane, coconut?" Huang Yun asked, "What are these?"

"These are all fruits from the south, and the local barbarians in Jiaozhou love to use them to make wine!" Kuai Sheng filled Huang Yun's wine glass to the brim. "Speaking of which, this method of mixing wine was first created by Marquis Wei, and he even gave it a name: cocktail!"

"Cocktail?" Muhammad asked, puzzled. "What does that have to do with a cocktail?"

"Because to make this mixed wine taste good, you have to pour the three kinds of wine into a large pot while stirring it quickly. Marquis Wei often used pheasant feathers to stir it, so it got its name!"

"I see!" Mu Han took a sip and laughed, "I never imagined that Marquis Wei had such refined tastes!"

"Yes!" Kuai Sheng laughed, "Judging from his appearance, he looks exactly like a handsome young man from Luoyang, and you can't tell at all what a general would look like!"

"If that's the case, then you really can't judge a book by its cover!" Muhan laughed.

“Yes! When I first heard about what he did in Jiaozhou, I thought he was a tall man with a thick beard and a similar appearance to Brother Mu!” Huang Yun said.

"Hehe! You can't say that!" Kuai Sheng laughed. "The books say that Marquis Liu was as beautiful as a maiden, but in terms of his achievements, how many men in the world can compare to him?"

"That's true!" Muhan was already six or seven parts drunk, but he mustered his courage and asked, "But I heard some rumors about Marquis Wei in the palace a few days ago. I heard that the General had some reservations about Marquis Wei!"

"Hehehe!" Kuai Sheng laughed: "Brother Mu, you've seen the world, how could you possibly believe the words of a few mediocre people?"

“A mediocre person?” Muhammad could hardly believe his ears. “What do you mean by mediocre person—?”

"Who else could it be but General Dou from the imperial court!"

Silence fell over the room. Both Mu Han and Huang Yun wore expressions of fear. After a long pause, Mu Han coughed and said, "Lord Kuai, aren't you going a bit too far? General Dou was renowned throughout Guanzhong in his youth, with hundreds of disciples. After entering officialdom, he was known for his integrity and incorruptibility. His wife and children were provided for with only meager food and clothing, and he distributed all the rewards bestowed by the court to his sons and former officials. His disciples were all outstanding individuals, and he was deeply respected by the people. How can such a person be considered mediocre?"

"Hehe!" Kuai Sheng laughed: "Mu Lingcheng, your family comes from humble origins, how would you know the tricks of aristocratic scions? Let me ask you, this General Dou has such high prestige and virtue, but after he came to power, what is the current situation of the Han Dynasty? Are the crops plentiful? Are the people well-fed and clothed? Is the border stable? Are the barbarians subdued? Has Heaven sent down auspicious omens?"

Mu Han was rendered speechless by Kuai Sheng's barrage of questions. As a cog in the Han Dynasty's bureaucratic system, he was well aware of the dire situation the Han Dynasty was in. From north to south, droughts, floods, and locust plagues were relentless, resulting in poor harvests in many areas. Under the dual blows of war and natural disasters, the people were suffering immensely, with many resorting to cannibalism. The border regions were even worse; just last year, the Xianbei had breached the border fortresses, plundering many border counties in Liang, Bing, and Youzhou, while the Wuling barbarians in the south had also attacked Jingnan, having already joined forces with the E'zei. Under such circumstances, there was certainly no auspicious sign.

"This can't all be blamed on General Dou alone!" Huang Yun said in a low voice. "The Moth Rebellion started during the reign of the late emperor, and the Xianbei and Wuling barbarians have been around for a long time!"

"With all the power in the court concentrated in one person, who else can we blame but him?" Kuai Sheng laughed. "If we're talking about a critical situation, when Marquis Wei led over ten thousand men into Jiaozhou, he was beset by internal and external troubles. Yet, in just over a year, he drove out his enemies from within and pacified the barbarians from without. Not only was Jiaozhou greatly stabilized, but he was also able to send troops north to attack the Ezhou bandits from both sides. This is true strategy of a king and the talent of a king's advisor. How could a mediocre person like Dou Wu, who rose to power solely through family background and his daughter's influence, possibly be able to evaluate him?"

By this time, Huang Yun and Mu Han had completely sobered up, and they knew, of course, that Kuai Sheng's words were meant to have an ulterior motive. Mu Han said in a low voice, "Lord Kuai, perhaps you are right. But even a pine tree, if it grows in a valley, cannot compare to the wild grass on the mountain. General Dou now relies on his family ties and the support of scholars throughout the land, and he holds the reins of power. I'm afraid no one can rival him!"

"I don't think so! In my opinion, Dou Wu is already in a precarious situation, and his demise is only a matter of time!"

"Oh? Would you like to hear the details?"

"It's very simple! Dou Wu's inability to lead troops to victory is his fatal flaw!"

"Isn't that a big deal?" Muhan frowned. "Although he is a Grand General, according to custom, a Grand General usually does not lead troops into battle. He is merely the head of the inner court, and whether he can lead troops or not is not important!"

"Under normal circumstances, this would indeed be correct, but times have changed. Right now, the Han Dynasty faces the E'er bandits to the south, the Xianbei to the north, and the Qiang to the west, with enemies on three sides. We must select capable generals and entrust them with specific responsibilities in order to defeat them. However, if we do this, the internal situation will inevitably become weak while the external situation becomes heavy, and the enemy will become too powerful to control. If Dou Wu wants to counterbalance the external generals, the only way is to respect the emperor and strengthen himself. This would not be a problem in itself, but the current emperor is not actually related to the Dou family by blood. Isn't this a great danger?"

As Kuai Sheng pointed out, Dou Wu's wielding of power as a relative of the emperor had inherent flaws—Empress Dowager Dou had not borne Emperor Huan a son. Furthermore, perhaps due to her age, Dou Wu did not choose a woman from his clan to be the new emperor's empress, thus failing to strengthen the relationship between his family and the emperor. Therefore, Dou Wu opted for a strategy of overwhelmingly favoring the scholar-officials led by the Yuan clan of Runan, effectively eliminating the eunuch faction and completely excluding the emperor from central power, reducing him to a mere figurehead.

If Dou Wu or his family had possessed outstanding military talent, the simultaneous outbreak of war in the north and south might not have been a bad thing. However, neither Dou Wu nor his family had any capable generals at this time. This forced Dou Wu to grant greater military autonomy to the vassal states (Wei Cong) and military commanders (Feng Kun), disrupting the empire's original military balance and creating a dangerous situation where the interior was weak while the exterior was strong. If Wei Cong and Feng Kun successfully resolved the military crisis, in order to suppress the powerful and meritorious vassal generals, Dou Wu would have to turn back and vigorously promote the emperor's authority to suppress Wei Cong and others. But this would be tantamount to loosening the reins on the emperor. Caught between a resentful emperor and powerful vassal generals, Dou Wu was essentially walking a tightrope of power; a slight misstep would send him plummeting to his death. Muhan poured himself a cup of wine, rinsed it in his mouth for a while before swallowing: "What Kuai Gong said makes sense, but it's still too far removed from our reality. It's like the bright moon in the sky; though it's as bright as jade, it's beyond our reach. This cup of wine is much more practical!"

"Hehe, what difficulty is there in making the moon fall to earth!" Kuai Sheng laughed. "Young Master Dong, please come in!"

Dong Zhong, who had been waiting outside, entered the room and bowed deeply to Huang Yun and Mu Han: "I implore you two to lend me a hand in killing the traitor Dou and restoring power to the Emperor!"

Huang Yun and Mu Han quickly got up to make way. They had originally thought Dong Zhong was a junior member of Kuai Sheng's family, but now it seemed that something was amiss.

"Who is this——?"

"This is Young Master Dong, and his aunt is Consort Shen of the Shen Garden, who is the current emperor's biological mother. In fact, he and the current emperor's cousin grew up together since childhood, and are no different from biological brothers!"

Huang and Mu were taken aback and quickly knelt down to return the courtesy: "Young master, such a great courtesy is too much for us to bear, it is too much for us!"

Kuai Sheng pulled Huang Yunmuhan up from the ground: "Young master, you greet me with such courtesy because you hope that we can lend a helping hand. If this great undertaking succeeds, I am willing to form a marriage alliance with you two and share wealth and honor!"

Huang Yun and Mu Han exchanged a wry smile: "Lord Kuai is joking. We are just ordinary people, like grass. How could we not serve you if you value us so highly? It's just that we are lowly and insignificant, and we are truly willing but unable to do so!"

"Why are you two so modest!" Kuai Sheng laughed. "Young Master Dong doesn't need you to assassinate Dou Wu. You just need to find a way to send a letter to the Emperor. That shouldn't be difficult for you, right?"

"Send a letter?" Huang Yun thought for a moment. Although this was still difficult for the two of them, it was much easier than arguing and killing Dou Wu.

“Excellent!” Kuai Sheng took a letter from Dong Zhong and handed it over: “This is a letter from Consort Shen of Shen Garden. It expresses the longing between mother and child, nothing more. Even if it is discovered by others, it won’t cause any major disaster. Would you two be willing to deliver it?”

Muhan thought for a moment. Just as Kuai Sheng had said, if the letter only expressed maternal affection, his greatest risk would be being dismissed from his post by the Empress Dowager after being discovered. But if it succeeded, the rewards would be limitless. No matter how he calculated it, it was a very worthwhile deal. He was about to agree when he heard Huang Yun reply, "I am willing to follow your orders, young master!" and then he took the letter.

"That Huang Yun is so quick! He beat me to it!" Mu Han cursed inwardly, but said aloud, "Young master, please rest assured. I have a favorite palace maid serving the Emperor. As long as she is on duty, she will definitely be able to deliver this letter to the Emperor!"

"Then I'll have to trouble you two!" Dong Zhong took out two deerskin pouches from his sleeve as Kuai Sheng had arranged beforehand: "Each pouch contains fifty taels of gold. You two must have spent a lot of money in the palace, so please accept these for your use. If you need anything, just let me know!"

Huang and Mu were overjoyed upon hearing this. Since ancient times, eunuchs, unable to have sexual relations, had valued money especially highly. No matter how eloquently Kuai Sheng and Dong Zhong painted their rosy pictures, nothing could compare to the gold before them. The two men each accepted the gold, bowing again in gratitude.

After leaving Kuai She, Huang and Mu discussed the matter and found it to be very beneficial. They waited a few days until the palace maid Mu Han was in love with was on duty in the emperor's bedchamber. Then, they secretly hid the letter among the poems and essays that the emperor usually liked to read.

Sure enough, a few days later, while Liu Hong was perusing the poems, he discovered a hidden letter inside. Although he was not yet fourteen, he had experienced much in his youth and was quite shrewd. Pretending to be nonchalant, he tucked the letter into his sleeve, only taking it out when he went to bed that night. He read it by the moonlight streaming through the window. As soon as he opened the letter, he recognized his mother's familiar handwriting, and his heart ached. He looked up to make sure no one was around before turning back to examine it closely.

"Separated by heaven and earth, mother and child in different places, for years, life and death have been intermittent, the pain in my heart is unbearable. I imagine your sorrow, how can I bear it? I entered your family at nineteen, and now I am over thirty. I always hoped you would be my bulwark, that I could see you in peace, but alas, the sins you committed are so grave, that life and death are separated. I have given birth to one son and two daughters, and today, not one of them is here. Just thinking of this fills me with grief… Ah Chong and Ah Lan are about your age, and were your classmates. The doctor's surname is Cheng, a stern and wicked man. The three of you plotted to harm him. Your aunt and I heard of this, and each of us grabbed his son and beat him, but because of your noble status, you were spared…"

Liu Hong stared at the familiar handwriting on the letter, which recounted trivial matters from his childhood—things unknown to anyone but his closest mother. The thought of being the emperor, yet unable to care for his mother and keeping her thousands of miles away, filled him with unbearable grief, a pain as if cut by a knife. Tears streamed down his face, soon soaking the bedding.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"

Just then, Liu Hong suddenly heard light footsteps behind him. He quickly hid the letter under the covers, closed his eyes slightly, and pretended to be asleep. At this moment, a eunuch came over to tidy up Liu Hong's bedding, but found that the emperor's face was covered in tears and the sheets were wet with tears. He was startled.

"How is this going?"

Realizing he couldn't hide it any longer, Liu Hong opened his eyes and said, "I just suddenly missed my hometown and my mother, and tears welled up in my eyes without me realizing it!"

Seeing the emperor's state, the young eunuch felt a pang of sympathy and lowered his voice, saying, "Your Majesty, you can say tomorrow that you miss your family in Hejian and have some gifts prepared to send back. I'm sure the Grand General will agree!"

"I'll remember that!" Liu Hong was delighted upon hearing this. He glanced at the young eunuch and asked, "You're a good man. What's your name?"

"My name is Zhang Rang. This is just my duty. I dare not accept Your Majesty's praise!" The eunuch hurriedly knelt down.

The next day, when Liu Hong was received by Dou Wu, he suddenly showed a sorrowful expression. When Dou Wu inquired, Liu Hong said that he had dreamt of his hometown of Hejian and his mother the previous night. In the dream, his mother was ill, and he was unable to attend to her, which made him extremely sad. Zhang Rang, who was standing nearby, also said that the emperor had wept in the middle of the night, and even his bedding was soaked with tears.

(End of this chapter)