As the season draws to a close, all flowers return to dust.
The endless silence of late spring in the inner court also makes people feel lonely.
Yang Wan cooked herself a bowl of noodles and brought it to the window while it was still hot. Since no one was in the main room of Building 5, she slid her legs down on the chair and prepared to have a nap.
The noodles were still too hot and she almost burned her tongue after taking a bite. She simply pushed the bowl aside to let it cool, rolled up her sleeves and continued writing her notes.
Yang Wan's notes from the past few days were written in a very messy way, and she even tore up several pages in a row.
When she couldn't continue writing, she would habitually draw a small portrait of Deng Ying on paper.
Initially, she wanted to paint the perfect brokenness she felt when she first met Deng Ying, but her painting skills were not good, and Deng Ying in her paintings always looked a little dull. But she didn't know when she started to lose her obsession with that brokenness, and even began to deliberately avoid it.
So she gently turned the page of the little portrait.
He turned sideways and ate a mouthful of noodles with his left hand, then came back and picked up the pen, but after a long time he still couldn't write a single word.
The people in the inner court were unaware of the secret struggle between the Imperial Household Department and the Cabinet.
Yang Wan's inner uneasiness became more and more intense as time went by.
Without the support of historical materials and relying entirely on her understanding of human nature, it was difficult for her to speculate how Deng Ying got out of the deadlock of the Imperial Household Department and the Cabinet.
Recalling what Deng Ying had said to her, Yang Wan thought of the brutal torture in the Ministry of Justice more than once.
She herself had not studied the Ming Dynasty's punishments, but she had a senior sister who had devoted herself to studying this aspect for many years. Among them, she mentioned Deng Ying and the three-day-long lingchi at Wumen Gate. The senior sister wrote the following in her notes on Lunwai.
"The emperor at that time probably just regarded this man's body as a symbol of guilt, using the death penalty to announce to the world his attitude towards the eunuch party, to show the lowliness of the eunuch group, and to show the absolute control of the imperial power over the palace slaves. When they executed Deng Ying in front of the gate of the palace, perhaps no one remembered that this eunuch who died tragically was the builder of this imperial city."
Yang Wan remembered that she had accidentally read this passage in the laboratory's materials.
At that time, her senior sister had already graduated and went to teach at a school abroad, so she didn't want to disturb her rashly.
In fact, this passage is just a calm description of the significance of lingchi eunuch at that time, beyond academic context, and does not have any special stance towards Deng Ying.
When Yang Wan read this passage, she felt that her senior sister was a person who had compassion for history.
But now, when she recalled these words, she actually wanted to cry.
"Your eyes are red from eating noodles again. I see you need to go out for a walk."
Song Qingyun walked in holding a basin of sawdust water.
Yang Wan turned around and said, "You went to wash your hair."
"Um."
Song Qingyun's voice was very cheerful: "It's a nice sunny day today. I see that all the people from the Shanggong Bureau have gone. Hey, but they always think they are superior to us, and they act in a pretentious manner and make me serve them. Hey, do you want to take a shower? Go now. When I leave, they will also leave. It will be quiet for you to go now."
Yang Wan lowered her head and ate her noodles. "Okay, I'll go after I finish my noodles."
Song Qingyun sat by the window twisting her hair, and suddenly remembered something, and stood up: "Oh, I forgot something."
While eating, Yang Wan asked her vaguely, "What?"
"It's about Hu Siji. I asked you to go to the Tongji Library to get some documents."
Yang Wan said while picking at her noodles: "Oh, I know, isn't it tomorrow? I'm not on duty today."
Song Qingyun curled her lips, "You know her, the Death Lady. She didn't look for you this morning, and guessed that you went to Lady Ning's place, so she didn't dare to look for you. So she came to me and asked me to mention it to you, but I forgot about it. I only remembered it when I saw you now."
Yang Wan glanced at the sky and said, "We still have to go to Huijimen."
"Well, it's all my fault. I told you too late."
Yang Wan lowered her head and continued to eat noodles. "It's okay. There's always work to do. I'll go after I finish eating."
"Okay, I'll wash the dishes for you."
Yang Wan laughed, "How dare I order you around?"
Song Qingyun said, "Alright, hurry up and go. Everyone knows that Young Master Deng is not here. You are confused. Just don't mess up the kitchen."
Yang Wan understood that she meant well and did not refuse.
He swallowed the remaining noodles in two or three bites, changed into palace clothes, and went up to Huiji Gate.
Huiji Gate was the only gate that the ministers of the cabinet had to go through to leave the palace, but the female officials in the palace were not allowed to have private conversations with outside officials. Therefore, even though Yang Wan and Yang Lun would sometimes meet at the gate, they would not dare to talk openly. However, being in the inner court, if she wanted to know about Deng Ying's situation, she could only ask Yang Lun. So today, Yang Wan wanted to break this taboo.
Unlike last time when Yi Lang was there, this time she could only hide behind the meeting door and wait.
The cabinet seemed to have something going on today. Yang Wan looked towards the cabinet room from time to time, but never opened the door.
A breeze blew in and out of the door, blowing up her thin palace dress, which was about to be changed. She felt a little cold, so she sniffed, hugged her knees and squatted down against the palace wall, wanting to rest for a while.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of me.
Yang Wan raised her head. The person in front of her was wearing a dark red robe with a mourning belt tied around his waist. He was holding an embroidered spring sword and looking down at her.
"How is it that the palace ladies and the foreign ministers have a private relationship?"
His voice was extremely cold.
Yang Wan stood up, "Twenty strokes of the cane, ring the bell on the city road."
"It seems you know."
"Isn't your Excellency also a foreign minister?"
Zhang Luo sneered and said, "You just don't know how to talk to me."
Yang Wan bowed, "Yang Wan knows her mistake."
Zhang Luo watched her crouch down and stand up straight, and suddenly said, "Even if you knew the servant's situation from Yang Lun, could you save him?"
Yang Wan pursed her lips and said, "He never thought of asking anyone to save him from the beginning."
After hearing this, Zhang Luo took a few steps towards Yang Wan. When he was close, Yang Wan could almost smell the sandalwood scent on him.
"You are a smarter woman than Yang Lun."
Yang Wan supported herself against the wall with her hands, "My Lord, what do you want to tell me?"
"I want to ask you, why did you abandon me and follow that person who is not even a man."
"Does your Excellency care about this matter?"
"right."
Zhang Luo raised his voice, "I care. I heard his trial at the Ministry of Justice a few days ago. He knelt on the ground and let the guards do whatever they wanted. The Ming Dynasty Law is ruthless to criminals. During the interrogation, they stripped him of his clothes and pants. He was worse than pigs and dogs. He had no face at all. Do you still want to see a body like this?"
Yang Wan's head buzzed, "Why did you insult him?"
"Oh."
This sneer was heart-piercing.
"Yang Wan, what you said is wrong. It's not me who is humiliating him, it's the law that is restraining him."
After hearing this, Yang Wan suddenly understood that the sense of oppression from this man did not come entirely from his viciousness, but from his obsession with the order of the feudal era. He did not vent his personal hatred on Deng Ying, he just had no sympathy for eunuchs, thus interpreting the scholar-official class's disgust for eunuchs to the extreme.
Yang Wan thought of the words written by her senior sister - perhaps no one could remember that this eunuch who died tragically was once the builder of this imperial city.
Suddenly, an uncontrollable sadness welled up in my heart, and tears welled up in my eyes.
She quickly raised her head.
Zhang Luo looked at him, "You actually cried for him? When did it start?"
He said, raising his hand.
Yang Wan moved to the side.
"Don't touch me."
"snort."
Zhang Luo snorted and laughed, "Yang Wan, I have been running around these past few years and have not asked about your affairs. Father asked about you a few days ago, and I was thinking, if I had married you a few years earlier, let you stay by my side, and disciplined you well, would you not be like this now?"
"Discipline? What are women in your eyes?"
Yang Wan almost blurted out this sentence, but after she finished speaking, a pale feeling of powerlessness rose in her mind.
Saying these words to Zhang Luo six hundred years ago was completely meaningless.
She was about to speak again when she heard Yang Lun's shout from behind her.
"Zhang Luo!"
Yang Wan turned sideways, and Yang Lun walked quickly over from the Huiji Gate. He grabbed her wrist, pulled her to the side, and blocked her behind him.
"What are you doing? This is the inner court!"
Zhang Luo took a step back, "Minister Yang, there's no need to be like this. Your sister's character is known to everyone in the city. I also find her dirty."
After saying that, he turned around and walked out the door.
Yang Lun was so angry that his throat hurt. Just as he was about to chase after her, Yang Wan grabbed his sleeve.
"Let him talk. It won't cost him anything."
Yang Lun turned around and asked, "Did he do anything to you?"
"No."
"Then why are you crying?"
"I didn't cry..."
Yang Wan quickly raised her sleeves and rubbed her eyes.
Yang Lun looked at Yang Wan somewhat helplessly.
In the past, when Yang Wan was at home, she would often cry in front of him, but since he brought her back from Nanhaizi, this was the first time that Yang Lun saw her eyes red.
"I'll go ask Zhang Luo!"
"Alright, brother! It's really okay. You don't have to be so hard on him at this time."
She staggered as she was pulled. Yang Lun quickly turned around to support her and looked down at her face. "I'm glad he didn't hurt you, otherwise my brother wouldn't let him go."
Yang Wan nodded, "I know, thank you brother."
Yang Lun helped her stop crying, stood up to calculate the time, and asked, "Why are you here?"
"Oh, Hu Siji ordered me to come here. I have an errand at Tongjiku."
"Is it over?"
"It's over. I'm waiting for my brother on purpose."
After listening to this, Yang Lun took a step back and said, "I want to ask about Deng Ying, right?"
"Um."
Yang Lun set his chin, looked at Yang Wan in silence for a while, and finally spoke.
"The Imperial Household Department has already brought him back from the Ministry of Justice today."
"Is he seriously injured?"
"He is not injured."
Yang Wan was stunned.
"General Zhang Luo said..."
"I was going to use torture, but then Mr. Zhang came."
Yang Wan suddenly remembered that Zhang Zhanchun seemed to have died in May of the twelfth year of Zhenning, but there was no record of how he died. She hurriedly asked, "Is it Mr. Zhang Zhanchun?"
Yang Lun nodded and said, "For details, you can ask Deng Ying yourself, but he may not be well in the next two days."
"Why?"
Yang Lun lowered his head. "Mr. Zhang admitted his guilt in the Shandong brick supply case in order to save him. He taught Deng Ying for ten years and was Deng Ying's most respected teacher. Now he is in jail for him... Oh..."
Yang Lun couldn't help but sigh.
"Okay, I'm leaving the palace now. Are the Queen and His Highness okay?"
Yang Wan didn't say anything, but just nodded blankly.
"Take good care of them. Recently... the political situation is unstable, and it is inevitable that the queen will hear some news. Please explain it to the queen for me and don't let her worry too much."
Yang Wan followed a few steps and said, "Brother, you guys don't need to investigate this matter anymore."
Yang Lun turned around and said, "Wan'er, Deng Fuling and Mr. Zhang are not afraid of death, and neither are we. No matter what your majesty does, we must let the people of the world see the loyalty of us scholars and officials to the Ming Dynasty."
**
Watching history, one feels compassion.
But if you are in it, just compassion... seems not enough.
After Yang Lun left, Yang Wan gathered her sleeves and walked towards the fifth institute.
On the palace road, he met Li Yu who was on duty. He saw Yang Wan and quickly sneaked down and said, "I see you."
Yang Wan coughed and asked, "What's wrong?"
Li Yu said, "Deng Ying is back and he didn't open the door for a whole day. I shouted until my throat was broken, but he didn't make a sound. I was afraid something might happen to him. He has no one else to take care of him in the palace. Don't you like him? Go and have a look."
A gust of wind blew in from the palace path, blowing up Yang Wan's skirt. The dust of the world blew in her face.
Yang Wan gathered her clothes and asked, "Do you have noodles?"
"noodle?"
"Yes, ready-made."
"have."
"What about the stove?"
"There is also a furnace, by the big willow tree in the moat."