Deng Ying lightly gripped the fabric at his knees.
“What does the Seal-Bearer want Deng Ying to say?”
He Yixian looked toward Hu Xiang, “You question him. I’ll listen.”
“Yes.”
Hu Xiang stood up at the command and strode several steps to stand before Deng Ying.
He was a straightforward person, his bearing not much like that of a eunuch. His voice was rough and direct, even somewhat harsh.
He took up a formal stance before Deng Ying.
“The Ministry of Justice’s documents arrived at the Office of Ceremonies today, requiring you to attend a hearing tomorrow. Today we’ll set up a court here – just pretend I’m the official from the Ministry of Justice. I’ll ask, you answer.”
Deng Ying obediently responded: “Yes.”
Hu Xiang coughed once and asked in an official tone: “In the tenth year of Zhenning, how many bricks were supplied from Linqing, Shandong?”
“Thirty thousand pieces.”
“Why did Shandong report supplying fifty thousand fine bricks that year?”
Deng Ying glanced at Wang Changshun trembling on his knees on the ground, then looked up and answered: “In the tenth year of Zhenning, there was a failure in rebuilding the moon platform of the Longevity Emperor Hall, which wasted twenty thousand fine bricks.”
“Are there records that can be checked?”
“Yes.”
He answered this series of questions almost without any hesitation. Hu Xiang nodded with satisfaction, stepped aside, and looked toward He Yixian.
He Yixian took a sip of tea, then continued Hu Xiang’s line of questioning: “Were they wasted?”
Deng Ying looked up, “If the Ministry of Justice asked Deng Ying, naturally they were wasted. If the Seal-Bearer asks me, then they were not.”
He Yixian laughed, “Good, then tell me the truth.”
Deng Ying spoke evenly: “In fact, Linqing in Shandong only supplied thirty thousand fine bricks, but falsely reported fifty thousand. The funds for the additional twenty thousand bricks were still disbursed by the Ministry of Revenue. As for where that silver is now, Deng Ying does not know.”
“Then why didn’t you answer Hu Xiang truthfully just now?”
At this question, the hall fell silent.
He Yixian set down his teacup, “Still can’t let go of your status, eh? What harm is there in saying it? You’re now a servant of the Office of Ceremonies, not their Cabinet’s firecracker to be lit as they please, isn’t that right?”
Deng Ying remained silent.
Looking at the torture wounds on Wang Changshun’s body, he suddenly felt that he too bore such bloody gashes.
“Speak.”
Just two words, not particularly forceful.
But they held the power to slice through consciousness.
Deng Ying stared at his own shadow at his feet, bowed, and then suddenly paused for a long moment before finally responding: “Yes.”
After hearing this, He Yixian shook his head with a smile, “Still not answering enough.”
Zheng Yuejia glanced at He Yixian’s eyes, then looked uneasily toward Deng Ying.
The atmosphere in the conference room suddenly grew heavy.
Zheng Yuejia couldn’t help but bark at Deng Ying: “Deng Ying, answer properly!”
“You be quiet!”
He Yixian shouted back at Zheng Yuejia, “Watch how he responds himself.”
Everyone in the room looked at him.
Under their gazes, Deng Ying slowly released his hand from within his sleeve. He knelt.
His blue robe touched the ground as he closed his eyes. At this moment, he thought of nothing, only feeling grateful that Yang Wan wasn’t here.
“Yes, this slave understands.”
Only then did He Yixian nod, waving for Hu Xiang to step back, and continued: “You were more than a little late today, but you’ve answered well enough just now. However, from now on, you need to change your thinking. We are palace servants – only when the masters live well will they bestow money upon us. You just said you don’t know where the funds for those twenty thousand fine bricks went. Fine, now I’ll tell you – all that silver went into the accounts for renovating the master’s Banana Garden. We servants didn’t see a single coin of it. But the master is happy, and that’s more important than anything. Do you understand? If you understand, stand up and answer.”
Deng Ying stood up at the command, eyes downcast as he responded: “Yes.”
He Yixian nodded and stood up himself.
“Alright. That’s enough for today’s discussion. I’m tired too, you may all disperse.”
Seeing they were about to dismiss, Wang Changshun hurriedly grabbed He Yixian’s leg, “Godfather, what about your son’s life? Godfather promised to save your son!”
He Yixian bent down and brushed aside his hair, “Supervisor Deng hasn’t said he’ll save you, so how can I save you, hmm?”
“Godfather…”
“Enough!”
He Yixian straightened up and sighed: “Your woman, and that godson of yours – Godfather will look after them all. You can go in peace. Godfather has prepared plenty of spirit money for you – you won’t be able to spend it all down there.”
“Godfather! Godfather! Godfather, please don’t, your son still wants to keep his life to serve you!”
As he spoke, his voice broke with tears and his body shook like sifted chaff.