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almondinflowerCharacters: In this chapter - Waya, Isumi, Touya, Le Ping, An Taeseon
Wordcount: 3000
Summary: In a world where divination is used to predict the future and govern nations, State Diviner Touya Akira and private investigator Waya Yoshitaka embark on a search for the heretic Sai, the ghostly diviner who may be the most powerful of them all.
This chapter: In which the focus shifts to the murder of Wang Shi Zhen, and suspects are named. (Also, Waya and Touya fight, but that's a given.)
Earlier chapters.
Le Ping drew me a map of the imperial palace. "You'd get lost if I didn't," he said.
“Given the quality of your art? Getting lost is still a very real possibility.” I squinted at the diagram. It was composed of three expansive courtyards, each labelled in Le Ping's chicken scrawl: Phoenix, Lion, Dragon.
He pointed to a lopsided rectangle in the northeast corner of the Lion Court. “This is where the Ministry of Internal Affairs is based.” His finger moved to a wonky circle nearby. “And this is the Pagoda of the Nine Stars. That's where they found Shi Zhen.”
“Right under Yang Hai's nose, hmm? No wonder he's being such a jerk about it.”
“It's not funny, it's a real headache. Lu Li was the chief of the Imperial Diviners, and Shi Zhen was his deputy.” A glint of embarrassment came into his eyes. “I'm actually the third-ranked Imperial Diviner.”
I burst out guffawing. “So you're the acting chief of the Imperial Diviners? No wonder everyone wants to resolve this case quickly, before the palace grinds to a halt.”
“Shut up! I didn't know what to do. Yang Hai took over for me, that's how I could come to Ki to see you.”
“They were that eager to get rid of you, huh?” His face altered; belatedly, I realised that I'd hurt his feelings. I fumbled for a way to mend my words. “You're awfully young to be ranked third, though.”
He brightened immediately. Ah, the resilience of youth. “I was the youngest in a century to get into the upper echelons of the Imperial Diviners. Actually, Zhao Shi would have beaten me to it, but being Emperor and all, he gets a special rank.”
“Zhao Shi believes in Lu Li's innocence.” I raised my head and saw Isumi emerging from the Consulate building. He crossed the tiny, slate-coloured bridge that connected the main garden to the gazebo where Le Ping and I were seated, coming to a halt about a yard away from us. His eyes were bright and alert. Sunlight danced on his hair.
Isumi continued: “But there's not much he can do without compromising his position. The Minister of the Left has been criticising the excessive power of the Imperial Diviners for the last several years. And most of the Cabinet supports him. There's no way Zhao Shi can acquit Lu Li without sufficient proof.”
I snorted. “And in the end, it all comes down to politics. Nothing new under the sun. Do we at least have an autopsy report?”
“Spontaneous necrosis of multiple organs, including the cerebrum and the myocardium. Cause unknown. Basically, the tissue in his body just began dying, for no apparent reason – his heart, his lungs, his brain. I've been doing research while Le Ping was in Ki, and I can't find a single poison that would cause something like that. Neither can the palace doctors.”
I felt ill. “And on the outside? His skin?”
“Burn marks from the stones, just like the ones on Ouza-sensei. Nothing else.”
“Try looking in the compendia of medical divination. Focus on the physiological effects of chaos within the body. Well, Touya might already have caught on to that line of thought, so check with him first.”
“You and Touya seem to have your own theories about the death,” said Isumi. “Care to share them with me?”
“Come on, Isumi,” I scoffed. “You'd never have asked me to come if you weren't harbouring suspicions.”
Swallows swooped overhead; bees nestled in the camellia bushes. Through the fretted iron gates that separated the Consulate from the outside world, I saw palanquins and automobiles travelling side-by-side on the bitumen road.
At last Isumi bowed his head. “I called you because I think Wang Shi Zhen may have been murdered by divination.”
“And I agree,” I said.
#
The question was who, and how. Touya, however, had no doubts on that score. “It was Shindou,” he said. “The whole thing smells of his Weiqi. Both in the Room of Profound Darkness, and the divination that Le Ping showed me.”
“That's kind of a really huge leap of logic to make,” Le Ping commented. His reaction was the mildest. Isumi looked palely aghast.
“Isn't it a little premature to be naming names, Touya?" he asked. "We don't even understand yet, how divination could be used to kill. Our first step should be to establish the method, not the culprit.”
We stood gathered in the front hall of the consulate. We'd been about to leave for the palace when Touya had thrown his hand-grenade of an opinion into our midst.
“I've studied Shindou's divinations constantly for the last two years. Nobody understands his methods better than I do.”
“Which is why you hadn't changed the future successfully even once until I showed you how?” Le Ping raised a brow.
“I'd never tried,” Touya snapped. “It's illegal in Ki.”
Le Ping lifted his chin. “Didn't take you for a coward.”
My attention was all on the dawning realisation in Isumi's face. So far I'd taken care not to mention what had happened on the train, but it looked like that effort was moot now. Isumi shot me a You'd better explain this later expression. I coughed. “Why are you so sure that it's Shindou, and not Sai?”
“Sai wouldn't kill.”
“And you think Shindou would?”
Touya ignored me and began heading for the door.
“Answer me!” I reached forward and grabbed his sleeve.
“Waya.”
Ignoring Isumi,'s soft reproach, I hauled Touya back until he was facing me. “You've always had this ridiculous complex about Shindou, and now you're accusing him of murder? Ignoring the fact that it was your high-and-mighty father who banished him in the first place--”
Touya struck me.
Surprised, I let him go. My cheek stung; I laughed. “You hit like a girl.”
But Touya had already turned away. He left in a whirl of his crimson robes, and I realised that Le Ping was going to have to be my language interpreter for the day.
#
“Politically, Touya's hypothesis would be the most favourable for us, if it were correct,” said Isumi, as we walked towards the palace. “Proving that divination was responsible for Shi Zhen's death wouldn't help Lu Li's case, and it might hurt.”
“Who else had access to the scene of the crime?” I was still unwilling to implicate Shindou. “Before the the crime happened, I mean. It would help if we could prolong the case, throw out a red herring or two for the judge.”
Le Ping answered: “Lu Li. Shi Zhen. Any current and former Imperial Diviners of lotus rank and above – that's about ten people in total, including me. One or two servants. But everyone else has solid alibis.”
“Who found the body?”
“The Emperor,” answered Isumi. We passed through a long promenade paved in hexagonal stone and flanked by rows of weeping willows. “The other problem is that Shi Zhen and Lu Li had a history of - let's say, not getting along. Somewhat like Waya and Touya.”
“If you bring up that bastard's name again, I'll...” I trailed off when it occurred to me that Touya was the bastard who was paying me, and paying generously. That nullified quite a lot of heartache and inconvenience.
“It's something of a backhanded compliment that he's hiring you to hunt for Sai, isn't it?” Isumi sounded amused, so help me. “No small compliment, either, considering that it's Touya.”
“Who said I wanted compliments from Touya?”
“And he didn't terminate your employment either, even after that little altercation.”
“No chance of that. It's not his style.”
“Looks like you've got your dream job, then. Good money and the chance to mouth off at Touya Akira.”
“You've gotten really good at being sarcastic. It's a lousy trait.”
Le Ping cleared his throat. “No offense, but it's really boring listening to you guys. I'm going to speed up, so see you when you get there.”
He sauntered on ahead, leaving behind an uncomfortable silence.
Eventually I grinned at Isumi. “He has a point. Pax?”
Isumi clasped my proffered hand, his relief palpable. “I apologise if I've come across as unfriendly. It's just – you're so different.”
“I'm so different? You're one to talk. You should tape record your conversations and listen to yourself. You've obviously been taking lessons from Yang Hai.”
For a while he made no response, and I peered at him anxiously as we ambled along. Then he shook his head. “Yang Hai is... very good at comporting himself. I envied that a great deal when I was sent here to Yih.”
“You were fine the way you were,” I told him.
“So were you.”
“No, I wasn't.” We exchanged glances, keeping our faces cheerful, Inside, I was aware of a tiny piece of my heart breaking, although I couldn't pinpoint where or why.
Isumi released my fingers. “I guess we've both grown up.”
“Growing up is overrated.”
“Le Ping would concur with you, there.”
“He's a sensible kid,” and, because I had to change the subject for my own peace of mind, “so, tell me about Lu Li's so-called motive for murder, and why it didn't convince you.”
We rounded the corner and paused to avoid a trishaw that was wheeling past, carrying two women wearing jade bangles and heavy maquillage. Isumi checked his watch. I eyed the clock face out of the edge of my vision: five past eleven.
“Wang Shi Zhen was known to be extremely ambitious. But he was fairly young for his position, and so was Lu Li. There was little chance of either of them being promoted for a while.”
“So Wang saw Lu Li as an impediment to his rise? Doesn't sound like adequate motivation for Lu to bump him off, though.”
“As I mentioned earlier, they also had personality issues. They came to blows about two weeks ago. In the presence of the Dukian ambassador, too; he's one of the witnesses for the trial, which is embarrassing for the Empire, to say the least.”
“Rather odd that they're asking a foreigner to testify.” The Yihian Empire had grown less insular in the last few decades, but it was still a pretty conservative country.
“I heard he volunteered. It happened late at night, after they'd been out drinking, so there weren't many others around. The Dukian embassy's pretty close to the winehouse district.”
“So he's the one who stepped forward? Strangely generous of him. I think I'd like to have a chat with this ambassadorial fellow.” We travelled along the eastern perimeter of what I guessed was the palace, from the glimpses I caught of spires and carved towers, above the high painted wall that barred our entry.
“I can introduce you to him later; he usually visits the court today. Do you speak Dukian?”
“Shouldn't have to. What kind of ambassador would he be if he didn't speak Kigo?”
#
Isumi didn't cross-examine me about what Touya and Le Ping had been doing in the way of forbidden divination, which I took to mean that he was saving the topic for an opportune moment, leaving me to mull nervously in the meantime. Fortunately I was too distracted to worry much about anything beyond the immediate moment. Le Ping was nowhere to be seen by the time we reached the palace, and Isumi had a meeting with the Department of Foreign Affairs; left to my own devices, I wandered up and down the Phoenix Court, practising sign language, smiling, and generally looking helpless at anyone who made the mistake of greeting me. I walked several hundred yards to the northern gate that led to the Lion Court, only to find it guarded heavily, as were most of the eye-catching buildings in this compound. I'd half-expected to be questioned and thrown out any moment, but the general expectation seemed to be that if you'd made it past the main entranceway, you had business being here.
Eventually I made my way back to the austere, gabled outbuilding that Isumi had disappeared into for his appointment, and sat by a nearby pond. It was raised, with a mossy artificial fountain and half a dozen glittering carp circling somnolently within. Water striders sent out minuscule ripples as they rowed back and forth between the lotus leaves.
I was squatting at the edge, lightly splashing the pond surface in an attempt to terrorise the carp, when Touya found me.
“I've been searching for you,” he said, out of nowhere. The shock of his voice sent me toppling - backwards, fortunately, instead of forward into the water.
I landed on my tail-bone. Hard.
The noon sun was high in the sky. I blinked upwards until the figure of Touya, regarding me seriously, came into focus.
“I'm sorry for hitting you,” he said.
He helped me to my feet. I checked to make sure that the world hadn't ended; it hadn't.
“My bum really hurts,” I complained out loud.
Touya's eyebrow twitched, a gesture I interpreted as, Don't make me apologise twice in a row, you fool..
I sighed. “Forgiveness tendered, and requested. I was a bit of a prat back there as well.”
“I have a few hours before my scheduled audience with the Emperor, if you need to question some of the people in the palace.”
I was starting to get used to Touya's relentlessly focused mind. “You're free to act as interpreter? How are you with Dukian?”
If he was startled, he didn't show it. “Competent. I speak it about as well as I speak Yihian.”
“There's a Dukian ambassador involved in the Lu Li case whom I want to speak to. Name of--” I ransacked my memory. Isumi had mentioned it to me, but the unfamiliar syllables had vanished from my thoughts within moments.
“An Taeseon.”
“That's it – how did you know?”
“It was in the local newspapers. Which I read this morning.” He didn't need to add the unlike you.
“Oh,” I said. This lack of linguistic know-how was really getting to me.
#
An Taeseon was a clean-shaven, dapper man in his late twenties. His suit was finely tailored: pinstripe trousers, watered silk tie. His manners were better than his clothes. He spoke Kigo with no traces of an accent.
“Have a seat,” he said, motioning towards the handcarved chesterfields in the Dukian embassy's main meeting room (in the end we'd gone there to find him). He sat down in a lavishly upholstered brocade armchair opposite us. “It's an unexpected pleasure to meet both of you. I take it that this is an informal visit?”
Touya looked at me. I said: “We wanted to ask you about the Lu Li case. I understand that you were there when a brawl broke up between him and Wang Shi Zhen.”
“Shocking event, that one. The murder, that is. As for the fistfight – well, they're young.” He shrugged gracefully. “I used to supervise the royal novitiates when I was still living back home. Boys will be boys. Would you like coffee or tea?”
Touya requested tea. I opted for coffee, and continued, “Do you think Lu Li was capable of murdering his deputy?”
“I can hardly comment on that, not being well acquainted with them. From the state they were in at the winehouse that night, yes, I think they would have at least seriously injured each other, if the onlookers hadn't pulled them apart.”
I observed his face, looking for signs of dissimulation, but his delivery and expression were pitch perfect. Too perfect. “Did you know what precipitated the fight?”
Taeseon crossed and uncrossed his legs. “I'm afraid I was sitting too far away to overhear their conversation. By the time I noticed anything they were both rolling on the floor together. The bigger one – Wang Shi Zhen – was punching the Chief Diviner's face. They broke some glasses and chairs, and the onlookers separated them before could do any more damage. The Chief Diviner was still cursing Shi Zhen as he was carried out of the building. I won't insult you by repeating his language here. May I enquire why you're interested in this matter?”
“Curiosity, I suppose. You've heard about Zama-Ouza's death?”
His eyes flickered. “Yes. My condolences.”
“Extraordinarily similar circumstances of death.”
“I have heard it so remarked, yes.”
“We're hoping that by uncovering the the facts of Wang Shi Zhen's death, we might be able to cast light on our own tragedy.”
“That seems logical. I sincerely wish you all the best in your endeavour. However, I've told you all I know. I deeply regret that I will not be able to be of more help."
My further attempts at questioning him yielded only opaque and unsatisfying answers. When we had been there about forty minutes he stood up.
“Excuse my rudeness; I have an appointment with a colleague for lunch. Do stay and finish the drinks and refreshments. I hope to have the privilege of meeting you again.”
He bowed; we bowed; he left.
“He's lying,” I said, once the room was empty. Touya frowned at me. “Okay, maybe not lying, but he's keeping something back. Such as, say, his reasons for being involved in this trial.”
“And how do you know that?”
“Intuition. The same kind of intuition that tells you Shindou did it, I suppose.”
Awkardness came and passed; we were still not ready to talk about Shindou.
I drained my coffee. “I'm going to find out what he's hiding.”
Go to Chapter 7.
Wordcount: 3000
Summary: In a world where divination is used to predict the future and govern nations, State Diviner Touya Akira and private investigator Waya Yoshitaka embark on a search for the heretic Sai, the ghostly diviner who may be the most powerful of them all.
This chapter: In which the focus shifts to the murder of Wang Shi Zhen, and suspects are named. (Also, Waya and Touya fight, but that's a given.)
Earlier chapters.
Le Ping drew me a map of the imperial palace. "You'd get lost if I didn't," he said.
“Given the quality of your art? Getting lost is still a very real possibility.” I squinted at the diagram. It was composed of three expansive courtyards, each labelled in Le Ping's chicken scrawl: Phoenix, Lion, Dragon.
He pointed to a lopsided rectangle in the northeast corner of the Lion Court. “This is where the Ministry of Internal Affairs is based.” His finger moved to a wonky circle nearby. “And this is the Pagoda of the Nine Stars. That's where they found Shi Zhen.”
“Right under Yang Hai's nose, hmm? No wonder he's being such a jerk about it.”
“It's not funny, it's a real headache. Lu Li was the chief of the Imperial Diviners, and Shi Zhen was his deputy.” A glint of embarrassment came into his eyes. “I'm actually the third-ranked Imperial Diviner.”
I burst out guffawing. “So you're the acting chief of the Imperial Diviners? No wonder everyone wants to resolve this case quickly, before the palace grinds to a halt.”
“Shut up! I didn't know what to do. Yang Hai took over for me, that's how I could come to Ki to see you.”
“They were that eager to get rid of you, huh?” His face altered; belatedly, I realised that I'd hurt his feelings. I fumbled for a way to mend my words. “You're awfully young to be ranked third, though.”
He brightened immediately. Ah, the resilience of youth. “I was the youngest in a century to get into the upper echelons of the Imperial Diviners. Actually, Zhao Shi would have beaten me to it, but being Emperor and all, he gets a special rank.”
“Zhao Shi believes in Lu Li's innocence.” I raised my head and saw Isumi emerging from the Consulate building. He crossed the tiny, slate-coloured bridge that connected the main garden to the gazebo where Le Ping and I were seated, coming to a halt about a yard away from us. His eyes were bright and alert. Sunlight danced on his hair.
Isumi continued: “But there's not much he can do without compromising his position. The Minister of the Left has been criticising the excessive power of the Imperial Diviners for the last several years. And most of the Cabinet supports him. There's no way Zhao Shi can acquit Lu Li without sufficient proof.”
I snorted. “And in the end, it all comes down to politics. Nothing new under the sun. Do we at least have an autopsy report?”
“Spontaneous necrosis of multiple organs, including the cerebrum and the myocardium. Cause unknown. Basically, the tissue in his body just began dying, for no apparent reason – his heart, his lungs, his brain. I've been doing research while Le Ping was in Ki, and I can't find a single poison that would cause something like that. Neither can the palace doctors.”
I felt ill. “And on the outside? His skin?”
“Burn marks from the stones, just like the ones on Ouza-sensei. Nothing else.”
“Try looking in the compendia of medical divination. Focus on the physiological effects of chaos within the body. Well, Touya might already have caught on to that line of thought, so check with him first.”
“You and Touya seem to have your own theories about the death,” said Isumi. “Care to share them with me?”
“Come on, Isumi,” I scoffed. “You'd never have asked me to come if you weren't harbouring suspicions.”
Swallows swooped overhead; bees nestled in the camellia bushes. Through the fretted iron gates that separated the Consulate from the outside world, I saw palanquins and automobiles travelling side-by-side on the bitumen road.
At last Isumi bowed his head. “I called you because I think Wang Shi Zhen may have been murdered by divination.”
“And I agree,” I said.
The question was who, and how. Touya, however, had no doubts on that score. “It was Shindou,” he said. “The whole thing smells of his Weiqi. Both in the Room of Profound Darkness, and the divination that Le Ping showed me.”
“That's kind of a really huge leap of logic to make,” Le Ping commented. His reaction was the mildest. Isumi looked palely aghast.
“Isn't it a little premature to be naming names, Touya?" he asked. "We don't even understand yet, how divination could be used to kill. Our first step should be to establish the method, not the culprit.”
We stood gathered in the front hall of the consulate. We'd been about to leave for the palace when Touya had thrown his hand-grenade of an opinion into our midst.
“I've studied Shindou's divinations constantly for the last two years. Nobody understands his methods better than I do.”
“Which is why you hadn't changed the future successfully even once until I showed you how?” Le Ping raised a brow.
“I'd never tried,” Touya snapped. “It's illegal in Ki.”
Le Ping lifted his chin. “Didn't take you for a coward.”
My attention was all on the dawning realisation in Isumi's face. So far I'd taken care not to mention what had happened on the train, but it looked like that effort was moot now. Isumi shot me a You'd better explain this later expression. I coughed. “Why are you so sure that it's Shindou, and not Sai?”
“Sai wouldn't kill.”
“And you think Shindou would?”
Touya ignored me and began heading for the door.
“Answer me!” I reached forward and grabbed his sleeve.
“Waya.”
Ignoring Isumi,'s soft reproach, I hauled Touya back until he was facing me. “You've always had this ridiculous complex about Shindou, and now you're accusing him of murder? Ignoring the fact that it was your high-and-mighty father who banished him in the first place--”
Touya struck me.
Surprised, I let him go. My cheek stung; I laughed. “You hit like a girl.”
But Touya had already turned away. He left in a whirl of his crimson robes, and I realised that Le Ping was going to have to be my language interpreter for the day.
“Politically, Touya's hypothesis would be the most favourable for us, if it were correct,” said Isumi, as we walked towards the palace. “Proving that divination was responsible for Shi Zhen's death wouldn't help Lu Li's case, and it might hurt.”
“Who else had access to the scene of the crime?” I was still unwilling to implicate Shindou. “Before the the crime happened, I mean. It would help if we could prolong the case, throw out a red herring or two for the judge.”
Le Ping answered: “Lu Li. Shi Zhen. Any current and former Imperial Diviners of lotus rank and above – that's about ten people in total, including me. One or two servants. But everyone else has solid alibis.”
“Who found the body?”
“The Emperor,” answered Isumi. We passed through a long promenade paved in hexagonal stone and flanked by rows of weeping willows. “The other problem is that Shi Zhen and Lu Li had a history of - let's say, not getting along. Somewhat like Waya and Touya.”
“If you bring up that bastard's name again, I'll...” I trailed off when it occurred to me that Touya was the bastard who was paying me, and paying generously. That nullified quite a lot of heartache and inconvenience.
“It's something of a backhanded compliment that he's hiring you to hunt for Sai, isn't it?” Isumi sounded amused, so help me. “No small compliment, either, considering that it's Touya.”
“Who said I wanted compliments from Touya?”
“And he didn't terminate your employment either, even after that little altercation.”
“No chance of that. It's not his style.”
“Looks like you've got your dream job, then. Good money and the chance to mouth off at Touya Akira.”
“You've gotten really good at being sarcastic. It's a lousy trait.”
Le Ping cleared his throat. “No offense, but it's really boring listening to you guys. I'm going to speed up, so see you when you get there.”
He sauntered on ahead, leaving behind an uncomfortable silence.
Eventually I grinned at Isumi. “He has a point. Pax?”
Isumi clasped my proffered hand, his relief palpable. “I apologise if I've come across as unfriendly. It's just – you're so different.”
“I'm so different? You're one to talk. You should tape record your conversations and listen to yourself. You've obviously been taking lessons from Yang Hai.”
For a while he made no response, and I peered at him anxiously as we ambled along. Then he shook his head. “Yang Hai is... very good at comporting himself. I envied that a great deal when I was sent here to Yih.”
“You were fine the way you were,” I told him.
“So were you.”
“No, I wasn't.” We exchanged glances, keeping our faces cheerful, Inside, I was aware of a tiny piece of my heart breaking, although I couldn't pinpoint where or why.
Isumi released my fingers. “I guess we've both grown up.”
“Growing up is overrated.”
“Le Ping would concur with you, there.”
“He's a sensible kid,” and, because I had to change the subject for my own peace of mind, “so, tell me about Lu Li's so-called motive for murder, and why it didn't convince you.”
We rounded the corner and paused to avoid a trishaw that was wheeling past, carrying two women wearing jade bangles and heavy maquillage. Isumi checked his watch. I eyed the clock face out of the edge of my vision: five past eleven.
“Wang Shi Zhen was known to be extremely ambitious. But he was fairly young for his position, and so was Lu Li. There was little chance of either of them being promoted for a while.”
“So Wang saw Lu Li as an impediment to his rise? Doesn't sound like adequate motivation for Lu to bump him off, though.”
“As I mentioned earlier, they also had personality issues. They came to blows about two weeks ago. In the presence of the Dukian ambassador, too; he's one of the witnesses for the trial, which is embarrassing for the Empire, to say the least.”
“Rather odd that they're asking a foreigner to testify.” The Yihian Empire had grown less insular in the last few decades, but it was still a pretty conservative country.
“I heard he volunteered. It happened late at night, after they'd been out drinking, so there weren't many others around. The Dukian embassy's pretty close to the winehouse district.”
“So he's the one who stepped forward? Strangely generous of him. I think I'd like to have a chat with this ambassadorial fellow.” We travelled along the eastern perimeter of what I guessed was the palace, from the glimpses I caught of spires and carved towers, above the high painted wall that barred our entry.
“I can introduce you to him later; he usually visits the court today. Do you speak Dukian?”
“Shouldn't have to. What kind of ambassador would he be if he didn't speak Kigo?”
Isumi didn't cross-examine me about what Touya and Le Ping had been doing in the way of forbidden divination, which I took to mean that he was saving the topic for an opportune moment, leaving me to mull nervously in the meantime. Fortunately I was too distracted to worry much about anything beyond the immediate moment. Le Ping was nowhere to be seen by the time we reached the palace, and Isumi had a meeting with the Department of Foreign Affairs; left to my own devices, I wandered up and down the Phoenix Court, practising sign language, smiling, and generally looking helpless at anyone who made the mistake of greeting me. I walked several hundred yards to the northern gate that led to the Lion Court, only to find it guarded heavily, as were most of the eye-catching buildings in this compound. I'd half-expected to be questioned and thrown out any moment, but the general expectation seemed to be that if you'd made it past the main entranceway, you had business being here.
Eventually I made my way back to the austere, gabled outbuilding that Isumi had disappeared into for his appointment, and sat by a nearby pond. It was raised, with a mossy artificial fountain and half a dozen glittering carp circling somnolently within. Water striders sent out minuscule ripples as they rowed back and forth between the lotus leaves.
I was squatting at the edge, lightly splashing the pond surface in an attempt to terrorise the carp, when Touya found me.
“I've been searching for you,” he said, out of nowhere. The shock of his voice sent me toppling - backwards, fortunately, instead of forward into the water.
I landed on my tail-bone. Hard.
The noon sun was high in the sky. I blinked upwards until the figure of Touya, regarding me seriously, came into focus.
“I'm sorry for hitting you,” he said.
He helped me to my feet. I checked to make sure that the world hadn't ended; it hadn't.
“My bum really hurts,” I complained out loud.
Touya's eyebrow twitched, a gesture I interpreted as, Don't make me apologise twice in a row, you fool..
I sighed. “Forgiveness tendered, and requested. I was a bit of a prat back there as well.”
“I have a few hours before my scheduled audience with the Emperor, if you need to question some of the people in the palace.”
I was starting to get used to Touya's relentlessly focused mind. “You're free to act as interpreter? How are you with Dukian?”
If he was startled, he didn't show it. “Competent. I speak it about as well as I speak Yihian.”
“There's a Dukian ambassador involved in the Lu Li case whom I want to speak to. Name of--” I ransacked my memory. Isumi had mentioned it to me, but the unfamiliar syllables had vanished from my thoughts within moments.
“An Taeseon.”
“That's it – how did you know?”
“It was in the local newspapers. Which I read this morning.” He didn't need to add the unlike you.
“Oh,” I said. This lack of linguistic know-how was really getting to me.
An Taeseon was a clean-shaven, dapper man in his late twenties. His suit was finely tailored: pinstripe trousers, watered silk tie. His manners were better than his clothes. He spoke Kigo with no traces of an accent.
“Have a seat,” he said, motioning towards the handcarved chesterfields in the Dukian embassy's main meeting room (in the end we'd gone there to find him). He sat down in a lavishly upholstered brocade armchair opposite us. “It's an unexpected pleasure to meet both of you. I take it that this is an informal visit?”
Touya looked at me. I said: “We wanted to ask you about the Lu Li case. I understand that you were there when a brawl broke up between him and Wang Shi Zhen.”
“Shocking event, that one. The murder, that is. As for the fistfight – well, they're young.” He shrugged gracefully. “I used to supervise the royal novitiates when I was still living back home. Boys will be boys. Would you like coffee or tea?”
Touya requested tea. I opted for coffee, and continued, “Do you think Lu Li was capable of murdering his deputy?”
“I can hardly comment on that, not being well acquainted with them. From the state they were in at the winehouse that night, yes, I think they would have at least seriously injured each other, if the onlookers hadn't pulled them apart.”
I observed his face, looking for signs of dissimulation, but his delivery and expression were pitch perfect. Too perfect. “Did you know what precipitated the fight?”
Taeseon crossed and uncrossed his legs. “I'm afraid I was sitting too far away to overhear their conversation. By the time I noticed anything they were both rolling on the floor together. The bigger one – Wang Shi Zhen – was punching the Chief Diviner's face. They broke some glasses and chairs, and the onlookers separated them before could do any more damage. The Chief Diviner was still cursing Shi Zhen as he was carried out of the building. I won't insult you by repeating his language here. May I enquire why you're interested in this matter?”
“Curiosity, I suppose. You've heard about Zama-Ouza's death?”
His eyes flickered. “Yes. My condolences.”
“Extraordinarily similar circumstances of death.”
“I have heard it so remarked, yes.”
“We're hoping that by uncovering the the facts of Wang Shi Zhen's death, we might be able to cast light on our own tragedy.”
“That seems logical. I sincerely wish you all the best in your endeavour. However, I've told you all I know. I deeply regret that I will not be able to be of more help."
My further attempts at questioning him yielded only opaque and unsatisfying answers. When we had been there about forty minutes he stood up.
“Excuse my rudeness; I have an appointment with a colleague for lunch. Do stay and finish the drinks and refreshments. I hope to have the privilege of meeting you again.”
He bowed; we bowed; he left.
“He's lying,” I said, once the room was empty. Touya frowned at me. “Okay, maybe not lying, but he's keeping something back. Such as, say, his reasons for being involved in this trial.”
“And how do you know that?”
“Intuition. The same kind of intuition that tells you Shindou did it, I suppose.”
Awkardness came and passed; we were still not ready to talk about Shindou.
I drained my coffee. “I'm going to find out what he's hiding.”
Go to Chapter 7.
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Date: 2009-12-09 04:29 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-13 09:13 am (UTC)the characters, on the other hand, are wonderful to bully. :D :D :D
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Date: 2009-12-10 06:10 am (UTC)I really like what a smooth customer your An Taeseon is. I always knew that guy was suspicious!
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Date: 2009-12-13 09:14 am (UTC)I love Taeseon; I wish there were a zillion more fics about him. *_*
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Date: 2009-12-10 08:33 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-13 09:17 am (UTC)and as for Touya? :D it's in the go, of course. XD it's always in the go.
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Date: 2009-12-11 09:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-13 09:18 am (UTC)thanks for reading! :D I'm having ridiculous amounts of fun writing this one, so I'm glad when other people do enjoy it as well.
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Date: 2009-12-12 12:25 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-13 09:20 am (UTC)