Young Master System: My Mother Is the Matriarch-Chapter 197 - 196: Tang Shu

The corner of her mouth twitched, while she poured without comment and gestured with her chin toward the back. The steam rose in slow coils as he passed by, carrying heat against his hands.

He chose the second room, avoiding the first door completely. The table in the enclave bore shallow cuts from careless knives and darker stains that no amount of scrubbing had lifted.

A single oil lamp rested on a hook by the wall, its light illuminating the plain decor. Li Wei set his cup down and remained standing, with one hand resting against the table's edge.

The ebony wood was worn smooth where others had leaned in, to have various discussions on topics that could only be speculated on. He waited casually, as time passed in small measures. A kettle whistled faintly somewhere just beyond the paper screens.

Footsteps came and went, while a chair scraped the floor below. ~scrape~

Li Wei did not bother sitting down. After half an hour the screen shifted, doing so without ceremony. A wrinkled hand pushed it aside, careful enough not to let it knock the frame.

Tang Shu stepped through and let it fall back into place behind him. The secretary was older than Tang Li described, or perhaps merely more tired. His amber robes were clean yet plainly cut, the stitching at the cuffs repaired twice over.

He carried no visible guard or attendant, only a narrow case tucked beneath one arm. Tang Shu's gaze darted around quickly, noting exits and the position of the lamp. When his eyes settled on Li Wei, they held.

"I have taken the necessary precautions," Tang Shu said.

"Excellent. My efforts appeared to have been worthwhile," Li Wei replied.

Tang Shu set the case down beside the table and drew out a chair.

The royal secretary did not sit immediately. Instead, he adjusted the lamp and turned the wick just enough to brighten the space between them. ~faint flutter~

"My colleague speaks of you with a great deal of civility," Li Wei added, lifting his cup at last. Although the tea burnt his tongue slightly, he welcomed it.

Tang Shu exhaled through his nose. "She speaks too freely."

"That may be the case" Li Wei corrected. "But her intentions were just."

That earned a brief silence. Tang Shu lowered himself into the chair, the wood protesting softly under his weight. ~creak~ He folded his hands together, knuckles pale.

"Words are merely a currency," Tang Shu said. "They tend to buy sympathy. Rarely protection."

Li Wei watched a bead of tea gather at the rim of his cup and fall back into the liquid. "Protection depends on the strength of the person."

Tang Shu's eyes flicked to the cup, then back to Li Wei's face. "Do you honestly come to me offering protection?"

Li Wei did not answer at once. He moved to the window instead, sliding it open a fraction. The sounds of the street slipped in as a chorus of distant voices, clattering dishes made of porcelain and a laugh cut short. ~murmur~

"I would not bother with such trivalites," Li Wei said finally. "A man of your prestige has stayed alive for this long without my assistance"

Tang Shu followed him with his gaze. "So you seek information about the imperial family…. Those pieces of information are expensive goods."

The older man's fingers tightened, then loosened. He reached for his case but did not open it. "You know how this ends if I misstep," Tang Shu said. "Men like Magistrate Yun do not forgive embarrassment."

The secretary rested his palm atop the linen container, as if feeling for reassurance through the lacquer. Li Wei turned to him with a small smile. "Men like Magistrate Yun are deployed, not loyal. That distinction matters."

Tang Shu studied him for a long moment. The lamp oil shifted as a draft passed through the room. Shadows climbed the wall and receded. ~flicker~

"You walk lightly for someone asking fatal questions," Tang Shu said.

"I walk lightly because others prefer to run," Li Wei replied. Tang Shu's mouth curved, not quite a smile. He drew the case closer and at last opened it. Inside lay folded papers, their edges worn thin. He did not hand them over.

"Then listen carefully," he said. "Because I will not repeat myself."

Li Wei inclined his head and reached for his cup again, his fingers brushing the table's scarred surface as he did.

Tang Shu's voice lowered as he spoke, not out of secrecy but habit. He slid one of the folded papers free and laid it flat on the table, pinning a corner with two fingers. The parchment bore faint ink marks, columns of names and dates written with a disciplined hand.

"The imperial family no longer moves as a single body," he said. "They haven't for some time. What you see is ceremony, that part most don't see is a rivalry."

Li Wei did not lean in, the young master merely stayed where he was, one shoulder angled toward the window, eyes drifting briefly to the paper before returning to Tang Shu's face. The kettle beyond the screen gave a soft click as the boil eased. ~tick~

"Rivalry implies balance," Li Wei said. "I doubt that luxury still exists."

Tang Shu's fingers paused. He smoothed the parchment as if straightening an unruly thought. "There are three factions that matter," he continued. "Two are visible, while the other pretends not to exist."

He drew another sheet from the case, this one creased more deeply. A seal had once been pressed into the corner, now faded and partially scraped away. "The Emperor relies on Magistrate Yun and men like him to keep the provinces quiet," Tang Shu said. "But Yun answers to orders that do not always come from the throne."

Li Wei's gaze shifted to the lamp. A thin line of smoke curled from the wick and vanished near the ceiling. 'My deductions were accurate that man was Deployed,' he thought again.

"And the other faction that is not concealing itself?" Li Wei asked.

Tang Shu leaned back slightly, the chair legs scraping the floor a finger's breadth. ~scrape~ "That would be the treasury bloc, its members do not care who rules so long as the roads remain open and taxes arrive intact. They will fund suppression one day and reconstruction the next."

Li Wei's fingers traced one of the shallow cuts in the table. He felt where the blade had slipped, the mark ending abruptly. "That leaves the one that pretends not to exist."

Tang Shu's eyes flicked toward the paper screen, then to the window, then finally back to Li Wei. He reached out and closed the case halfway, leaving the documents still visible.

"Old families," he said. "Bloodlines that predate the current dynasty. They no longer sit in council chambers, but they advise those who do. Quietly."

A burst of laughter rose from the street below and faded just as quickly. ~haha~ 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Li Wei turned fully from the window and faced him again. "And you," he said. "Where do you stand among them?"

Tang Shu's mouth tightened. He rubbed his thumb along the edge of the case, feeling the worn lacquer. "I stand where I always have. Between the floor and the knife."

That answer earned a brief pause.

Li Wei returned to the table and set his cup down, the porcelain clicking softly against the wood. ~click~

"You arranged this meeting quickly," Li Wei said. "That suggests a sense of urgency."

"It also presents an opportunity," Tang Shu corrected. "My work is concluding, Yours is just beginning." He gathered the loose papers and slid them back into the case, snapping it shut with care. "The Emperor will announce further conscription within the month. Officially, it will be framed as preparation. Unofficially, it is a test."

"A test for whom?" Li Wei asked.

"For the sects," Tang Shu replied. "For the old families. For anyone who believes the empire no longer has the right to demand blood."

Li Wei considered this in silence. Outside, a cart rolled over stone, its wheels uneven. ~rattle~

"And Tang Li?" Li Wei asked at last. "Where does she fall in this test?"

Tang Shu's shoulders sank a fraction. He reached up and adjusted his sleeve, tugging at the repaired stitching. "She is leverage," he said plainly. "Against me or for me, it largely depends on who moves first."

Li Wei nodded once and did not offer any reassurance. Instead, he reached into his robe and produced a small slip of paper, setting it near the lamp. The ink upon it was fresh.

"When this becomes public," Li Wei said, "send word to that address. Do not use official channels." Tang Shu did not touch it immediately. He studied Li Wei, eyes narrowing just slightly. "And what do you gain from this?"

Li Wei's expression did not change. "Clarity."

For a moment, neither man spoke. The lamp fluttered again as a draft passed through the room. ~faint flutter~

Tang Shu finally reached out and folded the slip of paper, tucking it into his sleeve.

"You are either very confident," Tang Shu said, "or very foolish."

Li Wei lifted his cup one last time, then set it aside untouched. "Those are not mutually exclusive."

Tang Shu rose, the chair protesting once more. ~creak~ He gathered his case and moved toward the screen, pausing with his hand on the frame.

"If you are wrong," he said without turning, "this city will bury you."

Li Wei met his reflection in the paper screen. "Regardless of the result," he replied. "I will still be here."

The screen slid shut, leaving Li Wei alone with the fading warmth of tea and the marks carved into the table by men who had also believed they understood the stakes.