Character Index
Zhou Yunqi: The Fifth Prince. Son of the Wise Consort, Kuang's supporter.
Zhou Kuang: The Third Prince, son of the Royal Consort. A contender for the throne.
Zhou Hong and Zhou Yong: The deposed First and Second Princes who were exiled after the death of Empress Gongsun.
Wise Consort: Yunqi's mother, she was married to the Emperor while he was still the Crown Prince as part of a political alliance with the Shu clan. Currently ill.
Qiu Jinwei: Yunqi's eccentric but talented strategist and advisor.
An Haoyang: A former Imperial Investigator, Qu Boyong/Xiang Daozong's retainer. Martially skilled but not as strong as Hu Qing.
Xiang Daozong/Qu Boyong: Lord of the Xiang clan, currently allied with the Seventh Prince and the Empress Dowager.
Jing Shuyou/Chujiao: Formerly Wenyuan's childhood sweetheart and personal serving maid, Qu Boyong's cousin and spy in the Zhao household. She was forced to infiltrate the Zhao clan at a very young age after the brutal destruction of her clan.
Liang Hongfei/Hu Qing: Lord of the Liang clan and Vice-Censor of the Office of Censure. Kayla's supporter and friend.
Xie Rengui: A young farmboy who became Hu Qing's personal aide after coming to the capital.
Ke Yongqian: Hu Qing's retainer, formerly worked under Hu Qing at the Zhao household.
Lin Jie: An Attendant Censor, a talented man from the provinces who was promoted by Kayla. He was previously brought to see a healer for his bad arm by Hu Qing and subsequently tasked with investigating what Hu Qing suspected to be a conspiracy against the First and Second Princes.
Heli: The young chieftain of the Tongluo tribe, he ranks among the Tiele chieftains despite being a fifteen-year-old. His position was unstable due to being contested by his nephew, who is twice his age. Kayla previously resolved to support Heli in order to gain his loyalty and support.
Datan: Heli's former teacher and caretaker, currently his retainer and advisor.
Governor Huang: Governor of Shengzhou, reluctantly joined hands with Kayla.
General Yan: Commander of the Xiazhou outpost, reluctantly allied with Kayla.
Duan Wuxie: A Senior Investigator in the Imperial Investigation Bureau who is responsible for handling records and archives, among other things.
----------------------------------------
Yunqi jolted awake, heart pounding against his rib cage as though he had been running from pursuers. Someone had lit incense in the outer chambers–probably one of the new servants who Kuang had hired to replace the eyes and ears from the palace. Yunqi inhaled sharply by instinct, regretting it as the scent of incense filled his lungs.
The remnants of his dream washed over him like the ocean waves he’d seen during his trip to the eastern coast as a child. Yunqi pulled a robe over his shoulders with trembling hands.
The news about First and Second Brother must have affected me more than I thought, he noted grimly. His brothers were fine for now, but the mere mention of a potential threat to them had sparked alarm deep inside Yunqi’s rib cage.
Like the salty foam of the ocean that ebbed and then came sweeping back, the same old nightmare tugged at the edges of his mind.
“If those two are gone, we still have a chance!” His mother’s words from that fateful day echoed faintly in the silent darkness. He had been too young then to fully comprehend his father’s actions, but the sight of palace maids and eunuchs scrambling about as the First and Second Princes were expelled had been self-explanatory, as had his mother’s fit of madness.
Yunqi shuddered, pulling his collar tighter around his neck as he lit a lamp. His irritation mounted and he strode into the outer chamber, putting out the incense with harsh movements. Tendrils of smoke rose into the air as the embers were snuffed out. Ignoring his distaste, the scent clung to him brazenly.
Incense. That night was always the first thing that came to mind when he smelled the thick, cloying scent of incense. Unbidden, he recalled the terrifying glint in his mother’s eyes when she’d grabbed him from the bed, her face twisted in a grotesque smile.
“The First and Second Prince have been deposed! You’re closer to the throne now, so much closer!” Fingernails dug into his shoulders, leaving painful marks through the thin fabric of his inner robes. Teardrops trickled down the Wise Consort’s face, droplets splashing onto Yunqi’s upturned face. She leaned forward, the horrible look on her face disappearing as she hugged him closer.
“Only two more,” his mother murmured into Yunqi’s hair. “Once they’re gone, you’ll be the one on the throne.”
The bone-deep horror of realization.
“But I don’t want Third Brother to be gone,” Yunqi had managed to get the words out, only barely.
The fingernails on his shoulders dug deeper into flesh, his mother’s voice taking on a hysterical note.
“You don’t want him to–you don’t want him to be gone? You don’t know a thing!”
The smothering tightness of a steel-like embrace, the overwhelming scent of perfume.
“How can you say that? How can you even say that?! Do you know what I went through just to survive–how much pain, how much humiliation I suffered just to give birth to you?! Oh, Yunqi, you’re our hope, our only hope, do you understand that?! Why can’t you understand?!”
Fear clogged the room. Nails dug into flesh. The thick scent of incense–
Yunqi felt sick to his stomach at the unbidden memory. These days, he understood his mother’s near-fanatical desperation. She had always been a kind-hearted woman, gentle in temperament and virtuous in conduct. How far did they push her to elicit such a reaction? Whether it was the palace or the Shu clan, he couldn’t forgive them. Some small, immature part of him couldn’t forgive his mother either.
Collecting himself, he chased the thoughts away. More important now was keeping the Shu clan in line during the commander selection.
An opportunity to regain their honor while far from the surveillance of the palace was too good a deal to pass up. Which was exactly why the Shu clan needed to stay silent.
But they’ve grown desperate because I’m unreliable, Yunqi thought in quiet despair. A drowning man will drag down their rescuer. How can I expect them to act differently?
Rubbing a hand down over his face wearily, Yunqi let out a heavy sigh before collecting himself and summoning Qiu Jinwei.
“My prince,” the strategist greeted as he entered the room without knocking.
“Apologies for disturbing your rest,” Yunqi said.
“It’s fine. I wasn’t sleeping.”
Knowing the man, he wasn’t just being polite.
Yunqi took a deep breath, meeting Qiu Jinwei’s curious eyes.
“Jinwei, I need your advice.”
----------------------------------------
An Haoyang knocked on the door of Xiang Daozong’s study.
“My lord,” he called as he entered the room. He stopped short as he caught sight of the young woman on the couch.
“My lady,” he added.
Jing Shuyou nodded at him with a small smile.
“What is it?” Xiang Daozong asked. An Haoyang approached the desk, eyes alight with anticipation.
“There’s a rumor that there’s been a clash between the Eastern and Western Turks, my lord. They say the Khagan’s going to ask for reinforcements.”
“What word from the palace?”
“None yet,” An Haoyang admitted.
“Keep an eye on everyone’s movements, especially who the Turkish officials will support. We need to figure out who’s being nominated,” Xiang Daozong ordered. “We’ll wait until we have a clear picture to decide what to do.”
“As you wish, my lord.” An Haoyang bowed towards Xiang Daozong and then towards Jing Shuyou before taking his leave again.
“War against the Western Turkic Khaganate…” Xiang Daozong glanced uneasily at his cousin, who sat demurely embroidering a cloak.
Jing Shuyou acted as though she hadn’t heard a thing. She always did so after returning to the Xiang household proper. Despite Xiang Daozong’s best efforts to persuade her, it had taken Zhao Wenyuan to get Jing Shuyou to move in. Even then, Jing Shuyou had refused to stay in the main house, remaining in a side annex until now.
He was happy that she was even here, but he might as well have been talking to a wall. Jing Shuyou flatly refused to comment on any political or household affairs. She knew that Xiang Daozong wanted her insight as someone who knew Wenyuan for over a decade, but even if Jing Shuyou wasn’t bound to silence by past ties of gratitude and affection, she wouldn’t be able to help. The Zhao Wenyuan who wore the mantle of Duke was practically a stranger to her. She knew him no better than her cousin did.
The plaque she kept in a locked closet was the only symbol of any trust that had once existed between Zhao Wenyuan and herself. The red jade necklace she had returned, and Wenyuan had ended their ties with no ambivalence, having asked her to go home and marry another man. Now, the daily offerings of incense were all that remained.
Across from her, Xiang Daozong let out a sigh, trying to sort through his options. To his surprise, Jing Shuyou set aside her embroidery to watch him.
“I won’t become the Seventh Prince’s concubine.”
Xiang Daozong shot her a look of surprise. “What?”
“I understand it to be one of the options you're considering, but given that there is about to be a great deal of changes at court, I wished to make it clear ahead of time that you should think otherwise,” Jing Shuyou said, still in the same soft, gentle tone as always. She met his eyes with a kind smile. “I did not wish to only inform you at the last minute and ruin your plans. Please understand.”
“Well, alright then,” Xiang Daozong said, a little awkwardly. He had considered it, yes, but he hadn’t actually considered the option all that seriously. For one, Jing Shuyou’s past as another man’s personal servant made it difficult for her to gain standing in the household of an Imperial Prince. It wasn’t worth the effort.
But more than that, deep inside, there was also the guilt and gratitude towards Jing Shuyou for how much she’d endured for the Xiang clan. If she didn’t wish to marry someone, Xiang Daozong of all people could not force her to do so.
He let Jing Shuyou’s words tug his attention away from the uncertainty of the distant conflict. Her marriage was one of his best bargaining chips, loathe as he was to admit it. Jing Shuyou evidently had no such reservations after her most recent heartbreak.
“But you are at the age to marry,” Xiang Daozong said. If anything, Jing Shuyou was almost past the age to marry. “Isn’t there anyone you’d be willing to consider?”
Other than Zhao Wenyuan?
Something flashed in Jing Shuyou’s eyes that made him tense. Was it derision? Determination? He couldn’t tell. His cousin, as he was quickly discovering, had a somewhat cruel streak beneath her gentle exterior. It rarely showed itself save for a brief and intense confrontation when she had first returned. She was predisposed towards sweetness, but now that he knew it existed, Xiang Daozong was left uneasily waiting for it to rear its head.
“Marrying…well, I’ve considered a few options, yes,” she finally replied. “But I would like to marry Lord Liang.”
“What?!” Xiang Daozong gaped at her in shocked indignation. He spluttered, anger rising at the thought of his closest family member marrying Zhao Wenyuan’s most irritating hunting dog. “Him? The cut-sleeve?!”
The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Jing Shuyou’s face was serene. “Yes. Given his past and mine, no one could say it’s a bad match. In fact, it may very well be the best match possible, for it would ensure the survival of our clan no matter what mistakes you make at this juncture.”
Xiang Daozong flinched a little at the words, softly spoken as they were.
“I mean nothing by it,” Jing Shuyou said apologetically. “But we live in a difficult time, and it’s soon to grow more turbulent, if the conflict in the West is any indication. Even someone who is both naturally talented and experienced in politics cannot guarantee they would not make the wrong choice, much less people like us. Our clan has already dwindled to the verge of destruction, we can’t afford to take any more risks.”
Xiang Daozong lowered his head at what he knew to be a rebuke.
“Lord Liang is tied to Duke Zhao in a way that would ensure his future, and Duke Zhao is tied to the throne in a way that ensures his. To be tied to Lord Liang, frankly, would do more for our family’s prospects than any promises from the Inner Palace,” Jing Shuyou went on. “The Empress Dowager has no more love for us than she did your mother, we have no reason to believe the Empress Dowager would honor her promises now when she did not do so before.”
If she wasn’t deliberately lacing her words with barbs before, she was now. Xiang Daozong had taken her silent disapproval for granted, and now found himself helpless to say anything in defense. It certainly didn’t help that she spoke with needles hidden in cotton, or that she was probably correct.
Xiang Daozong was floundering in the political arena, and they all knew it. Jing Shuyou’s words cut through the convoluted tangles of the court, clearing a path for him amid the brambles. It almost felt cowardly to accept. But Jing Shuyou’s eyes were resolute, and it was her own future she was putting on the line, how could he refuse her?
“I…allow me to think on this,” Xiang Daozong managed to say.
Jing Shuyou nodded. “Of course, Daozong. Thank you for considering my request.”
“Would Lord Liang agree?” Xiang Daozong asked before he could stop himself.
Jing Shuyou paused and turned back to him, having shifted her attention to the cloak again.
“He would, for Duke Zhao’s sake. The Duke no longer feels anything for me as a woman, but he still feels beholden to the time we shared together. If I ask him to negotiate the wedding talks,” Jing Shuyou paused, a sad smile on her face. “If I ask him, I think he will agree. After all, it does benefit him politically. You are the only other nephew of His Majesty.”
Xiang Daozong nodded slowly.
“Let’s not be hasty,” he finally said. “First, let’s see how Duke Zhao fares when his father-in-law is involved.”
Jing Shuyou bowed her head slightly. “As you wish, Daozong.”
Her smile faded as she turned back to her embroidery. Jing Shuyou ran a hand over the pattern, eyes glistening with moisture. After a brief pause, she blinked away the melancholic tears and picked the needle up again.
----------------------------------------
Xie Rengui dutifully handed Ke Yongqian the scroll he was asked for.
“So will the lord go North?” He asked.
Ke Yongqian clicked his tongue in annoyance. “As if! He’s only just become a Vice-Censor, does it make sense for him to abandon his position and go North with the reinforcements?”
“But I thought he had aspirations for the military?” Xie Rengui asked, giving a pointed look towards the stratagems on Hu Qing’s bookshelves.
“That’s for a different time and place,” Ke Yongqian said gruffly. “Don’t overstep, just focus on your own job.”
“He didn’t give me a task,” Xie Rengui pointed out. “My duties aren’t any different from before.”
“Then focus on those duties,” Ke Yongqian shot back.
“What about the investigations that the Lord is doing?” Xie Rengui asked.
“He’s not doing the investigation, Attendant Censor Lin is. We’re only to offer support as needed,” Ke Yongqian replied.
“Duke Zhao sure takes good care of the Lord,” Xie Rengui remarked. “But is it really alright to push a thorny investigation onto a lower-ranking official with no background?”
“Shut up and work,” Ke Yongqian snapped, pointing at the haphazard pile of scrolls that needed sorting. “Do you want the household to get tangled up in such a mess?”
“I didn’t mean anything by it,” Xie Rengui said apologetically. He began organizing the scrolls, slotting them onto the shelves.
Xie Rengui paused as he caught a glance of a label, tilting his head thoughtfully as he leaned back against the shelf. “But the guy that died, the Investigator who ran away after the assassination attempt on Duke Zhao, I mean. He was heading to Dengzhou, yet the Investigators found nothing despite scouring the city.”
Ke Yongqian frowned slightly, pausing from his work. “Yeah? What’s your point?”
“And the new mass grave,” Xie Rengui murmured. “The boy was wearing Suzhou silk.”
“What’s strange about that?” Ke Yongqian asked impatiently.
“The grave was found north of Dengzhou,” Xie Rengui pointed out.
“A great deal of the country is north of Dengzhou,” Ke Yongqian said drily. “It’s not as though they only sell Suzhou silk in Suzhou.”
“How much do you want to bet that if the coroners look into the talisman in the grave, they’ll find that it was produced in the Northeast?”
Ke Yongqian went still for a moment.
“Explain.”
Xie Rengui let out a soft sigh, straightening his posture. “I think we should look in Dengzhou for the dead noble and his guards, and look in the Northeast for clues about the assassin.”
Seeing Ke Yongqian’s perturbed expression, Xie Rengui began to pace the room as he elaborated.
“When the assassins took out the Investigators on duty at the Zhao household, the Bureau found nothing in Dengzhou despite all the clues pointing there. But Attendant Censor Lin’s findings suggest that this isn’t a singular occurrence. It’s not the first time when every sign in a case points to the involvement of nobles in Dengzhou, only for nothing to come up even after the city is turned upside down and inside out. Same for the Northeast–there’s more than one case where clues point to the Shu clan or one of the other in-laws near Youzhou, only to hit a dead end after an extensive investigation,” Xie Rengui said.
“Cold cases aren’t as uncommon as that. They may be nobles, but they’re the most probable suspects for a lot of cases–the Bureau can’t reasonably exclude Youzhou or Dengzhou from the investigations when they’re the most suspicious ones in both the Emperor’s eyes and in common sense,” Ke Yongqian pointed out. “What you’re describing is just the result of that.”
“Yes, but is it really as innocuous as that?” Xie Rengui asked.
“Then what? You think they’re…framing each other?”
“I think they’re covering for each other,” Xie Rengui replied. “Youzhou and Dengzhou might be implicating one another on purpose.”
Xie Rengui stopped pacing, turning towards Ke Yongqian with a serious expression.
“Back in my village, I heard about a case from a few counties over where there was a man with the surname Li, who quarreled extensively with his wife. One day, she was stabbed to death, and he was obviously the prime suspect. But when they went to make an arrest, they found that he had an alibi–Li was seen to be drinking with an acquaintance in another village at the approximate time of the murder. They kept looking for a while, but nothing came up. The case was closed, and that was that.”
“Surely that’s not the end of it?” Ke Yongqian asked warily.
“No. A few weeks later, a traveling peddler who’d been in the village the morning of the murder came by again, and noted that he’d seen a stranger near the scene of the crime. He was asked to describe the man, but they didn’t find anyone who fit the description. But only a few days later, the traveling peddler came back with shocking news. He’d seen the stranger again. The man was a farmer by the surname of Zhang, and he lived in the exact village where Li had been seen having drinks, and here’s the strangest thing–that man’s wife had been murdered the night before Li’s wife was killed.”
Ke Yongqian lit up in realization. “They exchanged murders!”
“Exactly. Li had the alibi of drinking in Zhang’s village, and Zhang was seen leaving the village the night before his wife died. Neither of them were suspected for murdering each other’s wives, only their own. And seeing as the initial investigations were limited to within the village, if not for Zhang’s carelessness, both him and Li would’ve gotten away with it. It’s just a possibility, of course, but what if Dengzhou and Youzhou are doing something similar? They know there’s nothing to be found in the other city, so they purposefully direct the Bureau’s attention towards them. After all, it’s just as you said. These two places are the first that come to mind when you think of troublesome nobles.”
“I didn’t say that,” Ke Yongqian objected.
Xie Rengui ignored him. “So knowing that they would both be suspected for any case with political implications, or anything important that happens in their respective regions, wouldn’t it make sense to purposefully set things up so that everything about the case implicates the other city? That way, if everything points to Dengzhou, no one will check Youzhou, but they’ll also fail to find anything in Dengzhou. And the same goes the other way.”
“You think it’s that easy to create false clues?” Ke Yongqian let out a disbelieving laugh.
“I’m not from your line of work so I can’t say for sure, but I’d think it wasn’t impossible either,” Xie Rengui said. Ke Yongqian considered it for a moment, finding little to say in retort.
“Well,” he muttered.
“In any case, it doesn’t hurt to consider the theory and look into it a bit,” Xie Rengui said. “If it’s wrong, Attendant Censor Lin is smart enough to dismiss it without wasting too much time.”
“Alright then,” Ke Yongqian conceded. “I’ll pass that along.”
----------------------------------------
Lin Jie opened the door to the unassuming smile of Xie Rengui. He recognized the pleasant, boyish face at a glance.
“Ah, you’re Vice-Censor Liang’s assistant,” Lin Jie greeted him.
“Pardon my interruption, sir. I have a note for you,” Xie Rengui replied.
“Of course, thank you.” Lin Jie took the offered scroll and watched as the young man bowed and left again. Retreating to the privacy of his kitchen, Lin Jie opened the scroll.
Lin Jie frowned thoughtfully for a moment as he read the note before his face smoothed back into a blank expression. He extended the corner of the page into the blazing fire and gently flapped it until the entire note was ablaze. The burning paper dropped into the stove under Lin Jie’s careful gaze. He stood over the fire until he saw it crumble into ash.
Letting out a soft sigh, Lin Jie turned away and headed to his desk, pulling out a new sheet of paper to write out an application for archival access.
----------------------------------------
Kayla ended her call to Heli, the youngest chieftain among the Tiele tribes. Heli may be a teen, but his authority over the Tongluo tribe was secure enough–in part thanks to the support of Datan, Heli’s former teacher and caretaker, and in part due to the support of Kayla. She hadn’t been subtle about it. Ever since leaving the North, Kayla hadn’t stopped expressing her support for Heli to the other Tiele chieftains and Governor Huang every time she contacted them. Now, her efforts were finally producing results. Just as Kayla’s support was unwavering, Heli’s gratitude was infallible.
The Anbei Protectorate won’t be a problem, and Governor Huang is just going along with what he’s told. The problem is the capital.
The news of the incursion in the Khaganate was already spreading in the capital, and the Ministry of War was officially on high alert. By the time the court convened the next day, extensive arguments would have been prepared by each interested party.
She glanced at the window to the darkening sky. It was fated to be a sleepless night for many.
Agreeing to send reinforcements is the first hurdle, and then it’s assigning a commander. But that’s only the start of it. There was still the matter of officers and supplier contracts and so many other moving parts.
General Yan won’t be happy when he realizes he can’t choose all the officers himself.
Kayla flipped through a mental list of personnel. Kuang would definitely want to get at least a few of his own men in as officers, and so would Xianchun, along with every other big and small political clique in existence.
If possible, I’d also like to send one of my own. Once they were through with the new census and backpay taxes, the Emperor’s attention would fully turn to the military.
It would be good to have more than just one guy in the military to rely on. Plus, it wasn’t good for anyone if too many high-ranking officers were tied to General Yan. It’d just be the Shu clan all over again.
Kayla made a note to call Zhao Wei for personnel recommendations and turned her attention to the list of potential vendors. After the fall of the Wang clan of Taiyuan, who had held a near-monopoly over supplies for the military, there was now a slew of contracts up for grabs.
We could use some funds, but I suppose it’s best to keep my hands off that, Kayla thought drily. But I can’t let just anyone grab them up either.
“Excuse me, Minister.” A secretary knocked on the door.
“Come in,” Kayla called, pulling a scroll of Ministry regulations open over the papers on her desk. The secretary bowed and entered, depositing a new stack of paperwork on her desk before taking his leave again. He had thoughtfully divided the paperwork by Bureau and Court of Judicial Review, and even gone as far as to label them by priority. She thumbed through the stack, eyes catching on a familiar name.
Lin Jie? Ah, that must be the request for records from the Bureau.
It was. Kayla glanced through the application, frowning as she took in the supplementary forms.
Dengzhou and Youzhou? He sure knows how to pick them. Kayla quickly stamped all three forms and signed off on the application. She added giving Senior Investigator Duan a heads up to her mental list and turned back to her paperwork.
----------------------------------------
Cultural Notes
Incense in Ancient China: Incense was a luxury good during the Tang and Song dynasties, and is recorded to have been primarily imported from South Asia and the Western Regions (both from Persia and also from Central Asia) via the overland and maritime Silk Road. Incense was also used for offerings at temples, altars, and graves, growing to have a symbolic importance in religious and cultural activities.
贤良淑德/Wise, good, well-mannered, and virtuous: An Ancient Chinese proverb, often used to praise women. It was a high form of praise, usually with the connotation that someone is ladylike and gentle-mannered.
绵里藏针/Hiding needles in cotton: An Ancient Chinese proverb to mean that someone is kind on the outside and harsh/cruel on the inside. It can also refer to statements that are presented in a nice way but might actually be pretty harsh.
Cut-sleeve/断袖: The Ancient Chinese euphemism for men who experience sexual or romantic attraction to men. Though this is often used to describe gay men, this originally did not equal homosexuality per se, as it also included men who lie with both men and women. It was based on the story of a Han dynasty emperor whose boyfriend fell asleep on his sleeve before the Emperor needed to go to the convening of the court. Not wanting to wake his boyfriend, the emperor cut his own sleeve off, showing his tender affection for the man.
披荆斩棘/Cut through the brambles and slice through the thorns: An Ancient Chinese proverb originating from the Han dynasty. It means to build one's own career, or to struggle in order to clear the path forward.
念旧/Nostalgic/Sentimental: A Chinese phrase referring to someone who is sentimental towards people they knew in the past and are thus softer on them/take care of them even when there's no particular benefit in doing so currently.
交换杀妻案/Exchanging-wife murder case: Inspired by a number of similar cases in real-life from modern China pre-2000s, as well as a dramatization of the investigation to solve one such case in a TV show called 重案六组/Homocide Division Sixth Squad (there was another name that made very little sense that I can't for the life of me remember).
Dengzhou: A city in Henan Province, south of the capital.
Youzhou: A city in Northern China, near modern-day Beijing. The city center should be around the Southwest of Beijing city.
Suzhou: A city in Eastern China, in the province of Jiangsu, which is known for its wealth as a cultural and economic hub, as well as its production of silk and its skillful embroidery.
Anbei Protectorate/安北都护府: In modern-day Inner Mongolia, China (and parts of Mongolia depending on the time period). It was established to monitor and govern vanquished Tiele and Turk tribes.
Tongluo: One of the Tiele tribes that surrendered to the Tang Dynasty.