《一世真》中英翻译 CH 38
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“I heard that yesterday was the birthday of Noble Consort Jing. She did not host a celebration, as was proper during the mourning period, but the Noble Consort said that she had to take care of Consort Chen and refused all guests. The Crown Prince was kneeling outside her door for over an hour!”
“Everyone thought this was the perfect time for Brother Qi to return to the capital, but His Majesty vetoed the idea, and Auntie Chen has fallen ill since,” Lin Shu pulls another dagger from his sleeves, charging at Meng Zhi in a duel, using some new techniques from the southern school of Hmong. “Perhaps she was upset that while all the officials joined in a petition for Brother Qi’s return, Jingyan said nothing in his favor.”
Although Meng Zhi is highly skilled in martial arts, his has mainly trained in one particularly style, unlike Lin Shu, who has dabbled in many. He was skeptical when he heard that Lin Shu learned various techniques here and there from his pugilist acquaintances while he was away from the capital. After all, when it comes to martial arts, practicing techniques from different schools would often hinder one’s competence in actual combat, since the styles could easily conflict with each other.
Much to his surprise, however, Meng Zhi realizes as he dodges another strike from Lin Shu that the other man has managed to seamlessly integrate all the diverse techniques into his own-- like replacing a dagger movement with a hand gesture from the pearl divers tribe at the East Sea, his fingers hooking and slashing like a blade, making his every move all the more unpredictable. Add his natural nimbleness to the mix, Lin Shu is a formidable opponent.
The only reason for which Meng Zhi still holds his ground is that Lin Shu has yet to master these newly learned moves, but with time, Meng Zhi is sure that no one would be a match for his sheer fickleness in battle.
After barely blocking an unexpected mid-air kick, Meng Zhi catches his breath and continues their earlier conversation, “Prince Jing must have his reasons for doing so.”
“Brother Meng, you should be cautious of your words, it’s the Crown Prince.”
Meng Zhi’s face twitches as he mumbles silently to himself, ‘You are the one to talk, you call him by his name!’
Lin Shu sidesteps Meng Zhi’s attack, hooking his knees around the tree branch and twisting away from the approaching sword. Then he flips his wrist towards the other man, shouting, “Watch out!”1
The object shoots at Meng Zhi at an alarming speed, forcing him to retract his strike halfway. He manages to grab it before it could smash into his face. Delighted to find a red fruit in lieu of a dart, he tosses it into his mouth without a second thought, only to scrunch up his entire face at the sour taste.
“Euughhhhh……”
“Told you to watch out, it’s not a good habit to eat your weapons,” Lin Shu hops down from the tree, putting his dagger back into his sleeve and snickering at the miffed Meng Zhi. “This kind of fruit turns yellow when it’s ripe, the red ones are the most sour.”
“Does that Mei Changsu still come to the capital often these days?” He asks casually.
“...Sometimes,” Meng Zhi chokes from the sudden question. “Why do you ask?”
“I still haven’t met him yet...It is no easy feat to bypass the Imperial Guards to meet with Jingyan in the Eastern Palace, unless he is truly skilled enough in martial arts to avoid everyone’s detection,” Lin Shu pauses, then adds, “But I am sure that Jingyan does have such a strategist by his side, otherwise many things don’t add up. Take the case with Prince Xian, for instance, I believe that he committed all the crimes he was accused of, but the words got out at an exceptionally convenient time. The defense plan on Jiu-An mountain, too. When you showed me the scheme, I knew it did not come from Jingyan’s hand. He and I have such distinctive styles in military strategy, and the defenses on Jiu-An mountain were not in his usual patterns. Whoever devised it took many risky moves, almost in a similar way as I would have done it, but his was far more sophisticated...it must have been Mei Changsu.”
“In these past years, Jingyan has never asked for my assistance, regardless of what hardship he encountered. He should have been one to loathe those scheming strategists the most, for him to trust this Sir Su so…” Lin Shu’s expression darkens, “There must be something extraordinary about him. But lately he has been backing Prince Xian into a dead end.2 With things the way they are now, as long as Jingyan is still here, the position of Crown Prince would not go to another. Taking such an aggressive stance towards Prince Xian would only incur discontent from some officials in the court. If you see this Sir Su at some point, make sure to remind him to take a step back.”
“Oh...okay,” stutters Meng Zhi.
“Vice Commander,” Zhen Ping approaches them in a hurry. “An unknown palanquin just entered the palace, heading straight to the Yangju Hall.3The porters were new servants but they had His Majesty’s special permit, and Eunuch Gao was personally escorting them, so we didn’t have a chance to probe any further.”
Lin Shu and Meng Zhi trade a glance, the latter frowns in confusion but quickly realizes that something is amiss. He asks Lin Shu, “Should we increase the guards around the perimeters?”
Lin Shu shakes his head and says, “No matter who the visitor was, His Majesty clearly did not want the Imperial Guards to intervene, so you and I have to act as if we know nothing. Zhen Ping, go back to the manor and have Li Gang bring Fei Liu to the Eastern Palace.”
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Two lists arrive on the emperor’s bedside table along with his usual dose of medicine.
One list comes from the Crown Prince, containing the names of everyone who had participated the revelry at Prince Xian’s manor during the mourning period. The other list is from Xia Chun, who had investigated the case at the emperor’s behest. The contents of the two lists are nearly identical. Most of the guests were supporters in Prince Xian’s faction, plus a few from the house of Princess Qing He, and the Crown Prince did not omit their names despite their connection to Shen Zhui.
In the beginning, the emperor had gleefully wanted to watch Jingyan stumble and fall. No matter who he is, the sudden responsibility of managing an entire kingdom would be unimaginably daunting--he would falter at the sheer amount of tasks. A novice in the position of power would make the common mistake of becoming too embroiled in the details to miss the heart of the matter.
Like a bumbling child who has been pushed by his father onto a battle horse to lead an army, without first having learned to ride the horse itself.
Yet Jingyan has marched forward with such incredible confidence, he’s even scrupulously avoided or eliminated the obstacles that were placed on his path by the emperor, some by mistake, some on purpose.
The emperor knows that they were not incidental strokes of luck, but rather the assertive measures of a true ruler.
The thought both frightened and relieved him.
He had always believed that of all his children, Jinghuan was the one resembling him the most.
But look at the Crown Prince now-- restructuring the court factions to promote his supporters and exclude his dissenters-- isn’t that exactly what he did immediately after he ascended the throne?
The case with Jingxuan was the same. Although the emperor was angry at Jingyan for his merciless persecution of his own brother--so angry that he hurled a bowl at him-- but he admits that if he were in Jingyan’s position, he would have seized this godsent opportunity as well.
That is why, throughout it all, the emperor has quietly stood by the side, too tired and ill-disposed to interfere.
Deep inside, he even feels a bit of perverse enjoyment at the way things have unfolded.4
Lin Xie, Yan Que, no one can give you the world you envisioned, not me, not Jingyan either.
One would inevitably change when he sits on that gilded throne; he would change so much that even he himself cannot recognize the face that stares back from the mirror, in those silent nights interrupted by nightmares.
Fortunately, Jingyan has retained a last bit of mercy towards his brothers: Prince Ning is still in the capital, Jingxuan has not been targeted since moving to his feudal land, even Prince Qi still lives peacefully with his family, far from the capital.
A persistent sense of suspicion nags at the emperor as he watches his seventh son busy himself with all those tasks. Jingyan had genuinely wanted the position as Crown Prince, yet he does not seem to enjoy it. He is mechanically doing everything as if out of sheer obligation.
On the surface, since taking over as the imperial proxy, the things he has accomplished appear unrelated to one another, his intentions seem impartial and righteous, but if there is one thing that unifies them all…
Prince Qi…
The emperor recalls the report he heard from Xia Jiang the day before, when the man secretly entered the palace. He said that there have been signs of Prince Jing’s personal guards around Prince Qi’s manor in the feudal land. He has also compiled a list with names of Prince Qi’s former supporters who have been demoted in the past few years. Many of these officials now hold prominent positions in local offices, some even possess certain military power, and Jingyan is almost always inexplicably connected to their reassignments.
The two pieces of information are no major breakthroughs. Perhaps a few years ago, the emperor would have cared enough to investigate, but now, he is but an old man plagued by illness. When Xia Jiang claimed that Prince Qi and the Crown Prince are plotting a rebellion to seize the throne, he could only dismiss it with a resigned smile.
Xia Jiang is a man who cares about nothing except his life and power, so the only reason for which he risked capture to sneak into the palace is the news that Jingyan detained Xia Chun and Xia Qiu in the Ministry of Justice for questioning a few days prior.
The emperor gave tacit permission to let Xia Jiang stay in an empty room instead of putting him under arrest.
He sweeps his eyes over the scattered herbs on the table left by Noble Consort Jing, knowing that despite the obvious disarray, they would eventually transform into a bowl of medicated porridge at her talented hands.
A sudden realization hits the emperor.
So that’s how it is.
Jingyan is making all the preparations for the coronation, not his own, but the coronation of Prince Qi.
Though the realization comes too late.
“...Hahahaha! Bwahahahahah!!” the emperor collapses onto the bed, hands clutching his stomach as the hysterical laughters leave him.
“Your Majesty!” Eunuch Gao rushes in at the commotion.
“Quick, summon Lin Shu, no, summon Meng Zhi, don’t let anyone else know!”
“Your Majesty…” Eunuch Gao falters, “Commander Meng is not currently in the palace.”
“Not in the palace? Is he off duty today? Where is he then?”
Eunuch Gao hesitates for a moment before bowing, “He’s...in the Xuanjing Bureau.”
Perhaps the words did not reach him, the emperor cracks open one eye and props himself up from the bed, asking, “What?”
“Commander Meng...has sealed the Xuanjing Bureau.”
Befuddled, the emperor queries, “Sealed? But isn’t Xia Chun detained already?”
“It seems that they found evidence of many misdeeds over the years from questioning Xia Chun and Xia Qiu, so...they sealed the Bureau.”
The emperor nearly jumps in outrage; he stumbles off the bed, only to land on the floor, “How dare he?! It is MY Xuanjing Bureau! Who gave him the leave to do so?!”
Eunuch Gao hurries forward to help him back onto the bed and wraps a cape around him, “Please remain calm, Your Majesty, it was per the order of the Crown Prince.”
A long silence follows his words.
Eunuch Gao raises his eyes to steal a glance and finds the emperor staring at his sheathed sword by the bed, apparently lost in thought. He says after a long pause, as if to himself, “...The Crown Prince? That’s right, Jingyan does have the authority now. Summon him here, I need to have a word with him.”
Eunuch Gao bows on his way out, and when he passes by the door, he whispers to one of the Imperial Guards stationed outside, “Tell Vice Commander Lin to come at once.”
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Despite the urgent summons, the Crown Prince is told to wait outside the Yangju Hall in the biting cold of early winter well into the evening. It is not until the moon ascends the dark sky does Eunuch Gao finally allow him entrance.
The Crown Prince steps into the hall along with just one attendant. He sees the emperor, who should still be recovering from his illness, sitting formally on the dais, dressed in solemn ebony robes trimmed with gold, a benevolent smile on his face that does not reach his eyes.
Jingyan has prepared himself for this, he has certainly never expected any familial warmth from the man in front of him.
“I apologize to Your Majesty for not having reported the case of the Xuanjing Bureau today in advance,” bows jingyan.
“Those are trivial matters, Jingyan, come closer,” chuckles the emperor, waving an affectionate hand to bid him forward.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” answers Jingyan, a bit baffled but obeying the command nevertheless.
Everything shifts in that instant.
Xia Jiang flings aside the curtain from behind the emperor and charges at Jingyan with his arm raised to strike. Jingyan twists to the side to evade the attack, but his movements are constrained within the confined space of the room; soon, he is backed into a corner.
When Xia Jiang’s claw is inches away from Jingyan’s heart, the attendant who has been following Jingyan leaps into the air, blocking Xia Jiang’s strike head-on with one of his own. Despite the boy’s youthful appearance, the clash forces Xia Jiang to take three unsteady steps back.
Then, with a few swift movements, the boy has apprehended Xia Jiang on the floor, and Lin Chen’s teaching resonates in his mind: ‘Never kill needlessly, but never let the enemy have any chance to rebound.’ He cocks his head in thought and decides to snap both of Xia Jiang’s wrists for good measure, then proceeds to empty all his hidden pockets and sleeves, tossing an alarming number of poisoned darts onto the floor.
The emperor glares at the wreck in front of him, his face twisting with rage, “Traitor! Traitors! Guards!”
Within the blink of an eye, Lin Shu charges into the hall with a team of Imperial Guards in tow, his unreadable eyes betraying nothing as he takes in the scene in front of him. He commands, “Seize the traitor!”
Zhen Ping and Li Gang move forward to apprehend the still kneeling Xia Jiang.
“Fugitive Xia Jiang, you have not only not repented for your crimes, but also dared to attempt assassination on His Majesty and His Highness, do you understand the severity of this offense?” demands Lin Shu.
Stunned by this turn of events, the emperor slowly turns his head towards Lin Shu, his eyes glassy with bewilderment. Then, he suddenly gasps in horror, “You…! You too--!!”
Uncontrollable fury seizes him as all rational thought flees his mind. He grabs the hidden dagger from beneath his pillow and lunges at Jingyan with his arm outstretched, “Did you think I wouldn’t kill you?!”
No one anticipated the emperor to have a concealed weapon; both Zhen Ping and Fei Liu rush forward at the sound of his hysterical cry, but they are too far to reach him in time.
Yet the gleaming dagger is stopped a mere centimeter before piercing Jingyan’s chest.
Lin Shu’s left hand is grasped tightly around the blade.
“...Xiaoshu!!”
Blood seeps out from Lin Shu’s fist, making a steady, crimson trail down the blade and landing on the emperor’s robes, its heat scorching through all those layers of fabric.
It has been years since the emperor has personally witnessed bloodshed, his hand shakes and his hold on the dagger slackens. “You…!”
Lin Shu takes the dagger from his lax fingers and sheaths it into his belt, before taking a step back and kneeling, “Your Majesty has been frightened. The fugitive Xia Jiang has been apprehended, and the Imperial Guards have secured the perimeter of the Yangju Hall, please rest assured of your safety.”
In the vast hall, no one pays heed to the furious screeches of the emperor. At the slight nod from the Crown Prince, Li Gang and Zhen Ping quickly silence Xia Jiang, tie him up in chains and leave without saying a word.
Lin Shu exchanges a glance with Jingyan and bows his exit as well.
In the silence of the hall, the emperor notices for the first time that the usual bustling of the servants is absent, leaving just Jingyan and himself.
“How come you are still in the palace at such a late hour?”
“Auntie Jing,” Lin Shu turns and sees Noble Consort Jing approach him with a dish of medicated porridge. He bows in greeting and hides his injured hand behind his back. “Jingyan is inside.”
“...I see,” Noble Consort Jing takes in the retreating group of servants led by Eunuch Gao away from the hall, a vague realization hits her. She dismisses them with a hand and turns to Lin Shu, saying softly, “Jingyan will be fine, you may go as well.”
“That boy will be here,” she points to Fei Liu with a smile, who is standing guard by the doors. “It’s rare to have such an uninterrupted time, let them have a proper conversation as father and son.”
At the same moment, unbeknownst to them, just outside the capital gates, the rasping cry of a battle horse pierces through the quiet night.
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Inside the hall, the emperor is crumpled bonelessly in the chair, his gray hair disheveled and all the energy in his frail body converged into his narrowed eyes, bitter resentment almost palpable as he glares at the Crown Prince-- the one he had personally chosen.
“Last month I was ambushed and was able to capture one of the assassins alive. His confession led our investigation to Xia Chun…” begins Jingyan.
“Based on the words of an assassin? You didn’t want Xia Jiang to speak, what were you afraid of?” the emperor cuts him off harshly, his eyes flaming. “You were afraid that he would implicate Jingyu, am I right?”
Since finding out that Xia Jiang had colluded with Prince Yu, Jingyan knew that somehow Xia Jiang had discovered his true intentions towards Prince Qi, and from there, it was easy to deduce that Xia Jiang would entangle Prince Qi in a desperate attempt to preserve his Xuanjing Bureau-- after all, the man had very few bargaining chips left. So the emperor’s question comes as expected. He answers, “The reason for which I did not allow Xia Jiang to speak was so that Your Majesty would not be mislead by a traitor’s lies.”
The emperor scoffs in disbelief.
“Not long ago, I have also apprehended Qin Banruo. Princess Xuanji entrusted to her the epistolary communications between Xie Yu and Xia Jiang, which contain explicit evidence of collusion between the Princess and the two men to frame Commander General Lin Xie and Prince Qi of high treason all those years ago,” Jingyan continues.
“When Princess Xuanji escaped from the Servants Prison, it was Xia Jiang who took her in. Xia Jiang has also abused his position to fabricate false evidence to frame the innocent and extort substantial amount of money from blackmail. There are a few dozen cases alone involving officials from the local provincial level as well as the third-rank and higher.5 Here are the testimonies of the three witnesses, please accept them for further review, Your Majesty.
“The Xuanjing Bureau has become the perfect channel through which Xia Jiang conducted illicit businesses to further his own agendas. Your Majesty had intended for the institution to become your trusted eyes and ears, yet it only served to obstruct them instead.”
The emperor takes the stack of reports from Jingyan’s outstretched hands and flings them up in the air, the pages falling in disarray around them. “Spare me your perfectly crafted excuses,6 you sealed the Xuanjing Bureau for the sake of Xiao Jingyu! Because he loathes its existence! Because Xia Jiang had sabotaged him before! Tell me, everything you are doing is per his orders, right? You and he...you are conspiring together to betray me!”
“My doings are my own, Brother Qi does not know anything about it.”
“...Your own? Why? I fail to understand,” the emperor narrows his eyes in suspicion at his son. “If you don’t want the throne, why bother going to such lengths to become the Crown Prince?”
“Because Brother Qi could not have become the Crown Prince,” Jingyan takes a step forward, into an area illuminated by the golden candlelight. “And of the other princes left, no one was fit to be Crown Prince of the Liang Kingdom.”
The emperor sneers, “I’ve known since you were small that you did not bow to anyone except Jingyu. Your precious pride, hmph, you are the same as Lin Shu! And now? You still bow to no one except your Brother Qi? Do you still consider me the sovereign of this kingdom?!”
“Wait...” A spark of realization hits the emperor, his face darkening dangerously and voice trembling with freshly awakened dread as he asks slowly, “You said just now…‘Prince Qi could not have become the Crown Prince’...have you found out about something?”
“I have captured Qin Banruo, who was the strategist of Prince Yu and the disciple of Princess Xuanji. She confessed to many crimes, including having planted Hua spies in Prince Qi’s manor, one of whom was the nanny that hid the silk pouch in Prince Qi’s study and arranged for its subsequent discovery by Xia Jiang. They knew what that secret meant to Your Majesty, and they were sure that Prince Qi had no way of absolving himself, because Your Majesty would never bring up the topic of such a taboo.
“Throughout the entire affair, Brother Qi had no idea about the existence of that pouch, never mind its contents.”
A strong gust of wind rushes through the windows, as the candlelights flicker menacingly into almost nothing, plunging the room into a brief moment of darkness.
“Then, Jingyan,” the emperor lowers himself gradually to pick up the abandoned sword from earlier. “How did you know about this? Did Jinghuan tell you?”
“Princess Xuanji told me before she died.”
“You killed her?” the emperor frowns, then pats himself on the head in remembrance. “...Right, I do recall. You were in charge of expelling all the Hua people from the capital, and one day you took a team to chase after an escaped woman outside the city gates, that was Princess Xuanji?”
“Yes. In an attempt to bargain for her life, she told me certain things, including the pouch and the secret it contained,” answers Jingyan. “Qin Banruo, Xia Chun and Xia Qiu are all detained in the imperial prison, they can testify that when they searched Prince Qi’s manor per Xia Jiang’s orders, they took the pouch from the exact same spot where Qin Banruo had placed it, and no one had touched it in the meantime.”
“So you are the one who knows everything, while Jingyu is completely ignorant,” the emperor nods. “And you are telling me all this now in the hope that I would summon him back to name him Crown Prince.”
“What about you then?” He points a finger at Jingyan, “While I have my reservations about Jingyu, I know that he would never publicize the secret to preserve my reputation, but you? You are too dangerous, you are someone who can forfeit his own life for the sake of the grander plan. You knew that the discord between me and Jingyu ran deeper than it seemed,7 you knew that even if you had interfered and testified for Jingyu’s innocence that time, the root of the problem would still exist between us, and you might have been implicated as well. So you waited patiently, for when Jinghuan and Jingxuan have both sealed their own fate, when I can no longer exert any influence on your life, then you divulge everything. It’s been two years since Noble Consort Jing returned, she now has total control over the palace. The Imperial Guards in and around the palace are all at your command, any decree that you disapprove of probably would never make it out of the gates.
“I am curious though, if I were to order your death now and then name Jingyu the heir, do you want that decree, or not?”
The emperor gathers his energy to lift up the sword, taking one step after the next until he stops in front of Jingyan, until the tip of the sword is pressed against Jingyan’s chest. “Many things went according to your plan these past years, but have you ever considered what I would do to you to protect my secret?”
The blade sinks torturously into the crimson formal robes of the Crown Prince, and soon a dark stain begins to saturate the fabric. The emperor quirks his lips up in a curious smile, apparently quite enjoying himself as he twists the sword experimentally, watching the spot of color growing by the second, yet Jingyan’s face remains completely blank.
He scoffs and tosses the sword onto the ground, its tip stained red.
“So close, I almost walked right into your trap! If I had killed you, I would have played along with your clever scheme!
“Jingyan, I lost,” sighs the emperor, grasping tightly onto his son’s sleeve to keep himself upright, “But I have my ways to make sure that you do not win, either.”
“Sealing the Xuanjing Bureau? As you wish. Protecting Jingyu and surrounding the palace with the Imperial Guards? Do as you wish. I will write no more decrees, and you will remain as the eminent Crown Prince. When I pass away, you shall be emperor,” he lets out an embittered laugh. “You see, it’s been an interesting game, one that lost. Yet the entire world, including your Brother Qi will think that you won.”
Contrary to the emperor’s expectations, Jingyan shows no sign of indignation at his words,8 rather, he meets his father’s eyes as calmly as before, “...Your Majesty has forgotten that I would need to be alive for you to win.”
This time, the emperor is struck speechless.
Jingyan is about to open his mouth again when Lie Zhanying enters the hall in a frenzy, unadulterated panic written all over his face.
“Your Highness, reports from the Eastern, Northern and Southern borders have all reached the capital, news of assault from Northern Yan, the East Sea and the Southern Chu!”
The emperor pales instantly, yet the Crown Prince rapidly composes himself after a fleeting moment of surprise. “...I see. Summon the Minister of Defense, Shen Zhui, Meng Zhi and all the military lords to the Eastern Palace, I will be along shortly.”
“Yes, sir!”
Jingyan turns to leave when he is abruptly caught from behind by the emperor, whose unsteady gaze is filled with puzzlement. He looks at his son as if looking at a stranger.
“...Who exactly are you?”
------------Footnotes-------------
1. Here literally Lin Shu is telling Meng Zhi to watch out for 暗器 (an qi), or concealed weapon, which is a general term that refers to small weapons usually hidden in the fighter’s pocket or sleeve, to be used in a surprise attack during close-range combat, where the opponent would have difficulty dodging it. They are usually in the shape of a dart or arrow, smaller in size than a fist. More aggressive versions have poisoned tips.
2. 落井下石 (luo jing xia shi): lit. throwing a stone at someone who has fallen into a well, i.e. adding insult to the injury.
3. 养居殿 (yang ju dian): lit. nurturing residence hall, is the name for the bedchambers of the emperor. I believe this is an invention of the canon author/screenwriter, but in many other historical novels, the imperial bedchamber takes on some variation of this name, so usually a native speaker who is at least somewhat familiar with the subculture would be able to infer the purpose of the hall from its name.
4. 幸灾乐祸 (xing zai le huo): taking pleasure in the misfortune of others.
5. Court officials in Ancient China were ranked 1-9 to show hierarchy, where 一品 (yi pin), or first rank was the highest, often at the Chancellor level, and 九品 (jiu pin, ninth rank) was the lowest, like officials in small local offices. This system originates from the late Han Dynasty in the 200s A.D., and has been adapted in different periods until its abolition at the end of the Qing Dynasty in the early 1900s, when the imperialistic system drew to a close. Third rank and up were considered very prominent positions in the court, and illegal activities involving these men were no longer trivial matter.
6. 冠冕堂皇 (guan mian tang huang): lit. the headdress of an emperor or a nobleman looks magnificent. Don’t be fooled by the literal meaning of this idiom, it has a decidedly negative connotation, usually describing a person or his words that appear righteous and impressive, but his actions are sadly the opposite.
7. Quiz time! This is an idiom that appeared in the footnotes of ch. 29, 冰冻三尺非一日之寒 (three feet of ice were not formed from one winter day), or more plainly, the problem has been brewing for a long time.
8. 恼羞成怒 (nao xiu cheng nu): become angry from embarrassment or shame, used in situations where the person is caught red-handed, usually in a public manner, he becomes so flustered with embarrassment that he expresses anger instead.
