Klares Wasser und wunderschöne Berge

Kapitel 5

I bowed slightly and replied, "I am thirteen years old this year. I have never studied painting, and have only scribbled a few times under the guidance of Young Master Cui."

"What... is your name?" she continued to ask.

“Liang Huaiji,” I replied, this time without adding any further explanation for the name.

"Oh, I remember you." The Empress smiled slightly. "Your original name was Liang Yuanheng, wasn't it? Your current name is Pingfu."

Pingfu was the courtesy name of Mr. Zhang Maoze, the head of the East Gate of the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics. The Empress's use of this title surprised me somewhat, but then filled me with a strange joy. I regarded Mr. Zhang as both a teacher and a father, and although we hadn't seen each other often over the years, I always held him in boundless gratitude and respect. The Empress's mention of the name change immediately reminded me of the kindness she had shown me, so I solemnly knelt down and kowtowed to thank her for saving my life years ago.

She kindly told me to rise and even rewarded me with some brushes made of rat whiskers and chestnuts, as well as some fragrant ink from Xin'an. I was almost overwhelmed with gratitude, because what she gave me was not the usual silk and cotton bestowed upon eunuchs, but rather superior brushes and ink suitable for calligraphy and painting.

She re-examined the batch of portrait scrolls, pointed out a few and asked me about their authors, then ordered someone to write them down before instructing me to take the rest of the paintings back. I obeyed and withdrew, then left the Kunning Hall under the guidance of an inner eunuch. The inner eunuch pointed out the way back to my residence before closing the door and returning home.

Both he and I overestimated my sense of direction. I was also preoccupied with what had just happened, and walked absentmindedly for a long time before suddenly realizing that I was in a completely unfamiliar place. I had lost my way in this midnight palace.

I stopped and looked around blankly. The surroundings were desolate and silent, without a soul in sight. Only a pool of clear water before me shimmered gently under the moonlight, and the willows along the bank swayed in the wind like silken hair, sending a chill down my spine. I vaguely remembered that this must be the rear garden located in the northwest of the imperial city, so I looked up at the sky, used the stars to determine my direction, found the south-facing gate, and hurried there.

Just as I reached the south gate porch, I suddenly felt a shadow enter from outside the gate and flash past. I was startled and turned around to look. I saw that the figure was petite and slender, like a young girl, running towards the Yaojin Pond in the back garden in the cool night wind. She was wearing only a plain white undergarment and a matching long skirt, and her long hair was loose and hung down to her waist. When it touched the moonlight, it had a faint blue luster.

She ran, lifting her long skirt, and as it fluttered, I could see she was barefoot. This detail made me realize she was human, not a ghost, and my initial fear faded. I quietly turned back and hid in the woods by the pond to see what she intended to do.

She knelt down beside a large rock by the pond, bowing three times and kowtowing nine times to the moon. From my angle, I could see her profile; she appeared to be about eight or nine years old, with a beautiful face and delicate features.

After kneeling and bowing, she looked up at the sky, her brows furrowed and tears streaming down her face, clear as morning dew: "Father is ill, and I, Huirou, have no way to ease his pain. I beg Heaven to have mercy and allow me to take his place, to suffer his illness and bear all his pain. I only hope that the gods will grant my request. If Father can be restored to his former health, I, Huirou, will not hesitate to give up my life..."

She wept and pleaded, repeatedly expressing her determination to take her father's place. I watched silently, gradually feeling a pang of sympathy. This scene reminded me of some things from the past.

My father was always in poor health, and later he fell seriously ill. He often coughed day and night, and I could always hear his coughing coming from next door when I went to sleep. I was young and didn't understand at the time, and I always thought the noise was annoying. Every time I couldn't sleep because of the noise, I would vaguely think how wonderful it would be if he could be quiet one day.

And then there was this one night, I finally didn't hear him cough anymore. I slept incredibly peacefully that night. When I woke up the next day, the first thing I saw was my mother's pale, blank face. She stared at me and calmly told me, "Xiao Yuan, your father is gone."

So this is what it's like when the sky falls; everything changes.

Since then, I have often felt immense regret for my neglect of my father's illness. If I could turn back time, I would surely, like the little girl before me, stand barefoot and pray to the heavens, hoping that I could take my father's place.

Lost in thought, I was startled when a leaf fell from above, brushing against my face. My hand trembled, and a scroll rolled to the ground.

Hearing the noise, the little girl turned around alertly. I picked up the scroll and appeared before her gaze. We looked at each other, and for a moment, neither of us spoke.

I don't know who she is. It's a tradition for concubines in the palace to adopt daughters from good families, and they also have eunuchs find brokers to buy young girls from poor families to enter the palace as prostitutes. Not to mention the palace maids trained by the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat from a young age. There are quite a few girls her age in the palace. Apart from knowing that her name is Huirou, I don't know her identity. I just feel that I have no way to talk to her, although I really want to tell her that I sincerely wish her father a speedy recovery.

"Who are you?" she asked.

Just as I was about to answer, I saw someone carrying a lantern enter from outside the south gate of the rear garden. Upon seeing this, Huirou immediately turned and ran towards another gate, presumably not wanting the person to discover her.

Her running startled the man. A young woman, who appeared to be a maid, immediately gave chase, lantern in hand, calling out, "Who's there? Stop!"

The shadow under the tree concealed me, so she didn't notice me. I watched their figures disappear at the eastern end of the back garden before following the direction indicated by the stars back to my dwelling.

Note:

Private person: a colloquial term from the Song Dynasty, referring to someone without official position.

The Lonely City Closes (The Princess Who Fell in Love with the Eunuch) Autumn River, Hibiscus, Two Geese Flying 5. Huirou

Chapter word count: 5352 Update time: 08-08-21 15:33

Two days later, following the Empress's instructions, I delivered several scrolls of Cui Bai's paintings to the Kunning Palace for her review. The Empress was chatting with the Palace Attendant, the highest-ranking female official in the Imperial Secretariat, when she saw the paintings arrive. She then ordered them to be unfurled and, together with the Palace Attendant, critiqued them.

Those paintings were carefully selected by me, with different themes, including flowers, bamboo, feathers, water lilies, ducks and geese, as well as Taoist and Buddhist deities, ghosts and gods, and flying creatures in the mountains and forests, all of which are Cui Bai's strengths. The Palace Attendant smiled when she saw them, seemingly very impressed. When the Empress asked for her opinion, she cautiously replied, "This person's paintings are quite innovative."

The Empress remained silent for a moment, then looked at the painting again carefully. Her gaze finally fell on a painting of lotus flowers and egrets. With a slight smile, she said to me, "Huaiji, you are right. Cui Bai is good at sketching from life. When it comes to capturing the essence of things, there are indeed few in the painting academy who can surpass him."

I smiled, lowered my eyes, and bowed my head. The Palace Attendant, seeing the Empress gazing intently at the painting of two egrets for a long time, also approached to take a closer look, wanting to know its wonders.

The Empress turned her head and asked her, "What does the Palace Attendant think of this painting?"

This painting depicts two egrets playing in a lotus pond. One swims from right to left, trying to catch a red shrimp in front of it, while the other flies down from the sky with its long neck bent and its two legs stretched out behind it.

The Palace Attendant pondered the painting carefully, then said, "The egret in the painting is graceful and lively, with soft and dense feathers that seem almost tangible... It is indeed a rare masterpiece."

"Not only that," the Empress said, pointing to the egret's neck above. "When egrets fly, they always bend their necks and retract them, sometimes even making the lower half of their necks look like a bag. I have seen other people's paintings of egrets before, which often mistakenly depicted them as cranes in flight, with their heads, necks and legs stretched out forward and backward respectively. But Cui Bai's painting is correct, which shows that he has indeed put some thought into observing and sketching."

Upon hearing this, the Palace Attendant and I looked at the painting again, and sure enough, we saw that the necks of the egrets flying in the painting were bent and almost sac-like, which made us feel astonished.

The Palace Attendant immediately praised, "Your Majesty is wise. How fortunate Cui Bai is to have gained Your Majesty's favor!"

The Empress shook her head and sighed, "But with his talent and temperament, it would be a constraint for him to stay in the painting academy... Some people are just not meant to enter the capital."

"Keep the painting safe and store it in the secret archives in the future," she instructed me. "As for Cui Bai, I will have the official in charge grant him permission to leave at the request of the painting academy."

Her praise of Cui Bai gave me a fleeting illusion that she would keep him, so her sudden change of tone in her conclusion surprised me slightly. But I immediately had to admit that it was indeed a decision that would make both the painting academy officials and Cui Bai feel comfortable. I admire her.

The palace servants rolled up the scrolls one by one, preparing to hand them to me to take back. As I stood waiting, I suddenly heard a commotion outside the hall. A woman was crying out, "Empress, my daughter and I have been murdered. It's one thing if you're unwilling to take charge and punish the villains, but why won't you even let me see the Emperor?"

The Palace Attendant frowned, about to rush out to check, but was stopped by the Empress, who ordered the palace servants, "Let her in."

In a flash, a woman with disheveled hair rushed into the hall, knelt before the Empress, showed her the child she was holding, and wept, "Youwu is so sick, can't Your Majesty let the Emperor see him?"

Perhaps worried about the child's illness, the woman's eyes were red and swollen from crying, and her face was very haggard, but one could still see that she was beautiful; if she were properly made up, she would be an absolute beauty. The child she was holding was a three or four-year-old girl, who was breathing heavily with her eyes closed, her little face flushed with a sickly redness, as if she had a persistent high fever.

The Empress said gently, "I have already ordered the imperial physicians to carefully examine Youwu. Consort Zhang should not have brought her out; it would be bad if she caught a chill. His Majesty should rest quietly these few days; I have already given the order that he should not see any of the concubines."

Consort Zhang shook her head: "The Empress is not unaware that this child's illness is caused by a curse. The imperial physicians can only treat the symptoms, not the root cause. If Youwu is to recover, the villain who harmed her must be punished. I know the Empress disdains to concern herself with such trivial matters and dare not trouble you with this. But why won't the Empress grant me an audience with His Majesty?"

I vaguely remembered hearing someone mention that the Emperor's most favored concubine was Lady Zhang, which must be the woman before me. Now, her words were arrogant and aggressive, truly befitting her favored status. Yet, the Empress remained unperturbed, calmly replying, "Your Highness is overthinking it. The weather today is unpredictable; Youwu has merely caught a cold. A few doses of medicine will cure her; it has nothing to do with anyone else."

"Nothing to do with anyone?" Consort Zhang sneered, tossing an object to the ground. "This thing was found yesterday under a stone in the back garden. I have already sent someone to report it to the Empress, yet the Empress still says it has nothing to do with anyone?"