Novelas PaiPai - Capítulo 36
The relationship between the Emperor and Empress was also a focus of attention for the women of the six palaces. Since the palace coup, the current Emperor and the Empress had not slept together. On the day of Consort Zhang's investiture ceremony, some subtle signs led the ladies to speculate about their current situation.
That morning, the Emperor and Empress rose separately from the Funing Palace and the Kunning Palace, respectively. When they appeared before the crowd, both had dark circles under their eyes and slightly swollen eyelids. Although the Empress had concealed it with makeup, some abnormalities were still noticeable. As the Emperor and Empress, accompanied by Consort Zhang, passed through the Imperial Ceremonial Hall to receive congratulations from the officials, a story that had happened in the Kunning Palace the previous night began to circulate quietly in the inner palace as anecdote.
According to palace servants in the Kunning Palace, after midnight last night, the Emperor ordered his close attendants to summon the Empress from the Kunning Palace. The Empress was already asleep when she heard this. She rose, put on her outer robe, and went to the door of her bedchamber, but did not open it. Instead, she asked the eunuch from the Funing Palace through the crack in the door, "What business does His Majesty have with me?"
The eunuch replied, "His Majesty woke up in the middle of the night and sat alone drinking. Before he knew it, he had finished his drink and sent me to ask if there was any wine in the Empress's palace, and if I could bring some over."
The Empress refused to obey the summons, saying, "Even if there is wine here, I dare not give it to the Emperor. It is late at night, so please inform the Emperor to rest."
After speaking, he immediately sent the eunuch back, refusing to even open the door to see him.
The princess overheard this, and that night, when the palace ladies were watching a banquet at Ziyun Tower, she directly asked her father, "Father wanted to drink last night. You should have asked the imperial chefs and brewers. Why did you have to summon them so late at night? Why didn't you send them over?"
The palace maids chuckled, but the Empress sat upright, seemingly oblivious. Now, looking embarrassed, she coughed softly twice, and after a moment's thought, said, "Since it's already late, it's not appropriate to trouble so many people..."
The princess pressed on, "Even if you don't want to trouble the servants, there are so many ladies in the palace, and the pavilion is stocked with plenty of wine. Why did Father specifically ask about those who don't drink often?
The Emperor was momentarily speechless. Seeing this, Consort Zhang took over the conversation: "My family has sent some more fine lamb wine. If Your Majesty wishes to drink it next time, just send someone to fetch it."
Before the Emperor could answer, the Princess spoke first, saying to Consort Zhang, "Who doesn't know that Lady Zhang has plenty of wine in her chambers? Father doesn't ask you for any, so there must be a reason why he doesn't want any."
Consort Zhang was immediately displeased, as if she wanted to retort, but when she turned her gaze and saw that the Emperor was observing her reaction, she suppressed her anger and forced a smile, saying, "The princess is right."
The ladies saw the Emperor's attempt to curry favor with the Empress by summoning her to the palace at night as a gesture of goodwill. They believed that the Emperor was simply trying to save face by speaking under the influence of alcohol. However, the Empress did not readily accept this gesture.
"Look at their eyes, they must have both been up all night," Consort Yu said to Consort Miao in the Yifeng Pavilion the next day. "This situation is like a young couple having a quarrel, what's the point!"
Miao Shuyi smiled and said, "They have always been respectful to each other on the surface, but there has been this awkwardness between them in private for more than ten years. Sometimes, even I can't see through it."
Hearing their conversation, the princess leaned closer to listen more closely, only to be tapped on the forehead by Miao Shuyi: "You silly girl, yesterday at the banquet you asked your father some silly questions, making him lose face for ages!"
The princess pouted and said, "I'm not stupid! I only said that to Zhang Niangzi on purpose because I saw how arrogant she was."
(to be continued)
The Lonely City Closes (The Princess Who Fell in Love with a Eunuch) The Waters of Canglang Wash My Tassels 28. Canglang
Chapter word count: 5878 Update time: 08-09-13 15:38
28. Canglang
Afterwards, the Empress maintained a polite, respectful, and distant attitude towards the Emperor. She diligently managed the affairs of the six palaces, employing both kindness and authority, thus ensuring order within the palace and preventing any further disturbances. However, Consort Zhang frequently provoked the Emperor, demanding to move into the more luxurious Ninghua Palace. She often bypassed the Empress, issuing orders directly to the two provinces and six bureaus, resulting in Ninghua Palace's food and supplies exceeding those of the Empress's. The Empress, however, remained tolerant and forgiving, showing no anger despite Consort Zhang's rudeness.
It wasn't until December of that year that I saw a sorrowful expression on the Empress's face again, but it wasn't because of Zhang's matter.
That evening, as usual, the princess went to the Kunning Palace for her evening prayers. I accompanied her. When we entered the palace, we saw the empress sitting alone, looking at a scroll of documents on her desk. When she turned to look at us, her eyes were glistening with tears.
The princess was startled and forgot to curtsy. She hurried over and asked with concern, "What's wrong?"
The Queen wiped away her tears, then smiled faintly, pulled the princess to sit beside her, and silently half-embraced her. After a long while, she said, "A good friend's husband passed away last month... He was wrongfully killed. She was still young, and none of her children are even as old as you..."
"He died unjustly?" the princess asked in surprise. "Then tell Father about the injustice and ask him to clear his name."
The Empress smiled sadly, simply embracing the princess tightly without saying a word.
Perhaps realizing the difficulties involved, the princess lowered her eyelashes, looking somewhat dejected. Leaning against the empress, she turned to point at the documents on the table and asked, "Is this a letter she wrote to...? Her handwriting is so beautiful."
It didn't really look like a letter; the paper and the font were larger than usual. I was too far away to see what was written clearly, but I could tell that the characters were slanted and curved, with hooks and loops, written in cursive script, and quite imposing.
The Queen did not answer whether she wanted to answer or not, but asked the princess, "Can you recognize whose handwriting this is?"
The princess examined it closely and said, "These characters are written like newly sprouted flower branches, very beautiful, but they are different from the famous calligraphic works that Father showed me... It's hard to guess."
"This person does not boast about his calligraphy, but people circulate his fragments and notes, so the secret archives have fewer of them. No wonder you can't recognize him." The Empress said to the princess with a gentle smile, then looked at me and said, "Huaiji, you used to work at the calligraphy bureau, come and take a look too."
I obeyed and approached, then looked down and saw that it contained a poem titled "Prelude to Water Melody":
On the tranquil shores of Taihu Lake, I stand serenely atop Dongting Mountain. Where fish and dragons hide, mist and fog shroud the vast expanse. Just as I think of Tao Zhu and Zhang Han, a small boat suddenly appears, its oars swift, cutting through the waves to carry perch home. Sunset, storm, and rain—the return journey winds its way along the riverbank.
A man's ambition should be strong in his prime, for he should be ashamed of idleness. Why then does one grow weary in the prime of life, his hair turning white and his youthful face pale? I think of borrowing a spot on the cold pond to fish, but I fear the seagulls will be suspicious and refuse to cast my line. I paddle through the reeds and rushes, silently watching the waves.
I recognized the handwriting; the meaning of the words matched my guess about the person's situation. Looking around, I saw only two or three of the Empress's close palace maids nearby, so I said, "The characters are like flowers blooming in the imperial garden, and the moon? The Huai River. It must be from Su Zimei's drunken brush."
The Empress confirmed this and told me, "He wrote this poem last month and died of illness in Suzhou not long afterward."
"Su Zimei? Is he dead?" The princess was greatly surprised.
The Empress nodded, and said wistfully, "It's truly a pity that the world will never again have someone like that, riding a spirited horse in fine furs, drinking wine while reading the Book of Han..."
There's a story behind this. Su Shunqin was a renowned poet, and his father-in-law, Du Yan, was a respected official. Famous ministers of the time enjoyed associating with them, and like the Jin dynasty poets describing Yue Guang and Wei Yi, they were described as "pure and refined," implying both were exceptionally handsome. It's said that when Shunqin was young, he lived in Du Yan's house and would drink a whole dou (a unit of volume) of wine alone every night, without any snacks. Du Yan didn't believe him and sent someone to investigate. The person returned and said that Shunqin was reading the *Book of Han* while drinking, clapping and praising the most interesting passages, making a few comments to himself, and then drinking another full cup. Du Yan laughed and said, "With such a perfect accompaniment, a dou is not too much." Later, the story of Su Shunqin drinking while reading the *Book of Han* became a widely known anecdote about him.
Princess Su Shunqin's early death puzzled her. She said to the Empress, "I heard my father say that those officials who were sent to the provinces were living very carefree lives, traveling around to enjoy the scenery, and then writing poems and essays. There were 'Records of Yueyang Tower,' 'Records of the Drunken Pavilion,' and 'Records of the Canglang Pavilion,' which were read and recited by everyone in the world, driving up the price of paper... Didn't Su Zimei build a Canglang Pavilion in Suzhou? How could he die so young? He spent his days enjoying the company of fish and birds. Wasn't he happy?"
The Empress asked her, "Huirou, do you know why he named the garden 'Canglang'?"
The princess thought for a moment, then shook her head: "Is it related to a phrase from some classic text?"
At that moment, someone entered from outside the hall, reciting in response as they walked: "The waters of the Canglang River are clear, they can wash my tassels; the waters of the Canglang River are muddy, they can wash my feet."
When we looked back, we found it was the Emperor himself, so we all stood up and bowed.
Since he recited the line about "Canglang," he must have overheard our previous conversation. Without being informed, we were unaware of his approach or how much he had heard. I couldn't help but feel a little worried. I glanced at the Empress and saw that she hesitated slightly, but still did not remove the poem from the table.
The Emperor walked straight to the desk and sat down. He picked up Su Shunqin's posthumous poem and read it carefully. After reading it, he did not show any anger, but sighed and said, "Shunqin retired to the water town, hoping to be as open-minded as the fisherman Gu?, finding solace in springs and rocks, drinking wine and singing loudly, and being content in the vastness. But this poem also says, 'A man's ambition is to be in the prime of life and ashamed of being idle,' which shows that he could not let go in the end."
The Empress stood beside the Emperor, maintaining a slight distance, her gaze calmly fixed on the ground before her feet, and replied: "He used Canglang Pavilion to show the world that he knew when to advance and retreat and was content with a tranquil life, which was a great achievement and made him laugh at the ages. But in the end, he still chose to die to reveal his true feelings: How can I, with my pure whiteness, be sullied by the dust of the world?"
The Emperor remained silent for a long time, then, as if explaining to the Empress, said, "Although I stripped him of his official rank and said he would never be reinstated, later... I added a clause to the amnesty decree for criminals this year: those who embezzle and whose crimes are minor may be exonerated by the Ministry of Justice. However, some people objected to exonerating him, saying that this clause was not originally included in the amnesty decree, and that this was a favoritism to protect Su Shunqin. The Emperor cannot break the law with a single word... Two months ago, I issued an edict to reinstate Shunqin as the Prefect of Huzhou, intending to let him serve as an official outside the capital first, and then gradually transfer him back to the capital, so as to avoid too much criticism from the censors. I did not expect him to be so arrogant, preferring death to taking office."