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The Lonely City Closes (The Princess Who Fell in Love with a Eunuch) Falling Flowers and Wind Play with Clear Autumn Rain 56. The Prosperous Pagoda

Chapter word count: 3366 Update time: 08-08-21 17:21

Fanta Pagoda

After the turmoil surrounding the incident subsided, the wife of the Emperor's brother-in-law entered the palace and hinted to the Emperor that Li Wei and the princess were getting older and it was time for them to get married. The Emperor then ordered funds to be allocated to build a residence for the princess, with Li Wei overseeing the construction, and the wedding date to be discussed later.

Soon after, some troublemakers deliberately "lost" a copy of the court gazette in front of the Yifeng Pavilion. It contained a memorial from the remonstrating official Fan Zhen impeaching the imperial son-in-law, Li Wei: "The household of Imperial Son-in-Law Li Wei has forty or fifty servants. Those who come and go among his retainers are all sons of wealthy families, opportunistic and unscrupulous individuals. Furthermore, the construction of his main residence is excessive… Li Wei is young and should be studying, yet he has so many opportunistic and unscrupulous people around him, building his residence in great extravagance. This is not what is meant by 'incorporating good people into one's family'…"

This court report was later delivered to me. Zhang Chengzhao was beside me at the time. He leaned over to read it and laughed, "These things were actually shown off by the princess's mother when she last visited the palace. I heard she praised her son to the Emperor, saying that he associated with no ordinary people and that his friends were all from wealthy and powerful families. Li Wei's social interactions with them were no less impressive in terms of clothing and possessions. He was always surrounded by dozens of people, and he was quite the dashing young nobleman... She even asked the Emperor for an extra piece of land, saying that the princess wanted to build a polo field in the princess's residence, and the Emperor actually agreed."

I asked Zhang Chengzhao, "Do people in the palace often discuss these matters?"

“Indeed,” he said. “As soon as the Empress Dowager left, the people around the Emperor were secretly laughing. They said that the paper money her family had made had turned into real silver, and they didn’t know how to spend it. They wanted to stick it on their faces and pile it on their bodies so that everyone could see it.”

I set the court report on fire and warned him, "Don't discuss this matter in front of the princess; don't let her hear it."

He readily agreed. But many people knew about this, and presumably a few gossips had revealed some information to the princess. In the following days, the princess became noticeably more depressed than before. Except for visiting the emperor and empress, she stayed indoors all the time, often lost in thought and silent. Sometimes, when she played the konghou (a type of Chinese harp), tears would fall as she played.

After the Emperor recovered, everyone tacitly stopped mentioning the Princess's refusal to marry Cao Ping, as if the matter had never happened, including the Princess herself. Therefore, her dissatisfaction with the marriage could only turn into silent sorrow, which eroded her happiness and health, causing her to wither away day by day.

Miao Shuyi saw this and felt very sorry for her, but she was helpless. She could only pray to the gods and Buddhas all day long, burning incense and chanting prayers. Each time, she would mutter something, but it was impossible to hear what she was saying.

One day, she told the princess that during the time when the emperor and the princess were ill, she had gone to Tianqing Temple and made a vow before the relics of Dingguang Buddha, praying for her husband and daughter to recover soon. Now that her wish had been fulfilled, she should go to give thanks, and the princess should go with her to show her sincere gratitude.

The princess had no interest in the matter, but she couldn't resist her mother's persuasion and finally agreed to go with her.

Tianqing Temple was built during the reign of Emperor Shizong of the Later Zhou Dynasty. It contains a temple pagoda called Xingci Pagoda, which enshrines the relics of Dingguang Buddha, but is commonly known as Fan Pagoda by the people of Tokyo. The pagoda is very tall, and there is a folk song in Tokyo that goes: "The iron pagoda is tall, the iron pagoda is tall, the iron pagoda only reaches the waist of Fan Pagoda."

I, along with several eunuchs and ladies-in-waiting, followed Consort Miao and the princess up the winding path inside the Fan Pagoda. It took us a long time to reach the Buddha niche. Looking down through the window, the scene was just as described in Su Shunqin's poem about the Fan Pagoda: "Carriages and horses are like ants, and the great river is a filthy ditch."

After paying homage to the relics, the princess looked around and discovered that the inner walls were inlaid with painted Buddhist images on bricks. Among them was a set of bricks depicting Indra and musicians, which depicted musicians playing instruments such as the pipa, conch shell, drum, cymbals, panpipes, and flute. The lines were smooth, the expressions were lively, and the images were lifelike.

The princess was gradually drawn in and examined everything closely, while Miao Shuyi said, "It's too high up here, and the wind is strong. I'm feeling a bit dizzy, so I'll go down first."

Upon hearing this, the princess wanted to go with her, but Miao Shuyi shook her head and said, "Since you like looking at these brick paintings, stay a little longer and take a good look. I'll go to the main hall of the temple to burn incense first, and you can come down with Huaiji in a little while."

After speaking, she left with the rest of her attendants and the abbot accompanying her. Before leaving, she secretly winked at me and pointed at the princess, as if she had some instructions. I figured it was just to ask me to take good care of the princess, so I bowed and nodded to indicate that I would obey.

The princess continued to look at the brick paintings of musicians, her gaze lingering on the one depicting a musician playing the flute. Perhaps recalling past stories, she was lost in thought and did not notice the footsteps that echoed on the wooden path in the tower until someone walked up behind her and called her "Princess," at which point she suddenly came to her senses.

In that instant when she turned her head, she didn't know whether to feel sorrow or joy. A smile bloomed on her face and then vanished. She grabbed the man's wrist, as if trying to confirm his presence, or as if afraid he would suddenly disappear. Her eyes filled with tears as she stared at him, she choked out softly, "Brother Cao... are you alright?"

Cao Ping's lips twitched slightly, but the smile was bleak. He had lost a lot of weight in the long time since they last met; his eyes were dark, and his gaze was lifeless—a far cry from his former spirited self.

He gently withdrew his hand, avoiding the princess's touch, took two steps back, and bowed, saying, "Thanks to Your Highness, I am well. Thank you for your concern."

His demeanor and tone carried a distinct sense of distance, which startled the princess. I suspected that he was hesitant because of my presence, so I moved to the outside of the door, but dared not go far, and stood waiting by the door.

Because they were still close, their subsequent conversation could still be heard. Cao Ping spoke first, politely and calmly addressing the princess: "Princess, I have come to bid you farewell. I am going to Sishui to guard my great-grandfather's tomb, and I fear I will never have the opportunity to visit you again. Therefore, I have come today to say goodbye. I hope you will take good care of yourself..."

Before he could finish speaking, the princess was already shocked and asked in a trembling voice, "You want to leave the capital? Why? Who sent you? Father? Or Aunt?"

Cao Ping said, "Princess, please stop guessing. I went willingly, not because I was forced."

The princess didn't believe it, her voice already trembling with tears: "Why are you leaving? Wait a little longer, I'll think of something... When Father is feeling better, I'll beg him to let us be together... He's been so good to me, he'll definitely agree..."

“Princess,” Cao Ping interrupted her, asking in return, “Are you sure your uncle will agree to your request? Can you guarantee that the bad things that happened before won’t happen again?”

The princess was speechless. Cao Ping sighed and continued, "I used to think like the princess, that since my uncle doted on her and my aunt was the empress, if we pleaded for her, and my aunt persuaded him, my uncle would surely grant our request. But now I realize we were too naive."

The princess remained silent. Cao Ping continued, “That day, after returning from the Imperial Academy, I told my parents about our affair. My mother was horrified, crying and scolding me for being ignorant. My father didn't punish me, only saying, ‘If the Emperor were willing to give you the princess, he would have done so ten years ago.’ Then, he turned and went to his study, where he wrote a memorial requesting to be relieved of his post and await punishment… After that, my family was monitored by the Imperial City Guards, and everyone who came in or out was questioned… My uncle fell ill and even uttered the words ‘The Empress is plotting rebellion.’ When our clan received the news, everyone was filled with fear and unease. Under questioning from the clan chief, my father told him about my affair. The clan chief, filled with grief and anger, despite his serious illness, personally came to me, leaning on his cane, and said, ‘If anything goes wrong this time, not only will the century-old honor of the Cao family, which your great-grandfather earned through a lifetime of military service, be destroyed in your hands, but it's also uncertain whether the lives of hundreds of people in the Cao family can be saved!’”

“Father wouldn’t do that!” the princess retorted. “What he said that time was just delirium during his illness…”

“Delirious talk during illness is much like drunken ramblings; it reveals some of one’s inner thoughts,” Cao Ping said. His tone remained calm, suggesting he had been thinking a lot these past few days. What he was saying to the princess now was simply the conclusion he had reached in his heart. “It was only then that I realized my aunt wasn’t as trusted by my uncle as I had thought, nor as secure and unshakeable as she seemed. My reckless behavior only deepened my uncle’s misunderstanding of my aunt. Perhaps he even thought that my aunt had sent me to seduce the princess…”

The princess denied it repeatedly: "No, Father would not have such thoughts..." However, her unthinking words sounded very weak and powerless.

"Let me finish, Princess." Cao Ping stopped her, his voice now gentle, warmer than before. "I never imagined my family would be so greatly affected by my actions... My elders are anxious and angry, my father is frowning, my mother cries all day, my brothers are confined to the house, and my sister, who once helped me deliver an umbrella to the princess, was hastily betrothed to someone she doesn't like because my parents believe that if anything happens in the future, that person's family can protect her life... But the most heartbroken person should be my aunt. I can't imagine what kind of difficult situation she will face in the palace when my uncle is accused of 'treason'."

After a pause, he continued, "I imagine the princess must have felt even worse than I have during this time. So, princess, now that everything is in the past, let's maintain the status quo, let's not make any more mistakes, and let's not affect those we love any further."

"So, does the person you love include me? If things stay the same, I'll have to marry that stupid and vulgar Li Wei. How am I supposed to live then?" the princess immediately asked him.

Cao Ping remained silent. At this moment, the princess, her emotions stirred, suddenly said with hope, "Or we could escape, we could escape from here, to a place where no one can find us..."

“Princess!” Cao Ping called out to her loudly, raising his voice slightly to signal her to calm down. Then, he said something that silenced the princess completely: “I like you very much, Princess, but I love my family even more.”

The speech ended there. Inside the pagoda, wisps of smoke floated, while outside the threshold, clouds and water flowed emptily. I listened intently, but could only hear fragmented whispers of wind passing intermittently through the tranquil time before the Buddha niche.

Then came the sound of knees hitting the ground. Cao Ping bowed to the princess and said, "Your Majesty, I wish you peace, health, longevity, and eternal happiness."

After the ceremony, he strode out the door. Before going downstairs, he bowed deeply to me and said, "Mr. Liang, please take good care of the princess in the future."

The Lonely City Closes (The Princess Who Fell in Love with a Eunuch) Falling Flowers and Wind, Clear Autumn Rain 57. Warming Up

Chapter word count: 4858 Update time: 08-09-13 15:39

Heating

When they saw the princess again, she had already walked to the edge of the tower's railing, standing in the howling wind, looking down at the vast world below, her clothes fluttering, swaying precariously.

I immediately went over, grabbed her arm, and pulled her around.