Chapter 56: The Flower Path is Chilly, the Sacred Will is Unpredictable
The wind blew crabapple petals across the bluestone slabs, forming a thin layer of pink and white outside the study's threshold. Eunuch Su's voice was like a fine needle, gently piercing the Fang residence's brief tranquility. Even the air seemed to freeze. Xiaoyanzi froze in place, her fingers digging deep into her palms. The cold touch confirmed to her that this was no dream—Qianlong was actually coming to the residence in person?
"Eunuch Su, you must be joking." Fang Zhihang was the first to come to his senses. The hem of his long blue cloth gown was wrinkled from his grip, but he forced a gentle smile on his face. "My daughter just caught a cold. How dare I trouble Your Majesty? Tomorrow... tomorrow I will bring my daughter to the palace to apologize."
"That's what Lord Fang said." Eunuch Su's voice came from outside the courtyard, with a smile but no room for doubt. "The Emperor said that Miss Fang is a rare good child. He loves her so much that he wouldn't blame her. I'll be waiting outside the mansion. My Lord, please take your time to discuss it. I'm not in a hurry."
The footsteps faded away, evidently someone was waiting at the door for a response. The study instantly fell into a dead silence, with only the sound of the wind outside the window rustling the petals, like someone sobbing softly.
"Dad, we can't let him come!" Xiaoyanzi's voice trembled, her eyes reddened, and the red silk ribbon at the end of her braid hung down across her chest, swaying slightly with her rapid breathing. "If he comes, there will be no peace in this mansion! If those imperial censors knew that the emperor had paid a private visit to my house, who knows what unpleasant things they would say!"
In her previous life, she had witnessed countless court disputes. Even the slightest favoritism from the emperor could be used as a weapon for criticism. The Fang family had been a family of scholars for generations, and they valued their reputation above all else. If they were accused of "fawning on the emperor and seeking favor," they would likely lose their place in the capital.
Madam Fang steadied herself by the edge of the table, the handkerchief in her hand already soaked through. "But Eunuch Su is waiting outside the door. If I don't respond, won't the Emperor become even more suspicious?" She looked at her husband, her eyes filled with panic. "Zhihang, what should we do?"
Xiao Jian walked to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain and looked out. The cuffs of his moon-white gown were lifted by the wind, revealing the blue veins on his wrists. "There are at least four guards outside the mansion, all armed with knives. Eunuch Su is standing in the gatehouse drinking tea. It's obvious that he will not give up until he achieves his goal." He turned and fell on his sister with a look of heartache. "How about... I take you through the back wall? Let's hide in the courtyard first and come back after the storm has passed."
"Nonsense!" Fang Zhihang growled, causing the inkstone on the table to tremble slightly, spilling a few drops of ink onto the rice paper. "There are guards guarding the back wall. Do you think the emperor's men are just decorations? Besides, can we hide for a while, but can we hide forever? If we hide today, the emperor will have other options tomorrow. We can't keep running away."
He picked up the bright yellow letter and rubbed his fingertips over the words "A New Qin Tune" repeatedly, wrinkling the paper. "The Emperor wants to listen to the qin... perhaps he just wants to test your attitude. He has no ill intentions."
"No ill intentions?" Xiaoyanzi smiled bitterly, reaching out to wipe away the tears from her eyes. "Dad, you don't understand the rules of the palace. The emperor's 'no ill intentions' are often more terrifying than openly making things difficult for him. He wants to listen to the zither today, maybe look at paintings tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow he might ask me to accompany him to the palace. Where is the end of this step-by-step process?"
She clutched the hem of her dress, pinching deep wrinkles into the lilac-colored material. The suffocating feeling of being locked up in the palace in her previous life came back to her, making it hard for her to breathe. "I just want to protect our home, my brother, and Liu Qing and Liu Hong. Why is it so hard?"
"Ci'er, don't cry." Xiao Jian walked over to her side, patted her back gently, and said in a very gentle voice, "Brother is here, I won't let you suffer any injustice. I will accompany you to the palace tomorrow. There are many people in the Imperial Garden, and he can't force you to do anything in public."
Fang Zhihang was silent for a long moment, his gaze sweeping across his children's reddened eyes, then at the falling crabapple blossoms outside the window. He finally sighed, "Xiao Jian is right. I can't avoid it, so I have no choice but to agree." He looked at Xiao Yanzi, his eyes serious, "Tomorrow when you enter the palace, all you need to do is play the piano, don't talk too much, don't look too much. When you're done, follow your brother back. Remember, don't offend the emperor, and don't show any dissatisfaction. Do you understand?"
Xiaoyanzi bit her lower lip and nodded, but her tears fell even harder. She knew her father was telling her the only way, but the thought of stepping into that magnificent prison again and facing Qianlong's eyes that seemed to see through people's hearts made her cold all over.
"That white jade guqin..." Madam Fang hesitated and spoke with a trembling voice, "Are you going to take it with you tomorrow?"
"Bring it." Fang Zhihang said firmly. He picked up the wolf-hair brush on the table and wrote the four characters "Be careful in what you say and do" on the rice paper in thick ink. "The emperor has given me a zither, so I must play music with it. This is the rule and also the attitude."
The wind outside the window gradually died down, the crabapple petals stopped falling, and sunlight streamed through the clouds, gilding the courtyard. But this warm light couldn't reach Xiaoyanzi's cold heart. She walked to the window and looked at the stone table in the courtyard. There, the empty lunch box was still there, its red sandalwood body gleaming quietly in the sunlight, like a silent omen.
She didn't know why Qianlong was so "concerned" with her. Did he find her interesting? Or was it the Fang family's talent that caught his eye? She only knew that from that glance at the palace banquet, her peaceful life was shattered, and this was just the beginning.
"Miss, the stewed rock sugar and snow pears are ready. Would you like to bring it to me now?" Chuntao's voice sounded outside the door, with cautious tentativeness.
"No thanks." Xiaoyanzi turned around, wiped her tears, and forced a smile. "Go tell the kitchen to prepare some light snacks tomorrow morning. I want to take them with me on the road."
Whether she likes it or not, she can't avoid the trip to the Imperial Garden tomorrow.
That night, Xiaoyanzi slept restlessly. Her dreams were filled with red walls and yellow tiles. Emperor Qianlong sat atop a high dragon throne, smiling and saying to her, "Xiaoyanzi, stay and keep me company." She wanted to run, but her legs wouldn't move. The road beneath her feet was paved with soft crabapple petals, and every time she stepped on them, she sank deeper and deeper...
"Miss! Miss! Wake up!" Chun Tao's voice pulled her out of her nightmare. The sky outside the window was already turning pale. "It's time to get up and dress. The master said we have to enter the palace before the hour of Si."
Xiaoyanzi sat up, her forehead covered in sweat, her undergarment soaked through. She looked at her pale face in the bronze mirror, the dark shadows in her eyes, like a frightened little animal.
"Just a simple bun and don't wear too much jewelry." She whispered to the mirror, her fingertips stroking her cheek in the mirror. "Just wear that moon-white plain dress, the material is softer."
She wanted to be more and more plain, hoping that Emperor Qianlong would ignore her existence. But she knew in her heart that this was just self-deception. From the moment she was reborn into the Fang family, perhaps she was destined to be entangled with the imperial palace again.
As the Fang family's carriage once again approached the palace gates, Xiaoyanzi lifted the curtain and gazed at the gradually clearing palace walls. The silver whistle in her hand grew hot from gripping it. She didn't know what awaited her, but she knew that this time, she couldn't act impulsively like she had in her previous life. She had a family to protect and a stable life to cherish. Even if the road ahead was thorny, she would forge ahead step by step.
The carriage rolled over the bluestone pavement, making a rhythmic sound, as if counting down something. Little Swallow took a deep breath and lowered the curtain, temporarily isolating herself from the magnificent prison. But she knew that it wouldn't be long before she would have to step inside again, face the unpredictable emperor, and confront those lurking undercurrents.
The lotus flowers in the Imperial Garden should be in bloom, right? I just wonder if, no matter how lushly they bloom, they can truly rival the free spirit of the Jiangnan region.
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