Chapter Seventy-One: Entering the Palace to Meet the Emperor
When the Great Zhou Dynasty was founded, it faced threats from the Later Shu in the southwest, the Southern Tang in the southeast, the Tibetan and Tangut tribes in the west, and the Khitan and Northern Rong in the north. It occupied only a small portion of the Central Plains, and its territory was plagued by repeated wars, leading to widespread suffering and a weakened nation. In its haste to raise the imperial banner, it lacked the resources to pay attention to other aspects, especially the imperial palace, which was extremely cramped. Although it was later repaired and expanded several times to improve its condition, its limited size meant it never truly achieved a grand and imposing presence.
However, though not grand, it is undoubtedly imposing and solemn. Especially when you are inside, seeing the rows of eunuchs and palace maids standing with their heads bowed and eyes lowered between the red walls and green tiles, motionless as if they were wooden or clay sculptures, the solemn atmosphere of the royal family is overwhelming.
On September 16th, Ruan Bi accompanied the immortal Zi Ying back to the palace.
The weather was fine that day, with bright, warm sunshine that wasn't glaring. Upon entering the palace gates, without seeing the Empress Dowager, I was led directly by a eunuch to a pavilion in the Imperial Garden. It was mid-autumn, and the trees along the way were ablaze with autumn colors, a truly pleasing sight. The pavilion was called "Pillow Dream Pavilion," and to the north was a gently sloping hillside planted with chrysanthemums, their yellow stamens exuding fragrance, a truly refreshing experience.
After sitting down in the pavilion, Master Ziying gazed at the yellow chrysanthemums on the gentle slope, his brow furrowed with melancholy, as if he were reminiscing.
After a long pause, she said with emotion, "The last time I played chess with the late emperor was here, also in September. At that time, the emperor had not yet been promoted to crown prince, and he was serving tea to me." She paused, sighed, and said, "It is clearly a thing of the past, yet it is still vivid in my mind."
Ruan Bi had inquired about the past of Master Ziying, but only about fragments. Judging from these words, she clearly had a deep friendship with the late emperor, having played chess and drunk tea together more than once. Even the then-Third Prince had to serve her, demonstrating her prominent status. Thinking carefully, twelve years ago, Master Ziying cultivated at the Jade Void Temple, quickly gaining fame. Half a year later, the late emperor bestowed upon her the title of Golden-Armored Feathered Hermit and summoned her to the palace to lecture the concubines—thus she befriended the then-Consort Rui, now the Empress Dowager. Later, Empress Zhao married the Third Prince… In that sense, she also played a part in the Emperor's ascension to the throne.
Regarding the succession struggle for the throne, Ruan Bi had inquired about it from the old lady in the past few days. Because it had been a long time, and because the old lady had been confined to the inner quarters, and because Duke Wenxiao had already passed away during the succession struggle, and because the Ruan family had been involved in the events, the old lady was not clear about the inside story and spoke vaguely. She only said that for a period of time, after dark, the people of the capital dared not wander around, for fear of accidentally getting into trouble.
However, the ferocity of the succession struggle back then is unimaginable. The late emperor had seven sons. Apart from the fifth prince who died young, the remaining six princes were either executed along with their entire families, demoted to commoners, imprisoned, or went insane. In the end, only the two princes born to Consort Rui survived unscathed. One inherited the throne, while the other took command of the Xingping Army on the northwestern battlefield. The Xingping Army was the most elite of the imperial guards established by Emperor Taizong. Before the Prince of Jin took command, it was led by the Duke of Dingguo.
The struggle for the throne concluded in the twenty-second year of the Qinghe era. That year, the Emperor was twenty-two, and the late Emperor officially declared him Crown Prince. Also that year, the eight-year-old Fourth Princess was chosen as a flower girl to enter the palace to celebrate the late Emperor's birthday. Not long after the Tianxi Festival that year, the late Emperor passed away. The Emperor ascended the throne, changing the era name to Jiaping, and made Lady Zhao Empress. In the same year, Xie Mingke from the Marquis of Yanping's household entered the palace as a Shuyi (a concubine rank). At nineteen, she was already considered an older spinster. Given her beauty, it's unlikely she lacked suitors; as for why she remained unmarried, only she herself could truly know.
"His Majesty has arrived." The eunuch's high-pitched voice rose and fell, coming from afar and interrupting Ruan Bi's thoughts.
She glanced in the direction of the sound and saw a line of people approaching from afar. In front of them was a leading eunuch, followed closely by the emperor, who was dressed in dark purple robes. He was tall but appeared somewhat thin, and his face was not clearly visible from the distance.
Master Ziying gave Ruan Bi a wink, and she wisely lowered her head and stepped aside.
After a short while, footsteps approached the pavilion, and Master Ziying stood up and said loudly, "Ziying greets Your Majesty."
Ruan Bi quickly knelt down and kowtowed.
"Level tone." The voice was neither too loud nor too soft, neither too fast nor too slow, yet it possessed a certain majesty.
Ruan Bi got up from the ground, still standing with her head down. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a section of dark purple brocade robe. She slowly walked to the stone chair and sat down.
The emperor said, "Why did you suddenly decide to invite me to play chess?"
Master Ziying sat down and said, “On the Double Ninth Festival, I was meditating in the Jade Void Temple, my spirit wandering through the Three Pure Realms. I encountered the late Emperor, who invited me to play chess. We were halfway through the game when a wild cat landed on my windowsill. I was suddenly awakened and could no longer leave my meditative state. I realized that the game was not finished, which was a regret. I kept thinking about it for a long time, so I thought of inviting Your Majesty to play a game. Your Majesty’s chess style is similar to the late Emperor’s, which is enough to make up for my regret.”
Ruan Bi secretly praised, "What a great excuse! It involves the late emperor, playing chess, the Three Pure Realms, and the Seclusion Realm."
Sure enough, the emperor's voice was tinged with excitement: "Did the immortal see Father Emperor in the Three Pure Realms? Is he alright? Why does he never appear in my dreams?" The Three Pure Realms was the place where immortals lived. Seeing him there meant that Emperor Xuanzong had become an immortal, so he was naturally excited.
"Your Majesty's countenance remains unchanged; there is no need for Your Majesty to worry."
The emperor, pleased, proclaimed: "Excellent! Excellent!"
The attending eunuchs had already set out the chessboard and pieces, and the two men slowly placed their pieces.
After a moment, Master Ziying sighed and said, "The last game I played with the late emperor was also in this Dream Pavilion, when chrysanthemums were blooming everywhere. Unfortunately, the game was only halfway through when news of the battle arrived from the northwest. Whenever I think of it, I always feel a sense of loss."
The emperor smiled and said, "Today I will definitely fight a real battle with him, so that this regret will not be repeated."
"Your Majesty is busy with official duties, and it is already difficult enough for you to take the time to attend this appointment. How could I, Ziying, dare to ask for more?" Master Ziying said politely, glancing at Ruan Bi out of the corner of his eye, thinking to himself, "Why haven't you made any moves yet? The Emperor has always been capricious, and it's hard to say how long he will remain in power."
After a short while, Ruan Bi slowly raised her head to look at the emperor, then quickly lowered it again. A moment later, she raised her head again, then quickly lowered it once more. This happened three times. The emperor noticed, frowned unhappily, and said to Master Ziying, "The young Taoist you brought today is extremely rude."
Ruan Bi quickly knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me."
Master Ziying also said, "Your Majesty, the one accompanying me today is my lay disciple, who is only dressed in a Taoist robe."
"You're a lay disciple?" The emperor was slightly surprised. "The daughter of Vice Minister Ruan? The one who wrote those distorted words?"
"Exactly."
“Raise your head.”
Ruan Biyi raised her head and looked calmly into the emperor's eyes.
Seeing her snow-white face, the emperor's anger subsided by a third. "Why did you keep glancing at me just now?"
Ruan Bi smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I was looking after my fourth sister."
The emperor asked in surprise, "What do you mean by that?"
“My fourth sister was selected as a flower girl in the twenty-second year of Qinghe to enter the palace to celebrate the late emperor’s birthday. She met His Majesty once and always told me that His Majesty’s appearance was like that of Cao Zhi and Pan An, and few in the world could match him. Yesterday, she heard that I was going to the palace with my master today and might catch a glimpse of His Majesty’s face. She repeatedly begged me to take a few more glances for her so that I could tell her about it when I got back. That’s why I kept stealing glances at His Majesty just now. Please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
Most men in the world are attracted to young girls, especially when one girl speaks so sweetly and another girl has been praising his appearance from the twenty-second year of the Qinghe era to the sixth year of the Jiaping era. Although the emperor has heard a lot of flattery, he still feels as if every pore of his body has been cleansed by a spring breeze, and his complexion softens. He waves his hand and says, "I forgive you, get up."
The emperor was indeed handsome, bearing a five-tenths resemblance to the Prince of Jin, though their temperaments were completely different. The Prince of Jin possessed an iron will and unyielding spirit; even before his face was clearly seen, the resolute aura emanating from his brows was immediately striking. The emperor, on the other hand, had a gentle and refined demeanor tinged with a hint of stern authority, his lips slightly downturned, likely a habit of feigning authority without anger.
Ruan Bi got up from the ground. Now that she had achieved her goal, she stopped stealing glances. She stood obediently to the side with her head down, listening to the crisp sound of the pieces being placed. However, one of the eunuchs attending the emperor looked up at her.
After a while, a young eunuch rushed over anxiously and said, "Your Majesty, Prime Minister Shen has arrived and says he has important matters to report."
The emperor said "Oh," and then, remembering that he had just spoken so confidently, looked at the dozens of chess pieces on the board with a somewhat troubled expression.
Now that his goal had been achieved, Master Ziying had no intention of continuing the fight. He feigned regret and said, "Since Your Majesty has important business to attend to, let's postpone the battle for another day."
The Emperor knew that since Prime Minister Shen had come, he must have important business to attend to. He stood up and said, "No rush, Your Excellency, please sit for a while. I will go see Prime Minister Shen. If there is not much business, we can continue later. If there is much business, I will certainly accompany you another day." After saying this, he strode out of the pavilion, but then paused, turned back to look at Ruan Bi, a hint of hesitation flashing in his eyes, before continuing on his way.
The eunuchs who were attending him also left, and in an instant, only Master Ziying and Ruan Bi remained in the pavilion.
Master Ziying looked at the emperor's retreating figure and asked doubtfully, "Do you think it will work?"
"It should be possible; he glanced back just now."
He stopped to take a look, clearly showing he cared. I just hope he cared because a girl had been thinking about him for six years.
"I'm afraid he'll remember you."
"Probably not. He prefers women like Consort Xie, who are passionate and vibrant." Although she said this, Ruan Bi wasn't sure. She didn't want to get herself into trouble. However, among the noble daughters of the Marquis of Yanping's mansion who were admiring the lotus blossoms, Aunt Wan had chosen Du Menghua, who was as gentle as a chrysanthemum. This showed that she was the type the Emperor disliked the most. Wearing a blue Taoist robe, she should look even more aloof than Du Menghua.
The emperor, accompanied by a group of eunuchs, gradually disappeared into the distance.
After a while, footsteps were faintly heard again, followed by a group of people who turned out from behind the maple tree, surrounding Consort Xie, who looked like a fairy princess, and heading towards the Pillow Dream Pavilion.
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