Volume 2, Step by Step to Victory, Chapter 26: Rejected at the Palace Gate
Ruan Bi picked up the Diamond Sutra and flipped through it, but found nothing unusual. She looked at Xiu Shui in confusion.
Xiushui hesitated for a moment and said, "My cousin said that the old lady was ill on the fifteenth and did not go to Tianqing Temple. Now that you don't need it anymore, Miss... So I'm returning these two copies of the Diamond Sutra to you. It's a way for you to give them to the old lady yourself as a sign of filial piety."
Ruan Bi suddenly realized, "How clever Man Yun is! She clearly means 'I don't want to be used by you,' yet she phrases it so tactfully and politely." Well, Man Yun only serves two purposes: to whisper in the old lady's ear and to offer a reminder in an emergency. Now, the former is unnecessary; Zheng Mama is there to handle things. Since Man Yun wants to distance herself from Ruan Bi, she'll grant her wish. If she hadn't been desperate, Ruan Bi wouldn't want to force anyone.
After careful consideration, she said, "Okay, I'll accept it."
Xiushui was taken aback by how easy she was to talk to.
"You may leave now. Bring Xiuzhi in."
Xiushui nodded a few times, went outside, and called Xiuzhi in.
"Is Tea Girl alright?"
Xiuzhi said angrily, "Miss, that Liu Mama is too hateful. Even if Chamei knocked over the incense burner, she still cursed her too harshly. Besides, who gave her the right to boss people around in this room?" Originally, she was the head of all the maids in the east wing, and Ruan Bi usually treated them kindly, so she was very comfortable. Suddenly, the appearance of the strict and rigid Liu Mama was really a real eyesore.
"Just tell everyone to do their own thing. If she wants to lecture you, just listen to her."
Xiuzhi's eyes flickered, and she said with a smile, "Yes, miss."
Ruan Bi glanced at the water clock and pointed to the Diamond Sutra on the table. "Take this; we should go and pay our respects to the old lady."
When they arrived at the old lady's room, the other young ladies were already there, sitting and talking.
After paying her respects, Ruan Bi respectfully handed over the Diamond Sutra and said, "Grandmother, when I was in the temple, I also copied two copies of the Diamond Sutra to ward off misfortune and disaster. I brought them here for you to take a look."
The old lady was not in good spirits as she was in the morning. She leaned against the couch, her lower eyelids dark. She glanced at her and said indifferently, "Good child, you are so thoughtful." Then she said to Manyun, "Take it and bring it to Master Baiyun at Tianqing Temple another day."
Manyun stepped forward, took the book, glanced at it, and smiled before speaking, a dimple appearing at the corner of her mouth. "Fifth Miss, your calligraphy is so beautiful, like a flower in a hairpin." As she spoke, she glanced at Ruan Bi, her eyes sparkling with a deeper meaning.
Ruan Bi was inwardly full of admiration for her quick wit and resourcefulness.
Hearing this, the old lady sat up slightly and said, "Bring it here so I can take a look."
Manyun handed her the Diamond Sutra. The old lady opened it and looked at it. She also came from a scholarly family and naturally knew what was good and bad. She nodded and said, "It's really good." Then she looked at Ruan Bi and her eyes softened. "I didn't expect that Fifth Sister would develop such good handwriting so quietly. She's almost as good as Second Sister."
The second young lady's face paled slightly, and she glanced at Ruan Bi.
Ruan Bi acted as if she hadn't seen her and said, "Grandmother, you flatter me. Second Sister's calligraphy is beautiful and elegant, far beyond my reach."
The old lady said approvingly, "It's rare to see someone so humble. Good, good. I promised Master Baiyun of Tianqing Temple that I would copy twenty copies of the Diamond Sutra every month and donate them to the temple. From now on, you should also copy three copies every month."
Ruan Bi respectfully replied, "Yes."
The second young lady, always proud of her calligraphy, was now being praised to her face as being on par with the fifth sister, which made her extremely resentful. Remembering how Ruan Bi had used her calligraphy to manipulate her, a flood of old and new grievances surged into her heart. If the old lady hadn't been present, she would have immediately erupted in anger. Barely suppressing her rage, she said, "Grandmother, let me see too, just how beautiful is Fifth Sister's calligraphy?"
The old lady handed her the Diamond Sutra. The second young lady flipped through it and thought Ruan Bi's handwriting was quite good. She felt very resentful and couldn't help but say sarcastically, "Indeed, it's very beautiful. It seems I'll have to learn to write from my sister from now on."
The old lady sensed something was wrong and frowned, saying, "What did you say, Second Girl?"
Before the second daughter could speak, the sixth daughter interrupted, "Grandmother, you don't know, when the fifth sister was... was being watched, she would send someone to deliver calligraphy to the second daughter every few days, asking her to correct it. Later... after she was released, she stopped sending it."
"Oh?" The old lady looked at Ruan Bi.
Ruan Bi said slowly, "Second sister, sixth sister, you've misunderstood. At first, I ran out of paper in my room. Later, Second sister was learning to manage the household from Mother and was busy every day, so I was too embarrassed to bother her. Second sister's flying white calligraphy is so elegant and unrestrained, I deeply admire her."
The second girl pouted.
The old lady understood and glanced thoughtfully at Ruan Bi. "You may all leave, but Fifth Sister stays."
The girls were surprised, but they still left as instructed.
"Fifth girl, come and sit down." The old lady patted the side of the couch.
Ruan Bi sat down, and the old lady carefully examined her, her face gradually turning sorrowful, her gaze becoming distant, as if she were looking at someone else. "In the blink of an eye, you've grown so much. Lately, I often think of your mother... When I was your age, she was always by my side... Sigh, if I had known it would turn out like this, I shouldn't have let her marry..." She sighed again, her eyes lowered sadly, lost in memories, and had no more interest in speaking.
Manyun gave her a wink, and Ruanbi wisely withdrew.
The next morning, after paying their respects, the old lady kept the three young ladies behind to discuss their audience with the palace. After breakfast, she sent Granny Sun to instruct them on the proper etiquette for the audience. Ruan Bi, who had never heard of palace etiquette before, either stuck her bottom out too high or her movements were too stiff. She knelt and bowed all day long, until her legs were trembling with exhaustion.
The third day, they practiced all day again.
Early on the fourth day, the old lady and the first lady put on their official robes and wore phoenix crowns adorned with pearls and jade. Ruan Bi and the other two were also dressed in luxurious attire. Amidst the envious gazes of the sixth young lady, they walked out of the hanging flower gate, sat in sedan chairs to the door, and then boarded two black lacquered wooden carriages painted with flowing cloud patterns.
The carriage emerged from the alley, passed through the main street, reached Ma Xing Street, turned onto Donghua Street, and finally disembarked at the Donghua Gate of the palace. The main gate of Donghua was tightly closed, but the side gate was open, where two rows of imperial guards stood, their armor gleaming and their halberds gleaming. Beside the gate stood a senior eunuch in his forties and several junior eunuchs.
The head eunuch stepped forward, gave a half-bow to the old lady, and said with a respectful but not arrogant expression, "Old Madam Ruan, it's been a while since we last met."
The old lady recognized him as Eunuch Lu, who served the Empress Dowager, and quickly returned the greeting, saying, "Eunuch Lu, how have you been? How is the Empress Dowager's health?"
Eunuch Lu said, "The Empress Dowager is in good health and everything is going well for her." He paused, then added, "However, I am currently serving Consort Xie."
The old lady was stunned for a moment, unsure of what to say.
Then Eunuch Lu said, "Come in with me, there's another carriage waiting inside." As he spoke, he walked in, but after a few steps, he suddenly stopped, turned to look at Ruan Bi and the other two, and frowned, saying, "Why is there an extra young lady?"
The old lady paused slightly and said, "I had already notified the three of them."
Eunuch Lu shook his head and said, "No, no, the Ruan family only has two young ladies, the Second Miss Ruan and the Fourth Miss Ruan. This extra young lady should be sent back."
Everyone was stunned for a moment, then looked at Ruan Bi with different expressions.
The second girl's dark eyes were full of schadenfreude, while the fourth girl looked at Ruan Bi with some worry, but secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Other noble ladies and young women who were about to enter the palace also looked in this direction.
The old lady pondered for a moment and said, "Eunuch Lu, originally it was the two young ladies who were notified, but later the palace sent someone to notify my fifth daughter to also come to the palace for an audience."
Eunuch Lu said in a neither soft nor hard tone, "Madam, we only know that there are two young ladies in the Ruan family. If we let this young lady in, and something happens, we cannot bear the responsibility, nor can the Ruan family bear the responsibility."
Having said all that, the old lady, though unaware of what had gone wrong and seeing so many noblewomen looking in their direction and whispering amongst themselves, felt embarrassed and said to Ruan Bi, "You should go back to your residence first."
Ruan Bi had never wanted to enter the palace, but being treated like this in front of so many people made her furious. However, she was always composed, so she didn't show it on her face. She bowed to the old lady and the first lady and said, "Grandmother, Mother, I'll go back now."
Eunuch Lu watched coldly, thinking to himself, "So young, yet so composed, and with such a striking appearance, no wonder Aunt Wan insisted that I stop her."
Amidst the curious gazes of the ladies and young women of noble birth, Ruan Bi boarded the Ruan family's carriage, feeling an indescribable embarrassment. Not wanting to enter the palace was one thing, but being blocked from entering the palace gates in front of everyone was quite another—as if she were trying to climb the social ladder and even intrude into the palace.
The carriage traveled along Donghua Street to Maxing Street, and only after hearing the noisy footsteps and shouts outside did her mood calm down. Ruan Bi smiled wryly. Human hearts are truly strange. Even though this was the result she wanted, she felt uncomfortable because she had been rejected by others.
I took a deep breath and looked out the window. I had heard Xiuzhi say that Ma Xing Street was one of the busiest streets in the capital, lined with shops. Looking out through the bamboo curtain, it was indeed so. Clinics, pharmacies, teahouses, and hotels stood side by side, bustling like the pedestrian street in the back market.
There were many people, crowded and jostling, forming a continuous curtain, sweat pouring down like rain.
Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves was heard. The pedestrians on the road were not alarmed, but simply moved aside.
Twenty heavily armored cavalrymen advanced from the front, their ranks impeccable, their eyes fixed straight ahead, demonstrating excellent discipline. Xiuzhi had mentioned that the Imperial Guards were stationed on Ma Xing Street; these must be the Imperial Guards on rotation. The leader… Ruan Bi paused, startled. It was Ruan Chi, wearing armor; she hadn't recognized him at first. Closely following him was a tall, robust middle-aged man with sharp eyes.
It was Liu Da—although he had shaved his beard clean, Ruan Bi still recognized him at a glance by his build and eyes.
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