The Empress makes her appearance
Three days after the Spring Festival banquet, the sky cleared up for once, and sunlight shone through the clouds into the Cold Palace, making the small peach tree in the corner of the courtyard even brighter. The buds on the branches had already slightly cracked open, revealing the tender green tips of the leaves inside. Ya Huan and I were squatting under the peach tree, carefully loosening the soil around the newly sprouted weeds, while Consort Rong sat on the veranda, holding embroidery thread in her hand, preparing to embroider a new square handkerchief for Consort Xian.
"Sister Zhao, look, aren't these buds about to bloom?" Ya Huan pointed to the peach tree branches, her eyes full of anticipation. I was about to nod when I heard a series of orderly footsteps outside the courtyard, accompanied by a eunuch's high-pitched announcement: "Her Majesty the Empress has arrived—"
The atmosphere in the courtyard instantly fell silent. Consort Rong's embroidery needle froze in mid-air, and Ya Huan also stopped what she was doing, instinctively shrinking back behind me. Consort Xian came out of the house, calmly straightened her clothes, and said to us, "Don't panic, what's coming will come. I'm here."
Soon, the Empress entered the courtyard with a group of palace maids and eunuchs. She wore a bright yellow palace dress with delicate phoenix patterns embroidered on the hem, and a kingfisher feather hairpin in her hair, looking both majestic and noble. However, her eyes were not as sharp as before; instead, they carried some complex emotions. When she swept her gaze across the scene in the courtyard, her brows furrowed slightly, much like the way Aunt Sun would look when we made a "mess" of the courtyard when we were children.
"I've heard that you've been having quite a bit of fun in the Cold Palace lately, with banquets and flower gardening. You seem to be living a more comfortable life than in the palace?" The Empress's voice carried a hint of criticism as her gaze fell on Consort Rong's embroidery in the corridor. "It's just some crudely made embroidery. Is it really worth all this effort?"
Consort Rong's cheeks flushed instantly, and she gripped the embroidered handkerchief in her hand even tighter. Instead of dodging as before, she whispered, "Your Majesty, this is a handkerchief I embroidered for Consort Xian. Although it is not as well embroidered as the embroiderers in the palace, it is my heartfelt gift."
The Empress snorted, about to say something more, when her gaze fell on Ya Huan under the peach tree. Ya Huan was still holding a small shovel, her trousers stained with mud. Seeing the Empress's gaze, her hands trembled with nervousness. The Empress's brows furrowed even more, but her tone softened: "How old are you, still rolling around in the mud all day? What kind of behavior is this?" As she spoke, she took a piece of osmanthus cake from a food box held by a maid behind her and handed it to her, "Take this, it's newly made in my palace, much better than the coarse pastries in your Cold Palace."
Ya Huan paused, looked at me, then at the Empress, before carefully accepting the osmanthus cake and whispering, "Thank you, Your Majesty." Watching this scene, I suddenly thought of my childhood. Although Aunt Sun always complained that we made the yard dirty, she would always secretly leave us some of the snacks she made, placing them on the stones by the wall.
The Empress's gaze swept over the forsythia in the courtyard and landed on the forsythia and winter plum tea on the stone table. Her tone was still critical: "These are just wildflowers by the roadside. You dare to drink them as tea? Aren't you afraid of ruining your health?" But she said to the palace maid behind her: "Leave the pre-rain Longjing tea that I brought for the Consort Xian. Tell them not to always drink these low-class things."
Consort Xian stepped forward and bowed slightly: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Although life in the Cold Palace is austere, it is also quite comfortable. We find the tea made from these wildflowers comforting." The Empress's expression changed slightly, but she did not refute it further. She simply said, "I came today on the Emperor's orders to see how you are doing in the Cold Palace. Since you are 'comfortable,' I am relieved."
Consort Su and Consort Li also came out of the room at this moment. Consort Su was holding freshly dried herbs in her hand and said to the Empress, "If Your Majesty is worried about our health, I have some freshly dried forsythia and wintersweet here. They can be brewed into tea to clear heat and relieve greasiness. If Your Majesty doesn't mind, you might as well take some back to try." The Empress looked at the herbs in Consort Su's hand, frowned, but still let a maid take them from her, and said in a low voice, "I only accepted them because I felt sorry for you. Don't think that I care about these things."
Consort Li stepped forward and said calmly, "Your Majesty, thank you for visiting us today. Life in the Cold Palace is simple, but peaceful, and we like it here very much." The Empress's gaze fell on Consort Li, and after a moment of silence, she said, "It's good that you understand. The struggles in the palace are indeed exhausting. If you need anything in the future, you can send someone to the Phoenix Palace to let us know." As she spoke, her eyes darted away, as if she was embarrassed to admit her concern.
As I observed the Empress's words and actions, I became increasingly certain that she was Aunt Sun from my childhood—always critical, yet harboring a tender heart. Her visit to the Cold Palace today, seemingly to "check up" on us, was actually out of concern for our well-being. She simply didn't know how to express her care, hence this awkward approach.
The Empress didn't stay in the courtyard for long before preparing to leave. Before leaving, she looked at the small peach tree in the courtyard one last time and said to us, "If this peach tree needs any fertilizer, just send someone to Fengyi Palace to let them know. I have some excellent flower fertilizer in my palace." After saying that, she turned around and left with the palace maids and eunuchs without even looking back.
Watching the Empress's departing figure, Ya Huan took a bite of the osmanthus cake in her hand and said with a smile, "The Empress doesn't seem so fierce after all. The osmanthus cake she gave me is really delicious!" Consort Rong also nodded and whispered, "Yes, she also accepted Consort Su's herbs. She must be a good person."
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "She's just stubborn on the outside but soft on the inside, unlike those in the palace who only know how to fight for power. If she comes again, we don't need to be afraid; we'll just treat her well." Consort Su also smiled and said, "Yes, the Longjing tea she brought is indeed excellent. We'll brew some for everyone to try later."
As the sun set, we sat on the veranda, drinking the Longjing tea brought by the Empress and eating the osmanthus cakes that Ya Huan had left. The atmosphere in the courtyard returned to its usual warmth. Consort Rong continued embroidering a handkerchief for Consort Xian, while Ya Huan carefully fertilized the small peach tree with the fertilizer brought by the Empress. Consort Li sat to the side, playing the pipa, the melody still cheerful and full of the breath of spring.
At night, I lay in bed, holding the spring sachet given to me by Consort Rong, the "drip-drip" sound in my ear still very faint.
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