Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Three years after I entered the palace, His Majesty set foot in my courtyard for the first time.
The palace servants whispered the story everywhere.
He had quarreled with his beloved empress again.
After the argument, he had nowhere to go, so he wandered aimlessly along the palace paths. As he passed a secluded residence, the faint, warm sweetness of something brewing slipped into his nose.
He stopped and looked up. The three characters above the gate read Hall of Quiet Reflection, and bewilderment flickered in his eyes.
At the time, I was tending several half-dead plants beneath the covered walkway. Hearing footsteps, I turned, froze, then hurriedly bowed.
“This concubine greets Your Majesty.”
He studied me uncertainly. “Which of the three Noble Ladies are you?”
“This concubine is Wu Lingzhao. My grandfather is the magistrate of Nanzhao County.”
“Lingzhao…” He rolled the name across his tongue. “Why give such a martial name to a gentle woman?”
“Your Majesty, the Founding Empress’s courtesy name was Lingyu. She was the first to pacify Nanzhao, and her achievements blessed generations. Grandfather grew up listening to stories of Her Late Majesty and revered her deeply. He named me Lingzhao in the hope that I would follow the example of that worthy forebear and never forget the imperial grace.”
He nodded by way of acknowledgment, then followed the increasingly distinct fragrance inside.
“What smells so good in your residence?”
I followed close behind. “Osmanthus wine, Your Majesty. I mixed autumn-dried blossoms with honey and glutinous rice and let it ferment. It is warming over a small stove to ward off the chill.”
He reached the low table, where amber-colored wine steamed in a little crock. Warm vapor curled upward, carrying sweetness through the room.
Taking the hint, I said, “If Your Majesty does not disdain such rustic fare, perhaps you might try a little to warm yourself.”
I ladled half a bowl into white porcelain and gently pushed it toward him.
The curling incense mingled with the honeyed wine, and some of the tension eased from Yuan Xingjian’s brow.
He finished one bowl in silence, then poured himself another.
After the third, he noticed the worn Go board on the low couch.
“You play?”
“Only to pass the time when I have nothing else to do.”
“I can play pai gow too, but I can never find enough people for a game.”
The teasing note made his lips curve, just as I had expected, and he became more talkative.
“So you are a woman of many talents. Bring the board. I will test your skill.”
We set out the stones beneath a lamp whose wick crackled softly.
He took black and moved first, casual and unconcerned, clearly treating the match as no more than a diversion. I answered without haste.
After several exchanges, his moves slowed and his brow furrowed.
In the end, I won by half a point.
He glared at the board, plainly dissatisfied. “Again!”
In the second game, he pressed hard and defeated me by half a point.
In the third, I miscalculated again and again and lost outright.
The gloom vanished from his face. Delighted, he exclaimed, “Excellent! That was satisfying.”
Loosened by wine and play, he began to talk. I followed his lead, telling him about the northern country and, now and then, Grandfather’s years on the frontier.
As he listened, his expression relaxed into appreciation.
“If only she were half as sensible and considerate as you…”
She was the empress who had risen to the highest seat overnight, yet fought him at every turn.
I answered gently, “Deep love unsettles the heart. One loses control only because one cares too much. Her Majesty simply loves Your Majesty dearly.”
My voice held nothing but understanding, quietly recasting disgraceful behavior as a moment of lost control.
The wind rose outside.
He considered my words. I did not intrude. Instead, I stood and shut the wooden window against the cold.
When I turned, he was already behind me without a sound.
My wooden hairpin, plain gown, and loose dark hair were wrapped in the warm sweetness of the wine.
His gaze darkened.
And so, for the first time, the lonely night at the Hall of Quiet Reflection carried the scent of imperial ambergris.
At first light after a night of passion, Yuan Xingjian sat with his back to me, fastening his belt.
An old scar slanted from his ribs toward his waist. My fingertips had found it the night before.
When he had dressed, he turned to me.
“I was somewhat drunk last night. Forget that any of this happened.”
I pushed myself up from the pillow, my long hair slipping over my shoulders.
“Nothing happened except that Your Majesty caught a chill and this concubine served you a bowl of warming soup.”
Every word I spoke helped hide his fault.
At the imperial wedding three years earlier, he had sworn that he and the empress would emulate the founding sovereigns and remain one devoted pair for life.
What he had done last night betrayed that vow. It had to be erased.
Perhaps to reward my discretion, he considered for a moment.
“I remember that your parents died young, and you have only one brother serving at the Northern Pass. I will recognize one of his merits and promote him to Battalion Commander. You will have one less worry in the palace.”
“Thank you for Your Majesty’s grace.”
The bargain completed, he exhaled and started for the door.
It opened before he reached it.
Empress Hu Yuke stood silently on the threshold, dew dripping from the folds of her skirt.
“‘The exquisite dice hold red beans within; do you know how deeply longing enters the bone?’
“That was the first poem you taught me. You said that in this life, its meaning would belong to you and me alone.”
Her eyes passed over Yuan Xingjian and pinned me in place.
“I stood here all night, and you never came out. Yuan Xingjian, you betrayed our love!”
She rushed forward. Before I could dodge, her palm struck my face.
“You filthy whore! Who gave you the nerve to climb into my man’s bed?”
I curled away from her blows. “Please calm yourself, Your Majesty! His Majesty had a terrible headache and only rested here. This concubine merely made him ginger soup. Nothing happened!”
“You think I am a fool?” the empress shrieked, turning on Yuan Xingjian.
“Yuan Xingjian! What did you tell me on the day you made me empress?
“Where are your vows? Where is your heart? Did the dogs eat them?”
With every curse she hurled, a little more guilt left his face.
“Enough! Empress, you have disgraced yourself.”
She froze, then burst into laughter.
“Ha! Yuan Xingjian, am I the one disgracing myself, or are you the one who changed?”
She laughed as tears streamed down her face, then spun and fled.
Yuan Xingjian clenched his fists. After the briefest hesitation, he ran after her.
The emperor did not attend court that day.
Instead, he cornered the sobbing empress in the imperial garden. Accusations and weeping came from behind the artificial hill. After a while, broken moans joined them.
The empress cried. His Majesty coaxed her. In the end, they returned hand in hand to Fengyi Palace.
That afternoon, the empress’s decree reached the Hall of Quiet Reflection.
Since I loved making ginger soup so much, it said, I would make one bowl for every eunuch and maid in the rear palace.
On the first day, I worked over the stove for ten hours.
I distributed the soup according to each residence’s register, keeping the fires burning from dawn until nightfall.
On the third day, my wrists swelled.
By the seventh, calluses covered my palms, only to be seared away by the bottoms of hot bowls.
On the tenth, the wooden ladle slipped from my hand as I served the last portions.
My knees gave way, and I collapsed.