Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Qingluo, who shared my chamber, was hanging from a roof beam eating an apple.
Among the ten of us, she was the best dancer.
The moment she heard that I wanted to learn a dance and perform it for the Crown Prince, she rolled her eyes.
Qingluo said, “If you dance in front of His Highness, the guards will think you are an assassin and cut you down.”
I thought my posture was rather graceful.
So I began a dance pose.
In the end, my left foot tripped over my right, and I crashed to the floor.
Qingluo burst into laughter, pointed at me, and said, “Luxiu, look at her! She is the clumsiest beauty I have ever seen.”
Luxiu helped me up and asked gently, “Is your father pressuring you again?”
I shook my head. In truth, my father had stopped expecting anything from me long ago.
Two years ago, the Crown Prince suddenly began taking beauties into his residence.
One beauty after another entered the Eastern Palace. Rumor had it that music and pleasure filled his nights.
The noble young ladies of the capital who had once hoped to become Crown Princess all lost heart when they saw how debauched he seemed.
For a time, every girl the Empress favored hurried to arrange a marriage elsewhere.
Only my father schemed eagerly and sent me, his daughter born of an outside woman, into the Eastern Palace.
He hoped the Crown Prince would favor me.
Then I could whisper a few useful words by his pillow.
Every time he entered the palace, he asked when I would win the Crown Prince’s favor.
Then, one year ago, after I mistook someone else for my father right in front of him…
He finally discovered that I was face-blind.
My father said in terror, “If you mistake someone else in the Eastern Palace for the Crown Prince and get involved with him, will you not drag your father to the execution block?”
He quickly bribed a eunuch to remove my name register and portrait.
I had never had any chance to meet the Crown Prince in the first place. After that, I became an even more insignificant concubine in the Eastern Palace.
When my father learned there was no hope of me climbing the dragon’s bed, he stopped sending me money.
But life in the palace cost silver at every turn.
And I happened to be the sort of person who loved food, beauty, and fun.
After thinking it over, I simply found three lovers to support me.
Unfortunately, after only a year of good days, trouble came.
I thought of Zhang San’s worn sleeves.
Li Si’s injured hands.
And Wang Wu’s torn shoes.
My heart could not help aching.
The Crown Prince was strictly investigating corruption inside the palace, so life had become difficult for these guards too.
That night, I tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
Since I could not get rewards from the Crown Prince, I thought,
I might as well break things off with all three of them. At least that would save them money.
I yawned and thought lazily,
Ah, I truly am a considerate great beauty.
To make the three of them give up on me, I deliberately ignored their invitations.
After dragging it out for more than a month, I finally met them one by one.
When I reached the abandoned little garden, I crawled through the dog hole and saw someone sitting on the stone bench.
When he saw me appear, he barked at me helplessly. “Woof, woof, woof!”
I happily rushed over, hugged him affectionately, and said, “Zhang San, I missed you so much.”
After we became lovers, we had made an agreement.
When Zhang San saw me, he would bark three times, and then I would know it was him.
Back then, he had asked helplessly, “Why must it be dog barks?”
I answered shyly, “A normal person would not suddenly bark at me. That way, I do not have to fear someone pretending to be you, and I will not mistake another person for you.”
At first, Zhang San refused to agree.
But after hesitating, I said, “It is fine if you do not agree. If I mistake someone else for you and kiss, hug, and touch him, do not get angry.”
Zhang San knocked me on the head and had no choice but to agree.
Hot dishes were laid out on the stone table.
Braised pork, Eight Treasure Tofu, stir-fried greens, and crucian carp tofu soup.
They were all my favorites.
When I saw that Zhang San was still wearing that shabby outfit, my heart ached even more.
Ah, he was already this poor.
Yet he still prepared such a lavish meal for me.
The Imperial Kitchen was a place that swallowed gold.
Usually, if I wanted even one meat dish, I had to pay a great deal.
For Zhang San to buy so much, he had probably spent his entire month’s salary.
I decided that after finishing this meal with him, I would part from him.
Zhang San wiped my hands with a damp cloth and handed me chopsticks.
He looked me over carefully, then frowned. “Does your husband refuse to feed you again? You have lost so much weight.”
It was not exactly that I had no food.
I just did not know what was wrong. Sometimes my whole body felt weak.
I would lie in bed too lazy to move.
I wanted to eat a little, but the moment food entered my mouth, I felt like vomiting, and so I became thin.
I did not want to tell Zhang San these things, so I could only lie to him.
I said mournfully, “He has so many concubines. How could he have time to care about me?”
Speaking of it, Zhang San and I had first met because of food.
One year ago, I walked out of the Imperial Kitchen in low spirits.
Because my purse was empty, I could only go there from time to time and smell the fragrance of the food.
Zhang San happened to be walking ahead of me.
His food box held Eight Treasure Tofu, and the scent made me dizzy with hunger.
By the time he drew his blade and set it against my neck,
I finally realized that I had followed him for quite a long way.
I dropped to my knees before him with a thud.
Zhang San frowned. “Get up. I will not kill you.”
I looked up and cried, “Big brother! Please, I beg you, give me one bite of food. I am willing to work like an ox or a horse to repay you.”
Zhang San seemed utterly speechless. He had not expected me to beg not for my life, but for food.
He handed me the food box.
Perhaps the heavens were watching over me.
After that, every three days, I went to the Imperial Kitchen to smell the food.
Each time, I followed a guard carrying a food box.
And each time, I knelt and begged for food.
On the twenty-fifth time, just as I was about to kneel,
The other person seemed to anticipate it and hooked his foot under my knee.
He said irritably, “You have eaten twenty-five meals from me and still have not remembered my face?”
“The first time, you said you would work like an ox or a horse for me.”
“The second time, you said you would wash my clothes and cook for me.”
“The third time, you even said you would acknowledge me as your father.”
“This time is even better. You said you would give yourself to me.”
Holding the bowl, I asked blankly, “Ah, then why did you not say so during the previous twenty-four times?”
Zhang San grew even more irritable and sneered, “Because I was afraid that on the twenty-fifth time, you would mistake someone else for me and offer yourself to him.”
How could I not understand? Zhang San had clearly fallen for me.
Thinking back on the past, I sighed with emotion.
I rubbed my round, full stomach.
Zhang San poured me another cup of honey water to help me digest.
He raised his hand and wiped my lips with his thumb. His touch was a little forceful.
Zhang San asked, “Who exactly is your husband?”
I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. Sorrowfully, I said, “Do not ask. He is a man you cannot afford to offend.”
After kissing for a while,
Zhang San restrained himself and pushed me away.
He looked at me and said, “I want to marry…”
But I said, “Let us part.”
I thought Zhang San would pester me.
To my surprise, he only sneered and said, “We loved each other for a year, and you break it off just like that. You truly have no heart. I, Zhang San, can take things up and put them down. I am not the sort of man who clings to you.”
After that,
I crawled through my dog hole.
He climbed over his wall.
And so we were officially over.