“My son is a Prince of the highest rank, noble beyond compare, and naturally handsome. How could marrying you be considered a waste of anyone’s time?” The Emperor, believing someone had been whispering nonsense to his son, was consumed by a dragon’s wrath. “Who has been filling your head with such rubbish?!”
“No one,” Prince Ruining replied, lowering his eyelids. “I am merely a man who is about—”
“Huai’er!”
Knowing exactly what he was about to say, the Emperor hurriedly cut him off. His anger was instantly replaced by guilt, heartache, and a frantic uncertainty about how to face his son. “What happened back then was the fault of your mother and me. It is only natural that you harbor resentment in your heart.”
The Emperor’s words did not move Prince Ruining. His expression remained utterly indifferent, as if the monarch’s words had nothing to do with him. “Father, I have never harbored any resentment.”
He resented no one; it was simply that no one believed him.
Silence fell over the Imperial Study as father and son looked at each other in wordless stagnation.
After a long while, the Emperor sighed. It was a faint sound, but it represented the sovereign’s compromise and retreat.
“Huai’er, I have already summoned the finest physicians from across the land for you. You will get better.” The Emperor averted his gaze, unable to meet his son’s eyes, which were as still as a pool of stagnant water. “Since you do not wish to take a Princess Consort now, then you shall not. Once spring arrives, I will take you to the hunting grounds to clear your mind.”
A memorial slid off the imperial desk, fanning out as it landed at Prince Ruining’s feet. He looked down, his eyes meeting a page filled with flowery, critical prose.
The Imperial Scribe Eunuch hurried forward with a bowed back, intending to return the memorial to the desk, but to his surprise, Prince Ruining had already picked it up.
Startled, the eunuch didn’t dare to stop the Prince and could only look toward the Emperor for guidance.
The Emperor raised a hand, dismissing the eunuch. Seeing his son take an interest in something else for once, a look of joy almost impossible to conceal washed over his face. “That is a memorial from Yun Boyan, the Vice Minister of Rites.”
“Minister Yun possesses extraordinary literary talent.” Prince Ruining scanned it briefly before placing it back on the imperial desk. “Father, I shall take my leave.”
The Emperor watched his son depart. Then, he picked up Yun Boyan’s memorial—which was lambasting Zhou Yuzhi, a Compiler of the Hanlin Academy—and looked at it again. He reached for the Ministry of Personnel’s evaluation of the Hanlin Academy and drew a thick red ‘X’ over the recommendation to promote Zhou Yuzhi to the position of Hanlin Expositor.
An Expositor had the duty of accompanying the Emperor to read and discuss the classics. How could an official with such a flawed character be fit to set foot in the Imperial Study?
The promotion and transfer orders for the Hanlin Academy were issued quickly. According to custom, the top three graduates of each Imperial Examination would typically be promoted one rank after serving two years in the Hanlin Academy and passing the Ministry of Personnel’s evaluation.
Zhou Yuzhi was quite talented in poetry, and his superiors had intended for him and the top scholar to serve as Hanlin Expositors. However, he never expected his transfer order to be rejected.
Upon learning that his promotion was hopeless, Zhou Yuzhi muddled through his shift until it was time to leave. After asking around, he discovered that Minister Yun had impeached him two days prior.
“Our Zhou family has been friends with the Yun family for years! To think they would disregard those years of friendship and ruin my son’s career over such a trivial matter!” Father Zhou was fuming. However, since his own father had passed away, the Zhou family had lost its primary backing, and he was powerless against the Yun family.
“The name ‘Yun’ is written with the same strokes. Yun Boyan only has that one niece. When Yuzhi was offending her, why didn’t he stop to think that Yun Boyan is her biological uncle?” Mother Zhou said, frustrated by her son’s failure to live up to expectations. “I told you long ago not to go around messing with other women, but you wouldn’t listen. It’s too late for regrets now.”
“Mother, I only helped those women because I saw they were in pity. I had no romantic feelings for them.” Zhou Yuzhi was filled with immense regret. Had he known that Miss Yun was so beautiful, he would never have allowed his father to agree to break the engagement.
Mother Zhou sneered. “A wild dog walks past a dung heap every day; who would believe it didn’t eat any?”
“What crude language!” Father Zhou was thoroughly disgusted by her words, and even the way he looked at his son was filled with disdain. “Tomorrow, I shall take gifts to the Yun Manor to apologize. You had better pray that after this, Yun Boyan stops targeting you.”
Yun Zhongsheng was truly lucky. He had been a useless loafer since childhood, protected by his father then, and now that he was old, he was protected by his older brother. But Yun Boyan would grow old too. Father Zhou refused to believe that when Yun Zhongsheng was old and frail, there would still be someone to protect him.
***
On the day of the Empress’s Birthday Banquet, Yun Qiya woke up before dawn to wash and dress.
She wore a magnificent wide-sleeved skirt, a red brocade cloak trimmed with white rabbit fur, and exquisite, beautiful hairpins.
Yun Qiya cupped her face and looked into the mirror happily. “Though a head full of jewels is heavy, they truly are beautiful.”
She was perfectly willing to endure such weight.
“Miss, it is time to depart,” a servant from the main courtyard reminded her softly from outside the door.
“Coming,” she replied sweetly. She stood up and turned to Wen Yuxiu, who was sitting nearby. “Mother, I’m leaving now.”
“There are many rules in the palace; you must be extra careful.” Wen Yuxiu adjusted the scented sachet at Yun Qiya’s waist. “If you encounter a problem you cannot solve, go to your grandmother for help.”
Yun Qiya nodded obediently.
“Go on.” A proud smile appeared on Wen Yuxiu’s face. In her eyes, her daughter was the most beautiful and brilliant pearl in the world.
The First Wife was standing at the entrance of the main hall. When she saw the meticulously dressed Yun Qiya emerge, she could not hide the look of amazement in her eyes.
“Eldest Aunt,” Yun Qiya said with a smile as she curtsied.
The First Wife took her hand, stopping her before she could finish the gesture. The more she looked at her niece, the more she liked her. “There will be many female guests in the palace today. You shall sit beside me later.”
*Why isn’t this my daughter?* she wondered. *How did my useless brother-in-law manage to have such a delightful daughter?*
As the wife of the heir of the Chengping Marquisate Manor, the First Wife keeping Yun Qiya by her side signaled the heir’s branch’s intimate and supportive attitude toward the younger generation of the family.
The Old Madam walked out of the house. Hearing the First Wife’s words and seeing the two of them so close, she smiled but said nothing.
The First Wife and Yun Qiya supported her on either side as they boarded the carriage.
“His Majesty does not have many children; he only has two sons,” the grandmother whispered to Yun Qiya about royal secrets as the carriage moved slowly. “Both were born to the Empress.”
“The Second Prince, Prince Luo, is young and capable. He will only turn eighteen after the spring. He is unrestrained and cheerful, has a wide circle of friends, and gets along well with his cousins in the imperial clan.”
“What about the Eldest Prince?” Yun Qiya noticed her grandmother only spoke of the Second Prince and hadn’t mentioned the Eldest Prince at all.
“The Eldest Prince, Prince Ruining, is in poor health and rarely interacts with others.” Her grandmother sighed softly. “His Majesty and Her Majesty dote on Prince Ruining and do not like others talking about him too much.”
Sensing her grandmother’s reticence regarding Prince Ruining, Yun Qiya immediately stopped asking. Her grandmother was experienced and knowledgeable; if she was unwilling to discuss something, it meant one shouldn’t have too much curiosity about it.
“Mother, for this banquet, it seems Her Majesty has summoned many young ladies to the palace.” The First Wife speculated on a possibility. “Could it be that Her Majesty intends to select Princess Consorts for the two Princes?”
The Old Madam shook her head. “This matter has nothing to do with our Yun family.”
Yun Qiya was the only young girl in the Yun family. Although she was the eldest granddaughter of the Marquisate, her father held no rank or title, and she had no reputation for talent or beauty in the capital. It was impossible for the Empress to choose her as a Princess Consort.
Furthermore, the royal family was not exactly a pleasant place to be. Her Yaya was so young; there was no need for her to struggle for a piece of the royal family’s difficult-to-swallow golden rice.
Understanding her mother-in-law’s meaning, the First Wife felt relieved. She stroked the white rabbit fur on Yun Qiya’s cloak. After spending only a few days together, she already wished Yaya were her own daughter. The Old Madam, being Yaya’s biological grandmother, naturally couldn’t bear to part with her either.
This was Yun Qiya’s first time stepping into the Imperial Palace. On the surface, she appeared calm and composed, but she was secretly taking in her surroundings with the corners of her eyes.
The palace walls were so high; one had to tilt their head back to see the very top.
Beautiful lanterns were hung everywhere, though it was currently daytime and they weren’t lit, so she couldn’t appreciate their nighttime beauty. Silk flowers were tied to the tree branches, looking so real that it was hard to tell the difference without a close look.
With mountains and water winding through and white jade forming the steps, the entire palace was filled with a beauty unique to power and status.
By mid-morning, the officials and their families arrived at Weiyang Hall to pay their respects to the Empress. Standing behind her aunt, Yun Qiya couldn’t see the Empress’s face clearly across the high jade steps. She only noted that the fabric of the Empress’s robes was stunning; even from such a distance, she could see the magnificent, soft glow of the material.
After the ceremony, at half-past noon, the ritual officials led everyone to their seats in Hongde Hall for the banquet.
Sitting beside her aunt, Yun Qiya was perfectly content, admiring the beauty and jewelry of the various young ladies one moment and watching the singing and dancing in the hall the next.
Halfway through the banquet, Prince Luo stood up and stepped forward. “Today is Mother’s birthday. I wish to perform a sword dance for you, to wish Mother a long life and eternal peace.”
Prince Luo was handsome and in the prime of his youth. With a silver sword in hand, he looked even more high-spirited and dazzling.
His sword dance was a pleasure to watch. If he weren’t a Prince, Yun Qiya would have been tempted to pull out her purse and toss a reward into the hall.
Some were captivated by Prince Luo’s grace, while others praised his filial piety. The Emperor and Empress were very happy and shared a cup of wine with him.
The table above Prince Luo was empty. Yun Qiya guessed that was Prince Ruining’s seat. By the time the luncheon ended, the master of that table had still not appeared.
“Since today is both my birthday and the Lantern Festival,” the Empress announced, “the palace has prepared lanterns. When night falls, I shall enjoy the scenery with all of you.”
Yun Qiya understood; this meant everyone was staying in the palace for dinner.
The Empress kept the ladies of rank to chat with her, while the young ladies were sent to play and enjoy the scenery in the Imperial Garden.
Since Sister Song and Lu Mingzhu hadn’t come to the banquet, Yun Qiya had to wander around by herself.
The Imperial Garden was massive. The young ladies were gathered together playing the “Flying Flower Command” poetry game, accompanied by female officials from the Empress’s side.
The books Yun Qiya read most were various storybooks; if she joined such a refined game, she would only bring shame to the Chengping Marquisate Manor.
After greeting a few girls who looked somewhat familiar, she slipped away from the crowd, intending to find another place to stay.
It wasn’t her fault she wasn’t good at literature; her father wasn’t a good student either. She blamed her father. After all, if the upper beam is crooked, the lower ones will be askew.
The winter air was cold, and there were almost no flowers in bloom in the garden. Any flowers brought out from the greenhouses would freeze to death within half a day.
Prince Ruining stood under a barren tree. Not far away, in a crevice of the decorative rocks, a tiny yellow wildflower swayed and bloomed in the cold wind. In such freezing weather, even a weed growing in a crack could bloom so stubbornly?
He looked at the little flower and walked slowly toward it.
Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind the rock and plucked the little yellow flower with precision and ruthlessness.
The hand moved so fast that he didn’t have time to react.
The weed, now missing its flower, continued to sway in the wind.
Prince Ruining stopped in his tracks and watched the young girl behind the rock. She held a hand mirror and placed the plucked yellow flower against the jade clasp of her cloak.
Once it was in place, she checked her reflection repeatedly in the mirror before revealing a satisfied smile.
He looked at the girl, who was clearly enjoying herself, and then at the thin, flowerless weed.
Forget it.
He was a man with one foot in the grave; why bother settling scores with her?