After passing through Qingzhou, it took only a few days to reach Xuzhou. Xuzhou had been a strategic military stronghold since ancient times, and had been briefly occupied by Lu Wei. In his youth, Lu Wei had delighted in the ways of wandering knights-errant, often performing acts of chivalry in Liangzhou, Suzhou, and other regions, earning great affection from the locals. Later, he accumulated military merit, and when he was dismissed from office midway, he was fortunate to be recommended by General Cui Xun of Boling, the maternal uncle of Prince Huaiyin. Afterwards, taking advantage of the late emperor's death and the current emperor's frail health, he swiftly seized control of the court.As Lu Wei entered the capital, he dispatched his subordinate Wang Song to take charge of Xuzhou. Wang Song was a man even more wicked than the governor of Qingzhou, treating the soldiers and civilians of Xuzhou like slaves. He built new towers extensively and plundered beautiful women, inciting widespread public outrage.Prince Wei took advantage of this opportunity to send Prince Huaiyin, Li Cheng, to seize the region. Though young, Li Cheng had grown up in the military and excelled in the art of war. After defeating Wang Song's army with surprising tactics, he took up garrison there.He was twenty years old this year, having garrisoned this place for less than a year, yet he was utterly formidable.After stationing himself here, Li Cheng did not take up residence in Wang Song's mansion. He felt it was too luxurious and exquisite, likely to corrupt one's will with pleasure. Instead, he chose to reside in the former mansion of the Prince of Donghai Commandery. The Prince of Donghai was a brother of the late emperor, and since he had no sons, his fief was abolished after his death.Huiyin was helped down from the horse by Nanny Nan and the servants, and entered with a veil covering her head the entire way, unable to admire the scenery of the place. Everything here was utterly unfamiliar to her, and Nanny Nan and the others were not much better off than she was. Although the prince's mansion had sent two nannies to look after them—one said to be Li Cheng's wet nurse, Nanny Chao, and the other a nanny from the household of Li Cheng's grandmother, the Grand Dowager of Prince Wu, known as Nanny Fan.Both of them said: "The young prince has been waiting here for the princess's arrival for some time, but unfortunately, an attack came from Xiapi, and the young prince led his troops there. A message arrived yesterday saying that it may be some days before he can return to complete the marriage. Please, princess, take up residence in the mansion for now."Nanny Nan's face showed signs of difficulty, but since they were already on the other party's turf, everything had to follow the arrangements of the husband's family.Huiyin thus took up residence in the mansion. The former Prince of Donghai Commandery had been a man who loved cultivating flowers and plants, and one could see all kinds of lush greenery and blossoms throughout the mansion at any time.Her favorite view was the scenery outside the north window. Not far away stood a large pear tree, its pure white blossoms appearing especially refreshing in the scorching summer heat. Beside the pear tree grew several plantains of emerald green. Perhaps to avoid monotony, beneath the window were planted vibrant crape myrtles—bright yet not vulgar—dotted with the occasional plantain lily.These so-called slights meant little to her. Though Nanny Chao and Nanny Fan were not particularly warm toward her, neither did they deliberately show hostility or mistreat her. Her daily allowances were ample, and the servants she had brought were all arranged quite properly.Nanny Nan, however, was quite anxious: "Miss, is the young master still fighting in Xiapi? What if he doesn't come back? What then? Among all the couples in the world, who delays their wedding like this? If things don't go smoothly at the start, the days ahead may not go smoothly either.""Mother, it's best not to expect too much from others. When my mother married Pei Shuo, they were deeply in love—she even rode out to save someone while pregnant for his sake. But what happened later? How did Pei Shuo treat my mother? It ended in such a mess. When love runs too deep, it breeds possessiveness, and that can easily lead to obsession." Having lived a past life, Huiyin knew that at first she hadn't understood Li Heng's intentions, truly believing he was devoted to her at first sight. Only later did she realize that all that sweetness was laced with poison, which is why she decisively set her plans in motion.Nanny Nan sighed. "Young miss, you're so young, yet your thinking is clearer than many adults'. But I think you're just starting out now—maybe there's still hope? Not every couple is the same, and not every man is like General Pei."Huiyin smiled and shook her head, then reminded her, "From now on, mind your titles. In Wei territory, Prince Wei is called 'His Highness,' and Prince Huaiyin is called 'Young Prince.' Don't call me 'miss' or 'young lady' anymore—just call me 'Princess.' Before Prince Wei, address me as 'Young Princess.'"Titles mattered. Though she had not yet held the grand wedding ceremony or shared the nuptial cup with Li Cheng, they were already husband and wife in name.She also rarely spoke with the people of Prince Huaiyin's household. Sometimes, keeping an air of mystery made others unable to see through you, and they would treat you with a certain wariness. Once you started asking questions, you risked revealing your eagerness.No one was born knowing these things; only those who had made mistakes understood the need to change.Ten days had passed without her noticing. The servants who had come with the Zheng family were growing restless, but Huiyin remained composed, reading on the couch. Unexpectedly, today it was Nanny Chao who brought her meal.Huiyin rose to greet her. "Why have you come to deliver it yourself today? You could have sent one of my maids to fetch it."Nanny Chao was said to have been Li Cheng's wet nurse since childhood. Like Nanny Fan, she usually stayed in Jianye, and it was only because Li Cheng was getting married that they had both come to help with the arrangements.Nanny Chao smiled. "Princess, you flatter me. Serving my master is only natural. I came today to tell you that the Young Prince has sent word—he'll return within three days to hold the wedding.""So the Young Prince is coming back." Huiyin smiled, but then added, "Nanny Chao, you are the Young Prince's wet nurse. If he has any taboos or aversions, you must tell me, so I don't inadvertently offend him."Nanny Chao's face was kind, and her speech was as soft as a southern woman's, but her words hid a needle beneath silk: "Young Princess, what are you saying? Our prince is not only magnanimous as mountains and seas, but also a man of his word. Rest assured, I sincerely hope that you and the Young Prince will enjoy a harmonious marriage."Huiyin did not press further, merely replying lightly, "Then I'll take your kind words as a blessing."Nanny Chao had expected Huiyin to ask more questions—after all, the Young Prince was the darling of every maiden and matron in Wei territory. Some women, just to catch a single glance from him, would deliberately eat beans and pass gas to make a spectacle, hoping he'd look their way. But this Young Princess seemed surprisingly uninterested in the Young Prince. She thought it might be because this Zheng girl had yet to lay eyes on her master.Once she did, she would surely be enchanted.The midday meal featured local Xuzhou dishes, and one dish in particular, the Pengcheng fish ball soup, was especially delicious. Huiyin was from the north and normally did not care for river fish, always finding the fishy smell too strong. Even when eating squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, she insisted the flesh not be too tender, lest the fishy taste be hidden within.But these fish balls were refreshing and light, and she heard they were made from silver bead fish, with not a trace of fishiness.She even had a second bowl. Nanny Chao, eating at the small table below, secretly observed the young princess's table manners. Seeing that she ate without being stiff or affected, yet with good grace and appetite, Nanny Chao could not help but nod in approval.After Nanny Chao delivered this news, Nanny Nan and the others were visibly relieved.It was said that he would return in three days, but Huiyin did not believe Li Cheng would actually arrive on time. Nanny Chao and Nanny Fan, however, began to make preparations. First, they replaced the bed canopy with a new one of red-pink silk with gold thread, embroidered with the pattern of the Four Joys and the Unicorn Bringing a Son, its four corners adorned with pearls and hung with long tassels. On the table were placed several ruyi scepter ornaments, and beside them a dressing table painted with gold peonies. The round-backed chairs and soft couches were newly draped with cloth bearing the auspicious dragon-and-phoenix pattern.A pair of bronze crane lamp stands held two dragon-and-phoenix wedding candles as thick as an infant's arm, and even the wedding cakes had been purchased."The young prince has returned! The young prince has returned!"Huiyin was sitting to the side reading a book when she heard the servants of the prince's residence rushing about, spreading the news. Before long, Nanny Chao came in and said, "Young princess, please wash and dress yourself. This evening at dusk, the young prince will perform the wedding rites with you."Nanny Nan had Leyun and Fugui come over to help her dress and groom anew. Perhaps because the wedding day had been postponed for so long, the Zheng family had been holding back for quite a while, and they were determined to let Li Cheng see that their young lady's reputation as the foremost beauty of Jizhou was not undeserved.Her jet-black hair was entirely coiled up, and at the center of the bun she wore a gold hair ornament inlaid with pearls and carved with mandarin ducks, while on either side were gold filigree hairpins set with gems, from which hung pearl-and-coral tassels and jasper tassels, making her appear all the more radiant and delicate. When she rose, with the servants' help she changed into a formal robe of bright red silk with gold-thread embroidery, a wide-sleeved outer garment of double-layered fine gauze, its cuffs trimmed with pomegranate-shaped gems, and over it a phoenix-patterned cape with a hundred birds paying homage. She wore a twelve-panel flowing skirt embroidered with a hundred children and a hundred blessings, its train trailing over five feet, adorned with tiny pearls of various colors. Together with the jade pendants at her waist, every step she took produced a pleasant tinkling sound.…The summer heat was intense. Li Cheng had returned only a short while ago, and after giving his subordinates their instructions, he finally removed his armor.Since he had taken to the field, Li Cheng had always led from the front, charging first into battle. This time, an arrow had struck his right shoulder, and fortunately the wound was not deep. But because he had ridden hard all the way back, sweat had soaked into the wound, causing it to fester considerably. Gritting his teeth, he had the military physician come to change the dressing.The military physician had once been a court physician in the prince's household. Seeing the wound now, he felt compelled to admonish: "Young prince, the wound absolutely must not come into contact with water, and you must not wear such heavy armor again. Now that you have returned victorious, this is a good opportunity to rest for a while."Li Cheng pondered for a moment and said, "I shall heed your words, sir."The physician glanced at the red decorations all around and added in a low voice, "Young prince, it would also be best to abstain from wine. And from marital relations—wait until you are healed before engaging in them…"Li Cheng was taken aback at these words.After the physician withdrew, Nanny Chao happened to come in.Obviously, Nanny Chao had overheard the military physician's words and quickly said, "Young Prince, should I go and inform that Zheng woman? She should understand. Your health is the priority. After all, this marriage was requested by Prince Wei; you weren't willing to take a wife in the first place."In Nanny Chao's view, having observed Zheng for the past few days, she seemed quiet, reserved, and unassuming—but she could never compare to the young prince she had raised with her own milk.Unexpectedly, Li Cheng said, "Nanny, marriage is no trivial matter. In the future, I may have many women, but she will have only me as her husband. The wedding was already delayed by several days. If we still don't consummate the marriage, how will others look upon her?"
Chapter 7
Rebirth of the Empress