"Your Ladyship,"1 the attendant lightly said, "Commander Xie has arrived."
The tall tower was sandwiched by the building, and the Empress Wu lifted the jade and pearl hanging curtain, stepping into the inner hall, sure enough catching sight of the white python robe of the Imperial Guard Commander spread out on the ground, unexpectedly in an upright genuflection before the main seat.
"Your Ladyship—"
A trusted palace maid strode forward, but the Empress Wu waved a hand: "Stand down."
The palace maid kept silent, backing away with a bow to retreat behind the pillar.
The inner hall was exceedingly rich and elegant in decoration, the brick floor carpeted with brocade woollens, jewelled and fragrant, and the green smoke of purple-gold aroma slowly drifted from a jewel-inlaid beast head. Empress Wu slowly strolled to before the main seat, looking down at the top of Xie Yun"s head, and only a while later did she softly spit out a sentence: "Commander has lost weight."
Then not waiting for Xie Yun to reply, she said: "It is clear that the whole journey was exhausting."
The latter half of her words, clearly showed an intent to ridicule.
Yet Xie Yun"s gaze fell to the gorgeous skirt arranged before him, as if sensing nothing in his surroundings, such that even his intonation was even without rising or falling: "Your Ladyship praises me, your subject does not deserve the praise—this morning the monk Xin Chao of Ci"en Temple has come bearing the Snow Lotus as tribute, and as your subject does not dare to act for oneself, thus specially brought him to pay his respects, may Your Ladyship decide." And then he unexpectedly bowed his head in a kowtow.
The palace maid hiding behind the pillar could not hide the surprise which appeared on her face.
Yet Empress Wu did not move, until seeing him complete the kowtow, then did she slowly speak: "This kowtow… has not been seen for many years."
Xie Yun said: "Your subject has known Your Ladyship for seventeen years, how does one kowtow count?"
This reply was extremely fast and yet quite perfect, that if it were anyone else they could not have done it so smoothly, even so much that the Empress Wu could not imagine how many times Xie Yun had practised in advance.
Yet she did not rage, her face showed a smile on the contrary, just that the smile was unusually cold: "Where is the Snow Lotus?"
"Xin Chao is holding it outside the door."
"Who is Xin Chao?"
"On the day that the Crown Prince descended to Ci"en Temple, he was the monk who offered the sour fruit soup."
"Why does he wear Imperial Guard colours?"
"Your subject wanted to bring him to personally see the Empress, and thus I could only use this last resort, may Your Ladyship calm down."
Empress Wu remained quiet for a while, and said: "I have seen him a moment ago."
Within the inner hall n.o.body spoke a word, and the green smoke slowly dissipated from the beast"s head.
"…since I have seen him there is no need to see him again." Empress Wu turned her head and instructed: "Guards, drag out Xin Chao outside the door, and beat him to death."
The palace maid responded and left, yet she had not walked out of the door, when Xie Yun abruptly raised a hand and waved his sleeve, and the Tai-E sword hidden all along in his robes streaked across the air, and sword-intent came out with a roar, slamming the door closed with a bang!
Empress Wu bellowed in anger: "Outrageous!"
Xie Yun drew his sword, turning a hand over to thrust the tip deeply into the floor tiles, and said in a deep voice: "To draw arms before the imperial presence is a capital offence, since this is the case, may Your Ladyship personally end me."
"….." Empress Wu"s chest undulated, and she unexpected seized a teacup on the table, and flung it into his face!
Thump!
The celadon tebowl struck Xie Yun"s temples and fell to the ground, instantly smashing into pieces, a line of blood flowing down Xie Yun"s cheek.
"He should have died two years ago," Empress Wu grabbed Xie Yun"s lapels, glaring into his eyes at close range: "—two years ago!"
Xie Yun"s eyes were soaked in blood, and his cheek was a frightening white as a result, yet his expression was extremely calm: "Your subject may be named as the foremost expert of the Great Interior, yet occa.s.sionally a mistake does occur, may Your Ladyship forgive me."
"Why did you make a mistake?!"
"……"
The palace maid turned her back to them. Although used to the temperaments and storms of the Palace, at this moment her hands could not help but shake, to the point that she did not dare to look back.
Xie Yun"s dark red lapel was tightly gripped within Empress Wu"s engraved gold enamel fretwork jewel-inlaid nail protectors, and from a c.h.i.n.k within there vaguely revealed a thin leather cord around his neck.
Empress Wu slowly let go, using her nail protectors to hook that leather cord, to see at the end there hung was a dried white pendant — the look in her eyes changed slightly.
That was an eagle claw.
"…this is not the one I gave you." Empress Wu finally straightened, and coldly said: "Where did it come from?"
The frozen atmosphere within the inner hall finally began to move slowly, and the nearby palace maid slowly supported herself against the door-frame, noiselessly let out a sigh of relief as if on the verge of collapse.
Xie Yun raised his head to look at Empress Wu, his gaze reflecting the woman at the peak of this empire"s power. His voice may be hoa.r.s.e, yet it was still extremely calm: "Back then in Mobei, within the lonesome and desolate desert sandstorms, whenever dreaming in the deep of night, I would always think of events from my youth in Chang"an — whether or not the hole in the wall at the outer courtyard of Ganye Temple was still there, in those days when I ran over to hide in hunger and thirst, Your Ladyship would always draw water from the well, secretly put in some honey, and pour it through for me to drink."
Empress Wu moved aside her gaze, not speaking for a long time.
"…that was my portion which I saved," she said at last in a low voice.
"Back then I was ignorant, and it was hard to eat my fill in the Secret School, so I would always beg for food from Your Ladyship, yet I did not know that Your Ladyship was pa.s.sing through hard times in the temple. Then I got injured once, and thought I was about to die, and barely managed to walk to the walls of Ganye Temple, and unexpectedly spotted Your Ladyship waiting the whole night for me there, having h.o.a.rded a basket of food and medicine for me…"
Empress Wu tartly interrupted: "Back then you were only a child, what did you know?"
Xie Yun gave a smile of pathos: "Yes, back then we truly did not expect to reach this present, I had thought that I would die in the Secret School, and Your Ladyship would spend your last years in the temple… no, back then I did not even know that you were Your Ladyship."
An indescribable mood slowly floated up in Empress Wu"s eyes, and after a while she gave a small sigh: "Afterwards I was summoned back to the Palace, and you were still stuck in the Secret School."
Xie Yun shook his head in self-mockery. "Your Ladyship caught a Secret School eagle before leaving, chopped off both its claws, and after drying them in the wind gave me one as a present. Unfortunately in Mobei one year a great sandstorm blew, and I moved too late only to be swept up in it. When I awoke everything that could be blown away was already gone, and the eagle claw on my person had also disappeared…"
"I searched over a radius of ten-odd li around the desert and could not find it, falling asleep in exhaustion. When I awoke I found that another claw had unexpectedly appeared next to my pillow, strung on a rope and hung by the side of the bed, and then did I know that someone beside me had hunted an eagle overnight, and hurriedly finished it before leaving it there."
Empress Wu suddenly looked towards Xie Yun.
Xie Yun also gazed at her, the ash-coloured dried eagle claw noiselessly suspended from his neck before his chest.
After a long time he finally leant down and slowly bowed under the Empress"s gaze.
"The life debt back then, your subject constantly has it engraved in my heart, and have never forgotten it in seventeen years. Two years ago when I struck in Mobei, I suddenly recalled an old affair in Ganye Temple…"
"My thoughts were entangled and scattered as red turned to green2, thus I made the first mistake in my life, may Your Highness the Empress forgive me."
The inner hall was entirely silent, and an unknown flicker flashed in Empress Wu"s eyes, and a while later the corners of her mouth finally crooked up, and she gave a low laugh.
"Xie Yun, sometimes I do wonder, why are you and I so alike…"
She reached out and gently lifted Xie Yun"s b.l.o.o.d.y cheeks, and wiped the blood with the cuff of one sleeve, in what could be considered a warm action. Some traces had dried up, but she did not ask for someone to bring a wet towel, but repeatedly wiped it, until the obvious bloodstains were completely wiped off, revealing smooth skin.
Empress Wu approached slightly, meeting Xie Yun"s eyes from her position above.
This was actually a rather strange scene—although they had no blood relationship, yet these two faces were both beautiful, with deep silhouettes, and a hidden chill and sharpness dwelt in their eyes, such that for an instant of distraction there seemed an inexplicable likeness.
"Why are you not my son," Empress Wu whispered by Xie Yun"s ear.
"—if you were, how would this world fall to this point?"
Xie Yun"s breath stopped for an instant.
Empress Wu rose with a smile, brushing past him, to stride for the door: "Commander Xie is injured, order the imperial physicians to send medicine over, do not let it scar—"
"Send a messenger to His Majesty, the monk Xin Chao of Ci"en Temple has done meritorious service in offering as tribute medicine for the Crown Prince, and is to be heavily rewarded!"
Translator"s Notes Chapter 20: "Your Imperial Highness" vs "Your Ladyship"
A fun fact: the generic style of "Ladyship" (娘娘) only spread out to all of the Inner Palace members (empress, consorts, concubines) during the Song dynasty. In prior dynasties the style would be reserved only for the Empress and Empress Dowager - it was the style by which the imperial descendants would address their (legal) mother, and the palace staff address the foremost woman in the Palace. Therefore, it would be the style which an Emperor would usually address the Empress Dowager (may or may not be birth mother).
The style of Highness (殿下) would also apply to the Empress and Empress Dowager, on top of other imperial descendants and va.s.sal kings. This style would be the one more commonly used in the Tang era.
- LLS
1 ZH: 娘娘 - style used to address Empresses, Empress Dowagers, G.o.ddesses, derived from repeating the word for "mother" twice. Spread to common use amongst imperial concubines after the Song dynasty.
2 ZH: 看朱成碧思忆纷乱
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