At the same time, behind the screen.
The moment that Xie Yun"s rear view disappeared, the s.p.a.ce between Shan Chao"s brows tightened, and he broke out into a run outwards.
Yet who knew that before he stepped out, someone else walked in from behind the screen.
"……Crown Prince?"
The Crown Prince Li Hong had just recovered from a serious illness, and his complexion was still very pale, his entire body wrapped in an unremarkable cotton blue gown of navy blue, and these few steps already left him panting and sweating, yet when he saw Shan Chao his face blossomed into a weak but happy smile: "Master Xin Chao, I knew you would be here! Vice-Minister Dai and Official1 Zhang would not let me risk myself and enter the Empress"s Qingning Palace, yet I feared that tomorrow you would have already returned to Ci"en Temple, thus I sneaked out to see you—by all means don"t let me be found by the Palace servants!"
Shan Chao: "……"
The Crown Prince pulled at Shan Chao"s hand, looking at him up and down: "Fortunately Master helped me find the Snow Lotus, and thus saved my life, how could I talk about repaying such a great favour? Oh, that"s right, Her Highness the Empress and Commander Xie didn"t make things difficult for you? Did Imperial Father confer an official t.i.tle to reward you?"
Shan Chao: "……"
Shan Chao"s inner thoughts could be described as a display of fireworks and lanterns, and under the Crown Prince"s bright and attentive gaze, he could not find any appropriate language to reply.
Right at this moment there was movement at the banquet outside. Under the Emperor"s coaxing Lady Helan for some reason had an abrupt brightening of mood, yet she had only spoken a few sentences, before she made known her tipsiness, and felt enclosed in the great hall, and insisted on going out on her lonesome with her personal maids to to stand in a breeze.
The Emperor gave a few words of reproach, and grudgingly obliged to consent, ordering the Palace maids again and again to properly serve the Madame of Wei.
Lady Helan readily consented, not bearing to spend another moment in the banquet, and hurriedly lifted up her skirts and with the support of a Palace maid"s hand, left the banquet hall and made straight for the outer quarters—from Shan Chao"s perspective, her footsteps were astonishingly headed straight for Xie Yun"s direction of departure a moment ago!
"Master is someone who has left home, and certainly would not wish to become an official, alas—this king would not be willing to force anyone either. Yet for the past few years in the Eastern Palace, the number of people who could be trusted with rea.s.surance has been dwindling, and were it not for Master on that day during the poisoning in Ci"en Temple, there is unlikely to be a second person willing to risk his life to provide critical care to me with all his effort, I remember all these perfectly…"
Shan Chao abruptly caught the Crown Prince"s hand: "Your Highness."
The Crown Prince had spoken to the point where he had moved himself: "Ah?"
"Your subject deserves ten thousand deaths, yet I am anxious to find the outhouse, is it possible to return later to chat with Your Highness?"
Crown Prince: "……"
The Crown Prince was rather baffled, yet immediately gave a magnanimous smile: "Why would you need to beg forgiveness for this, humans have three urges, it is just as well that I would need to relieve myself somewhat, why don"t we go together, the outhouse is right around the corner of Qingning Palace—"
"No, Your Highness." Shan Chao finally resorted to drastic measures in interrupting him, and said: "Your subject still deserves ten thousand deaths, that… how do I get to Taiye Lake?"
The Crown Prince"s eyes widened at Shan Chao, blinking once, and then again.
An ineffable expression floated up in his eyes, as if finally making an a.s.sociation yet truly found it too embarra.s.sing to mention, and after quite a while asked in a trembling voice: "Master… could it be you intend to… into the Taiye Lake?"
At the same time, late at night by the lakeside.
The wind skimmed over the lake surface, making soft ripples, and the steam and the sweet perfume of osmanthus flowers mixed together. The clinking of wine goblets and gambling chips mixed with the sound of bamboos and silks from distantly, and within the dim night the gloriously lit Qingning Palace became indistinct, and the lake-light reflected the stars, flickering along with the rippling clear waters.
The footsteps of guards on patrol gradually departed, and Xie Yun stood by the lakeside for a while, slowly walking towards the pavilion overlooking the lake.
At this time he had already begun to feel weary, and his bones seemed to be suffused with tiredness—perhaps due to his gradually increasing age? As Xie Yun thought about this, and gave a few undetectable sighs.
On average for male pract.i.tioners of martial arts, at this age it would be the prime of one"s life, Yuwen Hu up to now had yet to show any decline, yet for Xie Yun, he had already prematurely consumed and even overspent too much on other matters, and though in appearance there was no sign, yet he knew that the peak of his vigour would not continue too long.
The moon has its waxing and waning, this matter has continued since old.
Xie Yun stroked the jade fence in pa.s.sing, turning back to walk where he came, when suddenly his footsteps stopped.
"Commander Xie has been injured and yet persists in the night patrol, such diligence is truly unmatched, that second aunt of an Empress of mine ought to reward you properly—" From the flower-bushes a verdant gauze-skirted womanly silhouette slowly walked over, her voice like silver bells filled with ridicule: "Why, for the Empress you can go through water and tread on fire, yet for the Exalted One you only have cold words and severe expressions, are you a dog raised by the Empress?"
Xie Yun looked at the woman walking over under the moonlight, seemingly suspicious.
"Why do you not pay your respects on seeing me?" The woman said in anger: "Do people not enter your eyes?"
"……"
The lakeside was a spread of silence, and only after a long while did Xie Yun give a slight nod of his head, and speak thoughtfully: "…..Madame of Wei."
Translator"s Notes Chapter 22: Empress vs Madame — Family Issues
The presence of consort kin (see Translator"s Notes Chapter 21) comes in relation to the fact that the emperors of imperial China would have a harem of multiple wives and concubines. An overview of the system is here. To be specific, the setting of the novel would follow the Tang system here.
However, during this time it"s clear that Lady Helan is not, strictly, part of the Inner Palace (aka the imperial harem), due to her relation to the Empress. The logic here is "if the Emperor has a wife from one clan already, why would he have a concubine from the same clan, and one a generation younger than him" - rare cases of sisters married to the same Emperor include the Zhao sisters Feiyan and Hede, but they were all of the same generational relation.
- LLS
1 ZH: 舍人 - see previous note on 东台舍人，.