If we are speaking about people within the palace, while it was true that the Empress Dowager and Wanyan Xu both inspired great fear in this Concubine Yin, the person she feared the most was actually none other than this little Crown Prince, Wanyan Shuo. She had always been a clever woman; smooth and slick, she could adapt and present an aspect of herself that would be most pleasing to her interlocutor. Her social graces had won her popularity with both the Empress Dowager and the Emperor; only Wanyan Shuo had never fallen for her attempts to win him over. If one were to compare them in terms of intellect, then Concubine Yin could not hope to catch up with him even if she were riding a horse and whipping it. Even before Su Yi had arrived in the palace, she had already suffered much bitterness at the hands of Wanyan Shuo. At first, she had thought that she would bring up Wanyan Shuo so as to strengthen her hand as the most suitable candidate for the position of Empress but in less than two months, she had been compelled to appear before Wanyan Xu to beg that the responsibility for the care of the Crown Prince be lifted from her. The little demon king had messed with her so much that she was truly scared of him.
On this occasion, she had immediately felt unsettled upon the mere sight of Wanyan Shuo, and then to make matters worse, he had said those words “Just one day back into my Imperial Father’s good graces, and my Mother Concubine’s bearing has indeed become very impressive.” Her soul quailed even more and she was terror-struck. She knew clearly that, as a rule, this little devil hated all the concubines that had won favour with the Emperor, always saying that he blamed them for robbing him of his Imperial Father"s love. Therefore, with the sole exception of Su Yi, in the past anybody who won His Majesty"s favour would also be treated as an archenemy by Wanyan Shuo, who would feel personally offended by her. And now, her own arrogant manner had been witnessed by his eyes. What terrible luck she had! With all haste, she hurriedly put away the bossy and domineering expression she had been wearing. Careful to accompany her words with a demure smile, she said: “I didn’t know that the Crown Prince is here, did I get in your way? Aii, it"s all the fault of this slave who does not bother to look where he"s going. He actually wanted to trip me. I was angry and wanted to teach him a lesson but my behaviour was a little inappropriate.” So saying, she hurriedly gave her attendants a meaningful look, and the eunuchs and palace maids quickly retreated. Again, she put on a winning smile and said: “Crown Prince, please do not let us hinder you any further.”
Wanyan Shuo gave a derisive snort and said: “I’m not in a hurry, there’s nothing much for me to attend to today. It seems like Mother Concubine is still unfamiliar with the rules for conduct in the palace, let your child expend a bit of effort to teach them to Mother Concubine. Although with Mother Concubine"s natural apt.i.tude, it will be difficult for you to acquire a complete understanding but there"s nothing for it. Since you are my Mother Concubine, even if I"m wasting my time, I will have to try to educate you. We have to avoid having you make such an unseemly gaffe in front of others again. Even if we don"t speak of the fact that it damages the majesty of our Jin Liao Empire and my Imperial Father to have one of the concubines behaving like this, your actions make it hard for my Imperial Grandmother and I to maintain even a shred of glory on our faces.”
The colour of Concubine Yin"s face was by turns, green and white, and she was gritting her teeth so hard that creaking could be heard. However, she did not dare to utter a single word. Wanyan Shuo looked at her. Pretending to be surprised, he said: “Mother Concubine"s expression does not look very good, could it be that you feel that your child is not fit to school you [1]? If that"s the case, it is a bit awkward. Why don"t I go before my Imperial Father to ask for an official decree, that way Mother Concubine will surely be convinced of my teachings in both her words and her heart. Would that be alright?” With that said, he looked towards Su Yi, and pretending that he was speaking to himself, he said in a stage whisper: “Aii... Imperial Father has so many good qualities, his only flaw is that he cannot give up his feelings easily, that is such an undesirable trait.”
When Concubine Yin heard these words, she got the drift immediately. She knew that Wanyan Shuo meant them as a reminder to her that if this matter blew up and escalated all the way to Wanyan Xu, who was still enamoured with Su Yi, there would be dire consequences for her. His heart still ached over Su Yi, if he knew that she treated had treated him so shabbily, he would definitely not let her off easily. Actually, even without Wanyan Shuo"s reminder, she clearly knew the score in her heart. Although His Majesty came over to her and spent every night at her residence, this was merely a show that he put on for the benefit of others. The truth of the matter was that on every single night the spring [2] had been spent in emptiness. Not only that, he had dreamt every night, and in his dreams he had repeatedly and exclusively called out the name of this former Empress. These nightly occurrences were more than enough to prove that there was no lie in Wanyan Shuo"s words. At once, her heart seized with fright. She was an intelligent person; naturally she would know what would benefit her and what would be a liability to her. Hurriedly, she decided to grin and bear it, saying: “Crown Prince must be joking, how would I ever dare to say that you [3] are not fit to be my teacher? From the top of this palace to the bottom, everybody in here knows that the Crown Prince is the most clever and quick-witted of all. If you have any more instructions for me, please do tell me, I will surely listen with respectful attention.”
In a daze, Su Yi stared at Wanyan Shuo. How could he not understand that this little Crown Prince was actually coming to his aid? His heart was deeply moved; even at this stage, this child still gave his wellbeing so much thought. Pain pierced through Su Yi"s heart and lungs; he found it difficult to breathe. When he saw the tactics Wanyan Shuo used to deal with Concubine Yin --- how every single word and sentence were chosen and constructed with precision to deliver attacks so stinging that he might as well have been p.r.i.c.king her with a needle --- even as an adult, Su Yi could not help but to be full of admiration for this child. Even now, he still doubted himself; exactly what had he done to deserve this type of undying loyalty from this cunning and ruthless Crown Prince so that he still tried to protect him whenever he could?
On the other hand, Xiao Yan, who was standing to the side, could finally feel greatly relieved, thinking in his heart:Ever since Empress Su Yi was deposed and reduced to a slave, the Crown Prince’s heart has not been able to rest easy and he"s always looking to vent his frustrations on other people. It was just my luck that it was my turn to have my head on the chopping block, but who would have thought that we would run into this Concubine Yin on the way. She has become the outlet for his anger instead, and I have been granted deliverance. Xiao Yan was also appalled by Concubine Yin flagrantly throwing her weight around and using her superior position to abuse a slave. Her behaviour was worlds away from Su Yi"s dignified conduct; even when he had been Empress, he had always treated the servants with grace and kindness. Thus, when Wanyan Shuo turned the tables on her, and used her own tactic of making a fuss under a pretext, not only did Xiao Yan not disapprove or object to his actions, he actually enjoyed the scene very much.
As for Wanyan Shuo, he was born with a poisonous tongue, and once he decided to unleash it on Concubine Yin and started to berate her, his subtle taunts were almost too much to take. Already unsteady on her feet at being caught in her malicious act by Wanyan Shuo, she could only stand there trembling with rage. Wanyan Shuo stopped his tongue-lashing only when he saw that this outrageous woman was about to faint due to her suppressed anger. With insincere courtesy, he said: “Mother Concubine really has the delicate body of a genteel lady; you can only stand for a while before you need an attendant to support you. Forget it, if I say too much at a single time, I doubt you can remember all of it anyway. I shall not waste my saliva. Of course, the most important factor is that I think that Mother Concubine"s body can withstand it no more. I shall request that you return to your palace; you would not need your child to accompany you there, I trust?”
She had clenched her fists so tightly that the skin on Concubine Yin"s palms had been torn up by her nails, but she could not do anything other than to force herself to put on a smiling face as she said: “Since the Crown Prince has put it that way, I shall take my leave. If the Crown Prince is free, then please visit at the Palace of Merciful Grace to play.” So saying, she held on to an eunuch’s hand for support and resentfully went her way. But Wanyan Shuo refused to let her off so easily. With a smile, he fired a parting shot: “I understand, I shall find some time to visit Mother Concubine at her residence to continue imparting my wisdom.”
When Concubine Yin and her retinue had departed, Su Yi was left to face this master and servant duo alone. The complicated feelings in his heart were difficult to bear, and he did not know what to say to this little Crown Prince, therefore he could only give him a respectful bow before turning to leave. What he did not expect was for Wanyan Shuo to suddenly step right in front of him to block his path, and articulating each word succinctly, he said: “Your child has helped Mother Empress to get out of a tight situation, could it be that Mother Empress does not even have a word of thanks for your child?”