Chapter Eighteen
A Puzzling Question.
‘Aren’t you tired, standing there?’ the Emperor said mildly. ‘Sit.’
‘Yes,’ Xuanji said quickly, and after a moment’s hesitation, opted to sit facing the Emperor at the opposite end of the table.
At once, she jumped up from her seat with a painful gasp. Her body had just endured the Empress Dowager’s flogging, and her bottom was a particularly vulnerable area, where simply sitting on a chair made her eyes water in pain.
A stifled laughter sounded from the eunuch named Xia Sang. Xuanji flushed and chanced a glance at the man across the table. The Emperor’s lips were lifted in a faint smile.
Xuanji stood awkwardly – standing and sitting were both inviable options. The Emperor glanced at Xia Sang, who took the hint and quickly strode out of the room.
Xia Sang was definitely a man of action. Xuanji was still standing in a daze when Xia Sang hastened back into the room, carrying a small embroidered cushion.
The Emperor extended a hand to receive the cushion and placed it atop the small chair next to him. He patted the cushion, a careless and negligent movement.
In her heart, Xuanji cursed the Emperor for his craftiness. Now, she could not possibly shift the cushion back to her original seat, across the length of the table, opposite him.
‘Thank you, Your Majesty,’ she said resentfully, moving to sit beside him.
‘How are your wounds?’
Xuanji, who had spent the day with her nerves taut with tension, only just remembered that her back still burned with a sharp pain now that the Emperor had raised the topic. Yet it was strange – given the wretched state she had been after the Empress Dowager’s merciless punishment, the pain that she was currently enduring seemed to be disproportionately mild.
‘I can’t see the area where they hit me, but the wounds don’t seem so painful now,’ she blurted out.
A faint noise stirred from Xia Sang. Puzzled, Xuanji glanced at the eunuch. A strange expression flickered across Xia Sang’s eyes, but he only smiled as he said, ‘His Majesty treasures Your Highness, so all the good medicine in this palace have been used on you.’
Xuanji was about to say her thanks to the Emperor for the thousandth time, but the Emperor had already said, ‘Have a rest. Later, I will help you to take a look at it.’
Xuanji flushed, and instinctively reached for the cup of tea on the table, quickly taking a huge sip.
Xia Sang snorted and laughed, ‘Concubine Nian, that is His Majesty’s cup of tea.’
Xuanji lamented her misstep and immediately returned the teacup to the Emperor, stammering, ‘S-sorry.’
There was a long pause. The Emperor did not reach for the cup.
Xuanji raised her head anxiously, meeting the man’s pensive gaze.
He seemed to be… looking closely at her.
As she tensed in renewed nervousness, her hands were suddenly lightened, and the Emperor had taken the cup of tea from her.
Xuanji exhaled in relief then sat up abruptly – she had already drunk from that cup of tea!
…
Xuanji’s desire for a hole in the ground to open up and swallow her whole crystallised, and without thinking, she quickly reached over to snatch the cup out of the Emperor’s hands.
In the chaos, tea spilled from the cup, scalding her hands, a gasp of pain escaping her. As her ears rang with the laughter issuing from Xia Sang, in the next moment, she was engulfed in the Emperor’s embrace, his hands a tight grip around her waist.
Her heart rose to her throat; her breathing stilled.
Her senses were shrouded by a faint scent which she recognised as uniquely his. His warm, steady breath against her neck caused goosebumps to rise on her skin. Her mind was filled with only one thought: she was sitting on the Emperor’s lap…
The door shut with a resounding snap as Xia Sang tactfully withdrew from the room, leading all the other servants away.
Xuanji’s body stiffened as she sat rigidly within the Emperor’s embrace.
‘My beloved consort, you can relax. Am I so terrifying?’ The Emperor’s voice carried a hint of teasing. ‘Or is your shyness merely a way of invitation?’
Xuanji jumped up from the Emperor’s lap. He did not stop her; his eyes, swimming with good humour, rose to meet hers.
‘What’s the matter now?’
Xuanji gave a false smile and said, ‘To show you that I’m definitely not trying to invite your attentions?’
As she remembered his entanglement with Consort Hua in Jinluan Hall, an inexplicable agitation and moodiness welled in her heart.
‘Oh? So I do terrify you?’ The Emperor’s lips curled in ridicule. ‘It appears that I have come to the wrong place.’
Xuanji groaned in her heart. She could not fathom the Emperor’s thoughts. This man she did not know exactly what went on in his mind. Even when she faced the perverted Prince Zining the other day, she had not felt this strange shiver of nervousness down her spine. Yet unlike Prince Zining, the Emperor’s voice had never betrayed a hint of menace.
‘Your Majesty, please forgive me,’ Xuanji said, lowering her head.
‘You seem different today,’ the Emperor said abruptly.
Xuanji’s legs trembled and she nearly fell to the floor in her fright.
‘I just had a near brush with death, so it’s only natural that my character changes a little….’
She had already tried her best to come up with a reasonable explanation!
‘Then prove it.’
A warm breath hovered above her head. As her chin was lifted by the man’s strong grasp, her vision fixed upon his slender fingers.
Her heart racing, her eyes widened as she stared at the face that was suddenly within inches from hers.
The Emperor sighed faintly, bowing his head to press his lips upon hers.
This time, Xuanji’s legs really softened; her mind in a blur. Yet the Emperor had already tightened his grip around her waist, his hands firm and forceful…
The warmth from his hands was a comforting glow emanating through the silk of her dress. His lips, gentle like a butterfly brushing upon the petals of flowers, moved against hers.
She was no longer the original Xuanji. She was just… just Zhu Qi, a young soul who now rested within this foreign body – a person who did not know what to do, when she first arrived; a person who did not know when it would be, when she finally had to depart from this strange world.
This was Zhu Qi’s first kiss.
In her dreams, she had imagined a hundred different times her first kiss which she would give to Lin Sheng, that young and brilliant Professor of the 21st century, and had never imagined that it would instead go to this Emperor who lived a thousand years ago in the past…
Zhu Qi, push him away… push him away…
She was mad; she actually sunk into the fervour of his kiss, rough and forceful, carrying a hint of punishment.
She shivered as his hands slid across her back. Where his fingers brushed against her, her skin was warm, was hot…
Xuanji suddenly recalled that phrase which appeared with grating frequency in novels: how many women must a man have gone through in order to have such familiarity and skill… As she thought of this, she surfaced from her haziness.
She pushed him away, accompanying that action with a snort of laughter.
She had not even stopped laughing when her eyes widened in disbelief at her own actions. Heavens, what was she laughing at…?
All right. Of the mistakes that she could possibly make in the ancient times, today, she estimated that she had already made them all.
‘Am I so amusing?’
Xuanji glanced at the Emperor, who had raised a hand to his lips, his eyes on her.
‘I’m hungry.’ Throwing caution to the wind, Xuanji decided to speak her mind, no matter how incomprehensible her words were.
She could admit that the Emperor had a fatal attractiveness, only, she really could not bring herself to spend a night with a man that she had only met thrice, even if that man were the Emperor.
Moreover, the person he favoured was Consort Nian and not this imposter, Zhu Qi.
Except, she did not understand why the Emperor only doted on Consort Nian. Was it her incomparable beauty, or her position as the youngest daughter of Minister Nian?
Yet, if this devotion was born out of the latter reason, then the Empress Dowager, who was the Emperor’s mother, had even less reason to use a flimsy pretext to single out and attack Consort Nian, even if her intentions were due to her love for her niece, Consort Hua.
The Emperor coughed lightly and Xuanji’s train of thoughts righted themselves. She had been staring blankly at the Emperor when she had allowed her imagination to run away.
Her face reddened and she was about to explain herself when the Emperor said, ‘Seems like you’re extremely hungry. We should first have dinner.’
First. Xuanji did not know if the Emperor had intentionally said that word or otherwise, but the emphasis in his tone was unmistakeable. After dinner… they would… she continued to be in a daze.
The Emperor clapped his hands and Xia Sang quickly strode back into the room – he must have been waiting by the door.
If the Emperor was engaging in his ‘nightly activities’, didn’t that mean that each whisper and every caress would be heard by this eunuch?!
In a matter of seconds, Xia Sang had already led a couple of servants to enter the room. With frightening swiftness, numerous plates of food were carefully placed on the table.
Xuanji thought to herself that Xia Sang was perceptive and efficient. In the modern world, he would surely make a great manager.
When the food was all served, Xuanji stared puzzledly at the dishes laid out on the table and blurted out, ‘Your Majesty, is your treasury running out of money?’
The corner of the Emperor’s lips lifted in a smile. Xia Sang had already burst out laughing in an exaggerated fashion, bending over and clutching at his sides.
On the table were plates of steamed vegetables and bean curds, as well as two bowls of congee.
Xuanji bit her lips. She hadn’t asked the wrong question; the only thing that was wrong was that men cared about their pride, and since money and authority were proxies to display their worth, she should not have question a man’s wealth, especially when the man in question was the Emperor.
***
The two of them had not even begun their meal when, from outside the room, a newcomer sought an audience with the Emperor. Xia Sang hurried out of the room then hastened back in, leaning down to whisper something in the Emperor’s ears.
The Emperor furrowed his brows and said to her, ‘You can begin eating without me.’
Having said these words, he swiftly departed with Xia Sang.
Xuanji did not know if the Emperor was displeased with her question or if he did indeed have something to attend to. Staring at the numerous plates of food, she did not dare to begin eating, for the Emperor himself had not dug in.
Minutes passed and she grew tired and hungry. The few times she had gone to the entrance of the doorway in search of him, the roomful of servants had all stopped in their tracks to stare at her.
She thought that, after all, she was still a Consort, so she tried to display some authority, sweeping her hands as she said, ‘You can all rest for the night.’
Having asked the servants to all withdraw, she continued waiting for another long while, but the Emperor did not reappear. Eventually, her hunger eclipsed her tenacity, and she ate the dinner that had been prepared.
Originally, she had thought that even if the dishes prepared were all steamed vegetables, they should still be flavourful and unique in their tastes, to befit the status of food that had been served to the Emperor. Yet she soon discovered that they were really just plates of steamed vegetables, bland and without flavour…
The Emperor must have done it to mess with her.
In any case, she had already chalked up a list full of mistakes today, so she decided not to wait for the Emperor any longer, and to wash up and retire for the night.
Only when she thought of the issue of showering did she halt in her footsteps.
Where were the appliances for bathing? Earlier, she should not have asked all the servants to withdraw.
The compound of Fengjiu Palace was vast. All the attendants serving her lived in the numerous rooms enclosed within the inner courtyard.
Xuanji walked out of her rooms and stood in the middle of the courtyard, hesitating if she wake someone up. After all, she came from a world where every person was an equal.
‘Your Highness.’ As she contemplated, a soft voice called her.
Diefeng?
Xuanji was filled with surprise and joy at once. ‘You’ve not slept?’
‘I heard some of the servants remark that you were still waiting for His Majesty, so I did not dare to retire for the night.’
Casting aside the question of what made Diefeng serve her so attentively, Xuanji’s heart still warmed.
Diefeng quickly called a few other servants to prepare the bath tub and hot water.
Xuanji looked over and saw the flower petals that were scattered within the tub full of water. Recalling that common scene in television where a beautiful woman would bathe in a rose-filled bath, she could not suppress her laughter.
As she was unaccustomed to having someone wait on her, Xuanji let Diefeng return to the room to wait, and the both of them, separated by the embroidered screens, chatted idly, where she took the opportunity to understand the different power players within this vast palace.
She quickly got the gist of the relationships between the most powerful figures residing in Xi Liang, and found out that the Emperor had only just wedded a month ago, where he had simultaneously married the Empress and took three other women into his harem as his Consorts.
Within Xi Liang’s imperial harem, there existed one Hall and four Palaces occupied by the Emperor’s five highest-ranking women. Residing in Luanxiu Hall was Empress Yu Mixiu, the eldest granddaughter of Minister Yu, an influential official that had served three different Emperors during his tenure at court. Consort Hua, the Empress Dowager’s niece, occupied Qinfang Palace, while Consort Hui, the daughter of a military General stationed at the borders, occupied Liuli Palace.
Then, there was her: Nian Xuanji – the youngest daughter of Minister Nian, the force balancing Minister Yu’s authority in Xi Liang. Minister Nian had many followers in the imperial court – of the six most important ministries, three of the Ministers holding court were his pupils.
Guarding Xi Liang’s borders was an army under the command of three Generals: Wen Rukai, the Empress Dowager’s younger brother; Rong Meng, Consort Hui’s father; Nian Songting, Minister Nian’s adopted son.
The Emperor only favoured her because of this, right?
***
Yet when one considered the relationship dynamics between the important figures of Xi Liang, they could not easily discount the powerful forces which also backed the three other women who had married the Emperor. As such, if the Emperor wanted to be beyond reproach, then, on the night of his wedding, he should have resided in the Empress’s rooms.
Staring at the bronze mirror affixed on the embroidered screens, Xuanji finally had the first glance of her features, which was refined and graceful. Her eyes were clear and bright – it was a beautiful face, indeed.
Despite that, even without comparison to Consorts Hua and Hui, both famous throughout the country for their stunning countenance, the Empress, with her quiet, restrained beauty, also seemed to cause Xuanji’s features to pale in contrast.
Did the Emperor truly favour Nian Xuanji?
The truth was, on the day following his wedding, the Emperor had immediately departed for the Autumn Mountains to pay his respects to his ancestors.
The Emperor and Nian Xuanji’s relationship was merely a night’s worth of affections.
Even as Xuanji slid into the comforting warmth of her bed, her mind was still preoccupied with this question. She raised a hand to her lips, where the man’s breath seemed to still linger. After a long while, sleep finally claimed her senses.
Abruptly, her breath stilled.
Though the footsteps were faint, someone had indeed entered the room!
She was shocked – who possessed the daring to sneak into the room of the Emperor’s woman in the middle of the night? Before she had gone to bed, Diefeng had also arranged for a few eunuchs and servants to keep watch outside her rooms.
So where did all those people go?
The stranger had already walked to the bedside. Afraid to be discovered that she had awoken, Xuanji did not dare to open her eyes, her two hands clutching tightly at her quilt.
The intruder’s hands, separated by the quilt, brushed across her back, and a shiver spread across her body. At this moment, Xuanji abandoned all her hesitation, lifting the blankets to abruptly shove them towards the intruder’s face.
She failed!
The man’s movements were swift. With a flip of his hands, he had already lifted her together with the quilt wrapped around her. Her throat tightened and a shout escaped her.
‘Why aren’t you asleep?’ The man said mildly.
Xuanji’s cry of help was choked back as she said in surprise, ‘Your Majesty?’
‘Yes.’
‘Why are you here?’ Immediately, she realised that she was starting to be disrespectful again. ‘Sorry, I…’
‘What do you think I am here for?’
In the darkness, she could hear his voice, deep and impassive.
‘Oh… Ah!!’
She was tossed back onto the bed, where she automatically rolled deeper into the bed, her heart thrumming with fear. Unless she wanted to die…. could she say no?
The Emperor quickly laid down on the bed beside her.
‘Sleep on your back or lie on your stomach?’ The man’s voice carried a hint of fatigue and impatience.
‘On my back…’ She answered, puzzled by his question.
‘Don’t the wounds on your back hurt?’
The moment the Emperor said these words, Xuanji immediately reacted – it did hurt! Earlier, she had unconsciously laid down with her back facing the ceiling, but now, she was curled up like a hedgehog. Though the quilt was warm and thick, the pain emanating from her back still burned sharply.
She found it too embarrassing to let the gasp of pain escape her, so she clenched her jaw tightly in the darkness. Yet her entire person was suddenly pulled onto the man’s body.
Her heart thrummed in shock; she could feel the curve of her chest pressing tightly against his firm body.
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