·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.

·Yehonala T WAS Apnl in the city of Peking the fourth month of the olar year of 1852 the thurd month of the moon year the two lundred and eighth year of the Manchu, the great Ch mg masty Spong was late and the northera winds carrying ir load of fine yellow sand from the Gobi desert blew cold winter over the housetops Sand drifted down into the ets sar d whirled in eddies and filtered through doors and ndows It silted mto comers and lay upon tables and chairs and in th crevices of garments it dried upon the faces of children when they wept, and in the wrinkles of old people In the house of the Manchu Bannerman Muyanga in Pew ter Lane the sand was more than usually tresome for the windows did not fit tightly and the doors hung loose upon their wooden hinges On this particular morning Orchid hus neçe and the eldest chald of his dead brother was wakened by the noise of wind and creaking wood She sat up in the large Chinese bed she shared with her younger sister and frowned when she saw the sand lying upon the red qult like tinted sno v In a moment she crept out softly from the bed clothes so that she mght not a vaken the sleepe Under her bare feet she felt the sand on the floor and s ghed Only yes terd. y she had swept the house clean, and all was to be swept çain as soon as the wind died She was a handsome girl this Orchid, seeming taller than was b cause she was slender an! held herself erect Her KU S we e strong but not coarse her no e straigbt her brows clear ber mouth well shaped and not too small "I great beruty Lay in her eyes They were long and large. d exceedingly clear the black and the white pure ·am arate Yet such beauty might have been meaningless for the natural spirit and intelligence that informed by tire being although she still was very young She was eu controlled her strength apparent m the smoothness of her movernents and the calm of her manner In the sand gray light of the moming she dressed herself swiftly and noiselessly and putting aside the blue cotton cur tains that served as a door she went into the mam room and from that into the small kitchen adjoining it Steam rose from the large von cauldron set into the earthen stove Lu Ma, so she greeted the serving woman You are early this morning Self-control was in the extreme gentleness of her pretty voice held resolutely low From behind the stove a cracked voice replied I could not sleep Young Mistress What shall we do when you leave us? Orchid smiled The Emperors Dowager Mother may not choose me-my cousin Sakota is far more beautiful than I She looked behind the stove Lu Ma as crouched there feeding wisps of dned grass into the fire making the most of every blade of the scanty fuel You will be chosen The old woman s tone was definite and sad and emerging at this moment from behind the stove looked desolate a small hunchbacked Chinese her blue Hon garments faded and patched her bound feet stumps face shrunken into a net of brown wrinkles o tlined with le sand Sand lay on her gray hair and frosted her eyebrows and the edge of her upper lip "This house cannot do without you she moaned Second Sister will not so much as sew a seam because you have al ways done everything for her Those two boys your bro wear out a pair of shoes apiece in every moon month And what of your kinsman Jung Lu? Are you not as good as be trothed to him since your childhood? In a manner we are betrothed Orchid replied in the sam pretty voice She took a basın from the table and a fron kdle from the platform of the stove and dipped the h water from the cauldron Then reaching for a small g to: el that hung on the wall she put it in the water a ringing it steaming dry she wiped her face and neck wrists and hands Ker smooth oval face grew punk with. 2 ·dimp heat and she looked into the few inches of mirror that hung above the table There she saw only her extraordinary eyes lively and dark She was proud of her eyes although she never allowed a sign of pride to escape her When ne ghbor women spoke of her moth eyebrows and the leaf shaped eyes beneath them she seemed not to hear But she heard "Ale the old woman said, staring at her I did always say that you have a de any It is in your eyes We must obey the Emperor the Son of Heaven And when you are Empress my precious you will remember us and send down help Orchid laughed soft controlled laughter I shall be only a concubine one of hundreds! You will be what Heaven ordains the old woman de clared She wrung the towel out of the water and hung it on its nail Then she lifted the basın and went to the door and poured the water carefully on the earth outside Comb your hair Young Mistress she said. J ng Lu vill come e rly this morning He said that today he might be the bearer of the golden summons Orchid d d not reply but she walked with her usual grace into her bedroom She glanced toward the bed Her s ster was still sleeping the slight form scarcely rounded under the quilt Quietly sbe unwound her long black hair and combed it through wth a Chinese wooden comb perfumed with the fragrant oil of a cassia tree Then she wound her hau in two cous over her ears and into each coil she put a small flower of seed pearls swtounded with leaves of thin green jade Before she had finished she heard the footsteps of her kans man Jung Lu in the next room and then his voice deep even for a mans voice asking for her For the first time in her life she did not go to bum at once They were Manchu, and the ancient Chinese law and custom forbidding the meeti g of ma le and female beyond the age of seven, had not kept them apart. She and Jung Lu had been playmates in childhood and sin friends when chuldhood as past He was now a guardsman at the gates of the Forbidden City and because of bus duty th re he could not come often to Muyanga s house Yet he was always h re on feast days and birthdays and at The Chinese feast of the Crack of Spnng two months ago he Yad spoken to her of marge On that day she had neither refused hun nor armer ·She had smiled her brilliant smile and she had said You must not speak to me instead of to my uncle” We are cousins he had reminded her Thnce removed she had rejoined Thus she had replied without yes or no and remembering now hat had passed on that day and indeed she thought of at ah ays whatever she did she put aside the curtain There in the main room he stood tall and sturdy his feet planted well apart On another day he would have taken off his guardsmans round cap of red fox fur and even perhaps hss outer tunic but today he stood as though he were a stranger holding in his hand a packet wrapped in yellow silk She saw it at once and he knew she saw it They caught each others thought, as always He said You recognize the impenal summons It would be foolish not to know it she replied They had never spoken with formal address nor used thr courtesies and small talk of man and woman They knew each other too well He said his eyes not moving from hers Is Muyanga my Kinsman awake She said not moving her eyes from his "You know that he does not nse before noon Today he must rise Jung Lu retorted I need his signa ture of receipt as guardian in your father s place She turned her head and called Lu Ma wake my unclel ung Lu is here and must have his signature before he reurns to the palace Ale ył the old woman siched Orchid put out her hand Let me see the packet Jung Lu shook his head It is for Muyanga She let her hand fal 'Yet I know what it says I am to go to the palace with my cousin Sakota nine days from now His black eyes glowered under heavy brows Who has told you before me? She looked away from hum her long eyes half hidden under the straight black lashes "The Chinese know everything I stopped yesterday on the street to watch their windennel actors They played The Emperor s Concubine-that old play but they made it new In the sixth moon on the twentieth day the play said, the Manchu virgins must appear before ·the Dowager Mother of the Son of Heaven How many of us are there this year?" Suty" he said She lfted her stra ght long lashes black above her onyx eyes I am one of sixtype I have no doubt that in the end you will be first he sud His voice so deep so quet, went to her heart with pro phetic force Where I am" she said you will be near me That I shall insist upon Are you not my kinsman?" They were gaang at each other again forgetful for the moment of all except themselves He said sternly as though she had not spoken I came he e purposing to ask your guard an to give you to me for my wife Now I do not know what he will do Can he refuse the imperial summons?" she asked She looked away from his and then, her smooth grace accentuated she walked to the long blackwood table which stood against the inner wall of the room Between two high brass candlesticks under the painting of the sacred mountain of Wu Tai a pot of yello v orchids bloomed **They opened thus moming--the imperial color it is an omen "she murmured. Everything is an omen now in your mind " he said She turned to hun her black eves bnght and angry not my duty to serve the Emperor if I am chosen She looked away from him and her voice lowered to its usual ge tleness If I am not chosen certainly I will be your wife Lu Ma came in peering at one young face and the other "Your uncle is awake now Young Mistress H says he will take hus food in bed Meanwhile your kuisman is to enter She went away and they heard he clattering in the kitchen The hous was beginning to stir The two boys ve e quarrel ing in the outer courtyard by the street gate in the b droom Orchud heard her sisters plaintive call Orchid-Elder Sister! I am not well! My head aches." Orchid Jung Lu repeated It is too childish a name for you now She stamped her foot. It is still my name! you stay? Do your duty and I will do mine" Is at ·She had smiled her brilliant smile and she had said "You must not speak ta me instead of to my uncle We are cousins he had rernnded her "Thrice removed, she had rejoined Thus she had replied without yes or no and remerabering now what had passed on that day and indeed she thought of it always whatever she did she put aside the curtain Th re in the main room he stood tall and sturdy his feet planted well apart On another day he would have taken off hus guardsmans round cap of red fox fur and even perhaps kis outer tunic but today he stood as though he were a stranger holding in his hand a packet wrapped in yellow silk She saw it at once and he knew she saw it. They caught each others thought, as always He s d You recogn ze the imperial summons It would be foolish not to know it she replied They had never spoken with formal address nor used them courtesies and small talk of man and woman They knew each other too well He said his eyes not moving from hers Is Muyinga my kinsman awake? She said not moving her eyes from his "You know that he does not rise before noon Today he must nse Jung Lu retorted I need his signa ture of receipt as guardian in your fathers place She turned her head and called Lu Ma wake My uncle! Jung Lu is here and must have his signature before he te turns to the palace Ale ya the old woman sighed Orchid put out her hand Let me see the packet Jung Lu shook his head It is for Muyanga She let her hand fall 'Yet I know what it says I am to go to the palace with my cousin Sakota nine days from now His black eyes glowered under heavy brows Who has told you before me She looked away from hum her long eyes half hidden under the straight black lashes "The Chinese know everything. In stopped yesterday on the street to watch their wandering actors They played The Emperor s Concubine-that old play but they made it new In the sixth moon on the twent eth day the play said, the Manchu vygins must appear before ·mnent Sakota too was sakeful Somewhere in the silent hours she had heard footsteps and recognized them Sakotal she had cried In the darkness her cousins soft hand felt her face Orchid I am frightenedl Let me come into your bed She pushed aside her younger sister lumpish in sleep and made room for her cousin Sabota crept in Her hands and feet were cold and she was trembling "Are you not afraid?" she whispered cowering under the qults against her cousins warm body No Orchid sud, "What can harta me? And why should you be afraid when your own elder sister was the Emperors chosen onge "She died in the palace Sakota włuspered "She was un happy there-she vas sick for home I too may die I shall be there with you Orchid said She wrapped her od strong arms about the slender body Sakota was always too thin too soft never hungry never strong What if we are not chosen into the same class?" Sakota asked So it had happened They were separated Yesterday hen the virgins appeared first before the Dowager Mot! er of the Son of Heav n she chose twenty e ght from the sixty Salota because she was the sister of the dead princ ss was placed in Fer the first class and Orchid in Kuer Jen the third She has a temper the shrewd old Dowager sad staring at Orchid Otherwise I would put her in the second class of F'in for it is not fitting to put her vath the first class with her cousin and the sister of my daughter in law bo has passed to the Yellow Springs Let her be in the third class for it is better if my son the Emperor does not notice her Orchid hnd listened a seeming modesty and obedience Now a virgin only of the third class she rememb red her mothers partng words Her mother was a strong woman A voice called through the sleeping ball, the vo ce of the chief tiring woman whose task it was to prepare the virgins *Young ladies it is time to risel It is time to make your selves beautiful! This is your d y of good fortune The others rose at once upon this summons did not Whatever the others did she would would be separate she would be alone. She ky ·sat in a wide bamboo chatr fat and severe accustomed all but concealed beneath the silken qult, and watch 6 young girls skivering under the hands of the women with who come to attend them The early ar was cool, cle monde em ummer was still ziew and from the shallow wooden of hot ater the ste im rose in a mist. "All must bathe the chief tinng woman commanded Site obxd enc The young guls poly naked stepped into the tubs ante serving i omen rubbed their bodies with perfumed se p and asheri tlem with soft cloths while the chief tirung wauze stared at each in turn Suddenly she spoke T venty eight were chosen from the sixty I count ca's tusent) seven She examined the paper in her hand call d the names of the virgins Each virgin answered whe e she stood But the last one did not answer "Iehonala! the old woman called again It was Orchids clan name Yesterday before si e left house Vuyanga her uncle gus dian hd summoned her his l brary to give her a fathers counsel She had stood before fun and he not s sing his large cld in sky blue saten and on flowing the seat of his easy chu give his advice She felt an easy humor tos ar llum fo he was negligently kind but she did not love him for he loved no one being too lazy for love or hate No v that you are about to enter into the Cty of the Emperor he said in his oily voice you must leuve behind your little name Orchid From this day you will be called Iehonala Yehonalal Again the chief tuig woman shouted and still she did not answer She closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep Has Tehonala escaped? the old woman called A serving woman ans vered Mistress she lies in bed The chief tiring woman was shocked. Soll abed? And can she sleep? The servant went to the bed and looked She is sleeping" "Wat hard heart is this the old woman cried Valen her! Pull away the quilts pnch her arins! The servant obeyed and Yehonalt feignung to wake opened her eyes What is it?" she asked drou sily She sat 8 ·up her hands flyg to her ch eks Oh-oh- she stamor ered, her voice as soft as that of a mourning dove How could I forget?" "How indeed! the chef tiring woman said, indignant Do you not kno v the Emperors command? In two hours from now you must all be ready in the Audience Hall e ery vir gin at her best-t vo hours I tell you in which you must be bathed and perfumed and robed your hair colled your break fast eaten Tehonala yawned behind her hand How I slept! The mattress is m ch softer here than on my bed at bome The old woman snorted It can scarcely be magin d that a mattress in the palace of the Son of Heaven would be as hard as your bed So much softer than I imagined Jehonala sud She stepped upon the tile? floor her feet bare and strong The virgins ere all Manchu and Dot Chinese and their feet were unbound and free Come come the chief tiring woman sa d Hasten your self Yehonala! The others ar nearly dressed Yes Venerable she said But she did not hurry herself She allo ved a woman to undress her putting forth no effort to help he and hen she vas naked she stepped into the shallo v tub of hot wat r and would not lift her hand to wash her own body "You! the woman said under her breath. Will you not help me to get you ready? Yehonala opened her large eyes black and brilliant. What shall I do she asked helplessly No one should guess that n her home there vas na servant except Lu M in th kitchen She had al vays b thed not only herself but her younger sister and brothers She had washed ther clothes with her own and she had camed them as ba bies on her back, strapped there with broad bands of cloth while she went hther and thather helping her mother about the house und running often to the oil shop and the very table market Her only pleasure was to stop on the watch a troupe of wandering Chinese actors Muy ang al ays lind allowed he to be own children by the famuly tutor although the 9

·No text on this page.

·27 sen ible fer ale creature" she announced Nesertheless after a moment she tumed her head to whisper to one of the serv ing women Look at her great eyes! She has a fierce heart this one." The woman grimaced A tiger beart she agreed "Truly a tiger heart- At noon the emuchs came for them led by the Chief Eunuch An Teh hat He was a h adsome still you thfut fig ure vrapped in a long pale blue s tin robe gudled the waist with a length of red silk His face was smooth the fa tures large the nose curved dos nward the eyes black and proud He gave orders half carelessly for the virgins to pass b fore him and like a petty emperor he sat in a great carved char of blackwood and stared at e ch one as she passed se m ing at the sume time to be only contemptuous B side him was a blackwood table upon which were placed his tally book, his ink brush and box From u d r her long eyel ds Yehon la watched him She stood apart from the other virg ns half huding herself behind a curtain of scarlet satın hug in a doorwa The Chief Eunuch marhed with a brush and ink the name of each vi gun as she pas ed "There is one not here he announced Here am 1 Yehonal said she moved forward shyly her head bent her face turned away her voice so soft it could scarcely be heard "That one has been late all d y the chief tin g woman said in her loud voice She slept when the others rose She would not wash or dress herself and she has eaten enough food for a peasant voman-three bowls of mallet she swal lowed down' Now she stands th re stupid I do not know wheth she is a fool "Yehonala the Chief Eunuch tead in a h gh harsh voice "eldet daughter of the dead Bann man Chao Cuardıın. the Bpn man Muyanga She was egistered at the Northem Palace two years ago aged fifteen She is Tow seventeen lle 1ft d'hs head and sta ed at lehonala stand ng him her head drooping modestly her eyes fixed or. the very and he inn 19red Are you ·I am she Yehonala said Pass on the Chief Eunuch commanded But his eyes fol lowed her Then he rose and commanded the lower eunuchs Let the virgins be led into the Hall of Waiting When the Son of Heaven is ready to receive them I will announce them myself one by one before the Dragon Throne Four hours the vigins vaited The serving women sat with them scolding of a satın coat were wrinkled or if a lock of hair were loosened Now and again a woman touched a vir gins face with powder or painted her lips agam Twice the virguis were allowed to drink tea At noon a stir in distant courtyards roused them Homs sounded drums beat and a gong vas struck to the rhythm of footsteps coming nearer An Teh hai the Chief Eunuch came again into the Hall of Wuting and with him were the lesser eunuchs among whom as one young and tall and lean and though his face was ugly it was so dark and so like an eagles in its look that Yehonala s eyes were fixed upon him in olun tarily In the same instant this eunuch caught her look and returned it with insolence She turned her head away But the Chief Eunuch had seen Li Lien ying he cried sharply why are you here? I bade you wait with the virgins of the fourth class the Chang Ts ai! Without a word the tall young eunuch left the hall The Chief Eunuch then said "Young ladies you will wait here until your class is called First the Fei must be presented to the Emperor by the Dowager Mother then the Pin Only when these are reviewed and the Emperor s choice is made may you of the third class who are only huer Jen approact the Throne you are not to look upon the imperial face It is he who looks at vou None answered The virginis stood silent their hends drooping while he spoke Yehonala had placed herself last as though she were the most modest of them all but her heart beat against her breast Within the next few hours within an hour or less depending on the Emperors mood she might reach the supreme moment of her life He would look at her appra se her weigh her shape and color and in that little moment she must make him feel her powerful charm She thought of her cousin Sakota even now passing before the Emperor s eyes Sakota was sweetly simple gentle and 12 ·childlike Because she was the sister of the dead princess whom the Emperor had loved when he was prnce its us all but sure that she would be among the chosen That was good She and Sakota had lived together since she was three years old when her father dad her mother had returned to the ancestral home and Sakota had al vays vielded to her and leaned upon her and trusted her Sakota might even say to the Emperor My cousin Yehonala is beautiful and cler It had been upon her tongue that last n ght they slept together to say to her Speak for me, and then she had been too proud Sakota though gentle and childish had a chulds pure dignity which forbade advance. A munnur fluttered over the group of wating virgins Someone had caught a vhusper from the Aud ence Hu The Fes were already dismissed. Sakota had been chosen from among them to be the first Imp nal concubine The P'ın Here few in number Anoth r hour- Before the hour was ended the Chief Eunuch eturned It is now the t me for the Kuel Jen he announced Arringe yourselves young ladies The Emperor gows we ry The virgins arranged themselves in procession and the toring women put the last touches on hair and lips and eye brows Silence fell upon all nd laughter ce sed One si le ted (antig upon & servisg wom bo pucked her son.. and the lobes of her ears to store her Inside the Audience Hall the Chief Eunuch as al erdy calling their names and ag s and each must enter at the sound of her name and her age One by one they passed b fo e the Emperor and the Dowager Mother But Yehonala t last drifted a her place as though forgetfully to pet a small palace clog who had come running through an open door The creature was a sl eve dog, one of those minute beasts tht Cortides keep half starved in puppyhood and dua f d en ugh tude within a wide ernbroidered sleeve At the door the Chief Eu nuch waited "Yehonala! he called The tiring women had already scatte ed and she wa I ft alone play ng with the dog She had alipost deceived that inde d she had forgotten h re she was and held b k the dogs long e rs and laughed into face no larger th n the palm of her own hand S! 13 1 ·of these little dogs that looked like lions but no commoner was allowed to keep them and she had never seen one until DOW Yehonala! An Teh hais voice roared into her ears and she stood up quckly He rushed at her and seized her arm Have you forgotten? Are you mad? The Emperor waits! He waits I tell you--why you deserve to die for this She renched herself loose and he burried to the door and shouted out her name again Yehonala daughter of the Bannerman Chao now deceased, niece of Muyanga of Pew ter Lanel Her age seventeen years three months and two days- She entered without noise or affectation and walked slowly down the length of the immense hall, her long Manchu coat of rose red satın touching the tip of her embroidered Manrbu shoes set high on vhite soles and center heels Her narrow beautiful hands she held folded at her waist, and she did not turn her head toward the Throne as she passed slowly by Let her pass again the Emperor said The Dowager Mother stared at Yehonala with unwilling admuation I warn you, she said thus gul has a fierce tem per I see it in her face She is too strong for a woman She is beautiful," the Emperor said Shll Yehonala did not turn her head. The voices fell dis embodied upon her ears What does it matter if she has a temper? the Emperor now inquired she can scarcely be angry with me He had a youthful petulant voice thin and boyish in its qual ty His mother s voice answering him was full and slow wise with age It is better not to choose a strong woman who is also beau tiful," she reasoned "There is that other one Pou Yu whom you have seen in the class of Pin A sensible face good looks but-" A coarse skin, the Emperor said rebelliously "Doubtless she had smallpor as a child In spite of the powder on her face I saw its marks Yehonala was now directly in front of hun Stay manded her She stopped, her face and body in profile her 14 MP he com ·head lifted, her eyes gaziag into distance as though her heart were somewhere else "Tum your face to me he commanded Slowly as though indifferent she obeyed In decency in modesty in all that she had been taught, a virgin does not fix her eyes higher than a mans breast Upon the Emperor sbe should not look higher than lus knees But Yehonala looked full into his face and with such concentration that she say the Emperors eyes shallowly set beneath youthful scanty eyebrows and through her own eyes she poured into his the power of her will He sat immobile for a long instant Then he spoke "This one I choose If you are chosen by the Son of Heaven," her mother had sard serve first his mother the Dowager Mother Let her be Leve that you think of her day and might Leam what she enjoys seek out her comfort, never try to escape her She has not many years to live There will be plenty of years left for you Yehonala remembered these words On that first night after she had been chosen she lay in her own small bedroom within the three rooms given her to use An old tiring voman was appointed by the Chief Eunuch to be her servant Here she must live alone except when the Emperor sent for her That might be often or never Sometimes a concubine lived within the four walls of thus imperial city virgin until she died forgotten by the Emperor unless she had means to bribe the eunuchs to mention her name before him But she Yehonala would not be forgotten When he was weary of Sakota, to whom indeed he o ved a duty he might, he must think of her Yet would he remember? He was accustomed to beauty and even though their eyes had met could she be sure that the Son of Heaven would remember? She lay upon the brick bed, made soft by three mattresses and considered. Day by day she must now plan her life and not one day could be wasted, else she might hve sol tary a virgin forgotten She must be clever she must be careful and the Imper. I Mother must be her means She would be useful to the Dowager Empress affectionate unfailing in constant attentions And now beyond this she pe 15 ·be taught by tutors She knew already how to read and stite thanks to her uncles goodness but her thirst for real learning was never satisfied Books of hustory and poetry music and painting the arts of eye and ear these she would ask to be taught For the first time since she could remember she had time to possess for her own leisure in which to train her mind she would care for her body too eat the b st ments rub her hands soft with mutton fat perfume herself with dred oranges and musk, bid her serving woman brush her haur twice da ly after her bath These she would do for her bodv that the Emperor might be pleased But her mind she would shape to please herself and to please herself she would learn how to brush chuacte s as scholars do and to punt landscapes as artists do and she would read many books The satın of her bedquilt caught on the roughened skin of her hands and she thought I shall never ash clothes again or fetch hot water or gnnd meal Is this not h pp ness?" Two nights she had not slept In the last night in their home when she and Sakota had lain awake talking and dreaming and she comforting the gentle one and agun in the last night with the waiting virgins who could sleep? But toniglt all fears we e over She was chosen and here in these three rooms was her little home They were small but luxun ous the walls hung with scrolls the chair sents covered with red satın cushions the tables made of blackı ood and the berms overhead punted in bright design The floors i ere smoothly tuled and the latticed windows opened into a court and upon a round pool where goldfish shone under the sun Her woman servant slept on a bamboo couch outside her door She had no one to fear No one? The narro evil face of the young eunuch L Len ying appeared suddenly against the darkness Ah the eu nuchs her wise mother had warned her of the eunuchs- *They are neither men nor women They destroy them selves as men before they are allowed to enter into the For bidden City Their maleness stemmed and denied turns evil in them it becomes malice and bitterness and cruelty and all things vile Avoid the eunuchs from the highest to the low st Pay them money when you must. Never let them see that you fear them. 16 ·"I will not fear you," she said to the dark face of LI LA yung And suddenly because she was afraid, she thought of her kinsman Jung Lu She had not seen him since she entered the palace Then always bold, she had moved as de the cas tain of her sedan chair an inch or two as at approached the great vermilion gate Before them the imperial guardsmen stood in yellow tunics the broad swords dra m and held upnght before them At the nght, next to the central gate Jung Lu stood tallest among them all He gazed straight ahead into the su aming cro vds of the street and not by the slight est sign did he let her know that to him one sedan was differ ent from another Nor could she make a sign Half wounded she had put hum out of mind No and she would not think of him even now Ne ther she nor he could kno when they might meet again Within the walls of this Forbidden City a Iman and a woman might be out their lves and ne er meet. Yet why had she thought of him suddenly when she remembe ed the dark face of the eunuch! She sighed and wept a few tears surprised that she did and she ould not inquire into her elf to know the cause of her tears Then being young and sery weary she slept. The vast old palace ubrary was cool even in midsummer At noon the doors were closed against the outdory heat and the glittering sun shone dimly through the shell l ttices No Sound d sturbed the stillness e cept the low muru of Yeho nala s voice as she read aloud to the aged eunuch who was her tutor She was reading from The Book of Changes and absorbed 'In the cadences of its poetry she did not notice that her tutor was sulent too long Then, glanc ng upward as she tumed a page she saw the old scholar asleep his head sunk upon his breast hus fan slipping from the loosened fingers of his nght hand The comer of her mouth twitched in a half smide and she read on steadily to herself At her feet a little dog slept It was her own given her by the Imperial Keeper when she sent her serving woman to beg for a pet to mend her Ionel Ti o months now she had been in the palace and she received po summons from the Emperor she had not ness ·her family not even Sakota nor had Jung Lu come near Since she had not left the gates she had not passed bum as he stood on duty In this strange isolation she might have been unhappy except for her busy dreams of the days to come Some day some day she might be Empress! And when she was Empress she would do as she liked if she wished she could summon her kinsman into her presence for a pur POSA any purpose such as the bearing of a letter to her moti er I put this letter into your hands myself she would say and you are to bring back a I tter from her in reply And none but they two would know whether the letter was for her mother But her dreams wasted upon the Emperor and meanwhile she could only prepare herself Here in the library she studied each day for five hours with her tutor the eunuch who held the h ghest degrees of scholarsh p In the years when he was still a man he had been a famou writer of eight legged essays and poems in the Tng style Then because of lus fame he had been commanded to be come a eunuch in order that he might teach the young prince Dow the Emperor and after him the ladies who were to be come his concubines Among these some would learn and some would not and none the old tutor declared leamed as Yehonala did He boasted of her among the eunucts and gave good reports of her to the Dov ager Mother so that one day when tehonala waited upon her the Dowager Mother even commended her for industry "You do well to learn the books she sud My son the Emperor wearies eas ly and when he is weak or restless you must be able to amuse him with poetry and with your paint ing And Yehonala had inclined her head in obedience At this moment while she mused upon a page she felt o touch upon her shoulder and turning her head she saw the end of a folded fan and a hand that she had come to know at sight a large smooth powerful hand It belonged to the young eunuch, La Lien ying She was aware and had been axare for weeks that he was determined to be her scorint It was not his duty to be near hr he was only one among many of the lesser eunuchs but he had become useful to her in many small ways When she longed for fruits or sweets at 18 ·was he who brought them to ber and through him she heard the gossip of the many halls and passageways the hundreds of courts of the Forbidden City Gossip she must hear for it Has not enough for her to read books she must know also every detail of intrigue and mishap and love within these walls To know was to acqmre power She lifted her head her finger on her lips her eyebrows raised la question He motion d with his fan that she was to follo v him into the pavilon outside the library Silently his cloth soled shoes noiseless upon the tiles he led the way and she followed until they were beyond danger of ousing the sleeping tutor The little dog wakang, followed her without barking I have news for you" L Lien ying said He to vered above her lus sloulders immense his head squ re and large his features roughly shaped and coarse a figure powerful and crude Sho might have been afraid of him still except that now she allo ved herself to be afraid of no one What ne s' she ingured "The young Emp ess bas conce vedt Sakotal She hid nt once seen h r cousin s nce they entered the gates togeth er Sakota was Consort in her dead s ster & place hile she Yet onala was only a concubine Sakota had been summoned to the Fmperor s bed and she had fulfilled her duty If Salota bore a son he would be herr to the Dragon Throne and Sakota would be raised to the place of Empress Mother And she Yehonala woull still be only a concub ne For such small price would she have cast a vay her lover and her life? A r heart swelled and all but burst against her nbs Is there proof of the conception?" he demanded "There is he replied Her vaiting oman is in my pay This month for the second time there was no sho of blood" "Well? she asked Then her lif long control took hold, no one could save her except herself Upon he self alone she must now depend But fate m ght be her savior Sah ta might give birth to a gul There would still be no heu unt I a son w s born whose mother would then be raised to Empress And I might be that mother she tho ght Upon the gl pse of sudden hope her brain grew c Im her be rt grew still "The Enpero s duty to his dead lady us done the went on Now his fancy will wander in ·She was silent It might fall upon her! You must be ready he went on Aly reckoning is that within six or seven days he will think of a concubme. How do you know everything? she asked half fearful in spite of her will not to fear *Funuchs know such things he said, leering down into her face She spoke with dignity You forget yourself before me I offend you he said quickly I am wrong You are al ways nght I am your servant your slave She was so soltary that even though he was frightening she compelled herself to accept his assurance 'Yet why she now inquired do you ish to serve me? I have no money with which to reward you It was true that she had not a penny of money Dully she ate of the most delicate dishes for whatever tie Dowager Mother left vas gven to the concubines and there was ab IIT dance of every variety of food The chests in her bedchamber were filled with beautiful robes She slept between sill en quilts and she was writed upon day and night by her woman Yet she could not buy so much as a handkerchief or a pack t of sweets for herself And she had not seen a play since she en tered the Forbidden City The Dowager Mother was still in mouming for the dead Emperor Tao Kuang her sons fa ther and she would not allox even the concubines to enjoy themselves in a play and this lack made Yehonala morc Joncly than the loss of her family all her life whenever her tasks were heavy her mother scolding her days without loy she had escaped to watch the actors playing on the streets or in the courtyard of a temple If she had a penny by chance she saved it for the play and if she had none then slipped away before the basket was passed among the crou d. Do you think I ask for gifts? Li Lien ying said "Then you misjudge me I know what your destiny is You have a power in you that is in none of the others Did I not perceive it as soon as my eyes fell upon you? I have told you When you rise toward the Dragon Throne I will rise with you al wys your servant and your slave She was shrewd enough to know how skillfully he used her beauty and her mbition for his own ends while he knit th ties of obligation between himself and her If ever she reached 2 ·the throne and surely she would some day he would be there to remand her that he had helped her "Why should you serve me for nothing she asked indf ferently No one gives ithout thought of return "We understand each other be said and smil d She looked away "Then e can only wait" she said *We wait" he agreed and bowed and went a y She returned to the library very thoughtful, the Ittle dog padding after her The old tutor still slept and she sat down in the chair she had left nd began once more to read. And everything vas as it had been before except that her heart, in this short space of time was no more the soft he rt of a virgin She had become a woman bent upon her destiny Hoy could she now consider the meaning of ancient poetry? Her whole mind vas playing about the moment when she would be summoned And how would the summons come? Who ould bring the message? Would she ha e time to bathe and perfume he body or must she hasten as she w25? The imperial con ubines gossiped among themselves often and shen one had gone and come b ck gain, the others questioned to the last shred of memory to know what had passed between her and the Emperor Yehonala had not questioned but she had listened Better to know! "Th Emp ro does not sh vou to talk, a concubine had sa d Once she I ad been the fa onte but now she lived for gotten, in the Palace of Fo gotten Concubines wth others hom the Emperor I ad not loved for long or else who ere the aging concubines of h s dead father Though she was not yet twenty four years of age this concubine had been chosen and embraced and rejected For the rest of her life she would he neither ife nor widow and since she d d not conce ve she h d not even the solace of a child She was a pretty woman, idle and empty talking only of the one day when she had lived in the pri ate palace of the Emperor That brief story she told again and again as the new concubines I a ted to be chosen But Yehonala listened and said nothing she would divert the Emperor She would amuse hun and teas hem and song to him and tell ? am stories se ning every bond betu en them of mind as well as f sh She closed The Book of Chances put it aside There were other books fo bidden books 21 ·of the Red Chamber Plum Flower in a Golden Vase White Snake-she would read them al commanding Li Lien ying to bring them to her from bookshops outside the walls of she could not find them here The tutor vaked suddenly and quietly as the old do waken the difference for them between sleep and awakening being so slight He watched her without moving How nowhe asked Have you finished your portion? It is finished she said and I wish for other books story books tales of magic something to amuse me He looked stern and he stroked hus hairless chin with a hand as dry and withered as a dead palm leaf Such books poison the thoughts especially of females" he declared You will not find them here in the Imperial Library no there 19 not one among all the thirty sx thousand upon these shelves Such books ought not even to be mentioned by a virtuous lady" "Then I will not mention them she said playfully And stooping she gathered the Little dog into her sleeve and went away to her own chamber What she had known in the afternoon of one day as hy the next day known everywhere Mouth to ear the gossip flew from courtvard to courtyard and exc tement rose like Wind In spite of his Consort and his many concubines the Emperor had never had a child and the great Manchu clans were restless If there were no heir then an heir must be chosen from among them and pnnces watched each other closely guarding themselves and their sons jealous of where the choice might fall Now since Sakota the new Consort had conceived they could only wait If she had a daughter mstead of a son the strife would begin again Yehonala herself belonged to the most powerful of these clans and from her clan three Empresses had already risen Should she not be a fourth? Ah if she were chosen if she could conceive immediately if she had a son and Sakota but a daughter the path of destiny would be clear indeed-too clear perhap for who had such good fortune that one step could lead so swiftly to another? Yet all was possible in preparation she began from that day on to read the memorials that came from the Throne studying every word ·of the edicts the Emperor sent forth Thus she might inform herself concerning the realm and so be ready of ever the gods willed to send I er forwa d And slowly she began to compre hend the vastness of the country and its people Her world had been the city of Peking wherein she grew f om child to maiden She knew her ruling race the Manchu clans who from their invading ancestors h d seized and held the power over a m ghty people who were Chinese Two hundred years the northern dynasty had built its heart bere in the imperial city its red valls four square inside the capital The Em perors City t was called, or the Forb dden City for he was its king its sol tary male and he alone could Jeep here at right At twilight the drums beat in every lane and cranny to warn all m n to depart The Emperor remained alone among his women and bus eunuchs But this capital this inner city so she now comprehended was but the ruling center of a country et mal in its mo in tains nivers lakes and seashores n the endless numbers of its c ties and villages in the hundreds of m llions of its vari ous people its merchants farmers schola s ts weave s arti $ ns smiths and innkeepers men and women of every sort craft and at Her bright imagin tion few from the gates of her royal p son and traveled everyw here that her eyes led upon the printed p ges of her books Fron the impe al ed cts she learned yet more She learned that a m ghty rebellion was rising in the south the hateful fruit of a fore go religion These Chinese rebels called themselves Tai Ping and they were led l y a fanatic Christian surnamed Hung who imag ined himself an incarnated brother of the one called Christ, son of a fore gn god by a pe sant voman This birth was not strange for in the anc ent books were many such storles A farm wife could tell of a god ho cam b fore her in a cloud while she was telling the field and by magic he impreg nated her so that in ten moon months she bo e a godly son Or a fishermans d ughter though soll a virgin would tell how a god came up out of the river while she tended her fathers fish & sets and by his magic she was impregnated But und r the Christ an banner of Tai Pug rebels the rest less and the d scontents were gathenog th mselt s and up less they ere quelled, the e men might even overthrow the Manchu dynasty Tao Luang had been a weak emperor ·so now was his son Hsien I eng whom the Downger Mother commanded as though he were a child. Through the Dowager Mother then Yehonala must find her access and she made it her daily duty to wait upon the elder lady appearing with a choice fower or a npe frut plucked from the impenal gardens It was no v nearly the season of summer melons and the Dowager Mother loved very well the small yellow fleshed sweet melons that grow on dung heaps where in the spring the seeds are sown Yehonala walked daily in the melon rows and searched for the first sweet melons hidden under the leaves Upon those most nearly ripe she pasted b ts of yellow paper brushed with the name of the Dowager Mother so that no greedy eun ich or oman servant would steal them Every day she tested the melons with her thumb and forefinger and one day seven days after L Lien ying had told her of the news concerning Sakota she heard a melon sound is empty as a drum It was ripe and she twisted it from its stem and carrying it in both hands she went to the courtyards of the Dowager Mother Our Venerable Mother is asleep" a serving woman sud She was jealous of Yehonala because the Dowager Mothes favored her Yehonala raised her voice Is the Dowager Mother leep ing at this hour? Then she must be ill It is long pist the hour when she wakes- She had when she wished a thrush clear voice that curned through several rooms Now it reached the ears of the Dow ager Mother who was not sleeping but sat in her bedroom embroidenng a gold dragon upon a black girdle which she wished to present to her son There was no need for her to do such work but she could not read and she led to em broider She heard Yehonala s voice and since she was grow ing weary of her needle which she soon did she put it downt and called Yehonala come herel Who avs I am slecping is 1 liari Yehonala made a coaxing smule for the serving womanho frowned No one says you sleep Venerable she called in reply It is I who heard it wrong". With this courteous lie sho tripped through the rooms hold ing her melon until she reached the bedchamber of the Dow ·> ager Alother where the old lady sat in her undergarments because of the heat, and to her she presented the melon with both hands Ah the Dowager Mother cried and I sat here thinking of sweet melons and wishing for one and you come at the very moment! Let me bid a eunuch hang it in one of the northern wells to cool it " Yehonala said But the Dowager Mother would not allow this No no she argued of this melon falls into the hands of a eunuch he will eat it secretly and then when I send for it be will bring me a green one of he will say the rats have gawed it or it has fallen into the vell and he cannot get it up I know those eunuchs! I will eat it here and now and have it safely in my belly She turned her head and shouted to any serving woman who was near Fetch m al rge knife! Three or four women ran for knives and in a moment they we e back and Yehonala took a knife and sliced the meloni delicately and neatly and the Dowager Mother seized a piece of it and began to et it as greedily as a child, the sweet water dopping f om her chin. "A towel Yehonala sud to a serving woman and when it was put in her hand she tied it about the old lady s neck to keep her sıkken undervest from soiling Save half of it" the Dowager Mother command d when she had eaten as much as she could "When my son comes to present hum elf this evening as he always does before I sleep I will give it to him but it is to stay here beside me or one of those eunuchs will snatch it the "Let me- Yehonala said And she would not allow a serving woman to touch the melon She called for a dish and plac d the melon into it and then she called for a porcelain bowl and this she placed over the melon and the dish was set into a basın of cold water All this trouble she took that the Dowager Mother might mention it to the Emperor when he came and so her name would fill some here into the Emperor s heanng Vh le she worked in such ways L L en yiog worked in his also He bribed the menservants in the Emperor s private courts to watch their ford and when the monarch 95 ·restless his eyes moving this way and that after a woman the eunuch bade thern speak the name of Yet or ala Thus in one way and another it was done and the very day after the presentation of the melon Yehonala found in the pages of her book hen she opened it in the library a sheet of paper folded small Upon it were written two lines in rude handwriting They said "The Dragon awakes gain The day of the Phoenix ha come * She knew who had written the words Yet how did Li Lien yung know? She would not ask him what he did to fulfill her purposes must be secret even from herself and quietly she read her books while the old tutor eunuch slept and wohe and slept again until hours passed But this was the day when she received her usual p inting lesson in midafternoon and she was glad for her mind & rted here and there and she could not keep her thoughts upon the calm words of a dend sage Upon painting she must keep her mind fixed for her teacher was a woman not yet old and very exacting She was Lady Miao a v dow a Chinese whose husband had died in youth Since it was not usual for Chinese ladies to appea in the Manchu Court thi lady was allowed to unbind her feet to comb her hair high as Manchu ladies do and to put on Manchu robes so that at least she looked a Manchu and she was thus permitted because she was perfect in her art She came of a family of Chinese artists for 1 r father and her brothers were artists too but she excelled them all espe cially in the painting of cocks and chrysanthemums and she was employed to teach the concubines her art Yet she was so skilled and irnpatient that she would not teach a concubine who had no will to learn or no talent Both well and talent Yehonala had and when I ady Miao discovered this to be so she devoted herself to the proud young gul although she coninued insistent and severe as a teacher Thus she } id not as yet let Yehonala paint anything from life Instead she com pelled her to study ancient woodcuts and the prints of der] masters so that she might engrave upon her mind the sticles they made, the lines they drew the colors they mixed After 26 ·such study she allowed Yehonala to begin to copy and still forbade her to i ork alone This day Lady Miao arnved as usual upon the exact hour of four There were many clocks in the Imperial Library gifts of fore y envoys in past centuries and so many in the palace that it was the entire duty of three eunuchs to keep them wound This Lady Miao however looked not at the foreign clocks but at the water clock at one end of the ball She did not like foreign objects for she said they disturbed the calm needful for painting She was a slight and almost beautiful woman the small ness of her eyes being her defect Today she wore a plum colored robe and upon her hair combed high the beaded headdress of the Manchu A eunu h followed her and he opened high chest and took from it brushes and colors and water bo vls Meanwhile Iehonala rose and remained stand "ing in the presence of her teacher Be seated be s ated Lly Miao commanded She seated herself so that Yehonala could also st Now Yehonala saw from yet anoth windo v the vast country and its people at whose center she lived and the art of centuries stretched out before her as her teacher spoke frm the most fa nous of Chinese artists Au k a chih Living fifteen centu nes before this day Especially did she love the paintings of the early artist for he pa nted goddesses riding above clouds their chariots drawn by dragons And he made p ctures of impenal pal ces painted or a long hand roll of silk upon which the Imperial Ancestor Ch en Lung had set his prvate seal al ndred years ago and had written with his own hand these vords "The p cture h s not lost ts freshness The scroll xas eleven feet long time inches wide the color brown, and of the nine royal scenes it portrayed Yehonala s f vonte was th one wherein a bear breaking free from garners to amuse the Court rusted toward the Emperor and a lady thre v he self cross its path to save the Son of Heav n This Jady Yehon la thought was lke herself Tall b autiful and bold she stood ith folded anns and f arless looks befo e the be st while guardsmen ran forvard with their outthrust speurs And yet the e vas another scene she pondered on the Emperor and hs Empr ss and the r two sons tutors stood bes de these boys and all was family w ·Lfe the younger boy so mischievous grimacing and rebellious while a barber shaved his crown that Yehonala laughed to see him Such a son she would have too if Heaven willed But todays lesson was of Wang Wei a physician born thirteen centuries ago who gave up his ancestral skills and tumed poet and artist "Today Lady Miao was saying in her sharp sih ery voice "you will study these sketches by Wang Wei Observe the bamboo leaves so debcately drawn against the dark rocks Observe the plum blo soms mingled with chrysanthemums She allowed no conversation that had not to do vith paint ing and Yehonala always docile in the pr sence of her teach ers Istened and obsen ed Now she spoke "Is it not strange that plum blossoms and chrysanthemums are upon the same page? Is this not to confuse the seasons Lady Miao was not pleased It is wise not to mention confusion when speaking of Wang Well, she said if t master wishes to place plum blossoms among chrysanthe mums this is to convey a meaning It is not a mistake Con sider that among his most famous paintings is the one of banana leaves under snow Can it be possible that snow lies upon banana leaves? If Wang Wei paints it then it is possible Pray meditate upon its poetry Some declare Wang Wei more poet than painter I say his poems are paintings his paintings poems and this is art To portray a mood and not a facto this is ideal art While she talked she mixed the colors choosing brushes while lehonala watched You will inquire why I ask you to copy the work of Wang Wei the lady said I wi h you to learn precision and delicacy You have power but power must be informed and controlled from within Then only ma at Le genius "I would ask my teacher a question Yehonala shid "Ak" Lady Miao replied She was brushung fine quick strokes upon a large si eet of paper spread upon ? square table which the eunuch had brought to her side "When may I paint a picture of my own?" Yehonalı asked Her teacher held her hand poised for an instant an.) cast a sidelong look from her partowed eyes When I can nc longer command you Yehodala did not reply The inearung was clear When ·bed was chosen by the Emperor then Lady Miao could not com mand her for then no one could command her save the Em peror hunself She would be raised too high for any other to be above her She took up her brush and began carefully to copy plum blossoms among chrysanthemums Sometime in the night she did not kno v the hour she was wakened by hands shaking her shoulders She had not been able to sleep early and when at last her eyes had closed she had fallen deeply into sleep Now she came up from a y ell of darkness and struggling to open her eyes she heard the voice of her serving woman "W ke wake Yehonalal You are summonedi The Son of Herven calls- She woke instantly Her mind leaped to alertness She pushed back the silken quilts and stepped down from the h gh I have your bath ready the woman whispered Quickget into the tub! I have poured perfume into the water I have put out your best robe-the lilac satın- Not li c Yehonala sa d I shall wear the peach pink" Other vomen were coming into the chamber waked from their sleep and yawning the tiring woman, the ha rdresser and the keeper of the jewels Concubines were not g ven im penal jewels unt 1 they were summoned Yehonala knelt in her bath and her woman soaped her body well and ashed away the foam "Now step out upon this towel the woman said I 11 rub you dry The seven onfices must be perfumed th eas especially-the Emperor loves a woman s ears You have small and beautiful ears But do not forget the nostrils—and the privacies I must attend to myself To all such ministrations Yehonala submitted without a word Haste--haste was the necessity The Emperor vas awake he was drinking wine and eating small hot breads filled with fixore 1 meats The news was brought again and aga n to the door by Li Lien ying Do not d lay he hiss d in a hoarse voice through the curtains If the one he wants is not ready then he w ll call for another His dragon s temper is easily roused, I can tell Jou ·"She is ready" the serving woman cned She thrust two jeweled flowers behind Yehonala s ears and pushed her out the door Go my precious my pet she whispered Oh my little dog Yehonala cred. The small creature was at her heels No no La Lien ying shouted "You may not take your dog! But Yehonala suddenly afraid stooped and gathered the minute beast into her arms I will take hun she cried and stamped her foot Not L Lien y ng bellow ed again O Lord of Hell the serving woman roared in distraction let her take the dog you piece of cobbler s warl If you cross her she will refuse to go and where are we all then? Thus it was that Yehonala vent to the Fmperor at mid msght bearing in her arms hr little lon ber toy dog and from th t day on Li Lien ving who was indeed apprentic d to a cobbler before he cut himself into a eunuch was nick named Cobblers Wax by those who feared and hated him In the dark softness of the summer night Yehonala followed La Lien ying through the narrow passageways of the city He held an oiled paper lantern and the candle within it threw a dim circle of light to gude her Behind her came her serv ang woman The stones upon which they walked were damp with dew and thus dew like I ght hoar frost lay upon the small weeds between Silence surrounded them except that somewhere a woman wailed Thouph she had never been to the Emperors palace yet Yehonala knew as did every concub ne that it was n the heart of the Forbidden City in the midst of imperul ardens and in the shadows of the triple shrine the Tower of Rain and Flowers whose roofs were upheld by pillars of gold circled with dragons In this shrine stood three alturs where the Emperor worshipped the gods alone and so all emperors had worshipped since the time of the great Kang Hsi and the gods protected them She passed the shrine and came to the gate of the entrance courtyard of the Emperor s pnvate pulace It opened silently before her and the eunuch led her through a vast inner court yard and into a great ball and through this hall again by A ·passageways silent and empty except for watchful eunuchs until at last she reached high double gates carved with golden dragons Here the Chief Eunuch An Teh hai humself stood waiting, a tall and splendid figure his proud face set his Arms folded. His long robe of purple brocaded satın girdled about the middle with gold glittered in the light of the can dles flanng in high candlesticks of carved and polished wood. He did not speak to Yehonala or make a sign of recognition as she came near but by a gesture of his nght hand te dis missed Li Lien ying who fell back in deference Now suddenly the Chief Eunuch saw the he d of the toy dog pee ing out from Yehonala s sleeve "You may not take the dog into the Emperor s bedchamber he said sternly Yehonala lifted her head and fixed her great eyes upon tury "Then I will not enter either she said The words were brave but she spoke them in a soft indif * ferent vo ce as though she did not care whether she entered or did not An Teh hai looked his surprise Can you defy the Son of Heaven?" he demanded She made no reply and stroked the Lttle dogs smooth head with her oth r hand Elder Brother Li Lien ving now said, this concub ne is V ry troublesome She speaks like a chuld but she is more fierce than a female tiger We all fear her If she does not wish to enter it is better to send her home Truly it is not worth while to compel ber for her mind is more stubborn than a stone A curtain behind An Teh hai was now pulled aside with a jerk and a eunuchs face thrust tself out. It s asked why there is delay he cred. It is asked if he hims lf must come and settle affaust Elder Brother let her go in with the dog Li Lien ying urged She can hide it in her sleeve If the beast 25 a nui sance it can be taken away and given to the s rving woman who will st here outs de the door The Chief Eun ich scowled, but Iehonala continued to gaze at him with her great eyes wide and innocent and what co he do but yield? He grunted and quarreled under hus! but he yielded and again she followed through yet Joom at one end of which bung thick satin 31 ·Imperial vellow with dragons embroidered in scarlet silk Be hind them were heavy doors of cared wood The Chief Lu nuch put the curtains aside he opened the doors and mom tioned to her to enter This time she went alone The curtains fell behind her and she stood before the Emperor He sat upright in the huge imperial bed upon a raised platform This bed as of bronze the pillars of bronze and upon them were carved clumbing dragons From the top ol these pillars connected by a franework of bronze there hung nets of gold thread woven into patterns of fruits and flowers among curling five clawed dragons The Emperor sa upon a mattress cove ed with yello y satin and his legs wer covered by a quilt of yellow satın embroidered in dragons and behind him we e high cush ons of the same yellow satu to support him as he sat erect He yo e a bed shirt of re salk sleeved to his wrists and high about his neck and h: smooth slender hands were folded She had seen hun onl the once when he chose her and then he wore hss royal head d ess Now his head was bare and his hair was short an black His face was long and narro v sunken beneath forehead too full and overhanging They gazed at each other man and woman and he motioned to her to come near Sh walked to hım slowly her eyes fixed on his face When she was near she stopped again 'You a e the first oman vho ever come nto this chamber with her head lifted he said in a high thin voice They are always afraid to look at me" Sakota she thought Sakota had surely come in with her head drooping Where was Sikota? Inhat room did she sleep not far away? Sakota had stood here submissive Inghtened speechless I am not afraid Yehonala sud in her soft definate voice See I have brought my 1 ttle dog The forgotten concubines had told her how to address the Son of Heaven One must never spezk before him as though he were only a mortal-Lord of Ten Thousand Ycars the Highest the Most Venerable these were the words ol address But Yehonala behaved toward the Emperor a though he were a man She stroked the little dogs smooth head again and looked down Until I came here she said I have never had a dog 32 ·We this I used to hear about lion dogs and now I have one for my own The Emperor stared at her as though he did not know what to say to such childish talk Come sit on the bed beside me" he commanded her Tell me why you are not afraid of me She stepped up on the platform and sat on the edge of the bed, facing him and she held her little dog The small c ea ture sniffed the perfumed als and neezed and she laughed What is this perfume at which my dog sneeres?" she in quired. It is camphorwood the Emperor sard But tell an why you are not afraid She felt his eyes were upon her sea ching her f ce ter lips her hands as ste stroked the little dog a d she trem bled with sudden chill though it was mudsummer and the - dawn wind had not yet risen she bent her head agaur as if to see the dog then she forced herself to look up at the man and she forced herself to speak sweetly and shyly and still as though she were a child I know my destany she said And how do you kno v your destiny?** he dem nded He began to be amused, his thin lips curving upward his shad owed eyes less cold When I was summoned from my home shs d in the same shy sweet voice I went into the court of my uncles house who is my guardı n because my father is dead and I went to the shrine that stands bene th the p megranate tree there and I prayed to my goddess the Kuan Yo I lit the incense and then- She paused her lips quv red she tried to smile And then the Empe or inquired his heart enchanted by the b autiful face so soft so young *There was no wind that day she said "The smole from the burr ng incense rose straight heavenward from the altar It spread into a fragrant cloud and in the cloud I saw a face- A mans face he repe ted She nodd d her head, as a child nods when she is - to speak. 23 ·"Was it my facer he asked Yes Majesty she said Your imperial facet Two days two pights and she was still in the royal bed chamber Three times he slept and ench time she went to the door and beckoned to her serving woman and the woman came creeping through the curtains to the boudoir beyond There the euz uchs had prepared a ready bath a cauldron of water upon coals so that the woman needed only to dip the water into the vast porcelain jar and make her mistress fresh again She had brought clean garments and different robes and she brushed Yehonala s har and coiled at smoothly Not once did the young gul speak except to give direction And not once did the serving woman ask a question Each time when her task was done Yehonala went in again to the imperial bedroom and the heavy doors were closed behind the yellow curtains Ins de that vast chamber she sat upon & chai near the window to wait until the Emperor woke What had been done was done she knew now what this man was a wenk and fitful being possessed by a passion he could not satisfy lust of the mind more frightful than lust of the flesh When He was defeated he wept upon her breast This this was the Son of Heaven! Yet when he woke she was all duty and gentleness He was hungry and she sent for the Chief Eunuch and bade hun bring the dishes that his sovereign enjoyed And she ate with the Emperor and she fed the 1 ttle dag with bits of meat and released hun now and then into the courtyard outside the window When the meal was over the imperial man com manded his Chief Eunuch once more to draw the curtams over the window and hide the sunlight and he bade them leave him alone and not come unless summoned nor would he meet his ministers that day or the next and not unts he felt inclined An Teh hai looked grave Majesty evil news has come from the south for Tai P'ing rebels have seized the half of another province Your ministers and princes are impatient for audience I will not comes the Son of Heaven said peevishly and fell back upon his pillows ·The Chief Eunuch then could but leave the room Bar the doors the Emperor commanded Yehonala So she barred the doors and when she turned to him again he was staring at her with fearful and unsatisfied desire Come here" he muttered I am strong now The meats have made me strong Again she must obey This time it was true that he was strong and then she remembered something the ladies who lived in the Palace of Forgotten Concubines had told her in ther gossip They said that if the Emperor delayed too long in his bedchamber a powerful herb was mixed in /us fayo ite dish which gave him sudden and unusual strength Yet so dangerous was this herb that he must not be rous d too far for then exhaustion followed so ertreme that it could end in death On the third morning ths exhaustion fell The Emperor sank into half fainting silence upon his pillow His lps vere blue hus eyes half closed he could not move his narrow face set slowly into a greenish pallor which upon his yellow skin made him seem dead In great fear Yehonala went to the door to summon help Before she could call she saw An Teh hai the Chief Eunuch approaching expecting the sunnons Let the Court physicians be immed tely called " sho commanded She looked so proud and cold her great eyes so black, that An Teh hal obeyed Yehonala retumed to the bedside The Emperor had fallen asleep She looked down on his unconscious facend sud denly she longed to weep She stood there shivering in the str nge chill which had fallen upon her again and again in these two days and three n ghts and she went to the door and opened it enough to let her slender body through Out side at her serving woman at nodding on a vooden stool weary with aiting and kehonala put her hand on her shoulder and shook her & ntly Where is your Ittle dog?" the woman asked Yehonala stared at he unseeing I put it in the courts ard some time in the n ght-I fo get! Do not mind the oman sad, pitying her Come with me-take your old woman s hand- 35 ·And Yehonala let herself be led down the partow pas sageways It was dawn and the rising sun shone upon the rose red walls along the way and thus she came again to her solitary home And while the serving woman made her self bustling and busy she talked to comfort her mistress They are saying everywhere that never has a concubine stayed so long with the Son of Heaven Even the Consort spent only a night with him at one time That eunuch L1 Lien yang says that you are the favonte now You have nothing more to fear ** Yehonala smied but her lips trembled "Do they say so? she said and she held herself straight and moved with her usual smooth grace Yet when she was bathed and clothed in sleeping robes of softest sulk in her own bed though the curtains were d awn the serving woman gone away she fell into shivering and deathly chill Silent she must be so long as she lived for to no one could she speak Oh there was none for what friend had she? She was alone and never had she dreamed of such loneliness as now was hers There was not one Not one? Was Jung Lu not still her kinsman? He was her cousin and the ties of blood cannot be broken She sat up in her bed and dried her eyes and she clapped her hands for her serving woman "What now the woman asked at the door "Send to me the eunuch Li Lien ymg" Yehonala com manded her The serving woman hesitated Upon her round face the doubt was plain enough "Good mistress she said do not be too friendly with that eunuch What can he do for you now?" But Yehonala was stubborn Something that only he can do” she said The woman went away still doubtful to find the eunuch who came in great haste and elation "What what my lady Phoenix?" he mquired when he came to her door Yehonala put the curtain aşıde She had dressed herself in a dark and somber robe and her face was pale and gruve Beneath her eyes were shadows but she spoke with high dignity 36 ·"Bring to me here my kinsman” she said, "my cousinbrother Jung Lu The Captain of the Imperial Bannermen?" Li Lien ying asked surprised "Yes she said haughtily He went away wiping the smile from his face with his sleeve She let the curtain fall and heard the eunuch s footsteps go away When she had the power she told herself she would raise Jung Lu up so that no one not even a eunuch could dare to say the guardsman She would make him at least a duke a (rand Councilor perhaps And while she cherished these thoughts on her mind she felt such a yeaming arise in her heart that she was frightened for herself What could she want of her kinsman except the sight of his truthful face the sound of his firm vo ce while he told her what now she should do? Oh but she was wrong to send for hun, for could she tell him what had befallen her in these two days and three nights and bow she was changed? Could she say to him that she wished she had never come to the Forb dden City and beg hun now to help her to escape? She let herself sink to the floor and she leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes A strange pain deep in her vitals swelled up into her beast She hoped he would not come Vain hope for she heard his footsteps He had come in stantly, he was at the door and L. Lien yang was calling through the curtain Lady your kinsinan is here! She rose then and without thinking to look at her face in the mutor Jung Lu knew her as she was There was no reason to be beautiful for hum She went to the curtain and put it aside and he was there Come in cousin she said Come out, he said we must not meet inside your chamber" Yet I must speak with you lone she sand, for La Lien ying wasted his ears outstretched and greedy But Jung Lu would not come in and so she was forced to leave her chamber and when he saw her face how it was and how pale were her 1 ps and dark her eyes ? concemned for her and he went with her into the 37 ·and she forbade the eunuch to follow there Only her serving oman stood on the steps nearby so that it could not be said that she was alone with a man even het COUSI Thus she could not touch his hand nor allow him to touch hers sorely as she longed for his touch she moved as far from the door as she could and she sat down upon a porce lain garden seat under a clump of date trees at the far ead of the courtyard Seat you self” she said But Jung Lu would not sit down He stood before her as straight and stuff as though he were only a guardsman by the Emperor s gate "Will you not sit down?" she asked agam and looked up at him with pleading in her eyes No he said I am here only because you sent for me She yielde! Have you he d?" she asked so softly that a bird upon a branch above her could not have known what sbe s id I have heard" he said not looking at her "I am the new favorite "That too I have heard” It was all told in these few words and what more was there to be said, if he ould not speal? She kept looking at his face the face she knew so well comparing it with that thın narrow sickly face upon the imperial pillow This face was young and handsome the dark eyes large and powerful the mouth set full and firm above the strong chu Here was a mans face "I have been a fool she said He did not answer this What could be answered to it? I want to go home" she said He folded his arms and looked carefully above her head into the trees "This is your home le said She bit the edge of her lower la I want you to save me He did not move If one watched hun he would have said that Jung Lu stood subordinate to the woman who vas seated there under the date trees But he let his eyes slide down to her lovely uplifted face and in those eyes she saw his answer "Oh my heart, If I could save you, I would. But I cannot. 38 ·The heavy pain inside ber vitals suddenly eased "Then you do not forget me! "Night and day I do not forget, he said "What shall I do?" she asked "ou Imow your destiny he said "You chose it" Her lower lip quivered and tears shone silver in her black Dyes "I did not know how it would be she faltered There is no undoing what is done" he said. No gong back, no being what you were" She could not speak Instead ste bent her head to keep he tears from running on her cheels and she dared not wipe hem lest the eunuch lurked near enough to see "You have chosen greatness he said in her silence "Therefore you must be great She s allowed down her tears and still d d not dare to lift ser head Only on your promise she said, her voice small and trembling "What promise?" he said * That you will come when I s nd for you she said "I nust have that safety and that comfort. I cannot be always Jone She saw the sweat start out on his forehead as the sunlight ell through the tre s upon his face I will come to you when you call " he said not moving If you must then send for ne But do not send und ss you must I will bribe this eunuch -a thing I have never done before-to bribe a eunuch! It puts me in his power But I will do it She rose I have your promise she said She gave him one long look and held her hands hard Jasped together so that she could not put them forth to him You understand me?" she asked I do he said "It is enough she said and passing hun she left him there ind went directly to her chamber Behind her the curtain ell again For s ven days and seven rights Yehonala would not leave ser bed The palace corridorsere busy with wbispers that she was all that she was angry that she had tried to swallow ier gold earrings that she would not yıld again to the 39

·No text on this page.

·told her what was going on and how Tehonala although she knew her power would not obey the Emperor "I have never heard of such a woman in all our dynasty the Dowager Mother exclaimed with energy Let the eu puchs take her by force to my son! The Chief Eunuch hesitated Venerable be said I ques tion this method. She must be won and persuaded for I do assure you, Venerable that she cannot be forced She is so strong being both taller and heavier than the Son of Heaven though slender as a young willou tree that she will not hesitate to bite him or scratch his face when they are alone "What horror! the Dowager Mother exclaimed She was old and she had an illness of the liver and sper t much of her time in bed and was indeed now lying in the recesses of a bed so large that she seemed to be looking from a ca e She pondered "Is there no one mside the palace ho can Dersuade her?" she inquired _"Venerable the Consort is her true cousin" the Chief Eunuch suggested The Do vager Mother remonstrated It is not usual for the Conso t to urge a concubine upon her own lord the Emperor" Neither usual nor proper Venerable the Chief Euruch agreed The old lady remained silent for so long that he thought she had fallen asleep But she had dot She lifted her sunken eyelids after a time and she said "Well then let this Yehonala go to the Consort s palace "And t she will not go Venerable the Chief Eunuch inquired "How-if she not go?" the Dowager demanded "She has refused to go to the Son of Heaven hims If An Teh har remır ded her The Dowager Mother groaned I tell you I have never seen so fierce a female! Well, then the Consort 19 gentle Suggest to her that Yehonala is all and should be visited "Yes Venerable the Chief Eunuch said The e were the Instructions he wanted and he rose to obey Sleep in peace Venerable he said Go away the Dowager Mother replied "I am too old the troubles of men and women ·He went softly as she fell asleep and he went at once to the palace of the Consort and there found Sakota embroider ing tiger faces upon a pair of shoes for her child when I should be born When he had been announced and presented he exclaimed upon this work Does the Imperial Consort not have many women to embroider for her?' he asked I have Sakota replied But then I myself have nothing to do I am not cleve like my cousin Yehonala. I do no wish to study books or learn painting Ah" he said standing before her with a gesture of he little hand sl e now bade hurn sit Upon the middle finger this hand was her thumble a ring of gold at the second join' It is about your cousu that I come before you Lady b went on still standing "and at the command of the Dowage Mother" She lifted her pretty eyes Oh?' The Chief Eunuch coughed Your cousin gives us muc trouble" Indeed” Sakota sa d She will not obey the unperial summons he went on Sakota s little head drooped over her embroidery and sh blushed as pink as a peach blossom "Yet I heard--my wome told me She has won the Emperors favor” he agreed "but s1 will not retum to him. The peach blossom pink deepened 'What has this to with me?" Sakota asked "It is thought that she might listen to you the Consort he suggested Salota pondered this embroidering slowly and with t] utmost delicacy about the yellow eye of the tiny tiger the shoe "Is this a proper request to make of me?" she i quired at last The Chief Furuch was blunt Indeed it is not Lady Y must all of us remember that the Son of Heaven is not common man He is not to be refused by anyone "He likes ber so much! Sakota murmured Can she be blameda he asked a reply The Lttle creature sigbed and folded her embroidery at ·put it on the inlaid table near her Then she put her hands together We have always been sisters she and I" she said in her sy eetly plaintive voice If she needs me I will go to ber "Thank you Lady' the Chief Eunuch sard. I will escort you there myself and wait for your retum So it happened that Yehonala lying on her bed that same day tearless and in despair looked up and saw her cousin standing in the doorway By now she felt she hated all her life and she was sorry that she had chosen greatness for she did not wish such greatness when she knew the price of it. Sakotal she wailed and held out both her arms Sakota flew to her at once melted by such a cry and the two young women clasped each other and wept mutual tears Neither dared to speak of what both remembered and Sakota knew that the memory was as hateful to her as it was wa Yehonala "Oh poor Sister she wept. "Three nights. I bad only one I will not return to him Yehonala whispered She all but strangled her cousin so tightly did she bold her by both arms around the neck and Sakota sank down into the bed. Oh Sist r but you must! she cried Else , hat will they do to you my dear? We are not own now The Yehonala always whispering because of the listen ing eunuchs revealed her heart Sakota it is worse for me than you. You love no man do you? Alas I know row that I do love Here is the misery! If I did not love I could be careless What us a woman s body? It is only a thing to be kept or given as ay There is no pride in it hen one does not love It is only priceless when one loves and is loved again" She had no need to speak the nam Sakota knew it was Jung Lu It l. too 1 te Sister” Sakota said She stroked Yehonala s * Smooth wet cheeks "There is no escape now Sister Yehonala pushed her hands away "Then I must die she said her voice breaking for truly I will not Ine." And she put her head down on her cousin s shoulder again and wept Now this little Sakota had the soft heart of a w sshom is only gentleness and so while she soothed Y ·with her hands stroking her forehead and her cheeks she plotted in her heart as to what she could do to help her To leave the palace or even the Forbidden City was not pos sible If a concubine escaped there was no place for her is the kno n world IF Yehonala returned to her uncles house, who was Sakota s father then the whole family might be killed for her sin Yet where else can a runaway woman hide If she migles with strangers do they not all inquire to know who she is for is it not told everywhere with noise and commotion of a concubine runs from the palaces of the Dragon Emperor? Whatever h Ip whatever comfort must be found only wat in the walls themselves Intrigue there was a plenty and though no man could sleep within the walls of this city at n ght save only the Son of Heaven nevertheless women had their lovers by day Yet ho v could she the Imperial Consort stoop to bargan wth eunuchs and so put herself in their power? She cou not do this Not only fear but delicacy too forbade Dear Cousin she said hiding her thoughts you must speak with Jung Lu Ask hum to tell my father that you can not st y where you are Perhaps my father can buy you free or exchange you for some other one or he can say you have gone mid Not now you understand Cousin for indeed I bear that our lord is much in love with you But later Cousin when your turn is over and another takes your place per haps it can be done Salota said this innocently for she loved no man and was not jealous but Yehonal felt a prick of pride What was she to be displaced? If Sakota said thus then it must be that she had heard it already murmured among the women and the eunuchs She sat up in bed and pushed her tumbled bafr away from her face I cannot ask my kanstaan to come to me-vou know that, Sakotal Cossip would flare from court to court But you may end for hun Sakota He is your kinsman too Send for hur and tell him I will surely kill myself Tell him that I care nothing for anyone only to get myself free again Iſere 3 3 prison Sahota-we are all in prison! I am happy enough, Sakota sad mildly It is pleasant here I thinkt Yehonala turned her eyes sidewise on her cousin "You ·happy anywhere-so long as you can sit in peace and em bro der bits of satu!" Sakota s eyelids fell and her small mouth curved down. "What else is there to do Cousin?" she asked sadly Yehonala flung back her I air and caught it in one hand and twisted it into a great knot behind her head "There there-there- she cried It is what I am saying! There is nothing to do-1 cannot go on the street I cannot so much as put my head outs de the gate to see if there is a play at the comer I have not seen one play since I came here and you know I have ever loved to see a play My books yesmy pamting? Well I paint For wł om? Myselfl It is not enough-not yet! And at night- She shre ed and drew up her legs and laid her proud head down upon her knees Sakota sat silent for a long moment Then knowing that she had no comfort for this young and stormy woman whom indeed she could not understand since not by storm can a woman ch nge what she is born she rose Cousin my dear ste s id in her most coaring voice I will go away no v so that you can be bathed and dressed and then you must eat some fond something you like And I will send for our kinsman and you must not refuse to see hun af he comes for it will be because I ha e so decided for your suke And if there is gossip then I will say that it is I who bade him come She put her hand so lightly on Yehon la s head still bent on her knees that it felt no heavier there than a leaf ar d then she went away When she was gone Yehonala Aung hers lf back upon her pillo vs and lay stone still her eyes open and staring into the canopy above her A fantasy wove itself in her mind a dream a plan a plot possible only of Sakota protected her Sakota ho was the Imperial Consort, whom no one could accuse When her servng woman peered in, afraid to speak or call Yehonala turned her head "I will have my bath now she sad "And I will put on something new-say my green robe the apple green then I will eat Yes yes my queen, my pet," the wom:- 45 ·pleased She let the curtains fil and Yehonala heard her feet trotting down the corridors hastening to obey Sometime in the afternoon of that day two hours before the curfew fell when all men must leave the Emperor s city, Yehonala heard the footsteps for which she waited She ha spent the day alone in her own rooms after Sakota left her forbidding the entrance of anyone Only her serving woman sat outside the door to her Yehonala said honestly I am in sore trouble My cousin the Consort knows my woe She has commanded our kinsinan to come to me to hear me and to carry my trouble to my guardian uncle Whole he is here you are to stay by the door You are not to enter nor let anyone so much as peer into my court You under stand that it is by the Consorts command that he comes Lady I do understand the woman sa d Thus the hors had pa sed she at the door and Yet Inside the clos d door behind the dropped curtain She sat Idle in body but her mind was exceedingly busy and her I eart was in turmou Could she prevail upon Jung Lu to forsake his rectitude? It was her will so to prevail He came at last two hours before the curfew She heard his footsteps the firm pace measured to his height She heard his voice inquiring whether Yehonala slept and her woman , reply that she waited for him She heard the door open and close and she saw his hand that larg smooth hand she knew so well lay / old upon the unner curtain and hesitate She sat ngid in her chair of cared black wood waiting and motionless Then he put the curtain aside and stood there looking at her and she looked at hım. Her heart leaped in her breast a thing alive and sera rate from her and tears welled to her eyes and her mouth began to quiver Whatever she could do this that she did shook all his will He had seen her weep in pain and he had heard I er sob with rage but he had never seen her sit motionless and weep without a sound helplessly as though her very life were broken He gave a great groan and his arms went out to her and he strode across the floor And she seeng only those out stretched arms rose blindly from her chair and ran to! 48 ·"you" and felt them enclose her fast Thus locked together in silence and in fearful eestasy they stood how long neither knew Cheek to cheek they stood until theur lips met by instinct Then he tore his mouth away You know you cannot leave this place he groaned "You must find your freedom here within these walls for there is no otl er freedom for you now She listened hearing his voice from afar knowing only that within his arms she held him The higher you rise he told her the greater vill your freedom be Rise high my love-the power is you s Only an Empress can command But will you love me?" she asked her voice stilling in her throat "How can I not lo e you?" Thus he repled "To love you is my only life I draw my breath my every beath to love -Tyen-seal me your love! Th se we e the bold wo ds she spoke but in so soft a whisper that he might not h ve heard them except she knew be did. She felt I un motionless than he m de 2 sigh She felt hus shoulders shiver and his muscles loosen and his bones yield If once I am made you s she said b a ely even here I can live No answer yet! He could not speak. Ilis soul was still not yielded She lifted her head and loched into his face "What does it matter where I live if I am your ? I know you speak the truth There is no escap for me except by death Well I can choose death It is easy in a palace-opium to swallow my gold earrings a little knife to open my ens-can I be watched day and n ght? I swear I will de inless you make me yours! If I am yours I will do what you say-forever and my whole life long I will be Empress Her vo ce was magic, lovely wth pleading deep and soft and gentle arm and sweet as honey in the summer sun Was he not a man? He was young and fer ent st 11 ruin because he had loved no one but her whom h now held within his rms They we e prison rs trapp d ly old wa of life jailed within the impenal palace He was no + ·free than she was Yet only she could do what she would. I she said she would be Empress then none could hold her her nature and would he not deyote his life to help her live?' And h d not Sakota herself imagined some such scene as thus when she had bade hun come here? At the last moment the Consort had laid her hand on his arm and she bade him do all he could, whatever Yehonala asks -those were Sahotas very words His souls voice was stilled he felt his conscience die and he lifted the beautiful gul in his arms and carried her to the bed The drums of curfew beat th o igł the courtya ds and the corridors of the city of the Son of Heaven It was the hour of sunset when every man must be gone from when the walls The ancient command fell upon the es of lovers hidden deep within the secret rooms and in Yehonala s bed chamber Jung Lu rose and drew hs garments about hun while she lay half asleep and smiling He leaned over her Are we sworn?" he asked Sworn she put up her arms and drew his face down to hers again Forever forever! Th drums died down and he made haste and she rose quickly and smoothed her robes and brushed back her hair When her woman coughed at the door she was sitting in her chair "Enter she said and she took her handkerchief and pre tended to wipe her eyes "Are you weeping again ladyp” the woman asked Yehonala shook her head I am finished eeping" she sald in a small voice "I know what I must do My hansılan has made me see my duty" The woman stood peenng and listening head to one side like a buds "Your duty lady? he repeated When the Son of Heaven summons me" Yehonala said, "I shall go to him I must do his will The heat of summer lmgered late m the Forbidden City, One brilliant day followed upon another the places stond in the living light of the naked sun and no rains fell So hot 48 ·was the stillness of high noon that princesses and Court ladies eunuchs and concubines went to the cases in the upenal gardens and there spent the hours of the full heat These caves were built of river rock brought from the south apon barges floating up the Grand Canal The rocks were shaped by mens hands yet so cunningly contrived that they looked worn by winds and waters Crouching pine trees hung over the entrances to these caves and inside them hidden fountains dripped down the walls and made pools where goldfish played in the coolness the ladies did embroidery heard music or played at gambling games But Yehonala did not enter the caves She was now al vays busy at her books always smiling silent more often than speaking as she studied her books Seemingly ter rebellion as forgotten When the Emperor summoned r she al lowed herself to be bathed and dressed af esh and she went to hu His favor did not falter and this compelled her prui dence for wa ting concubines gre v estless fo their turn and Li Lien ying contended among the eunuch to keep huself her chief servant Yet if Yehonala knew of strife she did not let it be known that she knew unless it could be guessed from her faultless courtesy to all and f om her care- Ful obedience to the Dowager Mother Each d when she awoke she went frst to the Dowager Mother to inquire of her health and b ppiness The old lady vas often ill and Yehonala brewed herbs in the tea to soothe her and if sbe were restless she rubbed the withered feet and hands and soothed the Dov ager by brushing her white se nty hair in long and even strokes No task was too small or too low for Yehonala to perform for the Dowager Mother and soon all perceived that the handsome gil sa not only the favonte of the Son of Heaven but of his mother too Thus Yehon la knew ho v eag ly the Dowager Mother waited for the b rth of Sakot s huld and it was part of Yehonala s duty daily to accompany the Douager Mother to the Buddhist temple and wait while she m de prayers and burned incense befo e the gods beseeching Her en that the Consort might have a son Only hen this was done did Yehonala retim to her own chosen tasks which ere as ever in the 1 brary reading and studying under Auchs who were scholars o learning music and sh 49 ·herself u leaming how to write with the camels haur brush after the style of the great calligraphers of the past Meanwhưe she had a secret of thought she did until one dy her soman spoke out it was a usual day the air cooler at night and morning than at had been but still hot at noon Jehonala slept late for she had been summoned by the Emperor th night before as many nights she had been suramoned and always she obeyed Mistress the woman and when she entered the bedroom! on this day and closed the door carefully behind her have you not ma ked that the f 11 moon has come and gone and you have no show of crimson 18 it so?" Yel onala ashed sof ste did not cure Yet hos Greatly did she care and how closely she had observed her own person It is $0 the voman said proudly The seed of the Dragon us m you lady Shall I not carry the good news to the Mother of the Son of Heavenpo "Vit Tehonalcommanded Wat untu the Consort hus bome her child if le is a sop does it matter what I bears But if she bears a daughter pas the woman inquired cun ingly Yehonnla thre v her a long teasing look Then I walt II the Das ag Alott er myself she said "And if you tell even my euch she said ard made ) er eves big ind fierce then I will have you slıc d and the strip of your flesh hung up on pol sto In for dogs food The wooran trid to laigh I swear by my mother that I will tell no one But who ber pale face asked could know when ths concı b ne too beautiful too proud might tum tersing into truth? While the Co it wasted then upon the Consort, each com cuburz vole in the mornmg to ask if there were news and the prices and the Grand Councilor Shun before they en tered the Al di not Hal) az da i demarded from the eu nuchs whether th buth was legiin An i st ll Salotis child was not bom in his own ansiety the Emperor commanded the Durrd of Astrolog is to study the stars Ag767 ind ta determine from the entrails of freshly killed fowls whether hu child spuld Dot be a son Alas they saw confusion Th 50 ·$1915 were not clear The child might or might not be a son It was even poss ble that the Consort would give birth to twmns boy and gul in which misfortune the gul must be killed, lest she sap the life of h royal brother The autumn deepened and the Court phy icians grew anxious for the health of the Consort She as wom with waiting her frailty much increased because th child quid not be bom ard she could not eat or sleep Once Yeho ala Went to see her but Sakota Ould not receive he She was too all the eunuch in attendance said She should see no one And Yehonala went away in doubt Illne s? Ho could S kota be too ill to see her own cousin sister? For the first time she wished Salota did not know th t Jung Lu had come to her in private True she knew no more but even to know so Little put a weapon in Sakota s hand-a ne k hand that might be used by a tronger one as yet unknown Alis she knew by now that intrigue was everywhere th oughout the palaces and she must be strong enough to break th ough its me hes Never once again not for an hour would she put a weapon of secret knowledge into anothers hand The days went on each log and all om ns were dire Evil news came from evervwere throughout the Empire The long haved Chinese ebels in the south had seized the southern capital Nanking and many peop! had b en killed So ferocious were those rebels that the impe al sold ers could not win a single battle And as a furthe sign of evil trange swift winds blew down upon the c ty comets c ossed the skies at night and in many places rumors ro e that women gave birth to twins and monsters On the last day of the eighth moon month the appe red at noon a thunderstorm which chang d itself into a typhoon more fit for southern seas than for the dry northern plains upon wh ch the city stood Even the elders h d ne er seen such 1 ghtning nor he rd such crashing oaring thunder and hot winds blew f om the south as though devils rode upon the clouds When rain fell at last it c me pot in a gentle downpour upon the dried fields and dusty streets but in such floods and I shings and fury that torrents ate th earth away Whether from fnght or deep despair Sakota upon that day felt the pains of birth begin inside he body and no s did she cry out than the news spread everywhere th 51 ·the palaces and all stapped whatever they were dang to wait and hear At this hour Yehonala was in the library and at her usual books The sky had grown so dari that eunuchs ist lamps and Ly her lamp she was writing under the eye of her tutor as her ad aloud an ancient sacred text for her to copy Thus he read Chung I ung the minister of the House of Chi asked for advi e upon the a t of goverment The Mast r said Lein above all how to ust your subordinates Overlook their lesser weaknesses and raise up only those who are honest and able At the moment Li Lien ving appeared at the curtain and behind the titors back he ma le signs to Yehor ala whose meaning she understood at once she lid down hr brush and rose Sur" she said to her tutor I must tasten to the Dowager Mother who hs udden need of me Long ago sht hnd planned what she ould do when Sakot1 was in labor She would go to the Dowag r Mother and stay ith her sor the her and amuse herst it was kno vt) whether the birth was of a female or 3 male Before th tutor could reply sł e had left the library and was walking ahead of th eun ich to ard the Dowager Mothers palace The light ng d sted above the treetops and the courty rds spyr ng u to his d light as she went nd through the roofed passagew3ss the wind blew the rain lile spray from the sea Bot Yehonala hurried on and behind ber Li Lien yang fol lased When she reached the palace she went in without sperking to any of the waiting women The Dowager Alother had gone to bed as she did always in a thunderstorm and now she lay rased on her pulows her hands clasped about a jc veled Buddhist rosary her than face as white as mutton fat jade Wh n she saw Tehonala she did not smile In a salemr voice she said How can a sound chud be bom at such a time Herven itself rages above our heads." Yehonala ran to her and knelt beside the bed Be sonthed Imperial Vother she coured It is not because of us that Heaven i ges Evi Then have rebelled against the Throne 52 ·and the child to be born will save us all Heaven is angry on his behalf and not against him or us "Do you believe it so?" the old lady rephed I do Yehonala said and she knelt on speaking sooth ng words and rising only to fetch hot both for the Dowager Mother to drink down and uphold her strength Then she found a pleasant book of tales to ead and she plaved upon a lute and sang a song now and then and helped the old lady at her prayers and so the hours passed At sunset the wind died down and a str nge vello lght suffused the palaces and courtyards Then Yehon drew the curtains and lit the candles and wa ted for she had con tinuing news which she did not tell the Dos ger Mother that the birth was very near After the yello light the dark Dess came do vn suddenly and when night fell the Chef Eunuch An Teh hai came to the palace of th Do vager Mother Yehonala went to m et him and from his face she saw the news w s evil Is the child dead? she inquired Mot dead he said heavily but it is a gul-a sickly fe male- Yehonala put her handkerchief to her eyes Oh cruel Heaven! “Will you tell the Venerable Mothe" he asked I must hasten again to the Empero He is all with anger I will tell her Yehonala p omised And you the Ch ef Eunuch continued Make yo irself ready to be summoned in the night The Empe or will surely I am ready she said Then slowly she went back to the Dowage s bedchamber and gave no heed to the wa ting vomen who had guessed the news and stood v th bo ved heads and eves streaming tears as she passed She ente ed the great bedchamber again and when the Dowager Mother saw her face she too knew all It is not a male child she s d and her voice was weary with all th veanness of her yeas of w ting It is a f male Yehonala sud gently She knelt beside the bd again and took the Do need you 53 ·Mothers liands and stroked th mn with her own strong young Lands "Why do I live the Dowager Mother inquired piteously You must live Venerable Mother Tehonala said She made her deep voice tender "You must live-until my som is bom Her hope was revealed ste rad saved her secret and the a gift she gave it now to the Dowager Mother That old face quivered and b oke u to a vinkler smile "Is it true? she ashed Can ths be He ver s 1 221? Yes it is sol The child will become tron your strong body a sans Buddha hears! It must le So And 'I called you ferce I said that you were too strong Oh daughter how warn your hands are on me She looked dorm into the young and t nd rly beautiful face so near her and lehor ala looking up saw adoration in th Do vager Mothers eyes My hands are always wir she sud It is tru that I A strong and I can be fierce And I shall bear a son When the Vener ile lady heard what Tehonala sud she rose out of her bed with such energy that all around her were frightened Swe vourself Inp nal Mot! er Yehonala exclaimed She ran forward to support the Dawager Mother but the lady pushed her away Sed eunuchs to my so she ex claimed in her quavening voce "Tell him I have good news" The ladies in atter d Ice heard these words as they wa e outside They looked at one another with doubt and joy while in great commotion the couchs were summoned and sent off My both the Dowager Mother commanded her women, and while they bastened to make the bath she turned agaio to lehonala And you my heart," she exclaimed "you are more pre cimus to me noi than any except my son himself You are the de tined one I see it in your eyes Such eyes! Nntiine all must i efall you Return to your own chamber my da 18) ter and rest youse't I shall have you moved to the inner courts of the Western Palace where the sun falls i Fon the terraces And let the physicians be summoned without de ·"But I am not ll Venerabl Yehonala said laughing "Look at m ! She stretched out her arms she lufted her head her cheeks were red ber dark eyes bright The Dowager Mother tared at her Beautıful beautıful" she murmured. "The eyes so clear the eyebrows like moths wmgs the flesh as tender as a child s! I knew the Consort would bear only a girl I told you so you women-do you remember I said a creature of such soft bone such slack flesh would bear Only a gul?" "Venerable you told us—you told us indeed the serving women said one after the other And Yehonala said, I will obey you Venerable in all things She made her obeisance and retired from the chamber Outside the doors her own woman waited and Li Lien ying also The tall eunuch was rubbing his hands and grinding and cracking his finger joints "Let the Phoenix Empress command me he declared I wait for her commands Be quiet " Yehonala sad You speak too soon "Have I not seen destmy over your head? he cried I see it there now with my naked eyes I say what I have always known Leave me Yehonala told him She walked away with swift grace her woman following After a few steps ste pated and she looked back at the eunuch One thing only you may do she said You may go to my kinsman and tell him what you have heard The eunuch stretched out his neck corded like a turtles neck Shall I bid him come to your he asked in a hissing whisper No Yehonala replied in a clear voice for anyone to hear it is not fitting that I should speak now to any man save to my unperial lord And she went on her way her hand testing on her worn ans shoulder In her own bedchamber she wa ted expecting suminons from the Lmperor when he heard and her woman lathed her and put fresh inner garments on her and brushed her hair in cous to fit under her jeweled headdress 5S ·What outer robes will you wear now Venerable? the woman wquired fondly Bring me the pale blue robe embroidered in pink plun blossoms and the yellow embroidered in green barnboo Yehonala said The two robes were brought but before she could decide hich one suited the color of her face today there was commotion in the outer courts A sudden no:se of wailing voices rose above the valls Wint evil has befallenr the serving wom in cried She ran out leaving her mistress vith the robes spread out before her on the bed and at the gate into the court she fell against the eunuch Li Lien ving He wore a face as green as a sour peach and his coarse mouth hung har "The Dowager Mother , dead he gasped and his voice came dry out of his throat Deadl the oman screamed But my mistress was with her two hours ago! Dead" Li Lier ying repeated she came sottering to the Audience Fall supported by her ladies and when the Em peror hastened to her there she opened her mouth to I reathe as though her throat were cut Then she cried out that he would have a son and these were her last words for she fell dead into her ladies ams Her soul has gone to the eternal Yellow Springs Oh Lord of Hell the woman walled how can you bear such evil news? She ran back to her mistress but Yehonala hastening to the outer door had already heard I brought the Imperial Mother too much joy” she sand sidly Vo but joy came too quickly after sorrow and her soul mas darked" the woman said Yehonala did not male reply She went back to her bed room and stood looking at the two robes spread out before her Put them a ay she said at last I shall not be sum moved now until the Emperor s days of mouming art And the old woman sobbing and moanuig at such all for 58 ended.

·tue folded the bnght robes and put them away agan in the red lacquered chests from whence she had taken them The months slipped qwetly into the Season of the First Cold The Forbidden City was stilled in mourning for the Dowager Mother and the Son of Heaven wearing white robes of death lived without women Yehonala missed the fondness of the dead Dowager yet she knew that she was not forgotten She was free and by the Emperors command she was also guarded Whatever she asked for she had but she must obey the commands sent down to her Thus she was encouraged to eat the most del cate and deliciou foods fish from the distant rivers preserved in ice and snow the yellow carp the smooth skinned pels Fish she craved for every meal and she drank the soup made from crushed fish bones Beyond this she asked only to eat the coarse sweets of her childhood that she used to buy at the stret vendor s stall red sugar cakes sesame toffee and nice flour dumplings stuffed with sweetened bean paste such as peasants eat Fat pork and roasted mutton and browned duck and other palace meats she could not eat And most difficult of all to s vallow were the herbs and medicines which the royal physicians brewed darly for her to drink doi 'n for they were continually frightened lest the child be bom too soon or bom deformed for which evil they would be blamed as th y vell knew Each morning after Yehonala was bathed and dres ed and before she had eaten the physicians waited upon her in number to feel her pulse and peer under her eyelids and examine her tongue and smell her breath Then they con ferred for two hours concerning h r condition that day and after they were agreed they prescribed and themselves pre pared what they had chosen How vile were these bowls of green mixtures and black dr ughts! But Yel onala swallo ved the liquors for vell she knew that what she carried in her was no ordinary child but one who belonged to all the people as the r ruler and not once did she doubt that she carried & male child She ate heartily and slept well and she kept down the mediçmes someho and her young body Vith health Throughout the palaces a grateful joy like serene music and this fowed out over the ·trv People said to one another that the times hid turned that evil was past and good was come again to the Empire Meanwhile Yehonala herself was changed Until the day when she kne v she had conceived she had been a girl will ful and misch esous changeable and impetuous in spite of her love of books and he ambition to leam Not whle she continued to read the ancient books and to brush the ancient characters whatever she learned she wove around herself and the child within her This when she cime upon the words of L10 Tzu which are these Of all the dangers the greatest is to think lightly of the foe she was struck by their present mein ng That ise man had lived how many hundreds of years before he and yet his vords remained us fresh as though they were spoken to her this same day The foe? The realm her son m ght one day rule as presently beset by foes She had thought them no concern of hers but no v she knew they vere the enemies of her son and so her own She looked up from the page "Tell me she said to her tutor who are our present foes? The old eunuch shook his head 'Lady he replied I have no leaming in affars of state I know only the ancient sages Yehonala closed her book Send me one to teach me who are my present foes she said The aged eunuch was confounded but he knew better than to question her and he reported her command to in Teh hai, the Chief Eunuch who went to Prince kung the sixth son of the last Emperor His mother was a concubine and he was therefore half brother by blood to the present Emperor Hsien Feng The two half brothers had grown up together studying their books and leaming swordmanship under the same tutors Prince kungs mind was good his face minly and good to see Indeed his wisdom and intelligence were so high ind calm that ministers princes and euruchs went to hun secretly instead of to the Emperor nor did he betray anyone and all trusted hur The Chief Eunuch An Teh hai, went therefore to the palace of this Prince which was outside the Forbidden City and he told him of Yel on las visit ind hre begged Prince hung himself to teach the young Favorite 58 .

·"For she is so strong" he said so filled with health her mind as clever as a mans that we do not doubt she will bear a son who will be our next Emperor Prince kung pondered for a while He was a young man and it was not seemly for him to come near a concubine Yet he was related to her now through his imperial brother and custom might be set aside They were not Chinese moreover but Manchu and Manchu ways were more free than Chinese ways And he remembered how dire were these times His elder brother the Emperor was dissolute and weak the Court corrupt and idle the ministers and princes lifeless hopeless powerless it seemed to stay the crumbling of the Empire The treasury was empty harvests faded and famines starved the people often And in their angry hunger the people made rebellion Secret rebel bands were everywhere plotting against the Dragon Throne the Chinese declaring that now was the time to drive out the Manchu emperors who had ruled them for two hundred years Drive out the Manchu! Restore the ancient Chinese dynasty of Mingl Al ready such rebels had gathered in a horde under the long haired madman Hung who called himself a Chinese Christ as if it were not enough that foreigne s were Christians and in the name of that same Christ seduced the young in schools and churches to desert their family gods! What hope then except to hold hard the remnants of the Empire until an heir was bom strong son of strong mother? "I will myself teach the Favorite he sa d "but bid her aged tutor stay in her presence while I am there The next day then when Yehonala went to her books as usual in the Imperial Library she sa v there a man tall Young, and of powerful handsome looks beside her tutor With him was An Teh hai who presented Prince kung say ing why he had come Yehonala drew her sleeve across her face and bowed and Prince Kung stood sidew use his head tumed away B seated Elder Brother Yehonala said in her pretty voice and herself sat down in her usual chair while the old tutor took h s place at the end of the table The Chief Eunuch stood behind the Prince and her four lad es behind Yehonak In this fashion Prince kung began to teach the Imperial Concubine Without looking at her and his face turned away ·he began the lessons which he continued one day in seven for many months He told her the entire state of the nation described how the weakne s of the Throne invited rebellion of its subjects and invasion from enenuies beyond the north ern plans and eastern seas He told her how these invaders three hundred years before were first men from Portugal seeking tride in sp ces By the riches of their lawless plunder they tempted other men of Europe to do as they had done and Spanish conquerors came and Dutchmen in Dutch ships and then the English making war for their opium trade and after these the French the Germans Yehonala s eyes grew larger and more black Her face was pale and red by tums and her hands clenched in fists upon her knees And we did nothing? she cried out What could we do? Prince kung retorted We are not sea faring people as the Engl sha e Ther little lands lie cir cled by the sea barren and scanty and upon the sea they must forage or they starve Nevertheless I do think-" Thus Yehonala began but Prince Kung raised his hand "Wut-there is yet more And he told how continuously the English bad made their wars each time victorious "Why she demanded. "Thev spend their wealth on war weapons" Prince Kung replied "And he told her how still another enemy came down this time from the north We have long known these Russians he told her Five hundred years ago Most Favored the great Kublai Khan who ruled here employed Russians to be his bodyguard and so did all the emperors of his dyn isty Two hundred years after him one Yennah, Russian and land pi. rate a man of adventure and with a price upon his head led his wild band across the Url Mountains to seek furs for those who hired him He fought the northem tribes who lived in the valley of the great nver Ob and he took theu royal city called Siber and he claimed it in the name of the ruler of Ruszia who is the Tsar and thereafter the whole region was called Siberia And for this deed of conquest hus sans sere forgiven him and his people call him great even to thes day 60 r ·"I have heard enough she sud abruptly Iet not enough Most Favored Prince Kung said courteously "The English did not let us be In the time of Chia Ching the son of the mighty Chien Lung the British sent an envoy Amherst by name This man when summoned to the Audience Hall at the usual hour of dawn refused to come szying that his garments of state had not arrived and that he was all The Son of Heaven then ruling sent his own physicians to examine the foreigner and they returned say ing that Amherst feigned illness The Son of Heaven then ruling was angry and ordered the Englishman to go home The white men are stubborn Most Favored They will not bend or kneel before our Sons of Heaven They tell us that they kneel before none but gods-andomen Women?" Yehonala repeated Ste was diverted by this unage of white men kn eling before women and she put up her hand to hide her laughter behind her slee e The sound of laughter escaped her nevertheless and Prince kung turned his eves sidewise and caught the mischief in her eyes and humself broke into soundless laughter Thus encouraged the Chief Eunuch laughed and then the Court lad es laughed holding up ther silken sleeves too to hide their faces "Will wlute men still not kneel to the Son of Heaven?" Yehonala asked when her laughter ended **They will not kneel Prince kung replied Yehonala did not speak for a moment But when my son rules she was thinking they will kneel to ir y son If they will not kneel and bow their heads to the foor then I will have them beheaded "What now?" she asked Are we still helpless?" We must resist Prince kung said though not by arms or battles for we have not such means But we can resist by obstructions and delays We must deny the fore gners their wishes Now that these Americans ne vcomers and follo vers of the English insist, too upon the benefits of the treaties we have been forced to make with other Western people we have demanded that their government may not protect Amer icans who trade in oprim and to this they have agreed "What is the end? Yehonala asked "Who knows?" Prince kung replied He sighed heavily and shadows fell across his face it was a bitter face for all ·handsome looks a sad face the lines deep about the then mouth and between the black brows He rose and bowed It is enough I think for this one day" he said I have brushed a few lines from history for you Most Favored Now if you will I shall proceed to fill them out until all the truth is plann I pray you do so Yehonala said and she rose too and bowed Thus the day came to an end and that night she could not sleep What destiny was hers? Her son must take the Empire back again and drive his foreign foes into the sea Yehonala now felt herself no more a prisoner within the palace She was the center of the peoples hope What she ate hether she slept well d d she suffer languor or pain her color her laughter her willfulness and whims-all were mat ters of concern In the glow of such importance the winter months came in and passed day following day and the clear sunshine of bright and cloudless skies enlivened the whole city The people were cheerful with their hope and business was good in the south the long haired rebels settled into the city of Nanking and rumors creeping northward sa d that the leader was taking many wives and corrupting himself with wines and fine foods But Yehonala received this good news with no more than mild pleasure for the Chinese rebel was not her true foe The foreigners the white men were the enemy And yet why the enemy? Let them return to their own lands and there need be no enmity even with them We want but our own Yehonala told herself Indeed a mild mood pervaded her spirit in these dave and never had she felt her body grow so sound and whol \Vhether it as the brewed herbs she drank or whether it was her own full and vital energy flowenng at the demand of motherhood she did not know Strangest of all she no longer hated the Son of Heaver True she did not love hun but she pitted him the shell of a man wrapped in his golden robes of office She cradled him in her arms at night and by day she showed his extravagant respect and honor for vas he not the father of her son? Was he the father of her son? The two-headed question hid in her heart for all the orld to see and to believe he was the father of her son Her son must 6.

·have the Fmperor for his father Yet secret in her own heart was the living thought of Jung Lu and the hour when he had come at her desire Into her life there fed to streams the first her constant deepening pride that she bore v ithin her the Heir to the Throne and the other her secret love for the one she studied zealously the history of the people hom her son would rule poring over many an jent books and putting her questions to Prince Kung Because of the other she percerved uew the beauty of the world to which one day she would b ing her son Sometunes in the aftemoon instead of closing herself into the librares she spent the hours i alking with her ladies her guardian eunuch Li Lien ying following behind Never did they go beyond the vall of the Emperors city but within these alls vns enough to see so that it iould make her many years to know it all When the sun was h gh and no cold wind blew she valked among the courtvards do in the corridors and between the high rose red walls of narrow streets that linked the palice courts together C rcling the sacred city were triple walls and in the walls were set four gates facing the four points of the compass W thin the great first gate ere three inner gates lead ng to bridge and gar dens in the palaces and throne halls these halls facing lviys south tleir colors the symbols of the elements E en nov in winter the gardens were beautiful the northern b mboo green under snow and the Ind an bamboo bear ng curlet berries under sno At the Gate of Heavenly Pea e stood two wnged pillars of white marble encircled by carved dr gons and to th se she returned often and hy she did not know except that her spirit Ifted at the noble sight of these white Swinged pillars Palace by palace the throne ooms many she learned to know the sacred polar city the center of the earth even as the north star is center of the sky and in splendid loneliness she walked among her lades Ah she had chosen well to make this city her sons birthplace and his homel In the third moon of the spring of the new ye r on a day chosen by what heavenly decis on she did not know Yeho rala gave birth to he son In the p esence of the elder ladies of the Court who took the place of the dead Dow iger Mothe Aber son was bom indisputably the heur and the mid 63 ] ·declared him While Yehonala crouched upon a stool 3 mul wife caught the chud and held him up before the ladies See Venerables she announced A male child in ford henlth and strength! And Yehonala half fanting looked up and saw her sorka He lay in the midwifes hands he moved his arms and legs and open ng his mouth he cried aloud When n ght felt the soft spring night the courtyard out side her little private palace was lit by the light of lanterns set upon an altar of sacrifice from her bed Yehonala looked through the low latticed windo vs upon the assembly of princes and ladies and eunuchs ho stood beyond the table the candlel ght dickering upon their faces and upon ther many coloured robes of satın emb ordered in gold and silver It was the hour of buth sacrifice to Heaven and the Emperor stood before the altas to give thanks and to announce his hear Upon the altar were three offerings the steamed hend of a pig white and hairless a steamed cock naked of feathers et cept for its head and tail and between pg and cock a live fi h struggling in a net of scarlet silk The rite as difficult Yet none could make it except th Son of Heren hunself for this fish h d been taken alive front a lotus pond and it must be returned alve agun to that some water or the Heu would not live to reach his manhood Nor could the mental father make histe or violate the solemn dignity of that he did lest Heaven be offended In deep silence he raised his arms in silence he knelt before Henverta to whom he alone could male oberance and he chanted his prayers Exactly at the right mom nt he ended and seizi the stull living fish with both hands he give it to the Chef Eunuch who hastened to the pool and threw it in wutmg to see if it swam away if it did not then the Heir would do a child He peered into the water his lantera held high and in silence the Court wasted and the Emperor stood motionless before the altar The light fell upon a flash of silver in the water "The fish lives Majesty the eunuch shouted And upon these joyful words the assembly began to Izugba and talk Firecrackers were lit caged buds in all the palaces were freed and rockets spriyed the sky with light whe Yehonala leaned upon her elbow the wholc sky seemed to } ·split before her eyes and from the center she saw floating aganst the sparkling darkness a huge golden Orched its petals touched with purple Lady this is in your honorl her serving woman cried A roi rose up from the city when the people saw the sight and Tehonala laughed and thre v herself upon her pillows Ho many times in her life had she wished sheere a man but now how glad was she to be a woman! What man could know such triumph as hers that she had made a son for the Emperor? Is my cousin the Consort in the courtyard too she asked The old woman peered into the lights and shadows of the courtyard I see her standing among her ladies she repled Co out to her Yehonala commanded Invite her to come In Tell her I long to see her The woman went out and approaching proudly she asked the Consort to come to the beds de of her mistress She looks upon the Dagon Consort as her elder sister the woman said coaxing Bat Sakota shook her head I rose from my bed to attend the sacrifice" she said, and to my bed I must return Indeed I am not well She turned a vay as she said this and leaning upon two ladies and led by a eu nuch ith a lantern she walked into the darkness of a round moon gate All were surprised at th s refusal and the woman vent back to Yehonala to report Lady the Consort will not come She says she is all but I think she is not "Then why did she not come?" Yehonala demanded Who can tell how the heart of a Consort changes?s the woman replied She has a daughter The son is vours Sakota is not so small in heart Yehonala ins sted and yet while she spoke she remembered that her cousin held over her head the dagger of that secret knot ledge "Who knows the heart?" the woman replied and this time Yehonala made no reply The courtyard was empty now the Emperor and his lowers gone to their feasts Everywhe e tonight the fersted and took time for joy From north to south from to west the doors of prisons were opened and all wit ·freed whatever had been their crime In cities and villages po shops were opened for seven days no beasts killed for food no fish caught in river or pond and if they were caught already and stji alive in tubs and vats in marketplaces then they must be thrown back mto the waters Caged birds were loosed in homes as they had been in the palace and men of rank who had been banished could now retum and take again their titles and their lands And all this was done in honor of the new born child Yet in her bed Yehonala felt strangely lonely Sakota had not come to see her or her son Sakota who was always gentle always kind What then? Eunuchs had been busy bodies surely they had carried tiles duubtless and they had made Sakota think evil of her nov that her son was bom The upst irt Grand Councilor Su Shun or his friend Prince Yi the nephew of the Emperor these two might be the evil ons for they were jealous of her Until she came Li Lien ying had told her it was they whom the Emperor trusted and they were close to him until he drew her closer still by his insati te love In ver did them harm she thought and I have been more courteous than I needed to be The Grand Councilor was haughty and ambitious thoug! of low birth and , t she had taken his daughter Mes a young gul of sixteen to be her own Court lady But Prince kung must be her friend She remembered his lean handsome face and she determined to make and hold him as her ally Lying in the shelter of the great curtained bed her son curled into the hollow of her right arm Yehonala pondered her destiny and his They were alone against the world she and her son The man she loved could never be her husband Alone she" might have escaped by death if not by life but now death too was no longer in her reach She had borne a son and he had only her to keep him safe amid the tangle of intrigues within the palaces The times were evil the signs of Heaven por tentous the Emperor was weak and only she could hold the throne secure for her son In that night and in many nights thereafter as many nights indeed as she was to lie there came the small dark hours when she faced her destiny with naked eyes and Inghtened! heart knowing that only in herself was strength enough to 66 ·meet the dawn again She must defy them enemies and friends and even Sakota who knew her secret This child her son here in her arms must forever be the son of the Emperor Hsien Feng No other name could she allow Son of the Emperor and heir to the Dragon Thronel Thus she began the long battle of her destiny ·2 Tzu Hsi For his first month by anc ent tradition her son was her own Not even in the arms of a nurse could he be carried from his mother s palace Here in this cluster of rooms around the courtyard bright with peonies Yehonala spent the hours of day and night It was a month of joy and pleasure a month when pampered and praised as the Emperors Favorite she was named Fortunate Mother All came to look at the child and exclaim upon his size his ruddy color his handsome face bis strong hands and feet All came except Sakota and hert was the one lack in the young mothers joy The Consor should have been the first to see the child and acknor leds him the Herr and she did not come She sent her excuse that her own birth month by the stars was the enemy of the childs birth month How dare she then enter the palace wher be was sheltered? Yehonala heard without reply She hid her anger in he heart and there it grew for all the remaining days of the birth month But three days before the month was over she sen the eunuch Li Lien ying to Sakota with this message "Since you Cousin have not come to visit me I must com to you to ask your favor and protection for my son for by belongs to us both, according to law and tradition Noy it was true that the Consort ought to protect the Het as her own child for this was her duty but Yehonala sta feared that some secret Jealousy or evil rumor fostered b eunuchs and princes contending among thernselves had fed into Sakota s simpl heart Such quarrels infested th Forbidden City and when lesser courtiers made war the sought also to divide the ones above them hoping that thes too would take part in the endless struggle for power B 68 ·Yehonala in concem for her son determined that she iould not allow Salota to be divided from her she would compel bier alliance were it not given freely Therefore on this day she prepared to leave her own palace and go to Sakota Mlean hile she made every safeguard for the child She commanded L Lien ying to buy from the best goldsmith in the city a chain of small but strong gold links and this chun hung about her son s neck and she fastei ed the two ends together with a padlock of gold Its hey she pot on a fine gold chain around her o n neck next to her lesh and she did not take it off dav or night Though her son wa thus chained to Earth by symbol yet it was not enough she must offer the child as an adopted son bv svm bol to other powerful famil es in her clan Yet hat friends had she? She thought and she pondered and she devised this plan From the head of each of the highest one hundred famı Lies in the Empire she required a bolt of the finest silk From the silks she commanded the palace tailors to cut one hun dred small pieces and from these make a robe for he child Thus he belonged by symbol to one hundred strong and noble families and under the shelter the gods ould fear to harm hum For it is well know that gods are jealous of bedu tıful male children born of human women and thev send dos n disease and accident to de troy uch inf nts before they grow into godlake men On the third day before the end of her on s first moon month Yehonala went to Sakota s palace Słe ore a new robe of imperial yello v satın emb ordered in small flo ers of pomegranate red and on her head a leaddress of black sat n be dedith peuls Her face as fi stashed ith melted Putton fat and then with perfum d vater and after rd po dered and painted Ke fine eyebrowsere drain a brush dipped in al d mk Her mouth al vars lo elv was painted a smooth red and this mouth bett ved her varm heart for it as full ind tender Upon her hands she wore jeweled ni es and one thumb ring of soldi dend to guard her long polished nails she wo e shields of t! m beaten gold set with small gems From her ears h ng earrings of 1 de and pearls Her high sole 1 shoes and headdr ss made her seem taller th n she was When she as attired even her 1 clapped their hands to see her beauty A9 ·She took her son in her arms then he in scarlet satın from head to foot embroidered with small dragons of gold and with him she sat in her palanquin and they were borne, mother and son to the Consort s palace the eunuchs walking ahead to announce the amval and the ladies following Wher they came to their destination Yehonala came down from the palanqun and stepped over the threshold There in the te ception hall she saw Sakota Pale and yellow Sakota always was and now more than ever for she had not recovered from the buth of her daughter Her skin was withered and her little hands were shrunken into such that an invalid child might own Before this small timid creature Yehonala stood strong and handsome as a young cedar tree "I come to you, Cousin" she said after greeting I come on behalf of our son True I gave him birth but your duty Cousin is even greater to him than my own for is not his father the Son of Heaven who is your lord before he is mine? I ask your protection for our son Sakota rose from her chair and she stood half bowed cling ing to its arms "Sit down Cousin she said in her plaintive vorce It is the first time you have walked outside your owr courts for a month Sit down and rest I will not rest until I have your promise for our son Yehonala said She continued to stand as she spoke and she looked stead fastly at Sarota, while she made her black eyes blacker still their pupils swelling and glowing Sakota sank back into the chair "But--but why?" she stam mered Why do you speak to me so? Are we not kin? Is no the Emperor our mutual lord?" It is for our son that I ask your favor" Yehonala said ank never for myself I have no need of anyone Yet I must by sure that you are for our son and not against hum” Each lady knew what the other meant In the division o continuing intrigue among the princes and the eunuchs Yeho nala was saying she must be certain that Sakota would no accept the leadership of those who might plot to destroy the Heu and set another upon the Dragon Throne By her silenc Sakota announced that there was such intngue and that she did not wish to give her promise 70 ·Yehonala tepped forward hile she save her son to a lady to hold for her Give me your hands Cousin Her voice was smooth and resolute Promise me that none can divide us We must live out our lives together here within these walls Let us be friends and not enemies She waited while Sakota hesitated und did not put out her hands Then suddenly her great eves furious Yehon 11 leaned down and grasped those two small soft hands and cr shed them so fi rcely that the tears rushed to Sahotas ves so Jehonala had used to do when they ve e children Whenever Sakota had pouted and rebelled Yehonal: had crushed her hands until they ached I--I promise Sakota said in a b oken voice "And I promise Yehonala s id firmly She put the two small hands on Sakotas satın lap ngan and she stw what all the ladies saw that the thin gold shields of her nails had cut red stripes mto the tender flesh and Sakota put her hands together and let the tears of pain run down her cheeks But Yehonala sud no word of sorro v for vhat she had done She bowed she waved aside the bo l of tea that a lady offer d her I will not stay Cous n she said in her usual lovely voice I came fo this promise and now I h ve it Itu mine so long as my life la ts and so long as my son s life I sts Nor will I forget that I too have given my own promise W th surpassing pnde this proud woman let her ev circle from one f ce to another Then she turned and s veeping her golden robes abo t her she took back her son and ent away That night hen she had seen her h ld fed and sleeping in the arm of his nurse she sent fo Li Lien ying He was never far off from where he as and nor hen he had come she commanded him to brng to her the Chief Eunuch An Teh hai "Tell him I have a trouble that I brood upon she sad So Li Li n yung ent and in an hour or ti o he brought the Chief Eunuch ho said after greeting Forgive me Vene able for delay I was busy in the Emperors bedchamber and under his command "You a e forgiven Yehonala said She pointed her fo e finger at a chair upon which he was to sit, and she sat 71 ·10 her own thronelike chur by the long carved table set against the inner wall of the room Her ladies she h d dus missed and only L. Lien ving and her woman remained with hr Li Lien ving now made pretense also to withdraus but Yehon ılı b de him stav What I have to say is for both of you for I must count you to us my left hand and my right She went on then to inquire of the intrigues which her Indies had hispered into her ears Is this true? she asked of the Chief Eunu h Are there those who plot to seize the Throne from my son if- She paused for none who spoke of the Emperor could say the ord death Lady all is true The Chief Eunuch nodded his hand some helvv head Suy on she commanded Venerable you must kno he said obeving that no one among t e mighty clans believed that the Emperor could 1x get a sound son When the Consort give birth to sickly wirl certuin of the princes took heart and they plotted ho v the moment that the Emperor departed for the Yellow ngs they would steal the imperial seal Alas-las- agun le shook his head we may not expect a long reign The Emperor is vouing in yeurs but the Douager Mother loved fum too well He fed on s vects hen he was a child and vhen he had puns in his belly she ord red oprum for him Before he was to elve years of age he was deb wched by eunuchs und by sixteen he was exhausted by women Let me speak the truth Here the Chief Eunuch put his large smooth hands on his knees and he made his voice so low that Li Lien ying had to lean to her it In visdom the Chief Eunuch said his wide face solemn we must now count our frends and enemies Jehonalt sat without moving while he spoke It was her grace that she could sit for hours motionless and at ease in upriglt imperial figure She looked at him now vithout a sig of fear "Who are our enemies she asked First the Grand Councilor Su Shun the Chief Eunuch whispered ma ·"Hel she exclamed "And I have taken hu3 daughter as my court lady and my favorite! Exen he the Chief Eunuch said gravely and with him the Emperor s own nephew Prince Fi and after him Prince Cheng These three Venerable are your first enemies because you have given us an heir She bowed her head The danger was as great as she had imagined These were mighty princes related by blood and clan to the Emperor himself And she was but a oman She 1 fted her head proudly And who are my friends? The Chief Eunuch cleared his throat Above all others Venerable Prince kung the younger brother of the Son of Heaven" *Is he indeed my friend? she exclaimed "Then he is worth all the rest She was still so young that any hope was hope enough and the red blood ran to hr cheeks When Prince kung saw you the Chief Eu nich declared "he said to a clansman standı & nur who told me that you were a woman so clever and so beautiful that erther you would bring good fortune to the realm or you would destroy the Dragon Throne These words Yehonala received into h I tho ightful mind She pondered them and for a space of time she s t entirely sulent Then she drew her bre thu a long sigh If I am to bring good fortune I must h ve my weapons "True Venerable the Chi FE nich replı d and vaited “My first seapon she continu d must be the power of "True Venerable the Chief Eunu h sa d ag un and ited "Retum to the Empero Yehonala comm inded Put i to hus mind that the Heir is in d og Put into his mind that only I can p otect our ch ld Put into his mind that he must raise my rank to equ 1 th t of the Con ort, so th t ste cunnot have po ver over the Her or be used by those who The Chief Eunuch smiled at such clevemess and Li Lien ying laughed cracking his finger joints one after the other to show hu pl sure Lady the Chief Eunuch sa d I will put it 73 she said rank. rave such powe ·perors mind that he 50 reward vou on the leirs first moon birthdy What day could be more auspicious? None she agreed She looked into his small black eyes set deep benerth hus high smooth forehead ind suddenly her own face dinled and sursled and her great eyes shone with miscłu f inith and trumph The first month of her sons life was completed The moon had been full when le wa born, dit was full again Certam dangers were pas ed the danger of the ten day madness whereby a fants die Lefore ten days are spent the dringer of Art whereby the bo vels of an er font run out he water the dan r of continual vo niting the danger of cough and cold and fever At the end of this frst mor th the Heir was fat and healthy his will already imperious and his hunger con tint so that his wetnurse must be rudy day and night for his de mand This Tetnurse Yehon h hid cho en herself 1 strong Young country housewife a Chinese hose child was also a first son and whost milk therefo e vas suited to the royal ursity, But Tehonla had not been content to have the ourt physicians judge the Omın sound and healthy No she must herself exarnire the woman's body and taste the sweetness of her milk and smell her breath to discover any taxt of soumess in it Ard she herself prescribed the wom ans card s3 to it that she sas served only the best and richest foods Upon such mill the pricelins, throve like any pe is ints child On this first moon buthday of his heir then the Emperor hnd decreed that feasts must be held throughout the nation Here in the Forbidden City the day was to be given over entire to feasts sund to mise and shen he sent the Chief Eunuch to inquire of Yel onola what she would like for fer oyn pleasure on this auspicious day she put her private cray ang into words I do long to see a good play she told An Tella. Sot since I came to li e bene ith these golden roofs hase I seen a plav The Douager Mother did not like actors and I dared not za bile she led and in the months of mourt uig for ht(could not ask But now-wul the Son of lleven wdule mer ·An Teh hai could not but smile at the sight of her face flushed and ardent as a childs the great eyes hopeful "The Son of Heaven will refuse you nothing now lady he told her and he blinked and nodded his head many times to signify that she would indeed rece ve reward far larger than a play Then forthwith he hastened off to do her bidding Thus it came about that on the day of feasting Tehonala had her lesser desire too while she waited for the greater the pleasure of a play as well as her increase in rank But first the gifts must be presented and received for these rites the Emperor chose the throne room named the Palace of Surpass ing Brightness Here at dawn there aited men f om all parts of the realm and among them eunuchs passed to and fo to tend the huge lanterns swinging from the beams whereon were painted the imperial five cla ed dragons These lanterns were made of hom and they & ve forth such a light that fall ing on the robes of eunuchs and of guests tt p cked out the gold embroideries and the encrust d jewels of the throne Every hue and color glowed at once the crimson and the purple deep and strong the scarlet and the bright blue ac centing and gold and silver gl tter ng for sharpness In silence all waited for the coming of the Son of Hei en and when dawn broke across the sky the mperi 1 proces on appeared its banners streaming m the morn ng bre ze and carried by the guardsmen m their sca let tuncs Ne t came the princes then the eunuchs muching slo sly two by two in robes of purple belted v th gold in their midst i elve bearers bore the sacred yellow dragon palanquin in which sat the Son of Heaven himself within the Throne Hall) all fell upon their knees and knocked their heads nn times upon the floor and shouted out ther ge ting Ten thousand years-ten tl ousand years-ten thousand years! The Emperor came down from his palanquin and with hs nght hand upon his brothe s arm and his left upon the arm of the G and Councilor Su Shun he mounted the golden throne The e seated in precise dignity his hands p Ims down upon his knees he recened in order the p inces and the ministers who presented imperial gifts for the He Thr hands did not touch the g fts for these vere placed on trays and sıl er plates and brought by bea ers but Prince k read the lists of gifts and whence they came from what 75 ·inces what parts and cities what country regions and the Chief Eunuch An Teh hu ith brush and book marked do vn the name of the giver and what the gift 2 ind how much as its worth and that he might set the value high the givers had earlier bribed him with secret gifts of goods and money No va screen stood behind the throne as usull a mighty stretch of scented vood most cunningly carved with five cla ved dragons ind behmd it lehonala and the Consort sat with thar lidies When all the gifts had been accepted the Emp for summoned Yehonala to receive his own reward The Chief Eunich brought the ummons and he led her from her plice and she approiched the Dragon Throne She stood there for one instant tal nd straight her head hgh looking neither to the night nor 1 ft Then slowly in obeisance she sink to her knees and lard her hands one on the other lipon the t led floor and put her forehe 1 on her crossed hind Abo e her the Emperor atted nd now he began to speak I do ths d v dec ce that the mother of the Impernl Herr here kneeling is to be r used to r nk of Consort equal in all ways to the present Coort that there be no confusion the present Consort sh ll be hnown as Tzu An the Empress of the Eust ro Pul ce and the Fort nnte Mother shl be known as Tz H 1 the Empress of the Western Palace This is my will It shall be declared across the realm that it may be kno yn to all people These ords 1 honalı heard and her blood rn strong and joyful to her het Who could him her no v? She had been hifted up und by the Empero hand Three times and three times and set three times more she touched her forehead to her hands Then rising to her feet she stood until the Chief Eunuch put out his right rm and leming on it she returned agun to her pl ce behind the Dragon Screen But hen she was seated she did not turn her head to look at Sahota nor did Sakota sperk While Yehonalı hıd stood before the Dragon Throne the vist multitude in the Banquet Hall was silent Not one voice spole ercept the Emperors and not one hand stirred And from that dav she was no longer called lehonali Tzu Hsl, the Sucre Mother was her imperial name That same night Tzu Hisi vas summoned to the Empecor. 76 ·For thre months she had received no summons the two months before her sons birth and the one month since But now the time was come Sheelcomed the call for it was proof that the imperl favor still was hers not only for her son s sake but for her own well enough she kne that in these months the Emperor had made use of on concubine and another and ench had hoped that she could d spl e her who was most favored Tonight ould tell her whether any had succeeded and eagerly se m de herself ready to follo v the Chief Eunuch who waited in the entrance of her pal ce Ah but now how hard it was to leave! The childs bed stood by her bed His own oom hid been prepar d for hum before his birth but she had not It hm go from her even for a night nor yet tonight Ready and ob d in soft pink satın jew led and perfumed she could not force herself & 2 from the boy who slept replete with human mill upor the silken mattress Two women sat bes d him one the et nurse and the other her o vn woman You are not to leave him fo one breath of time she wamed them If when I return though it be t di n mid you if he is hurt or weeping of pot of red is in here upon his flesh I will have you b th b ten and if he sh rmed at all your h ads will be the pre Both women stared to see he look so fiercely at them the wetrurse awed and the oman im zed at the courte us mus tress she thought she knew Since the Empress of th We tern Palach s bome the child he said in a mild vos e sh has become a t gr ss Be sure Venerable that ve ull guurd h m better ev n thu you tell us how to do But Tzu Hsı had more commands And Li Lien ying must sit outside and my ladies must not sl ep soundly It sh 11 all be so the woman promis d Still Tzu IIsı could not go n y She lean d abos e her sleeping child and saw his rosy fare the routing laps soft and red the eyes full and large the ears clo e to the h ad and s t low the lobes long and these were all signs of high intelligence Whence d d hr child rece ve his beauty? Hers al n s rely was not enough for this peri ct on His father-- She broke off thunku g and reached for his hand fit hus right hand and then his left and gently pressing op ·curling fingers she smelled the soft baby palms as mothers do Oh what 1 tretsute no was hers! Tenernble! She heard An Teh hus voice bumbling from the outer room The Chief Eunuch gres impatient not for his own sike but for her o n She knew by now that he as her ally in the secret palace * ind he must heed hun sell She stived then only to perform one more task From her dress ing table she chose ti a gifts a ring of gold and a thin brace let set ith seed pearls These gifts she gave the two women the ring to her own woman and the bracelet to the etnurse and thus she bribed them to their duty Then she hastened out and there as L Len vng her eunuch waiting with An Teh hai To her eunuch she give a piece of gold without a word he knew what it meant and vhile he went with An Teh hu he strved behind to guard her son Ins de the bosom of her robe si e held gold in a packet for the Chief Eunuch too but she ould not gi e it to him unt! she saw how the Emperor received her Did the night go well then he ould have hı pr ze And the Chief Eunuch under stood this and he led her by the ell known narrow ways to the imperial center of the Forb dden City Come here to me the Emperor said She stood the threshold of his vast chamber that he might see her in all her st ong beauty Upon his command she walked slow ly toward hım s vrving as she went th that grice she kne v so well how to use She was not humble but she feigned shyness and assumed 2 sweet coyness whuch was half real and half pretended for it was this woman s power that she could be almost what she feigned and planned to be and so she became nearly what she ould be at any inoment and in any place she was not deceiving for she deceived herself as much as the p rson before whom she appeared Thus now when she approached the imperial bed as ide and long as a room in de the yellow curtains and the net of gold she felt sudden pity The man who waited for her here was surely doomed for death Young as he was he had spent his force too soon She hastened the last few steps to him Ah" she aid, you are all and no one told me my Lord of Hcaven! 78 ·Indeed by the light of the great candles in their golden Stand he looked so wan his yellow skin stretched tightly Across the fine small bones of his face and frame that he seemed a living skeleton propped there against the yellow Satin pillo vs His two hands palms upward lay lifeless on the quilt She sat down on the bed and put out her warn strong hands and felt his dry and cold Have you pain?" she asked anxiously "No pam * he said "A weakness- But th. hand she insisted She took up his left hand It feels different from the other-colder more stuff 1 annot use it as once I did he said unwillingly She put back his sleeve and saw his bare are thin and yellow as old ivory beneath the satin robes Ah she moaned "ah why was I not told?" What is there to tell he said Except 1 have a slow creaping coldress on this side He pull d his hand away Come he said come to my bed None of them has been enough Only you only you- She saw the old hot lght come creeping back into his 52.nkeri eyes and she rrade ready to obey And yet as the dark hours passed to m dnight and then bevond she felt a sadness she had never known before Deep deep as the woe in this ponr man who was the Emperor of a mightv realm, The chull of death had struck his in vard life and he is man no more. As helpless as any eunuch he strove to do his part he besought her again and vet agan Help me-help me lest I die of this dreadful heat un lld But she could not help him Wh n she saw that even she was helpless she rose from the bed and sat by tis p No ind took him in her arms as though he ere a child and like a child he sobbed upon her brerst knowing that h th d been his chief joy could never be gain Though he 15 yo ng in years indeed his third decide not vet come he manan body erkened by his ou ne lusts Too er lyt ad hoc vi ked to his desires too often had the cunuchs fed thern too humbly had the Court physicians whipped his | loo! live again with he bs and medi ines He was exhaitsted ard only ho Thus cert rinty overyhelmed the woman as she lel 70 and could not Help me As an old death remained ·man to her breast She soothed hun with pleasant word she seemed so calm so strong that he was at last persuad d You are weary she said you are beset by worries 1 know our many foes and how the Western men with all therr ships and armies do threaten us Whle I have been living my woman s life such troubles hide inside your mind and sap your strength While I have bome my son you have bent beneath the burdens of the state Let me help you my lord, Throw half your burden upon me Let me always sit behind the screen in the Throne Hall at dawn and listen to your ministers I can hear the inner meaning of their plaints and when they are gone I will tell you what I think but it aving all decision to my lord as is my duty From unsatisfied desire she wooed hum thus away from love and to the affairs of the nation the threats of enemies and the strengthening of the Throne itself now that he had his Herr And she saw how weary was this man with all th: burdens for he gave great sighs and then he lifted himsel from her bosom and leaned agaist the pillow agrun any holding her hand with his own hand he tried to tell her hi perplexities "There is no end to my troubles he complained In th days of my for fathers the enemy came alı ays from the nort and the Great Wall stopped them men and horses But no the walls u eless to us These white men s varn up from th sens-English men and Frenchmen Dutch and Germins an Belgians Il you I do not know ho many nation ther are beyond the border mountains of K un LunThey mak Wat vith us to sell their opium and they are never satisfied Now the Americans are here too Where d d they come from Where is America? I hear its people are somewhat bette than the others y t when I yield to those others the Amet cuns demand the same benefits This is the year when the wish to renew theur treaty with us But I do not wish to new any trenty with white men "Then do not renew it Tzu Ilst said impetuously "V should you do that which you would not? Bid your ministes refuse * "The white mens weapons are very fearful he moaned "Delay-delay" she said Do not answer their pleiding ignore theu messages refuse to receive their envoys 7 80 ·no gives us time They will not attack us so long as there is hope that we wul renew the treaty Therefore do not say yes or The Emperor was struck with such wisdom You are worth lure to me than any man” he declared ev n than my brother It is he who plagues me to recene the hite mer and make new treaties with them He tries to frighten me by telling me about their big ships and the long cannon Negoti ate he says, Tzu Hsi laughed Do not allow yourself to be fryhtened my lord even by Irince Aung The sea is very far from here and can there be a cannon long enough to reach s high as our city walls?" She believed what she said and he wished to believe what she said and his heart clung to her more than ever He fell asleep at last upon his p llows and she sat besid hum until dawn At that hou the Chief Eunuch car e to aken the Em peror because his ministers waited for the usual ea lv audi ence When he came in Tzu Hsi rose to command him while the Emperor stull slept From this day on she said I am to st behind the Dragon Screen in the Throne Hall The Son of Heaven has He commanded it" An Teh hai bowed do yn to the floo before her and i knoched his head on the tiles Venerable he exclaimed. Now I am happy" 1. From that day on Tzu Hsı rose in the da kness of the small || hours before day in the candl 1 ght her women bathed her Y and put on her robes of state and she enter d her curtamed sedan and Li Lien vinç ent befor her vitt a lantem in his hand to the Throne Hall and she sat beh nd the g eat carved screen befo e which was the Dragon Throne und Li Lien dymg was her guard He stood ne r her alw ys a dagger ready in his hand From this day too the Heir slept no more in his mother s bedchamber He was moved into his oyn palace and the Chief Eunuch was made his servant and Prince hung the brother of the Emp ror w s appointed his guard an The cold came soon that year No rain had fallen in * seks and alseady by mdautumn the dry and bitter 81 ·L blew from the northwest scattering their burden of pales from the distant desert The city was clothed in the faint of the sand and the sun glittered upon the roofs of the house where the sand drafted into the crevices of the eaves On the porcelun tules of the roofs of the Forbidden City rov blue and imperial vellow shed the sind and shone clear tr the white glare from the sky At noon while the sun stil gave forth a mild heat old people rapped in padded garments stirred out of ther houses and st in sheltered corners between walls and chil dren ran into the streets and played until the su eat streamer down their brou n cheeks Yet when the sun went away agan at nightfall the dry old congealed the blood of young and ok alıke Throughout the night the cold deepened until in the hours after midnight and before da vn it reached its depths Those beggirs in the streets who had no shelter ran hithe and thither to keep alive until the sun came up again even uld dogs could not sleep In such a cold and silent hour and upon a day set by th Board of Imperial Astronomers Tzu Hsi rose one day to tak her usual place in the Throne Hall Her farthfi 1 1 oman sler near her when the atchman s brass gong sounded thre times th ee through the streets the woman got up from } pillet b d ind laid fresh charcoal on the brazzer and she on the coal a kettle of inter When it boiled she made in n silver and earthen pot and pproaching the vast be where Tzu Hsi slept she put aside the ci runs and toucher her shoulder It needed but a touch for though Tzu Hsı sler well ste slept als ays lightly No her great eyes opene wide and an are and she sat up in bed "I makened she said The oman poured the infused ter into a bowl and sentd it with both hands and Tzu Hsı drink it slowly not too slowly gaugung exactly the measure of the passi time When she had drunk the bowl empty the woman too! It again in the bathing room the water as already pouret stemming hot into the porcelain tub Tzu Hsi rose her ever, movement graceful and precise for grace and precision wer her habit and in a few minutes she was in her bath lic woman washed her gently and then dnud her and put on he garments for the imperial audience Her undergarments wer 8.

·of perfumed silk ud over these was a long robe of rose red satur lined with northem sable and buttoned at the throat and over this again a robe of pale yellow gauze embroidered in mall blue medallions in phoenix design Upon her feet Izz Hsc s ore lined stockings of soft white silk and over them fer Vanchu shoes set on high double heels in the middle of the soles Upon her head hen her hair was dressed the woman set a headdress made of figures and flowers of satan und gems and veiled with beds of fine small pei Is They moved in silence the woman silent because she was lasears Seary and Tzu Hsı silent because her mind was filled with somber thoughts The times grew more grave Only yester day in private audience Prince kung had said to her The people of any nation do not care who their rulers are if there be peace and order in the realm and if they c12 lugh and at end plays But if there be ro peace and order is disturbed then the people blame their rulers It is our mi fortune to malm these times Alas that my unperial brother is so f eble! Todav neither white man nor Chinese rebel fears the Throne If these white-skinned foreigners had not come from across the seas" Tzu Hsi said ve could quell the Chinese rebels To this he agreed sadly and thoughtfully Yet vh t shall Me do? he inquired "They are here it is th fault of our dynasty that our ancestors d d not understand a hund ed cars ago that Western foreigners are different men trom all ot' ers Our ancestors at frst vere charmed with the cun ning and their clever toys and clocks and th nk g no eval they allowed them to visit us expecting that in cout they Would then leave our shores We kno v no that e should save pushed them all into the sea from the very fi st man or where one comes a hundred follow and none gue It is strange indeed Tzu Hs observed the the Vener rable Ancestor Ch zen Lung so great and so se nd rul ng so many dec des did not perceive the natir of the men F, Prince kung shaking his head went mournfully on Chien Lung was deceryed by his power and by h s o yn good heart It did not come to his mind that any could be lis e emy Indeed he even luk ned himself to the Amer cun George And ashington then living and he was fond of sayug that way 1 from the West." 83

·No text on this page.

·she would not recognize Ah yes ah yes the gossip of the wonen in the courts where there was little to do except to gossip had fluttered from mouth to ear ever since the first moon feast of the Imperial Heir and she had caught the pumor that Lady der had been seen to look more than once pt Jung Lu, the handsome Chief of the Imperial Cuard and kmsman of the Fortunate Mother Tzu Hsi heard this as she heard everything her mind always aware her eres seeing her ears hearing whether she woke or slept Who could guess all that she knew who made no confidante? "Venerable please I want no husband Lady Mer now mumu ed her cheeks suddenly pink Tzu Hst pinched the pretty cheek. No husband Let me stay with you always Venerable the lady pleaded Why not?" Tzu Hsi replied “Th is not to say you shall mot have a husband Lady Mer went pale and red and then pale gan Unl cky unlucky to talk of marriagel The Empress of the Western Palace had only to command her marriage to a m n and she must obey whereas her whole heart was, The gaunt shape of Li Lien ymg appeared befo e them la ge and hideous the light from the lantem in his hand fick ering upward against his coarse features hour grows late Venerable he said u hus high Tzu Hsi recalled herself "Ah yes and I must see my son For it was her habit every moming to see he on before she went to audienc and she entered he sedan the curtains fell and the six bearers 1 fted the pol s to ther shoi lders and me arched forwa d in swift hythm until they c me to the pal face of the Heir her lady following in a small sedan At the entrance to the Heurs private palace the bearers her lady waiting whle she hastened to her on F nuchs stond on guard and they howed as she pa sed to the roval bedchamber There thick rd candles of covs ft in gold candlesticks stood on a table and by the gutter ng light she saw her child He vas sleeping ith his etn irse and s imgered by hs bed of juilts laid upon the pl tform of he huick He was pillowed on his nurse s urin his ch k 1. eunuch s voice 85 ·her naked breast Some tune in the night he must wakened and cried and the woman had suckled bun and had both fallen asleep Tzu Hsi gazed down upon them with strange and longing She it should have been who heard him weepuis the night and she it should have been who suckled him then lay sleeping in deep peace Ah when she chose be destiny she did not think of such a price! She forced her heart down again The moment of chow was gone By his very buth her son now confirmed her des twy She was mother not to a child but to the Herr of the Empire and to that day when he would be Emperor of for hundred million subịects she must give her whole mund Upon her alone rested the burden of the Manchu dynasty Hsien Feng was werk but her son must be strong She wou make him strong to this end her whole life was directed Even the long and pleasant hours of study in the palace libra jes were fewer now and few too the painting lessons wat Lady Miao Some day it might be that she would have tum to brush the pictures which her teacher Lady Miao had nevt let her make but not yet She was soon in her sedan again the curtains drawn agar the winds rising before dawn the sight of her sleeping bab warm in her heart She had been ambitious once to mal herself an empress How mighty was her ambition now wł must hold an empire for her son! Through the shifting curtains of the sedan she could s the light of the eunuch s lantem fickering upon the cobble of the road and by alleyway and courtyards she was carrie until the Throne Hall was reached and there by a side her sedan set down and the curtain lifted Prince Kung waiting to receive her "Venerable you are late he exclamed "I lmgered too long with my son she confessed He looked his reproach I hope Venerable that you not wake the Her It is necessary indeed that he grow str and full of health His reign will be most arduous "I did not wake hum" she said with dignity Nowo passed more than these Prince Kung bowed and led the by an inner passage to the space behind the Duga Here shielded by the immense screen cared deer 88 ·bold design of dragons their scales and five toed cla s glded and cleanmg m the light of the great lanterns that hung from far up in the lofty painted beams Tzu Hsı took her seat. On her ngħt stood Lady Men, and on her left the eunuch Li Lien yog Through the mterstices of the screen she saw now that the wide terrace in front of the Audience Hall vast in shados was already filled with princes and ministers who had come before midnight in their springless fur I ned cart to brmg petitions and memorials to the Emperor hinself While thev waited in the courtyard for his arrival they sepa ated thern sel es accordmg to their rank and stood in groups together each group beneath its own banner of bright silk and dark velvet The darkness was still intense around a d above but the terraces as lit by the fammg lanterns m the lo ver cort yard There at the four corners stood bronze eleph nts filled mth oil and this 01 fed the torches wh ch the eleph nts held m their uplifted trunks and the fi e leaping toward the sky cast a fierce and restless light upon the scene In the Aud enice Hall itself a hundred eunuchs mo ed to and fro mending the huge horn lantems ant nging their vivid and jeweled robes hispermg now and then as they waited. Ao voice spoke aloud A strange silence brooded over all and as the hour fixed by the Board of Astrologers accord mg to the stars d ew ner ths s lence deepened into some thing lile a trance None mo ed ! f ce staff nd gra e all eyes gazing straight ahead I the last moment before da m broke a courier bles his brass trump t loudl and this a sig The Emperor had left his place and hs impenal pa cession sas on ts way movi & lo ly thro gh the boad lower throne halis passing thoi gh one great entrance and another into the higher hålls to arrive at the er et hour of dawn Now the couners cried out together Behold the Lord of Ten Thousand years! At this cry the impenal p ocess on appe red at the en trance to the lower courtyard Banners of gold ved in the moming wind as the couriers mu hed onwa d Bhi d them came the Imperial Guard in tun es of red and gold and at their herd Jung Lu walked alone Behind them beur is yellos uniform one hundred in number carried the S 87 ·or s palanqum of heavy gold and it in turn was followed by the Bannermen Every man and every eunuch fell down upon his knees and shouted the sacred greeting Ten Thousand Years-Ten Thousand Years! Each bowed his face upon his folded hands as he knelt and thus remuned while the bearers carried the Imperial sedan up the marble steps to the Dragon Terrace before the Audience Hall There the Emperor descended wrapped in his robes of gold embroidered with dragons and passing between the red and gold pillars he walked slowly to the dais He mounted its few steps and seated himself upon the Dragon Throne his thin hands outspread upon his knees his eyes fixed ahead Silence fell again The kneeling multitude their heads bowed upon their hands did not move while Prince kung took his place on the night of the Throne and standing he read aloud the names of princes and ministers in the order of their rank and the time at which each should appear The audience had begun Tzu Hst, behind the screen leaned forward that she might not lose one word of what was said Thus leaning she saw only the head and shoulders of the Emperor above the low back of the throne upon which he sat Thus man whose front apperrance was so pale and haughty was now betrayed Ber neath the imperial tasseled hat his nape showed thin and yel low the neck of a sickly youth and not of a man and this neck sat between two lean and narrow shoulders stooping beneath the rich robes Tzu Hsi saw him with mucd pity and repulsion her minds eye following those thin shoulders to the thu and sickly body and how could she keep her swift eyes from reaching beyond the Throne? There Jung Lu stood in the full strength of his youth and manhood Yet they ere as separate she from him as north is from the south Ah but the hour had not yet come when she could raise him upl Nor could he so much as put out his hand to her llers must be the hand to move but when would be the instant and the chance? Not and thus she knew until she was strong cnough in power to make all men fear her she must first be so high that none would dare accuse her or soil her name and sud denly guided by some instinct she would not acknowledge, 99 ·Joosed it. ber eyes slid sidewise toward Lady Mer There the girl stood her face pressed upon the screen stanng at- Stand back! She seized Lady Mei by the wrist and pulled bar turstmg her wrist suddenly and cruelly before she The lady tumed her head in fright, and her eyes met those eyes great and black and fierce with anger Tzu Hsı did not speak again but she let her eyes bum on until the girl could not bear it Her head drooped and the tears ran down her cheeks and only then did Tzu Hsı turn her eyes a say But her will rose hard within her against her self She ould not let her heart beguile her mnd Ths was the hour of learning how to rule She would not yeam for love At this same moment Yeh the Viceroy of the A ang prov inces was before the Throne He had come by boat and by | horseback from the south where he was the appointed gov ernor of those provinces Now kneeling he read loud from a scroll which he held in both hands He had a high level voice not strong but piercing and since he was a famous scholar he had written his wo ds in rhythms of four the anc ent class c style Only the leamed could unde stand vhat he said and Tzu Hsi herself listenmg with close care could not ha e comprehended except that she had so du gently spent her tme in studying ancient books He intell gence enl ghtened the words and she guessed hat she d d not know, Here was the purport The traders from th West vere pressing again in the south led by the wh te Englishmen who were angry and o er so small an affair that he the iceroy vas a hamed to ment on it now befor the Dragon Throne Yet from such small matters m the p st was had been fought and lot and he appointed by the Son of Heaven could not risk the danger of yet another war When ever the wh te men d d not get the w y he sad med ath ately they th eatened b ttle Th re was no easong them fo they were barbarians and uncivilized Yet the trou ble was ove nothing mor th n a fag The Emperor murmur d somethng and Prince kung spoke The Son of Heaven inquires the meanng of the -flag" he said in a loud clear ove 89 for hm ·"A flag Most High the Viceroy replied not lifting his eyes is only a banner * The Emperor murmured agam and again Prince kung repeated what he said in the same loud clear voice "Why should the Englishmen be angry over what is nothing more after all than a piece of cloth and therefore easily replaced?" "Most High the Viceroy explained still not lifting his eyes the English are a superstitious people They are not men of learning and so they attach magic qualities to an oblong cloth, designed in colors of red white and blue It is a symbol for them sacred to some god they worship They will not tolerate lack of reverence for this piece of cloth Wherever they place it st designates possession in this case it was at tached to a pole on the rear of a small trading vessel carty ing Chinese pirates Now these Chinese pirates have been the curse of generations past in our southern provinces They sleep by day and by night they attack vessels at anchor and even coastal villages The captain of this small boat had paid a sum of money to the Englishmen to allow them the flag mking that I the Viceroy would then not dare to command them to cerse their evil trade But I the Viceroy unworthy servant of the Most High did not fear I arrested the vesse and put the captain in ch uns Then I commanded the flag to be taken down When the Englishman John Bowring the Commissioner of Trade for the British in Canton henrd o this he declared that I had insulted the sacred symbol ang he demanded that I apologize on behalf of the Throne" Horror rushed over the entire assembly Even the Empero was aroused The Emperor sat up in his Throne and spole for himself "Apologize For what?" Most High," the Viceroy said "those were my words Stand " the Emperor commanded. Stand the Dragon Emperor commands you " Prince kung repeated It was unusual but the Viceroy obeyed. He was & tail aging man a native of the northern provinces and a Chl nese but loyal as all scholars were to the Manchu Throne Since the Throne favored Chinese scholars and when they had passed the imperial examinations with honor employed then as administrators of government. Thus were the interests of ·such Chinese cemented to the dynasty in rule and so it had been for many centuries Did you apologize?" the Emperor asked agun speaking not through his brother but directly to signify his deep con cem The Viceroy replied Most High how could I apologize when I however lo vly am the appointed of the Drngon Throne I sent the pirate captain and his crew to apologize to the Englshmen Yet this d d not satisfy that haughty and ignorant Bowring He sent the Chinese back to me declaring that it was I and not they whom he wanted Whereupon in extreme vexation I had them all beheaded for causing con fusion Did this not satisfy the Englishman Bowring? the Em peror inquired It did not Most High the Viceroy replied Nothing will satisfy him He wishes trouble so that he may have an ex cuse to make another war and se ze still more of our land and our treasure This Bowring enlırges every cause fo quar el Thus although it is agunst the la to bring op um from India across our borders he encourages smuggl ng sying that as long as any Chinese t ader smuggles Englishmen and India is and even Americans may be allowed to struggle the vile weed to demoralize and weaken our people Mo e than that guns also are now be ng smuggled m to sell to the south em Chinese rebels and when the white nen from Portugal k dnapped Chinese for the cool e trade Bowring declared that he would uphold the Portug ese Moreover he cont nues to insist thit the Englash are not > tisfied wth the ind ve have allo ed them to bi id their houses upon to Most *High now they insit these Engl shmen that the gates of Canton tself must be opened to them and to the ri milies so that they may walk upon ou str ets and Ir ngle with our people the wh te males & zig at our wornen and the wh te females ho h ve no modesty con ing and going as f eelv as the miles And what is gented to one h te tribe will be demanded by all the others as they have done in the past Is this not to de troy our tradit ons and corrupt the people? The Emperor agreed We cannot indeed allow strangers from other countries the freedom of o ir str ets ** Most High I did forbid it but I fear the English OL ·45 make whatever I forbid an excuse for yet another war and small man that I am I cannot take responsibility This is what Tzu Hsı heard behind the screen and she longed to cry out agamst the interlopers But she was a woman and must keep silence The Emperor spoke Have you yourself represented our opinion to this Bowing Englishman?' He was now 50 roused that he raised his voice to a feeble shout and this alarmed the Viceroy for he had never heard the imperial voice raised before and he turned his head to ward Prince Kung not lifting his face to the Throne Most High he said I cannot receive Bowrig because he insists that he be allowed to call upon me as an equal. Yet how can he be my equal when I am the appointed of the Dragon Throne? This would be to insult the Throne itself I have replied that I will only receive him as I do others from tributary states He must approach me on his knees as they do This he will not "You are correct the Emperor sald with puny anger Thus encouraged the Viceroy proceeded to further revela tion Moreover o Most High, this Bowring insists that I the people of Canton to print wall papers denouncing we white strangers These papers Most High the Chinese paste upon the walls of the city and upon the city gates and Bowring is angry because they call his tribe barbarian and be cause they demand that all invaders leave our shores "They are nght" the Emperor exclaimed "Entirely night Most High the Viceroy agreed And how can I forbid the people? It has been their ancient privilege and custom to say what they think and to male known their wishes to their rulers by public protest Am I now to say that the people may not speak? Is this not to invite fresh rebel lion? They were cou ed last year when I ordered the provin cial armies to kill all rebels At that time eighty thousand rebels were killed as I reported to the Dragon Throne but if one rebel is left alive ten thousand spring up like weeds Is it not to put power into the hands of Chinese rebels who continually think that they should be ruled by Chinese and not by Manchus? Ilis point struck home The Emperor raised his right hand to his mouth that he might hide the trembling of his lips He?

·feared the Chmese he ruled even more than the white men ho pressed upon hing His voice fnded Certainly the people must not be restramed” he mut tered Instantly Prince kung took up the words and repented thein as was his duty Certainly the people must not be restramed, he said in his loud clear voice Over the Ineel mg multitude of ministers and princes approval ro e in a I will send down my command tomorro v the Emperor said to the Viceroy when silence had fallen gun The Viceroy bowed his head nine times to the door and net ay to the next minister But all knew why the Emp Tor delayed subdued rour That night when she was summoned T u Hst kne v hat esh must say All day she h d remuned alone and in thought and she did not even send for her son Her struggle $ 1th her own ariger Could she h e velded to her anger she would have the Emperor send hs arm es to att ch the for eigners and force them from the shores of China to the last and voungest child never to return Bit he hour as not Yet She understood ell that she must first rule herself of she would rule others fo had she not ead in the Analects those very wo ds? When a nie s conduct s correct hus government is effective without issuing orders If his personal duct be not correct he my issue o ders but they will not be followed" And if such o ds ve e true fo a male ruler ho v much were they tru for one ho oman! How doubly nigorous must she be? Ah that she had been tom a manl She yould hers l' have led the Imperial Armes against the invaders What sins had she comm tted in some former life that she was born im le in these tunes hen strong men were vantedShe booded upon the eternal question sending mind and memory far back into her deepest being she could not pierce beyond the womb She was what she was bem and she must do with what she had mans mand in a womans body Mans med and womans body she ould combine to do hat must be done That night when the Emperor received her she - frightened for lis I abiti I lust, a desire 93 ·17 because his body could no more obey his mind He received her eagerly and in his eagemess she read his fear While he beld her right hand in both his hands he caressed her palm, and asked her the question that he had waited to put to her "What shall we do with this Bowring Englishman? Does be not deserve to die He does she said gently as any man deserves to die who insults the Son of Heaven But you know my lord that when one strikes a viper the head must be severed at the first blow else the creature will turn and attack Therefore your weapon must be sharp and certain We do not know what the weapon should be but we know this serpent is both wily and strong Therefore I beg you delay and make excuse never yielding but never refusing until the way is clear He listened his sallow face wrinkling with anxiety and every word she spoke he received as though he heard it from Heaven Indeed when she had finished he sud very fervently "You are Kuan Yin herself Goddess of Mercy sent to me by Heaven at this dreadful moment to guide and support He had spoken many words of love to her he had called her his heart and has liver but what he now said pleased her beyond anything she had ever heard Kuan Yin is my own favorite among the heavenly beings she replied and her voice sweet and powerful as it was by nature at this moment was also tender The Emperor sat up in his bed with sudden energy "Bid the Chief Eunuch call my brother" he exclauned Like all weak men he was impatient when a decision was made overquick to act Tzu Hsi obeyed nevertheless In a fesz minutes Prince Kung came in and she felt again as she looked at his grave and handsome face that this man she could trust Theurs was a coramon destiny "Sit down-sit down the Emperor said impatiently to this younger brother "Allow me to stand * Prince kung replied in courtesy and he remamed standing while the Emperor spoke in his high voice nervous stammering seeking for words We bave-I have decided not to attack the white stran 94 ·gers with one blow They deserve immediate death But when one steps on a viper-that is to say a viper should be killed instantly you understand his head crushed or cut off-the question being." I do understand Most High" Prince kung said It is better not to attack unless we can be sure of destroying the enemy mstantly and forever It is what I am saying the Emperor said peevishly Some day of course it is what we must do Meanwhile delay you comprehend not yielding but not refusing" Ignorng the white men?" Prince kung inquired Exactly the Emperor said wearily He lay back on his yellow satin cushions Prince Kung reflected Had his brother made such deci sions alone he might have believed that it was from his habitual dread of trouble the constant lethargy wh ch stayed action But he knew that this was Tzu Hsis advice He heard it, knowing very well the powerful and reason ng bram that was hidden inside the beautiful and shapely head Yet she was very young-and a woman! Could this be wisdom? Most High he began patiently But the Emperor refused to hear him I have spoken!" Thus he cried in a high and angry vo ce Prince Kung bowed his head Let it be so Most High I will myself take your commands to the Viceroy Yeh" The brittle peace continued Upon a wintes moming on the last month of the old moon year and the fi st month of the new solar year when her son was nine months old Tzu his woke and waking breathed a mighty sigh Again and again in the night her unsleeping mind had struggled through to consciousness She felt a lonel ness so heavy that it seemed some monstrous and uns en dager from which she could not escape No more d d she waken in the morning as she had once waked at her home in Pewter Lane her eves open ing on the calm morning sun shinng thro gh the latticed windows Her bed there shared with her sister was a refuge to wh ch there was no return her mother a sbelter that was hers no more Who in this vast tangle of walled passages courtyards and palaces ca ed whether she lived or Even the Emperor had his many concubines, 95 ·"Ah my mother she moined softly into her satin pillo is No voice answered She lifted her head and suw the gray light of late dawn steal o er the high walls of the courtvırd outside her sindo y Snow hnd fillen in the night ind it lay thickly upon the walls and over the hiled garden The round pool was hidden beneath sno v and the pine trees were beat under its load I am too sud she thought I feel the very marro in my bones cold with sadness Yet she was not ! Her arms Iving under the q Its ere warm and strong Her blood flowed her mind was clear She was only heartsick If I could see my mother she thought If I could see the one who bore me She remembered her mothers face sensible and good cheerful and shrewd and she longed to return to her mother and tell her that she was afraid and alone in the palwes in her uncles house in Pewter Lane there was no fear or fore boding no ominous future The moming dawned only to the simple necessities of food and the days work There was 1 splendor nor demand for greatness "Ah my mother" she sighed aga n and she felt the yeam of a chia for its own Oh that she could return to her podle source! The need pervaded her she rose with it in her heart, and all day she was sad A sad day indeed the gray light strug gling through the white fall of the snow so that even at noon the lanterns were still lit in the rooms She ent no here except into her own library a place she had taken for her self in a small adjoining palace long unused Here she had commanded eunuchs to gather the books she liked best and the scrolls she liked to open and to ponder upon But books did not speak to her today and she sat the hours through with her scrolls unrolling one after another slowly until she found the one she sought a hand scroll seventeen feet long painted by the artist Chao Veng fu in the Mongol dvnasty of Yuan This scroll five hundred years old and more had been inspired by her favorite the great Wang Wei mister of landscape art who had painted the scenes from his own home where he lived for thirti yerrs before he did now behind the palace walls on this winter s day where she coulu ·see only sky and fallmg snow Tzu Hsi gazed upon the green landscapes of continuing spring One landscape melted into another as slowly she unrolled the scroll, so that she might dwell upon every detail of tree and brook and distant hill Strle So did she in imagination pass beyond the hugh walls which enclosed her and she traveled through a delectable country beside flowing brooks and spreading lakes and fol low ng the ever flowing nver she crossed over wooden bridges and climbed the stony pathways upon a high mountainside and thence looked down a gorge to see a torrent fed by still higher sprogs and breaking into waterfalls as it traveled to ward the plains Down from the mountain agan she came past small villages Destling un pine forests and into the warmer valleys among bamboo groves and she paused in a poet s pavilion and so reached at last the shore where the river lost itself in a bay There among the reeds a fisherman s boat rose and fell upon the rising tide Here the river ended its horizon the open sea and the musted mountains of infinity This scroll Lady Miao had once told her was the artists picture of the human soul passing through the pleasant scenes of earth to the last view of the unknown future far beyond "And why the Emperor asked her that n ght when the long lonely day was spent, why is your mind so far from me? I am not decerved by you Your body is here but it is He took up her hand a soft and beautiful hand no v its last roughness smoothed away the fingers delicate the palm strong See this hand " he said I hold it, at grasps m ne but it could be any womans hand. She confessed her humors I have been sad today" she said, I have spoken to no one I have not even sent for the child He continued to stroke the hand he held "No v why be asked, when you have everything should you be s di* She longed to tell her strange fears to him but he dared not. He above all must never feel fear ta her upon whom he leaned for strength Oh how heavy a burden was this neces sity to be strong! And from whom could she draw her o strength? Above her there was nono She was indeed Tears filled her eyes against her will The F 07 lifeless ·them glitter in the light of the candles that bumed beside his bed and he was frightened What is this?" he cried I have never seen you weep She drew her hand away and wiped her eyes gracefully on the edge of her satın sleeve I have yearned all day for my mother she said And I do not know why Can it be that I have somehow been unfilial? I have not looked upon het face since I entered these walls at your command I do not know how she is perhaps she is dying and that is why I weep The Emperor was all eagerness to please her You must visit her he urged Why did you not tell me? Go go my heart and liver go tomorrowl I give you leave But you must come back again by twilight I cannot have you gone for a night So it came about that Tzu Hsi once more retumed to her mother for a day and the price she now paid to the Emperor was her grateful ardor Yet it could not be the next day that she go for the visit must be announced in order that her uncles house could be prepared But the next day after it could be done and two eunuchs were sent early to say that she would arrive at midday What excitement now prevruled in Pewter Lane! Tzu Hsi too was warmed by her om eagerness and she rose on the chosen mortung nth such a heart as she had not known since she came She spent in hour deciding and then undoing her decisions as to what she should wear I do not wish to be splendid she excluimed to her wom in for then thev will think I have gro in prod” "Venerable you must be somewhat splended the oma remonstrated lest they think you do not give them honor A middling splendor Tzu Hsı agreed She looked over all her robes choosing this one and then that until she selected at last a satm of a delicate orchid purple lined with gray ſur It was a fine robe its beauty in the perfection of its embroidered sleeves and hem and not in the boldness of its design She was pleased with herself when she was robed in it and she chose for omaments her favorite jade When she was ready and when she had enten a few mouthfuls of food which ber ladies pleaded with ber to swallow 08 ·she entered into her sedan that stood waiting in the court yard, the bearers drew the yellow satin curtains close and so the journey was begun For a mile it lay withm the walls of the Forbidden City and she gauged the courts through Mhich she was carried, and the halls by which she passed, travelmg always toward the south, for the Emperor in the excess of his love had granted her the privilege of using the chief gate called Mendian, by which usually only he himself could enter and leave his city Outside that gate she heard the Commander of the Imperial Guard shout for his guardsmen to stand attendance while she passed How well she knew that voicel She leaned forward in her chair and put aside the curtains a half inch and looking through the crack she saw Jung Lu standing not ten feet from her his face averted his sword held up before him his body taut and straight and at its full height. Neither to nght nor left did he look when she passed but she knew by the dark flush on hus cheeks that he had heard, that he knew it was she She let the curtain fall. It was high noon when Tzu Hsi reached the entrance to Pewter Lane, and hidden b hind the sedan curtains she knew that she was near her childhood home She smelled the familiar odors of salty crullers fred in bean oil the musky fragrance of camphorwood the reek of childrens urine and the choking scent of dust. The day was dry and cold and under the feet of the bearers the earth was frozen hard as stone Upon this pale dry earth the shado vs of the houses on either side of the lane were shrunken small and black against the walls and Tzu Hsi, peering downward be tween her sedan and the curtains guessed the hour So often had she run to and fro along this lane that he could tell within an inch what tune it was the shadows heavy toward the west in the moming and bending eastward in the after noon. Now in the light of the full sun ber sedan approached the well known gate and she put her eye to the crack of the curtains again and saw that gate opened and her family gathered before it and waiting there to the right stood hero uncle and her mother and with them the cousins of the generat on and their wives and to the left she saw ? soung girl who was surely her sister and with 89 ·two brothers grown beyond her memories and behind them Lu Ma Against the walls on either side were the neighbors and the friends of Pewter Lane When she saw their faces grave and welcoming tears watered into ber eyes oh she was the same to them and somehow she must make them know it! Inside her breast beat the same heart they knew so well Yet she could not open the curtains or cry out their name for whatever her h art was she was now Tzu Hsi Empress of the Westem Palace and mother of the Impenal Her and so she must carry herself wherever she was she made no sign and the eunuch led the way to the gate the Chief Eunuch first of all for the Emperor had commanded hun to go with his treasure and never leave her presence Up the steps then and through the open gate the six bearers carried her and they crossed the entrance courtyard and set the sedun down at last before the house There the Chief Eunuch hunsel put aside the satın curtains and Tzu Hsi stepped out into the sunlight and saw before her the wide and open doors of her old home The familiar room was there the main hallits tables and chairs polished and clean and the tiled floor swept. Often i had been her task to sweep and clean and set the chairs straight and dust the furniture and now all was done as though she were still here A vase of red paper flo ver stood on the long table agair st the wall and fresh candles in the pewter candlesticks and in front of the square table between the ceremonial chairs were small covered dishes ol sweetmeats a teapot and bowls She placed her hand upon the lifted aim of the Chief Eunuch and he led her to the highest seat to the right of the square table and she sat down and put her feet together on the footstool He arranged her skirts and she folded her hands upon her lap Then the Chlef Eunuch returned to the gate and announced that now the family could approach the Empress of the Westes Palace Osse by one they came her uncle first and then her mother and then the elder cousins of the same generation and their wives and after them hes brothers and her sister and the younger cousins of their generation and each bowed down before her hile behind her stood the eunuchs and at her right hand the Chif Eunuch 100 ·At first Tzu Hs behaved indeed as an Empress must. She recerved the obeisances of her family with dignity and grave looks, except that when her uncle and her mother boned before her she motioned to the Chief Eunuch to lift them up Xerd mvite them to be seated. When the ceremonies were complete no one knew what to say pest. All must wait for the Empress to speak and Tzu Hsı looked from face to face She longed to come down from her high place and speak as she used to do and she longed to nm about the house and be free as once she had been free. But the Chief Eunuch stood there watching all she did. For a while she considered how she could accomplish what she wished. All were ar ranged according to the generations the elders seated and the young ones standing and still they waited for her to speak first, and how could she speak as her heart longed? Suddenly she tapped her shielded fingernails upon the pol ished table at her right and she nodded at the Chief Emuch to signify that she had something to say to him He came near and leaned down his ear and mto this eu she spoke. You are to stand aside you and these eunuchsl How can I enjoy myself when you hear every word I speak and see every motion that I make?" The Chief Eunuch was concerned when he heard such a command. "Venerable the Son of Heaven bade me never leave your side" he said in a loud whisper Tzu Hsi was mstantly incensed She tapped her foot on the floor and drummed her golden finger skueids upon the table and she shook her head at the Chief Eunuch so that the pearls of her headdress trembled on their wires Her own jeunuch, Li Lien ying, who stood near to hold her jeweled pipe and fan and toilet case saw her fury rising and, know ing very well what it foretold, he plucked the sleeve of the Chief Eunuch "Elder Brother it is better to let her have her way whispered "Why do you not rest yourself? I will stay near enough to watch over her Now whether the Chief Eunuch would have obeyed Tzu Hsı or the Emperor cannot be known, but he was easily weary and already tired of standing on his feet and grasped the chance to withdraw to another room tone Tzu Hsi considered ter mentor bad left her 101 he

·No text on this page.

·that he s such a child as would delight your soul and you must come to visit him since I may not bring hun here His eyes are bg like this, here she measured two circles with ber thumbs and forefingers"and he is so fat his flesh so ragrant-and he never cries I do assure you-and he is al ways greedy for his food and his teeth are whiter than these pearls and though he is still so small he wants to stand on his legs which are like two posts under his strong body "Hush! her mother cried. Hush,hush-what if the gods hear you reckless one? Will they not seek to destroy such a child Her mother looked up and down and everywhere around and she cried out, in a loud voice Nothing is as you say! I have heard that he is puny and weak and-and- Tzu Hsi laughed and put her hand over her mothers mouth I am not afraidi Do not say so her mother insisted beneath the hand But Tzu Hsu could only laugh and soon she was walking every here looking at the rooms she knew so i ell and teas. mg her sister who now had the whole bed to herself and alone with her mother in one room she asked concerning the marriage plans for her sister and proposed that she would find a good husband for her among the young noble- Indeed” she said "I will find one young and handsorue and bid hun wed my sister Her mother was grateful will be a filial deed and very pious If you can so do she sa d "it So the hours passed and all the family vas merry because Tzu Hs was merry In midafternoon a good feast vas set, Tu Ma busy everywhere and having at the ti ed cooks and when this had been shared the day was nearing night and the Chief Eunuch returned to his duty He approached Tzu Hsf requested her to prepare for leave t king "The time has come Venerable he said "I have the command of the Most High It is my duty to obey She kne there was no further escape and so she yielded with grace Once more she became the Empress Li Lien ying put b ck her headdress and she took her seat again in the Thain room and arrar ged hers If Immed ately the became her subjects. One by one they came 103 men. and ·made their obeisances and said their farewells and to each she spoke with suitable words leaving gifts for each and for Lu Ma money At last all farewells were said She lingered a few minutes more in silence her eyes moving here and there It had been a day of deep happiness and a of the simple affections of her chudhood And yet somehow she kne it was the last time that ever she could return to this house All seemed the same but in spite of her faithful heart she knew nothing was the same They loved her still, but their love was entangled with hopes and desires of what she could do for them Her uncle hinted at debts unpad her brother yeamed for amusements and her mother bade her not forget her promise for her sister In lesser ways tho kinfolk, too had mentioned hardships and lacks She was pitying and merciful she made promises for all and she would fulfill them because she could but her loneliness nem turned and lay ten times more heavy on her heart for now she knew she was loved beyond herself She was loved for what she could do and for what she could give and her heart shriveled Though her body had come back and for these few hours her spint had rejoined the others in this house, separation vas forever Destiny compelled her onward I her own she must leave behind There could be no roturn When this knowledge settled into her being her garety was gone With firm steps she walked across the room and entered again into her sedan chair and the Chief Lunuch himself let down the curtains So Thu Hst returned again to the Forbidden City and when she approached the great gate of the Merid in th Impenal Cuard announced the end of the day The drumme stood behind his great drum beating upon it a rhythin $0 swift that the sticks fell with heavy blows ns steady one upon anoth r as the beat of some mighty heart in the tai light the trumpeters stool in their robes and eich held to his lips a long brass trumpet. These trumpets they raised in untson then lowered to the same level and at this moment they blew a long quivering blast of music beginning in soft ness and rising to strength and always following the beating of the mighty dnons until falling as ay again the trumpet voices died Again and again this muic was repeated 101 ·the last time when the trumpeters allowed the sounds to die so slowly that they were lost n distance So too did the drummer soften the beat of the drum until he made it end by three slow measured beats A pause of silence follosed and then a bronze bell was struck three times and by Jung Lu And the night fell as al vays it did fall The watchmen marched to their task, and Tzu Hsi in her sedan entered the vast gates and heard them close behind her Winter ended late and the halting spring was delayed still further by the evil winds that blew down from the north Sandstorms tortured the city and though the people closed their doors and sealed their vindo vs yet the wind drov the fine pale sand through every crack and comer, Nor was the news good from the south The Viceroy Yeh had obeyed the commands from the Dragon Throne He had dalled and delayed he had not replied to the many mes sages from the Englishunan Sir John Bowring and when it was reported to him that a French priest had been killed somewhere he made no reply to this announcement either por to the demand of the French mir ister for retribution Yet the Viceroy now reported to the Dragon Throne instead of being subdued by such neglect the white men were more restless than before and he the Viceroy sought further direction from the Son of Heaven What if war broke out again? And meanwhile there was the small trouble of the families of the beheaded men sho had been the sh crew of The Arrow They ere angry and their sons and nephews had joined the Chinese rebels for revenge against the laceroy who stood for the distant Emperor And of all it was rumored that the Englishman Elgin a noble ford very powerful was threatening to saul English ships northward along the seacoast and enter the harbor t Tientsin moder to attack the Taku forts which protected the capital When the Emperor read this memorit e fell dl and took to his bed and would not eat In silence he handed the docu ment to his brother Prince kung whom he si mmoned and he commanded that Tzu IIsi ad it also and that thy present tb r advice Now for the first time Tzu IIsi fell Ps orst itself IAC ·open disagreement with Prince King They argued in the Imperial Library their usual meeting place and in the pres ence of the Chief Eunuch and Li Lien ying who stood as attendants and heard all that was said Venerable Prince kung said reasonably again I & II you that it is not wise to annoy these white men to the pont of anger They have guns and warships and they are bar banan at heart." "Let them return to their own lands We have tned patience and now patience fails Tzu Hsi exclauned She was very beautiful when she as haughty and Prince kung sighed to see such beauty and such pride Yet he admitted in his secret heart that this woman had an energy which even he had not and surely that his elder brother had not and indeed the tumes needed strength "We have not the means to force their return he reminded her "We have the means if we have the will she retorted, "We can kill them every one whủe they are still few and throw their bodies into the sea Do dead men retum? He exclauned at such recklessness "Will death put 80 end to them? When their peoples hear of it, they will send a thousand white men for each one that dies and they will come with their many słups of war bearing their magic weapons against us I do not fear them" Tzu Hsi declared. Then I do Prince kung assured her I fear them greatly It is not only their weapons I fear-it is the white men them elves When they are attacked they return ten blows for one No no Venerable--mediation is the safe way and bar gaining and delays as vou wisely did advise before Theso Alust still be our weapons We must still confound them with delays and promises unfulfilled and we must still put off the evil day of their attack We must weary them and discourage them always courteous when we speak, scomm to yield and never yielding This is our steadfast wisdom. So in the end is as decided and that Tzu His might be diverted for she continued rebellious Prince kung advisme his elder brother th Emperor that she be permitted to spend the hot season at the Summer Palace outside the a of Pehing There among the lakes and gardens she could 100 ·Idom observed after the end of the preceding dynasty of port herself with the Heir and her ladies and forget the troubles of the nation "The Empress of the Western Palace loves plays and theatricals he suggested Let a stage be built at the Sum piher Palace and actors be hired to amuse her Meanwhile I will consider s ath the councilors what reply shall be sent south And it is to be remembered that when the green spring comes again we must celebrate the first buthday of the Heir and we should announce the occasion soon that the people Dray prepare their gifts Thus all ill be diverted while we ponder the dangers ahead In this way Prince kung hoped to allay Tzu Hsı s anger and tum her thoughts to pleasure and away from proud re yenge upon the white men in his secret heart he was very fearful, and he wished to take counsel with the prices and the ministers and any whose wisdom he could trust For he saw in the future and not too far the increasing threat of the men from the West They had discovered the treasures of ancient Asia and being men of nations young and poor could they be asked to leave hat they had found? They must be placated but how he d d not kno v until defense could be planned Troubled indeed he vas sleepless at night and never hungry for food any mo e for what he pondered was deeper than he could f thom The old cvilized vays of peace and wisdom were menaced by a new brute force Which would prevail and where lay the final strength in volence or in peace? So grave were these times that the Emperor in the fifth month renewed an ancient rite which has ancestors had sel the Emperor sorely troubled and afraid announced that he Mould worsh p at the Supreme Temple of Imperial Ancestors Now this was a very ancient temple and it stood in a vast park here great pines shielded its roofs for the sum These pines being older than the memory of man were gn led and twisted by the wind and the s nd and beneath them the moss was deeper than piled velvet Inside the Temple the sacred shrines of de d emperors their names carved tablets of precious ood and e ch tablet resting cushion of yellow satin Oily priests in yellow I 107 ·dered about the park and cared for the Temple and silence hung everywhere as heavy as the centuries that had passed. No birds sang in this still place but white cranes came m the spring and made their nests in the crooked pines and reared their young and in the autumn flew away again To this place then at the Feast of the Dead the Emperor came with his princes and dukes his councilors and high ministers It was the hour before dawn and musts unusual in this dry northem climate rose from earth to sky so that brother looking at brother could not recognize his face Two days before the feast day the ancestral tablets of the dead Manchu rulers had been brought from their own private hall near the Imperial Library and by the light of horn lanterns so dark were the shadows under the pines the Chief Eunuch and his eunuchs had arranged them upon the eleven shrines inside the temple. All was now in readiness for the arrival of the Son of Heaven He had spent the night in the Hall of Abstrence neither eating nor drinking nor sleeping for three days too the people of the whole nation had eaten no meat they had not tasted garlic or oils nor drunk wine nor heud music por looked at plays nor invited guests Law courts vere closed these three days and there was no litigation made by e At this gray hour before down the Court Butcher made his report that he had slaughtered the beasts for the sacrifice and had poured their fresh blood into bowls and had buriec ther bones and fur The princes and the dukes reported that the sacred prayer was written which the Son of Heaver was to pray before the guardian Ancestors whose tablet stood upright and ready upon the imperial yellow cushion upon the altars The Emperor recered these reports and be rose to allow the Chief Eunuch to put on him the solemn robes of sacrifice dark purple trimmed in plain gold and leaning upon twy Dear kinsmen, his first cousins he entered the Supreme Temp ple There his younger brother Prince Aung waited to 10 ceive him No strangers were near Even the eunuchs from the Temple withdrew before the Son of Heaven entered and his kinsmen alone stood at the door Now the imperial prices came forward to meet the Emperor and after ober 108 ·sances they led him from one to another of the eleven sacred altars At each one he made nie obeisances and he offered bowls of food and wine and before ench altar he made the same p ayer The prayer was for peace and for safets agımst the new enemies that had come from the West It is a long prayer, and the Emperor read it eleven times slo ly and in as loud a voice as he could muster To the Spirits of the Great Dead he reported sh! the Westem men had done how they had made ur ind ho v they had seized territories and ho v they came as b bir an tnbesmen in ships that spat out fire to frighten the people and he reported how these men insisted upon uns anted trade We have our own goods O Venerable Ancestors the Emperor declared in his praye We have no need of West em tovs What do we lack under the protection of He ven and Our Guardian Ancestors We beseech Our Ancestors to protect us now Let the strangers be driven into the sea' Pro vade pestilences to destrov therol Send do n poisonous in Sects to sting them and vipers to strike them dead' o Guard tans of our people restore to us our ) nd and g e us pence When the prayer as ended the hour w s Ire di n ar sunrise and in the dawning light flocks of yh te pigeons sleeping under the broad eaves of the T mple a oke and spread their wngs and c rcled above the nc et pns The candles faded in the lanterns and dust motes d nced in the pale sunbeams stealmg through the wide & tes of the Tem ple. The sacrifice was ended and the Empe or let I m elf be led away again and entering into his uperi 1 pal nque he retumed to his own palaces Then every here ove the na don the people took up their accustomed life comforted and encouraged because the Son of Heaven h mself h d bowed before the Guard in Ancestors had made his report and sent up his prayer on their behalf These ntes at the Spring Feast of the D ad so heart ned the Emperor that when the sth month of the moon se drew near and the heat of summer increased he h decid d to go to the Summer P lace vith his ts o C and vith him to take the Heir and the Court U although he had longed to go the disturbances in ·had made him unessy What if the Chinese rebels were to rise while he was away from the capital or what if the Western men were suddenly to become incensed and sai their ships northward up the coasts as they had long threat ened to do? Yet neither of these all events had come and although the Viceroy Yeh was still gloomy the delays and the evasions which he made held back both rebels and Western men And Tzu Hst herself corred the Emperor upon a certain night when the summer moon was full and her smile en chanting My lord she said come with me to the Summer Palace. The coolness of the hills vull restore you to health The Emperor was so ely in need of such restoration The slow paralysts which had weakened him in the last five years lay heavy upon his limbs Upon some days he could not walk and must lean upon ti o eunuchs for crutches and upon other days he could not raise his hands to his head His dead left s de' was his constant affliction and he felt his whole body pervaded with its heaviness He yielded therefore to this beautiful woman who enlivened him and strengthened lum as no other living creature was able to do and he de ided upon a day then a month hence for the journey to the Summer Palace some nine miles outside the city walls Now Tzu Hs though she could look the Empress and in full majesty was still so young a creature that the thought of a holiday permeated her heart like warm wine She did not yet love the severe and noble palaces in which she was doomed to live although among them she had made small separate places for herself secret gardens in old forgottet courtyards and terraces where no one walked and where sometimes she might escape the burdens of state which sho must carry In her own palace she had her pets a little dos, a female who bred pups to amuse her and she kept crickets in cages and birds of many colors The pets she loved best were not these however but the wid creatures ho settled. som tumes in the trees and upon the pools She could so im tate the sharp whisper of a cricket that she coaxed the inteet to sit upon her forefinger while she stroked its papery wings With much patience sh learned the call of a nightingale af twilight so that the dim brown creature futtered intoxicatcher 110 ·fancy After Chien Lung's time however the about her head. When this happened she felt a chudlike happiness that she was loved for herself alone and not for any favor she could bestow Sometimes when she sat with her son upon her knees she forgot that he was the Heu and Mogether they watched a flock of ducklings newly hatched or the pups pulling and mauling in play and then she laughed 30 loudly that her ladies marveled and smiled behind their fans But Tzu Hsı had no fear of smiles or reproaches She was herself and as she was so she continued to be a crea ture as free as those she played with. Yet though four square miles lay within the Forbidden City its walls confined her and she lodged to be outside all walls and in that place of which she had often heard but where never yet h d she gone to live or even to visit Thus Summer Palace had first been built fo pleasure sev eral centuries earlier by the emperors then ruling and they had chosen for its site a place near an etemal fountain which ran so clear and pure its waters sweet and eve fresh that It was named the Fountain of Jade The first Summer Palace was destroved in a war and rebuilt again two centuries ear Ler than this tune and by the Imperial Ancesto k ang Hsu, then ruling but the Imperial Ancestor his son Ch en Luns then ruling brought all the separate buildings together unit ing them into a vast pa k threaded with lakes and rivers and crossed by marble bridges or bridges of an ood Chten Lung enjoy what he had done so that her he hard that the king of France then ruling had also su h pl asure grounds in that distant land Chen Lung inquir d of Fench munisters and Jesuit prests wh e th French k ng hd that he had not, for Empe ors in thos dys we e dve ted by Western men and ey n welcomed them not de ming that they could have a later evil intent When Ch en Lung heard of the beauties that the F ench king had mad he 1 hed for tem too and he added Westem beauty to the Summer Palace as vell as that which belonged the e The Jesuit priests for their part thinking to find favor with the great Chien Lung brought : ith them fom France and It is in tures of the palaces of Europe, wh ch Ch jen Lung closely and he took from them anything wh ch 111 -

·No text on this page.

·smoothed the highway with yellow sand also retired Upon the third warning of drums and gongs the nobles of the Manchu clans all in their best robes knelt on the sides of the highway before the Son of Heaven as he passed sur pounded by his thousand guardsmen In the old days the emperors rode always upon great Arabian l orse bridled with gold the saddles covered with jeweled vel et But Hsien Feng, now ruling was not able to sit upon a horse and so he must nde in his palanqun He as shy too because he knew homself so thin and sallos nd he vould not allow the eunuchs to lift the curtains Hidden nd in silence he was camned along the yellow sanded hgh wv ind the koeling noblemen neither saw him no he rllis voce At the village of Hai rien outside the cty alls the road turned eastward and through this vill ge the palan quins of the Emperor and his two Consort på «d with all the Court The little town was bustimg w th god b siness for here the Imrerul Guardsmen ere to liv id in the countryside nearby the princes and the duk and other noblemen had s nmer pala es on their om e tates that they might more easily w it upon the Emper t the Sum mer Palace Everywhere the villagers were in hgh mood for when the Court took res dence at the Summer Place of Yuan Ming Yuan they vrh At sunset the imperial processio 1 approa h a th gate of the Summer Palace its ind peeing th Jugl th cracks between her curtains Tzu H i saw the lofty & te ot crved white marble guarded by two golden lons It waiting and she was cart d over the hgh th e hold id u to I the quret of the vast parh Now sh could not forb. r open ng her curtains with he hands to look out d she saw a d eamlike scene fagodas hung as thoush su pded on the green } lls d s clea books ran smoothly ripping be de the Winding rods pay d with n rbl and bridg s cary d of white marble led the ay to a hundred p vions each dif ferent from the others and beautiful in gold nd colo ed tule A lifetime would not be enough to kno v t ll And with the great much that he could se there was mor pal ce themselves d signed so long ago and enr ched loch every empe or in his time the famous at hvelve animals spout d water from the Fount in of 113 op n and unsee }

·No text on this page.

·Gercely of 7 sudden to hear his oice and kno hm the manifold vanety of palaces and gardens lingered in the doorway Alas the day i as at its end the sun slipped down behind the spires of the pagodas and the afterglow faded from the lakes and streams Soon even the shado s of the Smarble bridges no longer lungered upon the waters and the day was ended I shall retire early Tzu Hsł said and I shall rise at dawn However many tomorrows are allotted to this joyful place they will not be enough to see all that s to be seen here or to take our fill of pleasure Her ladi s agreed and the moon had scarcely r sen before Tzu Hsi went to her own apartments A light meal of s vect meats and tidbits was served to her she drank her fa orate green tea and then bathed and in fresh silk & rnents she lay down to sleep At first she said she could not sleep so sweet was the night nu and twice after her ve y оп ет slept, she rose from her bed to look from the open dors, The palace stood high above the low encircl al) and she could see beyond them to the distant mo nt prl in the moonlight Peace stole over her spint so d p a peace that it seemed the prelude to sleep itself and et she was awahe in every sense Before her lay th golden moonlit landscap she smelled the fragrance of night bloommg lilies she heard the clear call of the harvest bırd eul in its ea son Her loneliness subs ded the fear of w s nd troubles died away her impetuous heart grew gentle and he tho ghts kindly Beyond the terrace to the night stood the Palace of the Floating Cloud ass gned to Sakota Tomorro -no not she would stay by her resol e and renew her s te in fri nd ship with Sakota How strange to think that thy ho ład grown up beneath the same roof in Pewt r Lun shot ld now live side by side in their ti o palaces the one lo d the And then because her mnd was never long at rest she thought of Jung Lu her kinsman and how sh had s en hum for a moment todiy how their unu ty eves hnd met rod clung and then had p it d again unwillingly and she ! And why should she not summon him as her k s some ad needed? What advice d d she Emperor! 115

·No text on this page.

·mand a play was presented to the Court by the Imperial Players and for the first time Tzu Hsi could indulge to full ness of her desire her love of theater She had read books about te past, and she had studied well the old paintings And witings but in the plays she saw men and women of history come to life again before her eyes She lived with other consorts and empresses and saw her own self hom earlier to rule ard die And thoughtful thereafter she went to bed at night of the play were thoughtful and merry of the play were merry and whatever she did was ul pleasure Among the treasures which she mused upo more than the rest was the library which the Ancestor Chien Lung himself had caused to be collected and created from the great books of the past of four thousand years By his ommand these books had been copied by the scholars of t s reign into one vast treasure Two sets of the manuscripts these scholars made the one to rerpain in the Forbidden City and the other hese lest fire or invading enemies destroy either Tzu II : had not herself laad har ds upon these libr res hich the cholars had made for ansi le the city the one w s sto ed in the Hall of Literary Glory and kept und ick a d key except for a sır gle season each year this at the Feast of Classic when it was the di ty of the highest schol rs to take put the ancient writu gs and pound their me nng to the Emperor then ruling For ever since the Fust Empe or eight en hundred years ago bd bumed the booksnd buried cholars to put an end to anc ent learning and make huz s lf Supreme it had been the first c re of schol rs to pres rve books by teaching reverence fo then Grst f om the Em Hp ror and then from all hi 's bjects and that the ods of the sage Confucius could not be destroyed by 1 ullful ruters the Four Books and the Five Classr s were narved on stone and these stone monunents stood in the llall of Classics whose gates weeb od But h re at Yuan Ming Yuan Tzu Hsi though a voman could read the ancient writ Ings ard so he p omis d l erself she would do f on a day at rained of she wre ted with the sights to be seen Yet whatever she d d fo some twenty days not only w she enjoyed o tdoor f sts t pon the imperial hous boats the Court not only while she walked among the flower dens or played with her imp nal son who 1177

·No text on this page.

·advice upon and so I h ve tummoned you Where before she had received her kinsman in secret now Tzu Hsi recei ed hım openly and among her lidies Seated on her throne in the great hall of her palace she waited for Jun Lu Magnificence became her as always The walls Were hung with painted scrolls behind the throne as an alabaster screen and porcelain pots of blooming trees stood to right and left Her little dogs gamboled with four white kittens upon the floor and here was the woman in the En press Tzu Hsu, in the midst of her splendor laughed at her pets so much that at last she came down from her throne possessed by muth and playfulness And while she west here and there she praised one lady for her fresh looks and an other for her headdress and she trailed her sillen kerchief to male the kittens follow her and only when she heard the euruchs footsteps followed by a certain steadfast tread did she make haste to sit upon her throne again and fold her jeweled hands and look proud and grand while her lad es smiled behind their fans Her face was grave her lips demure but her great eyes sparkled hen Jung Lu stepped across the h gh th eshold of vearing his guardsman s tunc of s a let s tin and black velvet trousers He to k nune st ps forw rd and did not raise his face to hers until he knelt The before he bowed his he d he took one full lo k at hr h lo ed Welcome cousin Tzu Hsi s d in he pr tty voice It has been a long time since ve met A long time Vene able he ad nd wanted kn eling She gazed down on h m from he th on the corns of her mouth deepening in a smil I hav som thing to plead Command me Vener ble he s id he My younger s ster is old nousb to ved mmber th tch 1d? An ughty ailing little thing do you remember? Always clinging to m nd wanting what I had?" on able I forg t nothing he s id his h ad still bowed Tzu Hs rec iv d th sec et m aning in these words hid the tre su in hr hert Well no v my s ter needs a husband she went rhas outgrown her naughty ways and is a woman the entrance ent on "Do you 119

·No text on this page.

·When to a prince She opened her eyes wide at hun Why not pray? Was I not a concubine until my son was born?" "To the Emperor he reminded her and now you are the Empress The sister of an empress cannot be a concubine "Then I must choose the Seventh Prince she said It is only he ho has no wife Alas he is the least handsome of al princes-that heavy mouth drawn down the eyes dull and smal), a proud solemn face! I hope my sister does not love beauty in a face as well as do Il She looked sidewise at him from beneath her long strught lashes and he looked away Prince Ch uns face is not evil he rejoined It is lucky of a prince be at least not evil Oh she said most mockingly "You think that important? a prince? Is it not enough that he be a princep He ignored her mockery I think it not enough She shrugi ed her shoulders 'Well kunsman if Prince Chun be your advice I'll choo e hum and send a letter to my mother She was angry of a sudden at his hardness tow rd her and she rose to signify the aud ence as ended then pa sed And you- she said carelessly now? I suppose you re ved by He had risen vith her and he stood b fore her tall and calm Jou kno v I am not ved Ah but you must she insisted A sudden h ppine s made face soft and young as he rerr mb red it I wish you would ved she s d wistfully nd locked her ads together s is not possible He bowed and without f ewell he left her presence and a d not once look 6 ck. She stood there alone surp ed at hs be ng so swiftly gorp an l before sh hdd missed } im Tben her gick eyes caught the mov m nt of a curt u r a doon ay A spy? She stepped forward and tiled the urtain and s w a shrink ang figure It vas L dy M 1 hr pretty favorite te you daughter of Su Shun you? Now why?" Th Tz a Hsid manded s, The I dy I ung her head a d put her forefit Louth ·3 "Come come Tzu Hsı insisted "Why do you spy on mer Venerable not on you This came forth in the smallest whisper "Then on whom?' Tzu Hsı demanded The Indy would not speak "No answer? Tzu Hsi stared at the childish drooping figure and then without a further word she took the lady by her ears and shook hr vehemently On him then! she whispered fiercely "Ah he-you think hun handsome? You love him I daresay--" Bets een her jeweled fists the small face looked helplessly at her The lady could not speak Agaun Tzu Hsı shook with all her strength "You dare to love hun! The lady broke unto loud sobs and Tzu Hsi loosed hele ears So harshly had she seized them that blood where the earrings hnd cut into the flesh Do you think he loves your Tzu Hsı asked scornfully I know he does not Venerable the lady sobbed. 1 loves only you-we all know-only you- At this Tzu Hsi was in to minds what next to do si ought to punish the lady for such a charge and yet she so pleased to hear it said that whether she must smie slap the girls cheeks she did not know she did both SX smiled and seeing the heads of her other ladies peeping het and there in doorways to kno v why there was such com motion sie slapped the girls cheeks with a sound but with hurt "There-and there she said herrtıly Go from me befo I kill you out of shame! Do not let me see you for seven davs She tumed and saunterng with exquisite grace she dou n on her throne ngan half smiling and listening heard the patter of the lidy s little feet running dosti corridors from that day on the face and figure of Jung Lu fixed anew in Tzu Iisus mind and memory Though could not summon him again she planned and plotted to thy could meet not by contriyince and seldom but fr and often He was present in her thoughts wherever 122 1 ·sinust keep loyal She fro vned remembe ing the go sip that Went in the day and when she wake in the night he was there Waile she sat at a play he was the hero at whom she looked and of she listened to music she heard his voice As th summer days passed and she grew accustomed to her pressure palace she adulged herself much in thoughts of love Indeed she was a woman compelled to love and yet the e sas no man for her to love Meanwhile the Emperor receiv d the overflow of this need and he thought himself beloved but he was no more than the image upon wh ch sh hung her dreams Yet this woman was not one to be content vath dreams She lo ged for flesh and blood to match her o n Out of dreaming then she let herself proceed to purpose Sh would raise Jung Lu high enouch so that she could keep hun near her always mantanng the cousinsh p bevond doubt but ysing it for what she wuled How could she ruse him with but drawing all eyes toward her? Withu the close alls of palaces scandals breed like foul feves And she recalled her enemies Su Shun the Grand Councilor vło hated her because she was above him and th him were still the Princes Cheng and Yi for they were Su Shun s friends She dan ally in An Teh ha, the Chief Eunuch and him she This led her on to thinking of Lady Me ag in ho it Tfoull not be forgotten was Su Sh ns child well sh must ibot let that lady hate her too No no sh vould he p the Laughter her friend and within her p wer so that the father ad not use the daughter as a spy well thn was it not seful to know the the lady lo ed Jung, Lu? Why had she hown such jealous anger? Sh must undo bt she hd yone she would send for Lady Mes and bohit ke heart, for she th Empress of the West m Palace would hers 17 fpeal fo her to the Comm d of the Imperial Guard at fome oppo tune tume Suhan n age would serve a double purpos fo t would give e cus is jung Lu to high place Yes here she saw all at one was her means to raise up her b loved Sh paused į rudent after the instant of d cis on When the to bidden seven days h d passed she sent La gourt in secret to 13 ·ying to find the Lady Mler and bring her here itkinn an hour he brought his charge who fell at once upon her knees before her sovereign Tzu Hsi today was seated on her phoenix throne in the Pavilion of the Favorite a small see ondary palace she clained also for her own When she had let the lady kneel awhile in silence Tou Hsı rose and came down from her throne and lifted her up You ha e gro vs thin these ses en days she said kindly Venerabi Lidy Me sud her eyes pite ous wl en you are angry vith me I cannot cat or sleep I am not angry nos Tzu Hsi replied Sit down roor child Let me see how you are She pointed to a chair and herself sat down on another next it and ste took the ladys soft narrow hand and smoothed it between her own and went on talking Child it is nothing to me whom you love Why shouk you not wed the Comm nder of the Imperial Guard? A hand some man and young- The Idv could not believe what she heard ffer face fushed del cately tears came to her dark eyes and she cluns to the kind hands "Yenerable i do dore vou- Hush-I im not a goddess- Veneral le the ladys 01cm trembled to me you are the Golders of Mercy he self-" Tzu Ils smiled se enely and put down the 1 ttle hand she held low-nos-po flattery childi But I have a plan A plan?" We must have a plan must be not? "Whatever you say "enerable "Tell then-* and here Tzu Hsi put forth her plan y the Heir completes his first full year since birth you h that there is to be a great feast At that time child I myself invite my kinsman so that all may see my intent raise him when this is clear then step can follow steps who will dare to stop my kinsman? It is for your sale it him so that his rink may equal yous out "But Ienerable- Tzu IIsi raised her hand "Vo doubts childi fſe will be what I say No doubts Venerable but- ·Vher and she toke f om I er dream These wo ds spoken in his pow rfild 1 Vo ust rtl 1 Indern lies the many ne v ports ordly lor ful fore gn t ade And wł to Tzu Iis examined the pretty face still pink "You think it is too long to sait so many months?" Tb lady hid her face behind her slceve Tzu Hsı laughed Before one journeys to a new place the bord must be built! She pinched the ladys cheeks and made them still more red and then dismissed her For two hundred years Prince kung sad the trade of thes foreign merchants was confined to that one south m city of Canton Moreover such trade could only be through the I censed Chinese merchants Summer was ended the autumn half gone and Tzu Hsi Listening to her lesson gazed pensively beyond the doors open to the sun of midaftemoon Porcelain pots of lite chrysanthemums bloomed in red and gold and bronze She 'heard and did not hear the words failing on hs (irs ud Ho ting on her mind like fallen leaves upon the surf ce of a pool Prince Kung spoke sharply to recall her from l er dre mus Do you h ar Empress?" I hear she said He looked doubtful and went on R c 1 then Empr that th end of the two Opium W is left o niton 1: This defeat taught us one bitte 1 s oi-th t oil rut cons der the Western nations as trib trs TI WA ly ruthle s men though never ou e jul fers through the brut fo e of th evl no uf of 11 walls and locked gates! now gone How h teful S it to turn in to these ligh Our m sters?" she repeat d Ou masters unless we k per wits as ake th Pri ry said firmly we h ve yieldc I alue to ev ry demin l-the vit to this 1 16 - for ign n tlon Is the others all gain too Force-fo cth ir lism n H handsome f co s stern hst 11 figure wrapper! Fáray s tin rou s doop d in te carv d charb lo y the have invented os

·No text on this page.

·busy planning ho she cold ! !r yll womans mind is not an instrument apart from her other to mind now heart She is three in one a trinity complete and unified Thus while Prince kung could only guess how Tzu Hsis mind received what he taught, in fact he mind was working through her every sense It was not the dyn ty alone the wh te men th eatened t was he nd I crs the son the Imperial Heir imperı I not only beca ise le to sit upon the Dragon Throne but mperial bec made him her ene sy conceived himn and That day when p ince k ng 1 ft ler an l she lalrir to her own palace she sent for thill Will she play 1 with him holding him in her arms light g with Hinsic catching him when he [ 11 Sall no lo her min l w s Weapons the sight of cruel force instead of skillful reason is changing even the Chmese people in subtle ways Force they 52w now is stronger than reason We have been wrong the Chinese say for only weapons can make us free This Em kwess of the Westem Palace this is what we must understand m al depth and distance for I do assure you that in this one concert hides a change so mighty in our nation that unless we can change with it ne who rule Manchu and ourselves not Chinese our dynasty will end before the Heir can sit upon the Dragon Throne Ci e them weapons then Tzu Hsı said Alas Prince Kung sighed if we give the Chinese veapons wherewith to repel the enemy from the West they all turn first on us whom they still call foreign although our an cestors came down from the north to hundred years ago Empress the throne is trembling on its foundations” Could she comprehend the peril of the times? His eves rested most anxiously upon the beautiful womans face lle could not read the answer that he sought, for he knew that me she does not separate herself as man does now fl sh now on her instinct rose to s ehm counting his small toe t1 hol 1 etdi un Aid wong to him the songs that siel 1 I eard le mots nifre coaxt glim to at dan! icinles Tien ton es but fi her son A ! w oti play was over she gave hun to h's nurse ag in ail from it tho sto appled her elf With fre I will to the n nori is presented to the Th ea h povlc lut selly from that place w 17 From

·No text on this page.

·for love No while the Emperor lay in his bed half sleeping un an opium dream she pondered long and alone upon the Written pages studying every ord and weighing every meinung And when she had decided what her will was sho Afted the vermilion brush and crossed out the words of those who advised action or war or retallation against the intruders Delay sbe still commanded Do not yield but do not re- Sist-not yet Promise and break the promises Is not our land vast and mighty? Shall we destroy the body because a mos quto stmgs a toep Kone dared to disobey for to her handwriting she set the imperial seal and she alone except the Emperor could lift it from its coffer in the impenal bedchamber All that she com manded was printed in the Court Gazette as ampe ial de essays and memorials had been printed daily for eight hundred years This gazette was sent by messenger to every province and its viceroy to every city and its magistrate so that everywhere the people could know the royal wll And ful, who sat alone within the royal chamber while the Son of Prince kung reading the vermilion words was ick ith fear Empress he said when next they met in the wintry sh d ow's of the Imperial L brary I must wam you ag in nd yet again that the temper of these h te men is short and savage They have not lived the centuries th t our peopl have They are children When they se wh t they want thy put out their hands to snatch it Del y and promises not kept will pnly anger them We must barg in with them persuade them even bribe them to le ve our shores Tzu Hsı Hashed her splend d eye at hum P ay what can they do? Can their ships 1 a thous nd miles up our long coast? Let them harass a southern city Does this mean that they can th eaten the son of H ay n himself?" I think it po sbl he said gra ly Let turn ish r torted I hope it w II not be too l te he sighed She pitted his carek om looks too grave for a young and handsome and she coaxed him wit hords You m ke your own load heavy 19 Heaven slept.

·No text on this page.

·been patient with time and stem with her own heart Yet while she had resolutely studied and read her books she had remenbered Jung Lu and her purpose to advance his rank One day before the bathday she chanced in passing or it seemed chance to see that Lady Mei looked pensive She put up her hand and stroked the lady s smooth cheeh Do not think I have forgotten childi She gazed into the pretty eyes that looked up at I er star tled and knew that this woman whom she called chuld un der tood her meaning It was Tzu lIsis secret strength that while she put her mind to the large matters of state ponder mg long into the night and far beyond what Prince Aung thought she did yet she could at the same time remember her own hidden ishes Thus a fe nights before the birth das as she lay in the Emp rors arms seeming half asleep she mtirmured words Almost I forgot- Forgot what, my heart and live ? he inquired He was in good humor because this night he had found satisfact on enough to make him feel h ms 1f till a min You know my lord that the Command r of the Imp rial Guard y my kmsman? This she and still seemi g h If a loep I know-that is I have so he rd Long ago I made my un le M nga a prom se concern ing him and I have never lept that promise-oh nel Sop" If you invite hun to o r son s b rtl d y feat my loril my conscience all not tens me The Emperor w s116 dly Wh-i guards man? Will it not stir jealousy a noi g the les prias and their families?" "There is al ays je! y among the sm 11 my lod But do as you vill my lord! So si Nes rtl eless in a htel hl he m de slight movements of withd au I from hin The hey wned and sud that she was tired Mv tooth acles she d net and led for all I er teeth ve e wht nd sid Afti ti h 1 op d ft n the bed and put on hr shoes ud sud Do not sui non me tomorro. + prd mi mi red tur i ory

·No text on this page.

·Danked by two less rh Ils it rose from a bro d Earth, and it was su rro! nded bv m rble balu tals 19 hundred fe t in w dth oeh nd ed feet nbght on hun The day of the feast du ned fine and fair the air blown clean by earlier sandstorns and Tzu Hsi woke to roise and music in every courtyard n the city famil es set off fire crack ershen the sun rose and they beat gongs and drums and w trumpets This was true in each city in the realm and In all vilages and for three diys no one as to work Slc rose from her bed enrly imperous beyond anvthing she hud e er been yet careful as her habit was to be courte ous to each woman in her place as tenderly careful of her Serung woman as of the highest of her court ladies She bathed she allowed herself to b dressed she ate ter mom ing sweetmeats The Heir was then presented to her in his yoxal roles of scarlet satın earing on his head the imperial hat of bus unsque rank She took hm in h r arms her heart neur breaking with love and pride She smelled his perfumed cheeks and the perfumed pelms of his little h nd pimp and um with herlthy flesh and to him she whispe ed i am most Pro tum ite of all women bom i pon tht earth tod y He smiled his baby smile it her and tears cam to her yes No sh would not be afr d even of jealous gods She strong in herself and none could a sa l her on earth or u heaven Her destiny w s her hiel 1 and buckler No the hour having come she summoned he lid es and preceding the Her in her place sedan she went to the Su preme Throne Hall the very center of the Fo b dden Cty and the pl ce the Empercr hd chosen for rece ng the birth dy gifts Th s central and most stered h 11 u I ngu w stwo sred and t n feet and it y's tle 1 rgest of all the p 1 ces ble to Price knos n as the De son P vem nt and below th s ter ce ere five tiers of marble st psc red b twe n with d agos Upon the terrace stood gided isterns and incense buriers and sun dials and grain m as pillars repeated th 1 ed n ml rs of th god Today th toof f the hall sho golde in th sun No weed or wld grass m tred it mooth n anci nt t me a cert niio hd been mi ed with th inor n Iblown seeds of weeds tar and this po on luled all trees as e symb ls of H 2 en and ho e fo hn the tils ere I d in 1 133 ·and when the sun set those çifts still remining to be part all from the lower princes and lesser persons were put aside Here the Emperor and his twa Empresses preceded all a Imperial Banquet Hall where only mighty 1 asts vert del they sat at a table set apart ind at a table near them the Heir sat upon the knees of his uncle Prince hung The E mothers traveled from one huge candle to another as Svayed in tasseled lanterns above the tables and he pour of yellow sztin which reached from his neck to bus vel shoes as dipon it we e embroid red small d agons in scarlat Only Sakota the Empress of the Eastern Palace look hım sadly and mud as she was she could not forbest Alas so sacred was thus Supreme Throne Hill that woman had ever entered it and not even the pride and beau of Tzu Hsı could admit her on this day she gazed at golden roof the carved doorways and the painted eaves then ithdrew into a lesser hall and one she chose the of Central Ilarmony preferring it to the other the Hall Exalted Hurmony Yet the Emperor was mindful of her When he had seda himself upon the Dragon Throne and had there received from the nation the Heir beside hun in the arms of P. kung he commanded that all gifts be taken by eunuchs the Hall of Central Harmony Thus Tzu Hsı was shov ** and she examined them and made apprais il and although would not express her pleasure at magnificence for could be too splendid for her son yet all who watched face si pleasure in her bright eyes and vived looks for ki dced the tribute was very rich and valuable The day was not long enough for the receiving of the people The moon rose and this was the hour for the feasting peror could not keep his eyes from the child and ind meeles little boy was in the giyest mood His large eges, so Like at them and clapped his hands and laughed lie wore a sulk Upon his head he wore a hat of scarlet satın p! with a little peacock feather and around his neck was, locked as always the chain of gold which Tzu lisi had pl there when he was born to krip hum safe from every ho might wish him dead all admired the Heir been spole aloud their praise nor mentioned his health ad growth 1 st cruel demons hovered near T.

·and the fenst dew ne rits end Eunuch when hhdit mi Eunuch carried him aw y th endl sl med adgitted pervish word or to When the Emperor in court s urged her to taste some dish she shook ler hend and sun sh cold not eat she was not hungry aid of all the di hes th so e she liked the least and when Tzu Hsi deferred to her she pre Unded not to her She sat th re at the fest table thn is a burd her little cla like hands hervy with jewels too large and und r her high headdress her face as pale d punched Wh) could blame the Emperor hen he turned from this Consort to the other? Never had Tzu Hsı been so be utiful and so endowed ith grace To Sakot s peevi hness she rephed: ith most perfect pat ence and all who saw her felt the lar eness of her spirit Among the low tables set for the thou and guests ho sit scarlet cuish ons eunuchs garbed bright robe moved n silent s ftness to serve them all at the far end of th b }} were the Cou tladses the wives of prince nimni ter id noblemen and at the other vere the nobleme a th meles Nearest to Tzu Hsi indeed at h ght h nl the Lady M had her seat and Tzu Hsı looked down upon her und s n led shere Jung Lust tho gh at Guests wond red doubtless hy the Commande f the cd had been so honored but when the gestion as p t heb id a hand to some eunuch p ssing b h n d th He is the hunstran of the Empr's of the West in P Ice and here by her command To this no further rem k old hem d. Mean h le the hours of fe ing p d the Coirt mu i d druns cians plived upon their ! tage and the theater sent on for tha e Toerd to as rused high enough for tl Eup to and I co orts bºt bot above them The Hef sleep at I st th Chef Both kner d stant tille not h rp the rf ten T! th "Tea fo the nobles P'ri X & commanded the Chief Then eunu hs sery 1 it fl the nobles but none 1 as served to the Cnman l r of t1 Card lo vas not noole remi g not to s sw I a I she beckoned I d hand diilinyi & al vays : at hing moved quickly to ler sil "Take this 1 of tra from me to my kansipan T Tzu HS her jew 135 ·ti) comm nded in her cle rest Voice She put the port luin cover hier ) bu isi lidst listed and geit vatI sth hid nito th two hind of the eunuch And Li Lin yang pro dt be the leader cirried its both hands to Jung Lihamy who roi trece it iht the hands He set it down and turning to ird the Impr of the Westem Place he bowed nne times to 191 fshi thinks All Ik cesed und s turned to eves But Tzu Isi se med not to once Instead he looked do vn at Lndy Men and similed again fh s moment al o passed The Chief Eu nuch motioned to the inu ia ns ind fresh music soured into the nir vl ile the lit d: hes ere presented The moon was high the ho s vas late All wuted for the Emperor to ne ind nake his viagrn to the terrice here hus edan vaited But he d I not rise fle chopped his hands and the Chief Eunuch on d out for the music to be stilled "Wt at no? Ta kisi nused of Prince Lung Emress I do not knos h said SI noe fell once mure pon those feasting and eves turned } to the doors through which the e inuchs came and sent The Son of Heaven leaned toward hi beloved My heart e fispered look tid the great doors!" Tzu II looked and he sa six erinuchs bearing a try of goll o her that they had lifted it upon their heads and cro ched b) neath it Upon this t as stood the unge of a huge pre och gold on one side red on the other A perch? It was the symbol of long life An jounce my gift to the Fortunate Moti er of the Metri de Emperor nos commanded I is brother Prince kung rose "The gift of the Son of licaven to th Fortunate Mfother of the Heirl" All rose and bowed while the eunuchs brought the tray to Tzu lls and stood holdmg it before her Tile the peach with your hands" the Son of Ileaven now Corninunded She put her hands upon the giant sweet It split and Sell apart Inside she still a pair of shoes made of pink stana u embroidered with fine stitches into lowers of gold and slvet thred and in the threads were caught seins of every love The heels high and set in the Vanchu fasl 1 on Loyath : 10 ·Woman 98%Very gravey by grave Su Shun muttered riddle of the soles were tudded with pink pearls from India so closely that the satin was encrusted Tzu físı lfted brilliant eyes to the face of the Son of Hessen For me my lord? "For you alone he said It was a daring gift, the symbol of mans lustful love for Enl news carne up from the south and soon Evil enough it had been before hut Yeh the Viceroy of the Kwang pov inces held back the worst untu the holiday was over Nov be could no longer conceal fresh disaster He sent cou le s by relay on horseback to the capital saying that the Engl shman Lord Elgin again made threats to attack the city of Canton this tune with six thousand warriors ho aited upon his Battleships m the harbor at the mouth of the learl R ver Even were there no Chines rebels hudden in the city the Imperial Armies could not have held the gates Alas the .. ty was rotten with these rebels who called them elves Chr stans under the leadership of the madman Hung that ignorant nd powerful man who declared continually that he was sent by a foreign god named Je us to overthrow the Manchu throne When this desperate news can e to the imperi 1 city Prince Kung received at first and he dared not pr sent it to the Em peror. Since the His birthday feat the Emperor hd not TESfrom his bed He had e ten too well and drwk too m h and then to quiet his pains he had smoked op urn unul Dow here could not tell day from night Pince kungs nt vo d the e e to Tzu Hsi asking audienc t onc That day an hour after noon Tzu Hsunt to the Imperi 1 L. bary and took her seat behind a ser en for Prince kung d d not me alone With h mn were the and Councilo Su Shun and his ho vas a ally Prince Ts aj and th the Price ti younger brother of the Son of He sen a prince y eldmg and withont vit and less esdom but gi on to nvy and pee ish Dess The e fur surrounded at a do tance by the unuchs who follo: ed to now had the news which Pne kung red from the s roll upon hich the Viceroy had wrt ry ten th ኣ own bnu h 137 ·He is a till brord man his face powerful and course Tzu Hsı soidered hot he could be the father of so d a be juts is her fa orite Lady Viei lev grave Prince }ı agreed in a high little voice Simve Prince kung said that we must ponder que ti 11 of liether this Elgın having seized the city of Ca ton and there entrenched hinself may demand that he be received here at the Imperial Court Tzu Hsı struck one hand upon the other Never! "enerable Prince Aung said sadly I venture to suggest that citr fi se so strong an enemy lle must use cunning she retorted We must still promeise and deliv Veci ot prevail Prince Aung declared But the Grind Councilor Su Shun now came forward "We da presa t o vears ago hen the Englishman Seviol brok to the rity of nton You will remember Prince th he is driven o it ag u At that time a bounty of thuty sily peces as offered for ev - English hend and when such? h als er pres nt d to the Viceroy he ordered that they! curl tharo sha th street of the city He command also t! t th for 16 arel ouses ber bumed down Upon this the Engl h tl dres *Th v did ndeed Prince I agreed Still in ce kung refused to 18 ee lle stood fall and hand come mod strorg too vol is to speak so boldly as I e did bem for these men le erteless he spoke "The English the dr * only to send for more armies No v tlose amies have come Voreer this time the French dosiring to seize aye poss" n Inclo-China have promised to aid the England aga nst us and once more they have used the excuse of * French pes tortured and killed in At ang : Voreener agunit i said that this Lord Elgin has recents pd instruction from I u nder the Qun of England to d inand rt de ce here in our cipltal for smmister from ter court whenever she shalb onli Trı list 15 inchanges in her will but such spect dyr i'r ce kung and he desire to keep 1 15 losalts that? she still courteousls Id, I doul : th tou are night and y londer of are Surely my suster queen of the west does not know w 138 1 as I erre ·ею her е are i ner hus lord demands in her name Else why is it that all this did 2ot happen to us before shen we drove them ау?" Prince kung explanned still patiently The delay Em press has been caused only by the Indian mt tunt of hich I you some months ago You remember that the hole of India 15 no v conquered by Engl nd and when rebellien ose here recently and many Englishmen and omen ee killed the E glish armies put it do vn with fnghtful force N, they come here for further conquest I fear--I fe it is that in bent one day to possess our country as they do Indi Who knows how far their greed vill reach? An island people is 1 ays greedy for when they multiply they ha e no hi to spread If we fall th whole of our world will fall with us This ie must prevent at any cost We must indeed Tzu Hsı agreed She w s soll unbelieving Her vo e vas not manner concerned as she went on Yet the d st it at our walls are strong and I thmk d aster c nt hap en soon or easily Moreover the So of Heav n is toll to be disturbed Soon we must le e the city fo th Let action be postponed until the hot season 2 P t nd ve have retumed from the Summ r Palace Serd od to the Viceroy to promise the Engli h to memorial ze the Throne and present the r demands Wh n e recei e the merno al well send word that the Son of H av n s ;ll nd wmst wait until the cold weather come b fore he is ell enough to make decisions Wisdom the Grand Co in ilor cti d "Wisdom indeed Prince Tsa no d nd Prnce Y. Hylded his head up and lo y Pince kung k pt s lent ex sept for the heavy sigh he d ew up from his bo-om But Tzu Hsi would not heed thes ghs nd she put an end to the audience From the Impe al Lib ary she the palace where her son 1 ved wt his nurses and his nuchs and she stayed with h m for hot s watching him hile he slept and holding him pon he knees : hen he woke a d then when he v shd to walk sł It hun cling to her h nd s the source of her str ngth and solut on and when she felt afr d hec me here and renewed he ci He was her t ny god her wel in th lotus and she with all her he it and being Her heart was soft ent to u In him 139 ·love and she caught the child to her and held him close her und longed that she could keep him as safo as onre he hid beer n her own body Frm these hours sith the child Tzu Ils returned to on pulaces refreshed ud she set herself to her continu tak to tudy all letters and nemorials which came before the Throne 11d to decide but the Emperor must command in reply In these months before the summer she arranged for the m rruge of her sistr to the Seventh Prince whose name was Chun his personal name I hu in She had prvate audience *rch this in e that she might observe him herself on her sisters bx half a d thoush he had an ugly face and a head too la ge for las body he found him to be honest and sum ple a mini Ithout ambitin for t umself and grateful to her for the alliance with her iter The marriage was made bel the departure of the Cott for Yuin Ming Yuan but ther as no fersting in respect for the Jls ess of the Emperor ant Tzu II li rself only kne v that on the appointed day het 52$ er uent with proper attemny to Prince Chuns palacs which was outside the alls of the Forbidden City The summer passed silly even at Yuan Ming dean for ile ti e Emperor was all no music could be made no them atne 's allo ed no merrym kmę enjoyed the glorious days follo Ion upon another but Tz ilisi mudful of her disse mity did not so much as co ninand a boating party on the Lotus Lake and ste lied much alone Nor did she dage 10 recognize still further her kinsman Jung Lu for gossip ha! spring up after the birthday feast Iske smoke in a dry farta and it was every here known that to hun she had once bera betrothed Until her po ver was beyond assaul she could not do more for Jung Lu jest what she did be used against her to the Emperor or if he died against her son Young tho 1 h she i as and passionate sh was mistress of herself and when she shed she could be strong in patience The Court returned early in the autumn of that year to the Forhudden City the harvest frusts were observed quietly and as the peaceful monti e pis id by Tzu IJsi believed that she had d cided wisely na to allow a war to be made the foreigners For the Victo, Ich sent up bettet news 140 154 ·ere tuntil he slept and she could steal a av Teported that the Englishmen though angry at delays were helpless and that ther leader Lord Elgin passed the days at Hong Kong stamping his feet and sighing Proof Tzu Hsi declared in tnumph that the Queen of the West is my ally Only the Emperors al health made Tzu Hsı sad she did not pretend even in her own heart to love the motionless pallid figure that lay all but speechless upon his vello cushions but she feared his death because of the turmoil of the succession The Heir was still so young that ere the Dragon Throne to fall to hun now there would be mighty quarrels over i ho would be Regent She and sh al ne must be the Regent but was she able yet to seize the Th one and hold it for her son? Strong men in Manchu clans vould ome for ard to assert their clauns The Heir mght even be set aside and a new ruler take his place Ah the e we e plots everywhere She knew it for Li Lien ving bought h r ne s that Su Shun was plotting and persu di g Prince Y to plot with him and Prince Cheng made an ev i third The Imsser plots and weaker plotters who could kno them all? Her fortune was that her advisor Prince ku g s honor able and made no plots and th t the Chef Eunuch An Teh ha with all his command in the pa! ces a d ove th other eunuchs was loyal to her because she was the beloved this master the Emperor From habit fi st and then becrube had fa ed well under his mast the Ch f Eunu hl v dth s frazi ruler and he stayed al vay n a the vast crved bed upon which he lay unmoving nd s Idom spe king. It was the Chef Eunuch who heard wh n th Empowh p red d he whole ned og him to na "who was anted some "tumes in the n ght wh n oth rs slept the Ch ef Eunuch as alone to fetch Tzu Hs to t h th the Emper afraid and th the ct ved the tou h of her hnd nd th sght of her face Th n wrapped in d k obe sh follo d the Chief Eunuch along the sul nt pass ge v ys nd she entered the dim chumb where the end $ lways burned_She took her seat be de the bed nd she held th Emperor's h nds so chill and IF 1 ss betwen hers and she let hum guze at her and m de her eses tender tos ard him to comf ith Thus she tching from a distance at Th Chief Lunuch, w 141 ·perfect patience and her steadfast courtesy and careful kınd ness and he begin from that day to fix upon her the same de otion and loyalty that he had given the Emperor since first he came into the gates t child of twelve castrated by h qun father that he might serve inside the imperial city le as a thief sometimes this eunuch he took what he liked for himself from the vast stores belonging to his master and all knew that he had he iped great treasures for himself He could be cruel too and men died bt rope and knife when he held hs thumb downwird to make the sign of death But in that lon ly beurt of hi hidden beneath the lasers of his increasing flesh and fat he loved his o ereign and him only and when he saw the Emperor daily negrer death he transferred that strance und steadfast de otron hour by hour to the wom'ın young and beautiful and trong whom the Emperor loved above all others and orld so love until he ceased to breat None 1 ere prepared th refore for the hideous ne vs which reached the palice gates one day at twilight in the early Inter of that vear it in a davlhe others a gray dav chill and threatening snow The city had been quiet some busi ness done but without livelines within the palace there had been tre coming to and fo no audience for matters of im portance had come before Prince kung on the Emperors be alf and de ssions were po tponed Tzu Hs had spent the dry in punting Lady M120 her cercher stayed by her side no longer instructing or forbid ding but watching while her imperial pupil brushed a picture of the branches of a peach tree in bloom It was no easy task, to please her teacher and Tzu Fisi took pains and worked in silence First she must ind her brush in such a ay that or one stroke she could give the branch its outline and also its shading and this she dd ath care and perfectly Lady Sfiao commend d her Bell done Venerible "I am not fushed Tzu Ils replied With equal care she dress another branch int rtwi mnis with the first To this endy M130 remained silent Tzu fisi Gud er d lier crebro vs into a iro in lou do not like hat I have done?" It is not what I like or do not like Lencrable sand. The qu'stion you must ask yourself is ultether the 14.

·ter painters of peach blossoms would so have intertwined two branches in this fashion Why would they not?" Tzu Hsı demanded Instinct not reason rules where art is concerned the adv said Simply they would not Tzu Hsi made her eyes big and pressed her red lips to gether and prepared contention but Lady Mtao refused to contend If you Venerable wish to entertwine the branches thus then do so she said mildly 'The time has come hen you paint as you wish She paused and then sud thoughtfully her delicate head lifted to gaze at her pupil You are an amateur lene able and it is not needful that you should be professonal as I must be for I am an artist and all my family have b en ut Lists Yet were you free to be an artist bearing no b rdens of nation and state you Venerable would have been among the greatest of all artists I see po ver and precision in vou brush and this is genius hch needs only use to be complete Alas your life has not time enough for this gre tness t be dded to all the others vou possess She could not finish While Tzu Hsı listened her great eyes fred upon her teaches face the Chief Eunuch bist to the pavilion where the 1 dtes sat Bott tumed to hm amazed and startled and mdeed he was a fearful ght He h d run all the way from somewhere his eves were rolling dre dy to burst hs breath coming out of him in gap that to e his breast his bull of flesh pule and et wth sweat T o streams yere running down his jellied che ks in spt fcold he bas led lene ble-prepare yourself- Tzu Hsi rose instantly to hear the news of de th-whose enerable the Chief Eunuch roared a messenger from Canton-the city's lost-the foreigners ha e serzed t-the lice Foy is taken! He was climbing down the city wall to escape She sat down again It as disaster but not de th Collect your yıts sh said stemnly to the tremblu g eu auch I thought f om your looks that the enemy was ins de he place gat s Nevertheless she put down her brushes and Ludy A "Venerable death? 143 ·haste away withdre v silently The Chief Eunuch waited wiping his sweat away with his sleeves Invite Prince hung to join me here Tzu Hsi commanded "Then do vou return and take your place with the Emperor Yes \enerable the Chief Eunuch sad humbly and made In a few minutes Price kung cime alone bringing no councilor or other prince He knew the worst for he himself hnd received from the exhausted courier the memorl srit ten in an unknown hand but bering the Viceroy s own seal and he brought it ith him Rend it to me Tzu Hsi suid when she had acknowledged his obe: ance Ile rend it slowiv and sh listened setting upon her Butle throne in her own library her eyes thoughtful upon the pot of yellos orchids on the table she heard all that the couri ! Hal told the Chief Eunuch and nich more Six thousind Western varriors had linder and they hnd mirched to the pates of Canton nd there had ttacked Tho impernl forces had made a sho v of rouse and bravery and then hind Bed and the Chinese rebels hiding in ide the city had opened the gates and let the foreign enemy come in Th Viceroy hearing the ul news had run from bus pal ce to a parapet on the city wall and then his officers h à let hun don by n rope But halfway down the Chinese hnd sen him dangling and they shouted to the enemy who si mmed up the will n d cut him down and took him prisoner All high off clals re taken pris oners and the Viceroy as deported to Calcutta in d stint India Thn the West m man arrogant and honoring no one set up a new goseminent all Chinese and thus defid Vinchu dynasty Stul wore the memorial continue the Ençlıshmen declared that they had new demands from their OKTI Queen Empress but they i ould not say what these were Instead they insisted that they would appear before the Fm peror in Peking and tell hun shat they would have In this quiet place wiere an ho ir ago Tzu lIsi had painted peach blossoms the dreadful news now fell upon her sc bard it and said not one word She sat musing and Prince Aung looking sidest ise at her pitsed the beutiful and lonely woman and waited for her to speak "le cannot receive these liteful strangers at our court, 141 ·excuse she said at last And still I do believe they use Victoria s same without her knowledge Yet I cannot reach her distant throne nor reveal to our people the mortal illness of the Em peror 'The Heir is still too young, the succession is not clear We must deny the foreigners entrance At any cost we must stull delay and promue and delay again maling winter our He was greatly sorry for her in the midst of his o n deep aların and he spoke gently Empress I say what I have already said you do not un derstand the nature of these men It is too late Their patience 15 at an end Let us see she said and that was all she ould sav To his pleadings and to his advice she shook her he d her face pale and the black shadows creepung beneath her tragic eyes Let us see she said let us see Heaven helps me Tzu Hsı told herself and ndeed that Winter was cold beyond any that man had knon Day after day when she rose and looked from her window th sno v lay deeper than the day before Imperial cour ers the south took three times as long as usual to reach the cpt l and it was months before her reply could rea h Ca ton gai The aged Viceroy Yeh was now vasting away in a pri on in Cal cutta, whither the Engl h had tansported hum but he heart was hard against hen He had failed the Th on and cuse was strong enor gh to fo give hum such def at Let him diel Pity and mercy she would keep for those who could serve her Inter crept slowly by a d sp ing care ag an bitte and lineasy spring She long d fo the fist le ve to bd on the date trees and for th b mboo sp outs to crack the earth In side the pal cs the s cr d llies bloom d, warm d by the sh s in hich the box Is ng were placed Darf plum tes coated by hot stoves stood f blossom ng in po celain Jars Sh m de a mock sp ng such flow rs in hr halls and n the brancl es of the potted trees she comm nd d brds in c ges to be hung so that she could hear th song Wl en she thought of the p nl in wh ch the nat n stood i comforted he to open the cges and ttle on her shoulders and © burn charcoal sn thered n om in the birds fy out a d 145

·No text on this page.

·natural beauty of sky and water and earth When she slept at night she did not dream of lovers but of god is not ei closed and of the peacefulness of moonlight on the ba e and distant hills She spent hours poring over landscape scrolls and painted scenes imag ning she volled bes de rivers or the sea and that at night she slept in pine forests on a temple hidden in a bimboo grove When she vole sheept for these dreams were as real as memories clear and never to be forgotten but hich she could never see But one day suddenly as a storm comes do the rumors of the evil for which she felt herself al a ait ng came tushung north vard and instantly she put aside all hope of Yuan Ming Yuan Thell estern men ere mov ng up the cost in ships of war Imperial couriers in relay rin d and n ght to tell the ne vs lefore the ships could rea ht! T hu forts at Tentsin which city is a scant eighty mile fron the cap ital itself No v consternation fell on everyone on commoners as well as on courtiers The Emperor bestur d h ms lf a dhe commanded hs Crand Councilors and min ste s a d prnces to gathe in the Andience H II and he sent a ummo s to the tuo Consorts to seat themsel es behind the Dr ga Screen There Tzu Hent leaning on he eunuchs in and she sat herself upon the higher of the ti o small thr ne there in a wh le Tzu An the Emp ess of the East in P1 ce came too and Tzu Hsı always cou teous rose 1 d wit d h le she sat on the other throne That Emp ess S&be o d her years for she vas not yet th rty to He i ce hd grown long and th n and melancholy a d she made futs d smile when Tzu Hsı pre sed her hand Yet i ho could think of one when all were threatened? In silence the noble assemlly last ned to Pru ce kung as he stood to announce the evil ne s Th Emperor ml s gold n robes his and seated on the Dr gon Tho e bowed us 1 ad lo face half hidden by a Jhen fan he held u his r ght hand When proper greet gs had be n made Pn cek ng paceeded to the hard truth le must tell In sp te of all the Throne Fus done to prevent them the lens ha e not e mamed in the so th tl y are e en nou on the r wy up our coast th r sh 15 rmed and carrying a ni rs We must they will halt at the forts of T ku and not ent ru to ·proper at Tientsin from whence it would be but a short march to th s sicred plice A gto un burst from the Ine ling assembly and they boxed their heads to the floor Prince king faltered and sent on It is too soon for me to speak Yet I fear I fear that these barbarians will obey neither our laws nor our etiquette! The least delay and they ill come even to the gates of the imperial palices unless they are bribed ind pe suaded to return south 15in Let us face the worst let us cease dreaming The last hour is come Ahend is only sorro v When the full text of the memorial which Prince kung had written 1 75 read and presented the Emperor ended the audi ence commanding the assembly to withdraw and consider its judgment and advice So saying he rose and supported by to princes Iu. brothers he vis about to come down from the Throne hen suddenly Tzu Hsis clear voice rose from behind the Dragon Screen "I who should not speak must nevertheless break my proper silencel The Emperor stood i ne rt un tummg his head left and Tight Before him the assembly knelt with hends bowed to the foor and they remained motionless None spoke In the silence Tzu Hs s voice rose again It is I who have counseled patience with these Western barbarians It is I who have er: d delay and wait and now it is I who say I have been wronn I change i declare against patience and writing and delay I cry war ag inst the Westem enemy-war and denth to them all men women and children! Had her voic been that of a man they would have shouted sea or nay But it was the voice of a woman though she was an empress Mone spoke none moved The Emperor waited hus head drooping and den still supported by his brothers he cam down from the Throne while all heads were bowed to the floor and he entered his yellow palanquin and sur younded by Binnermen and guards he returned to his palice Vter him in proper tune the two Consorts also withdrew saying not a word to each other cxcept what is necessary for courtesy brut Tzu Isi could see thit Tzu An shunned hier and looked away And Tzu Hsi returned to I own apart ments while the day passed to wait for the imperul summons 148 ·but none came la silence she pored over her books her mind Astracted. When evening came near and she was not called, she inquired of Li Lien ying her eunuch and he told her that the imperor had dallied all day with one and another of his her concubines and had not mentioned her name This he Ład heard from the Chief Eunuch who had been compelled to stay by his master's s de and bear with his hums Tenerable" Li Lien ying said "be sure the Son of Heaven has not forgotten vou, but he is afraid no of hat may happen. He waits for the judgment of his ministers "Then I an defeatedt Tzu Hs exclaimed Thus was speech too plain against the Emperor and La Lien ymg pretended he had not heard He felt the teapot and muttered that it was cold and he bustled way with the pot m his hands his ugly face blank and unsmiling The next day Tzu Hsi heard the nes s she had fo ese en. There was to be no resistance even no ag inst the invaders from the West. Instead by advice of his councilors and ministers the Emperor appointed three honorable m n to go to Tientsin to negotiate with the Englishman Lo d Elgin Among these three the chief was X ei Liang the father of Prence kung's fe a man known to his good sense and his Ale alas! Tzu Hsı cried hen she heard his n me "This excellent man will per careful and too yielding oppose the enemy He is too old, too She was nicht undeed on the fourth day of that seventh month Kuer Liangs gned a treaty with th Western warriors por himself The three noblernen then eturned with their kreaty At point of suo d the Englishmen nd the French men, supported by the r fr ends the Americans nd the Rusfans had gained th r demands Th ! govemments were to be allowed minist is re ident in Peking their priests and trade s could travel throughout the ealm without subm tting to its lays op um was to be called the stuff of legal trade and the great niver port of Pankow in the heart of the Em pure a thousand miles from the sea was named treaty port where wh te men could I ve and bring their f mules. When Tzu il had such terms she retired to he Tamber and for three days she d d not wash herself n caution. 149

·No text on this page.

·what to do subtle nowadays he sent ministers to the white men ruling the city of Canton through the Chinese govemors they had appointed, and thes ministers were to coax and bribe the white men not to come north again because the treaty was t sealed Let them be content with their southern trade the Em peror commanded "Tell them we are friendly if they remain where they are Did they not come here for trade?" What if they refuse? Prince kung asked Remembering what Tzu Hsı had said in the long night When they were alone together the Empero replied "Tell them if you must, that we will meet them later at Shanghai to seal the treaty This is to go halfway to vard them Can they complain that we are not generous? For Tzu Hsı had said feigning indiffer nce to matters of state Why sign the treaty? Let them hope and of they are mpatient say it will be signed at Shanghai halfu y up the coast if they come there then vill be time to decide This she said, while sec etly she held war $ the final weapon If the mvaders came to Sh ngha would it not be proof that only death could end th in advance? The noblemen departed early in the year th these com mands and that same spring as soon as the earth * s free of Frost the Emperor commanded that the Talu forts near Tientsin were to be strengthened and to be m nned with guns secretly so th t the Engl sh kn v nothing of it Such pl ns Mere seeded into his mind in dle h urs h le Tzu H amused Ing tales and ve ses from the frbidden books she h à found in the eunuchs 1 braries What dismay thn hen in e ly summ r cou i rs bought news f om the Enp ror s min st rs tht the We tem men would m ke no comprom that once ag in thr ships were sail ng northwa d up the coast far past Sh ngl at this time und the Fnglish n Admiral Hope! But the Court and the commone s of the c ty decled themselves not afr d The T ku fort tong nd th impe al sold es hd be a rd for b avery la calm and er prom sed good re wat d for th att sk. 151

·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.

·GCIJ - 91 5 000
Form No 5
JOURNAL ISSUE CARD
DOCTOR ROBFRT FILIG LIBRARY
TAITUR
Faw ang am A al c llega mais esas
sw Msc 1168
Arc. No 13541
Q
Plus)
ato
is 6.58
Tit!
YI
Y ar
rrowe
'Yo
*
D. Dat
Borrowe Due Dato
NO
groll
Shelcard a fearful daun
18

·In contrast to this brren land Chien Lung had m de the thieves and robbers" fortress palace a hundred miles north of Peking and te loved miles of sand and ock and in the distance the mountains of ceuings and the golden images from the altars The gems Inset in the imperial thrones were tom out and jeweled Screens were carted away Fine porcelains were broken and ground into the earth except where some more clever robber perceived their value Jade pieces were stolen or smashed Set with all thus robbery less than one tenth of our treasures ere saved even to be enjoyed by our enemies The rest of Our precious and d lıcate possessions the bequeathed inher ituace of our Imperial Ancestors was crushed into pieces by de þults of the barbarian guns or tossed into the aur by daw long white men in wild games Last of all de whole palace was set afire For two days and nights the sky was It by flames the clou is dark wth smoke Yet not satisfied the barbarians pushed into the uttermost folds of the hills and destroyed every pagoda and every shrine and pavilion and De sure that close behind the barbarians came the local Tears crept from under Tzu Hsis closed evel ds as she now remembered what the courier had said and her woman Watching wiped them away with a ke chret Do not weep Venerable she s id tende ly I weep for that which is no more Tzu Úsı said "Venerable this palace too is beautiful Li Lien ymg She did not answer to her Jehol vas not b autiful Cen unes ago the Ancestos Empero Chen Lung had built this palace the more go geous The valls were hung with brocaded silks and embroideries of many colors the ceilings paneled with sc slet and gold and across tem gold dragons pread their , weled lenge! The fable and chairs and vast beds brought from the south we o carv d and mlad with Ah but she longed for 8 d ns and lakes for four tains and brookst Here water w s mo e pecious than fade It was car hed the b cks of hear som little w lls dus into the pesert, and when these files from a distant Oasis Wit Said to comfort her gems upon 181 ·her heart a fever of anger burned night and day beca Yuan Ming Yuan now lay in ashes because in the capi Prince kung stood a suppliant before the barbarians bech here in this remote and dreadful palace prevented by } enemies she could not approach the Emperor She was tio with anger and anxiety and the discipline she enforce upon herself to hide what she felt drained the strength fru her very bones And how could she prevall against her enemies wher here she had no friends? The Three had declared themse against her on that fearful day when the Court hnd f the Summer Palace For she had not ceased to resist fl even while the Court had fled But they her enemies persuaded the weak and foolish man who was Emperor tha he was in danger of his life She remembered how easily had yielded and so swiftly that he had left his pipe his h his papers on the table of his bedchamber It smote her to think that when the barbarians had pushed Into that penal place they must have seen these things and laughed loudly to know how frightened was the Son of Henven Why should this be an atrow into her heart when all else was Fone? She rose abruptly from her chair pushing aside with her hand the fan that Li Llen ying again wielded with slow patience and she began most restlessly to pace the floor up and do vn up and down, while outside the closed windows the hands howled Il she knew what the plot as Su Shun and his allies And the bordinates had taken flight with the Emperor but they 1 od semn to it that the ministers and councilors who might have helped her against them were left behind Sho had perceived the conspiracy too late and she was helpless Mo she h d one ally only one for even Su Shun could not present the Imperial Guard from its duty to protect the Fmperor She furied imperiously to Li Lien ying Summon my kinsman the Commander of the Imperial Cuard! I would ask his counsel Nou Li Lien yang had never before failed to obey imme diately whatever command she put upon him What was her surprise to see him hesitate the fan hanging in his band! 16.

·N Liars and threatened to have him beheaded if he dd not speak anthout delay Thus beset he whispered that the Fmperor hould not summon her because her enemies had told him He nodded his head and tid his face in his hands She had to vent her anger somehow and she struck the meeling eunuch with her foot and he fell over and lay there motionless while she went raging up and do 7 the grt hall, oming and going as though she climb d mount ins Suddenly she stopped befo e the suent eunu h Get up she commanded I dar say you h ve not told ne all What else do you know that I am not told? lle crawled to his feet and wiped his sw ating f ce with 12$ sleeve "Vene able-I have not slept a asht since I head She made he eyes v de and terrible "ht do they pl t? Venerable he falte ed I cannot spe h the t a torous Mords They plot-they plot--to seize the Renry them fely s-and then and th 1." beg you calm yourself "When did you h rat?" hot cheeks with hr palms d a first rumor many months ago Vene ablea Sh cnd out Ven table o aid pl ding if I told you every Come come " she insisted He fell upon his knees before her "Venerable* he begged do not compel me to obey this one command" thy not?" she asked severely Surely it could not be at Jung Lu himself was against her Menerable, I dare not say La Lien ying stanumered you will have my tongue cut out if I speak I will not, she promised I continued afraid nevertheless and she could not pull the words out of him until at last she flew nto a great rage hat-that-she and Jung Lu-, Do they say we are lovers?" she demanded she muttered "Liars-liarsvhat those three plot Kill my son! she h Venerable i proms I h small rumo y 1-1 did oth r so far as th t. She sat down n hr gr at cl als again and smoothed her A whe And y u were sil nt! 183 ·> I hear you would cast me in prison to silence me Those sit in high places must always be surrounded by the su armu insults of gossip And you Ienerable were hugher than the rest Who could have thought that the Son of H would have heeded these lower ones? lou should have used that stupid brain of yours sh cried "You should have remembered that in the years befor I came it was Su Shun who was the well beloved of the Em peror They were young men together and because th Emperor was weak and gentle he loved that wild youth who hunted and drank and gumbled and lived like savage Recall how this same Su Shun rose from a small pos tion in the Board of Revenue to be Assistant Crand and ho v he brought about the death of Po Ch un that and honorable man, so that he himself could have ** power! It had been so Indeed In the days before her child bom hen she had won the Emperors love one day had come to her an aged prince the Grand Secretary I Chun She had been too young then too new to palace wave to comprehend the tangles of intrigue Therefore she listened without thought while the good old man besought her to speak for him to the Emperor I do not have his ear now lady" he said mournfully while he stroked his scanty beard already white of what are you accused by Su Shunna she inquired Lady I am accused of enriching myself at the Thrones expense This fellow this Su Shun has whispered to the Emperor th t I hold back montes from the Imperial Trensa ury MWhy should he say so?" she asked "It is he who is the robber and he knows I know it the old Prince said She could not doubt his plain and honest looks and too innocent she promised to speak for him to tie Emperor and had done so But in those days the Emperor still favored Su Shun and he belies ed him and so the old man had been beheaded and Su Shun then took his place Hler anger mounted fresh as she remembered how Su Shun begin to hate her Only the Emperor s quickly growing love for h 181 ·hom of her plight and asking his immediate help She folded manded "You are to deliver this parchment into the hands Venerable he protested "how can I- She cut him off "You can because you must but she did not melt and so he could only make haste to When he was gone sh w nt pacmg up and down the hall ler Court ladies came and peered through the curtains at Jer and went aw y not daring to sp ak or even to let their At the end of four d y Prince Kung himself arrived and e cane dusty and tray l worn to tht wing of the mighty Plce whe e Tzu Fts lved. Sh had not left these rooms she had eaten 1 Hand lept less while all her poned on word from this prince What was her I had saved her agamst Su Shun s anger Ab she had been too sure of her power-look at her now! Suddenly umable now to bear the heat within her heart, she stood up and lifted her nght hand and slapped Li Lien yng first on one cheek and then on the other until his eyes watered and he could not get his breath. But he said nothing for to bear such anger was his duty "There she cried and there and there-not to tell me at oncel Oh, evil silence! Wat this she sat down agam and put her palms to her cheels and sighed for full five minutes or so while Li Lien mg knelt be a stone before her for never had he seen her des such a rage as this Another five minutes and her mind cleared She rose from her seat and walked with impetuous grace to her riting table. There she sat down prepared her vik slab and wet her parchment and on it wrote a letter to Prince Kung telling 1 and pressed her own seal upon it and beckoned La Lien YIT" to her side You are to go to the capital this very hour she com of Prince kung and from him bnng reply and all this is to take no longer than four days mre more until he Tesence be known реу woman was we ry of wt hing her and *

·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.

·29 ally and thus prevent her as an enemy Tzu Hsi could stil Meanwhile her woman and Li Lien yung stood watcher Suddenly the woman turned her head toward the clored door She had the sharpest ears this woman, made keer by He caught his roles in his right hand and strode to the doo He drew the bar and slipped through the crack and the woman hastened afte him and stood with her back to the door closed again, and she heard the flat of a hand poundmg softy She opened the door a crack and looked through. She Venerable she said under her breath "at is your kins- Tzu Ils still at the writing table turned her head sharly ther and Jung Lu came in The woman closed the door and She rose as shpoke 'The woman opened the door for drew the bar while outside the door the eunuch stood or "insinan greeting Tzu Hsis volle was smooth and Jung Lu did not speak He walked forward and scade uit kunsman" she said do not kneel Sit down on yonder But Jung Lu woud not sit He rose and st pping Dearer Empress of the Western Palace and the Empress of the F em Palace on this day of Aly death Here Tzu Hsı left a space and after it she added words And I set My name and the imperial dynastic seal to My will and My decree Here agam she left a space She rolled the parchment and put it in her sleeve Yes, would take Sakota as Regent with her compel her to be let a smile fucker on her lips at her own clevemess her and waiting for her commands Weary though he was the eunuch did not da e to ask for rest. years of listen ng to hear her sovereign s call. I bear footsteps she muttered "Whose footsteps the eunuch muttered. man guard. sweet obeisance chau and let us be as we have al vays been to her he fixed his eyes on the floor between them and turned to her mistress "Let hem come in 100 ·to speak "Venerable we have no time for courtesy The Emperor is dying and the Chief Eunuch sent me to tell you Su Sbun was there less than an hour ago and th him the Proces Yi and Cheng They had their plot-a decree for the Emperor to sign appointmg them as Regents for the Heirl "He would not sign it and be fell unconscious when they tried to force him but they will come again. She did not p use a moment she few past him He fol lowed her swiftly and Li Lien ymg came after she tossed commands across her shoulder to the eunuch as she went. *Announce me-tell the Son of Heaven that I bring the Heir with me! As though the winds bore her she went to the Hunting Lodge She burst into the door and none dared to stop her She heard a child crying she paused to listen and recogn med her sons voice Oh fortunate weeping that led her to hum! She pushed asıde the frightened women she ran through the rooms until she found the room where he was rying she burst through those doors ar d saw a woman nursing her son but he would not be comforted She swept him in her arms and carned him away be clinging to her neck ith both his arms silenced by astonishment but not atrait ste hastened through passages and corr dors up steps of stone through halls and chambers until she eached the innermost of all and there without pause she went stratglt thro ish the door that the Chief Fuguch held open for her "Does the Son of Heaven styl Ive?" she cried He breath es th Chief Eun ch said FILs voice 113 boars with weeping The gre t bed was raised I ke a bler and a ourd the eunuchs kn It weeping in thely hands Sh Passed through them as though they were trees bo ed in a forest Straigl't she went to the Emp ror s side and th replie stood her ch ld in her arms My lordi She called the two wor is in a loud clear val She wastd and he did not nswer My lord she called again Ah would the rll Www The Emperor heard Is heavy eyelids lifte! Slatina his head the dying ey s looked up he saw 1er My lo d she sa d here is your hels - The child s eyes stared down his eyes i la 169 Wo X ·"My lord she said you must declare he is your heur If you hear me raise your right hand All watched the dying hand it lay motionless a yellow piece of skin and bone Then while they watched at moved with sich effort that those watching groaned My lord she said imperiously I must be the childs Regent None but I can guard his life against those who would destroy humn Move your nght hand once more to sig nify your wish Again they saw the slight slow movement She stepped forward to the bed and lifted up the yellow hand My lord she called my lord come back for one more momenti With great effort did hus soul return when her voice called He moved his dun eyes to rest opon her face She took the parchment from her breast and quick as her own wish Jung Lu brought the vermilion brush from the writing table nearby and put it in her hand Then he took the chia from her arms Mou must sign your will my lord she said distinctly to the dying Emperor I take your hand-so Your fingers about the brush $0.--" He yielded her hus haid she held it and the fingers moved seemed to move to Inake his name *Thank you my lord she said and put the parchment in her bosom Rest now dear lord She motioned with her hand for all to withdraw Jung Lu camed the chuld from the room and the eunuchs stood at the far end and waited their sleeves at their eyes She salto down then upon the bed and Lited the Emperors head to Test upon her ar Did he still livet She listened and heard * Butter in his breast. Fle opened his eyes wide and drew in his breath "Your perfume-suceti Hereld his breath an instant it quivered in his throat and then he blew it out in a great sigh end asth it did. She put hu h ad down gently upon the pillow and leaned Ovrhun and moaned twice Ah" and "Ah- and she wept a little, her tears pure pity tlut a man should die so young STA ·2 Was Prince kung stl he al y? The Court a ted irresoluc Su Shun said arrog ntly that I 2. Prince Yi wete appointed Reg nts by the Son of Heaven zelf Emre his spirit left us Say that we come to annouso CUTE Ivet The Chef Eunuch made obe sance saying the hastened to do wh he was told Set of 2 FC to whisper his business to ſung Lu Ilonted you can to bring the Three to the imprese fc myself outs de the door and the moment and never loved Oh that she could have loved him and for a moment she gneved because she could not Th n she rose and walked from the imperial chamber but slowly as a widowed Empress walks Swifter than the winds the news of death swept through the palace The Emperor lay in state in the Audience Hall whose gates were barred and padlocked against all the lv ing At each gate of the great building stood one hundred men from the Imperial Guard appointed by Jung Lu Only the birds were free to come and go and nest among the gold dragons that reared themselves upon the to-tiered roofs Silence lay deep beneath the heavy eaves along the pullared outer corridors but there as no peace in such a silenc Throughout the palace these walls had the struggle of power but who knew where the final battle vould the pl ce? Tzu Hsı was no v the Empress Mother the mother of the Her She was still young a vom n not vet thirty years of age Princes of the blood surro inded hr d heads of strong and fealous Manchu clans Could sh pre even as Em press Mother? All knew th + Su St un vas hr enemy and with him the two princes both broth rs of the dead Emprror not knowing where to give its 1 yalty and ea h courtíry kept to bumself and each vas areful to be cool and makr 70 sign of ether fr endshp or hostel ty to any other Meanwhile this same Su Shun Grad Councilor that is had reported the dath of the Empe or, and he lxlr the was had summoned the Ch Eunuch as soon as his sping eunuch take a message to the Empress Aſother Tell he he Preord in Jung Lu took cost m nd at once 1 enter

·No text on this page.

·herself with rage from her bosom the parchment shich the dying Emperor s hand had signed in a smooth calm voice every word dis tinct as the stroke of a silver bell she read the decree from the beginning to the end while Su Shun and the two Princes Istened. Su Shun pulled at his beard "Let me see the signature he snarled She held the parchment where he could see the name "There is no seal” he cried A decree vithout the im peril seal is worthless He d d not wait to hear her answer or even to see the look of consternation on her face He tumed ar d fled the princes his following shados s She knew at onet bt made their haste The imperial seal was locked within its coffer in the death chambr Whoever seized it first vas victor She gnashed her teeth against herself that she h à not wa ted for the seul She tore the headdress f om her head and th ev it on the floor she pulled her ears with both her fists and was bes de Stupid! she shrieked agamst herself Oh stup d stip d woman and more stupid Pru ce who did not wam m early and stupid kinsman and teacherous eunuchs ho did not help me soonerl Where is the se 17" She ran to the dopr and jerked it open but no on stood putside no Chef Eunuch not even Li L en ying There was none here to give chase She th ew h rself upon the floor und wept The years were lost she was letrayed At this moment Lady Alei peeping th ouch b ocaded co ains saw her mistress lying th re as d ad and she ran in und knelt beside her Oh Worshipful" she moaned "are you wounded? Da some one strike you? She tred to luft her weeping mist es but she could not and so she ran to the door stijl open and m t there Jung Lu and behar d hwn the eunuch L L en yong just now arti ed. Oh she cried and sh nk bak her blood fooding up ward from he heart into ber ch eks But Jung Lu did not see her He arried something in his hands a lump wrapped in yellow szk He set it down when he saw the graceful figure ly 173

·No text on this page.

·old not put this trout #l for she could care fo h:n herself since now burgu nd til her ho v the Emmen that they two should be the Reg nts wide, I 435 Co sin sh !! sisters Our Ird vil d us to be united ir sy ear my lay Itynd lo e to you som She took Sakotis 1 ttl hnd and string for wistful face and how co id S kota dan smiled back ag i ! If gratefully and opened the tip of his tongue touched his upper lip In A TAA smile "Now I see" he said now I know why Su Slun say that such a woman as you must be killed or she will multis world They looked at one another Empress Prince and cut such and they broke into triumphant mirth The imperial seal was hidden underneath Tu JI 1d and the rose red satin c rt 1 o erhung it so that Iu 11 whole palace only she and he oman and her cu ruch in w It was there Do not tell me where it is h dden" Prince kung huel commanded I must be abl to say I do not know With the mpenal se 1 ecure sh could do as she without Her fever left her and p ce took the place of resel semok She could and did ignor the ferment in the place when it was known that the s 1 s gone and none knew wire All guessed that she had that a d courtesy an loba linia took the place of c 'pi g mpud n e and growing, som gance. Her th ee enem es k pt to fom her und knew that they were bed themselves since they er lidt carry out their pl t A d this nfusion and core nin she went sweetly and at ense dhe fist deed *19*14 her eunuch to thank the L dy fo caring for Brunari to assi re he that she her time vas no no e needed for the Empay yo stored to her the Fle -- Her next deed a to go eeping to ha, sit beside her a ch ld ''You and I de / 5 2 her old child sh honesty sh said "To tell the truth C sn I am glad obet "Sisters Tzu Ist said 175 2

·No text on this page.

·Aleanwhile Prince kung returned to the capital there to prepare a special truce with the enemy which vould allow the return of the dead Emperor for hus unperial funeral. I have but one warning" Prince kung told her in part Log Do not, Majesty allow any meeting between yourself and your kinsman, the Commander of the Guard Who can value hus loyalty and his courage more than I do? Yet enemies will have their eyes upon you now to see if there be truth in old gossip Instead put your trust in the Chief Eunu h An Teh hai who gives his service whole to you and to the Her Tzu Hsi cast reproachful looks upon the Prince Do you think me stupid? "Forgive me" he said and these were his parting words Although she did not need it yet his advice vas good for her against temptation For she was 1 woman and her pheart was hot, and now that the Emperor was de d she did often in the night let her wild and secret thoughts go creeping throu, h dark corridors and lonely halls and past empty rooms to that gate lodge where the Imperial Gua d was stationed There she found him whom she loved and he thoughts circled about him like mourning doves remembering hun as he had been when th y were children he always tall and straight inclined to stubbornness t was true never yı Idung unless it was his wul to vield stronger than she howeve stro & sho Was handsome then as low but male and never delicat or womanish as the poor Emperor had be n Against such thoughts and memories it was well that she had Prince Kungs Warning a shield to keep her from h r own desr She made her outer calm invinc ble hile within the fire burned And indeed she could not indulge her heart. Her task was shall not finished Ste must not giv comfort to her enemies nor freedom to he self until the Throne was h rs to hold for her son She must ex rt her e ery charm her dgnity and courtesy toward everyone and so x 1 she did this th t all except her enem es we e dra 'n to her and espe cially the soldiers of the Imperi 1 Guard to whom she granted guts and kundn ss without once s eming to show a diffe ence between these ma and ther commander To them too she sent her daily thanks to their protection of the in Dorpse.

·No text on this page.

·"Venerable your enemies despar" the Chief Eunuch told ber the night before departure Therefore we must watch them at every step *I depend on your ears” she said "This is their plot," the Chief Eunuch went on Instead of our loyal Manchu guards Su Shun has ordered his own sol diers to accompany you Venerable on the plea that the Im perial Guards are needed for the dead Emperor And even I have been commanded to attend the beer and with me your owa eimuch La Lien ving She cried out "Alas- The Chu f Eunuch put up his huge hand I have worse to tell Jung Lu is ordered to remain behind to guard this Jehol palace She wrung her hands together Forever?" The Chief Funuch bodded his unmense head "He tells W $ *What shall I do?" she asked in sharp distress Th s means I am to die In some lonely mountain pass who will hear me when I cry out to be saved?" *Venerable be sure your kinsma 1 has hs o n plan Ho says you are to trust him He will be nea you With this fath only to uphold her she set forth the next morning at da yn her son s c it in front then hers and Sa kotas and surrounded by the alien guard Yet all av her calm and unafraid she spoke courteously to ev ryone direct ing here and there and ashing last as though she all but for got, that her large toilet case be put bene th her lest she vish for kerchief or perfume There in her toil t caso 1 as hidden the impenal seal but none knew t save I er fa thful oman When I was ready ste s at d herself ans de ler curtains and so began the sad journey She had longed to l ave that somber palace and yet i seemed a stelt r now that she did not know what lay ahead nor even where that n ght she must sleep The summer drought I ad broken a drain f 11 steadily as the day w nt on a clean ha d ain that soaked into the s ndy sou and s v led the mountain streams and choked the narrow roads bet een the mountains By nightfall thus de layed th y were fr from any resting place and thrive obyere so ligd that th y Here forced to stop in a mi 179

·No text on this page.

·I knew that you vould ome she called + Such comfort now came flowing into a stole across the carpet to the door of the tre år into the stormy night Jung Lu s as there 11 sat "Dead I have thrown the body downy UAZ Who can dare to speak his name wider aught rather than another to kill her? Would it not be easy to bribe a palace cook to put poison in her food or an assassin eunuch to hide behard some door where she must pass? Shie toyed with each thought coaxing herself free from fear sny ing that it would indeed be annoyance to have the body of a dead empress to hide and would not her sub cts Inquira what had befalle 2 her and could even her enemes tulad risk of their anger? The next hour passed more quickly and now sl mily dreaded the dying of the candle If she moved the chill woul wake and he was sleeping sweetly his hand fold d into lxre Then she must call but softly to rouse her woman to put fresh candle in the lantem She lifted her head so to call * 1 her gaze which had been fixed upon the child s s plny i at this moment caught the movement of the leati ir funt of the tent. It was the wind loubtless or the entry down but still she could not mo e her eyes away n ir dun call And while she watched a short sharp leher 14 fee leather silently and now shs h nd a minut upon the thurnb it wo e 1 red jde ring Without a sound she snatch ed up the chud an the tent but in that same in t nt another has and sexzed the h nd that held the dagger and / and the shit fell shut ag u Al she knew hand! She stood and I tened and heard men atris saw the s de of the tent tr mble when they i ll my heard a moan then sul nce "Let that be an end to you these words el Lu mutter was shaken to the heart She put do y the toward her and they gazed at each other "I will not leave you, he sand Is the man d adi "Will they not know?" place?

·No text on this page.

·She sat silent in her cushioned seat the curtains parted wide enough to see the landscape and if any glanced tor ard her not once did he see her face turned toward the Commander of the Cuard What ber thoughts were : ho could know ? She was scarcely thinking her restless mind for once was in repase These few days of travel were her os n for she as safe The climax of her struggle the final battle for the Dragon Throne must come hen she received the imperial c ta falque Traveling now at such steady speed she would enter th Forbidden Cty five days before the cortege As soon as she reached her palace she must summon her clanstoen and the dead Emperors loyal brothers and thev must plan together how to seize the traitors not by force for then the people would protest but with order and decorum proving their wickedness and her own right as Regent on the Heurs behalf Beyond the edge of her mind these deeds of state loomed dark acord threatening but she had the trick of taking pleasure When she could and therefo e was refreshed and strong when the hard moment came And surely this as pleasure to nde through the autumn country sade the dange ous mountains hourly more distant hale Jung Lu rode bes de he silent it was true and p oud, so that they could not speak or look towa d each other But he was there and her life as in his keeping Thus p ssed the days She slept sweetly in the nights and oke hungry in the momug for the fresh northem arr made her blood li ely On the twenty nuth day of that ninth month of th moon year she saw the alls of the cap tal rise up fom the sur Founding plains and the gates her open Ins de the city the streets 1ere cleared of folk but Tzu Hsi put do n her cur tains lest she see a for ign en my There were none. The e ty lay silent in suspense i news traveled faster than human feet and the poc est itizen kew th t tigers were at war and Victory was not c ar At such tam s the people wait. Tzu Hsi bad planned her course She ente ed the pal ce in deep Inouming her robes of hute sackcloth and she ore po je tels Looking not to nght or left, she descended from her cart bile eunuchs knelt on e ther side Then in perfect courtesy he sent t Sahota s cart and helped br to descend and b iding her I ft hand within her own nght, 183

·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.

·No text on this page.