Consort Jing Chapter 11

Meng Guqing had no words. Although the entire palace believed she and Noble Consort Xu were natural rivals, both had adapted well to each other’s presence. They seemed to have an unspoken understanding not to disturb one another. Yet the young emperor was extraordinary, entrusting the Xu family’s affairs to her.

Forced to take on the task, Meng Guqing was responsible. Whenever she had time, she invited Xu Qiang over. The weather had been good, with sunlight reflecting off the snow. Fengyi Palace was perhaps the most prosperous place in the entire palace. Meng Guqing and her two maids were all sensitive to the cold, but the rooms were warm all day thanks to the generous fire.

Xu Qiang was at the palace less than fifteen minutes before she could no longer bear her cloak and mantle, which she took off and handed to her attendant, Hongfu.

Meng Guqing sat with hands folded in the main seat, feeling somewhat at a loss. How to begin? After a few pleasantries about Noble Consort Xu’s situation, she got stuck. Just as she was about to be direct, she caught sight of Xu Qiang’s thin, frail appearance once the heavy cloak was removed and was momentarily stunned.

One would think that with Noble Consort Xu’s palace stipend, Xu Qiang’s life would not be lacking. She was the Xu family’s arrangement, and Noble Consort Xu wouldn’t mistreat her.

But now, Xu Qiang looked clearly weak and emaciated, her makeup oddly heavy upon closer look. Meng Guqing pushed a box of assorted delicate pastries toward Xu Qiang and smiled, “Miss Xu, are you uncomfortable living in the palace? You look much more haggard than when you first arrived.”

Xu Qiang resembled Noble Consort Xu somewhat, though her features were softer and lacked the scholarly elegance that Noble Consort Xu carried. Her speech was similarly gentle, “Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I can live here, but having never been away from my parents for so long, I feel somewhat homesick…”

Meng Guqing sensed there was more unsaid. Looking around at the palace maids standing watch, she sent them away first. “The Emperor and the Empress Dowager entrusted you to me. I consider this the most important matter of your life. You must live comfortably for it to matter. Otherwise, all my efforts are wasted and I might even harm you. So I want to hear your thoughts.”

Xu Qiang, perhaps having held it in too long, choked up as soon as they were alone. “Your Majesty, I do not wish to marry. Please send me home. I will live in the ancestral temple, pray for Noble Consort Xu and the emperor, and want nothing else. I will marry no one.”

Meng Guqing sipped her tea, this answer was unexpected. She thought the Xu family was a well-known aristocratic clan, with a Consort beloved among the six palaces. Their daughters would surely have the manners of refined ladies, rarely venturing beyond their gates. Besides close male relatives, how many outsiders could they meet? Since the Xu family had long planned to send Xu Qiang into the palace, surely some of this would have been revealed to her. Could it be that Xu Qiang was fond of the emperor?

Though she didn’t like the young emperor, objectively, he was not lacking, he was the supreme ruler, handsome, and could win over any woman he desired. Xu Qiang had spent a lot of time with him recently. For a girl raised in a strictly segregated environment, this could easily lead to infatuation.

Fortunately, being from modern times, she could speak freely about her feelings. Xu Qiang blushed deeply behind her handkerchief, tears falling under her beautiful eyes. Seeing the Empress ask again, she grew flustered and whimpered, “No, Your Majesty, please don’t misunderstand. I don’t like anyone… What I like is… is…” She seemed shy to speak, then corrected herself, “I don’t like anyone. I only admire Eldest Princess Jincheng and wish to be like her…”

Eldest Princess Jin Cheng was one of the young emperor’s aunts, born of the same mother as the late emperor. She had once been married in her younger years, but her husband’s entire family perished fighting in the late emperor’s wars. Afterward, the princess lost all heart for remarriage and instead took up arms herself, fighting across the land for the late emperor and earning great merit. The late emperor had conferred upon her the title of General. After the founding of Great Wu, the princess still refused to remarry, and now, past fifty, she lived freely and at ease.

If Xu Qiang had mentioned the Eldest Princess at the start, Meng Guqing might have believed her. But now, it clearly sounded like an excuse. That Xu Qiang had someone she liked, ,someone who wasn’t the emperor, was believable. It was just a pity Xu Qiang refused to say who.

It wasn’t that Xu Qiang wouldn’t say, ,it was that she couldn’t. To speak the name aloud would not only destroy herself but also implicate the person she had tried so hard to protect. That person was sacred and untouchable in her heart. Even though he held no affection for her and had sternly rejected her confession, even if that made her seem weak, she still couldn’t let go.

She had thought that in this lifetime, there would be no more hope for her. So she had submitted to her family’s arrangements to enter the palace, help her cousin secure the emperor’s favor, bring prosperity to the Xu family. It was, after all, the duty of every Xu daughter. Yet Heaven would not let her off so easily. Everything took an unexpected turn: the emperor didn’t want her. Thankfully, the emperor didn’t want her. Heaven knew how relieved she was to hear it. But the joy was bitter. She wanted to go home. Even if she could not be with that person, to live under the same roof, to see him from time to time, would have been enough. Even if one day he married another, even if her heart broke to death, she would still be content.

Just thinking about the man she had loved for so many years one day marrying another woman and having children made it hard for her to breathe. Torn between anguish and longing, Xu Qiang’s thoughts swung wildly, from wishing to live out her days in solitude with only a lamp and a Buddha for company, to nurturing impossible fantasies. There was no one in the palace she could confide in; if she told her cousin, her family would know, and that would bring ruin upon him. She was determined to take the secret to her grave.

Yet the Empress was too perceptive. The very next day, she came straight to the point: “It’s Tan Ying, isn’t it?”

“Your Majesty, how…?” Meng Guqing had only learned this the day before, through inquiries at the Xu residence. For a girl of a great family, her contact with unrelated men was limited. By narrowing down the circle to her father and brothers’ acquaintances and considering Xu Qiang’s refined tastes, the answer wasn’t hard to find.

Noting Xu Qiang’s startled and sorrowful reaction, Meng Guqing’s remaining doubts vanished. She drew Xu Qiang up and seated her beside her on the low couch, sighing. “Didn’t I tell you? I can only help if you’re willing to tell me yourself. If you won’t say who you favor, how am I to know? What if I choose someone at random, who will you cry to for the rest of your life then?”

“Your Majesty would never,” Xu Qiang said through tears, smiling faintly before falling back into melancholy.

She could feel that the Empress was truly kind. Just last time, when her cousin fell, Her Majesty had advised her to think of the child first. Xu Qiang had observed quietly for long enough: Jingjia Palace never lacked for food or supplies, and when concubines flocked there in early pregnancy to curry favor, they were later strictly forbidden from disturbing the Noble Consort. They said it was the Empress Dowager’s order but the Empress Dowager had long withdrawn from affairs. The real authority over the palace lay with the Empress. If the Empress had been the least bit duplicitous, her cousin would have suffered for it. Xu Qiang, raised in a household full of wives and concubines, could see such things clearly.

She sighed. Since the Empress already knew, whether it would turn out to be a blessing or a curse was fated. If she still couldn’t let go, she should at least try once more—not to fail herself.

Only then did Meng Guqing learn from Xu Qiang’s account that Tan Ying was her father’s adopted son, brought into the family at a very young age. The two had grown up together.

Tan Ying was calm and restrained. He wasn’t good at studying but was skilled in martial arts. When Xu Qiang realized her feelings, she began to approach him in her own way, to express affection. But to her distress, he never responded; in recent years, he had even grown distant. Before entering the palace, she had mustered her courage to ask him directly for an answer, only to hear him say he harbored no improper thoughts and advise her not to dwell on such fancies. He told her he would pray from outside the palace for her happiness.

Recalling the pain of that rejection, Xu Qiang said quietly, “After what he said, how could I still face him? But except for him, I want no one else. I’d rather spend my life alone.”

How rare, at just fifteen, Xu Qiang had such courage. She was nothing like the gentle, sheltered girls of the south; she was more like the straightforward maidens of the eastern tribes. Meng Guqing, listening, found it interesting. “Your Brother Tan, how old is he this year?”

“Your Majesty, he’s only twenty.” Xu Qiang couldn’t help but laugh through her tears.

“Is he married?”

“No. His family is poor, only an old nurse left by his late mother. Since his father was close friends with my father, he’s been raised in our household ever since. My mother has often tried to find him a wife, status didn’t matter, only that she be good and kind. But he always refuses, saying he has no property and doesn’t want to burden anyone’s daughter.” Each time she heard him refuse, she felt both sweetly comforted and deeply pained. She had always believed he must have feelings for her but reality had struck hard.

“If his studies are poor, he could still make his way otherwise,” Meng Guqing mused. “You said he’s skilled in martial arts. Two years ago, the court opened the military exams, he could have risen through those, built his own career.” It didn’t make sense to her; there had to be more to it.

Indeed, Xu Qiang gave a bitter smile. “It’s useless. His father was among the fiercest rebels of the Jingtai Year uprising. All the adult men of the Tan family were executed. Only this year, when the emperor issued a general pardon, was their ‘traitor’s family’ status finally lifted. He’s barred from civil or military exams. Though he has fine skills, now he can only work as a guard for an escort bureau. Maybe that’s part of why he rejected me. But I… I don’t care.”

Fate played cruel tricks. Seeing Xu Qiang finally pour out her heart and cry bitterly, Meng Guqing could only sigh. Still, the matter of Xu Qiang’s marriage concerned both the young emperor and Noble Consort Xu. Tan Ying’s case, though handled under the regent’s authority, had ultimately been pardoned by imperial decree. Recently, the palace was recruiting new guards. With the martial exams not yet held, selections were made through recommendation. Meng Guqing decided to take part, she nominated one man. The rest would be up to fate.

That afternoon, after a night of snowfall, the clouds finally cleared. Brilliant sunlight poured over the palace walls, and the glazed tiles glittered. Having spent the morning on official work, Meng Guqing took a break to tend the potted flowers in the warm chamber. Seeing the tender pink petals beginning to bloom eased her heart. Lately, the young emperor had been coming to her palace often; no sooner did the attendants announce him than he would already be striding through the doors dressed in formal robes, every movement full of youthful energy, his bright smile more dazzling than the sun itself as he rushed straight toward her.

No matter how many times it happened, Meng Guqing still found him overwhelming, solid as a small mountain, knocking into her painfully. His handsome face came closer and closer, like an eagle swooping on a chick, and she had to retreat a few steps in fright. He caught her at once, dissatisfied. “Why does the Empress always hide from me? Yesterday I invited you to lunch at the Huangji Hall, and you refused. Is palace business truly so endless? I see so many people in Fengyi Palace doing nothing, must the Empress handle everything herself?”

The maids Caiwei and Fusang exchanged helpless glances. Of all the people in Fengyi Palace, none were more leisurely than their mistress. She had been diligent at first, but once she mastered palace regulations, she delegated everything according to the rules. They did all the real work and now His Majesty accused them of idling! How was that fair?

But what was “fair” was whatever the emperor said it was. Seeing the Empress uneasy under so many eyes, he dismissed everyone. Only the two of them remained among the fragrant blossoms, her face glowing softer than the flowers, her gaze calm and deep. Zhao Donglin felt a warmth in his heart that words could not describe.

Meng Guqing looked at him, handed him a handkerchief, and said helplessly, “It’s the dead of winter, how did you manage to work up a sweat? Can’t Your Majesty ride the palanquin properly?”

—But he didn’t take the handkerchief. Instead, his handsome face leaned closer, the meaning plain. Meng Guqing hesitated, then helped him wipe his brow. She knew his temperament well: the more she avoided him, the more he teased her like a cat toying with a mouse; only when she acted natural did he behave properly. He delighted in catching her off guard, and she had long seen through it.

“It’s because your palace is too far,” he began, then faltered, realizing he was the one who had ordered her quarters placed so distant. Awkwardly, he pressed his lips together and murmured, “I was just… eager to see you. By the way, what’s this about the Tan Ying you recommended? He’s got remarkable skill even Commander Li couldn’t best him. I plan to assign him to my personal guard. I’ll learn martial arts from him myself. Let’s see what excuse my royal uncles will have then to keep hoarding the military command.”

Then it struck him, those uncles were also the Empress’s allies. The Empress was chosen by the Regent and backed by his faction; naturally, she was aligned with them. Would she be displeased by what he’d just said? Zhao Donglin’s face tightened as he realized something unsettling: when had he begun to care so much about her opinion? That couldn’t be a good sign. Luckily, the Empress showed no reaction; instead, she seized upon another point.

“Tan Ying is that skilled? What a pity, he might not be allowed into the Guards.”

“Why not?” Zhao Donglin blinked. She’d recommended him herself, and he clearly had talent, why wouldn’t he qualify? So Meng Guqing told him the full story of Tan Ying’s background.

Zhao Donglin pondered, then said, “It’s been so many years. Southerners are citizens of Wu just the same. There’s no reason to turn away capable men. I need talent now more than ever. Since he’s already pardoned, there’s no need to dredge up old grievances.”

Meng Guqing had half-expected him to spare Tan Ying out of appreciation for talent, but hearing his magnanimous words still filled her with respect. Even toward the Regent, despite all he had suffered, he had never denied the man’s past merits. The teachers who had tried again and again to suppress him were now all honored and prosperous.

Such an emperor, broad-minded rather than petty, was truly one worthy of loyalty. Thinking of the day she herself might one day offend him, Meng Guqing could only hope he would remain this magnanimous forever.

“The emperor’s benevolence is clear to heaven and earth. The old subjects of the Yan Dynasty will come to sincerely submit sooner or later.” Meng Guqing truly believed that the young man before her would one day win over the hearts of all under heaven.

“Really?” As emperor, he heard more flattery than anyone in the world, praise so flowery and excessive it could reach the heavens. Though he’d grown up starved of genuine affection, he had always been able to tell the difference between empty flattery and heartfelt sincerity.

“The Empress believes Zhen can be a good emperor. Zhen definitely won’t let the Empress down, nor bring shame to you.”

Meng Guqing’s heart skipped a beat. Just imagine—a lively, bright young man, the supreme ruler of the world, suddenly saying something like, ‘Zhen won’t bring you shame.’ Who could withstand that?

Having never been in love, Meng Guqing found herself thoroughly flustered. But almost immediately, the thought of the noble consort, who was carrying the emperor’s child, poured a bucket of cold water on her heart. That was his true love. If she let herself be swayed by a few sweet words, she might not even know how she’d die later. Yet the trust and reliance in his eyes were undeniably genuine, so she quickly shifted the topic. “Your Majesty thinks Tan Ying is quite capable. In fact, I have something else to discuss with you, something that also concerns him.”

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