On the twenty-seventh of September of the fourth year of Yonghe, Emperor Qianyuan abdicated and passed the throne to Crown Prince Wei.
However, the matter was not settled so quickly. According to protocol, the Crown Prince had to decline tearfully and refuse the offer, while the Emperor insisted repeatedly. Only after three such exchanges would the formal change of reign name and era officially take place.
Of course, preparations for the new emperor’s ascension had already begun.
As the foremost contributor to the new emperor’s rise, Zhang Chun’s residence was packed with people. Visitors streamed in and out, the gatehouse was overwhelmed, and servants bustled about in chaos. Most guests simply delivered their visiting cards and gifts before taking their leave; only a select few close friends and relatives were invited inside for a cup of tea.
Male guests were received by Zhang Chun’s eldest son, while the women were accompanied by Zhang Chun’s wife.
“And where is Master Jiangzhou?”
Was he perhaps occupied with matters related to the new emperor’s ascension?
“He went to the academy to deliver a few lectures and work on some writings,” Zhang Chun’s son replied with a smile.
The guest was taken aback.
How could anyone still be going to the academy to lecture or write at a time like this!
“The people have found their purpose, yet the path of sacred learning remains long and arduous. My father dares not be remiss in his duties,” Zhang Chun’s son replied solemnly.
Did this mean Zhang Chun would not prioritize court affairs? Would he not succeed Chen Shao as chancellor, but instead remain a librarian and editor in the academy?
Why would he choose such a path?
Yet everyone quickly understood – even if he did not become chancellor, given Zhang Chun’s lifesaving favor to the Empress Dowager and his pivotal role in supporting the new emperor, his position at court would remain both secure and influential.
The main hall grew even more lively and cheerful.
In the inner chambers, laughter and merriment also filled the air.
“Today, we plan to stay for a meal before we leave,” one of the ladies said with a smile. “It’s so hard to secure your cook for private events – surely we can finally enjoy her skills here in your home?”
The other ladies in the room laughed in agreement, and some even began to request specific dishes.
Madam Zhang shook her head with a smile.
“What unfortunate timing,” she said. “Even here in my home, the cook is not available.”
The ladies in the room were taken aback.
“The cook is not at home today,” Madam Zhang explained cheerfully. “She had some business to attend to outside.”
So your own servant had business outside? Couldn’t the mistress simply recall her with a word? What business could a servant possibly have? The affairs of the master are the servant’s greatest responsibility.
This cook of the Zhang family truly is… something else.
“Of course she’s something else,” one lady remarked softly after leaving the Zhang residence. “Have you all forgotten whose household Zhang’s cook, Ban Qin, originally belonged to?”
The women exchanged glances, and a sudden realization dawned upon them.
The Crown Princess!
No, not just the cook in the Zhang household – several families in the capital boast cooks who claim to have been personally taught by the Crown Princess.
The cooks in other households might be inconsequential, having merely been sent to apprentice, but Zhang’s cook was a true member of the Cheng family, gifted to the Zhangs by the Crown Princess during her time in Jiang-zhou.
Now that the Crown Princess is about to become Empress, Zhang’s cook, as her former servant, is indeed no ordinary figure. How could the Zhang family possibly treat her as just any servant to be ordered about?
“But…”
One of the ladies suddenly remembered something and lowered her voice.
“Can the Crown Princess still become Empress?”
When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, husband and wife are united in honor and status. Under normal circumstances, the Crown Princess would naturally be granted the title of Empress. However, the current Crown Princess is not in an ordinary situation.
“She is gravely ill and has been unconscious,” one lady whispered. “Just like the Supreme Emperor, it has been nearly two months now.”
So serious!
The ladies exchanged glances.
That would indeed be considered a severe illness. Even in an ordinary family, someone in such a condition could be moved to a separate residence or even be divorced under the “seven grounds for dismissal.”
“Didn’t the Supreme Emperor regain consciousness?” someone remarked.
“Yet the Supreme Emperor can neither speak nor move – awake or not, it makes little difference,” another lady shook her head. “Would they really confer the title of Empress on someone in such a state?”
She paused for a moment.
“A posthumous title might be possible. I heard that the Empress Dowager has already begun preparing to select imperial consorts for the Emperor. Moreover, Princess Consort Xiu has brought several young ladies into the palace to request an audience with the Empress Dowager. Regardless of other matters, at least on the issue of securing heirs, the Empress Dowager and Princess Consort Xiu are likely of one mind.”
…
At noon, Tai Ping Residence was bustling with its peak business hours. A long queue of customers waited outside the door, seated under makeshift straw shelters at small tables, enjoying hot tea and snacks.
“Perhaps they should set up tables outdoors as well,” someone suggested while sipping tea from a bowl. “In summer, they serve chilled tofu to beat the heat, and in winter, people don’t mind the cold for the sake of comfort and enjoyment.”
Others stood by the entrance, admiring the calligraphy on the plaque above the door.
“This is Lady Cheng’s authentic handwriting.”
“The style is different from the one at Maoyuan Mountain graveyard.”
“Why still call her Lady Cheng? She is the Crown Princess and soon to be Empress.”
“Princesses and Empresses come and go in their thousands, but there is only one Lady Cheng.”
“Tai Ping – with Lady Cheng here, peace and tranquility indeed prevail.”
Amidst the chatter and laughter, someone suddenly pushed through the crowd in a hurry.
“Hey, hey, the line starts here!” someone shouted hastily.
The person turned to look back.
It was a young woman – unremarkable in appearance, yet her attire and bearing were anything but ordinary.
“Miss Ban Qin is here,” a waiter by the entrance promptly greeted her.
Realizing she wasn’t there for a meal, the waiting customers paid her no further attention as they watched the young woman swiftly stride upstairs.
“Miss Ban Qin.”
A waiter knocked on the door of one of the rooms.
“Miss Ban Qin is here.”
One name, “Ban Qin,” but spoken with two distinct meanings.
The door was pulled open, and the young maid hurried inside, seeing Ban Qin rise to her feet.
“How did you get here?” Ban Qin said with a trembling voice, stepping back as she looked at the young maid, seemingly reluctant to see her.
“Ban Qin, don’t be afraid,” the maid reassured her. “There is no news about our lady.”
No news was good news. Ban Qin placed a hand over her chest, sat down, and let out a sigh of relief.
“I couldn’t bear it, so I didn’t dare stay in the capital. I feared I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from rushing to the palace to find our lady. Hiding here at least feels a bit easier,” she said, wiping away tears with her hand.
“The Emperor has woken up and abdicated in favor of the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince is about to ascend the throne,” the maid said.
Ban Qin looked up at her.
“Then can we see our lady?” she asked anxiously. Whether the Emperor had awakened or passed away, whether the Crown Prince would ascend the throne or not – none of these matters, which were the talk of the entire capital, mattered to her in the slightest. Her heart was preoccupied with only one question.
The maid forced a faint smile.
“Soon, I suppose,” she replied.
Hearing this, Ban Qin felt overjoyed. She turned and knelt devoutly before the Bodhisattva statue placed nearby, kowtowing with reverence.
Seeing her like this, the maid’s smile turned bitter.
…
At Immortal’s Abode, Su Xin, who had been holding counting rods in her hand, looked up upon hearing this.
“Did the Old Master truly say such a thing?” she asked.
The young maid nodded, her expression now devoid of the brief smile she had shown at Tai Ping Residence, replaced instead by deep sorrow.
“Indeed,” Su Xin murmured softly, turning her gaze toward the window. “How could they tolerate an empress like her? They can only accept a posthumously honored empress – gaining both reputation and benefits while not hindering the arrival of new consorts.”
“Su Xin, I will beg the master. We ask for nothing else – not the title of empress, not any rewards. We only want our lady returned to us. We will go far away from here,” the maid cried.
“We can ask for the posthumous title of empress, as long as they show mercy and give this posthumously honored empress to us,” Su Xin said, rising to her feet. “I will go too. I will also plead with the master.”
The maid nodded and quickly stood up as well.
“With many guests at home, the master has retreated to the academy,” she said. “Let’s go.”
The two took a carriage and hurried to the academy but were unable to see Zhang Chun.
“Please, I beg you, tell the master it’s Ban Qin. Ban Qin needs to see him,” the maid pleaded with tears in her eyes.
The young attendant sighed.
“Ban Qin, I recognize you. It’s not that I’m unwilling to inform the master, but he is not here at the moment,” he explained.
He wasn’t at the academy?
“Then where has the master gone?” Su Xin pressed anxiously.
The attendant shook his head.
“You know the master’s habits, Ban Qin,” he said, looking at the two maids.
He had taken refuge. He had avoided the flattering guests at home, and he had also avoided them.
Someone as astute and perceptive as Master Zhang Jiangzhou – how could he not have foreseen this?
Su Xin slowly closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face.
“Our lady has never begged anyone before,” she murmured softly, “no matter how dire the circumstances.”
As she spoke, Cheng Jiao-niang’s image seemed to reappear before her.
“There’s no need. I haven’t reached the point of having no way out.”
The young lady’s expression was calm and indifferent.
“I simply dislike placing my hopes in the hands of others, that’s all.”
But what about now? Unconscious and helpless, had she reached that point of no way out? Where was her hope?
…
At the incense-filled Puxiu Temple, the main gate was tightly shut, and the courtyard lay silent and empty. Monks passing by wore solemn expressions.
Suddenly, the sound of a bell echoed within the temple, long and gentle.
A young eunuch stepped forward and extended his hand. Fang Bocong lightly rested his arm on it as he rose from the kneeling cushion.
“May the Emperor’s sacred health be safe and sound,” he said.
“The Buddha knows of Your Highness’s sincerity,” Zhang Chun replied.
Neither of them wore formal ceremonial robes. Fang Bocong was dressed in plain blue attire, while Zhang Chun wore a slightly worn scholar’s gown.
Fang Bocong stepped out of the Buddha hall, paused for a moment to look around, and then began walking again. Zhang Chun followed a few steps behind, and the attending eunuchs spread out around them at a distance.
“The court is in chaos these days. I have come here to seek some peace and quiet,” Fang Bocong said with a smile.
The ceremony for the Emperor’s ascension was a matter that brooked no negligence, and the court had been working day and night for this very purpose.
“A few days ago, a roster was submitted, proposing a retinue of eleven thousand three hundred people for the grand procession,” he continued. “Isn’t that too many?”
Zhang Chun nodded.
“That follows the precedent set in the early years of Zhenhe,” he explained. “However, during the Jianxing era, it was reduced to six thousand eight hundred.”
“I wish to reduce it further,” Fang Bocong said. “The Emperor is still gravely ill, and Crown Prince Xuanwen was only recently laid to rest. Extravagance is not appropriate at this time. I think three thousand three hundred would suffice.”
Zhang Chun nodded in agreement.
Behind them, Eunuch Jing frowned slightly.
Had they come to Puxiu Temple so abruptly and secretly summoned Zhang Chun merely to discuss the size of the procession for the coronation ceremony?
Matters such as the number of attendants, the arrangement of carriages, the configuration of ceremonial guards, musicians, and other trivial details hardly seemed worthy of such lengthy discussion between an emperor and a key minister.
What were they really here to talk about?
“…the ceremonial processions for the Empress Dowager and the Empress must both adhere strictly to the prescribed rites and regulations…”
As Zhang Chun’s words reached his ears, Eunuch Jing felt his heart skip a beat, and a sudden clarity dawned upon him.
So, this was what they were truly discussing.
He couldn’t help but quicken his steps, bowing his head and straining to listen carefully.
“According to the edict, when the Empress receives the imperial seal, she shall be attended by the Yellow Banner Guard and the phoenix-drawn carriage. Court officials are to offer congratulations and present gifts in the Zichen Hall,” Zhang Chun continued.
Fang Bocong suddenly came to a stop.
“Why did you seek a private audience with me today, Master Jiangzhou?” he asked, interrupting Zhang Chun.
“I would not dare presume. It was Your Highness who summoned me,” Zhang Chun replied with a faint smile.
“I said I wished to pray for His Majesty’s well-being, yet it was Master Jiangzhou who specifically suggested coming to Puxiu Temple,” Fang Bocong remarked, glancing at him. “Master Jiangzhou has never been one to speak without purpose. Whenever you speak, your words are never without meaning.”
Zhang Chun smiled and bowed.
Fang Bocong turned and continued walking.
“Did Lady Cheng once save your father?” he suddenly asked.
“A chance encounter and a simple meal shared as a favor,” Zhang Chun replied.
“A favor repaid a hundredfold – such is the virtue of a great man,” Fang Bocong said. “Your gratitude has not only benefited her but many others: the brothers of Maoyuan Mountain, and even myself.”
As he spoke, he looked at Zhang Chun.
“To help her achieve whatever she desires – that is true repayment, is it not?”
Zhang Chun quickly bowed with a smile.
“Your Highness jests,” he said. “I dare not claim such merit. I have done nothing extraordinary; I have merely followed my conscience.”
Fang Bocong smiled but remained silent, coming to a halt as he looked up at what lay before them.
They had now arrived at the stone pagoda behind the Avalokitesvara Hall.
A breeze blew past, and the bronze bells hanging on the pagoda rang out with crisp, clear chimes.
“You all have your principles, and so do I,” Fang Bocong said. “Yet none of you believe that.”
Before Zhang Chun could respond, Fang Bocong raised his hand and pointed toward the stone pagoda.
“When this pagoda was first built, it leaned toward the northwest,” he remarked.
Zhang Chun paused, looking up in surprise.
As someone who was no stranger to the capital, he naturally knew the legends surrounding the origin of the stone pagoda at Puxiu Temple.
“…At the time, some questioned it, but the chief craftsman said it would right itself within a hundred years,” he said hesitantly, picking up the thread of the conversation.
Fang Bocong suddenly laughed heartily and turned to look at him.
“…Next year marks exactly a hundred years. Look, it’s already almost perfectly upright now,” he exclaimed with heightened enthusiasm, his eyes gleaming.
Zhang Chun nodded.
“Anyone who isn’t blind can see it,” Fang Bocong said with a slight smile. “And even if they were blind, others would tell them about it.”
Zhang Chun looked at him, smiled softly, and lowered his head in a respectful bow.
On the tenth of October of the fourth year of Yonghe, Emperor Qianyuan abdicated, ceding the throne to Crown Prince Wei. The era name was changed to Tiansheng.
On the eleventh of October, Emperor Tiansheng ascended the throne.
The sunlight was bright as Fang Bocong looked at the golden edict presented by a eunuch in the Hall of Diligent Governance.
“Your Majesty,” the Empress Dowager, seated to the side, spoke up. “Are you truly determined to proceed with this?”
Fang Bocong’s gaze remained fixed on the golden edict.
“The conferral of the Empress title could be delayed,” the Empress Dowager continued.
As soon as her words fell, Fang Bocong raised his head to look at her.
Having undergone the ascension ceremony, the imperial aura was gradually manifesting in the Emperor.
The Empress Dowager subtly averted her gaze.
“I mean no other implication,” she said. “It is only that, given her current illness, enduring the full ceremonial process may be too much to bear. It might not necessarily be for the best. Besides, how is she to receive the conferral in her condition?”
Fang Bocong smiled.
“I will have her carried during the conferral,” he said. Lowering his head, he picked up the imperial jade seal and pressed it heavily onto the golden edict.
“By this decree, Cheng Fang is hereby granted the golden edict and the phoenix seal. The dignity of Empress is one with Our own. She shall honor the ancestral temples, serve as mother to the realm, and join me in ushering in a new era for the people. So let it be decreed.”
…
“Proclamation!”
Two rows of eunuchs, faces beaming with smiles, walked out of the palace gates, holding the imperial decree, the golden edict, the phoenix seal, ceremonial robes, and the phoenix crown. They proceeded in a stately procession down the imperial avenue, announcing the news to the world.
On the second floor of Immortal’s Abode, Su Xin covered her face, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Reassured, at peace.
The door was pushed open.
“Miss Su Xin,” a young eunuch entered with a smile, bowing to her. “Please return to the Eastern Palace.”
Su Xin immediately turned and rushed out. Her vision blurred with tears, she stumbled as she ran – bumping into the young eunuch, then colliding with Manager Wu, Li Dashao, and others who were hurrying over. Amidst the chorus of concerned exclamations, she staggered her way downstairs.
My lady, my lady.
…
“Proclamation.”
The gates of the Eastern Palace swung open wide. On both sides, eunuchs and maids stood in orderly rows, bowing as the eunuchs delivering the imperial decree filed in.
Inside the Crown Prince’s bedchamber, the door was drawn open, and the beaded curtain of the inner chamber was lifted.
The maids in the room knelt, receiving the golden edict, phoenix seal, ceremonial robes, and phoenix crown with their hands. After kowtowing to express gratitude for the imperial favor, they rose and slowly entered the inner chamber.
The bed curtain before the couch was gently drawn aside. Beneath the embroidered quilt lay a young lady, her makeup vibrant and her hair neatly arranged, resting peacefully.
“Congratulations, Your Majesty.”
The maids knelt, holding the golden edict, phoenix seal, ceremonial robes, and phoenix crown, and bowed in unison.
After three kowtows, they stood up and approached, placing the golden edict and phoenix seal beside Cheng Jiao-niang. The ceremonial robes and phoenix crown were hung on a clothing rack nearby, to be worn during tomorrow’s empress coronation ceremony.
Once this was done, the maids bowed and withdrew, leaving behind only two personal attendants to remain in service.
“Should we still take Her Majesty for a walk outside today?” one of them asked, glancing at the sky outside.
“Let’s go. His Majesty has instructed that Her Majesty’s daily routine must not be disrupted,” the other replied.
“But isn’t today a joyous occasion?” the first one said with a smile.
“A joyous occasion? I heard that the day after His Majesty’s wedding with Her Majesty, She still woke up at the usual hour to practice archery,” the other responded, also smiling.
Both of them chuckled softly.
“Let’s proceed then. Call for the sedan chair,” one of them said, walking toward the bed to assist Cheng Jiao-niang.
The other maid headed toward the door but had barely reached it when a sharp scream echoed from inside, followed by a heavy thud. She quickly turned back and saw the maid in the inner chamber fallen to the ground, scooting backward with her hands, still uttering incoherent cries.
“What happened?” she rushed in and, upon looking at the bed, also collapsed to the floor with an even more piercing scream.
“Someone, help! Someone come quickly!”
The eunuchs and palace maids in the courtyard had not yet dispersed. When they suddenly heard the screams from inside, their expressions instantly changed.
Could it be…
Everyone knew about the Crown Princess’s condition. It had been so long – was she finally…
And of all times, right after being granted the title of Empress. Did this mean she simply lacked the fortune to enjoy such an honor?
It seemed another would have to be chosen as Empress.
Everyone hurried into the room, but upon looking inside, they froze in shock.
The young lady on the bed was slowly turning onto her side.
Her movements were stiff, lifting herself inch by inch. Her face was pale, and her eyes, which had been closed, gradually opened to look at the crowd. Her eyeballs were mostly white, with only tiny dots of black pupils.
A louder wave of screams erupted from the room.
Some stumbled and rushed out, while the rest either huddled together or knelt on the ground.
The uproar nearly lifted the roof off the room.
Amidst this chaos, the young lady on the bed slowly blinked. The whites of her eyes receded, and her black pupils gradually sharpened. Yet her entire expression remained as rigid as her body.
“Who… am I?” she murmured softly.
