The Moon in the Palace (The Empress of Bright Moon Duology)

by Weina Dai Randel

  “A woman is not a bag of grain to be weighed and passed around by whoever wishes to purchase it,” Mother had said once when Father was teaching me Confucius. I could not remember what made her say that, but her voice, so clear and dignified, stayed with me.

  Would I be a bag of grain if I used my body to get what I needed? And what would Pheasant say if he knew? But I had to make a decision, and I would not tell him what I would do, because nothing outweighed my desire to care for Mother.

  I had to win over the Emperor so he could help me.

  • • •

  I walked down the trails leading to the Quarters of the Pure Lotus and came to Jewel’s bedchamber. I composed myself and then knocked on her door.

  She was eating lychees, the rare fruit with a scaly shell and jellylike pulp that every lady coveted. It was not lychee season, and she must have received them from the imperial ice pits. “Oh, Mei, there you are.” She waved away her maids. “You don’t look like you slept well. Or have you been crying?”

  My eyes lingered on the fruit. They looked plump and juicy, and I knew they were incredibly rare and precious. “It’s a windy day. The sand got in my eyes, and I rubbed them too hard. You haven’t gone out?”

  “Is it so? It must be a strong wind; otherwise, it wouldn’t bring you here.”

  There was no point dancing around the subject. I folded my hands across my stomach. “I have come to ask a favor, Most Adored.”

  She picked up a lychee. “Want one?”

  I had always loved them. But if I accepted it, I would owe her a favor. Besides, I could not eat anything. “No.”

  “They’re delicious. Everyone loves them. Try one.”

  I ignored her extended hand. “You would still be in the Yeting Court if not for me. You owe me, Jewel.”

  “I knew you’d ask for something. What do you wish for? And I am deeply sorry for what happened on the polo field. I asked for you after the feast. My maid said you refused to see me.”

  She was trying to change the subject. I bit my lip. “I am here now, Most Adored.”

  She sighed, peeling back the thin, red shell on the lychee. “You know I would be glad to help you, Mei. I’m not your enemy, I assure you. But it’s not that simple. The Emperor is the Emperor. He won’t listen to me.”

  “I’m not asking you to beg for me.”

  “I know you are better than that. You’re an honorable woman, Mei. I’ve always admired your courage.”

  “Really? Then give me one of your nights with him. We’ll be even.”

  The thin shell fell on the table, and Jewel held the white pulp to her lips, juice flowing down her fingers. “One night?”

  I nodded firmly. “One night.”

  Slowly, she ate the fruit, relishing it—I could tell—and spat out the tiny pit. “One night with the Emperor. What a fine idea. If you bear him a son, you will ride a shortcut to his heart.” She peered at me. “Even if you have a girl, you will stay in the court as the mother of an imperial princess.”

  What she said was true, but I did not care about that. All I wanted was his forgiveness, and then he would agree to search for Mother. “That would be ideal, except it does not happen very often. How long have you been bedding the Emperor?” I reminded her. She had yet to bear a child, and in fact, none of the Emperor’s concubines had conceived any since my arrival in the Inner Court.

  “You are young.”

  “You’re a mare who knows its way.”

  Jewel picked up another lychee. “Very well. I shall return the favor I owe you. But on one condition.”

  “What?”

  “I want to be there.”

  I could see a trap spread in the air like an invisible ladder waiting for me to climb. “Why?”

  “In case you need my assistance.” She smiled. “I remember you don’t know much about the bedroom affair.”

  “I know now.”

  “Then I promise I will not disturb you.”

  I studied her hard to detect any signs of trickery. I did not find any. Anyway, did I have another option?

  “Come to his bedchamber tomorrow night.”

  I was relieved. “I thank you.” I bowed and took my leave.

  When I stepped into the courtyard, a group of women gathered around a birdcage glanced at me. From the way they tilted their heads and whispered, I could tell they had heard our conversation. They were the Pure Lady’s servants, and I was certain they would report to her the moment I left.

  I knocked on the Noble Lady’s door. She was inside, working on her spindle wheel. Near the wheel was a desk where a few boxes sat. I knew what was inside without looking—spiders.

  I explained my plan to win the Emperor’s affection.

  “This is good news, Mei,” she said, smiling. “And you must be very persuasive to ask a night from Most Adored. Did she tell you why she wished to be there?”

  I shook my head. The Noble Lady did not ask me if I had reviewed the scroll, and I did not tell her I had. It was better to leave it that way.

  “I wish you the best of fortune, Mei. If you please him, you could keep your title and allowances, and perhaps much more.”

  “I thank you for your kindness, my Noble Lady. I am already fortunate to have your help.”

  “When are you going to see him?”

  “Jewel says her night will be tomorrow.”

  She nodded. “Good luck, Mei.”

  I thanked her and left.

  22

  The next day, sunlight dimmed on the pear tree’s branches. The last patch of gold lost its luster and melted into a pool of murky gray. A temporary tranquillity mixed with an eerie silence descended on the courtyard, and gradually the tree’s sprawling branches thickened and joined the night’s darkness.

  I tucked the scroll under my mat, dusted the dirt from my skirt, and walked to the Emperor’s bedchamber. I was ready. Well, not entirely. But I could not hesitate, because I might never be ready.

  The Emperor’s candleholder, a dwarf, opened the door, a scroll in his hand. The fresh scent of ink wafted to my nose. The Emperor had composed a new poem, it seemed. Any other time I would have liked to know what it was about, but not at that moment.

  I ignored the smirk at the corner of the dwarf’s mouth and went into the bedchamber. I coughed, to let Jewel know I was there.

  “Is that you, Mei?” Jewel called from behind the screen.

  “Yes, Most Adored.” I paused. The arrangement of the furniture looked different from what I remembered. The screens had been moved from near the brazier to shield half of the bed.

  “Come.”

  The Emperor seemed to be dozing on the oversize bed while Jewel lay beside him, her right hand supporting her head. The dim firelight flickered on her body. She was barely dressed, her breasts and long legs exposed in the candlelight.

  “I’m glad you came. Would you read a poem for us?” she said.

  I spoke, hoping my voice was calm. “Where is it?”

  “There.” Jewel gestured with her foot to a futon near the bed.

  I found the scroll, which reminded me of the paintings the Noble Lady had given me, and for a moment my face grew hot. I took a deep breath, sat down, and unfurled the scroll. Then I began to read by the light coming from the brazier. The poem was something about the strength of the grass would be known when the gale assaulted, and the loyalty of a minister would be tested during uncertainty. When I finished reading, the Emperor was still asleep. I did not know what to do. Would he sleep forever?

  Then he groaned and sat upright.

  My hands trembled, but I managed to sit still.

  Jewel covered her mouth, tittering. “Don’t worry. I made him drunk. He’s most agreeable in this state. Believe me, you’ll be glad I did.” She lowered her voice. “You know what to do to make him happy, do you?”r />
  “I know.”

  “You should thank me.” Jewel cupped her hand around my ear. “See the front of his pants?” It was stained. “I used pistachio nut oil for you.”

  The aphrodisiac? I was surprised Jewel would help me. “Thank you, Most Adored…”

  An arm pulled me, and I was in his grip. He smelled of strong kumiss, fermented from mare’s milk, the only drink he indulged in within the chamber, I had learned. “Take it off,” he said gruffly.

  I untied my robe, aware that Jewel, smiling, was watching me. After the robe fell, I reached for the strings of my bandeau. My hands shook. I had trouble untying it. Jewel went behind me and loosened the strings. The bandeau dropped to the floor, and I pulled down my skirt and loose trousers underneath.

  Even though I did not look at myself, I knew I was as beautiful as Jewel. When I had bathed with her years ago, I was just a girl, but now I had developed an attractive, womanly landscape: slender arms, supple slopes, and smooth curves, just like her. And the candlelight shone on my skin, bathing me with a warm golden hue.

  “Lovely, lovely indeed.” He nodded, turning me around.

  Remembering the paintings, I wanted to fold my arms across my chest but feared he would view it as unwillingness. So I stood with my arms at my sides. I was so close to him, like I was with Pheasant, and there was nothing between the Emperor and me.

  I felt dizzy. Jewel peered at me, her eyes gleaming. I could not tell whether she was jealous, but the sight of her, so close, startled me. I stepped back, my hand sweeping a brush on a stool near the bed. A trail of black ink dotted my white tunic on the floor.

  How clumsy I was! I reached out. “I’m sorry!”

  “Stop!” His big hand blocked me. “What are you doing?”

  “I—” I froze. “I—”

  He went behind me. A squeeze on my buttock. Then he came before me. A pinch on my nipple. Coughing, he parted his legs and stood solemnly. His night robe slipped off his shoulders, but he did not seem to notice. “Well?”

  This was it. I stumbled to the bed and pushed the crimson quilt aside. The silk felt cold, like a dead man’s skin. But that was not all. There was something else soft touching my fingers. A piece of gilded paper.

  I squinted at the words. I could not make it out at first, and when I did, I could not believe it. The paper announced Jewel’s crowning as Empress.

  I froze. There lay her true intention. She had not given me her night for free. She had prepared the ink and wanted to slip the scroll to the Emperor when the time was right. I did not know when or how, but if he signed it, it would give her the dream of a lifetime.

  I straightened and faced the Emperor. The candlelight radiated above his shoulder and blinded my eyes. But my mind had never been clearer. I must take control. I must be the master of my night.

  I gave the Emperor a deep bow. “Allow me to serve you, the One Above All. It is the privilege of which I have only dreamed.”

  “I don’t need your service.” His voice sounded ominous.

  I must do better. I slid my hand across the bed’s smooth redwood frame. “If you don’t mind, the One Above All, I would like to share some inspiring paintings I viewed today. The paintings portray the joy of fish swimming in the water.” The phrase was a common expression for the bedroom affair in the painting. “Or would you like me to describe them to you?”

  “No paintings.”

  Jewel snickered. I must not be distracted. But she reminded me the Emperor often summoned her. I put on Jewel’s smile, the one that was coy and seductive. “Then perhaps there are other ideas the One Above All might find interesting. If I may suggest—”

  “You don’t make a suggestion unless I ask you.”

  My heart pounded frantically, but I continued to smile. “How disrespectful I was, the One Above All. I beg your forgiveness!” I tilted my head, and with my eyes half open, I parted my lips and then my legs. “Whatever the One Above All has in mind, I will be happy to oblige.”

  There was silence, and at the corner of my eyes, I saw him fingering his whiskers while his eyes flicked to my chest and below.

  I could not stop. I walked to him, my back straight, my hips swaying, slowly, one pace at a time, and when I neared him, I kissed his hand.

  “What is your name?” He lifted my face, his voice gentler.

  “My parents called me Mei.” Meaning little sister, it was only an informal name used among my family, but then, none of the women in China were given official names, even the noble ones, as was the tradition. Men, however, had at least three official names: a given name, a noble calling, and a title.

  “Stand straight. Arms at your sides.”

  I felt cold, even as the candlelight shed its golden sheen on my skin, but I did not hesitate. I gave him a dip of my head, let my arms drop naturally, and straightened my back.

  He put his hands on my chest. “Good.” He nodded and then increased the pressure. I tried not to grimace. His fingers felt like iron tongs. “Perfect.”

  He was still again, as though considering his next move. Then, suddenly, he grabbed the brush on the stool and flexed his arms. His face grave, his eyes unwavering, like a general on a battlefield ready to send an attack signal to his army, he threw his right hand upward and swung his hand with great energy. The wet goat hair licked my skin like a dragon’s fiery tongue.

  “There.” He puffed out, and in his authoritative voice, he said, “I do believe you deserve it. I now formally name you Mei Niang.”

  I could barely identify the sprawling strokes and vertical lines of my new name. The ink flowed from my breasts, converged in my cleavage, and snaked toward my navel. It tickled terribly.

  But Mei Niang, the seductively beautiful girl. He had honored me greatly by bestowing on me a formal name, and I would be the first woman in the kingdom to bear an official name.

  “I am honored.” I lowered my head.

  “Precisely. So beautiful and seductive,” Jewel said, but her face suggested otherwise.

  I had surprised her. I had earned myself a name and his attention. “Thank you, Most Adored.”

  “Go.” The Emperor prodded me with the end of his brush. “Walk to the door and show me the living calligraphy.”

  I took one step, my heart filled with happiness. The ink flowed down my thigh, but it no longer bothered me. My hand on my waist, I held my head high, strutted to the screen, and paused there. When I turned around, the Emperor nodded, stroking his whiskers, his eyes alight with mirth.

  “This is the seductive girl I want to keep.” He squeezed my buttocks when I returned. “Should I deal with you now?”

  “How about one more round to the door?” Jewel’s voice came suddenly.

  She did not wish him to bed me. But even if she got her wish tonight, she had already lost. I smiled. “Would you like me to walk again, the One Above All?”

  “Go now.”

  I swung my arms and swayed my hips, treading on the ground of triumph. The scent from the brazier was fragrant, and the yellow candlelight danced. Everything in the chamber—the shiny crimson bedding, the carved posts of the bed, and the green balls of the dragons on the top of the posts—seemed to brighten.

  When I stopped at the screen, a lean figure appeared at the door.

  “Father!” he called.

  I dashed behind the screen to hide my nakedness.

  “Who is there?” The Emperor stood. Jewel gave him a robe, and they both went to the door, where they talked rapidly. It sounded as though Taizi was hurt, and the Emperor had to leave.

  “We must go now, or they’ll kill themselves, Father,” the informer said.

  The voice sounded anxious and concerned but familiar. Too familiar. I froze.

  Pheasant! Why had he come? Why had he come then? I pressed myself against the wall. My heart pounded. If only I could slip into
another chamber. If only the wall could dissolve. If only I could dissolve.

  “Mei Niang!” the Emperor called out. “Come.”

  Blood rushed to my head. I did not wish to go anywhere. I just wanted to stay at the corner of the bedchamber and not be seen. But I could not disobey him. He would know something was wrong if I refused.

  “Yes, the One Above All.” I scrambled to put on my bandeau. But I could not find my trousers. Hastily, I grabbed my robe and put it on, and then I stepped from behind the screen to greet the Emperor and my lover.

  23

  Two figures stood near the door: one old, the other young. One had his back to the fire, and the other’s face was bathed in light. Both stared at me.

  The candlelight was too bright. It glared on my naked face like daylight, scalding me. I lowered my head.

  “Here you are. Come with me.” The Emperor turned around, pulling his cape around him.

  “Mei Niang?” Pheasant said. There was a thick current of confusion in his voice, and something else, a tremor, like that of a wounded animal.

  My throat tightened. Did he believe I had betrayed him? Did he believe I no longer loved him? I could explain. I could tell him I was pleasing the Emperor only to help my family. I could tell him it had nothing to do with how I felt about him. Would he understand?

  “Prince Zhi.” I bowed and prayed he would not say anything to expose us.

  The smoke drifted from the brazier and stood between us. It smelled scorched, like that of a pyre.

  “That’s the formal name the Emperor bestowed on her,” Jewel said.

  “I see.” Pheasant sounded as though something had caught in his throat. There was silence again, and then I realized he was staring at my naked legs. Awkwardly, I covered them with the sleeves of my robe.

  “Shall we go now, Father?”

  The Emperor waved and left with Pheasant. I went back to the bed to look for my trousers and girdle. I was still shaken. The Emperor did not suspect anything between Pheasant and me. We were fortunate. But Pheasant… I thought of him and how his voice had changed when he saw my bare legs.