Later, another Gold Bird Guard, running straight from the watchtower, told us of a sudden burst of light coming from the Regent’s ward. It seemed there was a great commotion inside the Regent’s house. The General’s men were now waiting for their opportunity.
Everything was going smoothly.
• • •
Someone tapped lightly on the door. I rose to my feet, startled. There had been no announcement from the eunuch announcer of anyone arriving. Who could it be? The General?
Another tap. More urgently.
“Who is it?” Pheasant spun around.
A minister garbed in a purple gown stumbled into the hall and knelt before us. Minister Li Yifu. The assistant minister of the Ministry of Justice, who had a penchant to bow deeply and was fond of elaborate speeches. I went before him, remembering I had spoken to him last time in the library. He had let me read Zhuang Tzu’s books.
He gave a litany of gratitude of being received at this late hour, and finally, Pheasant cut him off and asked him about his business.
“A petition,” he said and presented a scroll with two trembling hands. He was so nervous he was unable to speak clearly. “A petition…to remove our Empress and appoint our Luminous Lady, may her beauty and courage remain to be our inspiration, to be the mother of the kingdom.”
Pheasant turned to me, his eyebrows raised. I studied the man in front of me carefully. “I am grateful for your support, Minister Li,” I said. “But may I ask why I have your loyalty?”
His sleeve flew to his face, and he started to weep. When he calmed down, he spoke rapidly, shuddering and stuttering. It took me a moment to understand that early tonight, he had received a letter from a minister by mistake. The letter stated the Regent had ordered to exile him, and the order would be effective at dawn. Fearful for his future, he had decided to come to me and offer his support in hopes of keeping his position.
“Why did he exile you? What did you do?” I asked.
“Luminous Lady, I have done nothing wrong,” the minister protested. “I acted only out of duty, drafted the letter of the heir’s repudiation as the Emperor ordered. The great Regent must have heard of it and become angry. He was angry at me before, for helping you at the library, and now that I drafted the repudiation of the heir, he said it was an act of betrayal.”
I could always tell if a man lied out of convenience or if he spoke the truth in desperation. He was speaking the truth.
“I see,” Pheasant said. “You will not be exiled.”
Minister Li Yifu wiped his forehead in relief. “I am most grateful for your kindness, Your Majesty. This is not all, Your Majesty. I come here bearing another message.”
“What message?”
“When I received the order of my exile by mistake, I heard some scribes whispering. The Regent has chosen a time to attack the palace.”
I jerked, and Pheasant took in a sharp breath. “When?”
“Today. Before dawn, Your Majesty.”
My heart hung in the air. It was only hours before dawn. “Are you certain, Minister Li?”
“Most certain, Luminous Lady. He has instigated the commoners, sending them to protest in front of the palace, and brought together an army of his hired men.”
“The Gold Bird Guards can take care of my uncle’s men, but the commoners…” Pheasant stood. “I must go to the watchtower now. I will not see any bloodshed tonight.”
“I will go with you.” I rose.
“You stay here.” He rushed to the hall’s door.
“Pheasant! Wait.” I followed him.
He had just reached the door when it suddenly flew open. He stopped abruptly, frozen. I took quick steps and rushed to Pheasant’s side. One glimpse into the dim yard, and I felt my heart stop.
Through the entrance of the compound, people burst in, waving their hands and shouting. In a moment, the empty yard became crowded with many shadows.
Were they the Regent’s men? Pheasant tensed beside me, and he stretched out his arms, pushing me behind him to protect me. But already I saw the faces in the dim light. They were ministers and scribes who worked the night shift, eunuch servants, and some palace guards. Some were weeping, some were shouting to one another, and others were running toward us.
“The Regent has attacked!”
“Heaven help us!”
“We have no weapons! The guards have no weapons!”
“Let us out, Your Majesty! Let us out before it’s too late!”
Cowards! The palace had not yet been breached, and they wished to flee! But we had to calm them.
“Keep them back,” I ordered the guards who had rushed to stand before Pheasant and me to protect us from the crowd. I could not help but step back, gripped by fear. I hated to be surrounded by throngs of people. They were dangerous. They could trample you with the brute force of their ignorance. And I had to assure that no one could get close to Pheasant and harm him.
“Stay back!” one of the guards shouted, and pushed the crowd away from the corridor.
But still, waves of people rushed to us. Some climbed to the windowsills of the corridor and surged closer. “Your Majesty! Help us!”
“Open the gates, Your Majesty! Open the gates and let us leave the palace. Before it’s too late.”
“I have an elderly mother and my family to take care of!”
I put my hand on Pheasant’s arm. “What are you going to do, Pheasant?” My hands were shaking, but I tried to stay calm.
“I need to take care of the rebels in front of the palace gates.” He clenched his fists, and his eyes, even though bleary and tired these days, looked more resolved than ever.
Suddenly, I did not think it was a good idea. There would be many stray arrows, hidden daggers… “Perhaps—”
The sound of a gong rang out. It was only a night watcher announcing the hour of the night, but it sent a shiver through the crowd, and people began to scream.
“Ministers!” Pheasant shouted, raising his voice above the commotion. “I shall guarantee your safety, but you must all stay inside the palace… Ministers! For your own safety…” He thrust himself toward the crowd, working his way out.
I grabbed his sleeve. “You can’t go to the watchtower now, Pheasant. It’s too dangerous.”
“My uncle will not succeed, Mei.” He waved at the guards to clear the path among the ministers and rushed through the crowd. He walked so fast, his hat left shadows flying across the ministers’ faces like a blackbird. “I will not let anyone die tonight.”
“No. Wait! Wait for the General.” I held up my skirt and ran after him. “Wait for me!”
“Go back, Mei,” Pheasant shouted as he exited the compound. He disappeared from my view, and by the time I caught up with him, he was instructing a group of the Gold Bird Guards who had gathered in front of him. Armor clinked, and many shadows raced toward us. The Gold Bird Guards were ready to defend the palace.
He took a bow from a guard. “I will take the command from you here, Captain Pei. No. Hold your arrows! Do not shoot the protesters unless I give you my order. Do you hear me? All of you? Do you hear me?”
“But, Your Majesty—” the Captain protested. I could not see his face in the dark, only his bald head shining white in the reflection of the blades.
“This is an order! An order! Now follow me to the watchtower. All of you! Captains! Do you have all your men in position? Good! Now let’s go. What are you waiting for? General! There you are!”
“Your Majesty, I returned as fast as I could—” The maroon cape flew down the path ahead of me. Behind him, more guards emerged.
I ran to greet him. “Did you find her, General?”
He pivoted to stop before me. “Luminous Lady. We followed the men reading the bulletins just as you instructed. Two were her spies. We found her nest, but she had already left.”
<
br /> “Left? How?”
He shook his head. “Someone had informed her before we arrived.”
I bit my lip in frustration. “Where is she now?”
“We do not know. She could be anywhere. Even inside the palace.”
How dare she return to the palace! But if she were here, I would find her and capture her myself.
“Your Majesty”—the General walked toward Pheasant as he stepped into a carriage—“I heard the rebels are out of control at the front gate. I shall take it from here.”
“No. I shall take care of them. And you will take all the men you need and look after Luminous Lady, as we discussed earlier. Remember that. It’s an order.”
“Your Majesty, if the front gates are breached—”
“It will not happen! I shall hold it. I will lead my men. You must trust me, General!”
“Your Majesty—”
I could not let Pheasant face the danger himself. I brushed aside the General and hurried to Pheasant’s carriage. “I’m coming with you.”
“You can’t, Mei.” Pheasant shook his head. “You must look after Hong.”
I stopped. Hong. My Hong. I had forgotten about him. I turned around and raced back to the yard. “Pheasant. I shall catch up with you in a moment.”
His carriage rolled forward and disappeared into the night.
“Luminous Lady!” the General shouted behind me. “You must stay with me!”
“I will be right back!” I rushed into the library’s yard. The vast yard sounded like a boiling pot with all sorts of cracklings and groanings as panicking ministers rushed to and fro. There were so many people, their dark heads rising and dipping, their arms flinging around.
I searched, straining to see through the dimness. I could not find my maids among the crowd. “Chunlu! Xiayu!”
No one answered. My voice was drowned out in the hubbub of noises.
“Hong. Where are you? Hong?” My hands shaking, I pushed through the crowd. I had a sickening feeling, being jostled everywhere I turned. I swore as long as I lived, I would never walk into a crowd again. “Hong! Hong! Where are you?”
Near the lion statue stood three shivering ministers. My Hong was not there. Opposite me were another group of ministers, wiping their eyes, their backs hunched; near them, a man with a bald head and large ears like fans dashed by. It was Captain Pei. What was he doing here? He should have left with Pheasant a moment ago. I was going to shout at him when a minister in a purple gown stumbled toward me, his hat nearly stabbing me in the eye. I ducked under his arm and drove him aside with my hand. When I straightened, the Captain was gone.
I turned around to search for my son again. “Hong, where are you?” Still, I could not see him or any of my maids. Perspiration ran down my forehead. Where was my child?
Strong hands grabbed my arm from the dark, and before I could cry out, before I could kick, a bald head appeared at the corner of my eye, a foul thing clamped over my mouth, and something hard and heavy knocked my head. Everything went dark.
35
Pain. Everywhere. On my arms, legs, and in my head and stomach. But I was still alive, and I was grateful for that, and the pain, the dull throb, was reassuring. It reminded me of my Oriole, of the Regent’s upcoming attack, of why I was abducted here, and of what I must do next.
But I had not expected the darkness. I could not see anything. I could not see Hong either. I hoped, with all my heart, that he was safe with my maids.
Where was I?
I struggled to sit up but fell sideways. I was bound tightly, my arms tied behind my back. I had lost my cape, and my hair was falling near my ears. A filthy cloth was in my mouth. I shook my head, working hard to dislodge it, but I could not spit it out.
In the distance, I heard rumbling, shrieks, and the sounds of metal clashing. The Regent’s attack. My heart tightened. I hoped the Gold Bird Guards were winning. I hoped Pheasant was safe. More determined than ever, I pushed myself up, balanced, and stared hard around me.
Tall shadows stood in front of me. Behind them draped a curtain of black sky. The wind carried the scent of fresh air mixed with dirt, resin, and the strong, fetid odor of something rotten. I was somewhere in a forest.
Some murmurs and faint rustling came from behind me. I jerked around. A few paces from me a fire flickered, near which hovered a dozen shadowy figures. Their heads bobbing, they raised some sticks with flat blades—shovels—and struck the ground. It was too dark to see their faces, but I could tell who they might be and whom they served.
All at once, anger burst from my stomach. That murderer! She had slipped through the General’s hands, and now she had gotten me instead. I struggled again, trying to free my arms and spit the cloth out of my mouth.
“Bring her here!” a voice shouted, a voice I could never forget.
I thrust my head toward her. There! Near the fire appeared the large figure in a golden gown. Her phoenix crown stood on her head like a vulture. I breathed hard.
Hands clamped on my shoulders, and before I could resist, I was dragged across the hard ground. Finally, I reached the pit, where a group of tall figures gathered. There were a dozen of them, and they turned toward me. Some folded their arms across their chests, some held their weapons tied on their belts, and others leaned over the shovels, watching me. They were those rogue Gold Bird Guards, I could tell, for they all wore the same scarlet leather boots.
“Traitors!” I shouted, but my voice was muffled by the cloth in my mouth.
A man struck me. He had a bald head and ears sticking out like two round fans. It was Captain Pei. He had abducted me.
Pain shot through my bones, and my knees buckled. But I could not kneel or lie there for the Empress to kick. On my elbows, I crawled backward, inch by inch; all the while, I fixed my eyes on the woman who murdered my daughter. If only my hands were free…
The Empress walked toward me, her shadow enveloping me like a heavy cloak, and her white face flat like a gravestone. “Let her speak.”
The traitor captain reached down and yanked the cloth from my mouth.
“Murderer!” I spat. “Murderer! You must die a thousand times!” But my mouth was numb and my words came out slurred.
“I heard you were looking for me, harlot,” the Empress said, the fire lighting up her repulsive, closely set eyes. “So here I am. What will you do? I suppose you never dreamed of this, but I warned you, harlot, you are nobody. You mean nothing to me, and now this day has come. You, your son, and all your servants shall die.”
I tried to sit up, and I would have torn her apart with my bare hands if they had not been bound behind me. But she had to die—on my terms. So I lowered my head and dove toward her. But someone caught me from behind and shoved me aside. I could not touch her. I screamed in frustration.
The Empress laughed, her voice shrill, disgusting. “Scream, scream, harlot. No one will hear you. No one will come to save you. You see this pit?” She grabbed my hair and pushed me down, forcing me to look at the pit. It was wide, round, and dark. “It used to contain serpents. What a pity they are no longer here. But all the same, I will kill you, set you on fire, and bury you here, and no one will ever know.”
I thrust my body backward, away from the pit, and I put all my contempt and hatred into my voice. “Don’t be so certain, murderer. You will not have your way. The forest knows, Heaven knows, and everyone knows.” My voice was hoarse somehow, and even though I knew I must not give too much away, I could not help myself. I could not bear to see her so triumphant. “You will not have your way, murderer. The General shall come. Perhaps he is on his way here now, with his army, and Pheasant will come too. You will not succeed.”
She thrust a torch near my cheek, the flame singeing my hair. “You think I am an idiot, harlot? How will the General know you are here? And Pheasant? I doubt he is still alive. The Regent surely behe
aded him hours ago.”
The Regent had broken into the palace? Pheasant was dead? A cold shiver ran down my spine, and my heart shuddered with fear. But I swallowed. I spat at her. “I do not believe you. You’re a liar and a murderer. You are evil. You are a vile, demented, and barren monster!”
She struck me, and my head crashed against the ground. An acute sting cut my face, a sharp pain shot up from my wrists behind my back, and my neck felt as though it was about to break. The Empress was shouting something. I strained to hear. Nothing. I blinked, trying to sit upright while a wall of thick buzzing reverberated around me.
“Who said I was barren? I am not barren! I am fertile! You, you are the liar! You’re the rumormonger. You ruined me!” She seized my robe and pushed her flat face close to mine, while her spittle sprayed my face. “Do you know what I have suffered all these years? Do you know how I have suffered? I have been his wife for nine years, nine long years, and he bedded me only once, on our wedding night. And you say I am barren? I am not barren. I am not barren!”
She threw me back to the ground, but I was so surprised to hear what she had said that I did not feel the pain. She was not barren? Pheasant had bedded her only once? That was ridiculous. I shook my head, laughing. I laughed so hard I had to stop to catch my breath.
“Why are you laughing? What are you laughing at, harlot?”
“Do you wish me to believe that? Once? Only once?” She always lied. “What happened to those full-moon nights when he summoned you? What happened to those nights before he became the Emperor? And you say he bedded you only once?”
Her chest rose and fell, rose and fell, and I could see a thick stream of breath puffing out of her stubby nose. “You know nothing. You know nothing! How could you know? He does not want me. He hates me. He despises me.” She turned away sharply, so all I could see was her exposed thick neck. “He drank and drank and drank while I waited on the bed, watching the candles burning, watching the moon stealing away outside the window. He never called for me! He…he never touched me. I begged him… I put on those clownish silk dresses! I put a black stone in his wine to make him want me. I drank rainwater to be fertile. I did everything my uncle told me to do. He would not take me.”
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