“I do not understand,” she began coldly. The moment I heard her tone of voice, I knew we were in for trouble. “If you run away in front of all your people, they’ll say you care nothing for your empire.” The fact it was true only made it worse. Everyone heard. A few glanced at her, but it was the emperor their eyes were fixed upon.
She’s got to stop, I thought. Because I saw where this was going. A wife can be angry with her husband in public and it can all blow over. Even a weak man like the emperor can forgive a fit of rage. But if she humiliates him in front of others, she’ll live to regret it.
I couldn’t speak, of course, so I did the only thing I could think of. I leaned forward and tugged the side of her robe. Nobody saw, but she felt it. She twitched her head, just the smallest bit, to let me know she was aware of the interruption, and her hand reached down and jerked the robe back up, to let me know to stop.
The emperor had given a little start when she spoke. But he forced a smile.
“The Noble Consort Yi has the true warrior spirit of the Manchu. But an emperor has to be wise as well. And she must learn discretion.”
I couldn’t fault his reply. It just showed, if circumstances had been different, he might have had the makings of a ruler.
But she wasn’t having it. I’ve often wondered since if perhaps she’d had some private disagreement with him earlier in the day that she was still brooding about. Who knows? Whatever the reason, she wasn’t going to take any more from him.
“Have you no shame? Have you no pride? Do you care nothing for your ancestors or the royal house?”
“We have heard enough!” the emperor cried. “The Noble Consort will be silent.”
I wanted to whisper to her. I’d have gladly shouted: “Keep your mouth shut! Save yourself—if it’s not too late!” But I couldn’t. So I did the only thing left. I reached forward and tugged at her robe again, really hard this time. I saw her shoulders go up in rage. Her head turned sharply. Then she slapped her hand down, hard as she could, on mine. I felt her fingernails cut like knives into the flesh on the back of my hand.
And I heard the brittle crack, loud as a pair of woodblocks clapped together, as her long lacquered nails snapped. She raised her hand and saw the broken fingernails. I glanced at my own hand and saw the thin red lines of blood. She turned right around to stare at me, and I saw a look of venomous rage that I had never seen before. It was terrifying. It was not hatred, mind you. Not hatred, only rage.
“Look at what you’ve made me do!” she screamed. “Get out! Get out!”
I didn’t know how to move. You can’t withdraw from the emperor’s presence without his permission. I half rose in obedience to her, but looked at him for a sign. In the awful silence I stayed like that, in a stooped position, like an idiot.
Then the emperor solved my problem for me. He turned to Mr. Liu. “That eunuch is to be taken away and flogged at once,” he said.
* * *
—
Mr. Liu did it himself. He took his time. Two other eunuchs stripped my bottom naked and held me spread-eagled on the ground. Then he laid into me with the broad split bamboo we call the banzi. If it hadn’t been Mr. Liu I should have screamed with the pain. But I would not give him the satisfaction, though I did think I might faint.
Actually, the punishment could have been worse. It was the standard beating any eunuch might receive for bad behavior. After all, they wanted you to be able to get back to work in a few days. My humiliation was terrible, of course. It must have given Mr. Liu a great deal of pleasure. The whole palace would have known about it by the following day. My sponsor, Mr. Chen. Everybody. “Lacquer Nail broke the Noble Consort’s fingernails. In front of the emperor! Who told Mr. Liu to flog him. What a comedown.” How they’d mock me. “Lacquer Nail’s finished,” they’d say. And I supposed they were probably right.
I stayed in my little room all the next day. I didn’t feel up to leaving it. An old orderly arrived during the morning to give me a washdown and apply some lotions to my backside. A junior eunuch came in at midday and again in the evening to bring me food. Neither of them spoke more than a few words, and I didn’t try to engage them in conversation. I just spent most of the time lying facedown on my bed and resting.
But the next morning I decided I really had to face the general mockery and find out what was going on. Had the Noble Consort Yi dismissed me forever? Was she herself in disgrace? Where were the barbarians and what were they doing? And I was all ready to leave my room when the door opened, and in walked Mr. Liu. He seemed quite friendly.
“I’ve good news and bad,” he announced. “I’ll give you the bad news first. The Noble Consort Yi is finished. The emperor won’t let her in the room with him.”
“You said it would happen,” I answered.
“True. But her fall is not quite as complete as I expected. The emperor feels that she should continue to look after the boy—who could still become the future emperor. Therefore she is to travel with the rest of the court to the hunting grounds.”
“So he’s still running away, north of the Great Wall?”
“Of course. Prince Gong will remain here.”
“May I ask you something, sir?” I said. “I was very shocked when Prince Sushun encouraged the emperor to make a run for it. Can he really have believed it was the right course of action?”
“Certainly he did,” Mr. Liu replied. “It’s true, of course, that Prince Sushun means to keep close with the emperor. He’s delighted that Prince Gong is left here to negotiate. If Prince Gong fails, regrettable though that would be, then his star will fade—and that of Prince Sushun will shine more brightly. If, on the other hand, Prince Gong succeeds, it will be good for the empire, but the emperor will secretly hate Prince Gong for showing him up. That’s good for Prince Sushun, too.” He paused. “There is, however, a further consideration. Prince Sushun is a patriot. And he is convinced that there will only be chaos here in Beijing unless we can get the emperor as far away as possible. He told me so himself.”
“So whatever happens,” I remarked, “he looks good.”
“The greatest and most difficult art in government,” said Mr. Liu with satisfaction, “is to keep a clear conscience.”
“I see,” I mumbled.
“You have not asked for the good news,” he continued. “Which is that you are to go to the hunting lodge yourself. With the Noble Consort Yi.”
“She has forgiven me?” I cried.
“She is distressed about what happened to you. Says it’s her fault.”
“Perhaps I can fix her broken nails,” I said eagerly.
“You’ll have to wait for them to grow again. She already had them cut short.” He smiled. “Not even you could have repaired them.”
“And what about the barbarians, sir?”
“Still south of the city. Threatening. We hold their hostages. I expect there’ll be more fighting and more negotiating. It may go on for weeks. But we shall both be north of the Great Wall.” He gazed at me steadily. “Which brings me to your orders. They come directly from the Noble Consort and must be obeyed exactly.”
“Of course,” I said.
“You are to go home this evening and spend three days with your family. You may not see them for some time to come. Here are your wages and a little more, which you should give them. After that time, and not before, you are to report back here. Some of the baggage will be leaving in the next few days, and I shouldn’t be surprised if the emperor leaves, too. But the Noble Consort Yi and her son will not be departing until later, and she wishes you to accompany them in person. Is that clearly understood?”
I made a small grimace.
“What’s the matter?” he asked sharply.
“I was wondering how to explain the state of my backside to my wife,” I told him.
“Please don’t bother me with de
tails,” he replied.
* * *
—
At home, I spent happy hours with my children; and although I winced a few times when I was sitting down, I told them I had twisted my back, and no one thought anything about it. As for Rose, I pretended I wasn’t feeling well, so we just slept, and I was able to hide my condition from her. I noticed she was putting on a little more weight. Eating too much, I daresay.
The second day, my father went out for a while, and when he got back, he said, “The emperor left town yesterday.”
“I expect he did,” I said.
“I heard the whole court went with him,” he went on. “Are you sure the Noble Consort didn’t go, too?”
“You don’t understand,” I told him. “The emperor doesn’t want her anywhere near him.”
“Is it such a good idea for you to serve her, then?” he asked me.
“It would be a worse idea if I didn’t,” I replied.
“Well,” he said, “if Prince Gong’s in charge, he’s going to have a difficult time. Everyone’s panicking because the emperor’s run off. The troops are saying they haven’t been paid. Not even their rice rations. I wouldn’t be surprised if they deserted.”
“Perhaps we should get you away from Beijing,” I said.
“Where would we go?” my father replied. “And even if twenty thousand barbarian troops did get into Beijing, the population’s so huge, I doubt they’d be much of a danger to us.”
Come to that, I thought, my father would be sure to find some way to make himself useful to the barbarians, just as he did with everyone else.
* * *
—
I was up before dawn on the day I was due back, and though I was sorry to leave my family, I was quite excited by the thought of the adventure north of the Great Wall.
The city gates were open. The guards seemed half asleep. One would never have guessed there was a barbarian army just a few miles away as I made my way along the lane that led to the Summer Palace. When I finally reached the entrance, I could hear the sentry in the guardhouse snoring, which I didn’t think much of, because the sky was getting light. But I walked in and made my way around the Front Lake towards the eunuchs’ quarters, passing the enclosure where Mr. Ma kept his penzai trees. He wasn’t there yet.
I don’t know what I’d expected to find at that hour: a few early risers; a line of carts loaded up and ready to leave? Something, anyway. But all I saw were the silent pavilions. They were beautiful, of course, with their curving roofs floating over the mist on the lake behind. But somehow they looked sad and empty.
I went straight to the entrance of the eunuchs’ quarters and turned into the main passage. The first thing I saw was the big ornamental sword in its usual place on the wall, with its hilt gleaming on account of all the rubies. That cheered me up.
And then what should I see but Mr. Ma coming up the passage towards me. “I wondered where you were,” he said.
“With my family,” I answered. “I’m going north with the Noble Consort Yi today.”
“I don’t think you are,” he said. “She left three days ago with the emperor.”
“How can that be?” I said. “Where’s Mr. Liu? I need to speak to him.”
“He left three days ago with all the rest,” said Mr. Ma. “They all went together. He left Shaking Leaf in charge. Everyone was looking for you,” he added. “Mr. Liu said you must have deserted. The Noble Consort was furious. She told him she never wanted to see you again.”
“But he told me she wouldn’t be leaving until today,” I protested, “and that I was to go and see my family in the meantime.”
The old man stared at me silently. “So he’s had his revenge,” he said quietly. “I told you he would. Got your hopes up and then destroyed you.”
I realized it even before he finished. You had to admire Mr. Liu. He could mask his feelings completely and bide his time. But when he struck, he was implacable.
“I’ll go after them,” I said.
“That won’t do you any good,” Mr. Ma told me. “They’re already three days away.”
“Yes, but with all the baggage carts, they won’t be going very fast,” I pointed out. “Maybe I can catch them up.”
“And then what?”
“I’ll tell the Noble Consort what really happened.”
He thought for a moment. “Did anyone see you arrive?” he asked. I told him no. “Then come with me quickly,” he said. “We’ve got to get you out of sight.”
It didn’t take long before we were inside the enclosure where he kept his trees.
“What’s all this about?” I asked.
“Mr. Liu’s given orders that as soon as you arrive, you’re to be arrested.”
“For what?”
“Absconding. Desertion. You’ll be kept in jail until the court returns. That could be months. And he’s put out orders that you’re to be arrested if you’re seen on the road or in the city.”
“What shall I do?” I asked.
“I suggest, at this moment, that you hide in the park here. Don’t let a soul see you. Wait until dark, then come back here, and we’ll make a plan.”
As I didn’t see any other option, I did as he said. It wasn’t too difficult to hide. The park was huge and hardly anyone was about. After darkness fell, I made my way back to Mr. Ma’s enclosure. He had plenty of news.
“Poor Shaking Leaf. When you didn’t appear this morning, he sent three eunuchs to your house to find you. Naturally, they learned that you’d gone to the Summer Palace. So he looked around and couldn’t find you. He was in a terrible flap. ‘Where can he be?’ he says to me. I should think it’s obvious, I told him. He probably discovered on his way that none of the court is left here, so he’s gone racing up the road to the Great Wall to try and catch them. ‘But he’ll be arrested,’ Shaking Leaf protests. But he doesn’t know that, I reminded him. I bet you that’s where he’s gone.”
“That’s what I was going to do,” I said.
“Exactly. And he looked quite relieved, because he wouldn’t have to arrest you and guard you for months himself. He told me something else, too. When the royal party reaches the Great Wall, Mr. Liu is going to order the guards to arrest you at once if you show up there.”
“He thinks of everything,” I muttered.
“Well,” Mr. Ma continued, “I’ll tell you where I think you could hide.”
“Where’s that?”
“Here at the Summer Palace.” His old eyes gleamed at me. “When you think about it: Most of the court’s gone. One or two of the old palace ladies are left behind, and a small staff of eunuchs, including me and the gardeners. But that’s all. There’s no business being done here. No entertaining, no concerts. We’ve got the whole park almost to ourselves.”
“I’d like a roof over my head,” I replied.
“You could install yourself on one of the islands. Not the Island of Shrines—there are some priests on it. But most of the islands are deserted. I’d let you know if the gardeners were coming your way. And I can bring you food every day or two. There’s plenty of food.” He smiled at me. “You can live like a scholar hermit for a while. Perhaps it will suit you.”
We discussed the islands. I liked the Apricot Blossom Spring Villa, with its orchard and steep hill; and I could see myself in one of the little villas around the lotus pond on the curious island known as Lianxi’s Wonderland. Both of them were quiet, out-of-the-way places where you could hide. But it was the Peony Terrace, the closest island of all, almost opposite the emperor’s private residence, that we finally decided upon.
“It’s really a spring and summer retreat,” Mr. Ma explained, “and with the emperor away, the gardeners don’t bother with it for the moment.” I also liked the fact it was easy for Mr. Ma to get to, when he wanted to bring me food or news.
; So after sharing a little food with me, he led me through the darkness to the Peony Terrace.
I believe the period that followed was one of the happiest of my life. Partly it was the beauty of the place. The peonies had already been trimmed back for autumn by the time I got there, and I must say I was glad it wasn’t summer, since if you were actually living out there, the heady fragrance of some of those rich, double-globed flowers might have been altogether too much of a good thing.
The fact remained, here I was, the sole inhabitant of the emperor’s most gorgeous garden in the paradise of the Yuanmingyuan, in perfect peace and safety. It has to be fate, I thought, that no matter what disasters befall me, I am lifted up and surrounded, time and again, with the finer things of life. The sixth emperor of the Manchu dynasty, the present emperor’s glorious forebear, used to retire to the Peony Terrace to write poetry—for which he had great talent. I wondered whether, had my education proceeded further, I might have done the same. But I’d probably have been too busy smelling the peonies.
* * *
—
Each time Mr. Ma came, he’d bring me news. “The barbarians are still camped just to the south,” he told me on the second day. “They say the French are a bit closer, with the British farther behind them, waiting for reinforcements. It’s easy to tell which is which. The French uniforms are blue and the British red. There have been a few skirmishes, nothing more.”
A couple of days later, he explained that the French were angry on account of one of their priests who’d been killed in a skirmish and thrown in the canal.
Meanwhile, Lord Elgin wanted the hostages back and Prince Gong wouldn’t give them up unless Elgin promised to go away. Some days it seemed like a stalemate, but on other days there were signs that the situation couldn’t go on. Our troops were close to mutiny, the old man told me. People were starting to flee the city. I was sure my father wouldn’t be one of them.
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