Chapter 49

 

Xuyu once again fell into the familiar dreamland: the flower forest, the moon mist, the pool, the beauty, and the voice of “Don’t come back” that seemed real and illusory from somewhere deep in the darkness.

Not only that, but her dream also included an old and sickly face. His face and the face of the beautiful lady in palace dress intertwined in Xuyu’s dream, sometimes overlapping, sometimes separated, looming, and finally transformed into a chaos that she couldn’t see clearly, like she was completely wrapped in the center like a pupa, deeply stuck, and felt powerless to move even a finger.

She opened her eyes from her dream to the sound of rumbling street drums in the early morning, feeling extremely tired and sad.

In the following days of rest, Pei Xiaoyuan returned to his usual routine of leaving early and coming back late, just as Qingtou had once described. She, on the other hand, kept herself busy—sending a letter to Yuwen Zhi, nearly healing the scrapes on her wrist, lending Qingtou money to buy the lightweight gauze canopy she had requested. Even when she had nothing to do, she would never let herself be idle and kept painting.

Lin Mingyuan also came to visit her. The painters and the artisans had begun to paint the various required designs for the halls, beams and corridors in Shenshu Palace, but the murals in Chongtian Hall had yet to be started. The news that the emperor asked her to paint the Queen Mother of the West in Ziyun Palace had also spread. But when mentioning this, Lin Mingyuan’s eyes did not show much envy, but a bit of fear, and he did not dare to ask much. After all, the unfortunate experience of the previous chief of painting department still lingered in people’s minds, leaving them deeply unsettled.

Three days later, Xuyu appeared in the West Hall of Ziyun Palace. This time she was still painting alone, and the eunuch named Yang Zai’en was by her side from morning to night, providing her with everything she needed and allowing her to stay overnight in the palace.

Xuyu painted her mother. When she closed her eyes, the scenes she had spent with her mother in her childhood came to her mind. Her beautiful eyebrows, eyes, nose, and the soft lips that felt like cool jade when she kissed her hot forehead before she was summoned to leave in a hurry that night.

She was reluctant to put too much of her own emotions in this mural.

After this mural was completed, unless there were any accidents, it would remain here and accompany that person forever.

But the owner of this palace, her father, the emperor of today, might not be qualified to face the person in this painting day and night.

She was afraid that her mother might not agree.

However, this was her mother, the one who often appeared in her dreams. Unless she didn’t love her and had no feelings for her, how could she completely detach herself when she was painting her eyebrows, eyes, nose, lips, hair, and even the fold on her clothes?

Xuyu couldn’t control herself. After she started, all distracting thoughts disappeared and she focused entirely on the painting.

In this boundless world constructed of indigo, vermilion, orpiment, and purple gold, her mother was transformed into the supreme divine spirit, the Queen Mother of the West, the sovereign goddess who ruled over all immortals. She resided in the ethereal realm of Kunlun, where heavenly trees stretched to the skies, spirit mushrooms fanned out like parasols, and jade pavilions and lofty palaces floated amidst clouds of mist. A golden dragon drew her chariot, and a rainbow phoenix fanned her feathers. Beneath her feet lay an ancient spirit turtle, while a host of immortals surrounded her in reverence. Her countenance was holy and beautiful, her eyes radiating both tenderness and profound wisdom. Her lips, shaped like a lotus bud, curled slightly at the corners in a smile that was both compassionate and mysterious. She was eternal, omnipotent, and omniscient. She nurtured all living things, governed the balance of yin and yang, rewarded the virtuous, and punished the wicked. Every birth and death in the mortal realm, every cycle of eternity and brevity, every moment of light and darkness, and the movements of the sun, moon, and stars—all were under her command.

This was a dreamlike perfect world without conspiracy, killing, betrayal or disappointment. This was her mother’s world of eternal life.

On the seventh night, after Xuyu applied the final stroke of light in the eyes of the figure in the painting, she gazed at the image of her mother on the mural for a long time. Slowly, she set down her brush and climbed down from the ladder. As if all the energy in her body had been drained, she lay beneath the Queen Mother of the West’s billowing, wind-swept resplendent robes, with the goddess gently looking down at her. Covering her eyes with the back of her hand, she lay there quietly for a long while before finally rising from the ground.

Several palace guards who were left here to keep watch at night were standing far away in the corner of the hall, dozing with their heads drooped. One of them was suddenly awakened, raised his head and looked around in confusion, only to find that the painter had left and the painting of the Queen Mother of the West on the west wall was completed.

Xuyu’s heart was still in turmoil. She walked out of the West hall and did not return to her temporary residence in the palace. Yang Zai’en gave her great freedom to paint at any time, allowing her to walk in the deep palace at night, and the guards hidden in the dark corners and behind the palace gates did not stop her. In this way, she passed through the continuous palaces, corridors and palace walls alone, and under the guidance of her dreams, she finally came to the flower grove and liquid pond where she had lost herself countless times in her dreams.

The trees had shed their blossoms with the end of spring, and the stream flowed silently. The hazy spring moon in the dream was gone, and there was no trace of the beauty. This place was located in the northwest corner of the palace. It must have been many years since anyone came here to enjoy the scenery. Wild grass grew thickly, and the darkness was oppressive. As the wind swept through, the treetops loomed against the deep blue sky, swaying ominously, their dense branches rustling as though countless ghosts and monsters were poised to emerge from behind, ready to devour her.

The waning moon was dim and the water was pitch black, like an endless expanse of black water in hell.

Xuyu’s figure lingered by the pond in the desolate forest in the corner of the palace late at night, and her body gradually became cold.

The sound of the palace clock ticked faintly in her ears. She turned slowly and walked back to Ziyun Palace along the same path through the grass, intending to pack up her painting supplies and return to her bedroom. When she reached a corner door leading to the West hall, her steps stopped.

At some point, the emperor had arrived, and stood with his back to her in front of the mural she had just finished painting tonight. Yang Zai’en led the palace eunuchs and stood at a distance with his hands hanging down.

This was the first time Xuyu had seen her father, the emperor, in many days.

She had been painting here for several days before, but he had never shown his face again.

Xuyu didn’t dare to go in anymore. She stopped quietly behind the corner door, looking at the figure in the hall.

On the left and right sides and in front of the mural wall, huge candles used for lighting were burning day and night. Under this bright light, the emperor raised his head slightly. Although his face could not be seen at the moment, she could tell that he was looking at the goddess on the wall, who seemed to be walking down towards him on the wind. His feet were nailed to the ground, and his back was still and motionless.

An unknown amount of time passed before a palace eunuch with an anxious look on his face walked quickly into the palace gate, looking around as if he had something to report.

At this time, the emperor walked towards the mural opposite him. He stopped at the wall where Xuyu had been lying, raised one arm, stretched out his hand, and slowly moved forward, as if to touch the corner of the goddess’ skirt on the wall.

Yang Zai’en’s eyes shot at the palace eunuch who was entering, and his finger quickly raised to his lips. The eunuch immediately fell silent and halted in place. Yang Zai’en then quietly walked over, listened to the eunuch’s whispers, then signaled him to leave. Turning his head, he looked at the figure standing before him, walked over gently, and stopped quietly nearby.

The emperor stretched out his hand, but ultimately failed to touch the wall.

When the hand was only a hair’s breadth away from the colorful skirt painted with gold powder, it stopped in mid-air, as if there was an invisible wall blocking the way ahead.

After a moment, the emperor slowly put down his hands and continued to stand in front of the wall.

“The people haven’t left yet?” the emperor suddenly asked in a low voice.

“Yes. Prince Kang and Feng Zhenping have yet left and are still kneeling on the foot of steps outside the main hall. They just said…that Feng Zhenping fainted.” Yang Zai’en hurriedly took a few steps forward and said carefully.

The case of the pleasure boat led by Han Kerang had been reported. After investigation, it was suspected that a carpenter in the workshop tampered with the boat in order to retaliate against his boss’s harsh treatment. He cut the mortise and tenon joints of a boat bottom plank in advance and only glued it with glutinous rice glue. As a result, when the boat reached the center of the lake, the rice glue melted under the waves and the bottom of the boat broke, leading to the tragedy that day.

The carpenter committed suicide by taking poison on the day of the incident. The crown prince was not strict in controlling his subordinates, and inevitably guilty of negligence. In recent days, Empress Liu, Liu Ceye, Chen Sida and others have all been pleading for the crown prince. After a full month of confinement, the matter would be more or less over.

Feng Zhenping, on the other hand, had brought the seriously ill Prince Kang to the palace to ask for an audience early this morning. Prince Kang burst into tears, regretting that he had not been able to take the two county princesses away that day. Feng Zhenping endured the pain of losing his son and did not even have time to arrange for the funeral, and apologized on behalf of Prince Kang. For several days he had not been able to see the emperor, and when he got up early this morning, he knelt until this moment, which then finally fainted due to exhaustion.

“What crime is there! Tomorrow, let them discuss amongst themselves and decide on an appropriate title. Posthumously grant the Feng family’s son a noble rank, and handle the funeral.

“That’s it. If they don’t leave soon, chase them all out of the palace. Zhen is tired—prepare for bed.”

The emperor’s voice sounded flat and tired.

Yang Zai’en complied and walked out quickly.

The emperor also turned around and went back to the vihara. After walking a few steps, his body shook slightly, as if he felt dizzy, and then after a few more steps, he silently bent over and slowly fell to the ground.

“Your Majesty!”

Yang Zai’en heard the unusual movement behind him, turned around and saw this scene. He ran back in shock, holding the emperor while calling for help.

The people in the hall immediately fell into chaos. Some people rushed to the hall, and soon, the mute eunuch hurried over with a plate of pills.

At this time, Yang Zai’en and several strong palace guards had carried the emperor into the small pavilion where Xuyu had viewed the painting that day, and carefully laid him down on the sitting bed.

The emperor frowned, his face was sallow, and cold sweat rolled down his forehead. The mute eunuch who served him medicine on a daily basis took out a pill. Yang Zai’en lifted the emperor’s body slightly, stuffed a cushion behind his waist and back, and then took the warm water handed over by a eunuch. Just as he was about to give it to the emperor so that he could take the medicine with the water, Xuyu, who had followed him to the door of the small pavilion, could no longer bear it, rushed in, and snatched the pill from the mute eunuch’s hand.

Yang Zai’en and the other palace eunuchs were stunned upon seeing this. They turned their heads and looked at her with wide eyes.

“This shouldn’t be eaten anymore!”

“Go call the Imperial Physician!”

The palace eunuchs finally reacted and looked at each other, motionless, as if they didn’t know how to deal with such an unprecedented situation.

At this moment, the emperor who was lying on the bed suddenly let out a muffled, suppressed groan. Then he slowly opened his eyes and stared with difficulty at the painter who suddenly appeared.

Xuyu couldn’t retreat. She gritted her teeth and squeezed the pill she had just taken tightly in her palm until it became soft. She knelt in front of the bed, holding back the hot tears that were about to burst out, and hung her head deeply.

“Emperor Qin sought immortality, and Emperor Wu pursued the divine, yet who among them ever truly achieved eternal life? If the body is in pain, it should be the imperial physician’s medicine that should be sought!”

The palace eunuchs in the small pavilion were horrified when they heard this.

After Yang Zai’en came to his senses from his initial astonishment, his eyes kept moving between the emperor and Xuyu who was kneeling on the ground, as if containing some hope that he usually did not dare to mention, and he did not step forward to forcibly stop her.

However, at this moment, when he heard her say such words, his face changed completely because of great horror.

He glanced at the emperor, whose eyes were half open and half closed, and shouted in a shrill voice: “Outrageous! Slap your face! Get out now!”

As he spoke, he ordered people to drag her out.

The two palace eunuchs near her came to their senses and rushed over, trying to hold her on both sides and drag her away.

Xuyu pointed in the direction of the mural outside the pavilion and said, “If Empress Zhaode were still alive, she would never sit idly by and watch Your Majesty hide his illness and avoid medical treatment, and indulge in elixirs.”

Everyone trembled. The emperor looked at the painter in front of his bed with a strange expression on his face, as if he wanted to say something, but couldn’t. Suddenly, he was gripped by a new surge of pain, unable to breathe, and closed his eyes again.

“What are you waiting for? Go call the Imperial Physician!”

Xuyu turned around and shouted at Yang Zai’en.

Yang Zai’en looked at the emperor and did not react.

It had always been his idea to invite the imperial physician, but the emperor had never spoken before, so how could he disobey? He did not expect such a turn of events tonight. But at this moment, he did not care whether the emperor acquiesced or was too weak to object.

He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said to a palace eunuch, “Go and call the imperial physician! Quick!”

When the palace eunuch heard the words, he rushed out.

Soon, two imperial physicians on duty in the Imperial Medical Bureau rushed to the palace after hearing the news. They used golden needles to relieve the emperor’s pain and induce him to sleep. Later, under the command of Yang Zai’en, many people carried the emperor back to the vihara on a sedan chair. Then, they sent people out of the palace overnight to summon the other imperial physicians who had not seen the emperor for several months to come to the palace for consultation and to discuss the medicine.

In the second half of the night, the palace clock rang past the fourth watch.

The West Hall became deserted. Everyone had left, leaving only Xuyu, as if she had been forgotten.

There was no summons to the vihara and she couldn’t enter.

Also there was no need for that.

She finally left this place and returned to her previous residence behind the Shenshu Palace in a daze.

She did not light a lamp and sat in the darkness, fully dressed, her hands clasped together on her lap, still damp with sweat, waiting for dawn.

Suddenly, there was a gentle knock on the door.

Her heart skipped a beat. She paused, stood up, dragged her heavy legs, walked over, and slowly opened the door.

There stood the shadow of a young man outside the door.

It was Pei Xiaoyuan.

He was staying in the palace tonight.

“Come with me. I’ll take you somewhere.

“Zhao Zhongfang should be there.”

He moved a little closer to Xuyu, lowered his head and spoke in a whisper.

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