Thousand Verdant Mountains – Chapter 99 Part 1
Chapter 99 Part 1
Xuyu lightly lifted the hem of her skirt, dragging off the colorful leaf as she stepped forward. Pei Xiaoyuan walked with her leisurely, slightly lagging behind by half a step.
At the fork in the palace road, Yang Zai’en saw that the two seemed to have finally finished their discussion. He led the group to continue following behind. The party turned toward Shenshu Palace, where Eunuch Cao, who had been waiting outside, spotted them from afar. He quickly stepped forward, bowed deeply, and greeted them with a smile, saying, “Princess and Prince Consort have just celebrated your joyous wedding. If Princess has any concerns about matters here, this servant can assign someone to report to at any time. How could we dare trouble you to come in person today?”
Xuyu originally thought that the matter of entering the palace in the morning would be completed early, and there would be nothing to do when she returned to Yongning Mansion. Since she was in the palace, and the mural matter had progressed to this step, it would not be good to delay any longer, so she arranged the matter on the same day. But she did not expect to get delayed.
She said it was fine and went to Chongtian Hall while asking about Zhou He’s situation.
Eunuch Cao hurriedly replied, “This servant went to Chongren Lane to look for him a few days ago. When this servant arrived, he already moved from the inn. It was said that his paintings could not be sold and he was driven away half a month ago because he could not pay the rent. After much inquiry, this servant finally found his whereabouts. It turned out that he moved to a shabby alley near the West Market and lived with merchants. On that day, he was disguised as a servant of a scholar, and followed the scholar to attend a poetry banquet, writing essays for others on the spot in exchange for money. When he met this servant and learned that the Princess wanted to summon him to the palace, he still didn’t believe it. Then this servant told him that the Princess was the Young Master Ye he knew before, he seemed to be waking up from a dream, crying and laughing at that time. This servant almost thought he was crazy, but fortunately he came to his sense quickly, took off his servant’s clothes on the spot, and followed this servant here.”
The imperial examination system of this dynasty was known for the saying, “A scholar of the Mingjing exam at thirty is considered old, while one passing the Jinshi exam at fifty is considered young.” The Jinshi degree was the most prestigious and exceedingly difficult to obtain. Each year, only twenty or thirty candidates would be selected, which was one-tenth of the number chosen for the Mingjing degree. Those who made the list could be hailed as “white-robed ministers” with boundless prospects in officialdom. Therefore, aspiring scholars across the land yearned for the opportunity, racking their brains to gain recognition in the capital and secure advantages in the examinations, hoping to leap through the dragon’s gate in one bound. Participating in poetry and literary gatherings was a key way to garner such recognition. Among them, some lacking sufficient talent would resort to hiring others to compose pieces on their behalf during these events.
Xuyu recalled that when she went to see Zhou He before, she had indeed seen some messy poems and essays in his room. At that time, she thought that he also liked reading, but she didn’t expect that in addition to his painting skills, he was also good at writing.
Without real talent and knowledge, it was impossible to be hired to write essays on the spot.
“What about his father and grandfather?” Xuyu asked again.
“This servant has looked into this. The Zhou family has been painters for generations. The great-grandfather committed a crime and was punished as a slave, and became a cave craftsman, specialized to paint in the grottoes. His descendants were also slaves from birth and could not engage in other occupations. It wasn’t until Zhou He’s father’s generation that things began to change. His father’s exceptional painting skills caught the eye of Ye Zhongli, who was overseeing grotto work. Ye Zhongli, recognizing his talent, brought Zhou He’s father into the palace and helped remove his slave status, enabling him to become an official court painter. After the chaos in the last years of Jingsheng, the emperor ascended the throne and the court was renewed. Many former court painters who had been living outside were also able to return to the palace, including Zhou He’s father.
“However, Yao Xu, one of the senior court painters, was jealous toward Zhou He’s father for once being favored by Ye Zhongli. Out of jealousy, he deliberately suppressed him. After his father died of illness, Zhou He was also expelled from the palace. This man is not without talent. He participated in several imperial examinations at first, but failed. After a few years, he gave up and began making a living in Chang’an, selling his paintings and writings. At the beginning of the year, when the painting academy held its recruitment exam, Zhou He tried his luck again but failed, likely due to Yao Xu’s interference. If he hadn’t met the Princess, this servant fear he might have spent his entire life in obscurity, dressed in rags and eking out a living ghost-writing and selling paintings in back alleys.
“This person is quite interesting. Since his arrival, he’s been completely absorbed in his work, painting day and night without pause, barely eating or drinking, as if possessed. Hearing that the Princess would come today, he rose early, bathed, changed into fresh clothes, and has been waiting eagerly to greet the Princess.”
The Chongtian Hall was just around the corner. Xuyu paused briefly on one of the side stairways leading upward. After a moment’s thought, she instructed Eunuch Cao to escort Zhou He to the Xiaoxi pavilion, where she would meet him alone first. Then, turning toward the person behind her, she stepped down and walked toward him.
Pei Xiaoyuan was standing at the bottom of the steps, looking ahead.
The entire Shenshu Palace, including the magnificent main hall in front of him, Chongtian Hall, had been completed except for the mural inside the hall that was yet to be painted. Everywhere you looked, you could see carved railings and jade bricks, colorful corridors and red pillars, emerald glazed tiles, and bright yellow roof ornaments standing on both sides of the ridge of the hall, reflecting the dazzling light under the autumn sky with floating purple clouds.
Probably because the princess had not arrived, a group of people dressed as scholars were arranged to have tea and enjoy the scenery in the Yuyun Tower on the east side of the Chongtian Hall. The sound of couplets and poetry reciting could be heard faintly in the wind, and the atmosphere was quite lively. However, there was only one person who was leaning against the railing alone, his white clothes facing the wind, and his figure seemed a little lonely.
Pei Xiaoyuan had outstanding hearing and sharp eyesight. Although he was still far away, he recognized the man as soon as he arrived. This man was Lan Tai.
“Princess, please go and do your work. I will take a walk nearby or go to the Jinwu Guards’ duty room.”
Before she could speak, Pei Xiaoyuan looked at her and said with a smile.
He was not unfamiliar with this place, and the duty room was indeed not far from here. Xuyu told him not to overwork himself, and agreed on a time to go back, and then headed for the Xiaoxi pavilion.
Zhou He, dressed as an ordinary painter, stood in the corner of the pavilion. He tried his best to suppress the overwhelming nervousness within him, and did not dare to move a single step, fearing that any improper gesture would attract contempt from the palace eunuchs standing outside the pavilion. Suddenly, a drawn-out proclamation of “The Princess has arrived—” echoed through the air. Zhou He couldn’t help but tremble slightly, exhaling deeply to steady himself. After regaining his composure, he briskly walked to the doorway of the pavilion. Lifting his head, he immediately caught sight of a young, elegantly dressed woman walking toward him, accompanied by Eunuch Cao.
At a glance, Zhou He immediately recognized her. The princess in front of him was indeed the Young Master Ye whom he had met and had several contacts with before. However, she was no longer the down-and-out youth he had once imagined her to be. Instead, she was the very Zhanxing Princess they had once discussed. Now, adorned in gold and jade, her resplendent attire flowing gracefully as she walked, so noble that people dared not look directly at her.
Zhou He fell to his knees on the spot, kowtowed respectfully, and greeted the princess. After the salute, he did not dare to move, and still bowed his head deeply. It was not until the princess approached, asked him to get up, and walked past him that he slowly got up from the ground, turned around and followed her in. He saw the princess stopped inside the pavilion, turned to look at him, and looked at him with a smile in her eyes. Her beauty and elegant temperament were difficult to describe in words. He felt ashamed for a moment, so he dared not look at her, and knelt down in fear again.
“The lowly one, Zhou He, . If the lowly one has ever offended the Princess with his words or actions, begging the Princess to please not blame!”
Xuyu asked Zhou He to stand up. Perhaps it was her calm attitude that made Zhou He feel that the princess in front of him had only changed her clothes, and the rest was no different from the young master Ye he knew before. He finally calmed down and stood up as she asked.
Xuyu looked at him. After not seeing him for half a year, he looked darker and thinner. Not only that, his eyelids were red from staying up all night, and his face looked tired. This must be as Eunuch Cao said, because he had been painting continuously day and night recently.
However, Xuyu also noticed that after the initial nervousness and fear faded, he quickly returned to the way she remembered him. His eyes sparkled, the tiredness on his face disappeared, and he quickly became energetic. Then, he knelt once more, bowing deeply before speaking: “The lowly one, as insignificant as mud, once fortunate enough to make your acquaintance, though only briefly and for a few meetings. The lowly one has never done anything to be of service to the Princess, yet you have not cast me aside and still remember me to this day. The lowly one learned of the Princess’ grand wedding yesterday, and as one so unworthy, how could he dare disturb such a joyous occasion? The lowly one could only kowtow at his own residence and wish the Princess and Prince Consort a union blessed by destiny and a lifetime of harmony. Not to mention, every time thinking of this matter recently, the lowly one feels like it was a dream. How dare the lowly one believe that there will be such a lucky day…”
Before he finished speaking, his voice became choked with sobs, and after he stopped, he kowtowed repeatedly.
Xuyu asked him to stand up and take a seat again. Zhou He just wiped his eyes and stood up, but dared not sit down no matter what. Xuyu just let him be and said with a smile: “Your painting skills are good, naturally I will not forget. Besides, I have promised you a favor before, how can I go back on my word? I have been busy with other things before and couldn’t take care of this. Now I’m finally free, so I called you here.”
Zhou He was excited and bowed deeply: “Princess is the most magnanimous! When the Princess was still Young Master Ye, the lowly one always felt that this person was definitely not an ordinary person. Thus, dared to seize the opportunity, an utterly presumptuous thought. But the lowly never thought that the Princess would take it seriously. To be able to get the Princess’s support, it’s the lowly one’s great blessing cultivated over countless lifetimes!”
Xuyu asked him what he had been doing recently, and he told her that he was copying the mural in Yong’an Hall. After a moment’s hesitation, he walked in front of her and knelt down again solemnly: “The lowly one has an audacious idea, one so outrageous and bordering on madness, but the lowly one still implores the Princess to please forgive and allow the lowly one to speak boldly.”
Xuyu glanced at him and nodded slightly: “Go ahead.”
Zhou He calmed down and said, “To be honest, the lowly one was once burdened by his ancestors, born as a slave and was as lowly as mud. It was only by a stroke of fortune, through the kindness of Lord Ye Zhongli, my father was freed from servitude and brought into the palace to serve as a court painter. However, after Lord Ye left the capital, my father became a target of Yao Xu’s jealousy. Later, Yao Xu was appreciated by Empress Liu. After my father passed away, he oppressed me relentlessly, cutting off any path for me to follow in my father’s footsteps. I have kept these things from the Princess before and never told you. I beg your forgiveness for not disclosing them sooner. Now, in order to make a living, I have fallen to the point of painting for others and even cheating by selling my writings. If it weren’t for the Princess, I would probably live like this for the rest of my life.”
A trace of bleak self-mockery appeared on his face, and then he continued, “The Yong’an murals painted by Lord Ye will be recreated in Chongtian Hall, I have known for a long time, yet I could only yearn for it in my dream before. Never in my wildest imaginings that I would be so lucky to be summoned to the palace by the Princess this time. In recent days, I have also heard that the chief painter for the mural has yet to be decided. I am well aware that the Princess is a master painter in your own right. If the Yong’an murals are painted by the Princess yourself, may I humbly request the chance to assist in the painting? I will do my best to serve the princess. When the murals are completed, as long as I can leave a mark on them, I will not let down my fate as a painter in this life. When I return in the future, I can comfort my late father so that he can be proud of me and smile in the underworld.”
He paused.
“Not only that. Lord Ye had done a great favor to my Zhou family in the past, and I admire him very much. If I have this opportunity to participate in the painting and fulfill my wish, it would be like a spiritual connection with Lord Ye, which would express my infinite admiration and gratitude.”
After he finished speaking, he kowtowed solemnly to Xuyu again.
Xuyu got up from her seat, walked to a window, and stood there for a moment. She then turned around and asked, “You just said that you have been copying the murals in the Yong’an Hall these days?”
Zhou He said yes, and then immediately explained that although the original mural painted by Ye Zhongli no longer exists, his father often assisted Ye Zhongli in his work in those days. His father was deeply moved by it and later created a reproduction from memory, which he kept in private. He learned painting from his father since he was a child, so naturally, he had also practiced it himself. In these past few days, with some time to spare, he attempted to recreate it once more from memory.
“Bring it to me.” Xuyu ordered.
Zhou He immediately agreed and went out to get the painting. Soon, he hurried back with a scroll, spread out the painting he had painted in the past few days, and explained: “Time is short, so I can only paint a part of it. I humbly request the Princess to offer your guidance.”
Xuyu slowly looked at his painting, pondered for a moment, and said as Zhou He waited with bated breath, “Painting requires full concentration and no distractions, so that the brush can follow the heart and produce a good painting. This is the case for ordinary small paintings, let alone such a masterpiece. I have been busy recently, and I am afraid that I can’t devote my full attention. If I force myself to paint, I may not be able to paint well. Moreover, the murals in the Chongtian Hall are not for ordinary purposes, and there must be no accidents. If it is delayed because of me, it will be a big deal. That’s why these days I am considering whether to choose another suitable person to take charge of the painting, and I will help him. This may be more appropriate.”
Zhou He was startled for a moment, but soon he realized what she meant. Trembled with excitement, he knelt on the spot: “If I can be trusted by the Princess and can get this opportunity, on the day the painting is completed, I, Zhou He, will die without regrets!
“Back then, Lord Ye completed the mural in one month. Although I am far from being as talented as him, but within two months, I certainly will be able to finish it. I will definitely not delay His Majesty’s longevity celebration next spring!” he added.
Xuyu glanced at the painting on the table again and said, “When I first saw your paintings, I knew that you are very good and has extraordinary skills. However, this matter is of great importance. If I paint, naturally no one will object. But if I choose not to paint, there will naturally be people in the painting department who want to paint, and they have been preparing for this for a long time…”
She hesitated for a moment, “How about this, postpone today’s meeting for three days. During these three days, I will ask the people in the painting department to each create their own rendition of the mural of Yong’an. We will then gather all the famous scholars to exhibit all the paintings, including yours, anonymously for joint evaluation. If your painting wins, the position of chief painter for the mural in the Chongtian Hall will be entrusted to you. In this way, it will be fair to all.”
“Thank you, Princess, for giving me the opportunity! I will try my best!”
Far from being disappointed, Zhou He seemed to be full of fighting spirit, his eyes were bright, and all his previous malaise and dejection were swept away.