Song In The Clouds
/ Song in the Clouds c42
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On the 26th day after Liu Fu Ling's death, the Grand Marshal Huo Guang presented Empress Dowager Shang Guan's edict, placing Liu He under house arrest and ordering Fan Ming You to lead the imperial guards in arresting every official that accompanied Liu He from Chang Yi.
The command Huo Guang gave Fan Ming You the night before was : make it look like an arrest, but kill them all. Due to the unexpected occurrence in their plans, the subjects of Chang Yi would never take this lying down and would have protested so Fan Ming You could just take this opportunity to kill them in the name of 'defying orders'. However, the news seemed to have been somehow leaked. When Fan Ming You arrived with his troops, it was as if Liu He had warned them ahead of time - no matter how his men provoked them, everyone kept mum, and their heads down. With no fault to be found, Fan Ming You had no choice but to first arrest those men.
On the 27th day of Liu Fu Ling's death, Empress Dowager Shang Guan issued an edict, disposing Liu He, and crowning Liu Xun.
Liu Xun entered the palace to pay his respects to Liu Fu Ling, acknowledging him as his grandfather, and addressing himself as Liu Fi Ling's grandson. Then he went to visit Empress Dowager Shang Guan to perform his bows, acknowledging her as his grandmother.
After the grand bow, Empress Dowager Shang Guan ordered for tea to be served to Liu Xun. Liu Shun made use of this chance to ask softly "My lord marquis, would you like a change of clothes?"
Liu He froze for a moment, accepting the tea without showing any reaction, then bent to express his thanks to the Empress Dowager. After a few sips, Liu Xun asked to be excused, hinting at an urgent need to change his clothes. The moment he stepped out for the hall, a pretty palace maid with an egg-shaped face smiled and bobbed a bow. "Your servant Cheng'er will assist my lord in the Shang Yi pavilion."
Liu Xun nodded, silently trailing behind Cheng'er. They really did end up in Shang Yi pavilion for him to change. Cheng'er gestured for Liu Xun to sit "Please sit for a moment while your servant prepares the fragrances."
Liu Xun sat on the perfumed couch, his mind whirling with questions, what was Shang Guan Xiao Mei really trying to do? Suddenly a line from the "Record of a Grand Historian" flashed through his mind "When the Emperor rose for a change of clothes, Zi Fu waited in the Shang Yi pavilion and gained favour!" He only thought that the scene in front of him seemed uncannily familiar and couldn't help but laugh drily. Princess Shang Ping used Wei Zi Fu to gain favour, enticing Liu Che, bringing forth the phrase "The balladeers enter as the Emperor only entertains Zi Fu." If Shang Guan Xiao Mei intended to use Princess Yang Ping's ploy to curry favour then she would be totally underestimating him. However....could he afford to offend Empress Dowager Shang Guan at this point? Could he not accept her favour?
In that instant, he somewhat understood the "urgent lust" Liu Che must have faced then. Lust wasn't just lust, favour wasn't favour. Liu Che might have slept with Wei Zi Fu but the true message he was sending was that he was accepting Princess Yang Ping's loyalty. This was a wordless alliance, showing that from that point on, besides the Empress' Chen clan, he was also acknowledging Princess Yang Ping's power. If he had refused Princess Yang Ping then, and not bestowed his favour on Wei Zi Fu, what would the power shift at court have looked like? Before having a clear understanding of Liu Che's intentions, Princess Yang Ping would definitely not have gone against the Chen clan, then the rest wouldn't have happened.
Cheng'er entered with the fragrance, and instruments to cleanse his hands. Liu Xun looked at her with a ghost of a smile.
She bent her head low and raised the wooden tray, bringing the handkerchief to Liu Xun, then softly said "My lord marquis, please cleanse your hands."
Liu Xun didn't move, and Cheng'er felt a little awkward, since she now had to lift a corner of the handkerchief herself.
The moment Liu Xun caught a glimpse of the national seal, his eyes grew round as he looked at Cheng'er in shock. Cheng'er felt herself calm down in the face of his shock "Your servant is giving them to my lord marquis on the Empress Dowager's orders."
Liu Xun opened his mouth to speak, but his throat seemed to have dried up, and nothing came out.
Cheng'er placed the tray by his side and retreated with a bow "Please make yourself at home, my lord marquis. Your servant will wait outside."
Liu Xun gripped the national seal tightly, the last of his worries fading. He should have been happy, but he felt strangely uncomfortable, as Liu Fu Ling's peaceful face flashed across his mind.
He had entered his shabby hut, changing his life forever; he gave him an official position, and the title of Marquis; he personally taught him the format of imperial edicts, the types of edicts, what seal should be used for each, giving him the education a prince of his blood should have received, how to manage the officials at court; speaking slowly as he stood in front of a sprawling map of the Han empire.....
When Liu Xun returned, Shang Guan Xiao Mei's face showed signs of tiredness as she commanded him to follow the officials back.
Liu Xun knelt in front of Shang Guan Xiao Mei, and kowtowed three times. He said with sincerity "Your majesty, I will do my best to be filial to you as your grandson."
Xiao Mei have him a small smile and said very graciously "I have long since been accustomed to being alone in my hall, and do not like disturbing others, nor do I like being disturbed. After I move to Chang Le palace, you do not need to come pay your respects every day. The best way to show your filial piety would be to govern wisely. "
Naturally, Liu Xun agreed without hesitation.
After leaving Jiao Fang Hall, Liu Xun said he wanted to walk alone and all the other officials immediately chose to wisely take their leave.
It wasn't long before Liu Xun was left alone in the grand hall.
In the clear blue sky, the round sun hang proudly from it, casting it's light across the land. The sunlight was strong, so strong others had to squint but Liu Xun didn't avoid it. On the contrary, he welcomed it, walking towards it as he took in the surrounding palace walls. From this day on, everything here belonged to him!
He started towards Xuan Shi Hall, commanding Qi Xi who was headed towards him "Summon Meng Jue to the palace."
to beg your majesty, to grant this one favour."
Liu Xun looked torn "I'll do my best!"
Meng Jue left Xuan Shi Hall after kowtowing again.
Liu Xun remained for a while longer, then got up and left.
Qi Xi and two junior eunuchs hurried to catch up with him.
Liu Xun walked silently, heading further and further. As he wasn't wearing the imperial robes, no one recognised him other than the palace maids and eunuchs serving in the bigger halls like Xuan Shi Hall or Jiao Fang Hall. When their entourage passed them, they all quickly paid Qi Xi their respects, conversely ignoring Liu Xun. Qi Xi wanted to rebuke them a few times but was stopped with a look from Liu Xun. He could only follow uneasily.
The tiled path was rather bumpy, with weeds peeping through the cracks, the tallest of them falling just short of knee-length. The original colour of the pillars lining the corridors can no longer be seen; only random smudges of black and red remained, emphasising the place's dilapidated state. Only the tall walls tightly wrapping the area served as a reminder that this land was imperial ground.
Standing outside, one could already feel the cold draft. Not even the bright sunlight could penetrate through the gloominess of this place.
A few guards blocked the door, coldly admonishing "This is the Cold Palace, the quarters for concubines found guilty of crimes. You can't just enter as you wish."
Qi Xi quickly went up to the guard and flashed his seal hanging from his waist. When the guard saw that he served the Emperor, he became a lot more polite "Since you are from Xuan Shi Hall, you would naturally know the rules. The people imprisoned here are not just the concubines and palace maids of Emperor Xiao Wu, but also the relatives of guilty officials. Since they are all women, not even we can enter."
Qi Xi tried persuading him but the guard would not budge, telling him that he either needed the Supervisor of the palace's token, or an imperial edict."
This angered Qi Xi, but Liu Xun only smiled "What is your name?"
The guard answered steadily "Gong Sun Zhi."
Liu Xun unfurled his fingers, and there was a seal nestled in his palm.
"Now may we enter?"
Gong Sun Zhi saw that it was the Supervisor of the Palace's token and was struck dumb. He moved aside. "Please enter."
As Liu Xun walked, he nonchalantly passed the token to Qi Xi. Qi Xi hesitated before accepting the token, hurriedly getting on his knees and kowtowing to Liu Xun's back "Thank you for your favour, your majesty. Thank you for your favour, your majesty."
Liu Xun told Qi Xi "Wait here for me."
The men in black led Liu Xun for a whole before stopping and pointing to the house on the left, saying softly "That's where she's kept."
A dilapidated house, the weeds had grown well over the threshold. The tattered curtains hanging by the windows howled when the wind blew, like a woman sobbing.
Liu Xun asked "Has she been well?"
The man in black replied "She hasn't spoken. To our surprise, she has been very obedient, never fussing or making too much noise. Miss Huo visited once and used a whip to whip her."
Liu Xun's brows knitted together almost imperceptibly as he asked coldly "Was she very badly whipped?"
"In any case, she is still alive. We found a old palace maid imprisoned here and asked her to take care of her."
With a wave of his hand, the men in black were dismissed. He walked towards the window and looked inside.
A person lay sleeping on the pallet, unmoving, her black hair spilling across the pillow, and her face covered.
Liu Xun stood there for a while before he sensed something was wrong and walked into the room in a few strides, grabbing the person on the pallet. To his surprise it was a woman of about forty. Angered, he shouted "Men!"
A man in black rushed in and knelt immediately when he saw the woman on the pallet. "Your servant...your servant..." But he just couldn't figure how to explain the situation.
Liu Xun was an exceptional man. He calmed himself down immediately, knowing that his servant wasn't the cause of the problem. He dismissed him with a wave and looked at the woman on the pallet. "Do you wish to live, or die?"
The woman smiled, a cynical coldness in her eyes. "Someone had already asked me those exact same words earlier this morning. So I lay here and changed the girl out."
People who didn't care about anything were the hardest to deal with - Liu Xun started to think of what he should do to make this woman talk.
As the woman stared hard at Liu Xun, the coldness in her eyes slowly ebbed away, to be replaced with shock "Your family name is Liu? Your eyes really resemble the emperor, but your chin, your nose look somewhat like the crown prince....you....you..."
Liu Xun replied "My family name is Liu, and my name is Xun."
Suddenly, she started to tremble uncontrollably. She raised a shaky hand to caress his face, tears falling swiftly from her eyes "You...you..."
Liu Xun wasn't alarmed at all, allowing her to caress his face "I'm alive."
She grabbed him in an embrace, crying and laughing all at the same time like she was a mad woman "You're so big now. The last time I saw you, you were still cradled in the Crown Prince's arms. His highness would have been happy, so very happy...."
Liu Xun already understood what was going on, and only stood there, allowing her to hug him.
After her crying and laughing subsided, she looked anxiously outside. "What are you doing here? You have to leave! You can't be discovered!"
She had been imprisoned in this palace for so long that she was completely unaware of the changes outside. Liu Xun felt his heart tighten, and he gently told her everything. It was only then that she found out that Liu Xun was the new emperor; although she was long used to the huge changes blowing through the palace, and the changes of people's fortune, she was still shocked beyond belief. She started to cry and laugh again, unable to comport herself.
Through her choppy narration, Liu Xun was able to find out this woman's identity. Her family name was Xia, and she was the late emperor's palace maid, serving in his palace. He was certain that wasn't all to it from her expression, but he let it slide. Let her say whatever she wished to! His body and bones had long grew cold, but the living must still continue living. Everything that has been buried in the past shall remain buried.
After she had calmed down somewhat, Liu Xun asked "Granny, where did the person imprisoned here go?"
"I didn't know she was your majesty's
in his hands, he thought everything had been settled - this palace, and everything under it, was now his! He would have never imagined that the Heavens would secretly arrange for another tiny master, what was he then?
No! This could never happen! This palace and everything under it is his! He is the master of them all!
He had already lost it once, there can never be a second time. The last time, he was helpless, his fate decided solely by the Heavens. This time, he would fight, he will never bend his head and accept this fate.
His unsteady steps slowly became more measured, his flustered gaze returned to calm and cold as he started to think and strategise.
Counting back, even if Yun Ge was pregnant, she'd only be one or two months along. He only found out through pure coincidence; Huo Guang wouldn't know so early.
He relaxed a bit when he thought of that part and started to walk faster towards Xuan Shi Hall. "Qi Xi, summon Zhao Guo Cong, Zhang An Shi, Juan Bu Yi to the palace."
He must be crowned as soon as possible!
The waning moon was like a hook, the chilly sky like snow.
There were several Chinese parasol trees in the yard, their grey twigs shivering in the chilly wind. A layer of frost coated the concrete steps, giving the illusion that it just snowed when the moonlight shined upon it. There was no blemish on the frost, showing that no one had stepped out or entered in some time.
Si Yue stood at the entrance to the yard, softly saying "His highness had kept himself locked up inside, none of us dare to...since Hong Yi's death, his highness seemed to have become a different person..."
Meng Jue's eyes were like ice shards, silencing Si Yue with one look. Si Yue didn't dare to continue, and retreated silently after a bow. Meng Jue stepped over the cold frost, and slowly climbed up the stairs. The door wasn't closed tightly and opened with just the slightest touch.
The house inside was littered with wine jars, and a sour smell wafted through the air amidst the strong smell of wine. Liu He lay on the pallet, his hair dishevelled and his purple robes in disarray.
Meng Jue stood on the edge of the pallet, coldly observing Liu He.
Liu He seemed to have sobered up slightly with the entrance of the chilly wind. He turned over, murmuring "Wine, wine..."
Meng Jue picked up a barrel and casually poured it at Liu He. Liu He slurped a few mouthfuls before his eyes suddenly flew open. Meng Jue continued to pour the wine, a smile playing on his lips. Liu He stared dumbly at Meng Jue as the wine continued to flow down his face, swiftly drenching his blanket, his clothes. As the cold wind passed by, he shivered, fully awakened from his stupor.
When Meng Jue was done with one jug, he picked up another and continued to pour wine over Liu He.
"Are you done playing? No matter how low I've fallen, I'm still a prince. What are you to me? Get out of here!"
Liu He raised his hand to hit Meng Jue, they both didn't move, exchanging a few blows with their palms. Liu He was slightly better and quickly gained the upper hand, sending Meng Jue's wine jug flying. It crashed against the wall, shattering into pieces.
The house started to smell of wine; the smell was so strong that one could get drunk on just the smell alone.
Meng Jue retreated and stood with his hands behind him, smiling "Well, it looks like you're sober now. Mind if I speak?"
"Since I entered the capital, I haven't seen or heard from you, why do you suddenly speak again? I haven't got anything to say to you." Liu He moved to the table besides the pallet, casually scooping up a jug of wine. After gulping down a few mouthfuls "My dear lord Meng, I suggest you better rush to tend to the new emperor. Once he is enthroned, you will definitely rise in ranks."
Meng Jue couldn't be bothered to explain, neither was he angered. He merely smiled "Thanks for your auspicious words! First I've got a question for you, how did a bunch of men in black suddenly appear by Liu Xun's side? They are highly skilled and disciplined; these people can't be of gallants of Jianghu. Liu He can't be short to men to aid him, but where did he get the money to train these people?"
Liu He was stunned into silence for a while, and then he understood, saying "Do you still remember the King of Qiangs Ke'er Da Da? Back then, his majesty told Liu Xun that he would give him money and resources, and requested that he figure a way to secretly infiltrate the Qiang tribe. Now that I think about it, Liu Xun must have had used this money to secretly train his army."
There was still suspicion in Meng Jue's eyes as his brows knit tightly. Liu He sighed softly "His majesty must have had known all these moves Liu Xun made."
A cold smile curled on Meng Jue's lips "If Liu FunL Ling had known what Liu Xun made them do, I wonder what his thoughts might have been."
Meng Jue looked at him, then burst out laughing. With a shake of his head, and his tone mocking, he said "Liu He, Liu He! Have you not thought this through before?"
Liu He only said calmly "I thought I was extremely clever but in actual fact I've been dumb. I thought my frivolous and ridiculous activities were
Her tender smile when she cocked her head;
Her cheerful smile when she lifted her face;
With a loud noise, the box split into half, spilling its contents all over the floor. A whole bunch of neatly plaited knots spilled all over the floor. They were of exactly the same design, all made with bright red string. Under the moonlight, they were exceptionally blinding.
If it was just a simple knot, Hong Yi had no need to make so many and keep them so preciously hidden in a box. However, they did look like they were made of normal strings, and he couldn’t see any purpose to them. He stared at them for a long while before suddenly remembering that once when he went to Xuan Shall Hall, Yun Ge was sitting alone at the corridor tying a similar knot.
“Men, men!!” Liu He shouted.
Si Yue rushed in, and when he saw what Liu He had become, he was shocked. Was this the smiling, flirtatious prince he knew?
Liu He held up the knot in his hand. “What is this?”
Si Yue scrutinized it, then said “A love knot. Its design is extremely complex, but only made of one length of string. It takes a lot of effort to make one of these. Women use a red silk ribbon, meticulously tie a love knot, then hang it on a man’s waist, signifying their love. It meant ‘Hearts as one together forever.” Hmmm… there was still some other phrase to it.” Si Yue tried to bring that phrase to mind as he slowly spoke “It was something like ‘The strings tied the dragon and phoenix together, embellishing the brilliant skies; a lock of entwined hair, binds them together forever.” Liu He made a sound that sounded like a cross between a cry and a laugh, as he lifted the love knot to his face, his eyes combing over it, as if through the complicated knots, he saw Hong Yi carefully knotting the silk ribbon in that way alone in the palace with her head bowed, her eyes tender and a hopeful smile on her lips, looking forward to a day when she could tie it on his waist herself. Yet until the very end, she wasn’t able to give her love knot away. The tear that fell from the corner of her eyes, did she blame him for not understanding?
He thought he was extremely intelligent, but he couldn’t even understand a dying girl’s wish.
“A lock of entwined hair, binds them together forever. A lock of entwined hair, binds them together forever….”
He crawled on the floor gathering all the love knots to him, smoothing each one and putting each one against his chest. His purple robe dragged against the chilled, wine soaked floor, but he didn’t notice. His hair was full of dust, but he didn’t notice. He only carefully picked up each love knot, as if by doing this he would have been able to stop that last strand of tears from falling just before she died. A lock of entwined hair, binds them together forever?
Meng Jue’s emotions were complicated, he couldn’t speak. He silently stared at the love knots on the floor, suddenly feeling like the bright redness of it all was stifling and constricting, quickly rushing out of the house.
The waning moon was like a hook, hanging by on top of the grey Chinese parasol trees.
The wind blew, and the door opened and shut according to the breeze, making a creaking noise.
Tags: translations, yun zhong ge
Chapter end
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