The Last Concubine (6 page)

Mei Ju slapped his arm playfully. “Nonsense. There is nothing minor about you. Princess Lan’xiu does not speak much about herself. I could not even find out whether she likes to sew!”

“Surely you found out something.”

“Of course, although not from her lips. My maid has spoken with her eunuch. He keeps the hand of discretion before his mouth, but she knows how to gossip and drew him out. Eunuchs love intrigue.”

“Which is why I keep them below stairs,” Hüi agreed.

“The northern province of Liaopeh was once ruled by Wu Chao, who sired both Wu Min and Lan’xiu, but they were born of different mothers. He had only the two children: Wu Min, his son, who inherited his rule, and this daughter who is much younger. Wu Min’s mother died young in childbirth with a stillborn male, so when Wu Chao took another woman, she became first wife. When Wu Chao died, there was a period of unrest within the court. Apparently Lan’xiu’s mother died of a sudden and mysterious illness. The eunuch believes Wu Min caused her to be poisoned, and that the same fate awaited Lan’xiu. He is fiercely protective of her.

“There was some sort of disturbance within the women’s quarters at some point before the mother’s death, but Lan’xiu was not harmed. It was then that Wu Min started a campaign to get her wed, shopping her to any official who could render him aid.”

“I would not think that would have been a difficult task to marry her off. She seems a pretty enough girl.” Hüi shrugged.

“Are you blind?” Mei Ju demanded. “I have never seen a more beautiful girl in my life, and I have lived longer than you!”

“Always rubbing that in,” Hüi joked.

“Respect your elders,” she reminded him. “Have you looked at her?”

“Only a glance when she was first presented,” Hüi said. “I would not give Wu Min’s envoy the pleasure of my reaction to report. I left the other gifts on the floor where the servants set them.”

Mei Ju giggled. “I hope that rankled with him. Well, when you
do
find the time to look her over, I think you will be pleased. She is an exquisite jewel.”

“I am far more interested in what dark reason Wu Min had for sending her here. Most men would care a bit more for their sister’s happiness than their own ambition.”

“From what you have told me of Wu Min, I would wager that he does indeed have some plan, but Lan’xiu is not party to it. And if what my maid has gleaned from her eunuch is true, Wu Min hates Lan’xiu and would prefer to see her dead. Perhaps this is his way of heaping dishonor upon her.”

Hüi thought about that for a minute. “What is she like?”

Mei Ju stared at him while she thought it over. “Clever. Polite. She likes children. She is… very sweet.”

“Sweet?” Hüi exclaimed. “Not much like her brother, then. What makes you say she is sweet?”

“She thanked me for my kindness and compassion,” Mei Ju said slowly.

“I see,” Hüi said with quick comprehension. “We always compliment in others what we value in ourselves, whether we are aware of it or not. You see? It would be difficult for anyone to speak with you and reveal nothing of themselves.”

Mei Ju smiled, remembering their discussion of Lan’xiu’s flaws, but that was not something she would share with Hüi. She would never want him to find her petty in pointing out the faults of another wife. “She has no false pride in her rank. Lan’xiu will fit into the household without creating any trouble.”

“Mei Ju, I apologize to you once again for foisting Ci’an upon you. Your life should be comfortable and luxurious, and instead you live beside a poisonous viper,” Hüi said with regret.

“Hush. It is not your fault, my love.” Mei Ju held her finger to his lips, pleased when he kissed the tip. “In your position, you had to make that marriage of convenience. And your prominence is owed the status of many wives. I have made my peace with it.”

“You are indeed kind and generous. What would I do without you?” Hüi asked. He tightened his arms around her.

Hours later when he took his leave of her, Mei Ju waited by the window to watch him walk away. Hüi’s heart was not yet engaged by Lan’xiu, but Mei Ju knew his tastes. She had been pretty enough to hold his attention when they first married, but she knew she had not captured his heart. The only comfort was that she knew he did not love any of his other wives, either. And then she had been brought to the birthing bed so often, she could not deny his right to pleasure when she could not provide it.

From the news her maid had brought her after Ci’an was added to the harem, Mei Ju knew that Hüi’s relationship with her had been stormy but passionate. It was not until Ci’an showed her true colors in an abortive attack upon Mei Ju that Hüi had come to his senses. He never shared a bed with Ci’an again, but by then she was already pregnant with his daughter. If not for Mei Ju, that sickly daughter would have died immediately of a neglectful death for want of a mother’s care, but Mei Ju had taken the baby into her own home and nursed her lovingly until she passed away.

For political reasons, Hüi had accepted as concubines the daughters of highly placed nobles ruling provinces that bordered upon his. Even with the acquisition of these other wives, Hüi had always come back to her, but Mei Ju knew he loved her only as a valued and trusted friend. He might have deceived himself into thinking it was a warmer emotion, but he could not fool her. She sighed with the torment of her fate to love a man who did not love her in return although truly, her marriage was luckier than most.

And now at last, Hüi had met the woman he would love so deeply and truly that their passion would become legend. At least Mei Ju would still retain a small corner of his soul to call her own. No matter how powerful the bonds of attraction, Hüi would never banish her from his life.

She shivered and came back to herself. She had no psychic gifts, but her love made her acutely sensitive to any subject concerning her husband, and she knew him well. Lan’xiu could not know and Hüi Wei could deny it, but in that moment, Mei Ju saw the future with clear eyes and she
knew
it in the depths of her bones. “I would put money on it if I had anyone to bet with,” she muttered. Her smile was mischievous as she wondered if Jiang would be up for a little wager.

I
N
THE
week that followed, Hüi Wei deliberately had the lanterns lit at each house of his harem save two. He was not yet ready to confront Lan’xiu. And Ci’an could rot for all he cared, and the sooner the better. After her attack upon Mei Ju, he had ordered bars installed on the windows of Ci’an’s house and her door was kept locked. When she was permitted to go out, Ci’an was accompanied by an armed guard.

The other wives kindly continued to include Ci’an in their parties, but Hüi Wei gave orders that soldiers of the household guard keep her under observation at all times. Despite changing her servants regularly, she had still somehow managed to procure poison and attempted to smuggle it into Fen’s tea when Third Wife first joined the household.

The court physician was the only person admitted to Ci’an’s home, and only when she was ill. Otherwise she was kept secluded, even from her own daughter until the child had died.

Hüi continued to enjoy the company of his other wives at intervals while still ignoring the existence of Princess Lan’xiu. And he hoped that point was clearly evident to all observers. He would be naïve to ignore the fact that spies were everywhere—even within his court—and bribes or enough beer could persuade a man of utmost loyalty to pass on what seemed to him an innocuous bit of gossip. So Hüi felt he could be certain Wu Min was completely aware that the gift of his sister had been ignored.

Hüi was determined to allow at least two weeks to pass before he went to the seventh house, although he was curious about Lan’xiu. Her image remained burned into his mind, though he had barely given her a glance at their meeting. He wondered what her voice sounded like and if her skin felt like silk—

Whenever he found his thoughts drifting to her, Hüi admonished himself and reapplied himself strictly to his responsibilities with determined vigor.

He heard gossip of her from his other wives when he went to them, although they had as yet not met her. Hüi deduced that not only had Mei Ju been talking of Lan’xiu, but that the other wives must have spent some time watching her from their windows when she was permitted to walk in the square to get some air. Fen and Huan were taken with her beauty and could speak of nothing else. Alute said in her placid way that Lan’xiu wore pretty clothes, and Bai admired her laugh. But then Bai was a bit of a loon. She had also said that Lan’xiu had twin pixies that sat upon her shoulders, one that made her sad and one that made her smile.

It amused Hüi to think what Ci’an might have to say about Lan’xiu, but considering he refused to see the second concubine, chances were he would never know.

Just when he had decided the time was auspicious, an uprising to the west called him away from home. After a hard fought but short campaign, the rebellious king’s head adorned a spike at the gate to his city, a new functionary had been installed to rule and left with enough soldiers to motivate him to a proper sense of loyalty to the emperor, and Hüi was able to return home. Hüi had entertained suspicions that Lan’xiu’s brother, Wu Min, might have had a finger in the plot, but the erring king had refused to confess to anything before he lost his head. Perhaps Hüi Wei’s strategy of ignoring the girl was making Wu Min impatient, and he had always been one to hide his moves upon the chessboard of power behind some gullible pawn.

Of course, Hüi’s first visit upon his return must be to Mei Ju, who clung to him and examined him for injuries whenever he returned from war. Then protocol demanded he visit each wife in turn, to give each the relief of seeing him unharmed.

Therefore it was a full month after the princess’s arrival before he sent a servant to light the lantern that hung beside the door of the seventh house.

“Finally you go to sample the beauty of the princess,” Jiang teased him at luncheon. “Perhaps you will remain to devour after the first nibble.”

“Have you seen her since the audience?” Hüi asked in a dangerous tone.

“Only in my imagination, where I often go to spend time these days.” Jiang heaved a ridiculous sigh and assumed a dreamy expression. “I should not dare to enter the household without your permission. The last time I went there, it was at your behest to converse with First Wife.”

“I know,” Hüi apologized. “I did not truly doubt you. This princess is a thorn in my side, and the sooner she is extracted, the better. I wonder how much of an insult Wu Min would take if I sent her back now.”

“Without going to see her?” Jiang’s face lit up in glee. “I cannot imagine worse. Unless you sent bits of her back in different trunks. But that would be a tragic waste of all that beauty. If I know you, you will find a way to use her
and
insult her brother.”

“Everyone keeps saying how beautiful she is,” Hüi said impatiently. “Ci’an is beautiful but dangerous. She would have killed me if she could.”

“Did she try?” Jiang asked with interest.

“Yes,” Hüi snapped.

“Why did you never tell me?”

“Because you would have killed her, and if you recall, we need her alive so that her father will remain docile.”

“How did she do it?”

“She threw a vase at me and then tried to stab me,” Hüi said. “When she found out that I did not approve of her attempts to assassinate my other wives, I told her I would not have her lantern lit again and she flew into a temper.”

“Did she hit you?”

“Of course not. I stood still. Women can’t hit what they aim at. And she didn’t have much of an arm for stabbing, either.” Hüi’s lips curled in satisfaction. “I’m afraid the physician was necessary when I got through with her.”

“Well, you will not experience that with Princess Lan’xiu,” Jiang said.

“How do you know if you haven’t seen her?” Hüi asked curiously.

“Ever since Ci’an’s little tantrum with Mei Ju, I have kept tabs on what happens in the household,” Jiang said. “I have a responsibility to First Wife and your children.”

“And I thank you for that,” Hüi said.

“And you must let me know how it goes when you exercise your latest mount,” Jiang continued without acknowledging the thanks he deemed unnecessary.

“It is unseemly to speak of the princess as if she were a horse,” Hüi said, getting a little hot under the collar.

“I meant your horse,” Jiang said with innocent surprise. “That new yearling that was brought up from the farms last week. She’s a beauty.”

“You meant nothing of the sort,” Hüi snapped. Then he wondered why he was so on edge. It could have nothing to do with a new concubine. Women were all the same, barring a few details of coloring and suchlike, and he had been through new acquisitions before. There was no possible reason for him to be anxious. That was for the women. It was their job to please
him
, not the other way around.

“Sadly, you have caught me out,” Jiang agreed. “But what is a ribald joke or two on the eve of claiming the most beautiful wife you have ever managed to acquire?”