The Moon in the Palace (The Empress of Bright Moon Duology) (23 page)

Traditionally, when a boy was born, his parents addressed him as a girl to avoid evil spirits snatching his life, and that nickname usually stayed with the person well into adulthood.

“How did he die?”

“Some said he was drunk and involved in a brawl, so he was killed by accident,” Plum said, her face pink with excitement. “But some people also said there was no brawl, and Fifth Girl was not drunk, because he never drank, so they said he was killed for no reason.”

I frowned. “So how did he really get himself killed?”

She went to the door to make sure that no one was coming to our chamber and lowered her voice. “It is because of the prophecy, Mei. Everyone is talking about it.”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes! You should listen to them! No one has ever died in the palace before, they said, but ever since the shooting stars, two guards”—she put up two fingers—“not one, died without a reason. What else could it be?”

She reminded me of the other guard, nicknamed Black Boy, who was shot for stealing horses. Something told me that what Plum said was true, but I did not want her to keep talking and get into trouble.

I picked up a handful of seeds from the table. “These smell good. How do they taste? ”

Plum did not appear to hear me. She looked around to assure no one was eavesdropping on us, even though we were alone. Her face pink with excitement again, she said, “Here’s another thing, Mei. Have you heard of the ballad?”

“What ballad?”

“They said the children on the streets are singing this, and the grocery eunuchs heard it. It goes:

“This morning, a crooked branch grows on my mulberry tree,

It dips low to my well and begins to sing a story, that I must tell thee.

Once upon a time a phoenix shed hot tears in the mountain of flame,

the fire burns a young crane that flies over, leaving no name.

Now the old dragon shuts his eyes and sleeps under a stone,

and the crow sings on his throne.”

I sucked in air. Of course. That was why the Emperor made those cryptic comments about lies and truths when he’d summoned me that night.

“You said the children on the streets are singing this?”

She nodded. “If the Emperor finds out who started it, he will—” She made a gesture of slashing her neck with her hand.

My mouth was dry. Whoever started the ballad could also be the man predicted in the prophecy, the man who would end the dynasty’s reign.

“So do you think the Emperor knows who his foe is, Mei?”

I shook my head. He did not. If he had known, there would have been only one death, not two.

“You don’t think Fifth Girl is the one?”

“He could be.”

“I don’t understand, Mei.”

“Me neither.” I sighed. “I just hope this will be over soon.”

Or was that only the beginning? I thought of the reports of violence that had broken out on the street lately. In one particular case, a group of rebels had stolen two transportation boats that carried grains from the Grand Canal. The Emperor’s uncle went to arrest the rebels, but when the Gold Bird Guards arrived, the rebels had all fled. The Duke, who took advantage of the Uncle’s failure, accused him of letting the rebels escape deliberately. The Uncle was furious and claimed the Duke had planted a spy among his men and sabotaged his mission.

In any case, the damage was done, and the outlaws from nearby towns, even those in the south, were encouraged by the rebels’ success and attacked the imperial delegations that transferred horses, grain, silk, and gold.

Plum popped three sunflower seeds in her mouth. Her mouth wiggled for a while, and then she spat out all the shells and swallowed the kernels. I watched her, fascinated by her skill.

“How long have you been in the court now, Plum?” I put a seed between my teeth and cracked it open.

“Almost five years.”

So Jewel had arrived in the palace before Plum. There was no way she would know Jewel’s true identity.

“Why did you ask, Mei?”

“Perhaps it’s time to prepare for your five-year anniversary,” I said, carefully picking out the small, cream-colored kernel with two fingers.

“What are you not telling me?” She stood nose to nose with me. “I heard the Secretary’s proposal in the Audience Hall. It doesn’t look good for the Noble Lady, does it?”

“I don’t wish to drag you into this.”

“What do you need to know?”

I did not speak.

She nudged me with her shoulder. “Out with it.”

I chewed the kernel. “Do you know that Most Adored’s name, Jewel, is not her real name?”

Her eyes widened. “Then what is her real name?”

“Snow Blossom.”

“Why did she change her name? I thought she was a lady from the Yeting Court, an old Select.”

“No. She is not a Select either. She was exiled to the court years ago.”

Plum raised her pained eyebrows. “Are you certain? Why was she exiled?”

“You tell me.”

“Well, well, well.” She smiled, showing her bucktooth. “It’s my skill to unearth the hidden secrets. I’ll let you know as soon as possible.”

The next day, when the Emperor came to the Audience Hall, I waited in the antechamber. Secretary Fang championed Jewel again. Just as I feared, the Duke and Wei Zheng could not find another excuse to stop the discussion, and the Uncle remained quiet. The Emperor appeared to consider Jewel seriously. The following day, she appeared in front of the advisers during a meeting and gave them bolts of silk and lavish gifts. When they took a break between meetings, she brought out trays of delicacies for them: roasted quail, poached pig ears, and stewed bear paws as their snacks. The ministers looked pleased. They devoured the food and soon sang a song of praise to Jewel.

“Indeed, Most Adored is the most virtuous woman I have ever seen,” they said.

The Emperor laughed. He walked together with Jewel and the ministers while I trailed behind. None of the men noticed me.

Despair grew inside me like a spring seed. I needed to work harder and quicker.

But Plum found nothing, and I still did not know the reason why Jewel had been exiled.

• • •

The Noble Lady raised her head as I entered her bedchamber. “Sit, sit,” she said, fingering her necklace as she went to a painted stool near the window.

“You wished to see me, my Noble Lady?”

“I don’t know how to begin, Mei. But I believe you must know this.” Her hand left the necklace, and she faced me. “There is a rumor that you sold the Emperor’s night robe for money.”

“What? I did not.” I clenched my fist. “You don’t believe that, do you?”

“Of course I don’t. You would never do such a thing. I talked to some eunuchs and paid them to quiet the rumor. I assure you this won’t get to the Emperor’s ears.”

“It’s Jewel’s trick again,” I said. “She should have played something new.”

“You’re wrong about this, Mei.” She shook her head. “The sources said it was not from her, but she definitely heard it and fanned the rumor.”

“Who started it then?”

“They said it was a female minister.”

I inhaled deeply. Rain. I had almost forgotten about her.

“Do you know who she is?”

I nodded.

“Is there anything I should know, Mei?”

I could not lie to her. “Teacher Rain had an affair with Prince Zhi. She thinks the prince is interested in me.”

“Prince Zhi.”

I glanced at her, uncertain if she was angry with me.

“The Emperor adores him, I told you before, and when Wende lived, Zhi stayed in her bedchamber, and she raised him like a pearl. People still treat him differently. The girls lose their heads when they see him. I don’t understand why the Emperor keeps him in the Eastern Palace. Perhaps he doesn’t know about Zhi’s dalliances. But Prince Zhi is trouble. You’ll stay away from him, won’t you?”

“I will.”

“Good. I have faith in you. You’re not like other girls, who are easily fooled by him.” She went to her spindle wheel. “I’m happy you discovered Most Adored’s real name, Mei. You did excellent work. Have you found out anything else about her?”

I shook my head. Plum had bribed the eunuchs, the teachers from the etiquette schools, and even the scribes from the Outer Palace. Soon, she said, she would hear something about Jewel. But by then, it might be too late.

We did not have much time. Since the ministers had approved of Jewel, it depended on the Emperor. Once he decided, she would become the Empress. He could announce his decision any moment.

“She hasn’t come out of her bedchamber,” the Noble Lady said, beginning to spin her spindle wheel.

“Why?” I asked.

“I don’t know.”

Doors squeaked open in the courtyard. I looked through the latticed window. Jewel’s maid, the one with freckles, came out of her bedchamber with a tray of food.

“What is it?” the Noble Lady asked.

“It looks like she didn’t like the meal.” The food was untouched, and I could see a plateful of chicken. “She didn’t eat it.”

“My maid said she has had a poor appetite lately.”

“Perhaps she’s sick.” I hoped.

“I don’t know.” The Noble Lady shook her head. “I don’t know.”

She had never sounded more worried.

• • •

My heart heavy, I bid the Noble Lady my leave and stepped into the corridor. People were busy in the compound, and I paused to look at them. In the center of the courtyard, a group of maids were crouched over a board, playing
weiqi
. Near the small mountain, some maids were embroidering, some were sweeping the ground. I turned to look at the lady’s chambers. At my right was Lady Obedience’s chamber, where she was swaying her hips, fluttering her arms, dancing to the rhythms of a waist drum. At my left side was Lady Virtue’s house, where a few seamstresses, carrying bolts of cloth in red, indigo, and green, gathered in front of the corridor. The Pure Lady’s chamber was shut. I wondered what she was doing. I had not seen her since her son, the hot-tempered Prince Yo, was exiled last year. She did not attend the feasts, fruit distributions, or other gatherings, and most of the time, she shut herself in her chamber. But I would be a fool to think she had decided to become a recluse. The Pure Lady was the type of woman who would grab something to go down with her if she were drowning.

I looked at Jewel’s house. There were some shadows floating around inside, but I could not tell what it was. Why was she not eating?

I decided to return to my chamber. When I passed the knobby pine trees near the small mountain, I noticed a blanket of frost had capped the mountain’s peaks and covered the crevices of the stones. The whiteness had not covered the rocks completely, and there were speckles of black tips poking through the frosty sheet like spiders’ feet. In the pond, the water was still but not frozen, and a piece of thin floe hung near the edge.

I pulled my sheep coat tighter around me. I did not like the frost or the snow. I preferred storms and thunder, and the furious power of the two joined to wash away the grime and dust.

It had been so cold at night lately that I had not slept well. Often I lay in bed, staring at the moonlight that shone through my windows. It printed pretty black patterns on the ground. Sometimes Pheasant came to my mind, and I shut my eyes to stop thinking of him.

“I hear you’re spying on me.” Jewel’s voice came from behind me. She stood under the eaves of her house near the end of the corridor.

I lowered my head to bow. She was still Most Adored. “You came out.” Should I call her by her real name? I should not. I could not alert her.

“Of course I did. I wish to ask you a big favor, Mei. You will indulge me, won’t you?”

I smiled charmingly. “As you wish, Most Adored.”

She pulled her red fur cape around her. Her white hair cascaded down her back. On her cheeks, beauty marks of pink peonies bloomed. “I knew you would say that.”

“What’s the favor?”

“When he summoned you a month ago, I heard he talked to you, and he slept in a circle of candles.”

Who was her spy?

“Yes.” I expected her to ask how my service to the Emperor was, but she did not speak.

She looked up at the sky for a moment. The wind swept her white hair like invisible fingers. “Have you been sleeping well, Mei? It is so cold lately I couldn’t sleep. Last night, the moonlight shone through my windows and left patterns like black plum flowers. I wish you could have seen it. I would like to paint it, but I haven’t painted for a while.”

How odd. We had noticed the same thing. But she was my enemy and she had gained the Secretary’s support. “You have been busy.”

Her shoulders rose as though the wind had touched her neck and she was cold. For a moment I could not see her lips, only her catlike eyes as she peered above the red fur. “What did he tell you?”

“Many things, but nothing about you.”

“That’s not a surprise. But were you frightened when he mentioned the dead?”

She knew more details than I had supposed. I kept a straight face. “What dead?”

She stared at me, her eyes still as the frozen pond. Then she looked away. But a glimmer flew across her eyes, and I caught it—a glimmer of unease, or perhaps even of pain. It was faint, subtle, fleeting, and it died the moment it was lit. I had a feeling she had found what she had been looking for, but I did not know what it was or what I had done or said to give it away. I was disappointed.

“I bid you good day, Mei.”

“How did you make Secretary Fang speak for you, Jewel?”

She shook her head. “Better luck next time, Mei.”

I did not expect anything from her anyway. I turned to leave. But how did she know what the Emperor said on my night? And why did she look troubled after she heard my answer? I paused and looked back. She was still there, standing under the eaves, staring at me.

But she was no longer alone. Beside her stood a slim figure with a sharp, triangular face.

Rain.

My heart dropped. I hurried on.

the
Seventeenth Year
of
Emperor Taizong’s Reign
of
Peaceful Prospect

SPRING