Volume Four Melodies of the Jade Forest
The Imperial Women's Officials Bureau under the Ministry of Internal Affairs oversees the Six Bureaus: the Chief of Palace Surveillance, the Chief of Ceremonies, the Chief of Wardrobe, the Director of Palace Food, the Chief of Bedchamber, and the Chief of Works. The Director of Palace Food holds the fifth rank, with subordinates including two seventh-rank officials each for the Director of Palace Catering, Director of Brewing, Director of Medicine, and Director of Provisions. These eight officials each have their own subordinates; for example, the Director of Palace Catering alone oversees four each of the Assistant Director of Catering, Supervisor of Catering, and Female Scribes, along with several unranked palace attendants. These attendants are assigned to various officials for training before being dispatched to serve in different palace halls.
Zhenzhen, Fengxian, and the other sixty palace attendants selected from the common populace were divided into groups of five, each assigned to a female official under the Director of Palace Catering for instruction. Typically, Pei Shangshi managed the Emperor’s meals, Qin Sishan oversaw the Crown Prince’s meals, while another Director of Palace Catering, Lady Sun, resided permanently in Cifu Palace and managed the Empress Dowager’s meals. These three were often occupied with their duties and only occasionally found time to teach the attendants. Zhenzhen rarely had opportunities to interact with them privately, let alone gather information about her mother from them. There was no Director of Palace Catering surnamed Liu in the Bureau of Palace Provisions—Zhenzhen had inquired thoroughly. When the young attendants were asked about "Official Liu," they all looked bewildered. Of course, they knew even less about Wu Qiuniang. No matter whom Zhenzhen asked, the answers were always "don’t know," "unfamiliar," or "unclear."
Zhenzhen was assigned to Feng Jing, the Supervisor of Catering, for instruction. Feng Jing was a gentle eighteen-year-old woman who, in addition to her eighth-rank position as Supervisor of Catering, had another identity—she was the niece of Consort Li.
Among the palace attendants in the Bureau of Palace Provisions, there was an unspoken hierarchy: those from Lin’an looked down on those from other prefectures and counties, while those with ancestral roots in Bianjing looked down on those from Lin’an. If two attendants shared Bianjing ancestry, their family’s official ranks and titles determined who looked down on whom. Feng Jing, as the daughter of Consort Li’s younger sister, hailed from Bianjing, with her father and brothers holding official positions. Logically, such a background should have placed her above her peers in the Bureau of Palace Provisions. However, Zhenzhen noticed this was not the case. Those attendants who had grown up in the palace often spoke of Feng Jing with barely concealed mockery in their eyes and expressions. While they treated her politely to her face, they would cast disdainful glances her way as soon as she turned around. Yet Feng Jing remained unperturbed, ignoring all slights and discourtesies. Unless necessary, she avoided socializing, often keeping to herself or staying in a quiet corner. Whether busy or silent, she carried an air of solitude.
The new attendants in Zhenzhen’s group gradually learned the reason and privately shared their astonishment with her: "Supervisor Feng was once a candidate for Crown Princess, just one step away from ascending to the heavens, but she was abandoned by the Crown Prince!"
It sounded like a lamentable story: The late Emperor’s Consort Zhang had a refined garden named Gathering Fragrance Garden. After Consort Zhang’s passing, the garden was reclaimed by the Emperor for the enjoyment of the imperial family and nobility. Last year, during a spring outing, the Crown Prince encountered Feng Jing there. Feng Jing, with her elegant demeanor and extensive knowledge of poetry and literature, immediately captivated the Crown Prince, who felt a deep connection and admiration for her. He later invited her to meet at the Gathering Fragrance Garden several times. However, perhaps because the Crown Prince harbored resentment toward Consort Li due to the Emperor’s prolonged favoritism toward her around the time of his birth mother, Empress Anshu’s passing, he remained cold toward Consort Li. Feng Jing, possibly wary of this, concealed her identity as Consort Li’s niece during her private meetings with the Crown Prince.
The matter of Feng Jing and the Crown Prince’s secret meetings in the Gathering Fragrance Garden later came to the attention of the Emperor and Consort Li. Consort Li was furious and anxious, scolding Feng Jing severely. The Emperor, however, was remarkably tolerant, suggesting that since the two were fond of each other, Feng Jing should be considered as a candidate for Crown Princess.At that time, there were several candidates for the position of Crown Princess, each from noble families and distinguished lineages, all with extraordinary backgrounds. However, the Emperor told the Crown Prince that he could choose according to his own heart, without needing to consider family status. Just when everyone assumed Feng Jing would be selected, the Crown Prince instead took up his brush and decisively chose a descendant of the Qian family, the King of Wuyue.
That young lady Qian was the seventh-generation descendant of King Qian Chu of Wuyue. Her great-grandmother was the Princess of Qinluo, her grandmother, née Tang, came from a line of renowned officials, and her mother was also a lady from a prominent family. In terms of noble status, she far surpassed Feng Jing. Therefore, although the world was slightly surprised by the Crown Prince's choice, they all considered it a wise decision, and both the court and the common people were pleased to hear of it.
However, this outcome placed Feng Jing in an extremely awkward position. The incidents of her private meetings with the Crown Prince had already spread, damaging her reputation, and no noble sons sought her hand in marriage anymore. The Emperor intended for the Crown Prince to take her as a concubine, but the Crown Prince actually refused, saying that as he was newly married to the Crown Princess, he would not take any concubines. Thus, Feng Jing faced the prospect of living out her days alone in her parents' home. Consort Li could not bear to see her become a laughingstock, so she requested the Emperor's permission for Feng Jing to enter the palace, granting her the title of a culinary official and making her a palace attendant.
"After all, it is quite normal for a palace attendant to remain unmarried for life," sighed Zhuang Lingzi, the palace attendant recounting this story. "However, suddenly placing her in the Bureau of Palace Provisions as an eighth-rank official caused dissatisfaction among the attendants. They felt she had not received formal culinary training, her skills were limited, yet she obtained this position through family connections, making it hard for her to command respect. So, everyone openly and secretly enjoyed mocking and ridiculing her."
Zhenzhen questioned, "Consort Li is her aunt. Aren't the attendants afraid of being reprimanded by Consort Li for mocking her?"
"Don't you know?" A sense of superiority from being well-informed arose in Zhuang Lingzi's heart. Raising her eyebrows, she told Zhenzhen, "The lady most favored by The Emperor now is no longer Consort Li, but Consort Liu. Consort Li now appears completely detached from worldly affairs, merely muddling along. How could she still care about Feng Jing!"
Zhenzhen felt some sympathy for Feng Jing, and the Crown Prince left her with the impression of a fickle man. Occasionally imagining the Crown Prince's appearance, she mentally sketched him as a higher-level version of Second Great King—dressed in fine clothes, riding spirited horses, spending his days wandering and flirting with young maidens.
But she soon discovered that reality differed somewhat from this.
At the end of April that year, the Emperor was to hold a "Celebration Banquet" at the Ministry of Rites Examination Hall to feast the newly presented scholars. The pre-banquet arrangements were handled by the Ceremonial Guard Department, while the food and drink content had to be planned in coordination with the Bureau of Palace Provisions. Several days prior, the palace attendants, led by a few female officials, went to the examination hall to inspect the relevant facilities and utensils, familiarizing themselves with the layout. After completing their tasks and returning to the palace, just as the attendants entered the palace city through the Lizheng Gate, they encountered the Crown Prince and his consort emerging from the South Palace Gate.
A brief stir swept through the attendants like a tide. Zhenzhen heard them whispering, "His Highness the Crown Prince..."
Zhenzhen looked up and indeed saw a tall, slender figure in wide-sleeved robes walking out from the inner palace. Judging by the style of his official headdress, it was indeed the Crown Prince.He walked with steady steps and elegant bearing, his complexion fair, with slightly upturned phoenix eyes that, paired with the ever-present upward curve of his lips, gave his face a delicate and gentle appearance. Every movement was imbued with the grace of a noble gentleman, making it hard to believe he could be the kind of libertine who would abandon someone after seducing them. Zhenzhen stared at him curiously, surprised by how different he was from the spoiled nobleman she had imagined. For a moment, she forgot all etiquette, unaware that the palace attendants accompanying her had already bowed in unison behind her to greet the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince noticed her standing there stiffly but showed no sign of reproach. Instead, as he passed by her, he smiled and gave a slight bow, as if taking the initiative to greet her.
Zhenzhen snapped out of her daze, finally remembering the etiquette the female officials had taught her repeatedly. She quickly bowed, keeping her head lowered and eyes downcast. In her peripheral vision, the Crown Prince’s figure drifted past like a cloud. Zhenzhen caught a faint trace of his lingering robe fragrance and couldn’t help but think to herself: What an elegant man—second only to Teacher Lin.
Crown Princess Qian followed behind the Crown Prince, maintaining a distance of three steps. Her movements were precise, with not a single hairpin or ornament out of place, and her smile remained perfectly within the bounds of propriety. She was a beautiful and gentle woman and seemed to have earned the Crown Prince’s genuine respect and affection. When they reached their carriage, the Crown Prince personally helped the Crown Princess onto it with both hands, repeatedly making sure she was seated properly. Only after receiving her reassuring smile did he turn to mount his horse, riding alongside the carriage as they made their way to the Eastern Palace.
Zhenzhen thought of Feng Jing and glanced back, seeing her still bowing in the same posture. Under the gleeful gazes of the others, Feng Jing kept her eyes lowered, fixed on the ground, motionless.
She wore the veiled hat used by female officials for outings and had earlier lifted the veil as required to bow to the Crown Prince, leaving her face exposed to the prying eyes of the crowd, with nowhere to hide.
Zhenzhen stepped forward, lifted the veil of Feng Jing’s hat with both hands, and let it fall back down, shielding her tear-filled eyes. Softly, she said to Feng Jing, “The wind is picking up. Please keep your hat on to shield yourself from the dust.”
Then she took Feng Jing’s hand and, ignoring the other attendants, walked calmly back to their quarters.
After that day, Feng Jing and Zhenzhen tacitly avoided mentioning the incident, but Feng Jing began to speak to Zhenzhen more often, teaching her various etiquettes with greater care. When observing Zhenzhen cooking, she would occasionally offer pertinent advice and suggestions. This made Zhenzhen feel that Feng Jing’s presence in the Bureau of Palace Provisions wasn’t solely due to Consort Li’s forceful arrangements—her culinary skills were likely no less impressive than those of the attendants who had been trained in the bureau since childhood.
The main dishes for the celebratory banquet were not assigned to newly arrived attendants like Zhenzhen, who were only responsible for preparing small pastries. When Feng Jing asked Zhenzhen what she wanted to make, Zhenzhen admitted she had no idea what kind of pastries the nobles in the capital preferred.
Feng Jing smiled gently and said softly, “Actually, even the pastries The Emperor eats aren’t particularly complicated. They’re similar to what common people eat, just made with finer ingredients and more refined techniques. Let me teach you a simple one first. This pastry is loved by The Emperor and… and the noble ladies of the palace. It’s called crisp seal pastry.”She taught Zhenzhen to mix wheat flour with bean flour, knead it by hand into strips as thick as chopstick handles, cut them into short pieces about two fen long, then pick up each piece and use a small comb to press uniform, fine serrated patterns onto them. Then she heated clarified butter in a wok, dropped the patterned strips into the hot oil to fry until cooked, scooped them out with a strainer, and while still hot, sprinkled fine white sugar over them and mixed well.
Before long, Zhenzhen had mastered the technique. Once the crisp seal pastries were fried, the entire space was filled with a warm, sweet aroma. Picking one up and placing it in her mouth, the ripple-like serrations swirled on her tongue. With a gentle bite, the crisp strip instantly crumbled between her teeth, releasing the trapped heat and the rich fragrance of clarified butter. The warmth and sweetness quickly evoked a sense of delight, enough to make one temporarily forget all worries and feel the simple joy of chasing sweets as a child.
Zhenzhen placed the crisp seal pastries on a plate, setting it on the counter of her small kitchen station to cool, then went to other rooms in the courtyard to search for a suitable airtight container. A short while later, she returned to the kitchen with a food box, only to find that many of the pastries were missing from the plate, with a few scattered messily on the floor.
Suspecting that a cat had passed by and stolen the pastries, Zhenzhen looked around and noticed something alive seemed to be hiding in the cupboard where large containers were stored, rustling softly.
Zhenzhen hurried over, pulled open the cupboard door, and heard a startled cry from inside. A girl in green clothes tumbled out onto the floor, then quickly sat up, staring at Zhenzhen in fright, with crumbs of crisp seal pastry still clinging to the corner of her mouth.
(To be continued)
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