This year's Dragon Boat Festival in the palace was livelier than in previous years. Not only were imperial clan members, relatives of the imperial consorts, and the families of high-ranking officials invited to attend the banquet "pai dang," but dragon boats were also launched on the Small West Lake in the Rear Garden, imitating folk customs. The Emperor ordered eunuchs and palace attendants to dress in commoners' clothing, disguising themselves as ordinary people to sell Dragon Boat Festival items along the lakeshore or from small boats on the lake. These items included colorful threads, longevity threads, mugwort tigers, hairpin charms, and sachets, all in the spirit of sharing joy with the people. After the banquet preparations were complete but before the feast began, the idle Palace Food Attendants brought various prepared Dragon Boat Festival treats to the Rear Garden, such as zongzi, dripping powder balls, apricots, crabapples, and preserved fruits, to participate in this rare palace market.
Zhenzhen, Fengxian, and Yingge each brought some Dragon Boat Festival fruits to the lakeside. They strolled along, occasionally craning their necks to gaze out over the lake until they spotted a lotus-picking boat drifting toward them, its center covered by a blue cloth canopy. The girls exchanged glances, their faces lighting up with delight.
After the boat docked, a young woman emerged from the cabin—it was Feng Jing. The one who had been rowing for her was a youth who appeared to be not yet twenty. He now stepped slowly to her side, first covering his hand with his sleeve, then extending his arm for Feng Jing to grasp, politely assisting her ashore.
Once ashore, Feng Jing smiled at Zhenzhen and the others. "I promised to find a small boat for you, but I didn’t expect so many people today. All the lake boats were already taken. I asked around everywhere and was fortunate to meet this young man. As soon as I mentioned it, he agreed to let us use his boat."
Zhenzhen and the others thanked the youth. He wore the plain blue robe of a scholar, with a soft-footed headscarf on his head. His features were delicate, and his skin, likely seldom exposed to sunlight, was pale as ice or jade, an unusual pallor. When the girls thanked him, he appeared quite shy, lowering his eyelashes and offering a bashful smile, a faint flush finally coloring his cheeks.
Zhenzhen surmised that he was a Junior Eunuch disguised as a scholar. She first shared a generous portion of her food with him, then asked how much it would cost to rent the boat. He shook his head and said, "These Dragon Boat Festival fruits are enough. There’s no need to pay anything more."
He invited Zhenzhen and the others aboard. The lotus-picking boat was small, accommodating only four people besides the youth holding the oar. Inside the blue cloth canopy, however, it was exquisitely decorated with a small table and seating, all elegant and clean. On the table, Hainan agarwood incense with a honeyed floral fragrance was burning.
Feng Jing let the three girls board but did not join them herself. The youth pushed off from the shore with his oar and, following Zhenzhen’s instructions, drifted along the lakeside.
Zhenzhen stood at the bow of the boat, looking around. At that moment, the Small West Lake resembled a scene of scholars and commoners boating, dotted with dozens of vessels of various sizes. On each boat, palace attendants called out to sell food and drink. Besides zongzi and white rice balls, there were soups, seasonal fruits, jellyfish, snail meat, freshly brewed wine, sugar lions, and sugar figurines—everything one could imagine.
Shen Rouran and her mother were strolling along the lakeside when an ornately carved and painted pleasure boat approached them. A palace attendant on board called out to them, "On our boat, we have freshly brewed wines like 'Green Jade Fragrance,' 'Spring of Longing Hall,' 'Imperial Bestowal,' and 'Little Longing'—wines even Consort Li enjoys. Madam and young lady, why not come aboard and taste them?"
Seeing the boat’s exquisite carvings and hearing the attendant mention Consort Li, whom they had recently met, the Shen family mother and daughter exchanged smiles and were about to board. But then they heard Zhenzhen’s clear voice from a nearby lotus-picking boat: "On our boat, we have fermented plums—the fermented plums that Princess Zhuang Xiaoming Yi, the Grand Princess, loves to eat."Fermented plums are also one of the traditional fruits for the Dragon Boat Festival. They are made by soaking calamus, ginger, apricots, plums, prunes, and perilla in saltwater, drying them in the sun, cutting them into fine shreds, pickling them in honey, and then stuffing them into plum skins, resulting in sweet and fragrant fermented plums. Although Shen Rouran was about to be married, she still retained a girlish fondness for sweet things. Upon hearing Zhenzhen's words, she smiled and looked over with keen interest.
The palace attendant on the painted pleasure boat then added, "Our boat not only offers fine wine, tea, and fruits but also features performances by musicians and dancers from the Immortal Music Academy. While enjoying drinks and tea, guests can also play drinking games and listen to music. The boat is spacious enough, making it ideal for distinguished guests to enjoy."
Upon hearing this, Zhenzhen calmly addressed Shen Rouran and her mother, "Their boat offers song and dance, while ours specializes in 'silver-word tales'—stories of ancient and modern times, tales of spirits and marvels, all the kinds of stories young ladies love to hear."
She was referring to a popular form of storytelling at the time, where the storyteller narrated fictional tales accompanied by musicians playing silver-word pipes, hence the name "silver-word tales."
The silver-word pipe, also known as the silver-word bili, could produce tones that were both high-pitched and clear or deep and sorrowful. As soon as Zhenzhen finished speaking, Yingge inside the boat raised her bili, parted her crimson lips, and began to play. The music drifted softly, lingering and melodious, as if recounting a poignant and enchanting tale.
Shen Rouran, moved by curiosity, asked Zhenzhen, "Can you tell the story of Princess Zhuangxiaomingyi the Grand Princess?"
Zhenzhen replied confidently, "Yes, otherwise how would I know she loved fermented plums?"
Shen Rouran then took her mother's hand and prepared to board the boat. Zhenzhen smiled apologetically and pointed to the cabin, saying, "Our boat is small and can only accommodate one distinguished guest."
Shen Rouran paused but continued to peer into the boat, reluctant to leave. Her mother smiled and said, "If you wish to listen to the silver-word tales, go ahead. I will board the painted pleasure boat nearby. We shall meet again here later."
Shen Rouran happily agreed and, after bidding farewell to her mother, gracefully boarded the boat with Zhenzhen's assistance.
Once Shen Rouran was seated inside the boat, the young man extended his arms and pushed the oar, steering the small vessel toward the center of the lake. Fengxian prepared tea for Shen Rouran and offered her fermented plums. Zhenzhen held a Goryeo folding fan, opening and closing it in rhythm with her shifting expressions of sorrow or joy. Accompanied by Yingge's silver-word pipe music, she began to tell the story of Princess Zhuangxiaomingyi the Grand Princess to the young lady of the Shen family: how she endured an unhappy marriage, found little common ground with her consort, was forced to part with the palace attendant who had accompanied her since childhood amid public criticism, and ultimately died of melancholy.
Shen Rouran sighed repeatedly as she listened. When Zhenzhen finished the story, she said, "I once heard my father mention this princess, saying she was willful and indulgent, quarreled with her husband's family, and in a fit of anger returned to the palace late at night, entering the forbidden quarters to plead her case, which led to the palace gates being opened at night and drew criticism from the censors. I was curious and asked my father for more details about her, but he refused to say more. Today, listening to your silver-word tales, I finally learned the whole story. You truly live up to being a palace attendant, knowing even such imperial secrets."
Zhenzhen replied, "In truth, I have not been in the palace for long and only know this one old story. The incident of the palace gates opening at night was mentioned by the Director of Palace Catering when explaining the palace regulations. Out of curiosity, I inquired further from the senior attendants and learned the full story. Coming from a common background, I have heard far more tales from humble alleys than from noble households. Among them are many intricate and intriguing stories that are just as captivating to tell."Shen Rouran eagerly urged her to continue with a folk tale. Zhenzhen nodded, signaling to Yingge. As Yingge’s silver-reed bili music began again, Zhenzhen unfurled her folding fan and spoke clearly: "It is said that in a previous dynasty, governance was smooth and the people harmonious, the nation prosperous and the populace at peace. The Liangzhe region was wealthy, and among its artisans and merchants, there were often diligent individuals who built fortunes through hard work. In Mingzhou, there was a young man surnamed Yu who, due to his family’s poverty, had worked in a perfumery since childhood. He was diligent and steadfast, enduring hardship without complaint, and treated others with sincerity, earning the appreciation of both the shopkeeper and customers. Gradually, he accumulated some wealth and later opened his own perfumery, naming it 'Yu Yisuo.' He married a childhood sweetheart, and the couple lived in harmony and affection. Soon after, they had a daughter, whose childhood name was Ying’er..."
Using the name Yu as a guise, she recounted Yingge’s story in detail, describing Ying’er’s beauty and kindness while vividly portraying the Yu couple’s feelings of inferiority due to their humble origins and their hope that their daughter could escape the status of a commoner through marriage. When she reached the part where the impoverished scholar they had sponsored, after passing the provincial examination as the top candidate, sought to break off the engagement, and Ying’er’s father angrily took off his shoe to beat the scholar, nearly risking his life, Shen Rouran empathized deeply, letting out a long sigh. Zhenzhen continued the story, describing how the scholar lured Ying’er to a bridge under the pretense of a lovers’ suicide, tricking her into drowning. Shen Rouran frowned and couldn’t help but rebuke, "After reading so many books of sages, this man still couldn’t change his wolfish nature!"
Yingge’s music grew increasingly sorrowful and faint, like weeping and lamenting.
The next part of the story told of Ying’er falling into the water, seeing the scholar swim away, and being rescued by a passing boatman just as her life hung by a thread. After returning home, her father searched everywhere for the scholar but found no trace. Ying’er severed her ties to love and entered the palace as a candidate, becoming a palace attendant. Unexpectedly, at a banquet, she encountered the scholar, who had by then become a Tanhua laureate, and whose other identity was the son-in-law of the prime minister... When Zhenzhen reached this point, she closed her folding fan and paused the storytelling, and Yingge’s music also came to an abrupt stop.
Shen Rouran had been listening intently, her expressions shifting between anger, confusion, and surprise before settling into silence as she lowered her head without further comment. Finally, seeing Zhenzhen stop, she calmly looked up and asked, "Why not continue?"
Zhenzhen bowed slightly to her and said, "This story is not yet finished, and I do not know how to perform the rest for now."
Shen Rouran’s bright eyes gleamed as she surveyed the women in the boat one by one, then calmly said, "Speak. Among you, who is Ying’er?"
Yingge timidly glanced at Zhenzhen, who nodded to her, giving her the courage to admit, "I am the Ying’er in the story. My real name is Yun Yingge, and I am now a palace attendant in the Bureau of Palace Provisions."
Shen Rouran looked her up and down for a long while before asking, "You accuse Fu Lang of being fickle and ungrateful. Do you have evidence?"
Yingge took out the previously prepared engagement documents, including the rough and detailed posts listing the names of three generations from both families, as well as several letters handwritten by Fu Junyi, and presented them one by one to Shen Rouran.
Shen Rouran slowly unfolded them, examining each page carefully. When she finally saw the love letters Fu Junyi had written to Yingge, she couldn’t help but sneer, "It is indeed Fu Junyi’s writing. Not only is the handwriting the same, but even the phrases describing longing and affection are identical to those he wrote to me."She then inquired in detail about Fu Junyi's family affairs from Yingge, who answered every question accurately, matching the facts without the slightest discrepancy. Shen Rouran was already about seventy to eighty percent convinced. After pondering for a moment, she said to Yingge, "These letters and documents only prove that Fu Junyi was once engaged to you. As for your drowning incident, there is insufficient evidence to conclude that he intended to harm your life. I do have a method to uncover clues about the matter, but it requires your cooperation. I wonder if you are willing."
Yingge expressed her willingness to cooperate, so Shen Rouran asked her to lean in and whispered instructions on how to proceed. Seeing Yingge's solemn expression afterward, Shen Rouran added sternly, "This is a serious matter. If there is even a hint of falsehood in your words, this plan cannot proceed. Otherwise, it will only bring disaster upon yourself, with no hope of redemption."
Yingge bowed respectfully to her and said, "I assure you that every word I have spoken is true, and I am willing to act according to your instructions."
Shen Rouran nodded and said to Zhenzhen, "Well, now that the story is over, please take me back to shore."
Upon returning to shore, Shen Rouran saw her mother waiting in the same spot. She walked over to her with a calm expression, making no mention of what had happened on the lotus-picking boat. As she was about to leave, Shen Rouran turned back to Zhenzhen and the others, smiled, and bowed, saying, "Until we meet again."
The young man holding the oar still covered his hands with his sleeves, helping the three young women ashore. Zhenzhen noticed that he had been silently rowing the boat the entire time, speaking little, and now displayed a gentlemanly demeanor. She couldn't help but feel a sense of goodwill toward him, thinking that she owed him a favor today and would have to repay it someday. He seemed rather gentle in temperament and might easily be bullied by domineering eunuchs. If she got to know him, she might be able to help him in the future. So she asked him, "Where do you work?"
The young man lowered his head and smiled but did not answer.
Zhenzhen pressed further, "Can you tell me your name?"
The young man hesitated slightly but finally replied, "My surname is Yin, and my given name is Qi."
"Yin Qi?" Zhenzhen felt that the name sounded somewhat familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere before. While she was still trying to recall, Fengxian, standing behind her, had already turned pale, staring at Yin Qi with a look of shock.
(To be continued)
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