Since the Emperor and Empress had openly spoken those words, the palace seemed to have returned to its usual peaceful atmosphere. Everyone performed their duties diligently, making orderly preparations for the investiture ceremony without any further mishaps. Zhenzhen also encountered no more dangers; palace staff treated her politely, and occasionally some even deliberately flattered her, clearly viewing her as a favorite in the eyes of the Emperor and Empress.
One day, after the Emperor finished his meal in the Jiaming Hall, he remained seated chatting with Zhenzhen when suddenly the Empress requested an audience. The Emperor promptly invited her in and asked with a smile, "Why didn’t you come earlier to dine together?"
The Empress bowed slightly and said, "How could I dare to disturb Your Majesty during your meal without being summoned? I have come now because there is a difficult problem concerning the Eastern Palace, and I dare not make a decision on my own, so I have come to seek Your Majesty’s judgment."
The Emperor invited her to sit and explain slowly.
After the Empress took her seat, Zhenzhen served her tea, but she did not drink it. Instead, she began to recount the problem in detail: "To be honest, this is originally a domestic matter of the Eastern Palace... Among the Crown Princess’s maids who accompanied her into marriage, there is one named Meng Yunxiu who is well-versed in literature, skilled in poetry and painting, and possesses a beautiful voice. When she plays the qin or sings, listeners say it sounds like heavenly music. The Crown Princess often received guidance from her while studying as a child and is very close to her. For this reason, the Qian family was reluctant to marry her off and allowed her to accompany the Crown Princess into the Eastern Palace. The Crown Princess intends to ask the Crown Prince to take her as a concubine, but Meng Yunxiu is several years older than the Crown Prince and is now thirty years old. Moreover, although the Crown Prince respects her greatly, he has no romantic feelings for her, so he has not yet agreed. Meanwhile, the Crown Prince also has many palace maids who have served him since childhood. One of them, named Yu Ruier, began accompanying the Crown Prince in play when she was eight and is now eighteen. Naturally, she also hopes to one day become the Crown Prince’s concubine. Seeing the Crown Princess recommend Meng Yunxiu to the Crown Prince, Yu Ruier could not help but feel jealous and has openly and covertly mocked and ridiculed Meng Yunxiu, saying that a thirty-year-old old woman like her dares to aspire to become the Crown Prince’s favored concubine—how shameless. Meng Yunxiu, gentle and mild-tempered, has always ignored her. The day before yesterday was Meng Yunxiu’s thirtieth birthday. The Crown Princess wanted to hold a banquet to celebrate, but Meng Yunxiu, not wishing to trouble the people of the Eastern Palace, politely declined. When Yu Ruier found out, she openly mocked her, saying she was trying to hide the fact that she had turned thirty, unaware that everyone in the Eastern Palace knew she was already a thirty-year-old withered wood and dregs, and even the Crown Prince found her an eyesore. How dare she shamelessly cling to him, hoping for favor..."
The Emperor could not bear to listen any longer and angrily said, "This Yu Ruier is sharp-tongued and so malicious. Could it be that the Crown Princess does not know how to punish her?"
The Empress sighed and said, "The Crown Princess is too kind-hearted and, considering that Yu Ruier is an old servant of the Eastern Palace, believes punishing her would embarrass the Crown Prince. Therefore, she has endured it without speaking up. Meanwhile, the Crown Prince, at Your Majesty’s request, has been diligently studying the principles of governance and finds it difficult to spare attention for household matters. No one has informed him of these quarrels... The day before yesterday, Yu Ruier’s mockery of Meng Yunxiu was particularly harsh and was spoken publicly. Meng Yunxiu, unable to save face, did not argue with her but instead ran back to her room in tears and locked herself inside. When the Crown Princess heard about it, she personally went to see her. The maids could not knock the door open, so the Crown Princess ordered the eunuchs to break it down. They found Meng Yunxiu had already hanged herself in an attempt to take her own life..."
The Emperor frowned and asked, "Was she saved?"The Empress said, "Fortunately, it was discovered early, and her life was saved, but her neck is terribly swollen. For the past two days, Meng Yunxiu has been unable to speak. The imperial physician examined her and said her throat will certainly be damaged. Even if she can speak in the future, her voice will be hoarse and unpleasant. That beautiful voice she once had will likely never return."
"This is akin to Yu Ruier killing with her words—her heart is truly wicked!" the Emperor exclaimed angrily, then asked the Empress, "How have the Crown Princess and the Crown Prince punished her?"
"That is precisely the difficulty," the Empress sighed softly. "The Crown Princess has been staying by Meng Yunxiu's side these past two days, weeping incessantly. When others ask her how to punish Yu Ruier, she simply says coldly, 'Let His Highness decide.' Meanwhile, Yu Ruier has already rushed to the Crown Prince, crying and pleading, repeatedly recounting her years of service to him, clutching his robe and begging desperately. The Crown Prince has always been kind-hearted and soft-natured, so he finds it hard to impose severe punishment. He sent Yu Ruier to Palace Matron Wei, asking her to decide the punishment. But Palace Matron Wei is also in a difficult position—if the punishment is too light, she fears it won't appease the Crown Princess's anger; if it's too heavy, she worries the Crown Prince will be displeased. So she came to seek my advice..."
The Emperor understood: "Your concerns are the same as Palace Matron Wei's, and since this involves the Eastern Palace, it's not easy for you to decide."
The Empress lowered her head in embarrassment. "I am incompetent and can only beg Your Majesty for a wise judgment."
The Emperor said, "In such matters, according to palace precedent, Yu Ruier should simply be expelled from the palace and forced to become a nun."
The Empress hesitated, remaining silent, clearly feeling this was not an appropriate solution.
Seeing this, Zhenzhen softly said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, forgive my bluntness, but I recall that when the female official Hao Jinyan framed Feng Dianshan, Palace Matron Wei wanted to expel Hao Jinyan and the others from the palace and force them to become nuns. The Crown Prince intervened, saying expulsion from the palace was enough—there was no need to force them into a life of seclusion and ruin their lives. The Crown Prince had no prior acquaintance with Hao Jinyan and the others, yet he couldn't bear to see them become nuns. How much more so for a palace maid who has served him for ten years?"
The Empress added, "Indeed, if Your Majesty handles it this way, even if the Crown Prince does not object, he will surely feel distressed and may harbor resentment."
"Expel her from the palace without forcing her to become a nun?" the Emperor quickly rejected this idea angrily. "That would be letting her off too easily! No, absolutely not."
The Empress had no response. After a moment of silence, the Emperor suddenly turned to Zhenzhen. "In your opinion, what would be a suitable punishment?"
Zhenzhen did not evade the question. She bowed respectfully to the Emperor and replied, "That Yu Ruier repeatedly called thirty-year-old women 'old hags' and 'withered wood and dregs,' showing her extreme aversion to the age of thirty. She is so obsessed with flaunting her youth and beauty that she has never considered she will also live to thirty and become the very 'withered wood and dregs' she despises. In that case, Your Majesty might as well decree that on the day before Yu Ruier turns thirty, she be granted a white silk cord."
The Emperor and the Empress exchanged glances, both utterly astonished. After a moment, the Empress spoke: "Although Yu Ruier's vicious words drove Meng Yunxiu to attempt suicide, according to the laws of the Great Song, her crime does not warrant death. Even if the execution is delayed for twelve years, it is still too severe. This punishment is harsher than forcing her to become a nun."Zhenzhen said, "Let's announce it this way for now. Over these twelve years, His Majesty will inevitably have occasions for grand amnesties to celebrate joyous events. During this period, Yu Ruier must be demoted and is not allowed to approach the Crown Prince, Crown Princess, or Meng Yunxiu again. However, we should arrange for someone to guide her well, so that she learns to be cautious in speech and conduct, accumulates virtue through good deeds, and strives to earn a pardon when the amnesty comes. Whether she is included in the amnesty list depends entirely on her conduct over these years. Therefore, to save herself, she must first learn to become a good person."
The Emperor finally smiled, exchanging a glance with the Empress, and said, "I think this method is feasible. This way, not only will Yu Ruier dare not make mistakes again, but with this precedent, the palace attendants in the Eastern Palace and even the Six Palaces will likely no longer dare to speak maliciously or gossip about others. The Crown Princess's resentment will be appeased, and the Crown Prince will not have major objections either. Later, I will first explain this to the Crown Prince, but instruct him not to interfere with subsequent matters. I must trouble the Empress to select a mature and prudent female official to be responsible for restraining and disciplining Yu Ruier from now on."
The Empress bowed slightly to accept the order. The Emperor smiled at Zhenzhen and was about to say something more when suddenly a eunuch entered from outside the hall to report: "Your Majesty, the Court Gentleman for Ceremonial Service was crafting the 'Ancient Pine' ornamental display in the eastern corridor of the Great Celebration Hall. Perhaps due to overexertion, he felt dizzy. Chief Steward Zhang had him sent to the Imperial Academy of Medicine for treatment by the imperial physicians. Unexpectedly, shortly after arriving at the academy, he fainted and lost consciousness."
Zhenzhen was greatly alarmed, staring intently at the eunuch delivering the news. She involuntarily stood up, filled with both worry and self-reproach.
The 'Ancient Pine' ornamental display was no ordinary floral arrangement or potted landscape. The main structure was nearly five feet tall and over two zhang in length, shaped like a vigorous, ancient pine tree with branches and trunk twisting in every conceivable manner. However, it was not made by directly cutting down an ancient pine; instead, it used only overgrown branches or dead tree stumps pruned by the imperial garden gardeners. Lin Hong led over ten attendants from the Hanlin Office to cut, trim, and piece together sections and branches to form the shape of an ancient pine. They then attached bark and arranged the foliage to make it indistinguishable from a real tree. Lin Hong had expended considerable mental and physical effort to complete this work, using various carpentry tools such as saws, planes, knives, and hammers. Since the attendants were not skilled enough, he often tied up his sleeves and completed the tasks himself. Zhenzhen deeply regretted assigning him this task while matters at the Gathering Scenery Garden were still unresolved. The continuous toil had exhausted him to the point of falling ill.
The Emperor was also very concerned and immediately asked the eunuch, "What did the imperial physician say? How is the Court Gentleman for Ceremonial Service now?"
The eunuch replied, "Physician Guo also said it was due to overexertion. Before I came to report, Physician Guo had already begun administering acupuncture. His current condition is unknown."
Physician Guo, named Guo Siqi, was now the head imperial physician and the most skilled in medicine. The Emperor felt reassured. Seeing Zhenzhen's evident concern, he instructed her, "Go to the Imperial Academy of Medicine to check on him."
Zhenzhen immediately agreed, bowed, and hurried off to the Imperial Academy of Medicine.
The Empress watched her leave, then turned back to the Emperor and said, as if explaining, "The Court Gentleman for Ceremonial Service and Zhenzhen share a master-disciple relationship, so hearing of his fainting, Zhenzhen couldn't help but be concerned..."
"I know," the Emperor said calmly. "The Court Gentleman for Ceremonial Service is young, handsome, and talented. What young woman wouldn't be moved after spending time with him?"
The Empress smiled somewhat awkwardly and cautiously probed, "Is Your Majesty willing to grant them their wish?"
The Emperor fell silent for a moment before continuing, "I notice Second Brother is also quite attentive to Zhenzhen. Last time, when you admonished the palace attendants at the Plum Ridge Pavilion and I went over to say those words, it was actually Second Brother who begged me to speak on his behalf.""Second Brother?" the Empress asked in surprise.
The Emperor nodded and said, "He came to the Hall of Blessing and Tranquility to tell me that Zhenzhen's actions were all in accordance with my will. I had long been aware of the issues but chose not to act, while Zhenzhen, fearless as a child, faced them with a naive and unpolished courage, willing to help me clear the path. I thus went along with her suggestions, but inadvertently placed her in the spotlight, causing her to incur resentment and even endanger her life... Second Brother repeatedly kowtowed to me, pleading for you and me to make a statement to warn the six palaces, so that those who wish to harm her would not dare act rashly."
Upon hearing this, the Empress was deeply moved and said softly, "I have always seen Second Brother's affection for Zhenzhen and have been inclined to support it, but Zhenzhen seems to have her heart set on Lord Xuanyi, so I did not feel it appropriate to force the matter... Zhenzhen is eighteen now, and it is time to decide her future. In Your Majesty's view, who is more suitable—Lord Xuanyi or Second Brother?"
"There is no hurry in this matter," the Emperor replied, lifting his cup to sip tea before lowering his gaze to the tea, deep in thought. "For Zhenzhen, perhaps there is still a better arrangement..."
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