Wei Shubin had once appeared before the Emperor before, but on that occasion, she had been cold and frightened, her emotions turbulent. Kneeling with her head bowed in the imperial presence, she had barely spoken two sentences before fainting and thus hadn’t clearly seen the Son of Heaven’s face.
So when she carelessly bumped into the Emperor’s back and fell backward from the impact, making momentary eye contact with the ruler of the realm, she didn’t recognize who he was. She only felt that his appearance strongly resembled her beloved Fourteenth Brother Li Yuanzhui, whom she couldn’t forget for a moment… Perhaps in twenty years, Li Yuanzhui would look just like this?
Fine wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and brows had replaced youthful innocence, and his whole bearing exuded mature composure and natural authority. He wasn’t wearing the Emperor’s exclusive ochre-yellow robe and thirteen-pendant jade belt, but rather white hemp mourning clothes. Yet once one gathered their wits, they would immediately recognize him as humanity’s supreme sovereign, the ruler of the nine provinces, the Heavenly Khan revered within and beyond the seas.
Colliding with the imperial person was a grave offense, and directly bumping into the Emperor’s body was even more so… There was no need to elaborate on the crime – nearby guards were already shouting and rushing forward to seize this ill-mannered palace maid. The Emperor himself seemed unbothered, merely glancing at Wei Shubin before turning back to continue gazing at the military training ground, clearly dismissing her as an unlucky palace maid.
Wei Shubin grew anxious and, while resisting the guards’ grasp, called out to the Emperor:
“Your… Your Majesty! Your humble servant Wei has matters to report!”
Hearing “your servant Wei,” the Emperor paused slightly, turned to look at her again, and after furrowing his brow in thought for a moment, realized: “Ah yes, Wei Xuancheng’s daughter… Release her and withdraw. Why are you here?”
At his first words, the guards immediately obeyed and released her, stepping back. Wei Shubin had just caught her breath when she heard his latter question and froze in place.
How had she ended up here? How had she come to run out of the Emperor’s tent alone?
The matter had too many threads – even if she weren’t responding before the Emperor, she would need time to organize her thoughts to explain clearly. But now she had no time to sort through her thoughts… In her urgency, sudden inspiration struck, and she blurted out:
“Your servant came with Her Majesty the Empress’s retinue!”
She had hidden behind the imperial bed and eavesdropped on the Emperor and Empress’s private conversation. She knew this crime was far too serious to admit to. Fortunately, the great tent was spacious – she could say she had been far from the imperial bed earlier… but why had she suddenly appeared in the imperial tent? She would need to carefully craft an explanation.
Moreover, the Emperor had mentioned that he was testing siege equipment in this remote corner of the imperial gardens because he didn’t want her father and other remonstrating officials to know. So she’d better pretend she hadn’t seen the Emperor’s military exercises earlier. Saying she had come with the Empress would at least help cover this point and ease the Emperor’s concerns. However, other questions followed:
“You came with the Empress’s retinue? Why didn’t the Empress mention this earlier?”
When he and his wife had been talking in the tent, they had discussed Wei Zheng and his daughter. If Empress Zhangsun had brought Wei Shubin along, there would have been no reason not to mention it – so making up lies was truly a complex and delicate matter. Wei Shubin’s palms were already sweating as she wracked her brains to continue improvising:
“In reply to Your Majesty, the Empress was unaware of your servant’s presence in her retinue… Your servant had originally gone to Lizheng Palace to seek an audience with the Empress on urgent matters. Just then, the Empress was setting out to come here, and the supervisor instructed your servant to follow along and seek an audience when possible. Unexpectedly, there was such bustle and confusion here that as soon as we reached the steps, someone ordered your servant to enter the tent to prepare furnishings for the Empress… Your servant, being young and ignorant, didn’t understand the proper protocols and wandered in confused, getting lost inside the tent and circling far about for quite some time before finding her way back. Hearing shouts outside that the Empress was departing for the palace, your servant panicked and ran out thoughtlessly, offending the imperial presence – a crime deserving of death…”
“I’ve crafted quite a reasonable story,” Wei Shubin congratulated herself internally while kowtowing in apology. The Emperor listened and gave a small laugh, waving his hand: “Never mind, never mind. Wei Xuancheng is stubborn and inflexible, not very quick-witted, and his daughter is just like her father – you may go.”
This was the Emperor showing mercy, pardoning her offense of collision. Wei Shubin verbally expressed her gratitude but hesitated to rise – she had come here specifically to negotiate money with the Emperor face-to-face, and having finally met him, how could she leave without addressing the main issue?
But how could she possibly begin bargaining with the Emperor of the Great Tang? Even thinking about it felt absurd…
“Hmm?” The Emperor suddenly seemed to remember something and asked her: “Are you still living at Purple Void Temple? With the Chai family’s young lady?”
Wei Shubin didn’t know what this question meant, and could only vaguely reply: “In reply to Your Majesty, your servant moves frequently between home and Purple Void Temple… My mother is often ill, and your servant entered the Dao to cultivate blessings – this was also reported to the Empress…”
Before she finished speaking, the Emperor turned toward the great tent, beckoning with his finger: “Come here.”
What was he planning to do?
Wei Shubin suddenly thought of the imperial bed in the tent, the fragrant sachet of romance upon it, and her chest tightened… Having just quarreled with his lawful wife over this, surely he wouldn’t…
Imperial commands could not be defied. She could only steel herself and rise, cautiously entering the tent. Fortunately, the Emperor didn’t walk toward the imperial bed, but sat down on the couch behind the writing desk, curling up one leg and furrowing his brow in thought as he supported his knee.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Wei Shubin silently approached the imperial desk and quietly knelt. It seemed the Emperor had something to say to her. This was good – it would be easier to navigate than outside in front of many servants, and she could also speak more boldly about those rebellious matters.
“Since you’re still residing at Purple Void Temple, go back and relay a message to the young lady of the Chai family for me,” the Emperor began. “The Empress is unwell. If Yingniang can get up, she should try to visit Lizheng Palace more often to look after her aunt’s health – though there are imperial physicians in the palace, they are all men, and can only inquire about physical ailments, not treat matters of the heart.”
So Your Majesty also knows that the Empress’s weakness is largely due to heartache… Wei Shubin thought silently, lowering her head in acknowledgment. She heard the Emperor sigh behind the writing desk, speaking rather regretfully:
“I don’t understand you women – what you’re thinking, what you want to do – why can’t you just speak plainly? The Empress’s virtue is unmatched in ancient or modern times, with just one flaw: she thinks too much and says too little. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have fallen ill like this… How do I have time to constantly guess at women’s thoughts? At least Yingniang is good in this respect, taking after her mother – always speaking her mind without restraint, cursing and threatening when angry, laughing heartily, and giving away houses and land when happy – isn’t that much more pleasant?”
A full man doesn’t know a hungry man’s hunger – how many people in the world could act as freely and unrestrained as uncle and niece? Wei Shubin thought, beginning to understand the Emperor’s meaning.
He had just personally carried his wife out but hadn’t accompanied the Empress’s carriage back to Lizheng Palace – perhaps the Empress had said something else outside the tent to prevent him from coming along. He realized his wife was truly angry, and so thought of Chai Yingpo, knowing this niece could speak effectively with her aunt and was skilled at persuasion. Thus he was asking Wei Shubin to go to Purple Void Temple to relay a message to Chai Yingpo, asking her to mediate between husband and wife…
“Your servant accepts the imperial command with reverence and will immediately return to Purple Void Temple to convey the message to Master Shangzhen.” She took a deep breath, gathering the greatest courage she had accumulated in her life. “Your lowly servant also has an unreasonable request, and dares not conceal it from Your Majesty, but wishes to speak directly before the imperial presence, begging the Holy Sovereign’s mercy.”