“What a presumptuous fellow!” Ding Yi struggled fiercely. “No wonder your consort constantly beats you—you deserve it! Let go immediately, or I won’t be polite anymore.”
The Seventh Prince said, “Aren’t you upset? I know you’re feeling terrible inside. I’m being considerate.”
She stomped her foot in anger. “I don’t need your consideration. I have our Twelfth Prince! Don’t you think I have enough troubles without you adding to them?”
The Seventh Prince had intended to persist a bit longer, but then he saw someone approaching from the end of the passageway, each step laden with thunder and lightning. Frightened, he released his hold and stepped back, saying, “Twelfth Brother, a gentleman uses words, not fists.”
“So you know what a gentleman is?” Hong Ce bared his teeth in a sinister smile. “You’re a gentleman, yet you’re embracing my woman?”
“I mistook her identity.” The Seventh Prince was practically babbling. “I mistook her for my Mongolian wife—a momentary lapse. The crime doesn’t warrant death.”
Seeing the Seventh Prince like this made Ding Yi want to laugh, but she couldn’t. A heavy weight pressed on her heart, making it difficult to breathe. She tugged at Hong Ce’s sleeve and said, “The Seventh Prince came with good intentions to save me. Otherwise, I would have been devoured alive by now.”
Hong Ce furrowed his brow and said, “I know everything. Hong Zan devised this clever scheme, bringing out Mu Lian Sheng—simply to strike first. If I hastily conclude the case, wouldn’t that play right into his hands? He fears a public trial, unable to bear that loss of face.” With that, he turned to look at the Seventh Prince. “Everything’s settled now?”
The Seventh Prince affirmed, “With me on the scene, what can’t be resolved? Master Wu and the neighbors have all been sent away. That foster father of Xiao Shu has been arrested—you can fry or grill him as you please. But these trivial matters are easily handled. Your mother, however, stands taller in her ways. She plans to have two bridal sedan chairs enter together. She’s already found a principal consort for you. You’d better think of something quickly!”
Hong Ce’s expression changed. He asked Ding Yi, “Is this true?”
“Aren’t you delighted? The bliss of having two wives!” Before Ding Yi could respond, the Seventh Prince spoke sourly, “If you take a principal consort, we’ll be on the same path again. Don’t blame me then for poaching.” His words earned him a massive eye-roll from Hong Ce.
Two bridal sedan chairs? What kind of joke was this? He was both anxious and angry. His frustration was one thing, but what about Ding Yi? She must be suffering silently! He bent down to examine her expression, saying, “I’m sorry. Being with me has caused you so much grievance. Earlier, I was busy with government affairs in the palace. By the time the eunuch brought the message, it was already too late. Fortunately, we had Seventh Brother—we should thank him this time. Now, Sha Tong has driven the carriage to the main palace gate. Go wait for me there first. I’ll join you shortly.”
“Where are you going?” She clutched him with a worried face. “Are you going to see your mother? How long will you be?”
He forced a smile. “Very soon. Just a few words, and I’ll be back.”
He released her and headed toward the central chambers. The Seventh Prince watched him go, muttering, “His stubborn streak is showing. He’s probably going to quarrel with his mother.”
Hong Ce walked briskly, storming into En Hui Qing Yu. Chen Jing came forward to respectfully greet him but was brushed aside.
The Noble Dowager Consort was being attended by palace maids for hand-washing. Seeing his flushed, agitated appearance, she understood but didn’t expose his intentions. Ignoring him, she slowly dried her hands, sat on a stool, and let the palace maids massage her pressure points and apply ointment.
He tempered his anger and still swept his sleeves in a formal bow. Only then did the Dowager Consort acknowledge him with a sound, saying, “Sit down! You’ve come at the right time. I have a portrait here for you to see.” She gestured for Chen Jing to unroll the painting scroll, which depicted a beauty in palace attire, with a small dual-knot hairstyle, wearing a water-pink floral robe, playing with a round fan, her face beaming with smiles. She pointed out, “This is the daughter of Li Yi Zhou, the Grand Scholar of the Hanlin Academy. She’s accomplished in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting—becoming your consort wouldn’t demean you. I told Ding Yi earlier, that she may enter the Pure Prince Mansion as a side consort, but there must be someone above her. Such a grand prince’s mansion needs a mistress with authority. We can’t let a girl of unknown origin manage your Pure Prince Mansion. This maintains your dignity in public affairs.” As she spoke, she examined the portrait again, her face showing slight satisfaction. “This girl looks fine to me. Her father is a first-rank official of the current dynasty, her mother is the Fourth Lady of the old Gong Prince’s family—a proper lady from a distinguished household. How is she not better than your side consort? The palace arranged the marriage before the New Year. The wedding can be held in February. Don’t worry, regarding the principles of wife-concubine relationships, when I summon this girl later, I will naturally instruct her. As for your Ding Yi, tell her to restrain herself. If she crosses me again, I won’t be as lenient as today.”
Hong Ce contained himself for a long while, finally waiting until the Dowager Consort finished speaking. He then clasped his hands and said, “Mother, there’s no need to summon anyone. I have decided on one person, and my bed cannot accommodate a second. Whether noble lady or imperial relative, I want none of them. I only want Ding Yi. Our relationship has weathered storms—no one can intervene anymore. Please withdraw your order. Even if the palace issues an imperial decree, I won’t hesitate to defy it. If that leads to my title being stripped and imprisonment in the great dungeon, is that what Mother wishes to see?”
The Dowager Consort was astonished. “Have you lost your mind? What do you mean, you only want her? When you said this before, I thought you were joking. Today you’re still saying the same thing—has she fed you a love potion? Listen carefully, giving her the position of side consort is already a tremendous favor. She’d better not aspire to climb higher. If she harbors excessive ambitions, I’ll ensure she shatters into pieces. You will marry Li’s daughter. Parental mandate is one layer, and the majestic imperial authority is another. If you dare disobey, the principal consort may not enter your door, but your side consort won’t enjoy exclusivity either. I’ll have her sent to a nunnery to take the tonsure. After all, your Yu Wen clan has precedents of family members becoming monastics—one more won’t make a difference.”
At this point, the facade had been torn away. Hong Ce hadn’t expected her to show even a shred of affection. Perhaps in the past, her temperament had led her to disregard her son’s feelings, but now, even with advancing age, she remained as self-willed as ever.
“Does Mother not care about hurting your son’s heart?” He lowered his head, his tone undisguisedly mournful. “Since childhood, I’ve never known what love is. You brought me into this world, but have you ever looked after me? Others run between their birth and foster mothers, receiving affection from both. What about me? When I paid respects in your palace, did you ever truly look at your son? When I was ostracized and treated unfairly, did you ever speak a word on my behalf? Now I’ve grown up and no longer need anyone’s protection, yet there’s always a void in my heart. I too long for someone who truly cares for me. I found her, only to discover it displeases you. You want to force an outsider upon me, causing me unbearable pain. Is this your motherly love?”
The Dowager Consort, questioned by him, was filled with fury. She nodded angrily, “Very well, indeed a fine son! I think only of you, yet not only do you fail to appreciate me, but you even blame me. How dare you speak of matters of the older generation? Why am I like this? Go ask your dear imperial father! Half my life withered away in the deep palace, my grievances and helplessness—who pitied me? How was your imperial father? When Mu Rong Jin Shu wasn’t around, he treated you a thousand times better, but if Mu Rong Jin Shu smiled at him, he immediately rushed to her side as if scalded—that’s the deep love of you Yu Wen clan men! Yes, I didn’t look after you properly, but that was due to your Qi people’s custom of child exchange—you blame me, but whom do I blame?”
She had her bitterness, and Hong Ce knew it all, but why must the mistakes of the previous generation continue? He hardened his resolve even more and spoke coldly, “Mother endured those hardships yet wants her son to follow the old path of his imperial father. I don’t think loving one person is wrong, and meeting Ding Yi now is the best time. With no third person involved, I won’t wrong any innocent woman. I live more openly than my imperial father. Has Mother never longed for Father to love you wholeheartedly? Since you’ve experienced it, why can’t you fulfill your son’s wishes? Imperial women, each with a bellyful of bitterness, trapped in their own besieged city, yet still finding ways to drag others in. Even if Father were here today, I would say the same: my ability is limited—I can be responsible for only one person in my lifetime. Call me stubborn or unambitious if you will; I accept it all. After all, since birth, I’ve been an unnecessary person. If Mother can’t stand me, then consider that you never gave birth to this unfilial son!”
He spoke his piece forthrightly, angering the Dowager Consort to her limit. She jerked her hand violently, breaking her two-inch-long fingernail in the palace maid’s palm. The maid, terrified, trembled all over, kneeling and kowtowing incessantly. The Dowager glared at her fiercely but had no time to settle accounts with her. She grabbed the teacup from the table and hurled it at Hong Ce, “For a woman, you dare raise your voice to your mother! You rebellious creature! I carried you for ten months only for you to anger me like this today!”
He didn’t dodge. The cup lid struck his brow bone, cutting a deep gash from which blood immediately gushed. The eunuchs and palace maids were stunned. Chen Jing trembled as he approached to stanch the bleeding but was pushed away by Hong Ce’s raised hand. He bowed to his mother, “Son had no intention of defying Mother. Today’s actions were unavoidable—please understand. I won’t say more, lest I further anger Mother. Please calm your anger. Son will leave now and return in a few days to apologize.”
He swept his sleeves and exited En Hui Qing Yu. Blood continued to flow, a warm patch spreading to his jaw and dripping onto the dragon emblem on his chest. Fearing to frighten Ding Yi, he covered the wound with a handkerchief. Walking with a heavy heart, his feet seemed filled with lead, making each step difficult.
She wasn’t in the carriage but stood waiting by the shafts. Seeing his disheveled state, she didn’t make a fuss, simply helped him into the carriage and silently bit her lip as she tended to his wound.
Her silence frightened him somewhat. He said softly, “It’s just a small injury, nothing serious.”
She nodded, “We’ll call the imperial physician when we return. I’m afraid it might leave a scar.” Emotions choked her throat, and it took a long while to calm herself. She raised her hand to touch his face, “Does it hurt? Any lower and it would have injured your eye.”
His physical pain hurt her more than if she had been beaten herself. She wanted to hold back her tears, but they fell anyway. She leaned forward, resting on his knees, making no sound, yet her sobs and trembling were uncontrollable.
Hong Ce felt terrible. Patting her back, he said, “A man of stature, such a minor wound is nothing. Don’t cry. If shedding a few drops of blood can change the Dowager’s mind, it’s worth it.”
She looked up, her eyes red, “Had I known you would be beaten, I would rather you married someone else.”
He smiled slightly, “Are you foolish? The pain is only momentary. Marrying someone else would mean suffering for a lifetime. I just made it clear to her, asking her to abandon that idea. Since she never cared for me before, she needn’t concern herself with my marriage now.”
Ding Yi hesitantly said, “She must be very angry. If this reaches the palace or Changchun Garden, then we…”
“It won’t end that way. If pushed to desperation, we’ll elope.” He spoke of such topics with surprising ease, pulling her up to sit beside him, smiling as he said, “Would you be willing to go to the ends of the earth with me? We could be an ordinary couple, the man plowing, the woman weaving.”
Many hopeless loves contemplate such steps, though not with genuine intent to act. That he had such thoughts was enough to satisfy her. Leaning on his shoulder, she sighed, “It sounds nice, but it would be too unfair to you. What am I? Originally just like a weed, now burdening a precious prince, making you suffer with me? But if it truly comes to that, don’t worry, I’ll earn money to support you.”
He let out a delayed “Oh,” then said, “Besides being a prince, I seem incapable of anything else. If we run out of food, take me to set up a street stall reading fortunes!”
The two found humor amid their suffering, heads leaning together, laughing. But after the laughter, they had to resume worrying. Ding Yi, with drooping eyebrows, asked, “What did your mother say in the end? The beating can’t be for nothing. Seeing you bleed, she must have felt remorseful for quite a while. Then did she say, ‘Well, let the younger generation follow their fortune,’ and let us be? Is that how it went?”
He barely curved the corner of his mouth, “It wasn’t that smooth, but she won’t likely dwell on it anymore. Thinking back, my words earlier were perhaps too harsh, probably hurting her heart. But without doing so, she would continue living in her own besieged city, never considering others’ feelings.”
Everything stemmed from her; Ding Yi felt quite sad. She lowered her head and said, “Then after a few days when her anger subsides, I’ll go apologize and kowtow to her. If she truly can’t overcome her resentment, I can take a couple of blows—I’m tough, I can endure it.”
Leaning against the carriage wall, he shook his head, “The rift between her and me doesn’t originate with you. ‘Three feet of ice is not formed in a single day.’ Even if not for the marriage, there would be other discord. Perhaps the mother-son bond is simply thin!”
In his heart, family ties had always been important. Parents and brothers—he cared for each one, though often they didn’t necessarily care for him. He never intended to push matters to extremes, but was forced to this point. She knew how much he valued Ding Yi, yet she allowed a rural commoner to testify against her, disregarding not just face but also propriety and decorum. The Noble Dowager Consort had been loveless for too long, forgetting true human emotion. Ding Yi had not had an easy life these years. If he didn’t protect her, who in this world could keep her safe?
He took her hand into his palm and rubbed it, “Let’s not dwell on this matter for now. Later, I’ll send more Ge She Ha to your place. No matter who summons you, have them report to me first—don’t rashly follow. By my calculation, Ru Jian should be entering the capital in the next day or two. Once he arrives, our family can spend a peaceful New Year together. As for the rest, let’s discuss it after the festival!”