58. Eight Hundred Miles of Urgency from Liaodong

After Cao Ziyin’s marriage, Xu Guiyi found herself with a few days of leisure. The wedding date for Xu Zhuning was set for late March, so there was still some time, and for now, matters in the Eastern Palace were all routine.

In the last days of the first lunar month, Xu Guiyi found a pretext to divide half of the palace’s affairs between Cheng Hewei and Lu Zhirou, while she herself, with Mamma Wu, managed the other half. Ever since then, Xu Guiyi’s happiness was visible to the naked eye; even her demeanor during meals grew much lighter.

As Xiyue put it, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess were truly a match made in heaven—one disliked court politics, the other disliked domestic affairs, both equally inclined to indolence.

Soon it would be the second day of the second lunar month, the Dragon Raising Its Head festival, a fortuitous day, and also the fifth birthday of Prince Zhao’s firstborn, the little imperial grandson, Fu Jun.

Of the Emperor’s sons, only three had married, and among them, Prince Zhao had been married for ten years but had only Fu Jun; Prince Qi had been married for six years and had yet to produce an heir; as for the Crown Prince, there was no need to mention him. Thus, Fu Jun was the only imperial grandson the Emperor currently possessed—his most treasured child.

Since Prince Zhao’s mother passed away early, the Empress was delighted to take on the role of noble and gracious grandmother. She decided to host a palace banquet for the little imperial grandson’s fifth birthday at the Changqiu Palace. Originally, Princess Zhao had wished to spend the day quietly at their own residence with Fu Jun, but the Empress insisted that it had been too long since the palace had celebrated a young child’s joyous occasion, and it must be done in style. Princess Zhao, though she initially refused, found her protests ignored; after repeatedly trying and failing to decline, she was left with no choice but to enter the palace daily to pay her respects, teary-eyed with gratitude.

Xu Guiyi came to the palace very early today, flanked by Cheng Hewei and Lu Zhirou, with a retinue of twelve beautiful palace attendants following behind. As she traversed the Imperial Garden and entered Changqiu Palace, the palace staff and eunuchs on either side looked on in astonishment.

“The Crown Princess didn’t make such a grand entrance even when she first entered the palace. What’s the occasion today?” a young maid whispered after the procession had passed.

“Of course, it’s because today is the little imperial grandson’s birthday. The palace values heirs above all else—no doubt the Crown Princess brought a larger entourage to save face.”

Though the celebration was not grand, the Empress’s Changqiu Palace had made careful preparations. Princess Zhao sat below the Empress, holding Fu Jun in her arms, while the Empress cradled Princess Yi’an from the Prince An’s household, teasing her with laughter.

When Xu Guiyi entered, Princess Zhao and Princess An rose to greet her. She returned their greetings with a smile and beckoned Fu Jun into her arms, playing with him for quite some time.

Not long after, Princess Qi also entered, bringing with her a pregnant concubine, who had already been promoted to the rank of Lady. Princess Qi introduced her, and the Empress, her expression indifferent, merely instructed the palace maid Siqi to bestow some ordinary gold and jade ornaments upon her and said nothing further.

At Xu Guiyi’s side, as the lady bowed in greeting, Xu Guiyi took a closer look: a pale blue palace dress, her black hair arranged in a lily bun adorned with a jade and gold hairpin, a round face, almond-shaped eyes, slightly full lips, average looks, and a figure somewhat plump—a belly rounded, suggesting five months of pregnancy.

“I am Tang, my lady, and I pay respects to Your Highness the Crown Princess.” Her voice was even weaker than An Ruosu’s.

Xu Guiyi replied warmly, “Lady Tang, there is no need for such formality.” She then signaled Xiyue to present the prepared gift, exchanged a few polite words with Princess Qi, and as the other noblewomen of the imperial clan took their seats, the hall soon filled, only the Emperor’s and a few princes’ seats remaining vacant.

In the Empress’s palace, they waited a long while before Yuanhe, the chief eunuch of the Tai’ning Palace, arrived in haste: “Your Majesty the Empress, His Majesty asked me to report that the ministers are still in council at Tai’ning Palace. His Majesty and the princes cannot attend for now; the Empress may begin the banquet without them.”

With that, Yuanhe raised a hand, and eight young eunuchs stepped forward, each carrying a brocade box.

“These are birthday gifts from His Majesty to the little imperial grandson. Princess Zhao, please accept them.” After speaking, Yuanhe bowed to Princess Zhao.

She immediately rose, pulling Fu Jun to his knees. “On behalf of the imperial grandson, I thank Father Emperor for his boundless grace.”

Once Yuanhe had departed, Consort De smiled, “His Majesty and the princes are busy with state affairs—national matters take precedence.”

The Empress, too, smiled at the assembly. “Since that is the case, let us begin.” At her signal, the guests picked up their chopsticks.

Because it was Fu Jun’s birthday and most of those present were women, the conversation naturally turned to children.

The Marchioness of Yongjia reminisced with the Empress about the mischievous childhoods of Fu Lancheng and Shen Yu. Princess An sighed, “Luckily, Yi’an is a girl; though she can be lively, her energy is limited. Otherwise, I’d be truly exhausted.”

Despite her words, Xu Guiyi observed Princess An’s delicate beauty, still youthful and lovely, unmarked by the passage of time. She couldn’t help but feel a touch of envy.

Princess Zhao, with three parts envy and seven parts complaint, said, “You are fortunate to have a daughter—well-behaved and understanding. Unlike me, always chasing after Fu Jun, who runs wild through the entire prince’s estate, stopping just short of tearing off the roof!”

Princess De laughed easily, “Fu Jun is only five—wait a few more years, when he’s truly up to mischief, you’ll have no time for sighing!”

The Marchioness of Yongjia agreed, “Indeed, in a few years, you’ll wish you could tie him up with hemp rope and toss him into the woodshed!”

Princess Zhao pressed her forehead and sighed, “Forget a few years—just the other day, he broke his father’s favorite inkstone. His father was so angry he threatened to tie him up and throw him into the stables for reflection. But really, he’s only a child—how could his father be so harsh?”

Of course, it was all bluster. With only one son, how could Prince Zhao bear to punish him? Even if he could, the Emperor would never allow it.

The gathering took it as a joke, laughing heartily. Little Fu Jun, playing with Princess Yi’an, saw the adults’ merriment and burst into giggles himself, making everyone laugh even more.

With the Emperor absent, the atmosphere was relaxed and cheerful, and the day passed swiftly.

Upon returning to the Eastern Palace, Xu Guiyi waited in Chunhui Hall until late into the night, but Fu Lancheng did not return—no doubt detained by urgent matters.

Xiyue came forward to urge her, “Your Highness, you should rest. His Highness must be occupied with affairs of state.”

The hall was brightly lit, and Xu Guiyi’s delicate, graceful silhouette flickered on the mica screen, wavering and indistinct, stirring unease.

Before she spoke, a sigh escaped her lips. “It’s already late, yet the Crown Prince hasn’t returned. Is he still at Tai’ning Palace in council? Today was the little imperial grandson’s birthday banquet, yet neither the Emperor nor the princes appeared, not even at the end. This matter in Liaodong... I fear will not end easily.”

Three days prior, the eldest son of the Prince of Liaodong died in the neighboring state of Dayue in the east. In his grief, the Prince of Liaodong did not forget to seek justice for his beloved son—a memorial was rushed to Guangling, requesting the Emperor’s permission to send troops in retaliation.

The incident was sudden, and to mobilize troops in haste, most of the court officials were opposed; yet, the Prince of Liaodong, Yu Wenkun, though aged, still commanded immense respect in the region. For the sake of stability in the northeastern fiefdoms, many supported military action.

Thus, the court split into three factions: the pro-war party, the opposition, and the neutral group, each fiercely debating for two days. The Emperor had yet to decide when several of the Prince of Liaodong’s sons led thirty thousand troops to besiege the border city of Liaowang in Dayue, shocking the court and the nation.

What boldness! What determination!

The sons of the Yu Wen clan truly took after their father, inheriting his spirit and the daring with which the old Prince of Liaodong once rode into battle.

But as for His Majesty... upon hearing the news, he was less spirited and more furious.

The Emperor’s original intention had been to send Crown Prince Fu Lancheng, with a delegation, from Guangling to Liaodong to first pacify the region, observe the people’s sentiment, and then decide on a course of action. He had even issued a decree for Nangong Mingchen, the deputy commander in Xinzhou closest to Liaodong, to mobilize ten thousand troops to escort the Crown Prince.

But as soon as Fu Lancheng had barely left Yongding Gate, news arrived of Liaodong’s preemptive strike. How could the Emperor not be enraged? Fu Lancheng and his party were urgently recalled; the pacification mission abandoned, further deliberations were required.

Grand Secretary Lu Yijian memorialized, “Your Majesty, forgive my candor—Liaodong is the face of our Da Yi in the northeast. For them to declare war with Dayue, whether or not under imperial orders, Dayue recognizes only the Prince of Liaodong as Da Yi’s vassal. This means war between the two states is inevitable—this matter is of utmost gravity!” One way or another, the battle could not be avoided.

Even Duke Wei, a senior statesman, personally entreated the Emperor: “Your Majesty, listen to this old servant—generations of the Prince of Liaodong’s household have defended our harsh northeast. They have always maintained good relations with the court; we must not chill the hearts of our loyal and capable generals, sire!”

With these two venerable elders speaking, the Deqing Hall was thrown into uproar as the factions argued relentlessly.

Though the Emperor had lost his temper over the Prince of Liaodong’s unauthorized mobilization, after cooling off for two days, he realized the priority was to stabilize the northeastern defenses given the current state of affairs between the two states.

The next morning, a command from Tai’ning Palace summoned General Qu Zhe, Lord of Martial Valor, to court.

When the news of the Prince of Liaodong’s private mobilization reached the palace, Xu Guiyi had been present in the Empress’s quarters, witnessing the Empress pause, cup in hand, silent for a long time.

Though women of the inner palace could say little regarding such matters, Empress Song, herself from a military family, understood all too well the gravity of fiefdoms mobilizing privately and the importance of Liaodong to the dynasty.

With the Emperor’s command, the Lord of Martial Valor marched thirty thousand troops to Liaodong, and Qu Zhe hurried on, sleepless. All of Guangling awaited news from Liaodong, as did the feudal princes across the land, especially those of different surnames.

Even Prince Xiping, a close ally of Liaodong, along with several high-ranking generals within Liaodong, personally memorialized the throne, pleading with the Emperor to seek justice for the aged Prince of Liaodong.