A Crane Cries in Huating - 9.1

The bright blue moon shines on the wine glass and the pearly sky glitters behind it.^[1]From 千金记 by 沉采 (Chen Cai)  

A-Heng, A-Heng, Dingquan said silently in his heart. How could he forget these two words? Over the years, his little sister’s face had become blurred in his memory. He only remembered that she was very lovely and pitiful, with a small mouth like that of a peach blossom. She had just barely learned to call him “Brother.”

On a spring day many years ago, Crown Prince Gu — as privately called by the narrow-minded and old-fashioned courtiers — still had two buns on his head. He clumsily held the young princess in his arms and asked his mother who was sitting beside them with a smile on her face, “Will A-Heng look as pretty as Mother when she grows up? How will a huadian^[2]The floral pattern drawn between the brows be drawn on such a small face? Can her hair be combed high, too?” 

He bent down and kissed the little princess between her brows, conscious that his love for her was second only to his mother’s. “I wonder where A-Heng’s husband is right now? When the time comes, I won’t let him marry A-Heng so easily.” 

The servants around Empress Gu chuckled with amusement. “With a brother like Your Highness, the crown prince, the emperor’s future son-in-law, the lieutenant general, will suffer a lot — I’m afraid it will hurt your sister’s heart a great deal.” 

Not knowing why he would hurt the princess by making things difficult for the emperor’s son-in-law, Crown Prince Gu laughed out loud but couldn’t help feeling confused. 

The precious round silk fan concealed the world-famous beauty of Empress Gu while her noble upbringing concealed the true expression in her clever eyes, except for the golden glow of her lush raven hair swaying gently under the spring light, which was being reflected in the corners of Crown Prince Gu’s smiling eyes right then. Only that radiance was accompanied by a few weak coughs — the birth of the princess brought great joy to the empress’ heart, but it also went on to do serious damage to her body. Even though the father of her two children was not around due to his responsibilities, or because he was simply accompanying Concubine Zhao and her children, in the memory of Crown Prince Gu, who was far more sensitive and precocious than his peers, this scene was enough to eternally become his most precious piece of memory.

His young sister’s sudden death, his father’s indifference, and the rumours circulating in the palace. 

His mother’s heartbreaking grief, his father’s indifference, and the rumours in the palace. 

His mother’s serious illness, his father’s indifference, and the rumours in the palace. 

His mother’s death, and his father’s indifference, followed yet again by the rumours in the palace.

One scene ravelled after another, one moment after another, one sentence after another, one sound after another — the old scabs were exposed to the surface again, but the wounds underneath had never healed. Instead, pus and blood oozed out. The deep-rooted venom was like wine: the older, the more brewed. Until all of a sudden, it rose and corroded all of the internal organs, every joint and every hair, causing a dull aching pain where there was sensation and where there was none.

Crown Prince Gu Xiao Dingquan, whose two buns had long been assembled into one bun, was left stranded in bewilderment one spring day many years later. Even though he tried his best to restrain himself, he was still startled to see the golden glow suddenly turn into the blood red of the setting sun. He tried his best to find the person in front of him amidst the blood-soaked glow as he said hoarsely, “What do you know? How did you know the princess’s maiden name?”

Hearing his voice change into that of another person, Xu Changping was secretly horrified in his heart. He fell to his knees with a plop, kowtowed, and said, “The princess’s governess Song is my foster mother.”

The past vanished just like the wind, brushing past his face, drying the thin layer of cold sweat on Dingquan’s forehead. He slowly calmed down, sat down in his seat, and said, “Speak.”

Xu Changping said, “On the night when the princess passed away, my mother had changed shifts and was not in the princess’ pavilion. Afterward, the investigation could not uncover a reason, but His Majesty blamed the palace servants for the dereliction of duties and wanted to execute everyone who served the princess. The esteemed late empress realised that my mother had no knowledge of it after much torture, so she pardoned her and released her from the palace. I lost my father in infancy and my mother a bit later. It was only because my foster mother raised me that I could become the adult I am to this day. She treated me like her own. Mother used to say that she could never repay the empress’s benevolence, so she will always be grateful to her for the rest of her life till death. Today, I want to repay Your Highness the debt my mother wished to repay the late empress.”

Dingquan sat still for a long while until he felt his mind reaching some clarity. He then asked, “Registrar Xu, please rise. I remember your mother. She has a small mole between her eyebrows, right?”

Xu Changping got up and said, “Your Highness is surely outstanding. It’s just that my mother’s mole is in the corner of her eye.”

Dingquan smiled lightly. “Really? I was too young at that time, so I can’t remember clearly.” He added, “I would like to thank you, Registrar Xu. Your words are the same as precious gems, how can I not pay attention to them? Besides, your mother was my sister’s caretaker, so you can be regarded as a half-brother to me.”

Xu Changping hastily declined, “Your Highness is granting me so much love, how can I take responsibility? My mother owes the late empress for her enormous grace, so I will certainly repay Your Highness for the kindness with whatever means possible.”

Dingquan smiled. “Registrar Xu, you don’t have to be so polite. You’re a rare, unforgettable old friend.”

Xu Changping bowed his head and said, “I may not be clever, but I know to repay every small favour and grudge that is in my debt.” 

Dingquan nodded his head. The blood before his vision had gradually receded. He got up to him, studied the man before him for a moment, then suddenly straightened his collar for him, and said, “Registrar Xu wears brown but is actually full of gold^[3]pī hè huái jīn, which means to wear coarse cloth clothes, and to hide gold and jade. The metaphor is ordinary on the surface but rich on the inside. From Han Zhao Yi’s “Ode to the World’s Disease … Continue reading. It’s such a shame that you only get to wear this green robe.” 

His cold fingers brushed Xu Changping’s neck. Xu Changping did not expect him to do this, so he quickly avoided his touch. But after coming back to his senses, he apologised, “I misbehaved.” 

Dingquan withdrew his hand and smiled slightly. “So, I’d like to believe that Registrar Xu is a regular person, otherwise, he wouldn’t dare to get close to me.” 

Xu Changping shivered and realised that his collar was already drenched in layers of sweat.

The sky was gradually getting darker and the sound of the bell from the palace rang till here, leaving behind the lingering sound; it was almost time to close the palace gate. 

Dingquan grinned. “If I have any doubts in the future, I hope to receive some advice from you. However, it’s gotten late today, so I won’t be keeping you for dinner. By the way, how did you come here?” 

Xu Changping said, “I rode a horse.” 

Dingquan smiled. “I’ll ask someone to prepare a carriage to take you back.” 

Xu Changping turned down his offer, “I understand Your Highness’ sincerity but I don’t want to attract any attention.” 

Dingquan then gave up and personally sent Xu Changping out to the front of the palace hall. He stood quietly between the doors, watching the official’s figure disappear out of sight before sauntering back into his room.

He ordered someone to call his close attendant and instructed, “Give this note to Royal Scribe Zhang and have him thoroughly investigate the reputation and track records of the new officials in the Household Administration, both secretariats and the herald’s office. Then find out where the — what’s his name — newly appointed registrar is from, who is in his family, where he lives in the capital, what he does, and who he meets up with. Tell him to be discreet about it — don’t alert the others.”

His trusted aide agreed to everything one by one and then turned around and left. After that, Dingquan sat down slowly, stroked his forehead, and reached for his cup of tea. The foam on the tea had already settled and there was only cold jade-coloured tea left. On the inner wall of the black porcelain, every drop of blue light twinkled like celestial eyes, gathered in twos and threes, like the one-eyed ghosts shining in the dark night. Feeling anxious in his heart, he drank two sips of the cold tea under those peering eyes. Suddenly, his scalp became numb and he threw the teacup straight to the ground. Then, he spread out his hand to sweep down the candlesticks, stationery, and books on the table, and felt his heart gradually calming down. 

Kouzhu and A-Bao heard the loud noise in the room and rushed in to check up on him. They saw Dingquan had cut his hand and was stepping on the messy ground. When he saw them, he calmly ordered, “Just clean it up.”

Translator: turtleneck

Editor: idlemousse