The Emperor Ling Yao is face blind. I had been in the palace three years, and he had never once been able to recognize me.
That day he calmly ascended the dragon throne and instructed me coldly. "As the Emperor, it is only right to expand the imperial harem. I must spread my favor. Empress, you must be magnanimous."
And so the absurd days began.
Once, while I was watering flowers in the imperial garden, he saw my beauty and immediately ordered that I be brought into the harem. Another time, while I was riding a horse at the stables, he praised my free spirit and wanted to bring me into the harem again. What was even more ridiculous was the day I disguised myself as a commoner to visit a temple fair outside the palace, with a coarse cloth headscarf wrapped around my head and a simple coarse dress on my back.
He actually managed to find me based solely on the scent of my incense. Waving his folding fan, he approached and said, "This young lady has such charming features. I wonder, are you betrothed?"
Suppressing my laughter, I feigned shyness. "In response to the young master, this humble woman is already married."
He fell silent for a moment. Then, with a face full of regret, he actually said, "I am not a vile man who would break up someone else's family. But may I make so bold as to ask — when will your husband die?"
I almost spat out the sugar figurine in my mouth right then and there. I quickly covered my mouth, my shoulders shaking uncontrollably, pretending to be overcome with grief and sorrow, when in reality I was barely holding back my laughter.
He thought he had touched a raw nerve, and a hint of pity actually appeared in his eyes. He added another line. "Do not be afraid, young lady. If he truly treats you poorly, I will stand up for you."
My father is a veteran minister of three reigns. Years ago, during Ling Yao's struggle for the throne, my father backed the wrong side and allied himself with the deposed crown prince. Ling Yao has held a grudge to this day. In the year of my hairpinning ceremony, he issued an imperial decree marrying me into the palace. He called it a great favor, but in truth it was revenge, ruining my betrothal to the heir of the Duke of Zhen.
I secretly rolled my eyes. It was bad enough that this man was face blind. He was also so black-hearted.
Initially he wanted to title me a Lady of Handsome Fairness. But then he heard that a Lady of Handsome Fairness does not have to deal with her chores and only needs to pay respects to the empress daily, whereas the empress can only rest after all the concubines have finished paying their respects. It seemed more like he was finding me an easy, leisurely job. So he overrode all objections and made me empress.
But he forgot that at the time the harem was completely empty. The so-called morning greetings were just me paying respects to myself. Every morning I would sit on the empress's throne, looking at the empty hall. Wanqing would stand by my side, going through the motions with me. Over time it actually became a bizarre sight in the palace.
Occasionally I would ask Wanqing to pretend to be a consort and pay respects to me, just to relieve the boredom, but she would always refuse with a smile, saying she feared offending the empress's dignity.
Before half a month had passed, Ling Yao also realized something was off. Once again sitting on the dragon throne, he repeated to me with a stern face, "Empress, do not harbor any illusions about us. As the Emperor, we must expand the imperial harem. You must be magnanimous."
He went on and on, lecturing endlessly. My personal maid Wanqing, who was standing beside me, could not bear to listen any longer. With a thud she fell to her knees and kowtowed. "Your Majesty, spare my life. This servant is Her Majesty the Empress's personal maid. Her Majesty went to the side hall to touch up her makeup and ordered this servant to wait here."
Ling Yao pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, yet his face showed not the slightest hint of embarrassment. He said with utmost seriousness, "We knew that, of course. We were merely having you pass on the message. In the future, whether it is you or anyone else, you must introduce yourselves first upon seeing us, lest we mistake your identity."
Wanqing nodded repeatedly, murmuring "Yes, yes, yes" without stopping. Only then did Ling Yao flick his sleeves and leave with an air of pretense. As he left, he did not forget to turn back and instruct, "Tell the Empress to hurry up. We are still waiting to discuss taking in new consorts with her."
As a result, just as he stepped out of the hall door, he ran right into me, who had just come out of the side hall. He was taken aback for a moment. Then he immediately switched to a gentle tone. "Are you a lady from the Empress's palace? Pass a message to the Empress for me. Tell her I am looking for her to discuss selecting concubines."
"Your Majesty, I am the Empress."
His face instantly turned red. He coughed twice, turned around, and ran off, almost missing his step on the stairs.
Later, in the imperial garden, he ran into me again while I was pruning flower branches. Having learned from the incident with Wanqing, he deliberately stopped his pace. First he had the eunuchs wait in the distance, while he strode toward me himself.
It had to be said, Ling Yao was truly handsome, with sharp brows, starry eyes, and a face like fine jade, which complemented his tall and upright posture. He indeed possessed an imperial majesty. No wonder he could captivate so many noble ladies.
Just as I was about to curtsy to greet him, he reached out to support my hand, his eyes filled with a smile. "As the saying goes, a graceful lady is a fit mate for a gentleman. You are the most pleasing woman I have ever met in my life."
As a woman who had lived a sheltered life in her boudoir, even though I had long known about his face blindness, being confessed to in public by such a handsome emperor still made me blush and my heart flutter. Even his rudeness and malice from a few days ago were completely cast to the back of my mind.
We set up a small table by the lake, drinking wine, reciting poetry, and chatting with great joy, until he suddenly blurted out, "The Empress is vulgar and boring, far less gentle and graceful than you."
Oh boy. His face blindness was acting up again. Flirting with girls behind my back was one thing, but he actually put me down to my face.
Before Ling Yao left, he specifically asked about my family background, saying he wanted to make me a consort. I deliberately lied. "In response to Your Majesty, I am Li Aqiu, the third daughter of Minister Li's household."
That very night the imperial decree conferring the title of consort was delivered to Minister Li's residence. Minister Li searched his entire estate but could not find even a maid named Li Aqiu. He was so anxious that he almost hanged himself.
Upon learning of this, Ling Yao was absolutely furious. He was convinced that Minister Li had hidden his daughter away. For several days in a row he gave Minister Li the cold shoulder. He made things even more difficult for him during court sessions. One moment he ordered him to copy the Analects of Confucius a hundred times. The next, he sent him to manage the sewage in the suburbs of the capital.
Minister Li was already advanced in years. After copying the Analects a hundred times, his hand was nearly broken. Then he had to go manage the sewage in the suburbs. He ended up covered in mud and in a wretched state.
The ministers at court saw all of this, yet no one dared to plead on his behalf. After all, everyone knew. The Emperor was currently vexed over the matter of Li Aqiu. Minister Li was so worried that his hair turned white. Every day he burned incense and prayed to the Buddha in his manor, begging for Li Aqiu to show herself.
Ling Yao's personal eunuch, Xiaoluzi, really couldn't bear to watch any longer.