Story of Yanxi Palace, Chapter 73: Madness

   “Stop right there!”

On the corridor outside Changchun Palace, Erqing’s footsteps halted. She turned around. “…Yingluo, is something the matter?”

Wei Yingluo approached slowly, her expression far from friendly. “What exactly did you say to the Empress just now?”

Was this an interrogation? Erqing forced a relaxed smile. “Yingluo, I was merely worried for Her Majesty, which is why I made such a suggestion. Besides, securing favor among the palace consorts is quite common. I was momentarily muddled and mistakenly treated you as one of those women. I won’t mention it again.”

She tried to downplay the matter, to brush it off as a minor, harmless joke. But clearly, Wei Yingluo had no intention of treating it as a joke.

“Erqing, how many years have you served the Empress Dowager?” Wei Yingluo suddenly asked with a smile.

Erqing remained silent.

“Four years? Or five? In any case, longer than I have.” Wei Yingluo smiled as she stepped closer. “The Empress Dowager’s deep affection for His Majesty is something even I can see. How could you possibly not see it?”

That smile was more terrifying than any blade, forcing Erqing to take a step back.

“And right now the Empress is with child. If, at a time like this, the person she trusts most were to take the opportunity to climb into His Majesty’s bed, what a devastating blow would that be to her?” Wei Yingluo reached out with both hands and straightened the collar of Erqing’s robe for her. “So—so not only will I never do such a thing, I will absolutely never allow anyone in Changchun Palace to even entertain such an idea…”

At this point, her hands moved upward. Her ten fingers slowly closed together, wrapping around Erqing’s throat like a rope.

Boom—

Erqing shuddered violently. Whether it was because of the thunder rumbling outside the long corridor or because of Yingluo’s ice-cold fingers, she couldn’t tell.

Boom—

Dark clouds rolled in, turning day into night. Several flashes of lightning snaked through the black clouds like twisted, writhing serpents.

“Ah… it’s thundering.” Wei Yingluo released her fingers and looked out at the sky beyond the corridor. “It’s getting late. I should go attend Dowager Consort Yu’s birthday banquet.”

Erqing retreated several steps, her fingers touching her own throat as she stared in terror at the other woman’s retreating back.

The sound of her departing footsteps felt even more frightening than the thunder outside.

Shoukang Palace.

   The birthday banquet had been in preparation for many days, with most of the effort concentrated on erecting the canopy.

“How is it coming along?” Dowager Consort Yu personally inquired. “Is the canopy fully set up yet?”

One of the eunuchs busy installing window gauze stepped forward and replied respectfully, “In reply to Your Highness, it’s almost finished.”

“This morning you said ‘almost,’ and now you still say ‘almost.’ When exactly will it be done? Give me a definite answer.” Dowager Consort Yu was displeased.

The eunuch wiped sweat from his brow. “Before the sun sets, it will definitely be completely finished!”

Only then did Dowager Consort Yu give a reluctant nod. She instructed the maid beside her, “Stay here and keep an eye on them. I’m going to recite sutras.”

Fingering the prayer beads in her hand, Dowager Consort Yu passed by the still-unfinished canopy. For some reason—perhaps it was only her imagination—she thought she saw a faint trace of golden light drifting across the gossamer-thin white gauze…

Dowager Consort Yu frowned and was about to continue walking when suddenly an irritating voice, accompanied by peals of thunder, came drifting from far outside the palace gates:

“Dowager Consort Yu! I have an extremely important secret concerning Prince He that must be reported to you at once!”

“Dowager Consort Yu! Dowager Consort Yu! This matter concerns both Prince He’s reputation and yours. I dare not fail to report it!”

“Are you unwilling to see me, or do you not dare to see me?”

That mad girl again!

Dowager Consort Yu’s expression turned icy. The maid beside her glanced at her face and said, “Your Highness, this servant will have her immediately removed from the palace.”

“No. Let’s go out and take a look.” Dowager Consort Yu scoffed with icy disdain. “Otherwise she’ll think I’m afraid of her.”

Supported by her maid, Dowager Consort Yu walked out through the palace gates. Several gate-guarding palace maids were currently pushing and shoving with Wei Yingluo. Dowager Consort Yu slowly turned the sandalwood prayer beads between her fingers and spoke in a measured, leisurely tone:

“Wei Yingluo, have you completely forgotten every warning I gave you?”

The struggling immediately stopped. Wei Yingluo slowly turned to look at her.

Dowager Consort Yu held an umbrella over her head, but Wei Yingluo had none. The downpour drenched her completely, turning her into a drenched chicken, yet she seemed utterly unaware. Her clear black-and-white eyes fixed intently on Dowager Consort Yu. After a long moment, she suddenly gave a strange, eerie smile:

“I have not forgotten Dowager Consort Yu’s threats, but my sister died too horribly—how could I possibly forget? If in this lifetime I cannot seek justice for my sister, if I cannot expose your mother-and-son crimes to the entire world, then Wei Yingluo will never rest in peace even in death!”

Dowager Consort Yu’s fingers, which had been turning her prayer beads, paused. She stared coldly at the other woman, not believing for a moment that she truly had the courage or the backing to make the truth public. She didn’t care whether her clansmen would lose their lives over this—could she possibly not care whether she herself would lose hers?

But in the next instant, Wei Yingluo turned toward the crowd and shouted loudly:

“Everyone, listen well! On the tenth day of the first lunar month, Prince He—Hongzhou—illegally entered the palace and raped the embroidery workshop palace maid A-Man! That is crime number one! Dowager Consort Yu, in order to cover up her son’s crime, did not hesitate to murder the innocent victim! That is crime number two! This mother and son—one behaves outrageously and without shame, the other is ruthless and vicious, hiding behind a mask of virtue! And because I discovered the truth, they even tried to destroy the evidence and silence me by killing me!”

An uproar erupted throughout Shoukang Palace.

Dowager Consort Yu gripped her prayer beads so tightly her knuckles turned white. The constant whispering poured into her ears. If these had been only the palace servants of Shoukang Palace, naturally they would not dare to chatter so boldly in her presence. But in preparation for the birthday banquet, many outsiders had been brought into Shoukang Palace today. These people were not under her authority, so of course they dared to point and murmur behind her back.

“…Right and wrong will be judged by the public; justice lies in the hearts of the people.” Dowager Consort Yu raised her head with righteous dignity and declared, “I have believed in Buddhism all my life and have never done a single thing that goes against my conscience, nor have I ever harmed an innocent life! Everything you say is pure slander!”

With that, she gave a meaningful glance to the palace maid beside her. The maid understood immediately and shouted:

“Wei Yingluo has openly slandered a Dowager Consort—this is the capital crime of extreme disrespect! Seize her at once!”

Several eunuchs immediately rushed toward Wei Yingluo. She did not struggle at all, allowing them to restrain her. Amid their grip, she let out cold, mocking laughter:

“Dowager Consort Yu keeps claiming she believes in Buddhism. I only want to ask one question—do you dare to swear before the Buddha that you have truly never done anything against your conscience, and never harmed a single innocent life?”

“What is there to fear?” Dowager Consort Yu’s devotion to Buddhism was performed for others to see; in her heart there was no Buddha, so naturally she did not fear him.

“Murder demands a life in return; debts must be repaid. If men do not collect, Heaven will.” A sudden clap of thunder roared overhead, illuminating Wei Yingluo’s face deathly pale. She said coldly, “Dowager Consort, are you truly not afraid at all?”

What do I have to fear? Dowager Consort Yu sneered inwardly, but her outward expression grew even more righteous and awe-inspiring. She raised the hand wrapped around her prayer beads toward the sky and declared:

“I have a clear conscience! What harm is there in swearing to Heaven? With the Buddha above as my witness—I have lived my life doing good deeds and being a good person. I have never taken a life, never wronged a single soul! If even one word of what I say is false, may a bolt of heavenly thunder strike down and shatter me to pieces!”

BOOM—

Wei Yingluo slowly lifted her head, gazing at the white serpent of lightning coiling and twisting endlessly amid the black clouds. She murmured:

“Heaven, did you hear that?”

BOOM—

“The murderer is right here. Heaven, open your eyes. Look at her.”

BOOM—

“When A-Man died, you were already too late. Do not keep being late forever. Heaven, open your eyes—please, open your eyes and look!”

BOOM—

Her figure, repeatedly pleading to the sky, was reflected in everyone’s eyes. One eunuch shook his head:

“She’s gone mad.”

“If she weren’t mad, how would she dare clash with the Dowager Consort like this?”

“How does the Imperial Household Department handle things? Letting a madwoman into the palace—aren’t they afraid of offending the noble ladies?”

Seeing public opinion gradually turning in her favor, Dowager Consort Yu resumed slowly turning her prayer beads. With a compassionate sigh, she said:

“Those who slander the virtuous will fall into the Hell of the Tongue Being Torn Out in the future. Wei Yingluo, I originally should punish you severely, but seeing you in this deranged and pitiful state, my heart cannot bear it. Never mind, never mind. Someone—take her to the Bureau of Careful Punishments!”

As the prayer beads turned in her hand, Dowager Consort Yu turned and left. But what was turning in her mind was not any thought of mercy.

“This woman cannot be allowed to live,” she thought. “I’ll make some arrangements above and below—let her ‘fall ill’ and die in the Bureau of Careful Punishments…”

BOOM—

Another clap of thunder rang out, accompanied by Wei Yingluo’s furious roar: “If Dowager Consort Yu is truly the murderer, then let her words become reality—let her wish be fulfilled!!”

In that instant, the window gauze hanging from the ceiling suddenly flared bright, as though a spiderweb had been set ablaze. It fell from above like burning silk, enveloping Dowager Consort Yu.

“Ahhh!!!” Dowager Consort Yu let out a blood-curdling scream amid the flames.

Everything happened so quickly that no one could react in time. Only when Dowager Consort Yu collapsed with a heavy thud—her body giving off the acrid smell of charred flesh—did Shoukang Palace fall into utter, deathly silence. Everyone stared at her in stunned disbelief, yet not a single person made a sound.

“…Hahahahaha!!”

The sudden, jarring laughter sent a shiver through the crowd, snapping them out of their daze.

“Retribution! This is retribution!” Wei Yingluo laughed wildly. “You all heard it—Dowager Consort Yu swore it with her own mouth. You all saw it—heaven itself sent down the thunder! Dowager Consort Yu—you have gotten exactly what you wished for!!”

Buddha above, in this life I have done good deeds, been a good person, never taken a single life, never wronged a single soul! If even half a sentence of what I say is false, may a bolt of heavenly thunder strike me down and reduce me to ashes—that was the oath Dowager Consort Yu had just sworn. Less than the time it takes to finish half a cup of tea had passed. How could anyone possibly forget?

   “…Someone…!” Dowager Consort Yu still had one breath left. She lay on the ground; one eye had already gone blind. She stared upward with her remaining right eye. The burning gauze overhead continued to drip bright red liquid onto her face, onto the ground around her… Strange—what were these red things? She had no strength left to ask. She only managed to whisper weakly: “Save me… quickly, save me…”

But who dared to save her?

Her personal maid, Bailing, took only one step forward before another peal of thunder sounded overhead. She immediately drew her foot back, clasped her hands together, and began chanting frantically: “Please, Thunder God, quell your anger! It was Dowager Consort Yu—Dowager Consort Yu who did wrong! It has nothing to do with me! Mercy, Bodhisattva! Mercy, Buddha! Please, Thunder God, calm your wrath!”

She was terrified—and so was everyone else.

No one noticed anything unusual about the window gauze. No one paid attention to the eerie red liquid dripping from it. Once it hit the ground, the pouring rain washed it away completely—along with the truth—leaving no trace behind.

“You bunch of… lowly sluts…” Dowager Consort Yu’s breathing grew fainter and fainter. She called for Bailing, for the other eunuchs and maids, but they were all paralyzed with fear. They would rather face severe punishment later than take even half a step forward now. Seeing this, Dowager Consort Yu cursed in despair: “You… will all die miserable deaths… you… you…”

The world before her eyes flickered between light and darkness. The last thing she saw was Wei Yingluo’s smile.

—A smile of a wish fulfilled.

STORY OF YANXI PALACE CHAPTERS HOME