Story of Yanxi Palace, Chapter 168: Heavenly Maiden

   “In the Great Qing, girls reach hairpin maturity at fifteen. A woman of twenty-seven is long since surrounded by children. Yet such an ‘aged beauty’ has become the woman most favored by His Majesty. Wei Yingluo, are you truly not worried?” The Empress answered for her. “If you were not afraid, you would not have returned to the Forbidden City! In the Forbidden City, there are only eternal interests—never eternal enemies. Only if you and I cooperate can we deal with Concubine Rong. Otherwise, you will ultimately have to return to the Yuanmingyuan! Think carefully. I await your reply!”

Wei Yingluo was silent for a long moment before she resumed walking.

Seeing that despite everything she had said, Wei Yingluo still left in the end, the Empress frowned. She tossed the wisteria flower in her hand to the ground and spoke coldly:

“Yuan Chunwang, will Consort Ling truly agree to cooperate with me?”

As the most patient hunter in the Forbidden City, a trace of impatience actually crept into her voice—proof of just how formidable her opponent was, far beyond what Wei Yingluo had imagined.

“She will.” Yuan Chunwang calmly watched the direction in which Wei Yingluo had departed. “Hearing is false; seeing is believing. As soon as she catches one glimpse of Chenbi, she will obediently come begging you.”

On the way back to Yanxi Palace, Wei Yingluo was weighed down with heavy thoughts. Ming Yu glanced at her several times, wanting to speak but hesitating. The two walked in silence for a stretch until Wei Yingluo suddenly stopped, let out a soft scoff, and said:

“I still fell for his trick after all.”

Yuan Chunwang had not invited her to attend a welcoming banquet—he had invited her to catch a single glimpse of someone.

That was why the reception banquet was held in the Imperial Garden: because Hongli and a certain someone was also there in the Imperial Garden.

Not far ahead, a crowd of palace maids and eunuchs had gathered beneath a large tree. Hongli was looking up and shouting toward the branches:

“Come down right now!”

The branches swayed. Everyone below immediately raised their hands in unison. The scene was at once comical and solemn, as though thousands upon thousands were welcoming the descent of a heavenly maiden.

Suddenly, a clear chime of silver bells rang out. In the blink of an eye, a woman in white—with silver bells tied around her ankles—descended gracefully from above, ethereal as moonlight among clouds, pristine as snow on the Heavenly Mountains.

She resembled an immortal descending from the heavens and landed steadily in Hongli’s arms.

Hongli caught her firmly, then asked in a low voice:

“What happened?”

A palace maid beside them explained nervously:

“Reporting to Your Majesty: when Her ladyship Concubine Rong passed by, she noticed a fledgling bird had fallen from the tree and wanted to return it to its nest.”

Hongli: “Chenbi!”

“Your Majesty, please don’t be angry,” Chenbi spoke. Her voice was extraordinarily pleasing—each word sounded almost like singing. “It was this concubine’s fault. You have told me many times not to act on whim. Next time something like this happens, I will definitely instruct them to handle it and won’t let you worry anymore, alright?”

Legend said that in the West there was a wondrous bird of exquisite voice called the kalavinka, which served the Buddha with its song. Her voice was exactly like that of a kalavinka—one capable of delighting even the Buddha—and it likewise delighted Hongli. He sighed, took out a handkerchief, and personally wiped the dust from her face.

Chenbi laughed softly, like a kalavinka gently beginning to sing. Halfway through the song, she suddenly turned her head toward the direction where Wei Yingluo stood. Her eyes sparkled with innocence and curiosity.

Wei Yingluo’s entire body stiffened. The instant she saw Chenbi’s face, her mind went blank. No word could describe her appearance; she felt only a profound sense of inferiority and shame.

“What is it?” Hongli followed her gaze but saw nothing—there was no one ahead.

“Someone was standing there just now,” Chenbi said with a smile. “Watching us the whole time. The moment you turned your head, you scared her away.”

Hongli glanced toward Li Yu. Li Yu reminded him quietly:

“Your Majesty, it was Her Ladyship Consort Ling.”

At the mention of that name, Hongli’s face immediately darkened. He took Chenbi’s hand and led her in the opposite direction:

“Come. I’ll take you to the watchtower to watch the sunset.”

The sunset over the Forbidden City was magnificent and grand, like a splendid brocade unfurling from the horizon across the earth. Yet Wei Yingluo had no heart to appreciate it.

Ming Yu: “Yingluo, are you really going to cooperate with the Empress?”

Wei Yingluo: “Why not?”

Ming Yu: “But I don’t understand. You had already refused her. Then, after just one glance at Concubine Rong, you immediately changed your mind. Is she really that special?”

The two of them had already returned to Yanxi Palace. The setting sun streamed in through the window, dyeing the mirror in front of Wei Yingluo a deep red. She pointed at her own reflection in the glass:

“Look at this face.”

Ming Yu followed Yingluo’s gaze and asked curiously, “What’s wrong with it?”

Wei Yingluo’s finger slowly traced across the mirror—over her lips, her nose, and finally her eyes:

“This face isn’t cute at all. It’s like the moment my eyes blink, some wicked scheme is already brewing.”

Ming Yu burst out laughing. “Who talks about themselves like that? So what’s so different about Concubine Rong’s face?”

Recalling that fleeting, breathtaking glimpse of beauty, Wei Yingluo suddenly felt she understood why Hongli had forgotten her—forgotten to reply to her letters.

With a woman like that in the world—one who seemed to gather every beautiful thing between heaven and earth, like a celestial maiden descended—who would still pay attention to ordinary rouge and powder?

“Concubine Rong’s face is exactly the one I’ve always wanted most.” Wei Yingluo stared blankly at her own reflection, unconsciously comparing herself to that other face. “…Pure and flawless, gentle and approachable, the kind that makes people’s hearts fill with tender affection.”

Ming Yu couldn’t help laughing again. “So that’s why you decided to work with the Empress? Just for a face?”

Wei Yingluo shook her head. “It’s not only because of her appearance. It’s also her manner.”

Ming Yu looked puzzled.

“For the sake of a little bird, she climbed up a tree… On anyone else, it would seem ridiculous. But on her, it’s called innocence.” Wei Yingluo closed her eyes and sighed wearily. “A woman who is innocent and untouched by the dust of the world is the most dangerous, because she is the one who most easily wins a man’s heart—especially a complicated man like His Majesty…”

She really wished she could have a face like Concubine Rong’s.

If she too had been born so pure and guileless, making people feel protective and tender at first sight, then her path in the palace would have been so much easier. She wouldn’t have faced so much suspicion from so many people the moment she entered—especially from Hongli. It wouldn’t have taken so much time and so many trials to finally change the way he looked at her.

“That makes sense.” Seeing her mood dip, Ming Yu quickly tried to change the subject with a teasing tone. “If you had a face like that, seducing His Majesty would be twice the result with half the effort!”

Was that really how one should phrase it? Wei Yingluo instantly forgot her melancholy, shot her a glare, and retorted irritably:

“Wrong! With a face like that, how convenient it would be to do bad things!”

“But right now His Majesty clearly likes women like Concubine Rong…” Ming Yu hesitated for a moment, then cautiously suggested, “How about… you try imitating Concubine Rong?”

“I can’t imitate her, and I don’t want to.” Wei Yingluo was silent for a long while before finally smiling. “Wei Yingluo is Wei Yingluo. Why should I turn into someone else? If I want to win someone’s heart, I’ll do it my own way. All right—please make another trip for me. Deliver a message to the Empress. Tell her…”

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