Story of Yanxi Palace, Chapter 183: Elopement

   The wild wind tousled the flowers; the moon floated over hills and valleys. Fuheng sat alone at his desk. Moonlight streamed in through the window, falling upon the ruby gardenia earring resting in the palm of his hand.

The gem shimmered with flowing light, much like her eyes—quietly gazing at him in silent depth.

In his ears echoed the words Chenbi had spoken that morning: “Tomorrow, the Empress Dowager will go to the Medicine King Temple to offer incense. Most of the guards will be reassigned away from the palace, leaving the security lax. That will be the only opportunity. If you truly intend to elope with her and fly far away, prepare a carriage and wait for her outside Xizhi Gate…”

He sighed, as though finally making up his mind, and gripped the earring tightly in his hand.

By a strange coincidence, in Yanxi Palace, Wei Yingluo lay on the cold bed and slowly opened her palm. In the center of her hand rested the same gardenia-red ruby earring.

In her ears, too, rang the words Chenbi had said that morning: “The Cangzhen Gate near Yanxi Palace is the route the water carts pass every day. That is your only chance.”

After tossing and turning for a long time, Wei Yingluo finally sighed, sat up on the bed.

Was it her imagination? The night seemed unusually quiet.

Yuan Chunwang was absent, and even Xiaoquanzi was nowhere to be seen. Wei Yingluo sat on the bed for a moment, then quietly got down, tiptoed to the door, and cautiously pushed it.

Creak—

The door opened. A sliver of moonlight slipped through the crack and fell across her face.

…Even the night-watch eunuch was gone. Where had everyone disappeared to?

Whether they had gone to relieve themselves or sneaked off to sleep, this seemed to be Wei Yingluo’s perfect—and only—opportunity.

One embroidered shoe stepped out from behind the door.

Then she walked all the way from the sleeping chamber into the rear courtyard.

In the courtyard stood rockeries, strange stones, exotic flowers, and rare plants—yet one thing looked completely out of place: a large water barrel.

Wei Yingluo had no idea where the barrel had come from, just as she had no idea where the night-watch eunuchs had gone.

“Most likely Chenbi’s doing,” she murmured to herself. Then she walked to the barrel, lifted the lid, and peered inside…

The next day was the day the Empress Dowager would leave the palace to pay respects to the Buddha.

   Silk and bamboo music floated sweetly through the air; the qin sounded like a gentle lament. Inside Baoyue Tower, Chenbi danced to the rhythm. As she bent her waist in a graceful turn, her gaze flicked toward Hongli. He sat with one hand propping his cheek, clearly distracted—his eyes were on her, but his mind had wandered somewhere far away.

“Ah!”

Hongli snapped back to reality and hurried over to help Chenbi up from where she had fallen: “How could you be so careless? Li Yu, summon the imperial physician at once!”

Li Yu responded with a quick “Yes!” and hurried away.

“How can you be so absent-minded even while dancing?” Hongli scooped Chenbi into his arms and carried her to the couch. “Later we have to accompany the Empress Dowager to the Medicine King Temple. If you injure your foot, you won’t be going anywhere—you’ll just have to stay here in Baoyue Tower and stare into space.”

Seeing the anxious look on Chenbi’s face, he suddenly smiled and playfully tapped the tip of her nose.

“I’ll stay behind too,” he said with a laugh. “I’ll keep you company while you daydream. How about that?”

Chenbi stared at him blankly for a moment. Then she suddenly rolled off the couch, knelt before him, and said through streaming tears: “Your Majesty, there is something I have kept hidden in my heart for a very long time. I never dared to report it. But you have treated me so kindly—if I don’t tell you the truth now, I truly cannot bear it!”

Hongli was taken aback: “What is it you want to say?”

Chenbi pressed her lips together, as though waging an intense internal struggle. Finally, gritting her teeth, she said: “Your Majesty, Yingluo, she…”

The candle flame burned steadily on the table, yet it brought no warmth at all.

When Li Yu rushed back with the imperial physician, what greeted them was Hongli’s face as cold as frost. In an instant, the entire Baoyue Tower seemed to plunge into winter; every person present shivered uncontrollably from the chill.

“Your Majesty!” Chenbi suddenly cried out, then limped after him. “Where are you going? You… you promised this consort you wouldn’t make things difficult for Yingluo!”

But how could Hongli listen to her? He strode out quickly and headed straight for Yanxi Palace.

   Inside Yanxi Palace, the place was already deserted—people gone, building empty.

Looking at the bare, vacant bed before him, Hongli suddenly spoke: “Li Yu.”

“This servant is here!” Li Yu hurried forward.

“Transmit my decree,” Hongli said coldly. “Seal the Shenwu Gate.”

Li Yu was stunned. “Today the Empress Dowager is going to the Medicine King Temple. If we seal the gate now, it will inevitably alarm Her Majesty—”

Hongli: “Seal it!”

Li Yu knelt. “As you command!”

A donkey cart, driven by two young eunuchs, slowly approached the Shenwu Gate.

Several water buckets on the cart were covered with a large tarpaulin. The buckets were all identical in style—exactly the same as the ones used in Wei Yingluo’s courtyard.

One of the young eunuchs yawned. “We have to go fetch water from Yuquan Mountain at the third watch every day. Walking all the way to the Forbidden City is enough to wear a person stupid with exhaustion! What’s the difference between the palace wells and Yuquan Mountain water? Isn’t it all just water?”

The other young eunuch elbowed him, signaling him to watch his words.

The first eunuch pursed his lips. “Yes, yes, I know—the water for His Majesty and the Empress Dowager must of course be the best water in the world! Yuquan water is sweet and pure—how could any ordinary well compare?”

As the two chattered, the front wheel of the donkey cart passed through the gate.

Clop-clop-clop—the sound of hooves grew louder from the distance. Li Yu, mounted on a tall horse, pointed at the donkey cart from afar: “By His Majesty’s oral decree—seal the Shenwu Gate! Quick—stop that donkey cart!”

Even if the guards didn’t recognize him personally, they recognized his robes—he was clearly a high-ranking eunuch from the palace. Moreover, he was followed by so many imperial guards.

The upright spears immediately crossed in front, blocking the donkey cart’s path. The two young eunuchs stood frozen in panic before the cart, trembling with fear.

Li Yu dismounted. Beside him stood Yuan Chunwang. Yuan Chunwang strode quickly to the side of the donkey cart. His narrow phoenix eyes flicked toward the half-man-high water bucket on top, and he sneered coldly: “Palace treasures have been stolen and are suspected to be hidden in the water cart. Come—arrest them all and take them back!”

And so, under the watchful eyes of a grand procession, the donkey cart was escorted all the way to the front of Yangxin Hall.

Hongli was already waiting there.

Yuan Chunwang bowed respectfully. “Your Majesty, the water cart has been fully recovered.”

Hongli’s hands shook with rage. He struggled to keep his voice calm: “Li Yu!”

Li Yu waved his hand.

A faint smile curled at the corner of Yuan Chunwang’s mouth. He led the crowd away, leaving only Hongli, Chenbi, Li Yu, and the four trusted guards who had escorted the water cart.

“Your Majesty.” Chenbi clung to his arm, pleading tearfully. “Yingluo has always been proud and unyielding—how could she endure the desolate chill of Yanxi Palace? Those cries of anguish were only begging me to save her life! I truly couldn’t bear it, and since I also owe Lord Fucha a debt for saving my life, I agreed to help the two of them elope.”

She had such a talent for twisting black into white with just a few words.

“I was wrong, and Yingluo was wrong too.” Tears streamed down her face, her expression innocent and lovely, yet her words seemed spoken entirely for the sake of others. “Please, for the sake of past affection, spare her life—will you?”

But hearing her words only made Hongli angrier. He flung Chenbi’s arm away, strode to the donkey cart, reached out, and seized the tarpaulin—yet for a long moment, he could not bring himself to lift it.

Li Yu said nervously, “Your Majesty?”

Every one of his fingers was trembling. Hongli took a deep breath: “Come here!”

Li Yu: “Yes.”

Hongli stepped back half a pace and closed his eyes.

Under everyone’s watchful gaze, Li Yu yanked off the covering cloth and was about to lift the lid of the water barrel when, unexpectedly, the barrel swayed twice and then rolled off the cart with a thunderous crash.

The barrel rolled several times on the ground, the lid popped open, and a person tumbled out from inside.

“You… you…” Li Yu pointed at the other person, unable to utter a complete sentence for a long while.

Hongli had kept his eyes tightly shut, unable to bear watching—until now. Only then did he slowly open them. When he clearly saw the face of the person who had emerged, he was stunned and blurted out: “How could it be you—”

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