Joy
The carriage came to a halt before the palace gates, and Bai Jingyan helped her mother, Lady Dong, down from it. General Zhang Danyue and his family, along with Zhen Zeping and his family, who had arrived ahead of them, hurried forward and bowed with the utmost deference to Lady Dong and Third Madame Li, then sang the praises of Bai Jingyan and Bai Jinchi until their mouths ran dry.
The moment Bai Jinchi dismounted, she drew close to Bai Jingyan's side and lowered her voice.
"I just heard the news — Prince Yan of Xiliang, Li Zhijie, and Princess Pyeongyang aren't coming today."
Anyone could see this was a celebration of Great Jin's victory over Xiliang. Why would a man of Xiliang show his face here without the faintest sense of decorum? Li Zhijie was a man whose head was always clear.
The young daughters of the Zhang and Zhen households had been standing dutifully behind their mothers when they caught sight of Bai Jingyan — and her beauty, so striking it stole one's gaze, left them inwardly astonished. So this was Bai Jingyan, the eldest daughter of the Bai family, whom their fathers had praised without pause for her courage, her brilliance, her extraordinary will — and she possessed a beauty that could pluck the very soul from a person's chest.
The girls had meant to draw near, to get acquainted with Bai Jingyan and Bai Jinchi and exchange greetings. But then they remembered that Bai Jingyan was the ruthless creature who had put a hundred thousand surrendered soldiers to death, and none of them dared step closer.
Only after Lady Zhang and Lady Zhen urged them forward did they finally approach Bai Jingyan, fidgeting and stammering their greetings.
Watching Bai Jingyan smile as she returned the salutations, the sixth daughter of the Zhang household murmured under her breath to the third daughter of the Zhen household.
"Isn't she just too pretty? Where on earth does she look like someone who could kill a hundred thousand people?"
Bai Jingyan had followed her grandfather about since she was a small child, and after she was wounded, she had shut herself away at home to convalesce, rarely setting foot beyond the gates. For that reason, the daughters of the great families in Dadu knew little of her face.
The noble young men of the capital had gossiped endlessly about how beautiful Bai Jingyan, the eldest daughter of the Bai clan, was, but the girls had merely turned up their noses, certain the boys were exaggerating. Beautiful or not, surely she could not surpass Liu Yafu, the County Mistress of Nan Tao.
And today, having seen Bai Jingyan in the flesh, the daughters of the Zhang and Zhen households confirmed that those young men had not exaggerated in the slightest. The beauty of Bai Jingyan, eldest daughter of the Bai clan, outshone Liu Yafu's many times over — a flawless, exquisite loveliness that set the heart of anyone who beheld it racing.
Only, the air she carried was like a flower in full bloom on the peak of a high mountain — near enough to admire, but not easily approached.
"You can't judge a person by their face. Everyone who's ever marched to war has cut off men's heads with their own hands. What would they possibly be incapable of?"
Lowering her voice to a whisper, the third daughter of the Zhen household spoke with her eyes gleaming.
"That's what Father said — if the Xiliang soldiers weren't killed, then Jin soldiers would die! He said it's only ignorant commoners who know nothing of war that call the killing of surrendered soldiers cruel. On the battlefield, even a child becomes the enemy the moment he draws a blade — when it's your life or mine, where would you find room for sentiment?"
The sixth daughter of the Zhang household was still too young to fully grasp what she was being told, but she understood the part about 'ignorant commoners.' Fearing the Zhen girl might count her among them, she nodded along as though she understood perfectly.
Then the eldest daughter of the Zhang household pursed her lips and began openly sizing up this 'murderous fiend.'
Sensing the hostility in that gaze, Bai Jingyan lifted her eyes to meet it. Her gaze was like the surface of a deep well — not a single ripple.
The eldest Zhang daughter tensed, her fists clenching tight, and her heart began to pound for no reason she could name. She frowned and dropped her eyes, dabbing at her chest with a handkerchief. The aura Bai Jingyan gave off was simply too fierce; it would be best, she decided, to keep her distance from now on.
Though it was a palace banquet, the Empress was absent. Since the incident with King Xin, the Empress had taken to her sickbed, and all matters concerning the imperial consorts were being handled by Consort Yu, the Crown Prince's mother. Those attending the banquet at the Emperor's side today were Consort Yu and the newly elevated Lady Chou.
As the son received such exalted favor, his mother's station seemed to have risen with it. Where Consort Yu had once moved about quietly, she now wore a phoenix hairpin in her hair and appeared in splendid, ornate dress, her chin lifted high — unmistakably changed from the figure Bai Jingyan remembered from banquets in years past.
Inside the great hall, dancers took up wooden swords and performed a sword dance in full armor.
The music conjured a fierce, martial atmosphere, but the dancers' movements lacked all force. There was no killing intent at all — it was a dance crafted purely for pretty poses.
Bai Jingyan had little interest in song and dance, and her gaze drifted to Lady Chou, seated beside the Emperor. She possessed a transcendent beauty. Bai Jingyan had no memories of her aunt Bai Xiaoqiu, but it struck her that the clear, smiling eyes of Lady Chou were exactly like the aunt she had seen only in paintings.
Lady Chou turned her head and looked at Bai Jingyan. A deep smile bloomed on her face, and she raised her wine cup toward Bai Jingyan from across the distance.
Refusal was impossible. Bai Jingyan lifted her cup and took a small, measured sip.
The Emperor glanced sideways at Lady Chou, then looked once at Bai Jingyan before asking her with conspicuous tenderness, "Do you find Bai Jingyan to your liking?"
"Yes!"
Lady Chou answered with a radiant smile.
"I couldn't say why, but when I look at the eldest daughter of the Bai family, she feels familiar to me."
The Emperor took Lady Chou's hand and toyed with it lightly. Bai Xiaoqiu had adored Bai Jingyan when she was born.
Lady Chou is Xiaoqiu returned to this world. If she were not, how could she take to Bai Jingyan the moment she laid eyes on her?
"Your Majesty," Lady Chou said, wrapping her small, soft fingers around the Emperor's large hand, "when I was serving in the King Yang Estate, I seem to recall hearing that Yang King and the eldest Bai daughter got along remarkably well."
"I've been blessed with such good fortune since meeting Your Majesty that I find myself wishing every pair of lovers in this world might fare as well as we do. That woman Hongqiao drove a wedge between the eldest Bai daughter and Yang King — drove her to cut off all contact with him and speak words of bitterness — but I believe the affection between those two ran as deep as Yours and mine! I wonder if that wasn't how the eldest Bai daughter felt, back then. When Your Majesty went to the chambers of the other sisters, I would feel as though I never wished to see Your Majesty again. Something like that, perhaps?"
The Emperor's fingers, which had been tracing the back of Lady Chou's hand, went still.
"You mean to act as matchmaker between Yang King and Bai Jingyan?"
"I only wish that every bond between two people might come to fulfillment — as Yours and mine have."
Lady Chou's eyes grew damp, as though stirred by some overwhelming emotion.
"I am fond of the eldest Bai daughter. I would like for us to become one family."
"Bai Jingyan, however, has sworn never to marry — and her fortune with children is said to be thin. It would hardly be fitting."
The Emperor spoke slowly. Yet he did not refuse outright.
"Let me think on it further."
Lady Chou did not press. She gazed at the Emperor with tender eyes and answered, "As you wish."
Consort Yu cast a sidelong glance at Lady Chou and the Emperor, then lifted her cup and sneered under her breath.
"An insolent little chit like that — what on earth does she imagine she has in common with that woman!"
Consort Yu had known Bai Xiaoqiu too. Bai Xiaoqiu had been a woman of proud bearing and unyielding spine, radiating a lofty, unapproachable grace. She would never once have stooped to such coaxing, flirtatious behavior — and had she witnessed it, she would surely have turned up her nose in contempt.
It was Bai Jingyan, the eldest daughter of the Bai clan, who actually bore a resemblance to Bai Xiaoqiu.
When the song and dance drew to a close, the Emperor smiled and spoke.
"Thanks to the sacrifice of our generals and soldiers, we achieved a great victory in the Southern Border! All who earned merit in this war shall receive rewards. And the generals deserve them all the more. Gao Demu — read the decree."
The assembled crowd knelt as one to receive the imperial edict.
General Zhang Danyue is conferred the title of Fujun Great General.
General Zhen Zeping is conferred the title of Huaihua Great General.
General Shi Panshan is conferred the title of Yunhui Great General.
Each shall receive a thousand taels of gold and a newly granted residence.
When the decree had been read, Zhen Zeping — an honest, blunt-spoken man if ever there was one — lifted his head and called out to the Emperor seated high above.
"Your Majesty — General Bai is the one who earned the foremost merit in this war!"
Zhen Zeping was worried that the Emperor might find fault with Bai Jingyan over her killing of the surrendered soldiers.
"Look at him!"
The Crown Prince laughed as he turned to the Emperor.
"Father, didn't I say so? That quick-tempered General Zhen was certain to blurt something out before the words had even cooled."
The smile on the Emperor's face deepened.
The Crown Prince spoke again, laughing.
"General Zhen, no need to be impatient. How could Father ever forget the eldest Bai daughter? It's only that she is a woman, and so cannot be made a general — Father intends to reward her in another way."
Bai Jingyan kept her head bowed, holding her posture of obeisance.
The Emperor directed Gao Demu to read the second decree.
Gao Demu unfurled another scroll and read it out in a ringing voice.
Bai Jingyan, legitimate granddaughter of the King of Zhenguo, threw herself valiantly onto the field of battle in the cause of righteousness and delivered the imperiled people of the Southern Border from ruin. She has proven herself worthy of the name of Zhenguo.
She is hereby conferred the title of Zhenguo Commandery Princess.
Bai Jinchi, fourth daughter of the Bai family, is conferred the title of Gaoyi County Princess.
Gao Demu went on reciting the details of the rewards behind her, but the words no longer reached Bai Jingyan's ears.
Zhenguo Commandery Princess — the title alone was extraordinary.
To receive such a title for the great victory in the Southern Border — how precious a designation it was.
But precious as it was, a title of this kind carried no real power. The Emperor had no intention of using the Bai family, no intention of using her — yet he had deliberately left a thread dangling, attaching the name 'Zhenguo' to it.
Now that she bore the name 'Zhenguo,' if ever a day came when Great Jin needed her strength, she would not be able to sit quietly and watch from the sidelines. The imperial family truly knew how to use their heads.
For the daughters of noble houses, being granted a title of Commandery Princess or County Princess raised one's value on the marriage market considerably. Third Madame Li was in high spirits — since her daughter and Bai Jingyan were not men, she reasoned that being made a Commandery Princess and a County Princess was a far finer thing than any generalship.
Bai Jingyan and Bai Jinchi bowed low, offering their thanks to the Emperor.
The Crown Prince spoke to Bai Jingyan with a smiling face.
"Father has bestowed a manor upon the Zhenguo Commandery Princess and named it the Zhenguo Commandery Princess Estate — the plaque bears Father's own calligraphy. Such favor has never before been seen in all of Dadu."
Bai Jingyan nearly knit her brow, but she bowed obediently once more from her knees.
"I am grateful for the grace of Your Majesty and His Highness the Crown Prince. However, the manor in Suyang has already finished its repairs, and after consulting with my mother and my aunts, we have decided to return to Suyang on the first day of the fifth month. I fear I will not be able to stay long at the Commandery Princess Estate. Should Your Majesty summon me back to Dadu again someday, I shall settle into the estate at that time."
The Zhenguo Duke Estate of the Bai family had been bestowed by the founding Emperor himself. Now the Bai family was retiring of its own accord from its hereditary rank and returning to Suyang — and the Bai family that remained would be a Bai family no longer.
The moment the Crown Prince heard this, light flashed in his eyes, and he dropped to his knees before the Emperor at once.
"Father, there is a matter your son would ask of you. The Bai Estate was bestowed upon the Bai family by the founding Emperor. The Zhenguo Commandery Princess grew up within its walls and must be deeply attached to it. What if Father were to hang his own hand-written plaque upon the Bai Estate, and bestow the Bai Estate itself upon the Zhenguo Commandery Princess instead?"
Bai Jingyan said nothing, head bowed, kneeling in silence.
The Emperor narrowed his eyes and considered. It sounded like a reward, but in truth it was nothing more than a change of name. Once the Bai family stepped back from its rank of its own accord, the plaque reading 'Zhenguo Duke Estate' would simply become 'Bai Estate' — and now that Bai Estate would merely be renamed the 'Zhenguo Commandery Princess Estate.'
"Then let it be as the Crown Prince says."
The Emperor answered slowly.
"Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Your Highness the Crown Prince!"