Palace Maids, Destinies Bound to the Imperial Palace (9)

KAA-AANG!

The instant the golden blades crossed, the drums and war horns that had filled Fengtian Hall fell silent as one.

Even the wind held its breath. For a moment, stillness settled over the plaza before Fengtian Hall.

And then—

The Minister of Rites' voice rolled out from the white marble dais and echoed across the square before Fengtian Hall.

Three thousand taels of silver. Worth roughly a hundred and sixty thatched cottages. A Rank 7 county magistrate drew about forty-five taels a year — so call it sixty years' salary, give or take.

"Granted!"

A eunuch stood before Shengchen Gate with his right arm folded behind his back. Six chi of commanding frame, a face of striking beauty — Jin Myeong began to walk.

Pride sat openly on his features, unapologetic and serene.

He passed beneath the canopy the golden blades had made, approached, and prostrated himself.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long, long live the Emperor!"

As Jin Myeong called out the mountain-cry of loyalty from the ground, waiting eunuchs carried forward a table stacked with three thousand taels ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of silver, laid out in neat, gleaming piles.

The Minister of Rites continued.

"Granted!"

Supervisor of the Directorate was a proper Fifth Rank. It was the third office in the eunuch hierarchy, and the proof that a palace eunuch had at last risen into the ranks of the high. From this day forward, Jin Myeong would be addressed as Gonggong by those beneath him.

A man not yet twenty, raised to Directorate Supervisor. It had never happened before. It would never happen again. A miracle.

General of Martial Integrity was likewise a proper Fifth Rank. In days past, Zhu Gaochi had conferred upon Jin Myeong the Seventh Rank military prestige title of Commandant of Soaring Trust; the Yongle Emperor had simply elevated the new office in proportion to that former grade.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long, long live the Emperor!"

Jin Myeong came forward to fifty paces and prostrated himself. A table was set out displaying a new official robe, a cap of office, the written edict, and a command plaque.

There was still more to read. The Minister of Rites cleared his throat.

"Granted!"

The Touhou Robe stood with the python robe of the highest rank and the Flying Fish Robe of the second as one of the three garments the Emperor bestowed only upon ministers who had rendered extraordinary service. It was among the supreme honors of the court.

And sure enough, envy surfaced on a considerable number of faces among the civil and military officials. A mere inner attendant — neither scholar nor gentleman — daring to receive a Touhou Robe?

And what are you going to do about it, staring like that? You think merit just appears if you bury your noses in books all day? Tsk, tsk.

Jin Myeong felt their gazes and laughed inwardly.

That said, they could have handed it all over at once instead of making this such a production. I'll have to deal with that Minister of Rites first. Ugh. What a pain.

Walk, prostrate. Walk, prostrate. Was it not exhausting?

The three robes were such a singular honor because, unlike ordinary official dress, the creatures embroidered upon them resembled dragons. The Emperor's imperial dragon robe bore the five-clawed dragon, and the five-clawed dragon was the exclusive privilege of the Emperor and those of the imperial blood he permitted. The beast stitched upon the Touhou Robe had a dragon's head and a fish's tail, its horns curving downward. In a word, an imugi — a creature so like a dragon that the civil and military officials coveted it with their whole hearts. That was the reason.

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long, long live the Emperor!"

Before the prostrate Jin Myeong, a table was set bearing the Touhou Robe, folded with exquisite care — black silk, gold thread.

Meanwhile, off to one side of the marble dais, young eunuchs watched and murmured among themselves.

"Whoa…! His eunuch career is set for life. Set. A castrate the likes of which never existed and never will. Directorate Supervisor at that age? That's a eunuch's life made. How old did they say he was?"

"Hey now — a eunuch who makes it big is still a eunuch. Nineteen."

One of the young eunuchs sneered, clearly displeased.

"Watch your mouth, you eunuch. Don't you want a promotion? Why are you jealous of the kid? But damn — some people really do just make it. Of all twelve hours in a day, he just happened to be with Her Ladyship the Consort at that exact moment?"

The truth was, jealousy required a certain proximity of station. And Jin Myeong had, in fact, rendered extraordinary service. What they felt was less spite than envy.

He had not gotten here by throwing money around a gambling table or dealing from the bottom of the deck.

"Fair enough — nothing to be jealous of, really. That post was a place where his own life hung in the balance. If you can't live large, you should at least live long. No need to take on a risk like that, you know?"

"Exactly. He won that with his own neck on the line. If he hadn't saved her, it wouldn't have been just him — Steward Deok of Jangan Palace, and who was it, Attendant Chae — they'd all have been torn limb from limb, one after another."

Look no further than the matter of Noble Consort Wang. Had she died then, Jin Myeong would have been buried with the blame. In the end, everything he had won, he had won with his life as the stake.

"Obviously. But what happens if the heart organ is paralyzed? They say he saved her, right? You can't just dump true qi into someone and call it done. Should we ask him later? Who knows — we might need it ourselves someday."

"That's true, isn't it? If the heart organ seizes up, the blood stops moving. So you'd have to somehow squeeze the blood out, and then… huh?"

"Ohhh…? So then?"

The two eunuchs looked at each other, the same thought striking them at once. They confirmed it in each other's eyes.

"Alright, alright — let's just admit it. That kid's just lucky as hell. Nothing more to say."

"Yeah. Lucky's the word. When a eunuch gets that lucky, he even gets Her Ladyship the Consort's…"

Eunuchs up and down the ranks were murmuring about Jin Myeong as if they could talk of nothing else. Meanwhile, seated at the exact center of the dais, the Yongle Emperor gazed down at the prostrate figure on the steps with a look of deep satisfaction, and opened his mouth.

The words were for Noble Consort Wang.

"Consort."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"I shall give that one to you."

A stir of sharp interest ran through people at various points upon the dais — principally the household of Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi, and Zheng He. Zhu Gaochi and Zheng He looked at each other as if by prior arrangement. In the same instant, Princess Ju Jeong-won's face crumpled, and Lady Zhang and Zhu Zhanji could be seen soothing her.

Who would dare obstruct a decision of the Yongle Emperor? There was no one who could—

"No, Your Majesty."

—except one.

None other than Noble Consort Wang. So long as she held the Emperor's favor, she too was an absolute power.

"And why not?"

"If you do that, Your Majesty, it will look as though this humble concubine is taking the Crown Princess's person. How then could I ever hold my head up?"

A smile ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like a flower spread across a face already radiant with beauty.

Noble Consort Wang remembered the conversation she had had with Jin Myeong in the moments after she woke from the Heart-Penetrating Incense Poison.

She had been entirely won over by the man who had saved her life, and she was prepared to heed whatever he said. And so she refused both her own desire and the Emperor's command, and followed Jin Myeong's will.

"There is reason in that. Your consideration runs deep, Consort."

The moment the Yongle Emperor signaled his withdrawal of the offer, Princess Ju Jeong-won's face brightened at once. Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Zhanji both let out breaths of relief.

"Your Majesty, bestow a treasure upon him instead, and praise him highly. His rank was already high to begin with, was it not? Yes, Your Majesty?"

Noble Consort Wang's alluring voice melted the Emperor and the men around him. Even the taciturn Yongle Emperor could not suppress the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, and in that instant Zheng He had to concede that the seat of one below one man and above ten thousand in the Great Ming belonged to Noble Consort Wang.

She, for her part, fully intended to score a few more points with Jin Myeong while she was at it.

"I brought one regardless. He protected you. He must be properly rewarded. Hai Shou — are you there?"

The Yongle Emperor offered his beloved consort a faint smile and called for his personal attendant eunuch, the Joseon-born Hai Shou. His office was Chief Hall-Accompanying Eunuch, next after Yi Gwak.

"Here, Your Majesty!"

"Bring it."

"At once!"

Every eye on the dais gathered on Hai Shou the moment the order was given to fetch something. I brought one regardless could only mean the thing being fetched was a treasure — and not just any treasure, but one the Emperor himself would personally bestow. It was bound to be extraordinary.

"Minister of Rites. Tell the Directorate Supervisor to come up."

"This servant receives the command. Jang Jinmyeong, Supervisor of the Directorate of Ceremonial — ascend the dais and prostrate yourself ten paces from the throne!"

"Granted!"

Jin Myeong hurried up the steps in short, quick strides and prostrated himself. In that interval, Chief Hall-Accompanying Eunuch Hai Shou came forward bearing a square wooden casket and presented it to the Yongle Emperor.

A click.

Still seated, the Yongle Emperor opened the casket and took out what lay within.

Every gaze concentrated. Those seated at either end of the dais craned their necks to see.

"Its name is Cheonyang Biyeon — the Heavenly Yang Flying Swallow. A blade given to Us by Our friend, the King of Joseon."

A murmur of awe slipped through clenched teeth. No one had expected a sword to come out of that box.

It was the accession gift of Taejong of Joseon, Yi Bangwon, who had taken the throne some two years before the Yongle Emperor himself.

"The material is meteoric iron, with wrought iron added. Length, eight chi. Width of the blade, two cun."

The blade was a dull, dark color — and, astonishingly, it had been rolled up on itself. When the Yongle Emperor uncoiled the wound steel, the sword, longer than a man was tall, hung limp, without rigidity.

And then—

"This is not a rigid blade. It is a soft saber."

The manifestation of the Nine Dragons Great Net Qi, cultivated to the tenth star. The Yongle Emperor could not sustain his martial power for long — the internal injuries of years of personal campaigning saw to that — but he remained, without question, a martial artist of the Peak Realm, Late Stage.

Heavenly Yang, is it…? Noble Consort Wang. This woman really… she plays as beautifully as she looks.

Jin Myeong, come unexpectedly into a treasure, marveled at her goodwill and studied the Cheonyang Biyeon's appearance. The Yongle Emperor turned the long blade this way and that as he continued.

"Set in the hilt is a Pure Yang Dry Jade, which nourishes the purest yang energy. An inner attendant is deficient in pure yang. It will aid your cultivation."

Sound reasoning, as far as principle went. It simply did not apply to Jin Myeong as he was now.

Because Jin Myeong was not a eunuch.

His yang energy was already burning at a roar; he was only just keeping the balance with the Jeong-eum Divine Blade that Zhu Gaochi had given him.

Damn it. Am I going to grip this thing and fall into qi deviation? Still — it's a weapon made for the Bright Sky Hand.

Meteoric iron alone was a treasure whose price was whatever the seller named, and to have forged that meteoric iron together with wrought iron into this meant the craftsman's art was first under heaven. Add the Pure Yang Dry Jade, and it was the fated pair to the Jeong-eum Divine Blade, in which a Pure Yin Kun Jade was set.

And since it had been bestowed, he could hold it up and brandish it in the open. From this day forward he meant to leave the Sun Moon Blood Light Claw Technique behind and wield the Bright Sky Hand.

"Furthermore, We elevate the Cheonyang Biyeon to the status of an imperial sword, and permit it to be carried within the inner palace. With this blade, defend the Imperial House."

The people on the dais started in shock.

To elevate it to an imperial sword meant that, depending on the hour, it could act as a proxy for the Emperor's own authority. To permit it to be carried in the inner palace meant that Jin Myeong was being granted immunity — limited to invaders who had breached the palace — for the act of killing within the Forbidden City.

How could they not be stunned?

An imperial sword, with the Emperor's further leave, was a thing that could take the head of any official below a given rank without prior report. This was an exception among exceptions, and a glimpse of what real power the guards of the Eastern Depot would one day wield.

"We have heard the Consort's plea and bestowed a divine weapon upon the inner attendant. The inner attendant shall devote himself to the protection of the Crown Prince, the Crown Princess, and the Imperial Grandson."

"This Supervisor, Jang Jinmyeong, receives the command."

The Cheonyang Biyeon was rolled up once more and returned to the casket. As Jin Myeong received the box from Hai Shou's hands, his eyes met Noble Consort Wang's.

Your Ladyship, thank—

He flinched.

He had been about to send his thanks by telepathy, and in that instant he hesitated. The reason was simple: Noble Consort Wang was smiling, and her fingers were playing over her own lips.

On any other day he would have thought it beautiful. Not today.

This woman…! Don't tell me she was awake then?

The lips. The smile. He understood what they meant. It was that kiss. The kiss that had melted the Thousand-Year Jade Clarity.

Come now… that was treatment, I tell you.

The memory of that kiss sent a chill through him. Jin Myeong looked at her smiling face and gave an involuntary shudder — and in that moment, the Yongle Emperor rose.

Jin Myeong bowed his head at once.

The investiture of Noble Consort Wang as Empress. That was why the Yongle Emperor had staged the meritorious reward of a mere inner attendant on so grand a scale.

As expected — an Emperor is an Emperor. She must have given him quite a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠scare, though. Save her life and he invests her as Empress on the spot. Looking at it now, even that man of iron and blood has grown old. To be shaken over a woman.

Jin Myeong marveled inwardly at the Emperor's method. Had the matter been raised during morning court or a classical lecture, the ministers would have argued ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for and against without end. Instead, he had laid down a thousand Brocade Guards as a ceremonial vanguard to seize the initiative, broken the civil and military officials' spirit by elevating his closest eunuchs, and then thundered the announcement like a bolt from a clear sky.

A move of genuine precision and seasoned craft.

And in the midst of it, to heap such staggering glory upon a mere eunuch for saving Noble Consort Wang's life was at once a display of his profound affection for her and a demonstration of his will regarding the Empress's investiture.

Defy me if you dare. But be prepared to be marked for it.

Was that not the meaning?

With the Brocade Guard spread across the courtyard, not a single minister had the liver to embarrass the Emperor by going against his will.

"…Your Imperial Grace is boundless, Your Majesty!"

In the end, the ministers who understood the shape of the thing had no choice but to raise the white flag.

The Yongle Emperor smiled, satisfied, having concluded his planned affairs in a single flowing stroke. The entire ceremony was about to close in peace.

It was then.

It was precisely then that Huang Yan, the Brush-Holding Grand Eunuch standing behind Zheng He, sought out the Yongle Emperor.

"Your Majesty. Gu Ryun, Clerk of the Directorate of Ceremonial, says he has an urgent matter to report, and I have admitted him."

Unexpected. Zheng He, his direct superior, thought so — and so did everyone else.

He could have reported it later. Why now, of all times?

That was the thought in every mind. Zheng He, in particular, found Huang Yan and Gu Ryun's decision to step forward without so much as consulting him infuriating. And yet, precisely because of that, it could be no ordinary matter.

"What is it?"

"He says a sinister rumor is circulating in the palace."

"A sinister rumor?"

A stir. The civil and military officials, who had been preparing to leave the plaza, stopped where they stood. Whispers sprang up on every side.

Presently a young eunuch in his mid-twenties — Gu Ryun, Rank 8 Clerk of the Directorate of Ceremonial — hurried forward and prostrated himself before the Yongle Emperor.

"Speak at once."

Huang Yan pressed the prostrate Gu Ryun. Gu Ryun, flat on the ground, was trembling — from tension, it seemed.

"N-Noble Consort Xiao Xian was…"

Gu Ryun opened his mouth in a shaking voice.

"…poisoned. Jang Jinmyeong, then Clerk of the Directorate of Ceremonial. The attending eunuchs and palace women of Jangan Palace. The imperial physician who treated Noble Consort Xiao Xian. They were all in it together, and they disguised it as paralysis of the heart organ."

"What."

A low rumble. In that instant, the Yongle Emperor's quiet roar rolled out, and a wild wind tore across the plaza.

Noble Consort Wang had been poisoned. Not anyone else — Noble Consort Wang.

For a moment the Yongle Emperor remembered the death of Consort Quan, whom he had once loved enough to take with him even onto the battlefield.

"Proof. Is there proof?"

"G-Gong Jun of the Imperial Academy of Medicine is on his way, Your Majesty."

"An imperial physician is coming?"

He had asked whether there was proof of a poisoning disguised as paralysis of the heart organ, and the answer, without preamble, was that an imperial physician was on his way. It planted in the Yongle Emperor a powerful premonition that the sinister rumor might be true.

"You—"

Rage began to rise. The Yongle Emperor's head turned, slowly, and locked onto Jin Myeong, still prostrate, and Zheng He standing beside him.

Had they touched the reverse scale of a mad dragon?

The eyes of a dragon on the verge of roaring burned. The air, which had been gentle, transformed in an instant. The atmosphere went dry, as if a thunderbolt might fall at any moment.

In the silence that followed, shock and worry, unease and terror crept across the faces of Zhu Gaochi's household and everyone else. Cold sweat beaded along spines, in palms, at the crowns of heads.

But two people were different.

Myeong-ah.

Yes, Gonggong.

Will you be all right? This is a matter upon which your fate and that of our entire clan hangs.

Two people exchanging telepathy. In a chaos where everyone else had been struck dumb, the only two who wore expressions of perfect calm were Jin Myeong and Zheng He.

So long as this humble one lives, from this day forward no one will ever be able to touch our clan.

With that answer, Jin Myeong lifted his head a fraction. His pupils shone.

They were fixed on Huang Yan.

How is it that your methods are never even slightly original, you pitiful eunuch?