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Two servants entered, setting down a plate of sugar-dusted persimmon cakes and two cups containing bulbs of bundled hibiscus leaves. The bundles gently unfurled into blooming orange flowers when the servants poured boiling water over them.
Xifeng took only a small bite of her cake, though she could have happily swallowed it whole. She studied the Empress as the woman dismissed the servants and helped herself.
Her Majesty’s face and neck were lily-white, the skin of a wealthy lady who never had to expose herself to the sun. She had wide, trusting eyes, but the lines of weariness around them belied her age. She was the mother of three sons, but she seemed lost and lonely. Akira had said that the Empress was nearing fifty but still longed for a girl child. This was a woman who wore her longing like a cloak against the cold—who understood heartache. Xifeng noticed that the Empress’s frame beneath her elegant silks appeared fragile and delicate; with such a frail, narrow body, she did not look nearly strong enough to carry and bear another baby.
Perhaps she’ll die in childbirth. Yearning so for a daughter that she would risk her life,Xifeng thought. That could be one way fate would clear the path for a new queen and a younger, healthier woman... for Xifeng. Her cheeks burned as hot as the tea when she noticed Empress Lihua staring back at her.
The queen had a laugh like wind moving through the trees. “There’s no punishment for looking at me.” She brushed a crumb off Xifeng’s sleeve absently and Xifeng thrilled at her touch, though she felt embarrassed by her own rough clothing. The Empress had taken a cake, too, but seemed to have no appetite; she neither touched it nor sipped her tea.
“I’m afraid Master Yu spoke the truth, Your Majesty. I lack polish and refinement, for all the education my aunt gave me.”
“Your aunt educated you? Where is your mother?”
“I have no mother. She died long ago, and I never knew her.” Xifeng could not keep the longing from her voice, and to her surprise, she saw an answering hunger in the woman’s eyes. She wished there were still crumbs on her sleeve so the Empress would touch her again. Something in her muted sympathy drew the story from Xifeng, and her family’s disgraceful legacy poured out. The Empress listened intently to the story of the journey, her fingers tightening on her teacup at the mention of the assassins.
“But you were saved, you say, by thetengaru.” Her Majesty’s voice held a note of relief, as if something had been confirmed for her. “The demon guardians hold special significance for me. Not many have the privilege of seeing them, let alone staying in their clearing under their protection. I love their queen as one who protects my family’s realm, and anyone she chooses to favor is a friend to me.”
Xifeng studied the flower in her tea, remembering the garlands Wei had woven for the queen. “She is gone from the earth now.”
The Empress made the sign of the Dragon Lords, pressing her fingers to her forehead, lips, and heart as she blinked away tears. “It is a holy place you saw, and one inextricably linked to my family and my future. To have had the honor of seeing that tree will mark you for the rest of your life.” She hesitated. “I have a strange feeling you belong here and we were meant to meet.”
A chill slithered down Xifeng’s arms at the prophetic music of those words, and at the lingering darkness beneath the beauty of the sentiment. “In friendship, I hope, Your Majesty.”
“Yes, I hope that, too.” The Empress’s gaze seemed to bore right into her head.
Xifeng lowered her face, her mind muddled. She had not yet been deemed worthy to approach the apple tree; thetengaruqueen had said the honor might belong to another—to the Fool. Could the Empress be that woman? If so, Xifeng had to be cautious. She pictured a wall of thorns growing over her heart, keeping her foolish craving at bay.
“Your aunt must love you a great deal.” Empress Lihua’s expression held only guarded courtesy now. “Not many see the use in educating a girl. Why didn’t she come with you?”
“My aunt loves me,” Xifeng repeated, trying out the words. They tasted foreign on her tongue. “She wasn’t well enough to travel with us.”
The Empress’s fingers twitched toward Xifeng’s hand. “I’m sorry, my dear. I can hear how much you miss her.”
This is how I win her,Xifeng realized.By playing to her need for a daughter... and mine for a mother.She allowed tears to enter her eyes. “There are so many things I’ve said to her that I regret,” she said, and there was truth in the words.
This time, the Empress did not resist. She reached shyly for Xifeng’s hand. “You mustn’t be hard on yourself. I’ve never had a daughter, so Ifeel like a mother to the maidens here and even to Lady Meng, though she is my husband’s concubine.” She opened and closed her lips a few times, clearly struggling between warring instincts. “I’d like to give you a home here, Xifeng, and be someone you may speak to when you are missing your aunt.”
The kindness in her voice dug a small hole in the wall of thorns around Xifeng’s heart. But at the same time, she felt a part of herself observing how Empress Lihua’s thirst for a daughter weakened her. The woman was a descendant of kings and should have been nothing but strong and willful. How many had been clever enough to exploit this frailty?
Xifeng bent her head, shocked by her own callous thoughts. “Thank you, Your Majesty.” This time, the tears that slipped from her eyes were real.
Save me,she thought.Save me from this long dark road.
Xifeng followed a maidservant back into the garden, her mind an exhilarated jumble. She struggled to keep up with the girl, who walked at a frenetic pace. They passed a sitting area with a fountain, where Lady Sun sat sewing alone. She inclined her head with condescending grace, but the twitch of her mouth implied that she found Xifeng’s whole person offensive. Xifeng turned away, her cheeks hot, noting that even the maid wore clothes more presentable than her own.
They passed through exquisite rooms adorned with pillars, paintings, and silken rugs. The luxury seemed like a dream, and Xifeng eagerly wondered what her chamber would be like. When the maid at last led her to an open door, she struggled not to show her disappointment.
The room was small, with plain furnishings: only two low stools and a table with a washbasin. One window illuminated three beds built into three walls, with a simple curtain of undyed linen beside each. The maid gestured to Xifeng’s bed, which was closest to the door. Xifengnoticed a folded tunic, a comb with long hair in its teeth, and an empty bone cup.
“With whom am I sharing?”
“Two other maidens.” The maid handed Xifeng her sack and a folded pile of clothing with cotton slippers on top. As ordinary as they were, they were finer than anything she had ever owned. “Her Ma- jesty requests that you speak to Madam Hong when you have finished washing.”
When she was alone at last, Xifeng collapsed on her bed. The last hour had exhausted her more than the entire journey through the Great Forest. But she had made it to the Imperial Palace. She had impressed the chief eunuch, charmed Empress Lihua, and earned herself a position—exactly as Guma, and fate, intended.
It made her dizzy to think how drastically her life had changed in such a short time.
Her sack of belongings looked strange without Wei’s possessions beside it. He would have laughed at her for expecting grander accommodations, and joked about the grim prospect of instructions from sour old Madam Hong.
