Empress Orchid - Anchee Min [114]
“We need to talk about Su Shun and his cabinet, Nuharoo,” I said. “I get nervous about things I don’t know.”
“Oh, you will never know it all. It’s a hundred-year-old mess.” She blocked my eyes with her “finger spears.” “I’ll send my nail lady to your palace if you don’t get it done yourself.”
“I am not used to long nails,” I said. “They break too easily.”
“Am I the head of the Imperial household?” She frowned.
I sealed my lips, reminding myself of the importance of keeping harmony between us.
“Long nails are symbols of nobility, Lady Yehonala.”
I nodded, although my mind had gone back to Su Shun.
Nuharoo’s smile returned. “Like a Chinese lady who binds her feet, who doesn’t live to do labor but to be carried around in palanquins. The longer our nails, the further we depart from the ordinary. Please stop bragging about working in the garden with your hands. You embarrass not only yourself but also the Imperial family.”
I kept nodding, pretending to appreciate her advice.
“Avoid tangerine.” She leaned so close that I smelled jasmine on her breath. “Too many hot elements will give you pimples. I’ll have my eunuch send you a bowl of turtle soup to put out the fire inside you. Do honor me by accepting.”
I was sure that she felt she had achieved her goal when the Emperor stopped sharing my bed. She now had an even better reason to feel safe with me: Hsien Feng was never going to get up and walk back into my bedroom.
“I’ll leave you to the headaches, then,” she said, smiling and getting up.
To put her mind more at ease, I told her I had no experience dealing with the court, nor had I any connections.
“That’s something I am sure I can help with,” Nuharoo said. “My birthday is approaching, and I have ordered a banquet to celebrate. I want you to invite anyone you think will be useful to you. Don’t worry. People are dying to make connections with us.”
“Who is there besides Prince Kung that we can trust?”
She thought for a moment and then replied, “How about Yung Lu?”
“Yung Lu?”
“The commander in chief of the Imperial Guards. He works under Su Shun. He is a very capable man. I went to my family reunion for the rice cake festival and his name was on everyone’s lips.”
“Have you met him?”
“No.”
“Will you send him an invitation?”
“I would if I could. The problem is that Yung Lu’s rank is not high enough to entitle him to a place at an Imperial banquet.”
Fragrance of laurel filled the courtyard and the reception hall. Dressed like a blossoming tree, Nuharoo was surprised to learn that Su Shun had sent word at the last minute that he would not be attending. His excuse was that “His Majesty’s ladies are for His Majesty’s eyes only.” Nuharoo was beside herself.
Wearing so many necklaces of hammered gold, precious stones and brocade caused Nuharoo’s neck to lean forward. She was sitting on the throne in the east hall of the Palace of Gathering Essence. She had just completed her second change of dress for the day and now wore a bright yellow gauzy silk robe embroidered with an array of Imperial symbols.
All eyes were locked on Nuharoo except those of Emperor Hsien Feng, who, although sick to the bone, had made an effort to come. He was dressed in a matching robe to complement Nuharoo. But the symbols on his robe were slightly different. Dragons replaced phoenixes, mountains replaced rivers.
“Happy twenty-second birthday, Your Majesty Empress Nuharoo!” Chief Eunuch Shim sang.
The crowd followed, and toasted Nuharoo’s longevity.
I sipped rice wine and thought about what Nuharoo had said to me about her method of achieving internal harmony: “Lie in the bed others have made, and walk in the shoes others have cobbled.” The sentiment made little sense to me. My life so far was a piece of embroidery with every stitch sewn by my own hands.
The banquet’s courses were endless. As people tired of eating, they moved to the west wing, where Nuharoo was presented with her gifts. She sat like a Buddha receiving worshipers.
Emperor Hsien Feng’s gift was