"Sister Youshi, why are you still kneeling? Father Emperor has left already. Here, let me help you up." Although she said so, Princess Mingzhu took her sweet time, lightly swaying from side to side as she walked towards me, a careless smile dangling off her painted lips.
As she neared, the chokingly strong scent of peony drifted through the air. With her exaggerated body movement, the sunlight reflected off her golden hairpins, blinding me every time she turned her head.
But from this angle, I had no choice but to look up at her. No, even if I stood up, we would never be at equal heights. She was a princess with a title, and I was the castaway daughter to be gifted to the North. She was the pampered pearl, and I was the bargaining chip. The emperor was her "Father Emperor" and my "Your Majesty."
With a flick of her wrist, she extended her pale hand outwards, fingers curved elegantly downwards. Framed against the building's bamboo furniture, she was every bit the portrait of an elegant noblewoman. And though she was the one supposedly helping me up, her pose made it seem as if I was to kiss her hands.
"How long is Sister Youshi planning on keeping me waiting?" There was a hint of coldness in her words, though I was not at all aware of how I offended her.
I set my hand on the back of hers, careful not to put weight on her.
"Oh!" She immediately recoiled, taking a few steps back as if I had pricked her with a needle. Her voice suddenly spiraled up an octave. "Sister Youshi, why is hand so…" she paused, acting as if brushing dirt off the hand I had touched. "It's so coarse! Even the nannies of the court have better groomed hands than yours!"
She gestured towards the door, and a string of maids filed in. "You over there," she curled her index finger towards one at random, "Come cleanse my hand and reapply some peony balm." They had come prepared, and another court servant shuffled in with a tray of bottles.
The maid was visibly shivering and accidentally brushed against another vial as she applied the peony balm, and it toppled over, spilling into a pool of pink.
"Your Humble Servant can't speak of how sorry she is." She immediately dropped to the floor.
"Aw, don't worry." Much to my surprise, Princess Mingzhu just brushed it off. Perhaps I was too quick to judge, and a sense of guilt arose.
While she was preoccupied, I had already helped myself up from the floor. Standing up, she was a half-head shorter than me. In fact, I had to slightly tilt my head downwards to meet her gaze. She was just a child with a considerable ego unsuited for her small body.
Staring straight at me, her eyes not moving once, she commanded coldly to the maid who was still kneeling on the floor, "Just go and receive twenty wooden planks. Father Emperor likes it quiet. Don't make a noise as you go receive your punishment."
The maid's muffled screams echoed on, and two court servants had to clamp her mouth shut.
"Wait," I began, but no one listened to me.
"Sister Youshi, I almost forgot! Let me show you around the imperial garden!" Princess Mingzhu chirped as if nothing had ever happened. She didn't even spare a glance for the maid who was just dragged away. "It'll surely be a different sight from the fields you work in!"
Without waiting for me, she turned and began walking out, the servants and maids trailing behind her.
Considering how she treated the maid like a mere animal and her constant belittling, she successfully kindled my flame of agitation, and I dashed forward to stop her by the door.
"Oh, Sister Youshi, don't fret about hiding your past, as ashamed as you might be. Everyone in the palace knows by now!" She cast downward glances at the small crowd behind her, but their heads were all dipped. "Isn't that right? Everyone?" She stressed the last word, and each court servant hurriedly nodded, never lifting their heads once.
She raised her dainty fingers to her mouth as if to stifle a giggle. "That's why Father Emperor is so worried about marrying you off to the North. The Sui palace is no place for… what do you call it again? Sowing the weeds?"
My fingernails dug into my flesh. But before I could even retort, she was talking again in a cheerful voice as if she hadn't mocked me mere moments before. "Come on, let me show you around!"
We followed the cobblestone steps the same way out as I had come, and I was once again reminded that I was still in the palace.
The imperial garden was breathtaking, flashy in ways that a field of wildflowers could never hope to achieve. But yet, all plants were carefully trimmed and blatantly unnatural, violating the full beauty of nature.
A carefully-painted tea set was already prepared and set in the intricately-designed pagoda. All around, flowers were blooming, fighting to show their beauty to the world. Surrounding the pagoda was a ring of peach blossoms, but every time a petal fell, it was quickly swept up by a court servant.
As we sat down, though I was quite annoyed, per habit and courtesy, I motioned to pour her a cup of tea. I gingerly handled the pot, knowing it costed at least tenfold more than my uncle's treasured set. Instead, Princess Mingzhu exclaimed that it was no work for a princess.
"I think I would like my wedding procession to take place on a street lined by peach blossoms," she sighed dreamily without any context. "Father Emperor has already promised that I could pick my husband by holding a fun little competition. Sister Youshi, you must help me think of some questions to ask before you leave for the Sui!"
Her careless words deepened my invisible wounds, and I could feel my body gradually tense up. She cast a casual sideways glimpse at me and smiled as if she was pleased with my reaction.
In such a time, even commoner's daughters could not risk marrying for the sake of love and had to consider familial alliances. Yet she, a princess who should give back to the nation and its citizens, could wed as she pleased.
It suddenly dawned on me. I was summoned back only because the emperor took pity on her and didn't want to force her to wed to the barbaric North. A twisted smile crawled up my lips, but I hid it in time. However, her words only further confirmed my suspicions.
"But I'm truly jealous of you. Your future husband, the Prince of Jin, is said to be so excruciatingly handsome and talented!" She feigned swooning over, but her eyes carefully followed any slight change in my displayed emotions. "I only wish Father Emperor wouldn't be so doting on me and allow me to wed in place of you! I had begged him to let me help the state of the kingdom, but it was all to no avail!"
How foolish I was to think I was needed by the nation when I was only a cheap replacement for the favored daughter. I stood up, tired of listening to her endless exclamation and sugar-coated daggers.
"I'm also glad that I'm the one arranged for the alliance. If you went, I doubt the Northern prince would spoil you as our emperor does." I allowed my before-natural smile to slip to match hers, bright but with no temperature nor actual emotion. "Perhaps that is why he thought you unsuitable for such an important marriage. My humble apologies for my lack of manners. By 'he,' I meant Father Emperor." I made sure to emphasize the last two words before exiting the pagoda.
I never saw the expression on her pretty face after I left; for, I never turned back. However, I did hear the crisp sound of porcelain shattering.
Pity, it was a good set too.