In the twenty-fourth year of the Saintly Prosperity Dynasty, on the eighteenth day of the sixth month, His Majesty Xuanyuan Aotian passed away. His throne was then inherited by the Crown Prince Xuanyuan Jinxing, who was enthroned three days later, marking the beginning of the Shengde Dynasty. At the same time, a decree was issued to welcome Miss Xiao Yao, the daughter of Prime Minister Xiao Chengguang, as the new Empress.
The first year of the Shengde Dynasty, on the lucky eighth day of the eighth month, an auspicious day for weddings.
The prosperous and thriving Capital City, where Ten Miles Changan Street was covered in red carpets, every household adorned their doors with red lanterns and streamers.
Yet Changan Street was teeming with a tide of people, shoulder to shoulder, the din of voices deafening, an extraordinarily lively and unprecedented scene.
"Look quickly, look! The sedan is coming, hey, you're pushing me!" a passerby named Zhang San shouted to the person behind him.
Stretching on tiptoes for a better view, one could see a red sedan carried by eight men, adorned with an illuminating pearl on the top that sparked a dazzling light. Each corner of the sedan also had a bright pearl, and large red silk flowers were suspended on the sedan's poles. The big red body of the sedan was etched with golden "happiness" characters on all sides.
"Oh, sorry, my apologies. I heard that Prime Minister Xiao Chengguang's daughter, Miss Xiao, is a monstrosity with one half of her face red and the other half white, just like a ghastly phantom. How can His Majesty possibly take such a person as a wife!" Li Si apologized to Zhang San and then turned to his other friend, Zhao Wu, expressing his doubts.
"Shh, keep it down; Miss Xiao is about to become our Empress!" Zhao Wu hurriedly whispered to Li Si, although he also harbored doubts.
"What's there to be afraid of? Didn't His Majesty issue a decree just now saying that all citizens have 'freedom of speech'? We can speak freely, whether it's praise or criticism!" Li Si said carelessly to Zhao Wu.
"Right, I also heard from my aunt's husband's little sister's nephew that not only is Miss Xiao unattractive, but she also has a peculiar temperament, arrogant and despotic, considering no one her equal, and she can't even recognize a single character. Yet our Emperor is a kind, benevolent, diligent, and people-loving monarch. How can someone with such a disagreeable nature like Miss Xiao become our Empress and set an example for the nation?"
"Exactly, that's how it is!" many people echoed the sentiment.
"However, I did hear that before the Emperor was held in high regard by the late Emperor, he lived a very desolate life, being beaten and scolded daily, ordered around like a servant, not at all resembling a prince. Later, Prime Minister Xiao Chengguang noticed him, took the initiative to help our Emperor, and gradually brought him before the late emperor. And because of that, our current His Majesty proposed to marry Miss Xiao, the unmarriable ugly daughter of the Xiao Family, to repay Prime Minister Xiao's kindness," whispered a thin man with a pointy mouth and monkey cheeks, conspiratorially to a crowd around him, while hiding a smug smile in a place others couldn't see.
"Ah, Prime Minister Xiao is also a good, honest, and upright official, how could he exploit His Majesty's gratitude to make him marry his worthless daughter? You know, not just His Majesty, but even the common people wouldn't want his daughter!" A righteous scholar indignantly defended the Emperor.
"Exactly, exactly!!" the crowd around echoed his words.
"If you ask me, the daughter of the Left Prime Minister, Miss Chang, is said to be outstanding in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, and not only is she incomparably beautiful, but she also has a gentle and virtuous character, refined and dignified. Our Emperor should marry someone like her. Only such a peerless lady is worthy of our Emperor!"
"Alas, His Majesty had no choice; he's a man who repays kindness with kindness. And now, with Prime Minister Xiao wielding tremendous power, he must appease Prime Minister Xiao, even if it means ensuring the welfare of the people of Nanyang Country," the thin man whispered.
"Humph, that's infuriating. I thought Prime Minister Xiao was one of the good officials, but it turns out he's just a treacherous villain!" the scholar exclaimed angrily.
"And I also heard that Prime Minister Xiao's daughter, Miss Xiao, and Miss Chang, the daughter of the Left Prime Minister, are good friends, sharing a close relationship like sisters. How can two such different people be friends!" another person added.
"It's because Miss Chang is kind-hearted, befriending Miss Xiao out of pity because she had no friends!"
The conversations grew louder and louder, as if afraid that the people on the street wouldn't be able to hear.
"Miss, they're being too much!" a young maid on the left side of the sedan said, her face flushed with anger.
"Let it be, Zhi Ruo, no need to mind their words," the person inside the sedan replied while wearing a phoenix crown and draped in a rosy mantle, sitting upright.
"But the young master is such a good person, and the old master such a great official, yet they talk about them as if they're villains!" Zhi Ruo still couldn't contain her frustration.
"All right, today is a happy occasion for me, don't be angry, hm!"
"Miss..." Zhi Ruo stomped her foot without saying another word.
"The Imperial Edict has arrived!!"
A eunuch holding a whisk shouted shrilly.
Soldiers followed behind him, forming a grand and imposing escort.
"Miss, why is there an Imperial Edict at this time?"
"I don't know, go receive the edict!" Xiao Yao, wearing a phoenix crown, stepped out of the sedan and knelt to receive the edict. Everyone on the street fell silent and knelt to listen.
"Long live the Emperor, long live, long live!"
"In accordance with Heaven's mandate, the Emperor decrees: I have now confirmed that Prime Minister Xiao Chengguang conspired with the traitor Xuanyuan Jincheng, pressing the palace and plotting to harm the late Emperor, with irrefutable evidence of his treason. His crime warrants the execution of his entire family. Henceforth, I abolish my marriage with the traitorous minister's daughter Xiao Yao. Xiao Yao is to be imprisoned and await further trial. Tomorrow at noon, all members of the Xiao Family, excluding Xiao Yao, will be beheaded at the gates of Ming Palace. By My Imperial Decree!"
"Long live the Emperor, long live, long live!"
Xiao Yao didn't move from her kneeling position, her mind a blank, even as Eunuch Li verified the edict.
"Eunuch Li, is there a mistake? Isn't today to be a joyous day for His Majesty and our Miss? How has it turned into a revolt by the master?" Zhi Ruo loudly questioned Eunuch Li.
"Insolence! Guards, take them away!" Eunuch Li commanded loudly.
"Miss, what do we do now?" Zhi Ruo shook the motionless Xiao Yao. After a few shakes, her headpiece fell off, revealing Xiao Yao's originally clear white face to be pale, and the other side flushed red. Half white, half red, she appeared terrifyingly unnatural.
"Ah, a ghost!" someone screamed, and suddenly, they started throwing eggs and lettuce leaves, and all sorts of debris rained down. The guards and attendants of Xiao Yao were too slow to intervene.