[Romantic Anecdotes of the Qing Dynasty Court] [40] [Author: Xu Xiaotian]

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Chapter Forty: The Hui Woman in Prison Gains Favor at Night; The Emperor Eavesdrops in the Palace. It is said that the Empress Dowager, seeing Emperor Qianlong's illness caused by his longing for Consort Xiang, felt great pity, but lacked the opportunity to kill her. She and the palace eunuchs had already devised a plan. That day, while the emperor was staying in the Zhai Palace, she sent a chief eunuch to the Western Palace to summon Consort Xiang and her maids and servants. First, she questioned the maids: How did Consort Xiang enter the palace? How did the emperor view her? How many servants and belongings did Consort Xiang bring with her? How many treasures and garments did the emperor bestow upon her?
How many times did the emperor and Consort Xiang meet? What did the emperor say during their meetings? What did Consort Xiang say? What did Consort Xiang do in the palace daily? What did she say? Did the emperor ever have physical intimacy with Consort Xiang? Did Consort Xiang express gratitude or resentment towards the emperor? After questioning her carefully, the palace maid reported everything truthfully to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager instructed the palace maid to stand aside and then summoned Consort Xiang into the palace. As soon as Consort Xiang entered the room, everyone present was astonished by her beauty. The Empress Dowager turned to Empress Fucha and said with a smile, "She looks like a bewitching enchantress; no wonder our Emperor is captivated by her!" Consort Xiang, upon seeing the Empress Dowager and the Empress, did not kneel but stood to the side with her head bowed. The Empress Dowager was the first to speak, asking, "You came to our palace, and the Emperor treated you with the utmost kindness. Do you know how to be grateful?" The Fragrant Concubine coldly replied, "I don't know how to be grateful to the Emperor; I only know how to hate him!" The Empress asked, "Why do you hate the Emperor?" The Fragrant Concubine said, "My husband and I were living peacefully in the Hui region. Why did the Emperor send troops to seize our land and kill our chieftain? Killing my chieftain is one thing, but why did he bring me to the capital? Bringing me to the capital, treating me as a prisoner, and killing me would have been fine, but why didn't he kill me? Why did he bring me to the palace? Bringing me to the palace is one thing, but why does the Emperor constantly harass me?" As the Fragrant Concubine spoke, she became filled with indignation. Her eyebrows furrowed, her almond eyes widened, and two rosy clouds appeared on her cheeks, making her even more beautiful. When the Empress Dowager heard her mention the Emperor's flirtatious remark, she smiled slightly and said, "So, what do you intend to do now?" The Fragrant Concubine replied, "If Your Majesty would be so merciful as to let me return to my hometown, I will gather my husband's former troops and march into the capital to avenge him." The Empress Dowager quickly shook her head, saying, "That's impossible; don't even dream of it." The Fragrant Concubine continued, "Otherwise, let me return to the palace. When the opportunity arises, I'll assassinate the Emperor and vent my anger." The Empress, upon hearing this, couldn't help but feel enraged and shouted, "You vile woman! What has the Emperor done to wrong you
that you would resort to such cruelty?" The Empress Dowager quickly stopped the Empress, saying, "Let's hear what she has to say." The Fragrant Concubine then said, "No, I only beg Your Majesty to have mercy and grant me a complete corpse, preserving my chastity." As she spoke, tears streamed down her face, and she knelt down, repeatedly kowtowing and pleading.
The Empress Dowager, seeing this, felt a pang of pity and nodded, saying, "Seeing how pitiful this child is, let's grant her wish." The Empress also agreed, "The Empress Dowager is right.
" The Empress Dowager ordered that Xiang Fei be helped up, and then summoned the head eunuch, instructing him to take Xiang Fei out and order the guards to drag her out and strangle her in the west wing of Yuehua Gate, granting her a complete corpse. Xiang Fei, upon hearing the Empress Dowager's decree, quickly crawled down and kowtowed three times; after thanking the Empress Dowager, she turned and followed the eunuch out. The palace maids and eunuchs standing on both sides couldn't help but shed tears. The next day, when the Emperor returned to the palace and received the news, he rushed to Kunning Palace to save her, but it was already too late.
When the Empress Dowager saw the Emperor, she took his hand and spoke kindly to him, saying, "That Hui woman was vicious. If she hadn't been strangled, she would have caused a great disaster sooner or later.
How could I face your ancestors then? Now that Hui woman is dead, you can let go of her. Look at you, you've become so thin these past few days because of her. My good child! Go back to the palace and rest." The Emperor, after being scolded by the Empress Dowager, couldn't say anything, so he left the palace and quietly pulled a eunuch aside, asking him, "Where is Xiang Fei's body?" The eunuch quietly led the Emperor to the west wing of Yuehua Palace. As soon as the Emperor saw Xiang Fei's body, he rushed over and hugged it, only managing to say, "I've ruined you!" Tears welled up like a tide, soaking a large patch of Xiang Fei's clothes. The eunuch, flustered, knelt down and repeatedly begged the Emperor to return to the palace. After the Emperor had wept enough, he carefully examined Xiang Fei's face for a while, then personally closed her eyelids, saying, "Xiang Fei, Xiang Fei! We are truly separated by life and death!" Emperor Qianlong stood beside the corpse, still stunned, unwilling to leave. Unable to withstand the eunuch's repeated urging, he finally took a ring from the corpse and tucked it into his sleeve. He went out of the room, summoned the eunuch in charge of the Yuehua Gate, and instructed him: "Use the finest coffin for the burial, and choose a scenic spot for the final resting." The eunuch repeatedly replied, "Yes, Your Majesty!" He secretly consulted with the Imperial Household Department, bought a fine coffin, dressed Xiang Fei in her own clothes, and secretly carried her out of the palace, where a large mound was built in the northeast corner of Taoranting in Nanxiawa. A stone tablet was erected in front of the mound, inscribed with the two large characters "Xiang Tomb"; on the reverse side of the tablet was inscribed a poem: "Vast sorrow, boundless calamity; the short song ends, the bright moon wanes." A beautiful tomb stands, where azure blood lies.
Azure too fades, blood too perishes; but a wisp of fragrant soul remains unbroken. Is it so, or not, that it has transformed into a butterfly!
This poem was commissioned by Emperor Qianlong from a compiler in the Hanlin Academy, and inscribed on the back of a stele, expressing his eternal regret. This fragrant tomb still stands majestically to this day. Those who visit Taoranting Park and see this solitary grave all shed tears for the Fragrant Concubine. But these are all digressions, and we will not dwell on them now.
Let us speak of Emperor Qianlong. Since the Fragrant Concubine's death, he has been deeply troubled. Looking at the ring she left behind, the object remains even as the person is gone, and he cannot help but shed tears. Living in the palace, no matter how the concubines and maids try to amuse him, he can never bring himself to smile.
Fortunately, Fukang'an often visits the palace. When Emperor Qianlong sees him, all his worries and sorrows vanish. Fukang'an accompanied the emperor in the palace, sometimes playing a game of chess, sometimes drinking a cup of wine, chatting and laughing, thus passing the time. As the harsh winter passed and the new spring arrived, Emperor Qianlong gradually forgot his worries.
One night, in the middle of the night, he suddenly thought of the Fragrant Concubine again. Thinking of her reminded him of the Hui chieftain Khoja Jahan and his wife, who were still imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice prison the previous year. Khoja Jahan's wife was also quite beautiful, but he had forgotten her because he was so focused on the Fragrant Concubine. "Why don't I summon that woman to the palace for a bit of fun and relieve my boredom?" he thought. Emperor Qianlong immediately ordered the head eunuch to go to the Ministry of Justice prison and bring Khoja Jahan's wife to the palace before dawn. The eunuch, carrying out the imperial decree but not understanding the emperor's intentions, rode swiftly to the Ministry of Justice hall, repeatedly urging them to bring her. By then, it was late at night, and all the officials on duty had already gone home. The jailer on night duty was sound asleep when he suddenly heard a series of shouts outside: "Receive the imperial decree!" Startled, he jumped out of bed, threw on his clothes and slippers, trembling as he said, "I am but a lowly official, never qualified to receive an imperial decree. What should I do?" The eunuch shouted, "Nothing else! Just open the jail door, hand over that woman, and that's it!" The jailer, even more frightened, waved his hands wildly, saying, "The magistrate isn't in the office. Opening the jail door in the middle of the night—if there's any negligence, how can I, a mere nobody, bear the responsibility?" The eunuch, exasperated, stamped his feet repeatedly, saying, "How dare you, jailer! An imperial decree has arrived, and you dare disobey? I ask you, how many heads do you have?" The jailer grew increasingly frightened and burst into tears. Later, a minor jailer came up with an idea, saying, "If we don't open the jail gates, we can't afford the crime of disobeying the imperial decree; but opening them in the middle of the night would be too much of a hassle. There's no other way; we'll ask you to wait a moment, sir, while we bring Minister Man here to receive the decree. With his word, we'll be fine." The eunuch, at this point, had no other choice but to tell them to quickly fetch Minister Man. The clerk agreed and rode off at full speed, opening Minister Man's door and explaining the situation. Minister Man, bewildered, hurriedly followed the clerk to the yamen. Upon receiving the imperial decree and verifying the imperial seal, finding no error, he immediately opened the jail gates, dragged the Hui woman from her sleep, examined her on the spot, and handed her over to the eunuch. The eunuch had already prepared a carriage and secretly escorted her into the palace. The emperor, meanwhile, was waiting in bed. The woman, who had spent half a year in prison in a daze, resigned herself to certain death, was suddenly brought to the palace in the dead of night. She was bewildered. A palace maid pushed her to kneel before the emperor's bed, and she, terrified, knelt with her head bowed, trembling. The emperor told her to raise her head; though disheveled, she was still beautiful and alluring. The emperor ordered a palace maid, "Summon the eunuchs from the Imperial Household Department!" The eunuchs, who were responsible for the emperor's sexual affairs, received the imperial decree and dragged the woman into the bathroom, washing and cleaning her. The palace maids helped her with her makeup, and then, naked, helped her sit cross-legged on a yellow satin mat. Several eunuchs lifted the mat by the four corners and carried it into the emperor's bedroom. The emperor saw that she was radiant and alluring, no less so than the Fragrant Concubine, and thus helped her onto the bed and had his way with her.
The next day, when the emperor held court, the Minister of Justice, Man, stepped forward to request the return of the Hui chieftain's wife. Emperor Qianlong, knowing his intention, interrupted him, saying, "Khoja Jizhan is extremely rebellious and has repeatedly defied the imperial army. I originally intended to execute him and his wife, but because their crimes are so heinous, I already defiled his woman last night!" He then burst into laughter.
The civil and military officials, seeing the emperor's incoherent speech, were all astonished and exchanged bewildered glances.
The sound of bells and drums in the palace signaled the emperor's departure from court. Khoja Jizhan's wife was extremely alluring. Emperor Qianlong, having taken her, was captivated by her every night, keeping her in the Jingren Palace for his daily pleasure, and bestowing upon her the title of Hui Consort. The following year, she gave birth to a prince, and the emperor's favor towards her grew even stronger.
The Hui Consort said that she was born in the Hui region and was not accustomed to the Qing court's lifestyle. Emperor Qianlong then ordered the Imperial Household Department to build a Baoyue Tower within the Forbidden City, with a dressing table erected high in the sky.
The building had nine rooms, with large mirrors embedded in all four walls. The bed curtains and canopies inside were all sourced from the Hui region, and the walls were covered with paintings of Hui landscapes. This Baoyue Tower was located right next to the imperial city, and a Hui camp had been built within two miles of the city walls. Every day, the Hui concubine leaned against the tower, gazing into the distance. Sometimes, she would recall her homeland and tears would well up in her eyes. The emperor would try his best to comfort her, offering her many treasures to win her favor. The Hui concubine would then turn her anger into joy, and she and the emperor would indulge in sensual pleasures in a secret chamber. The secret chamber was exquisitely constructed, with intricate patterns inlaid with gold and silver on the walls; thick, soft carpets covered the floor; and apart from a clothes rack, the room was completely empty. On the north wall was a large bronze mirror, fifteen feet high and six feet wide; every movement of a person in the room was reflected. The emperor and the Hui concubine would spend their days in the chamber, laughing and joking. In the third year, the Hui concubine gave birth to another prince. The emperor then dressed the Hui concubine in Manchu attire and sent her to pay homage to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager recognized her as the Emperor's newly chosen concubine, and because she had given birth to a prince, she also doted on her.
A few days later, on the occasion of the Empress Dowager's birthday, the Emperor, to please her, ordered the Imperial Household Department to gather actors from the capital to perform a play on the palace stage. The Emperor himself dressed as Lao Lai Zi, donning a beard and performing in mottled clothes. The Empress Dowager was delighted and ordered palace maids to bring many sweets onto the stage, saying, "A reward for Lao Lai Zi!" The Emperor then thanked her on stage, which made the Empress Dowager laugh heartily. The civil and military officials who had accompanied the audience all knelt down and cheered, wishing the Empress Dowager and the Emperor a long and prosperous life. Seeing this, the Emperor suddenly thought of how, when the Holy Ancestor was alive, he had accompanied the Empress Dowager on six tours of Jiangnan and Zhejiang, bringing joy to the people; now, after fifteen years on the throne, the world was at peace, and the Empress Dowager was in her prime, so she could enjoy herself while she could. Looking around, he found no one to consult, so he remembered that Gao Kemin was returning to the capital from the south, and summoned Kemin to the West Study. Ke Min, a veteran official of the previous dynasty, immediately tried his best to dissuade the emperor, saying, "Your Majesty is looked up to by all the people. It is better for you to remain in the capital and not to rashly leave." Emperor Qianlong, after hearing this, was undecided for a moment. Thinking he would consult with the Empress Dowager, he left without guards and quietly headed towards the Cining Palace. Passing through the Yuebi Gate and about to head towards the Longzong Gate, he heard whispers inside. The emperor stopped and eavesdropped through a domed ceiling. He recognized one voice as that of his wet nurse, Lady Fengge, and another unidentified person speaking to her. The man asked, "Is the princess still with the Chen family?" The nanny, surnamed Feng, replied, "We replaced Grand Secretary Chen with his son. Perhaps to avoid trouble, he retired and went home. It's been almost forty years now, and they haven't been in touch since. I don't know who the princess married." The man then asked, "So, according to you, the Chen family's daughter is the Empress Dowager's own princess; and the current Emperor is the Chen family's own son?" The nanny replied, "Of course he is." The man said, "This is a serious matter, not something to be taken lightly! You certainly haven't figured out..." "Was it wrong?" The nanny replied earnestly, "Absolutely! I was the one who switched them out myself back then, and that idea was mine for the Empress Dowager. Because my Empress Dowager had become the Empress and had been infertile for many years, and was deeply afraid that another prince would seize the throne, just then the Empress Dowager became pregnant, and so did that old lady Chen. Madam Chen and my Empress Dowager were originally very close; the Empress Dowager often summoned her to the palace for outings. She learned that Madam Chen and my Empress Dowager were pregnant at the same stage of pregnancy, so the Empress Dowager discussed with me: 'Let's raise the child; if it's a prince, then we don't need to...'" They said, "If it's a princess, we must keep it a secret from the late emperor and pretend it's a prince." Meanwhile, they inquired about the Chen family. If a boy was born into the Chen family, they would coax Mrs. Chen into bringing the boy into the palace, secretly switching the princess with him. Later, the Chen family indeed had a boy, and the Empress Dowager had a princess. When both families were a month old, the Empress Dowager coaxed Mrs. Chen into having her son brought into the palace by his wet nurse. We left the wet nurse in a side room near the palace gate, getting her drunk; the Empress Dowager secretly summoned us, and we switched the Chen family's child with the princess. The princess's face... Covered by a dragon-embroidered cloth, the wet nurse, her eyes glazed with drunkenness, carried the princess out of the palace. "The man, hearing the wet nurse mention this place, said, 'So, our current emperor is truly a descendant of the Chen family?' The wet nurse replied, 'How could it not be! It's a pity all my hard work was for nothing. Now, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor see me as nothing at all!' Emperor Qianlong, having overheard this, was greatly surprised. He hurriedly turned back to his study, secretly sending someone to summon the wet nurse for questioning. The wet nurse, terrified by the Emperor's questioning, prostrated herself on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly, saying, 'Your Majesty, please be magnanimous and forgive my humble words. This servant deserves to die! I only beg Your Majesty to spare my life!' Emperor Qianlong comforted her with kind words, ordered her to rise and speak, and then questioned her about the circumstances of her being switched into the palace." Seeing the Emperor's amiable expression, the nanny boldly recounted the events in detail, adding, "Though I deserve to die, I dare not deceive Your Majesty." Hearing her words, the Emperor knew the truth and sighed, remaining silent for a long time. The nanny stood by, neither daring to speak nor to leave. After a while, the Emperor slammed his hand on the table and said, "I've decided to go see them." He then instructed the nanny, "From now on, do not tell anyone else about this. Go back to your room." The nanny returned to her room and was soon strangled to death by a eunuch, who quietly buried her in a corner of the courtyard. While Emperor Qianlong was speaking with the nanny, the guards and eunuchs had already been dismissed in an antique room within the Imperial Study, so no one else heard their conversation.
However, after hearing this news, the Emperor became increasingly suspicious, noticing that his appearance and accent were completely different from the late Emperor.
The next day, Emperor Qianlong went to the Cining Palace to pay his respects. Upon seeing the Empress Dowager, he asked, "Why is my appearance so different from that of the late Emperor?" The Empress Dowager's face changed color upon hearing this, and she was speechless. The Emperor, seeing this, understood even more clearly and resolved to visit Grand Secretary Chen's parents. However, the Emperor rarely went out and could not easily announce a tour; to go to Jiangnan, he needed to find a pretext to avoid being dissuaded by his ministers. Suddenly, he remembered that the Empress Dowager's birthday was approaching. He could say he was accompanying his mother on a tour of Jiangnan, and besides, the late Emperor had accompanied the Empress Dowager on six tours of Jiangnan, setting a precedent. At this time, the Ministry of Works reported that the seawall was completed, which could also be used as a pretext to secretly visit Grand Secretary Chen in Haining. Having made up his mind, he went to the palace to see the Empress Dowager, saying he was accompanying his mother on a tour of Jiangnan to enjoy her company. Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager initially declined, saying, "This trip would only trouble the people; it would be better to decline." However, the Emperor repeatedly urged her, and the Empress Dowager thought, "The Empress Dowager Cixi once enjoyed this blessing; if the Emperor has such filial piety, I can too." So she agreed.
The next day, the Emperor held court and announced his intention to accompany his mother on a southern tour to inspect the sea dikes. Although several ministers, including Qiu Rixiu and Chen Dashou, stepped forward to dissuade him, Emperor Qianlong's mind was made up for the southern tour, and he ignored their advice. Soon after, an imperial edict was issued, setting the southern tour for April of the sixteenth year of Qianlong's reign, and appointing Grand Secretary Liu Tongxun to act as regent and Shi Yizhi to oversee military affairs. This edict left the officials along the route extremely busy. The first to volunteer were the salt merchants of Yangzhou. These merchants, relying on their power, monopolized the market and amassed tens of millions; among them, the Jiang, Wang, Ma, and Huang families were the wealthiest, spending money like water and consuming tens of thousands of coins a day. The Governor-General of Liangjiang, knowing their wealth, ordered them to undertake imperial missions. Among them was Jiang Heting, a leading merchant. He owned a secluded bamboo garden where he kept a troupe of young actresses who performed daily. Hearing of the Emperor's southern tour, he lavishly renovated the garden. Among the actresses was a young female lead named Huifeng, beautiful and graceful, skilled in both dance and song. Jiang Heting personally taught her many new songs, preparing them to entertain the Emperor. Meanwhile, another wealthy salt merchant, Wang Rulong, having learned of the Jiang family's affairs, also prepared to receive the Emperor. He owned a troupe of actresses, each possessing unparalleled beauty and alluring charm; among them was a top-tier beauty named Xue Ru, in her prime, with the grace of a goddess. Throughout Yangzhou, everyone knew of this beauty in the Wang family.
Even Wang Rulong himself felt great tenderness towards her; though such a beauty was before him, he could not bring himself to ravage her. Therefore, Xue Ru, even at the age of eighteen, was still a flawless jade, untouched.
Upon hearing of the Emperor's southern tour, Wang Kunshi informed the Governor-General that he was willing to offer all his courtesans for the Emperor's entertainment.
On the day the two empresses departed, carriages and horses filled the air, sails lined the river, and flowers adorned swords and pendants, dew fluttering banners along the way. Upon reaching the Qingjiang River, officials and gentry on both banks prostrated themselves at the bows of the boats to welcome the empresses. The emperor summoned the governor to his cabin and asked, "Where here can the Empress Dowager rest?" The governor replied that the Shuizhu Garden of Jiang Shen was a suitable place to stay. The emperor then ordered the emperor to move to the Shuizhu Garden. In an instant, the Shuizhu Garden was teeming with people and carriages; inside, music and song filled the air, while outside, weapons stood in imposing array. Jiang Heting bustled about, attending to everything. The emperor, accompanied by the Empress Dowager, held a banquet and watched a play. During the banquet, he was greatly impressed by the gentle breeze, soft dances, and graceful singing, and only returned to his boat when the sun began to set. After Mr. Jiang saw the emperor off onto the ship, he was delighted by the emperor's skillful performance, which pleased him greatly. He anticipated receiving a reward from the emperor the next day and was very pleased. Even the local officials, both high and low, congratulated him in advance. Early the next morning, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, along with his civil and military officials, went to the imperial boat to inquire about the emperor's well-being. Jiang Heting was also among them. However, as soon as they reached the dock, the eunuchs waved to them and whispered, "The emperor is listening to music on the boat; do not disturb his enjoyment." The officials were so frightened that they tiptoed and dared not utter a word. The Governor-General begged the eunuchs to let them serve him on the bow, but the eunuchs refused. They had no choice but to stand in a line on the shore to serve. Mr. Jiang sat on the bow, chatting and laughing freely with the eunuchs. Mr. Jiang was very surprised; looking at the boat, he saw yellow curtains hanging low on all sides, and the melodious singing and music drifting ashore, captivating all who heard it. Mr. Jiang was quite astonished. He thought, "Yangzhou's song and dance are the best in the country, and my family's Jiqing Troupe is the most outstanding in Yangzhou. Where did this exquisite troupe of singers and dancers come from that has captivated the Emperor so much?" He was truly indignant, so he pulled aside a eunuch and quietly asked him. Whether the eunuch would tell him or not, we'll find out in the next chapter.

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[Romantic Anecdotes of the Qing Dynasty Court] [40] [Author: Xu Xiaotian]

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