Chapter 33: Chapter 33: A Disgrace? Backed by the Emperor
The Empress Dowager hadn’t expected that once the performances began, they would be so hard to stop. That alluring Princess Consort Wei had finished her sword dance and completely outshone the Empress Dowager’s own niece.
"Let’s conclude today’s performances here," she announced.
Li Yuzong glanced at Emperor Wu Su’s expression. Gauging the imperial will was his duty.
With an appeasing smile, he said, "Empress Dowager, you still have one niece who has yet to perform."
Ji Qingwu took a sip of fruit wine, then picked up a piece of hibiscus cake. She had just raised it to her lips, about to take a bite, when she heard Mrs. Qiao give a light cough.
All eyes in the hall focused on her. She could only put the pastry down resentfully and lick her lips.
The sight of her annoyed the Empress Dowager.
The young ladies from other families were all scrambling to volunteer a performance. Yet here she was, with a small cup of wine in one hand and a sweet pastry in the other, looking quite content, as if she had truly come to the palace just to feast.
"It’s getting late, and I am tired."
Prince Yong, seated with the imperial clan, had been glancing frequently in Ji Qingwu’s direction. He clapped his hands and laughed, "Mother, let’s have Fifth Cousin perform as well. It won’t take long."
Ji Qingyuan knew Mrs. Qiao had hired a teacher to instruct Ji Qingwu in the Six Arts. She had even sent someone to spy on her at first, only to receive a report that her fifth sister was a hopeless dunce, utterly inept at dance and music.
Having just been bested by Princess Consort Wei’s dance, she was looking for someone to make herself look better by comparison.
Ji Qingyuan added with a smile, "Empress Dowager, my fifth sister has been practicing diligently at home. Please, give her a chance."
Ji Qingwu shot her fourth sister a sidelong glance. ’If I go up there and disgrace the Ji Family, will that somehow bring honor to Ji Qingyuan’s name?’
With both Prince Yong and Qingyuan insisting, the Empress Dowager couldn’t very well refuse them. "Very well. Let me see what progress Qingwu has made."
Ji Qingwu had no choice but to rise and walk to the front of the hall.
After offering a salute, she looked directly at the Empress Dowager, her gaze unwavering.
"Replying to the Empress Dowager, I am not skilled in dance or music, nor can I compose poetry. Over the past several days, I have indeed studied hard at home, but my talent is average, and I couldn’t really understand it."
Her statement, "I couldn’t really understand it," instantly drew stunned looks from the entire hall.
Mrs. Qiao watched Ji Qingwu’s back, a helpless look in her eyes. ’This child is just too honest.’
’Even though it’s true, to just casually say in front of so many nobles and aristocrats that her talent is average and she couldn’t grasp it... It’s really...’
Mrs. Qiao let out a long sigh.
Seeing the unpleasant look on the Empress Dowager’s face, Ji Qingyuan smiled with smug satisfaction.
Emperor Wu Su raised his wine cup for a drink, his wide sleeve concealing his expression. From Li Yuzong’s vantage point, however, he could clearly see the corner of the Emperor’s mouth, which had been set in a tight line ever since he entered the hall, finally curve into an arc.
Prince Yong burst out laughing. "Fifth Cousin, are you really completely ignorant of the Six Arts? It seems it was my fault, as your cousin, for making you come out here and embarrass yourself."
The crowd erupted in laughter.
As it happened, from where Ji Qingwu stood, a slight turn of her head brought Qiao Menghan into view. Her maternal grandfather was frowning deeply at her. Shifting her gaze slightly, she then saw Li Chengxun, who was seated beside him.
Unlike the rest of the hall, his gaze wasn’t mocking. Instead, he looked as if he was trying to suppress a laugh. Ji Qingwu took a closer look. He had a pair of amorous phoenix eyes.
In that moment, Ji Qingwu understood.
’Now I get why Wei Jie and Pan An became famous for all time based on their looks alone. Beauty truly is a weapon, regardless of gender. It can make a person lose their senses.’
’It’s like my eyes have a mind of their own. The moment I let my guard down, they drift his way.’
On the dais, Emperor Wu Su, who had taken in the whole scene, set his wine cup down with a thud. Li Yuzong’s heart, which had just begun to relax, leaped back into his throat. ’Can’t this Miss Ji keep her eyes to herself?’
In truth, Ji Qingwu had only taken one, two, three... maybe four glances before turning her head away.
"I vaguely recall that Miss Ji’s horsemanship and archery are quite good."
The moment Emperor Wu Su spoke, the hall fell silent.
Ji Qingwu’s neck felt stiff as she looked up at the high dais, a buzzing filling her head.
’I’m skilled at riding and archery, but how would Emperor Wu Su know that?’
’When did he "recall" it?’
’Since returning to Lin’an, I haven’t ridden or shot a bow in front of outsiders even once. I only practiced at home for half a day.’
’But, back when I was in the army...’
Forgetting all decorum, Ji Qingwu stared straight at the Emperor.
’Has he already figured out who I am?’
The young woman’s eyes were like pools of water; their movement was like the shimmering surface of a lake. When she was unsettled, the ripples in their depths stirred one’s pity. Dressed as she was today in luxurious, light gauze, she looked all the more slender and graceful.
Emperor Wu Su’s long fingers gripped his wine cup tightly, his thoughts unreadable.
He parted his lips and commanded, "Bring a bow and arrows for Miss Ji."
Jiyin Hall was spacious, and the distance to the main entrance was more than enough to serve as a makeshift archery range.
A little eunuch quickly fetched a bow and arrows and presented them to Ji Qingwu, while a palace attendant set up a target at the main hall’s entrance.
The distance was about ninety feet, the standard for men’s archery competitions. Since women typically had less strength, the target was usually placed much closer.
The little eunuch asked her, "Miss Ji, shall we move the target a little closer?"
Ji Qingwu replied listlessly, "No need."
The little eunuch simply assumed her archery skills were poor as well. ’Whether the target is near or far, she won’t hit it anyway,’ he thought. ’At least from farther away, she’ll have an excuse. After all, a woman who could hit a target from this distance would be a rarity in this world.’
Ji Qingwu gave the bow a light tug, testing the tension of the string, then spread her feet to take a firm stance.
Her robes today had wide sleeves, which would slide down if she raised her arm. A kind young lady had a palace attendant bring her a sleeve band, and Ji Qingwu shot her a grateful smile.
The arrow was already nocked.
Ji Qingwu did her best to steady her mind. She closed her right eye, drew the bow, and the arrow shot from the string, slicing through the air.
"Did she hit it?"
"It’s so far away, I can barely even see the target. You think she can hit it?"
"Look at her form. If she even grazes the target, I’ll eat my hat!"
...
The palace attendant at the door shouted, "A miss!"
The hall filled with a cacophony of voices, most of them laughing at her for overestimating herself.
In truth, Ji Qingwu knew the arrow would miss the instant it left the string. ’But I used the same form and the same amount of force as always,’ she wondered. ’Why was it so far off?’
But for some reason, after releasing the first arrow, her first instinct was to turn and look for Emperor Wu Su.
Because in the Northern Border Camp, when it came to supreme skill in archery, no one was superior to General Dingbei.
Their eyes met. Ji Qingwu forgot her fear, consumed by the need to know why her arrow had missed.
Princess Consort Wei watched the Emperor beside her. His face had been grim, but when the Ji Family’s Fifth Missy shot her arrow and glanced back at him, lost and helpless, his expression instantly softened.
He even smiled and shook his head at Miss Ji. She could see it clearly—it wasn’t a smile of derision...
...but one of amusement. His jet-black, star-like eyes were full of mirth.
Ji Qingwu’s shoulders slumped in dejection. Then, a rich male voice drifted down from the dais.
"Bring me my Xuanyuan Bow."
Princess Consort Wei’s red lips parted in surprise. ’What has gotten into His Majesty today?’ she wondered.
The civil officials at court might not have known, but every military general was aware: Emperor Wu Su had practiced martial arts since he was a boy and excelled at archery and wielding the long spear. With his Xuanyuan Bow, he had killed no fewer than fifty enemy generals, each with a single arrow to the throat.
Princess Consort Wei was the sister of Wei Ting and came from a family of military generals.
To a soldier, a trusted weapon was more cherished than the wife who had seen him through hardship.
She had never, ever seen the Xuanyuan Bow in anyone else’s hands.
