Volume Three: The Southern Campaign and Expansion of the Realm Chapter 117: A Bosom Friend
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The Princess Consort of Heng smiled with quiet pleasure. After exchanging a few more words with Xuerou, she took her leave.
Li Xuerou escorted her to the door, where the two attendant beauties congratulated her in unison. “Our congratulations, Your Highness.”
Li Xuerou merely inclined her head and turned back to her chambers.
Once inside, one of the maids asked in confusion, “Your Highness has been granted a title and an imperial marriage, yet you do not seem pleased.”
Seated on an embroidered chair, Li Xuerou replied softly, “Being made a princess is not necessarily a good thing. The Fufeng Marquis might accept a marriage with a princess of the imperial clan, but he may not be willing to accept one with a princess of the highest rank. Besides, His Majesty’s decision to make me a princess clearly means that he regards me as a pawn.”
“I think being made a princess is a good thing,” the maid argued.
Xuerou smiled faintly and said nothing. Within her heart, she sighed. “What use is the title of princess? Once I leave Chang’an, I may not even be as precious as a magistrate’s daughter. That Fufeng Marquis may well grow wary of me and keep his distance.”
Three days after the Empress’s reply arrived, the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs sent men to take Li Xuerou away.
In accordance with court protocol, she was formally invested with her title and issued an imperial edict, several seals, ceremonial guards, and princess’s robes. An official establishment was also created for her princess’s residence, though in truth it existed only in name.
After returning to the Prince of Heng’s residence, Li Xuerou sent someone early the following morning to the mansion of Li Xi, asking that Ninth Lady be brought over for a visit.
When Ninth Lady arrived at the Prince of Heng’s residence, Li Xuerou received the news and personally went to the courtyard gate to welcome her.
When the two women met, Li Xuerou noticed that Ninth Lady looked somewhat haggard.
Her lovely face calm, Ninth Lady bowed respectfully. “I pay my respects to Your Highness. Ninth Lady offers her congratulations, Elder Sister.”
Li Xuerou supported her by the hand and said gently, “Let us speak in my chambers.”
They entered the inner room together. Li Xuerou dismissed everyone and sat down opposite Ninth Lady.
Looking at her, she said softly, “You must have heard that His Majesty has arranged my marriage to the Fufeng Marquis.”
Ninth Lady nodded calmly.
“In fairness, Elder Sister has wronged you,” Li Xuerou murmured.
“You speak too harshly of yourself,” Ninth Lady replied softly. “I have no further connection with the Fufeng Marquis.”
“Do you truly not care?” Li Xuerou asked in surprise.
Ninth Lady nodded. “The Fufeng Marquis was originally Fourteenth Lady’s destined match. Second Uncle forcibly arranged for Fourteenth Lady and me to marry him together. In truth, neither Mother nor I was willing.”
Li Xuerou nodded, and Ninth Lady continued, “You and I are close, so I do not resent your marriage to the Fufeng Marquis. I simply do not understand why you favor him. I heard from Mother that the Princess Consort of Heng took the initiative to ask Her Majesty the Empress to arrange this marriage.”
With a bitter smile upon her vermilion lips, Li Xuerou asked in return, “Why do you dislike the Fufeng Marquis?”
Ninth Lady hesitated before answering, “I dislike men who are overbearing and discourteous.”
“You have always admired men of talent,” Li Xuerou said softly. “But men of genuine talent are rare. Most are merely polished on the outside yet cowardly within. There are many scholars in Chang’an, but very few who can remain steadfast before force.”
Ninth Lady fell silent.
“Do not think me too extreme,” Li Xuerou went on. “During the Huang Chao Rebellion, I saw too many nobles and officials abandon their wives and daughters in order to save their own lives. One cannot know a man’s heart by looking only at his face. It is only when disaster descends that one can tell who possesses the courage and compassion of a true hero.”
“You believe the Fufeng Marquis is such a hero?” Ninth Lady asked, her tone edged with challenge.
Li Xuerou smiled bitterly. “There is much disagreement over what makes a hero. You asked why I favor the Fufeng Marquis. In truth, it cannot be called favor. I simply have no choice. I will be nineteen in two months, and very few nobles are willing to marry me.”
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Ninth Lady gave a soft exclamation, and Li Xuerou continued, “I met the Fufeng Marquis that day. Later, when I spoke with Fourteenth Lady, she told me that she had once wished to visit Qu Pond. The Fufeng Marquis had deliberately made time to accompany her there, and afterward he had Qu Pond repaired.”
“Qu Pond was repaired by imperial order,” Ninth Lady said.
Hearing the naïveté in her reply, Li Xuerou shook her head. “His Majesty cannot even afford to repair his own palaces. How could he have the leisure to concern himself with Qu Pond? It was clearly the Fufeng Marquis who requested the repairs himself.”
Ninth Lady fell silent.
“One of the chief reasons I chose the Fufeng Marquis,” Li Xuerou continued quietly, “is that I long for protection.”
Ninth Lady looked at her in astonishment, unable to understand what Li Xuerou had to fear. “Have you encountered some crisis?”
Li Xuerou shook her head. “There is no immediate crisis. But Chang’an has suffered repeated outbreaks of warfare. I have heard that the power of the military governors of Fengxiang, Xuanwu, and Hedong, beyond the capital, is growing stronger by the day. Chang’an is like an isolated imperial city in the Warring States era, swaying precariously in the storm.”
“The court still has tens of thousands of soldiers,” Ninth Lady said nervously.
Li Xuerou shook her head. “Tens of thousands of undisciplined rabble. When the imperial army once attacked Hedong, they say that a thousand soldiers from Hedong routed ten thousand imperial troops. Only the Fufeng Army managed to make the Hedong forces suffer a defeat and still withdraw from Hedong unscathed.”
Ninth Lady’s lovely face changed slightly, and she remained silent.
“The Fufeng Marquis is by no means reckless,” Li Xuerou continued. “Otherwise, he could never have emerged safely from Hedong. I believe there must have been a deeper purpose behind the Fufeng Army’s smashing through the gates and charging into the Daming Palace.”
“What deeper purpose?” Ninth Lady asked.
“The assault on the Daming Palace may have been an outlet for his fury. As for smashing the gates, that was likely meant to protect the Li family and prevent His Majesty from venting his anger upon them,” Li Xuerou replied.
Ninth Lady stared at her in stunned disbelief, finding the idea almost inconceivable.
Li Xuerou continued, “That he charged the Daming Palace to vent his anger shows how deeply he cared about his marriage connection with the Li family. Yet he also feared that His Majesty would take his rage out on the household. If the Fufeng Marquis had truly wished to retaliate against the Li family, he would not have stopped at smashing the gates. At the very least, he would have stormed inside and beaten many people half to death.”
Ninth Lady turned her head away and said softly, “Since you are marrying the Fufeng Marquis, naturally you will speak on his behalf.”
Li Xuerou smiled bitterly. “You need not listen if you do not wish to, but I will say this: the Fufeng Marquis’s withdrawal of his troops from Chang’an may portend misfortune. I have grown worried and wish to leave the capital to seek refuge.”
“Seek refuge?” Ninth Lady cried in surprise.
Xuerou nodded. “Chang’an is no longer a safe place. All four directions are watching it. Warfare may break out before long.”
“Are you planning to go south into Sichuan? That is a land of barbarians. Surely it will be even less peaceful there,” Ninth Lady objected.
“Sichuan may be a barbarian land, but think about this: since the An Lushan Rebellion, whenever warfare has broken out in Chang’an, why has the emperor’s journey always been toward Bashu?” Li Xuerou asked quietly.
Ninth Lady was momentarily taken aback. “The emperor went west to Chengdu in Xichuan. Southern Sichuan is very far from Chengdu.”
“Southern Sichuan is indeed far from Chengdu, but it still lies within the region of Bashu. Though it is a barbarian land, the barbarian powers there are much weaker than the military governors of the Central Plain and the lands within the passes. At present, the Central Plain and Huainan are locked in ceaseless warfare, driving countless refugees into Bashu in search of survival,” Li Xuerou explained.
Ninth Lady shook her head. “Those matters have nothing to do with us.”
“They have nothing to do with us for now,” Li Xuerou said softly. “My thoughts are simple. I wish to find a place in Southern Sichuan where I can settle. Wherever peace may be found in the future, that is where I would go. I only hope that Chang’an may remain peaceful forever.”
Ninth Lady remained silent.
“The Fufeng Marquis was originally destined for you,” Li Xuerou continued gently. “Though circumstances have changed, if you truly like him, you may still become his principal wife. I would willingly share the same standing with you.”
Ninth Lady hurriedly shook her head. “Elder Sister, do not say such foolish things. I truly do not like the Fufeng Marquis.”
Li Xuerou opened her mouth, but Ninth Lady quickly added, “Elder Sister, I speak sincerely. If I cared for the Fufeng Marquis, how could I have come to see you?”
“Elder Sister is speaking sincerely as well,” Xuerou replied softly. “If you cannot find a talented man who suits your heart, you may write to me. I acknowledge you as the Fufeng Marquis’s principal wife.”
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Ninth Lady seemed about to speak, but stopped herself. With a bitter smile, she said, “Thank you for your kindness, Elder Sister. I will remember it.”
With sadness in her voice, Li Xuerou murmured, “I will be leaving Chang’an in a few days. After we part, we may find it difficult to meet again. Let me offer you a few words of advice: do not stubbornly set your heart on men of noble or official birth. In times of turmoil, such distinctions mean very little.”
Ninth Lady nodded, sorrow showing upon her lovely face. She was quiet and gentle by nature, and among all her companions of the same age, Li Xuerou was her only close friend. Hearing that they might never meet again, she felt a deep and painful reluctance to part.
……
After Ninth Lady returned home, her mother summoned her and asked what had happened. Knowing that her mother disapproved of Xuerou’s marriage to the Fufeng Marquis, Ninth Lady truthfully repeated Xuerou’s explanation.
Lady Li Ji shook her head. “Xuerou is calculating. She should not have set herself against you.”
“Elder Sister Xuerou was not setting herself against me,” Ninth Lady said. “It truly is difficult for her to choose a husband. If she marries the Fufeng Marquis, she will be able to look after Fourteenth Lady.”
Lady Li Ji’s face darkened, and she said nothing.
Confused, Ninth Lady asked, “Mother, did you not say that you disliked the match with the Fufeng Marquis?”
Lady Li Ji could only sigh helplessly. The bitterness in her heart was impossible to express.
Ever since the Fufeng Army had smashed through the gates, the noblemen and officials’ wives who had once been close to her had grown noticeably distant. When she took the initiative to visit them, hoping to ask their help in finding a husband for her daughter, some politely declined, while others became evasive and tongue-tied.
Only after Lady Li Ji pressed them did she learn the truth: they feared that they would one day suffer retaliation from the Fufeng Marquis. A marriage connection might plant the seeds of disaster. Having endured the ravages of war, the people of Chang’an feared nothing more than provoking a brutal military commander who held troops in his hands.
Another source of Lady Li Ji’s anguish was her husband’s cold indifference toward her. Every day he left early and returned late, wandering outside in search of musical performances. It was obvious that he had lost all sense of purpose.
Lady Li Ji sent her daughter away, thinking that after some time the damaging influence of the Fufeng Army’s assault on the gates would fade, and that her husband might overcome his disappointment and regain the composure he had possessed as a court official before leaving for Fu Prefecture.
……
At the end of the third month of the first year of Jingfu, Li Xuerou, newly invested as Princess Jiangcheng, departed from Chang’an under the escort of one hundred soldiers of the Divine Strategy Army, heading toward Xingyuan Prefecture in Hanzhong.
One day after leaving Chang’an, she suddenly turned southeast toward the Wuguan Route.
The one hundred Divine Strategy soldiers accompanying her came from the forces recently placed under the command of the Prince of Heng. The report submitted to the authorities stated that one hundred men had been assigned to the princess’s residence. In truth, all one hundred were merely hemp-clad spearmen.
The two thousand troops belonging to the Prince of Heng were, for the most part, little more than an undisciplined militia.
The emperor had accepted Du Rangneng’s proposal, intending to draw upon the wealth of the various princes to strengthen Chang’an’s military equipment and provide part of the army’s provisions.
Under the rites of the Tang dynasty, a princess who received an imperial title was permitted to establish her own household.
Li Xuerou received the imperial edict and golden seal confirming her title, along with a series of official seals for civil and military posts: the Princess’s Commandant of the seventh rank, the Princess’s Assistant of the eighth rank, a Recorder of the ninth official rank, and military captains of both the regular and lesser ninth ranks.
Among the offices of the princess’s household, Li Xuerou appointed only the two military captains of the lesser ninth rank—the two squad commanders who had been transferred to her service.
As for the other posts, the Princess Consort of Heng had once recommended household servants for them, but Li Xuerou tactfully declined, saying that such appointments would best be left to the Fufeng Marquis.