The Treacherous Concubine’s Guide To Whitewashing

Chapter 17, Pt 1 - Talent

In Zichen Palace Si Xi held a bowl of warm ginger soup and asked cautiously, "How could the Empress catch a could? Is the charcoal stove in the east palace hall too inferior?"

Yuan Luo took the ginger soup and drank it all all at once. She put aside the jade bowl. "It’s simply that this palace was not careful enough, so there’s no need to mention it again." Si Xi, her close personal maid, could definitely tell that she had fallen into the water and had changed her entire outfit.

Si Xi did not dare to ask more.

After drinking the cold medicine decoction, Yuan Luo became very busy the next day.

The New Year festival was going to begin very soon. There would be grand banquets held in the palace which would go on continuously for several consecutive days all to entertain hundreds of civil and military officials and their spouses. There would also be continuous celebrating in the harem.

That day there was to be a family banquet in the harem to be held in Zhaoyang Palace hall. Not only would the feast include the imperial concubines, but the noble regional princesses of the imperial clan and numerous other regional ladies would also attend.

Yuan Luo and Empress Wei stood beside Sikong Lin, one to each side. The imperial concubine and the Empress Consort were both situated on the high platform, which did not conform with the established rules. However, the imperial concubine had followed alongside Sikong Lin and they had both experienced his taking of the throne. Naturally, no one was bothered by this little impoliteness.

This banquet of the New Year festival was particularly lively and gorgeous. Not only did the palace workshops prepare all kinds of sideshows, but outstanding folk artists from outside the palace were also called to perform. Even lively princesses and concubines prepared singing and dancing programs. This era did not pay as much attention to ethics as later generations and noble ladies from prestigious households were proud of being experts in vocal music.

Yuan Luo held a wine glass and watched a beautiful, dancing figure in the center of the expansive hall with interest.

Concubine Shu Zhuo, dressed in a green palace costume, was performing and the swiftly-rotating slim figure was particularly dazzling on the carpet of red embroidered with gold thread.

Concubine Shu Zhuo's face was average and she hadn’t expect her dance to be so breathtaking.

After Concubine Shu Zhuo, a regional lord showed off his voice again and sang a song praising the prosperity of the dynasty. The weak Du Zhao Yi changed into a hunting costume and showed off with a sword dance. Yuan Luo was quite amazed to see that performance.

Even Empress Wei was unable to resist her eagerness to display talent, so she ordered a female officer to fetch her long qin and chose to play a song right then and there.

To be honest, Empress Wei’s talent with the qin was quite good and when the Empress Consort left the stage at the conclusion, naturally everyone there had nothing but praise for her skill and performance.

Empress Wei smiled reservedly. "Everyone is too polite. Everyone who has performed singing, dancing and music this evening are also excellent."

Yuan Luo glanced at the opposite side, smiled and said, "I was unaware, but did the Empress Consort prepare a show today? You have permitted us the opportunity to broaden our horizons."

There was a moment of silence in the hall. Everyone was aware that the Empress was not in harmony with the imperial concubine and the family origin of the imperial concubine had always been the focus of criticism. It was said that the imperial concubine had been supplied with the surname of a declining, aristocratic family so that she might claim a higher status and in their hearts everyone was clear that it was merely a name and nothing more.

Yuan Luo set down the wine glass. This rigid girl was preoccupied with Yuan Luo poking her if she had nothing better to do with her time. At the same time, Yuan Luo deeply reflected on whether her temper had been so good-natured these days so as to make the other imperial concubines no longer fear her as they once did.

Although this had originally been the goal of Yuan Luo's efforts, however, sometimes inevitably she can't help but feel slightly irritated.

"Since the Empress has spoken, this palace is also no good at avoiding a clumsy task just to save face. Speaking of which, this palace has been practicing painting skills recently and has made great progress. While painting may be inferior to today’s performances, it may also permit everyone to broaden their horizons."

Everyone in the hall listening to her inevitably felt somewhat ridiculous. Something major to broaden our horizons? Who could praise themselves so much before even painting?

Empress Wei beamed at her and said, "Then we are looking forward to it."

Yuan Luo stood up exasperatingly slow. When she passed by Empress Wei, she lowered her voice and said with a grin, "Then hold your head up well."

Empress Wei stiffened. Her cheeks flushed with anger and bulged like a pufferfish.

Liu Xiu Chun had hurriedly directed a little eunuch to bring a desk.  They had prepared a writing brush, ink, paper, an inkstone, and various colors of paint.

Yuan Luo walked to the front of the desk and brandished a large writing brush. With very little effort and using only a small amount of tea, she immediately raised her head and said, "The painting is finished."

Everyone in the palace hall was surprised. Never had they seen a painting completed so quickly and were now even more curious about the quality of the finished piece.

Yuan Luo instructed two court eunuchs and said, "Show the work of this palace to all the sisters and ladies."

Everyone looked at it attentively.

Those who were of a mind to curry favor considered Yuan Luo’s overwhelming power at this time and were prepared, no matter how disappointing the painting might be, to pinch their noses and compliment the painting no matter what. But at that moment, they were dumbfounded when they saw the painting and were unable to speak at all.

Because it couldn’t be called a painting at all. On the snow-white paper, there were only a few thick ink marks, which were messy and completely lacked order.

Yuan Luo laughed. "How is the painting that this palace created? Please, everyone, examine it."

Everyone looked at each other in dismay and didn't know whether they should in good conscience compliment the painting or remain silent. The main reason was because this painting was too far beyond their tolerance limits. Wouldn’t they be seen as a joke in the future if they praised it?

Concubine Shu Zhuo couldn't help asking, "What kind of scene does the unknown painting of the Empress describe?"

Yuan Luo said lightly, "Can you not see it? Of course it is a snow scene."

Everyone: ...

That vast expanse of whiteness could indeed be regarded as a snow scene.

Prince Yi Chang asked, "The black included are…?"

"Those black lines are houses in the snow."

Everyone ridiculed, do such ugly houses exist? Wouldn’t these houses simply be a pile of disorderly wood?

"Speaking of which, these houses do resemble a confusing pile of wood," Yuan Luo said reasonably as she walked up to her masterpiece and touched her chin.

It turns out that this imperial concubine at least knows herself.

Yuan Luo glanced around the large palace hall at all the noble ladies and raised her voice. "However, this kind of messy wood house is the actual scene you would find blanketed by the violent blizzard we had in the Capital today.  It is what this palace saw with my own eyes."

Under everyone’s surprised line of sight, Yuan Luo walked slowly through the palace hall. "Your Majesty, and all of the ladies in the high seats of the palace hall today, the food we eat is rich and sumptuous. The clothing we wear is fashioned of silk and damask. There is burning ambergris at everyone’s side and our feet are walking on golden velvet. In this way we’re swallowing pearls and eating jade, but do you know how many common people have been living a hard life since the beginning of winter? Recently, there have been multiple, cruel blizzards and 2,221 houses inside the Capital have been damaged so far with more than 8,000 people being affected. These are the people at the foot of the Emperor in the Capital in this situation. There is no shortage of people outside the Capital who are destitute and homeless. Even if they are barely affected by the rapid snowfall, they live in thatched huts and are wrapped in sackcloth. Their normal days are difficult..."

She had seen the snow disaster scene in the Capital when she went out of the palace in person.

Sikong Lin thought for a while. "Is that the divine story in "Ma Liang" that A Luo told me about before?"

Yuan Luo had previously provided him with a picture book which combined folk tales and stories of livelihood issues of the common people. She had wanted to use it to guide Sikong Lin’s three views, so when he mentioned it, she remembered the snow disaster he was referencing.