Love In The Forbidden City (Completed)

Chapter III - The Marriage Announcement - Part II (Revised)

Our horse carriage rode past the moat and within minutes, we arrived at our destination.

Stars spread throughout the night sky as I entered the Forbidden City. All of my dreads were washed away as I saw the palace's grandeur. I recalled reading in a book that it measured about 3,000 feet from north to south, and 2,500 feet from east to west. It had 980 buildings in the compound, with 8,886 bays of rooms. The walls surrounding the entire palace were constructed with a rammed earth core and were surfaced with three layers of baked bricks.

The foyer we had to walk through to reach the Hall of Justice and Honour was bigger than a cinema. A stone flagged path was constructed at the central axis of the foyer, which was called the Imperial Way. Only the emperor could walk on it. I later realized that the emperor might grant permission for coursing through it for certain occasions, such as for the wedding of the princes and for celebration for students who had passed the royal examination.

Almost all roofs in the Forbidden City bore yellow glazed tiles, as yellow was the colour of the emperor. The sloping ridges of the roofs were decorated with statuettes of men riding on phoenixes and dragons. Without waiting, the herald led us to the Hall of Justice and Honour. There, an intricately carved blue wood tablet brimmed with golden edges was set into the center of the ceiling. The words Justice and Honour were imprinted on the tablet, coated with gold. A stage held up by golden archways was placed underneath the tablet, with a throne deposited on it. A gold partition was set as a backdrop behind the throne.

The emperor sat on the throne, dressed in a bright yellow gown stitched with golden dragons' embroidery. Ringlets of pearl necklaces coiled around his neck. On his head was a crown with seven pearls festooned vertically. The Empress sat next to his right in a smaller throne. She was clad in a similar golden gown. Her pinkies, with incredibly long nails, perked up on the armrests. She wore so many gold bangles that it was a wonder her wrists didn't break. 

The princes had put on their golden dragons gowns as well, and they each wore a hat with a ruby stone on it.

At the sonorous voice of the herald, we all knelt before the emperor, chanting, "Your Majesty, may you be endowed with longevity and prosperity."

"Rise. This is a festival celebrated by all. The round moon signifies the unity of a household and a kingdom. Let us rejoice with peace and ease."

I breathed in relief upon hearing the ease word, when the emperor gave a loud shout.

"You!" His index finger, adorned with a Nephrite ring, pointed to me.

Worried faces of the princes turned to me.

From the corner of my eyes, I saw the Gorolos struggling hard to control their cynical laughter, but I couldn't feel any vexation towards them. My heart thumped. My feet trembled as if I'd run a hundred laps in the Marathon. The emperor continued to stare at me with his beady eyes, making me cringe in fear. For some majestic reasons, his brows, mustache, and beard seemed to have twisted into a malicious angle. For a good minute, I stood rooted to the floor, not knowing what to do. It wasn't until Ruo Lan had whispered to me to step forward that I could move. Perspiring, I walked past the crowd and knelt before the emperor.

The emperor said in a thunderous voice, "You are the famous Die Hard Maiden."

"I-- I am, Your Majesty."

"You are scared to see me."

My inner voice cautioned me that only the ruthless emperor would love his people to dread him. Apparently, saying yes would irk Kang Xi Emperor. My reply came in like the tumbling of a waterfall. "Ruo Xi was just overwhelmed to have witnessed Your Majesty's greatness." I didn't even dare to use "I" in my speech, as it would show that I was a self-centered person.