Zhang Rang is an intriguing character, to say the least. Under the unrelenting sun, I can see him clearly. On the surface, he appears to be a walking lump of lard. He is grossly obese, his entire figure inflated unnaturally. Yet, he does not sweat at all. In fact, despite having walked for nearly twenty minutes in the blazing sun he doesn't even seem winded, an incredible testament considering the four eunuchs carrying my palanquin are showing signs of wear. Eunuchs. I can't stop my face from contorting into an expression of abject revulsion at the practice of mutilating children to specifically serve the court.
After another five minutes of walking, the vastness of the Imperial Palace complex fully dawning on me, we finally arrive at my future residence: the Jujue Palace. The palace is arranged in an extended version of the Siheyuan pattern, though it is surprisingly... plain. Zhang Rang comes to this conclusion as well and offers to personally furnish the palace so it's "worthy of me."
"Your Highness, a eunuch should not be entrusted with such matters. It would be better to use His Highness, the Eighth Prince's privy purse instead." Xiaoyue speaks up from beside me. Zhang Rang goes beet red, eyes bulging. With a single, mighty stride, he steps toward Xiaoyue and me. Without hesitation, he slaps Xiaoyue so hard she tumbles to the ground. Everyone freezes, shocked at the eunuch's sudden outburst.
"HOW DARE YOU!" The harsh tones of Latin echo across the area. Cold fury seeps into my veins and my hand itches for a gladius that is not there. My rage and reaction catch Zhang Rang off guard and, in an instant, he goes from belligerent to groveling.
In Rome, we have a saying, "Fear is the fastest path to truth." How a person acts under duress reveals unspeakable amounts about their character. What is a person's first response to danger? How do they react? In other words, fear forces people to disclose their true character. And for Zhang Rang, he is nothing more than a coward, a craven cat clinging on to those in power. My assessment at the time could not have been more incorrect, Zhang Rang may have been a cat, but he was the king of the jungle, a tiger.
Zhang Rang- An actual historical figure, Zhang Rang was a powerful eunuch part of a court clique known as the Ten Regular Attendants, eunuchs who held sway over the Emperor himself. The Ten Regular attendants were widely despised by the rest of the court, especially the Confucian gentleman scholars who tried and failed to depose the eunuchs multiple times.
A/N- Sorry for the slow updates this time. A bitmore of a transitional chapter since I've been busying studying for IHBB. :)
KAMU SEDANG MEMBACA
The Foreign Empress
Fiksi SejarahA cold and potentially fatal marriage, an imperial court embroiled in assassination and conflict, a hidden conspiracy that could shatter not just a four-century-long peace but the empire itself. In the midst of it all, a girl whose struggle to survi...
