The Blood-Stained Empress

C2: A Sentence's Warning

*

After selecting the dress and saying goodbye to Huang Siming, Li Meixing boards the carriage to return to the Li fu. Because she is not married to Huang Siming yet, it would be improper for her to arrive at the banquet with him.

"We have arrived at the Li family's fu!" the carriage driver announces. Li Meixing steps out of the carriage, adjusts her hair, and happily heads inside.

"Greetings to daxiaojie," the guards keeping watch bow.

Li Meixing nods in response and glances at the long stream of maids hastily running to and fro the inner courtyard, each one carrying a stack of clothes. With a wry smile, she approaches the courtyard and enters the room filled with chatter. Inside, a young and pretty teenage girl is nervously picking at the sleeves of a purple dress while a cluster of maids fit the dress around her.

One of the maids, sensing Li Meixing's presence, raises her head and hastily curtsies. "Greetings to daxiaojie." The other maids quickly follow suit.

The girl at the center turns around and, upon seeing Li Meixing, her face bursts into a large smile. "Jiejie! You've finally come. I was worried that you would end up spending the entire day with the emperor." She eagerly rushes toward Li Meixing and, after stumbling on the hem of a dress on the ground, wraps her arms around her.

"Unfortunately, that wouldn't be appropriate," Li Meixing responds. "Shaomei, are you coming to tonight's banquet?" Li Shaomei is the first daughter of Concubine Wei Wuqi, the woman that Li Meixing's father married after marrying the official wife. Li Meixing is the daughter of the official wife, which is why she is treated courteously no matter where she goes.

"En. Since this time it's a major celebration for the emperor's coronation, His Majesty allowed everyone in first, second, and even some third rate families to come!" Normally, concubines and their children aren't allowed to attend banquets in the imperial palace, but it seems like this time Huang Siming is making an exception.

"Woah, then you're making your debut in society today!" Li Meixing pats the top of Li Shaomei's head and gazes outside the window at the bustling courtyard. "Where are dage and didi? Are they going to come as well?"

Li Shaomei cocks her head to the side. "You weren't told? Last night, father sent them out on a mission to Tangwei. He said it was urgent, too. I think the emperor called them back this morning for the banquet and rebuked Father for sending them away."

Something urgent? At this time of year? Li Meixing thinks for a moment before writing it off as usual. Li Huoxin, her older brother, has gradually become a more prominent member in court and is now heavily utilized by her father, the minister of rites. Li Guang, her younger brother and Li Shaomei's twin, often tags along with Li Huoxin even though he's not supposed to. Li Meixing gestures toward the dress that's only halfway attached to Li Shaomei. "That dress looks really pretty on you. Mmm, have you seen Father?"

Shaomei shakes her head before pausing and nodding her head again. "No-wait, I think I saw visitors come to visit him. They looked like officials. Father was really happy to see them."

"Ah, I see." Li Meixing frowns. "I wanted to say hello to him since I haven't seen him in a while, but I guess he has better things to do." She notices the cluster of maids with their heads lowered, busily cleaning a bit of the mess that was there before. "I'll leave you back to your fitting."

She turns as if to leave, but Li Shaomei grasps the sleeve of Li Meixing's dress to bar her from the exit. "I'll just wear this dress since jiejie said it was pretty. Can jiejie tell me what the palace is like? I don't want to be a laughingstock later tonight."

Li Meixing smiles and gestures for a maid to bring her a seat. "Alright, then you must listen closely. The palace is beautiful. There are ponds covered with lotus pads and majestic red fish at every turn, trees blooming with pretty pink flowers, and everything is just so grand. There's the emperor, too--"

Li Shaomei giggles. "--jiejie loves him very much."

With a pout, Li Meixing playfully swats the side of Li Shaomei's face. "If you keep cutting in, this sister will just leave."

"No, no, please continue," Li Shaomei hastily responds while laughing.

"Well, he's very kind, and everyone...."

______________________

Someone knocks at the door.

"What is it?" Li Meixing asks loudly. "Not this one," she mutters to the maid next to her who was in the process of inserting a jade pin into her hair. "The green won't look nice with my red dress."

"Daxiaojie, the prime minister says that it's time to go to the palace."

"Eh? Already?" She had spent the entire afternoon talking to Li Shaomei about all the different events she had been to at the palace and had not yet finished getting ready for the banquet. "I will be done soon," she calls out to the maid outside. Li Meixing glances at herself in the mirror and, finding something lacking, frantically looks around the table for the missing final touch to her outfit. Her eyes catch sight of an embroidered pouch and, after opening it, carefully grasps the hairpin into her hand. It's a beautiful pearl-white hairpin with a bouquet of pink cherry blossoms engraved on the edge and delicate strands of crystals hanging off of the tip of the hairpin so that the crystals sway with each step. It was also the first gift that Huang Siming had given to her. "Put this into my hair," Li Meixing declares.

Bai Wei, her most trusted maid, gingerly inserts the hairpin so that it frames her face perfectly. "Daxiaojie, you look beautiful."

Li Meixing gazes at her appearance through the mirror. A stunning lady dressed extravagantly gazes back at her. "Do you really think so?"

"En," Bai Wei earnestly replies. "His Majesty will think so too."

Li Meixing smiles. "Alright, let's go. Father is probably waiting for me by now."

"Father, I've arrived." Li Meixing curtsies and the maids behind her follow suit.

A stern-looking man with firm-set eyebrows and greying hair nods. "Concubine Wei Wuqi and Li Shaomei are already sitting in their carriages." He pauses for a moment and, looking pensive, adds, "You must be careful tonight."

Surprised at the sudden warning, Li Meixing blinks a couple of times before responding, "Your daughter understands."