The Empress Wears Gucci

74

          A chuckle escaped from my lips. We both faced each other and shared amusement. The Emperor was smiling today. He rarely was joyous. Every time I saw him, he was either angry or solemn. I almost felt bad that the polo game will end off with something happening, but Minister Feng needed to go away. 

          I placed the cat down and exhaled sharply. I had a great name in my head, Em-PURR-ess. But it obviously wouldn't make sense because I wasn't speaking English. I felt pretty pressured to find a good cat name. Usually, I'd name it 'Dog' or something ironic but I don't think ancient Chinese humour would understand it.

        Then, I scanned the room. I tried searching for anything that could be a good name for a little cat. I was pathetic. After a little bit of searching, my eyes stopped at the dragon embroidery I did. 

        He still kept it.

        My smile gradually spread wider. I turned to look at the Emperor. "Dragon. Her name will be 'Dragon.'"

          "A female cat named 'Dragon'?" the Emperor raised an eyebrow. He took another glance at Dragon, who stretched on the floor. She arched her back and widened her mouth.

          "What's wrong with that, Your Majesty?" I pursed my lips, keeping my eyes fixed at the Emperor now. 

          I waited for him to say something, maybe try to argue with me, but nothing came out of him. The Emperor wasn't going to throw a fit over a cat's name. That'd be stupid. There were more things to worry about than a female cat named Dragon. 

          The Emperor slowly nodded at me. "Fair enough, Empress."

          "You know, Your Majesty, I miss being called Ying Yue." 

          "You do? You don't want me to call you by your title?"

           "No, I just think it's nice to have you call me by my true name," I watched Dragon lay on the ground. She looked at me. I looked away slowly and faced the Emperor. "Unless you prefer 'Empress'?"

           "Whatever you like, Ying Yue." the Emperor replied in a softer tone. He studied my face. His eyes trailed to my lips, to my nose, and then back to my eyes. He was so obvious that I don't think he was hiding it.

          I was pleased. Nobody in the palace called me Ying Yue, except for the Emperor now. I've been so used to 'Empress' or 'Your Majesty', that I missed being called Ying Yue. Even Hua Er is so keen on not referring to me by my real name. Since the Emperor was the only person who called me by my name, I hoped he felt more connected to me.

          We both sat in silence now. After speaking, we turned to watch Dragon. She kept her eyes open but now closed. Probably because it was awkward. I always felt awkward when a foreign animal was staring at me. I didn't know what to do. Do I talk to it? Do I touch it?

          After glancing back at the Emperor, I remembered another reason I was here. 

        I was comfortable where I was, but I shifted myself so I didn't ruin my hanfu. The Emperor turned away from Dragon and watched me. I leaned my head back and sighed. "Your Majesty, please don't get mad when I say this."

          The Emperor furrowed his eyebrows. He rested his weight on the palm of his hand settled near my thigh. "What is it?"

           "Do you remember the beautiful pin of the red bird you gave me when I was an Imperial Noble Consort?" I asked.

           He nodded once.

          Once I was a high-ranking consort, the Emperor showered me with more gifts than before. Perhaps he pitied me because I lost Guan Shu, or maybe it was just common to do so. I had a lot of jewellery as well. The earrings that I wore today had the centerpiece of jade.