I was not alone in my concern for the Emperor’s health. Nuharoo shared the same feeling. On her last visit we had come together on friendly terms for the first time. The fear of losing Hsien Feng bound us. She had begun to accept the fact that I had become her equal. Her sense of superiority had softened, and she began to use “would you” instead of “this is Her Majesty’s thinking.” We both knew from history what could happen to an emperor’s wives and concubines after his death. We both realized that we had only each other to depend on.
I had my own reasons for wanting Nuharoo as an ally. I sensed that my son’s fate would be in the hands of such ambitious court ministers as Grand Councilor Su Shun. He seemed to have the Emperor’s complete trust. It was public knowledge that even Prince Kung feared Su Shun.
Su Shun had been running the state’s affairs and conducting audiences in the name of Hsien Feng during His Majesty’s illness. More and more, he acted with total independence. Su Shun’s power worried me, for I thought him manipulative and cunning. When he visited Emperor Hsien Feng, he rarely discussed state matters. In the name of caring for His Majesty’s health, he isolated Hsien Feng and strengthened his own position. According to Prince Ch’un, Su Shun had been carefully constructing his own political base for years through the appointment of friends and associates to important positions.
I convinced Nuharoo that we must insist on having important documents sent to Emperor Hsien Feng. His Majesty might be too ill to review the documents, but we might help him stay informed. At least we would not be kept in the dark and could make sure that Su Shun was not abusing his power.
Nuharoo didn’t want to bother. “A wise lady ought to spend her life appreciating the beauty of nature, preserving her yin element and pursuing her longevity.”
But my instinct told me that if we refused to take part in the government, we could lose whatever control we had.
Nuharoo agreed that I had a point, but didn’t fully embrace my plan. Nonetheless, I spoke to His Majesty that evening, and the next day a decree was issued: all documents were to be sent to Emperor Hsien Feng’s office first.
It didn’t surprise me that Su Shun ignored the decree. He ordered the messengers who carried the documents to “follow the original route.” Again his excuse was the Emperor’s health. My suspicion and distrust deepened.
“I feel myself aging over your struggle to control Su Shun’s ambi-tion,” Nuharoo said. She asked me to spare her the exertion. “Do whatever you want with Su Shun as long as you respect the fact that ‘the sun rises in the east and sets in the west,’” she said, referring to the two of us.
It amazed me that Nuharoo would think of this as important. I gave her my word.
Immediately she relaxed. “Why don’t you take charge and update me once in a while?” she said. “I hate to sit in the same room with men whose breath stinks.”
At first I suspected that Nuharoo was testing my loyalty. But in time she made me realize that I was doing her a favor. She was the kind who would lose sleep over the smallest flaw in her embroidery, but not if we lost an important term in a treaty.
The sunlight on Nuharoo’s bone-thin shoulders carved a beautiful contour. She never failed to prepare herself for His Majesty’s possible appearance. Her makeup must have taken half a day to complete. Black paste made of scented flower petals was used to accent her eyelashes. Her eyes looked like two deep wells. She painted her lips a different color every day. Today was pink with a touch of vermilion. Yesterday had been rose, and the day before purple. She expected to be complimented, and I learned that it was important to our relationship that I do so.
“I’d hate to see you age, Yehonala.” Nuharoo held up all of her fingers. The two-inch-long nails were painted gold and silver with delicate details from nature. “Take my advice and have your chef prepare tang kuei soup daily. Put dry silkworm and black dates in it. The taste will be awful, but you’ll get used to it.”
“We need to talk about Su Shun and his cabinet, Nuharoo,” I said. “I get nervous about things I don’t know.”
“Oh, you will never know it all. It’s a hundred-year-old mess.” She blocked my eyes with her “finger spears.” “I’ll send my nail lady to your palace if you don’t get it done yourself.”
“I am not used to long nails,” I said. “They break too easily.”
“Am I the head of the Imperial household?” She frowned.
I sealed my lips, reminding myself of the importance of keeping harmony between us.
“Long nails are symbols of nobility, Lady Yehonala.”
I nodded, although my mind had gone back to Su Shun.
Nuharoo’s smile returned. “Like a Chinese lady who binds her feet, who doesn’t live to do labor but to be carried around in palanquins. The longer our nails, the further we depart from the ordinary. Please stop bragging about working in the garden with your hands. You embarrass not only yourself but also the Imperial family.”
I kept nodding, pretending to appreciate her advice.
“Avoid tangerine.” She leaned so close that I smelled jasmine on her breath. “Too many hot elements will give you pimples. I’ll have my eunuch send you a bowl of turtle soup to put out the fire inside you. Do honor me by accepting.”
I was sure that she felt she had achieved her goal when the Emperor stopped sharing my bed. She now had an even better reason to feel safe with me: Hsien Feng was never going to get up and walk back into my bedroom.
“I’ll leave you to the headaches, then,” she said, smiling and getting up.
To put her mind more at ease, I told her I had no experience dealing with the court, nor had I any connections.
“That’s something I am sure I can help with,” Nuharoo said. “My birthday is approaching, and I have ordered a banquet to celebrate. I want you to invite anyone you think will be useful to you. Don’t worry. People are dying to make connections with us.”
“Who is there besides Prince Kung that we can trust?”
She thought for a moment and then replied, “How about Yung Lu?”
“Yung Lu?”
“The commander in chief of the Imperial Guards. He works under Su Shun. He is a very capable man. I went to my family reunion for the rice cake festival and his name was on everyone’s lips.”
“Have you met him?”
“No.”
“Will you send him an invitation?”
“I would if I could. The problem is that Yung Lu’s rank is not high enough to entitle him to a place at an Imperial banquet.”
Fragrance of laurel filled the courtyard and the reception hall. Dressed like a blossoming tree, Nuharoo was surprised to learn that Su Shun had sent word at the last minute that he would not be attending. His excuse was that “His Majesty’s ladies are for His Majesty’s eyes only.” Nuharoo was beside herself.
Wearing so many necklaces of hammered gold, precious stones and brocade caused Nuharoo’s neck to lean forward. She was sitting on the throne in the east hall of the Palace of Gathering Essence. She had just completed her second change of dress for the day and now wore a bright yellow gauzy silk robe embroidered with an array of Imperial symbols.
All eyes were locked on Nuharoo except those of Emperor Hsien Feng, who, although sick to the bone, had made an effort to come. He was dressed in a matching robe to complement Nuharoo. But the symbols on his robe were slightly different. Dragons replaced phoenixes, mountains replaced rivers.
“Happy twenty-second birthday, Your Majesty Empress Nuharoo!” Chief Eunuch Shim sang.
The crowd followed, and toasted Nuharoo’s longevity.
I sipped rice wine and thought about what Nuharoo had said to me about her method of achieving internal harmony: “Lie in the bed others have made, and walk in the shoes others have cobbled.” The sentiment made little sense to me. My life so far was a piece of embroidery with every stitch sewn by my own hands.