Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 345 A Shocking Change on the Stage
There is a small stage on the west side of Cixi Hall, which was specially set up for the Empress Dowager.

The platform was exquisitely constructed, covered with a scarlet felt carpet, flanked by carved wooden pillars, and draped with a plain-colored gauze curtain.

Empress Dowager Chengqing leaned back in her rosewood armchair, her eyes half-closed, watching the men and women in colorful clothes on the stage, their flowing sleeves fluttering, with a listless expression...

Fuquan, carrying a carved lacquer tray, bowed and leaned closer: "Grand Ancestor, His Highness Prince Wei sent over these Jiangnan tangerines, saying they are refreshing and soothing to the throat, perfect for enjoying while listening to opera..."

"It's admirable that he's so filial, remembering that I love this." The Empress Dowager picked up a tangerine with her fingertips, her gaze falling on the stage.

"This performance of 'The Golden Hairpin' is quite fitting for the occasion. I love watching stories of princesses falling into misfortune and returning to the imperial palace. It's so satisfying to watch..."

Fuquan smiled obsequiously, his voice growing increasingly submissive.

"His Highness Prince Wei knows best what the Ancestor intended..."

The sweet and sour taste of the tangerines soothed her throat, and Empress Dowager Chengqing felt a little better. "Pass down the word, tell them to sing for me well... If they sing well, I will reward them handsomely."

"Yes." Fu Quan bowed and gave the opera troupe leader a look.

As the play progressed to the middle, when the lyrics reached "Golden branches and jade leaves shattered into dust, past glory sought only in dreams," the actor playing the fallen princess's maidservant slowly stepped forward and offered a cup of tea to the "princess."

The "princess," who should have been pampered and dignified, now had white hair, a haggard and withered appearance, and the scars on her cheekbones were particularly glaring.

She trembled as she took the broken bowl, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably, accompanied by a pitiful sob.

"Cold water and porridge are hard to swallow, and old clothes can hardly keep out the biting north wind..."

"The palace walls separate life and death, thousands of miles apart; who remembers the soul begging for food before the steps..."

The sounds of silk and bamboo instruments filled the air.

The tragic story of "The Golden Hairpin" was sung with heart-wrenching sorrow.

Empress Dowager Chengqing twirled the Buddhist prayer beads on her wrist, while the "princess" on the platform made all sorts of obsequious and fawning gestures, her brows furrowing more and more tightly.

"This show is so upsetting..."

She suddenly spoke, her voice tinged with impatience.
"Even if a princess of the current dynasty were to be exiled to the common people and become a prisoner, she should not debase herself in this way. Starving to death is a small matter, but losing one's chastity is a great matter. What kind of princess is she, crying and begging for mercy? Stop the performance and let them come over here... I want to ask, how was this play arranged? Does the dignity of the royal family still have any regard for it?"

Empress Dowager Chengqing, for reasons unknown, suddenly became furious and her voice rose sharply.

Fuquan looked up and gestured in that direction.

The troupe leader understood and rushed onto the stage, dragging the actress playing the "princess" off the stage, and scolded her in a low voice. The actress seemed extremely unwilling, being pulled forward and staggering to within a few feet of the Empress Dowager's seat. Before she could even stand properly, her knees buckled and she knelt heavily on the ground, her head buried deep in her hands, her arms tightly wrapped around herself, as if terrified...

"Raise your head—" Empress Dowager Chengqing's voice was cold and hard.

The actor shuddered, hugged himself tighter, and lowered his head even further. His disheveled white hair covered his face, revealing only a sharp chin and dry, pale lips.

"I tell you to raise your head!" the Empress Dowager raised her voice.

The performer shuddered again, and very slowly, little by little, raised his head.

Layers of heavy makeup obscured her original appearance, yet her eyes remained fixed on Empress Dowager Chengqing…

"What are you looking at? A lowly entertainer, does he really think he's some kind of noblewoman? He doesn't even kowtow to the Empress Dowager, and he dares to look directly at her phoenix face..." Granny Cui stepped forward and scolded her sternly.

"Slave..."

The performer opened his mouth, and upon seeing the Empress Dowager, he suddenly gave a sorrowful smile.

"We dare not offend our ancestors..."

Empress Dowager Chengqing's previously indifferent gaze suddenly froze.

How dare you speak so presumptuously?

"Slap him!" Granny Cui shouted sternly.

The head palace maid raised her hand to strike.

Snap!
A powerful slap ripped off the makeup from the actress's face, revealing her sallow skin underneath. She suddenly broke free from the palace servants' grasp and lunged forward.

"Ancestor, save me..."

The palace maid was so startled that she took a half step back, and Granny Cui quickly stepped in front of the Empress Dowager, shouting, "You lowly servant, how dare you offend the Empress Dowager?"

"Grandmother, save me..." the actor cried out again, his voice barely audible, yet it struck Empress Dowager Chengqing like a thunderbolt.

With a gurgling sound, the tangerine in her hand rolled to the ground.

This face...

She had applied a thick layer of powder, but some of the natural oils had worn off, leaving only dark red patches crawling across her cheeks. On stage, I had thought it was just makeup, but now, upon closer inspection, they resembled a spiderweb crisscrossing her skin, grotesque and terrifying—far beyond the reach of mere makeup…

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

The sounds of string and wind instruments, gongs and drums, and the performers on stage all receded like the tide.

She stared intently at that face, her voice sounding as if squeezed out from between her teeth.

"Fuquan, where did Prince Wei find this opera troupe?"

Fu Quan had already waved his hand to dismiss everyone.

Hearing the voice, he leaned closer, bent even lower, and whispered, "Your Majesty, it's an opera troupe from the north..."

"Which north..." The Empress Dowager's gaze never left the person kneeling on the ground.

"Shuozhou." Fuquan's voice was even lower, almost a whisper.

Empress Dowager Chengqing's pupils suddenly contracted, and she sat up abruptly, her well-maintained fingers gripping the cold armrest tightly.

The actor before me, neither human nor ghost, was completely different from the arrogant and domineering figure in my memory.

Yet, the contours of her eyes and brows couldn't conceal her former arrogance; she was clearly the deposed princess who had been demoted to commoner status and exiled to the harsh and desolate land of Shuozhou by His Majesty…

A nearly forgotten name rose to my throat.

"Ping Le?...It's you?"

The person on the ground shuddered violently.

"Grandmother, it's me..."

"Your face..." Empress Dowager Chengqing couldn't believe it, and dared not look closely at the spiderweb-like red threads...

Ping Le was once so bright and flamboyant; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she was the most beautiful woman in the palace...

The person before me now is ashen and emaciated, with high cheekbones and sunken eyes. Only his eyes burn with a venomous resentment, which has a somewhat terrifying familiarity.

"Even though His Majesty was furious, he still considered the bond between blood relatives and gave you a way out... Although you were demoted to Shuozhou and your palace stipend was cut off, he still left you private property to rely on and assigned servants to take care of you. How... how did you end up in such a state?" The Empress Dowager's voice was full of surprise and doubt.

Ping Le let out a short, shrill laugh.

Suddenly, she rolled up her sleeve to her elbow, revealing shocking scratches on her forearm.

The scars, old and new, gnarled and ugly, resembled coiled centipedes, meandering along the thin, bony arm—a truly alarming sight…

Empress Dowager Chengqing gasped.

"How is this going?"

"They're the ones who caused this!"

Ping Le dug her nails deep into her palms, tears streaming down her face, washing away the powder on her cheeks. "When the love affair triggered this, I suffered day and night in Shuozhou, my skin gradually festering and bleeding... The unbearable pain, itching, and burning sensation felt like a thousand ants gnawing at me, like being burned by a raging fire, so I scratched myself until I looked like this..."

(End of this chapter)