A dull pain began to throb in my head again. I returned to the bed, the headache unbearable. Without thinking, I took the carnelian ring from under my pillow and gripped it tightly. In the past, whenever the pain flared up, the only things that helped, aside from drinking mandragora flower juice, were holding onto this ring, which would offer me some relief.
I must have fallen asleep without realizing it. I was startled awake by a series of knocks on the door.
It was already morning. Was I supposed to go and paint a portrait for the Saint Lord today?
I put the ring back under the pillow, got up hurriedly, dressed, and opened the door. Standing at the door was the priestess who had delivered food yesterday.
She handed me the food box but did not leave immediately. She looked at me and whispered, “You don’t look well. Did you not sleep well last night?”
I felt warm inside when I remembered that she asked me about my scar yesterday. This priestess might be the only person in this huge palace who cares about me.
I shook my head and smiled at her: “No problem.”
“I saw the palace entry list. Your last name is Tai, and your name is Tai Xue, right?”
I nodded, wondering if this priestess knew me or if she was my former neighbor or something like that. “What’s wrong, Lord Priestess?”
“It’s nothing, it’s just that you are about the same age as my son, and I think you look familiar, and I feel… very close to you.” Her voice was hoarse and unpleasant, but the words she said made me feel a sense of familiarity and made me think of my adoptive father.
I asked curiously, “Where is your son? Isn’t he in this palace?”
“He’s long gone.” She shook her head, her eyes dim, as if she didn’t want to talk any more: “If you don’t mind, can you recognize me as your godmother?”
I was startled, and seeing her expectant expression, I couldn’t bear to refuse, so I said, “en”.
“Great.” She excitedly reached out and held my hand.
I felt her palms were extremely rough. I lowered my eyes and saw that the back of her hand was covered with twisted lumps of flesh, which indeed seemed to be caused by burns.
“What happened to you?” I couldn’t help but ask, but she retracted her hand into her sleeve.
“Tai Xue!” Just then, a loud call echoed from the end of the corridor. “Tai Xue, His Majesty summons you. He commands that you accompany him to the royal family’s ski resort to paint for the beauties. Hurry and gather your painting tools.”
Thinking of last night, I felt uneasy. Didn’t I enter the palace to paint portraits of the Shengzun and the Saint Lord? Why did I have to paint the king’s concubines as well?
My hand was pinched: “The king has a fickle temperament and mood swings. You have to be careful.”
“Thank you for reminding me, Godmother.” I said gratefully.
But the king’s order is hard to disobey, so I have no choice whether to go or not.
“And that Saint Lord… I saw him coming out of your room last night with an unhappy look on his face. Although I don’t know what happened, you must remember to stay away from the Saint Lord. He was imprisoned in the tower by the Shengzun for three years. I heard that he had gone mad a long time ago. Although he looks gentle and indifferent now, he is definitely not mentally normal. Be careful when you paint for him in the future.”
Imprisoned in the tower for three years?
I was stunned and heard a loud voice urging me, “Why are you still dawdling about?”
I saw the mighty procession outside the side gate of the palace from afar. I lowered my head, but I couldn’t help but watch out of curiosity. The cavalrymen riding tall horses and wearing silver armor walked on both sides of the procession, each holding a sturdy mastiff in their hands, guarding the carriage in the middle of the procession. The structure of this carriage is quite peculiar. There are no wheels under the body of the carriage, but a pry made of wooden boards, which is obviously for the convenience of traveling in the snowy mountains. I don’t know what the king is doing with all the concubines in such heavy snow, and what is the royal family’s ski resort?
As I was thinking about this, I suddenly heard a burst of laughter, some from men and some from women.
Following the sound, I saw the figures at the front of the team, wearing gorgeous clothes with fur collars and sitting on a high-bottomed trolley. They were the king and his concubines.
As if sensing my gaze, he looked towards me.
I lowered my eyelids and tightened the straps of my painting box.
“Be seated, and take your clothes.” From a distance, I heard his voice, lazily spoken, yet with an undeniable tone of inevitability, as if I were a prey he was relentlessly pursuing.
I sat in the warm palanquin, with servants draping a thick fox fur over my shoulders, yet cold sweat continued to bead on my hands and feet. I lifted the palanquin curtain, and the procession moved down the slope. The towering, magnificent palace at the mountain’s peak was slowly receding into the distance.
Suddenly, a flash of white streaked across my vision.
It was a large white bird, resembling an eagle.
Then, I saw it, a tower standing behind the eagle. At the top floor, through a dark window, there was the fleeting figure of someone in white. In the blink of an eye, leaves drifted by, obscuring my view. When I blinked again, the figure was gone. Was that… the Saint Lord?
A foot warmer was placed in the warm palanquin, radiating heat. I hadn’t slept a wink last night, my mind racing with thoughts. At some point, I drifted into a deep sleep, only to be jolted awake by a sudden, hard slap.
“Still not getting out of the palanquin? If you can’t capture His Majesty and the beauties’ snow-competition poses, you won’t be able to bear the consequences!”
I hurriedly stepped out of the palanquin. As soon as my feet hit the ground, I sank into the snow up to my knees, nearly falling to my knees.
Not far away, a thunderous cheer rang out. The source of the cheer was a long, steep snow slope ahead. The king stood at the top of the slope, with a pair of sled-like planks strapped to his feet. On either side of him stood two beautiful maidens.
Could it be that the king intends to slide down from here?
I widened my eyes in disbelief. But the king clearly looked unwell, was it really fine for him to be so reckless in such cold weather? And yet, none of the servants or officials tried to stop him?
As I was thinking this, the king unexpectedly turned to look at me, smiling. He spread his arms wide, and his cloak fluttered in the wind and snow, like a bird about to take flight. Yet, his figure seemed so frail, as though he could be blown away at any moment.
“Draw me!”
I was stunned, not daring to disobey, and quickly took out my painting tools. Kneeling before the small table that the servants had brought, I just picked up the brush when I heard the shrill screams of the women. Looking up, I saw him laughing as he pushed aside the two maidens beside him, then pushed off with his feet and slid down the snow slope.
With a single stroke, I captured his figure. It didn’t look graceful at all — or rather, it resembled a bird with broken wings.
“Your Majesty!”
As I watched him tumble into the snow, my hand holding the brush trembled, and I stood up. But then I saw him push away the servant who tried to help him, standing up on his own. He glanced at me, and though I couldn’t make out his expression, I had the distinct feeling that he didn’t want me to witness his fall.
“Your Majesty, there are white deer! It’s an omen of good fortune!” At that moment, a woman suddenly cried out in surprise. Sure enough, in the nearby woods, a few snow-white figures flashed by.
“Bring the arrows, this king wants to hunt deer!”
Because the king insisted on hunting the deer, the procession crossed several mountain peaks. As night fell, the wind and snow grew heavier, and the group had no choice but to set up camp in a nearby valley. Hearing the sounds of laughter and conversation outside the tent, I arranged my painting tools and parted the curtain just a little.
Around the campfire, people sang and danced joyfully. The king reclined on soft felt, drinking one cup after another. The maidens, dressed in light gauze that exposed their midriffs, swayed their hips and danced an exotic dance I had never seen before. I felt a sense of novelty and couldn’t help but capture the scene in my painting.
“Where is the painter? This king wants to see today’s painting.”
Suddenly, a drunken voice floated into my ears. I lifted my gaze and happened to meet those hazy, intoxicated eyes behind the firelight. My heart skipped a beat.
A sense of foreboding stirred in my heart, but the king’s command was not something I could refuse. Reluctantly, I had no choice but to present today’s painting respectfully before him.
“Your Majesty, I beg for your forgiveness… I have failed to capture even a fraction of your majestic figure.”
“Who said the painting is bad? I think it looks great,” he said, picking up the one of him racing down the snow slope and rolling it up. Then, he glanced at the one I had just finished and even clapped a few times. “What a debauched, indulgent king, only knowing how to play and enjoy himself. Empress Mother will surely be very pleased when she sees this. Go, mount it, and it shall be hung in the main hall from now on.”
“Your Majesty is drunk,” A nearby servant bent down and asked, “Shall this servant help you inside to rest?”
“This king wasn’t drunk!” He kicked the servant away, his gaze fixed on me. “Ah Xue’s painting is excellent. This king is very pleased. Bring wine!”
A cup of wine was presented before me, its deep red hue and pungent odor filling the air, most likely the deer blood wine made from the white deer the king had hunted today. I wasn’t good at drinking, but of course, I didn’t dare to refuse. I could only take off my mask, and at that moment, I heard the maidens around me gasp in surprise, murmuring quietly.
“What a horrible scar…”
“What a pity, he was originally quite handsome…”
“Who was talking just now? Drag her into the snow and strip her clothes off!”
“It was her!”
“It wasn’t me, Your Majesty, spare me!” The guards seized a maiden, ripping at her clothes. I was shocked and instinctively crawled forward, grabbing hold of the king’s hem.
“Your Majesty, why must you do this? My face is already frightening enough; there’s no need to vent your anger on others because of me!”
His gaze, filled with hostility, landed on me but then softened. He waved his hand and said, “Forget it, let her go. Let her return to the palace on her own.”
In this freezing snow, letting someone walk back would mean death from the cold in no time.
I clenched my fists, not daring to say another word, and remembered what my godmother had told me.
This new king is truly unpredictable, just as it seemed.
A cup of wine was presented before me, its deep red color and pungent scent filling the air, most likely the deer blood wine made from the white deer he had hunted today. One whiff and I could tell it was extremely strong. I wasn’t good at drinking, but I dared not anger the king, so I took the cup and drank it all in one go.
As soon as it went down my throat, my face burned, and I felt lightheaded. By the time I returned to the tent, I collapsed into a deep sleep. In a haze, it felt like my body was being lifted, a cold breeze sweeping over me. In an instant, it became warm again, and I was laid down on a soft cushion. I tried to open my eyes, but my eyelids were heavy, and a faint itch spread across my face, mixed with the lingering warmth and alcohol in the air.
