Chapter 220: The Eight-Foot Lady

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【Servicing the bed?!】

Upon hearing Xiao Puxian's instruction for them to serve the bed, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei were utterly stunned.

【You mean my sister and I are to serve the bed alongside Empress Yelu Nanxian and Princess Jin's Wang Fei?!】

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei could hardly believe their own ears. They had never imagined that one day they would have a man—let alone that their man would be an Emperor, even the greatest Emperor of the age.

In truth, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei had no idea how they ended up among these beauties as two of the women presented to Zhao Yu by Accompanying Tong Guan.

Are we beauties?

What joke is this? Have you ever seen a beauty over eight feet tall?

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei still had enough self-awareness for that.

After all, even in the remote and backward lands of Western Xia, a beauty needed grace and gentleness to stir a man's heart.

Yet these two sisters, since childhood, had stood out in any crowd due to their towering height, often mocked as the "Liang Family Twin Pillars," utterly unlike the petite, delicate image of beauty in the world's eyes.

Worse, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei had taken to the battlefield at twelve, fighting for over a decade, slaughtering countless men; the Song soldiers who died by their hands numbered at least eight hundred, if not a thousand. Men who saw them felt only deep awe, not a trace of lust—even most men would lower their heads and detour around them, fearing these two fierce women might suddenly feel amorous and reverse-pin them.

Precisely because of this, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei, both over twenty, remained unmarried—becoming "old virgins."

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei had long given up hope of marriage, especially as the Song-Xia war intensified, forcing them to lead the Ma Kui in constant campaigns, burning away their youth amid endless flames of war. They had assumed their lives would be spent galloping on horseback, ending in the clash of blades, their bones finally returning to the earth.

Yet fate played them a cruel joke: the Song dynasty had driven Western Xia into a corner, forcing them to lead the Ma Kui into Xingqing City to make a last stand and await reinforcements.

But after holding out for over half a year, Western Xia was utterly annihilated by the Song dynasty, and they, like everyone else in the city, became prisoners of war.

After capturing Xingqing City, the Song army separated men and women into different prisons.

In fact, the Song army's action was redundant: during the defense of Xingqing, Li Qianshun and his ministers had already segregated men and women to better control the populace, preventing chaos from erupting as despair drove them to reckless indulgence.

Soon after being imprisoned, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei were visited by a Song general.

He was tall and imposing, his face dark and resolute, his eyes deep and sharp, radiating cunning and authority; his chin bore sparse, long whiskers, his bones as hard as iron.

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei soon learned from their guards that this man was Accompanying Tong Guan, a trusted eunuch of Emperor Zhao Yu, sent to select Western Xia beauties for him.

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei were taken aback—they had never imagined an eunuch could radiate such masculine vigor, utterly devoid of the usual eunuch's softness, resembling instead a fierce general who had ridden the battlefield, not a palace-bound eunuch.

As Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei idly watched the spectacle, Accompanying Tong Guan instantly spotted them towering above the rest—and his eyes lit up!

Immediately, Accompanying Tong Guan personally led his men to select over a thousand beauties.

Among them were Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei.

Then Accompanying Tong Guan arranged for women to examine and question these thousand beauties—whether they were virgins, and so on.

After what seemed a rigorous screening, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei were inexplicably selected—and they were among the first chosen.

—Precisely because of this, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei felt that the screening, though seemingly strict, was in fact careless; otherwise, how could the "Liang Family Twin Pillars" have been chosen?

Though selected, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei never believed they would ever be called to service the bed. They assumed they'd merely become palace maids—perhaps even the lowest-class laborers.

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei never imagined that not only would they have the chance to serve the bed, but that they would serve alongside Empress Yelu Nanxian and Princess Jin's Wang Fei—two women whose status in Western Xia ranked among the highest.

This was outright absurd.

Not only did Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei think it a joke; even their Ma Kui soldiers whispered teasingly that even iron trees had bloomed for them.

Liang Damei, uncertain, quickly summoned her "military advisor" Wang Shu and whispered: "Advisor, tell me honestly—did Lady Xiao instruct me and Xiaomei to serve the bed just to spite Princess Jin? Are we merely pawns used to undermine her?"

Then, with bitter self-mockery, Liang Damei added: "I doubt even if Lady Xiao petitions him, His Majesty would ever summon us to serve the bed. Perhaps she was just speaking offhand."

Here, Liang Damei glanced at Wang Shu, who looked the very picture of a conventional beauty, and teased: "If Lady Xiao recommended you to serve the bed, perhaps it might actually happen."

Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei had stepped forward to stop the Western Xia women from clashing with Xiao Puxian precisely because they followed Wang Shu's advice.

Wang Shu had told them this was a divine opportunity to secure their place in Zhao Yu's harem—if they missed it, "the brothers" would suffer.

That was why Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei had dared to confront Princess Jin's Wang Fei directly.

Now Wang Shu revealed the truth:

"Empress Yelu arrived here still dressed in Xia attire, refusing to don Song Fu—this will surely displease His Majesty."

"Those who surrendered still cling to their old homeland will never please their new lord, let alone be tolerated; His Majesty is a great unifier, and he naturally fears such sentiments—that is why today's events unfolded."

Liang Damei asked: "Did His Majesty send Lady Xiao?" Wang Shu shook her head: "Why would His Majesty need to? When such a matter arises in the harem, it is the Empress's failure in management."

Liang Damei understood: Xiao Puxian had been sent by Zheng Xiansu.

Wang Shu continued: "Since Empress Yelu refuses to lead us in submitting to Song Fu, His Majesty and the Empress must find someone who will lead. That is why I advised you two generals to step forward—if you had hesitated even a moment, someone else would have seized this chance, and then our fates would be in others' hands, entirely beyond our control. We must grasp the rudder of our own destiny, so our brothers may enjoy wealth and honor here, and at least no longer suffer."

Here, Wang Shu glanced at Xiao Puxian, whose aura now dominated the scene, leaving Princess Jin's Wang Fei gasping for breath, and added: "Lady Xiao understood your intentions and returned the favor by recommending you to serve the bed—thus securing your position as the overall supervisor of all Western Xia women."

Liang Damei frowned: "Empress Yelu was once our nation's Empress; Princess Jin's Wang Fei was once the wife of our nation's Supreme Commander; among us are even the Imperial Dowager, Empress Cao, and noble daughters of every clan—even our own Liang family has Lady Liang. We are merely illegitimate daughters…"

Wang Shu smiled: "Times change. Things are no longer as they were."

Wang Shu looked at Xiao Puxian and said: "Lady Xiao was merely a noblewoman of Liao, betrothed to the Prince of Yue. Her status was inferior to the Liao Emperor's Consort Wen and the three Khitan princesses. Yet because she understood the times and advocated integrating Liao women into Han society, she won the favor of His Majesty and the Empress—and now surpasses even Consort Wen and the Khitan princesses as the overall supervisor of Liao women."

Wang Shu turned to Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei: "As for status, once you two generals serve the bed tonight alongside Empress Yelu and Princess Jin's Wang Fei, and receive His Majesty's promotion, you will have it. At that moment, Lady Liang, the Imperial Dowager, Empress Cao, and every noble daughter will be beneath you."

Wang Shu's analysis was sound—but Liang Damei had no confidence in herself or her sister. In her view, ordinary men wouldn't even look at them; how could Zhao Yu, the greatest sovereign of the age, possibly find them desirable? To approach the bed now would only invite humiliation.

Seeing Liang Damei's lack of confidence, Wang Shu smiled: "I've heard that His Majesty has two consorts—one is Lady Guo, daughter of Guo Cheng, the other surnamed Wei. Both are eight feet tall. A certain Imperial Consort Zhang nicknamed them 'Eight-Foot Ladies,' and His Majesty greatly favors them—he often visits them."

Wang Shu encouraged Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei: "Though you two are taller, since His Majesty favors the Eight-Foot Ladies, he will surely prefer you even more. Do not undervalue yourselves."

Hearing that Zhao Yu favored the Eight-Foot Ladies, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei felt a mix of unease and a strange hope. They exchanged glances and saw the same emotion in each other's eyes—a complex blend of anxiety and longing.

Though Han Chinese by origin, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei had been born and raised in Western Xia; their environment shaped their admiration for strength.

This was not unique to Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei—it was a trait shared by Western Xia women, even Hu Ren women.

Many Hu Ren women, upon first awakening to love, dreamed of a white-horsed prince who would sweep them away—ideally, a man not only powerful in battle but also the leader of a mighty tribe, or his brother or son, preferably the heir apparent.

Though Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei did not look like women, they were real women, and they too had once been young, and had dreamed such dreams.

And if one subtracted and added carefully, wasn't Zhao Yu precisely that white-horsed prince, that ideal husband?

Most crucially, the current situation was this: Western Xia was gone. These Western Xia women now in Zhao Yu's harem were drifting flotsam on the tide of fate, with no anchor, no retreat. To survive well, they must grasp this one straw—perhaps the only one capable of rewriting their destiny.

Thus, Liang Damei and Liang Xiaomei displayed the decisiveness of elite generals, preparing to seize this fleeting opportunity.

There, under the pressure of Xiao Puxian and Liang Damei, Liang Xiaomei, and the many Western Xia women eager to abandon their past and embrace new lives, the resolve of Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi and other Western Xia women who cried out to die to preserve their purity crumbled.

Xiao Puxian dropped a single phrase: "You must swiftly tidy this place and prepare to welcome His Sacred Presence. If you remain obstinate, cling to foolish loyalty, and insist on dying to prove your virtue, speak plainly now. Then I shall surely petition Your Majesty to issue edicts across the land, arrest your kin, and slaughter them all—to grant you the honor of your so-called loyalty." With that, she casually chose a room to rest.

After Xiao Puxian left, the Western Xia women who did not wish to die turned on Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi, accusing her of selfishness, obsessed only with securing her own name in history while ignoring the lives of her family and friends. If their deaths were truly caused by her rash impulse—especially if Li Qianshun and other Western Xia imperial and clan members, who were merely imprisoned and did not need to die, were slaughtered—she would be a traitor to Western Xia, and even after death, she would have no face to meet the ancestors of the Li clan.

These Western Xia women had never wanted to die; now, with the excuse of protecting Li Qianshun and the other Western Xia men, those who had once supported Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi's wish to die for purity swiftly switched sides, urging her to prioritize the greater good, endure temporary humiliation, serve Zhao Yu, and preserve the last sparks of Western Xia.

As for the Western Xia women still clinging to death to preserve their purity, they were not entirely absent—but their faint voices were quickly drowned out by the accusations and persuasion of the others.

Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi stood utterly alone. She gazed at the Western Xia women who had once pledged to support her, now turning against her one by one.

She panicked!

Her words—"Better to shatter like jade than survive as pottery. If we must bow to serve our enemies, we must die to preserve our purity"—now sounded hollow and powerless.

Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi drew a deep breath, trying to calm her inner turmoil, but the tears in her eyes betrayed her fragility.

Who, if they could live well, would choose death?

At this moment, Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi realized: the fool was herself.

She was not the only one to awaken. Yelu Nanxian, who had silently observed all this from the side, also awakened. She understood: she had made a grave mistake, foolishly believing she could win the support of Western Xia women by claiming loyalty to Western Xia.

Yelu Nanxian knew well: Xiao Puxian had not come to deal with Jin Wang Fei Mo Cang Shi and other confused Western Xia women—she had come to deal with Yelu Nanxian herself, the nominal leader of these confused Western Xia women.

"Xiao Puxian intends to replace me with Liang Damei, to make Liang Damei govern the Western Xia women. No—the one who wishes to replace me is not Xiao Puxian, but Song Zhu, the Empress Zheng. They will not permit someone who still clings to her former country to lead the Western Xia women, lest I use this position to incite unrest among them…"

And Liang Damei seized this opportunity to pay her respects to Xiao Puxian.

Liang Damei walked with firm steps, her heart both anxious and stirred by a barely perceptible excitement. She crossed the corridor and gently knocked on the door of the room where Xiao Puxian rested.

The door opened slightly; a soft glow of candlelight spilled out, illuminating Liang Damei's resolute face, her eyes gleaming with a determination never seen before…

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(End of Chapter)