Chapter 75: The Noble Consort Plays Cuju

Back in the palace, daily routines had to resume, starting with attending lessons at Wenhua Hall.

Over the past two months, Zhu Cilang had missed many lessons due to his imperial orders to comfort the people and his campaigns outside the city. Even though he had already studied far beyond the curriculum, the Chongzhen Emperor still issued an edict to resume regular instruction at Wenhua Hall.

Wenhua Hall was located at the southernmost part of the Forbidden City, not far from the Meridian Gate, while Zhongcui Palace was roughly at the northernmost part. The two were separated by over seven hundred meters, and Zhu Cilang wasted about two hours on every round trip.

Imperial will was not to be defied, so he had no choice but to go. After tidying up for a while, Zhu Cilang set off for Wenhua Hall with Wu Zhong and Qiu Zhizhong.

Just as he stepped out of the main gate of Zhongcui Palace, he heard a burst of crisp laughter coming from within the courtyard walls to the south.

Curious, Zhu Cilang asked, "Who is laughing?"

Wu Zhong replied, "Reporting to Young Master, it should be Noble Consort Tian of Chengggan Palace."

"Oh, so it's her."

Zhu Cilang had long heard of Noble Consort Tian's reputation. Like Empress Zhou, she was one of the old retainers of the Prince Xin Residence. After the Chongzhen Emperor ascended the throne, he conferred upon her the title of Noble Consort and renamed Yongning Palace to Chengggan Palace for her residence, right beside Qianqing Palace — a clear sign of the Chongzhen Emperor's favor toward her.

However, Zhu Cilang had never met her. He had only heard that she was very beautiful and especially skilled in music. On ordinary days, separated by the palace walls, he would often hear her playing musical pieces.

Noble Consort Tian's qin technique was exquisite — she tuned the strings to perfect harmony and played with soaring grace. At times the notes rang out grand and sonorous like a great orchestra; at others they were delicate and faint like the soft whisper of reed pipes. When a piece ended, the lingering tones wafted on, curling around the beams without dispersing, and Zhu Cilang, on the other side of the wall, could not help but tap his fingers in admiration.

Though he often heard her play the qin, Zhu Cilang had never laid eyes on this legendary consort who was separated from him by only a single wall. The rules of the palace were extremely strict; on ordinary days he could hardly ever see the consorts, let alone have a private opportunity to meet one.

"Let's go!" After listening for a while, Zhu Cilang left with the two eunuchs. No matter how wild a noble consort might be, it was not his place to comment.

Just as he left Zhongcui Palace and was walking down the alley toward Wenhua Hall, a round object suddenly flew out from Chengggan Palace, struck the palace wall, bounced back, and nearly hit Zhu Cilang.

After colliding with the palace wall twice, the round object rolled to a stop at Zhu Cilang's feet. He looked at it closely — it was wrapped in leather with what seemed to be stuffing inside. He picked it up and squeezed it, feeling that it was probably something like rice chaff.

"Isn't this just a soccer ball?" Zhu Cilang wondered inwardly as he examined the "soccer ball" in his hands from all angles.

Seeing that the Young Master had nearly been struck, Wu Zhong immediately shouted, "Who threw this cuju ball? You nearly injured His Highness the Crown Prince!"

Just as Zhu Cilang was studying the "soccer ball," a gorgeously dressed beautiful woman and several palace maids came running down the alley, all staring in surprise at Zhu Cilang holding the cuju ball.

Though the woman at the lead was called a matron, she was in fact only in her twenties. She was tall and slender with well-proportioned, full curves. Even in her emerald-green palace attire, her shapely figure was impossible to conceal.

As the beautiful woman drew near, Zhu Cilang could finally see her face clearly. Her features were charming and alluring, her nose delicate and straight, her phoenix eyes lively and bright, and her bearing unique.

Seeing the leading beauty approach, Wu Zhong immediately bowed and said, "This servant pays respects to Noble Consort."

Zhu Cilang stared at the gorgeously dressed beauty for a few moments and thought to himself, So this is Noble Consort Tian? She really is beautiful! Her face bore not a trace of makeup — completely natural and bare-faced.

Though inwardly stunned by Noble Consort Tian's peerless beauty, he could hardly exchange flirtatious glances with the Emperor's consort. Not to mention that palace rules were extremely strict, forbidding eye contact with consorts — most importantly, his young body wouldn't allow it either.

In all his years, Zhu Cilang had only seen three women in the palace (besides palace maids). The first was Consort Dowager Liu, a consort of the Wanli Emperor, now over eighty years old. The second was Empress Yi'an, the empress of the Tianqi Emperor. The third was his own mother, Empress Zhou.

The first two were venerable elders of high virtue. Empress Zhou had taken him to pay respects to them several times before. As for the Chongzhen Emperor's other two wives, Noble Consort Tian and Noble Consort Yuan, Zhu Cilang had never met them.

This Noble Consort Tian counted as the fourth woman he had ever met. Zhu Cilang dared not look too long, so he could only lower his head and bow slightly, saying, "Cilang pays respects to Noble Consort."

In classical China, filial piety was paramount. Regardless of whether the woman was one's birth mother, any woman of one's father's was owed ritual respect upon meeting — that was part of filial piety.

Noble Consort Tian also nodded slightly and returned the greeting, saying, "I greet the Crown Prince. I was just playing cuju, and unfortunately the ball flew over the palace wall, disturbing the Crown Prince. I hope the Crown Prince will forgive me."

The Crown Prince's status was extremely exalted. If not within the palace, when attending state ceremonies outside, consorts would actually have to bow to the Crown Prince first.

Zhu Cilang smiled and said, "Noble Consort speaks too gravely. Cilang is unharmed."

Zhu Cilang handed the cuju ball to Wu Zhong, who then passed it to the palace maid beside Noble Consort Tian.

Noble Consort Tian took a serious look at Zhu Cilang, inwardly surprised by his bearing, then did not linger further. She nodded slightly and walked away gracefully, returning to Chengggan Palace.

Zhu Cilang asked curiously, "The Noble Consort can play cuju too?"

Wu Zhong smiled and said, "Young Master may not know this, but Noble Consort not only plays cuju — she is also expert at horsemanship and archery. This servant has heard that the Noble Consort can stand on one foot on a stirrup and hit a willow leaf from a hundred paces. Even the Embroidered Uniform Guard members could not help but cheer in admiration. Cuju is even more of the Noble Consort's specialty — she can play cuju while on horseback, wheeling her steed with effortless grace such that no famed rider can surpass her. His Majesty has praised the Noble Consort's bearing as elegant and composed beyond compare, saying that were she to charge across a battlefield, she would surely prove that a woman is no less than a man."

"Playing soccer and going to war? What a load of nonsense," Zhu Cilang muttered under his breath.

This Noble Consort Tian was truly versatile — accomplished in both letters and martial arts. It was genuinely astonishing. His cheap father didn't have many women, but every single one was a rare gem — peerless in both looks and talent.

Zhu Cilang suddenly asked, "She's the birth mother of my fourth brother, Ci Zhao, isn't she?"

Wu Zhong did not understand what the Crown Prince meant, but he still answered earnestly, "Yes, Young Master. The Fourth Prince was born of Chengggan Palace."

Zhu Cilang had only asked casually. He seemed to recall reading about the Fourth Prince, Zhu Cizhao, in books from his later life. Prince Yong, Zhu Cizhao, after the fall of the Ming dynasty, had gone into hiding among the common people. At the age of seventy-five, in the forty-seventh year of the Qing Kangxi reign (1708), he was captured by the Qing authorities in Wenshang County, Shandong, and his entire family was executed.

This younger brother of his had been hiding perfectly well, even changing his surname to Wang. But when naming his own children, he insisted on following the imperial generation characters and adding the distinctive five-element radicals of the Ming imperial house — which ended up drawing people's attention.

Zhu Cilang said no more and led Wu Zhong all the way to the side hall of Wenhua Hall.

Today's lecturer was Jiang Fengyuan, Minister of the Ministry of Rites. Minister Jiang's lectures were truly not very good, but his calligraphy was astonishingly superb.

This Minister Jiang's calligraphy had reached the sublime state of effortless creation. His characters possessed not only the Wei-Jin elegance of Wang Xizhi, Wang Xianzhi, Zhong Yao, Suo Jing, and Huang Xiang, but also the solemn roundness and vigor of Chu Suiliang and the tolerant, spacious style of Yang Ningshi.

There were even traces of Sun Guoting's winding, circling flourishes, Huang Tingjian's lean strength and graceful flow, and Zhao Mengfu's exquisite beauty and serene composure.

One man fused the styles of several great masters into a single whole. Between every stroke and dot, there was exquisite refinement and flowing beauty; the brushstrokes tumbled and turned, soaring and wheeling with effortless ease, his forms ever-changing and full of natural charm.

During Jiang Fengyuan's lessons, Zhu Cilang spent half the time listening and half practicing calligraphy — something Jiang Fengyuan was more than happy to see.

The Crown Prince was exceptionally intelligent — he understood everything he was taught, saving a great deal of time. Using that time to practice calligraphy and study his calligraphic style was the best possible use of it.