Emperor Jingren held himself to a very high standard of conduct. Since the night of that improper dream, he had been plagued with self-reproach. All his life he had told himself he had to be a wise ruler who gave the people a chance to live in peace and be happy in their work, who increased the prestige of the State of Xia among the surrounding nations. He adhered strictly to the demands made of a ruler and a man. But that absurd dream had made him doubt himself.

It wasn’t that he objected to being involved with a man. What he couldn’t accept was being the kind of debauched ruler who would lust after an able courtier. He had found a perfect explanation for that dream, but in the end he still couldn’t be satisfied with that.

Emperor Jingren never recalled that sensual dream, and he didn’t think there was anything good about it. He took pains to have nothing to do with Lin Boyuan. In reality, no matter who he might dream of, if that person was a courtier with an official rank, the dream would only serve as a warning to him, a reminder to be a good ruler.

From then on, no matter how busy he was, Emperor Jingren read the words of the sages and chanted Buddhist scriptures every day, to cultivate his mind and moral character. During this process, naturally, he had to stay away from women. And by coincidence, while checking his health, Imperial Physician Chen had told him that the injury to his head had harmed his vitality; as part of self-cultivation, he should avoid spilling his seed—in other words, abstain from sex. This advice suited Emperor Jingren perfectly. All he wanted right now was to maintain his self-discipline and cultivate body and mind. From then on, Emperor Jingren no longer visited the consorts and concubines who would tempt him into error; instead, every day he went to exercise and sleep—purely sleep—with the seemingly very safe empress.

It was probably because the empress was so dignified that Emperor Jingren felt utterly comfortable around her. Though the empress was tall and sturdy and looked ridiculous dressed in her phoenix robe every day, when you’d seen enough of her you got used to it. Besides, as she spent more and more time with Emperor Jingren, the empress no longer maintained her once ever-present solemn and sedate demeanor. In private, she often dressed in casual clothes.

The empress’s casual clothes were mostly fighting clothes, white or black; in them she looked bold and valiant or cold and handsome. The only flaw was that this clothing highlighted the shortcomings of the empress’s figure. With only the faintest swell at her bosom, the empress was far from matching up to the other women of the harem. But again and again Emperor Jingren became aroused by the sight of this empress. Each time he saw the empress in casual clothes, he felt a nameless sense of closeness.

Fortunately, the empress was capable of keeping the bigger picture in mind. She didn’t let Emperor Jingren do as he liked just because he started fooling around. She would always gently remind Emperor Jingren to mind his health and moral cultivation.

Summer ended and autumn began. Emperor Jingren’s physical condition improved considerably; he could last two rounds against the empress.

“The days are getting shorter,” Emperor Jingren said with a sigh one autumn morning, looking at the just-lightening sky. “When I started getting up first thing in the morning to train with you, it would already be broad daylight, but now the sun is just peeking over the horizon. In a few more days, it’ll still be pitch black this time of day.”

The first thing the two of them did after getting up in the morning was go for a jog, from Kunning Palace where the empress lived to the newly renovated Chaocheng Palace. The distance between the two palaces was about three thousand yards, perfect for a morning run. At first Emperor Jingren had been forced to alternate running and walking to hold out over that distance, but now he could run and chat with the empress at the same time.

“Do you exercise in winter too, Jinyi?” Emperor Jingren asked.

“I started exercising every morning with my father when I was five years old. Apart from the period of our wedding, I’ve never missed a day,” the empress said calmly, as if there was nothing remarkable about what she was saying.

Emperor Jingren had been feeling a little sluggish and reluctant to get up early. Now he fell silent. His desire to slack off went up in a puff of smoke.

When they reached the training field in Chaocheng Palace, the ground was covered in fallen leaves. Frowning slightly, Emperor Jingren said, “What has the eunuch responsible for the upkeep of the training field been doing? Why is this place such a mess?”

There was a trace of anger in his voice. But the empress gently pressed his raised hand down and said with a smile, “Your subject wife instructed them not to clear away the fallen leaves for the moment. It’s been a long time since I practiced my swordsmanship. I was afraid I’d forgotten my technique, so I wanted to practice today.”

Emperor Jingren was about to ask what practicing swordsmanship had to do with fallen leaves when he saw the empress, dressed in white fighting clothes, fly a dozen yards in a single leap. Her feet just tapped the ground, and a sword flew from the weapons rack.

With the sword in hand, the empress’s whole demeanor seemed to change. Before, she had been the staid and magnanimous empress; now she was a finely honed sword that had left its scabbard. Emperor Jingren was even dazzled by the sharpness of her expression.

The empress stood on the field and wielded the sword in her hand. Emperor Jingren felt that her movements were unusually fast, but fast as they were, he could still see each form and maneuver perfectly, as if the empress were performing just for him. The empress’s sword exuded a profound chill. With each thrust, the leaves on the ground fluttered. For a time, the red maple leaves flew around the field, as if a rain of scarlet leaves were falling, shining in the first light of morning. It was a sight of unparalleled loveliness.

Emperor Jingren, surrounded by leaves, was stunned by the beauty of this scene, captivated as he watched the empress wielding her sword. The fallen leaves swirled around the empress like a tornado, then were drawn aside by the empress’s sword.

As she practiced, the empress flew over the field. When she had made a full circle, all the leaves were gathered together, while the field was entirely clean, without a single leaf to be found. Most miraculous of all, though the empress’s sword felt so cold and fierce, not a single leaf had been cut. Each and every leaf was whole, gathered neatly beside the field.

When her sword dance was finished, the empress stood in the center of the training field, the autumn wind rustling her carelessly bound up hair. It looked so beautiful hovering in the breeze that Emperor Jingren was momentarily dazed.

The empress smiled slightly. With a wave of her hand, the sword returned to the weapons rack. Emperor Jingren was about to applaud when he heard the empress say, “Did everyone see that? Practice this leaf sweeping sword form, and sweeping the palace courtyards won’t be so much work in the future.”

Emperor Jingren was taken aback.

He had meant to ask the empress to teach him that beautiful sword form.

The previously deserted training field had been populated by a dozen eunuchs and palace maids. Each of them took a sword from the weapons rack, then ran off to train somewhere.

Finished with her training, the empress, looking fresh and cool, walked toward Emperor Jingren. She said, “It’s been a long time since I practiced. I was worried I’d gotten rusty. Now it seems it’s not so…”

She came to a sudden halt and looked fixedly at Emperor Jingren’s refined countenance.

Emperor Jingren was looking at the empress with an encouraging smile. Seeing her captivated expression, he said, “You wield a sword like the deity of autumn come to earth, Jinyi. It’s intoxicating to watch, truly…”

The empress reached up and brushed Emperor Jingren’s face.

Emperor Jingren felt warmth course through him. It had been three months. He had recovered as much as he was going to. And he no longer had any impression left of that absurd dream. Now that the empress was for once reaching out to him… He remembered that there were bed chambers in Chaocheng Palace, which were cleaned daily, provided for the empress to bathe and change, and rest after exercising.

Expectantly, Emperor Jingren raised his hand to hold the empress’s large hand to his face.

But when his fingers had just brushed the empress’s skin, that big hand darted away. It hadn’t even touched his face—only now it held a maple leaf.

Emperor Jingren was brought up short.

The empress knew nothing of Emperor Jingren’s frustration. Looking at the leaf, she sighed lengthily. “It seems my skills really have declined. I missed a leaf.”

Dissatisfaction was written across her face. Those soulful eyes were focused on the leaf.

Emperor Jingren thought that he hated maple leaves that turned red and flew all over the palace in autumn.

“Your skills are excellent. We couldn’t look away just now. We admire you greatly.” Emperor Jingren decided to take back the empress’s attention, ploughing ahead and delivering the praise he hadn’t had a chance to deliver earlier.

“It’s not good enough,” said the empress, dissatisfied.

“It’s very good,” said Emperor Jingren, taking the opportunity to reassure the empress.

But the empress lowered her head and, gaze fixed on Emperor Jingren, said, “Your subject wife must protect Your Majesty. If by this slight shortcoming I allow Your Majesty to fall into danger, should a single hair on your head be harmed, I will still feel uneasy. Your Majesty, the reason I train is to be able to keep you safe, so you can continue to be a wise ruler who brings benefit to the people.”

“We are very moved by your feelings, Jinyi. We will order the Embroidered Guard to keep in good training and protect both of us, so you never need to have such anxieties.” After comforting the empress, Emperor Jingren wanted to put his arms around her shoulders and embrace her, gently stroke her hair. But the empress was truly too tall; he couldn’t manage it. Finally, Emperor Jingren had to settle for putting his arms around the empress’s waist and leaning his head against her shoulder as consolation.