Though there had been this unpleasantness, Emperor Jingren had resolved it with the swiftness of a bolt of lightning; with a word he had settled the fates of Imperial Concubine Lin and Lin Boyuan. Once the matter was resolved, there was no need to go on thinking about it. The most important thing now was the autumn hunt.

After a day of rattling, as well as the matter of the incense, Emperor Jingren was in no mood to enjoy himself with the empress. He felt worn out after his bath. The empress, by contrast, was keeping her strength up; she massaged his back and shoulders, making Emperor Jingren feel thoroughly comfortable. Soon he was asleep. This time he slept very soundly.

When he woke the next day, Emperor Jingren had recovered his strength and began to prepare for the autumn hunt.

Before the hunt, a ceremony was held at the temporary residence. The gist of it was an expression of gratitude to the heavens for the good weather and rich harvest that the State of Xia had experienced this year. After the autumn hunt, the best quarry would be selected as an offering. This was known as the first prize. First prize went to whoever brought down the quarry publicly acknowledged as the strongest and fiercest—or in the case of a guard, the prize would go to the family that employed him. The winner would receive a reward from Emperor Jingren, as well as everyone’s acclaim. There was even a belief in the State of Xia that the person who won first prize in the autumn hunt would have a year of good luck. And if the winner were some government official’s guard, perhaps he would even be chosen by Emperor Jingren to join his personal bodyguard. This was a colossal opportunity; everyone would give it their best efforts.

The empress, however, could not go hunting. She could only join Emperor Jingren for the opening ceremony, and afterwards when making the offering to the heavens. The rest of the time, she would have to remain in the temporary residence or a tent, presenting the image of a dignified empress.

But since Emperor Jingren had brought the empress along, he wasn’t planning on letting her sit there like a statue receiving adulation. Therefore, when he set out for the hunt, he brought the empress’s carriage, so people would think the empress was accompanying him as far as the hunting grounds, where she would remain in her tent. But in reality, the empress’s carriage was empty, while there had been an addition to Emperor Jingren’s retinue—a tall, handsome guard.

Given Emperor Jingren’s rigid adherence to tradition, that he would do this much for the empress already went beyond mere respect. Seated astride her horse, the empress watched the young emperor in his bright yellow martial dress and couldn’t put a name to her emotions.

Forget it. One way or another, she had to protect Emperor Jingren during this hunt.

The imperial family’s hunting grounds were enormous. Sometimes you couldn’t be certain of encountering any prey all day. This was why the hunt lasted a full three days. Camping out in the open near the hunting grounds for two days was an imposition on the women brought along by the party. But on the other hand, if they came to the autumn hunt but didn’t even get a look at the hunting grounds, the whole exercise would be pointless. Many wives and concubines had come along; the four consorts and Imperial Concubine Lin were no exception. Each of them had her own tent. If the emperor wanted to visit one of them, he would simply go to her tent. There was a certain rustic charm to it.

Sadly, these weren’t the rustic charms Emperor Jingren cared for. Upon entering the hunting grounds, he caught the empress's hand and said, “Are you a good rider?”

“Naturally.” Looking up at the crisp autumn sky, the empress smiled. It was a glad smile, different from the one she wore in the palace.

“Then we certainly won’t be able to keep up with you.” Emperor Jingren sighed, then said, “But we wish to hunt with you. What can we do?”

“Your subject wife will not leave Your Majesty’s side,” the empress said, smiling. “Moreover, I’m going to win first prize for Your Majesty and give Your Majesty a year of good luck.”

Emperor Jingren released his reins and took the empress’s hand. “Out here, you should not call yourself a subject wife to keep from being found out.”

He was very close to the empress as he said this, lips brushing against the empress’s ear, in a decidedly suggestive posture.

To keep from being found out? The empress glanced down at her own strapping form, then glanced at all the guards whose physiques didn’t match up. She too drew very close to Emperor Jingren and whispered in his ear, “Your servant has faith in not being found out, but Your Majesty should avoid rumors of enjoying the company of men.”

Then, with a mocking smile, the empress flicked her reins and trotted away.

Emperor Jingren felt the roots of his ears tingle. He quickly galloped ahead until he drew level with the empress.

The emperor had entered the hunting grounds, so naturally everyone else followed. Meanwhile, the people in the camp had their own activities. Though there was a strict guard on the hunting grounds, it was much more relaxed than in the palace.

The four consorts and Imperial Concubine Lin were gathered in a single tent, and even Eunuch Lian and Little Shunzi were present. Of all those present, the virtuous consort’s position was highest. She took a roll call and frowned. “Imperial Physician Chen stayed back at the palace, but the empress is here. Didn’t she bring Xiahe?”

Eunuch Lian said, “Perhaps you ladies aren’t aware—for the crime of thievery, Xiahe has had the ultimate sentence carried out against her.”

“The ultimate sentence? Then hasn’t she…” The pure consort was artless. She nearly blurted out the truth. The worthy consort, beside her, gave her a pinch, and the pure consort realized what she had been about to say. Instead, she said, “Hasn’t she died?”

“Precisely,” Eunuch Lian replied. “Little Shunzi learned of Xiahe’s fate yesterday. We hadn’t yet had time to notify you all.”

Everyone understood precisely what Xiahe’s fate was. The honest consort considered, then said, “I have plenty of my own informants in the palace, but I had no idea about this. The empress is good.”

“It’s not only Xiahe,” Imperial Concubine Lin said with a sneer. “My idiot brother spent just one night in candlelit talks with the emperor, and he’s been sent away and put to work. He won’t be back for years, and then maybe he’ll end up like Xiahe.”

“Imperial Physician Chen used to be the emperor’s most trusted physician, but now he’s being shunned,” said the worthy consort.

The virtuous consort lowered her gaze, deep in thought, then said, “Xiahe, Imperial Physician Chen, Lin Boyuan. Three people that we know of are basically out of the running. And all of us haven’t even seen His Majesty for three months.”

“Three months…” Little Shunzi actually dared to put in a word in the presence of all these palace women, and there was nothing deferential about his attitude. “Three months ago, Su Huailing ran into His Majesty.”

“Of course she’s involved!” the honest consort said coldly. “Though none of us have succeeded after all these years, at least everything was peaceful. But as soon as Su Huailing came onto the scene, His Majesty changed. And the empress had never stepped in, but she did as soon as Su Huailing appeared. She must be using Su Huailing!”

“That must be it,” the worthy consort guessed. “Su Huailing can’t be killed or injured. She got sent to the cold palace, and there are still people protecting her in secret. We’ve only been keeping our distance, but the empress decided to use her. Does rank really make such a big difference?”

“We can’t get news as quickly as Yan Xu. Little Shunzi, has Yan Xu told you where Su Huailing has ended up?” the virtuous consort asked.

“Just like in the novel, she’s already come to the hunting grounds,” Little Shunzi responded. “Commander Yan stood by and did nothing while she snuck out of the cold palace and into the traveling party for the autumn hunt. She managed to sneak in on her own. It’s as if everyone around her was blind. They didn’t notice that she looked any different from the eunuch she replaced.”

“Since she’s here, the emperor is sure to be attacked during the hunt,” Eunuch Lian said in instant realization. “No wonder the empress came along after so many years of avoiding the hunt!”

“So we should also…” started the pure consort, who hadn’t been able to keep up with everyone else’s train of thought. At last she had understood.

The worthy consort sighed. “Do you have the empress’s skills at martial arts? You dummy, you have only your face, no talents at all. And you actually dared to square dance in front of His Majesty. You’re hilarious!”

Angrily, the pure consort said, “I may only have my face, but so what if you’re talented? I’ve been His Majesty’s favorite all these years. What use are your talents?”

“I don’t know whether the worthy consort’s talents have any use,” said Eunuch Lian, touching his face, “but I’ll finally have a chance to put mine to use. My martial arts skills are even better than the empress’s. I’ll stop wasting time with you ladies and hurry after Su Huailing, to go rescue His Majesty in the hunting grounds.”

“With that face, you can rescue him all you like!” the women and Little Shunzi yelled at Eunuch Lian all at once.

Eunuch Lian froze. He touched his old face, then left the tent, looking grim.

Meanwhile in the hunting grounds, Emperor Jingren and the empress, galloping at their whim, had left the guards far behind. And closest to them, having lost her way and entered the hunting grounds from another direction, was Su Huailing.