The Nine Cloud Dream by Kim Man-jung & Heinz Insu Fenkl & Heinz Insu Fenkl & Heinz Insu Fenkl

Author:Kim Man-jung & Heinz Insu Fenkl & Heinz Insu Fenkl & Heinz Insu Fenkl
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2019-02-11T16:00:00+00:00

* * *

From the time he set out for the front, Shao-yu had sent regular dispatches to the Emperor, who was delighted to hear about his victories. One day, as he paid a visit to the Empress Dowager, the Emperor praised Shao-yu.

“Yang Shao-yu is like the great general Kuo of Fen-yang,”3 he said. “When he returns, I will make him prime minister to reward him for his merits and his value to us. But we have not yet resolved the issue of the princess’s marriage. If Marshal Yang changes his mind and obeys us, all will be well, but if he is obstinate and continues to resist, we cannot punish him because he has done so much for us. I am sorry, but I am at a loss as to how to deal with him now.”

The Empress Dowager replied, “I have heard that Minister Cheng has a very beautiful daughter whom Yang has already met. I do not see how he will refuse her now. But if we order the Chengs to marry their daughter to someone else while Yang is still away, then he will give up hope. And then he will have no reason not to obey your command.”

The Emperor said nothing, and after a long silence, he left the room. The princess Lan-yang had been standing by her mother, and she said, “Your plan is not proper, Mother. Lady Cheng’s marriage is something that should be decided by her father—it is not the business of the royal court.”

“This matter is very important for you and it is also an important matter of state,” said the Empress Dowager. “I must discuss it with you. Yang Shao-yu is superior to all other men in both appearance and achievement. He is the minister of war. And I know he was predestined to be your husband when I heard of his flute playing. You cannot possibly pass him by and marry someone else.

“But for his part, he has become close to the Cheng household and neither party desires to break off the engagement. It has become a complicated matter. If we allow him to take the Cheng girl as a concubine, Yang cannot refuse if we order him to marry you upon his return. However, I hesitate to do this without hearing your thoughts.”

“All my life I have never known jealousy,” said the princess. “There is no reason I should be jealous of the Chengs’ daughter now. Yang was betrothed to her first, so it is not proper for him to take her as a concubine. The Cheng family is well respected and they have been ministers for many generations. It would be humiliating for them if their daughter were to be taken as a concubine. That would be unjust.”

“Then what do you suggest is the right thing to do?” asked the Empress Dowager.

The princess replied, “The law permits all noblemen three wives. When Marshal Yang returns, he may be made a prince—a high-level retainer,4 at the least. There is no reason for him then not to have two wives.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.