The Rise of Phoenixes Novel Translation #252

Upon hearing the word “Madam”, something flashed across Machun’s eyes but she didn’t say anything. She took the silky smooth halter top and carefully caressed the exquisitely embroidered figures with her fingers. 

This outfit…belongs to her. 

A few days ago His Highness had asked her offhandily if there is anyone in the manor that is skilled at embroidery. She said she might be able to take on the task. His Highness then ordered her to embroider a set of clothes according to the latest styles and to be extra attentive to details. 

At that time, His Highness was leaning on a long chaise bed, playing with a letter, looking towards the west side of the palace with a mild expression. 

His long black hair draped down the bed, his face mesmerizing and beautiful. For the ten thousandth time, she was fascinated by such magnificence. And for the ten thousandth time, she lowered her head to hide her deep infatuation in her eyes. 

She knew, if she showed the slightest hint of attachment or obsession, then this person named Manchun would no longer be able to take one more step towards him. 

She accepted the task respectfully, with the same distant and cold expression she always wore. Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at the letter between his fingers. As expected, it was a secret letter from Official Wei. His Highness always paid special attention to Official Wei’s letters (the wording here makes it clear the letters are for official business). Her duties are to serve in the study and she is used to seeing Official Wei’s letters on the very top of the other official letters. 

He didn’t look at her. He was leaning back with his long slender fingers resting on a bent knee. His posture is one of careless leisure but there was a smile in his eyes. 

She heard him say softly, “Well…the clothes, should be light apricot color. It doesn’t need to be too eye-catching. The cloak should be made of Jianghuai’s chiffon, the sort that is sheer and can be seen through the shadow of the lantern. In the breezy spring night, with shadows of people and flowers, coming through the moonlight in a flowing chiffon, it must be a great view.” 

He squinted his eyes slightly as if he was thinking about something, and the smile in his eyes gradually spread to the corners of his lips, causing the large white camellia flowers on the screen opposite from him to seemingly instantly pale in beauty. 

“…The inner clothing…although bright red is good it is inevitably gaudy. Deep purple is too cold, and smoky blue is not regal enough… let’s go with goose yellow…that kind of skin with that color…like the bright moon turning into a white jade babe…” 

He was lost in thought, his slightly raised jaw smooth and firm, like a piece of white stone that has been soaked in the moonlight for thousands of years, splashing the sky with tiny starlight. 

He suddenly looked back and smiled at her. 

Like the wind blowing through the snow-covered Devil’s Snare flower, blowing the white crystals like sparkles onto the ground. 

She couldn’t help herself and her cheeks immediately turned red. 

 White jade babe. 

Before she was sent to Prince Chu’s manor, she was the top courtesan of the thirteen provinces of the north. She was always called the “Jade Girl” because of her snow-white-like skin and smooth velvety voice. 

Goose yellow was also her favorite color. 

She also lives on the west side of the manor. 

Suddenly, she thought of her brief encounter with Guardsman Ning a few days ago. The man was sitting on the rooftop with his knees crossed. He was also looking at the west side of the manor. She heard him mutter, “Why not just take (marry) her, what’s there so much to fret over?” (I used the word “take” here because while it means to marry, it is a word usually reserved for concubines. So Ning Chen was foolishly suggesting that Ning Yi could just make Feng Zhi Wei his concubine. Ning Chen probably assumed our heroine couldn’t be anything more than a concubine because it would only be logical and expected that Ning Yi would want a wife from an influential family that could help him obtain the throne.)

Although Guardsman Ning seemed to have fallen out of favor with His Highness and has not been allowed to serve by his side but he is still the closest person to His Highness after all, which means the things he says can often represent His Highness’ thoughts. 

Could it be…

His Highness’ playboy reputation is famous in the capital. While she doesn’t know how he is with women outside, but inside the Chu manor, he is not like that at all. All the concubines gifted by the other princes, none of them could enter into His Highness’ courtyard. Even though His Highness would sometimes go to the concubines’ courtyards, like he would come to her place three or four times a month but after he gets there…well, it’s not worth talking about.

She sometimes wondered if the other concubines were…like her too?

Probably. 

One time she chanced upon His Highness at Concubine Jin Han’s place. The two of them were sitting opposite each other in front of the makeup mirror. His Highness was applying makeup to Jin Han’s eyebrows. The silk curtains of the room were parted, and a misty apricot blossom slanted out in front of the mirror. The woman in the mirror’s reflection was delicate and the man was elegant. It was truly a very beautiful and enchanting scene. 

Yet when she bowed down, she discovered Jin Han’s neck was stiff with veins bulging, her whole posture was rigid and stiff. 

Jin Han disappeared the next day. 

Another time, the most daring and lively Concubine Siuyuan, wore a high-waisted thin chiffon gold dress that was a tribute from the West, revealing a large area of snow-white skin. She pretended to be lost from sleepwalking and went into His Highness’ place. 

There were no commotions at all that night. The next day, Siuyuan was sent back to her own courtyard. Everyone thought Siuyuan must’ve won the favor of His Highness and would be made the second princess consort soon. (Still a concubine, but next in status to the prince’s wife.) However, nothing happened other than the fact that Siuyuan shut herself in from that time on.

Half a year later, she accidentally bumped into Siuyuan, and was shocked to see that she looked gaunt, haggard, and her expression dazed. When she chatted with her, Siuyuan’s replies were all nonsensical. The more she thought about it, the more odd it seemed to her as she walked away. She turned back only to see Siuyuan staring blankly at the pond, throwing gravel into the water as she muttered, “…threw up on me…”

A nonsensical phrase but it caused her body to break out in cold sweat. The water rippled in a crystal arc on the water, shining for a brief instant before disappearing. Like them, flower-like women, whose beauty is fleeting, gone in an instant. 

Later, Siuyuan’s body was found in the pond she had thrown rocks into. She had committed suicide. 

After that, she stopped thinking about certain things. She stopped thinking about even more things after the death of the crown prince. She only needed to be herself. If she was destined to spend her life in loneliness, that is still better than ending up floating in the pond in silence. 

She was noticed by His Highness last year while she was arguing with another concubine. 

She pushed the spoiled troublemaking concubine into the water and smiled coldly at her high-pitched screams. When she turned around, she saw His Highness standing in the pavilion by the pond, watching her from a distance. 

In that instant, the expression in His Highness’ eyes seemed far away, with a slight smile of reminiscence. 

She knelt down, thinking for sure she was as good as dead but he only stared at her silently for a long time. She knelt in the mud, stubbornly refusing to speak as her soaked clothes and the cold moonlight seeped into her skin. There was a faint cold fragrance as the corner of his robe silently brushed past her side. 

She heard his voice, slightly wistful as he said softly, “No one is you…” 

You? Who is you? Is that saying she is different from everyone else? Or something else? 

She didn’t know what any of it meant but from then on he treated her a little differently from others. He seemed to be quite pleased by her response of indifference and polite propriety. He gradually gave her some trust after she carefully and meticulously finished a few tasks. 

As time went by, she thought, maybe they were all wrong before. Someone like him, has a heart that cannot be won over by women who try to use the usual feminine wiles. Only those who do things for him can win his attention. 

So now…has she gained his favor?

She was so happy, so very happy. 

During those nights, she burned the lamp to work on the clothes, leaving them aside during the day. She knew every task given to her by him needed to be tended to with special caution even if he didn’t say it to her. It was precisely because she understood this that she was able to obtain his permission to get a little closer. 

She didn’t feel tired on those days she worked through the night making those clothes. She only felt a boundless joy blooming, like the fine stitches nestled together on the soft silk. The quiet sounds of the needle tip poking through the fabric bloomed like a multi-colored web in the night. 

The web spread inside her heart, with thousands of knots, every knot a beautiful dream. Although the dreams are frozen, they are no less gorgeous. 

In the dead of the night, her eyes were red under the palace lantern, but there was a smile in her eyes as if she was making a wedding dress for herself.

All text copyright @ www.Ninja-Reflection.com

I think I have mentioned before but all these concubines given to Ning Yi by his brothers are all spies. It’s an open secret that despite the obviousness of it, plenty of men still fall for. Ning Yi has purposefully made a reputation of being a playboy for himself so naturally his brother would think women could be used against him. By the way, just to emphasize again, our two leads are really not what one would consider nice people. Neither are the sort of monsters that enjoy killing…but they also are not the sort to lose sleep when they do.