When the Sea Turned to Silver
Page 22
“I probably saved her life,” Yanna said with a hint of her crooked smile. “This place has been empty for months. You could freeze to death sleeping here.”
But Pinmei only looked at Yanna curiously. She was scarcely half a head taller than Yishan, but she ordered servants about as if she had been at the palace for decades.
As if hearing her thoughts, Lady Meng spoke.
“Have you been here a long time?” she asked Yanna. “It’s unusual for someone so young to have so much responsibility.”
Yanna’s impish grin returned. “That’s your nice way of saying I’m not old enough to be the head of the king’s servants,” she said. “I’m not. I worked in the kitchen, at first.”
“From the kitchen to the king’s attendant?” Yishan said. “That’s quite a jump! Why were you working in the kitchen?”
“My father got into some trouble—a long time ago—before the Tiger King became emperor.” Yanna was starting to stammer, but she took a deep breath and continued. “I was just happy to find a place where I could stay.”
“Where did you come from?” Lady Meng asked kindly.
“Oh,” Yanna said vaguely, “just a village by the sea.”
“The sea is far away,” Lady Meng said. “You traveled quite a distance.”
“I rode a horse,” Yanna said, and her eyes softened with the memory.
“It must be quite a horse,” Yishan said, watching Yanna’s face closely. It had taken on a wistful, dreamy expression.
“Oh, it was,” Yanna said. “The most beautiful white… But it’s gone now. It was never mine anyway… though it didn’t belong to the king either…”
A beautiful white horse? Pinmei thought. That sounds like BaiMa! Could he have… But Lady Meng was talking.
“The king took your horse?” Lady Meng said, slightly shocked. “I can’t believe KaeJae…”
“No, no!” Yanna said, shaking her head rapidly. “I meant the Tiger Emperor, not the king of Bright Moonlight. It was the Tiger Emperor when he was king who wanted the horse but…” She looked at their confused faces and quickly continued. “Anyway, when I got here, I was able to get a job in the palace kitchen, just scrubbing floors, washing dishes—that sort of thing.”
“So how did you get to be the king’s attendant?” Yishan asked.
“I volunteered. The Tiger Emperor took all the men to work on the wall,” Yanna said, “so that left only old women and girls here at the palace.”
“There are some guards,” Yishan protested.
“The king can’t trust them,” Yanna snorted. “They’re all spies for the emperor!”
“The emperor is spying on the king? Why?” Yishan said. “He could just kill the king, like he did all the others.”
“No, he can’t, because he needs him,” Yanna said.
“Why?” they all, even Pinmei, asked in unison.
“The king said you were friends,” she said, and Pinmei was surprised to see Yanna looking directly at her. “I think I can trust you.”
Yishan said, “Of course,” but it was only when Pinmei nodded that Yanna continued.
“Well,” Yanna said, dropping her voice to a whisper and looking around hastily. “Remember what I said about the western side of the walkway?” She waited until they all nodded at her. “When the emperor comes, he and the king go out to the western side of the garden—and all his guards have to camp on the eastern side of the Long Walkway.”
“Even his guards don’t go to the western side?” Yishan asked.
Yanna shook her head. “No one crosses over to the western side when the emperor is here,” she said. “Not a servant or a guard—they wouldn’t even dare shoot an arrow. Like I said, you’d be killed if you did. I bet even a bird would be killed if it were there at the same time as the emperor.”
“Does the emperor come often?” Lady Meng asked.
Yanna nodded. “But only for one night, when the moon is full,” she said. “He leaves right after, as fast as he can.”
“And the emperor is here now?” Yishan said, disbelief creeping into his voice.
“Well, it’s a full moon tonight,” Yanna said, shrugging. “That’s when he and the king go out to the garden, alone, at night, when the moon rises.”
“But why?” Lady Meng said. “What do he and the king do?”
Yanna shrugged and began leading them through the empty hall to a chamber door. “I asked the king once, and he told me it was safer if I didn’t know,” she said. “But whatever it is, only the king can do it and the emperor needs him. That’s why no one is allowed to harm the king, but the king isn’t allowed to do anything either.”
“What do you mean?” Lady Meng asked.
“Well, the palace might as well be a prison,” Yanna said. “The king can’t leave, and no one is ever allowed to see him.”
“We did,” Yishan said.
“That’s true,” Yanna said, frowning. She stopped at the door and opened it. “I hope you don’t get in trouble for it.”
CHAPTER 26
Pinmei and Yishan had been treated to a dinner of new enjoyments. In a lacquered box brought by the gray-haired and grim servant, there had been tea-stained eggs, pickled plums, and cold slices of aromatic roast chicken that made Pinmei afraid she would embarrass herself by drooling over it all. But even while they ate, Pinmei’s thoughts nibbled at her. How could they find out if Amah was here? As the servant refilled their cups with golden tea, Pinmei longed to speak to Yishan alone. So when Lady Meng soon retired to her bed, taking the servant with her, Pinmei looked at Yishan eagerly.
“Yishan,” Pinmei said, “if the emperor is here, I think…”
“Amah?” Yishan said, nodding. “I was thinking the same thing.”
“She might be here!” Pinmei said, her words bubbling like heated porridge. “The emperor could have come here from our mountain…”
“Stopping at a couple of villages to collect men on the way,” Yishan said, agreeing. “But there’s a good chance he just came here with a small troop of soldiers and sent the rest of them, with Amah, off to… wherever.”
But Pinmei only looked at Yanna curiously. She was scarcely half a head taller than Yishan, but she ordered servants about as if she had been at the palace for decades.
As if hearing her thoughts, Lady Meng spoke.
“Have you been here a long time?” she asked Yanna. “It’s unusual for someone so young to have so much responsibility.”
Yanna’s impish grin returned. “That’s your nice way of saying I’m not old enough to be the head of the king’s servants,” she said. “I’m not. I worked in the kitchen, at first.”
“From the kitchen to the king’s attendant?” Yishan said. “That’s quite a jump! Why were you working in the kitchen?”
“My father got into some trouble—a long time ago—before the Tiger King became emperor.” Yanna was starting to stammer, but she took a deep breath and continued. “I was just happy to find a place where I could stay.”
“Where did you come from?” Lady Meng asked kindly.
“Oh,” Yanna said vaguely, “just a village by the sea.”
“The sea is far away,” Lady Meng said. “You traveled quite a distance.”
“I rode a horse,” Yanna said, and her eyes softened with the memory.
“It must be quite a horse,” Yishan said, watching Yanna’s face closely. It had taken on a wistful, dreamy expression.
“Oh, it was,” Yanna said. “The most beautiful white… But it’s gone now. It was never mine anyway… though it didn’t belong to the king either…”
A beautiful white horse? Pinmei thought. That sounds like BaiMa! Could he have… But Lady Meng was talking.
“The king took your horse?” Lady Meng said, slightly shocked. “I can’t believe KaeJae…”
“No, no!” Yanna said, shaking her head rapidly. “I meant the Tiger Emperor, not the king of Bright Moonlight. It was the Tiger Emperor when he was king who wanted the horse but…” She looked at their confused faces and quickly continued. “Anyway, when I got here, I was able to get a job in the palace kitchen, just scrubbing floors, washing dishes—that sort of thing.”
“So how did you get to be the king’s attendant?” Yishan asked.
“I volunteered. The Tiger Emperor took all the men to work on the wall,” Yanna said, “so that left only old women and girls here at the palace.”
“There are some guards,” Yishan protested.
“The king can’t trust them,” Yanna snorted. “They’re all spies for the emperor!”
“The emperor is spying on the king? Why?” Yishan said. “He could just kill the king, like he did all the others.”
“No, he can’t, because he needs him,” Yanna said.
“Why?” they all, even Pinmei, asked in unison.
“The king said you were friends,” she said, and Pinmei was surprised to see Yanna looking directly at her. “I think I can trust you.”
Yishan said, “Of course,” but it was only when Pinmei nodded that Yanna continued.
“Well,” Yanna said, dropping her voice to a whisper and looking around hastily. “Remember what I said about the western side of the walkway?” She waited until they all nodded at her. “When the emperor comes, he and the king go out to the western side of the garden—and all his guards have to camp on the eastern side of the Long Walkway.”
“Even his guards don’t go to the western side?” Yishan asked.
Yanna shook her head. “No one crosses over to the western side when the emperor is here,” she said. “Not a servant or a guard—they wouldn’t even dare shoot an arrow. Like I said, you’d be killed if you did. I bet even a bird would be killed if it were there at the same time as the emperor.”
“Does the emperor come often?” Lady Meng asked.
Yanna nodded. “But only for one night, when the moon is full,” she said. “He leaves right after, as fast as he can.”
“And the emperor is here now?” Yishan said, disbelief creeping into his voice.
“Well, it’s a full moon tonight,” Yanna said, shrugging. “That’s when he and the king go out to the garden, alone, at night, when the moon rises.”
“But why?” Lady Meng said. “What do he and the king do?”
Yanna shrugged and began leading them through the empty hall to a chamber door. “I asked the king once, and he told me it was safer if I didn’t know,” she said. “But whatever it is, only the king can do it and the emperor needs him. That’s why no one is allowed to harm the king, but the king isn’t allowed to do anything either.”
“What do you mean?” Lady Meng asked.
“Well, the palace might as well be a prison,” Yanna said. “The king can’t leave, and no one is ever allowed to see him.”
“We did,” Yishan said.
“That’s true,” Yanna said, frowning. She stopped at the door and opened it. “I hope you don’t get in trouble for it.”
CHAPTER 26
Pinmei and Yishan had been treated to a dinner of new enjoyments. In a lacquered box brought by the gray-haired and grim servant, there had been tea-stained eggs, pickled plums, and cold slices of aromatic roast chicken that made Pinmei afraid she would embarrass herself by drooling over it all. But even while they ate, Pinmei’s thoughts nibbled at her. How could they find out if Amah was here? As the servant refilled their cups with golden tea, Pinmei longed to speak to Yishan alone. So when Lady Meng soon retired to her bed, taking the servant with her, Pinmei looked at Yishan eagerly.
“Yishan,” Pinmei said, “if the emperor is here, I think…”
“Amah?” Yishan said, nodding. “I was thinking the same thing.”
“She might be here!” Pinmei said, her words bubbling like heated porridge. “The emperor could have come here from our mountain…”
“Stopping at a couple of villages to collect men on the way,” Yishan said, agreeing. “But there’s a good chance he just came here with a small troop of soldiers and sent the rest of them, with Amah, off to… wherever.”
