Chapter Five: The Women of the Li Family

After learning about this matter, Old Li felt much more at ease. It seemed that being born into the royal family did have its advantages—especially for a princess like herself, who was practically retired from birth!

Since Li Zhi had given the staff a holiday, there weren’t many memorials to review these days, so the emperor and empress could finally spare some time for themselves, enjoying a little world of two.

But regardless of what they said, as parents, they inevitably harbored all sorts of hopes and expectations for their children. That morning, the couple had slept in, only rising when the sun was nearly up. After a simple meal and freshening up, Wu Zetian summoned one of the maids to fetch Little Fu.

Upon entering the palace, Little Fu bowed deeply, “Greetings to Your Majesty, Your Highness!”

Wu Zetian gestured for him to rise. “How has Chen’er been progressing with her studies lately?”

“Reporting to Your Highness, the princess applies herself diligently each day,” replied Eunuch Fu.

“And what sort of books is she reading?” Wu Zetian pressed.

Eunuch Fu answered respectfully, “Mainly histories of the nation, along with various Confucian classics and other texts…”

Upon hearing this, Wu Zetian raised her eyebrows. “What about the Four Books and Five Classics?”

“She has read them as well, but…” Eunuch Fu hesitated, then continued carefully, “the princess seems rather uninterested in those.”

Wu Zetian immediately rose, intending to see for herself. Before she could go, Li Zhi stopped her. “Chen’er is still young. It’s only natural that such abstruse works don’t hold her attention. There’s no need to make a fuss.”

“My lord…”

“Meiniang, you’re being too strict. Don’t forget, Chen’er is only four years old,” Li Zhi gently pressed her shoulders, urging her to sit. “Besides, though she’s quiet by nature, she’s kind and filial, always coming to keep us company…”

Wu Zetian seemed puzzled by his fondness. “Why does Your Majesty favor Chen’er so much?”

Li Zhi sat down with a smile. “Since I became aware of the world, it’s been so long since I’ve seen such pure eyes… Every time I see Chen’er, I’m reminded of Zizi…”

With that, he sipped his tea, his face softening with reminiscence. Wu Zetian fell silent. Zizi was Li Zhi’s younger sister, Princess Jinyang, who grew up with him beside Emperor Taizong. Their bond was deep.

When Li Zhi, as crown prince, began attending court, Princess Jinyang would always cling to his sleeve, reluctant to part. Yet heaven is jealous of beauty; she died of illness at twelve, leaving both Emperor Taizong and Li Zhi heartbroken, weeping for days on end.

Wu Zetian discreetly waved the attendants away and took his hand, sitting with him in companionable silence.

…

Eunuch Fu, leaving the chamber, was beaming. He’d overheard Li Zhi’s praise for the little princess—clearly, she was highly favored, and he, by extension, would prosper.

Returning to the Hall of Fragrant Harmony, he respectfully replaced the charcoal brazier and waited quietly nearby. The princess was so bright now she no longer needed lessons in reading; she only called for his help when she encountered particularly unfamiliar characters.

After all, while Old Li could recognize most classical characters, some were so different from those of later eras that she couldn’t make them out. Compound words could sometimes be guessed, but isolated characters left her stumped.

At that moment, Old Li sat beneath the sunlight, surrounded by scattered books on the tatami and the adjoining floor—volumes she’d perused over the past few days. If she found something useful, she’d study it further; if not, she’d flip through and set it aside.

Suddenly, a copy of “The Rule of Women” caught her eye. It had been lying there for several days, yet she’d ignored it, instinctively suspecting it was another treatise on feminine virtue and obedience.

However, today, her attendant Xiao He mentioned that the book was supposedly written by Empress Changsun. She hadn’t read it herself, only heard of it in passing.

For this empress, whose reputation had echoed down more than a thousand years, Old Li felt a measure of respect. In fact, it wasn’t just Empress Changsun; the more Old Li learned about the Li-Tang royal family, the more she admired the women within it.

Perhaps it was because she herself had become a woman that her perspective on many things had changed.

Li Er’s grandmother, the former Empress Dugu Jialuo’s own sister, was a formidable woman in her own right. Li Er’s mother, Empress Dou, was the close confidante and strategist of Emperor Gaozu Li Yuan, though she died too soon.

Li Er’s sister, Princess Pingyang, had gathered thousands of troops at the very start of Li Yuan’s uprising. The foundation of the Tang dynasty was laid by Princess Pingyang’s forces and funds raised through her maternal grandfather Wu Shihuo’s lumber trade.

Princess Pingyang was a formidable leader, conquering half the empire for Tang, and even the famed general Qutu Tong had once suffered defeat at her hands.

Moreover, she remains the only princess in all dynastic history to be buried with full military honors, escorted by the army.

…

Reading through “The Rule of Women,” Old Li discovered it was nothing like the traditional guides to submission and virtue she’d expected. Instead, it resembled—what to call it?—a manual for palace intrigue, or perhaps a handbook for influencing politics from within the harem!

For that matter, the historical records revealed that Empress Changsun was never one to wait at home for news. During the campaigns of conquest, she always followed closely at Li Er’s side, frequently serving as his advisor.

All this was unknown to Old Li until she came to this era. Seeing it now, it made a certain sense that her own mother, Wu Zetian, would one day become emperor.

If all this was true, it would be no exaggeration to say that women held up half the sky of the Tang dynasty.

What was even more fascinating was that, according to other basic texts, this period in East Asia saw female rulers everywhere. During Emperor Yang of Sui’s reign, Japan saw its first empress, Suiko. By the later years of the Zhenguan era, Silla had a queen, Kim Deokman, who was succeeded by her own sister, Kim Seungman.

And soon, her own mother Wu Zetian would become emperor…

Old Li couldn’t help but shiver, goosebumps rising all over.

She’d never believed in the supernatural, but reading all this, it was hard to dismiss it as mere “historical coincidence.”

…

Setting her book aside, Old Li glanced at the sun and estimated it was around three in the afternoon.

From her recent reading, she’d discovered she had two older sisters—and she intended to visit them.

She called to Xiao He, who hurried over. “Your Highness, how may I serve you?”

Old Li asked, “I’m curious—does Father really have only one daughter?”

At this, Xiao He’s expression shifted, and she glanced nervously at Eunuch Fu.

Seeing this, Old Li called, “Eunuch Fu, come here as well!”

Eunuch Fu hesitated, then approached with a wry smile.

“No bowing—sit down, both of you,” Old Li commanded. “Tell me what’s going on.”

Eunuch Fu’s expression was complicated, and he stood silently for a moment.

Old Li waited, then suddenly blinked and flashed a cute smile. “If you don’t tell me, I’ll go tell Mother you bullied me!”

“Spare me, Your Highness!” Eunuch Fu dropped to his knees, nearly in tears. “Please, have mercy!”

“Enough, enough…” Old Li felt a pang of guilt at his terror, momentarily forgetting she was a princess with the power of life and death over them.

“Just tell me what you know,” she said.

Eunuch Fu gritted his teeth, then said softly, “Your Majesty… there are indeed two other princesses. Only, they are both in the Palace of Restraint.”

“Palace of Restraint?” Old Li frowned. She knew the place—a training ground for palace maids, or more bluntly, the palace prison. Many maids who had committed offenses, and even the families of disgraced officials, were confined there.

It differed from the Music Bureau, which trained official courtesans in the arts and serving men. The Palace of Restraint, in contrast, was for training new maids and serving as the palace prison, where disgraced or neglected maids performed the dirtiest, lowest tasks.

If Daming Palace was a city, the Palace of Restraint would be its most lawless, shadowy corner.

Old Li asked, “Why did my two sisters end up there?”

Eunuch Fu looked at Xiao He, hesitating. To them, it wasn’t a great secret, but to tell the princess directly…

Yet Old Li seemed determined to get to the bottom of it, and both attendants were torn.

“Don’t worry. If Mother ever asks, I’ll explain myself. She never forbade you from telling me, did she?” Old Li reassured them.

The two exchanged glances, then Eunuch Fu said, “It all began before Your Highness was born…”

He had resolved to come clean and began recounting the events of those years, with Xiao He occasionally adding details.

…

But they were only a eunuch and a maid—servants, after all, unable to know the full details.

All they could say was that the two princesses were daughters of Consort Xiao. After Wu Zetian became empress, the girls were sent to the Palace of Restraint.

Listening to them, Old Li recalled bits of information she’d read online in her previous life and pieced together what had happened.

In short, the palace power struggle ended with her mother Wu Zetian as victor. Both Empress Wang and Consort Xiao were forced to hang themselves with white silk.

There was even an old tale on the internet that, as she died, Consort Xiao swore to return as a cat to torment Wu Zetian in her next life.

Supposedly, since then Wu Zetian feared cats and suffered nightmares.

But Old Li didn’t believe it, since there were plenty of cats in Daming Palace now! Not only were there cats, but they were everywhere—half-wild, half-domesticated, raised to keep the mice at bay in the wooden palace, and not afraid of people. Even Wu Zetian, when in a good mood, would sometimes pick one up and stroke it.

…

Thinking of her two sisters, Old Li felt a pang of pity. Coming from a world where collective punishment was unthinkable, she instinctively disliked such cruel reprisals.

But to imagine she could simply say a word and have her sisters freed was naïve. Without the nod from Li Zhi or Wu Zetian, what could she do?

She longed to see them, but feared arousing suspicion without her parents’ approval.

Yet, after some logical analysis, Old Li reconsidered. She had no ties to Consort Xiao, nor any connection to the Xiao clan of Lanling. Most importantly, she was still a child—pure-hearted, and any kindness would only be seen as virtue.

Sometimes, being a child came with privileges: after all, what dark designs could a child possibly have?

With this in mind, Old Li looked up and asked, “Does anyone have any money?”

Although she was a princess, she hadn’t been granted a title yet, so all her expenses came from her mother, Wu Zetian. Her purse was empty.

Eunuch Fu was taken aback, then slowly produced a string of Kaiyuan coins—about thirty in total.

Old Li turned to Xiao He, who also produced a string, about twenty coins.

Weighing the coins in her hand, Old Li stood. “Let’s go.”

Eunuch Fu and Xiao He followed. Seeing Old Li stride ahead, they exchanged anxious whispers.

“What should we do?”

“We can only report honestly,” Xiao He answered with a wry smile. “Let’s hope Their Majesties won’t hold it against us…”

Eunuch Fu added, “Her Highness said there’s nothing to fear. We’ll just have to trust her.”

Though his tone wasn’t entirely confident.

…

Old Li walked through a thin layer of snow, making her way to the gate of the Palace of Restraint. As she was about to enter, a middle-aged maid in an official black cap stepped out, bowed, and greeted her, “Greetings, Your Highness.”

“And you are?” Old Li asked.

“Replying to Your Highness, my surname is Liu. I am the Mistress of the Palace of Restraint.”

Old Li nodded. “Mistress Liu, I’ve come to visit my two elder sisters. May I?”

Though her tone was polite, she was, after all, a princess. Mistress Liu dared not refuse and promptly bowed, gesturing, “This way, Your Highness.”

The Palace of Restraint was not small, comprising three main sections. The central area was for labor and confinement, where most of the maids also rested.

As they passed through a corridor, Old Li saw two young women in their twenties cleaning. Both wore maid’s attire, their hair somewhat disheveled and faces marked by exhaustion.