Then with a grimace, the master snapped at the eunuch. 'Release her hair. What cause have you to be so cruel to these children?'
The eunuch curled his lip. 'She wears paint.'
'And she will be washed. But not by you.' At his gesture, two new guards appeared. The master turned his attention back to the girl. At least she was breathing on her own now. 'Do not fight me,' he ordered, his voice low but no less powerful.
She nodded slowly.
He glanced at the eunuch. 'Go wash the chamber pots, and do not show your face to me again.' Then he gently took hold of the girl's arm and passed her to another eunuch, one who had kinder eyes and a softer face. 'Do not disobey my orders again,' he said to her.
She swallowed but was able to produce a quivering nod. Then she was led away along with nearly two dozen other girls who had applied paint of some kind. Meanwhile, Ji Yue slowly eased herself back into her seat. He saw her, of course. He seemed to be the kind of man who saw everything. As she settled back upon the hard bench, he raised his eyebrows at her.
She knew what he meant. He was asking her what exactly she had thought she could do for that girl against an army of eunuchs? She had no answer because, of course, she hadn't thought that far in advance. And what right did he have to question her, anyway, even from across the room?
So she did what her mother had taught her. She smiled sweetly with as vacant an expression as possible. If you do not wish to answer, Mama had said, then let them believe you a blank piece of art—beauty without mind— and they will forget you ever disquieted them. That was her plan and it had worked thousands of times before. Until now.
The master's lips curled in disdain. He did not hide his disgust as he turned to address the whole room. 'You who remain will be taken for inspection. You will stand naked before the doctor. You will allow the physician to touch and measure and poke in whatever manner is required. You will endure this in silence, for in such a way we ensure that you are indeed a virgin.'
Gasps of horror greeted these words. Most of the girls had never seen a physician before. But Mama had foreseen this particular trial and prepared Ji Yue. In fact, Ji Yue had already seen a doctor and had the process completely explained to her. Though repugnant, it would not cause her agony.
'And,' continued the master with a sardonic sneer, 'this examination will be repeated regularly. I suggest you guard your virginity well.'
Ji Yue frowned. How could she—or any of these girls—lose their virginity here where they were surrounded at every turn? And even if there were opportunities for dalliance, who would do something so stupid?
She wasn't given time to wonder as the remaining virgins were divided into groups. Ten in each with Ji Yue as the last in her line. The first girl was taken immediately by a eunuch into a tiny room while the others sat outside and waited. And waited. And waited. An hour later, the girl reappeared, her clothing askew and muffled sobs coming from behind her curtain of black hair.
'What happened?' they all asked. 'Why are you crying?'
The girl did not answer, but merely dashed away, escorted by the same eunuch who had led them here. Then it was the next girl's turn. She entered the chamber with only a soft mewl of distress, then came out wailing less than twenty minutes later.
'What happened?' she asked the eunuch.
He curled his lip in disgust. 'Southern girls. Too hairy!'
'She is sent home?' asked another.
The eunuch nodded.
It took Ji Yue two breaths before she realized exactly what he meant by too much hair. Then she began to panic. How stupid had she been! Of course a check for virginity would inspect the lower body regions! Her mother had already consulted fortune tellers to learn exactly how much hair was too much or too little. Ji Yue was safe on that count. But she had put on her cream, and that certainly would be discovered!
The other girls were beginning to panic, too, and they thought about ripping out their hair before the inspection. One went so far as to try to leave. She was stopped by a pair of eunuchs guarding the exit. When she returned, tears were trembling on her lashes.
'He won't let me go back to my room.'
'It won't do any good, anyway,' Ji Yue inserted. 'They will notice swelling if you do anything now.' Just as they would notice her sweet-smelling cream.
Never mind, she consoled herself. The worst that could happen to her was that she would be bathed along with the other girls. It would be embarrassing but not fatal. Except, just then the young girl—the one who had screamed in the main room—was dragged past. Her hair was in wet clumps, her face was scrubbed raw, and her arms showed ugly welts where she had been pinched. She was sobbing again, only this time it was the miserable heartsore sobs of a woman with no hope.
Ji Yue was on her feet in a second. 'Stop!' she ordered the guard. 'Stop!' She went to the girl, her expression tender as she pushed the wet, stringy strands of hair out her eyes. 'Surely it is not so bad as all that,' she said softly.
'I am to be sent home!' the girl wailed.
Ji Yue froze, her gaze leaping to the stone-faced eunuch. 'But why?'
'She was brought before the dowager consort, who declared her too ugly.'
'But of course she is…is…unattractive like this! With dark bruises and raw patches.'
The eunuch did not seem to care. 'She was too young, anyway.' And with that, he dragged her away.
Ji Yue had no choice but to sink down on her seat in fear. At her age, she did not dare appear before the dowager consort soaking wet, her hair askew, and her skin blotchy. And yet, without access to a bathing chamber, how could she wash away her cream?
No answer presented itself no matter how much she thought. And one by one, the girls disappeared into the room. Another girl was dismissed for being knock-kneed. The others came out tearful, even distraught, but they were allowed to dress for the next task: lunch with the dowager consort.
Then it was Ji Yue's turn. She stepped into the room, exhaling in relief when she saw the physician: a woman, thank heaven. She was elderly, with crabbed hands, a thin nose and a voice that sounded sharp with anger. 'You're not going to cry, are you? I've had all I can stomach this morning and I'll not tolerate any more hysterics, understand?'
Ji Yue nodded, judging it wisest to keep silent.
'You're older than the other girls.'
She shook her head. 'No, no. I was born in the year of the rooster,' she lied. 'At night, too, which is an excellent time for a girl,' she added, just in case the physician didn't realize that girls born during the time of 'roosting' were likely to be tame and submissive.
The doctor crinkled her nose as she peered closer. 'If that's true, then you will not age well.'
'She was born in the year of the horse, I'd wager,' a man's voice said behind her.
Ji Yue spun around, but she already knew who was there: her personal tormentor—the master of the festival. He was hidden behind the door, which was why she hadn't noticed him earlier, and he had a casual smirk on his too-handsome face. She stiffened in shock, though inside, her heart beat triple time. 'Do you accuse me of lying?' she demanded.
'Of course I do,' he answered calmly. 'Why would you have the word 'Ji'—grain—in your name if not for being a horse?' He smiled, his expression lazy and sensuous as he listed the attributes of a girl born late in a horse year. 'Which means you are destined for a hard life, Ji Yue, one of much labor. You may be broad-minded, but you lack perseverance and are incapable of keeping secrets.'
'That's ridiculous!' she snapped.
He leaned forward. 'If I were you, I would have lied about my age, as well.'
She turned from him, unable to look him in the eye. He had named her exact reasons for lying. Though she dismissed the thought that the year and time she was born determined anything about her, she knew that others took great store by it. Especially when predicting who would make the most fertile concubine.
'Don't worry,' he drawled from behind her. 'Being an empress is a difficult task. I would expect her to be a woman who labors hard.'
