LEGEND OF NEVETSECNUAC
THE RESCUE - SECTION 8
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| PRINCESS LUELING AND SHAO Shutizan had never spoken
with such vehement, passionate conviction before, though Teuquob had long ago
had perceived, seen through the at times stern, restrained, rather reserved,
deceptive exterior of her nanny and believed her to be a soft, caring person
with gentle disposition, one who actually loved her charge as if she was her
very own. “I am now totally
committed to the truth. I made up my
mind last night to give you a reason and a means to escape this terrible
predicament. Please child, do not hate
me for keeping silent for so long; no, no, do not interrupt either, let me
speak, before I lose my nerve.” Then, straying in her
thoughts, she interjected, “Oh, your mother was such a beautiful woman both
inside and outside, as you, yourself, are growing up to be. In fact, you are the very image of her, hence
the reason for your father’s, His Majesty’s contempt.” “Men’s vanity!” she spat
on the floor, “Heaven may spare us from...” but then, getting a grip on
herself, she smiled sheepishly and continued in a more even tone. “Your mother’s name was Lueling. She was the Fifth Princess of the Kingdom of
Jenor, a peaceful, beautiful state about one-third the size of Kontu. It had the misfortune; however, of resting along the borders of our kingdom and possessing access to strategically important shipping ports… and for that reason, as so many others had, perished! Of course, the existence of Jenor, by royal diktat (edict, decree), was entirely omitted from your studies, the reasons for it now, you may well comprehend.” Then, Shutizan spoke of a
turbulent time in history when the great armies under Lord Hedenko had waged
incessant wars on all the neighboring countries, gaining Murong Di the
territories he’d craved. She succinctly
narrated the key events and how some later campaigns, including the one against
Jenor, were more directly overseen by His Majesty, who wished at the time to
escape the tedious tranquility of his court. “But what do I know of war
strategies or politics...?” She smiled sheepishly then shook her head as if in
self-admonition. “How I continue! Well anyhow, after the successful campaign
against Jenor, His Majesty Murong Di entered the capital city leading the victorious
armies and perched himself on your maternal grandfather’s conquered
throne. Then, as I have been told, he
had the entire Royal family and anyone else of consequence brought before his
presence, and, in front of your mother, who was made to bear witness, had them
humiliated, debased then one by one slowly dismembered, sliced, eviscerated or
other such, cruelly annihilated. He had
the same thirst for barbarism you see, not much different from Hedenko, he was. “Only your poor mother Princess Lueling, was made the sole exception and so her life was spared. Why, you ask? Because your father, our present sovereign, also had an eye for beauty, and your mother was the fairest maiden he had ever seen or possessed. As for the other palace belles who were also spared, well, they were taken away to be abased and ravaged by the subordinates or profitably sold to brothels or into slavery. What use did he have for them, when he had laid claim to the most enviable prize? The ensuing week, the soldiers, on orders from His Majesty, went on a rampage of murder, destruction and wanton mayhem, reducing a once-beautiful city to cinders, before the army’s final withdrawal.” “Now child, what I’m about to tell you may cause you still greater distress.” Shutizan warned as she determinedly gazed at Teuquob’, “But I must be candid with you on all accounts. You must be made aware of your father’s inherent cruelty. “Imagine, if you can, how
your poor, dear mother must have felt being made to watch her entire beloved
family after unspeakable torment, being ruthlessly butchered, one by one, in
front of her. Yes, and when she lost
consciousness, she was revived and unmercifully forced to witness still more
atrocities. It was a sort of game for him you see, toying with the victims’
minds, first trampling on their integrity and their honor, then in the end,
with their soul in shatters and when all speck of humanity was stripped away,
to have them brutally subjugated and cut down. For simple decapitation or
butchery, without the tantalizing debased spirit, would not suffice. Imagine if
you can the depth of agony she must have endured. The state she must have been reduced to after
all that! Now, I ask you, what need was
there of such vile acts?” She shook her
head indignantly, “What had been the point of it all... The unequivocal display
of his might? To mount further satisfaction as he drove her to the brink of
insanity, meanwhile, sapping all resistance of her will…?” Shutizan absorbed
herself in considering this for a moment then, turning her gaze back on
Teuquob, heaved a deep sigh. Teuquob’s
head was lowered, and she was quietly shedding tears. Biting her lip to constrain her own emotions,
Shutizan continued, “At the time of her capture, Princess Lueling had been
betrothed to a most handsome and virtuous aristocrat scholar, what was his name? I should remember, for it was on her lips
daily...Shao...that’s right, he was called Shao. This most handsome young man, as I understood
it, was a sensitive, most gentle soul who possessed great literary genius but,
unfortunately, lacked martial skills. As
the youngest son of the Prime Minister of Jenor, and a distant cousin to
Princess Lueling, your mother and he had been playmates since childhood, and,
as they grew into young adulthood this childhood attraction and their innocent,
carefree exchange had naturally blossomed into different kind of love. Subsequently, the said young adults were no longer permitted to freely see each and certain restrictions for the proper decorum now had to be adhered to; however, overriding these complexities, they’d still maintained written correspondence and with it the deepest affection for each other. Once, taking a grave chance, they had even rendezvoused secretly by the garden’s lotus pond to profess their devotion and eternal love for each other. Within the palace walls, however, few secrets could be kept. When the princess’s father, a kindly, perceptive King, considering info, announced (pronounced in Court) his desired wish for their ‘future union in matrimony’, the two could not have been happier. But, alas, just a month before the Royal wedding ceremony was to take place, their country was plunged into war with Kontu, and only a brief time later their capital was besieged by Hedenko’s invading army. “Now at the time of your
mother’s capture this fact about her prior engagement was also disclosed to His
Majesty Murong Di; your father had Shao therefore captured alive and had him
brought before his presence. Then, as
ordered, Hedenko had Shao’s chest cruelly ripped open while the unfortunate was
still alive. Plucking the beating heart
right out of the body, Hedenko (then just a field-marshal) presented it to Our
Sovereign, in full view of your mother.”
At this point Shutizan cringed noticeably and her body gave an
involuntary shudder. Teuquob was too
horrified to utter a sound and remained mortified, though curious, to hear the
rest. After taking a deep
breath, the old nurse pushed on, “Your father looked at the bloody organ with
scorn, and then remarked, “Ha, it’s but an ordinary heart! Cast it to the dogs!” Those were his exact words, I swear, as your
mother told me. I’m telling you all
this, distasteful as it is, only because your mother once asked me to. The night of her unfortunate demise, in fact,
she made me swear an oath to only reveal this truth to you when the need arose,
and not until then. She had hoped you
would be spared Murong Di’s wrath, but I think, deep down, she knew
otherwise. Now being such a time, I am
bound by my oath to your mother, overriding His Majesty’s, to reveal all. Yes, I have long since detested His Majesty,
my liege, for his despicable acts. It
took me weeks to wipe away those horrible images from my mind, but I had to
mask my indignation for your sake.” Warily she looked at the
door, and then moaned, “Your poor mother!
Already spent both emotionally and physically, this added atrocity
proved too much for her to bear and so once more she’d collapsed, quite
unconscious to the floor. This time, however,
despite their attempts, they failed to revive her. The Imperial Physician diagnosed her state
as, “Barely alive and in state of near comatose shock,” and then urged our
Sovereign to have her taken to a quieter place where she could be properly
tended to. Begrudgingly, he must have
agreed to it, for Princess Lueling regained consciousness several days later in
his bed. “Forgive me if this may
sound cruel, but it may, perhaps, have been better had she never
recovered. For that night and nights
after that Murong Di had his way with her and repeatedly violated her near
senseless, limp body. She later pleaded
again and again with him to allow her to die, but he would grant her no such
wish. On the contrary, he took every
precautionary measure and had her under constant surveillance to prevent any
suicide attempts.” Teuquob could not bear to
hear anymore. Her hands cupped over her
face, she collapsed on the bed and sobbed uncontrollably. Alarmed, the nurse rushed to console her,
urging her to be strong. Drying the
girl’s eyes, Shutizan urged Teuquob to help her finish what she had started. “It’s as hard for me to
tell you this, as it is for you to hear.” She reasoned, “So, child, you must be
stronger. Old as I am, I’m tired
already. Now, you don’t want me worrying
about your health on top of everything else too, do you?” Teuquob pulled herself together and nodded
her head. “That’s my girl.” The old nurse affectionately hugged her. Then she told of how Princess Lueling was
kept more like a prisoner in a high tower, under scrutiny in order to prevent
her from killing herself. “Favoring Princess
Lueling, the most, your father visited her frequently.” Scorn entered her voice, “Because your mother
was the only one who had rejected his advances, remaining the only one he could
not conquer, he became like a man possessed. All his other wives lost favor and
his mounting infatuation, rather lust, drove him to the brink of madness. He
incessantly fixated day and night on seizing (attaining) Princess Lueling’s
true affections. Despite all his
efforts, however, he could never win her love; never make her forget her
murdered fiancĂ©e! “Since everything is
according to the will of Heaven, not of man, you were meant to be
conceived. Pregnancy brought a definite
change in your mother, and gave His Majesty renewed hope. Thinking that, at last, he had won her over
he relaxed the watch on her and looked forward to a time when he could resume
his pleasures with her. “Men!” Shutizan spat on
the floor in disgust, “whether king or pauper, they are all cast from the same
mold. I’m glad I was never tainted by
their filth. I’m glad I was spared such
contemptible...” Checking her tongue,
Shutizan smiled wryly and coughed. “How
I stray. You don’t suppose I’m going
senile already, do you?” she questioned the air as she walked around the
room. Then, sitting herself down once
more; she resumed her say (continued), however, in a sadder tone. “Don’t take what I say to
heart dearest; not all men are the same, some are noble and good.... My hope is
that you will meet one such person in future and fall in love and have the
happiness that had been so cruelly denied to your poor mother…. Now, where was I?... “She closed her eyes to
pick up the train of thought she’d veered from.
“Because your mother was against taking an innocent life and felt an
obligation to the fetus (child) in her womb, she had resolved herself to endure
her torment (to carry-it to full-term at least) until after you were born. As for that contemptible father of yours, he
looked forward to the day of your birth as well, not because he wanted or
valued a child but...” Shutizan shook her head and murmured: “He craved your
mother more than his kingdom, more than all the power he held.” Once more she paused to catch her
breath. All this emotion had worn her
out. “It was after you were
born,”, she finally, looked up to say, “at the time when you were no more than
two weeks old, when your beautiful mother, on one peaceful fall afternoon, so
tragically ended her life by throwing herself from the window of the high tower. Ayy...”
The terrible picture just being evoked in Shutizan’s mind made her
unable to continue. She rose hastily and walked away to stare out
the window. Tears flowed down her cheeks
in defiance of her best efforts to stifle them.
“How I carry on. I’m but an old
fool, an old weakling.” She bit her
upper lip and angrily stamped her foot to constrain her emotions. Then, quickly wiping away all evidence of
tears, she sat herself down as before by bedside and added indignantly, “The King, your father, was outraged. Far from admiring your mother for her virtue,
he scorned her as a contemptible woman, deeming her act as most despicable and,
most of all, unfair to him. First, he claimed, she had enslaved his emotions, then cast them aside as thought they were worthless dirt. How dare she uphold the memory of a dead man over him, forsaking and rejecting all his boundless devotion and love? His disappointment soon
unhinged his tumultuous rage, and he acted with unheard of ferocity. Many suffered at his hand! Blood flowed like
rivers as thousands, mostly civilians, lost their lives most brutally! “Cruel, such cruel acts
many more months, ensued this mad savagery!” Shutizan shaking her head bit the
corner of her lip. “Meanwhile, on his decree your poor mother had been unceremoniously buried in an unmarked, pauper’s grave, no prayers, no sacrifices, nothing! She’d been hence forever denied the peace she’d deserved in the afterlife. Ahh...”, again Shutizan sighed. “Such was her tragic end,
and your mother’s cruel, most cruel fate.
To this day no ne, save for the Sovereign, knows where your mother is
buried.” “Riled by this injustice,
long ago I did make some discreet inquiries, but these yielded no result. Your poor, dear mother! Then, as if that was not enough, with the
same stone heart he had you, a two-week-old baby, disowned, put under house
arrest. The man you’ve known to date as your father was your paternal
uncle-in-law. I suppose that’s right… For he’s the husband of our Sovereign’s
younger sister…He took pity on you, and securing permission from the King, on
condition that you’ll still be kept in similar form of confinement, formally
adapted you. In this way he’d hoped to shield you from future ramifications, as
well as provide you with a personal name and acceptable surname. In time
however, even this became too much for the wrathful king to bear. I don’t
believe it was a hunting accident that caused the early demise of your foster
father…But again, my suspicions have never been proven …so I must keep my
tongue.” Then, after a thoughtful
silence, the old nurse muttered, reflecting on how, with the advancing of the
years the king had only become worse, on how he had only nursed his anger and
hatred, and how, in punishing Teuquob in this manner, he was still seeking
revenge (vengeance) on his long-dead wife, Princess Lueling. Just then a sharp knock on
the door startled them both. The
concerned Chief attendant (head chambermaid) was at once abruptly dismissed by
an incensed Shutizan. But then, on second
thought, Shutizan called her back and ordered her, even though it was beneath
her station, to fetch them the no:5 herb tea.
The old nurse’s throat was parched and Teuquob looked too pale. When the tray was produced Shutizan sternly
gave the order to her rival, “The young mistress needs her rest. See to it that no one disturbs us.” “Yes ma’am.” She
begrudgingly assented; but as she was leaving, she snuck another look at
Teuquob. Observing the girl’s condition,
she halted her step, contemplating suggesting that perhaps a physician be
fetched to examine Teuquob. “What are you waiting
for?” Shutizan’s curt, angry voice however deterred the other; for an open
confrontation with latter when she was in such a foul mood would not be
advisable. “Sorry, ma’am,” she meekly
ejected and quickly left the room.
Shutizan was an old shrew that no one dared cross or disobey. This special brand of herb
tea was appropriate for times like this, for it soothed the nerves and rushed
blood to their cheeks. Placing the empty
cup down the nurse now spoke with and even tone, “Dear child, I have told you
all this, painful as it was, to make you understand. Now you must set aside all propriety, I mean
your filial piety towards this one who do not deserve it. Since the King has long ago forsaken you and
spared you not one ounce of parental affection or care, you do not owe him any
homage, least of all obedience. You owe
it to your mother and yourself, however, to survive and not perish in this vile
net of fate he has cast to ensnare you. “Your mother’s life was
tragically spent before its time, but this need not be your destiny. You must disobey the King and get away to
safety without fail. Only then, once you
are safe in another state, may you offer the prayers and proper sacrifices to
her soul. Only then may she find peace
in the afterlife. Her spirit must be
released from its internment in this world and be able to find entry to the
heavens above. Her long-tormented soul
must be spared from further anguish.
Only you, my child, the last surviving member of your mother’s family,
can offer this solace to her. Since the
Gods are merciful, they will hear the prayers you offer, as long as it’s done
through a proper religious order, regardless of creed or sect. “Take counsel,
Teuquob. I have thought long and hard on
this and have finally devised a plausible course of action whereby we may be
able to free you from this entrapment.
Listen with care, therefore, to my instructions. Tonight, we will pretend to have retired
early, only...” “You don’t look well, my
dear, perhaps we should go back.” “Go back? No! I
can’t!” Trembling, her throat
constricting, Teuquob protested. Then,
realizing where she was, she smiled bashfully, steadied her heart and
apologized. “I quite understand. There’s no need for explanations.” Stark with
a compassionate response, withdrew his hand.
“Still, perhaps you would like to rest here a bit before our return. We needn’t proceed to the next point.”
~
(Stay tuned for the next exciting
post, the conclusion of “The Rescue”, Section 9)
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