Once New Year's Eve passed, bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new, the first year of the Jingping era began.
In early February, the plum blossoms in the Imperial Garden bloomed. Empress Dowager Zhou invited Yao Huang and the little princess, Qin'er, to the Imperial Garden to admire the blossoms.
Qin'er wouldn't celebrate her third birthday until April, so Yao Huang placed the little one in a stroller and left the rear hall of the Qianyuan Palace. The spring sunlight was bright and beautiful. Qin'er sat in the stroller, looking all around. Upon entering the Imperial Garden and spotting Empress Dowager Zhou standing under a plum tree with a mama from afar, Qin'er's eyes immediately curved into happy crescents. She called out in a crisp voice, "Imperial Grandmother!"
Empress Dowager Zhou turned around. Seeing the little princess in the stroller who looked like she was carved from the exact same mold as Yao Huang, she laughed out loud and personally lifted Qin'er out of the stroller.
Qin'er tilted her head back, wanting to pluck the plum blossoms above her head.
Yao Huang plucked two short twigs for the little one, letting Qin'er hold one in her hand and pinning the other in Qin'er's hair.
"Mother wear flowers too," Qin'er said, looking at her mother's hair bun which was adorned with only a single jade hairpin, and raised the plum branch in her hand.
Yao Huang lowered her head, allowing her daughter to help pin it in.
With this, Qin'er considered her flower-viewing complete. She wriggled out of her Imperial Grandmother's embrace, and once her feet touched the ground, she toddled forward on her own.
Empress Dowager Zhou and Yao Huang walked side by side behind her. Watching Qin'er's tiny figure, Empress Dowager Zhou smiled and reminisced, "They truly are brother and sister. Qin'er's agility is exactly the same as the Crown Prince's when he was little."
Jun-ge'er was conferred the title of Heir of the Eastern Palace when he was three. Last year, when the new Emperor ascended the throne, he immediately established the Crown Prince right after conferring the title of Empress.
Yao Huang said, "Yes, the Crown Prince loved watching the fish back then, and Qin'er is just the same."
As they spoke, Qin'er indeed walked toward the pond. Unfortunately, the water in the pond had not completely thawed yet, and the koi fish had been moved indoors long before winter set in last year, waiting to be released back once the water warmed up.
Unable to see the koi, Qin'er returned to the main path of the Imperial Garden. One moment she was entering a pavilion, and the next she was climbing a rockery. Since Yao Huang had to keep Empress Dowager Zhou company and converse with her, she ordered the wet nurse to follow the child closely.
After chatting about the siblings, Empress Dowager Zhou began to express concern for the adults. "Is the Emperor still eating a vegetarian diet lately?"
Yao Huang replied, "He actually wants to observe the mourning period for another year or half a year. But I was afraid his body wouldn't be able to handle the heavy burden of state affairs on a purely vegetarian diet, so after the Lantern Festival, I forcefully coaxed him into eating a few meat dishes."
Empress Dowager Zhou patted Yao Huang's hand. "You did the right thing. The Son of Heaven must prioritize the state and the nation. It has long been an established custom for a new Emperor to substitute days for months when observing mourning. Now that the late Emperor has been buried in the imperial mausoleum for half a year, the Emperor should look forward. He absolutely must not continue to wallow in grief."
Yao Huang said, "Yes, I will properly advise the Emperor."
Empress Dowager Zhou added, "I remember you used to return to the garden of your former residence every spring to enjoy the season. Pick a day off this year and go for a stroll there too. The Emperor was already a man of few words and rare smiles in his youth, and his majestic aura has only grown heavier since ascending the throne. The court officials cannot figure out his thoughts. If they think the Emperor hasn't moved on from his grief, the subjects will feel compelled to continue mourning the late Emperor alongside him, not even daring to celebrate joyous occasions in their own homes. Over time, this will only breed resentment."
Yao Huang said with admiration, "Imperial Mother, you are truly thoughtful."
Empress Dowager Zhou smiled.
The new Emperor was an extremely self-disciplined and proper person. Although the Empress was radiant and loved to laugh, she didn't dare to easily speak up and advise him on such matters. Therefore, as an elder, she had to give them a little push, nudging the young Emperor and Empress to quickly return to their former days of talking and laughing.
.
In the morning, Zhao Sui handled state affairs in the Imperial Study, working until it was almost time for lunch before returning to the Qianyuan Palace to eat.
Jun-ge'er, who was about to celebrate his sixth birthday, returned from the academy before his imperial father. After washing his hands, he sat on the warm couch to play with his sister. Qin'er also liked her brother and arranged the beautiful, washed pebbles she had picked up from the Imperial Garden to show him.
When the voices of the palace maids respectfully welcoming the Emperor drifted in from the outer room, Jun-ge'er wanted to get off the couch. Qin'er thought her brother was leaving and scrunched up her little face, ready to cry.
Jun-ge'er looked at his mother in a dilemma.
Yao Huang smiled and asked, "Why do you want to get down?"
Jun-ge'er looked toward the doorway of the adjoining room.
The next moment, the hem of an ink-black dragon robe appeared there. With a lift and a stride of black dragon boots, the new Emperor entered the room.
Zhao Sui's first glance fell on the Empress. Seeing her looking at the couch, his gaze shifted, and he saw his daughter opening her little arms to hug her brother. Jun-ge'er, looking nervous, changed to a kneeling posture and cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "Your son pays respects to Imperial Father. Please forgive me for not getting off the couch in time to welcome you."
Qin'er didn't quite understand what her brother was saying. She continued to lie on his back, hugging him tightly, and even complained to her imperial father, "I don't want brother to go. I want him to play with me."
Zhao Sui looked at Jun-ge'er for a moment longer and said, "Dispense with the formalities. Play with your sister."
Jun-ge'er replied, "Yes."
Zhao Sui gave the Empress a meaningful look and went into the inner chamber.
Yao Huang followed him in and saw the new Emperor stopped in front of the gold-lacquered washstand, about to roll up his sleeves to wash his hands.
Yao Huang quickened her pace and, imitating Jun-ge'er's respectful demeanor, said, "Do not move, Your Majesty. Allow this concubine to serve you."
Zhao Sui was speechless.
Yao Huang saw it clearly, the faint hairs on the Emperor's wrists stood on end. But she pretended not to notice, pulling his left hand over and meekly helping him roll up his sleeves.
Zhao Sui asked, "Why are you suddenly using such a humble form of address? And Jun-ge'er, why did he kneel?"
Looking at the sleeve in her hands, Yao Huang said, "Because Your Majesty is the Supreme Ruler. Your imperial majesty grows ever heavier, so this concubine..."
Before she could finish, the new Emperor suddenly pulled her into his arms. Rubbing the back of her head, he said, "You are not allowed to call yourself that anymore."
Yao Huang said, "Alright. This is Your Majesty's decree. Don't pick on my faults for this form of address in the future."
It was still a distant tone. Zhao Sui didn't like her acting this way. To remind the Empress of the relationship between them, his hand slipped in through her back collar, sliding down her smooth, creamy skin all the way to her lower back.
Yao Huang gasped and melted softly into the new Emperor's embrace.
The former Prince Hui and Crown Prince had done even more reckless things to her before. But in the half a year since the late Emperor passed away, the newly enthroned Emperor had been fully devoted to mourning. At most, he would hug her at night to comfort each other in their grief for the late Emperor. Other than that, there had been no intimate gestures. With him suddenly doing something like this, how could Yao Huang handle it?
Zhao Sui truly hadn't intended to arouse any lust. At least, he hadn't thought about it before making that move. But the Empress had deliberately provoked him, and as his palm slid over her familiar body, that fire instantly flared up.
However, the two children were right outside, still waiting for their imperial father and mother to come out for lunch. Zhao Sui withdrew his hand just in time. With one arm supporting the Empress, whose bones seemed to have turned to mush, he used his other hand to tidy her loosened collar. He continued to ask, "What exactly is going on with Jun-ge'er? Did someone say something to him?"
Yao Huang leaned against his slightly thinned chest and said in a muffled voice, "Does someone else need to say it? For the past half year, there hasn't been a single trace of a smile on your face, nor have you been in the mood to play with the siblings. Of course I know you have your own pain, but children who are only a few years old can only see what you show them. Wearing the dragon robe, you are the Emperor. Jun-ge'er is smart; your imposing aura as the Emperor has completely overshadowed the gentleness you had as his royal father. Naturally, he will imitate the respect and reverence you previously showed toward the late Emperor."
Half a year ago, Jun-ge'er was very attentive to etiquette in front of his imperial father. This time, it was only because he happened to be accompanying his sister on the couch that the unfamiliarity between father and son became apparent.
Zhao Sui fell silent for a moment, then said, "At dusk, our family of four will take a stroll in the Imperial Garden."
Yao Huang nodded.
Zhao Sui helped her stand up straight, rolled up his sleeves, and washed his hands.
Watching from the side, Yao Huang brought up the words Empress Dowager Zhou had said to her in the Imperial Garden.
Zhao Sui: "Then we'll go back for a visit on the tenth?"
Yao Huang: "The three of us always have time. Can you really free up your schedule?"
Zhao Sui: "The tenth is already a rest day."
Yao Huang snorted, "You should rest even more during the New Year. Most of the time, the Emperor is just staying in the Imperial Study reviewing old memorials from past years."
Zhao Sui was silent.
This was the first New Year since his imperial father passed away. Although his heart was not as heavy anymore, he couldn't act as if nothing had happened.
And he did need to understand some officials, unfinished construction projects in various places, and unresolved major cases through the old memorials from previous years. So, he simply took advantage of the free time before and after the New Year to read for a few more days in one breath.
But he couldn't tell the Empress this, because he didn't want the Empress to think he was an unfilial person, returning to normal just a few months after his imperial father's passing.
He lowered his head and washed his hands.
Yao Huang hugged his waist from behind and said affectionately, "I miss Imperial Father too, but I miss you more. I want you to spend more time with the three of us."
Zhao Sui: "I will. We will continue to live as we did before."
Later, during lunch, Zhao Sui helped Jun-ge'er and Qin'er serve food a few times.
Qin'er ate with great relish, while Jun-ge'er secretly looked at his imperial father a few times.
Zhao Sui: "Come to the Qianyuan Hall after you finish reading this afternoon. It's been a while since I checked your schoolwork."
Jun-ge'er, who had been personally praised for his intelligence by his imperial grandfather, was not nervous at all. He was only happy that his imperial father finally had time for him again.
After lunch, Jun-ge'er returned to the Eastern Palace to rest, and Qin'er was carried by the wet nurse to the side room of the rear hall.
Yao Huang looked at the jade pendant on the new Emperor's waist. Over the past six months, the new Emperor had been busy with government affairs and, relying on his youth, rarely rested at noon. Even when he did rest occasionally, it was always in the middle hall by himself. Yao Huang could understand why the new Emperor didn't come to the rear hall for the first half of the year. Now that the new Emperor had decided to look forward, he had touched her in broad daylight...
Zhao Sui: "...There are quite a few memorials today. I'll go back to the Imperial Study first."
Empress Dowager Zhou had just advised him to look forward through the Empress in the morning. If he accompanied the Empress to rest at noon, wouldn't it seem like his previous mourning for the late Emperor was just for show, and he immediately recovered as soon as someone advised him?
He should recover, but not in this way.
Yao Huang smiled and said, "I'll see the Emperor off."
If he didn't want to stay, he wouldn't stay. He wasn't hungry, and Yao Huang wouldn't crave it either!
By dusk, after Zhao Sui had checked Jun-ge'er's schoolwork, he accompanied the Empress and their two children for a stroll in the garden as promised. Because the Imperial Garden wasn't big enough and it was still early after one round, Zhao Sui glanced toward the Eastern Palace and said, "Let's go to the two gardens in the Eastern Palace. After we finish strolling, we'll have dinner directly at the Eastern Palace."
Yao Huang also happened to miss Madam Gao's cooking. She held Jun-ge'er's hand and followed the new Emperor, who was pushing their daughter. When they returned to the former residence on the rest day, she would take the opportunity to transfer Master Kong to the Imperial Kitchen.
The Eastern Palace was still the same, just missing the group of palace servants the Emperor and Empress had taken to the Qianyuan Hall.
The family of four first strolled through the garden on the west side. Because the place was too small, there were only two plum trees planted inside. The flowerbed was also not big, with eighteen Yao Huang peonies planted. The leaves were green and shiny, and the flower buds hadn't even sprouted yet.
Arriving at the deer park on the east side, Qin'er pulled her brother to see the deer. Now there were three generations of female deer inside.
Zhao Sui was worried about the siblings and followed them to the deer pen.
Yao Huang lazily leaned against the bench on the left side of the garden gate. She looked at the one big and two small figures in front of the deer pen, then at the maple trees on the low hill to the south. Her gaze swept around and naturally fell on the top and bottom of the wall on the right side of the garden gate.
Thinking of what the former Crown Prince had done when he pressed her against that spot, Yao Huang's face grew hot. She looked at the deer pen again and saw that although the new Emperor was guarding the two children, his handsome face was turned toward her. Who knew how long he had been looking. Only when she noticed did he hurriedly turn back. He was the Emperor, yet he was so clumsy at peeking.
As the sun set, the family of four went to the main room to eat. After eating, it was time to return to the Qianyuan Hall. Qin'er couldn't bear to leave her brother and refused to go.
Just as Yao Huang was about to make the decision to let Qin'er stay in the Eastern Palace for a night, the new Emperor next to her spoke up, saying the same thing.
Thus, when they left the Eastern Palace, it was only the Emperor and Empress.
Dusk gathered, and the cool evening breeze of early spring blew across the palace road between the Eastern Palace and the Qianyuan Hall. But Yao Huang didn't feel cold at all, because the new Emperor's gaze occasionally falling on her face was like a ball of fire.
After returning to the Qianyuan Hall, Zhao Sui bathed and changed clothes in the middle hall before going to the rear hall to find the Empress.
Tonight, Yao Huang soaked in the bathtub for a little longer. Some thoughts didn't need to be spoken; one could tell just by looking at the eyes, and her husband was already considered restrained.
Half a year. Except for when she was pregnant with the siblings, this was the first time the couple had been apart for so long.
The twenty-five-year-old Yao Huang felt as if she had returned to the night she just married Prince Hui. No, she should be even more nervous than that night. After all, that night she didn't know if Prince Hui could perform, but tonight she knew the new Emperor was very capable. What she feared was his abnormal ferocity every time he had abstained for too long.
After drying her body, Yao Huang changed into a set of white silk inner garments embroidered with a few simple plum blossoms. It looked as plain as the previous pure white inner garments but added a bit of softness.
As she sat on the couch in the east side room combing her hair, the new Emperor arrived.
Yao Huang maintained a slightly lowered head, gently moving the comb while asking in confusion, "Why did the Emperor come over so early tonight?"
For the first half of the year, he had slept in separate rooms from her for a hundred days. Although he came to the rear hall for the following three months, it was never earlier than the hour of Xu.
The new Emperor didn't answer and went straight to the inner chamber.
Yao Huang waited until her long hair was completely dry before going in.
The rear hall of the Qianyuan Hall actually also belonged to the Emperor. The central palace three courtyards back was where the Empresses of past dynasties were supposed to live. However, the newly enthroned Emperor Jingping didn't want to be separated from his only Empress, so after the enthronement ceremony, he arranged for the Empress to live in the Qianyuan Hall.
The rear hall was more spacious than the sleeping chambers of Princes and Crown Princes. But once all the lights inside were extinguished, this spacious sleeping chamber seemed even darker, pitch-black.
Yao Huang stood at the door for a while longer, waiting for her eyes to get used to the darkness before walking toward the canopy bed.
Just as she lifted the first layer of silk curtains of the canopy bed, a hand suddenly reached over from the side.
Yao Huang bumped into a familiar broad chest. Before she could stand up straight, that slender and powerful hand reached into her back collar, just like in front of the washstand during the day.
The thirty-one-year-old new Emperor had a stronger physique than Prince Hui, who sat in a wheelchair when they were newly married. He was also more experienced and uninhibited than the twenty-six-year-old Crown Prince who had just recovered his legs. At least on such a dark night, he was never afraid of the true or false words of complaint from the person in his arms.
Yao Huang was truly panicked: "Slow down, Emperor, you..."
Zhao Sui closed his eyes.
He had revered his imperial father since childhood, because his imperial father possessed the highest power in this palace and the whole world. The closer one was to the Emperor, the more cautious one had to be in words and deeds.
He mourned his imperial father, because his imperial father had given him imperial favor far exceeding that of other princes and princesses.
But now, he had succeeded his imperial father to become the most powerful man. His wife no longer needed to find suitable excuses for every time she left the palace, and his children no longer had to walk the lonely, desolate paths he had walked in his childhood.
From childhood to adulthood, Zhao Sui was accustomed to strictly observing etiquette, but he was ultimately not a true gentleman; he would also secretly rejoice at obtaining the imperial power.
Yao Huang had long been used to her husband's silence when doing these things, but he was a living person after all. Whether it was the heaviness of his touch or the length of time, it could always reveal some of his inner thoughts.
For example, the first time Yao Huang scolded him, the disabled Prince Hui immediately slowed down, clearly misunderstanding that she was truly angry.
For example, the first time Yao Huang complained that he looked too much like that, the disabled Prince Hui immediately finished, showing that the reserved prince could not handle vulgar words from the common folk.
For example, the first time Yao Huang called him Crown Prince by his ear, the Crown Prince, who was still sitting in the carriage, could no longer control himself, indicating that he also felt happy about his promotion.
Now, as soon as she called him Emperor, the new Emperor behind her put on a posture as if his strength had also increased along with his status. Yao Huang knew just how much he liked being the Emperor.
Yao Huang liked a husband like this. She liked that he always appeared cold, aloof, and devoid of desires in front of outsiders, but completely came alive when he was in front of her.
Half a shichen, or perhaps longer, the new Emperor was finally willing to leave her, hugging her as they fell back onto the bed.
Yao Huang turned over with difficulty, lying on his chest, rising and falling with his breathing.
Zhao Sui pulled up the quilt, covering the Empress's shoulders, which were still constantly breaking out in fresh sweat.
By the time Yao Huang recovered her breath, the new Emperor had already returned to his usual calm.
Yao Huang reached out to touch his face, tracing from his chin to his brow peak, and then from his brow peak back to his chin.
It tickled a bit, so Zhao Sui grasped the Empress's hand.
Yao Huang said, "What's wrong? Now that you are the Emperor, has your face turned into a dragon's face, making it untouchable for me?"
Zhao Sui said, "...If I have a dragon's face, what kind of face do you have?"
Yao Huang said, "...Either a face like a flower or features like the moon. Your Majesty can choose whichever you prefer."
Zhao Sui then rolled over and pinned the Empress down, kissing her flower-like face and moon-like features inch by inch.
As he kissed her, the Empress began to sound as if she were crying and weeping again. However, because the new Emperor had become gentler, the Empress could still intermittently speak complete sentences.
"Your Majesty has been a vegetarian for half a year, and you have lost weight. Why hasn't the place that should have shrunk lost any weight?"
Zhao Sui remained silent.
Yao Huang said, "If Your Majesty ignores me, then I don't want to pay attention to you either."
She pushed the new Emperor outward, but how could she possibly move him at a time like this? Instead, both of her wrists were pinned down, and he even punished her a couple of times.
Yao Huang said, "Your Majesty only knows how to bully people."
Zhao Sui said, "...You brought it upon yourself."
Yao Huang: "..."
After three consecutive rounds, the new Emperor finally went to clean himself up. He then lit a few lamps and carried a bucket of water to the bedside to serve his Empress.
Yao Huang bit her lip shyly.
When the new Emperor put out the lamps and lay back down, Yao Huang skillfully burrowed into his embrace. Tracing circles on his shoulder, she said, "When I call you Your Highness the Prince, Your Majesty loves to hear it. When I call you Crown Prince, Your Majesty also loves to hear it. And when I call you Emperor, Your Majesty loves it even more. How wonderful for you. In our eight years of marriage, I've consecutively changed three pleasant-sounding titles for you, yet Your Majesty has never called me anything."
"Huang Huang" didn't count; that was just him being deliberately mischievous.
Zhao Sui said, "...I don't need to call you."
He didn't like having palace servants waiting around them. Every time he saw her, it was just the two of them alone as a married couple, so his words were naturally directed at her.
At night, she had many demands for him, but Zhao Sui had none at all, not even needing to speak.
Yao Huang thought for a moment and said, "For example, if one day I fall ill and need to take medicine, but I don't want to, Your Majesty will definitely have to coax me, right? So how would you coax me? When I coax Jun-ge'er and Qin'er, I always have to call their names."
Zhao Sui immediately thought of her gentle, water-like voice. Good Jun-ge'er, good Qin'er—she would say it so casually.
Yao Huang touched the corners of the new Emperor's lips, which seemed as if they were about to open, and preemptively said, "Don't call me Empress or Good Empress. It doesn't sound nice."
Empress, Empress—it sounded so dignified and proper, having absolutely nothing to do with intimacy.
Zhao Sui held her fingers: "Let me think about it. I'll tell you tomorrow morning."
After tossing and turning for so long, Yao Huang was indeed sleepy, and she fell asleep leaning on his shoulder.
But the new Emperor was very bad. When Yao Huang was woken up by him again, it was still pitch black inside the bed curtains.
She refused to cooperate no matter what.
The sleepy Empress had no strength at all. Zhao Sui could have made her submit using just his knee, but Zhao Sui didn't do that. Kissing along the Empress's warm neck to her ear, because the surroundings were pitch black, and because she was dazed with sleep, he very naturally called out: "Huang'er, be good."
Yao Huang was startled awake by the unfamiliar address coming from the new Emperor's mouth: "What, what did you just call me?"
Zhao Sui paused for a moment and said, "Huang'er, the Huang from Yao Huang."
Yao Huang: "...Of course it's the Huang from Yao Huang. Could I have thought of any other Huang?"
Zhao Sui: "...It sounds exactly the same, so I had thought of calling you this a long time ago, but I never used it."
Under heaven, only the Emperor and Empress, as well as the Emperor's children, could use the character "Huang". Emperor, Empress, Imperial Son, or Imperial Daughter.
Zhao Sui had been a cautious imperial prince since childhood. Therefore, when he was still Prince Hui or the Crown Prince, he could not call his Princess Consort or Crown Princess "Huang'er," which sounded identical to Imperial Child.
Yao Huang repeated it a few times in her heart. The more she thought about it, the more mushy it felt. She said awkwardly, "Then you'd better not call me that. Huang'er, Imperial Child... it sounds like you're calling a child."
Zhao Sui: "You are originally younger than me anyway."
Yao Huang: "But not so young that I could be your Imperial Child."
Zhao Sui: "But only calling you this is intimate enough."
Yao Huang: "Yao Yao is also very intimate."
Zhao Sui: "I can't bring myself to say it."
Yao Huang: "...If you can't open your mouth, getting handsy is enough, right?"
The new Emperor stopped talking and continued doing what he was very accustomed to and happy to do.
.
The Emperor and Empress were deeply in love, but for the next few years, they still only had the Crown Prince and one Princess by their side.
Gradually, some officials, using the excuse of worrying about the scarcity of imperial heirs, submitted memorials requesting Emperor Jingping to hold a draft to fill the inner harem.
Emperor Jingping, who was also a man of few words at court assemblies, cherishing his words like gold yet hitting the nail on the head with every syllable, looked at the official surnamed Zheng kneeling in the grand hall and said bluntly: "In my early years, I suffered from a leg ailment. It was Huang'er who never left or abandoned me, helping me untie the knots in my heart and return to the imperial court. It can be said that without Huang'er, there would not be the me sitting before you ministers today. Meeting Huang'er was like a dead tree finding spring; we are inseparable. I once spoke frankly with the late Emperor that I would grow old together with Huang'er and absolutely never take a concubine. The late Emperor valued the imperial heirs more than any of you ministers, yet he never interfered with my decision. Minister Zheng, you have repeatedly submitted memorials regarding the draft. Do you feel that you are more qualified than the late Emperor to discipline me?"
All the civil and military officials in the court: "..."
Even the imperial diarist, who was sitting to the side writing furiously, froze for a moment. Imperial Child? Huang'er? The Empress?
Although this form of address was overly intimate, the imperial diarist still truthfully recorded Emperor Jingping's words exactly as they were on paper.
Covered in goosebumps, the official surnamed Zheng defended himself: "This humble minister would not dare, this humble minister was merely..."
Zhao Sui: "Those who do not know are not to blame. But today I have already made my intentions clear. From now on, anyone who advises me to hold a draft will be punished for the crime of defiance."
Every official in the court knew that Emperor Jingping was a man of few words, but the moment he spoke, his decree was absolute.
Because of this, from that day forward, not a single soul dared to publicly utter even half a word about the Emperor's inner court.
When the news eventually reached the common folk, it naturally blossomed into a beautiful tale of the profound love shared between the Emperor and his Empress.
