When he entered and paid his respects to his mother, Lady Liu took her son’s hand, stroked his back, and said,
“Are you truly my son Shaoyou? However I look at it, I cannot believe it. When, in days past, you recited the sexagenary cycle and pieced together letters, how could I ever have imagined that today’s glory would come?”
Unable to contain her joy, she shed tears. When Shaoyou told her in detail how he had achieved fame and honor, taken a wife, and chosen concubines, Lady Liu sighed and said,
“Your father always said of you that you would be the one to bring glory to our house. My one regret is that he cannot now share this splendor with you.”
The Chancellor offered sacrifices at his ancestral graves and reported that he had come to enjoy glory, wealth, and rank. With the gold and silk bestowed by the Son of Heaven, he held a banquet for the Grand Lady to wish her long life, invited his clan, relatives, and friends, and entertained guests for as many as ten days. Then, escorting the Grand Lady, he set out. Along the road, the common people and the magistrates of the various districts hurried to accompany them, and their brilliance lit the highway.
When the Chancellor passed through Luoyang, he ordered the local office to summon Jinghong and Chanyue. The messenger returned and reported,
“The two young ladies have already set out together for the capital many days ago.”
The Chancellor was disappointed that their paths had missed. Upon reaching the imperial capital, he escorted the Grand Lady into the Chancellor’s residence, then entered the palace to pay his respects to the Emperor. The two palaces summoned him, and bestowed upon him ten carts of gold, silver, and colored silks, which he used to offer wine in celebration of the Grand Lady’s longevity. He invited all the civil and military officials of the court and held a grand feast for three days.
The Chancellor again chose an auspicious day and, escorting the Grand Lady, moved into the new residence granted by the Emperor; its towers and pavilions, gardens and ponds were magnificent beyond measure.
Princess Yingyang and Princess Nanyang performed the bridal rites, and Lady Qin and Lady Jia also paid their respects with full ceremony, so that the Grand Lady was filled with warmth and delight from the bottom of her heart.
Since the Chancellor had already received the command to celebrate the Grand Lady’s long life, he used the things bestowed from above to hold another grand banquet for three days. The two palaces sent out the musicians of the inner court and bestowed dishes from His Majesty’s own table, while the high ministers of the court all gathered. Shaoyou, wearing robes of many colors, together with the two princesses, raised jade cups high and offered them in turn to the Grand Lady, wishing her longevity. As they were enjoying themselves greatly and the feast had not yet ended, the gatekeeper entered and reported,
“Outside the gate, two young ladies have come and present their calling cards to the Grand Lady and the Chancellor.”
When the cards were received and read, they were Chanyue and Jinghong. The matter was therefore reported to the Grand Lady, and they were at once called in. The two courtesans bowed below the steps and paid their respects, and all the guests praised them with one voice.
“Gui Chanyue of Luoyang and Di Jinghong of Hebei have long been renowned, and indeed they are peerless beauties! Were it not for Chancellor Yang’s elegance and refinement, how could he have brought them here?”
The Chancellor ordered the two courtesans to display the talents they possessed. Jinghong and Chanyue rose at the same time, trailed their jeweled shoes, and ascended the jeweled mats. Their light sleeves flew as they danced to the tune of “Rainbow Skirts and Feathered Robes.” Falling flowers and fluttering branches seemed to drift in the spring wind, while cloud shadows and snowy rain shone upon the brocade curtains. Zhao Feiyan of the Han palace appeared once more in the palace of the imperial son-in-law, and Lü Zhu of the Golden Valley stood again in the hall of Duke Wei. The Grand Lady and the two princesses bestowed damasks and brocades upon the two singing girls as rewards. Lady Qin, having long known Chanyue, spoke with her of old times and unburdened the feelings that had accumulated in her heart. Princess Yingyang personally took up a wine cup and offered it especially to Lady Gui, thereby repaying the grace of having recommended her. Lady Liu, Shaoyou’s mother, said to the Chancellor, “You all thank Chanyue, but have you forgotten my maternal cousin?”
The Chancellor replied,
“The joy your son enjoys today is all due to the virtue of Du Lianshi. Moreover, now that Mother has come to the capital, even if you had not spoken, I truly intended to invite her respectfully.”
He immediately sent someone to Ziqing Abbey. All the Daoist nuns said, “Du Lianshi left for the land of Shu three years ago.”
At this, Lady Liu was deeply disappointed.
The Prince of Yue Invites Chancellor Yang to an Outing
When Chancellor Yang assigned the various residences within his household, the main hall was Jingfu Hall, where the Grand Lady lived. Before Jingfu Hall was Yanxi Hall, where the principal wife, Princess Yingyang, resided; to the west of Jingfu Hall was Fengxiao Palace, the residence of the secondary wife, Princess Nanyang.
Before Yanxi Hall were Ningxiang Pavilion and Qinghua Tower, where the Chancellor lived and from time to time held banquets. Before these stood Yanxian Hall, the house where the Chancellor received guests. South of Fengxiao Palace was Shenxing Garden, the chamber of Lady Qin Caifeng; east of Yanxi Hall was Yingchun Pavilion, the chamber of Lady Jia Chunyun. To the east and west of Qinghua Tower, respectively, small towers rose aloft, their blue-green windows and crimson railings reflecting one another, with winding galleries joining them to Qinghua Tower.
East of Ningxiang Pavilion was Shanghua Tower, and west of it was Wangyue Tower. Gui Chanyue and Di Jinghong each occupied one tower. The eighty palace musicians were all women of outstanding beauty and talent known throughout the realm, and they were divided into eastern and western sections. The forty of the eastern section were led by Lady Gui, and the forty of the western section were entrusted to Jinghong, who directed their singing and dancing and trained them in music. Each month they gathered at Qinghua Tower to compare the skills of the eastern and western groups. When the Chancellor escorted the Grand Lady and brought the two princesses to watch from the tower, the victors were rewarded with three cups of wine and had a flower placed in their hair to display their honor; the defeated were punished with a cup of cold water, and a dot was marked on their foreheads with an ink brush to shame their hearts. Thus the talents of all the courtesans grew more accomplished day by day, until the female musicians of the Duke Wei’s residence and the Prince of Yue’s palace became renowned throughout the world. Even the musicians of the Pear Garden could not match these two troupes.
One day, while the two princesses and all the young ladies were attending upon the Grand Lady, the Chancellor entered carrying a letter and handed it to Princess Nanyang, saying, “This is a letter from His Highness the Prince of Yue.”
The princess opened it and read as follows.
In these spring days, when all is bright and fair, are all within the Chancellor’s honored household enjoying abundant blessings? In former times, state affairs were many and public duties left no leisure, so one saw no one halt his horse at Leyou Plain, nor was there again the pleasure of mooring boats at the head of Kunming Pond. In the end, weeds filled the courtyards of the places where song and dance had once been enjoyed. The elders of Chang’an often recall the former days when, through the sacred virtue of the illustrious ancestors, the age was prosperous and flourishing, and there are those who at times shed tears; this is hardly the atmosphere of Great Peace.
Now, owing to the grace of His Imperial Majesty and the great merit of the Chancellor, the four seas are at peace and the people live in ease. If ever there is to be a joyful occasion like those of the Kaiyuan and Tianbao eras, it is now. Moreover, the spring light has not yet faded, and the weather is mild and clear. Lovely flowers and tender willows are well able to make men’s hearts joyful and at peace; beautiful scenery and fine sights are also present at this time. I wish to gather with the Chancellor upon Leyou Plain, to watch the hunt and to listen to music, thereby enhancing the atmosphere of Great Peace. If the Chancellor’s heart inclines to this, please set a date at once and send a reply, so that I may follow it. That would be fortunate indeed.
After reading the letter, the princess asked the Chancellor,
“My lord, do you know the Prince of Yue’s intention in this?”
The Chancellor replied,
“I cannot know what intention he has, but in Shaoyou’s view it seems to be no more than a flower-viewing excursion. Is it not truly the refined elegance of a noble young lord?”
“My lord has not yet understood it all. What my elder brother the Prince of Yue loves is nothing but beauties and music. Among his palace women there were already more than one or two peerless beauties, but his newest favorite concubine is Wan Yuyan, a famous courtesan of Wuchang. They say that when the beauties of the Prince of Yue’s palace see Yuyan even once, they lose their senses and regard themselves as unlovely as Wuyan, the exceedingly ugly queen of King Xuan of Qi, or Momo, the ugly fourth consort of the Yellow Emperor. From this one may well imagine that Yuyan’s beauty and appearance are without equal in the world. My elder brother has heard it said that there are many beauties in our palace, and I suspect he wishes to imitate Wang Kai and Shi Chong in their rivalry.”
The Chancellor laughed and said,
“I looked at it casually, but the princess first perceived the Prince of Yue’s intention.”
Princess Yingyang then added,
“Though this is but a pastime of the moment, we must not lose to others.”
She signaled to Jinghong and Chanyue with her eyes and instructed them,
“Though soldiers are raised for ten years, they are used in a single morning. The victory or defeat of this outing rests solely in the hands of you two instructors, so you must exert yourselves.”
Chanyue replied,
“This lowly concubine only fears that we have no talent with which to oppose them. In the Prince of Yue’s palace, a thousand musicians emerge all at once, and Yuyan’s name has resounded throughout the Nine Provinces. Since His Highness the Prince of Yue already commands such music and also possesses such a beauty, there can be no one under heaven able to oppose him. We concubines are like soldiers of little skill: our discipline is not clear, nor are our banners and standards properly arrayed. Our own ridiculousness is not worth worrying over; I only fear it may become a disgrace to the Chancellor’s residence.”
The Chancellor said,
“When I first met Lady Gui in Luoyang, people spoke of ‘three peerless beauties of the pleasure quarters,’ and Yuyan’s name was among them, so it must surely be this woman. Yet if there are only three incomparable beauties in the pleasure quarters, and I have now obtained Xiang Yu on the one hand and Zhang Liang and Chen Ping on the other, why should I fear a mere Fan Zeng?”
Chanyue said,
“The beauties of the Prince of Yue’s palace are so splendidly adorned that one might say there is not a tree or blade of grass on Mount Bagong that is not a soldier. Our troops will be frightened in advance and flee; how could we dare oppose them? I beg Your Highness the Princess to ask Lady Di for a stratagem. This concubine is fainthearted; merely hearing of it makes my throat close, so that I cannot sing properly.”
Jinghong indignantly rebuked her:
“Are Lady Gui’s words truly sincere? The two of us roamed more than seventy commanderies east of the Pass, and the pledge by which we alone made our names known—how could we yield first place to Yuyan? If in this world there were a Lady of Han who toppled states and overthrew cities, or a divine maiden of Chu who became clouds in the morning and rain in the evening, then I might feel a little ashamed. If not, why should the likes of Yuyan be worthy of dread?”
Chanyue spoke again,
“How can Lady Di’s words be so brave? When we were formerly east of the Pass, at the greatest our banquets were with grand administrators and regional inspectors, and at the least with spirited scholars and chivalrous, elegant young men. Because we never met a powerful opponent, no one took first place from us. But now His Highness the Prince of Yue was raised among the noble people of the inner palace; his eye is extremely discerning and his judgments are sharp. Lady Di’s words are just like the old saying, ‘seeing a fist-sized stone and looking down upon Mount Tai.’ Moreover, Yuyan is so full of strategy that within the Prince of Yue’s palace she is their Zhang Liang; she has the stratagems to sit within the tent and win victory a thousand li away. If you now boast like Zhao Kuo, you will certainly suffer defeat.”
Then she reported to the Chancellor,
“Since Lady Jeok seems to be feeling rather triumphant, your lowly concubine shall speak of her shortcomings.
When Lady Jeok first followed my lord, she called herself a youth from Hebei who had stolen the King of Yan’s thousand-li steed, and deceived my lord by the roadside in Handan. However fine her features and graceful her bearing, how could my lord have been deceived into thinking her a man? Moreover, on the night Lady Jeok first served my lord, she took advantage of the darkness and stood in place of your lowly concubine’s body. That was simply fulfilling her wish by another’s aid. Yet now she boasts of such things before your lowly concubine—surely that is laughable as well?”
Gyeonghong laughed and answered her.
“Truly, the human heart cannot be fathomed. Before your lowly concubine followed my lord, you praised me as though I were Chang’e in the heavens; yet now you scorn me. It seems you harbor signs of jealousy, wishing to monopolize my lord’s favor.”
Seomwol and all the young ladies burst out laughing, and Princess Yeongyang said, “Lady Jeok is so slender and delicate, yet he took her for a man—His Excellency the Chancellor’s pair of eyes must surely not be very discerning. Still, what Lady Gye says is indeed correct. A woman who deceives others by dressing as a man must surely lack a woman’s lovely bearing, and a man who deceives others by dressing as a woman must surely lack a man’s mettle. Each adorns falsehood according to the place where he or she is deficient.”
The Chancellor laughed aloud and said,
“Your Highness’s words are indeed correct! This pair of eyes was not discerning enough; though they could distinguish the melodies of the geomungo, they could not distinguish a man dressed in women’s clothes. This is having ears but no eyes. If one of the seven openings on the face is missing, how can one be called a whole person? Though Your Highness mocks Soyu’s meagerness, all who see Marshal Yang’s portrait in the Qilin Pavilion praise the grandeur of his appearance and the dignity of his bearing.”
The assembled people again roared with laughter, and Seomwol said, “Now that we are to set our battle formation against a powerful foe, how can we all keep speaking only in jest? It will be hard to rely on just the two of us, so what if Lady Ga Yu-in were to accompany us as well? And since the Prince of Yue is not a stranger to us either, what objection would there be if Lady Jin Suk-in also came along?”
At this, Lady Jin replied,
“If the two young ladies, Lady Gye and Lady Jeok, were entering an examination hall for women, I would naturally lend even the strength of one arm to assist you. But in a place of song and dance, where would there be any use for me?
That would be no different from driving marketplace rabble into battle, and I would only fear that we would not succeed.”
Chun-un also said,
“If it were only that this one body of your lowly concubine would be laughed at by others and shamed for artless singing and dancing, how could I have no wish to watch such a grand amusement? But if your lowly concubine were to go along, people would surely point their fingers and laugh, saying, ‘That is the concubine of the Grand Chancellor, Duke of Wei, and the attendant concubine of Princess Yeongyang.’ That would bring ridicule upon my lord and leave worry for the two principal ladies. Chun-un shall absolutely not go.”
Princess Yeongyang then asked in return,
“Why would my lord be ridiculed because Chun-un goes, and why would we have cause for worry on that account?”
Chun-un answered,
“When brocade rugs are spread wide and cloudlike canopies are raised high, all the people will say, ‘Lady Ga Yu-in, concubine of Chancellor Yang, is coming,’ and they will rub shoulders and stand on tiptoe to watch. But when at last I move my steps and ascend to my seat, this body will prove a wretched frame with a dirty face. Everyone will be greatly startled and say, ‘Chancellor Yang has the same lecherous affliction as Dengtu Zi.’ How would that not be my lord suffering disgrace? And since His Highness the Prince of Yue has never seen such a shabby object before, if he sees your lowly concubine, he will surely be nauseated and fall unwell. How could this not also be a worry for Your Highness?”
Princess Nanyang, hearing Chun-un’s excessive words of modesty, reproved her, saying, “Lady Ga’s humble words go too far! Before, you turned from a person into a ghost, and now, as a beauty like Xi Shi, you wish to become an ugly woman like Wuyan. No matter how I hear it, I cannot believe such words.”
Then she asked the Chancellor,
“For what day have you made the appointment?”
The Chancellor answered,
“We agreed on tomorrow.”
Gyeonghong and Seomwol then said,
“We have not yet sent orders to the music offices of the eastern and western residences, so the matter is already late.”
Thereupon they summoned the head gisaeng at once and gave orders: “Tomorrow the Chancellor has agreed to meet the Prince of Yue at Leyou Garden. All the gisaeng of both residences must dress themselves in new adornments, take up their instruments, and attend the Chancellor at dawn tomorrow.”
The eighty gisaeng received the order all at once, powdered their faces, painted their brows, took up their instruments, practiced their music, and busied themselves for a long while making preparations.
At dawn the next day, the Chancellor rose early, put on military dress, fastened on his bow and arrows, mounted a snow-white thousand-li Rongshan horse, summoned three hundred huntsmen to serve as his escort, and headed south beyond the city gate.
Gyeonghong and Seomwol adorned themselves with gold and jade, embroidered flowers, and painted leaves. Each led her gisaeng, mounted a dappled flower horse with a golden saddle, raised a coral whip, and loosely held jeweled reins, following close behind the Chancellor. The eighty gisaeng each mounted swift horses and advanced while guarding Jeok Gyeonghong and Gye Seomwol on the left and right. On the way they met the Prince of Yue, and the Prince of Yue’s huntsmen and musicians were more than enough to match the Chancellor’s party.
The Prince of Yue and the Chancellor rode forward with their horses’ heads aligned, and the Prince of Yue asked the Chancellor, “Of what country’s breed is the horse Your Excellency rides?”
The Chancellor answered,
“It was born in Dawan. The horse Your Highness rides also seems to be of Ferghana stock.”
The Prince of Yue replied,
“It is so. This horse is named Fuyuncong. Last autumn, when I attended the Son of Heaven on a hunt in Shanglin Garden, though there were over ten thousand horses in the imperial stables and all were swift as the wind, none could match this horse. Zhang Fuma’s Taohuacong and General Li’s Wuzhui are both called dragon-horses, yet compared with this one, they are very dull.”
The Chancellor said,
“When I campaigned against Tubo some years ago, there were deep, perilous waters and high, sheer stone cliffs where no man could possibly set foot, yet this horse trod them as though upon level ground and never once lost its footing. Since the achievements Soyu accomplished were truly due to the strength of this horse, I think what Du Zimei called ‘joining one heart with a man to accomplish great merit’ must be just this. After Soyu returned the army, his rank rose and his office became leisurely, so he has been riding comfortably in a level palanquin and slowly traveling broad, flat roads. Thus man and horse alike are on the verge of falling ill. I ask that Your Highness turn your whip with me, compare the swift strides of our fine steeds once, and contend in the remaining valor of old generals. What do you say?”
The Prince of Yue gladly accepted the Chancellor’s proposal, saying,
“That is my thought as well!”
Thereupon he ordered his attendants to have the guests and courtesans of the two households wait in the military tents. Just as he raised his whip and was about to strike his horse, a great deer, driven by the huntsmen, happened to pass before the Prince of Yue. The prince ordered the warriors before his horse to shoot it. Several warriors drew their bows at once but failed to hit it, so the prince grew angry, turned his horse forward, and with one arrow struck it in the flank and killed it. All the soldiers cried “A thousand years!” in one voice.
The Chancellor congratulated him, saying,
“Your Highness’s divine archery is no different from that of the Prince of Ruyang.”
The Prince of Yue modestly said,
“How can such a small skill deserve such praise? I wish to see the Chancellor’s archery.”
Before he had finished speaking, a pair of swans happened to fly up among the clouds. All the soldiers said,
“Those birds are the hardest to shoot; we should set the falcons on them.”
The Chancellor hastily said,
“Do not shoot yet!”
Then he raised an arrow and shot at a swan, striking it in the eye and making it fall before his horse. Seeing this, the Prince of Yue praised him greatly, saying,
“The Chancellor’s marvelous skill is now like Yang Youji’s!”
Then the two men cracked their whips once, and the two horses flew together as one, racing like lightning and flashing like spirits. In an instant they crossed the broad plain and climbed a high mountain, where the two men drew in their reins and stood side by side.
As they looked around at the scenery of mountains and streams, Chancellor Yang and the Prince of Yue discussed archery and swordsmanship. Only then did their followers arrive and present the deer and swan on silver platters. The two men dismounted, sat on the grass, drew the knives from their waists, cut the meat, roasted it, and ate while offering wine to one another. Looking into the distance, they saw two eunuch officials in red robes hurrying toward them, followed by a group of people; these were coming from within the city.
In a moment, one man rode up and reported,
“Wine has been bestowed from Yangjeon Palace.”
The Prince of Yue waited in the military tent, and the two palace attendants poured the imperially bestowed wine and offered it to the two men. Then they handed them a packet of poetry paper patterned with dragons and phoenixes. The two men washed their hands, knelt, and opened it to see that they had been commanded to compose and submit poems on the topic of a great hunt in the mountains.
The Prince of Yue knocked his head to the ground and bowed four times, and each composed a poem and gave it to the palace attendants.
Yang Soyu recited as follows.
At dawn I drove the warriors forth into the fields;
Our swords were like autumn lotuses, our arrows like stars.
The women within the tents were beauties peerless under heaven,
And before the horses, paired wings were falcons.
Sharing the imperially bestowed wine, we vied to hold our gratitude; drunk, I drew my golden knife and cut the game myself. Then I thought of last year beyond the western frontier, where in the wind and snow of Mount Dahuang I hunted at the royal encampment.
The Prince of Yue recited in his poem,
The leaping dragon-horse passed like a flash of lightning; guiding the saddle, beating the drums, we stood upon the level slope. A shooting star flew swift and struck down the blue deer,
A bright moon opened its form and brought down the white goose.
The killing spirit could stir heroic crimson intoxication, and imperial grace lingered to make drunken faces redder still.
Speak not of the Prince of Ruyang’s divine shooting; all vie today in gaining much fat game.
The palace attendants received the two poems and returned.
Then the guests of the two households sat in order and offered their congratulations, while the wine officials presented tables of food and drink. The wondrous flavor of camel and the tender lips of xingxing beasts came forth from silver cauldrons, while Yue lychees and oranges from Yongjia filled jade platters. If it was not the Jasper Pool banquet of the Queen Mother of the West, it was like Emperor Wu of Han’s gathering at the Bailiang Terrace.
Several hundred courtesans gathered thickly together, their armor forming a curtain, the sound of their ornaments like thunder; waists no more than a handful were soft as willow branches, beautiful faces were fair as flower hues, the sound of music made the waters of Qujiang boil, and the sound of song stirred Mount Zhongnan. When the wine had grown heady, the Prince of Yue said to the Chancellor,
“Since I have received the Chancellor’s deep kindness, I would offer my humble devotion: I have brought with me several concubines, and wish to have them lend, just once, to the Chancellor’s pleasure. I ask that they be summoned before us to sing and dance.”
The Chancellor replied with thanks,
“How could Soyu dare to sit face to face with Your Highness’s favored concubines? Yet, trusting wholly in the affection between brother and sister, I venture this presumptuous thought: several of Soyu’s own concubines have also accompanied me, wishing to watch. I would likewise call them in, so that they may join Your Highness’s concubines and each contribute to the merriment according to her own skill.”
The Prince of Yue said,
“The Chancellor’s words are excellent as well!”
Thereupon Seomwol, Gyeonghong, and the four beauties of the Prince of Yue’s palace received the command, rose, and bowed before the curtain. The Chancellor said,
“In ancient times, Prince Ning had a beauty whose name was Furong. Li Taibai entreated Prince Ning and barely managed to hear the beauty’s voice, yet never saw her face. Now Soyu may look upon your faces to his heart’s content, so what I have gained is twice greater than what Li Taibai obtained. What are the names of you four beauties?”
The four beauties rose and answered,
“We are Du Yunxian from Jinling, Su Cai’er from Chenliu, Wan Yuyan from Wuchang, and Hu Yingying of Chang’an.”
The Chancellor looked to the Prince of Yue and praised them, saying,
“In former days, when Soyu wandered the world as a scholar, I heard Lady Yuyan’s name. Now that I at last behold her face, she is lovelier even than her reputation.”
The Prince of Yue, too, had heard and knew the names of Seomwol and Gyeonghong.
“All under heaven revered these two beauties, and now that they have entered the Chancellor’s household, they have truly met a worthy master. When did the Chancellor obtain these beauties?”
The Chancellor answered,
“Lady Gye came of her own accord to follow Soyu when I was on my way to take the civil examination and had reached Luoyang. Lady Jeok had once entered the palace of the Prince of Yan, but when Soyu went as envoy to Yan, she escaped by herself and followed Soyu.”
When the prince heard this, he clapped his hands and laughed loudly.
“Lady Jeok’s bold and unrestrained spirit cannot be compared to that of cloistered maidens from respectable houses! Yet she followed Hanlin Academician Yang knowing him to be a noble man; Lady Gye, however, followed a mere poor scholar, and that she could foresee today’s wealth and honor is all the more wondrous!”
The Prince of Yue then asked again,
“How was it that the Chancellor met her on a distant road?”
Thereupon the Chancellor recounted in full how he had met Seomwol at the wine pavilion by Tianjin Bridge and how he had composed a poem for her. The prince laughed aloud and said,
“I had thought the Chancellor’s taking first place in the examinations in former days a most delightful matter, but this story is even more exhilarating. That poem must surely be exquisite—might I hear it?”
The Chancellor answered,
“How could I remember something composed heedlessly while drunk?”
Then the Prince of Yue asked Seomwol,
“Though the Chancellor has forgotten it, might you, lady, perhaps remember?”
Seomwol replied,
“This humble concubine still remembers it. Shall I write it on paper and present it, or shall I recite it in song?”
The Prince of Yue was even more pleased.
“If I may hear it sung as well, I shall be all the happier.”
So he commanded.
Seomwol stepped forward and sang, and all those gathered were astonished. The prince praised her with the utmost respect, saying,
“The Chancellor’s literary talent and Seomwol’s clear song are foremost in the world. Within that poem, the lines, ‘The flowering branch is ashamed before the beauty’s adornment; before her delicate song has even emerged, her lips are already fragrant,’ are enough to depict Seomwol’s beauty. They would surely make Li Taibai step back in deference, and I dare not attempt to praise them in a single phrase!”
Then he filled golden cups with wine and bestowed them as rewards upon Seomwol and Gyeonghong.
Afterward he had the four beauties of the Prince of Yue’s palace dance and sing as they offered cups in celebration, and host and guest proved well matched.
The Prince of Yue, unable to contain his delight, went out beyond the curtain with all his guests to watch the warriors wield their swords and clash with one another. Then he said to the Chancellor, “The sight of beauties riding horses and shooting arrows is also worth seeing. In our palace there are several dozen women skilled in archery and horsemanship, and among the beauties in the Chancellor’s household there are also those who came from the north. What say you to ordering them summoned out, so that they may shoot pheasants and chase hares, adding to our laughter for a while?”