“What an exquisite face. So young, graceful, and delicate, like a summer peach.” She took my hand and patted it.
I did not know what to think. A lady held another’s hand only when they were equals, but the gap in social standing between us was as vast as the Yellow River. “I’m honored to be in your presence, my Noble Lady.”
She put something in my hand. A pearl necklace. “A gift. I would like to reward you for your courage.”
All the phrases I had prepared earlier evaporated like mists under the sun. “My Noble Lady…” I forgot the etiquette and stared at her in astonishment. “This honor is too great for me. I do not deserve it. Besides, a Talent is not allowed to possess any expensive gifts.” I had Pheasant’s present, of course, but no one needed to know that.
She sighed. “I forgot. In this case, tell me, what would you like to have as a gift?”
“I… I… ” I bit my lip. “I do not desire any treasure, my Noble Lady. If I must accept the honor, I shall be bold. For my entire life, I’ve been curious about silkworms, yet I have never seen one.”
“Silkworms.” She hesitated. “I see.” She waved at the two guards at the gate. “She has my permission to enter.”
The guards exchanged glances, hesitated, but stepped aside to let me enter.
“Come.” The Noble Lady waved at me to follow her inside the building.
I took a deep breath and crossed the threshold. I could not face her, afraid that she would read my mind. She led me to the front parlor, a small, rectangular reception room with a tiled roof. The area had a square table, two painted stools, and a vase containing a sprig of plum blossom. On the wall hung a painting of a mountain and a waterfall. Everything seemed tranquil and graceful, as if we were in a home, not in a workshop.
After passing the parlor, we came to the front courtyard. A loud clatter rose. Startled, I froze. In front of me stood three looms, each the size of a small house. They clacked busily as female weavers pushed the front movable bars of the frames to tighten the wefts. Between two curtains of threads, shuttles flew back and forth, like swift fish in a pool of a waterfall. Each time the shuttles reached the end, the weavers stepped on the pedals and pulled the front bars of the looms. Clack. Clack.
I had heard the noise when I’d waited outside the walls, but I had been too preoccupied to notice. So close, the sound was sharp and piercing.
“The Imperial Workshops include five courtyards this size.” The Noble Lady ascended a raised terrace, where some female workers rolled the finished silk from the looms and some measured the silk into bolts. “The dyers work there.” She pointed at a wide space below the terrace, where some workers pulled silk through buckets of dyes.
“I have never seen anything like this,” I said, careful not to rouse the lady’s suspicion. But I could not help being curious. I scanned the area. There was no fire or nursery to be found.
“We shall see the silkworms soon.” She led me down a walkway near the terrace, and then I entered another world.
The place looked like it had come from a painting. White spring lilies were tucked among the green grass like opaque pearls, blue water lotus flowered in the shiny ponds like lapis lazuli, and a field of red azalea spread near the wooden bridge like a thick carpet. In the distance, groups of willow trees stood, their long branches drooping, like crowns of exquisite silk threads.
“Beautiful!” I blurted out.
“As it should be.” The Noble Lady slowed down, and I could see she was not used to so much walking, but she continued until we arrived at another courtyard, where a score of workers sat before rows of steamy vats. Inside the vats, the cocoons dipped and rose in the bubbling water like eyeballs. Holding pairs of long chopsticks, the workers poked the cocoons to unfurl the silk threads.
Ahead of me, a wide hall came into view. The Noble Lady turned to face me, her plump face blossoming with pride. “Do you hear that?”
There was a loud swish somewhere. It sounded like the steady rhythm of drizzle, but there were no raindrops.
“Yes.” I nodded, confused. “What is it?”
She led me to the hall and nodded to a servant at the door, who hurried to open it. “Here we are.”
The swishing sound rushed to my ears as the hall opened before me. She walked in first, and I followed.
Rows of bamboo shelves spread from wall to wall. On the shelves were many large trays holding green mulberry leaves. Between the rows traveled many workers, their hair tied in head wraps and their arms carrying trays.
The nursery.
My heart raced faster. I walked down the aisle after the Noble Lady, and when she pulled out a tray, I looked over her shoulder. The tray was covered with tender red leaves, and under the leaves squirmed numerous white worms covered with tiny spots.
“Silkworms,” I whispered.