CHAPTER FIVE
AN AUDIENCE WITH THE EMPRESS Two Years in the Forbidden City | ||
5. CHAPTER FIVE
AN AUDIENCE WITH THE EMPRESS
No one informed us the day before that there was to be an audience to receive the Russian Minister's wife on that very day. We told Her Majesty that we must go and change our clothes in order to receive this lady. The dresses we wore that day were very simply made and short. The reason we wore this kind of costume was that there was no carpet and the bare brick floor had ruined our beautiful red velvet gowns, also the clumsy eunuchs had kept stepping on our trains all the time. We had made up our minds that short dresses for general wear every day would be more practical. Her Majesty said: "Why must you change your clothes? I see you look much better without that tail dragging behind you on the floor. I laughed at the idea of having a tail on one's dresses. I noticed that the first day when you came to the Court.'' Before we had time to explain to her, she said: "I see, dresses with tails behind must be more dignified than short ones, am I right?'' We told her it was so. Then she said: "Go and put on
We were very busy getting ready to receive Mdme. Plançon, who arrived about eleven o'clock
When Mdme. Plançon entered the hall, my sister brought her to the steps of the dais and she courtesied to Her Majesty. I then went forward and brought her up onto the dais and Her Majesty shook hands with her and she presented the photograph which she had brought to Her Majesty. Her Majesty made a very pretty speech of acceptance, expressing her appreciation of the gift of their Majesties, the Czar and Czarina. I interpreted this speech in French to Mdme. Plançon, as she could not speak English. After this, Her Majesty told me to take Mdme. Plançon to the Emperor, which I
The Manchu law is very strict as regards the mother-in-law and the daughter-in-law, and the Young Empress had been sitting behind the screen at the back of the throne during the audience, and it was there that I found her. From there we went to the banquet hall, where luncheon was served in Manchu style.
Here I must explain the difference between the Chinese way of eating and the Manchu. The Chinese place the bowls of food, one at a time, in the center of the table and everyone eats out of these bowls, sticking their chopsticks in and helping themselves to what they want. The Manchus eat quite differently and are served with individual bowls and dishes, the same as in any other country. Her Majesty was very proud of this and said that it saved time, not to mention being cleaner. The food in the Palace was always very good and clean, especially when we had foreign guests, and of course we had a variety
Her Majesty had given me the order that morning to have the tables nicely decorated and they did look very nice when we sat down. Besides the usual tableware, we had gold dragon menu holders, little peach-shaped silver saucers filled with almonds and dried watermelon seeds, and knives and forks in addition to chopsticks.
Her Majesty and the Emperor never ate with
guests, so Mdme. Plançon was entertained by
the Imperial Princess and the Court ladies.
When luncheon was half over a eunuch came and
told me that Her Majesty wanted to see me at
once. The thought flashed through my head that
something had gone wrong, or that some of the
eunuchs had been making false reports, a bad
habit of the Court; and I was much surprised to
find her all smiles. She told me what a nice,
polite lady Mdme. Plançon was, that she had
seen many ladies who had come to the Court, but
none with manners like this one, that she was
sorry to say that some of the ladies who came
did not behave very well. She said: "They seem
to think we are only Chinese and do not know
anything, and look down upon us. I notice
these things very quickly and am surprised to
see people who claim to be well educated and
View taken from Pei Yeun Dien,
[Description: Black and white photograph of the view taken from Pei Yeun Dien, Spreading Cloud Pavilion, Summer Palace]
Spreading Cloud Pavilion, Summer Palace
When we had finished luncheon, she told me how pleased she was with her reception and the kindness that Her Majesty had shown her, and took her departure, we accompanying her to the courtyard of the Audience Hall, where her chair was waiting.
Her Majesty had made a rule or custom that after all guests had departed, we must go to her and report everything. I suppose she was like all women, a bit of a gossip as well as the rest; it appeared so at any rate. She wanted to know what Mdme. Plançon said, whether she liked the jade and whether she enjoyed her luncheon, etc.
Her Majesty was very well pleased that I had interpreted so well for her and said: "I have never had anyone to interpret for me this way before. Although I don't understand the language, I can see that you speak it fluently. How
I felt very happy at what Her Majesty had said and thought I had made my début under very favorable auspices, and was very glad that Her Majesty liked me; but this marriage question worried me, for nothing was farther from my mind than this. I afterwards told my mother about it and she told me not to worry, as I could always refuse when the time came.
When we had told Her Majesty all that Mdme. Plançon had said, she told us we could go to our rooms, that as we had risen early that morning and had worked very hard, we must be tired and needed rest, that she would not need us any more that day. We courtesied to her according to the custom when saying good night, and retired.
CHAPTER FIVE
AN AUDIENCE WITH THE EMPRESS Two Years in the Forbidden City | ||