During the Qing dynasty, in the reign of the Qianlong Emperor, Yehenara Wanyan was already the wife of Fucha Fuheng when, through a twist of fate, Qianlong forcibly brought her into the palace. She was first made Lady Qiongyan, then exchanged identities with her own younger sister, Yehenara Wanxuan, and became Consort Shu. She held her own alongside the Wei woman, an old acquaintance who had been close to Wanxuan, sharing the palace’s favor with her without ever turning against her. The other consorts were dissatisfied, but nothing much came of it, until the arrival of Princess Nguyen of Annam shattered the peace. Wanyan wanted no part in palace intrigue, but had no choice but to fight. In the end, her extraordinary wit brought down both the foreign royal woman and the “near-mad” Empress Consort. Yet she had no desire to cling to power, and handed it over to Noble Consort Ling, Wei Miaoyi, leaving her to rule the inner palace. Wanyan herself wanted no part in it. Her and Qianlong’s tenth son died young, and Wanyan believed this was Heaven’s punishment for remarrying. From then on, she stayed secluded in Yuhua Pavilion, spending her days with the Buddha and never venturing beyond its doors. Fuheng, who spent years away at war, was no more spared from fate’s twists and turns. He rose and fell several times before becoming a grand secretary, but in the end, his worsening illness took his life. The ill-fated couple were separated forever, never to meet again. In the forty-second year of Qianlong’s reign, Consort Shu, Yehenara, passed away. At last moved by Wanyan’s desperate plea on her deathbed, Qianlong ordered the sisters’ identities switched back. His fifth younger sister, Wanxuan, was once again buried in Yuling under the title of Consort Shu, while Wanyan was laid to rest beside Fuheng, once more as his wife. In front of their graves, he had precious saplings planted and carefully tended, hoping they would grow into intertwined branches and never be parted again.
