Han Palace Grass Language: The Survival Wisdom of a Silent Grass Spring in the Han Palace is always like a painting splashed with heavy colors - outside Madam Qi's bedroom, the golden nanmu corridor pillars are covered with freshly picked wisteria. The sound of silk and bamboo is wrapped in the fragrant wind and fills the palace. The maids come and go carrying silk and satin studded with pearls. Even the green parrot raised under the corridor is taught to tilt its head and shout "King Zhao is a thousand years old". Everyone in the palace knew that this "King Zhao" was Mrs. Qi's son Liu Ruyi. With Liu Bang's favor, even the crown prince Liu Ying was almost suppressed. In comparison, the side hall where Bo Ji lives is like a corner forgotten by spring. Most of the red paint on the window lattice has fallen off, revealing the wood texture inside. There are only a few old sycamore trees planted in the corner of the yard, not even a single decent flower. This afternoon, the sun shines through the gaps in the sycamore leaves, casting mottled shadows on the ground. Bo Ji is sitting on a low stool by the window, holding a needle and thread in her hand to sew a small coat - the stitches are fine, and the fabric is the most common coarse cotton. It is a spring coat made for her son Liu Heng. "Madam, look at this!" The palace maid Qingzhu came in with a cup of herbal tea, with a bit of injustice on her face, "I just passed by Mrs. Qi, and your majesty rewarded you with rubies from the Western Regions. The boxes containing the gems are all gold! Look at our place, even the lychees sent from the imperial kitchen are semi-green. How about you go and beg the eunuch in charge to let your majesty remember you?" The needle in Bo Ji's hand paused for a moment, then she looked up and looked out the window - the new leaves of the old sycamore tree had just unfolded, so tender that they could draw water. They swayed slightly when the wind blew, but they were not damaged by the late spring cold last month. She shook her head gently and put the needle and thread in the bamboo basket. Her voice was as soft as the rain falling on the leaves: "Qingzhu, look at the peach blossoms on the branches. They are blooming beautifully, right? But when the wind comes, the petals fall all over the ground. The grace you receive is just like this peach blossom. It looks lively but does not last long. Mother and son, if we can live a stable life, it is more valuable than any gem." Qingzhu was still puzzled and put the tea cup on the table: "But you are also His Majesty's concubine, and His Highness Liu Heng is also a serious prince! Look at Queen Lu, although she is not often close to His Majesty, she holds the seal of the harem, and even the ministers are in awe of her when they see her. Why don't you want to fight for it?" Bo Ji picked up the little coat, looked at the stitches in the sun, and slowly smoothed the corners of the clothes: "The queen has the queen's difficulties, and Mrs. Qi has the danger of Mrs. Qi. The queen has to guard the position of the prince, for fear that others will snatch it away; Mrs. Qi has to plan for her son's future, for fear of falling behind. The two of them are like standing on hot coals, unable to let go for a moment. If we get together, wouldn't we just jump into the fire ourselves?" As soon as he finished speaking, there were footsteps outside the courtyard. It was the female official from Empress Lu's palace who came, holding a gilt post in her hand: "Mrs. Bo Ji, your Majesty has rewarded Mrs. Qi with a batch of dowry. The empress has ordered that all the palaces go to Mrs. Qi's palace to congratulate her." Qingzhu's face turned pale, and he pulled Bo Ji's sleeve and said in a low voice: "Madam, if we don't go, Mrs. Qi will definitely hold a grudge, and the Queen will think you are out of place. What can we do?" Bo Ji didn't panic, got up and walked to the cabinet, opened the bottom drawer - there were several stoneware jars inside, filled with dried chrysanthemums that she had dried herself last autumn. The petals were golden and had a faint fragrance. She took out a small jar, wrapped it in tissue paper, and handed it to the female official: "Can you please tell me back to the empress, I have been feeling cold recently, and I am afraid that I will expose it to you sisters when I am over sick. I dried this jar of chrysanthemums myself. It can clear the liver and improve eyesight, so I will treat it as a congratulation to Mrs. Qi and wish her well." The female official took the jar, glanced at the simple side hall, and then at the plain Bo Ji. Without saying anything, she turned and left. As soon as the female officer left, Qingzhu stamped his feet anxiously: "Madam! You are too low-key! Who will take it seriously with just a jar of dried chrysanthemums? If His Majesty completely forgets you one day and can't even decide on His Highness's title, we will be doomed!" Bo Ji walked to Liu Heng's small desk. There was a piece of paper spread out on the table, with the word "Ren" written by Liu Heng. The strokes were still immature, but they were written seriously. She lightly brushed the paper with her fingertips and said with a certain certainty in her voice: "It doesn't matter whether Your Majesty remembers me or not. What's important is that we don't let anyone regard us as 'opponents'. Look at the grass in the corner of the yard. No one cares about it, no one waters or fertilizes it, but it grows slowly along the base of the wall. It doesn't get wet in rainy days, is not damaged by frost, and can still produce seeds in autumn - this is how you can live for a long time." Qingzhu seemed to understand, but didn't refute again. The days went by like this, and Mrs. Qi cried in front of Liu Bang every day, begging to change Liu Ruyi to the crown prince, which made Empress Lu's eyes red; other concubines also competed to perform songs and dances for Liu Bang, and presented rare treasures. Some were found to be too showy and were punished by Empress Lu and sent to the cold palace, and some were never summoned again because the things they presented were not in Liu Bang's liking. Only Bo Ji was still sewing clothes in the side hall and teaching Liu Heng to read. Liu Bang occasionally thought of her and summoned her to sleep with him, but she never said anything. She neither complained about the deserted palace nor asked for any reward for Liu Heng. As time passed, Liu Bang actually forgot about her. Even when Liu Heng was seven years old, he never saw his father. Until Liu Heng was eight years old, the imperial court wanted to allocate fiefdoms to the princes and let them go to their respective fiefdoms to become vassals. Queen Lu was sitting in the main hall of Changle Palace, holding a list of princes in her hand. The eunuch standing next to her read out the names of the princes: "King of Qi Liu Fei, King of Chu Liu Jiao, King of Zhao Liu Ruyi..." When she read "Liu Ruyi", a cold feeling rose at the corner of Queen Lu's mouth - Mrs. Qi had been clamoring for Liu Bang to keep Liu Ruyi in Chang'an a few days ago, saying that "King Zhao is young and can't live without his father." She was obviously afraid that if he went to the fiefdom, he would not have the chance to fight for the crown prince. Queen Lu's fingers holding the list turned white, and she was already thinking about how to deal with the mother and son. Until he read "Liu Heng, the Acting King", Lu Cai paused, thinking of Bo Ji, who always delivered dried chrysanthemums and spoke softly. She had never argued about anything, never caused trouble, and even the side palace she lived in was as simple as the residence of an ordinary palace maid. Empress Lu looked at the biological mothers of the other princes on the list. They were either from prominent family backgrounds or they were very competitive. Only Bo Ji was like a grass with no sense of existence. She picked up the ink pen, drew a circle next to Liu Heng's name, and said in a calm voice: "Although Daidi is remote, it is stable and there is no war. Let Bo Ji follow Liu Heng to Daidi." On the day of leaving the palace, it was dawn. Bo Ji hugged Liu Heng, followed by Qingzhu, and only brought a few simple baggage. She looked back at the walls of the Han Palace. The red walls and golden tiles shone coldly in the morning light. There was the sound of Mrs. Qi's silk and bamboo, the power of Empress Lu, and the tears and lives of countless concubines. Qingzhu led the horse and said with a smile: "Madam, that 'silent grass' you mentioned at the beginning really protected our mother and son!" Bo Ji lowered her head and touched Liu Heng's head. Liu Heng held her neck and asked in a low voice: "Mom, we went to Daidi, can we plant sycamore trees?" Bo Ji looked in the direction of Daidi, where there were vast fields and quiet villages. She nodded gently: "Yes. When we get to Daidi, we must not only plant sycamores, but also take root firmly in the soil, like the grass, growing slowly." The carriage turned and gradually moved away from the prosperous and dangerous Han Palace. Bo Ji sat in the car, looking at the fields passing by outside the window, knowing in her heart that this was not the end, but the beginning of another period. And her "silent grass" wisdom will accompany her and Liu Heng on a longer journey.
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