The Northern Desert Sky

Flowers drift away, the waters flow on. One heart full of longing, two hearts weighed down by sorrow.

According to the History of Liao, Empress Ren De of the Shengzong Emperor, surnamed Xiao and known by the childhood name Pusage, was beautiful and talented at the age of twelve, and was selected to enter the imperial palace. In the nineteenth year of the Tonghe era, she was invested as Empress Qitian. She once used a stalk of grass to sketch the design of a palace hall, then secretly gave it to the officials in charge and ordered them to build the Qingfeng, Tianxiang, and Bafang Halls. Once they were complete, she was favored even more. The carriage she rode bore a dragon's head and owl-tail ornaments, decorated with gold. She also commissioned a Nine-Dragon Carriage and carriages for the princes, fashioned after pagodas in platinum, each with its own ingenious design. In summer and autumn, when she traveled through mountain valleys, the flowers and trees were like embroidery, and the carriages and clothes mingled in a dazzling array. Those who saw her thought she was an immortal. She bore two sons, both of whom died young.

"For generations, the daughters of our Xiao family have been born to take the highest place in the imperial palace and serve as an example to all under Heaven."

New geese arrive from afar, the clouds carry no tidings. The mandarin ducks are parted, their reflections divided in the mirror, with no way to meet again. Spring rain weeps softly, a pale moon shrouds the courtyard in sorrow. Those days are gone.

Could this feeling be recalled now? Even then, it had already left me lost and bewildered.

In the northern desert, at the edge of the world, unfolds a legendary Khitan romance. The road is long and the wind bleak, yet neither can compare to seeking your fragrance in a drunken dream. In this life, I wish to hold your hand and grow old by your side.