China by Edward Rutherfurd (historical books to read TXT) 📕

the senior eunuchs. “There are about two thousand eunuchs altogether,” he said, “though there used to be more. And two hundred of them are officials—from the eighth mandarin rank up to the third. That’s normally as high as a palace person can go.”

“And each rank has a different uniform and insignia?” I suggested.

“Exactly. I’ll tell them to you now,” he said.

“I have an idea,” I said. “Is there a wardrobe room where we could look at the robes? I’d remember them a lot more easily if I could see them.”

“Well…” He looked a bit doubtful. “I suppose we could.”

The wardrobe was next to the eunuchs’ laundry. It was like a treasure trove to me: rows of silk coats—blue, red, purple, and other colors. Some were plain silk with a big square patch on the chest, embroidered with the bird belonging to their rank. Others were covered with embroidery, with the bird worked into the rich design. The third rank was a gorgeous peacock, then a wild goose, then a silver pheasant, an egret, and for the seventh rank a mandarin duck. The humblest clerk of the lowly ninth rank wore a little bird called a paradise flycatcher. There were hats as well, with feathers in jade holders, and various grades of tassels. After we’d studied these for a while, I said: “Will you please test me, master?” And of course I got them all right. He was quite amazed.

He didn’t realize that this wasn’t work to me at all. The moment I saw each beautiful design, I had it in my mind. These were the finer things of life—everything I loved. I could have stayed in there all day. I couldn’t wait to come back.

“I expect I’ll forget some of them by tomorrow, master,” I said. “But if we come in here for a few minutes each day, I’m sure I’ll get them all fixed in my head, so that I won’t let you down.”

The next morning, he taught me about the rooftops. For like everything else in the Forbidden City, each building belonged to a particular rank. “You know how every government building has at least three little figures on each corner of the roof,” my mentor began. “On the outer point is a tiny man riding a bird. That’s the emperor’s servant running his errands. Behind him is at least one other animal, watching over him, and behind them both is an imperial dragon—he’s a bit bigger—who’ll eat them up if they don’t get on with it.”

“A minimum of three figures,” I said.

“That’s right. But a more important building will have another two figures, making a total of five. More important still, another two, making seven; and most important of all, two more again, making nine. Always an odd number, you’ll notice, in a little procession down the roof’s ridgeline. There’s a bird, a lion, a seahorse, a bull, a figure that’s half goat and half bull, a young dragon, and a fish. You’ll have to learn them all, their individual significance, and exactly what all the combinations tell you about the building or gateway in question. Here in the Forbidden City you’ll find examples of every kind.”

“All right,” I said.

“But there’s still one more figure. It’s only on a single building in the whole kingdom. Do you know what that is?” I didn’t. “It’s a figure of a walking man,” he told me. “He’s holding a sword as if it were a stick. He goes at the back, just in front of the dragon, to oversee all the other figures. And he’s to be found only on the roof of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, here in the Forbidden City, because that’s where the emperor’s throne is.”

“Will I ever go in there?” I asked.

“I doubt it,” he said, “but you may see the roof.”

The next day he took out a scroll and unrolled it on the table. It was a map of the Forbidden City, beautifully illustrated with little pictures of every building with their names written beside them, as well as the number of figures on each roof. We studied this closely for a couple of hours and I made good progress. When we paused in the middle of the day, my master asked if I had any questions.

“I have noticed one thing, master, which you haven’t yet discussed.”

“What is that?” he inquired.

“The names of the buildings,” I said. “Every palace, every hall, has a beautiful name. Going north from the Hall of Supreme Harmony, for instance, I see the Hall of Preserving Harmony, then the Gate and the Palace of Heavenly Purity, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, and the Hall of Imperial Peace. In the east there is the Gate of Tranquil Longevity. To the west there’s the Palace of Everlasting Spring. The list goes on and on. Everything is about heavenly peace, harmony, absence of discord.”

This pleased my master very much.

“You are exactly correct,” he replied. “And how could it be otherwise when the rule of the emperor is dedicated entirely to the maintenance of harmony, justice, and peace within the kingdom?”

“Can the emperor really be so wise all the time?” The moment I said it I cursed myself for being such a fool. Now I’ll be in trouble, I thought. But my master only smiled.

“That was all thought of centuries ago,” he said. “Everyone in the palace, including the emperor himself, is watched all the time. All his memoranda and all his actions, no matter how small, are recorded. Not only does he have counselors, but there are officers who will inform him of the precedents for every action, going back into previous dynasties. Everything he does has to be according to law and custom. Not only that, there is always at hand at least one Confucian philosopher called a censor, who acts like a tutor and who is required to warn him if any action he is considering would be unjust. The censor may speak freely, without any fear, and the emperor