Читать книгу The Jade Enchantress - E. Hoffmann Price - Страница 4

Prologue

The Jade Emperor sighed. No matter how well the Celestial Bureaucracy ran Heaven, someone always had a complaint or wanted something changed. He tapped the petition his secretary had handed him and lifted one eyebrow inquiringly.

“Who and what is this Mei-yu?” he asked.

“Divine and Imperial Majesty,” the secretary answered, “she was a Buddhist nun who was granted Immortality for her good works—the usual compassionate business. For the past thousand or so years, she’s been a Jade Lady, working day and night to make jade out of moonbeams. She seeks permission to present her problem to Chang Wo, the Moon Goddess.”

“And what’s her problem?”

“Ah—Divine Majesty, she won’t explain. It’s something she—ah—has to discuss with another woman.”

The Jade Emperor sighed again. “Permission granted,” he said. Accordingly and in due time, Mei-yu appeared in the Lunar Palace of Chang Wo, dressed in her formal court robes. Her velvet hood was embroidered with pearls, as were her satin slippers; as a compliment to her hostess, her tunic was the gold of the full moon on the horizon and her long ear pendants were of moonstones, glowing as if from an inner light. Elegant and beautiful, she was truly Chinese, except for her nose, which was longer than standard and faintly curved—perhaps the heritage of a Turla ancestor.

There was no kowtowing; the Goddess loathed formality. Mei-yu permitted Chang Wo to seat her at a small table, well away from the stately area reserved for the Jade Emperor and his favorite concubine.

The Goddess poured tea, which had been set out by soundless attendants. “What’s on your mind, Mei-yu, that’s for the ears of women only?”

“Divinity—”

“Do forget that formal nonsense!”

“Ah—Chang Wo, this is awkward. You know, I was a Buddhist nun—”

“Some of my best friends were nuns.” The Goddess sighed. “But that was thousands of years ago. So what is in your mind?”

Mei-yu squirmed, smoothing out her tunic. “It isn’t just in my mind.”

“Everything is mind. You must have learned that in the nunnery.”

“I learned everything in the nunnery—except how to get a lover. I’m one thousand, two hundred and eight years, nine days, and eight hours old, and I’ve never had a lover. And I’m fed up with herding elemental jade spirits and listening to their chatter…”

The Goddess regarded her visitor shrewdly. “Just who is this man you’ve fallen in love with—another Immortal? Or is he human?”

Mei-yu’s brows rose to pointed arches. “What difference does that make?”

“You’re pure spiritual essence,” the Goddess explained. “You have everything a human woman has, but not a bit of it is substantial enough for love with a solid mortal.”

Mei-yu seemed suddenly on the verge of tears. “I never thought of that! He’s a farmers son, studying for the Imperial examinations. But he neglects his studies. He loves to work with jade. Kwan Ju-hai is an artist—a very sensitive artist… Couldn’t I possibly get a physical body or something reasonably solid?”

“Difficult. But if he’s sensitive enough to see your spiritual body—some humans are—you two might manage. Yang combining with yin—positive combining with negative to create zero; and that’s total completeness; instead of nothing, it’s really everything!”

Mei-yu looked dubious. “But those human girls—being solid and substantial gives them advantages no spiritual body has. There is nothing like that which I could offer him!”

“Lingam and yoni as spirit principles have amazing possibilities,” Chang Wo assured her. “Try it. You might be surprised.”

The Jade Lady sensed that she was listening to a woman who spoke from experience. Yet she sighed and shook her head. “If I’d started at the human level… But skipping the foundation course and the pillow book… I just can’t quite…”

The Goddess patted Mei-yu’s shoulder. “Perhaps a temporary substantial body could be constructed for you; but it’s a complicated business with many obstacles. Some of the answers to the problem are likely to be impossible, others illegal or against public policy. Why don’t you run along home, get yourself some nice things to wear, and then find out whether he can see you—talk without speaking? If he can—well, you can use your imagination. You might make some wonderful arrangements. And if you still have problems, you can see me at any time.”