Synopsis of Act I
Wang Mang (44 B.C.-25 A.D.) came to power as Prime Minister through hypocrisy, political maneuver, and the influence of his aunt, the Empress Dowager of the Han dynasty (203 B.C.- 11 A.D.) A man of great ambition, Wang Mang was determined to become emperor. He did away with all who dared to contradict him, killing three of his four sons and driving the fourth insane. He schemed to make his daughter Empress and was successful.
Dramatis Personae:
EMPEROR, in his teens.
LAO PENG-TZU, pet jester of the Empress Dowager.
EMPRESS DOWAGER, Regent to the boy-Emperor, about 70.
LADY PAN, an imperial concubine to the late Emperor Cheng.
WANG YING, Wang Mang's daughter and Empress, in her teens.
WANG MANG, the Prime Minister and nephew to the Empress-Dowager, about 50.
KUNG KUANG, the Grand Tutor to the Emperor, over 70.
HO WU, an old general, loyal to the Emperor.
CHEN TSUNG, a Censor and faithful to Wang Mang, about 30.
WANG YI, General-Commander, cousin of Wang Mang and faithful to him, about 30.
LIU HSIN, a distinguished scholar and Lord Chamberlain, about 40, in favor of Wang Mang's reforms.
CURATOR of the Imperial Temple. Eunuchs, guards, ladies-in-waiting.
ACT II
Scene One
One month later, in the bed chamber of the Emperor.
As the curtain rises, the Emperor is lying in bed. Lao Peng-tzu, the jester, is dozing by the foot of the bed. Lao Peng-tzu has white hair and beard but talks and acts like a mischievous child.
LAO PENG-TZU: (Sits up, rubs his eyes, and looks at the Emperor.) Your Majesty Lord Emperor. Your Lordship! Uh! Are you really asleep, or are you just pretending? Are you really sick, or just feigning sickness (Rises and goes to the Emperor.) My Lord Emperor, if you are just pretending, you don't need to any more. Look, they're all gone. And your bride-Empress, too.
EMPEROR: (Turns over.) Gone? (Sits up.) Wang Mang's daughter gone?
LAO PENG-TZU: Your bride-Empress ... yes, she has gone to ask Her Highest Majesty the Empress-Dowager to send her home.
EMPEROR: Go home? Would she? It's Wang Mang's intrigue that she should be Empress so she can keep constant watch on me. It's Wang Mang's wish that she ruin my health and drive me to my death.
LAO PENG-TZU: How heartless you are! For a whole month, your bride-Empress has been waiting on you day and night. And you don't even look at her.
EMPEROR: Haven't I had enough of Wang Mang? What do I care about his daughter? So long as she is Empress, I shall not be Emperor. Let her be an empress without an emperor.
LAO PENG-TZU: An empress without an emperor! That's funny ... Ha! Ha!
EMPEROR: Stop laughing! What's so funny about it?
LAO PENG-TZU: But I'm not laughing! I'm crying! (Sobs.)
EMPEROR: Don't think I'll yield to him. I won't! I'll stay in bed and have nothing to do with his daughter!
LAO PENG-TZU: This is so-called negative resistance, victory of the spirit.
EMPEROR: But I will resist! Resist to the bitter end!
LAO PENG-TZU: Resist in bed? From on the bed or underneath it?
EMPEROR: No! I'll get up! I'll fight Wang Mang. (Gets up and dresses.) I'll insult his daughter to her face, and recount the crimes of her father. He massacred my uncle Wei Pao and so many of the Wei family. If I cannot avenge him, Heaven will. (Music and trumpets. Lao Peng-tzu jumps up.)
LAO PENG-TZU: It's Her Highest Majesty! (He runs out. Enter ladies-in-waiting with lanterns to stand at either side of the door. Enter the Empress-Dowager supported by Lao Peng-tzu and Lady Pan, followed by Wang Ying dressed as an empress.)
EMPEROR: (Kneeling.) Your Majesty is most welcome.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Arise, Emperor. (Emperor rises.) I'm indeed happy to see you well today. (Sitting down.)
EMPEROR: Thank you, Your Majesty.
LAO PENG-TZU: Your Highest Majesty, it's all to Lao Peng-tzu's credit.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: How is that?
LAO PENG- TZU: They've waited on My Lord Emperor for a whole month. But his illness only became worse. Today Your Highest Majesty sent Lao Peng-tzu over to say something funny to His Majestic Lordship. And, hey, in a twinkling of the eye, there you are, his majestic illness is gone!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: You mean your jokes are a panacea, eh?
LAO PENG- TZU: Ha! Ha! Laugh! Laugh! Laugh! Laugh! Panacea! (All laugh except Wang Ying and the Emperor.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (To Wang Ying.) Come over here, Empress. (Wang Ying walks over and the Empress Dowager holds her hand.) It's been hard on you, my child. Ever since you entered the palace, you have been waiting at the sick bed of the Emperor. Now that the Emperor has recovered, you need some rest. (Holds Emperor's hand.) During your illness, the Empress has been nursing you, going without sleep. Now give her your thanks. (Emperor frees his hand and turns away.) What fit of temper is this? Don't be childish! (Wang Ying weeps. The Empress-Dowager comforts her.) Child! Don't mind his fits of temper. He is still not himself. When he is completely recovered, he will be gentle and tender toward you. Pan-kuei-fei, tell them to get ready for a nuptial feast for the Emperor and the Empress.
LADY PAN: Yes, Your Majesty.
EMPEROR: (Kneels before the Empress-Dowager.) Your Majesty! I am not worthy of the crown, and I'm not worthy to be an empress. Will Your Majesty be so kind as to allow me to go home to Chung-shan?
YING: (Also kneels.) Your Majesty! Would you send me home to my parents? (Weeps.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: What's this? Get up, both of you! (They rise.) Emperor, this going to Chung-shan, do not mention it again. All the world will laugh at you! When you are fully recovered, I shall turn over the state affairs to you, so that you will be truly an emperor.
LAO PENG-TZU: He'll be truly an emperor! Is he falsely an emperor now?
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Keep quiet!
LAO PENG-TZU: (Slaps his own mouth.) Keep quiet! Keep quiet!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Get out of here!
LAO PENG-TZU: Get out! Get out! Lao Peng-tzu better go to sleep. (He squats and dozes.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: You two must stop your hostility. Husband and wife should love each other and live in harmony. (Stands up.) Pan-kuei-fei, you stay here and make peace between them.
LADY PAN: Yes, Your Majesty. (Exit Empress-Dowager, followed by ladies-in-waiting. The Emperor looks at Ying from the corner of his eye. Ying sits far away. Both are silent. Lady Pan goes into the inner chamber and returns with a bowl of broth.) Here. (Speaks to Ying.) Your Majesty. His Majesty the Emperor might be thirsty. Offer His Majesty this broth. (Hesitating, Ying takes the bowl. She walks over to the Emperor.)
YING: Your Majesty, please have some broth. (The Emperor looks at her dubiously. Slowly he takes the bowl, but does not drink from it. Then he looks at Ying with anger and hate, and throws the bowl on the floor. Ying covers her face with both hands. She leans on Lady Pan's shoulder, and cries bitterly.) Pan-kuei-fei! You saw it with your own eyes! Day and night, I have prayed for his recovery. What wrong have I done?
LADY PAN: My dear, the Emperor is unhappy. Later he'll feel better. (Enter Wang Mang. Lady Pan bows.) Your Excellency!
WANG MANG: Pan-kuei-fei! Isn't it the will of the Empress-Dowager that you are not to supervise the Emperor in his studies any more?
LADY PAN: Yes, Your Excellency. But today ...
WANG MANG: Not today or any day. You need not come here again.
LADY PAN: Yes, Your Excellency. (Bows and exits.)
YING: Father! (Runs to him.) I want to go home. Please take me home!
WANG MANG: Home? This is your home. You are the Empress of Han. (Looks furiously at the Emperor.) Who dares to say no? Who dares to bully Wang Mang's daughter!
EMPEROR: (Stands up, furiously.) I dare! I'll bully her! Just because she's your daughter!
WANG MANG: If you dare!
EMPEROR: What do I fear? I don't care about being Emperor, nor does my mother. It's you who put me on the throne.
WANG MANG: You don't care, eh? When you're needed, you had better care!
EMPEROR: I won't! I will return to Chung-shan. You've massacred so many people. All you want is this crown. Take it, and help yourself to the Dragon Throne. You can be emperor, and your daughter can be empress, or empress-dowager. The palace can be yours, and this whole Empire of Han can be yours, too! (Grieved and furious, he exits.)
WANG MANG: How dare he! To return to Chung-shan? Not so easy!
YING: The Emperor is unhappy. Pardon him, father.
WANG MANG: Are you taking his side?
YING: He is sad at heart.
WANG MANG: Sad at heart! Unhappy! Who is happy? Don't be fooled by his pretending. Weak and sick he seems to be, but he can spit fire from a serpent's mouth. He can take your life any moment. He can take my life, and the lives of our whole family!
YING: Oh, no! He wouldn't!
WANG MANG: Stupid maid! If we don't take his life now, he will take our lives later on.
WANG MANG: (Takes a vial from his sleeve.) This wine ...
YING: (Frightened.) The poisonous "Chen" wine!
WANG MANG: You'll make him drink it.
YING: My eldest brother and my second brother both died from drinking this!
WANG MANG: And now, I want you to make him drink it.
YING: But, father! He is the Emperor, the Son of Heaven!
WANG MANG: Son of Heaven, huh! He is Son of Heaven only as long as I make him so!
YING: Father! Spare him! Let him return to Chung-shan.
WANG MANG: Let him return to Chung-shan? Shall I release a tiger in the mountains?
YING: He only wants to see his mother.
WANG MANG: Don't talk nonsense. Let him drink the wine tonight. (Gives her the vial.) Take it.
YING: I can't, father! I cannot kill! He is my husband.
WANG MANG: Husband! Huh!
YING: Didn't you teach me, father, that when at home, obey your father, and after marriage, obey your husband?
WANG MANG: But I never taught you to go against your own father!
YING: (Kneels before Wang Mang.) Father!
WANG MANG: I've always taught you that a man must think of great things and mind trifles. You are Wang Mang's daughter. You must think and act like a man ... be a man. (Helps her to rise.) Let me tell you, you have only one father. As to husband, you have all the men in the whole for your choice. I will let you choose the most intelligent and the most distinguished man in the empire for your husband. And I will give him the highest position. I am Dot deceiving you. You know I always love you best.
YING: But, father, I won't have another husband.
WANG MANG: Then you won't have this one either. He is your father's greatest enemy and must be gotten rid of.
YING: (Weeping violently.) Father! Why must it be so!
WANG MANG: He blocks the way to my new kingdom. It is Heaven's will that your father create the most beautiful kingdom that men have ever known.
YING: Can't it be done without killing?
WANG MANG: When it is necessary to kill, you have to kill. For the blooming in the springtime, there must be dry leaves in the fall and withered branches in the winter. For the coming of the new era, obstacles must be overcome. (Ying is silent and struggles with herself.) Take this. (Places the vial in her hand.) Don't hesitate. But do it cautiously. (Exit.)
YING: Oh Heavens! Why is my fate so bitter? (Falls into a chair and cries. In a while, she stands up, and looks around.) Pan-kuei-fei! Pan-kuei-fei! (She sees nobody around, feels frightened, and runs toward the door. Lao Peng-tzu creeps out, and sees Ying exit.)
LAO PENG-TZU: Poor maiden! What's to be done? (He sticks out three fingers on his left hand to indicate Wang Mang, his daughter, and the Emperor, and points to them with his right hand.) This one hates this one, and this one hates this one; but this one here loves this one. This one tells 'this one here to kill this one, but this one here loves this one, and cannot bear to kill this one. Yet this one wants to be obedient to this one. Oh, what a dilemma! What's to be done? (Enter the Emperor. He sees that Lao Peng-tzu is dancing around and is interested. )
EMPEROR: Lao Peng-tzu, what are you doing here?
LAO PENG-TZU: Lao Peng-tzu is not doing anything, my Lord Emperor. Lao Peng-tzul can only crack jokes.
EMPEROR: You don't do anything, only crack jokes. That's not bad. I wish I could be like you.
LAO PENG-TZU: And I don't think I want to be like you. (Re-enter Wang Ying with Lady Pan.) Look! There comes your bride-Empress. (Seeing Ying, the Emperor turns his head aside.)
LADY PAN: Lao Peng-tzu, come, prepare the Emperor for the nuptials tonight.
LAO PENG-TZU: Yes, come, my Lord Emperor! Don't you want to be the bridegroom to such a beautiful bride?
LADY PAN: This is a string of "hundred-son" pearls that the Empress-Dowager ordered me to send over. You tell the Emperor to put it on the Empress, so that Her Majesty may have a hundred grandsons.
EMPEROR: Get out! All of you! Don't try to make fun of me.
LAO PENG-TZU: (Shakes his head.) Pan-kuei-fei, neither of us is adept at pulling romantic red strings. Let's go. (Suddenly, he seems to see something, and places the string of pearls on the bed.) In a dream—I think I saw in a dream a naughty lad, coming out of the foreign seas, and holding bow and arrow in his hands. He shot, and lo! It pierced the hearts of the Golden Boy and the Jade Maiden. I'll go and look for that naughty lad, and borrow his bow and arrow. (He imitates the gait of a shooting boy, and exits. Lady Pan looks at the Emperor, and then at Ying. Nothing can be done. She follows Lao Peng-tzu.)
YING: Pan-kuei-fei! Pan-kuei-fei! (She runs after Lady Pan, but when she reaches the door, she stops, and returns. She looks at the Emperor, summons her courage, and walks slowly toward him.) Your Majesty, my lord! (Emperor does not answer.) I know you hate me. You are not happy, I understand. (The Emperor turns, and looks at her.) I feel sorry for you, too.
EMPEROR: Huh! Don't try to put on a show! Wang Mang's daughter feeling sorry for me! How ridiculous!
YING: Not only am I sorry for Your Majesty, but my brothers and my tutor, they all felt sorry for you. Hasn't anybody told you that my brother lost his life because of Your Majesty? Professor Wu Chang and thousands of his pupils, like your maternal uncle, Wei Pao, all lost their lives, only because they wanted Your Majesty and your mother to be reunited.
EMPEROR: And who killed them? It's your father, Wang Mang!
YING: I'm all the more sorry, because he is my father. (Pauses.) My Lord, I'll follow you to Chung-shan.
EMPEROR: Didn't you say you wanted to go home?
YING: No, Your Majesty. I belong to you. Wherever you go, I'll go. Please take me with you to Chung-shan. I will be a filial, pious daughter-in-law to your mother.
EMPEROR: (Impressed.) Why do you want to be filial to my mother?
YING: Because ... because.... she is Your Majesty's mother. (Looks at him with love.) Whoever Your Majesty loves, I shall also love.
(File photo)
EMPEROR: (Still looking at her with suspicion.) But ... Wang Mang wants you to be Empress. When I return to Chung-shan, I shall no longer be Emperor.
YING: I don't want to be Empress. All I want is ... Your Majesty ... (Kneels down and holds his legs.)
EMPEROR: (Helps her on her feet.) Are you sincere?
YING: Most sincere! (The two embrace.)
EMPEROR: My Empress!
YING: My Lord!
EMPEROR: Why is it that I don't seem to have seen you before? Why is it that I have always thought of you as detestable, hateful?
YING: But, Your Majesty! I've always been ... (Holds his hand.)
EMPEROR: Now, I begin to remember. When I was ill, you prepared my medicine for me. You wiped the sweat on my body. You sat on the side of my bed. You called to me in a low voice. You rubbed my temples so gently and tenderly. How sweet and loving! (He places the string of hundred-son pearls on her.)
YING: I prayed to Heaven that only if Your Majesty would get well, I'd be sick instead.
EMPEROR: But why? What do you see in me?
YING: Ah! Poor Emperor! (Feels frightened, and suddenly holds his hand again.) Your Majesty, let's go to Chung-shan now!
EMPEROR: Yes. (Dreaming.) At Chung-shan, there will be no more pressure, there will be no more fear. There the fields stretch so far, so wide, so green. And the trees, the hills, rivers, cataracts! There is warmth and friendship among men, and love in the family. We will live in peace and happiness, and our children will have peace and happiness after us.
YING: Let's go right away.
EMPEROR: Why such a hurry?
YING: We must hurry, Your Majesty!
EMPEROR: Why? (Begins to suspect.) Why are you so impatient?
YING: We must hurry, Your Majesty!
YING: Because…. because ... Your Majesty ... this place…
EMPEROR: I see! Your father wants to take this place. As long as I am here, he cannot be Emperor. That's why you want me to leave. You are trying to trick me. It's a plot!
YING: Your Majesty, please believe me! In my heart, there is only Your Majesty!
EMPEROR: Can I believe it? Can I trust Wang Mang's daughter?
YING: Though I am his daughter, I am also your wife. I love you, my lord! I am afraid. There's danger in this place. Great danger!
EMPEROR: I am not afraid. Don't try to frighten me.
YING: Your Majesty! I am only thinking of you and your mother.
EMPEROR: Why don't you say you are thinking of your father? No! I'm not going away! See what Wang Mang can do with me!
YING: He ... he will kill you! Your Majesty! (Cries over his shoulder.)
EMPEROR: Kill me! He wouldn't dare!
YING: He'd dare! (Shows vial of "Chen" wine to Emperor.) He wanted me to make you drink this "Chen wine.
EMPEROR: The poisonous "Chen" wine! (Holds vial in hand.) He wants to poison me! Wang Mang! What grudge is there between you and me? Why must you be so malicious?
YING: My Lord, let us run away from here at once!
EMPEROR: (Indignantly.) No! I am not running away! Wang Mang! You can do anything you want. But you cannot frighten me into running away! I, the Son of Heaven, will not be threatened! (Smashes vial on floor.) If I should run away, I shall be like this vial!
YING: Your Majesty!
Curtain
Scene Two
It is December 8 of the same year. Scene is conference room in the Empress-Dowager's palace. At left, a door leads to the exterior. Door at right leads to the inner part of the palace.
As the curtain rises, the Empress-Dowager is sitting at center flanked by the Emperor and Empress, also seated. Lady Pan stands behind the Empress-Dowager and Lao Peng-tzu squats at her feet. Wang Mang, Kung Kuang, Liu Hsin, Wang Yi, Chen Tsung, Ho Wu, and Shentu Kang stand on either side.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: You are invited to a feast at the White Tiger Hall today to celebrate the December Eighth Festival. The Emperor is well now, and the young couple are living in harmony together. I feel very happy.
WANG MANG: Under the care of Your Majesty, His Majesty the Emperor is fully recovered. The whole empire is rejoicing.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: It is my hope that His Majesty will continue to enjoy good health and lead you ministers in building a strong and peaceful empire.
KUNG KUANG: To construct a strong and peaceful empire. Long live the Emperor!
HO WU and SHENTU KANG: Long live the Emperor!
CHEN TSUNG: Long live Her Majesty the Empress-Dowager!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: For five years, I have been Regent to the Crown. Now that this Emperor is grow up, and married, I shall hand the reins of the government to him as of tomorrow. Hereafter, I shall live in retirement to enjoy the rest of my days.
SHENTU KANG: Your Majesty be praised!
CHEN TSUNG: But... but... But Your Majesty must not retire! (Looks at Wang Mang.)
WANG MANG: Your Majesty! Though advanced in age, Your Majesty is still strong. You have brought prosperity and peace to the whole empire, and the people know only the existence of their Empress-Dowager, just as they know there is only one sun. Your Majesty must not retire.
WANG YI: No, Your Majesty cannot retire!
CHEN TSUNG: No, decidedly! The Empire of Han cannot afford to lose the rule of Your Majesty!
LIU HSIN: Your Majesty! The Empire has been peaceful under Your Majesty's good government. And His Excellency the Prime Minister's reforms are newly initiated and enforced. I am afraid a change of government will interfere with those noteworthy reforms, and past efforts will become labor lost.
CHEN TSUNG: If Your Majesty prefers quiet, you need not hold a court every day. There is His Excellency the Prime Minister to take care of state affairs. His Excellency would not mind working a little harder.
WANG YI: It is our hope and the hope of the whole Empire that Your Majesty continue to be Regent.
WANG MANG: (Kneels.) Long live Your Majesty! (All the court kneels.)
THE COURT: Long live Your Majesty!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: You may rise. (All rise.) I am very grateful for your loyalty. But I am really failing in health, and to remain as Regent will do more harm than good to the Empire. Moreover, I am only a woman, unlearned in the Classics of the sages and ignorant of the conditions of the people. For me to be Regent was an emergency procedure. Now that His Majesty the Emperor is grown up, I think it is right to restore the ruling power to the offspring of Han. I have done my part, and I have a clear conscience toward my Lord the late Emperor, as well as toward the people. Don't you think so, Grand Tutor Kung?
KUNG KUANG: Your Majesty has spoken the truth. The Sage Mencius said, if one can be quick, be quick; if it can last let it last. Your Majesty is fully aware of this same principle of right time for right action, and is walking in the ways of the sages.
HO WU: Exactly. Your Majesty is setting a good example of great virtue. To know when to take power and when to pass it to others is the highest wisdom. I believe in your retirement Your Majesty would guide His Majesty the Emperor with your wisdom and virtue, and make him a good emperor.
SHENTU KANG: Without doubt, His Majesty will be a good emperor. His Majesty has inherited the heavenly qualities of the late Emperors. And now he has Her Majesty the Empress-Dowager to guide him. He will be a god emperor.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: That is good. (Wang Mang and his followers are much agitated. Wang Yi whispers to Liu Hsin, and Chen Tsung comes over to Wang Mang.)
CHEN TSUNG: (He turns to Kung Kuang, Ho Wu, and Shentu Kang.) What is the matter with you? You people are not forcing Her Majesty the Empress-Dowager to retire, are you?
WANG YI: When Her Majesty spoke of retirement, Her Majesty was being modest. But what the Grand Tutor and the old general have said seems to be that you are happy to be rid of Her Majesty!
WANG MANG: Certainly not the Grand Tutor, nor the old general.
KUNG KUANG: I dare not! I dare not! (He coughs.)
LIU HSIN: Nor is his lordship Shentu Kang, I think.
SHENTU KANG: Who says I am?
CHEN TSUNG: Are you not? I can see the joy in your face!
SHENTU KANG: I can see the fear on your face, that when His Majesty the Emperor is in power, your sinister nature will be frustrated.
CHEN TSUNG: And you are maneuvering for power and new favor.
SHENTU KANG: Not I! It is not Shentu Kang's way to scheme for anything, and least of all for favor!
CHEN TSUNG: No? And yet I have proof. (Takes a document from his sleeve.) Who wrote this letter to Priness Wei of Chung-shan plotting to take over Her Majesty's position and power as an empress-dowager? Signed: Ho Wu and Shentu Kang.
HO WU: Your Majesty! It is true that his lordship Shentu Kang and your servant Ho Wu have written this letter to Princess Wei. But we meant no harm to Your Majesty and the Empire. And pray do not misinterpret it.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (After a pause.) Well, today is a lucky day. Let us not dig up old debts. (She gives the letter to the Emperor.)
CHEN TSUNG: (To Shentu Kang.) Nothing but luck for you today. Huh!
SHENTU KANG: And you're most unhappy to find your evil plan does not bear fruit.
OHEN TSUNG: It's you who are unhappy, because you're jealous of His Excellency the Prime Minister and the Wang Family. You spread the rumor that Her Majesty the Empress-Dowager is moving the whole Empire to her own father's home, that there are ten dukes and five prime ministers from the House of Wang, that they are trying to besiege the Empress-Dowager, and that they are the rulers-in-fact of the Empire.
SHENTU KANG: Chen Tsung! Don't try to soil the innocent with filth from your mouth!
CHEN TSUNG: But it's from your mouth that you said His Excellency the Prime Minister was a hypocrite, and that all his politeness, his philanthropic and righteous acts were mere pretense.
CHEN TSUNG: And this same slanderer, Your Majesty, is the one who makes the remark that Your Majesty is an ignorant woman, to be swayed by a rascal.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (Angrily, to Shentu Kang.) What rascal has been swaying me? I know. You all think that I consider only the good of my father's family. You do not want me to find a trustworthy kinsman who can help me in my old age. (Weeps.)
CHEN TSUNG: This kind of lawless and reckless rebel should be beheaded!
SHENTU KANG: All right, if you like! You people have turned the court into such a degraded place that the black gauze hat of an official is no longer something to be coveted. I've long since ceased to be proud of it.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Stop! Do you still have any veneration for the imperial house? Do you have any consideration for your superiors?
SHENTU KANG: (Kneels.) Your servant's tongue has slipped and he deserves a thousand deaths!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: He should be removed from his office and dismissed from court. For the rest of his life, he shall be a commoner.
SHENTU KANG: Thank you, Your Majesty!
EMPEROR: Your Majesty! Shentu Kang is an upright man. Please—
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Do not interfere, Emperor! I have not turned authority over to you as yet! (Exit Shentu Kang. Silence. Ho Wu kneels before the Empress-Dowager.)
HO WU: Your Majesty! Your servant Ho Wu has served five illustrious emperors since the age of fourteen. Now that I am old, and useless, will Your Majesty be so kind as to grant me leave, that I may yet retire to my country home, and live my life quietly to the good end?
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: General Ho Wu, you have been a trusted counselor during five reigns. There is no reason why you should leave the court all of a sudden.
HO WU: Your servant is the only obstacle remaining. I beseech Your Majesty to grant me leave, that I may die a peaceful and normal death.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (To Wang Mang.) What does he mean. I don't like that!
WANG MANG: Your Majesty, since General Ho Wu feels tired of court life, why doesn't Your Majesty grant him his wish and let him rest?
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: All right, then. Your wish is granted.
HO WU: Your Majesty be thanked.
EMPEROR: But General Ho Wu! (He knows it is useless to speak for him, and he weeps.)
HO WU: Heaven bless Your Majesty. And may the Empire of Han be blessed.
KUNG KUANG: (Holds Ho Wu's hand.)
General Ho Wu! (He coughs, and tears are falling from his eyes.)
HO WU: Grand Tutor Kung! Ho Wu bids you good-bye! Live up to your integrity. (Exit.)
KUNG KUANG: (He looks after Ho Wu. A long pause. Then he returns and kneels before the Empress-Dowager.) Your Majesty, the Empress-Dowager! (He coughs and is choked up. Wang Mang goes over and helps him to stand.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: What do you want to say, Grand Tutor?
KUNG KUANG: Your Majesty, Your servant is deteriorating in health. I'm afraid I'm not fit to teach His Majesty any more. Would Your Majesty allow me ... (Coughs.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: You make me sad, Grand Tutor. You, the wise and experienced, all plead to leave the court. Do you want me, a lonely old widow, to shoulder the responsibility of the state all by myself? (Weeps.)
WANG MANG: Your Majesty, though Grand Tutor Kung is advanced in age, yet his patriotic spirit is second to none. If Your Majesty will grant him leave, he may rest at home, and need not come to court regularly. When necessary, your servants may consult him at his home. When there is an important issue, then Grand Tutor Kung may be granted a special audience.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: This sounds reasonable.
KUNG KUANG: Thank you, Your Majesty. (Coughs, with more tears streaming down his face.)
CHEN TSUNG: Perhaps the Grand Tutor had better go home.
KUNG KUANG: Yes. Would Your Majesty grant me leave?
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Well. Grand Tutor Kung! I've never thought ... but we are both old. Go home then, and take care of yourself.
KUNG KUANG: Yes, Your Majesty. We are both toward the end of our road, just like a candle in a breeze. Maybe I shall see Your Majesty no more. There's no telling when the oil will be exhausted and the last light will flicker out.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (Weeps.) Grand Tutor!
WANG MANG: Grand. Tutor Kung, please. (He tries to urge him out.)
KUNG KUANG: (Turns to the Emperor.) Your Majesty! My Emperor ... (He starts to say something, but stops.) Your Majesty... (About to say something again, but finally turns away without speaking.)
EMPEROR: Grand Tutor Kung! (Comes down from his throne.) Don't leave me alone!
YING: Grand Tutor Kung!
KUNG KUANG: (Turns around to look at the Emperor, then at Ying, and again at the Emperor.) Your Majesty! For the sake of the Empire, take good care of yourself! And... (Wang Mang comes over to help him out. Kung Kuang looks at him, and then at the rest of the court, and cannot continue ... He takes the Emperor's hand and presses it. Finally, he turns and exits. The Emperor looks after him and weeps. So does Wang Ying.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (After a long pause.) Now will you all please go to the White Tiger Hall for the banquet? The other officials must have been waiting for quite some time.
ALL: Yes, Your Majesty. (Exit Empress-Dowager to the interior of Palace, supported by Wang Ying and Lady Pan, followed by Lao Peng-tzu. The Emperor looks at Wang Mang, then at the rest of the court, one by one. Finally, he goes out to the left, by himself. )
CHEN TSUNG: Your Excellency!
WANG MANG: Everything will be discussed tonight. Let us join the others at the White Tiger Hall. (Swaggers toward the left door.)
CHEN TSUNG: Your Excellency! Just one word!
WANG MANG: (Stops, and waits for the rest to walk past him.) What is it?
CHEN TSUNG: We cannot wait for tonight! It must be done right away. In case the Empress-Dowager make public announcement of her retirement at the banquet, that brat will be the real emperor tomorrow and our cause will be finished. You've got to make a decision now.
WANG MANG: What would you say?
CHEN TSUNG: Let him die tonight at the banquet. (Wang Mang is pondering. Enter Wang Ying.)
YING: Father. Your Excellency. Where is the Emperor?
(File photo)
WANG MANG: The Emperor? How do I know? (Ying is silenced. She is about to leave but is stopped by Wang Mang.) Madame Empress! I want to talk to you. (Ying stops. Wang Mang motions Chen Tsung to leave. Exit Chen Tsung.) "
YING: What is it, father?
WANG MANG: Where's the vial of wine that I gave you?
YING: That poisonous "Chen" wine?
WANG MANG: Go and get it for me.
YING: But father ...
WANG MANG: I told you to make him drink it. Why did you not obey me?
YING: I couldn't do it!
WANG MANG: You couldn't do it! Then return it to me. Get it! Go and get it!
YING: It's no more! I've thrown it away.
WANG MANG: What? You! Are you still taking his side?
YING: Father! Have pity on us!
WANG MANG: Us! Did I make you Empress, just for you to conspire with him against me?
YING: I'm not against you, father.
WANG MANG: Not to obey is to be against me! There is only one way—my daughter or his wife?
YING: Can't I be both, father?
WANG MANG: Impossible! He who is with me will live, against me, perish! There is no exception for you, even if you are my daughter!
YING: Father! If I am wrong, you may punish me, in whatever way you think fit. But please spare him his life. (Kneels.) Oh, father!
WANG MANG: (Coldly.) I'm not your father! And I have no daughter like you! (Enter Chen Tsung. Exit Ying in grief and fear.)
CHEN TSUNG: Your Excellency, here is a vial of that poisonous "Chen" wine.
WANG MANG: (Takes vial.) Where does it come from?
CHEN TSUNG: It is ever ready.
WANG MANG: Chen Tsung! (Pats his shoulder.) You are my real brother!
CHEN TSUNG: I'm most flattered, Your Excellency. But Your Excellency could be my father.
WANG MANG: Isn't that so? You are actually the only good son I've got! (They exit at left. Enter Lao Peng-tzu from right, imitating Wang Mang's swaggering gait.)
LAO PENG-TZU: (In the same mood and tone as Chen Tsung.) "Your Excellency could be my father!" (Then imitating Wang Mang.) "Isn't that so? You are actually the only good son I've got!" Ha! Ha! To let a slave and running dog call you father, while good men, even your own sons, you slaughter. (Enter the Emperor.) My Lord Emperor. (Seeing that the Emperor is unhappy, he tries to amuse him.) Look at my good Lord Emperor! And this mournful face! For a tragedy? (Imitates the latter, demonstrating a long face.)
EMPEROR: Lao Peng-tzu, don't laugh at me. Do you suppose I'll stand for being mocked and bullied?
LAO PENG-TZU: Who dares to bully an emperor?
EMPEROR: Everybody! But I will protest! I will have my revenge!
LAO PENG-TZU: To drop an egg on stone?
EMPEROR: Come what may, we'll be finished with it. I've made my decision. I will recount the crimes of Wang Mang at the White Tiger Hall. I don't believe there's a single good man left in the whole court.
LAO PENG-TZU: Oh, yes, plenty of them. Ho Wu is a good man, so is Shentu Kang. And Grand Tutor Kung Kuang is almost good. And am I, Lao Peng-tzu, not a good man? But, my good Emperor, as good men don't kill and set houses on fire, and good men cannot cheat and have no talent for flattery and trickery, what good is it to be a good man? "Golden belts they wear, those who kill and burn. But he who repairs bridges and constructs roads goes bare-footed." (The Emperor bows his head. Music is heard from afar.) Ah! Banqueting is beginning at the White Tiger Hall! (He runs out to the left.)
EMPEROR: (Grinds his teeth.) "They wear golden belts, those who kill and burn!" (Enter Wang Ying. Her face is tear-stained and she is agitated.)
YING: Oh, my Emperor, my Lord!
EMPEROR: My Empress, how is it with you?
YING: Your Majesty! Don't go to the White Tiger Hall!
EMPEROR: Is it possible not to go?
YING: Hide yourself! Pretend to be ill! But don't go!
EMPEROR: But I shall go! Tonight I'm going to unburden my mind.
YING: Your Majesty! Let's escape to the house of Grand Tutor Kung and ask for his help!
EMPEROR: (Shakes his head.) Nobody can help me. I'm like a hunted deer, chased by a pack of hounds; I'm like a fish in a dragnet. I've no place to run.
YING: My poor Emperor! (Cries over his shoulder.)
EMPEROR: (Holds her.) My Empress! (Enter Empress-Dowager, radiantly dressed for the banquet, preceded by two lantern-bearers and followed by Lady Pan.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Emperor! Why are you still dallying with the Empress here? You'll make laughing stocks of yourselves. Hereafter, you must be more dignified, both of you! Now, come with me to the White Tiger Hall, Emperor.
YING: (Holding onto the Emperor.) Your Majesty, don't go!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Behave yourself, Empress!
YING: Your Majesty! You must not drink! You must not touch any wine!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Madame Empress! Let the Emperor go!
EMPEROR: Madame! Go back to your palace ... and wait for me ...
YING: Your Majesty! Empress-Dowager!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Don't make any more scenes! Come! (She pulls the Emperor from Ying. The Emperor turns his head several times to look at Ying, and exits with Empress-Dowager.)
YING: (Tries to follow.) Empress-Dowager! Your Majesty, my Lord!
YING: (Struggles.) I must tell the Empress Dowager! Pan-Kuei-fei! Help! Save the Emperor! His life is in danger! (The lights go down, then come up again. It is half an hour later. Wang Ying and Lady Pan are as before. There is music and shouting from the White Tiger Hall.)
YING: (Frightened.) My Lord! Don't drink, Your Majesty! Don't drink that wine! (About to run out.)
LADY PAN: (Stopping her.) Madame Empress!
YING: I must save His Majesty's life! (Size is still struggling with Lady Pan when the noise from the White Tiger Hall suddenly ceases. A long pause. Enter the Empress-Dowager With the lantern-bearers and Lao Peng-tzu.) Your Majesty! Did the Emperor drink the wine?
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: The Emperor has been taken ill! And here you are, still playing at nonsense!
YING: Ill? Oh Heavens! He must have drunk that poisonous "Chen" wine! Oh my Lord, Your Majesty! (Exits, staggering.)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (Following Ying with her eyes.) Poisonous wine? I wondered, too. Why did he fall on the floor as soon as he drank that wine?
LADY PAN: Do you mean His Majesty the Emperor?
LAO PENG-TZU: Who else could it be? (Enter Wang Mang, Liu Hsin, Wang Yi, and Chen Tsung.)
(File photo)
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (Looks angrily at Wang Mang.) Prime Minister! What is this? Why did the Emperor fall ill?
WANG MANG: If Your Majesty asks me like that, I dare not answer. (Kneels.)
CHEN TSUNG: The Emperor is weak in health. He talked too much tonight, and drank too much, too.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: Not too much! Not at all! Just the second cup! (Seeing that the Empress-Dowager is angry, everyone is silent.)
WANG MANG: (Rises and shouts to Heaven.) The Venerable Lord Heaven above knows that I, Wang Mang, am loyal and true. I helped to pacify the empire, and rule the land with justice. This heart and soul are discerned by all the gods, above and below. Tonight His Majesty the Emperor has suddenly fallen ill. May I, the stupid Wang Mang, be worthy to suffer in the stead of my Lord and Emperor!
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: How I regret... I should not have entrusted all the authority to one man! I should not have listened to slanderers and harmed the loyal and good!
WANG MANG: My loyal heart is witnessed by Heaven and by Earth! (A eunuch enters, and kneels before the Empress-Dowager.)
EUNUCH: Your Majesty, the Emperor, His Majesty has passed away.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: (Cries out.) Poor child! It's I who brought you to harm! You were the only grandson left of the late emperor, my lord, and I... Oh, how am I to face the ancestors of the House of Han?
WANG YI: It's too bad that the Emperor should pass away before he came of age. It's beyond human power to remedy. I beseech Your Majesty not to grieve too much.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: I grieve that men are but wild animals in human attire! And I have to become a sinner before the sages, to be spat upon by the whole world!
LIU HSIN: Don't take it that way, Your Majesty. But now that the Emperor has passed away, Your Majesty's responsibility is all the heavier. Pray calm yourself and be consoled.
WANG MANG: His Lordship Chamberlain Liu Hsin is right. Your Majesty must now take a good rest, and hold a court tomorrow.
EMPRESS-DOWAGER: I'm not going to hold any more courts! I had already decided to hand over the government to the Emperor. Whoever assassinated the Emperor had better take up the responsibility himself. I wash my hands of all this! (Exits supported by Lady Pan.)
LAO PENG-TZU: (Jumps up and follows the Empress-Dowager.) Wash but not washed, Your Majesty! Hard days ahead for the Han dynasty! (Exit. Enter the Curator of the Imperial Temple.)
CURATOR: Where is the. Empress-Dowager? Something terrible has happened in the Imperial Temple.
WANG MANG: What has happened in the Imperial Temple?
CURATOR: Your Excellency! The Imperial Temple ...
WANG MANG: What is it? Speak up!
CURATOR: (Looks at Wang Mang, then at the others.) At dusk today, there was a great storm. Sand and stones were blown into the skies. Oh, it was horrible! All of a sudden, there was total darkness. There was thundering and the earth shook. We were so frightened and everyone fell on his face. When it was over, and we opened our eyes, what did we see but a golden cabinet ...
OREN TSUNG: Golden cabinet?
CURATOR: Yes, a golden cabinet standing right in the middle of the central hall of the Imperial Temple!
WANG MANG: What kind of golden cabinet?
CURATOR: There are inscriptions on it.
WANG YI: What do they say?
CURATOR: On one side, these characters are engraved: "Golden Cabinet of the Heavenly King". On another, they are: "The Scarlet Emperor to pass on to the Yellow Emperor".
LIU HSIN: The Scarlet Emperor is the first Emperor of Han. And the Yellow Emperor, he was the direct ancestor of His Excellency the Prime Minister's family.
CHEN TSUNG: That is to say, the House of Han is to abdicate the throne to the House of Wang.
WANG YI: It is the will of Heaven then, that His Excellency should ascend the Dragon Throne.
WANG MANG: Don't you say that! Wang Mang has no ambitions, except to hide himself behind the banner of Her Majesty the Empress-Dowager and implement the doctrines of the sages.
LIU HSIN: Your Excellency is the only one who can implement the good doctrines of the wise sages, restore the Golden Age of Ancient Emperors, and bring peace and prosperity for thousands of generations to come.
WANG MANG: That is our aim, and our mission! Lord Chamberlain Liu Hsin is a great scholar, and so he understands me best. Should it be the will of Heaven, that will is the creation of a New Empire—which begins anew, and grows into radiant glory and magnificent splendor, greater than the Crown and the Dragon Throne, more significant than Peace and Prosperity, more vital, even, than Life and Death!
CHEN TSUNG: That's wonderful! Let's hail His Excellency the New Emperor of the New Empire!
LIU HSIN: No hurry. We shall report to the Empress-Dowager and get Her Majesty's consent for the abdication.
WANG YI: Then, we'll choose the lucky day to inaugurate the new dynasty.
CHEN TSUNG: Right! (Kneels.) Long live our new Emperor! (All kneel.)
ALL: Long live our new Emperor!
Curtain
End of Act II