where her chair was waiting.

Her Majesty had made a rule or custom that after all guests had
departed, we must go to her and report everything. I suppose she was
like all women, a bit of a gossip as well as the rest; it appeared so at
any rate. She wanted to know what Mdme. Plancon said, whether she liked
the jade and whether she enjoyed her luncheon, etc.

Her Majesty was very well pleased that I had interpreted so well for her
and said: "I have never had anyone to interpret for me this way before.
Although I don't understand the language, I can see that you speak it
fluently. How did you learn? I will never let you go away from me any
more. Sometimes the foreign ladies bring their own interpreters, but
I can't understand their Chinese and have to guess at what they are
saying, especially some of the missionaries Mrs. Conger brings with her.
I am very happy to have you and want you to stay with me as long as
I live and I will arrange a marriage for you, but won't tell you just
now."

I felt very happy at what Her Majesty had said and thought I had made my
debut under very favorable auspices, and was very glad that Her Majesty
liked me; but this marriage question worried me, for nothing was farther
from my mind than this. I afterwards told my mother about it and she
told me not to worry, as I could always refuse when the time came.

When we had told Her Majesty all that Mdme. Plancon had said, she told
us we could go to our rooms, that as we had risen early that morning and
had worked very hard, we must be tired and needed rest, that she would
not need us any more that day. We courtesied to her according to the
custom when saying good night, and retired.

CHAPTER SIX--IN ATTENDANCE ON HER MAJESTY

THE building where we had our rooms, as I have said before, contained
four large rooms and a hall, and we three, my mother, sister and myself,
each took a room and gave the fourth to our maids. Her Majesty had
ordered a eunuch to accompany us and this eunuch told us that Her
Majesty had ordered four young eunuchs to attend on us and that if they
did not behave, we should tell him. He also said his name was Li, but as
there were so many by this name, including the head eunuch, it was very
hard to tell them apart.

When we arrived, which took some time, he pointed to a building on our
right and said that it was Her Majesty's own Palace and the one which
we had just left. I could not understand why it had taken us s