Mudan returned to Fang Garden but didn’t see Zhen and Sun. Upon inquiring, she learned they had accompanied Monk Fuyuan to inspect the progress of construction at the back of the garden. Surprised by Fuyuan’s unexpected visit, Mudan felt obliged to join them.
As she reached the peach and plum grove, she suddenly saw young monk Ruman running out, laughing. He held a half-eaten peach in one hand while his robe was filled with more peaches and plums. He turned back to tease Atao’s brother Ashun, “Come on, catch me and I’ll give you some!”
Ashun, his face flushed from running, chased after him with outstretched arms, shouting, “Little monk, don’t run!”
When they saw Mudan, both stopped in their tracks. Ashun greeted Mudan and Fifth Young Master politely, mimicking adults. Ruman, blinking his eyes, said, “Benefactor He, why are you so late? I’ve been waiting for you to bring me peaches since early morning. I couldn’t wait any longer, so I begged Master to come and have a look.”
Mudan smiled, “I planned to bring you some when I returned. Since you’re here now, eat as many as you like, whether it’s ten or eight. Just be careful not to spoil your appetite for the vegetarian meal later.”
Ruman chuckled, “Master is in the grove watching people dig the canal. I’ll lead you there.” He bounced ahead carefree, with Ashun following closely behind, clutching Ruman’s robe and happily munching on a peach.
Watching Ashun’s bouncing figure, Mudan recalled the once timid little boy and silently appreciated He Zhizhong’s kindness.
In the peach and plum grove, a third of the canal had been dug. Trees obstructing the path were being transplanted after their fruits were harvested. Workers ate fruit as they worked, offering the ripest ones to Monk Fuyuan, who accepted without hesitation, wiping them on his sleeve before eating.
Sun and Zhen stood at a distance, whispering to each other with displeased expressions. Upon seeing Mudan, Zhen quickly pulled her aside, away from Ruman. She angrily whispered, “Danniang, you should talk to your Fifth Brother about managing the people you hired. It’s fine for them to work, but why are they helping themselves to the master’s fruit? It’s outrageous! These fruits are valuable and could fetch a good price if sold.” She glanced at Sun, adding, “I wanted to intervene, but your Sixth Sister-in-law stopped me.” Her tone implied she questioned Sun’s intentions.
Sun hurriedly explained, “We shouldn’t hastily accuse them of theft. They’re eating in front of us and only from trees that are being moved. They haven’t touched other trees, which suggests they know what they’re doing. Perhaps Fifth Brother or Danniang allowed it. We shouldn’t speak without knowing the full story, lest we offend someone and cause trouble for Danniang.”
Zhen persisted, “Danniang, did you allow them to eat the fruit?”
Fifth Young Master approached and said firmly, “I allowed it. We’re employing these people, and the fruit on the trees that can’t be kept isn’t worth selling separately. Eating a few fruits won’t hurt.” His tone suggested Zhen was being petty.
Zhen pouted, “Fine, I’m the only one making a fuss.”
Mudan quickly took her hand, smiling, “Sister-in-law, you’re just looking out for me.”
Zhen replied, “My personality isn’t likable, and good intentions often go unappreciated. I know you all think I’m harsh behind my back, but I’m straightforward. We’ve hired them to work and paid them…”
Seeing Monk Fuyuan approach, Sun pulled Zhen’s arm, “Master Fuyuan is coming.”
Zhen fell silent, forcing a smile at Fuyuan. The monk greeted Fifth Young Master and Mudan, saying, “This humble monk will be traveling far in a few days. I came to see if the female benefactor needs anything else?”
Mudan had many questions but focused on the most pressing, “Master, after seeing the construction progress today, do you notice any deviations? If so, please tell me so we can address them early. Are you going on a pilgrimage? How long will you be gone? I still have many questions about stone placement and such…”
“The current work is basic and shows no deviations,” Fuyuan said, calculating briefly. “Female benefactor, please don’t worry. It’s not a pilgrimage. I’ll return by the time you need to build houses, place stones, create artificial mountains, and plant flowers and trees.”
Mudan sighed in relief, “In that case, there’s nothing else. Master, please come inside for tea.”
Fuyuan’s eyes flickered with slight surprise. He had heard from Jiang Changyang about the situation at Mudan’s estate and, seeing her visit him at that time, assumed she needed his help. He came prepared to offer assistance if needed. Yet Mudan didn’t bring anything up. He wondered why.
Atao rushed in, “Miss, someone is looking for you in the main kitchen.”
Mudan excused herself, asking the Fifth Young Master to entertain Fuyuan with tea. She followed Atao to the main kitchen, asking, “Who’s looking for me?”
Atao replied, “Village Head Xiao is in the kitchen scolding his wife, Zhou Baniang. It looks like they might come to blows, so they asked me to fetch you to meditate.”
Mudan guessed it was about Zhou Baniang pressuring Village Head Xiao to help her family. When she last saw Xiao, he seemed fine, so she wondered what had happened to anger him so quickly. She asked Atao, “Are Zhou Baniang and Village Head Xiao family? When I visited earlier, Zhou Baniang seemed capable and young.”
Excited but nervous to be asked, Atao whispered, “You don’t know their story. They weren’t originally family. Zhou Baniang was Village Head Xiao’s wife’s younger sister, married to a man named Lu in Changan Ward in the city. After her husband died and Xiao’s wife also passed away, Xiao asked the Zhou family for a continuation of marriage with Zhou Baniang. She refused, but her family forced her to marry him. At first, she chased Xiao around with a broom for about two months before settling down.”
Mudan finally understood why Zhou Baniang had remarked on the difficulties women face. She was a woman who had been wronged and unhappy.
Seeing Mudan’s silence, Atao boldly continued, “This Zhou Baniang is quite daring and creative. She once taught young village women to make incense from old bamboo strips and orange leaves. People laughed at her for dreaming of living like the rich, but she ignored them and did as she pleased. I once smelled her incense; it was quite fragrant. But she also does disgusting things, like catching toads to make some kind of stew, claiming it’s a method learned from Baiyue. It’s so gross. I don’t know how she could think of doing such a revolting thing.” Atao shuddered for effect.
She expected Mudan to be shocked and disgusted like others, but Mudan remained calm and asked, “Have you seen her cook toads?”
Atao was taken aback, “No, I haven’t. It’s just what Madam Wang said. The kitchen staff also said that if Zhou Baniang wasn’t such a good cook and strong worker, they would have asked you not to let her help in the main kitchen.”
Mudan gave a noncommittal “Oh.” Atao, observing Mudan’s reaction, sensed that she didn’t dislike Zhou Baniang and might even be interested in her. She decided to speak more favorably of Zhou Baniang, smiling, “Actually, she’s quite capable. Everyone likes to invite her to help with cooking for weddings and such. She’s also friendly and helpful. Once, when my runaway stepmother was chasing us and almost pushed my brother into the river, she helped us and even argued with my stepmother.”
Hearing this, Mudan frowned and looked sternly at Atao, “So she’s not only capable and kind-hearted but has also helped you. How can you spread gossip about her behind her back? Isn’t that ungrateful?”
Startled by Mudan’s sudden change in tone, Atao stopped in her tracks, nervously fidgeting with her fingers and stammering with her head down, “I just wanted to tell you everything I knew to please you.”
Seeing the color drain from the girl’s face, Mudan thought, “This child is like a crooked tree.” She said, “Although you meant to make me happy, a noble person knows what to do and what not to do. This behavior is despicable. If you don’t change, I’m afraid I won’t be able to keep you here in the future.”
Atao bit her lip, “Then I won’t speak ill of people anymore. I’ll only say good things.”
Mudan sighed and called Yuhe over, “Teach her about proper behavior and how to speak appropriately.”
Yuhe smiled slightly, grabbing Atao by the collar like an eagle catching a chick, and pulled her aside to lecture her.
By the time Mudan reached the main kitchen, the commotion had ended. Village Head Xiao and Zhou Baniang were about to come find her. Xiao’s face was ashen, grumbling angrily, while Zhou Baniang looked unconcerned.
Mudan hurried to greet them: “Uncle Xiao, what’s wrong? Who upset you?”
Village Head Xiao, upon seeing Mudan, rushed over angrily: “I’m not your uncle, I don’t deserve that title. Don’t address me so casually. You’ve ruined me! If I had known you had ill intentions, I would never have agreed to this foolish woman’s request.”
Zhou Baniang nonchalantly blocked him and smiled at Mudan: “Young miss, let’s find a quiet place to talk.”
Mudan led them inside to a secluded room. After they were seated, she carefully asked Zhou Baniang, “Everything was fine earlier. Why is he now saying I’ve ruined him? Did something happen?”
Zhou Baniang smiled faintly: “It’s just that as soon as you left, servants from Prince Ning’s estate came looking for him. I thought, ‘He can only testify once, and if he’s late, whose fault is that? The document is already written in black and white, how can it be changed?’ So I didn’t bother our Village Head Xiao. I just poured him some tea and went to work.”
Village Head Xiao trembled with anger: “Do you know who those people are? The son of the Emperor – can you afford to offend him?” He glared at Mudan, “Can you afford to?”
As Mudan was about to speak, Zhou Baniang glanced at Xiao: “You’re truly foolish. I’ve already arranged everything for you, but you don’t know how to refuse. Who can you blame but yourself?”
Xiao said, “But I did refuse! I told them they came too late, that I had already written the document and it couldn’t be changed. I told them to find the He family. But they wouldn’t let me off, saying I was deliberately opposing them, asking if I no longer wanted to be the village head. Then they slapped me, almost loosening my teeth…”
Mudan looked closely and saw that half of his face was indeed swollen. She felt apologetic: “I’m truly sorry. At this point, we can only ask you to push the blame onto me. I’ll cover your medical expenses as an apology…”
Zhou Baniang said, “That was the plan all along.” Seeing Mudan look at her, she calmly continued, “Your goal was to have us testify for you. My goal was to avoid doing anything unethical while also not getting caught in the middle and suffering. So we each got what we needed. It’s just that this old fool is too stupid, cowardly, and greedy. He doesn’t know how to handle things but still wants to be the village head. He deserves this misfortune.”
Mudan silently reflected that this was indeed the case. She hadn’t been entirely truthful with Xiao when persuading him to help with this thorny issue. From Zhou Baniang’s perspective, they had signed the document intending to pass the responsibility to Mudan, letting her deal with Prince Ning’s estate without further involvement.
No one was foolish; everyone had their motives. These common folk were looking out for themselves, and it was hard to judge who was right or wrong. Ultimately, Xiao had been slapped because of her, and Zhou Baniang was indeed straightforward. Mudan said, “I’ve caused you both trouble. I apologize. Is there a doctor nearby? I’ll send someone to check on Village Head Xiao’s injury immediately.”
Xiao grumbled, “No need. I’ll consider this beating a loss. I dare not have any more dealings with your family. They said to tell you to watch out. I’m here to take her home. Quickly pay her today’s wages, and then you can wait for Prince Ning’s people to come make trouble for you. Just wait for your misfortune!”
Feng Danian, bringing in tea, heard this and became angry. How could someone speak so rudely? She was about to say something when Mudan quickly pulled her back, smiling, “Thank you, Uncle Xiao, for coming to warn us. You’re truly kind-hearted. I’ll be careful. Since that’s the case, I won’t keep you any longer. Auntie Feng, please help settle Aunt Zhou’s wages.”
Experienced in such matters, Feng Danian didn’t ask Zhou Baniang about her wage rate. She directly got a string of cash from Fifth Young Master and gave it to Zhou Baniang. Zhou Baniang smiled, counted out a hundred coins, and said to Mudan, “The extra is for selling him herbs to apply to his mouth. Young miss, take care of yourself.” With that, she left, dragging Xiao along without waiting for Feng Danian to see them out.
Feng Danian frowned, “Danniang, who is so arrogant? How dare they act so brazenly outside when such a big incident has occurred in Prince Ning’s estate? Don’t they fear causing trouble for Prince Ning’s estate and themselves? They know our family is related to Master Li, yet they behave so despicably.”
Mudan thought silently that before the truth was clear, all she could do was take maximum precautions to protect herself and her family from being implicated. As for the rest, Li Yuan would handle it. She said, “I’ll tell Fifth Brother and the others. We should all be careful these days and not let anyone take advantage of us.”
Feng Danian nodded in agreement. Seeing it was getting late and that Yuhe had brought Atao over, Mudan instructed Atao, “Have someone pick the freshest, best peaches and plums from the grove. Prepare four portions: one for Master Fuyuan to take back, one to send home, one for the Li family, and one for Lady Bai of the Chuzhou Marquis’s estate.” She then told Yuhe, “Have the kitchen quickly prepare a vegetarian meal so Master Fuyuan can return to the city early.”
Mudan went to invite Monk Fuyuan for the meal and called the Fifth Young Master aside to relay Xiao’s message. She said, “Fifth Brother, don’t stay here tonight. Go back with Third Sister-in-law and Sixth Sister-in-law, alright?”
Fifth Young Master frowned, “If they’re going to cause trouble, we should have people here to guard. How can we all leave? What if someone comes to make mischief? No, I won’t go.”
Mudan said, “Fifth Sister-in-law hasn’t seen you in a long time. I’ll stay here.”
Fifth Young Master smiled slightly, “You’re still a woman. How can you handle those dirty tricks as well as I can? If you’re not comfortable with me staying, how can I be comfortable leaving you alone? How about this: if you want to stay, let’s both stay, brother and sister together.”
Mudan was silent for a moment, then looked up at Fifth Young Master with a gentle smile, “Alright.”
When Zhen and Sun heard that Mudan wasn’t returning, they fussed for a long time, saying Mudan staying here would only cause more trouble. They also mentioned that there was nothing here, not even a change of clothes for Mudan, making it inconvenient. They were trying to persuade Mudan to return with them.
Mudan just shook her head, “Clothes aren’t a problem. I brought two sets here when work first started, just in case. I don’t need anything else. We can’t let Fifth Brother stay here alone. I’ll stay to help him.”
Though she didn’t know what trouble Manager Deng might cause, she absolutely wouldn’t leave Fifth Young Master to guard the place alone at this time.
Zhen and Sun had no choice but to say, “As soon as we reach the city gate, we’ll send the servants back to help you.”
Monk Fuyuan quietly finished his meal, then followed Zhen, Sun, and the He family servants back to the city as Mudan suggested. Before leaving, he looked at Mudan silently and said, “Be careful with the timber.”
The timber was the most vulnerable – a single fire could burn it all to nothing… and after that, wouldn’t she have to stop work? Mudan shuddered and answered seriously, “I will.”
Monk Fuyuan smiled slightly, bowed to Mudan and Fifth Young Master with his hands clasped, and thanked the He family servant for bringing a horse, but still rode the donkey he had come on, slowly departing.
Mudan and Fifth Young Master discussed briefly and, while it was still light, quickly made arrangements. The timber and tiles had already been delivered and were being guarded, but now with this danger, they had to increase wages and arrange for more reliable people to watch over them. They also organized a night patrol team to circulate the construction site to prevent anyone from sneaking in to cause trouble.
As evening fell, Yuhe and Feng Danian prepared Mudan’s room and brought hot water from the kitchen, calling Mudan to bathe. Mudan was indeed exhausted after a day of running around, sweating, and drying repeatedly. She felt as if salt crystals were forming on her skin, so the opportunity to soak comfortably in a bath was most welcome.
She lay in the tub, not wanting to get out, thinking about building a shower room in the future. She dozed off leaning against the tub wall until Yuhe knocked on the door, startling her awake.
Yuhe hurriedly brought in Mudan’s change of clothes. Seeing her drowsy state, she chided, “You fell asleep again? If you catch a cold, won’t you suffer?” As she spoke, she covered Mudan’s head with a large cotton cloth to dry her hair. Mudan, getting dressed in a daze, mumbled, “Have my Third Sister-in-law and Sixth Sister-in-law arrived?”
Yuhe’s hand paused, and she said softly, “Someone just reported that on their way back to the city, the two young madams were almost hit by a mad bull. Fortunately, Master Fuyuan was quick-witted and lured the bull away, preventing a major incident. However, the donkey he rented was injured.”
Mudan’s drowsiness vanished instantly. She found it hard to believe this was a coincidence. With a gloomy face, she took the cotton cloth from Yuhe’s hand, wrapped up her hair, and walked out, asking, “Where’s my Fifth Brother?”
Yuhe followed her out, “He’s outside instructing our family servants and estate workers. At least fix your hair properly before going out! This isn’t home; there are men everywhere…”
Mudan paused, patiently allowing Yuhe to tidy her up. Finally, with her hair half-dry and in a simple bun, she immediately went to find Fifth Young Master. He was indeed under a willow tree with several foremen, drinking tea and talking. Seeing Mudan approach, he walked over and said, “You’ve heard? Don’t worry, they’re all fine. The family will send more people to help tonight and will also discuss with the Li family overnight. It should be resolved quickly. I’m here to handle things, so you can relax.”
Mudan frowned, “Fifth Brother, it’s such a small matter. Why are they being so relentless? Even if they want to take this land, they should just come and say so directly. Why all these underhanded tricks? It’s so vicious. How did things come to this?”
Fifth Young Master smiled gently, “Silly girl, there are many things in this world that don’t make sense. The human heart can be supremely good or supremely evil; it’s quite normal. People are different; don’t use your thoughts to guess others’. We feel wronged, but perhaps they feel wronged too. How can you not let them walk all over you, but instead repeatedly challenge and oppose them? It’s not appropriate.”
Mudan smiled, “I see your point. You’re not planning to sleep tonight, are you? Shall I keep you company?”
Fifth Young Master thought for a moment and said, “Alright. Just like when we were young, shall I tell you stories?”