One year later, the forty-third year of the Jiajing reign, the twelfth lunar month, heavy snow fell. Year after year the snow remains the same, but year after year the people change—some have left this world forever.
At Shichahai, Rizhong Ward, the Li Imperial Relative’s residence.
Dawn had just broken when a horse carriage drove into this three-courtyard residence. Reaching the rear courtyard, the carriage stopped, and snoring could be heard from within.
The snoring was thunderously loud, almost enough to lift the carriage roof.
Two servants knocked on the carriage door, saying in low voices: “Master, we’re home. Go sleep on your bed—it’s cold in the carriage, be careful not to catch cold.”
After knocking repeatedly several times, the snoring inside finally stopped. A middle-aged man wrapped in fox fur bent over as he emerged from the carriage, with servants quickly holding up umbrellas to shield him from the wind and snow.
This was Li Wei, father of Li Jiubao, the Prince Yu Mansion’s side consort.
When the mother rises in status through her son, the father rises through his daughter. After Li Jiubao was made side consort of Prince Yu Mansion, her family could no longer live in a slum like Machang Hutong.
Prince Yu bought this residence and gave it to Li Wei and his son and daughter-in-law to live in. He also purchased honorary positions as clerks for Li Wei and his son, so they were no longer commoners—the whole family had become respectable people.
Princess Yu allocated over a dozen government slaves from the prince’s mansion to serve Li Wei’s family. Li Wei and his son no longer had to work as masons—from then on they lived comfortable lives with meals brought to their mouths and clothes put on their bodies.
Mason Li had transformed into Clerk Li, and as they were also the maternal grandfather’s family of the Ming Dynasty’s only surviving imperial grandson, relatives of the imperial family, this residence was commonly called the Li Imperial Relative’s residence.
This year, Li Wei’s physique had changed from a dried-up steamed bun to a white flour bun. Even his wide fox fur couldn’t hide his protruding belly from getting rich, and when he got off the carriage, he made the footstool beneath his feet creak and groan.
Li Wei instructed his servants: “There are many treasures in the carriage—bring them all in. I’ll count them personally before having them carried to the storehouse.”
Like all nouveau riche, Li Wei was shallow-minded. Having been poor before, he placed exceptional importance on money and wealth, always feeling his servants had unclean hands and feet. He kept all storehouse and chest keys on his person, and even when storing items, he had to count them personally and seal them before letting servants carry them away.
When Li Wei returned home, Li Dalang, who had been watching over his father all night, quickly came to see him. As soon as Li Wei saw his son, he tried to avoid him: “Why are you here so early? I haven’t washed up yet.”
“Father! You didn’t come home all night—where did you go?” Li Dalang blocked his path and leaned in to sniff: “Body odor, cheap rouge scent, tobacco smell, grilled meat aroma—did you spend another night at the gambling den!”
In recent years, Li Jiubao had paid for her brother Li Dalang to marry a wife. The brother and sister-in-law were honest and dutiful, staying home quietly as nouveau riche, keeping a low profile and never going out to cause trouble.
But after becoming wealthy, their father Li Wei couldn’t change his bad habits. He forgot the solemn promises he’d made in the past to “never gamble again” and returned to the gambling scene.
Li Jiubao often instructed her brother and sister-in-law to watch their father and prevent him from going to gambling dens. But Li Dalang’s wife was a daughter-in-law, and Li Dalang was a son—it wasn’t proper for them to forcibly tie Li Wei at home. Despite guarding day and night, Li Wei still often found opportunities to slip out.
Li Wei had no interest in women. Many official families hoping to curry favor wanted to marry their virgin daughters to him as a second wife, with matchmakers nearly wearing down the Li Imperial Relative residence’s threshold, but Li Wei never agreed.
He had no wife at home, no concubines, didn’t bully others with his power or commit crimes. During festivals, Li Wei would have his son and daughter-in-law prepare generous gifts to send to his former neighbors in Machang Hutong, never forgetting his roots.
When neighbors had weddings or funerals and sent invitations, Li Wei would contribute money and attend the banquets, without any airs of an imperial relative—he was still the same old Mason Li.
When neighbors occasionally came seeking help, Li Wei would assist with anything he could do, never refusing.
Except for one thing, Li Wei was a perfect imperial relative—and that was gambling.
Even his daughter Li Jiubao’s name came from the gambling game pai gow. This vice of gambling couldn’t be cured even by cutting off hands, let alone now that Li Wei had capital to gamble with.
Li Wei was an imperial relative now—times were different. The gambling den people didn’t dare let him lose too much, sometimes even deliberately letting him win a few rounds to keep this regular “customer.”
Li Wei thought he had finally “changed his luck” and it was his turn to succeed at gambling. At first he would just play a few rounds and leave, but after winning several times in a row, he gambled for longer periods—half an hour, an hour, midnight, and eventually all night long.
Three years later, Li Wei’s gambling addiction had returned and was completely out of control.
Last night, Li Wei had left home under the pretext of attending a neighbor’s birthday celebration in Machang Hutong. Li Dalang hadn’t suspected anything. After the banquet, instead of going home, Li Wei changed course to the gambling den and gambled all night again.
He had originally planned to gamble until midnight and then go home, but last night his luck was extraordinarily good. Each time Li Wei said he’d stop gambling after this round, he’d win and want to win once more, or occasionally lose once and want to win back the previous round’s losses.
At Li Wei’s age, he could no longer stay up all night easily, but the gambling den people provided free good tea, mutton soup, grilled meat, and food and drink. In his extreme excitement, he unknowingly gambled until dawn.
Li Wei was the big winner tonight. His carriage was filled with the money he’d won, plus treasures that desperate gamblers had put up as stakes.
Li Wei got in his carriage to go home. Surrounded by all this money and treasure, as the carriage swayed, he was exhausted and fell asleep in the carriage, dreaming of winning money.
Li Dalang scolded his father for his gambling relapse, spitting as he lectured in the hall: “…Father treats the side consort’s words as wind past his ears. How should your son explain to the side consort? The side consort is currently pregnant—if she hears father gambled all night and gets so angry it harms the pregnancy, what then? Our Li family’s wealth and future all depend on the side consort’s belly!”
He continued: “We’re a craftsman family, originally humble with no power to help the side consort. The only thing we can do is not hold her back. How can father be so confused as to do such things while the side consort is pregnant!”
Li Wei was scolded by his son until he couldn’t lift his head. He quickly opened the chests to change the subject: “I didn’t lose money—look, these are things I won in one night: banknotes, loose silver and gold, snuff bottles, jade pendants. Take all these to the storehouse. It’s enough for our family for a year, and I’m not the only one enjoying it.”
Li Dalang didn’t even glance at the chests: “Our family doesn’t lack money! What we lack is peace!”
Li Wei rummaged through a chest and pulled out something wrapped in red silk: “Are you the only one who cares about the side consort? Have I forgotten my own dear daughter? Look what this is!”
Li Wei unwrapped the red silk, revealing a white jade carved statue of Guanyin bestowing sons.
The jade was superior quality with perfect craftsmanship—even the folds of Guanyin’s robes were crystal clear and lifelike. It was obviously quite valuable.
Li Wei carefully placed the Guanyin bestowing sons statue on the altar and lit three incense sticks: “This statue was blessed by a famous monk and is very efficacious. All pregnant women who have worshipped this Guanyin later gave birth to sons. Last night I put all my capital on the line, risking everything to win this. I’m not doing this for myself, but hoping the side consort will have another son with this pregnancy. With two sons to support her, her position in Prince Yu Mansion will be secure.”
Li Jiubao had given birth to a son on the seventeenth day of the eighth month two years ago. A year later, in August this year, Wei Caiwei had diagnosed Li Jiubao as pregnant again. Now Prince Yu Mansion treated Li Jiubao like a treasure.
Li Dalang was dismissive: “Things won through gambling are bad even if good. So what if you won gold and silver mountains? Father won’t listen to his son’s advice—I truly have no choice but to tell the side consort and let her personally advise father.”
“Absolutely not!” Li Wei quickly grabbed his son: “The side consort is heavily pregnant. I heard this pregnancy has been difficult—she had morning sickness so bad she vomited yellow water, and only stopped vomiting after five months. While others get fat during pregnancy, she’s gotten thin. Her pregnancy is already unstable. If you go tell on me and the side consort gets angry and it harms the pregnancy, causing an accident, you’ll be the one who harmed her!”
How could Li Dalang dare bear responsibility for harming an imperial heir? He stopped in his tracks and stamped his foot: “Clearly father is at fault, so why blame me!”
Li Wei said: “If you don’t tell and I don’t tell, how will the side consort know? I swear this is the last time—I’ll never go to gambling dens again. Every day I’ll burn incense and pray to Buddha, praying the side consort will again bear a son and both mother and child will be safe.”
Seeing his father’s solemn oath, Li Dalang was half-believing: “From today on, father shouldn’t leave the house. Leave all social obligations to me. If you must go out, your son must accompany you.”
Li Wei said: “It’s year-end now, and Prince Yu Mansion has bestowed many things on us. Although we’re not the proper in-laws, we can’t have no expression at all. I plan to give this jade Guanyin to the lady, so she can worship it regularly and bear another son.”
“Write a note to send to Prince Yu Mansion, saying I miss the side consort and want to see my daughter before the new year. Of course, if I could see the little imperial grandson too, that would be even better. See when the prince’s mansion has time to arrange for me to visit.”
Li Jiubao was made side consort but was still a concubine. For her family to visit her in the prince’s mansion, they first needed approval from the primary wife, Princess Yu.
Li Wei and his son Li Dalang were originally both illiterate. After becoming wealthy, Li Wei only wanted to gamble and didn’t seek self-improvement. Li Dalang was somewhat more ambitious—he hired a tutor for basic education and could recognize some characters. Though he lacked literary talent, writing courtesy notes was no problem.
Li Dalang said: “Father wanting to see the side consort is perfectly normal family affection. But wanting to see the little imperial grandson doesn’t conform to etiquette. You’re not the proper maternal grandfather—the little imperial grandson’s maternal grandfather’s family is Princess Yu’s family. What qualifications do you have to demand to see him? Improper, improper.”
Prince Yu Mansion’s little imperial grandson was already over a year old, but Emperor Jiajing still hadn’t bestowed a name on his only little imperial grandson.
Li Wei muttered: “I’ve seen the little imperial grandson before.”
Li Dalang kept pouring cold water on the idea: “That was because Princess Yu has a good temper and the side consort has always been well-behaved in the mansion, so they let you see him a few times. Don’t take exceptions as the norm—our Li family is still not mainstream in the imperial family’s eyes.”
Li Dalang wrote the note, only mentioning that father wanted to see the side consort, not mentioning the little imperial grandson.
Princess Yu set the fourth day of the twelfth month. Li Wei arrived as scheduled, entering through the west corner gate to Li Jiubao’s courtyard. He presented the jade Guanyin like offering a treasure to his daughter, lying: “…After learning the side consort was pregnant, I bought good jade and had skilled craftsmen rush to complete this. I had eminent monks bless it—nothing could be more efficacious. If the side consort worships it daily, she’ll surely bear a son and both mother and child will be safe.”
This pregnancy wasn’t going well for Li Jiubao. Wei Caiwei’s careful treatment had barely preserved it, and she’d grown very thin. Five months pregnant, her belly had only just started showing. Prince Yu had also prayed to gods and buddhas for this pregnancy. Later it was indeed preserved, so both Prince Yu and Li Jiubao felt the bodhisattvas had shown their power. Seeing the jade Guanyin Li Wei had commissioned hit exactly what Li Jiubao wanted.
Li Jiubao accepted her father’s gift and invited him to stay for lunch.
Li Wei glanced toward the door: “The little imperial grandson isn’t with the side consort today?”
Li Jiubao said: “He’s had some coughing recently, and my health isn’t too good, so the princess took him to the main courtyard to care for him.”
Li Wei quickly asked: “The little imperial grandson is alright?”
Li Jiubao said: “He’s fine. Doctor Wei came to examine him and said the winter rooms are too warm and dry, causing some internal heat. He doesn’t even need medicine—we stewed pear water for him to drink. The princess says he’s much better, just coughs a couple times at night.”
Li Wei was relieved. After lunch, Li Jiubao sent him home, and Princess Yu also bestowed some things.
Li Jiubao placed the jade Guanyin on the altar and worshipped it daily, praying the child could be born smoothly.
Two days later, on the sixth day of the twelfth month, Li Jiubao felt itchy while sleeping at night—so itchy she couldn’t stand it. She got up, lit candles, and carefully examined herself in the mirror, getting such a fright she trembled: her body had broken out in small, pus-like, semi-transparent blisters that were spreading at an almost visible rate, already reaching her neck. Her body was also starting to fever.
Crash! The mirror fell to the ground. After initial panic, Li Jiubao quickly composed herself: “Quick, summon Doctor Wei!”
Author’s Note: The timeline has moved forward another year, and the true culprit is about to surface—revenge is starting again. Honestly, this novel really doesn’t give out many death certificates. Thinking back to my “Hu Shan Wei,” when fighting broke out, there were often total annihilations with few people surviving to the end. And “The Great Jin Is So Charming,” writing about the Eight Princes’ Rebellion, fallen princesses, and the southern migration—the death certificates were numerous beyond measure. Comparatively, this novel has the fewest deaths, though it’s quite hard on fathers.