Cheng Jing wore a sapphire blue robe with auspicious clouds and floral patterns, Cheng Xu wore a dark green robe with honeysuckle motifs in Hangzhou silk, Yuan Shi wore a bright red jacket with gold embroidery all over and full sleeves, and Min Jia wore a rose-colored jacket with a subtle vase pattern. Cheng Jing looked dignified, Cheng Xu refined, and both were in good spirits. Yuan Shi looked exhausted, while Min Jia was subdued and taciturn—both like dusty jewels, appearing dull and colorless.
Not only did Zhou Shaojin and Cheng Sheng notice this situation, even Madam Guo noticed it.
The old lady was greatly alarmed. After they had bowed and straightened up, she asked Cheng Jing somewhat urgently, “What’s wrong with your wife and daughter-in-law?”
Cheng Jing smiled bitterly and said, “Six days ago, Cousin Wen sent Nuo Ge’er’s wife back to Jinling. The day before yesterday, he had someone send over invitations saying that Cheng Nuo is marrying that Miss Kang the Sixth into his household, and the date is set for today…”
As he spoke, Yuan Shi took out several wedding invitations from her sleeve and said, “He said these are for you, Fourth Uncle, Second Uncle, Zheng’er, and the others.”
Madam Guo closed her eyes expressionlessly. After a long moment, she said, “Silang and Mr. Peng are having tea in the flower hall. Dalang and Jiashan should go accompany the guests as well!”
Cheng Xu glanced at Cheng Jing.
But Cheng Jing kept his eyes straight ahead and respectfully replied “Yes,” then withdrew.
Cheng Xu hurried to follow him.
Madam Guo said warmly to Min Jia, “You haven’t come over for some days. I had your young aunt make some almond cream that you love most. Go have some refreshments with Asheng!”
She was clearly sending all the men and younger generation away.
Min Jia respectfully agreed and withdrew with Cheng Sheng.
Zhou Shaojin felt vaguely uneasy. Seeing Min Jia and Cheng Sheng withdraw, she quickly said, “Mother, I’ll go see how the preparations at the water pavilion are coming along.”
Madam Guo nodded.
Zhou Shaojin hurried out.
But she hadn’t even passed through the flowered partition when she heard a “smack” sound from behind. Madam Guo said sternly, “Have you become senile now that you’ve married a wife? Is Wu Shi dead or divorced? Getting married—Cheng Wen doesn’t know propriety and shame, but must you follow his example? When you saw such invitations, you should have driven the person delivering them out the door! Yet you actually accepted them. Not only did you accept them, you even brought them to Chaoyang Gate! Are you not satisfied with how comfortably the family has been living and want to stir up trouble for everyone to criticize? Go burn these invitations right now!”
Yuan Shi was scolded mercilessly.
She hadn’t expected Madam Guo’s reaction to be so intense. In a panic, she took the invitations to go burn them.
How could Chenxiang and the others dare let her do it herself? They quickly took them from her.
Yuan Shi murmured her thanks and lowered her head to apologize to Madam Guo: “Mother, this matter was my foolishness. I will never act on my own again. From now on, I’ll ask you about everything first!”
“Why would you need to ask me about things?” Madam Guo said with a cold laugh. “You’ve been married into our family for over thirty years now. You’re about to become a grandmother yourself, having married off your own son. But look at what you’ve done! Even if I wanted to give you face, you’d have to give me some justification, wouldn’t you? You still need me to point out such small matters to you even now. What am I supposed to do?”
Yuan Shi couldn’t help but say quietly in her defense, “The Wu family doesn’t agree to let Wu Shi be completely divorced. Wu Shi has no son. She’s been sent back to Jinling to keep Wen’s great-aunt company—what future could she possibly have? But that Miss Kang the Sixth is different. I heard she took over the family business at fourteen. The reason her uncle protects her is because she’s too formidable. If they tear off all pretenses, her uncle will only suffer losses…”
“So you’re afraid that Miss Kang the Sixth will gain power if she bears a son? So you’re acting like an ignorant, unreasonable woman, flattering the powerful and trampling the weak?” Madam Guo glared angrily. “You are the wife of a Grand Secretary, a third-rank Lady of Imperial Favor. Yet you’re afraid of offending a merchant woman! If that’s what you think, you might as well have Dalang retire and go do business with the Kang family—a Grand Secretary becoming a merchant would certainly be profitable.”
Yuan Shi’s face flushed crimson with shame. She quickly said, “Mother, I didn’t mean that. I just felt that the stronger one’s relatives are, the more help they can provide…”
“Bah!” Madam Guo said contemptuously to Yuan Shi. “That depends on what kind of help! Qu Yuan was Gao Yao’s father-in-law! What help could the Kang family, who can’t even show their faces in proper society, possibly give you? If you still can’t distinguish right from wrong or understand priorities, I think you shouldn’t manage this household anymore, lest you bring trouble to Dalang. Better to have Jiashan’s wife take charge of the household affairs sooner rather than later!”
“Mother!” Yuan Shi’s face turned deathly pale.
If Min Jia had a child at this time, handing over the household management could be explained as becoming a grandmother who wanted to dote on grandchildren. But now Min Jia showed no signs of pregnancy at all and was at the stage of recuperating her body to try to conceive. What would it mean for her to hand over household management to Min Jia?
Never mind others—even the Min family would point at her back and say she mistreated her daughter-in-law, that Min Jia’s continued childlessness after marriage was because she as the mother-in-law had been causing obstacles!
Madam Guo was too tired to say more to her and was about to dismiss her when a young maid announced through the curtain that Qiu Shi had arrived with Abao and Aren.
“Show them in quickly.” Madam Guo smiled as she instructed the young maid, but withdrew her smile as she said to Yuan Shi, “Your sister-in-law and nephew-grandson are coming. Go greet them!”
Yuan Shi breathed a sigh of relief and quickly turned to lift the curtain.
Zhou Shaojin, Cheng Sheng, and Min Jia hadn’t gone far and were greeting Qiu Shi. Seeing Yuan Shi come out with a smile, they felt relieved and surrounded Yuan Shi and Qiu Shi as they entered the room.
But this matter wasn’t over yet.
After lunch, when Madam Guo returned to her room for an afternoon rest, she called Cheng Jing to accompany her.
On the way, Madam Guo said to her eldest son, “Cultivating oneself, managing one’s family, bringing peace to the realm—now that you’re a cabinet minister, you should also pay attention to household affairs. Like today, what was the point of bringing over Fifth Branch’s invitations?”
Cheng Jing said guiltily, “Mother, it’s all my fault. I’ll speak to her properly when I return.”
Madam Guo shook her head and said, “It seems I still didn’t teach you well—when you arrived, you were in high spirits, but your wife was exhausted. Didn’t you think about what she’s been busy with these days? If it’s about Fifth Branch’s affairs, then you shouldn’t have allowed it even more. For some matters that women can’t decide, you should help her make decisions. Some things aren’t things people are born knowing how to do. Just because these are inner household matters doesn’t mean you shouldn’t care about them at all. In this regard, you’re not as good as your two younger brothers—look at Erlang. Whatever Qiu Shi has to deal with, she asks him to decide. Though this has its drawbacks, their household is peaceful, the couple is harmonious, the children are filial, and they don’t make mistakes in important matters. Needless to say about Silang—his wife is a motherless girl, even less capable than Qiu Shi. But look at now—though there are shortcomings in small household matters, they’ve never been confused about important things. As the saying goes, teach your son in the hall, teach your wife at the bedside. You need to think this through carefully. Don’t let rear courtyard matters drag down your front hall.”
Cheng Jing repeatedly said “Yes.”
Madam Guo didn’t know whether he had taken it to heart and sighed deeply.
The rear garden, however, was lively.
The children were boating on the lake. The lively and active Cheng Sheng pulled Min Jia onto a boat as well. The two of them were clumsy, and the boat spun around by the shore for ages without moving away, making Zhou Shaojin, Cheng Zheng, and Cheng Xiao, who were watching from the covered walkway by the shore, laugh uncontrollably. Cheng Zheng said even more bluntly, “And you said we few were boring. We just rarely have such leisure time and wanted us sisters to sit and chat. That’s all.” As she spoke, she called to Cheng Xiao and Zhou Shaojin, “Let’s go boating too.”
Yun Ge’er was still small and had gone with Li Shi and Zong Jin to take an afternoon nap. But You Jin was full of energy and was having so much fun playing with Abao and Gu Zhong that she didn’t want to leave. Her wet nurse sat with her, accompanying her and several others as they boated.
Seeing Cheng Sheng come ashore and board a boat, standing at the edge of the boat, she called to Zhou Shaojin: “Second Sister, Second Sister! You come boat too. Boating is so fun!”
The wet nurse smiled and held her hand, afraid she would run around.
Zhou Shaojin rarely encountered such moments either. She turned to look toward Cheng Chi, who was sitting in the pavilion by the water pavilion.
Felt blankets were spread in the pavilion. Cheng Chi, Cheng Shao, Gu Xu, Yuan Ming, Peng Zao, Cheng Xu, and Cheng Rang sat around the tea table in the pavilion, talking and drinking tea. Cheng Rang, being the youngest, conscientiously made tea for everyone. Though their expressions couldn’t be seen clearly, everyone’s posture was quite relaxed, and the atmosphere looked good.
Zhou Shaojin felt reassured and smiled as she agreed. “Alright. I’m not very good at rowing, so Azheng will have to teach me.”
Cheng Zheng smiled and nodded.
But Cheng Xiao said, “Why doesn’t Aunt ask me?”
Zhou Shaojin was taken aback.
Cheng Xiao smiled and said, “Among us sisters, I’m the best at rowing, and I can even swim.”
“Really?” Zhou Shaojin’s eyes widened. “How did you learn to swim?”
“I learned from a servant woman when I was young,” Cheng Xiao said with a smile. “Back then I didn’t understand things and insisted on learning. Grandmother had someone teach me.”
Cheng Zheng added with a laugh from the side, “Don’t let her quiet demeanor fool you—she’s quite bold. Back then, none of us dared go in the water, but she made such a fuss about it.”
Cheng Xiao smiled with pursed lips and was the first to board the boat, then stood at the stern to help Cheng Zheng and Zhou Shaojin onto the boat.
The boat swayed. Zhou Shaojin sat down carefully.
Cheng Xiao smiled at Cheng Sheng and said, “Asheng, why don’t we have a rowing race? Whoever reaches that white pagoda over there first wins. How about it?”
“No, no,” Cheng Sheng said with a laugh. “You have three people on your side, and we only have two on ours. It’s not fair.”
Yuan Shi and Qiu Shi stood up nervously, listening, and said repeatedly, “No competing—just row the boats.”
“It’s fine!” Cheng Zheng said with a laugh. “Are you afraid they’ll fall into the water? Even if they do fall in, let them have a taste of it.” As she spoke, she laughed heartily.
“How can you be so mischievous, child!” Yuan Shi was rather helpless.
Qiu Shi laughed and said to Yuan Shi, “Weren’t we like them when we were young? We’re all mothers now. Let’s not worry about them and let them have a good time. It’s rare for these sisters to be together.”
Once girls married, there were many rules to follow.
Yuan Shi had gone through this herself.
She said no more.
Min Jia, who since learning about the matter between Cheng Xu and Zhou Shaojin had felt too ashamed to come to Chaoyang Gate, also smiled at this scene.
For a time, the atmosphere by the lake was excellent.
Zhou Shaojin suddenly stood up, looking toward the covered walkway by the shore with a grave expression.
Cheng Zheng and the others were momentarily stunned and couldn’t help but follow her gaze.
They saw Qingfeng, the attendant boy by Cheng Chi’s side, along with Scholar Wu, Cheng Shao’s advisor, running toward the pavilion where Cheng Chi and the others were seated.