Eleventh Miss took out the Hundred Longevities embroidery that Master Jian had stitched and spread it flat on the table, then looked at her own work on the embroidery frame — barely half completed — and let out a quiet sigh.
“Miss, should we still continue embroidering?” Dongqing said hesitantly.
“Of course we continue.” Eleventh Miss smiled. “Though neither my skill nor my speed can compare to Master Jian, have you noticed — are the ‘longevity’ characters I am stitching now not markedly improved compared to the ones I embroidered at the very beginning?”
Dongqing brought the lamp close and examined it carefully for some time, then nodded: “They are different from before — it feels as though your stitches are more even and finer than they used to be…”
Eleventh Miss nodded and smiled: “That is precisely why this has also been an opportunity to refine my embroidery skill!”
Dongqing smiled and said: “Then Miss should sleep earlier tonight — with Master Jian’s Hundred Longevities to fall back on, you will at least have something to present when the time comes.”
These days, staring day and night at a space of mere inches, her eyes had begun to ache. No wonder so many embroiderers went blind before they were thirty — this was truly a livelihood that consumed one’s youth. For someone like Master Jian — going to the homes of the wealthy to teach needlework as a specialty — though it was not a bad path, the demands on embroidery skill were exceedingly high…
Turning this over in her mind, Eleventh Miss said with a laugh: “Let us sleep early tonight — at any rate, it is the fifteenth of the first month, the Lantern Festival. While others are out celebrating, let us at least give ourselves a small holiday!”
Dongqing covered her mouth and laughed, then arranged for Zhuxiang to keep the night watch, personally attended to Eleventh Miss until she had settled in for the night, and only then returned to her own quarters.
After Hupo’s arrival, Dongqing and Binju had given up the room by the window to her. Hupo had also tried to decline, but Dongqing and Binju were not only accustomed to sharing a room, they also maintained a certain wariness toward Hupo, and so refused persistently, ending up crowded together with Qiuju and Zhuxiang.
When she walked in, both Binju and Qiuju were still awake, curled up together on Binju’s bed looking through her collection of embroidery patterns, debating which style of decorative border would look best on the embroidered pleated skirts for next year’s spring garments.
Seeing Dongqing come in, Qiuju immediately jumped nimbly off the bed to greet her: “Is Miss asleep?”
Dongqing nodded.
Qiuju brought her water to wash her face: “What did Master Jian send to Miss?”
Dongqing laughed: “Just a letter to ask after Miss.”
Qiuju’s eyes shone with envy: “Miss and Master Jian have such a wonderful bond!”
“Naturally.” Dongqing smiled. “Otherwise, with so many students learning embroidery from her, why would she pass the rare technique of ‘double-sided embroidery’ to our miss alone?”
Qiuju nodded and said: “Dongqing sister, do you think — if I serve Miss well and ask her to have Master Jian pass that technique to me as well, would Miss agree?”
“That I can’t say for certain!” Dongqing laughed. “But whenever someone in the household comes to ask Miss for guidance in needlework, she always helps wholeheartedly. If you’re truly interested, why not ask Miss one day!”
Qiuju nodded, and was about to say more when Binju, from beside them, smiled and said: “It’s getting late. Dongqing sister has to attend to Miss and help with the embroidered screen first thing tomorrow morning — let’s all say less and rest now.” As she spoke, she began gathering up the scattered patterns covering the bed.
Qiuju gave a murmur of assent, and the three of them settled down for the night with nothing more to say.
The next morning at the fourth watch, the sky still utterly dark, Nanny Xin and Nanny Tang had already risen and started the hot water in the small kitchen beside the side room. At the fourth watch and third quarter, Eleventh Miss was up; Binju attended to her washing and grooming; Qiuju had already prepared white congee; Eleventh Miss ate a small bowl of congee with a dish of preserved bamboo shoots and a dish of pickled cucumber, and then seated herself at the embroidery frame to begin stitching.
As the light outside the window slowly brightened, a junior maid came to announce: “Eleventh Miss, First Madam asks that you come to Zhiyun Hall at once.”
Eleventh Miss was astonished.
What could First Madam want with her at this hour?
Puzzled at heart, yet her hands and feet did not dare slow for a moment. She had Dongqing reward the junior maid with a handful of honey-pulled sweets, went inside to change her clothes, and then took Hupo with her to First Madam’s quarters.
Walking beneath the eaves, she heard the sound of Fifth Miss’s bright, cheerful laughter.
It seemed First Madam was in excellent spirits.
Eleventh Miss’s heart settled slightly. Beside her, the junior maid had already lifted the curtain and announced: “Eleventh Miss has arrived!”
The voices inside fell quiet, and Eleventh Miss stepped in.
First Madam sat smiling on the daybed in the main hall, dressed in a lilac-colored gown with a pattern of butterflies among grape vines. Fifth Miss, in a moon-white jacket with bamboo-joint patterning, stood at the side of the daybed with the graceful, swaying poise of willow branches in a breeze; the smile had not yet left her face, and gladness still played at the corners of her lips and the tips of her brows.
Seeing Eleventh Miss enter, she covered her mouth and laughed: “We were just talking about you, and here you are!”
Eleventh Miss stepped forward, smiling, and paid her respects to First Madam.
First Madam pointed to a brocade stool beside the daybed: “Sit!”
Eleventh Miss sat down lightly on the edge of the brocade stool.
Fifth Miss, unable to contain her eagerness, smiled: “Eleventh Sister, Mother is going to take us to Yanjing to visit Elder Sister.”
Eleventh Miss looked at First Madam in startled disbelief.
First Madam was quite pleased by Eleventh Miss’s surprise, and nodded with a smile: “Before the new year, your eldest sister sent a nanny to pay her respects. She said that your paternal grandparents have already passed away, and that First Master, if he is to await his post in Yanjing, while your eldest brother is also planning to enter the Imperial Academy to study — taking this opportunity, she invited me to make the trip to Yanjing so that the family might reunite.” As she spoke, First Madam let out a sigh. “Come to think of it, since your eldest sister was married out, more than ten years have passed without my seeing her. I do miss her terribly. When she put it to me like that, I was truly moved to go. Yet your eldest sister, worried I would be reluctant to leave the household affairs behind, kept writing to urge me to come to Yanjing. When I considered it, the fourth month happens to fall on the birthday of Madam Xu of the Xu household — it would be fitting for me to go and offer my congratulations. Thinking it would be rather dull to go alone, I decided to bring the two of you along to broaden your horizons a little.”
So the thing that had to come had finally come…
Eleventh Miss’s heart actually grew calm.
“Eleventh Sister,” Fifth Miss said with a face full of delight, “what good fortune has fallen upon us.”
Eleventh Miss let an expression of hesitation cross her face and murmured: “But the screen isn’t finished yet…”
First Madam laughed: “I had originally intended to send gifts only — now that I am bringing you both to offer birthday congratulations in person, the gifts I had prepared before would seem rather meager. The screen can be set aside for now!”
Eleventh Miss said respectfully: “Yes.”
“We will set out once the new year has been celebrated,” First Madam said with a smile. “Go and make your preparations. If there is anything to be added or arranged, just have Nanny Xu help with the purchasing.”
Eleventh Miss stood up with a smile: “Mother has given me so many gifts over the years — in my view, there is nothing much that needs purchasing. Only, my eye for such things is limited, and I would like to ask Nanny Xu to come and look over my belongings — in case anything is not quite right. After all, we are going to visit Elder Sister and pay birthday respects to Elder Sister’s mother-in-law; propriety and appearances must be observed.”
First Madam nodded again and again: “My child, you are right. This is not a matter that concerns you alone — there is your eldest sister’s reputation to consider as well.” With that, she called Nanny Xu directly: “Send for the manager of the Old Auspicious Fortune shop and have some new head ornaments and jewelry added for both Misses.”
Nanny Xu smiled and agreed.
Eleventh Miss asked a few more questions about what to bear in mind when traveling to the capital, and seeing that Fifth Miss was beginning to grow a little impatient at her side, she finally rose, took her leave, and returned to Lvyun Tower.
She had barely stepped through the door when the wife of Wu Xiaoquan came in right behind her.
She was carrying a small jar in her hand.
“Eleventh Miss, I have a matter I would like to ask Hupo’s help with.”
Eleventh Miss would naturally not stand in her way, and said with a smile: “Nanny, whatever you need, just tell her directly.”
“It’s nothing else.” The wife of Wu Xiaoquan pointed to the small jar in her hand. “Knowing that you are going to Yanjing, I was hoping Hupo could help carry this jar of pickled dried fish to Madam Lu Yonggui — she is the First Young Mistress’s personal accompanying maid.”
Eleventh Miss showed a look of difficulty: “I don’t yet know how First Madam intends to arrange things…”
Before she could finish, the wife of Wu Xiaoquan had already smiled and said: “First Madam is taking Nanny Xu with her. The inner courtyard affairs have been entrusted to Nanny Yao, and the outer courtyard to our household. Lianqiao is unwell and will be staying home. Luoqiao, Shanhu, and a few others will all be going. You and Fifth Miss will each bring two senior maids, two junior maids, and two coarser-duty matrons…”
Eleventh Miss laughed bitterly inwardly.
Her quarters had three senior maids. Hupo, having been given by First Madam, would have to be brought along without question. No wonder the wife of Wu Xiaoquan had come to ask Hupo to carry something.
“Since it is as you say, let us have Hupo help with this errand.” The wife of Wu Xiaoquan had already spoken so plainly that to refuse further would only cause her to think badly of them. “Only — how will we find this Lu Yonggui when the time comes? You know as well as we do — we are, after all, female guests, and we are going to visit the Luo Family…”
“Miss need not worry — I would never do anything so foolish.” The wife of Wu Xiaoquan laughed quickly. “This Lu Yonggui manages the properties that came with the First Young Mistress’s dowry. He is often out and about and seldom at home. The journey to Yanjing takes more than twenty days; by the time you arrive, it will already be early spring, and he will likely have set out long ago. When you get there, just have Dongqing pass it to Lu Yonggui’s younger brother, Lu Yongfu. Lu Yonggui’s father was once the head manager of the accounts office. Our household’s man was looked after considerably by the old man in those early days, and so the two families are on very close terms. The last time Lu Yonggui came back to Yuhang, he said there was nothing he missed more than this pickled dried fish; I had actually promised to pickle some for him, but with Yanjing being so far away, there was no one to send it with. It was only when I heard that you would be going along that I had this idea.”
What a roundabout story it turned out to be…
Eleventh Miss smiled: “And how are we to find this Lu Yongfu?”
The wife of Wu Xiaoquan laughed: “He is now a minor manager in the stables of the Marquis Yongping’s Residence — that is in the outer compound. When you get there, just ask one of the stable boys and they will know at once.”
Eleventh Miss agreed with a smile and had Dongqing put the item away.
Binju then teased the wife of Wu Xiaoquan: “If we can’t find him, we’re not giving it back — we’ll eat it ourselves.”
The wife of Wu Xiaoquan laughed: “Ladies, feel free to eat all of it. I have plenty more.”
Everyone burst into laughter.
…
By the afternoon, news that Fifth Miss and Eleventh Miss would be accompanying First Madam to Yanjing had spread through the household.
Yet the mood in Eleventh Miss’s quarters was somewhat subdued.
Two senior maids were to be brought — two junior maids, two coarser-duty matrons… The junior maids and the matrons were straightforward enough. But which of the senior maids should go?
Eleventh Miss decided to go to First Madam’s quarters.
After all, those words had come only from the wife of Wu Xiaoquan… Even if First Madam truly intended it so, so long as she had not yet made the announcement, there was still an opportunity to secure a place for someone from her household.
Having made up her mind, Eleventh Miss rose — when without warning, the curtain at the doorway was swept aside, and Tenth Sister’s face appeared, the kind of face that was equally charming whether in a frown or a smile.
“Well, well, well.” Wearing an expression of laughter born from the peak of anger, she walked slowly inside. “You really are something. Going to Yanjing…”