Zhù Ying read the document over carefully once more but found no further information. She set it gently to one side, and said to Xiao Liu, “Have it circulated for copying.”
Xiao Liu took the document and hurried out. Zhù Ying said to Xiao Huang at her side, “Go run an errand — ask Xiang An to come.”
“Yes.”
Xiang An was at the sugar mill, with Xiang Yu on one side and A’Jin on the other, each holding a small notebook and jotting things down from time to time. When word came that Zhù Ying was summoning her, Xiang An dared not delay. She said to Xiang Yu and A’Jin, “Stay here and go over the figures we just tallied — check them carefully.”
A’Jin, a person of very few words, replied simply, “Yes.”
Xiang Yu, ever curious, asked, “I wonder what it could be about? Could it be good news?”
Xiang An shot him a sideways look. “Mind your mouth.”
Xiang Yu pulled his head back. Xiang An said, “If I do not return, do not wait for me — finish your work and go eat on your own.”
“Alright.”
Xiang An hurried back to the Prefect’s office. Along the way, she asked Xiao Huang quietly, “Is something the matter?”
Xiao Huang spread his hands. “I do not know either. Who can guess what the lord is thinking?” He thought for a moment about saying that Zhù Ying had not looked particularly pleased, but then again had not looked particularly displeased either. Xiao Huang swallowed the rest of his words.
Xiang An noticed the slight shift in his expression and pressed further, “What? Is something really the matter?”
Xiao Huang replied with a look of mild puzzlement. “It does not seem like it.”
Neither of them could figure it out, but because of that slight change in Xiao Huang’s expression, Xiang An became even more unsettled. She had two older brothers, both of whom were now married, and all of her mother’s pressure had shifted squarely onto her. Whenever someone sought her out without stating the reason, she could not help suspecting it was her mother’s matchmaking envoy. Of all such matchmaking voices, Zhù Ying’s opinion was the one least possible to ignore.
With a heart full of unease, Xiang An arrived at the main office. Zhù Ying first had her sit down, then asked, “Is your second brother still at home?”
“Yes.” The moment her family was mentioned, Xiang An’s heart leapt to her throat.
Zhù Ying said, “Between your elder brother and your second brother — which do you think is better suited to staying home and keeping the household?”
Xiang An let out a quiet breath. “Elder Brother. That was decided from the time we were small — I and Second Brother are more inclined toward going out into the world.”
Zhù Ying smiled gently. “You haven’t had much of a chance to go out these past few years — you’ve been tied to the sugar mill.”
“The sugar mill is not being tied down!” Xiang An said quickly. “Having real work to do means you are not confined. I want to be out doing things.”
Zhù Ying gave a nod, drew out a document, pressed it to the desk, and slid it forward. Xiang An approached in puzzlement, picked it up, and could not help startling: “This — !”
Zhù Ying nodded. “Over these years, your siblings have done much for me. There is real credit, and real toil as well. Of course I must do my part in seeing your wishes fulfilled.”
The Xiang family’s deepest wish was for “status.” What Zhù Ying had shown Xiang An was a household registration document — the Xiang family’s registry had been transferred. For someone to enter officialdom, three generations must be examined; now that reckoning could begin from Xiang An’s own generation.
Xiang An held the document, at once glad and anxious. After a moment, she found she could not quite bring herself to smile. She ought to be rejoicing for her family — but what about herself? If the family were no longer registered as merchants, would she still be able to go about freely in public?
Throughout Fulu County and beyond, the local gentry were all happy to seek a share of profit from commerce — but they always needed a pretext. Lin Ba’lang, for instance, had gone to Gu Tong’s jurisdiction under the name of “traveling for study and recreation,” thus preserving the advantageous status that allowed one to seek office, while also partaking in commercial profits. This was the way of things throughout all of Wuzhou.
Even so, there was not a single household that had a woman managing affairs in public — unless she was a widow. It was actually in merchant families that it was more convenient for a woman to step forward and handle certain matters.
Before, the question of status had been a worry shared by the whole family. Now it had become her problem alone. Her mother had already been urging her to marry and settle down — and now there was all the more cause for that talk.
These thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant. She lowered her head and put the household registration away carefully. Composing herself, Xiang An looked up at Zhù Ying, her thoughts moving swiftly. She took the document in both hands and stepped back three paces, then knelt in a deliberate and formal bow. “This girl’s whole family kowtows in gratitude for the lord’s generous support.”
Zhù Ying said, “Rise.”
Xiang An stood. She hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not speak the words of appeal that had formed in her mind. She waited for Zhù Ying to say, “Go share this news with your family, and also ask your elder brother to come by — as soon as possible.”
“Yes.”
Zhù Ying glanced at her and asked, “What plans do you and your family have going forward?”
Xiang An’s heart tightened. She said quickly, “When the lord helped us siblings avenge our father’s death, we swore to follow the lord always. My resolve will never change because of shifting circumstances — not even if the family has now changed its registry, or even if we have a bit more money.”
Many faces flashed through Xiang An’s mind — Zhu Dajie, the two Miss Jiangs, older sister Hu, Su Mingluan. She pressed on at once: “My second brother and I came to the lord’s side not for the sake of this piece of paper. Everything the Xiang family has today is owing to the lord’s support. What I say holds, and I stand by it. There is Elder Brother at home, and Second Brother has also married and started his own household — there is nothing holding me back.”
Zhù Ying asked, “And if I were to be transferred away from Wuzhou?”
“It would be the same! The sugar mill was given to our family by the lord in the first place. When Elder Brother is away, there is still A’Yu — that youngster may be young, but with the managers’ help he can keep things going. His younger brothers are growing up fast too. It will all be fine.”
Zhù Ying said, “You still need to inform your family.”
Xiang An said, “My lord… I… I do not want to go home… and get… married… The household registration has been changed now. Things will be different for someone who wants to get married. I do not want to be the sort of person who stands at the door gazing into the distance, waiting.”
Zhù Ying said, “Send word home, and ask your second brother to come here. Let us have a talk.”
“Yes.”
——
When news reached the Xiang household, the family broke into another round of joy. Xiang An’s mother and the others spoke of going to thank Zhù Ying; Elder Sister-in-law Xiang busied herself preparing gifts; Second Sister-in-law Xiang counted on her fingers, calculating how many generations it would be — her son’s generation, or her grandson’s — before someone in the family could begin seeking an official position.
In their eyes, all the “gentry households” of Fulu County were full of promise. Their family had risen over the past decade: they had money, they had bought considerable land, and by any measure they could count themselves among the gentry. They had also formed a connection with the Prefect — how could there not be some hope?
Even if this generation could not become officials themselves, becoming an Honored Lady or Honored Lord would do just fine!
Xiang An’s mother pulled her son aside and asked, “I also want to go up to the prefectural city — is that alright?”
Xiang Le asked, “Why wouldn’t it be? What does Mother want to do?”
“For Third Daughter,” Xiang An’s mother said. “The lord has done much for our family, and you two say you will follow the lord — I gave my blessing to that as well. Third Daughter is different from you — she is a girl! When she was young it was one thing, but she is getting older with each year. Should the lord not have something to say about it?”
Xiang Le was thoroughly startled. “What do you want the lord to ‘say about it’? The lord is an upright and honorable person — how can you bring the lord into this kind of talk?”
Xiang An’s mother said, “I haven’t said anything! But when I’m gone, you and your elder brother will both have your own households, and she’ll be an old maid with a cold stove and cold pots — that will simply not do! As long as she has somewhere to belong, we can keep on showing our gratitude — the two aren’t at odds!”
Xiang Le said, “That is a matter for our family — it is not right to drag the lord into it. The lord is kind and virtuous, and is not someone to be spoken of carelessly by others.”
Xiang An’s mother said, “I’ll just stay home and… fine, fine, I’ll stop. But Third Daughter…”
Xiang Le said, “That has to be up to Third Daughter. It’s not proper for the lord to play matchmaker.”
“I just fear she has other notions in her head.”
“Let’s go see her first.”
“Write to your elder brother — let him know about this.”
“Alright.”
That evening, Xiang Le wrote a letter to his elder brother in the capital. The next day, he set off with his mother to the prefectural city. He had a room at the Prefect’s office, but he did not bring his mother inside the office compound — instead, he first settled her in a house of their own outside the compound. Xiang Le, after seeing his mother settled in, had someone call his sister back.
When she came home this time, the family had another big uproar.
Mother and son and daughter, having sent the servants away, first spoke about the matter of the household registration — on this point there was no dispute. Then Xiang An’s mother brought up the old subject again: a daughter must get married. “Unless you have someone in mind? If there’s someone in your heart, just tell us. What can’t be said to your own mother?”
Xiang An knew full well what sort of person her mother was; she did not waste words on her. She reached up, grabbed her own hair, rummaged through a sewing basket, pulled out a pair of scissors, swept up her long hair, and began to cut.
Xiang Le said, “Don’t — !”
Both siblings had some martial skill; after a tussle and a struggle, one side of Xiang An’s hair had been hacked to resemble something a dog had chewed, and her left hand was cut. Xiang Le had a gash running from his forearm to the back of his hand, bleeding freely.
Both rummaged for bandages and medicine, tended to their wounds, and got themselves sorted. Xiang An’s mother stood with tears in her eyes. “What a torment! You are a well-bred girl from a proper family — without a name or a title, what do you think you’re doing? We’ve suffered through all these years together, and now that we can finally see the light — what on earth are you thinking?”
Xiang An was so furious her neck and face went red as fire. “Is this the sort of thing a mother should say? I am perfectly clean and upright — what title do I need? Look at your elder daughter-in-law: Elder Brother went to the capital, and she stays home to manage the household. If you swapped them around, would you be willing? And look at your second daughter-in-law — Second Brother treats her well enough, doesn’t he? But if she wanted to go out and do business and manage the family’s affairs, would you allow it?
“Once you have a husband’s household, there is not one less task to do at home! In the end, it all amounts to the same thing — being supported by a man’s household. They say a woman manages the home, but every coin spent and every item bought still has to be accounted for to someone else. Eat two extra mouthfuls and you are called a greedy wife with a bottomless stomach. I cannot bear that!
“I manage my own affairs now, and I make my own decisions. No one can slight me.”
Xiang Le was silent for a moment, then said, “I hadn’t even said a word yet — why are you in such a rush? Mother is getting old; it’s only because she’s thinking of you. She wants good things for you — she doesn’t wish you ill.”
Tears streamed down Xiang An’s face, but her words remained clear: “What was our family like when Father had just died? How many years has it been since then? Have you forgotten already? Back then, we swore: whoever avenged Father, we would follow that person all our lives. I am acting on my own loyalty, filial devotion, and honor. And yet you insist on taking it somewhere improper and perverse — what am I supposed to do about that?”
Seeing that both her children were hurt, Xiang An’s mother could only sigh. “Then I must see the lord myself.”
Xiang An was still reluctant, but Xiang Le said, “That’s also fine.” With his injured hand, he pressed his sister back down; Xiang An looked at the bandage on his hand and held her tongue. Xiang An found a piece of cloth to wrap around her head, both of them pulled their sleeves down to barely cover the wounds, and the whole family made their way to the Prefect’s office.
——
At the Prefect’s office, because Zhang Xiangu was not present, Xiang An’s mother could only be accompanied first by older sister Hu. The two siblings went on ahead to the main office. Along the way, they saw people coming and going inside; everyone who passed them exchanged greetings with the two siblings. Xiang Le smiled and asked, “What’s all the bustle?”
“Summoning the county magistrates — with spring planting coming, the lord has things to instruct. Second Brother, you probably haven’t heard yet — our Vice Prefect Zhang has been promoted, and there is a new Vice Prefect on the way.”
Xiang Le said quickly, “Just found out — what sort of person is the new Vice Prefect?”
“No idea — but with the lord here, it doesn’t matter who comes.”
The two siblings entered the main office. Xiang Le, just as Xiang An had done, expressed his gratitude to Zhù Ying for resolving a major matter for the Xiang family. Zhù Ying said, “Let’s skip the pleasantries for now — I took care of it when the opportunity was convenient. There is one question I must ask you both now: are you willing to leave Wuzhou?”
Xiang Le said, “We are willing to serve at the lord’s side! Wherever that may be, our hearts will not change.”
Zhù Ying pointed toward Xiang An and said, “Her situation is not so straightforward to arrange. Your mother has come as well — is that also about her?”
Xiang An said quickly, “I am the same as my brother. As for the family…”
The two siblings exchanged a glance. Xiang Le said, “My lord — Third Sister is still young. There is no urgency about marriage.”
Zhù Ying said, “I understand. I will speak with your mother. As for the two of you, begin wrapping up what you have at hand and gradually step back from it. Hand over your family affairs as well. We will be heading to the capital before long.”
Both of them were immediately energized. “Yes!” They did not ask Zhù Ying further questions, but both guessed that she was about to be promoted to a higher post.
Zhù Ying continued giving them instructions: “Have your elder brother come back too — your family cannot be left without someone looking after it.”
“Yes.”
Zhù Ying observed the Xiang siblings; clearly they had not avoided coming to blows at home. But the fact that Xiang Le could say what he had said meant a conclusion had been fought to. As long as the two of them had made up their minds, she would certainly support both of them.
She immediately assigned the siblings another task: to go to the estate and inspect the estate’s workshops, and at the same time bring a supply of goods up the mountain.
Previously, she had had Xiang An assist Zhao Zhen and the others in taking inventory of Wuzhou’s workshops, and had also brought some of the younger people from the estate down the mountain to learn various crafts — all in preparation for building corresponding workshops at the estate as well. She had originally expected to be transferred before Vice Prefect Zhang, but now Vice Prefect Zhang had gone first, and the incoming Vice Prefect was an unknown quantity; many things would need to be completed ahead of schedule.
The matter of the Xiang family’s household registration was among them.
The siblings asked no questions about the reasons, took their orders, and began preparing at once.
As for Xiang An’s mother, Zhù Ying received her in the study at the inner quarters of the residence. Xiang An’s mother’s worries were all too clear to Zhù Ying — even the way she expressed them was remarkably similar to Zhang Xiangu.
Zhù Ying measured her words carefully and said, “Your second son and third daughter are both good children — loyal and filial. The people of your family give me great peace of mind.”
Xiang An’s mother said, “That they enjoy the lord’s regard is their good fortune.”
Without giving her the chance to bring up Xiang An’s situation again, Zhù Ying added, “Those who serve by my side — I will always make proper arrangements for.”
Zhù Ying offered nothing further, and Xiang An’s mother gathered herself, turned over many memories of the past in her mind, and forced herself to say no more about Xiang An. Muttering to herself, she returned to Fulu County.
The moment their mother was gone, the two siblings felt an immediate lightness wash over them. The very next day they set off for the estate.
Zhù Ying also became busy. She did not know what manner of person the new Vice Prefect was, and since she herself would be leaving this year, she prepared for the worst — that this Vice Prefect had been sent to check her authority. That was, after all, one of the purposes for which a Vice Prefect was appointed to a prefecture by the court.
She took stock of affairs throughout the prefecture once more, and simultaneously notified the five county magistrates of the incoming new Vice Prefect. She also stopped going to the estate herself, and waited solely for the Vice Prefect’s arrival.
By the time spring planting was drawing near its close, Zhang Yun arrived!
——
Zhang Yun was around forty years of age. He looked less like a civil official than a military general — he carried a general’s paunch, had thick eyebrows and large eyes, and must have had a decent enough appearance when young; unfortunately, he was getting on in years now, and in the heat of the south, his whole head gleamed with sweat.
Zhang Yun had brought no family members with him — just six servants, including a cook and a personal attendant, a married couple.
The moment Zhù Ying set eyes on him, she knew this was a man who had never known real hardship. His hands were plump and white, without a callus, the flesh soft to look at.
Zhang Yun also sized up Zhù Ying. He had long heard of her — this was a highly capable Prefect, and young.
Now, seeing her in person, she looked not at all like someone who stirred up trouble. He was inwardly astonished: one truly cannot judge a person by appearance!
Both wore genuine smiles. Zhù Ying said, “Accommodations have been arranged for the Vice Prefect. Please have a look — if anything needs to be added or changed, just say so to the Deputy Director of Granaries and the others.”
Zhang Yun waved his hand. “Close enough will do.”
Zhù Ying also hosted a welcoming banquet for Zhang Yun. During the meal, Zhang Yun glanced twice at the two women present, but said nothing. Since Zhang Yun had come a long way, Zhù Ying gave him a few days of leave to settle in; he accepted this as well, and showed no eagerness to ask Zhù Ying to assign him duties.
Zhù Ying also kept her composure and waited. After a day of rest had passed, she brought Zhang Yun along to familiarize himself with Wuzhou’s affairs. Contrary to her expectations, Zhang Yun’s “close enough will do” on their first meeting turned out to be a perfectly accurate self-portrait. Whatever you said to him, he replied with a single “close enough will do.”
He did read the documents given to him, and he did carry out the tasks assigned to him — yet no matter what he did, he never sought to understand anything deeply, carrying the air of someone who governed entirely by doing nothing.
Zhù Ying thought to herself: the Hall of State Affairs has actually done a decent thing for once.
In a place like Wuzhou, if an official was not going to govern vigorously, then governing by doing nothing was far preferable — better that than causing pointless disruption.
Zhù Ying was quite content that Zhang Yun was not meddling in things. By the beginning of the fourth month, seeing no sign of movement from Zhang Yun, she handed the matters of the Prefect’s office over to him and announced that she was going into the mountains.
Zhang Yun, by now well aware that Zhù Ying regularly went into the mountains, asked her, “My lord — I do not need to go into the mountains myself, do I?”
Zhù Ying said, “Those are all tributary counties. If you wish to enter the mountains, it would be best to discuss it with the county magistrates first. The precedents and records are all in the local gazetteer.”
Zhang Yun nodded in understanding. “Then I shall not go.”
Zhù Ying bid him farewell at the edge of the city. Several merchants also traveled with the party on this occasion, though she did not go deep into the estate. She took the Asu line, and upon reaching Asu County, let the merchants continue on their own to trade at the estate, while she herself quietly doubled back and took shelter at Zhao Su’s home for a few days — watching to see how Zhang Yun would react: whether his apparent indifference was a performance, a ruse to catch her off-guard the moment she left, or whether “close enough will do” was simply who he was.
After half a month of staying there, Zhang Yun showed no sign of movement at all, and Zhù Ying’s mind was finally put at ease. In the fifth month, she settled in at the estate with a calm heart for another half month. From within the estate, she selected anew ten men and ten women. For her journey to the capital, all her escorts would be estate-born — and her father and mother, remaining at the estate, would also need trustworthy attendants; their current number of hands was a bit stretched.
Once the people were selected, Zhù Ying inspected the workshops. The various workshops had taken on a proper shape, and for the first time the estate had arrived at a state that gave her genuine peace of mind.
Zhù Ying came down the mountain feeling satisfied, with Xiang An and Xiang Le accompanying her. Three riders rode in the middle of the convoy, with outriders opening the way ahead and bringing up the rear. The three of them had not been able to move like this together for quite some time; Zhù Ying felt a pang of nostalgia. She planned to bring both Xiang An and Xiang Le along to the capital, as well as Qi Tai. Ideally, someone like Xiang Le ought to remain at the estate to be in charge — but the situation in the capital was complex, and she needed people around her. Nor could she go on relying on only a small number of trusted hands; once the framework was in place, and with her father and mother there and Hua Jie able to manage, those within the estate would need chances to come into their own.
In truth, Zhù Ying thought most highly of Zhù Qingjun and Wu Ren. Both were capable and practical. The pity was that Zhù Qingjun was still too young — she still had things to learn from Hua Jie. Wu Ren was quiet and reserved, not fond of dealing with people, and her whole family was in Nanping County.
As she counted up the capable people she had, Zhù Ying felt deeply regretful: if only she were allowed to serve another three years, Zhù Qingjun alone could have become half a capable aide to her. The estate would also have grown a few more usable people.
Back at the Prefect’s office, Zhang Yun was, as ever: “You are so diligent, my lord — hence such achievements. Now that Wuzhou is thriving and flourishing, why must you go on laboring so hard? Close enough will do.”
Zhù Ying smiled and said, “Force of habit — if you told me to be idle, I would not even know what to do with myself.”
Zhang Yun did not take it to heart. He did what was asked of him; during the period Zhù Ying had been away, a few cases had come in, and he had adjudicated them all. Zhù Ying came back and looked them over — his judgments were also reasonably sensible. She only wondered why this man was so thoroughly lethargic. If he were to fall conveniently ill at regular intervals on top of everything else, he would be a perfect copy of Prefect Qiu.
The two coexisted in peace — until the eighteenth day of the fifth month, when a thunderbolt crashed down on Zhù Ying’s head: the Emperor was calling her to the capital. There was no need to wait until the tenth month — she was to leave now.