Xiang Lan felt warmth in her heart as she held Lin Dong Qi’s hand and said, “This matter cannot be rushed. Having children is a matter of fate…”
Lin Dong Qi replied, “You are a kind person. When you first entered the Lin family, you suffered greatly. Xiao Juan and Mother Wu have told me about your past circumstances. You saved me once, and though the Madam previously had prejudices against you and didn’t treat you well, you still saved her and Fourth Sister. In this household, it’s worth noting that most people who receive such favor from my elder brother would strut around proudly. Yet you rarely take credit and always let others shine, just like at today’s banquet – you did all the work while others enjoyed the glory. I understand all of this.”
Xiang Lan sighed, “Second Young Madam, you give me too much credit. I’m merely fulfilling my duties. Though people may see me in a favorable light now, who knows what the future holds? You know Master’s temperament – I’m just taking things one step at a time. Everything I eat, drink, wear, and use belongs to the Lin family. It’s just that Master temporarily favors me, so I must know my place. How could I dare to be arrogant?”
Lin Dong Qi said, “Don’t speak like that. This is your home too. You belong to my brother’s household – isn’t it natural for you to use his provisions? You’re a sensible person, how can you say such things?”
Xiang Lan thought to herself, “I cannot remain here forever as a concubine,” but she merely smiled quietly.
Lin Dong Qi comforted her, “I know what you’re worried about. Today at the banquet, several families were inquiring about my elder brother remarrying. I’ll investigate carefully for you, and if anyone seems difficult, I absolutely won’t let them marry into the family. I’ll write to the Madam about it.”
Xiang Lan felt moved again and said, “Second Young Madam, there’s no need for such trouble. You treat me so well, I’m truly at a loss for words.”
Lin Dong Qi smiled, “Since I married here from Jinling, although I have several good friends among the young ladies in the capital, some have married far away, some have grown distant, and some have changed in temperament, making conversation difficult. It’s nice to be able to chat with you for entertainment. I know you’re a good person, and we can confide in each other. Later when I’m heavy with child and can’t go out much, you must come visit me more often.”
After talking for a while longer, Xiang Lan left her gifts and took her leave, heading toward the new bridal chamber.
Lin Dong Qi leaned against her headboard. Soon after, Xiang Yun entered and sat at the foot of the bed to massage her feet, speaking softly, “I inquired at the front – the son-in-law couldn’t hold his liquor well and has already taken hangover soup and retired. Servants are attending to him in front, so Second Madam need not worry.”
Lin Dong Qi made a sound of acknowledgment, lost in thought. After a while, she asked, “You saw both of our Lin family’s new madams today – what do you think of them?”
Xiang Yun said, “Second Madam Xuan has a beautiful appearance, though she’s rather aggressive, always needing to stand out in everything. Fortunately, Fourth Young Miss isn’t here, or those two together would make quite a drama. Third Madam Ting seems shrewd and formidable. I notice First Young Madam has changed from before – she used to speak quite harshly, but now she’s much softer, elevating others in her speech. It’s quite pleasant to hear.”
Lin Dong Qi smiled slightly and said, “If I hadn’t married well, would she speak so kindly to me? When she first married into the Lu family, she thought she had climbed to a higher branch and barely acknowledged her own family. Only after she stumbled did she realize how much her maiden family elevated her status, and then she hurried back. She wasn’t originally like this – now she has endless flattering words, which shows she must have experienced quite some bitterness behind the scenes.” After a pause, she asked, “What do you think of Xiang Lan?”
Xiang Yun replied, “She’s truly a beauty – when she stands somewhere, the whole room brightens up. No wonder Master Lin favors her exclusively.”
Lin Dong Qi sighed, “It’s unfortunate that such beauty often leads to a bitter fate. Looking at how she manages the household, she truly shows the bearing of a noble family’s daughter – generous and gracious, giving ample rewards and showing concern for those below her. These two traits sound simple but aren’t easily achieved. Some well-born young ladies are miserly with money – forget about giving rewards, split every coin in two before spending it, or they’re only generous with themselves but act like they’re cutting flesh when giving to others. Xiang Lan came from humble origins, yet remarkably doesn’t fixate on such things. Then there are those ladies and madams who don’t treat their maids and servants as human beings – either harshly berating them, falsely trying to buy their loyalty while looking down on them, or treating them like cats and dogs for amusement. Today I heard Xiao Juan endlessly praising Xiang Lan’s goodness, saying how Xiang Lan set rules that maids shouldn’t do needlework after the lamps are lit, worried it would harm their eyes.”
Xiang Yun smiled, “Xiang Lan was once a maid herself, and must have spent many nights doing needlework by lamplight under the young miss’s orders, so naturally she knows to be considerate of those below her now.”
Lin Dong Qi laughed, “Second Young Madam said the same thing at the time, but she didn’t consider that there are plenty who, once they gain status and become masters themselves, treat their servants even worse. They think that since they suffered through it, others should naturally do the same. Or they quickly put on airs of being a master, afraid of being looked down upon – wasn’t that how Hua Mei, Qing Lan, and Luan’er all behaved? Xiang Lan has won such loyalty from her servants that they willingly work hard for her. While this is partly due to their elder brother’s authority, if she didn’t have some capability herself, she couldn’t manage things so well, let alone handle someone as clever as Shu Ran. Now she’s even managing Third Brother’s wedding banquet – though conventional, it’s remarkably without fault. The better she does, the more I worry for her – what future mistress of the household would tolerate such a person…”
Xiang Yun said, “Madam sees things clearly – we don’t understand such principles.”
Lin Dong Qi said, “What use is seeing clearly? I’m far inferior to my mother – she said early on that Xiang Lan was no ordinary person. Though she appears quiet and unassuming, with that face and those schemes, when she stirs up trouble it won’t be small. I didn’t believe it at first, seeing Xiang Lan as gentle and quiet, not seeming shrewd or formidable. But look now – hasn’t it proven true? My elder brother, who used to be fickle as the Bo Lang waves, now has only her in his household, treasuring her above all.”
After the mistress and servant chatted for a while longer, Lin Dong Qi grew tired and dozed off against her pillow.
Xiang Yun quietly stepped forward, draped a thin blanket over her, extinguished the lamp, and silently withdrew.
Meanwhile, Xiang Lan went to the bridal chamber. From afar she could see it brightly lit. Since the wedding ceremony hadn’t yet taken place, Lin Jin Ting was spending the night in Lin Jin Xuan’s courtyard while the bride stayed there. When Xiang Lan entered the courtyard, she saw servants and maids moving about, with occasional laughter coming from inside. When the Lin family’s little maid saw Xiang Lan, she hurried inside to announce her, and a woman at the door lifted the curtain. Xiang Lan stepped inside to find seven or eight beautifully dressed women, with one in ceremonial robes sitting on the bed. Though beautiful and dignified, she wasn’t exceptionally striking – she had fine eyebrows, large eyes, fair skin, and a plump figure, with a round face bearing a hint of spring’s authority.
Xiang Lan thought to herself, “This must be the new bride, Lady Li, given the name Ying Ru. Her grandfather is the Right Vice Minister of Revenue, and her father serves as Deputy Magistrate in Zhejiang. She was raised by her grandfather like a son since childhood and is extremely clever. Lin Jin Lou said that because the Old Master found Second Madam Wang too soft, they sought a stronger-willed daughter-in-law this time, hoping Lin Jin Ting would have someone decisive. They say appearance reflects the heart – this Lady Li has a fiercer temperament than Tan Lu Hua.”
Lin Dong Yan was chatting with everyone when she saw Xiang Lan enter. She warmly came forward to take Xiang Lan’s arm, smiling, “Come, let me introduce our family’s beauty – she’s from my elder brother’s household and was essential in arranging today’s banquet.” She introduced each noble lady to Xiang Lan, including women from both the Lin and Li families, as well as several other families related by marriage to the Lins. Xiang Lan and Li Miao Zhi greeted each other, with Xiang Lan presenting a pair of bracelets as a gift, and Li Miao Zhi returning the gesture with a pair of hairpins.
The noble ladies came forward to chat, but Xiang Lan kept her head lowered shyly, answering only once for every four or five questions, not speaking much. After a while, she took her leave. When she returned home, she found Lin Jin Lou had already returned and was sitting inside drinking tea. Seeing Xiang Lan, he asked, “Coming back from Third Sister-in-law’s?” Xiang Lan nodded and took out her everyday clothes to change into.
Lin Jin Lou asked, “What do you think of her?”
Xiang Lan replied, “I think Third Madam seems formidable.”
Lin Jin Lou stroked his chin and said, “That’s right – she’s been well-educated in literature since childhood. When she was unmarried, everyone in her household called her ‘Brother Miao,’ and she often expressed deep resentment at heaven’s unfairness in making her a woman – otherwise, she would have taken the imperial examinations to establish her reputation. Little Third has married a formidable wife – he’ll have his hands full in the future.” After chatting for a while, they extinguished the lights and went to bed, which we’ll leave for now.
The next day, Lin Jin Ting departed early for Jinling with his wife, with everyone seeing them off – but we won’t elaborate on that. After the wedding feast, all the decorations and items used were cleaned up and put away, taking a full day to complete. Xiang Lan checked all valuable items against the inventory, collected the matching tokens, stored the remaining jarred wine in the storehouse, and distributed the leftover food, and pastries, and opened wine to the servants as rewards. Xiang Lan gave vacation time to the maids, wives, elderly women, and stewards who had worked hardest at the wedding feast, and also awarded them extra food, making everyone in the household happy. While Xiang Lan was kept busy, Tan Lu Hua was quite leisurely. She had made quite a showing at this wedding feast, and though she knew people’s fawning was due to her position as a Lin family daughter-in-law, she still felt quite pleased and even showed more patience and gentleness toward Lin Jin Xuan.
Since summer had arrived, Lin Jin Xuan’s symptoms had lessened somewhat. He spent his days sitting under the grape trellis in the courtyard reading, playing with flowers and grass, watching fish and insects, or playing chess with Tan Lu Hua – the days passed quietly. However, after a few days, Tan Lu Hua began to feel unsettled, moving about restlessly. In the middle of the night, she would recall what she had glimpsed in the back courtyard of Chang Chun Hall – two bodies entwined, that Lin Jin Lou with his broad shoulders and strong arms… Tan Lu Hua felt as if her heart was on fire. She turned to look at Lin Jin Xuan, seeing that handsome face pale and weak, thinking of how their occasional intimate relations were always hurried affairs, with Lin Jin Xuan weak in the legs the next day, showing signs of deficiency, prompting Concubine Yin to gossip – how vexing.
Tan Lu Hua heaved a long sigh, lying awake until dawn, feeling listless. After lunch, Lin Jin Xuan went for his afternoon nap, and Tan Lu Hua was playing chess with her maids when someone announced, “Third Young Master Rong from the Dai family has arrived.”