After Xianglan struck Second Aunt Lu with the door bolt and publicly exposed the stolen clothes, humiliating her, Second Aunt Lu was furiously pacing in her room. She was waiting for Second Uncle Lu to return from his duties so she could make her tearful complaint. Just as she was grinding her teeth in anger, she heard the door and a voice asking, “Is anyone home? Young Lady Chunyan has returned!”
Second Aunt Lu hurriedly opened the door to find her eldest daughter Chunyan standing there, wearing a lotus-colored jacket embroidered with chrysanthemum patterns. Her hair was adorned with a gold pearl-drop ornament and two agate hairpins, jade earrings dangled from her ears, and gold-silver twisted bracelets adorned her wrists. She looked quite affluent, though somewhat haggard beneath thick layers of powder and rouge. Beside her stood an elderly woman, and behind them was a seven or eight-year-old serving girl carrying a bundle.
Second Aunt Lu was overjoyed, clapping her hands and exclaiming, “Who would have thought? Our phoenix has come home!” She invited them inside and moved to pour tea for the elderly woman.
Chunyan pulled some money from her sleeve and pressed it into the elderly woman’s hand, affecting an air of dignity as she said, “Thank you, Mother Wang. Please wait with the little maid by the carriage. Here’s some money for wine.”
The elderly woman beamed at the money and left with the young maid. After the door closed, Second Aunt Lu asked, “Why have you come home so suddenly? Your timing is perfect – you won’t believe what just happened…”
But before she could continue, Chunyan burst into tears with a loud wail. Startled, Second Aunt Lu questioned her urgently. Covering her face with a handkerchief, Chunyan just shook her head while crying. Second Aunt Lu led her to the inner room and sent the three children out to play. Only then did Chunyan wipe her tears and say, “That little hussy Yingge is one month pregnant!”
Yingge was also a bedchamber maid of Young Master Lin Jinlou. Though she had become his companion two months after Chunyan, she always managed to outdo her. Second Aunt Lu was still processing this information when Chunyan continued bitterly, “It’s not fair! Among the Young Master’s three bedchamber maids, how am I inferior to that little tramp in looks or figure? Even the Young Mistress favors me more than the others, treating me with special kindness. The Young Master used to love me too, giving me jewelry and clothes, until that little vixen bewitched him. She just knows how to sing a few tunes to please men – she’s no better than a common prostitute. Making her a Favored Concubine would only bring shame to the Lin family!”
Second Aunt Lu asked, “What did the Young Mistress say about her pregnancy?”
Chunyan replied tearfully, “What can the Young Mistress say when she has been childless for four years? The Old Madame has already sent rewards, assigned two elderly matrons and two married women to care for that little tramp, plus two serving girls for menial tasks – she’s almost as privileged as a young lady! And there’s money and jewelry too – brand-new gold headdresses and gold-silver bracelets. They say as long as she delivers the child, boy or girl, she’ll be elevated to Favored Concubine…” She fell face-down on the kang, wailing.
Second Aunt Lu grew anxious upon hearing this. Yingge’s parents also served in the mansion, and while there had been no issues before since both families’ daughters became the Young Master’s companions, they had become bitter rivals, exchanging cold remarks and veiled insults, even coming to blows several times – their hatred ran deep. If Yingge became a Favored Concubine first, Second Aunt Lu would lose more face than from Xianglan’s door bolt beating. She patted Chunyan’s back, saying, “Since that little whore is pregnant, she can’t serve the Young Master. Quickly win his heart, spend a few nights with him, and have a son soon – then you can become a Favored Concubine too!”
Chunyan sat up, wiping her tears, “It’s not that simple. The Young Master is rarely home, always traveling between the capital and Yangzhou. When he is home for a few days, he either calls for that flirt with Huamei or goes to Yingge’s room. He’s cold toward me, not even showing respect to the Young Mistress. These days he’s in the capital, and I heard the Elder Madame has arranged another proper concubine for him there – a beautiful and gentle one. Even the Young Mistress was stunned when she heard this. She held my hand and said, ‘Yanr, though we’re mistress and servant, we’re like sisters. Even my dowry maids aren’t as close to me as you are – we have a special connection. I never liked how seductive Yingge acts, but now you and I are in the same situation. I can accept that the Young Master doesn’t favor me, but I had hoped my favorite would catch his eye. Who knew you’d end up suffering too.’
“This made me angry, and I told the Young Mistress, ‘That loose woman Yingge even dares to bully you now. You’re such a virtuous lady – I can’t stand for this!’ But the Young Mistress cried and said, ‘We must endure it, whether we like it or not. What can I do when I can’t bear a child? Now they’ve found him another concubine in the capital, supposedly a scholar’s daughter of exceptional beauty. There will be even less place for us two. Yingge is in the Young Master’s heart now – you’d better avoid crossing her, or you’ll only bring trouble on yourself…'”
As she spoke, Chunyan drank the warm tea Second Aunt Lu offered in one gulp, tossed aside her tear-soaked handkerchief, and pulled out a fresh one from her sleeve to dab at her eyes. “So many people in the mansion are waiting to laugh at me, and Yingge keeps parading around, holding her waist and rubbing her belly in front of me! She’s always demanding fish or chicken, complaining the food is too salty or the soup too bland. The kitchen scrambles to please her, afraid of neglecting her needs. I can barely get a decent meal without facing cold looks… No matter how upset I am, I have to keep smiling. If I didn’t come home to cry it out, I couldn’t go on…”
Second Aunt Lu paced anxiously. Their family’s future depended on their eldest daughter’s position. If she lost the Young Master’s favor, the Lu family’s good fortune would end, especially since Yingge’s family was their enemy. If they were outdone in everything, not just her daughter but their whole family would lose their footing. She clicked her tongue and asked, “Can’t the Young Mistress, powerful as she is, do something?”
Chunyan raised her eyebrows, “What could she do? It’s not like we can transfer the child from Yingge’s belly to mine?”
Second Aunt Lu thought for a moment, her expression darkening, “Even if we can’t put it in your belly, we can stop her from delivering it!”
“What do you mean?” Chunyan leaned forward, noting her mother’s sinister expression.
“Your Third Grand-aunt was a midwife in the mansion, and I served under her briefly when I worked there. There are many ways to prevent a pregnant woman from delivering – tiger medicine, miscarriage needles, conflicting foods – add two or three special ingredients, and that little tramp will suffer plenty.”
Chunyan was startled, feeling her hair stand on end. She whispered, “If we’re caught…”
Second Aunt Lu snorted, “Who would catch us if we’re careful? Do you think the Old Madame and other ladies are innocent? Great households are filthy inside – everyone has blood on their hands.” She gripped Chunyan’s hand earnestly, “My good daughter, I’ve known since you were little that you were different from your sisters – beautiful and clever. Now you’re the Young Master’s companion, about to become half a master of the Lin family, and the Young Mistress favors you – this is a heaven-sent opportunity! Your parents’ future, your siblings’ lives, and your lifelong status all depend on these few years. Your Third Uncle runs an herbal medicine shop. I’ll ask him to prepare some special medicine… Heh, one kind for that little tramp to eat, another for you to secretly put in the Young Master’s tea. I guarantee he’ll favor you more at night.”
Chunyan’s face first went pale, then flushed red. Second Aunt Lu tucked her loose hair behind her ear, whispering, “The first month is the most unstable, easiest time for a miscarriage…”
When Chunyan left home, she was refreshed, her hair newly arranged, her face evenly powdered, though her eyes remained slightly swollen. Xianglan was carrying a wooden basin to dump dirty water when she saw Chunyan at the courtyard gate turning to speak with Second Aunt Lu. She quickly hid behind the grape trellis.
She had seen the Lu family’s eldest daughter least often. When she had lived at Jingyue Temple, and by the time she returned to secular life, Chunyan had already been serving as a maid in the mansion for several years. She vaguely remembered Chunyan as a pretty girl and had once remarked to Miss Xue how surprising it was that such a crooked bamboo as Second Aunt Lu could produce such a fine shoot. Miss Xue had replied that Second Aunt Lu had once been beautiful too, but after having children, she had become as fat as a sow.
Looking at Chunyan now, her wealthy attire made her even prettier than before. Her once fresh and delicate face was thickly painted, adding a seductive air, and her willowy waist swayed like a true bedchamber maid who served with her beauty. Xianglan pursed her lips, remembering the gossip that Chunyan spent almost all her allowance and master’s gifts on fashionable expensive clothes and beautiful hairpins, only bringing home the clothes and ornaments she didn’t want for her parents and siblings. Xianglan thought, if she gave more money to help her family, why would Second Aunt Lu need to steal from their household daily?
Watching Chunyan leave in her carriage, Xianglan shook her head, threw out the basin water, and went back inside.