Before the words were finished, Zhao Yue Chan had already walked in unsteadily, supported by her maid. She wore a pear-blossom blue light silk gown with double embroidery, adorned with matching jade ornaments of bright green on her head, ears, and hands, making her appear as pure and refreshing as a celestial consort.
Zhao Yue Chan walked straight to the bedroom, and upon stepping inside, she saw Lin Jin Lou and Qing Lan sitting intimately close together. Though her hands and feet instantly turned cold with anger, her face broke into a smile as she said, “Oh my, so Master is here. I’ve come at an awkward time.” Qing Lan hurriedly stood up to offer her seat, smiling, “Madam has come at just the right time, how could it be awkward? Xiang Lan, quick, brew some tea and bring out some fine refreshments.”
Zhao Yue Chan sat gracefully by the kang table and said, “Had I known my husband was here being intimate with my sister, I wouldn’t have dared to disturb. The servants might gossip later and say I’m not virtuous.” Qing Lan dared not remain seated, nor did she dare respond, only standing to the side.
Lin Jin Lou took a sip of tea, glanced at Zhao Yue Chan, and said, “What are you doing here?”
Zhao Yue Chan gave Lin Jin Lou a coquettish look and said, “I merely came to visit and chat, what’s wrong with that?” Though she appeared annoyed, her eyes sparkled like spring waves, full of charm. She surveyed the room, noting its luxurious furnishings, especially the curio shelf in the corner displaying gold and silver treasures. In the center of the precious cabinet stood a jade-carved Guanyin statue of the Child-Giving goddess, carved from a single piece of luminous green jade and inlaid with agate, crystal, coral, jadeite, and other jewels, gleaming brilliantly. This Guanyin was a wedding gift given to Lin Jin Lou years ago by a wealthy salt merchant from Yangzhou. She had fallen in love with it at first sight and had repeatedly hinted for Lin Jin Lou to give it to her. Lin Jin Lou had pretended not to hear, but now he had given this Guanyin to that little vixen Wang Qing Lan! By the bed stood a purple sandalwood mirror stand with gold trim and full-relief ivory carvings, looking even more valuable than the rosewood silver-inlaid mirror stand in her room. That purple sandalwood moon gate with a chrysanthemum openwork pattern had a crystal bead curtain hanging in the middle, made entirely of highly polished crystal beads, round and clean, exquisitely transparent, letting light through while keeping mosquitoes out, with each bead of identical size—extremely rare.
Zhao Yue Chan forcefully suppressed the fire in her heart and said with an ambiguous smile, “This is my first time visiting my sister’s quarters. Now that I see it, the furnishings here are even better than in my room.”
Qing Lan smiled apologetically, “Madam flatters me. How could it be so good? Though my room appears full of treasures, how could it compare to the precious things in Madam’s chambers?”
Zhao Yue Chan’s smile carried a sting as she said, “You are the apple of Master’s eye. Those fine things—who else would he favor if not you? Everything in your room was personally selected by him. No matter how precious the things in my room are, compared to Master’s affection, they’re as worthless as dirt.”
Qing Lan had never been good with words, and being stung by Zhao Yue Chan like this, she stammered, not knowing what to say.
Lin Jin Lou set his tea bowl down on the table and said, “Pour me some more tea.” Qing Lan hurriedly picked up the teapot to refill Lin Jin Lou’s cup.
Seeing Lin Jin Lou’s indifferent attitude, Zhao Yue Chan suppressed her anger and softened her voice, “Earlier, I went to Mother’s room to deliver some preserved goose feet and duck hearts I made myself. Mother mentioned you’re going out tomorrow—why didn’t you tell me about this? I could have helped prepare some clothes and supplies for you. I waited for you in my room for so long, and when you didn’t come, I felt troubled and came to chat with Sister Qing Lan.”
Lin Jin Lou said flatly, “Shu Ran and the servants have prepared everything for me.”
Zhao Yue Chan said, “They can’t know your needs as well as we do. If you don’t eat or sleep well while away, we’ll all worry, won’t we, sister?”
Qing Lan looked at Lin Jin Lou’s expression, unsure whether she should respond or not. She became nervous whenever she saw Zhao Yue Chan and simply lowered her head randomly.
Zhao Yue Chan gave a cold laugh, thinking to herself: “This little tramp isn’t as beautiful as me, and her timid personality isn’t fit for public view. What exactly has she got that’s so special? Master seems like he’s been fed a love potion, running to the east wing every other day.” Her eyes fell on Qing Lan’s swollen belly, and her hatred grew even stronger.
It turned out that Lin Jin Lou’s coldness toward her meant that every time she returned to her maiden home, her mother would pressure her to quickly bear sons and daughters. But in the current situation, how could she produce a child while sleeping alone in an empty room? These days she had deliberately restrained herself, no longer throwing tantrums, instead trying to win Lin Jin Lou over with gentleness, and hadn’t found fault with Qing Lan, but Lin Jin Lou remained cold and distant toward her. Earlier, when she heard from Madam Qin that Lin Jin Lou was going out tomorrow, she realized she knew nothing about it—now her status was lower than even a lowly concubine! She was angry, so she dressed up and came to the east wing, wanting to see what was so special about that little vixen that could bewitch the men, only to find nothing remarkable. Yet Lin Jin Lou was being dismissive of her in front of that little tramp, deliberately making her lose face!
As Zhao Yue Chan’s anger grew, Xiang Lan happened to bring in tea. This tea should have been personally served to Zhao Yue Chan by Qing Lan, but she had frozen up and didn’t move. Zhao Yue Chan’s anger intensified, and she picked up the tea bowl to create an incident, letting out an “Ah!” as she threw all the tea in Xiang Lan’s face, berating, “You thoughtless hussy, the tea is so hot, how am I supposed to hold it!”
Though the tea wasn’t boiling, it was still quite hot. Xiang Lan cried out “Ah!” and quickly covered her face, tears already rolling down her cheeks. Lin Jin Lou immediately sat up straight. Zhao Yue Chan scolded, “Get out of here!”
Xiang Lan covered her face and was about to leave when Lin Jin Lou, not even bothering to put on his shoes, got down from the kang and rushed over in a few steps, pulling Xiang Lan’s hands away from her face. He saw that her cheeks were bright red, but fortunately, there was no burn. Seeing the tears on Xiang Lan’s face and her frightened, pitiful expression, his heart ached.
Lin Jin Lou’s face was cold as he glanced at Zhao Yue Chan, then turned to Xiang Lan and said, “The First Madam was just discourteous to you. I apologize on her behalf.”
Xiang Lan was stunned and was about to kneel, but Lin Jin Lou held her arm and wouldn’t let her. He reached into his pouch with his other hand, took out a silver ingot, and pressed it into her hand: “Tomorrow, find Doctor Luo from Ji An Hall to examine you. Keep this silver for your recovery, and you don’t need to serve here until you’re healed. I’ll send someone later with some medicine for you.”
Xiang Lan looked at Lin Jin Lou with tears in her eyes, her lips moving but unable to speak words of gratitude. Lin Jin Lou gave her a slight smile, showing his snow-white teeth, then turned to Zhao Yue Chan and said, “Let’s go.” Seeing Zhao Yue Chan in a daze, he raised his sword-like eyebrows and said, “Didn’t you come here to make me return? Hurry and bring me my shoes!”
Zhao Yue Chan finally came to her senses and hurriedly helped Lin Jin Lou put on his shoes, then followed behind him as he left.
Back in her room, Xiang Lan felt both wronged and distressed, her face burning with pain. When Chun Ling and others came to inquire about what had happened, Xiang Lan only managed a couple of responses while pressing a cool towel to her face. Soon after, a young maid brought a small round box made of gold-threaded fragrant wood, saying, “This is the medicine from Master. Apply a layer when your face hurts, but don’t let it get wet.” Xiang Lan opened the lid and saw a milky-white ointment inside, accompanied by a faint herbal fragrance. When applied to her face, it felt cool and moisturizing, and the red marks immediately began to fade.
Chun Ling exclaimed in surprise, “This is Crystal Orchid Snow Cream, just bestowed from the palace during New Year. The Madam received four boxes and immediately sent one to the Old Madam. This is made from a secret palace formula—any rash or chilblain will heal with one application, but you can’t buy it anywhere.” With a jealous expression, she continued, “Master not only apologized to you and gave you silver, but even gave you the palace-bestowed cream and called for Doctor Luo from Ji An Hall to examine your injury. Doctor Luo usually only checks the pulse of the Madam and mistresses for their well-being.”
Xiao Juan said with a grin, “Just one scalding turned into such good fortune—you’ve become quite lucky!”
Yin Die said neutrally, “Though Master is good-natured and shows kindness to those beneath him if it weren’t for Young Mistress’s sake, how could you receive such face? Don’t get carried away!”
Xiang Lan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, thinking to herself: “The scalding pain is on my body, yet it’s brought a bunch of idle gossip. If any of you want to take my place, I wouldn’t even want this ‘such face’ from Master.” Then she thought: “Though Master is somewhat proud in temperament, he is quite generous. The ointment he gave me is so precious—once the marks on my face fade, I’ll return it to him.” Her face remained expressionless as she quietly put the items away.