Of the twenty-four solar terms in the year, the Establishment of Winter had just passed and Minor Snow was now at hand.

The night before Minor Snow, without the faintest warning, a north wind came howling in. The windows hissed and whistled, and only gradually fell quiet toward the middle of the night, while household after household slept soundly, unaware that outside their walls the snow was already falling thick and fast like goose down.

This year’s first snowfall had come early enough, and fallen heavily enough.

At the first watch of the mao hour, Pei Shaohuai awoke. He found it odd that the roosters had not crowed today, so he rose, lit the lamp, draped on his clothing, and pushed open the window as he always did to air out the stuffiness of the room. With a creak, the moment the latch was pulled back, both shutters were pushed open by the force of the wind. A rush of cold air came pouring in without restraint, cold enough to send Pei Shaohuai into a fit of sneezing.

The wind carried snowflakes drifting in, settling on the candlestick and the writing desk, slowly melting into ice water.

Pei Shaohuai quickly pulled the windows shut and rubbed his hands to warm them. Only then did he notice that even the ink slab on the writing desk had frozen over, the small hollow of it like a pool of ink-black mirror.

Chang Zhou brought in a brazier, then brought hot water. The room gradually filled with a faint mist of steam, and slowly warmed.

“The snow this year has come truly early — and what a heavy fall it is.” Chang Zhou said with a sigh. “I went to the kitchen to fetch hot water, and when I put my foot down, it sank past my calf. Young Master, you must dress warmly if you go out today.”

He read through until broad daylight.

When morning had fully broken, Pei Shaohuai put on a water-blue patterned padded jacket, draped a cloak over his shoulders, and set out together with his younger brother Shaojin to go to the Xu household for lessons as usual.

“Are you cold?”

Pei Shaojin nodded and said, “When I was doing my morning reading, my little mother added two more braziers for me — only then did my body warm up a little.”

“This snowfall truly came far too suddenly,” Pei Shaohuai said.

The two brothers arrived at the Xu household and found Xu Yancheng directing his servants to carry braziers into the study room. Xu Yancheng said with a helpless smile, “The study room window must not have been closed tightly last night. When I came in just now, I found the ink slab had frozen with a thick layer of ice, and the writing desk was badly chilled too…”

Old Adu pushed Tutor Duan’s chair in. Tutor Duan took in the scene and said, “Never mind, never mind. ‘When Minor Snow brings snow that fills the sky, the coming year will surely be bountiful.’ In the Minor Snow solar term, one might not see such a fine, heavy snowfall in ten years. Today, why don’t we go to the half-lake pavilion at the Orchid Garden to admire the snow?”

The three young men’s faces lit up with delight.

The servants gathered up the braziers, the warm-wine stoves, and other supplies, and the carriage set off.

Passing through the market, the heavy snow did not seem to have dampened the people’s enthusiasm at all — the shops and stalls were even livelier than usual. At this time of year, frost-bitten vegetables and fruits were carted into the city load after load, quickly dispersing into every household.

As they reached the outskirts, the roadside was covered in swathes of farmland stretching far and wide, the fields blanketed in white snow as far as the eye could see. And amid the fields, many dark specks were visible. When the carriage drew near, they saw that these were farming families tilling and turning the ridges of the fields, working away with great energy.

Pei Shaohuai felt a swell of feeling in his heart: “At Minor Snow the earth is sealed but not frozen; the old farmer still turns his field.” The folk saying did not deceive — by taking advantage of the timely snow to till and turn the earth now, killing the insect eggs buried within and working the snowmelt down into the soil, one could hope for a good harvest come next year.

At the lakeside, the scenery of the Orchid Garden appeared clearer and more expansive than on ordinary days. The far side of the lake too was an expanse of white merging with the horizon, and the only thing that commanded the eye was the vermillion walls of the Orchid Garden.

Old Adu used the stove to brew some sweet wine. The faint fragrance of wine drifted out, chasing away some measure of the cold.

“You should all have a taste as well.” Tutor Duan said.

A cup of warm sweet wine going down in the cold of winter was indeed exhilarating — no wonder literary men and poets throughout history had loved warming wine, talking with pleasure, and admiring beautiful scenery.

“This is a refined pleasure,” Tutor Duan said. “A person of learning cannot be without refinement.”

Tutor Duan gazed out at the snowy scene before him and asked, “Seeing such a scene as this — which line of poetry comes first to each of your minds? …Shaojin, you go first.”

Pei Shaojin rose and bowed, replying, “In response to Tutor, this student has not grasped the spirit of the snowy scene. I could only think of the winter’s proud plum blossom, and so the line that came to mind was from Zhu Xi’s ‘Two Poems Written After the Snow’: ‘Previously buried under snow with no trace to be found, last night by moonlight it bloomed once more as before.'”

“To emerge in the cold, to bloom in the moonlit night — proud and stubborn. Excellent!” Tutor Duan said, then asked, “Yancheng, and you?”

“When it comes to snowy scenes, I can only offer the word ‘pure.’ But with the lake before us as well, it made me think of the egrets in summer — their white feathers are very much in harmony with the snowy scene — and so I thought of the line from Master Mu Zhi: ‘Startled into flight, they vanish into the blue mountains afar, like a tree of pear blossoms falling in the evening wind.'” Xu Yancheng said.

Tutor Duan evaluated this: “Excellent — what an imaginative idea.”

To look at snow and think of the white egrets of summer was truly an unusual angle, yet full of poetic charm.

It was Pei Shaohuai’s turn. He said, “The line that came to this student’s mind was: ‘A thousand mountains, and not a bird’s flight; ten thousand paths, and not a person’s trace.’ There is no mention of snow in those lines — yet the entire poem is snow.”

Tutor Duan nodded and evaluated, “Heaven and river blending into one color — a mind broad and boundless.”

Tutor Duan continued, “Taking advantage of this snowy scene, today I will speak to you about the style of eight-legged essay writing. The eight-legged essay has flourished for a long time now, and the more people have written it, the more its formulaic patterns and techniques become apparent. However, if one’s mind becomes clouded by the pursuit of status and rank — fixating on shortcuts to pass the examinations — without ever thoroughly studying the classics and learning from the ancients, one cannot travel far on this path. Even if one passes the autumn provincial examination, one will come to grief at the spring metropolitan examination…When the examiners grade the papers, they require that essays be ‘pure, genuine, refined, and correct’ — reading the essay’s style to discern the character of its author, seeing the writer’s nature and disposition in each phrase and sentence, then selecting the finest.”

“‘Pure, genuine, refined, and correct’ — these are the words of the reigning Son of Heaven.”

“‘Pure’ means that the writing style is sound and sincere, accurately understanding the principles of the sages; ‘genuine’ means that the sentiment is true and the intent sincere — no wild or false words, every sentence and phrase coming from the heart; ‘refined and correct’ means citing the classics and drawing on historical precedent, without carelessly employing vulgar language or obscure meanings.”

“Shaojin, you are best at citing the classics, yet your writing style lacks a measure of clarity and refinement still. Yancheng, your mind is perceptive and you often find a different approach, yet your phrasing is not refined enough, not correct enough. Shaohuai, your essays do not measure up to the quality of your mind…”

“We are grateful for Tutor’s instruction.” The three young men bowed.

……

……

In the afternoon, Pei Shaohuai returned home from the Orchid Garden and saw Nanny Shen busy in the courtyard, directing the maids and servants to carry cart after cart of vegetables and fruits down into the cellar.

“Young Master Huai has come home so early today.” Nanny Shen said.

“Tutor let us out early,” Pei Shaohuai replied, then asked, “Nanny, what are you busy with here?”

Nanny Shen said proudly, “At Minor Snow, you preserve vegetables; at Major Snow, you cure meat. The leafy cabbages that have been touched by frost are the most sought-after right now — I had them bring several carts directly from the manor, which saves several dozen coins compared to buying from outside.”

After chatting briefly, Nanny Shen also said to Pei Shaohuai, “The fourth young miss has been feeling a little under the weather lately. I simmered some chicken broth in the kitchen, and also stewed a small pot for Young Master Huai — Young Master Huai, remember to drink it.” Lin Shi was usually busy managing household affairs, so it was most often Nanny Shen who oversaw the food and meals for the Zhaolu Courtyard.

“What is wrong with my sister?” Pei Shaohuai asked with immediate concern.

“Young Master Huai, please don’t worry first.” Nanny Shen realized her words had caused him worry, so she explained, “It is only that her stomach and digestion are a little unsettled, and her appetite is not good — she has been eating very little these past few days… Once this cold spell passes, she should be fine.”

Only then did Pei Shaohuai breathe a sigh of relief, after which he went to his sister Ying Jie’er’s side courtyard.

……

In the Fengyu Pavilion.

Concubine Shen picked up her scissors, cut the fine thread, and finally finished sewing several cloaks. She held one up and examined it — a snow fox fur collar, a satin face with floating subtle patterns. When worn, it would surely guard against snow and wind, and keep one warm.

She was rather satisfied with her work.

It was right at this moment that Jin Ge’er returned from school. Concubine Shen called him over and personally fastened the indigo-colored cloak around Jin Ge’er — a perfect fit. She said, “The First Madam sent over a fine piece of snow fox fur — white and gleaming. Taking advantage of winter’s arrival, I had it cut into four strips and sewed several cloaks, so that all of you will have something to wear when going out to guard against snow and wind.”

She then picked up the other two cloaks and said, “Your elder brother has always liked darker colors — this indigo blue one is for him. Your fourth sister has a lively temperament, so I made her one with a pale yellow satin face. You remember to deliver these to them in a while.”

Jin Ge’er replied, “Little Mother, I understand.”

Finally, Concubine Shen picked up the last remaining bamboo-green cloak on the couch and folded it carefully and neatly. She opened a large wooden chest and placed it inside with perfect tidiness.

Inside the sandalwood chest were handkerchiefs, spring dresses, summer dresses, autumn dresses…each and every set was the style that Zhu Jie’er loved best.

Concubine Shen did not shed tears. She only quietly spoke to herself, “The First Madam can pass some silver to her each month, but larger items cannot be sent inside. I can only fold them up and keep them here for you, Elder Sister, to wear when you come home.”

After a long pause, she added, “I wonder whether your elder sister’s figure has changed by now. When she leaves the palace, I wonder if these clothes I have sewn will still fit her…”

It was not that Concubine Shen did not wish to weep — it was that after weeping so many times, this kind of quiet murmuring to herself had become ordinary.

Jin Ge’er’s eyes reddened slightly. He walked over to comfort his mother, saying, “Little Mother, please don’t worry. Elder Sister is sharp-minded and determined — she will take good care of herself… Was it not said just recently that the Empress had bestowed rewards on her again?”

“I am only afraid that she keeps receiving rewards and draws people’s envy.”

“I will study hard and achieve a degree and rank. In the future, I will make sure that Little Mother and Elder Sister no longer need to live in fear and anxiety.”

“Foolish child.” Concubine Shen gently touched her son’s face and said, “You pursue your degree for greater prospects in life — your little mother has no need for you to do it for her, and your elder sister even less so. You only need to follow your own heart, and that is more than enough.”

……

……

It had happened several times now — Pei Shaohuai noticed that whenever he did not go to the Xu household for lessons and went out for a stroll in his spare time, that Young Lord Yin the Fifth would invariably appear on the street to encounter him at precisely the right moment.

This could not help but make Pei Shaohuai’s heart grow cold with suspicion. He already knew Yin the Fifth’s purpose in seeking him out — that much was no mystery. But how was information about his comings and goings being passed along?

Surely no one was standing guard at the Earl’s residence’s main gate every day?

On this particular day, Pei Shaohuai deliberately slipped out through the back gate quietly, and yet, at the wine house, he encountered Young Lord Yin the Fifth again as usual.

“Young Lord Huai certainly has refined tastes today — and we have met again.” Yin the Fifth came sidling up with a grinning face. “I know this wine house well. Would you like this humble one to recommend a few good dishes for Young Lord Huai?”

Pei Shaohuai waved over the server and said, “Let him list the dishes.”

This actually left Yin the Fifth quite bewildered. He asked in surprise, “Young Lord Huai is not going to send me away today?” Usually Pei Shaohuai would give him a dismissive snort and he would take the hint and leave… but he had never before seen Pei Shaohuai actually engage with him.

“Even if I brush you off every single time, you still come sidling up every single time — what good does brushing you off do?” Pei Shaohuai said with feigned exasperation.

“That is so, that is so — the clear remains clear, the murky remains murky.” Young Lord Yin the Fifth said. “Young Lord Huai is a man of the clear stream, and this humble one is thoroughly murky — wherever there is food, there I fly, shameless and pushing in. “

“But I am someone who knows his place. Young Lord, if you dislike it, just say so directly, and I will never come around to cause trouble.” He then added, “I am a genuine, through-and-through hangers-on — I understand the rules. I am like a fly: spot me from far away and you can already hear the buzzing. If Young Lord finds me tiresome, just wave a languid hand and I will fly away on my own. But there are those who look perfectly respectable, doing the same work as us, yet you can never tell — they always look like noble young gentlemen no matter where they go. Young Lord, those are the ones you should truly be wary of.”