When Dai Yuquan came to call, Qinglan asked who he was — she vaguely remembered hearing his name from Yanyan’s lips. Apparently the candied fruit he sent was exceptionally fine, and Yanyan had talked about it so often that even Qinglan had remembered his name. But Qinglan’s temperament was too straightforward; she was not perceptive when it came to small, subtle details, and she never noticed that every time Yanyan brought him up, Lingbo would shoot her a sharp look.
But this time Lingbo was exceptionally composed, saying only that he was an imperially licensed merchant, that they had crossed paths in the matter of the Ruyi Workshop, and that what had once been a rivalry had since turned into friendship, so he had come to call.
She was not lying — she had simply not said everything. Qinglan had no knowledge of officialdom and was thus easily satisfied.
What a pity — Ye Qinglan, who had read through all the classics of the sages, was more than capable of serving as a palace female official. Yet because the Wutong Courtyard had no eyes or ears in the official world, she was so easily deflected. The world admired her talent, but admiration was one thing — people still kept their respectful distance in the end, never offering a hand in times of need. Even the Grand Princess, who shared her views, had done nothing more than make use of her time and again, without ever giving her the recognition she deserved. Even though she far surpassed the two female officials who served in the Grand Princess’s presence, she couldn’t even get the title of a female official — whenever she was used, it was done quietly, dismissed with a word or two of hollow praise.
People in this world loved to flatter those above and trample those below. It was revolting.
Lingbo was not Shen Biwei — she saw through the ways of the world, but she did not distance herself from it. Nor was she Qinglan — she did not forgive.
She only wanted to use her own wits to carve out a place for herself in this world.
Otherwise, she would not have arranged for Dai Yuquan to come, had Yang Niangzi draw Qinglan away, put on her finest Lantern Festival dress, and walked into the meeting alone, armed with nothing but herself.
Dai Yuquan was as she remembered — not handsome exactly, only with even, regular features, a tall frame, and the bearing of an official. Between a man and a woman, the moment any trace of feeling entered the equation, the atmosphere shifted entirely. He immediately became a strange, tall man — like a stag that had suddenly appeared in the hall, putting one on guard.
He was a clever man. When he saw Lingbo’s dress, he understood at once, and offered her a smile.
But Lingbo’s expression was cool and neutral, and she said: “With no male member of the household to receive guests, I fear we have been remiss in our hospitality toward Master Dai.”
“Not at all,” said Dai Yuquan.
He came forward to greet her with the courtly formality of a young man from the Jiangnan gentry — but he was a man who admired her, and even while bowing, he cast a quiet glance at her. When she caught him at it, he let out a frank, easy laugh.
Anyone who had ever negotiated a large business deal knew that it was not so different from fighting a battle: lure the enemy with a false impression, keep them off balance with feints and truths alike. One opens, naturally, with pleasantries — but what swiftly follows is a composed, even aloof, expression. The uninitiated think this is merely to make the goods seem rare and beyond price. In truth, it also serves to set out the harsh terms plainly from the start, to speak honestly and spare both parties from future disputes.
After all, business is not done only once. The oldest and most loyal customers of the finest establishments — those relationships last a lifetime.
And so Lingbo came directly to the point: “Master Dai knows, I am not a woman who will entrust her life to another.”
He was a new and rising figure in the capital — coming to the city bearing the weighty expectations of the Jiangnan gentry, there was little he didn’t know. The officials of the capital watched him; he watched the officials of the capital in return. One may assume that whatever he wished to find out, he could discover with perfect clarity in short order. The history of the Ye family was no secret — three daughters had brought down their own father and stepmother, and from then on lived as their own household within the small courtyard their mother had left them. He had only to ask casually, and someone would have told him the whole story.
And so he smiled as well, and said: “I know that Second Young Miss Ye is no clinging vine — she is a heroine who can match wits with any man.”
Men in this world were all the same — a woman who had once bested them always commanded a higher regard in their eyes.
Lingbo could see he still did not quite grasp her meaning.
“I do not speak of sentiment,” she told him evenly. “Jiangnan has its lovely springs, its romance and scenery and beautiful seasons — but Master Dai will have to enjoy those alone.”
His expression shifted. He likely took this for a refusal. He was a man of broad character, and even beneath the weight of great disappointment, he showed no loss of composure — still managing to maintain a polite smile. Lingbo then continued: “If Master Dai can accept this, please drink this cup of tea.”
Xiao Liu’er brought the tea — the finest pre-Qingming spring tea. A single tael of pre-Qingming tea was worth a tael of gold, let alone here in the capital, so far from Jiangnan. The cup was celadon-glazed Ru ware, equally priceless — a complete set was nearly impossible to find on the open market, and yet she had a full one.
This was her way of revealing the extent of her resources. Xiao Liu’er stepped forward to offer the tea and said: “Young Master Dai, please have some tea.”
“Young Master” rather than “Master” — the manner of address used in Jiangnan. This beautiful maid was her head maidservant, and by the customs of the capital, a young lady’s head maidservant was generally among her bridal attendants. Dai Yuquan was a clever man, and he immediately understood the meaning of this tea offering.
“If the Young Miss does not care for Jiangnan, taking up permanent residence in the capital is equally fine,” he said with a smile, playing along with the unspoken exchange. “I see that the fifteenth would be a fine day — just right for admiring the moon.”
The riddle game he had missed at the Lantern Festival — today he was working through it with her, one by one. “The fifteenth for admiring the moon” meant making his formal proposal on the fifteenth. “Taking up permanent residence in the capital” meant that after their marriage, she would not need to return to Jiangnan.
Lingbo only lowered her eyes to look at the teacup.
“The fifteenth is indeed auspicious. But this year’s Huaxin Banquet has also been lovely — I wonder whether Master Dai has the patience to wait until all twenty-four seasonal flower winds have passed before we speak of the matter?”
She was agreeing to his proposal on the fifteenth, only asking that the discussion of marriage wait until the Huaxin Banquet had concluded. For Dai Yuquan, this was already better than he had dared hope — and far sooner than expected.
But he too was a formidable opponent, and showed none of the excessive joy he might have felt. With steady composure, he only smiled and said: “I shall follow the Young Miss’s arrangements.”
After business matters were settled, naturally a few words of a more personal nature had to be exchanged — after all, they were to become husband and wife. Though he found everything about her admirable at this moment, including the fact that an unmarried young miss was discussing her own marriage so openly, and he felt not the slightest impropriety in it. But a person’s heart is changeable — who could say it would not be held against her in the future?
And so, having concluded the terms, Lingbo only lowered her eyes and said: “With our family’s fallen state, I fear we have made a spectacle of ourselves before Master Dai.”
In truth, their family’s affairs were hardly fallen — a household capable of knocking an imperially licensed merchant off his feet was not something easily found in the capital. But Dai Yuquan understood that she was not speaking of business affairs — she was speaking of the family scandal that ought not be aired publicly.
Lingbo was not very tall, her figure slender, dressed in a kingfisher-green blouse. Without the fox-fur cape from the Lantern Festival, she looked all the more slight and delicate. Not yet twenty by the reckoning of full years — yet she had lived under the thumb of a father and stepmother, and still built a household enterprise of such scale. Anyone who looked upon her would feel a stirring of compassion.
And so Dai Yuquan also spoke with gravity: “Young Miss, please set your mind at ease. To adapt to circumstances, to act according to one’s situation — why should the Young Miss trouble herself over rigid, outmoded rules? I myself am not that kind of person.”
Xiao Liu’er, though deeply at odds with her young mistress’s choice in her heart, could not help but look at Dai Yuquan with a measure of greater respect upon hearing these words.
Things had come to this pass — there was nothing left but to trust her young mistress’s judgment. However one felt about it, Dai Yuquan was indeed one of the most sought-after young men of rank in the capital. Yet the feeling of something being not quite right still lingered.
With the great matters settled, Lingbo had only one final word: “Lingbo is most grateful for Master Dai’s favor, and can only feel unworthy of it. I hope that Master Dai will offer much guidance in the days to come.”
She rose from her seat and left Luo Niangzi to see him out. Yang Niangzi’s eyes were too sharp — she would likely see through things — and at this moment, Lingbo needed no unexpected complications.
But he called out to stop her.
Even the usually steady Dai Yuquan could not quite conceal the joy in his eyes at this moment. After all, it was the matter of a lifetime. He called out: “Second Young Miss.”
Lingbo stopped and raised her eyes to look at him.
In the young man’s eyes there was not only joy, but a self-assured confidence that he would not be denied. Looking into her eyes, he said: “Second Young Miss, you said you do not speak of sentiment — I understand what you mean. In truth, I too am not a man given to romantic entanglements. Before I came to the capital, the thought of marriage had not crossed my mind. It was only after meeting the Second Young Miss that I understood what it means to say two people are made for each other by heaven. Please be at ease — I am willing to build something worthwhile together with the Second Young Miss. As for everything beyond that, I am willing to spend a lifetime slowly, gradually speaking of it with you.”
Even Xiao Liu’er’s expression shifted at these words — but Lingbo only offered a faint smile.
“Many thanks for Master Dai’s understanding.” She had changed her form of address too, but then asked: “The fifteenth happens to be the very day of the Dittany Banquet. The Book of Songs says: the cherry-apple flowers in splendor, the brothers gathered in fellowship. Though the spirit of the dittany flower is most often applied to brothers, it serves equally well for sisters. Our household has not yet held a Huaxin Banquet this year, and the custom of the capital holds that double joys are most auspicious — would it not be fitting to hold the Dittany Banquet at the same time? I wonder what Master Dai thinks?”
Dai Yuquan had run into a gentle but immovable refusal, yet he also knew that her “no sentiment” was not something to be overturned in a day or a night. And so he smiled and said: “All shall be arranged as the Young Miss sees fit — I need only cooperate.”
“Many thanks for Master Dai’s understanding.” Lingbo bid him farewell: “Your humble host must take her leave now. Please stay and take the midday meal before departing, Master Dai.”
“Many thanks, Second Young Miss.”
Lingbo walked out of the hall, through the corridor and back to the inner courtyard. The sunlight outside was so brilliant it was nearly blinding. In just a brief span of time, a lifetime had been settled — even she felt a kind of hollow exhaustion wash over her. Without thinking, she reached out and steadied herself against one of the corridor pillars.
“Young Mistress,” Xiao Liu’er asked, filled with worry. “Wasn’t this a little too fast…”
“If it is truly a match made by heaven, what does fast or slow have to do with it?” Lingbo said lightly.
If it is destined, what does fast or slow have to do with it? She heard her own voice speaking within her heart — then let it be as fate wills. Let go of that brief and fleeting peach blossom stream. Embrace this grand and blessed union that awaits her.
She was going to become Madam Dai — the principal wife of a hundred-year Jiangnan gentry family, with a husband of limitless promise making his way through the official world. She could still live in the capital, build her household, protect her sisters, build her career. She would have power, wealth, a position envied by all. At next year’s Huaxin Banquet, she would be a force to be reckoned with.
She had met Dai Yuquan only three times, and yet their marriage was now decided. She was to wed this frank and magnanimous Master Dai, to be his wife, to share in each other’s glory and disgrace from this day forward.
She would be his finest wife — devoting all the talent of her lifetime to building a home with him. The treacherous currents of the capital’s political world, the ever-shifting fortunes of commerce — she could shoulder all of it alone, and standing side by side with him, she would manage it all with ease. She would help him become the foremost Master Dai in the capital, and in that process, she would also protect her sisters. And when the time came — when her wings were truly and fully grown — she might at last settle the old scores, and give her mother the justice, long delayed, that she deserved.
They would be the most perfectly suited husband and wife — power, wealth, the admiration of the world — none of it would be beyond their reach. There was no better choice than this. Dai Yuquan was a man who understood her worth, and what she excelled at above all else was leveraging her own worth. This whole capital would remember the name of Ye Lingbo.
What more was there left to wish for?