Dawn had barely broken when everyone in Fang Garden was already awake. By candlelight, Mudan warmed a small emerald ornament on her tongue, melting the adhesive, and carefully placed it between her eyebrows. She then gently pushed open the window.
A gust of damp, cool air rushed in, causing the candle to flicker dangerously close to extinction. The patter of rain sounded like silkworms munching on mulberry leaves—a lonely, continuous noise. Shuer quickly covered the candle with a gauze shade, complaining softly, “This weather, raining every other day, day and night without stopping, it’s truly miserable.”
Mudan felt worried. From where she stood, the fine rain outside looked like the finest crystal curtains, enveloping the entire Fang Garden in a translucent, misty veil. It was beautiful, but the problem was that despite the Mid-Autumn Festival having passed—a time when each autumn rain should bring cooler temperatures—the weather hadn’t cooled much.
In years of high temperatures and heavy rainfall, peonies were most susceptible to disease, requiring careful and vigilant care. To make matters worse, at this crucial time, Master Li had fallen ill with his old ailment, lying in bed complaining of bone pain. Medicine had no effect; only acupuncture provided some relief. Yuhe was run ragged, busy with everything. Without these two major helpers, Mudan hardly dared to step away, fearing the peonies in the garden might be drowned by standing water. But last night, Jiang Changyang had brought a message from Pan Rong, saying that Madam Bai was about to give birth. She was feeling uneasy and her relationship with the Marquis of Chu’s wife was extremely poor. She wanted to invite Mudan over to keep Madam Bai company and help her relax.
Childbirth was a matter of life and death; Mudan couldn’t refuse. She smoothed her clothes and asked, “Has someone gone to fetch Master Lu?”
Yuhe, wearing wooden clogs and an oilskin coat, hurried across the courtyard. She stopped under the corridor and handed a food box hidden under her coat to Kuaner, smiling as she said, “Master Lu says not to worry, he’ll take good care of everything. He promises to return everything to you in perfect condition, but he wants you to pay him wages.”
“He’s just trying to extort our good wine and Zhou Baniang’s cooking skills. Tell them to make whatever he wants to eat, as long as we have it,” Mudan said, her mind half at ease as she took the bowl of noodle soup Kuaner handed her. “How’s the water in the river?”
“It’s not too bad, hasn’t risen much, just flowing a bit fast. But the roads are muddy and difficult to travel. I heard it takes a long time for ox carts to reach the city,” Yuhe replied, crouching under the corridor and deftly taking the boots, wooden clogs, oilskin coat, and umbrella that Mama Lin brought out, giving them a final cleaning.
“You’re always so considerate. Let Xiaolizi and the others learn to do these things. Go take care of Master Li’s daily needs and meals,” Mudan said, finishing her last sip of noodle soup and rinsing her mouth to prepare for departure.
Yuhe smiled, “With the old problem flaring up, I can’t help but worry.” She hesitated, then added, “Danniang, why don’t you take the carriage instead of riding? It might be slower, but you’ll still arrive before dark.”
Mudan carefully put on the oilskin coat and pulled on her boots. “Never mind, I heard from Shunhou’er that even the court has canceled the officials’ morning audience due to the muddy roads. Taking a carriage would just be asking for trouble.” Who could say when Madam Bai might go into labor?
Mama Lin had wanted to persuade Mudan to take the carriage too, but she swallowed her words and silently helped her put on the oil hat, advising, “Ride slowly, don’t rush.” She also instructed Kuaner and Shuer to be careful and not let Mudan get wet.
As Mudan and her servants rode out of Fang Garden’s main gate, they saw Lu Fang wearing a straw raincoat and a bamboo hat, clumsily walking towards them in wooden clogs, slipping with each step. He waved at them, calling out, “Have a safe journey!” Before he finished speaking, he slipped and fell flat on his back.
“Young Master, we told you to watch where you’re going,” Kanger complained as he went to help him up. Lu Fang hung his head in embarrassment, not daring to speak.
Everyone burst into laughter, but it also served as a warning. They didn’t dare let their horses run fast, only allowing them to take small steps forward. They didn’t encounter many travelers on the way, and the few they did meet, whether on horseback or driving ox carts, were all covered in mud. A journey that usually took only an hour now took nearly two. By the time they entered the city, both people and horses were exhausted. The city was indeed a muddy mess, no wonder the officials’ morning audience had been canceled.
Fortunately, the Qixia Gate was close to Qujiang Pool. The tired and hungry group was so happy to finally reach home that they almost laughed out loud as they stepped through the door. But even in such terrible weather, Jiang Changyang was not at home as usual. Mudan changed her clothes, ate and drank, rested briefly, and then ordered a carriage prepared to go to the Marquis of Chu’s mansion.
The doorkeeper at the Marquis of Chu’s mansion had been instructed in advance. As soon as he saw Mudan’s carriage, he ordered the side gate opened and the threshold removed to allow the carriage to enter directly to the second gate. Then Nianyu and a housekeeper came out with an awning to welcome Mudan inside. Perhaps due to the bad weather, the Marquis of Chu’s mansion was unusually quiet. Only occasionally could one see two or three people hurrying by with umbrellas, passing through the rain-soaked, lush green, and heavy-looking flowers and trees.
The atmosphere was very somber. Mudan coughed lightly and looked at Nianyu. Nianyu was particularly quiet today, her young face full of weariness, with dark circles under her eyes as if she hadn’t rested well for a long time. Raindrops had settled on her hair, forming strings of droplets that made her look bedraggled. Hearing Mudan’s cough, she looked at her apologetically and forced a smile, saying, “Sorry to make you come so far in the rain. I’ll have someone bring you some ginger soup later.”
She knew what Mudan meant but deliberately spoke this way. Mudan glanced at the housekeeper and lowered the curtain without saying anything more. She wanted to know what major conflict still existed between the Marquis of Chu’s wife and Madam Bai that couldn’t be resolved later, given that Madam Bai was about to give birth and Pan Rong had started to show initiative.
As they went deeper into the Marquis of Chu’s mansion, the number of servants passing by gradually increased. Finally, the awning stopped outside a courtyard planted with phoenix trees, called the Qingping Pavilion. A young maid with an umbrella and wooden clogs came forward to receive Mudan and her group.
Mudan walked to the corridor, took off her wooden clogs, and went straight to the main room. The main room was silent, with no one entering or leaving. Only at the door stood a young woman wearing a short yellow jacket with a six-panel long green skirt, two black beauty marks pasted on her cheeks, and a gentle, youthful appearance. As soon as she saw Mudan, she bowed and greeted her, then attentively lifted the curtain for her, whispering to Nianyu, “The Madam just came to see the Young Madam.”
This “Madam” naturally referred to the Marquis of Chu’s wife. Nianyu glared fiercely at the young maid who had gone to receive Mudan with the umbrella, blaming her for not giving a warning. Then, without even looking at the young woman holding the curtain, she went inside, saying softly, “Madam He has arrived.”
Madam Bai’s voice quickly responded, “Please come in.”
Mudan stepped on the thick carpet, walked around the silver-inlaid six-panel landscape screen, and saw Madam Bai, heavily pregnant, sitting properly on the ivory bed by the window despite the effort it took. To her left sat a woman wearing a purple robe embroidered with silver, her hair graying, adorned with gold hairpins, her makeup exquisite, the corners of her mouth turned down, and wearing no smile. This was Pan Rong’s mother, the Marquis of Chu’s wife.
Mudan had formally met the Marquis of Chu’s wife when she came with Jiang Changyang before and had found her to be indifferent, seemingly uninterested in everything, and somewhat melancholic. But seeing her now, Mudan felt there was something else beyond that—a strange feeling as if everyone owed her something.
“Danniang, you’ve come! Thank you for braving the rain to visit me. The weather is truly awful,” Madam Bai said, struggling to stand up with Nianyu’s help, a genuine smile on her face.
“I figured you’d be due these days, and I couldn’t stop worrying. I just happened to have some free time, so I came especially to see you. I hope I’m not interrupting your conversation?” Mudan said with a smile, stepping forward to greet the Marquis of Chu’s wife, pretending she had come to see Madam Bai on her initiative. Sure enough, when the Marquis of Chu’s wife heard that she had come on her own, the tense expression on her face finally softened a bit, and she said kindly, “How thoughtful of you. The pastry you sent on the fifteenth of the eighth month was delicious and exquisite. Thank you for your consideration.”
Mudan responded modestly, and seeing that both mother-in-law and daughter-in-law seemed distracted, she smiled and asked, “Where’s Ajing? I brought him some treats.”
Madam Bai’s lips pressed tightly together, and she remained silent. The Marquis of Chu’s wife said indifferently, “I hired a tutor for him. He’s studying with the tutor right now.”
Mudan was shocked. How old was Pan Jing? Three years old? At this age, studying classical texts with a tutor—what could he understand? Please note, that this wasn’t kindergarten, but a real tutor. She looked at Madam Bai with some sympathy, basically guessing the source of the conflict between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
The Marquis of Chu’s wife sat silently for a moment, then stood up and said, “Axin, just focus on taking care of yourself. I’ve prepared everything, don’t worry. The weather is bad, and it’s difficult to travel from your parents’ home, so let’s not have them come over. They can visit when the weather improves. It’ll save you from worrying.”
Without waiting for Madam Bai to answer, she nodded slightly to Mudan, “Madam He, please come visit more often when you have time.” She looked meaningfully at Madam Bai, “Our Axin is too reserved. She always keeps things to herself and hides away to be angry alone. I’ve advised her many times, but it doesn’t seem to help. This isn’t good. Please talk to her more, and give her some guidance. I’d be grateful for that.”
“Don’t worry, Madam. Axin is my good friend, and I’ll do my best to keep her happy,” Mudan said, frowning slightly. Every word from the Marquis of Chu’s wife sounded nice on the surface, but listening carefully, there was a hint of coldness in them, as if she harbored great dissatisfaction towards Madam Bai.
Madam Bai stood up expressionlessly to bow, “Daughter-in-law respectfully sees Mother off. The rain has made the paths slippery outside, please walk carefully.”
“You’re heavily pregnant, no need for such formalities,” the Marquis of Chu’s wife said, glancing indifferently at Madam Bai. She looked at the young woman at the door and said, “Chunzhu, take good care of your mistress and the guest. Report to me immediately if anything happens.”
Chunzhu quickly agreed and stepped forward to support the Marquis of Chu’s wife as she left, her actions and demeanor extremely respectful and gentle.