Amidst rising dust clouds, small bricks and tiles were occasionally “accidentally” thrown by strong craftsmen into the neighboring Fang Garden, leaving behind a series of pleasing “pitter-patter” sounds.
The usually fastidious Liu Chang now disregarded the dust. He had a soft couch set up nearby, along with a table of delicacies and two jugs of fine wine. He lay on the couch, eyes half-closed, blissfully enjoying the food and wine fed to him by beauties, and the gentle massages they gave him. He was in a state of utter contentment.
One beauty asked coyly, “My lord, shall I play the zither for you?”
He shook his head. The tower he had carefully planned and spent countless riches to build was being demolished. It was as if the villa had lost its soul and depreciated in value. He wouldn’t feel satisfied unless He Mudan’s garden or flowers were damaged. The sound of falling debris was music to his ears.
Perhaps because his expression was too content, another beauty boldly suggested, “Shall I sing for you then, my lord?”
He smiled charmingly, “No need. Nothing sounds better than this.” He thought that there would soon be a reaction from the other side. Jiang Changyang wasn’t there today; only He Mudan was there with the three children. He wanted to see how she would handle this. He hadn’t seen her since their brief encounter at the Chu State Marquis’s mansion three months ago. He had only caught a glimpse of her from the tower yesterday, still affectionately tugging at that dark, chubby Jiang Dalang. Thinking of the past… well, better not to dwell on that. His mood suddenly soured, and the smile vanished from his face.
His irritation didn’t last long, as soon a woman’s scolding voice came from next door. The voice was crisp and eloquent, using no vulgar words but every sentence stinging. Ostensibly berating the workers for their carelessness, it was actually directed at him. He immediately perked up, sitting upright and saying excitedly, “Go see who it is! How dare they! It was just an accident. Couldn’t they discuss it civilly? They dare to scold my people? They’re clearly looking for trouble.” He had been worried about finding an opportunity, and now one had presented itself.
The beauties exchanged glances but went to investigate. Shortly after, they returned, saying, “It seems to be Shuer, who serves Madam He.” Though they said “seems,” there was no doubt. Living with their master, they were familiar with everyone next door, even the cats and dogs, and could guess with near certainty just by a glance.
“Hmph, so it’s that damned girl,” Liu Chang sneered. He knew it would likely be this audacious girl. When she was still in his household, she was just a little yellow-haired girl following Yuhe around. Over the years, she had become sharp-tongued. This just showed how He Mudan spoiled her servants. He glanced at a beauty, “Are the men upstairs too busy to speak up?” He wanted the demolition workers to shout back, to create some commotion for him to hear. These workers were crude; how could a girl like Shuer, raised in a noble household, match them? She’d probably be in tears after two or three exchanges. Since they were idle anyway, why not listen to her cry?
One beauty, eager to please him, immediately smiled and rushed to relay his order. Another, trying to appear virtuous, gently advised, “My lord, why bother with an ignorant servant? Don’t upset yourself.” Her hand tenderly slipped inside his robe, caressing his chest.
Liu Chang was in no mood for play. He firmly grasped the wandering hand, shaking his head with a smile, “I’m not bothered. I’m just having fun. Don’t you think this is more entertaining than listening to music?”
The beauties all giggled in unison, “Of course it is.”
Upon receiving the order, the workers upstairs began to laugh and jeer loudly. Some made crude jokes at Shuer’s expense, while others deliberately threw bricks over, then feigned losing their grip – doing whatever they could to provoke her. Liu Chang listened with great amusement, telling the beauties, “If you see that damned girl cry, let me know immediately. If anyone from next door comes to inquire, say I’m not here…” His plan was to drag things out until He Mudan couldn’t bear it and came personally.
However, the workers’ laughter gradually died down, and someone shouted, “Hey, sister, don’t leave…”
“My lord, Shuer has left,” reported a panicked beauty who had been keeping watch. She added hesitantly, “She… she didn’t cry…”
“No matter, she’s surely gone to get reinforcements. Tell them to throw farther, aim for the densest flower beds. It’d be best to damage a few peonies,” Liu Chang said nonchalantly. He knew Shuer’s personality; she wouldn’t cry in front of others, preferring to hide and cry alone. And she wouldn’t swallow this insult quietly. The more commotion, the better.
Just as he was thinking this, a burning log about as thick as a child’s arm came whistling through the air, barely missing his couch. It was a wonder that the person who threw it managed such accuracy. The log continued to spit flames after landing, quickly scorching several holes in Liu Chang’s expensive, rare light robe. The beauties screamed in terror, some trying to pat out the fire, others fleeing in panic, creating utter chaos.
Liu Chang was startled. After hastily extinguishing the fire on his clothes, he immediately realized this was no accident, but retaliation from next door. “Damn it,” he thought, “they dare throw burning logs at me in broad daylight? Are they trying to burn me alive? How vicious of He Mudan. Even though I’m demolishing the tower, she won’t leave me alone.”
Anger fueled his courage, and malice rose in his heart. He stood on tiptoe on the couch, looking in the direction the log had come from. He saw thick smoke rising, and someone shouting, “Fire! Fire! Quick, put it out…” Before the words faded, several hot bricks and tiles came flying at his head.
“This is outrageous!” Liu Chang nimbly dodged amid the worried cries of the beauties. His face turned ashen with rage, teeth clenched and fists tight. Seeing a head briefly appear above the opposite wall, he ground out, “Someone is attempting to murder a current imperial official. Tell Qiushi to gather men. We’re going over there to kill…” Before he could finish, Qiushi rushed in, saying, “My lord, the Jiang family has sent someone to apologize. They say a room adjacent to our villa caught fire, and they’re worried sparks and debris might ignite our property. They ask us to prepare some water and beg your understanding.”
“Bah!” Liu Chang thought. “As if sparks and debris from those shabby rooms in Fang Garden could fly over the high wall into my garden? They’re aiming at me deliberately… Do they think I’m a three-year-old child? Everyone knows Jiang Changyang’s background. He keeps a bunch of thugs and ruffians as guards who excel at this sort of thing. Fine, they think my household is full of genteel people, do they? I may be educated, but I can wield a sword and ride a horse too. If the tiger doesn’t show its might, they’ll mistake it for a sick cat.”
“Keep throwing! The more you throw, the greater the reward!” Liu Chang shouted up to the tower, then hitched up his robe and strode out with a fierce expression. “My villa is being destroyed. Mere verbal apologies won’t suffice. They’ve gone too far! Even though Jiang Changyang outranks me, there must be reason and limits!”
“This is like quarreling with children!” Qiushi thought, his face covered in sweat as he chased after Liu Chang. He tried to persuade him, “My lord, let me handle this. Please rest. If I can’t resolve it, then you can step in…”
Liu Chang sneered, “You’re no match for that vicious shrew He Mudan. She’ll have you in tears with just a few words, and might even accuse you of disrespecting her as a noble lady and beat you soundly.”
“Ah, my lord, please wait…” Seeing he couldn’t dissuade Liu Chang from going personally, Qiushi had no choice but to summon a group of strong servants with weapons to follow – fearing Liu Chang might be at a disadvantage in Fang Garden. “Isn’t this just asking for a beating?” Qiushi thought. “If I were from the Jiang family, I’d want to teach him a lesson. Who could tolerate his constant, unprovoked disturbances?”
Liu Chang led his group, charging out of his main gate towards Fang Garden. Just as he was about to kick Fang Garden’s gate, he paused, adjusted his clothes, smoothed his hair, then mustered his anger and kicked hard, shouting, “This is outrageous! Which damned servant dares to injure my favorite concubine? Bring them out to face the law!”
After seven or eight kicks, the gate finally creaked open. Hu Dalang, the gatekeeper of Fang Garden, poked out his long-suffering face: “Minister Liu if you have something to say, let’s discuss it civilly. Please don’t damage our gate. I’ll have no explanation for the madam if you do.”
Liu Chang stood his ground, striking a pose and pointing at Hu Dalang’s nose aggressively: “Tell He Mudan to come out! Your people threw burning logs and stones, killing my favorite concubine. Tell her to hand over the culprit quickly, and I might spare her. Otherwise, hmph…” He glanced at his servants behind him, raised his chin arrogantly, and said, “Although Master Jiang outranks me and is physically stronger, I do not fear power!”
Hu Dalang sighed with a troubled expression: “Did I mishear? A moment ago, you said she was injured, and now in the blink of an eye, she’s dead?”
“You insolent slave, how dare you talk back to me? Call He Mudan out! Call He Mudan out!” Liu Chang was furious. Even a lowly gatekeeper dared to disrespect him? If he said someone was dead, then they were dead!
“Please calm down, let’s talk reasonably,” Hu Dalang hurriedly stepped aside, saying softly, “I was just saying how pitiful your concubine is… Please, come in. My madam instructed that if you came, we should invite you inside for some good tea…”
“You think I’ll go in just because she says so? Tell her to come out and see me!” Liu Chang’s throat tightened involuntarily. Had she anticipated his visit? When she had people throw stones and burn logs, had she already known he would come? His legs seemed to be pulled by invisible strings, moving forward against his will.
He heard Hu Dalang muttering, “He’s supposed to be a man and an educated one at that. To be so relentless, shouting a lady’s name like this… It’s truly uncivilized…”
Liu Chang suddenly stopped, his eyes reddening as he glared at Hu Dalang and kicked out at him: “Fine! I won’t go in then! You go tell her, if she doesn’t come out, I’ll have people shout her name loudly out here!” He was quite capable of doing it, too. Unless He Mudan came out personally to welcome him in.