After Lady Wen returned to her residence, she immediately invited several ladies who were often her companions to come over for tea and conversation. After drinking tea for several hours and becoming animated in their discussion, she sent someone to Deyin Troupe to invite performers to come and sing opera.
During the gathering, the Second Madam Song, whose husband was a Reader-in-waiting at the Hanlin Academy, asked, “…You mentioned recently that you were going to the Medical Officer Gu’s house to perform the hairpin ceremony for their Second Young Miss. I heard that although the Second Young Miss’s birth mother is a concubine, she is a favored one. I wonder how the banquet was arranged? Which noble families attended?”
The Gu family had split into two branches, which people generally distinguished by their official positions.
The Gu’s ancestral family was related by marriage to the Marquis of Changxing. The Marquis’s heir’s maternal grandfather was the Chief Academician of the Hanlin Academy and concurrently the Minister of Rites, overseeing all officials in the Hanlin Academy. Second Madam Song was more interested in this matter than others.
When the conversation reached this point, Lady Wen heaved a deep sigh and said, “I left before attending the coming-of-age ceremony, so how would I know about any of that!”
The ladies couldn’t help but grow curious. It happened that among them was Third Madam Cao, whose elder sister was the wife of Senior Minister Mu, the legitimate mother of the Mu family’s eldest son. She had already heard from her elder sister about Senior Minister Mu’s desire to seek the Second Young Miss of the Gu family for his eldest son born of a concubine. Curious, she asked, “…What happened? Could it be that the Gu family was disrespectful to you?”
Lady Wen laughed coldly, “…You don’t know that there are truly such two-faced people in this world!”
She then recounted her experiences with the Gu family in detail, embellishing the story for everyone to hear. Finally, she added, “…In our daily lives, we hear rumors about the Gu family’s Eldest Young Miss being arrogant and overbearing. In my opinion, if it weren’t for her scheming half-sister who loves to gossip and scheme against others, the Gu family’s Eldest Young Miss’s reputation wouldn’t be so poor! I saw with my own eyes that the Gu family’s Eldest Young Miss is measured in her conduct and well-versed in propriety. She simply suffers from being too reserved…”
Third Madam Cao was inevitably surprised and, after thinking for a moment, said, “What a coincidence! My elder sister told me that Senior Minister Mu was preparing to propose a marriage between his eldest son and the Gu family’s Second Young Miss, but the Gu family wasn’t very willing. If the Second Young Miss truly has such a malicious heart and loves to cause trouble, how could Medical Officer Gu have the confidence to refuse Senior Minister Mu…”
It was actually that foolish and slow-witted eldest son of the Mu family who wanted to marry the Gu family’s Second Young Miss! All the ladies were quite surprised. After a moment, Lady Wen immediately realized that she had originally thought she would have to put in effort to spread the word, but now with this connection, Third Madam Cao would surely help!
“The Second Young Miss of the Gu family has always been said to be respectful and kind. I think Lord Gu doesn’t want this marriage and hopes to find a better family for the Second Young Miss because of her reputation… I wonder if Madam Mu is keen on having the Second Young Miss as her daughter-in-law?”
Third Madam Cao waved her hand and said, “Mu Zhidi’s birth mother died early, and he was raised by a wet nurse. My elder sister wants to resolve this matter soon by finding a suitable young woman to marry him. After all, he’s already eighteen, and only manservants and old women attend to him—he doesn’t even have a personal maid! Senior Minister Mu has been urging her about this matter for a long time… But who in all of Yanjing would want to marry their daughter to Mu Zhidi!”
Lady Wen nodded and said, “It must be difficult for Madam Mu… If this Second Young Miss of the Gu family had an even worse reputation, and other families wouldn’t dare to propose marriage, perhaps the Mu family’s eldest son might have a chance!”
Hearing these words, Third Madam Cao’s brow twitched slightly.
After the opera performance ended, the ladies dispersed.
Lady Wen yawned and lazily picked up her tea, saying to a maid beside her, “Go find a few old women and spread the news about the Gu family’s Second Young Miss’s poor character. We should lend a hand to Third Madam Cao and Madam Mu…” After a moment’s thought, she added, “Remember to also say that the Gu family’s Eldest Young Miss was framed by Gu Lan, which is why her reputation suffered…”
The maid agreed but felt something was strange: “Madam, I feel this matter is not quite right. It seems too coincidental that you and the Eldest Young Miss of the Gu family overheard what the Second Young Miss said. The Eldest Young Miss invited you for tea and then led you to the bamboo grove behind the side chamber. This matter…”
Lady Wen smiled: “Of course I know! The Eldest Young Miss of the Gu family is quite scheming!” She raised an eyebrow and continued, “But although she used me, she didn’t frame or deceive me. I hate being treated like a fool! I must teach Gu Lan a lesson. Since we’re teaching her a lesson, why not help the Eldest Young Miss a bit more… Besides, I see that the Eldest Young Miss doesn’t have it easy—her mother is so ill, her maternal family can’t support her, her only brother is still young and inexperienced. If she doesn’t use some schemes, she’ll surely be eaten alive by Song Miaohua and Gu Lan, with not even bones left…”
The maid nodded in understanding. Lady Wen stood up, planning to check on her eldest son’s studies.
…
Two days later, the guests from the coming-of-age ceremony had finally all departed. Gu Jin Rong had already packed his belongings and returned to Seven Square Alley.
As for Jin Chao, she claimed to be ill, but her concubine mothers and two younger sisters all came to visit her. Seeing her vigorously embroidering an antique design, they all just smiled, and Concubine Luo even brought her homemade snacks every day.
Madam Tong lifted the curtain and entered, standing beside Jin Chao as she embroidered, neither too fast nor too slow. The weather was gradually getting warmer, and she wore only a plain satin short jacket with a pair of emerald jade bracelets on her wrists, making them appear as white as frost. The window was half-open, letting in a cool breeze that made the room entirely refreshing.
When Jin Chao put away her needle, Madam Tong said softly, “Young Miss, this servant has heard that there are rumors about our Second Young Miss circulating outside.”
Jin Chao looked up and asked calmly, “What are they saying?”
Madam Tong replied, “The news came from Sophora Alley. This servant has carefully investigated but can’t determine whether it originated from the Wen family or the Cao family. They say that our Second Young Miss was caught stirring up trouble behind people’s backs and committed one of the seven grounds for divorce. They also mentioned you, Young Miss, saying that previously, our Second Young Miss often slandered and disparaged you behind your back. You were simply reserved by nature, which is why you suffered from her gossip. They claim that most of the rumors about you in the outside world were, nine times out of ten, slander. The storytellers made it very interesting as if they had witnessed it personally. Now I’m afraid these rumors have spread throughout the inner circles of ladies in the Sophora Alley area…”
The Wen family in Sophora Alley was Lady Wen’s home. It must be that after returning home, Lady Wen couldn’t accept the silent loss she suffered at the Gu family and spread this news to damage Gu Lan’s reputation. However, Jin Chao found it unusual that such a minor matter from the women’s quarters could spread so quickly.
Moreover, these rumors seemed to be vindicating her, which was quite strange. Could it be that Lady Wen sympathized with her pitiful situation and decided to help her as well? While helping her, this also indirectly suppressed Gu Lan.
Jin Chao smiled and shook her head: “Nine out of ten of those rumors about me in the outside world are true. Gu Lan merely added fuel to the fire. This time, they’re truly wronging her.”
Madam Tong also smiled: “Our Young Miss is so clear-minded. Past matters are in the past, so why bother paying them any more attention? I wonder how we should handle these rumors—should we add fuel to the fire or clear the Second Young Miss’s name? After all, the Madam is also the Second Young Miss’s mother.”
Jin Chao thought carefully for a moment and then asked, “Why did you say the rumors might have come from the Cao family?”
Madam Tong continued, “After this servant heard about this matter, I went to find Manager Luo to inquire about the news. He has an accountant named Cao Ziheng working under him who is a distant relative of the Cao family. He tried for the provincial examinations more than ten times but never passed, and only found work as an accountant when he reached fifty. He told this servant that Third Madam Cao and Madam Mu are full sisters. After asking his nephew who works at the Cao household, we learned that Third Madam Cao was the one who had these rumors spread…”
The Cao and Gu families had never had much interaction, let alone any grudges. Helping Lady Wen spread such things must have a reason.
Third Madam Cao and Madam Mu were full sisters… which means this news might be related to Madam Mu! Father didn’t agree to the marriage with the Mu family because he looked down on the Mu family’s eldest son, but if Gu Lan’s reputation was also damaged, the marriage prospects might change!
The Mu family’s eldest son was already eighteen and still unmarried; the Mu family must be anxious.
The Mu family must have had a hand in this! They wanted to pressure Father into agreeing to this marriage due to the rumors!
Jin Chao laughed heartily, attracting curious glances from Madam Tong and Qing Pu—the Young Miss rarely laughed so openly…
She waved her hand and said, “The Mu family is truly anxious! They can’t wait to carry off whoever they can marry. It’s quite amusing that Gu Lan has encountered such a family.” Now she wouldn’t need to think of ways to promote this marriage!
Gu Lan marrying the Mu family’s eldest son would be a good thing. At least Mu Zhidi had a good temperament and was patient; his prospects were limitless. Moreover, she would be free from Gu Lan’s occasional scheming behind her back, and Concubine Song would also behave better, allowing Mother to rest and recover in peace.
Counting the days, it had been about a month. From Guizhou to Yanjing, even riding fast horses day and night would take a month. Adding the difficulty of mountain paths, Master Xiao would arrive in a month and a half at the earliest, or possibly two to three months if delayed.
But at least there was hope for Mother’s illness now.
Finally, Jin Chao instructed Madam Tong: “The innocent will clear themselves, and the guilty will reveal themselves. Since we didn’t start these rumors, let’s not concern ourselves with them.”
Madam Tong bowed and withdrew.
Concubine Song only learned of this news three days later. When Qiaowei told her that the rumors had already spread beyond control, she closed her eyes to compose herself. She told Qiaowei to fetch Gu Lan.
Qiaowei whispered, “Concubine, the Young Miss is currently being made to practice calligraphy in the study by the Master.”
Concubine Song said coldly, “Tell her she’s going to visit her ‘gravely ill and immobile’ sister! I don’t believe anyone would dare stop her.”
Her hands were clenched tightly. It was all because of Gu Jin Chao! All because of her! If not for her, how could Lan’er’s reputation be ruined? Now the situation was dire. Lan’er had her coming-of-age ceremony before being betrothed, which was already a time to hasten marriage. With these rumors spreading, which respectable family would dare to propose marriage?
The rumors spread so quickly, it was almost bizarre. If anyone said Gu Jin Chao wasn’t pushing things along from behind the scenes, she wouldn’t believe it even if she were beaten to death!
Gu Jin Chao, if this is how unkind you are… then don’t blame her for being unjust!