In the late spring season, fine bamboo-strip roll blinds had been fitted under the eaves, hanging in staggered rows at varying heights. Facing the light, one could faintly make out two or three branches of emerald bamboo forking outward on the other side.
Before the propped-open lattice window stood a gilt bronze crane-bearing incense burner in the style of Mount Bo Shan. From the top of the burner, wisps of pale blue smoke rose in a languid curl — so light and fine, like strands of silk thread, yet stretched perfectly straight, as if intent on ascending to the very heavens.
Then, without warning, a strange gust of wind blew in from nowhere, scattering the column of smoke and stirring the autumn-yellow tassels hanging below the blinds. Qin Dan raised her eyes to look. A maidservant had stepped through the doorway and come to the foot of the steps, hands tucked inside her collar, and announced: “Master is back.”
Qin Dan gave a small nod and turned to look into the room. There, before the flat-topped desk of yellow cypress wood, stood a young woman of graceful bearing, weighing dragon brain resin on a small precision scale for ink-making. She wore a light gauze half-sleeve garment, with a skylark-embroidered sash bound across her chest. Tilting her face slightly to the side, her complexion was luminously fair as the bright moon, carrying the tender, charming quality of plums just ripening to their prime.
Qin Dan stepped forward and moved aside the wooden box filled with pine soot. “Master sent someone with a message this morning, saying he has an important matter to discuss with Miss. I wonder what it could be.”
The woman making the ink set down the scale. A nearby maidservant quickly brought a silver basin for her to wash her hands, then attended her as she took a seat. She turned her head to look at the incense burner by the window. “Change it to costus root fragrance — that was what A’Niang loved best.”
Scent has the power to summon memories. Whenever she missed her mother, she would have that particular incense lit, and closing her eyes, she could still feel the happiness of dashing into her mother’s courtyard as a small child.
Qin Dan received the order and turned to signal the maidservant tending the incense. The lid of the burner was lifted and set back down, and before long the fragrance in the room had changed entirely.
When Jiang Heng stepped through the door, his footsteps faltered for just a moment, and an expression of wistful melancholy crossed his face. It lasted only an instant — then he arranged his features into the smile of a doting father, called out “Si Si,” and settled himself into the armchair by the south window.
Si Si was her milk name. A dozen-some years ago, it had been fashionable to give children names with repeated characters, and she happened to have been born in the year, month, and day of the Snake, so she came to have this homely, affectionate nickname. She also had a formal name: Yun Pan. Her A’Niang had said she was the moon in the heavens, who ought by rights to dwell beside the clouds — only such a name, she said, could express a mother’s gratitude to heaven for the precious gift bestowed upon her.
But alas, that carefully chosen name later became merely a convenient template. The Jiang household successively produced a Xue Pan, a Yu Pan — names that utterly missed the spirit of the original — yet they were their father’s way of bestowing a kind of recognition and affection upon his daughters by a concubine.
Yun Pan personally carried the tea to her father and offered it to him with a smile. “Father has been busy with official duties lately. Your daughter has not seen you for several days.”
In truth, the Yong’an Kaiguo Marquis, who also held concurrent authority over the Youzhou military prefecture, was not quite as significant as his titles suggested. When Yun Pan’s mother had thrown everything aside to marry down to Jiang Heng, he had been nothing more than a sixth-rank Court of Reception Official. His subsequent rise — the titles and promotions — had all come by way of his wife. Yun Pan’s mother was the daughter of the Grand Princess of Ping Yao, and had been granted, as a special imperial grace, the title of County Princess, which she bore until her death.
As for being busy — Jiang Heng was indeed busy. He was busy managing the rooms of his concubines, busy playing the role of the fine Master and devoted father to others. A’Niang’s headstrong determination had bought only three years of conjugal devotion. In the fourth year, the household staged the spectacle of an outside mistress turning up at the door, and Father declaring he would die with his new love.
Perhaps it had not been easy to wrest from the County Princess the concession of a secondary wife — but Father had been well-behaved since then, bringing no further consorts into the household. And yet precisely this restraint broke the County Princess’s heart further. She had wept holding Yun Pan in her arms: “What can I do? I feel as though I have become the outsider, and they are the devoted couple. And yet, three years ago, your father once threw himself against a wall for my sake…”
Yun Pan had been small then and did not understand the despair of being betrayed. But seeing A’Niang weep, she hated Father and Liu Yanqiao.
A’Niang had been ailing since then, her health never fully recovering. The previous year, in the first month, she contracted a severe cold and lingered on for three months before finally passing away. With that, the one person who could hold Liu Shi in check was gone from the household. Liu Shi seized control of the household’s management, and the only remaining difficulty was the matter of her formal status.
Sure enough, Jiang Heng set down his tea bowl and rubbed his hands together, speaking obliquely: “Your A’Niang has passed on. Father knows you grieve deeply, but now that the mourning period is complete, you should allow yourself to set aside your sorrow. The household affairs are numerous and complicated. This past year, Liu Niang has been managing them in your stead, but it cannot be a permanent arrangement — it is, after all, not the proper way of things, without a proper title to justify it…”
Yun Pan lowered her eyes and asked, “Is Father thinking of taking a new wife?” — which startled Jiang Heng into silence.
To be in such haste to remarry the very moment his wife’s mourning period was over — would that not invite ridicule? Jiang Heng looked flustered and shook his head — no, that was not it. But some things were difficult to say directly to the only daughter of his primary wife. After hesitating for quite a while, he finally managed: “What Father means is, perhaps it would save a great deal of trouble to elevate Liu Niang to proper wife status.”
To his surprise, Yun Pan slowly furrowed her brow. “To elevate a concubine to the status of wife — that would surely be improper. The Household Marriage Code states it clearly: a concubine belongs to the lower class, and elevating her to wife carries a penalty of one and a half years of penal servitude. Would Father truly abandon his noble title and official rank for the sake of this matter?”
Jiang Heng was stopped short, and felt, despite himself, a degree of shame. But after pausing briefly, he put forward his plan, patting his knees: “It is not without a solution — she could first be sent away and then received again in formal marriage. In any case, this is not something only our household has done…”
Yun Pan felt a painful tightening in her chest, as if she had been steeped in brine — a stinging, bitter sensation surging up to her eyes.
How she wanted to smash the tea things and leap up with a torrent of reproach — but Jiang Heng was an extraordinarily stubborn man, and a direct confrontation would be useless. She had no choice but to restrain her temper and advise with reason: “Such things do happen, but it is a case of the people not reporting it and the officials not investigating. Does Father have no colleagues in the officialdom who hold opposing views? If someone with ill intent were to expose this matter, how would Father face it?”
At this, Jiang Heng grew agitated and fretful, and like a cornered beast, he burst out: “Even the Emperor can elevate a consort to Empress — why should I not be permitted to elevate a concubine to wife?”
Yun Pan looked at her forty-year-old father, still as impetuous as ever, and said coolly: “Does Father dare to compare himself to the Emperor?”
Those were treasonous words — if spoken aloud beyond these walls, they could bring utter ruin. Jiang Heng stared wide-eyed at his legitimate daughter, fury, humiliation, and resentment all surging up at once. He raised his hand and pointed at her, finger jabbing wildly, unable to produce a single coherent word.
It would come to this sooner or later — Yun Pan had always known it in her heart. While A’Niang was alive, they had not dared act so brazenly. The moment A’Niang was gone, Liu Shi had been desperate to claw her way into the mistress’s position. This confrontation of hers might well extinguish whatever little father-daughter feeling still remained — but the only thing she could do was to protect her mother’s dignity after death.
“Insolent! Harsh-tongued!” — that was her father’s verdict on her.
The head of the household erupted in rage, driving out all the maidservants who had been standing in the room quiet as cicadas in winter. Qin Dan, standing on the other side of the wall, heard Master’s berating of Miss: “Is this how your mother raised you? Listen to what you have said — does a single word of it sound like the speech of a dutiful child?”
The color drained from Yun Pan’s face, shifting from pale to ashen, her hands and feet growing cold. To spare her father’s dignity, there were certain words she could not hurl back at him. She only asked quietly: “Father — when A’Niang once wished to dissolve the marriage, why did you not let her go? If you had separated from her first, and then received Liu Yiniang into the household properly, there would be no difficulty today.”
When it came down to it, he simply could not relinquish his position and prospects. Once he separated from the County Princess, the titles and official post granted through imperial favor would all be recalled — and he cared nothing for that mere sixth-rank position anymore. So he had pleaded, had reasoned that her parents were already deceased, had pushed his daughter forward as a persuasive argument, and had ultimately kept the County Princess in the marriage. Now that the County Princess was gone, new possibilities had opened up — and the real reason he had come to speak with Yun Pan was simply to preclude any chance of his daughter exposing him.
Father and daughter stood at daggers drawn, the situation having grown impossible to resolve, when Liu Yiniang rushed in. She seized Jiang Heng by the sleeve and fell to her knees in pleading: “Master… Master… all fault lies with me. I have been fortunate to receive Master’s undeserved affection and to enter this household to serve Master and Lady. I would not dare hope for anything more. Now Master, out of regard for the bond between us, would raise me up — but in doing so has wounded Miss’s heart. Miss’s grief at losing her mother has not yet subsided, and to make such a request of her at this time — is it not placing me in the position of the wrongdoer, making it impossible for me to go on living?”
These words of hers deflated Jiang Heng’s fury at once. He shook out his sleeve and turned away, striding out of the room in great steps.
Liu Shi then turned and tried to soothe Yun Pan. Speaking gently, she said: “Miss, please calm your anger. Do not quarrel with your father on my account. Miss, you have seen with your own eyes what has been in my heart all these years. The very day I entered this household, I swore before Lady that I would never harbor improper ambitions — I asked only for a place to call my own. Today, your father came to discuss all this with you, and I was utterly unaware of it. Had I known beforehand, how could I have allowed myself to be placed in such a shameless position? To elevate a concubine to the station of wife would obliterate the distinction between legitimate and lesser-born — Miss’s position would inevitably become awkward, and surely I understand this. To consider it from the other side — if an official’s household falls into disorder in matters of propriety, Master will be looked down upon in public as well. I have always devoted myself wholeheartedly to the Jiang household — how could I ever wish to harm the head of the family?”
She spoke with deep sincerity and seeming thoroughness. Had it been another person, she might truly have been taken in. But Yun Pan was not one whose ears were easily swayed. She understood perfectly well the truth of the matter — yet the surface harmony still had to be maintained. So she softened her tone and replied: “I spoke as I did for the sake of Father’s reputation as an official. If the head of the household loses face, everyone in the marquis’s residence will be subject to cold looks. When the mistress of the household was alive, all was orderly within these walls. Now, with her mourning period barely concluded, a matter such as this has stirred up — others will not say Father is lacking in judgment. They will gossip about Yiniang, and Yiniang will suffer an unjust reputation.”
Her words were at once a gesture of reconciliation and a veiled warning. Liu Shi had always been sharp-minded and naturally heard the hidden implication. She nodded repeatedly at once. “I am grateful to Miss for protecting my reputation. Though I am merely a woman of the inner household who cannot show her face in public, I still know what is important and what is not. In the future, Second Miss and Third Miss will both need to be given in marriage — if I were to drag them down through my actions, that would be my grave sin.”
There was no need to say more. The legitimate daughter of the Jiang family was not to be brushed off with a few words. After a little more idle conversation, and bidding Miss to rest well, Liu Shi withdrew from Pi Xiu Courtyard and made her way back to Xiaocong Study. The moment she stepped through the door, she saw Jiang Heng sitting on the couch with a sullen expression. She immediately let a tender smile rise to her face, and said softly by way of consolation: “Miss is Lady’s own daughter by legitimate birth — it is only natural she is a little prouder than others. Master need not trouble himself to argue with her.”
These words poked at Jiang Heng’s sore spot again. He fixed her with a glare and raised his voice: “I am her father — how dare she behave so audaciously before me?”
Liu Shi took the tea bowl brought by the maidservant and set it on the small side table, then settled herself at his side and murmured softly, twisting her handkerchief: “In truth, what she said was not without reason. We cannot let things go awry over me, ruining all Master’s careful efforts over these years.”
Her such sensible manner prompted Jiang Heng to sigh, and he said helplessly: “You — others block your way forward, and yet you still speak up for them.”
Just as those words fell, a voice picked them up from beyond the patterned floor curtain: “Since Father already knows Yiniang is a soft-hearted person, he should be all the more inclined to think on Yiniang’s behalf.”
Jiang Heng raised his eyes and saw Xue Pan enter, dressed in a pale jade-green gown, her small delicate face with almond-shaped eyes, her gaze and manner carrying much of Liu Yanqiao’s charm from her younger years.
Liu Shi smiled and scolded her with fond exasperation: “What do you know of matters outside? Your father is busy with his official duties every day — let there be no more adding to his troubles at home.”
Xue Pan clicked her tongue. “Father, you see — Yiniang has spent a lifetime neither contending nor grasping, enduring every grievance in silence. Who in this household does not praise her for her virtue and goodness? When Lady was alive, she kept herself small and submissive, suffering every humiliation. Now that Lady is gone, it is still Yiniang who manages this vast household. Not to speak of Yiniang’s hard work and meritorious service — just on the account of bearing Father’s children, Yiniang ought to be elevated and given a proper status.”
In Jiang Heng’s heart, had he ever not wished to give Liu Shi her due? In those early years, though Liu Shi had sold wine in the market — her birth low and humble — she was not of the class of brothel women or rouge-faced entertainers. Every time he passed her stall, she would offer him a cup of her home-brewed plum wine, saying it could not compare with the fine vintages of Pan Tower or the Liang family garden, but that it was simply her heartfelt offering. Seeing her then — gentle and beautiful, her pair of expressive eyes that could speak without words, the captivating allure and tender charm in her every movement and gesture — she was utterly beyond what a royal-clan County Princess could match, and he had sunk helplessly into that world of warmth and tenderness.
A principal wife who was dignified and proper could stand firm before the winds from all directions; a beautiful concubine in the inner chambers providing soft, tender affection — any man would long for such an unimpeachable life. To speak plainly, Liu Shi had been most devoted in her service. She was willing to put real effort into a man — even that kneeling just now had been her most beautifully composed posture, refined through careful deliberation. On that account alone, now that the mistress was gone, it was only right that she should emerge from bitterness into sweetness.
What a pity that Yun Pan had obstructed him, leaving Jiang Heng — who had made bold promises before Liu Shi — greatly humiliated. For the first time, he found his legitimate eldest daughter troublesome — truly a second Yuyang County Princess.
But Liu Shi, ever understanding, saw that he was in a bind, and simply told Xue Pan to say no more. “Your elder sister is, after all, of noble standing.”
Xue Pan rolled her eyes in frustration, “No matter how noble she is, she is still Father’s daughter! In my view, hurry and marry her off. Once a daughter is wed, it is not her place to interfere in the affairs of her maternal home. By that time, Father can elevate Yiniang as he pleases, and she will have no say in it.”
These words drew a long silence from Jiang Heng. Liu Shi stole a glance at his expression, and seeing that he neither agreed nor disagreed, she smiled and said: “Master, pay no mind to the child’s prattle…”
But Jiang Heng waved his hand and said: “When her mother was still alive, she had already arranged a match for her with the household of the Anchang Commandery Duke. Last year when her mother passed away, the Duke and Duchess came in person to offer their condolences, and the two children’s marriage was discussed at that time as well — it seemed they would need to wait one more year. Now that the mourning year is complete, the time has come…” As he spoke, he stroked his beard and rose slowly, pacing his way out of Xiaocong Study.
① The Mourning Period with Staff: Under the old funeral rites system, when a father is living and the mother dies, or when a husband mourns for his wife, the mourning period lasts one year, and is called the “staff period” mourning. In this novel, Jiang Heng observes the coarse mourning with staff for the County Princess, as she died while his father was still living. Since children cannot observe a mourning period heavier than their father’s, Yun Pan also follows the coarse mourning with staff period.