Ten days passed swiftly as the weather grew colder. The thick snow in the Jian family courtyard had just been cleared when two sparrows landed on the offering platform filled with rice grains beneath the corridor. The birds were startled away by hurried footsteps. Young Maid Qingting led two maids carrying trays along the corridor, stopping outside a room draped with thick felt curtains.
“Young Lady, the master craftsmen at the shop have made some new items. Master asked us to bring them for your inspection. If you like them, you can keep them for your enjoyment,” Young Maid Qingting announced.
“Come in,” Jian Mingshu’s listless voice drifted out.
As the curtain lifted, Young Maid Qingting entered with the two maids in tow, immediately spotting Jian Mingshu lounging beside the Eight-Treasure flowing water tank, watching the fish. Since clearing things up with Lu Chang, Jian Mingshu hadn’t been crying or wailing, but she hadn’t left her room either. A few days ago, she had quarreled with Master Jian over the matter of choosing a son-in-law from among the imperial examination candidates. Master Jian had thrown a cup in anger, though fortunately, being made of gold, it hadn’t shattered.
After the father and daughter’s relationship became strained, they hadn’t spoken for several days. In the end, it was the father who relented first, sending treasures to Jian Mingshu.
The items included an engraved pure gold powder box, a filigree flint case, and pearl-studded earrings. Though not a complete set of jewelry, each piece was exquisitely crafted and gleaming with gold, rarely seen in the market. These were all new pieces from the Jian family’s gold shop.
The Jian family’s brand was inherited from their ancestors and had flourished under Master Jian’s management. Over twenty years, it has become a renowned establishment in Jiangning Prefecture. Besides the storefront, they had gathered a group of skilled craftsmen. Two years ago, during the Empress Dowager’s birthday celebration, even royal relatives had specifically commissioned the Jian family to create gold items as birthday gifts.
Speaking of Master Jian, he was an unabashed merchant dealing in gold items. Quite vulgar in his ways, with no shortage of silver, he had acquired a large mansion. For all items of daily use, anything that could be gilded was either gold-lacquered or gold-plated. He seemed eager to advertise his gold business to everyone – the scholars of Jiangning County looked down on his style, feeling that such displays of wealth were offensive to the eye. They had discussed this several times privately and some had even advised him, but Master Jian remained unchanged.
Though vulgar, Master Jian truly loved Jian Mingshu with all his heart. After Madam Jian’s early death, leaving him only this daughter, Master Jian hadn’t dared to take another wife. He raised his daughter like precious gold and jade, doting on her completely. Over the years, Jian Mingshu lived comfortably at home without having to mind others’ opinions, all thanks to her father.
No matter how mercenary and crude others found Master Jian, in Jian Mingshu’s heart, her father was the best man in heaven.
This quarrel between father and daughter was their first serious rift in many years.
“Alright, set those down,” Jian Mingshu said lazily, raising her head. “Go fetch the stewed mung bean and lotus seed pigeon soup from the kitchen, and accompany me to see my father.”
Young Maid Qingting, knowing this was a prelude to reconciliation, sweetly responded “Yes,” and had just turned to fetch the soup when the curtain was lifted again. A man wrapped in a thick fur coat entered, his belly protruding slightly, wearing a gold ring set with a pigeon egg-sized green jade that dazzled the eye.
“Master can rest assured now? Didn’t I say our Mingshu is a filial daughter who keeps you in her heart? Now you’ve heard it yourself, haven’t you?” Before the man could speak, a woman in peach-red clothing walked up behind him, smiling.
“Father, Concubine,” Jian Mingshu rose to bow – the arrivals were her father Jian Jinhai, and Concubine Zhou.
Since there was no mistress of the house to manage internal affairs, and as Jian Mingshu was growing up and couldn’t always follow her father around, Jian Jinhai had taken this concubine five years ago. He likely also hoped to have a son to inherit the family fortune, otherwise, the property would go to distant relatives and there would be no one to care for Jian Mingshu – all troublesome matters. Concubine Zhou had been in the household for five years and only gave birth to a son last year. She had hoped to gain status through the child, but unexpectedly, Jian Jinhai still showed no intention of promoting her to main wife status, instead registering the son under Jian Mingshu’s deceased mother’s name.
Concubine Zhou hadn’t said anything about this, maintaining her gentle demeanor and treating Jian Mingshu with courtesy.
“Hmph. You’ve become increasingly spoiled, even daring to be angry with me. Who am I doing all this for? It’s all for you!” Master Jian maintained his dignity as he complained while entering the room and sitting on the arhat couch. He continued, “Wasn’t there soup to be brought to me? Why hasn’t it been served yet?”
Jian Mingshu gestured for Young Maid Qingting to fetch the soup, then sat opposite her father and invited Concubine Zhou to sit at the secondary position. Only then did she say, “I know Father acts for my benefit, but those scholars are stubborn. This incident has made us the laughingstock of many! Why force an unwilling match? What’s the point?”
Choosing a son-in-law from examination candidates wasn’t so simple – it would be talked about for a lifetime.
“It’s not entirely for your sake. Our family business has reached its limit these years. If we want to advance further, we need connections in court. Who better to support than one’s son-in-law?” Master Jian tapped the table with his jade-ringed finger, sighing. He continued, “Besides, would you be satisfied with an ordinary man? If you would be, why pine for Lu Chang all these years? I see that Lu Chang is heartless. If one scholar doesn’t work out, we can find another! They’re all educated men, after all!”
“Ahem.” Concubine Zhou coughed twice in warning – Master Jian always spoke without restraint to his daughter, even leading her astray. What did he mean by “they’re all educated men”? Jian Mingshu wasn’t a man, after all.
“What are you coughing about? Did I say something wrong?” Master Jian saw nothing wrong with his words. “Well, never mind if it doesn’t work out. Don’t worry, daughter. I’ll find a way regarding your marriage. Worst case, we’ll increase your dowry. I refuse to believe we can’t find a suitable man to be my son-in-law!”
Throwing money at problems had always been Master Jian’s way – if money could solve it, it wasn’t a problem at all.
“Father-” Jian Mingshu drew out the word, “I have just one condition: whoever I marry must meet with my approval first.”
As she spoke, she glanced at Concubine Zhou, who sat calmly, smiling unchanged.
Jian Mingshu had to admire her composure – her father had already planned a generous dowry, and if it were to increase further, it would amount to half the Jian family fortune. Yet Concubine Zhou remained unmoved.
After serving her father soup and meal, Jian Mingshu coaxed Master Jian back to his room in high spirits, finally resolving their estrangement. It was past noon, and Jian Mingshu was about to take her afternoon rest when a voice called from outside – “Old Servant Ying has returned.”
Jian Mingshu quickly got up, put on her clothes, and sat on the bed, calling the person into her chamber before closing all doors and windows tightly.
Old Servant Ying had been her mother’s maid. After her mother’s death, Old Servant Ying stayed at the Jian household to care for Jian Mingshu, becoming her most trusted and capable servant.
“Pour Old Servant Ying some hot tea, add some coal to the brazier, and bring her a thick cushion.” After giving these instructions, Jian Mingshu said to Old Servant Ying, “You must be tired, Old Servant Ying.”
Old Servant Ying had just returned, her lips blue from cold. She replied gently, “This old servant is fine, thank you for your concern, Young Lady.” Without waiting for the warm items to arrive, she continued in a serious tone, “This old servant went to investigate near Yunhua Temple as you instructed, and indeed found some leads. The child born to Concubine Zhou, I’m afraid isn’t…” She shook her head, her expression grave.
Jian Mingshu wasn’t too surprised, having already suspected as much.
Concubine Zhou had been a concubine’s daughter from a wealthy family in the city, only becoming a concubine in the Jian household after her family’s decline. Though Jian Mingshu didn’t particularly like her, she wasn’t unkind either, treating her with courtesy and maintaining conversation. The Jian family provided her with the same quality of food and clothing as the main wife would receive, all of the finest quality. She seemed honest and managed household affairs well, often mediating between father and daughter, and speaking kind words to both sides. After five years, Jian Mingshu developed some affection for her. Who would have thought such an honest person would harbor ill intentions?
The child had been born just before Jian Mingshu’s engagement and marriage, as if timed precisely. How could Concubine Zhou, who had been childless for four years in the Jian household, conceive so conveniently at this crucial moment? If she remembered correctly, during that period, her father was often away inspecting the new shop, only home for a few days. Meanwhile, Concubine Zhou frequently went out to burn incense and pray at temples, her movements suspicious.
Jian Mingshu hadn’t paid attention to these circumstances initially, but after the child’s birth, she began to sense something amiss and secretly investigated Concubine Zhou. This Yunhua Temple was the one Concubine Zhou visited most frequently, going there two or three times each month to burn incense. Even when the newborn child had a fever from catching a cold, it didn’t stop her visits.
“Near Yunhua Temple, there’s a Water Fairy Nunnery that usually keeps its doors closed, only receiving familiar visitors. After dismissing our household servants at Yunhua Temple, Concubine Zhou would always go alone to the Water Fairy Nunnery. I’ve also quietly inquired about this nunnery – it’s not a proper Buddhist convent, but rather…” Old Servant Ying hesitated, unsure whether to speak of such unsavory matters to Jian Mingshu.
“I know,” Jian Mingshu said directly. Coming from a merchant family, with Master Jian as her father, she had heard something of official and commercial matters. This Water Fairy Nunnery, under the guise of religious practice, actually ran a flesh trade. Its visitors were mostly high officials and nobles, either seeking pleasure or meeting their lovers there.
Old Servant Ying didn’t continue, only sighing, “Four days from now is Concubine Zhou’s day to burn incense at Yunhua Temple.”
Jian Mingshu toyed with the powder box her father had just given her, remaining silent for a while before saying, “Yunhua Temple is near Xunyang Town. Make arrangements – say that I’m feeling down and want to go to Xunyang to clear my mind. We’ll leave in three days.”
She wanted to see exactly what ghosts Concubine Zhou was chasing.
Young Maid Qingting, who had been standing quietly, suddenly spoke up, “Young Lady, Young Master Lu… will be departing around the same time. Won’t you see him off?”
Jian Mingshu’s hand paused, then firmly closed the powder box lid, saying only, “What is there to see off? From now on, he takes his road to Yang Pass, and I cross my single-plank bridge.”
Better not to meet than to meet.
Let there be no more entanglement.
Author’s Note: Soon, everyone will see a male lead who dug a pit and buried himself in it.