The next day, Eleventh Miss arrived at the First Madam’s quarters slightly earlier than usual to pay her respects.

The First Madam was in the middle of having her hair dressed and was somewhat surprised to learn she had come.

“…I can only finish one cord tassel per day,” Eleventh Miss explained with a touch of embarrassment. “I’m not as fast as Master Jian.”

A smile came into the First Madam’s eyes. “In that case, you needn’t come to pay your morning and evening respects anymore. Focus on embroidering that screen well — that is devotion enough to me.”

Eleventh Miss considered this for a moment, then respectfully answered, “Yes.”

The First Madam, knowing she had something on her mind, gave her a bowl of goat’s milk and dismissed her.

It was Luoqiao who saw her to the door.

Eleventh Miss took the opportunity to invite her and Lianqiao to join them.

Luoqiao was briefly taken aback, then smiled. “What a pity. Lianqiao has fallen ill, and I’m the only one left to attend upon the First Madam alongside a few junior maids… I’m not sure I’ll be free.”

“It’s only a small gathering,” Eleventh Miss said with a smile. “Your duties come first, Sister. We live in the same courtyard — there will be other chances.”

Luoqiao also smiled. “Some day when I’m free, I’ll come and bother Eleventh Miss all the same.”

While the two were still talking, the First Madam called out from inside to one of the junior maids, “Has Eleventh Miss left yet?”

The junior maid stepped out to look, then came back to report: “Not yet. She’s still talking with Luoqiao.”

The First Madam gave a nod, and Luoqiao lifted the curtain and stepped back inside.

“What were you two talking about?” the First Madam asked, her tone seemingly casual.

Luoqiao’s heart tightened slightly. She smiled and said, “Eleventh Miss is hosting a midday luncheon in her room to welcome Hupo back. She invited me and Lianqiao to join in the merriment.”

The First Madam did not press further and changed the subject. “What did Wu Xiaoquan say?”

Luoqiao replied, “Steward Wu says that word has been spreading at court that His Majesty plans to launch another military campaign in the northern frontier after the new year, and gold prices have been dropping sharply. The sum you wish to exchange is also quite large — ordinary money houses cannot handle it, and the reputable ones, seeing that you are in a hurry, will refuse to offer favorable rates. When it all adds up, the difference comes to four or five thousand taels. It really isn’t worth it.”

The First Madam furrowed her brow. “Tell him — four or five thousand is four or five thousand. Find a way to complete the exchange before mid-February next year.”

Luoqiao acknowledged the order and departed.

—

Back at Lvyun Tower, Eleventh Miss had Binju deliver invitations to Jiao Yuan, Tenth Miss, and Eleventh Miss’s quarters. Dongqing, meanwhile, went to Nanny Xu’s residence.

Nanny Xu was not in. The junior maid attending her responded with a dismissive air: “I’ll let Nanny know when she returns.”

Dongqing had only meant to observe the proper courtesy, so she exchanged a few words with the junior maid and turned to make her way to Wu Xiaoquan’s home.

Wu Xiaoquan’s wife was in the middle of breakfast when she heard that Dongqing from Eleventh Miss’s room had come. She shuffled into her shoes and hurried out to meet her. “Whatever the matter, a junior maid could have come to pass along the word. Why trouble yourself to come in person, Miss Dongqing! Have you eaten yet? Come in and have a bite.”

Such warmth quite startled Dongqing, and it took her a moment to collect herself. “Thank you, Nanny. I’ve already eaten,” she said, and then explained her purpose.

Wu Xiaoquan’s wife, hearing there was something she wanted, did not detain her and agreed without hesitation: “Tell Eleventh Miss — I’ll definitely be there!”

Dongqing left, puzzled, and headed to Nanny Yao’s place.

Nanny Yao was standing at the entrance of the west wing with her hands on her hips, speaking in a voice loud enough that anyone within earshot could not fail to hear: “You’re inviting me to drink wine? Eleventh Miss is certainly thoughtful — but where would I find the time? The First Madam just had me arrange for people to clean out the heated pavilion in the back garden and get the underfloor heating going, all to be ready for use over the New Year.” As she spoke, she waved her hand as if shooing away flies. “We’ll talk about it later!”

Dongqing had been braced for this. She knew perfectly well that Nanny Yao would not give her a kind word — but since they all served in the same household and would keep running into each other, there was no avoiding it. She simply pretended not to notice the hostility and kept her smile. “I’ll send one of the junior maids to invite you again when the time comes, Nanny!”

One does not strike a smiling face.

Nanny Yao bit back whatever she had been about to say. She let out a cool “Mm,” and that was her answer.

Nearby, someone laughed and said, “You’ll all be under the same roof soon enough, and she’s serving before the mistress. You ought to show her a little more face. Just go and have a cup of wine later!”

Dongqing stiffened.

For those words to be said so openly, Nanny Yao must have been saying things behind her back.

She thought of how, not long ago, Nanny Yao had been going around the village with an eight-assorted gift set, asking everywhere, “When is the Xia family leaving?” and “The girl from their family who works at the Luo Mansion has been matched with my nephew — I’ve come to acknowledge the connection as relatives” — so that when Dongqing went home to attend her younger sister’s wedding feast, all the neighbors and various aunties who had come for the occasion kept asking her, “When are you getting married?”…

Thinking of all this, Dongqing felt a stabbing pain in her chest from the rage. She turned and went to the kitchen.

Nanny Cao, who oversaw the kitchen, looked up with an unfavorable expression. “Miss had better change the menu. Ten taels of silver would be more than enough for the duck that goes into the eight-treasure broth, but then there are the ginseng, gastrodia root, angelica, wolfberries that go into the broth…” A flash of contempt crossed her eyes. “And on top of that, you’ve ordered flash-fried river seafood, chicken broth with clam, drunken silverfish, and bamboo shoot lily slices… If Miss is going to manage Eleventh Miss’s household affairs, she ought to think carefully. Generous people will say Miss simply has grand tastes; people who don’t know better might say we in the kitchen are taking advantage of Eleventh Miss’s inexperience.”

Dongqing’s face flushed crimson.

When Fifth Miss had hosted a banquet last time, she had also taken only ten taels of silver and still managed a Buddha Jumps Over the Wall. She herself had already reduced the portions proportionally — so how could it still not be enough? When all was said and done, it was simply the way of the world: people thought less of Eleventh Miss because she did not enjoy the same standing before the First Madam as Fifth Miss did.

“It’s my inexperience. Please don’t take it to heart, Nanny,” she forced herself to smile and apologize to Nanny Cao. “I’ll leave the adjustments to you, Nanny.”

Nanny Cao gave a nod, turned, and called out instructions to the kitchen women to go chop the duck — leaving Dongqing with nothing but her retreating back.

—

Dongqing made her way back to Lvyun Tower, her steps uneven.

The cold wind cutting through the trees brought her somewhat back to her senses.

Today they were hosting guests, and there was still so much to be done. How had she let herself get caught up in idle frustration with those two nannies, neglecting what actually mattered?

After all, the two nannies were older than her, had entered the household before her, and ranked higher than her — if there were things she did not do well, it was only right that they should correct and instruct her… She thought back to when she had first entered the household. If the rules were not learned properly, being scolded and beaten was the least of it — there were times when food and sleep were withheld too. How had a few years of following Eleventh Miss made her unable to endure even this?

Though she reasoned with herself this way, Dongqing still felt an indescribable ache inside.

She stood staring at the pale walls and grey roof tiles in the winter snow for a while, before turning and making her way to the venue for that day’s banquet — a heated side chamber at the front of Lvyun Tower.

Against a backdrop of white snow and lush bamboo, the red-lacquered chamber glowed like a warm ember.

She lifted the double crimson gauze panel curtain, and a wave of warmth greeted her face.

Binju had just finished setting up with Qiuju and Zhuxiang — the black lacquer chairs had been polished to a bright sheen, the small stools were cushioned with silver-pink floral seat pads, tea sets were arranged on the side tables, and two large square tables were placed side by side at the center.

“Dongqing, take a look — is there anything else to add or change?” Binju came forward with a smile.

Before Dongqing could answer, Qiuju had already chimed in from the side: “I think we should arrange some pineapples for display.”

Binju countered: “If we’re displaying fruit, pineapples are no match for a few sprigs of plum blossom.”

“But for plum blossoms we’d have to open the trunks and bring out the plum vases. Eleventh Miss has three in total — one Song-dynasty five-color gilded porcelain, one Ru-ware sky-blue glazed, one official-kiln sweet white. All top-quality pieces. With so many people about later, if even one were to go missing, no amount of tears could bring it back.” Qiuju argued with some indignation.

Binju could not help but sigh. “The pineapples and citrus fruits are all kept by the nanny who manages the garden. To get them, we’d need Nanny Xu’s tally token… That might be even more trouble than just unlocking the trunk for the plum vases.”

For a moment, all three were at a loss.

The faint sadness that had lingered in her chest suddenly swelled into something larger. Dongqing pulled the twelve-year-old Qiuju into an embrace. “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if someday we could just do whatever we pleased!”

—

At noon, over their meal, Eleventh Miss asked Dongqing about the invitations.

“Nanny Xu wasn’t in. The junior maid said she would pass along the message. Nanny Wu said she would definitely come…” Dongqing paused, then continued, “Nanny Yao is uncertain — I promised to send a junior maid again shortly to invite her. Fifth Miss was practicing calligraphy and I didn’t see her; Ziwei said she would need Fifth Miss’s approval before knowing whether she could come. At Tenth Miss’s, I only managed to see Baizhi, who also said she would see how things stand. At Twelfth Miss’s, it was Nanny Liu who replied. She said that Twelfth Miss goes to bed early and needs someone to attend her. If Nanny Liu comes, then Yutong and Yuhuai cannot come. And if Yutong and Yuhuai come, she cannot come. Weighing the two options, she felt that a lively occasion like this was better left to the young ones. So she would not be coming, and is sending Yutong and Yuhuai instead, along with the two junior maids Baizhu and Jingzhu.”

Nanny Xu had not been met in person. Nanny Yao, Jiao Yuan, Tenth Miss, and Twelfth Miss’s manner were all the same as usual. In other words, only Wu Xiaoquan’s wife had suddenly become unusually warm.

Eleventh Miss gave a faint nod and said nothing.

The room fell into quiet.

And behind her, Hupo’s face took on a pensive expression.

—

Shortly before the end of the afternoon, Wu Xiaoquan’s wife arrived — and she had brought two jars of Jinhua wine. “…I’m a person of leisure. Do let me know if there’s anything I can do, Eleventh Miss.”

Hearing this as a polite formality, Eleventh Miss did not actually put her to work. She set down the cord tassel she had been working on — about two-thirds finished — and rose to receive her.

“No, no, no.” Wu Xiaoquan’s wife waved her hands repeatedly. “You’re making that auspicious tassel for Xu Ge. That is the most important thing. I have Hupo here to keep me company. You attend to your work. I’ll go say hello to Miss Dongqing and put myself at her disposal.” She insisted on going to the heated side chamber.

Since Eleventh Miss genuinely had the unfinished tassel on her mind, she instructed Hupo to accompany Wu Xiaoquan’s wife to the side chamber.

Dongqing had gone to the kitchen to hurry the dishes along. Binju was in the chamber with Qiuju and Zhuxiang, waiting to receive the guests.

When Wu Xiaoquan’s wife came in, everyone greeted her warmly with their courtesies. She returned the greetings and fell into lively, witty conversation with Binju and the others, drawing peals of laughter from them all.

Before long, Yutong and Yuhuai arrived with Baizhu and Jingzhu. Seeing Wu Xiaoquan’s wife, they all showed expressions of surprise — but Wu Xiaoquan’s wife was entirely at ease, greeting each of them as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

Yutong and the others quickly composed themselves and exchanged courtesies with Wu Xiaoquan’s wife.

Then Ziwei from Fifth Miss’s room arrived.

Wu Xiaoquan’s wife stepped forward to greet her.

Ziwei’s face was covered with astonishment, and it was a long moment before she recovered herself enough to exchange courtesies with Wu Xiaoquan’s wife.

“Nanny is here too — I really hadn’t expected it…” she murmured, and immediately caught herself, hurriedly softening it with a smile. “I thought Nanny must be a busy person, yet here you are earlier than I am.”

Wu Xiaoquan’s wife remained perfectly composed, smiling warmly. “I’m a person of leisure. It’s not like you all, with your duties — you can’t just put them aside.”

—