The Grand Madam looked at the two daughters-in-law before her — the Third and the Fourth — both smiling pleasantly, and gave a quiet, satisfied nod.

How much better this was — a smooth and natural passing of the torch, without any resentment.

Some things cannot be rushed. Rush them, and grievances are sure to follow.

She gave a warm laugh. “Old Third’s wife must take good care to teach Old Fourth’s wife. And Old Fourth’s wife, in turn, must take good care to learn from Old Third’s wife.”

Shiyiniang smiled and agreed.

The Third Madam was already pulling her along, eager to take her to meet the household matrons at the administrative receiving quarters.

Shiyiniang felt this was too abrupt — there should at least be a proper occasion for introductions. She smiled and declined gently. “The Marquis doesn’t know about this arrangement yet. I should let him know first, and also make some arrangements at home, so there won’t be no one to attend to him when he comes back.”

The Third Madam could not help inwardly reproaching herself for having forgotten this — in handing over the household management so readily, she should have first told the Third Master, and had him go to the Marquis as though seeking his opinion. That way, they would also be repaying some of the favor the Marquis had done for them.

At the thought, she nodded. “You’re right — I hadn’t thought of that.” She also knew they would need to speak with the Third Master quickly, so word could reach the Marquis before he returned to the inner courtyard that evening. She exchanged a few more pleasantries with the Grand Madam and Shiyiniang, then excused herself on the grounds of having things to attend to, and hurried back to her own courtyard, where she sent someone to the outer court to fetch the Third Master.

Shiyiniang, once the Third Madam had gone, brought up the matter of Wan Daxian with the Grand Madam. “… The Marquis was thinking of placing him in the receiving office, but he’s a man of straightforward character, and I thought the ancestral hall might suit him better. The Marquis said he might not be familiar enough with the rites of ancestral veneration, and so he’s been placed in the document office instead, to help run errands for the stewards there.”

Xu Lingyi was reshuffling the outer court staff — the Grand Madam had long been aware of this. But placing Shiyiniang’s personal attendant in the document office was another matter. A flash of surprise crossed the Grand Madam’s eyes.

So soon, and he had already placed her person in the outer court.

The Grand Madam studied Shiyiniang.

Shiyiniang felt the Grand Madam’s unease. She had no choice in the matter.

It was better the Grand Madam hear it from her directly than from someone else’s mouth.

Her only course now was to attribute the favour entirely to Xu Lingyi and the Grand Madam, so as to soften any displeasure. “I’ve already sent word to Wan Daxian,” she said, “and he is very grateful. He’s waiting at the gatehouse and says he wants to give his thanks to the Marquis in person when he returns. He also wishes to pay his respects to you.” She smiled. “He doesn’t know the proper etiquette. I told him: if you truly wish to express your gratitude to the Grand Madam, simply kneel and bow three times toward her quarters from the outer court.”

The Grand Madam laughed. “If he doesn’t know the rules, let the stewards teach him properly.”

“Mother is quite right!” After a few more words of casual conversation with the Grand Madam, when the time came for the Grand Madam’s daily prayers at the Buddhist hall, Shiyiniang accompanied her there before returning to her own courtyard.

The wife of Yang Huizu was waiting outside the gate.

She was a woman of about thirty, of medium build, dressed in a deep green Luzhou silk padded jacket and a plain black skirt. She had regular, pleasant features and a pair of lively, quick-moving eyes. She curtsied to Shiyiniang with a smile. “Madam has only just returned — you’ve kept me waiting.”

Shiyiniang thought of how she had sent Yang Huizu to help old Gan Quan, and felt a certain wariness toward his wife — she did not seem the sort one could entrust things to. She greeted her politely. “Is there something I can help with?”

The wife of Yang Huizu reached into her sleeve and produced a dark red velvet pouch. “My husband said this is what Madam asked him to purchase.”

Hupo stepped forward and accepted it. Shiyiniang smiled. “You’ve gone to the trouble.” She had Hupo offer her two taels of silver as thanks, then sent Qiu Yu to take her off for some tea.

Back inside, she opened the pouch to find round, lustrous pearls tumbling out.

Shiyiniang picked one up — it was no larger than a grain of rice. “Ten taels of silver, and this many.”

Hupo brought Shiyiniang a cup of hot tea with a smile. “Madam, are you going to thread a bracelet for Zhen Jie’er?”

Shiyiniang nodded and set the pearls aside. “Have them sent to Chief Steward Bai — ask him to help have holes drilled through the centers, and also see what these pearls are worth, and whether any are false.”

A jewelry house that dealt with the Xu family was certain to be no ordinary establishment — and it would also be a good test of Yang Huizu’s competence.

Hupo smiled and took the pearls, then quietly relayed what she had learned from Weizi to Shiyiniang.

Shiyiniang was silent for a long moment.

The Second Madam’s move was truly very clever.

She had only said that her personal household attendant was hoping for a position — nothing more. Xu Lingyi respected this widowed sister-in-law and would naturally do his best to arrange something for the boy. And yet every one of this boy’s qualities matched exactly what was needed for a personal attendant.

“What should we do?” Hupo was a little anxious.

Shiyiniang smiled. “For one thing, the Second Young Master does genuinely need an attendant of that kind. For another, the Second Madam is acting at the request of Qin Yiniang, to find the Second Young Master a trustworthy person. She’s not there to harm him. What is there to be anxious about?” Then she added with quiet significance, “Hupo — the Second Young Master is already eleven years old. Even if I wished to cultivate a relationship with him, it can’t be done now. He is a son born of a concubine. By convention, once he’s married he’ll establish his own household. Why should we fight tooth and nail with one another? Far better to part amicably when the time comes.”

Hupo thought about it and saw the sense in it. Even if they won the Second Young Master’s favor — he was already old enough to form his own judgments. Pour your heart out for him, and he’d likely think you were putting on a performance anyway. As long as things remained civil on the surface, that was enough.

Shiyiniang saw the look of sudden understanding come over her, and continued, “That said — while we need no harmful intentions, we must always keep our guard up. What we need to watch against is others manufacturing misunderstandings between me and the Second Young Master that might bring about the Marquis’s displeasure. Nothing more. As for the rest — we have our maids as our people. With more and more things to manage in this household going forward, you’ll need to start putting Qiu Yu, Lanxuan, and Xiulan to work. You can’t keep everything in your own hands alone. One person can only do so much, and you’ll reach your limits before long. Have them spend more time with the maids in the Second Young Master’s rooms — Wenzhu and the others. If anything seems off, have it reported to you at once.”

Hupo already felt herself stretched thin, and hearing this, she nodded in agreement again and again.

Shiyiniang gave one more instruction: “The maids in this household may be a fixed establishment, but they cycle through. While things are still manageable, start looking now to see if there are any suitable young girls in the house — sharp and presentable — so we have people ready to rotate in when the time comes. That way we won’t end up with only Nanny Tao’s people around us.”

Hupo hesitated. “Madam, is there someone you’re not satisfied with?”

Shiyiniang smiled. “Dongqing and Binju are both getting on in years. Better to plan ahead.”

Hupo thought of how often Shiyiniang had been asking after Wan Daxian, and her eyes lit up with a smile. “Could it be — you have your eye on Wan Daxian?”

Shiyiniang nodded, and asked her quietly, “What do you think — him and Dongqing?”

Hupo’s eyes curved into crescents with delight. “Daxian is steady and honest, and Sister Dongqing is gentle and kind — Madam, what wonderful matchmaking instincts.”

Just as they were talking, the wife of Wan Yizong arrived.

Hupo could not help laughing. “How perfectly timed — speak of the devil.”

She went to welcome her in, then took the pearls off to find Chief Steward Bai.

The wife of Wan Yizong had brought two paper boxes filled with modest dried goods — persimmon crisps, dried pear, fruit preserves, peanuts, puffed beans, and the like. “Please don’t think too little of it, Madam — it’s just a small token of my sincerity.” She then knelt and bowed her head to the floor. “Daxian couldn’t come himself, so I’m kowtowing on his behalf. He will serve faithfully and not bring disgrace to your name.”

Shiyiniang had someone bring a stool for her to sit on and asked after the situation at Jinyu Lane — she learned that Liu Yuanrui was the one managing things there, that everyone had hot meals to eat, and that each person had received a sturdy padded coat. Shiyiniang was pleased, and the conversation gradually turned to Wan Daxian’s prospects in marriage.

“… Could it be he’s been setting his standards too high?”

“Madam, you must be joking,” the wife of Wan Yizong said with a rueful smile. “The family is too poor — who would want to marry into it?”

“What if I were to serve as a matchmaker for Daxian?” Shiyiniang said with a smile.

The wife of Wan Yizong froze, and her smile became a little strained. “With Madam as the matchmaker, I could ask for nothing more.”

But Shiyiniang saw there was no real joy in her face. A forced match bears no sweetness. And she would be the mother-in-law besides.

Shiyiniang suppressed an inward sigh and turned the conversation to asking after the situations of Jiang Bingzheng and Chang Jiuhe.

It was evident the wife of Wan Yizong was also a straightforward and honest woman. Though she spoke little of Jiang Bingzheng and somewhat more of Chang Jiuhe, she spoke of both with nothing but praise and not a word of fault.

As the hour grew late, Shiyiniang handed back the paper boxes the wife of Wan Yizong had brought. “Come with me to give thanks to the Grand Madam.”

The wife of Wan Yizong was quite flustered. “This — this is too…”

“Take them,” Shiyiniang said with a smile. “We’re all family here — everything is easy. That Daxian is able to take up a position in the household is also owing to the Grand Madam’s grace. As you said — it’s just a token of sincerity. The Grand Madam will certainly not think any less of it.”

Only then did the wife of Wan Yizong accept the boxes. Just as they stepped out the gate, they met Hupo returning from her errand, looking somewhat deflated. “Madam,” she said, “that magic cube — Chief Steward Bai says it’s far too complex. He’s had it sent to the Imperial Household Bureau. I’m afraid it may be a few days before there’s any word.”

Shiyiniang could not help sighing.

During her studies abroad, there had been a young man who had persistently pursued her. He had once shown her how to solve a Rubik’s cube and even given her a handmade one in acrylic resin — she remembered it vividly. At the time it had not seemed so difficult at all. And now it had ended up being forwarded to the Imperial Household Bureau.

She gave a wry smile, and with the wife of Wan Yizong in tow, made her way to the Grand Madam’s rooms.

The Grand Madam was genuinely delighted to see them, said a few warm words, and not only gave the wife of Wan Yizong two taels of silver but also had a meal laid on for her.

Shiyiniang felt a quiet easing in her heart — she had done all she could, and she hoped the Grand Madam had truly put her reservations to rest.

By the time the Third Madam arrived, the two of them attended the Grand Madam together through the midday meal, then departed her courtyard.

Along the way, the Third Madam chatted with her in the most amiable and intimate manner, walking her all the way to the gate of her courtyard before returning to her own rooms.

Shiyiniang napped through the afternoon, and had barely risen when a young maid came in to announce: “Two matrons from the Household of the Marquis of Weibei have come to pay their respects to Madam.”

Was this about the arrangements for Hui Jie’er’s visit?

Shiyiniang had the two matrons shown in.

Indeed, it concerned Hui Jie’er — they were asking whether the following morning would be a suitable time for Madam Lin to come and pay a call.

Shiyiniang agreed. She gave the two matrons a tip and sent them off with Hupo, then went to the Grand Madam’s rooms to show her Madam Lin’s letter.

“In that case, prepare accordingly tomorrow and have them stay for the midday meal.” The Grand Madam then instructed Weizi to bring her lacquered box carved with a playing children design and retrieved from it a copper token, which she handed to Shiyiniang. “This is my authorization token. If you need something that Old Third’s wife cannot furnish, have Chief Steward Bai in the outer court procure it.”

She was placing the entire responsibility for receiving Madam Lin squarely on Shiyiniang’s shoulders.

Shiyiniang was a little taken aback, and her eyes drifted involuntarily to the token.

It was no wider than two fingers, no longer than two inches, hung from a brilliant red layered tassel with a carved pixiu head at one end — and inscribed in neat, formal script with four characters: “Yongping Marquis Mansion — Fourth.”

First, second, third, fourth — she wondered how many privileges the token marked with “First” carried.

She received the token respectfully.