The Office of Imperial Stud was responsible for overseeing the governing regulations concerning horse pasturing and was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War. In Shandong and Henan, across six prefectures, horses were reared and kept in trust. For any grasslands that had been converted to farmland, the Ministry of War was responsible for collecting annual rents. In the event of disaster, funds were to be released to subsidize horse purchases.
This year’s snowfall had been severe. Jinan, Dongchang, Kaifeng, Weiwei, and surrounding areas had suffered greatly. Deputies from the offices in all four locations had come in succession to the capital to request assistance. Changling Princess’s only son, Ren Kun, held the position of Bureau Director of the Carriage and Courier Division under the Ministry of War, overseeing matters of ceremonial processions, courier relay stations, and horse stabling. The deputies from those offices inevitably needed to come and cultivate ties with him. He was a renowned beauty in Yanjing, passionate about relations with men and entirely indifferent to women. The venues for receiving them had naturally shifted from ordinary brothels to establishments catering to male companionship. In the course of these visits, he made the acquaintance of Wang Lang, who was a regular patron of such places…
“From the tenth day of the twelfth month, the whereabouts of the two men has been unknown!” Zhou Furen said, studying Eleventh Miss’s expression all the while.
“So Wang Lang was never at home at all… On the second day of the New Year, of course Tenth Miss couldn’t come back to her maternal home…” Eleventh Miss heard this with something approaching stupefaction. Then she thought of Madam Jiang Gui’s sudden return to Yanjing: “…Could this be the reason that brought her back to Yanjing?”
Zhou Furen could not hear Eleventh Miss’s quiet murmuring, but did offer a reminder: “Changling Princess is ten years older than the Emperor. When the Emperor was young, he once received Changling Princess’s care. Only Changling Princess dares to cite poor health as a reason not to present herself at Cining Palace for the morning greeting.”
Eleventh Miss gave a rueful smile.
Even setting aside the matter of Ren Kun’s particular companion — besides Wang Lang’s family and Tenth Miss herself, who else had any standing to intervene…
This was perhaps not altogether a bad thing. With Wang Lang now having a person he was devoted to, his attention would naturally be diverted away from the household, and Tenth Miss would be able to enjoy a few days of peace.
She let out a long breath.
She barely managed to endure until after dinner and returned home, only to find her courtyard ablaze with lamplight and full of merry voices.
A young maid came to report: “It is Fourth Young Master who is teaching Fifth Young Master how to kick the shuttlecock!”
Eleventh Miss couldn’t help looking up at the sky full of stars. “At this hour?”
The young maid smiled: “Fourth Young Master came this afternoon and even had dinner here.”
“Has the Dowager Marchioness not returned?” She hurried inside. “Has the Marquis returned?”
The young maid answered: “The Dowager Marchioness has not yet returned. The Marquis went out with you this morning and has not returned either.”
As she was speaking, Eleventh Miss had already entered the room.
“Watch carefully — just like this…” The entire room of maids and matrons had gathered in a ring around Zhun Ge and Xu Sijie in the center. Zhun Ge was demonstrating how to kick the shuttlecock, holding a bright-feathered one in his hand. But Xu Sijie across from him looked somewhat distracted, his gaze wandering idly around the room.
Suddenly Xu Sijie’s eyes lit up: “Mother!”
He shouted and came charging toward Eleventh Miss.
Eleventh Miss caught Xu Sijie, then asked Zhun Ge’s wet nurse: “Does the Dowager Marchioness’s side know that Fourth Young Master is here?”
The wet nurse curtsied respectfully: “She does. Lady Weizi is aware.”
Zhun Ge had already stepped forward to bow to Eleventh Miss. “Mother!”
Eleventh Miss nodded, and seeing his forehead damp, reached to feel his back. “Have you worked up a sweat?”
Zhun Ge pulled slightly at the hand on his back but then held still. “No, I haven’t!”
Eleventh Miss carried Xu Sijie toward the inner chamber. “Look at all that sweat on your head. Come inside and have some tea.”
Zhun Ge thought for a moment, then followed Eleventh Miss into the inner chamber.
Maids attended to them as they settled on the kang and tea was served, while the various concubines came in to pay their respects. The room was bustling noisily when Xu Lingyi returned.
Seeing the room full of warm cheer — Zhun Ge seated beside Eleventh Miss, Xu Sijie sprawled in Eleventh Miss’s arms — the corners of his mouth lifted involuntarily.
“You’ve all come back early!”
Everyone quickly rose to pay their respects.
“Princess Ancheng dislikes noise, so everyone played cards for a while and then dispersed.”
Xu Lingyi nodded, went to the dressing room to change, and Qiao Lianfang followed him in.
Qin Yiniang lowered her gaze, affecting an expression of having seen nothing. Wen Yiniang glanced at Eleventh Miss.
A concubine was nothing more than a servant with a slightly higher status. There was nothing to be troubled about.
Eleventh Miss did not react, and calmly instructed a maid: “Go see whether the Dowager Marchioness has returned.”
The young maid ran off.
Eleventh Miss chatted casually with Zhun Ge: “Did your three brothers not keep you company? What are they all up to?”
Zhun Ge pouted: “They won’t let me follow them. They shut themselves in a room talking all sorts of secrets.”
Children generally liked to play with older children.
Eleventh Miss smiled. “So you came to find Sijie to play with.”
He nodded, and said with dissatisfaction: “I told Fifth Brother how to kick the shuttlecock, but he always won’t learn properly.”
Perhaps Xu Sijie simply had no interest in it.
Eleventh Miss smiled gently, then heard a man’s low, mellow voice say: “Why learn to kick a shuttlecock. Focus on reciting the Preliminary Learning. Once the New Year is over, you will be attending the clan school.”
She looked up to see Xu Lingyi step out from the dressing room in a dark green brocade Daoist robe, Qiao Lianfang following behind him with a properly deferential manner.
Children too had their dignity.
Eleventh Miss immediately said with a smile: “It is getting late. Let us all retire for the evening.”
Xu Lingyi had been about to say a further word to Zhun Ge but swallowed it back seeing that Eleventh Miss had spoken up.
Even so, Eleventh Miss worried he might still pull Zhun Ge aside to reprimand him, and personally walked Zhun Ge to the door.
Returning, she asked Xu Lingyi: “How have things been these past few days?”
“Not badly,” Xu Lingyi said, reclining lazily against the large bolster pillow. “Only that the censors’ letters of impeachment haven’t even touched the real point. I plan to have someone write a memorial tomorrow to send up — you should understand that the more people pile on to impeach me, the more uneasy the Emperor becomes.”
Eleventh Miss understood this perfectly.
No Emperor liked to see his ministers forming factions. The matter of Xu Lingyi’s affair could be treated as major or minor. If a great many people all fixated on it without letting go, the Emperor would begin to wonder at the deeper implications.
“Has the Qu family shown no movement?” she mused. “This is too good an opportunity for them to simply pass up. And if they have truly let it pass… then the Qu family is truly not to be underestimated.”
“It is not that they have passed it up,” Xu Lingyi replied evenly. “It is simply that here in Yanjing, they cannot direct things as neatly as they could in Fujian.” Then, seeing that Eleventh Miss’s spirits seemed somewhat low, he asked: “Tired?”
It took Eleventh Miss a moment to realize he was asking about her. She smiled then: “Not particularly. Only that the princesses all had many rules of protocol to observe — it wasn’t as comfortable as at Yongchang Marquis’s household.” She then told him about Wang Lang. “…I cannot say whether it is good or ill — a blessing or a curse.”
“So Ren Kun and Wang Lang are together,” Xu Lingyi said, clearly quite surprised. “How did Ren Kun come to take a liking to Wang Lang?”
From his tone, he had a higher opinion of Ren Kun than of Wang Lang. But then, remembering that Wang Lang had a past quarrel with Xu Lingkuan, it was understandable that Xu Lingyi would look on him unfavorably.
The next day she sent Hupo back to Bowstring Lane — both to tell Luo Zhensheng the news, so as to prevent deepening misunderstandings within the Luo family toward Tenth Miss; and to take the opportunity to look in on Fifth Yiniang and see how she was faring.
Fifth Yiniang was well on all fronts. Sixth Yiniang was looking after her admirably. Luo Zhensheng, upon receiving the news, was furious. Regardless of the festive season, he immediately sent First Young Mistress to pay a call at the Wang household. The matter could no longer be concealed; the Wang family was deeply mortified. Madam Jiang Gui not only personally came to offer an apology, but the Wang family also sent a steward bearing gifts worth a thousand taels of silver. Luo Zhensheng’s anger was still not spent, and First Young Mistress reasoned with him: “And what — shall we actually bring Tenth Miss back home?” That single question deflated Luo Zhensheng entirely, and he could only urge the Wang family to retrieve the man at once.
This incident, which would otherwise have been worth every corner of every street gossiping about, was overshadowed by the affair of Xu Lingyi’s illegitimate child — like a small stone cast into a lake, it stirred ripples, yes, but only ripples, and they vanished quickly. Xu Lingyi’s affair, by contrast, grew more and more heated. From aspersions of moral failure it escalated to accusations of treason and consorting with the enemy; from impeachment by censors it grew into open attacks among court officials. And the Xu household, as the eye of the storm, responded sluggishly, without coherent strategy or coordinated action. Its one saving grace was that the brothers remained on good terms with one another — Xu Lingkuan had gotten into several physical altercations over this matter on behalf of his brother.
For a time, inside and outside Yanjing the gossip was unceasing.
Eleventh Miss was not greatly affected. Apart from accompanying the Dowager Marchioness to several family banquets hosted by households with close ties, she spent her days in her own courtyard doing needlework for the children with Dongqing and Binju.
Every afternoon Zhun Ge would come to play with Xu Sijie — yet Xu Sijie would rather sit beside Eleventh Miss watching her embroider characters than play with Zhun Ge. Zhun Ge was not pleased. “…Elder Brother and Second Brother are sharing secrets, won’t let Third Brother listen, and won’t let me listen either.”
Seeing him pouting with great indignation, and taking in the sight of all the maids and matrons who hovered at his side with reverently bowed heads, and then looking at Xu Sijie who sat unmoving at her side and would rather count his fingers than take a single step away from her — Eleventh Miss smiled, put down her needlework, and said: “Zhun Ge, teach me how to kick the shuttlecock!”
“Really? Really — Mother wants to learn shuttlecock from me?” Zhun Ge’s face lit up.
Eleventh Miss nodded. Not wanting anyone to watch and find it unseemly, she kept only Lvyun and Hongxiu, sent a young maid to keep watch at the door, changed into a short jacket, and let Zhun Ge teach her.
Whether she simply lacked the aptitude, or whether her heart was more in accompanying the children than in actually learning, Eleventh Miss practiced and practiced and never got the hang of it — either kicking the shuttlecock off to one side, or missing it entirely. Zhun Ge grew so anxious that sweat beaded on his forehead. Xu Sijie, content anywhere as long as he was near Eleventh Miss, laughed happily as he chased after the shuttlecock to pick it up for her, having the best time of all.
“How about we play jump rope instead?”
Jump rope — that was the white cord jumping game.
Eleventh Miss felt it was better exercise than shuttlecock, especially for a child built like a slender sprout like Zhun Ge — building up gradually in intensity would strengthen him. And it was more discreet, not likely to draw attention.
She said so, looking at Zhun Ge with hopeful eyes.
Zhun Ge puffed up his little chest immediately: “All right, let’s play jump rope!”
He actually found jump rope quite tiring. But Mother was clumsy and hadn’t managed to learn shuttlecock, so she wanted to switch to jump rope. He naturally had to give her some face.
Xu Sijie was perfectly content with whatever Eleventh Miss wanted — he clapped his hands: “Jump rope, jump rope!”
Eleventh Miss laughed and ruffled his head. She had Steward Bai bring three jump ropes proportioned to their heights, then moved the grand chairs in the hall aside to clear an open space in the center. She and Zhun Ge each took a rope and tried it out.
Xu Sijie, holding his rope, ran back and forth nearby.
Eleventh Miss called to Xu Sijie with a smile: “Come here, let me show you how to jump rope!”
Xu Sijie trotted over with a grin.
Eleventh Miss stood him in front of her, called out “one, two, three,” then swung the rope in a circle and stopped; called “one, two, three” again, then swung. At first Xu Sijie had no idea what was happening and the rope caught him on the legs several times. Gradually he began to understand what Eleventh Miss was trying to do — that when she counted to “three” he was to jump. But being so young and unsteady on his feet, he swayed back and forth like a tumbling figure, making Zhun Ge laugh helplessly watching from the side. Xu Sijie looked over at Zhun Ge, and in that moment of distraction stepped squarely on Eleventh Miss’s foot. Eleventh Miss had not expected this and let out a startled cry. The rope caught on Xu Sijie’s feet, and the two of them tumbled down together.