Zhen Jie’er jumped to her feet, her face flushed with embarrassment. “Mother, you’re so busy — I’ll be on my way.”

Shiyiniang did not ask her to stay, and walked her out smiling. “What have you been keeping yourself busy with these days?”

“Second Aunt has been checking on my studies!”

“Have you told Second Aunt about the spring banquet? You’ll need to pause your lessons for a day.”

A flicker of hesitation crossed Zhen Jie’er’s eyes. “I’ll tell Second Aunt in a bit.” There was something almost apprehensive in her tone.

Thinking of the Second Madam’s cool and reserved manner, Shiyiniang gently urged her, “Tell her soon. If she hears about it from someone else first, she’ll be displeased.”

Zhen Jie’er nodded repeatedly and took her leave.

Shiyiniang then went with Hupo to the storage room where her dowry was kept.

Zhuxiang and Yan Rong, along with several young maidservants, were busy sorting through things, and stepped forward to curtsy when they saw her.

Every item in the storeroom, who was responsible for which pieces — all of it was recorded and catalogued.

Shiyiniang saw that everything was organized neatly and in good order, and gave a small nod of approval. She asked about the concubines.

“Qin Yiniang says she’ll move at the hour of Mao on the morning of the sixth,” Hupo replied. “Wen Yiniang says she has very few belongings and will move whenever there’s a free moment — and asks whether you need any help on your end. Qiao Yiniang made no requests at all. She only asked when you’d like her to move, and said she would do whatever you say.”

Shiyiniang was mildly surprised.

Qiao Lianfang had been remarkably cooperative of late.

From one extreme to another. It was hard not to find it unsettling.

She hoped she was simply overthinking it.

Shiyiniang and Hupo turned and walked back to her room.

On the way, she told Hupo quietly, “Go to Qin Yiniang’s quarters yourself. She’s moving at the hour of Mao, when it will only just be getting light. She has a Bodhisattva enshrined at home — there are protocols to observe. Take Fang Xi with you and go ask in advance, so things don’t fall into a rush.”

Hupo acknowledged and went off at once.

Nanny Du arrived from the Grand Dowager’s quarters with a summons.

Shiyiniang had Nanny Du wait in the outer room, stepped inside to change her clothes, and then accompanied Nanny Du to the Grand Dowager’s quarters. All along the way she chatted with her about this and that in an easy, unguarded manner, without letting slip a single probing word.

Nanny Du could not help smiling. “The Grand Dowager has something she wishes to consult with the Madam about.”

Shiyiniang was not sure what Nanny Du meant by this, and chose the safest reply. “She is an elder — there’s no need to speak of consulting. Whatever she wishes to direct, I am here to carry out.”

And she meant every word of it. Having taken over the management of this entire household, if there were difficulties, of course she would be the one to turn to. Being the mistress of the household was no easy matter — it carried both authority and obligation.

Nanny Du silently approved, and said no more, accompanying her to the Grand Dowager’s quarters.

The Fifth Madam was also there, speaking with the Grand Dowager about something. When she saw Shiyiniang come in, she broke off the conversation, stepped forward to greet her, and then curtsied and took her leave.

The Grand Dowager had said to the Fifth Madam, “In this matter, use your own judgment. However, the Abbess Jining has long had close ties with the Yang family. There are certain things it is still best to keep at a distance.”

The Fifth Madam was overjoyed by this. She curtsied deeply to the Grand Dowager in gratitude, exchanged a few words with Shiyiniang, rose, and departed.

The Grand Dowager gestured to the seat opposite and asked Shiyiniang to sit. “Danyang says Xin Jie’er has not been sleeping well at night lately. She sought a prayer talisman from Jining to burn, and it has been better. She would like to have Jining come to the mansion to perform a few days of ritual prayers. I agreed.”

It seemed that the details of Xin Jie’er’s fright had still been kept from the Grand Dowager to some extent.

The Grand Dowager had summoned her — could it really be for this matter?

The thought passed swiftly through Shiyiniang’s mind, and she smiled. “I wonder how many days the ritual prayers will run? I was thinking that Dianchun Hall has a spacious layout, it’s close to where Fifth Sister-in-law lives, and has side rooms where the officiating Abbess and her attendants could be housed. Would it please you, if we arranged for Abbess Jining to stay there?”

The Grand Dowager nodded readily. “How thoughtful of you. Let’s arrange it that way.”

As they spoke, a young maidservant came forward with tea.

The Grand Dowager invited her to taste it. “New tribute tea from this year.”

Shiyiniang lifted the cup and took a sip.

The color was a vivid jade-green, the fragrance rising and enveloping. It was premium pre-Qingming West Lake Dragon Well.

“Wonderful tea,” she said with a smile. “Rich and fragrant, fresh and natural.”

The Grand Dowager beamed and instructed Nanny Du, “When the Fourth Madam leaves, have a maidservant take these tea leaves back with her.”

“How could I,” Shiyiniang said quickly. “A taste is enough. There’s no need to give it all to me.”

“I’m old — it doesn’t suit me the way it suits you young people,” the Grand Dowager said, signaling to Nanny Du to go fetch the tea leaves. “I do better with the later harvest.”

Pre-Qingming tea is full and robust in flavor; post-Qingming tea is lighter and more delicate. The Grand Dowager’s words made perfect sense. But Shiyiniang still said, “Do keep some for entertaining guests. And for Second Sister-in-law and Fifth Sister-in-law as well — shall I have some sent to them when I go?”

The Grand Dowager agreed readily, and told Nanny Du, “Leave aside five taels for receiving guests, and that will do.”

Nanny Du acknowledged and went to attend to it, and the Grand Dowager turned the conversation to another matter.

“I hear the supervising nanny for your quarters has not yet been decided?”

Not only had the supervising nanny not been settled — even the position left vacant after Old Gan’s departure had been filled only on a temporary basis by someone who had previously worked under Old Gan.

“Hearing is believing, but seeing is knowing,” Shiyiniang replied. “I am still not well acquainted with the household’s people, and it has been difficult to make a decision in good conscience. I was just thinking of asking you, Mother, to advise me on the matter.”

Hearing this, the Grand Dowager was not the least bit reserved, and said with a smile, “I summoned you precisely because I have someone to recommend.”

“Please do tell, Mother!”

“The wife of the outer courtyard’s Steward Song.”

That Steward Song — the one who had gone to the Imperial Household Bureau to fetch cosmetic powder for Yuan Niang?

Shiyiniang was mildly surprised.

The Grand Dowager continued, “There is an unwritten rule in our household that the wives of outer courtyard stewards may not serve as supervising nannies in the inner apartments. However, this Steward Song’s wife was originally the only daughter of the chief steward who served your late father-in-law’s time — a capable and clever girl from childhood who once served as a senior maidservant in my quarters. Later she took Steward Song into the household as her husband, and after he took up his post in the mansion, she retired from service. I have given this a great deal of thought — she is the most suitable person there is.”

Given that the Grand Dowager had gone so far as to recommend someone, she had naturally already weighed the matter carefully. The woman would surely be capable. Only the matter of the household’s rules…

She said tactfully, “I am so grateful for your consideration, Mother. But Steward Song belongs to the outer courtyard. If my affairs were to interfere with the Marquis’s proper business, I would feel deeply uneasy.”

“Rules are fixed, but people are flexible,” the Grand Dowager said with a laugh. “If you are content with her, that is all that matters. I will speak with the Fourth Young Master about this myself.”

There was wisdom in the Grand Dowager’s words.

She did not wish to press the matter further — lest the Grand Dowager think she was dissatisfied with her recommendation.

The Grand Dowager then asked after the plans for the move.

“Hupo and Lvyun are overseeing my room’s belongings; Zhuxiang and Yan Rong are overseeing the storeroom. Fang Xi is handling Qin Yiniang and Wen Yiniang; Xiu Lan is assisting. For Qiao Yiniang’s quarters — she has just come out of confinement — I have Hong Xiu helping her move.” Shiyiniang went through each aspect with the Grand Dowager in detail: the order of the moves, the schedule for each room, the routes to be taken.

The Grand Dowager saw that everything, down to the smallest detail, had been arranged with perfect order and not a single flaw to fault. Her heart swelled with deep relief, and she broke into a broad, contented smile, urging Shiyiniang to go and attend to things. “…Once everything is settled, host a few tables of dinner. Let us all have a proper celebration.”

Shiyiniang smiled and said yes, made a little more conversation, and then rose to take her leave.

That evening, when Xu Lingyi came home, she had the Dragon Well tea brewed for him. “She called me over about the matter of the supervising nanny, and presented me with these tea leaves. Marquis, do try — what do you think?”

Xu Lingyi took it up and sipped. “Excellent. Premium West Lake Dragon Well — rich, fragrant, and aromatic.” Then, quite naturally, he told her what had transpired. “Mother called me in this afternoon to speak about it as well. I think it’s a good arrangement. Let’s settle it this way.”

Shiyiniang nodded and said with a smile, “Since Mother recommended her and the Marquis also approves, there can certainly be no mistake. Only I worry it may break the household’s established rules…”

Had it been anyone else faced with such a rare exception being made for them, they would have been overjoyed. Yet Xu Lingyi saw Shiyiniang’s gently furrowed brows and her worried, earnest eyes — and as if under some spell, he reached out and gave her nose a gentle pinch, teasing, “Both Mother and I bent the rules for you, and you’re still not pleased?”

The words had barely left his mouth before they both froze.

One felt he had been overly familiar; the other feared the implications.

The first, now somewhat flustered, said nothing. The second quickly spoke up. “Rules exist for a reason. If they are bent on my account — however kind the intention from Mother and the Marquis — if I, as the one overseeing the household, were simply to accept it, then in time others would follow the example and find their own reasons to request exceptions.” Her tone was gentle yet firm. “Marquis, Nanny Song is someone you and Mother both hold in high regard, and I very much want her in my quarters. But might there be another way?”

“Come to think of it, Steward Song has also been in the storeroom for going on ten years now,” Xu Lingyi said, composing himself. “His conduct has seemed quite steady and proper. As it happens, our shop in Nanjing is short of a second manager. I think it would be good to send him there for some seasoning. That way, his wife’s appointment to your quarters would be entirely above board. And beyond that — being posted as a manager is a mark of distinction, both an honor to him and a tribute to his late father-in-law.”

“An excellent plan, Marquis!” Shiyiniang breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She brought up the matter of who might fill Steward Song’s position. “…When the First Madam’s household was dissolved, a man called Yang Huizu was kept on. I asked him to help me purchase a few things once and found him quite capable. If the Marquis has not yet settled on anyone, perhaps he might be considered.”

Xu Lingyi was mildly surprised.

Shiyiniang had never taken it upon herself to involve herself in the outer courtyard’s affairs, let alone make recommendations in this manner.

“I was left with no other choice,” he said when he saw his wife let out a sigh. “That business with Wan Xiang — colluding with familiars, ensnaring honest people — I’ve found the whole affair increasingly distasteful.” Then Shiyiniang told him of how, after Old Gan’s departure, she had put someone who had previously worked under Old Gan in a temporary position overseeing things, and how Wan Xiang had not only made a show of contempt to the person in question, but had also stirred up trouble with the kitchen staff. “…The kitchen originally fell under her supervision. After Old Gan’s departure, I had the same intention of putting her in charge. But since I had only just taken over and did not yet have a full picture of the situation, I thought it unwise to make changes immediately — and so I appointed that person in the meantime. Even if she had grievances, this was, after all, my decision. For her to act this way makes it impossible to keep her on. It seems this must be made an example to warn others. And yet I worry about chilling the hearts of those who came over from the First Madam’s household. If I could arrange things so that the transition seems to come through different hands, I would feel on firmer ground.”

“Very well,” Xu Lingyi said with a nod. “Then have that Yang Huizu go see Steward Bai the day after tomorrow.” He made no mention of whether anyone had already been considered for Steward Song’s vacancy.

—