Eleventh hurried to the main chamber.
Nanny Du had not yet left. “I still have several of the ladies’ personal matrons to attend to over there. The Grand Madam’s intention was for me to deliver him and return at once, but I thought the Fourth Madam would surely have questions for me, so I took the liberty of staying.”
“What are you saying, Nanny.” Eleventh invited Nanny Du into the inner chamber. “You were thinking of me, knowing how much I have on my hands with so many children. That much, at least, I can tell.” As she spoke, the two of them settled onto the large platform bed by the window.
Qiuyu served tea, then drew the latticework partition closed with quiet, careful hands.
Nanny Du leaned forward slightly and lowered her voice. “Yesterday and today, Fifth Young Master spent time over in Dian Chun Hall watching the opera. Especially today — while he was listening, he was tapping along to the beat. It made several of the ladies quite amused. The wife of Elder Liang even teased, saying the child takes after Fifth Uncle rather than the Marquis.”
Eleventh’s heart gave a sudden lurch.
The events of that year had been suppressed, but Xu Sijie had been raised by the Liu family until the age of three before being brought back. Given Liu Huifang’s nature and social circles, there were almost certainly people among her acquaintances who knew or had heard of Xu Sijie’s origins. The reason Eleventh had discouraged Xu Sijie from learning opera was precisely to keep him from forming close ties with people in that world, which might lead him to learn of what had happened — his birth mother’s early death, his birth father’s refusal to acknowledge him, his maternal uncle using him as a bargaining chip to extort his birth father, his uncle by marriage taking him in to raise him… any one of these things alone was enough to cause heartache, and having them all tangled together would be devastating to Xu Sijie.
Sometimes, not knowing is its own kind of blessing.
She quietly asked, “What did the other ladies say?”
“Ladies like Madam Huang said nothing, naturally. The wife of Elder Dou asked Fifth Young Master whether he understood what he was hearing, and whether he knew what was being sung. Fifth Young Master’s face went red, but he nodded and recounted to the wife of Elder Dou, point by point, everything that had been performed on the stage. The wife of Elder Dou was quite amazed and praised Fifth Young Master for being so clever. Fifth Young Master stood there smiling shyly, looking very handsome.” Nanny Du paused and drew a long, slow breath. “Lady Chen, the wife of Vice Minister Chen, took a great liking to him. She called Fifth Young Master over, took his hand, and asked what books he had been reading, what he did at home, whether he often accompanied the Grand Madam to the opera, and so on. Fifth Young Master said he had just finished reading the Youxue Qionglin and was preparing to move on to the Analects, that he practiced calligraphy and flute and zither at home, made Zisha teapots, and did not often accompany the Grand Madam to the opera. Lady Chen found this even more remarkable and asked how he could follow the singing on stage if he didn’t attend often. Fifth Young Master said he didn’t know — he just understood it as soon as he heard it. Lady Chen laughed warmly at that and told the Grand Madam that the family was going to produce a master. She then asked Fifth Young Master if he could sing. So Fifth Young Master sang a few lines of what he had just heard.”
At this point, Nanny Du turned to Eleventh with a rueful smile on her face.
“I may be no connoisseur, but even I could hear that although Fifth Young Master’s voice was softer than that of the young performer Xiaolianzu on the stage, his pronunciation was precise, his intonation pure and graceful, and his manner open and accomplished — exceeding that Xiaolianzu by more than one measure. It wasn’t just the ladies in the room who were astonished — even Xiaolianzu and the other performers waiting outside the hall for their reward money were struck dumb.”
Was this not fame achieved in a single moment?
Eleventh gave a wry smile of her own. “So the Grand Madam sent Nanny to bring him back to me.”
“This evening there is to be a performance by the Deyin troupe,” Nanny Du said with a nod, dropping her voice to barely a whisper. “That Liu Huifang sings Geyang opera. And she is the foremost name in all of Yanjing.”
All the more reason to keep him away.
Eleventh nodded. “I understand.”
Nanny Du let out a breath of relief. “The Grand Madam also knows this puts the Fourth Madam in a difficult position, but there are too many guests on her side — if there’s any chance at all to avoid the situation, it’s better to do so.” With that, she rose. “Then I’ll take my leave. If there’s anything the Fourth Madam needs, just send someone with word.”
Eleventh smiled, nodded, and walked Nanny Du to the door.
The matter was more difficult to handle than she had anticipated.
If she told Xu Sijie the reason the Grand Madam had sent him back, she would have to tell him about his origins — and doing so now, with the house full of guests, was clearly unwise.
No one could hear of such a past and not be shattered by it. With so many guests on the premises, one misstep might give rise to far more gossip and talk, and once that happened, suppressing it would be all but impossible. The blow to Xu Sijie would be too great.
But if she said nothing, she would have to find some explanation.
And one lie usually required more lies to cover it.
Thinking this over, Eleventh felt a ripple of unease move through her.
She paced around the spacious main hall for some time, and when her emotions had gradually settled, she asked Qiuyu, “Where is Fifth Young Master?”
Qiuyu did not know what had happened, but seeing Eleventh this troubled, she was worried as well.
She pointed toward the east side room and said softly, “I’ve settled Fifth Young Master in there.”
Eleventh went to the east side room.
Xu Sijie sat alone in the armchair at the large table by the window, his head bowed, shoulders hunched, his toes tracing circles on the blue stone tile floor.
At the sound of her entering, he immediately raised his head, and a look of frightened, animal-like anxiety flashed in his eyes.
“Mother!” Seeing it was Eleventh, his whole body relaxed. He jumped down from the armchair and rushed over, then stopped himself five steps short of her.
“Mother,” Xu Sijie looked at Eleventh with a complicated expression, “I — I — I…”
He said “I” over and over and could not produce another word, and a look of guilt spread across his face.
Having been delivered back like this by Nanny Du, he clearly understood he had done something wrong. But exactly what he had done wrong, he almost certainly had no idea.
Eleventh’s heart ached as she looked at him. She stepped forward and gathered Xu Sijie in her arms. “Let’s not let this happen again — running off to watch the opera by yourself without caring what your younger siblings are up to, shall we?”
It was the best excuse she could find.
Xu Sijie’s face flushed deep red. “I…” then a trace of timidity showed on his face, and he hesitantly asked, “Grandmother — will she blame Mother?”
So he thought he had done wrong and was afraid she would be caught in the crossfire — was that why he was so overcome with guilt?
Eleventh felt the corners of her eyes growing damp.
“I don’t think so,” she said with a smile. “Acknowledging one’s mistakes and correcting them — there is no greater virtue. If we don’t do this again, Grandmother will surely not blame us.”
Xu Sijie nodded repeatedly. “Eldest Brother and the others all went to escort the bride. Second Sister, Sixth Brother, and Seventh Brother are at the bridal chamber — there’s Eldest Sister-in-Law and Third Sister-in-Law watching over there, and Hong Wen, A’Jin, Huang Xiaomao, Liu Erwu, and Nanny Wu all attending on the side. Second Sister and Third Sister-in-Law are playing cat’s cradle, and Sixth Brother and Seventh Brother are playing at battle in the courtyard…” He lowered his head. “So that’s why I…I…”
“With Eldest Brother and the others all out, you were the eldest one at home — all the more reason to look after your younger brothers and sisters. How could you run off on your own to watch the opera? No wonder Grandmother was displeased.” Eleventh said gently. “Jie Ge’er is grown now — you’ve moved to the outer courtyard, you’re no longer a small child. You need to take on the responsibilities of being an elder brother. Shortly, when Second Sister-in-Law’s flower palanquin arrives, there will be people coming to see the bride, children seeking red packets, the Xiang family’s escorting party… it will be quite lively and chaotic. Your grandmother, your Fifth Aunt, and I won’t be able to keep track of everything. You must help us look after your younger brothers and sisters.”
“I understand!” Xu Sijie brightened. “I won’t go to the opera later — I’ll look after Second Sister, Sixth Brother, and Seventh Brother.”
Eleventh smiled and nodded. “You haven’t eaten yet, have you? Come, eat with me.”
Xu Sijie went cheerfully with Eleventh to the small courtyard beside Dian Chun Hall. After eating, they went together to the bridal chamber.
Jin Ge’er and Shen Ge’er were setting off fireworks there.
Seeing Eleventh, Jin Ge’er grabbed a lit incense stick and threw himself at her. “Mama, the meatballs today were so good — I want meatballs again tomorrow!”
Shen Ge’er saw this and threw himself at her too. “Fourth Auntie, I want meatballs too.”
Eleventh quickly caught the hands of both small figures clutching their lit incense sticks. “Careful — don’t burn my clothes. I haven’t time to change today.”
Jin Ge’er giggled and passed the incense stick to Huang Xiaomao, who was standing nearby. Shen Ge’er took his cue and passed his to Huang Xiaomao as well.
A small maid came to report: “Madam, Liu Ji’s has delivered the live fish and live shrimp for tomorrow’s banquet. Nanny Li and Liu Ji’s man have weighed them and are asking Madam to put her seal on the ledger.”
Xu Sijie heard this and quickly said, “Mother, you go ahead with your business! I’ll watch over Sixth Brother and Seventh Brother.”
Eleventh smiled in acknowledgment, but still chatted with her son for a while before heading to the small hall beside Dian Chun Hall.
Around the first quarter of the Hour of Xu, the bride’s flower palanquin arrived at the gate, and she kowtowed to Xu Lingyi and Eleventh, was escorted to the bridal chamber, and everyone crowded in to take a look at the new bride. The Xu family opened the main banquet; Xu Siyu came out to offer incense; First Young Mistress and the others accompanied the bride for the bed-sitting ceremony; Fifth Madam accompanied First Young Mistress Lin, Madam Zhou, and a group of others to play cards in the east side room of the Grand Madam’s quarters; the Grand Madam and Madam Huang and others watched the opera in Dian Chun Hall; Eleventh conferred with the head matrons. Throughout Xu Mansion, the sounds of drums and music, cheering, cards being played, toasts being made, laughter and chatter, song and music, and the continuous bursting of firecrackers rose and fell together in a great clamor that did not subside until shortly after the first quarter of the Hour of Yin on the following morning.
When Xu Lingyi returned to the chamber, he saw Eleventh lying on the bed fully clothed. He quickly pulled the blanket over her, then leaned down and called softly, “Eleventh, Eleventh — change your clothes before you sleep.”
Eleventh roused herself in a daze, let Xu Lingyi help her undress, then fell straight back to sleep.
Xu Lingyi shook his head at the sight of her and called Qiuyu in. “When did Madam come back to the room? How did she end up lying down in her clothes like this?”
Qiuyu quickly replied, “Madam had only just come back. She said she wanted a moment to herself, so we didn’t dare enter.”
Xu Lingyi went to check on Jin Ge’er.
He and Shen Ge’er lay side by side in the large bed of the warm alcove, sleeping soundly.
“Seventh Young Master absolutely insisted on sleeping with Sixth Young Master!” Shen Ge’er’s wet nurse murmured in explanation.
Xu Lingyi waved a hand and returned to the inner chamber.
With someone suddenly beside her, Eleventh stirred drowsily, turned over and wrapped her arms around the person’s waist — she caught a faint smell of wine.
“Drink less,” she murmured. “Too much wine at night isn’t good. Take care of yourself.”
“I know,” Xu Lingyi answered without much concern, watching her wriggle about in his arms trying to find a comfortable position, and felt a stir in his chest. His hand moved toward the opening of her garment.
Eleventh came fully awake.
She closed her fingers around his wrist. “My time of the month has come.” Her tone carried a trace of dejection, her delicate brows drawn tightly together.
Xu Lingyi paused.
Another month without conceiving…
His hand came to rest naturally on her back, stroking her gently in comfort as he pressed his face to hers and murmured a teasing laugh in her ear: “Looks like I’ll have to keep trying.” His tone was distinctly roguish.
Eleventh gave his shoulder a petulant swat.
—