Fifth Miss was chatting with Ziwei and Ziyuan. Nearby, Nanny Xu was reporting to the First Madam.
“Nothing was found at all?”
Nanny Xu’s face was flushed crimson.
“Given her personality, there’s no way she’d simply leave Tenth Miss to fend for herself. Those valuables must have all been handed over to Tenth Miss. Otherwise, those two wouldn’t have had the nerve to run away.” The First Madam’s expression darkened somewhat. “Go and search again, thoroughly. I refuse to believe she left no trace of herself whatsoever.”
Nanny Xu hurriedly replied, “I’ve already instructed Jinlian and Yinping to keep a close watch.”
The First Madam gave a slight nod. “From the way Wu Xiaoquan spoke, Sheng Ge should be arriving in Yanjing within the next day or two. Have him settled in the west wing of the main courtyard.”
Nanny Xu was taken aback.
The First Madam glanced at her and said quietly, “I’ve heard that he took Di Jin into his household.”
He had been put in charge of managing the household, yet two concubines had gone missing and one had hanged herself; moreover, he had taken a maidservant without obtaining the elders’ consent. The former showed incompetence — that was something that couldn’t be helped; the latter was a complete failure of virtue, a matter of flawed character. A son without virtue or ability, compared again to the eldest young master, was someone even the First Madam could feel no fondness for — let alone one born of a concubine who had fallen out of favor.
Nanny Xu understood at once and nodded repeatedly. “You can rest assured. The matter of Fourth Young Master secretly taking Di Jin — I will make sure the First Master hears of it.”
The First Madam nodded and changed the subject. “Fifth Miss and Tenth Miss will be married one after the other. We must give the matter of their dowries careful consideration.”
Nanny Xu turned it over in her mind and ventured, “How about giving the wooded mountain property to Fifth Miss, and the dry farmland to Tenth Miss?”
Seeing that Nanny Xu had fully grasped her intentions, a faint smile flickered in the First Madam’s eyes. “Very good. Let it be so.”
The Luo Family’s holdings were all in Jiangnan. The wooded mountain could still bring in a few taels of silver, but that dry farmland — aside from growing a bit of peanuts, it was good for nothing.
“As for the bottom-of-the-chest money, give Fifth Miss a little more.” A trace of weariness crossed the First Madam’s expression. “Whatever one might say, she has always been well-behaved and obedient in my presence.”
Nanny Xu smiled. “I’ll speak to Fifth Miss about it. She’s a sensible girl — she will certainly receive this generous kindness of yours with gratitude.”
The First Madam let out a cold laugh. “Trying to use death to move the First Master’s heart, hmph…”
Nanny Xu did not dare respond.
For a moment, the room fell utterly silent.
A young maidservant called from beyond the curtain, “First Madam, the First Master has returned!”
The First Madam shot Nanny Xu a meaningful glance. Nanny Xu gave a slight nod, and with a swishing sound the curtain was pulled aside. The First Master walked in with a somber expression and dropped himself into the seat across from the First Madam.
“When is that wretched son of mine arriving?” he said, settling heavily into his chair.
“Within the next day or two,” the First Madam replied. “I’ve already instructed Nanny Xu to have the room prepared.”
Nanny Xu personally served the First Master his tea, then led the servants who had been attending in the room and withdrew.
“My lord,” the First Madam sighed, “have some tea and calm yourself. Don’t let this ruin your health.”
The First Master took the teacup, and the color of his face eased slightly.
“Children are young; it’s not uncommon for them to make mistakes.” The First Madam gently coaxed the First Master. “What truly concerns me are the two concubines. They’ve lived in the Luo Family for decades, never once stepping beyond the inner gates — to say they had some scheme in mind, I truly cannot imagine it. And even if Sheng Ge were ever so careless, there’s still Wu Xiaoquan and the others at home; they would certainly have arranged for people to accompany them to the temple fair. I fear the worst. And then, of all times, Fourth Concubine chose this moment to die. Yuhang is a small place — if word of this gets out, the Luo Family will be utterly disgraced. It also reflects badly on Fourth Young Master’s reputation, and right when we’re in the middle of arranging marriages for Fifth Miss and Tenth Miss. It’s truly a cause for worry.”
The First Master, upon hearing this, let out a fierce grunt. “Throw Yang Shi’s body onto the paupers’ burial ground!”
The First Madam felt a secret surge of satisfaction, but her face instead showed distress. “My lord, you’re talking nonsense again. How can we throw Fourth Concubine onto a paupers’ burial ground? What I mean is, let us keep this matter quiet for the time being, and hold the funeral for Fourth Concubine only after Fifth Miss and Tenth Miss are married. What do you think?”
The First Master hesitated briefly. “Does Tenth Miss know?”
“I haven’t told her yet.” The First Madam continued, “As you know, our family these past few years is not what it once was — we cannot put together more money for our daughters’ marriages. Whether it’s Duke Maoguo’s household or the young Master Qian, both are matches of the very finest kind. Once this chance passes, who knows if another will come.”
The First Master’s lips parted slightly as he was about to say something, but the First Madam was already speaking. “I know — you feel that neither of these matches is quite to your satisfaction. But think about it. How old are these two daughters of ours now? And consider Second Branch’s Fourth Miss — she is a legitimate daughter, with a dowry of three thousand taels of silver, and look how that turned out. Second sister-in-law had to put in money and call in favors, and it took great effort to support the raising of just one successful examination candidate…”
“All right, all right.” At the mention of money the First Master felt a pang of guilt. “You decide.”
The First Madam gave a faint smile, and just then a young maidservant called from beyond the curtain, “First Madam, Yanhong from the Marquis Yongping’s household has come.”
Yanhong was Yuan Niang’s personal maidservant.
Both of them were startled. The curtain was swept aside with a swish, and a young woman with delicate features rushed in. “First Madam, quickly — the mistress, the mistress is not well.”
The First Madam felt a buzzing in her head and swayed where she sat.
The First Master’s face went white with fright. He pressed the First Madam’s philtrum with his fingers while calling out, “Quickly, quickly, go fetch the physician!” And then, “Summon the First Young Mistress!” He turned to reproach Yanhong, “Could you not have broken the news more gently before speaking?”
Seeing the scene before her, Yanhong could not bring herself to say anything more, yet in her heart she kept seeing the vivid, shocking crimson blood that Yuan Niang had coughed onto her collar.
…
“Mother, as the saying goes: teach your son in the hall, guide your wife upon the pillow. But the Marquis — he says nothing to me of anything…” Yuan Niang lay quietly on the bed, pale and gaunt, her collar and bedding spotlessly clean, faintly fragrant with the scent of jasmine. Her large eyes brimmed with tears. “He knew perfectly well that I favored Jiang Bai’s daughter, yet he deliberately chose Jiang Song’s daughter — and not even a thought given to the fact that Jiang Song’s daughter is only ten months younger than Zhun Ge. Women age more quickly than men to begin with. By that time, won’t she be like Zhun Ge’s own mother…”
“Yes, yes, yes.” The Grand Madam nodded repeatedly. “It’s all Xiao Si’s fault. I’ll speak to him, I’ll certainly speak to him.” The First Madam held her daughter-in-law’s hands. “I’ll have him come and beg your forgiveness.”
A quarrel between husband and wife — no, it hadn’t even reached the point of a quarrel — and yet she expected her husband, a high court official of the realm, to apologize to his wife. If word of this got out, the reputation of a shrewish wife would be irrevocably stamped upon her.
Yuan Niang lay weakly against her pillow, gave a faint shake of her head, yet a smile curved at the corner of her lips. Whether she was laughing at herself or at the Grand Madam, it was impossible to say.
Glancing sideways, she caught sight of a pair of black-and-white official boots beneath the screen at the entrance to the bedchamber.
At this time, in this place — who else could it be but Xu Lingyi?
He stood behind the screen. Was he standing there out of guilt toward her? Or was it beneath him to face her?
A flash of mockery crossed her eyes, and she said softly, “Mother, do you still remember what happened when I first entered the household?”
Yuan Niang’s sudden mention of this left the Grand Madam momentarily startled.
“It was Second Sister-in-law who was managing the household at the time.” A look of reminiscence crossed Yuan Niang’s face. “I heard that the two rabbits in the back garden had been left in the household’s keeping by Her Majesty the Empress, so I volunteered to Second Sister-in-law to feed them every day. In the end, I killed both rabbits. You went to great lengths to find two identical ones to pass them off as the originals.”
A smile appeared on the Grand Madam’s face at the memory. “You cried so pitifully, clutching that rabbit cage!”
“At the time I thought — Second Sister-in-law is someone you hold in high regard, Third Sister-in-law is clever and quick-witted with words, and I am inferior to them in every way. So I pushed myself forward in everything, trying to win your favor.” As she spoke, Yuan Niang clasped the Grand Madam’s hand tightly. “Mother, I truly wanted with all my heart to be a good daughter-in-law to you. It’s only that I’m slow-witted and always falling short — please don’t blame me…”
She saw the boots behind the screen shift with a slight, restless movement.
Hearing these words that sounded like a final testament, and looking at the daughter-in-law’s face — pale to the point of transparency — the Grand Madam’s eyes grew moist at the corners. “I have always known you were devoted. Say no more — rest and conserve your strength.” As she spoke, she personally took the small blue-and-white porcelain bowl from the tray a nearby maidservant was holding.
Inside the bowl lay paper-thin slices of ginseng.
“Here, take a slice to dissolve under your tongue.”
Yuan Niang shook her head. Her jet-black eyes fixed steadily upon the Grand Madam, shining with a sincerity that was unmistakable. “Mother, I’m all right — I just want to talk with you for a while.”
“Talk after you’ve taken the ginseng first.” The Grand Madam coaxed her with a smile, her tone carrying something of a doting tenderness one might show a child.
Yuan Niang declined gently. “I’ll take it just before I sleep — it works better that way.”
The Grand Madam, knowing her temperament and finding her reasoning sound, did not press the matter. She let out a soft sigh and passed the bowl to the maidservant beside her. “Then make sure you take the ginseng before you sleep!”
“Yes!” Yuan Niang nodded obediently.
Since the daughter-in-law said she wished to speak with her, the subject could be nothing other than the matter that had driven her to cough up blood earlier that day. The betrothal card had only just been exchanged, and there was much more to come — there was no way around going through the mother.
The thought flashed through her mind, and the Grand Madam was first to speak. “Yuan Niang, the matter of Zhun Ge — we were in the wrong in that. Although Jiang Song’s daughter is only ten months younger than Zhun Ge, Jiang Song holds no office, while our family is a household of meritorious service, and with a lady of our family now Empress — if we wish to remain safe and prosperous, we can only proceed with caution, keeping a low profile and bearing things with patience…” A look of contrition showed on her face.
“Mother, I know.” Yuan Niang cut in with a gentle smile. “You and the Marquis are people of vision — I know you have your reasons for doing what you do. I was simply upset that the Marquis did not discuss it with me.” She pressed her lips together with a slight smile. “Mother, that’s not what I wanted to talk about. I was afraid that if I closed my eyes this time, I might never again have the chance to speak my heart to you.”
The less Yuan Niang spoke of it, the more it showed the matter was lodged deep within her.
But under the circumstances, the Grand Madam could hardly insist on bringing it up.
She had no choice but to feign irritation and put on a stern expression. “Nonsense. You’re still young. Zhun Ge hasn’t even taken a wife yet — I’m still counting on you to care for me in my old age…” Yet as she spoke, thinking of how her daughter-in-law had done nothing but keep up appearances these past years through sheer willpower, the corners of her eyes grew wet.
“I know my own situation well enough.” Yuan Niang’s eyes flicked toward the screen, her voice dropping low, carrying a faint note of sorrow. “At home I was the eldest daughter — my parents cherished me like a treasure. Then I married into this household, and you treated me as your own; the Marquis has always shown me respect in all things. For a woman to have been treated as I have — there is nothing to regret. And yet I cannot bear to leave Zhun Ge, cannot bear to leave you, cannot bear to leave… the Marquis…” As she spoke, tears streamed down her face. She sobbed a few times as though suddenly unable to catch her breath, and then she pressed a hand to her chest and began to cough violently.
—