The Grand Madam quickly handed Zhun Ge to the wet nurse at her side. The young maidservant had barely knelt to help her with her shoes when the First Madam came striding quickly in.

Her face was ashen, her expression distressed; she had not yet spoken a word before her tears were already falling. “They say Yuan Niang has…”

“All is well, all is well.” The Grand Madam signaled to the First Madam with her eyes, indicating that Zhun Ge was present. “It’s only that she missed you and asked me to bring you here for a chat.”

Only then did the First Madam notice Zhun Ge beside the Grand Madam.

She forced a smile for Zhun Ge. “Zhun Ge’er, have you eaten?”

Zhun Ge pressed his lips together and replied in his soft, childish voice, “I have. I ate rice balls.”

“What a good child.” The First Madam mustered a smile and patted his head. The wet nurse held Zhun Ge as she bowed to the First Madam; Zhen Jie’er also stepped forward to greet her maternal grandmother. The First Madam took a small jade-carved monkey from her sleeve and gave it to Zhen Jie’er to play with. Zhen Jie’er gave her thanks. By then the Grand Madam had just finished putting on her shoes, and she smilingly called for Wei Zi to take the two children out to play, while she herself accompanied the First Madam to Yuan Niang’s room.

Inside, all was hushed. A stick of calming incense was burning, and its sweet fragrance made one feel at ease.

Catching sight of the Grand Madam and the First Madam, Nanny Tao, who had been tending to Yuan Niang by her bedside, quickly rose to her feet.

The Grand Madam motioned for her to make no sound. Nanny Tao gave the two of them a silent curtsy.

The First Madam walked to the bedside, sat down on the small stool that Nanny Tao had been using, and let her tears fall in silence.

The Grand Madam took a handkerchief and wiped the First Madam’s tears, and together with Nanny Tao stayed at Yuan Niang’s bedside for a while before leaving Nanny Tao to keep watch. The two of them then went out to the front courtyard.

“…Imperial Physician Liu from the Imperial Medical Academy was called to take her pulse and prescribed several doses of calming medicine.” The Grand Madam described Yuan Niang’s condition to the First Madam in very gentle terms, and then drew the prescription Imperial Physician Liu had written earlier from her sleeve and handed it to the First Madam.

“How did it come to coughing blood? Has she not been well these past days?” The First Madam took the prescription while murmuring to herself. She then tilted it toward the light of the courtyard to read it carefully. “This is simply a prescription for replenishing vital energy and nourishing blood — though the medicines are costly, for a family like ours, they are not beyond reach…” As she said this, she suddenly understood. She fell still for a moment, and then covered her mouth and began to weep again.

The Grand Madam, looking on, was also overcome. She wept alongside her.

Yao Huang and the other maidservants, seeing this, all moved forward to comfort them. “…Please don’t cry yourselves into illness — the Fourth Young Mistress on her side is still counting on you both to help watch over the Fourth Young Master!”

At these words, the two of them gradually composed themselves.

The maidservants then ushered the two ladies to the east side room of the main hall, bringing water to attend to them as they washed their faces.

The Grand Madam and the First Madam freshened themselves anew, and had barely sat down again when the First Madam’s tears began to fall once more.

“My dear,” the Grand Madam held back her own grief to comfort her, “if Yuan Niang wakes and wishes to see you, and you look like this — would that not make her even more heartbroken?”

At that, the First Madam finally took out a handkerchief to dry her tears. The Grand Madam had someone fetch cold well water to compress her eyes; and seeing her emotions gradually grow calmer, personally brewed her a cup of tea.

The First Madam took the teacup and had barely taken one sip when a young maidservant came running in. “Grand Madam, ma’am — the Fourth Young Mistress has woken and wishes to see you both.”

The First Madam dropped the teacup at once and strode toward the door, leaving the maidservant who had delivered the message four or five paces behind. The Grand Madam hurried after her in quick steps.

Yuan Niang lay on her back. Hearing movement, she turned her face, her eyes dim and unfocused.

The Grand Madam’s heart gave a sharp lurch.

Yuan Niang — she could no longer see.

The First Madam had not yet noticed her daughter’s condition. She went forward and took her hand. “Yuan Niang, are you feeling any better?”

Yuan Niang’s eyes drifted in the First Madam’s direction, but could find nothing to fix upon, and slid away to one side. “Mother, when did you arrive?” Her voice was thin and faint, no louder than the hum of a gnat.

“Just now.” Lv’e had already placed a small stool behind the First Madam. The First Madam sat down and asked Yuan Niang, “Is there anywhere that troubles you?”

“Not at all!” Yuan Niang smiled and shook her head. “Have you seen Zhun Ge?” The words came with great effort.

“I’ve seen him, I’ve seen him.” The First Madam said quickly. “He’s playing happily with Zhen Jie’er at this very moment.”

“Good.” Yuan Niang smiled faintly. “Mother, it was I who asked the Marquis… to send for you. I was thinking… if anything should happen to me… there would be no one to look after Zhun Ge… I wanted to choose… from among my sisters… to find… someone gentle and virtuous… to look after Zhun Ge…”

The words were finally spoken.

The First Madam felt none of the satisfaction of a carefully laid plan coming to fruition — only a sourness that settled deep in her heart, and more than anything else, a sense of injustice on her daughter’s behalf. After so much hardship to reach this point, just when the suffering was about to give way to better days — who could have known that she had been sewing a wedding garment for another.

She gazed at her thin and sallow daughter, her heart a storm of grief and indignation, her face wet with tears, without a single word to say.

Yuan Niang could not see her mother’s expression. Her hand groped in the air. “Mother, Mother…”

The First Madam was startled. She stared at her daughter. “Yuan Niang…” She took her daughter’s hand firmly in her own. “Your eyes…”

“It’s nothing, nothing.” Yuan Niang clasped her mother’s hand. “Just a momentary dizziness — I can’t see quite clearly.”

The First Madam found this deeply puzzling and wanted to ask further, but Yuan Niang had already smiled and said, “Mother, won’t you help me… choose one from among my sisters… to come and care for Zhun Ge? I cannot rest easy on his account…” In just those few words, her lips had gone white.

The First Madam nodded through her tears.

Yuan Niang had to ask again. “Will you? Or will you not?”

Was she trying to say this for the Grand Madam to hear?

The First Madam considered this, then said clearly, “I promise you — I promise you all of it.”

Yuan Niang smiled, then let her eyes drift blindly in search of the Grand Madam. “Mother, which of my sisters do you think would be best?”

The Grand Madam, recalling how the First Madam had shown only sorrow — not surprise — upon hearing Yuan Niang say she wished to find a sister to care for Zhun Ge, was already turning matters over deeply in her mind. Now, seeing Yuan Niang ask her, she smiled gently. “The First Madam is their mother — she has raised all the young misses herself, and knows them better than anyone. My only wish is for Zhun Ge to be well.”

This left the First Madam at a loss for what to say.

If she named Eleventh Miss directly, might that put the Xu family on guard? But if she did not name Eleventh Miss, and things were mishandled? Yet if she did not speak plainly today, she would be letting down her daughter’s painstaking efforts…

She hesitated, and then Yuan Niang said quietly, “Mother, what do you think of Eleventh Miss? Although she is young, she is… dignified and poised, her conduct entirely proper…” Her voice was very faint.

The Grand Madam gave a small start.

She had not expected Yuan Niang to have chosen Eleventh Miss.

Her thoughts went at once to what had happened that day in the small courtyard.

Could it be that Eleventh Miss had also played some part in that?

The thought flashed through her mind, and she felt a faint twinge of displeasure.

The First Madam, seeing that the words came from her daughter’s own lips, understood that she must have had some confidence behind them. She nodded repeatedly in agreement. “Since you say she is suitable, then she is. I shall defer to you in all things.”

Yuan Niang then asked the Grand Madam, “What do you… think?”

The Grand Madam considered. “Might she not be somewhat too young?”

“She is a little young.” Yuan Niang smiled, though the smile was pale. “But being young has its advantages. When the time comes, you can keep her beside you and personally guide her for a year or two — her temperament will grow steadier, and everything she does will put people more at ease.”

In a flash of sudden clarity, the Grand Madam understood completely.

If she is young, the marriage need not be consummated… dragging it out for a few years, until Zhun Ge grows up…

This was entirely in keeping with how Yuan Niang had always conducted herself.

The Grand Madam thought it over and found the reasoning sound.

Brothers farther apart in age would have less cause for conflict.

“Yuan Niang has thought of everything.” The Grand Madam smiled. “It all rests with what the First Madam thinks.”

It had passed without any obstacle…

The First Madam let out a quiet breath of relief and nodded. “Eleventh Miss was raised before my eyes — she is a good child. In the days to come, she will certainly treat Zhun Ge well.”

Yuan Niang, upon hearing this, slowly let her eyes close.

“Yuan Niang!” The First Madam’s heart lurched. Her face was streaked with tears.

The Grand Madam also stepped forward anxiously and called out “Yuan Niang.”

Yuan Niang slowly opened her eyes once more. “Mother, I’m tired — I want to sleep a little.”

“Of course, of course.” The First Madam said quickly. “Sleep, sleep — I’ll stay here and keep watch over you.”

Yuan Niang smiled faintly upon hearing this, a smile as pure and tranquil as a child’s.

…

After seeing the First Madam off, the Grand Madam went to Banyue Pavilion.

Xu Lingyi was in the middle of a painting.

Seeing his mother enter, he set down his brush and came to meet her. “For anything you need, you need only send a young maidservant — there was no need to come all this way yourself…”

“I wanted to take a walk.” The Grand Madam said, and let her son support her as she walked to the painting table.

Amid clouds and mist, a solitary old woodcutter wearing a rain cape and hat walked alone along a narrow, winding path. The loneliness and desolation of it leapt from the page.

The Grand Madam looked at it for a long while, then let out a quiet sigh and turned to sit on the luohan couch in the main hall.

Xu Lingyi personally brewed a pot of Old Lord’s Brow tea for the Grand Madam.

The Grand Madam took the teacup and sipped, and gazed out at the pear blossoms beyond the main hall entrance — white as fresh snow — saying, “These flowers have been blooming quite persistently.”

“Spring came late this year.” Xu Lingyi took a seat in the master’s chair beside his mother and followed her gaze. “Though the apricot tree nearby has already put forth a few small green fruits. Would you like to go and see?”

The Grand Madam’s interest was piqued. She rose. “Let’s go have a look.”

Xu Lingyi offered her his arm, and together with the maidservants and women servants, they went to the apricot grove beside Banyue Pavilion.

In the warm spring light, the Grand Madam gently told Xu Lingyi of Yuan Niang’s decision. “…It all comes down to the same idea. Only, I am not yet certain whether this young woman is the same in private as she appears in public.”

Xu Lingyi’s footsteps paused for a moment.

“Mother — regardless of whether she is the same in private as in public, since Yuan Niang dares to have her come to care for Zhun Ge, she must have means by which she can manage her.” He gazed into the warmth of the spring day around them. “Rest easy.”

The Grand Madam then stopped walking.

She studied her son, her expression very deliberate.

“What is it?” His mother had stopped so suddenly that Xu Lingyi lowered his head and caught the unusual look in her eyes. He smiled. “What did you wish to say?”

“I heard that Xiao Wu had Danyang dressed in a boy’s clothes and took her off to a teahouse to listen to opera…”

Xu Lingyi quickly smiled. “Mother, don’t worry. I’ll speak to him properly. He won’t cause such mischief again.”

The Grand Madam stared at her son in a daze. After a long silence, she said wistfully, “Never mind. They’re happy — and so am I. Let them be.” The corners of her eyes were faintly wet.

Xu Lingyi looked at his mother uncomprehendingly, not knowing why she was so sad.

—