Nanny Wang walked through the long corridors of Baifang Garden with a solemn expression.

Sunlight fell upon the courtyard walls of the Yang Manor, bright and gleaming, casting warmth over the red lacquer that had already begun to fade on the walls. Groups of young maids leaned against the courtyard walls in twos and threes, cracking melon seeds and chatting idly. The clever ones would step forward to greet Nanny Wang when they saw her, while the timid ones would shrink into corners, hoping Nanny Wang wouldn’t notice them.

The Yang family was a household with a century of history, conducting affairs with certain rules. When the young maids had nothing to do, they would play and frolic within Baifang Garden, which was also a rare sight to behold. Though Nanny Wang was strict, she never scolded them for it.

She passed by Huansha Dock, circled around Zhuying Pavilion, and turned past Changqing Tower. Before her appeared a high wall, where two or three young maids stood with their backs to her, nestled in the corner flower bed, chattering away about household matters without hearing Nanny Wang’s approaching footsteps.

They were girls working in the small storage room, all newly promoted and not yet ranked among the established servants.

The Yang family was a wealthy household in Jiangnan, and even these unranked young maid girls dressed decently, all wearing light blue cotton padded jackets. Though they looked plain, the cotton batting inside the jackets was thick and substantial, keeping them warm even in winter.

“This time for First Concubine’s birthday, things will be even more extravagant than Seventh Concubine’s birthday last month. Gold and silver thread that’s rarely brought out for use—more than ten spools were requisitioned all at once. I don’t know if the sewing room can rush to finish everything in time. But now our winter clothes will be delayed again, who knows when we’ll get them.” Someone’s voice carried a tone of envy.

“How shallow-sighted!” Another voice laughed cheerfully. “That’s a concubine promoted from the Great Madam’s side… naturally it would be more extravagant. You just haven’t seen much of the world. A few years ago when Fourth Concubine turned thirty, now that was truly a spectacle! Tsk tsk, brocade with eight treasures, gold-sprinkled Hangzhou silk… flowing like water out of the small storage room. People who didn’t know any better would have thought it was the Madam celebrating her birthday!”

Nanny Wang’s face darkened as she coldly rebuked them from beside the wall.

“How improper! Are the affairs of the Madam and concubines for you to gossip about?” She stood firmly by the corridor, furrowing her brows and glaring fiercely like an evil spirit at the young maid girls by the wall. This frightened the group of unranked young maids into chaos, as they scrambled over each other to squeeze through the red lacquered wooden door by the wall. Not daring to make a sound, they peered through the crack in the door, watching as Nanny Wang passed by the courtyard entrance without a sideways glance. Only then did they begin discussing among themselves, “What business does Nanny Wang have going to the South Side Courtyard?”

“She’s probably going to visit Ninth Concubine. I heard Ninth Concubine has gotten even worse these past few days.”

“Her, visiting the sick? She’d better be careful, or the more she visits, the worse Ninth Concubine will get.” Someone said with pursed lips.

At this, the young maids all burst into laughter, saying, “Do you have a death wish! She’s a favored attendant of the Great Madam—how dare we talk about her?”

#

The Great Madam’s favored attendant, Nanny Wang, was indeed going to the South Side Courtyard to visit the sick. Though called a side courtyard, the South Side Courtyard was actually partitioned off from the servants’ large mixed compound. It was worlds away from the main courtyard, tucked in the farthest corner of Baifang Garden. One had to go through a door and wind through several narrow passages before reaching the entrance to the South Side Courtyard. Only one wall separated it from the noisy, bustling mixed servants’ compound.

In recent years, everyone understood: those living in the South Side Courtyard were the most powerless and least favored concubines in this great manor.

Years ago when Third Concubine was still alive, she had lived in the South Side Courtyard. After Third Concubine passed away, Ninth Concubine moved in. These two concubines were indeed neither favored nor respected, making the South Side Courtyard seem rather gloomy. In the corners of the courtyard, long grass grew from between the blue brick crevices, and the few bamboo stalks in the yard were half-yellow and half-green, quite unpleasant to look at. Nanny Wang stood at the courtyard entrance looking left and right, and for once let out a sigh before entering the row of three blue brick rooms at the back of the courtyard.

As soon as Nanny Wang lifted the curtain, she smelled a heavy medicinal odor.

“This servant has come to pay respects to Ninth Concubine.” As she spoke, she walked toward Ninth Concubine’s bedroom. Only after entering the bedroom did two young maids come out to greet her. These two young maids still wore the autumn clothes issued last year. After a year, the blue cotton cloth had faded, making them look particularly shabby. The younger one even had a large patch on her collar, giving off a rustic air. Nanny Wang curled her lips disdainfully from her superior position, then switched to a smiling face as she walked to the jujube wood bed, repeating in a soft, gentle voice, “This servant has come to pay respects to Ninth Concubine.”

Though she said she was paying respects, Nanny Wang only half-squatted before straightening up, looking down from above at the woman on the bed. Ninth Concubine didn’t seem to take offense either. She coughed a few times and laboriously sat up halfway, nodding at Nanny Wang.

“Is Nanny Wang representing—” She broke into another coughing fit. The two young maids hurried forward to pat Ninth Concubine’s back and hold up the spittoon. Nanny Wang stepped back several paces, as if afraid Ninth Concubine would cough on her face, and softened her voice.

“This servant is indeed here on behalf of the Madam to visit Ninth Concubine.”

Seeing only these three people in the room, Nanny Wang looked around. The room contained only two or three camphorwood chests with locks that had rusted. The windows were tightly shut, and beneath the window frame stood a small brazier with one or two small stools nearby.

Nanny Wang frowned.

“Why aren’t you boiling the medicine in the corridor?” Though her voice wasn’t loud, it carried a cold, blade-like authority. The two young maids exchanged glances and were about to kneel in apology when Ninth Concubine, still coughing and gasping for breath, said:

“Please don’t blame them, Nanny Wang. Alas, alas, we’re just short-handed.”

Nanny Wang’s expression turned rather unpleasant as she said stiffly, “Rules must not be abandoned.”

The two young maids stood there awkwardly, unsure whether to apologize or pretend nothing had happened.

Why bother arguing with such foolish little maid girls? Nanny Wang suddenly became calm again and asked, “Why don’t I see Seventh Miss?”

“In answer to Nanny Wang, Seventh Miss is still taking her afternoon nap.” Before Ninth Concubine could reply, a young maid eagerly said, “This servant will go wake Seventh Miss now.”

Neither Nanny Wang nor Ninth Concubine spoke, only watching as the young maid nimbly ran out of the gloomy room. Ninth Concubine stood dazed for a long while before remembering to say, “Please sit, Nanny Wang.”

The remaining young maid stepped forward and brought over a camphorwood chair for Nanny Wang. The cushion on it had yellowed. Nanny Wang cleared her throat and sat down solemnly on the camphorwood chair. Ninth Concubine instructed again, “Serve Nanny Wang tea.”

That young maid also disappeared. Nanny Wang said with a trace of dissatisfaction, “The servants and maids in this courtyard really need proper supervision. In broad daylight, not a single one of them can be found.”

“Ah, they’re all busy too. With the year’s end approaching, which household isn’t overwhelmed with matters?” Ninth Concubine seemed to take it quite philosophically. She was a woman of very plain appearance, perhaps twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old, yet her features were already withered. She was so thin her flesh had dried up, and a gold bracelet on her wrist pitifully dangled about, looking as if it might fall off at any moment.

Nanny Wang smiled reservedly and accepted the tea the young maid brought, but didn’t drink it, only held it in her palm to warm her hands. Ninth Concubine coughed a few more times, spat out some phlegm, and leaned against her pillow, looking at Nanny Wang with slight anticipation.

“Seventh Miss must be six years old now,” Nanny Wang asked after a while.

Ninth Concubine smiled. “Yes, the same age as Ninth Young Master.”

At the mention of Ninth Young Master, Nanny Wang’s expression softened by three degrees, and she became more talkative. “Ninth Young Master is quite mischievous. Yesterday he broke something or other, which earned him quite a scolding from the Madam, but she still couldn’t bear to hit him. I wonder if Seventh Miss has the same temperament. People say that twins—” She cut off the rest of her sentence.

Ninth Concubine showed a trace of bitterness and picked up her thread. “Seventh Miss is quite quiet instead, silent all day long, only doing embroidery.”

“So Ninth Concubine’s needlework skills have found a successor.” Nanny Wang seized upon this topic to continue. “But can Seventh Miss embroider at only six years old?”

“She’s been learning on and off for half a year, and can barely manage not to embroider forsythia when she means to do Chinese roses.” A flash of pride appeared in Ninth Concubine’s eyes, though her tone remained light. “Last night she attended me at my bedside until midnight. Today I finally managed to send her to sleep for a while, which makes her seem somewhat lazy. I hope Nanny Wang won’t laugh at her.”

After all, she was a concubine—no matter how down on her luck, her speech and conduct wouldn’t be completely uncouth. Nanny Wang gained three parts of respect for her. “Not at all, Seventh Miss’s filial piety is commendable.”

Just then, a little girl of five or six rubbed her eyes as that maid led her into the room. She wore a sky-blue jacket with continuous wan character pattern, her hair done up in two small buns. Though her clothes were old and the style outdated, they had been starched and washed clean, making her look rather adorable.

Nanny Wang smiled. “Seventh Miss, do you still remember me?”

Seventh Miss raised her eyes and looked at Nanny Wang in a daze. After looking for a moment, she crouched down in greeting. “How do you do, Nanny Wang.”

“Seventh Miss is too polite.” Nanny Wang quickly stood up, not daring to accept Seventh Miss’s courtesy. Her smile grew wider.

Ninth Concubine beckoned to Seventh Miss, who nestled beside her. Her large eyes rolled around, looking at Ninth Concubine, then at Nanny Wang.

Nanny Wang suddenly felt she looked very much like Ninth Young Master.

Twins—brother and sister—they were indeed twins. She thought to herself and retracted some of her original arrogance.

“Nanny Wang has come this time to see Little Seven, hasn’t she?” Ninth Concubine said with a trace of weariness. “I’m not boasting, but Little Seven is quite clever. In the future, she won’t cause the Madam too much trouble.”

Nanny Wang quickly said, “Whether the Madam will raise her is still uncertain. The Madam only asked me to come see Ninth Concubine and ask if there are any gifts to send to your natal family this New Year.”

Ninth Concubine’s natal family lived outside the city. Every year around New Year’s, they would come once or twice to seek favors. A flash of embarrassment crossed Ninth Concubine’s face. She lowered her eyes to look at the gold bracelet on her hand. Her lips moved several times, about to speak, but she swallowed her words.

Nanny Wang, being habitually harsh, didn’t think much of it and sat calmly, looking at Seventh Miss with her eyes. Seventh Miss still nestled beside Ninth Concubine. Her large eyes looked at Ninth Concubine, then at Nanny Wang, and suddenly she smiled with pursed lips.

“What is Seventh Miss smiling about?” Nanny Wang asked, softening her voice.

Seventh Miss said crisply, “I’m smiling because Lixia is clumsy. She wants to move the small brazier but can’t lift it.”

Nanny Wang and Ninth Concubine couldn’t help but both look toward the tea-serving young maid.

That young maid was bending over trying to lift the small brazier, but since there was still a medicine pot on top of it, she couldn’t get a good grip no matter how she tried. Her face had quite a bit of black ash on it.

Both Nanny Wang and Ninth Concubine smiled in unison, and a trace of pity flashed in Nanny Wang’s eyes.

In this great manor, the most down-and-out and easiest to trample upon were Ninth Concubine and her daughter… Nanny Wang was a favored attendant by the Great Madam’s side. She usually dealt with comings and goings, entertaining only respectable concubines. She rarely saw such a desolate scene.

With this shared laughter, conversation became easier. Ninth Concubine looked at Nanny Wang and pleaded, “I don’t have many days left. I may not make it through this New Year… Please let Little Seven live with the Madam. Only with the Madam can I, as her mother, close my eyes in peace.”

Tears welled up in Seventh Miss’s eyes. Ninth Concubine smiled and stroked her head. Her left hand fumbled about, found the gold bracelet on her right hand, and laboriously took it off, handing it to Nanny Wang.

“If Nanny could put in a good word with the Madam…”

Nanny Wang quickly pushed Ninth Concubine’s hand away. “I wouldn’t dare accept this. We servants do our duty—it’s only proper.”

Ninth Concubine found strength from somewhere, leaned forward to grasp Nanny Wang’s hand, and pressed the gold bracelet onto it. “Please don’t be polite with me, Nanny.”

She gave Seventh Miss a meaningful look, and Seventh Miss also said crisply, “Nanny, please don’t be polite.” She thought for a moment and added, “Little Seven relies entirely on Nanny’s care.”

Nanny Wang stopped refusing, grasped the heavy gold bracelet, and said with a slight smile, “Actually, the Madam has this intention too. After all, Seventh Miss and Ninth Young Master are twin siblings. Raising them together would be more lively.”

Ninth Concubine immediately showed a completely satisfied expression. “With Nanny saying this, the heavy stone in my heart can be set down.” She stroked Seventh Miss’s head. “Little Seven, go fetch that peony embroidery you made and show it to Nanny Wang.”

Seventh Miss obediently went out. Lixia followed silently and efficiently behind her, carrying the small brazier as she left. Ninth Concubine frowned at the tea-serving maid. “Qiufeng, you follow Lixia and make sure she doesn’t break the medicine pot.”

Only then did Qiufeng know to leave, still glancing reluctantly at Nanny Wang several times before leaving the room.

With these three people gone, the room suddenly felt empty. Sunlight finally reached into the room, hazily scattering through the window paper, casting Ninth Concubine’s face with a trace of color.

“These days, I’ve been waiting for Nanny.” Ninth Concubine spoke slowly. Having accepted her gold bracelet, Nanny Wang would work on her behalf, which improved her mood considerably and brought a trace of a smile to her face. “But… Fourth Concubine has also come by several times recently.”

Nanny Wang immediately narrowed her eyes. “Fourth Concubine came by?” She felt her tone had been overly excited, so she quickly added, “Fourth Concubine has been quite busy lately. I didn’t expect she would set foot in the South Side Courtyard.”

“Fourth Concubine also meant well.” Ninth Concubine lowered her head and slowly turned the smaller silver bracelet on her left hand. “My illness flares up more severely in the cold weather. The doctor said it would be very difficult for me to make it past New Year’s. Fourth Concubine came to ask if I wanted to send Little Seven to be raised in her courtyard.”

Ninth Concubine’s illness actually wouldn’t kill her before New Year’s—she only needed century-old ginseng as a medicinal catalyst to sustain her life.

Nanny Wang acted as if she didn’t know about this. She first sighed, “Ninth Concubine’s illness has dragged on for quite a few years,” then looked at Ninth Concubine inquiringly. “If Ninth Concubine agreed to Fourth Concubine’s proposal, I would have trouble speaking up.”

Ninth Concubine smiled slightly and pointed at the gold bracelet on Nanny Wang’s wrist. “If I had agreed, why would I still ask Nanny Wang for help? But for a concubine-born daughter to enter the Madam’s courtyard is truly quite difficult. I’ve never had much face. I’m afraid… the Madam may not agree to my request.”

According to Great Qin’s rules, concubine-born daughters raised under the legitimate wife’s care were treated as legitimate daughters when it came to marriage proposals, and when they married, their dowries were as generous as those of legitimate daughters. Therefore, being personally raised by the Madam was tremendous face for a concubine-born daughter. Nanny Wang understood this principle well. She rolled her eyes and smiled.

“Ninth Concubine is too modest. Though you’ve been ill these recent years, you are still Ninth Young Master’s birth mother. Just for Ninth Young Master’s sake, the Madam must give Seventh Miss special consideration, mustn’t she? To tell the truth, I came today specifically to bring Seventh Miss to meet the Madam.”

This time, Ninth Concubine’s smile showed true peace of mind.

“Little Seven will rely on Nanny Wang’s care from now on.” She sighed and broke into another coughing fit. “This child has a quiet temperament. When Nanny has time, you must teach her the ways of dealing with people. In the future… Little Seven will surely repay Nanny Wang.”

Nanny Wang glanced at the window frame. Through the only half pane of glass window, she saw Seventh Miss standing in front of the west wing, holding an embroidery frame and peering anxiously into the room. Even from this distance, she could vaguely make out the anxiety on her face.

She felt somewhat superior in her heart and slightly curved her lips.

“Need you even ask? Ninth Young Master’s twin sister—I absolutely must take proper care of her.” She stood up. “If Ninth Concubine has no other instructions, shall I take Seventh Miss to see the Great Madam now?”

Ninth Concubine also looked out the window.

A smile floated to her lips—a smile that carried sadness, expectation, and a small measure of confidence.

“Little Seven won’t cause you trouble.” She said softly and gently, then broke into another coughing fit. “I entrust her to your care!”