Shen Shanyan had only spoken casually, but seeing that Yu Wen had taken his words to heart, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of responsibility. After thinking briefly, he said to Yu Wen, “Show me that painting again. Let me think about whether there are other places that have this tree.”
His relatives and friends were a level above Yu Wen’s, and many of them liked planting flowers and cultivating trees. Moreover, some people specifically grew strange varieties to show they were different.
“The several sea buckthorn trees at Xiaguang’s house were planted by Zijing to tease Xiaguang. Xiaguang doesn’t even bother to look at them, and the servant women who tend to the flowers and trees certainly wouldn’t care about them either. They grow just like weeds.” Shen Shanyan continued, “When I was in the Northwest, I saw these trees grow as high as houses. The several sea buckthorns at their house are good—they’re not even waist-high yet. Even if you borrowed saplings from their house, you probably couldn’t keep them alive either. Better to look around some more and see if any other households have raised this kind of tree.”
Since he was taking such interest, Yu Wen naturally thanked him repeatedly.
The two men pondered in the study for a long time but couldn’t think of anyone else who had planted such a tree. Shen Shanyan simply took the painting and said, “After Xiaguang and I celebrate Little New Year here, I’ll be going home. I’ll take this opportunity to ask around for your daughter.”
During New Year, the Shen family’s doors would be bustling with traffic, with many relatives and old friends coming to pay New Year visits.
“That would be wonderful!” Yu Wen was overjoyed. When Shen Shanyan returned to Hangzhou, he packaged half a knife of Chengxin paper from his family’s collection in a box and gave it to Shen Shanyan as a travel gift.
Shen Shanyan genuinely liked it and didn’t decline. He told Yu Wen to wait for his news and returned to Hangzhou to celebrate New Year.
The Yu family was also very lively.
Starting from Little New Year, they began changing the peach wood charms, pasting couplets, hanging red lanterns, preparing offerings for ancestor worship, and dishes for the New Year’s Eve dinner.
Yu Tang accompanied her father tending to narcissus flowers and kumquat trees, directing Shuang Tao and others to sweep away dust.
She also took time to send Ma Xiuniang some New Year cakes and malt sugar made by Chen Shi, as well as hair ornaments she made herself.
Ma Xiuniang was very happy. She put down her work, brought her into her inner chamber, and even took out persimmon cakes from the cabinet to treat her: “These came from Fujian. They’re very sweet. Take some back later for your auntie to try too.”
Yu Tang smiled and thanked her, then rolled her eyes up and down examining Ma Xiuniang, pursing her lips in a smile.
Ma Xiuniang’s face immediately turned bright red. She pushed at her bashfully and chidingly: “What are you looking at? An unmarried young lady—don’t let your thoughts run wild.”
Yu Tang laughed heartily.
She had just received word from Chen Shi and learned that Ma Xiuniang was pregnant. That’s why she specifically came to see her.
Seeing this, Ma Xiuniang couldn’t help but laugh too. But after laughing, her face showed a bit of light worry. She quietly spoke intimate words with Yu Tang: “Before I married over, I knew the Zhang family’s finances were ordinary, but I didn’t expect them to be this poor. My husband is afraid of wronging me and copies books day and night. I’m afraid he’ll ruin his health, but no matter how I try to persuade him, he won’t listen. He says that once the child is born, household expenses will be even greater, so if he can prepare in advance, he should prepare in advance.” Speaking of this, she took Yu Tang’s hand. “If you hadn’t come to find me, I was planning to go find you—I want to quietly pawn a pair of my silver bracelets. Can you help me make a trip to the pawnshop?”
She was managing the household accounts, so only she knew how much silver had been used. Although income didn’t meet expenses, Zhang Hui absolutely wouldn’t touch her dowry. Lin’an City was both small and large. As the eldest daughter of Scholar Ma’s family, quite a few people knew her. She didn’t dare go to the Pei family’s pawnshop to pawn things, afraid of being recognized and ruining Zhang Hui’s reputation.
Yu Tang had encountered such situations more than once before. A single coin could truly defeat a hero.
She immediately gripped Ma Xiuniang’s hand in return and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll help you make this trip. I’ll help you pawn them as a live pawn. Later when your husband earns silver, you can redeem them.”
For live pawns, getting five out of ten was already good. For dead pawns, however, one could get seven out of ten, or even eight.
Ma Xiuniang bit her lip and said, “Help me pawn them as a dead pawn. Later when your brother-in-law has money, I’ll just have another pair made.”
Yu Tang thought this would work too.
In her previous life, when she married, Ma Xiuniang had even given her a pair of five-liang silver bracelets as a congratulatory gift, which showed that life was still good. The current difficulty was only temporary. As long as they got through it, things would be fine.
“Sister, give me the items!” she said. “New Year is when expenses are highest. I’ll go quietly and come back quietly.”
Ma Xiuniang nodded, tears about to fall. She held her hand and said, “A’Tang, thank you so much.”
She was too embarrassed to say more, but her gratitude was complete.
Yu Tang felt somewhat guilty instead.
In her previous life, she had actually missed such a good friend.
Thinking of this, she thought of the Li family, and of the message she had sent to the Gu family when she went to Hangzhou.
What would the Gu family’s reaction be?
Gu Xi was currently extremely angry.
She knew someone was scheming against her, but the problem was that what they said was all true, not wronging the Li family in the slightest.
But why would the Li family do such things?
Was it merely to save face after a failed marriage proposal?
Then the Li family’s heart wasn’t just narrow—it could be said they would seek revenge for the smallest slight.
Was she going to marry into such a family?
A woman’s world was confined to the inner quarters. In the future, she would be eating from the same pot and living in the same courtyard as Lin Shi. When upper and lower lips touch, if Lin Shi felt aggrieved and wanted to make trouble for her, it would be easy. Would she really accompany such a woman in constant conflict throughout her life?
And Li Duan—her stepmother had praised him to the heavens, but in reality he was useless. The dignified legitimate eldest grandson of the Li family had actually worn mourning for someone else and couldn’t even handle this matter. Once he entered official circles, eight or nine out of ten times he’d be someone who could only struggle at the fourth rank. No wonder they say to look at three generations for food and five for clothing. Someone born from a minor household was someone born from a minor household. Even dressed in brocade, he wouldn’t be a renowned scholar!
Gu Xi’s beautiful face was cold as if covered with a layer of frost and snow.
No, she couldn’t just accept this fate.
She had to tell her elder brother about this matter, tell her father… and her stepmother shouldn’t expect to get away easily either.
Gu Xi tightened the sapphire blue plain gray squirrel cloak draped over her, and said coldly to her wet nurse, “Come, let’s go see the eldest uncle from the main branch!”
The wet nurse had always known her seemingly gentle but actually strong-willed temperament. Hearing this, she was greatly alarmed and hurriedly grabbed her hand, saying urgently, “Young Miss, you can’t go! This is ultimately the second branch’s matter. If it becomes a big deal, the master will prioritize face and won’t help you. You should wait until the eldest young master returns!”
Their eldest young master had written two months ago saying he would return with the Zhejiang Circuit Censor after New Year to visit.
The wet nurse earnestly persuaded Gu Xi, “At most wait another month. Once the eldest young master returns, everything will be resolved easily.”
Gu Xi laughed coldly and said, “Of course I’ll wait for my elder brother to return, but I can’t just sit and wait for death either. They made me uncomfortable, so I won’t let them have an easy time either.”
The wet nurse said, “Young Miss, you must think thrice before acting. Those Yu siblings clearly want to provoke you so you won’t have peace even during New Year.”
“Even if that’s so, I can’t possibly let this matter rest.” Gu Xi raised her eyebrows. Her slender willow-leaf brows that swept into her temples were like sharp blades. She said coldly, “Anyway, in this matter no one can stay uninvolved. Let’s start with my dear mother then. Don’t think I don’t know about those filthy things she’s done over the years. I didn’t speak up before because I felt that saying it would just make us a laughingstock. The ones being gossiped about would still be our second branch, and I’d lose face all the same. I didn’t expect that my tolerance and concession would produce an ungrateful wretch who not only interfered in my marriage but wanted to scheme against me!”
She flung off the wet nurse’s hand and strode toward the main branch’s residence.
The wet nurse stamped her feet anxiously.
When discussing the marriage initially, both the young miss and she had seen the person with their own eyes. Seeing that the son-in-law was dignified and talented, although the eldest young master wasn’t very willing, such good-looking scholars were quite rare, so they had tacitly agreed.
But where in this world were there perfect things?
To be both good-looking and good at studying, with good temperament too…
The wet nurse watched as Gu Xi’s figure was about to disappear around the corner and quickly chased after her.
Setting aside how the Gu family didn’t have a good New Year because of this matter, on the Lin’an side, the Yu family was harmonious and happy. Early on New Year’s Eve morning, Yu Wen’s family went to Uncle’s house. The womenfolk helped cook while the men sat in the hall chatting.
After a simple lunch at noon, the afternoon New Year’s Eve dinner appeared especially grand.
Cold dishes, hot dishes, seafood, seasonal vegetables, desserts, and snacks filled the entire table. Yu Bo opened a jar of Jinhua wine. Not only did all the women in the household fill a glass, he specifically toasted the eldest sister-in-law, thanking her for staying home and working hard after the shop incident. The eldest sister-in-law stood there with a flushed face, somewhat at a loss, not knowing whether to drink or not. Yet Yu Tang was there egging them on: “Father, look how good Uncle is! No wonder Eldest Aunt works so hard without complaining she’s tired. You should also toast my mother. My mother also worked very hard this year. The New Year cakes were made by my mother, right? The malt sugar was boiled by my mother, right? And the quilt covers for Elder Brother’s wedding—Mother also helped embroider them!”
“Right, right, right!” Wang Shi sounded as if she had suddenly found a kindred spirit. She immediately pulled Chen Shi up and said to Yu Wen, “Not only should you toast younger sister-in-law, but we two should also toast younger sister-in-law. If it weren’t for you all, our A’Yuan’s marriage wouldn’t have gone so smoothly.”
Chen Shi was already blushing enough to drip blood when Yu Tang praised her. Now pulled up by Wang Shi, she couldn’t even speak: “No, no, it’s not, it’s not…” She even pretended to scold Yu Tang, “You talk too much. How can you be so tactless!”
Fortunately, Yu Wen was thick-skinned. He stood up with a smile and said, “Isn’t that why it’s said that elder brother goes first! I really should learn well from elder brother. Children’s mother, our daughter spoke correctly. I toast you a cup. You’ve also worked hard this year.”
Chen Shi was both shy and happy, not knowing what to do. She lightly patted the chief culprit Yu Tang once, glared at her, then bashfully raised her cup and drank a glass of wine.
Yu Yuan grinned happily.
Shuang Tao, A’Tiao, Chen Pozi, and others all had smiles covering their faces too.
Yu Tang thought of the bleakness at this time in her previous life, then looked at the liveliness before her eyes. Her eyes grew moist.