“…For the sake of the friendship we’ve had since childhood, please put in a word for me with the Mistress. My son and I will remember your kindness.” A middle-aged woman stood in the covered walkway, pulling at the sleeve of a smartly dressed household stewardess and murmuring privately.

The stewardess replied softly: “I understand. Second Mistress is busy these days; otherwise, even without you bringing it up, she would have remembered. You might as well think about it — in all these years of schooling, when has Second Mistress ever overlooked your son?”

The middle-aged woman, though clothed in fine silks and satins, had a rather shrinking manner; at these words she gave an awkward and flustered laugh.

After the two parted ways, the stewardess turned and walked out of the courtyard. The other servant woman beside her hurried to catch up, muttering: “Cui Chan, you’re far too kind-hearted. If this business goes wrong in any way and Second Mistress suspects you, what then?”

Cui Chan gave a quiet sigh: “Never mind. We did grow up together, after all, and she doesn’t have things easy these days.”

“Hmph — what does she not have easy? She was the one who wanted to stand out, back then. Is she any better off than us now?”

Cui Chan shook her head: “This is not our place to comment on. You go and see to your own business.” The other woman smiled: “Fine — then the matter I asked you to help with…” Cui Chan smiled: “I won’t forget.” The other woman thanked her repeatedly and walked away with a smile spread across her face.

Watching her go, Cui Chan resumed walking in the direction of the main chambers. Every maidservant and matron she encountered along the way hastened to set down whatever they held and bow and nod in greeting.

Cui Chan had barely stepped into the main room when she heard voices from the inner chamber. After a moment’s careful listening, she recognized one as her mistress and the other as the second wife of Chang Wu from the Sheng family’s main branch. She immediately stopped and stood quietly at the threshold, holding her breath.

“…Cousin, please help me — those children of mine have never once been separated from me since the day they were born.” The second wife of Chang Wu was weeping in fitful bursts.

“There is no point in weeping and wailing. These years I have said everything there is to say; you let it go in one ear and out the other, treating my words as empty threats. Now, inevitably, the elder madam of the main branch has finally exerted her authority. In grander terms, this is a matter between you and your mother-in-law of the main branch, settled behind closed doors — and I am only a married-out daughter; even my brothers could not properly intervene. In smaller terms — what grandmother is without cause to personally raise and educate her grandchildren?”

The second wife of Chang Wu was not a foolish woman; she understood all the principles she ought to understand, yet she wept with heartfelt grief all the same: “Mother is angry with me, and yet — yet what choice do I have? She is, after all, my birth mother. Cousin…”

“Yes — you are filial and devoted, mindful of your birth mother. My own birth mother is this very moment alone and desolate in the family temple back home.” Second Mistress inserted this with sudden coldness.

The second wife of Chang Wu immediately realized she had misspoken and hurriedly said: “Cousin, please don’t take offense — I’m clumsy with words, I’m foolish! Aunt has always been fond of me, and my mother has troubled her so, I truly don’t know how to make it up to you.” And with that, she was weeping again: “My mother’s sins are deep, I know this — but the time I went to see her in the Penitential Office, she was worn to the bone, barely recognizable, and she kept weeping, kept weeping, looking at me without stopping. As a daughter, how could I bear to watch…”

“I told you not to go see her; you insisted.”

The second wife of Chang Wu sobbed: “After Grandmother passed, Uncle and Aunt no longer wished to be involved with my mother — my brother is kept in check by his wife — apart from me, who is left…?”

“So — now that Chang Wu brother has been promoted to a higher post, that has conveniently made it easier for you to visit your mother in the Penitential Office!” Second Mistress’s voice took on a mocking edge, then shifted: “Changing the subject — speaking of Uncle and Aunt, I hear that Second Brother of the Wang family recently had another son? I must say, Aunt’s discernment was not wrong — the concubine wife she took in has indeed proven beneficial to her husband and auspicious.”

The second wife of Chang Wu started with alarm, raised her head, and caught the meaningful look in her cousin’s eyes. Flustered, she said: “Cousin… cousin…”

“You ought to count yourself lucky. My great-uncle and great-aunt have treated you with considerable generosity — though they harbor anger and resentment, they have never taken it out on you. Think of Yuan’er — whose parents-in-law are our own blood uncle and aunt! You, meanwhile, take kindness for granted: one moment you are sneaking visits to your mother, the next you are pestering Grandmother to forgive — the old woman rarely returns to the capital, and you spent the entire New Year kneeling at the gate of Shou An Hall weeping and pleading, bringing nothing but ill omens!”

“Grandmother is well now, and has already issued word for Aunt to come home. Everyone is wealthy and flourishing, all families gathered in contentment. And besides — besides, she is my mother…” the second wife of Chang Wu was about to continue, and was immediately cut off.

“I know she is your mother. Everyone knows she is your mother!” Second Mistress’s voice was laden with sarcasm. “That old matter I am too tired to rehearse again. The fact that Grandmother is well is her boundless good fortune. That Aunt harbored malicious intent, however, is as certain as a nail hammered into a board. Our Sheng family’s main branch and second branch have shared a bond of many decades — closer than ordinary brothers who have long since divided into separate households. That bond must continue on into the future. Grandfather and Grandmother will absolutely not allow you to cause a rift between the two branches on your account! You had better think clearly: no matter how many justifications you have, you can only choose one side. Do not imagine that everyone will be understanding of you and make allowances for you. You are an intelligent person — you know what you ought to do!”

Having said all of this, Second Mistress seemed to have exhausted her patience and began to send her guest off. The second wife of Chang Wu had no choice but to dry her eyes, and with a sniff walked out the door. Cui Chan quickly stepped back several paces and stood at the entrance to the main room, one hand lifting the curtain, curtsying with bent knees.

After seeing the second wife of Chang Wu out, Cui Chan slowly made her way into the inner chamber, where she found her mistress sitting on the heated bed with an unpleasant expression. The moment she saw Cui Chan, she said: “What took you so long?! You’ve kept me waiting half the day.”

Cui Chan knew her mistress’s temperament, and she smiled and stood before the bed, giving a little theatrical exclamation: “Oh my, oh my, my Second Mistress — when the mistresses are within talking, could I really just push in and report? Poor me, I ran all that way on these tired legs, only to have to stand out there and wait.”

Second Mistress was amused by her expressive performance and her face cleared somewhat.

Cui Chan read her mistress’s expression with practiced ease and smiled: “If you ask me, it’s because Second Mistress is too broad-minded and kind-hearted that the second wife of Chang Wu keeps coming to your door trip after trip to pour out her woes. If it were anyone else, she would have been served a cold reception long ago — or had her face set against her with an outright scolding.”

Second Mistress was an open and frank temperament — her tempers came quickly and departed quickly as well. At these words she laughed and sighed: “I only feel sorry for Cousin Yun’er. All these years she has been compassionate to the old and weak, distributing gruel and giving alms, and has done no small amount of good works. Sigh… a white phoenix taking flight from a crow’s nest — how did things come to this…”

Cui Chan ventured carefully: “This time… has the second wife of Chang Wu run into trouble again…?”

Second Mistress gave a cold snort: “The Kang family sister-in-law got tired of being pestered by her, and put her up to it: ‘If you want to get someone released from the Penitential Office, it cannot be done without the Marquis Gu. Why not ask his younger sister to put in a word with the Marchioness Gu?’ And Cousin actually took this seriously. She actually pricked her finger and wrote a letter in blood, intending to send it all the way to Sichuan. Fortunately, the stewardess matron that Great-Aunt left in the capital was quick-thinking and managed to intercept it before it went out. When the news was sent back to the hometown of Yuyuang, it gave Great-Uncle quite a fright. If that letter had truly been sent, Sixth Sister may not have thought much of it, but her husband would have taken it for Brother Chang Wu’s intention! “

Cui Chan was also startled: “The second wife of Chang Wu has grown bold indeed.”

“Hmph!” Second Mistress’s expression was all exasperated disappointment. “I advised her right from the start, when this first broke out: hold yourself clear of it, do not gamble yourself against the entire second branch — not a single person in the main branch will stake their backing on her. Four years ago, Great-Aunt confined her in the hometown for a full year, and when she came back, I urged her in good faith to stop crying without end — Great-Aunt was already furious. Last year she went and knelt outside Shou An Hall and made a spectacle of herself, and Great-Aunt was so agitated by it she fell ill. Two months later, a concubine of good background was formally welcomed into her husband’s household. Sigh — she is incorrigible. I am done wasting my words.”

Cui Chan saw her mistress was parched from talking, and quietly poured a bowl of warm tea to offer her.

“Actually, I knew about this matter beforehand.” Second Mistress drank her tea, steadied her breathing, and then said slowly: “Great-Aunt’s original intention was to summon Cousin back to the hometown and never let her return to the capital again — and going forward to promote the concubine to the status of an equal wife, to take over Chang Wu brother’s public affairs and household management in her place. It was only because Chang Wu brother could not bear to part with her, and argued and pleaded until Great-Aunt’s heart softened somewhat, saying ‘this is not proper conduct,’ that Cousin’s position was finally preserved.”

Cui Chan sat down on the heated bed and gently massaged Second Mistress’s legs, saying warmly: “Mistress, please don’t vex yourself. If you ask me, the branch elder calling back the second wife of Chang Wu’s children may not be entirely a matter of punishment. Setting aside our Grandmother’s debt of grace to the main branch, speaking plainly: the Kang family are merchants; only one of them, Chang Wu Second Master, serves as an official — and even then he is a military one. But our family, on the civil side and the military side both, how many are there? In this generation, our two branches are still as close as one family. But if the second wife of Chang Wu is allowed to go on like this, taking her children to the Penitential Office from time to time to visit the suffering Kang family grandmother, teaching them through her example — once the boys and girls are grown, will they not secretly harbor resentment?”

Second Mistress slapped her knee: “You’ve spoken right to my heart! I have worried over this too. It is fortunate that Great-Uncle and Great-Aunt are clear-sighted people, and are moving to take the children back to raise them themselves while they are still small. Still — this is the last time. Chang Wu brother has already pledged to Great-Aunt that if there is a next time, he will send his wife back to the hometown for good, and take in an equal wife instead.”

She sighed, then continued: “Such a vicious woman as Aunt must absolutely never be released — word has it she is still cursing our entire family every single day in there. Sigh — to think it was Grandmother herself who arranged this marriage for Yun’er. One wonders whether she has any thought for the grace Grandmother showed her.”

Having spoken at such length, Second Mistress noticed that Cui Chan had been silent for some time, and smiled: “What is the matter with you? Have you suddenly gone mute?”

Cui Chan hesitated once more and finally spoke: “Listening to Mistress speak of conscience, I wasn’t sure whether or not I should pass along a word for someone.”

Second Mistress paused in thought a moment, and her expression gradually grew somber: “It’s Yun’er’s soft heart again — and you are soft-hearted too. What has she asked you to tell me now?”

Cui Chan smiled wryly: “Song Yiniang says that the young master grows bigger each day, and it is clear he is not the scholarly type — he is fond of swords and weapons. Our Master has no time for such things. Could Mistress possibly find a martial arts instructor for him?”

Second Mistress gave a cold snort: “She has quite an appetite — daring to ask for that.”

Cui Chan stood quietly to one side, saying nothing.

Though she was now Second Mistress’s most relied-upon servant, in the past it had been Song Yiniang who was the personal maidservant who had grown up with Second Mistress from childhood. Mistresses in other households might have been happy enough to give a personal maidservant to their husband as a concubine, but Second Mistress had grown up witnessing Lin Yiniang’s dominance, and to her very core she did not believe in the notion of a wife and concubines living in harmony. So even when Second Mistress had been frantic with anxiety, she had never set her sights on any of them for that purpose.

Yet Song Yiniang, seeing that Second Mistress had injured her health during her first daughter’s birth, had formed other ideas — since there would be no legitimate heir now, a concubine’s eldest son would be of the highest standing, and she took it upon herself to propose “sharing the burden on behalf of the principal wife”… After that incident, Second Mistress, though she said nothing and everything continued on as normal, had — Cui Chan knew — been wounded at heart.

Second Mistress’s original idea had been to find a second-tier maidservant whose parents and brothers and personal bondship were all in the household’s hands. After all, this was to be the one who bore the eldest concubine-born son — one could not allow too much closeness; if things went well, that would be all the better for everyone; if not, with her family ties in hand as security, should it ever come to an open breach, at least it would not wound a bond of affection that had been there since childhood.

Cui Chan had often thought: even she could see through Second Mistress’s thinking — could Song Yiniang truly not have known? And yet she had still said, full of earnest expressions, “No other person can be trusted the way I can, for I am truly close to Mistress from the heart; the son I bear will be no different from one born from Mistress’s own body.”

In the early days after the young master was born, Second Mistress had of course breathed a sigh of relief, and Song Yiniang had been smugly pleased with herself as well — yet who could have foreseen? As fate would have it, afterward Second Mistress recovered her health and gave birth to one legitimate child after another, and the couple grew ever more devoted.

With this turn of events, the existence of the eldest concubine-born son had become rather awkward; and Song Yiniang grew ever more uneasy and apprehensive.

After a long silence, Second Mistress said quietly: “Tell me honestly — in all these years, have I ever wronged the two of them, mother and son?”

Cui Chan replied softly: “Heaven and earth are my witness — it was Song Yiniang who wronged Mistress first; Mistress has been more than fair to her. Among all the concubines raised from maidservants — just look at our household’s Xiang Yiniang and the wife of Sixth Young Master, what they eat and wear… They ought to count their blessings.”

A glimmer of something like tears appeared in Second Mistress’s eyes, only to vanish quickly. She took Cui Chan’s hand, and said in a voice thick with feeling: “Thank goodness Grandmother gave you to me before I left to be married. Through those most difficult days, you were there every day to bolster my spirits and comfort me; that is how I endured it.”

Cui Chan said with genuine feeling: “Grandmother said it long ago — Mistress has a kind and warm heart. Following Mistress, one could never go wrong.”

Mistress and servant spoke and laughed for a while, until Cui Chan suddenly recalled something: “Oh — Mistress hasn’t even asked me how I got on with my errand.”

Second Mistress slapped her own forehead and laughed, pretending to scold: “It’s all your fault — you’ve rambled and wandered, and I’ve lost all track of where we are. Quickly, tell me — this morning early on I sent you to deliver ginseng, did I not? How is Fourth Miss? Has she delivered yet?”

Cui Chan smiled and said: “After a whole morning of labor, Fourth Aunt-by-Marriage has given birth to another young lady.”

Second Mistress was startled: “Another girl?! This makes four!”

Cui Chan also silently sighed — four in a row, it really was as if heaven itself had gone silent on the matter.

It was just as well that Fourth Aunt-by-Marriage had inherited some measure of her birth mother’s real skill, and despite her mother-in-law’s disfavor, had at least managed to keep a hold on her husband. One could only hope that Lin Yiniang’s particular abilities were reliable ones, and that Fourth Aunt-by-Marriage would be able to go on keeping her husband close and having more children.

Second Mistress sighed for a while, then said languidly: “What kind of thing is this. Sixth Sister gives birth to one son after another, while Fourth Sister — one leg raised and it’s a girl, one leg raised and it’s a girl.”

Cui Chan murmured: “I heard that the first pregnancy Fourth Aunt-by-Marriage lost — that one was actually a boy.”

Second Mistress clicked her tongue in regret: “Not only that — two years ago she lost another one, which was a fully formed male fetus.” Molan’s fertility was actually quite strong; her tragedy lay in the fact that all the ones she had lost were boys, while the ones who had survived to birth were all girls.

“After so many years, I have not a trace of grudge left in me anymore. I only hope Fourth Sister will be sensible and stop picking quarrels with the concubines — she should take good care of her health and produce a son in the next pregnancy.” Second Mistress sighed without stopping.

Cui Chan’s eyes were warm and smiling. Over the years Second Mistress had grown ever more gentle of heart and kind of spirit — even the old resentments stemming from Lin Yiniang had scattered on the wind. She had turned her heart wholeheartedly toward doing good, hoping to accumulate some measure of blessing and virtue for her children.

“Fifth Sister-in-Law still has things best — one daughter, one son, perfectly alternating. That’s enough to make Sixth Sister-in-Law envious.”

“She’s no trouble-free case either — Sixth Sister envies her, and she envies Sixth Sister right back.”

Second Mistress gave a light click of the tongue: “Sixth Brother treats Sixth Sister like the apple of his eye — afraid she’d melt if he kept her in his mouth, afraid she’d shatter if he held her in his hands, not willing to be apart from her for a single moment. Fifth Brother-in-Law, on the other hand, must be kept in line from time to time. Recently Fifth Brother-in-Law’s superior presented him with a concubine as a gift, and Fifth Sister-in-Law made quite a scene about it. Who knows how things stand now.”

Cui Chan listened and smiled as well: “Fifth Sister-in-Law is not the sort who can’t tolerate anyone — it’s just that when a husband takes a concubine, she must at least give her approval first. Those first two weren’t they perfectly fine? Quiet and proper.”

“She’s competing with Sixth Sister!” Second Mistress said. “How can one compare to Sixth Brother-in-Law — after all the hardship he suffered in the first half of his life, he is stubborn at the bone and cannot stand anyone interfering in his family affairs.”

She remembered that one year when the Prince of Shu had sent two beautiful women as a gift, Sixth Brother-in-Law had handed them straight over to the common soldiers under his command who had not yet been able to marry; then when four dancing girls were sent, he had simply kept them well-fed and well-cared-for, and whenever there was a banquet in the household he would have them come out to sing and dance — by this time, half the officials of Sichuan had witnessed these performances and praised the Prince of Shu’s household for training such accomplished people, each one combining beauty and talent.

Second Mistress thought of that woman called Fengxian from the former Ningyuan Marquis household, and shook her head with a private smile.

Later, the Prince of Shu had been infuriated, and had begun to stick his neck out looking for ways to create trouble, only to be preempted by Gu Tingye, who submitted a memorial against him to the throne. Her younger brother Changfeng had once vividly described for her the gist of that memorial:

“Your Majesty — this subject passed on the women sent by the Prince of Shu to others, and this enraged the Prince. This subject acknowledges the error: anything granted by the imperial family — even a chamber pot — should never be casually passed on to another! So the second time the Prince sent women, this subject retained them and has made frequent use of them; guests who attended banquets have all seen and praised them greatly. Yet the Prince of Shu is displeased again, indicating that this subject has failed to grasp the proper use of the women he sent. Your Majesty — if the Prince of Shu is now managing how this subject uses the women in his household, will he next manage how this subject commands the troops under him?

Your Majesty — this subject truly has no wish to take concubines. This subject suffered enough from a turbulent household in his early years, nearly bringing about complete ruin of the family; Your Majesty is well aware of this. It is not this subject’s wish to take concubines, and yet the Prince of Shu insists on compelling him to do so — what benefit does the Prince of Shu derive from this subject taking concubines? This subject devotes himself wholeheartedly to serving Your Majesty, and has not even had the time to instruct his young son in his lessons; at this rate, this subject will have to send him back to the capital again, like his two elder brothers, to be companions to the Crown Prince with the imperial tutors to guide him. Your Majesty — what do you think… perhaps one more could be taken in as companion?”

The Emperor’s imperial rescript to Gu Tingye had read: “The roster of imperial companions is already full; your family alone has taken up two positions, and a great many veteran colleagues have expressed their dissatisfaction. The remaining young ones you may keep for yourself. P.S.: Your eldest is not bad — steady and mature for his age, handles matters reliably, and has quite the favor of this Emperor and the Crown Prince. Your second does not like to speak, which has left the tutors considerably exhausted. When your great-uncle Sheng Changbai returns to the capital next month to take up his official post, have him sent to receive Sheng Changbai’s guidance — he is worthy of careful cultivation.”

The Emperor had been waiting for precisely this, and immediately issued an edict sharply censuring the Prince of Shu — even Crown Princes should not casually associate with officials; you, a feudatory prince, have on several occasions cultivated relationships with governors of border territories — what is your intention? The implied meaning was: I am sitting on this throne precisely because I came up through the ranks of the feudatory princes, and I have already dealt with two of them since taking my seat — is that what you are after?

In the years that followed, the Emperor stripped the Prince of Shu of two-thirds of his personal guard force, stripped him of his authority over the minting of currency and mining rights in his domain, and in addition graciously assigned several “household administrators” to the Prince of Shu’s estate on behalf of the imperial family.

Every time she thought of the letters Sixth Sister sent from far away, Second Mistress felt an irresistible urge to laugh — her heart at once settled and warmed.

Cui Chan glanced sideways, observing that Second Mistress’s lips held a smile, as though she were recalling something amusing, and all the earlier displeasure had been cast entirely from her mind. She let out a quiet breath of relief — whenever Sixth Aunt-by-Marriage came up, it never failed to make Mistress a little happier.

Seeing the moment was right, Cui Chan added a bit more: “Just now as I was returning to the household, I saw Old Ge at the side gate unloading cargo, saying that Master has sent goods back from beyond the frontier passes. Among them is a wild fox pelt, patterned in brilliant patches — my eyes dazzled just looking at it, it was truly beautiful. Old Ge said our Master hunted it himself, skinned it himself, and had an excellent craftsman from beyond the frontier passes tan and cure the hide — all so as to make Second Mistress a new hood for the new year.”

Second Mistress’s heart was sweet, a faint flush rising to her cheeks: “Old husband and old wife, and we’ve already become grandparents, and he’s still carrying on like this — others will laugh if they see it. What really matters is that he get back before the new year. Nothing else is important.”

Cui Chan saw that Mistress had broken into a genuine smile, and felt reassured.

Second Mistress counted on her fingers, calculating the days as she spoke: “Come to think of it, there really is quite a bit to see to before the new year. Shi Ge’er is old enough now for a proper tutor to be found for him — even if not someone as fine as Master Zhuang from the old days, he still cannot go on mixing with the little ones at home every day. We’ll have to go speak with Changbai’s wife about that. Second Brother must start his basic education — Song Yiniang wants a martial arts instructor hired, well then the practice yard might as well be made larger, as perhaps some of the little ones will also develop a taste for the martial arts. As I see it, Shi Ge’er and the others are also not the scholarly type…”

After turning it all over in her mind, Second Mistress suddenly remembered something and instructed Cui Chan: “Oh, right — don’t forget to send a share of those furs to Grandmother and First Sister-in-Law, sent openly, just see that the patterns look nice. And send a share to Zhang Yiniang as well — not conspicuously, but make sure the things are solid and practical. Hmm? How is it there hasn’t been a sound from that direction all day.”

Ordinarily, whenever goods came in from beyond the frontier, their mother-in-law would be like a hound scenting the air — sending people around openly and covertly to find out what had arrived, unable to sit or lie still, itching to come over and inspect it, afraid that her daughter-in-law was keeping it all for herself.

Indeed, their mother-in-law had originally wept and wailed, demanding that her son send everything directly to her so she could distribute it among the various branches of daughters-in-law; it was only after the old grandfather had pointed at her nose and given her a severe tongue-lashing that she had given up the idea.

Cui Chan stifled a smile and leaned to Second Mistress’s ear: “Last night she had yet another quarrel with Zhang Yiniang. During the scuffle she scratched the old master’s face. He struck her with one slap in return, and she is now in a fury, flat on her bed.”

Second Mistress had not the slightest feeling for this mother-in-law of hers, and asked quietly: “How long will she be lying abed this time?”

Cui Chan hesitated a moment: “Shall I go and find out how heavy the imprint of that slap was?” After all, one would have to wait for the mark to fade before she would come out.

Second Mistress lightly tapped her on the forehead with one finger, laughing and teasing: “Nanny Fang was right to say you were mischievous, back in those days — she was not wrong at all.”