“Outrageous!”
Wang Wenzhong brought his palm down on the rosewood tea table in a furious slam. The entire reception hall fell dead silent.
“You are an unmarried young woman — how could you show your face in a place like a military garrison?! Rushing over to deliver longevity cords was shameless enough, and then to be driven away in humiliation! You have utterly disgraced the Wang family! What manner of behavior is this for a daughter of a distinguished household?!”
Wang Wenzhong’s chest heaved with rage. Beside him, Lady Wang carefully offered a teacup.
“My lord, please calm yourself…”
“You gave me a daughter like this — how am I supposed to calm myself?!”
Wang Wenzhong picked up the teacup, ready to hurl it, but at the sight of his only daughter kneeling in the center of the hall with her eyes downcast — he couldn’t bring himself to throw it.
The teacup was set back down on the table. The terror-stricken Lady Wang beside him finally let out a breath of relief.
“Shiyong, don’t just kneel there dumbly — say something to explain yourself…” Lady Wang pleaded with imploring eyes at her silently kneeling daughter.
“…Father.” Wang Shiyong finally spoke. “With the Dragon Boat Festival approaching, your daughter only wished to rally support for you among the military — and so purchased longevity cords for the number of men in all three of Pengcheng County’s garrisons to distribute. Those longevity cords were not braided by my own hand, nor were they given to any single person alone. Moreover, they were sent in your name and in the name of Xuzhou’s citizens — your daughter acted with the best of intentions. Wherein lies my wrongdoing?”
“Yes, Shiyong truly meant well—”
“Listen to her nonsense!” Wang Wenzhong roared, cutting off Lady Wang’s words before they were barely out.
He turned and fixed Wang Shiyong with a furious glare. “You dare say — that among those thousands of longevity cords, not a single one was braided by your own hand?!”
“Among those cords, there was indeed not one—”
Wang Wenzhong seized the teacup and hurled it. This time there was no hesitation.
With a loud crash, the teacup shattered into pieces. The pale, golden tea bloomed rapidly across Wang Shiyong’s skirt.
Wang Wenzhong had always been deeply fond of his daughter. Though the teacup had not been aimed directly at her, throwing it at all was something that had never happened before.
Lady Wang, seeing that his fury was genuine this time, fell silent, not daring to make a sound.
“Do you think you have concealed your every move so well? I already know everything! And you still refuse to come to your senses?!” Wang Wenzhong’s face darkened with iron fury. He pointed at Wang Shiyong, consumed with frustration and disappointment. “You abandoned your dignity as a young lady and went yourself to deliver longevity cords — did anyone accept your gesture with gratitude?! Do you realize — you have become the laughingstock of all Xuzhou?!”
Lady Wang could not help saying, “My lord, surely it isn’t that serious — it’s clearly that Li Wu who is unreasonable…”
“If you say one more word in opposition, go back to your room at once!”
Lady Wang clamped her mouth shut and dared not speak again.
“From today forward, until the day you are married — you are not permitted to leave the house!” Wang Wenzhong looked at Wang Shiyong and said in fury.
“Father!” Wang Shiyong’s face went white.
“The Prefect of Shouzhou, Jiang Liang, is thirty-six this year — from a distinguished family, learned and cultivated, and enjoys a fine reputation among civil officials. He is a worthy match for you. I will settle your marriage as soon as possible. Put aside these thoughts and stay home in peace and wait to be wed!”
“The Prefect of Shouzhou? He has a wife!” Wang Shiyong cried out in alarm. “Father wants me to become a concubine?”
“Jiang Liang’s wife passed away from illness two years ago. You would marry him as his principal wife.”
“But he already has children — both legitimate and from concubines—”
“That is none of your concern!” Wang Wenzhong cut her off in a decisive tone. “You would be going as the prefect’s wife. All you need do is manage the children you yourself bear. That is your only responsibility!”
“Father—” Wang Shiyong’s voice broke, already on the verge of tears.
“There is nothing more to say. My mind is made up! And you had best put those thoughts to rest as well — do not entertain any more ideas that you have no business entertaining. If word of your disgrace spreads, it will not only be you — the entire Wang family will be made a laughingstock in Xuzhou because of you!”
Wang Wenzhong flung his sleeve and stormed out.
Sounds of desolate weeping filled the reception hall.
Lady Wang hurried anxiously to Wang Shiyong’s side and helped her distraught, sobbing daughter to her feet.
“Shiyong, Shiyong… what on earth is your father talking about? What disgrace? Are you hiding something from your mother?”
In answer, she received a burst of wretched, broken sobs.
The news of Li Wu turning Wang Shiyong out of the garrison without mercy reached Shen Zhuxi through the street gossip she heard here and there.
She worried they might face retaliation from Wang Shiyong. Li Wu, however, was entirely unconcerned.
Fortunately, the days that followed were calm and uneventful. Wang Shiyong made no further appearances, and Li Wu suffered no censure from Wang Wenzhong.
On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, Shen Zhuxi wore the longevity cord Li Wu had braided with his own hands and joined the three Li brothers to watch the dragon boat races, then ate freshly made glutinous rice dumplings at a lakeside teahouse.
This was the first longevity cord she had ever received in her life — and it had been made by Li Wu himself. She turned it over and over in her mind, unable to decide where to keep it safely, and in the end, she placed it inside her jewelry box, together with her phoenix pendant and her private savings.
When the festive Dragon Boat celebration was over, Pengcheng County returned to its usual quiet.
With the festival behind them, the Double Seventh Festival was drawing near.
The street vendors who had been hawking multicolored longevity cords and pungently fragrant mugwort gave way to peddlers selling red hair ribbons and clay figures of children, while the pastry shops put out their special Double Seventh confections — vibrantly colored sweets made only for this festival to be offered to the Cowherd and Weaver Girl.
When Shen Zhuxi went to deliver decorated stationery to the bookstore, she could already see that the streets were visibly fuller of young women dressed in their finest.
In years past, she had not been without a Double Seventh Festival.
Every year, the palace would hold a grand Double Seventh family banquet. The women of all six palaces would gather together and present carefully prepared song and dance performances for her imperial father. The imperial kitchen chefs would exhaust their ingenuity, fashioning exquisite imperial carriages from costly ingredients — rooftops carved with dragons and phoenixes and scattered with gold flakes, while craftsmen from the Weaving Bureau boiled ivory until soft, then drew it into threads to weave six spirited horses, powerful and majestic.
Every year the imperial carriage was different, and every year, Shen Zhuxi never knew where that creation — built at enormous cost of labor and materials — ended up after the banquet.
Her former self, like her brothers and sisters, had regarded extravagance as something as natural as breathing, never once thinking about what cost lay hidden behind all that opulence.
Last year’s Double Seventh had passed without note. This year, Shen Zhuxi had no desire to celebrate either — yet Li Wu had been murmuring in her ear about it since half a month ago, and this murmuring reached its peak the day before the festival.
“Tomorrow is the Double Seventh. I don’t care — you are spending it with me!”
The insufferable Li Wu was squawking insistently, determined to have a satisfying answer before the day was out.
Shen Zhuxi, who was in the middle of rushing to fill orders that had surged because of the festival, said helplessly, “What is there to celebrate about the Double Seventh?”
“I don’t care!” Li Wu propped both hands on the writing desk and leaned his torso forward to put his face right next to her ear, as though afraid she might not hear him. “I want to celebrate the Double Seventh!”
“Are you trying to make me deaf?” Shen Zhuxi covered her ears, frowning deeply.
“Will you or won’t you come out with me tomorrow for the Double Seventh?” Li Wu threatened. “Answer now and you’ll still be walking out on your own two feet tomorrow. Refuse — and tomorrow you’ll be carried out.”
“…Fine! I’ll go!”
“Getting you to celebrate a festival is harder than pulling teeth,” Li Wu grumbled.
Shen Zhuxi’s instinct was to fire back: And have you ever done that?
One look at Li Wu’s expression, and she wisely swallowed the question.
Never mind. What was the point of bickering with a walking nuisance.
“Should Li Kun and Li Que come back tonight then? I can get the side rooms ready in advance—”
“What are they coming back for?” Li Wu raised an eyebrow.
“Don’t you want to celebrate the Double Seventh?”
“They’re not invited!” said Li Wu.
“Just the two of us?” Shen Zhuxi said in surprise.
“Just the two of us.”
Shen Zhuxi was beginning to regret not asking more questions before she had agreed.
Just the two of them celebrating the Double Seventh…
“I…” she started to hesitate.
“Let me warn you—” said Li Wu. “If I don’t get to celebrate the Double Seventh, don’t expect to see your writing paper again either.”
Shen Zhuxi’s jaw dropped—
He — how did he always know exactly where to strike!
With her lifeline held hostage, Shen Zhuxi had no choice but to concede reluctantly. “How do you want to celebrate the Double Seventh?”
“Last time it was my turn to braid the longevity cords. This time, the red hair ribbon has to be made by your own hands.” Li Wu pulled out a bundle of red silk thread from his sleeve and slapped it onto the writing desk with a thud. “I’ve already got the materials — Shen Zhuxi, if I don’t have a red hair ribbon tomorrow, I am going to be very unhappy. And you know what happens when I’m very unhappy — don’t you?”
Shen Zhuxi was at a complete loss for words.
She knew, she knew… whenever he was unhappy, he would subject her to an endless torrent of his peculiar remarks.
But it wasn’t as if she got any peace when he was happy either!
Ode to the Pig’s Trotter and Li Wu’s Appreciation of Shrimp Paste Tea… had either of those not been composed during his moments of happiness?
Shen Zhuxi thought to herself: I’d almost rather he stayed unhappy.
After dropping the red silk thread, Li Wu dragged over an armchair, plopped himself down in it, and gave her a lift of his chin. “Get weaving — ask me if there’s anything you don’t understand.”
Shen Zhuxi tallied the delivery deadline in her head and reluctantly set down her brush.
She cleared away the tools for her hand-painted stationery, picked up two strands of red silk thread, and stared at them with complete bewilderment.
What didn’t she understand?
She didn’t understand any of it…
“Can you weave one first so I can watch?” Shen Zhuxi said with a coaxing smile.
“Call me husband and we’ll see.” Li Wu lifted his chin.
Shen Zhuxi’s face went scarlet.
“You can’t even bring yourself to fulfill such a small request — do you expect to get something for nothing?” The insufferable wretch frowned.
“You — you are absolutely shameless!”
Shen Zhuxi nearly leapt to her feet in shock. Her face burned as if scorched — all the embarrassment Li Wu seemed incapable of feeling came pouring out through her instead.
Did he want the whole world to know about those things? And here she had been making every effort to put his wayward behavior out of her mind.
Outrageous!
“Are you going to call me it or not?” Li Wu frowned.
“No! I would rather die than say it!” Shen Zhuxi clenched her fists, resolved to fight the forces of wickedness to the bitter end.
“Good, very principled of you.” Li Wu nodded, then rose from the armchair and headed toward the door. “I’ll go and send your writing paper on its way right now.”
“Husband!” Shen Zhuxi blurted it out before she could stop herself.
It was over…
She buried her face in her hands, the skin beneath her palms burning hot at an alarming speed.
Li Wu curved his lips into a casual, shameless grin and settled back into the armchair.
“Yes, wife?”
Detestable Li Duck!
Detestable Li Windbag!
Shen Zhuxi silently cursed the thick-skinned wretch with every grievance she had. The subject of her curses paid not the slightest attention to her reproachful eyes, and supervised her from start to finish as she braided all four red hair ribbons.
Shen Zhuxi had no talent for needlework, and was equally hopeless when it came to any kind of weaving or braiding.
Not one of the four red hair ribbons she produced could make her feel the least bit satisfied.
Yet these ribbons — which even she herself found lacking — were tied around Li Wu’s wrist with great care and solemnity.
Watching his suddenly serious expression, Shen Zhuxi, who had braided every one of those ribbons reluctantly and under duress, found herself feeling unexpectedly abashed. She said quietly, “It’s just a red cord…”
“It is not just a red cord.” said Li Wu. “This is a red ribbon braided by the Princess of Yue herself — absolutely one of a — there are no more than five of these in the whole world. Even that number one dog in the world doesn’t have one—”
His expression abruptly changed. He turned and glared at her fiercely. “He doesn’t have one — does he?!”
“He doesn’t!” Shen Zhuxi said hurriedly. “This is the first time I’ve ever braided a red hair ribbon!”
“And what about sachets? Handkerchiefs? Did you ever give any of those away?”
“What kind of person do you take me for!” Shen Zhuxi said, indignant.
Li Wu broke into a pleased, self-satisfied smile. “I knew it — your taste isn’t that bad after all!”