Hua Zhi knew nothing of the commotion at court, and set out once the timing felt right.
As though heading to the most ordinary of appointments, she still wore the same half-new, half-worn white garments, with only small white flowers as ornaments for her hair. Since others had clearly known she was in mourning and had sent the invitation anyway, she saw no reason why they would have any objection to her attire.
Even for her attendants, she brought only Nian Qiu and Nanny Su. Shao Yao tried to tag along and was coaxed back home.
Inside the carriage, Hua Zhi instructed Nanny Su: “Since those people have dared to do this, it means they have no intention of honoring past goodwill. There is no need for you to use the Old Madam as a shield on my behalf. I can manage these people on my own — there is no need to drag Grandmother into this.”
Nanny Su was taken aback before responding in acknowledgment. She had assumed that was precisely the reason the young miss had brought her along…
“If they had truly retained even half a measure of sentiment, I would not need to make this trip today. Why disturb Grandmother over people of no consequence?”
“Yes.”
Hua Zhi closed her eyes to rest, turning over the situation she would soon face, and said nothing more for the rest of the journey.
When the carriage came to a stop, voices from outside drifted in simultaneously. “Could this be the carriage belonging to the Hua Family’s First Young Miss?”
The Hua Family’s servant replied: “It is.”
Hua Zhi took Nian Qiu’s hand and stepped out of the carriage. Standing elevated on the carriage steps, she looked down from above at the figure who was clearly waiting there deliberately — a young man no older than seventeen or eighteen.
Under her gaze, he involuntarily straightened his posture, and introduced himself: “This one is the Wu Family’s First Son, Wu Chunsheng, come to welcome the First Young Miss into the manor.”
How interesting of the Wu Family — sending a male member of the household to receive her. If it had been a member of her own family it might have been one thing, but she and the Wu Family could not claim to be close relatives. Even in the past, they had only been connected by marriage — not related by blood, not by family — certainly not close kin. Did they think the appearance of a man would make her too flustered and shy to respond?
Or perhaps… the intention was to stir up unflattering talk about her?
Such transparent scheming. How contemptible.
Hua Zhi turned and retreated back into the carriage, her voice carrying out from within: “If this is how the Wu Family conducts itself, there is no need to go in at all. Let us return.”
Wu Chunsheng, with the impulsiveness of youth, had no intention of letting her leave so easily. “Why does the First Young Miss say this?”
“Is it customary for the Wu Family’s young ladies to be received by their young male relatives? That is rather novel. However, the Hua Family has strict propriety, and I cannot allow myself to behave so recklessly. Please convey my apologies to the Old Madam — this young lady must unfortunately withdraw from today’s appointment.”
“The Wu Family’s young ladies would certainly not be received by the young male relatives. Those words are rather harsh, First Young Miss.”
“Oh? The Wu Family’s young ladies would not be treated in such a manner, yet the Hua Family’s young lady should be? What logic is that?” Hua Zhi stepped out again and looked down at Wu Chunsheng once more from above, her gaze cold, her expression equally cold. “Does the Wu Family believe the Hua Family deserves to be treated with such disrespect?”
So this was the cold and proud beauty spoken of in all those rumors. Wu Chunsheng’s heart stirred with something unbidden. This version of Hua Zhi was so unlike the frail and delicate women he was used to — looking at her was far too satisfying. If he could only…
He pressed down that small treacherous thought, softened his expression, and tried a more coaxing tone: “How could the Wu Family ever disrespect the First Young Miss? It is simply that I am the eldest grandson of the Wu Family and you are the eldest granddaughter of the Hua Family — it seemed most courteous for me to come personally to welcome you. I never imagined you would read so much into it. Truly…”
“If that were the case, then it should have been the Old Madam herself who came to welcome me. Though I am young, I am the head of the Hua Family household. For Wu Gongzi to compare himself to me in rank is rather presumptuous, wouldn’t you say?” Hua Zhi turned to step back inside. “Please do convey my message to the Old Madam.”
“Wait.” An older woman accompanied by two small maids came hurrying out from a side gate to the east. Nanny Su quietly identified her: “That is Head Housekeeper Zhu, who serves at the Wu Old Madam’s side.”
Housekeeper Zhu approached with an elaborate bow, and apologized with a smile: “Please forgive us for this embarrassment, First Young Miss. The Old Madam will certainly reprimand the Young Master properly afterward.”
If Hua Zhi wished to press the matter further, she absolutely could have. Turning and leaving with dignity was well within her rights, and no one could fault her on the grounds of improper conduct. But the purpose of her visit today was not to get into a public quarrel with a Wu Family son at the front door and give others something to gossip about.
And so she took the offered way out. She allowed Nanny Su to help her down from the carriage, and fixed the housekeeper with a cool, unreadable gaze without uttering a word, making her displeasure perfectly plain. She had already decided she would fight head-on today, and that was her greatest strength.
Housekeeper Zhu had no choice but to maintain her apologetic smile. The Wu Family was in the wrong here — if the Hua Family’s First Young Miss had failed to see through the scheme, it might have worked. But since she had clearly seen through it, Housekeeper Zhu had to serve as the outlet for her displeasure.
Yet no matter what she said, Nanny Su fielded every word without leaving a single gap, and by the time they had passed through to the inner courtyard and arrived at the Wu Family’s garden, Hua Zhi still had not spared the housekeeper another glance.
The Wu Family’s garden was not situated within the inner courtyard, but along the side of the entire estate — and it had quite a reputation in the capital.
Wu Zhen’s paternal grandmother had been deeply fond of flowers and plants, and had maintained that devotion with unwavering dedication for decades. She had collected rare and exotic flowers without number. Wu Zhen’s father had been filial, and whenever he heard of a new variety somewhere, he would acquire it as an offering to his mother. With the head of the household setting such an example, the entire household had taken the matter very seriously. After the old matriarch passed away, the garden was entrusted to his wife, and from there it was passed down to Wu Zhen’s wife, who now oversaw it.
The family took great pride in this garden. Whether it was poetry and wine gatherings for the younger generation or intimate get-togethers among the ladies of the household, this was always the venue.
And indeed it was beautiful. With the chill of winter now fully dissipated, flowers competed with one another in full bloom. Even those not yet in season showed no signs of withering — a clear testament to how carefully the Wu Family tended them.
In such surroundings, the slight displeasure Hua Zhi had performed so carefully dissipated just enough to seem natural. At precisely that moment, Wu Zhen’s eldest daughter-in-law, Zheng Shi, came forward to meet them. “I heard from the housekeeper that our ill-mannered boy gave the First Young Miss a fright. This is my failure as his mother. Please do not let it trouble you.”
Hua Zhi returned a shallow bow, composed and unhurried. “I had rather thought it was the Wu Family’s custom for male relatives to receive female guests.”
Zheng Shi’s expression shifted briefly, but she quickly drew her smile back into place. “Of course not. No family conducts itself that way — it would entirely overturn proper decorum.”
“Indeed.” The one overturning decorum is none other than your Wu Family, isn’t it? Hua Zhi smiled lightly.
Chosen by the Wu Old Madam as her eldest daughter-in-law, Zheng Shi was no fool. How could she fail to hear the undertone in those words? In this moment, however, she could only pretend she had not understood, while internally seething at her mother-in-law for allowing Chunsheng to do such a thing. If word of it spread, how would it reflect on Chunsheng’s reputation?
Because it was frequently used for gatherings, several pavilions of varying styles had been constructed throughout the garden, among which the most striking was one draped in flowing white curtains — used for the young unmarried ladies’ gatherings. That, naturally, would not be in use today. Zheng Shi led them instead to a nearby pavilion of carved railings and jade-white steps, where an aura of opulent grandeur met them head-on.
Yet to Hua Zhi’s eye, it clashed quite conspicuously with the surrounding landscape.
Looking more closely, the marks around the outside of the pavilion were still quite fresh. It seemed it had not been standing long. She thought to herself that the two generations of mistresses who had managed the Wu Family household could hardly have had taste poor enough to build something so disruptive to the garden’s harmony.
Hua Zhi set aside her train of thought. She was simply that way — when she liked a person, no amount of effort on their behalf felt too great. When she disliked someone, even their very breathing struck her as an offense.