The sky turned gray and bright.
Third Young Master Xiao was exhausted.
Those who didn’t know would think he’d embraced warm jade and fragrant warmth all night. Although his wedding night had occurred twice before, they’d been utterly uninteresting. This time truly—even he himself couldn’t figure out how it had turned out this way.
Before him was his new bride. Even though before marrying he’d decided to maintain a respectful distance with this wife, he still had to admit this Qiu Sanniang was a rarely seen beauty. Looking at her bright countenance, several lines of verse unconsciously surfaced in his mind—”Like light clouds veiling the moon, drifting like flowing wind returning to snow.”
Fortunately, he wasn’t someone who forgot his principles at the sight of beauty. It was just that looking at such a pleasing sight, he forgot the cold expression he should have maintained, becoming what he was now.
What was he now?
Eyes drowsy and half-closed, head so heavy he had to prop it with his hand, but face smiling, thoughts highly active. All because of one game of chess. One game of chess played for several shichen.
Qiu Sanniang was a merchant family’s daughter. The Qiu clan was merely a merchant household in Luo Zhou. This marriage alliance—just as his parents had no choice, he also had no choice. He’d therefore prepared to meet a shrewd woman bordering on vulgar, yet hadn’t expected this woman to be not only beautiful as a celestial being but also to play excellent chess.
Women who could play chess were uncommon; women who could play chess well were rarer than phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.
Though he admitted his new wife’s chess skill was superb, he didn’t believe he couldn’t defeat her. But unexpectedly, she persisted for a very long time, refusing to concede until the board was completely filled. And he, unable to win with overwhelming advantage, had gone from leading by three or four stones to now only two stones. What he’d thought was a board-filling exercise still left the opponent room to turn defeat into victory.
Quite interesting.
The opponent being a truly talented great beauty made this black and white struggle infinitely more vivid than ever before. No wonder Second Brother and Brother Shi Lei both said the words “not lacking in romantic fortune.” True enough—with his ill reputation of having divorced two wives, he could still marry a woman as beautiful as the Goddess of the Luo River. Not every man had such luck.
Wanting tea to wake himself up, he found the cup’s surface somewhat cool. But clearly when he’d made his move, it had still been hot. Or perhaps he could no longer tell the difference.
“Sanniang, how much longer will you think?” This chess game—she no longer needed to think, just fill in the spaces directly. Third Young Master Xiao wanted to discourage her.
However, no one answered him.
His fingertip left the teacup. Lifting his eyes to look carefully, he couldn’t help but laugh silently.
The bride’s hand supported her peach-pink cheek, propping up one corner of the small square table, her dark hair like black gold tassels. Though her eyes still showed a sliver, she’d actually fallen deeply asleep while sitting. Her breathing light as feathers, her posture lazy like a cat.
He stood up, took two steps forward, then retreated one step. A beauty sleeping in this posture was certainly pleasing to behold, but when she woke, the aching waist and back would be quite uncomfortable. But if he carried the beauty to bed, it wouldn’t accord with his original plan. Therefore, he hesitated two steps forward, one step back, his arm half-extended but not reaching.
“Young Master.”
At this moment, a voice called from behind.
Third Young Master Xiao glanced sideways to see two of Sanniang’s dowry maids entering—no longer the earlier Bai He and Lu Ju.
One with a slender figure, head lowered so her features weren’t quite visible, said, “Does Young Master want fresh tea?”
These maids were truly busy! Over the past several shichen, midnight snacks, pastries, tea and water had never ceased, plus there was the accidentally broken porcelain. Trivial matters—in the blink of an eye, the sky had turned white. If not for his good memory, each time sending the two to the outer room, he might have thought Qiu Sanniang had the maids secretly switching chess stones. However, if she had maids who understood switching chess pieces, this Qiu Sanniang would be even more formidable.
The maids could take shifts, but he’d drunk wine and played an anticlimactic endurance chess game—his head was dizzy and eyes blurred. More tea? If he drank more, he’d be floating.
“What time is it?” Seeing the sky’s color, Third Young Master Xiao asked.
“Mao hour.” In a little while, it would be time for breakfast. Mo Zi thought, at this critical moment, for the sake of one year’s freedom earlier, she absolutely had to hold fast and couldn’t let there be any “post-chess passion.”
“So late… early?” Unable to distinguish late from early anymore, Third Young Master Xiao decided to display some grace before his new wife’s maid, reaching out to embrace Qiu Sanniang. “Your mistress fell asleep at just the right time. I was about to win the game.”
“Young Master, watch out for Miss’s hand!” Mo Zi urgently cried out.
Third Young Master Xiao hadn’t yet understood Mo Zi’s meaning when Qiu Sanniang, who was about to fall into his embrace, suddenly swung up her hand and smacked his head with a slap. He hurriedly retreated, while the other silent maid with long limbs took the position where he’d just been standing.
“Xiao Yi, you’d better carry Miss to the bed.” Mo Zi instructed the slender maid.
Third Young Master Xiao watched as Xiao Yi gently lifted Qiu Sanniang, carefully placed her on the wedding bed, and covered her with the quilt. Qiu Sanniang swung her hand twice more, but the maid was nimble and dodged both times.
“Your mistress certainly has lively sleeping habits.” Third Young Master Xiao understood why Mo Zi had told him to be careful.
“It’s alright. It’s just that when Miss is asleep, she doesn’t like people moving her.” Mo Zi lowered her head, laughing wildly inside. This Qiu Sanniang was probably pretending to sleep—otherwise how could they have such coordination? As soon as she shouted about the hand, Qiu Sanniang happened to give Third Young Master Xiao a slap on the head. “Mo Zi apologizes on Miss’s behalf. Did it hurt Young Master?”
How could it not hurt? A solid hit right on target! But Third Young Master Xiao was a man—though not a martial man, he still valued face. Saying it didn’t hurt, he walked to the bedside to see Qiu Sanniang’s hands and feet spread out wide under the quilt, occupying more than half the bed.
“Did your mistress sleep like this at home too?” Domineering, a sleeping style that didn’t share the bed with others?
“Young Master, how could that be? It’s just that Xiao Yi didn’t pay attention when placing her just now. Should Mo Zi tuck in Miss’s hands?” Mo Zi pretended to step forward, yet her mouth said, “Just afraid of waking Miss. She can sleep at most half a shichen, and still has to pay respects to the elders.”
Hearing Mo Zi’s muttering, Third Young Master Xiao thought she had a point and said, “Forget it, forget it. Don’t wake her. I’ll sleep in the adjacent room.”
“Young Master, how can this be proper? On the first night of your wedding, if you sleep in another side room and word reaches the Prince and Princess…” Mo Zi spoke with difficulty.
“Then what should I do? Should I sleep on the floor?” Third Young Master Xiao thought to himself, at the start a chess game prevented him from being cold enough—was it too late now to turn vicious?
“There’s a soft couch in the outer room. Mo Zi will have Xiao Yi make it very comfortable. If Young Master can make do—” Her head slightly raised then lowered, a fifteen-degree viewing angle hiding all the hilarity.
Third Young Master Xiao didn’t want to soften, was accumulating emotion to sweep his sleeves and leave, but saw the maid called Mo Zi walk toward the chess board, take out the remaining pieces from the wooden holder, and begin planning to separate the black and white stones on the board.
“What are you doing?” The sleeve-sweeping matter could wait—the game’s outcome concerned the reputation of the great talent Xiao.
“Young Master just said he was about to beat our Miss, but Mo Zi sees the black and white stones are about equal. Miss rarely loses at chess. Mo Zi had better count properly, lest Miss wake and not believe Mo Zi’s words.” Third Young Master Xiao really let one chess game drag until dawn—clearly he wasn’t one to accept defeat easily. To achieve Qiu Sanniang’s requirement while not letting Third Young Master Xiao sweep his sleeves and leave, only she, Mo Zi, could continue delaying.
Hearing this, Third Young Master Xiao thought, after all she’s a dowry maid—helping the mistress, not the young master. Not only not believing his words about winning, but also wanting to prove Qiu Sanniang won. He immediately said, “Wait.”
Mo Zi held the first black stone in her hand, turned her face with a smile, the candlelight behind her.
Third Young Master Xiao could see her face was pretty, but because it was backlit, couldn’t see too clearly.
Third Young Master Xiao couldn’t see Mo Zi clearly, but Mo Zi saw Third Young Master Xiao perfectly clearly. Lu Ju was right—this person looked quite good. Starry eyes and sword-like brows, a high nose bridge, an expression carrying a scholar’s arrogant air, combined with innate and cultivated nobility. With one raised brow, one opening of the mouth—the stubborn unyielding spirit of the Xiao family.
“Young Master, I’ll be completely impartial. Black is black, white is white. If I count incorrectly, you can count again yourself.” This saw through someone’s thoughts.
Third Young Master Xiao wasn’t afraid to admit it. “How do I know you won’t slip in a handful of white stones?”
Mo Zi laughed, covering her mouth. “Young Master, how about I take the entire board out to count, leaving the remaining black and white stones in this room?”
“Fine. No need to disturb your mistress’s sleep.” As if truly fearing Mo Zi would cheat, Third Young Master Xiao watched her two hands.
The two walked to the outer room, one step following another.
Xiao Yi came out carrying two quilts, making up the soft couch there.
Third Young Master Xiao saw this but couldn’t spare attention to say anything, only listening to Mo Zi count the stones one by one.
“White wins by one stone.” Mo Zi shook her head and sighed. “What a pity. Just one stone short of a draw. Young Master, if Miss hadn’t fallen asleep, this game might not have been her loss.”
“You maid certainly don’t know how to play chess. If your mistress hadn’t slept, she’d have lost even more.” Third Young Master Xiao remembered it was one and a half stones—unexpectedly Qiu Sanniang had caught up another half stone. This woman’s chess skill was formidable, but his mouth wouldn’t concede at all.
Mo Zi didn’t argue with Third Young Master Xiao. Counting so many stones twice could take until sunrise. “Young Master should rest. In a little while the sun will rise.”
Seeing the sky’s color, Third Young Master Xiao thought, truly so—why keep fussing? He lay down on the couch fully clothed.
Xiao Yi left first. Mo Zi quietly extinguished the candles and was about to close the door when she suddenly heard Third Young Master Xiao ask her a question.
“Mo Zi—is that the ‘mo’ for ink and ‘zi’ for purple?”
Mo Zi paused, then answered yes.
“Yuling has ten thousand peony plants, the king came only to see Ink Purple. You maid took quite a good name.” In the darkness, Third Young Master Xiao’s voice finally carried a thread of drowsiness.
“I heard many Yuling women have the name Ink Purple. It’s nothing particularly good or bad.” They all met the same fate of a destroyed nation and ruined families.
“You’re from Yuling?” A trace of interest—Third Young Master Xiao thought of the good book he’d seen today. “Do you know of the Yuling Flower Goddess?”
“Mo Zi is indeed from Yuling, but I’ve never heard of it.” But she was always quite curious about Yuling and wanted to hear more. “Is it a legend?”
“It’s a book, quite interestingly written. However, I think it may have exaggerated the facts too much. Being a hand-copied manuscript, it’s probably not reliable. As a storybook though, it’s written quite well…” His voice gradually lowered. The soft couch beneath him was truly very comfortable, the quilts having a relaxing fragrance.
Could she borrow it to read? But Mo Zi didn’t ask, instead bending to close the door properly.
The lamps in Mozhi Residence’s corridor had almost all been extinguished by this time.