The mother and daughter of the Sheng family talked for a full half-hour or more, and Minglan heard everything — things she ought to have heard and things she ought not to have. When the elderly woman finally grew tired and Sheng Yun helped her to rest, Minglan painstakingly moved her completely numb legs and slowly retreated. Her legs ached and stung, her lower back throbbed, and she was stooped like a little old woman. She also had to make sure no one saw her — and even in that state, Minglan was quietly proud of herself for remembering to pull the water barrel back into place and brush the weeds back over the gap in the wall as she crawled out.

Covered in mud and in a sorry state, Minglan did not dare return to her own room. She slipped quietly over to Pin’lan’s. There she found the traitor who had abandoned her comrade, waiting in anxious guilt. The moment she saw Minglan, Pin’lan put on a face full of apologetic smiles, and produced a change of clothes she had already prepared, offering to help Minglan wash and change.

Minglan went straight for her and gave her a thorough squeezing and pinching — working out a small measure of her grievance — before washing herself. When she stripped off her clothes, both girls were alarmed. Minglan’s elbows and knees were red and swollen, and the pale, delicate skin was imprinted all over with the pattern of the shrine’s stone floor tiles, as if they had been stamped there. Pin’lan spent a long time rubbing medicated ointment into the marks and then brewed ginger soup to force Minglan to drink for warmth. Even so, by the next day, the injured areas had turned a mottled purple-blue — like the mismatched tile squares of a public latrine. Minglan was furious. She grabbed Pin’lan’s cheeks and stretched them in both directions. Pin’lan yelped and howled, but very honestly submitted to the punishment, and was as meekly obedient as a little lapdog for the next several days, constantly offering apologies.

By the time the purple-blue bruises on Minglan’s knees had begun to fade, Great-Grandmother had assembled the clan elders of both the Sheng and Sun families, along with the respected community elder known for his moral virtue, and finally had the Sun family’s mother and son summoned — quite a gathering indeed. An occasion like this was too good to miss, and Pin’lan pleaded with Li Shi until she was blue in the face. Li Shi naturally refused to let her daughter go and watch the adults argue. It was Great-Grandmother herself who spoke up: “She’s not a little girl anymore — let her see something of the world’s hardships. Otherwise she’ll be as fragile as a hothouse flower, unable to bear any wind or rain.”

Great-Grandmother’s philosophy of survival differed from her daughter-in-law’s. She believed that weeds were far hardier than ornamental orchids. Li Shi could not defy her mother-in-law, so she shot Pin’lan a look and walked away. Pin’lan immediately ran to find Minglan, calling out “Let’s go together!” at the top of her voice. Minglan was equally curious, but first sought Grandmother Sheng’s permission — and to her surprise, Grandmother did not stop her. So the two girls excitedly and sneakily made their way around to the alcove adjoining the main hall. “We’re going to make them pay!” Pin’lan was particularly stirred up.

When they reached the alcove, they found Shulan already sitting quietly inside, her expression hollow and haggard as a widow’s.

“Great-Grandmother asked our young mistress to come,” said Shulan’s personal maid quietly. Minglan and Pin’lan exchanged a look. Great-Grandmother must be taking drastic measures today — cutting off Shulan’s last remaining illusions all at once.

Sun Zhigao’s mother, seeing the Sheng family’s servants come respectfully to invite them, assumed the Shengs had finally yielded, and swaggered in grandly. Upon entering, she found the room half-filled with people — every one of them a respected local elder or a senior relative of one of the two families. Then she turned her head and discovered the local Circuit Judge himself seated in the corner, with two clerks beside him. Sun Zhigao began to feel some unease, though Sun’s mother remained oblivious as ever, and seized the foremost chair with a preening air of self-importance.

After all the requisite greetings had been exchanged, Uncle Hu and Changson escorted the Circuit Judge and both clerks out for tea. Pin’lan peered carefully through the crack in the door and turned back to whisper: “Thank goodness those two didn’t come — otherwise they’d have had a field day laughing at us.”

After tea was served, Sheng Wei swept the room with his eyes, then cupped his hands and said: “I have invited all of you honored elders here today to discuss the matter of my daughter and her husband from the Sun family. Our household has not managed things well — I ask your pardon.”

Sun Zhigao saw how things were lined up and thought: are you Shengs trying to use your influence to pressure me into compliance? He decided to strike first: “Father-in-law, as they say, the greatest of the three failings of filial impiety is to leave no heir. I, Zhigao, am twenty-five and still without a son — this is my shame. Now that the concubine in my household carries a child, it is cause for celebration for the Sun family. My wife, as the principal wife, should properly manage this matter with care. Instead she is so overcome with jealousy that she refuses to accept the situation — Father-in-law, a man of your broad understanding ought to admonish her.”

Sheng Wei, ordinarily the most patient and good-natured of men, felt a surge of anger rise in him as he listened to this complete inversion of truth. Li Shi, seeing her husband’s face suffuse with dark red color, rose slowly to her feet: “This is a matter of the inner household — it is not proper for my husband to speak on it. Allow me, as her mother, to say a few words.” She turned to Sun Zhigao: “Son-in-law, I have a question for you. How many concubines did my daughter help you take in during the years since she entered your household?”

Sun Zhigao’s breath caught. He let out a huff and said nothing. Li Shi continued: “My daughter had not even been in your household half a year before she arranged a serving girl for your use. One year later, two more women were purchased from outside. In the second year, a Yiniang of good family was brought in, along with another serving girl. The year after that, four or five more. Son-in-law, you are twenty-five now — and between them all, you have twelve women in your household.”

Hearing Li Shi lay out his affairs with such itemized precision, Sun Zhigao’s face blazed crimson. The elder relatives around him exchanged pointed glances, and one clan uncle who had long harbored a grudge against Sun Zhigao said coolly: “No wonder the great nephew keeps failing his examinations — he’s been rather occupied, it seems.”

Sun Zhigao was speechless with humiliation. His mother, seeing her son cornered, rushed in: “A man having one wife and four concubines is perfectly ordinary — my son is doing this for the sake of continuing the family line. What exactly is the meaning of this, in-laws?”

Sheng Yun let out a cold snort: “Whether it’s truly for the sake of an heir, or simply for indulgence — heaven alone knows~~~!”

Sun Zhigao’s fury nearly had him slamming the table.

The Sun family’s old clan elder, seeing the situation deteriorating, rushed to smooth things over: “In-laws, please calm yourselves. Between husband and wife, quarrels at the head of the bed are made up at the foot — family members should talk things through properly. There’s no need for all this contention.”

Sun’s mother, seizing the offered foothold, jumped in: “Exactly — let’s not get into all of this. Whatever the daughter-in-law’s failings may be, say no more about them. Now that there’s a child on the way in the household, she should welcome this properly. When the baby is born — whether a boy or a girl — it will be a blessing for her as well.”

Li Shi’s voice came out quiet and cold: “That is precisely what we are here to discuss today. I have only one question for the in-laws: if my daughter absolutely refuses to accept that woman — what then?”

Sun Zhigao sprang to his feet, his face full of arrogance: “If she cannot be a virtuous wife, what use is she? A letter of divorce — and let her be sent away!”

Sheng Wei finally could contain himself no longer. He laughed, one cold laugh after another: “Very well! Very well! Very well! — What a fine son-in-law, one who has read all the sages!”

Minglan felt a pang of pity. She turned to look at Shulan and saw her staring vacantly, her body swaying as if about to crumple — only her maid’s support kept her upright. Pin’lan was so furious her teeth were clenched. She leaned close to Minglan’s ear and hissed: “If I were a man, I’d go out there right now and beat him senseless!” Minglan glanced at Pin’lan’s fierce expression and thought: actually, even as a woman, you’d probably win.

Sun Zhigao looked around at the silent Sheng family members, then smiled again with his habitual arrogance: “As they say, even one day as husband and wife carries the weight of a hundred days of kindness. If she would be somewhat more virtuous and properly manage the continuation of the Sun family line, the Sun family would never let her go short of a meal. Father-in-law, Mother-in-law, consider this carefully.” He settled himself back in his chair with the air of a man who was utterly certain the Shengs could not afford to lose him as a son-in-law.

Li Shi looked at his expression, and the last trace of hesitation she had held vanished entirely. Her heart was burning with a fury that could have killed. She raised her voice: “There is nothing to consider. Your Sun family genius is far beyond what we can aspire to. We will not be issuing a letter of divorce — we are seeking an amicable separation, and every last piece of the dowry is to be returned!”

Sun’s mother was thunderstruck. She had not expected the Shengs to be this unyielding. People exchanged stunned looks all around the room. After the initial shock, voices broke out urging caution: “Don’t act in the heat of the moment,” “Better to tear down ten bridges than destroy one marriage.”

Sun Zhigao collected himself and shouted: “What amicable separation? For a woman so devoid of virtue and filial conduct, one letter of divorce is already lenient!” His mother chimed in at once: “Once she entered our Sun household, all those dowry items naturally became property of the Suns. On what grounds would you take them back?!”

Li Shi looked at this mother and son — who had not one flicker of fondness or concern for her dutiful and hardworking daughter — and finally understood every bit of what Great-Grandmother had been working toward. Her heart hardened. She raised her voice clearly: “What do you mean devoid of virtue and filial conduct?! Can you bring yourselves to say such things with black hearts? You wanted filial piety and descendants — my daughter never stood in the way of that. My family may be merchants, but we know what wifely duty and filial duty mean. They say a wife must be proven unworthy over seven years before divorce is permissible — but my daughter was helping you take a serving girl before she had even been in your household half a year. And you call her jealous?! In all the years she has been with you, out of every month, more than twenty days she slept in your mother’s room — pouring tea, serving food, working the kitchen, rising before dawn and sleeping after midnight — and she never answered back a single scolding or blow. And this isn’t being a virtuous wife?!”

Li Shi’s voice broke as she thought of her daughter — young and in the prime of her life, yet worn as thin and dry as an old woman. Those listening were moved to sighs, and accusing looks turned toward Sun’s mother. More than one person thought privately: if you won’t even let the husband and wife sleep together, how are you expecting them to produce children? What a mean and petty mother-in-law.

Sun’s mother, caught under so many eyes, reddened even through her thick skin. Sun Zhigao sat with his head down, puffed up with indignation, saying nothing. Li Shi’s fury surged: “You mistreat my daughter like this, and then want to divorce her AND keep her dowry! I am telling you — never!”

Sun Zhigao gave a cold laugh: “A man has the right to divorce his wife — that is the natural order. What can you do to stop it?”

Li Shi returned the cold laugh, reached into her sleeve, and pulled out a sheet of paper, holding it up: “You took a woman of the entertainment houses as a concubine — that is a disgrace to respectable standing. This is her old household register from the Qianjin Pavilion. You may have paid for her freedom, but it seems you forgot to destroy this original registry. Hmph. She was born into a base household registration. I will write a letter right now and send this document along to your teacher and to the Magistrate of Jinling. Let all those scholars who spend their days composing poetry with you have a good look at your character. Even if it cannot strip you of your examination credentials, your reputation among the literary circles…”

Sun Zhigao, for the first time, genuinely changed color. He forced himself to appear composed: “Hmph — there have been plenty of men of learning who kept mistresses from the entertainment world. The famous Four Masters of Yuhang all had romantic companions of that background.”

Sheng Yun smiled pleasantly: “Yes, but none of them brought those women home, let alone set them up formally in the household to continue the family line.”

Sun Zhigao was sputtering with fury, but dared not let it out — the Circuit Judge was sitting just outside. The Sun clan elder, seeing Li Shi’s manner and recognizing that she had come fully prepared, knew that today’s affair could not simply be brushed under the rug. He turned at once to advise Sun Zhigao: “Given the circumstances, once that woman has delivered the child, send her away. It’s not worth throwing away a proper wife over someone from that background.”

Upon hearing this, Sun Zhigao suddenly transformed into a paragon of devotion, his eyes brimming with unshed tears: “That absolutely cannot be! She… she sold her art, not her body — a rare woman of virtue among all the flowers of the pleasure quarters!”

From the alcove, Pin’lan muttered under her breath: “What utter nonsense.” Minglan could only sigh: “This is entirely normal. Extraordinary women have always tended to emerge from the pleasure quarters. Women from respectable households are generally just ordinary good women.” And these extraordinary women typically encountered one or two heroes of the brothel circuit, giving rise to a tale of undying devotion.

Shulan, however, had not Minglan’s capacity for detachment. Hearing these words, her hollow eyes finally brimmed over, and she began to cry silently, pressing her lips together, shoulders shaking.

At this moment, a woman dressed as a household manager entered from outside. She walked respectfully to Li Shi’s side and placed a large stack of documents and a large ring of keys in her hands. Li Shi took them, smiled, and nodded. Sun’s mother, catching sight of this woman, cried out in shock: “Nanny Bian — what are you doing here?”

Nanny Bian smiled pleasantly: “I came over as part of the young mistress’s bridal retinue. I am a member of the Sheng household — why should I not be here?” She turned to Li Shi: “Madam — these are the deeds to the farmland and estates and the contracts for the servants that went with the young mistress. And this is the original dowry register.”

Great-Grandmother had been planning this for a long while and had naturally attended to every detail. The moment Sun’s mother had stepped out the front door, the Sheng household’s people inside had immediately set to work. Sturdy manservants blocked the gates; the head matrons rapidly sorted, packed, and sealed the trunks; every person and every item that Shulan had brought as her dowry was gathered up and escorted back to the Sheng household.

Sun’s mother leapt up almost a foot off the ground and nearly threw herself across the room: “You conniving Li Shi of the Shengs — how dare you ransack our Sun family! Those are all our things — give them back at once! I, I’ll fight you to the death!” She lunged forward to claw at Li Shi’s face, and the surrounding matrons immediately blocked her. Every one of them was Li Shi’s trusted person, and seeing their own mistress insulted, they were all quietly seething. Then came a loud thud — by some mechanism that nobody quite saw — and Sun’s mother went sprawling full-length on the ground, flat on her face.

Sun Zhigao rushed forward to help her up, but Sun’s mother had bitten her tongue in the fall and could only stammer incoherently. In the alcove, Pin’lan and Minglan felt deeply satisfied.

Li Shi raised the documents in her hand and said coldly: “The dowry register is right here. I have not taken so much as a needle or thread from your Sun family. If anything, several thousand taels of silver and a good deal of jewelry are unaccounted for — but never mind. Consider it the cost of housing and feeding my daughter all those years. If you are not satisfied and want to take this to court — I will accompany you gladly!”

Sun Zhigao’s fury had reached its peak. He bellowed: “Once she stepped through our doors, she became a member of the Sun family in life and in death — her belongings naturally belong to the Suns! There is no ‘yours’ or ‘mine’ — everything is the Sun family’s property!”

Sheng Yun burst out laughing and pointed at him: “I may not be a man of learning, but I have heard the saying ‘seeing an ornate balustrade recalls a fine horse.’ Since my niece so greatly offends your eyes, why would you want to keep her belongings? Wouldn’t they only remind you of her? Unless — ” Sheng Yun drew the word out with an expression of sudden dawning realization — “unless the greatest talent of Youyang simply cannot bear to part with money! Tsk, tsk — how terribly vulgar.”

Sun Zhigao was completely silenced. He went red to the neck, his face nearly contorted. Everyone in the hall was arguing back and forth, and the commotion showed no sign of settling — when, after a long silence, Great-Grandmother finally spoke: “Honored fathers and elders, please hear one old woman’s words.”

The room gradually quieted. Great-Grandmother’s hoarse voice came slowly: “Our Sheng family has been in Youyang for several generations. Counting from my late husband’s time, we have been on good terms with all of you for generations. This is not a matter of our Sheng daughter being jealous and intolerant. It is — it is…” Great-Grandmother let out a long sigh, her expression full of sorrow.

A local ward head from the Li family cupped his hands and said: “Elder, if there is something difficult to speak of, please do not hesitate.”

Great-Grandmother said, her expression stricken: “Decades ago, a woman of the entertainment houses also entered our Sheng family’s gates. All of you uncles and elder brothers who were here in those days know what happened afterward. My eldest daughter Hong’er was not yet ten years old when she passed. Wei’er’s father was driven to ruin his family and squander everything for that woman — even this ancestral home —” Great-Grandmother pointed to the roof above their heads “— was sold.”

The tale of the old master’s infatuation with his concubine at the expense of his wife had been notorious far and wide for years. Anyone of any age in that room had lived through it, watching a vast family fortune be mortgaged and pawned away piece by piece — a cautionary tale that parents had used for years to lecture their sons against visiting the pleasure quarters.

Great-Grandmother’s sudden appeal to shared memory and grief left Sun’s mother completely at a loss. In a mournful tone, Great-Grandmother continued: “By the grace of our ancestors, and with the support of all you uncles and fathers, our branch of the family managed to endure all those years and finally redeemed the ancestral home. I can close my eyes and face the ancestors in the afterlife. This old woman thanks every one of you here today!”

With that, Great-Grandmother actually rose to her feet as if to offer a formal bow to the assembled elders. Everyone leapt up to stop her, declaring it absolutely could not be allowed. Sheng Wei’s reputation in Youyang was excellent — not only because of his charity to the elderly and poor and his efforts to repair roads and bridges, but because his story of reviving a ruined family enterprise was genuinely inspiring to all who heard it.

Great-Grandmother straightened up with a look of absolute resolution: “On the day we redeemed this ancestral home, I made a vow before heaven: whatever others of the clan may do, I cannot control — but for my own branch of this family, whether man or woman, there will be no dealings with women of the entertainment houses. If I break this vow, may I not die in peace — may I fall into the eighteenth level of hell, where the bull-headed demons pull out tongues and the oil pots wait.”

These words, spoken with finality, stunned the room. And they made the situation comprehensible: her family had been nearly destroyed by a woman from the pleasure quarters, and now you want her daughter to address a dancer as a sister? Was that not too much to ask?

With those few sentences, the atmosphere in the hall had shifted. Without everyone taking sides with the Shengs exactly, there was no longer anyone willing to speak for the Sun family either. The Sun family’s clansmen simply sat in silence. Even Sun’s mother was beginning to grow inwardly alarmed. With that great moral weight pressed down upon them, they were thoroughly on the back foot.

Then, suddenly, Great-Grandmother softened her voice and said, with a long sigh: “I understand the Sun family’s difficulty as well. You have finally obtained an heir after all this time — how could you let that go? And Zhigao does have genuine feeling for that woman. But our Sheng family daughter absolutely cannot live under the same roof with her…” Every neck in the room craned forward, every head tilted up to listen.

Grandmother Sheng said: “Why don’t we each take a step back — let them separate amicably. Half of what Shulan brought as her dowry can remain with the Sun family, as a mark of the goodwill between our two families. How does that sound?”

At these words, the entire room let out a collective breath of relief. The Sun clan elder immediately said loudly: “The elder truly shows the wisdom of a generous and far-sighted person. Nothing could be better than this. The friendship between our two families must not be damaged! Nephew Zhigao, what do you say?”

Minglan silently marveled. Great-Grandmother, who ordinarily appeared quiet and unassuming, had turned out to be utterly extraordinary in action. The whole affair had been staged and managed with perfect clarity of roles, precise control of pacing, exact calibration of emotion — leading everyone step by step into the trap she had set. She had written, directed, and performed the entire production herself. A truly remarkable talent.

Sun Zhigao was still seething inwardly and feeling hard done by. Sun’s mother was equally unwilling to give ground — she had had her eye on Shulan’s dowry from the very beginning. If it weren’t for the formidable women Shulan had brought with her from home, Sun’s mother would have swallowed the whole lot long ago. Being made to spit back even half of it sat very poorly with her.

Li Shi looked at this mother and son, and said loudly: “If you are not willing, we will see you at the magistrate’s court! We will drag that woman of yours out into the streets and let everyone in Youyang county have a good look at the great talent Sun Zhigao’s conduct!”

Sun Zhigao, who cared above all things about his reputation, gave a cold snort: “Separate then — as if I would care!” With half the dowry still in hand, it was still a fair sum.

Sheng Wei, face solemn, immediately called the Circuit Judge in from outside, and the two clerks with him. In a low voice he explained the situation, and documents were drawn up on the spot. Li Shi then produced the dowry register. Sun’s mother still wanted to go through it carefully and pick out the better items, but with the Circuit Judge looking on, Sun Zhigao could not afford to give anyone grounds for ridicule. Without so much as a glance, he tore the register in half down the middle and tossed one half aside.

Li Shi then said: “The servants sent to the Sun household with my daughter are all bond-servants raised in our family. We are now two separate families — it would not do to separate family members from one another. Let me add a sum in silver for them, and they will come back with us, every last one.” She drew several banknotes from her sleeve and handed them over. The clan elders and relatives standing in the center cast sidelong glances — each note appeared to be in the denomination of one hundred taels, and there seemed to be four or five of them. Everyone thought privately: the Sheng family is generous indeed — that sum would buy many times the number of servants in question.

The documents were drafted, and the Circuit Judge looked at Sheng Wei: “Ready to sign and seal.” Sun Zhigao stepped forward first, signing his name with a sweeping flourish and pressing his thumbprint. Li Shi quickly said: “My daughter is not well — let my husband sign on her behalf.”

At that moment, there came the sudden, loud crash of a wooden panel being thrust open. Minglan and Pin’lan both started. They turned to see that Shulan — no one had noticed when she had risen — now stood with both hands braced against the lattice door, and shoved it open with a full-force push. She stepped out in long strides. Pin’lan made to follow, but Minglan grabbed her forcefully and kept her behind the door panel. Through the crack they watched.

“Shulan — what are you coming out for?” Li Shi cried out in shock.

Shulan’s face still bore the damp traces of tears. But she dropped to her knees before her parents with perfect composure and said, her voice breaking: “It is this daughter’s failure to be filial — causing Grandmother, Father, and Mother such worry on my behalf!” Li Shi covered her face and wept silently. Sheng Wei turned his head away, unable to watch, his heart in turmoil. But in Great-Grandmother’s eyes there glimmered something warm and proud.

Shulan’s robes fell straight and determined. Her expression was resolute. She gave the assembled company a graceful bow, then walked steadily toward the table, picked up the brush, wrote what was needed, and pressed her handprint to it.

Sun Zhigao looked at Shulan’s sallow, gaunt face and could not resist: “You have neither beauty nor talent — you were never a match for me to begin with. It was our family’s mistake to accept this engagement at the outset. Now that this is settled, you may go. In the future — marry some butcher or farmer, and try to be more virtuous.”

What insufferable cruelty! Both Li Shi and Sheng Wei blazed with fury, and even the onlookers felt he had gone too far.

Sun Zhigao was still smiling. Shulan turned abruptly. Her gaze blazed with hot fury. She looked at this man — this man she had once relied on as her whole life — and now found his face so utterly revolting that she could barely stand the sight of it. With great force, she gathered a mouthful of saliva and spat it, full and deliberate, into Sun Zhigao’s face. Then she looked at the spluttering, furious man before her and said, quietly: “You lecherous, faithless, unprincipled wretch. Looking at you for one moment more turns my stomach.”

With that, she gave the assembled company another proper bow — and swept out of the hall.

Sun Zhigao frantically wiped his face with his sleeve. Around him he could hear the soft sounds of laughter. He was consumed with rage.

The crowd made no effort to conceal their contempt. They filed out one by one to take their leave of Sheng Wei, without a single person sparing so much as a glance for the Sun family. Even the Sun family’s own clansmen only gave Sun Zhigao a perfunctory nod of the hands before departing. Sun Zhigao, acutely aware that the Circuit Judge had witnessed his humiliation today, rushed forward to make conversation and ingratiate himself. But the Circuit Judge ignored him entirely — gave him one long, cold, appraising look — then said a few warm words to Sheng Wei and took his leave.

Sun Zhigao was livid. He turned to his mother and said: “What a mercenary, corrupt old official! Just a few days ago he was drinking wine and exchanging verses with me, and today he turns on me without a second thought! Once I pass my examinations and attain a post, I will most certainly submit a memorial against him!”

Sheng Yun laughed lightly: “Oh? And how many times have you sat those examinations? You haven’t even managed to get your name on the roster of candidates — and you’re talking about impeaching people? The toad yawning — what an impressive amount of hot air.”

Sun Zhigao bellowed with fury, but when it came to verbal sparring, he was no match for Sheng Yun, and was mocked several more times besides.

Pin’lan had long since left the alcove to go and comfort Shulan. Only Minglan remained, and the two attending maids looked at each other uneasily, seeing Minglan standing absolutely still in the same spot, her expression distant and unusually thoughtful.

Minglan slowly moved her feet. She lowered her head in thought. Much that had puzzled her over these past days — and the deeper meaning behind her own grandmother’s quiet efforts — she was beginning now to understand.