The sky had not yet brightened. In the lamplight, the bedroom felt bustling and lively.
“…Ever since that news arrived, it’s been noisy everywhere these past few days, especially among the students—they’ve really been making a fuss…”
Wrapped in her blanket, Su Tan’er propped herself up in bed and reached out to straighten her husband’s robes. It was still not yet past the first month, and outside the cold remained bitter. Though the room had been kept warm through the night, the temperature had dropped somewhat by now. Su Tan’er wore only a thin undergarment, and after exposing herself to the air for a moment, she burrowed back under the blanket, leaving only her head out to talk with Ning Yi.
Though she was already the head of a major merchant house, having managed all manner of business for years, it was only at the end of last year that she and her husband had finally consummated their marriage. Ordinarily poised and composed, at this moment, wrapped in her blanket chatting with her husband, she seemed distinctly more girlish and endearing. Such was the way of this era—despite all Su Tan’er had experienced in the business world, within the privacy of her own chambers she still seemed, in some ways, like an unmarried girl.
Ning Yi got out of bed just then, and Xiao Chan and Juan’er came in carrying a washbasin and towels. Su Tan’er’s chambers hadn’t been especially large to begin with, and once all of Ning Yi’s belongings had been moved in before the New Year, even after some rearranging, the room now felt rather cramped with the four of them inside. Su Tan’er, however, wasn’t one to fuss over such things—before the new house was finished, she’d simply said this arrangement felt cozier. And it truly was cozy. Ning Yi took the towel Xiao Chan handed him and sat on the edge of the bed, making idle conversation.
“They’ve been discussing all this at the academy these past few days too. Everyone feels a bit anxious, honestly—worried that the Jin and Liao won’t end up fighting after all. Some say it’s because the Jin’s strength is limited; despite winning a few battles, they’re still afraid of Liao in the end. Others say our own Wu Dynasty hasn’t been proactive enough—that if we’d taken more initiative, the Jin might have found the resolve to see it through… Heh, these people certainly have plenty of opinions…”
“Yesterday, at the cloth shop, I heard Master Qi’s tutor say that Lord Zhonghen from Qing Garden and some others want to rally a group of prominent scholars to petition the government. They even came to ask my opinion on the matter, wanting to know what you thought…”
“A couple of old scholars did come by the academy yesterday looking for me… though I’m hardly what you’d call a ‘prominent scholar.'”
“You’re Jiangning’s foremost talent, husband. It’s only natural they’d seek you out. Did you agree?”
“Uncle Chonghua put in a good word for them, wanting to make a bit of a stir, so I agreed to put my name on it when the time comes. It’s mostly just for show anyway—won’t amount to much.”
“Strength in unity, as they say.”
“Heh, though I doubt there’s really that much unity behind it…”
The group moved about the bedroom; Ning Yi took the towel to wash up, and Xiao Chan reached out to take it back from him, only to have Ning Yi wave her off. The little maid pouted, as though Ning Yi had stolen her job right out from under her.
Since the previous year, news of rising tensions between the Jin and Liao states had been brewing for a long while in the Wu Dynasty, and now that word had come of a peace settlement between the two nations, there was a wave of disappointment among the common people—many scholars and students felt it was a real pity. Some felt the Wu Dynasty ought to have taken the initiative to seize the moment and ally with the Jin. In any case, the discussions had been quite lively, and Ning Yi and Su Tan’er had been swept up in some of it too, bringing it up now as morning chatter.
“I actually think it’s just as well if the fighting starts later rather than sooner.”
“Does our family have business dealings with Liao as well?”
“Mm, some, though that’s not really why I say it…” Su Tan’er nodded under the covers, then shook her head. “It’s just that we’ve only recently taken over the Wu family’s business, and things haven’t fully settled yet. If war broke out right now, there might easily be complications… Of course, I’m only saying so.”
As she spoke, Juan’er, who was over by the wardrobe sorting clothes, suddenly burst out laughing. “Speaking of the Wu family—young master, young mistress—they must be about ready to explode with anger by now, don’t you think?”
This maid was usually mild-mannered and quiet, though occasionally she had a sharp, hidden wit. At her words, the whole room suddenly couldn’t help but burst into laughter—Ning Yi, Su Tan’er, Xiao Chan, all of them. Ning Yi’s original threat against the Wu family had, after all, ridden on the momentum of the coming war, ultimately frightening the Wu family so badly they hadn’t dared gamble the whole clan’s fortunes on defiance. Now, barely past the New Year, the handover between the Wu and Su families was already complete. Outsiders simply assumed the Wu family had cut their losses and retreated strategically—if they knew the real details behind it, they’d probably die laughing.
It was early morning, the oil lamp casting a warm golden glow through the room, and though the laughter in the room wasn’t particularly loud, it was genuinely warm all the same. After a moment, Su Tan’er brought up something else. “Husband, if you’ve nothing else planned, what do you say we all travel around together as a family this summer?”
“Summer?”
“Mm. In a few months, once the spring silk harvest is finished, we could head over to Suzhou and Hangzhou, take a tour along the way. As the saying goes, above there’s heaven, below there’s Suzhou and Hangzhou. Our family has some holdings in those areas too, and when the heat comes, it’d be a good time to escape it there.”
“Sounds good.”
“Then I’ll start making arrangements.”
Ning Yi nodded in agreement, and Su Tan’er brightened at once. In truth, it was still only the end of the first month—there was no real need to start planning a summer trip this early. But Su Tan’er had her own reasons. In the past, as manager of the main household’s holdings, she’d made a trip out every year—first accompanying her father, and later bringing her own household guards along, partly to familiarize herself with the specifics of the family’s various holdings in each region, so she wouldn’t be left managing things blindly from home once she truly took over the business.
When she’d left home to marry Ning Yi, it had likewise been made easier by her prior experience traveling. Naturally, things were different now—this year she’d taken over the entire main household, and by rights she shouldn’t be running around so much. But given how far things had progressed in her relationship with Ning Yi, Su Tan’er found herself torn: on one hand valuing the family business, on the other wanting to nurture this marriage properly, intending eventually to become a good, virtuous wife and mother. For that, she was even willing to let go of some of her old business-world exactingness. What she really wanted, in a roundabout way, was to combine business with pleasure—to go on a trip together, following the “tradition” of years past.
There were also some deeper, more complicated reasons behind it. Last year’s masterstroke against the Wu family—the one she and her husband had pulled off so brilliantly—had made her name and firmly stabilized her position within the Su family. But now that her father had recovered from his injuries, he still held more than enough control over the main household. Su Tan’er had modeled herself after her father’s style, and being a woman besides, she’d become extremely adept in all sorts of subtle maneuvering—but when it came to real gravitas and seasoned judgment, she still fell somewhat short of her father.
Though Su Boyong was paralyzed, he wasn’t yet old, and his mind remained sharp. After the Xi Junyu affair had come to light, it was he who had ordered the Hundred Blades Alliance hunted down, nearly wiping them out entirely. The old man’s ruthlessness and authority remained, in the end, irreplaceable within the main household. Su Tan’er’s position was now secure and unshakeable, but it was easy to see that for the next several years, her father would still need to shield and support her to some degree.
Though there was a certain emotional distance between Su Tan’er and Su Boyong, there wasn’t much friction over the transfer of power itself. Having Su Boyong hand over all authority outright wouldn’t have been a real problem—but Su Tan’er might not yet be ready to take it all on at once. Internally, there was an unspoken understanding about this, but from the outside, with Su Boyong still holding control over the main household on one hand, and the old patriarch having publicly announced Su Tan’er’s succession on the other, outsiders inevitably sensed some tension between the two. Because of all this, Su Tan’er had chosen to act first.
After the great victory over the Wu family, she decided to hold back, rein in her prominence, and take time to consolidate the results while avoiding any further complications. On another front, she felt she’d already drawn enough attention to herself personally—she was only twenty, after all, and there was no need to rush ahead too eagerly; she could still let her father take the lead for now. And by letting her own image recede somewhat, others would come to see the Su family as a whole, not just the main household—after all, the second and third households also stood to gain something from this. She no longer needed to confine her thinking to the narrow interests of the main household alone, and could start considering how to share some benefit with the second and third households as well—there would always be people who remembered her elegant handling of affairs. Additionally, with war looming in the north, she was also thinking of shifting the focus of various business interests toward the southeast; Suzhou and Hangzhou were precisely the most prosperous regions and would surely become the focal point of the future. By keeping the Su family’s public image centered in Jiangning while she personally scouted Suzhou and Hangzhou, she could accomplish several goals at once.
Of course, none of this needed to be spelled out. In her own mind, she’d already settled it, remembering only that this was a trip she was taking with her husband—quite the sacrifice on her part, really. Having lain in bed reluctant to get up just moments before, she now rose and dressed, ready to start planning ahead for the summer trip. Xiao Chan and Juan’er, who also loved traveling, helped their mistress dress and wash while quietly discussing the plans with her.
Ning Yi bid them farewell and pushed open the door to head out for his morning exercises. The sky was just beginning to lighten, snow piled in the courtyard, a few snowmen sketching out vague shapes among the grounds. Ning Yi did a few stretching exercises under the eaves. Over in the makeshift kitchen nearby, Xing’er sat tending the fire and poked her head out. “Young master’s up.”
The morning wind was cold, and amid the crowing of roosters and barking of dogs, the entire Su estate was gradually waking up.
…
“So what exactly is the story with this Bamboo Records place…”
Just as morning arrived, the streets along the Qinhuai River had already grown lively. Boats moved across the river through the crisp air, and pedestrians, carts, and peddlers had begun filling the streets with the bustle of a new day. Outside a restaurant called Jubin Tower, a carriage pulled to a stop. The man who stepped down was around thirty, with a somewhat pointed chin, dressed in the fine robes of a wealthy gentleman, a folding fan tucked behind his back. Truth be told, carrying a fan in this season was a rather foolish affectation, but he pulled it out anyway and fanned himself a few times in the frigid morning air, frowning as he stared at the handsome riverside restaurant across the street.
With his pointed chin, he looked something like a wealthy young master by his clothing, something like a scholar by the way he waved his fan, something like a fool for fanning himself in such weather, and something like a common street thug by his overall bearing and demeanor. Behind him, Jubin Tower’s doors, originally closed, had lights on inside—apparently making preparations before opening. As soon as the odd, pointy-chinned man arrived, the doors opened, and a shopkeeper hurried out to greet him. “Master Chen the Fourth, you’re here—so early?”
“Early? Hardly. Just came from Yancui Tower, was on my way home to catch some sleep, passed by here… What’s this Bamboo Records Jin’er’s Shop supposed to be? Snatching food right out of our mouths—who opened it? What’s the story behind it?”
The shopkeeper hesitated for a moment, then bowed. “In reply, Fourth Master, the manager from Bamboo Records did come by earlier to deliver a visiting card. The manager there is surnamed Lin, an old fellow—but the actual owners behind it seem to be two women. We see them coming by every day, though I haven’t heard of any particular background… oh, I did hear they’re two girls who left the pleasure trade to go straight.”
“Left the trade?” Chen the Fourth laughed. “You’re pulling my leg… as if any girl ever really leaves that trade.”
He looked the restaurant over a few more times, his expression darkening, and shook his head. “This restaurant setting up shop right here won’t do. Stealing our business, plain as day, going out of their way to cross the Chen family… Have them moved out.”