It was midday, and the streets along the Qinhuai River were unusually noisy. This was a district near the docks, lined with shops, busy with goods being loaded and unloaded. Behind the small shop bearing the sign of the Su Cloth House was a large warehouse, its door set to the side for easy access. Right now a whole boatload of goods was being transported over from the docks, and goods, porters, and shop assistants moved in and out ceaselessly, crowding the whole scene.

The upper reaches of the Yangtze were suffering severe flooding, and disaster refugees were still gathering this way. Once the gates of Jiangning were closed, the situation that followed might well last a month or two. When the gates closed, the cloth trade within the city would certainly suffer, but goods still had to be stocked in full — this had happened before, and now it was simply routine.

The outer part of the warehouse looked rather like a large apothecary. Massive shelves displayed boxes of cloth and stored all kinds of dyes. At the moment, some samples requiring careful storage were still being carried in, set on the counter for the shopkeeper and the assistants in charge to inspect. But besides Shopkeeper Liao, who managed this storefront and warehouse, Su Tan’er herself, as the proprietress, was also behind the counter, examining the goods piece by piece.

The air of early autumn had only just shed the summer heat; the weather still wasn’t truly cool. Today Su Tan’er wore simple matron’s attire — a white dress with sky-blue collar and cuffs, not elaborate, but clean and fresh without losing its air of dignity. While others bustled in and out of the shop, she moved about within the counter, which resembled an apothecary’s, occasionally opening a newly delivered box to look and smell, or pulling open a small drawer in the cabinet inside to check what was originally stored there, now and then giving an instruction or two.

“Cinnabar, madder root, alum, aster flowers — this is holly… these mouse-tail leaves look off, Shopkeeper Liao, come take a look… and the gallnuts over there have gone moldy too — even though they’re just used as a reference material, the moldy ones still need to be swapped out. Is it because water got in? Have someone deal with that side this afternoon… ah, Xing’er, come here…”

“It’ll probably take another two hours to finish unloading. The ship won’t wait, so tell them to keep unloading. Have the food at Longqing Tower prepared well, with meat. Another boat arrives this afternoon — today will be exhausting, so let’s see if we can get everything unloaded before midnight. Make sure there’s enough tea, and also buy a load of liangfen from the street corner — anyone who wants some can have it to cool off.”

This shipment contained goods of many kinds — raw materials for dyes, dyes already finished, silk thread, finished bolts of cloth, even looms. So much was being packed into the warehouse that some of it would have to be diverted to other storehouses. Amid the bustle of porters and shop assistants, Su Tan’er and Xing’er moved among them without the slightest sense of being out of place — mostly because Su Tan’er had long since grown thoroughly practiced at this kind of work.

If she hadn’t come herself, Shopkeeper Liao could probably have handled things here well enough on his own. But when she did come by, the welfare of the laborers tended to improve — if time was short and the workload heavy, sometimes finishing early even earned them a reward from her own hand. When it truly came to needing others’ effort, she was never stingy about it.

After instructing Xing’er to handle the food and drink, and finishing her instructions at the counter, she made her way out toward the docks, with Shopkeeper Liao and an assistant hurrying to follow. This street, too, was a mix of all sorts — not as chaotic as the old dock district of Haiqing Ward, but still a gathering place for every kind of person, with all manner of interests entangled behind the busy trade, and gang factions vying with one another. Every few days there’d be some kind of brawl, big or small. Still, Su Tan’er had grown used to the atmosphere here. As she walked on, she even helped steady a crate for two assistants carrying it; when they hurriedly thanked her, she only smiled: “It’s nothing, hurry along.”

The street was thick with crowds, shops and vendors on every side. As she brushed past a young man walking hurriedly, Su Tan’er suddenly stopped short.

The man glanced back — in his hand was the pink-and-white pouch that had been hanging at Su Tan’er’s waist. The seemingly delicate woman gripped the other end of the pouch with one hand and would not let go. The next instant, the man wrenched it free with force and made to run, only to be tackled to the ground by the assistant who had followed with Shopkeeper Liao.

The crowd stirred into confusion. Su Tan’er’s right hand had apparently been chafed by the pouch’s cord; she stood with her fist clenched, brow slightly furrowed, watching the scene. The young man scrambled up to keep running, but after only two steps was struck down by a burly man coming from the opposite direction with a single punch.

Blood splattered out. Su Tan’er turned her head aside, eyes narrowing slightly, then went to pick up the pouch and help the assistant to his feet. Head lowered, she hung the pouch back at her waist, sighed, and walked briskly onward. Behind her, the beating continued: “Damn it! Were your eyes blind?!”

Not far from there, by the riverside, stood a small tea stall with a shade canopy, where a group of men sat resting. At the head of them was a lean but sharp-eyed middle-aged man, who rose smiling and cupped his fists when he saw her approach: “Miss Su.”

“Uncle Jing the Fifth,” Su Tan’er greeted him with a smile, then glanced back. “Thank you, Uncle Jing. It’s been a long while since anything like that happened.”

“Ha, some newcomer, not sure where from — no eye for trouble, how does he expect to get by out here. Since Miss Su has a soft heart, we’ll leave it at that — otherwise he’d lose a hand for this.”

“It’s nothing serious. If he loses a hand, it’ll be hard for him to do anything else afterward…”

This man called Jing the Fifth was one of the gang leaders of this dock district, on close terms with Steward Geng, which was why Steward Geng had already informed him of matters concerning Su Tan’er. Jing the Fifth waved his hand, and the beating on the other side stopped. After thanking him, Su Tan’er continued on to a cargo ship moored at the dock, where Juan’er was at that moment tallying items with a small notebook. Among her three maids, Juan’er was the calmest and most meticulous, which was why such detailed matters were usually left to her.

In the afternoon, white clouds drifted lazily overhead. Once a boatload of goods had been unloaded, Xing’er had already called for food. The porters and cloth-shop assistants gathered under the canopies by the river to eat. Xing’er carried a pot of tea back and forth — as a senior maid, her standing in the Su household was not much different from Shopkeeper Liao’s, and this too was, in a sense, a mark of that same circle. Juan’er and Su Tan’er sat at a table not far off, sorting through a small notebook. What they ate was much the same as everyone else’s, and not much of it. Midday meals weren’t fixed fare in these times, though for the others doing physical labor, an extra meal was naturally welcome.

The news of someone stealing Su Tan’er’s pouch and being beaten like that had already spread among the crowd by now. Juan’er asked, “Miss, did someone steal something from you earlier?”

“Mm, and Uncle Jing’s men beat him for it,” Su Tan’er answered simply. Juan’er just nodded with an “Oh.”

Among the others, the talk was clearly far more complicated.

Some of the porters didn’t quite know Su Tan’er’s standing, and there were new assistants in the cloth shop as well. Whispers passed through the crowd — clearly they couldn’t understand why such a delicate-looking woman would come out here to manage such matters. Surely a woman like that ought to be an outsider to business — though, come to think of it, the food and drink prepared really had been generous.

Such doubts surfaced bit by bit, and of course someone would explain them along the way.

“Our young mistress is no simple woman, what do you know…”

“Someday she’s going to be running the whole Su family.”

“Couldn’t tell, could you? Of course someone like you couldn’t…”

“Don’t let her delicate look fool you — she’s not fierce either, but when she takes charge of something, it’s handled properly…”

“That one’s sharpness is hidden deep inside. If she really got angry, those young masters of the Su family wouldn’t dare breathe too loud in front of her…”

“Surprised, aren’t you? Work here long enough and you’ll see — the young mistress carries herself like a proper lady from a great house, but she thinks about far more than you’d guess…”

Not long after, a second large ship docked, and everyone stirred into motion again. Xing’er helped keep the whole operation running smoothly without mishap — she was skilled at that.

Juan’er ran off again to first tally the valuable items on board without error. Su Tan’er sat at the table under the canopy, turning to look at the large ship, watching the goings-on at the dock. On the other side, where Jing the Fifth’s men had gathered, some among their idle chatter glanced this way too, familiar faces and strangers alike.

“What’s that woman doing coming over here…”

“That woman’s no ordinary person…”

“Damn, she really is pretty. Such a pretty little thing out here showing her face doing business — what a waste…”

“Cut the crap, she does business better than you ever could.”

“Wouldn’t have guessed it.”

“If I could marry a woman like that as my wife, damn it… tch… hey, you’re telling me she’s really not getting married? A woman ought to marry, help her husband, raise the kids…”

“You’re an idiot too — didn’t you see she’s already dressed as a married woman? Used to be, when she came around here, she’d dress as a man. Even dressed like that though, she still looked fine…”

“Married?”

“That’s right. Heard she took in a matrilocal son-in-law, some scholar.”

“Spineless man.”

“The Su family’s got money — didn’t you just say you’d marry her yourself? You think you could marry a woman like that without marrying into her family?”

“But he’s a scholar, marrying in means living under someone else’s thumb. I’d be different…”

“Tch, that woman’s the real deal. Her sharpness is all inside — she won’t lose her temper with you, won’t say a harsh word to you, and you’ll still end up listening to her. You’re just built bigger and think that means you can lord it over someone…”

The dock, inside and out, was extraordinarily busy. Shopkeepers and managers from every store nearby would come over to watch or lend a hand. Among all such people, nineteen-year-old Su Tan’er was without question the most striking and unusual. Young and beautiful, gentle with everyone, she was a woman who drew people in even as she puzzled them — behind that approachable manner lay also an indefinable sense of restraint and distance. Her looks, her family background, her ability were often enough to make many people feel unable to help feeling inferior by comparison.

She couldn’t linger out in the open too long, in the end. After watching things for a while under the riverside canopy, she rose and started back toward the Su shop, then seemed to notice something, and smiled with a slight frown, breaking into a light trot across the street. Though she’d seemed easygoing before, she’d always carried herself with composure — but now, for a moment, she looked almost like a young girl. When she reached the street, she came face to face with a man walking toward her. He showed a flicker of surprise, then broke into a smile. Onlookers saw Su Tan’er smile and offer a bow of greeting, then the two of them fell into conversation by the roadside.

Judging by the manner and expression of that bow, it seemed to be one a woman gives to a husband or a lover — for there was something intimate and unguarded in it.