Chapter 24: Embarrassment on the Birthday
But he looked so haggard.
His eyes were bloodshot, filled with capillaries.
His complexion was sallow, and his lips were pale.
He coughed, his shoulders shaking.
I hurried forward, supporting him with He Ming, and ordered a servant boy to fetch a doctor.
Cheng Huaishi pointed to the Main Courtyard and shook his head at me.
I knew he didn’t want the Old Madam to find out. I sternly ordered the maids and servants to keep their voices down and not to gossip in the manor. If the Old Madam asked, they were to say the Second Master was busy with official duties.
Upon reaching the bedroom, I helped him onto the couch and used a handkerchief soaked in warm water to wipe his face.
The doctor arrived, took his pulse, and said it was a common cold, requiring rest. He wrote a prescription, and He Ming quickly went to fetch the medicine.
After a long while, the room quieted down.
A gentle breeze, carrying the scent of herbs, blew through the gap in the window frame, filling the gently swaying red gauze curtains.
I got up, intending to close the window tightly, but Cheng Huaishi held my hand.
So I stopped moving, sat by the bedside, and watched him. His lowered eyelashes were stiff and tired. My heart felt a pang of sadness, and I softly asked, “Second Master, what would you like to eat? I’ll make it.”
He closed his eyes and brought my hand to his chest.
I forced myself to maintain a cheerful tone, saying, “When traveling by water, some storms are inevitable. But I have always believed that Second Master can overcome any danger and turn misfortune into fortune.”
He opened his mouth and slowly said, “Madam, no matter what happens, I will never forget my original intention when I entered officialdom. Last night, at the Eastern Depot, Feng Gao said many insidious things to me, both openly and indirectly, urging me to betray Minister Zhang. How could I be a sycophant? I thought I might not return this time. I always thought that if anything happened to me, the person I would be most sorry for would be you. You married into the Cheng Family as a wife, only to toil, and never enjoyed a single day of happiness…”
Before he could finish speaking, he began to cough.
I dabbed my eyes with a handkerchief, smiled, and stroked his chest, helping him to breathe, “Second Master is unwell, don’t think too much. You once said that there will be a long future, and I have always kept that in my heart.”
He gripped my hand, his eyes filled with a tumultuous sense of guilt.
On the bedside table lay a book of 《Han Yuefu》.
I smiled, “Second Master, please close your eyes and rest. I will read poetry to you, alright?”
He nodded.
“May I ask where the maiden comes from? Her brows are furrowed, and her words are choked. She turns her head and waves goodbye to the traveler, lamenting her wandering and suffering. For three years, she was held captive in the Qin land, vaguely recalling the events in Qin. If you can dismount your golden saddle for me, I will also stop my jade feet for you…” I read softly.
Cheng Huaishi listened quietly.
The candlelight in the room cast a rare warmth between me and Cheng Huaishi.
This warmth was faint and peaceful, like any husband and wife who share hardships and joys in the world.
At this moment, He Ming entered to report.
“Second Master, Miss Xun is outside the manor, saying she wishes to visit Second Master.”
Cheng Huaishi waved his hand at He Ming, “Tell her I am resting. Please ask her to leave.”
He Ming acknowledged and left.
I remembered his words in his sleep when we were in Yangzhou. I put down the book and smiled faintly, “Second Master, tell me about your past, will you?”
“The past?”
“Yes, the past. The Second Master of the past, Miss Xun of the past.”
Cheng Huaishi shook his head, “I was young and ignorant, merely reading and writing. What past could there be? Even when Lord Xun was alive, Mother never liked her. The only things we discussed were politics and poetry. Nothing else.”
His eyes were full of openness.
The topic was dropped lightly, and not pursued further.
The small kitchen sent over some light congee. I helped him up, and we each ate a small bowl before lying down in our clothes.
Because he was ill, and to prevent the cold from worsening, we did not engage in marital intimacy.
I remembered the Old Madam often speaking to me about “offspring.”
Perhaps fate plays tricks on people. I have been married for over half a year and am still a virgin. How can I speak of offspring?
Opportunities are like the moon in the sky; its fullness and waning are beyond human will, constantly changing.
Three days later, Cheng Huaishi’s illness had slightly improved.
In the morning, when I went to the Main Courtyard to pay my respects to the Old Madam, he accompanied me.
The Old Madam thought he had been busy with official duties these past few days and gave him a few words of caution about his health.
Afterward, she smiled at me and ordered a maid, “Bring out the gift I have for the Second Young Mistress.”
A maid brought a tray, on which rested a pair of crystal-clear jade bracelets.
I bowed and said, “It’s not a festival or holiday, why is Mother giving me a gift?”
The Old Madam smiled brightly, “Sang Yu, have you forgotten what day it is today?”
I thought for a moment and said, “Today is Mangzhong. On Mangzhong, we bid farewell to the Flower Goddess.”
The Old Madam shook her head, “Silly child, today is your birthday.”
Only then did I suddenly remember.
Since my mother passed away, I hadn’t celebrated my birthday for many years, and no one mentioned it, so I had completely forgotten.
I smiled at the Old Madam, “How did you know?”
“When you were betrothed, the Cheng family and the Zhu family exchanged wedding invitations, which contained your birth date and time. A few days ago, I was looking through old things and saw it, so I kept it in mind.”
She said to Cheng Huaishi, “Huai’er, let’s give Sang Yu a proper birthday celebration.”
Cheng Huaishi smiled and said, “We should, we should. It is my wife’s birthday, we must hold a good celebration.”
He then cupped his hands and bowed to me, “May Madam’s lifespan be as long as the pine, and her fortune and health be abundant.”
The Old Madam gave instructions to set up a banquet in the garden and invite the best opera troupe from the Capital City. The servants busied themselves.
She pulled me to sit beside her, “Let Huai’er arrange these matters. You are not allowed to exert yourself at all today; have a comfortable day.”
About an hour later, the gatehouse guard came in to report, “Reporting to the Old Madam and Second Young Mistress, the Zhu family’s father-in-law, mother-in-law, and young uncle have arrived!”
I was stunned.
The Old Madam stood up and said, “Sang Yu, we must go out to greet them.”
It was indeed my father who had arrived.
Behind him followed my stepmother, Lin Yue, and their son, Zhu Xifeng.
Lin Yue saw me and smiled, “Eldest Daughter, your father misses you every day at home. I said, if you miss your daughter, why not go to the Capital City to see her? Your father said that Eldest Daughter is not what she used to be. The son-in-law is an official now, and Eldest Daughter is an official’s wife. How could we bother you? I said, never mind that Eldest Daughter is an official’s wife, even if she becomes an Imperial Consort, she must still remember you are her father! Madam, don’t you agree?”
I lowered my head.
The Old Madam smiled, “That is indeed the case. Relatives, you must have had a tiring journey. Please come in quickly and have a drink.”
My father stroked his beard and smiled.
The banquet in the garden had already been set up.
The Old Madam invited them in and they sat down.
Cheng Huaishi bowed to my father and Lin Yue.
The opera troupe was arranged, the gongs and drums sounded, and they were about to begin.
Seeing this, my father asked, “Is there a celebration in the manor today?”
The Old Madam coughed lightly, “Today is Sang Yu’s birthday.”
“Oh—”
My father looked a bit embarrassed.
He never remembered such trivial matters.
Lin Yue quickly nudged him, “Hey, Master, have you gone senile? You’ve been talking about it all the way here. We came precisely to celebrate Sang Yu’s birthday. We hurried as much as we could to make it in time.”
“Yes, yes, yes. Look at me, getting older, more confused.”
At the wine table, there were delicacies and exquisite dishes.
On the stage, the music was masterful and deeply moving.
During the feast, Lin Yue kept signaling to my father. My father took a sip of wine and said, “Son-in-law, I have something else to entrust to you on this trip.”
“Father-in-law, please speak.”
A string in my heart immediately tensed.
I heard my father say, “Son-in-law, at my age, I have no further aspirations. Only my son, for whom I have always been worried.”
Lin Yue said with a fawning smile, “Isn’t there the son-in-law? A son-in-law is half a son. The son-in-law surely won’t stand by and watch the Master worry.”
My father nodded and pointed at Zhu Xifeng, saying, “Son-in-law, I hear that Prime Minister Zhang greatly appreciates you. Could you ask Minister Zhang to find a position for your brother-in-law?”
Cheng Huaishi’s smile froze on his lips.
I quickly said, “Father, please don’t be unreasonable. Second Master has just entered officialdom and must be cautious at every step. How can he show favoritism?”
Lin Yue stopped her chopsticks and said, “Oh, Eldest Daughter, your words are not right. It is said that one should recommend the worthy without regard to kinship. Finding a position for your brother, how is that favoritism?”
“Recommend the worthy?”
I stood up, “Zhu Xifeng hasn’t even passed the preliminary examination for a scholar. He is neither learned nor martial. He is only sixteen years old and hasn’t even married a principal wife, yet he has already taken two concubines. In what way is he worthy?”
My father became angry, his face turning red, “You! You!”
Lin Yue cried to Cheng Huaishi, “Eldest Daughter is so unreasonable and ungrateful, it’s truly unimaginable… Son-in-law, please say something, give us your judgment. I don’t believe the son-in-law won’t help us…”
Cheng Huaishi was extremely embarrassed.
He had never faced such a situation before, and now he could neither advance nor retreat.
“I will do my best,” he said.
Just then, someone from the Hanlin Academy called for him. He cupped his hands and excused himself from everyone.
The Old Madam glanced at me and gestured for me to return to my room.
She appeased Lin Yue and the others.
The actors on stage continued to sing their melodious tunes.
The birthday banquet, however, had already been thoroughly disrupted.
The manor servants whispered amongst themselves.
I returned to my room and sat there blankly, clutching the hairpins my mother had left me, and my clothes became wet with tears.
“Elder Sister—”
I looked at the window that suddenly opened, and a familiar face appeared.
“Why are you here?”
I was startled.
