Chapter 281: Rising from Humble Beginnings
Pingjiang City.
In April, the monks began their summer retreat, holding the Dharani Assembly. The Dharani Assembly in Pingjiang City was most grand at Hanshan Temple.
During the Dharani Assembly, the monks chanted the Dharani Sutra every three days. Men and women from Pingjiang City flocked to the temple to offer incense and pray for peace in the coming summer.
For the three days the monks chanted in the Great Buddha Hall, according to an unwritten rule, on the first day, all officials of Pingjiang City, led by the Prefect, had to go to the temple to listen to scriptures for a day. If their hearts were sincere, Pingjiang City would surely be peaceful that summer.
When it was time to chant in the Guanyin Hall, it was the time for the women of Pingjiang City to pray for the peace of their families.
On the first day the monks of Hanshan Temple chanted in the Guanyin Hall, the prominent women of Pingjiang City, led by the seventy-eight-year-old Old Madam of the Lu Family, gathered at Hanshan Temple to listen to scriptures and pray.
Beside a tea house in front of the mountain gate of Hanshan Temple, two carts were parked.
Sister-in-law Yin poked her head out of the cart, listening carefully to the sounds from the temple.
The chanting stopped, and a clear sound of bells and chimes rang out.
“Alright, alright! It’s time!” Sister-in-law Yin shouted to Li Jinzhu and Li Yuzhu, who were sitting behind her and also straining their ears to listen, and then nimbly jumped off the cart.
Li Jinzhu and Li Yuzhu followed her off the cart. The three of them tidied their skirts and then looked at each other.
Sister-in-law Yin took a deep breath, looked at Li Jinzhu and Li Yuzhu, who were both looking nervous, and signaled to them, “Take a breath, hold it, don’t be afraid.”
“How about I…” Before Li Yuzhu could finish her sentence, Sister-in-law Yin interrupted her, “Those inside are all the noble ladies of our Pingjiang City. Even those sitting at the very bottom, we have no way to get close to them. Now, taking this opportunity, with A Nan’s golden face, we can make a move. But this golden face of A Nan, you sisters can borrow it, but I’m too far away! Alas, I wish I could go in myself, but I’m afraid they’d throw me out!”
“Don’t be afraid! At worst, they’ll kick us out, what else can happen?” Li Jinzhu patted Li Yuzhu forcefully.
Li Yuzhu took a deep breath and gritted her teeth, “Okay! Let’s go!”
Sister-in-law Yin waved to the four old women she had hired and handed four large bundles from the cart to them.
Li Jinzhu took a breath and stepped towards the mountain gate. Sister-in-law Yin pushed Li Yuzhu, and Li Yuzhu quickly followed Li Jinzhu.
Inside Hanshan Temple, after a long sutra chanting, the female guests stood up, walked around, and talked. It was a lively time.
The stewardess, with a smile plastered on her face, walked quickly but not hurriedly to the Old Madam of the Lu Family, bowed, and whispered in her ear, “Old Madam, the two young ladies from the Li Family on Academy Street are here, along with their Shopkeeper Yin.”
“Hmm?” The Old Madam was surprised and taken aback.
The stewardess, facing the Old Madam’s surprised gaze, nodded quickly to confirm it was indeed those two.
“They brought a lot of things. Perhaps they’ve come to offer them to the Three Jewels?” the stewardess guessed.
The Old Madam pushed the stewardess away and looked at her daughter-in-law, Madam Huang, who was also paying attention to her and the stewardess. “The two young ladies from the Li Family on Academy Street are here. You don’t need to go. Let Huan Ge’s wife go, and you keep an eye on her.”
“I’ll go give some instructions,” Madam Huang said, standing up.
“You go with them and watch,” the Old Madam instructed the stewardess.
Sister-in-law Yin mustered all her courage and walked at the front. Li Jinzhu gritted her teeth and held her breath, following closely beside Sister-in-law Yin. Li Yuzhu kept her eyes on her elder sister, not falling behind. The three of them, with all their courage, strode through the mountain gate. After only a few steps, they saw a young wife hurrying towards them, followed by a string of old women and maids.
Sister-in-law Yin stopped, and instinctively looked at Li Jinzhu.
Li Jinzhu held her breath nervously. Were they here to drive them away?
About ten paces away, the young wife quickly curtsied and said with a smile, “Is this Miss Li, the eldest?”
Li Jinzhu didn’t react, and neither did Sister-in-law Yin.
“This must be the second young lady, and you must be Shopkeeper Yin.” The young wife curtsied very quickly, then walked even faster, reaching the three of them and curtsying again.
“Yes, this is our second young lady, and my surname is Yin.” Sister-in-law Yin was the first to react and quickly curtsied back.
“This is my second sister, my surname is Li, I… you?” Li Jinzhu curtsied almost at the same time as Sister-in-law Yin.
“My surname is Lu, my husband’s surname is Lu, and my maiden name is Wang. Our Old Madam heard that Miss Li, the eldest, was here and sent me to welcome you.” This Madam Lu Wang was no less nervous than the Li sisters and Sister-in-law Yin.
“Our Old Madam is very happy to hear you’ve arrived. Please come this way, the three of you,” the stewardess quickly chimed in.
“Forgive our intrusion…” Sister-in-law Yin said politely.
“Forgive our intrusion!” Li Jinzhu quickly echoed the politeness.
“It was I who was remiss,” Madam Lu Wang quickly curtsied politely.
“Our Old Madam is over there. If you don’t mind, please come this way, the three of you.” The stewardess was also a bit flustered by Madam Lu Wang.
“We apologize for disturbing the Old Madam, and for disturbing all of you.” Sister-in-law Yin, believing that politeness is never a fault, kept curtsying.
Li Jinzhu followed Sister-in-law Yin, and Li Yuzhu followed Li Jinzhu. The three of them curtsied one after another without stopping.
Seeing the three of them curtsy to her, the stewardess was startled. Fortunately, she was experienced and knew that the three were too flustered and confused, and it was best to pretend not to see it.
The stewardess, before Madam Lu Wang, who was also a bit bewildered and flustered, could speak, bowed and said with a smile, “Please come this way, the three of you.”
The stewardess led the way, Sister-in-law Yin pushed Li Jinzhu, Li Yuzhu followed closely behind Sister-in-law Yin, and Madam Lu Wang followed behind Li Yuzhu. The five of them walked very quickly, passing through the crowd who were staring with curiosity, and entered the quiet room of the Old Madam of the Lu Family.
……………………
The next day, Li Xiaonan received a stack of urgent letters from Pingjiang City delivered to the capital.
Li Xiaonan first picked out the letter from her eldest sister.
The letter was written by her eldest sister. Her handwriting was worse than that of a primary school student who had just started learning, and it was full of everyday talk and many typos.
In her long letter, her eldest sister only mentioned one thing: she, Yuzhu, and Sister-in-law Yin felt that the Dharani Assembly at Hanshan Temple was where the female family members of the prominent families of Pingjiang City were most gathered. They wanted to go to the Dharani Assembly and have each family’s female members send a fine cloth and silk wadding summer quilt to open up sales for the fine cloth quilts.
However, they did not expect that from the moment they entered the mountain gate, they became honored guests. The Old Madam of the Lu Family personally introduced her and Yuzhu to the female family members of each family. They had already sent out the summer quilts, but that day they received return gifts from each family that had received the summer quilts.
She and Yuzhu couldn’t sleep all night. After thinking it over and over, they realized they had handled the matter incorrectly. But since it had already happened, they could only quickly write a letter to inform A Nan.
Li Xiaonan sighed. She could imagine the panic and apprehension of her eldest and second sisters. If she were to marry into Prince Rui’s Mansion, the families in Pingjiang City, including the Lu Family, a century-old scholarly family, would have to think of ways to get close to her eldest and second sisters. Now, her eldest and second sisters had presented themselves…
Li Xiaonan put down the letter and, after sifting through them, picked up the one from Old Master Hong.
Old Master Hong’s letter contained another letter, written by the daughter-in-law of Old Scholar Hong. From her perspective, it described the Li Jinzhu sisters and Sister-in-law Yin’s trip to the Dharani Assembly at Hanshan Temple. The words revealed her contempt and dissatisfaction with the Li Jinzhu sisters, whom she considered country bumpkins who didn’t know their place.
Old Master Hong’s letter was not long. He first stated that his niece-in-law was an ignorant woman of domestic affairs and asked A Nan not to bother with her. He then explained that he was giving this letter to Li Xiaonan so that she could know the other side of the story, as most of the female family members in Pingjiang City were ignorant women like his niece-in-law.
Li Xiaonan put down Old Master Hong’s letter and then opened the one signed by the Lu Family of Kunshan.
The letter was signed by the Old Madam of the Lu Family, but as Li Xiaonan squinted at the letter with its extremely beautiful handwriting and elegant prose, she knew this letter was definitely not written by the Old Madam. The person who wrote this letter was full of talent and passion; it must have been one of the young, spirited talents of their Lu Family.
The letter from the Old Madam of the Lu Family began by praising Li Jinzhu’s business for the country and the people, then reflected on their own shortcomings, and finally declared their full support.
Li Xiaonan folded the letter and put it back, then looked at the other letters.
After reading all the letters, Li Xiaonan picked out the one from the Lu Family and loudly called for A Wu, asking her to deliver the letter to Mr. Zhou and ask him to write a reply for her.
“Which Mr. Zhou? The one by the Young Lord’s side? Then you might as well give it directly to the Young Lord!” A Wu put the letter away.
Li Xiaonan ignored her and waved her hand, signaling her to hurry.
“Is everything alright?” Wan Jing bent down and carefully observed Li Xiaonan’s expression.
“It’s nothing,” Li Xiaonan patted the stack of letters.
Seeing Li Xiaonan look at the stack of letters, Wan Jing fetched a small stool and sat down beside Li Xiaonan.
“I can tell from your expression that something is wrong. You’re not saying anything because you know it’s useless to tell me. Alas, look, this is your difficulty. When something happens, you have no one to discuss it with, not even anyone to talk to.
“It’s not like Miss Shi and the others. We… not we, but in their Prince’s Mansion, I used to often hear Shi Liu say that their Eldest Aunt was complaining to their Princess Consort again, their Second Aunt was asking the Princess Consort for advice, and their Third Aunt was doing this and that. Alas!” After a long sigh, Wan Jing looked at Li Xiaonan with a worried expression.
“Have you heard of the Lu Family of Pingjiang?” Li Xiaonan glanced sideways at Wan Jing.
“Of course! A prestigious scholarly family with a long heritage. In terms of depth, even the Wei Family can’t compare to them.” Wan Jing gave Li Xiaonan a sideways glance, a glance of dissatisfaction with Li Xiaonan’s abrupt change of topic.
“My eldest sister wrote in her letter that the Lu Family treated her and my second sister extremely courteously,” Li Xiaonan patted the stack of letters.
“Oh!” Wan Jing let out a “yo” with a pout, then immediately chuckled and leaned forward, her face full of gossip. “For these centuries-old, millennia-old great families, the longer their heritage, the more they will adapt to circumstances and be sharp-eyed! Shi Gun said this. Shi Gun said he heard from our… I made a mistake again, heard from their Prince. That’s right, the original words were: they are best at judging the situation.”
“That’s true, those who don’t adapt to circumstances would have capsized long ago.” Li Xiaonan held the letter out to Wan Jing. “This matter, you see, I can tell you.”
Wan Jing looked at Li Xiaonan. After a moment, she sat up straight. “It was my fault. You have no other choice, and I shouldn’t have said that. Don’t worry, whether I understand it or not, I can at least listen. No matter what you tell me, I… I mean, whether I can understand it or not, I… no, what I mean is, no matter what, I will follow you. Even if I die, I will die with you.”
Li Xiaonan leaned back from her last word of “die” from Wan Jing.
……………………
In the evening, Shi Gun came to deliver a message: Li Xiaonan was invited to the Zhang Family Garden.
When Li Xiaonan entered the Zhang Family Garden with Wan Jing, Gu Yan had already arrived.
Gu Yan watched Li Xiaonan enter the room, pointed his folding fan at the plain silk half-sleeved top Li Xiaonan was wearing, and said with a smile, “This looks better on you.”
Li Xiaonan didn’t speak and walked past Gu Yan into the room.
Gu Yan turned around and followed Li Xiaonan, watching her sit down at the table and lean forward to look at the tiered box in the middle of the table. Gu Yan stepped forward, blocked Li Xiaonan with his folding fan, and ordered the servant, “Take this away!”
Li Xiaonan sulkily retracted her head. “I was just looking! Wan Jing said the Zhang Family Garden is the most expensive restaurant in Jianle City, I just wanted to see what was inside!”
“It’s all inedible,” Gu Yan replied unceremoniously. He opened a box on the high table beside him, took out a golden peony, and handed it to Li Xiaonan.
“You mentioned something about flowers, is this it?” Gu Yan asked.
Li Xiaonan took the flower and weighed it. “Is this gold? Is it pure?”
“What do you mean pure or not pure? Gold? Pure gold!” Gu Yan replied impatiently.
“That’s not what I meant. The flowers I was talking about are not like this. They are fresh flowers, the kind cut from living plants growing in the soil, not this.” Li Xiaonan looked at the heavy pure gold peony.
Of course, this was much better than fresh flowers.
“Fresh flowers, things that wilt and decay easily, are inauspicious,” Gu Yan said, sitting down opposite Li Xiaonan and ordering Shi Gun, “Serve the dishes.”
Li Xiaonan ate attentively, and Gu Yan watched her eat.
After the meal, tea was served again. Gu Yan picked up his tea and, with a sigh that was neither admiration nor speechlessness, said, “You are alone in Jianle City, without support, and your future is uncertain. I didn’t expect you to be able to eat and drink so peacefully.”
“First, I am not alone. I have Eldest Uncle, Master Hong, and Wan Jing, Yu Ting, and A Wu. Second, regarding the future, you are here, so how can it be called uncertain?” Li Xiaonan said seriously.
Gu Yan was stunned for a moment, then chuckled, “I was wrong.”
She was absolutely right. With him here for the future, she naturally had nothing to worry about.
“Let’s discuss a few important matters first,” Gu Yan said with a smile. “You sending the letter from the Lu Family to me was handled extremely well. That’s exactly how it should be. Zhou Shennian has met Lu Wenheng, the third son of the Old Madam of the Lu Family, a few times. I’ll have Zhou Shennian write a letter to Lu Wenheng. Firstly, to reply to the Old Madam of the Lu Family on your behalf. Secondly, it will be a good opportunity to see the Lu Family’s attitude towards the Maritime Tax Bureau matter.”
Li Xiaonan listened carefully and nodded.
The letter from the Old Madam of the Lu Family was clearly not written for her, or rather, the Old Madam of the Lu Family was using that letter to test the possibility of her marrying into Prince Rui’s Mansion. She understood this clearly.
Gu Yan looked at Li Xiaonan and continued, “The second matter is that you should write a letter to your eldest sister. Regarding business matters, she should consult Old Shopkeeper He more. Her status is no longer what it was. It is very inappropriate for her to personally go to Hanshan Temple to distribute fine cloth summer quilts.”
Li Xiaonan hummed in agreement.
Seeing that Li Xiaonan’s expression remained unchanged, Gu Yan secretly breathed a sigh of relief and then said with a smile, “The third matter is that Jiangnan celebrates the Dragon Boat Festival. Before the festival, there are usually several gatherings and drinking sessions at the guild halls. Mr. Dongxi wants to hold some literary gatherings and intends to invite you to lecture on the Investigation of Things. The request for your participation has been conveyed to Zhou Shennian, and I have accepted it on your behalf.”
In the last sentence, Gu Yan looked at Li Xiaonan, his voice trailing off slightly.
Li Xiaonan nodded quickly.
“I’ll have Zhou Shennian tell Mr. Dongxi that I want to use this opportunity to build your reputation and elevate your status, which will be beneficial for your marriage into the Prince’s Mansion. This way, I can arrange for some scholars to attend, and Mr. Dongxi won’t be suspicious,” Gu Yan continued.
“Is it just about lecturing on the Investigation of Things? How will you lecture? Will you make them understand, or will you make them not understand?” Li Xiaonan asked.
Gu Yan chuckled. “You have to make them understand some of it, and leave a little for them not to understand. Otherwise, it would be like playing the lute to a cow.”
“Okay!” Li Xiaonan agreed, and then sighed again. “It’s easy to make them not understand, but it’s quite difficult to make them understand.”
Gu Yan glanced at her sideways. After a moment, he continued, “Mr. Dongxi’s literary gatherings are to win you over and enhance his own reputation. Zhou Shennian said that Mr. Dongxi is already suspicious of him, so he probably won’t be informed of the specific arrangements for the literary gatherings.”
Li Xiaonan looked at Gu Yan, waiting for him to continue.
“Zhou Shennian is a bit worried, and I think…” Gu Yan paused slightly, then smiled. “You can act according to the situation when the time comes. I don’t think Mr. Dongxi can win you over.”
“What if he does?” Li Xiaonan was not so confident.
What if Mr. Dongxi had the eloquence of Su Qin and Zhang Yi?
“I have arrangements, and it’s not like you’re going alone,” Gu Yan said.
“That’s good then.” Li Xiaonan breathed a sigh of relief.
“Is everything alright with Miss Shi?” Gu Yan suddenly changed the subject.
“Hmm?” Li Xiaonan looked at Gu Yan.
“You stayed at Miss Shi’s place for a whole day. The next morning, Miss Shi’s mother left the city. In the afternoon, Miss Shi’s Second Aunt, Second Madam Pan, came to the Prince’s Mansion to talk to Mother,” Gu Yan said, glancing at Li Xiaonan.
“What are you trying to say?” Li Xiaonan didn’t understand.
“What did you have to talk to her about? Why did you stay for a whole day? What did you say?” Gu Yan asked directly.
“I didn’t talk about you. We get along very well. Can’t I go talk to her? Is it bad for her or bad for me?” Li Xiaonan asked.
“It’s not about good or bad, it’s about appropriateness. She was previously engaged to me, and you know that,” Gu Yan said somewhat impatiently.
He hadn’t even asked if they talked about him or not, and she immediately asked if they talked about him. What did she mean by that?
“She doesn’t have any feelings for you now. If there’s nothing wrong, then I’ll go see her tomorrow,” Li Xiaonan leaned back against the chair back and looked at Gu Yan.
Miss Shi’s mother went early in the morning, was it to scold her? Second Madam Pan went to the Prince’s Mansion, was it to apologize? What did Miss Shi do wrong? She had to go and ask.
“Aren’t you afraid she’ll scheme against you? Are you as cunning as she is?” Gu Yan reached his hand out to Li Xiaonan, slapping the table with a loud bang.
After a moment of silence, Li Xiaonan replied, “I can handle it.”
“Alas!” Gu Yan let out a sigh of annoyance. “If you want to go, then go. It’s fine, don’t worry, I’m here.”
“She told me about matters within the inner courtyards of various families, who had grudges against whom at what time, who helped whom, and which family had a deadly feud with which family. I’m not stupid, don’t worry,” Li Xiaonan said, looking at Gu Yan.
“You can’t believe everything she says,” Gu Yan said with a smile.
Li Xiaonan nodded.
“It’s getting late,” Gu Yan glanced at the already descending twilight and reluctantly stood up. “It’s not advisable for you and me to meet too late, regardless of how many people know. It’s not good for you. I’ll have Shi Gun escort you back.”
“Okay,” Li Xiaonan agreed and went to pick up the pure gold peony. Gu Yan was one step ahead of her, picked up the peony, and signaled the servant to put it back in the box.
Wan Jing took the box and hugged it, following Li Xiaonan with her head bowed, and got into the carriage outside the Zhang Family Garden.
