Chapter 74: What is Marital Fate?
Qin Mingxu looked up at me blankly. He hadn’t expected me to say such a thing in public to exonerate him.
Gossip is the lock on the door.
Since I said this, my marital fate with him has been sealed.
Zheng Tai’s face turned pale with anger and he said, “Zhu Sangyu, you are speaking nonsense! Since you have already had the consummation of marriage with this Qin fellow, why then did you get into my Zheng family’s sedan chair? Everyone can bear witness, my Zheng family’s sedan chair was carried to the Qin family, what do you say to that?”
The official thought for a moment and asked, “Lord Zheng’s words are reasonable. That sedan chair indeed belongs to the Zheng family. Lady Yidexiang, do you have anything to say in defense?”
I smiled and retorted, “Did the honorable official ever see a bride lift her wedding veil before getting into the sedan chair to see whose family it was?”
The official was stunned.
I said, “How would I know how Lord Zheng’s sedan chair appeared before the Zhu Residence? Master Qin and I are in love and were about to get married. Lord Zheng’s actions are truly perplexing. To bully others with power and snatch a bride, it should be Lord Zheng.”
“You, you, Zhu Sangyu, you clearly said at the wine shop entrance that day, you said…” Zheng Tai pointed at me.
I said, “May I ask, what did I say?”
“You said, ‘I’ve thought it through.'”
“Yes, I’ve thought it through. I’ve thought it through, and I want to marry Master Qin.”
Zheng Tai was choked, and he kept cursing, “No merchant is not cunning, no merchant is not cunning, Zhu Sangyu, you wicked woman! You dare to play me!”
The courtroom was in an uproar.
There was a lot of arguing.
Seeing this, the honorable official, intending to smooth things over, struck the gavel and adjourned the court.
The matter of “bride snatching” was left unresolved.
Qin Mingxu and I walked out of the yamen together.
He looked at me, as if he hadn’t yet recovered from my words just now.
“Sangyu, you shouldn’t have said that. It’s detrimental to your reputation,” he said.
I looked at him. His pale blue clothing was a bit disheveled, and the last fading rays of the sunset cast a shadow over him, like a silhouette behind a curtain. His eyes were like fishing lights on the riverbank, sometimes bright, sometimes dim.
I walked towards the ferry terminal.
He followed me silently.
This year’s rain was exceptionally heavy, and the water level of the Grand Canal had risen considerably. It was full of dark green, swaying back and forth, as if it wanted to break free from the riverbank’s confines. People from the Canal Transport Yamen, along with many constables, were at the ferry terminal for flood control.
The willows by the riverbank swayed with a thousand tangled sorrows.
The evening breeze tonight was so gentle.
A faint floral fragrance wafted.
I said, “Mingxu, about what you told me last time, I can answer you now. I am willing to marry you.”
He walked a few steps and said, “Sangyu, I know you said those words in court to absolve me. That was not your true intention. I am not someone who takes advantage of others’ predicaments. I can wait. Even if I have to wait until I am old, you will still be the Miss Zhu I met on the boat.”
I stood by the willow tree and said, “People often say there is a matchmaker who is responsible for tying the red threads of marriage in the world. Perhaps, when the matchmaker was tying my thread, he dozed off, and the red thread wasn’t tied securely, breaking with a slight touch. I’ve thought about it for a long time, what is marital fate?”
“Mountains remember a journey of water, water winds around mountains for a lifetime. Wind waits for clouds for a journey, clouds drift for a lifetime. In truth, women are very prone to accepting their fate. I came to Yangzhou with a marriage certificate, facing death at every turn, to get married. Along the way, I made up my mind, no matter who I married, I would accept it. If it was a dead person, I would guard their spirit tablet. If it was a living person, I would follow him. I intended to grow old with Cheng Huaishi as husband and wife. Some of the things he did, I didn’t understand, but I always supported him. Even when I knew clearly that thorns lay ahead, I couldn’t bear to extinguish his flame. I wanted to be a good wife. I only wanted to be a good wife. But he still divorced me. He didn’t want me to share hardships with him. This became a thorn in my heart. This thorn never disappeared for a moment. However, now, I suddenly understand—”
“He was the husband I was betrothed to in my childhood. I walked a path with him. I have him in my heart, but I also have the fireworks of the four seasons, three meals a day, my family around me, the Zhu Family Wine Shop, the morning clouds, the evening sunset, and the night watchman’s drum. I cherish everything I want to cherish. If I want to live well, I must learn to let go. Perhaps, this is also what he hoped to see. Isn’t it?”
Like these stars, not last night’s; for whom did you stand in the dew and wind at midnight?
As I spoke, my eyes felt as if they had been washed by the river water of the Grand Canal, carrying the softness of May in Jiangnan.
Qin Mingxu walked closer to me and gently took my hand.
My fingers curled slightly, but I did not refuse.
“Sangyu, from now on, your four seasons of fireworks will have me, your three meals a day will have me, your morning clouds will have me, your evening sunset will have me, and your night watchman’s drum will have me.”
The next day, Feng Gao returned from Southern Metropolitan Region.
Qin Mingxu held a family banquet at the Qin Manor to discuss the wedding date.
Due to my remarriage, I did not wish for a grand ceremony, preferring something simple.
Qin Mingxu, however, insisted on giving me a magnificent wedding. I knew he wanted to compensate for what was missing in my first marriage.
The Zhu Family Wine Shop had substantial earnings, and my father enjoyed his later years, showing me genuine affection. He had previously hastily married me off with Lin Yue, and thus felt guilty towards me, also advocating for a grand wedding.
Master Qin had passed away, and Cai Qingyao, in her capacity as Qin Mingxu’s elder, discussed the wedding date with my father.
A group of people sat together, drinking and eating merrily.
Feng Gao was both happy and silent, drinking over ten pots of Yunsi, and took a nap on the rocks in the garden.
My father ordered Zhu Xifeng to invite a renowned fortune teller from the city to divine the wedding date.
Finally, the sixth day of the sixth lunar month was set, an auspicious date.
I walked along the garden path of the Qin Manor and found Feng Gao.
His cheeks were flushed with a bit of drunkenness, and he squinted at me.
I said, “It’s cold on the stone, get up quickly and sleep on the bed.”
He rested his hands under his head and smiled, “Elder Sister, I’m truly happy. That you can take this step and are willing to. I was always afraid you would be lonely.”
I pulled him up.
He clung to me, refusing to get up.
“Elder Sister, let me sleep among the flowers for a while. When people sleep, they have many beautiful dreams that cannot be reached. If they wake up and want to dream again, it becomes difficult.”
Cai Qingyao came over, holding a thin layer of bedding.
She covered Feng Gao with the bedding.
We had all kept the matter of Feng Gao’s imprisonment from her. She only knew that Feng Gao had sustained injuries to his face from martial arts training and kept muttering, “You should be careful, you should be careful…”
Feng Gao suddenly hugged her waist and pressed his face against her, like a child.
Cai Qingyao reached out and stroked his head.
“Elder Sister will be happy, right? Mother,” he said nonsensically.
Cai Qingyao said gently, “Yes. Sangyu will be happy.”
“That’s good,” he murmured, and fell asleep with his head on Cai Qingyao’s lap.
Cai Qingyao remained still, watching over him for a long time until he woke up.
Zhu Xifeng had become a bit more sensible than before. He had successfully negotiated business with the foreign merchants who had come last time.
I gradually began to hand over some of the counter’s affairs to him. He would go to the ferry terminal to check the cargo ships on the waterway. Hua Lian kept an eye on things.
On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, something happened at the dock.
Every year during the Spring Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, and Mid-Autumn Festival, the merchants in Yangzhou’s trading ports had many orders. The cargo ships on the Grand Canal were lined up. Some merchants tried to cut in line, and Zhu Xifeng, being stubborn, refused to yield. A group of people started fighting at the dock.
Seeing Zhu Xifeng at a disadvantage, Hua Lian, with a heart full of loyalty, rushed forward.
The Flower Viper in her hand crawled out of her sleeve, flicking its tongue, ready to bite.
These people had been in the business world for many years, and none of them were easy to deal with. They had a group of fierce-looking house guards.
During the scuffle, a man holding a fork went to grab the snake, shouting, “Stew her snake! Let’s see how arrogant she is later!”
Hearing this, Zhu Xifeng grabbed the man’s waist and bit down.
The man tried to break free from him.
He held on tightly, refusing to let go, his knuckles turning white.
The man cursed and punched Zhu Xifeng’s head.
Zhu Xifeng’s mouth was full of blood, and his head was dazed, but he still didn’t let go.
The dock was in complete chaos.
When I heard the news and called for the government constables, the crowd finally stopped fighting.
Hua Lian, slightly injured, rushed towards Zhu Xifeng.
Zhu Xifeng let go and sat down on the ground. His head was covered in blood, looking quite frightening.
I stepped forward and said, “Quickly carry the young master back and call a doctor.”
Zhu Xifeng stared blankly, not moving.
Hua Lian patted his face. He then grinned and burst into tears.
I scolded, “You’re a grown man, what are you crying about for a little beating? Useless! If you dare to cause trouble, you shouldn’t be afraid of it.”
He seemed not to hear me, only crying, “I was afraid he would kill the dead girl’s snake… *sob sob sob*… that snake is the dead girl’s treasure. If it’s gone, the dead girl will be unhappy…”
Hua Lian pushed him and said gruffly, “The snake is fine! No need to cry!”
The snake in her sleeve, as if understanding, crawled to Zhu Xifeng’s side and leaned against him docilely.
Zhu Xifeng still had a fearful look and dared not reach out to touch it.
Hua Lian cursed, “The master is right, useless!”
Zhu Xifeng said stubbornly, “I’m not afraid!”
He forced himself to touch it. The snake crawled onto his arm, and he trembled like a sieve.
The people around them all laughed.
