Against the Current - Chapter 21

Chapter 21 - Intentions

Now, speaking of the young ladies of the Lin family, after a lively morning and lunch, they all dispersed. Lin Dongqi kept Song Tanchai at Huifeng Studio, while Lin Dongxiu looked somewhat displeased, let out a soft huff, and walked out leaning on her maid Hanzhi's hand. Just as she stepped out of the courtyard, she heard Lin Dongling calling out from behind her, "Sister, wait for me." As she spoke, Lin Dongling trotted over, linked her arm through Lin Dongxiu's, and pushed Hanzhi aside.

Lin Dongxiu glanced sideways at Lin Dongling, gave a cold laugh, and said, "Why didn't you stay behind? Huifeng Studio is lively enough."

Lin Dongling smiled amiably and said, "How could anyone bear to stay in that place? That person puts on a false, hypocritical front, striking poses and putting on airs as if she were the ultimate paragon of a noble young lady. I simply can't bear to look at her."

"That person" obviously referred to Lin Dongqi. Lin Dongxiu had been vying with Lin Dongqi since childhood. Although she also looked down on Lin Dongling, she found her a bit more pleasing to the eye at that moment. The corners of her mouth lifted in a small smile as she whispered, "So the third younger sister has such a discerning eye after all. Even though we haven't seen each other in years, you managed to figure out who is loyal and who is treacherous in just a few days."

Lin Dongling lifted her chin. "Of course. Which demons and monsters could possibly escape my discerning gaze?" Then, frowning, she continued, "The second sister is merely annoying to look at, but the truly detestable one is that Cao Lihuan. She's a distant relative who is practically unrelated, yet she comes clinging to the mansion to claim kinship and refuses to leave. Outwardly she acts all high and mighty, claiming she doesn't take the Lin family's monthly stipend, but which of her food, clothes, and living expenses isn't provided by our family? Morning and night, she demands this and that. She still thinks she's superior to everyone else, bragging every single day about how much what she eats costs and how much what she wears costs."

"Indeed, she claims to be a renowned talented woman from Yuzhou, boasting dozens of poems she's written that have even been compiled into collections," Lin Dongxiu sneered softly. "She doesn't even bother checking her own bearing, thinking that dressing in gold, silver, silks, and satins makes her a young lady of a great household? She looks for all the world like a shrewish tigress, yet she still imagines herself a beauty, opening her mouth only to talk about how many brilliant young men came to propose to her back in Yuzhou. Pah! A young woman in a boudoir talking about such things without even knowing shame!"

Lin Dongling burst into a hearty laugh. "Her mouth is full of nonsense, and everyone in the household knows it."

Exchanging remarks back and forth about Cao Lihuan, the two grew much closer after just a few exchanges, parting ways only when they reached a fork in the road. Once Lin Dongling had gone, Hanzhi walked up to Lin Dongxiu, gazed at Lin Dongling's retreating figure, and whispered, "What is the third young miss up to? Why is she suddenly trying to curry favor with you out of the blue?"

Lin Dongxiu let out a huff. "Showing courtesy for no good reason means she's either up to a trick or a thief. What kind of intentions could she harbor? She previously thought she was Tanchai's proper cousin and could seize every advantage, only to have that little minx Lin Dongqi cling to Song Tanchai and keep her there with just a few words. That's why Lin Dongling came running to me, hoping I'd unite with her against an outside force. Does she really take me for a fool who can't see through her motives? The moment Young Master Song arrived, her eyes turned green with envy."

Hanzhi supported Lin Dongxiu as they slowly walked back. "If we're being honest, Young Master Song is truly a man of exceptional talent and appearance, with both learning and capability—he's the only one matching a young lady like you. But the third young miss is Young Master Song's own cousin, while we are a bit more distant. With that blood relation between them, I'm afraid it won't be easy to handle. Besides, there's also the second young miss, whom we cannot afford to lower our guard against."

Lin Dongxiu sneered, "The second sister crawled out of the mistress's own belly. The mistress will never be content to let her marry into a declining household like the Song family; she's entirely focused on plotting a high-ranking, powerful family for her. If she had her eyes on the Song family, she would have stepped in and settled the match long ago. By the same token, second aunt holds the exact same mindset. I hear second uncle intends to find a colleague's son in the capital, also from a family with illustrious military achievements, so the third sister's little ambitions will likely come to nothing. What is the Song family's current status? Old Master Song is dead, leaving behind a lonely widow and orphan who even split off to live independently from the greater clan. No matter how ambitious Young Master Song is, he currently only holds the rank of a xiucai. Even if he passes the imperial examinations in the future and captures glory on the honor roll, it will take at least ten full years just to revitalize his family lineage."

Hanzhi asked with concern, "Young lady, then a family like that..."

"A family like this happens to suit me best. The Song family has a simple household, and Aunt Song has a gentle temperament, so marrying over there won't subject one to bullying. As the old saying goes, 'a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.' The Song family may look in decline right now, but they possess plenty of hidden wealth and resources—they own quite a few land deeds, not to mention several shops in the capital. Young Master Song is clever, driven, and responsible; a man like him is a hundred times better than any young lord from a noble clan!" The more Lin Dongxiu spoke, the more agitated she became, her hands clenching tightly into fists. Thinking of Song Ke's graceful, refined, and handsome appearance, her face flushed crimson.

Hanzhi said, "Even so, my lady, you still need to drop a hint to the master and mistress early on. It's just a pity that your birth mother is a timid person; otherwise, she could have helped you a bit, sparing you from reaching this age without having your marriage settled."

Lin Dongxiu patted Hanzhi's hand and sighed, "Who can say otherwise? My birth mother was terrified out of her wits by the mistress long ago, and nowadays she refuses to stick her neck out for anything. On top of that, I don't even have a brother to back me up..."

As it turned out, the first branch's eldest daughter born of a concubine, Lin Dongwan, and the second young master, Lin Jinxuan, were brother and sister born of the same mother. Their biological mother, Concubine Yin, was originally a senior maid who served close to Lin Changzheng before having her face washed and being taken into the inner chambers as a concubine. In her early years, Qinshi possessed a fierce and formidable temperament, frequently clashing in verbal disputes with Lin Changzheng. Concubine Yin, however, was gentle, accommodating, and shared many years of deep affection with Lin Changzheng, causing him to favor her preferentially. Qinshi, being a clever woman herself, gradually reined in her temperament. With the strong backing of her maternal family, she greatly assisted Lin Changzheng in his official career. Coupled with her deliberate efforts to win him over, the eldest master of the Lin family came to realize that his legitimate wife's insight and breadth of mind were far beyond the reach of concubines who only knew how to wait on others, prompting him to grow much warmer toward his wife.

Concubine Yin gradually lost favor, and unwilling to resign herself to it, she secretly resorted to various schemes. While Qinshi worked to secure Lin Changzheng's affection and solidify her position, she covertly suppressed Concubine Yin. After two or three iron-fisted maneuvers, Concubine Yin—being at heart an honest soul whose courage was completely shattered by Qinshi—never dared harbor any other ambitions again, becoming timid and submissive in all things. Later on, Lin Changzheng's superior presented him with a beautiful concubine surnamed Bao. Lin Changzheng favored her for a spell before the novelty wore off. Because Concubine Bao only gave birth to a daughter, Lin Dongxiu, she was treated much like a piece of decorative furniture in the household, no longer occupying a place in Lin Changzheng's heart, which naturally meant he didn't pay much attention to Lin Dongxiu either. In stark contrast, five years prior, Qinshi gave birth late in life to another son, who was named Jinyuan. Lin Changzheng was genuinely overjoyed beyond measure, growing increasingly devoted and respectful toward Qinshi.

When a birth mother wields real power, her children have something to lean on. At that moment, Lin Dongqi had changed into a fresh, semi-new indigo silk outfit, sitting beside the kang table on the arhat bed to trace embroidery patterns. Song Tanchai sat on the other side making a scented pouch, the two of them chatting intermittently. Tasha brought over a cup of warm tea and said, "Both young ladies should rest for a while."

Lin Dongqi whispered, "We're not tired yet." Then she nudged Tasha with her chin. "Go fetch the box of sweets and pastries."

Tasha returned shortly with it, and Lin Dongqi pushed the sandalwood mother-of-pearl eight-treasure box toward Song Tanchai, saying, "These creamy almonds and amber walnuts were both freshly made. Sister, try them while they're fresh."

Song Tanchai picked up a piece and popped it into her mouth. Lin Dongqi picked up the pouch Song Tanchai had been working on, examined it, and praised, "Sister, you truly have skillful hands. Who knows who will be blessed enough to marry you in the future?"

Song Tanchai's face flared bright red in an instant, and she stammered, "What is sister saying!"

Lin Dongqi smiled warmly and said, "Why are you suddenly so shy? There's no outsiders here anyway. What kind of family background would you like, sister? Later on, I'll speak with my mother and have her keep an eye out for you too." Seeing Song Tanchai lower her head in silence, she probed indirectly, "Strictly speaking, the eldest brother must be betrothed first before you can properly discuss marriage, and Young Master Song isn't young anymore either."

Song Tanchai replied, "Mother wants to arrange a match for older brother too. She looked into several households and thought them all wonderful, but older brother wasn't satisfied. He said he would settle a match only after passing the imperial examinations, and that a real man wouldn't mind waiting another few years to take a wife, so my mother simply dropped her hands and stopped interfering."

Lin Dongqi smiled approvingly and nodded in agreement, "What your brother said makes complete sense. In any case, there are maids in the house to wait on him, so settling down a bit later is no harm... Take my eldest brother, for instance; he had two attendant concubines before marriage, which was quite proper." Inwardly, she silently added the thought, "Though they were all dismissed before the wedding and none were kept."

Song Tanchai shook her head. "Originally, there was a maid named Hongxiu in older brother's quarters who was different from the others, but who would have thought she fell ill and died a year ago? Mother wanted to give him Shanhua from her side, but older brother wouldn't take her, insisting that next year's spring examinations are coming up and everything must take second place to his studies and pursuit of official rank."

Having coaxed out the information she wanted, Lin Dongqi was inwardly satisfied and proceeded to probe into other household matters of the Song family. The two of them engaged in a question-and-answer exchange for a long time.

After finishing dinner, Song Tanchai took the arm of her personal maid, Juanhua, for a stroll by the lake. Noticing that there was no one around, Juanhua could not help complaining a bit to Song Tanchai, saying, "My lady, really—today you told Qi姑娘 so many details about our own family, even dragging out whether the eldest young master has attendant concubines just to gossip about it. These are hardly topics young women in boudoirs should discuss, let alone sharing them with outsiders. What if word gets out later and causes trouble?"

Song Tanchai rubbed the bridge between her eyebrows and said, "There's no need to fear; I did it on purpose. My brother possesses high talent and fine character; originally, seeking to marry a legitimate daughter of the Lin family wouldn't have been anything extraordinary, but now that the Song family is in decline, it isn't nearly so easy anymore. Brother always says that among the Lin family's daughters, only the second young miss is somewhat kind-hearted, and told me to grow closer to her. But observing with a cold eye, Sister Qi shares this exact intention, so I simply dropped a few hints for her to know. It's nothing of consequence."

Juanhua nodded repeatedly, and the mistress and servant departed together, leaving the matter aside for the moment.