Against the Current - Chapter 44

Chapter 44 - Selling Hairpins

As Xianglan walked to the entrance of the side room, she faintly heard Chunling scolding Yindie and couldn't help shaking her head, inwardly sighing, Among all the young maids up and down these great manorial gates, which of them doesn't harbor ambitions of marrying into wealth? Especially since the Eldest Master is both handsome and dashing, holds an official post, and possesses vast amounts of gold and silver. Whether it's Chunling or the younger Yindie, they all secretly pin their hopes on him, lamenting only that they can see no further than the palm-sized patch of sky above the Lin residence, casting the words "impermanence of worldly affairs" to the back of their minds. Musing thus, she went to the trunks to retrieve the clothing.

Lin Jinlou had left a crab-shell-green patterned straight robe in the eastern side-chamber last time. Xianglan took it out, sprayed it lightly with a bottle of distilled liquor, and pressed it with an iron. At that moment, Chunling lifted the door curtain and came in. Seeing Xianglan hard at work, she remarked, "Why are you bothering with this sort of labor? Let those two little slave girls do it."

Xianglan smiled and said, "It's just a small chore, it's no trouble."

Chunling curled her lip and said, "You're far too easygoing. You're a second-rank maid now; when it's time to put on airs, you need to hold your ground. Look at that little hussy Yindie—she's already daring enough to climb over your head and give you attitude."

Xianglan pressed her lips together in a smile. In truth, Yindie was usually quite warm and attentive toward her; she had only lost her composure today upon seeing Lin Jinlou.

After making a couple of remarks, Chunling felt a slight disappointment seeing that Xianglan didn't take up the thread of the conversation. Xianglan was magnanimous and easygoing, always willing to share any food or playthings with everyone, which made all the little maids fond of growing close to her. Chunling liked to pull rank in everything and enjoyed lecturing and reigning in the younger maids—which in itself was nothing out of the ordinary, but compared to Xianglan, she inevitably came off looking worse. Just as she was about to say another word or two, she heard Mother Wu calling her from the courtyard, so she tossed her hands up and left.

Xianglan pressed the clothes smooth, folded them neatly, and carried them into the inner room. There, a heated kang table had been set up on the bed, laden once more with fresh fruits and pastries, and Qinglan was currently helping Lin Jinlou strip off his official outer robe.

Xianglan set the clothes down and made to leave, but Lin Jinlou called out, "Wait." He wanted to have Xianglan help him change, but glancing at Qinglan, he felt it wasn't quite appropriate.

Though Qinglan was not a particularly shrewd person, watching Lin Jinlou fixate so intently on a little maid brought a trace of displeasure to her face. Xianglan lowered her head right down, staring fixedly at the tips of her own shoes.

Hesitating for a moment, Lin Jinlou feigned an air of casual nonchalance as he said to Qinglan, "This maid is quite good. She used to serve in Cao Lihuan's quarters. That Cao woman is black-hearted; she put peach juice into the Second Sister's food, and if it hadn't been for this girl's quick wits in reporting it to the Mistress, it would have been troublesome once the affliction broke out. Now that she's come to serve in your quarters, I can rest easy."

Only then did Qinglan's face relax into a smile. Secretly feeling that she had been overthinking things, she said, "I know. This girl is steadfast and kind-hearted; she does a great deal of work both openly and behind the scenes, yet she never claims credit for herself."

Lin Jinlou nodded. Glancing down and seeing a small horse-shaped pendant of red gold and yellow jade hanging from his belt, he unhooked it on a whim, handed it across to Xianglan, and said, "A reward for you. Take it, and keep serving your concubine well; there will be more rewards in the future."

With her head bowed, Xianglan said, "This is merely what this servant is duty-bound to do; I dare not accept the Eldest Master's reward."

Lin Jinlou frowned slightly. "If I'm giving it to you, just take it. What's all this nonsense about daring or not daring?"

This little golden horse pendant was truly far too precious. Hesitating and not daring to take it, Xianglan cast a glance toward Qinglan. Seeing Lin Jinlou casually bestow such a valuable trinket upon a mere maid, Qinglan couldn't help feeling a twinge of envy; she wanted to offer a word of discouragement, but didn't dare. Hearing him say, "Keep serving your concubine well; there will be more rewards in the future," she assumed Lin Jinlou was giving the maid such a fine reward entirely for her sake. A smile touched the corners of her lips as she told Xianglan, "Since it's given to you, just take it."

Only then did Xianglan dare to accept it. As she moved to kneel and kowtow in haste, Lin Jinlou waved a hand and said, "No need, skip it, skip it."

Xianglan retreated and made her way to a secluded spot to inspect the item. The golden horse was no larger than a thumb, yet it was exquisitely crafted. Inlaid into a knotted cord, it featured five-colored palace tassels dangling beneath it. Holding the little horse, Xianglan felt as though it burned her hand. The memory of Lin Jinlou's demeanor while making her fan him set her heart aflutter once more with anxious dread. Could it be, she thought, that Lin Jinlou has taken a fancy to me? She tried to comfort herself by thinking that Lin Jinlou was simply a romantic and dissolute rake who would flirt with any maid he crossed paths with, and that she had no need to take it to heart. From now on, she would simply avoid serving right in front of him. Yet looking at the little golden horse in her hand, she found she could not set her mind at ease.

Lin Jinlou partook of his midday meal in the eastern side-chamber and prepared to leave the residence again in the afternoon. Qinglan personally escorted him out. Standing at the doorway of the main chamber to watch for a moment, Yingsong turned back inside and served Zhao Yuechan a bowl of rock-sugar bird's nest porridge.

Zhao Yuechan was reclining on the daybed beneath the window, her eyes lightly closed, her temples slightly loosened with a few strands of dark hair straying across her autumn-fragrant headrest, making her flushed face appear all the more dazzling.

Carefully placing the bowl onto the sandalwood begonia-wood side table, Zhao Yuechan asked without opening her eyes, "Has he left the eastern side-chamber yet?"

Yingsong studied Zhao Yuechan's expression and answered in a low voice, "Yes."

"He certainly dotes on the bit of flesh inside that little hussy's belly."

Not daring to speak, Yingsong merely picked up the bowl of rock-sugar bird's nest porridge, stirred it with a spoon, and stammered, "Mistress, the bird's nest porridge should be eaten while it's hot..."

"If that little hussy bears a son, does that mean she'll climb right over my head?" Zhao Yuechan opened her eyes and fixed her gaze on Yingsong.

Yingsong forced a smile. "Mistress shouldn't dwell on such thoughts; taking care of your own health is what matters most. Even if that little hussy does have a son, she will never surpass the Mistress. The Lin household is a distinguished family of generations of officials; such a thing as favoring a concubine over a legitimate wife simply cannot happen here..." As she spoke, her voice trailed off into a whisper until she fell silent altogether.

Zhao Yuechan stared blankly for a long while at a pot of Huilan orchids sitting on the windowsill.

Yingsong licked her dry lips and ventured cautiously, "What my maternal uncle's wife said last time also makes sense... You and the Eldest Master are bound by an emotional knot, and he hasn't had a change of heart all these years. The maids the Mistress takes a fancy to, the Eldest Master won't even look at. Why doesn't the Mistress offer up the maternal aunt's family's Xiajie as a concubine to the Eldest Master? For one thing, the maternal aunt's whole family is easy to manipulate; for another, Xiajie is of a timid disposition and rather dull-witted. She has fine looks, and the Eldest Master will surely find her pleasing to the eye. Aside from the Mistress, I have yet to see anyone whose beauty surpasses Xiajie's. Once she has a son, the Mistress can simply take him and raise him as your own..."

Before she could finish, she saw Zhao Yuechan looking at her with a gaze as cold as frost. Yingsong shrank her neck back and clamped her mouth shut.

After a long silence, Zhao Yuechan slowly said, "How could a child born of another woman ever compare to the flesh and blood born from one's own body... Do not speak of Xiajie's matter ever again; I have my own plans."

The two of them remained in silence.

Zhao Yuechan took the bird's nest porridge, ate a couple of spoonfuls, and asked, "Has Cao Lihuan quieted down?"

At the mention of this, Yingsong perked up, straightened her back, and said, "She's quieted down. She hasn't sent anyone over to bother the Mistress these past few days... I heard from several matrons at the second gate that she threw a crying, floor-rolling tantrum when she refused to leave at first. I thought for sure she'd throw a violent scene—given what a brawler she is, never letting anyone around her have peace—now that she's been swept out the door, wouldn't you expect her to raise the roof? Who would have thought it ended in total silence."

Swallowing a spoonful of porridge and wiping the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief, Zhao Yuechan sneered, "Raise a scene? She's a clever one. I heard that when the Old Madame sent her away, she mentioned that perhaps when she marries, the Old Madame might still add a bit to her dowry. Just for the sake of the Old Madame's dowry money, she wouldn't dare tear her face completely open and cause a ruckus outside. Besides, the Eldest Master himself escorted her out. With his methods, do you think he'd let Cao Lihuan make a public spectacle of herself and throw away her dignity? It's best if she doesn't come knocking. In the future, tell the matrons at the second gate that if she sends anyone over again, they are to drive them right back."

Yingsong nodded repeatedly, then sighed. "It's just that some rumors and shadows have leaked out afterward, saying that Huanhuan wasn't entirely proper with the pageboy in her service, and that the pageboy snuck over and got drunk and accidentally harassed a maid. I reckon word of this has already reached the Ren family; whether Huanhuan's marriage can still go through is anyone's guess."

Zhao Yuechan let out a scoff of derision and set her porridge bowl down on the small table. "Didn't she look down her nose at the Ren family? Now she doesn't even have a door left to marry through... Though you can't say for sure; Cao Lihuan still has a few private savings, and the Ren boy isn't a man of strong backbone. Perhaps he'll shut his eyes and marry her anyway just for the money."

Yingsong nodded, looking somewhat concerned. "What if Cao Lihuan starts spreading malicious talk about the Mistress outside, claiming we took a box of her hairpins yet failed to help her with her matters..."

Crooking her finger and spooning another mouthful of porridge into her mouth, Zhao Yuechan said dismissively, "Let her say whatever she pleases. Do you expect me to spit out something that's already gone into my mouth? Do you think she'd be singing my praises even without this box of hairpins? Pah! I truly am not afraid of her!"

Yingsong brought over a cup of warm tea. Zhao Yuechan rinsed her mouth, spat into the spittoon, wiped her hands with a small towel, and thought carefully. Feeling that the box of hairpins in her possession was indeed a bit of a hot potato, she decided it would be better to sell them off quietly; securing the silver was the proper course of action. She instructed, "Tomorrow, take that box of hairpins to my cousin and have him find a reliable buyer to sell them. The absolute minimum should be three hundred and fifty taels of silver; any amount higher than three hundred and fifty taels he can keep for himself. Don't look at how small those hairpins are; every single one is exquisitely crafted, not to mention the red rubies set upon them—they're blazing red. If it weren't for the fact that keeping these things around makes me uneasy, I wouldn't be willing to sell them at all. It's a pity Cao Lihuan mentioned there was a matching pair of red ruby earrings to go with these hairpins, but she never managed to get her hands on them in the end."

Yingsong smiled and said, "Why doesn't the Mistress introduce a match for her? In her current predicament, let alone a pair of red ruby earrings, if you asked her for half her mother's dowry chests, she'd probably hand them right over to the Mistress."

Zhao Yuechan hummed and sneered coldly, "She's nothing more than a street rat now; people would run to avoid her, so why would anyone actively stick close to her? Besides, you can't casually touch the belongings of that fierce tigress—just this box of hairpins is probably causing her physical heartache as we speak. I'll put my words right here: she's acting all meek and quiet for now, but before long, she'll come crawling back to our doorstep!" As she smoothed down her temple hair with an ambiguous smile, she added, "Only, when she comes knocking again, she won't be the Lin family's young cousin of before; I suspect even the gatekeepers will give her the cold shoulder. It won't be too late for us to deal with her then..."

Yingsong responded with an assent, turned around to unlock the cabinet with a key, and pulled out a sandalwood box. Lifting the lid to peek inside, she saw a dazzling array of brilliant jewelry, with eight exquisitely delicate eight-treasure red-gold and ruby hairpins resting in perfect order. She closed the lid, preparing to take them out of the manor the next day to sell at a high price—but that is a matter for later.