Zhao Huanxi and Xu Nian’an arrived at Jiaxiang House. Yin Furen saw that both of them were dressed up and looked refreshed, like figures in a painting, which greatly honored her. She was very pleased, took them with her, and went to Lao Taitai’s Lingde Hall.

When the three arrived, they saw that people from the Fourth and Fifth Branch were already there. Originally, the hall was filled with laughter, but after the maidservant went to announce Yin Furen’s arrival, the laughter ceased.

Yin Furen led her son and daughter-in-law inside and paid respects to Lao Taitai.

This was the first time Xu Nian’an had seen the face of the step-Zumu who had punished her to copy the “Lessons for Women” on the second day of her entry into the family.

As a step-Zumu, Lao Taitai appeared much younger than Guogong Yé, probably not even sixty. She had a thin and clear face, with ordinary beauty, yet exuded a dignified and solemn demeanor. She wore a bun with streaks of white hair, fastened with a flat gold hairpin engraved with lotus patterns. Her attire consisted of a reddish-brown jacket with treasure-patterned flowers. On her wrists were two translucent emerald bracelets, while she held a string of Tridacna prayer beads in her hand.

The three of them paid their respects, and Lao Taitai asked them to sit down.

Originally, Zhao Shuxian and Zhao Shutong were sitting together, whispering to each other. When Xu Nian’an arrived, Zhao Shuxian’s eyes stuck to the pearl hairpin on Xu Nian’an’s head. Such big and round pearls, even she, a young lady from a noble family, had never seen before. While Xu Nian’an, from a humble background, had them, which made her extremely envious for a moment.

These pearls were originally part of Yin Furen’s dowry, taken from the palace during the chaos of the previous dynasty, and eventually came into the hands of the old Marquis of Jinling (Yin Furen’s father). The Old Marquis gave them to his beloved daughter as a priceless gift.

Feeling sorry for her third daughter, Zhao Jiazhen, Yin Furen gave this box of pearls to her as part of her dowry.

Zhao Jiazhen had always been reluctant to use them herself. Now that her younger brother had married a good wife who is also managing the household well, she took them out and gave them to her sister-in-law to help her maintain the family’s reputation.

When Yin Furen saw this set of accessories, she just sighed lightly and said nothing.

“Aiyo, look at how well-dressed Xi Ge’er and his wife are, the fabric and the craftsmanship are different from what we wear. This made everyone in the residence want to be in charge! Although they say being in charge makes even cats and dogs fed up after three years, it benefits the descendants! I heard that Xi Ge’er and his wife have each made a whole eight sets of new clothes, unlike us, who only have three sets.” Si Taitai chuckled sharply, saying to Wu Taitai and Lao Taitai.

Yin Furen glanced at Si Taitai and said, “Pomu has just come out of the Buddha hall, and Si Dimei is already eager to sow discord? It’s true that Xi Ge’er and his wife have made eight new sets of clothes, but the extra five sets were made with my own fabric and money, unrelated to the residence treasury.”

She wasn’t the type to swallow her pride. Previously, due to her husband and son’s lack of ambition, despite her strong personality, she had to lower her head. Now that her son was willing to show ambition and had gained Guogong Yé’s favor, wouldn’t her back straighten up? How could she endure *Si Taitai&’s provocations again?

Unfortunately, Si Taitai thought that with Lao Taitai’s support, the Fifth Branch had gained a powerful backer, which was equivalent to her having one as well. She spoke with a tough attitude, waving her fan, “You are in charge of the household expenses, and whether a thing is unrelated to the treasury is only clear to you. Naturally, whatever you say goes.”

Yin Furen also waved her fan and said, “Your words are not wrong, but my dowry is ample, and I don’t need to support my maiden family’s finances. There’s no need for me to make a few sets of clothes for my son and daughter-in-law and still have to rely on the residence treasury.”

Si Taitai’s face turned red immediately. She indeed had a small dowry and often had to find ways to support her maiden family because of her brother’s lack of ambition.

Shortly after, Er Taitai and San Taitai also brought the younger generation to pay their respects to Lao Taitai. Seeing the crowded room, Lao Taitai, feeling annoyed by all except for the few from the Fifth Branch who were her own flesh and blood, asked everyone to disperse.

The young couple walked with Yin Furen to the fork in the path leading to the front courtyard and Jiaxiang House. Xu Nian’an said to Yin Furen, “Mom, I’ll see Sanlang off.”

Yin Furen looked at her daughter-in-law, and the corner of her right eyebrow raised slightly: “Have you explained everything that needs to be explained?”

Xu Nian’an nodded subtly and calmly, “Everything has been explained.”

Yin Furen smiled and said, “Go ahead.”

Zhao Huanxi completely didn’t notice that his mother and wife had secretly communicated. Seeing that Yin Furen didn’t stop him to give him various instructions, he thought that she finally regarded him as an adult and happily went out.

✦

In Fifth Branch’s courtyard, Zhao Shuxian threw a tantrum, throwing tea cups and pushing flower vases, making a mess on the floor.

Wu Taitai hurried over and exclaimed, “Little brat, you’ll be married in a few months. What are you doing?”

Zhao Shuxian sat on the bed and cried, “What marriage? I’m supposed to be a young lady from the Guogong Residence, but I don’t even have a set of luxurious jewelry. I’m worse off than Xu Nian’an, who comes from a humble background! Instead of being embarrassed by my in-laws’ relatives in the future, I might as well not get married at all!”

Wu Taitai hurried up to cover her mouth, scolding gently, “You don’t marry someone as good as Lu Gongzi, do you expect to marry a deity? Stop talking nonsense. So what if Xu Nian’an has jewelry? In terms of prospects, Zhao Huanxi can’t even compare to Lu Gongzi. You have to look at the big picture.”

There was nothing she could do. Yin Furen, as the eldest legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Jinling, had a high status and was greatly favored at home. When she married into the Guogong Residence, her dowry was so grand that it was carried for several blocks. Among them sisters-in-law, she was the wealthiest, even surpassing Lao Taitai. She was also skilled at managing household affairs. Over the years, although she had only given birth to one son, the money she had accumulated was already countless. Who wouldn’t envy her? But what could envy do? That was someone else’s dowry.

“I don’t care, I just don’t want to!” Of course, Zhao Shuxian didn’t truly not want to marry Lu Feng. She was just feeling emotionally unbalanced.

Zhao Shuxian wiped away her tears, looked up with red and swollen eyes and said to Lao Taitai, “That He Gongzi, his mother favors Fourth Branch’s Shutong, but his Zumu and Gumu favor Xu Nian’an’s sister. Mom, can’t you think of a way to help me get a set of Xu Nian’an’s headdresses? I don’t want anyone else, I just want the set of pearls she wore today.”

Wu Taitai was in a dilemma. “This…”

“Mom, when I marry into the Lu Family, my daily social interactions will be with the wives and daughters of officials and nobles. My reputation reflects on you and Er Ge, right? I refuse to believe that Xu Nian’an’s sister’s lifelong happiness isn’t worth a set of headdresses to her.” Zhao Shuxian insisted anxiously.

“I’m afraid that if Da Taitai finds out…”

“What if she does? It’s her daughter-in-law who gave it away. If she wants to settle scores, she can only do so with her own daughter-in-law! Mom~”

Wu Taitai couldn’t resist her earnest plea and nodded, saying, “I’ll think of a way.”

✦

Zhao Huanxi arrived at the Marquis of Yong’an Residence by carriage and asked Zhiyi to call for the gatekeeper to inform Qian Ming.

After a while, Qian Ming came out to greet him. Seeing the carriage from the Jing Guogong Residence parked in front of the gate, he came over and knocked on the carriage door, saying, “Lao Di, get off the carriage. Who goes out to play in a carriage? Aren’t you feeling stifled?”

Zhi’er opened the carriage door, and Zhao Huanxi bowed as he stepped out of the carriage.

Qian Ming, turning around and seeing him, jumped back as if he had seen a ghost, exclaiming, “Why are you dressed so nicely? Will I still look presentable next to He Xiong and others with you looking like this?”

Zhao Huanxi lowered his head and looked at himself, innocently spreading his arms, “Isn’t it just a change of clothes? Why is Qian Xiong reacting like this?”

“Right, right, you just changed into new clothes. I should go change into my best outfit too.” Qian Ming pulled him towards the residence. “Wait for me for a moment.”

Zhao Huanxi initially thought Qian Ming would lead him to the guest hall in the front courtyard. However, after passing through a hanging flower gate, they unexpectedly headed towards the back courtyard. He stopped and asked, “Where is Qian Xiong taking me?”

The back/inner courtyard is where the family of the household lives. Usually when guests visit the residence they'll be in the front/outer courtyard.

“I’ll change my clothes, and you can wait for me in my study for a moment,” Qian Ming said.

“If your study is in the inner courtyard, it’s not convenient for me, an outsider, to enter,” Zhao Huanxi replied.

“It’s fine. That’s my own courtyard. Besides my wives, there’s no one else inside.”

“This isn’t proper etiquette,” Zhao Huanxi said. He noticed a garden not far away, pointed there and suggested, “I’ll wait for you there.”

Unable to persuade him otherwise, Qian Ming let go and said, “Alright, I’ll be out soon.”

Zhao Huanxi nodded, watching him hurry away. Then, he turned and walked into the garden, not going far, just admiring the flowers and trees near the entrance.

At the other end of the garden entrance, Qingxiang Junzhu entered the garden with four maidservants, looking furious. She held a short whip made of colored threads and lashed out at the flowers and plants along the way, causing petals to scatter in disarray.

君主 (Junzhu) - lit. County Princess; Princess of Second Rank, usually daughter of a Prince/Princess (of first rank), which will make a Junzhu be the granddaughter of an Emperor.

“Junzhu, Junzhu, please don’t be angry. If Qingshou Junzhu sees this later, she’ll report it to Wangfei.” The maid following behind her whispered, trying to advise her.

“What does it matter?” Qingxiang Junzhu stopped and said angrily, “I thought my parents were so easy to persuade as they allowed me to come visit the capital alone. But it turns out it was for my Gugu (father’s sister; aunt) and Biaojie to persuade me? They even wanted me to meet that Xie Hengliang, a wastrel who indulges in pleasure. There’s no way I’m going!”

She angrily picked a perfectly blooming purple hydrangea and was about to tear it apart when she turned and inadvertently glanced across the garden. Suddenly, her body froze in place.

Standing under the purple wisteria tree near the entrance of the garden was a young gentleman dressed in purple with a golden headcrown. His skin was fair, and his hair was black. He was slender and upright. He alternated between touching the wisteria and smelling the jasmine, carefully appreciating the flowers without even glancing in her direction.

Qingxiang Junzhu, however, was captivated by the sight. She had never seen such a handsome young man before. He was as beautiful as a painting, a beauty that could only be seen in the dreams of a young girl in her boudoir.

She stood there, gazing foolishly at Zhao Huanxi, until Qian Ming appeared at the entrance of the garden and called for Zhao Huanxi, and the two of them disappeared together through the Moon Gate. Only then did she suddenly snap out of her trance.

She looked down at the purple hydrangea still pinched in her hand, then turned abruptly to look at the maid following behind her, asking, “Did you see the young man in purple across the garden just now?”

The maid, Suwei, nodded, “One saw him.”

Qingxiang Junzhu breathed a sigh of relief and muttered to herself, “I thought I was dreaming…”

After a pause, she quickly instructed her maid, “Hurry, go and see where Qian Ming took him! What’s the name of the young man in purple? Which family’s son? I want to know everything!”

⟡ Aewoo’s Ramble ⟡

The phrase 'attracting bees and butterflies' in the snippet at the top of the chapter is from a classic Chinese idiom, 招蜂引蝶 (zhāofēng-yǐndié):

Literally, it means flower whose fragrance and color are so potent that insects flock to it.

Metaphorically: It describes a person (usually a woman) who is so attractive or flirtatious—whether intentionally or not—that they constantly attracts the attention of the opposite sex.