Chapter 131

Chapter 131: An Interesting Second Prince’s Consort

Xin An was used to speaking in circles and leaving half unsaid, so she was not quite accustomed to the Second Prince’s Consort’s bluntness. As a superior, the consort could not be expected to adapt to others; it was Xin An who had to change her way of speaking lest the future empress find her dull.

Xin An explained with a small, open smile: “As you know, my mother-in-law is a successor wife. When she faces my elder sister-in-law, she has certain scruples, so she is not as direct as she is with me. With me, she says what should be said, and scolds what ought to be scolded.”

The Second Prince’s Consort gave a chilly snort and said with authority: “A successor wife is still the legitimate Marchioness. She also raised Tang Rong, so she ought to enjoy the same rights as Tang Rong’s birth mother. Your mother-in-law is simply too hesitant.” She was still hoping Tao Yi Ran would be worn down in the marquis’s household; she had no desire to see her live well. She recalled how Tao Yi Ran, when flirting with the Second Prince, had implied that the prince’s consort made her own husband suffer, painting her as a shrew. The consort found such affectation loathsome and, in her anger, [wished she could have stabbed her on the spot].

Xin An smiled and said tactfully: “If my mother-in-law had Your Ladyship’s mettle, the earliest trouble would never have happened.”

The Second Prince’s Consort arched a brow and asked point-blank: “You truly are not angry?”

Xin An replied honestly: “If I am speaking for the sake of appearances, then of course I am not angry. If I am speaking from the heart, even now I feel like giving her two slaps, though I never had any designs on her man.”

She continued with candor: “I chose not to cling to the matter, first because I must consider my natal family. The lot of merchants is not easy, and the marquis’s household is the highest gate we can possibly enter. Second, I do not wish to embarrass my husband. Although our match came about by a twist of fate, we share similar tastes and temperaments, and we are comfortable with one another. He treats me with great consideration, and I ought to repay him in turn.”

To the Second Prince’s Consort, this at last sounded like the truth, and her mood improved. This was how a person ought to think. Whose man could be taken and she would be indifferent? Even if one felt men were not important, was one’s pride not important?

She teased, half laughing: “I have seen you twice and both times you praised Tang Mo. Is he truly that good?”

Xin An’s eyes brimmed with amusement as she said: “He is quite good.”

The Second Prince’s Consort smiled and said: “After the Water Blossom Banquet, the Second Prince mentioned him as well, saying he is a man of true temperament. This sweltering summer is finally passing. Next month our manor will hold a Moon Inviting Banquet. You and your husband should come and add to the merriment.”

Xin An rose to thank her, then laughed lightly and said: “I have not been in the capital long, but I have already heard of the Moon Inviting Banquet at the Second Prince’s Manor. I am told there are many gifted guests, and even some who can perform illusion arts. The thought set my heart racing. I never imagined Your Ladyship would invite me. I am overjoyed.”

She added with a self-deprecating smile: “Only, may we as husband and wife be permitted to simply watch and enjoy? We truly have no special skills worthy of a stage.”

The Second Prince’s Consort paused, then burst into laughter and said: “Did you think I invited you to perform?”

She waved away the worry and continued with a grin: “Rest easy. First, you will not be asked to go on stage. Second, this year there will not be anything to watch. Last year, that one… you heard about it, yes?”

She recounted last year’s Moon Inviting Banquet: the elderly father of the sitting Grand Secretary had two cups of wine and insisted on performing a trick to pluck the moon. At more than sixty years old, he stubbornly climbed the wall to perform ritual magic, shouting for the moon to come down by itself. In the end, the dignified Grand Secretary had to coax him down personally and even carried him back on his back, for which he threw out his waist and was bedridden for seven days.

Xin An lowered her head, smiling: “A pity it happened last year. We will not get to see it again.”

The consort’s story reminded Xin An of Huaijiang’s Rong family old master. Xin An said with amusement: “Though he is a genius in trade, he is convinced he is an expert in exorcism and ghost catching. To prove it, he often carried a white lantern to wander among the graves at midnight, set up arrays at home, and even refined pills which he would invite friends to try.”

The Second Prince’s Consort, her interest caught, asked quickly: “Did he take a master, or did he teach himself? And how were those pills?”

Xin An replied: “He said he met a master while traveling for business, and after returning he became absorbed in it. As for the pills, no one dared to take them. His son later came up with a solution. Now the old master no longer performs ritual magic at home and no longer goes to the graves.”

The Second Prince’s Consort leaned forward and asked with a spark in her eyes: “What solution?”

Xin An laughed and said: “They fulfilled his wish. They gave him a calming draught, and when he fell asleep they carried him to an empty graveyard and left a note, saying that the ghosts he had summoned invited him down to drink. He was nearly frightened sick and never went again.”

The Second Prince’s Consort found it very amusing. Reading her interest, Xin An told two more anecdotes. Seeing the consort’s interest undiminished, Xin An realized she likely enjoyed such tales. Thinking further, she remembered the consort had not grown up in the capital and was said to have led troops in battle, so her tastes were unlike those of ordinary noblewomen. Fortunately, Xin An had lived decades more than most in a different life; she had heard many strange stories and told them with ease. Originally the consort had wished only to learn about Tao Yi Ran’s situation, but now she found Xin An herself somewhat intriguing.

The consort said with a satisfied nod: “You know many amusing things and tell them vividly. It suits your background as a salt merchant’s daughter.” She meant no slight, merely spoke frankly, and then asked: “I have heard that before you married you even helped manage the business?”

Xin An answered modestly: “Out of interest, and with my father’s indulgence, I studied for some time.”

The Second Prince’s Consort laughed: “In that, you and I are somewhat alike.” She herself was keen on weapons and martial pursuits, and with her father’s favor she had even taken the field. She asked with genuine curiosity: “Your father and mother treat you well?”

Xin An nodded, her eyes crinkling as she said: “I am the eldest daughter. From birth my parents cherished me. Later I had a younger brother, yet their affection for me did not diminish. They even made my younger brother listen to me in all things. I had been back only two months, and they already sent many local specialties from Huaijiang, afraid I would not like the food in the capital.”

The Second Prince’s Consort nodded in approval. She disliked people from sprawling families who schemed and plotted, who could not speak three sentences without angling for favors from her or trying to use her hand to accomplish their aims.

Seeing that they got on, she said with easy generosity: “We seem to speak well together. I liked the tea you gave me last time. I have not yet sent a return gift. Is there anything you want?”

Xin An shook her head and answered sincerely: “Merely entering the gates of the Second Prince’s Manor today, I have already gained much. It is I who should thank Your Ladyship.”

The Second Prince’s Consort asked with interest: “How so?”

Xin An said frankly: “Everyone in the capital knows I not only come from a merchant family, but that on my wedding day the groom was switched from the marquis’s Heir Apparent to the second son. Many look down on me because of it and wait to see me make a fool of myself. That I can enter the Second Prince’s Manor today already borrows Your Ladyship’s light. Outsiders who cannot guess the truth will treat me a bit more politely.”

The Second Prince’s Consort laughed and said: “Since that is the case, I should send you something extra, to lend you even more of my light.”

Xin An rose to thank her. Sensing their talk had reached a natural end, she took her leave. The Second Prince’s Consort did not press her to stay, only told her that she could occasionally send in a visiting card, and that whenever she had time, she would receive her. Xin An understood at once. [So this “occasionally” means whenever there is news that does not favor Tao Yi Ran.] It was plain that Tao Yi Ran’s attempt to seduce the Second Prince had offended the consort deeply.