Chapter 138

Chapter 138: Tang Rong Gets Bitten by a Dog Again

To most ears, Tao Yi Ran’s zither music would have been beautiful, but to Xin An and Tang Mo it sounded especially grating.

Before they could decide how to make the noise stop, the little dog Meatball barreled into the courtyard and faced the neighbors, barking nonstop: “Woof, woof, woof!” Then again: “Woof, woof, woof!”

Perhaps feeling that barking was useless, it dashed out of Qiu Shi Courtyard and ran straight into Chun Hua Courtyard. Tang Mo immediately grew interested and said with relish, “This dog hasn’t eaten for nothing.”

The zither from next door stopped at once. Screams and curses followed. Chun Yang and Chun Lv sprinted over and, just as the neighbors were about to lay hands on Meatball, they rushed in and scooped it up. The maid across the way fumed and snapped: “How do you people keep a dog? It barged in and barked in our courtyard. If it frightens our Eldest Young Madam, can you afford the consequences?”

Chun Yang shoved the dog into Chun Lv’s arms, planted her hands on her hips, and fired back: “The dog was asleep. How were we to know you would pluck at a zither in the middle of the night and disturb it? It barked a while in our yard and you ignored it, and now you blame us?”

The other maid refused to back down and said sharply: “What good dog goes to sleep before dark? A lazy thing like that ought to be killed early.”

Chun Yang strode two steps forward and sneered: “What decent person plays the zither at night? Someone who doesn’t know better might think the King of Hell has come to claim a life. My dog has good fortune and sleeps early. If you’re not convinced, come keep vigil for it.”

The maids on both sides had long disliked each other, so they seized the chance to quarrel. It was at this moment that Tang Rong returned. As the household’s Heir Apparent, he held considerable authority; the instant he spoke, both sides fell silent, then began presenting their complaints.

The people of Chun Hua Courtyard insisted that Qiu Shi Courtyard could not control its dog and had let it rush in and frighten the Eldest Young Madam.

The people of Qiu Shi Courtyard retorted that Chun Hua Courtyard played the zither at night and frightened the dog in their yard.

Neither side would yield. Having watched long enough, Xin An drifted out unhurriedly and said, “Chun Yang, Chun Lv, go stand at the gate of Chun Hua Courtyard and apologize to the Eldest Young Madam. Covered in dog hair as you are, do not go in and risk bumping into her. And mind your mouths; is the Eldest Young Madam someone you can talk about so casually?”

She added crisply: “Each of you is fined one month’s pay.”

Then she said, “Apologize to the Heir Apparent as well. To behave improperly in front of him, your courage is growing by the day.”

The two obeyed her orders, then withdrew to Qiu Shi Courtyard. Tang Mo came out, still damp from washing, and said to Tang Rong, “I was rinsing off just now and did not have time to stop the dog. It offended Sister-in-law. I beg Big Brother not to blame us.”

Tang Rong forced a smile, preserving the magnanimity of an Heir Apparent: “It is a trifling matter. No harm done.”

Tang Mo cupped his hands and said, “Big Brother is generous. I will find a chain and tie the dog up so it does not run about in the future.”

Tang Rong inclined his head slightly. His gaze slid over Xin An, then shifted to the maids of Chun Hua Courtyard as he said, “A small matter has stirred the household until even the chickens and dogs are unsettled. Apologize to the Second Young Madam.”

The maids could not understand why they ought to apologize to the Second Young Madam, but since their master had spoken, they dared not disobey and offered their apologies. Xin An merely replied, “Mm,” and said nothing more. She turned and went back through the gate, and Tang Mo followed after her.

Before entering the bedchamber, he gave instructions with a grin: “Tomorrow give Meatball a chicken leg. Poor thing nearly took a beating in the middle of the night.”

Auntie Wang laughed and said that Meatball was clever, only too rash, and that more training would set it right.

As for the matter of fining Chun Yang and Chun Lv their monthly pay, no one brought it up again.

Under the night sky, after its fright, Meatball was coaxed by Tang Mo into playing again. It flopped on its back, exposing its belly and waiting for a rub, yipping happily. Tang Mo rubbed Meatball’s head and, smiling, asked Xin An, “What do you think about being bitten by a dog?”

“What?”

Xin An did not catch his meaning at first. Tang Mo glanced toward the neighboring courtyard, then said with a meaningful air, “Bitten by a dog?”

Xin An understood at once and said, “Excellent. I will also prepare a little surprise for the one playing the zither.” [Disgusting; what rotten luck.]

The two exchanged a smile. At that very moment, Tao Yi Ran could not smile at all. Facing Tang Rong, she felt guilty and explained softly that she had played the zither on a sudden itch to practice.

Anger simmered in Tang Rong’s heart. [What proper principal wife plays the zither in the middle of the night? She is not some courtesan on a flower boat selling laughter.]

Once he thought of that, he could not help letting his mind run on. He decided that the Tao Family’s Grand Matron was indeed lacking and that Tao Yi Ran had no sense at all. [A legitimate daughter of an official family learning such things unfit for the front stage—if word gets out, how will people not scoff?] As for how he had once praised Tao Yi Ran’s outstanding zither skills many times, he would absolutely never admit it now.

Unsurprisingly, that night Tang Rong slept in Concubine Yue’s rooms again, leaving Tao Yi Ran to weep in silence.

When Tang Gang heard the news, apart from taking a few deep breaths to calm himself, there was nothing he could do. At present, major affairs could not proceed without the Tao Family’s support. However dissatisfied he was with Tao Yi Ran, he could only endure it.

Two days later, the weather turned even cooler. Early autumn had crept in. The streets grew livelier, and peddlers no longer feared the scorching sun as they shouldered their poles laden with trinkets and wandered through the alleys.

That day, Tang Rong once again visited the Crown Prince’s Manor. When he came out, his expression was composed and his eyes held a trace of pride. Perhaps he was daydreaming about a future meteoric rise, for he failed to notice the two large wolf-dogs that darted out of a nearby alley.

Ever since he had taken a beating for nothing the last time, he had traveled with bodyguards. After a stretch of peaceful days, however, his vigilance had relaxed, and the two bodyguards were not as alert as before. They only scrambled to intercept when the wolf-dogs were already upon them.

Alas, men can be stopped; dogs cannot. One of the wolf-dogs lunged and knocked Tang Rong to the ground, then opened its bloody jaws to bite. With his hands thrown up to shield his face, Tang Rong felt a searing, drilling pain. Shouts, screams, and the yelps of dogs in pain rang out in quick succession.

“Second Younger Brother Tang, there is turmoil ahead, let us take a look,” said Zhuang Shi.

That day Zhuang Shi and Tang Mo were patrolling the streets. They followed the noise forward and dispersed the onlookers before stepping in. Before either of them could ask what had happened, a panicked cry went up: “Second Young Master, hurry and save the Heir Apparent!”

Tang Mo stepped forward and exclaimed, “Big Brother, what happened?”

The bodyguards were terrified. If anything happened to the Heir Apparent, would they still be allowed to live?

They babbled over one another in explanation. Tang Mo grasped the gist, stifled his laughter, and put on a worried face as he said, “You mean two wolf-dogs rushed out of the alley and bit my brother?” He looked around and asked, “Where are the wolf-dogs?”

“They ran.”

Tang Mo no longer wasted time. He pulled down the arm Tang Rong had raised to shield his face and gasped again, letting the onlookers see Tang Rong’s miserable state and identify who he was. Only then did he summon the bodyguards to carry Tang Rong to a physician.

Once they were gone, the onlookers began to chatter. Someone said, “Was that the Heir Apparent of the marquisate?”

“The Heir Apparent bitten by dogs in the street. Now that is something new.”

“I have seen him before. He is the Heir Apparent of Marquis Wei Yuan’s household.”

“Hey, I heard he was beaten while walking at night before this. Why is he so unlucky?”

“Once is one thing. But this again?”

“Was it like this before too?”

“I never heard of it.”

An older woman carrying a vegetable basket said, “It only started after he married. Do you think his wife is jinxing him?”