Chapter 198

Chapter 198: My heavens, is it true?

Tao Wei lost again tonight. By now he had gambled away every property in his hands, squeezed a large sum of silver from his mother, and even pilfered his wife’s dowry, losing the lot.

Seeing familiar faces, he called out with forced cheer: “Brother Zhu, Brother Zhao, Brother Ma?”

The sight of acquaintances eased the tightness in his chest. Zhu You glanced toward the doorway Tao Wei had emerged from, then smiled and said: “So Brother Tao is enjoying himself here.”

Because Tao Wei was Tao Yi Ran’s elder brother, Zhu You instinctively treated him with deference, even a touch of ingratiation: [If he could win Tao Wei’s help, would it not make approaching Tao Yi Ran far easier?]

Having lost silver, Tao Wei naturally wanted a pretext to explain himself at home. The instant he saw Zhu You, an idea took shape. With each man harboring his own designs, they fell in together and continued toward the brothel.

The next morning, their tail found an opening to report to Tang Mo. Tang Mo gave a short, scornful laugh and said: “I went to such lengths to lure Zhu You into the game, and it turns out he is eager to leap in himself. I hardly need to lift a finger.” [More important, he is running around with two sycophantic friends; with those two beside him, how could things end well for Zhu You?] [And now he has entangled himself with Tao Wei. Of all people, I know Tao Wei best; he would never let these three off lightly. Tsk, tsk, tsk.]

He said: “Keep watching.”

He half wanted to hurry back and tell Xin An, then thought better of it: [So long as Zhu You shows up on time on the family’s day off when we all go out together, the process does not matter.]

Today was the Autumn Banquet. Xin An dressed early; it was another outing for all the ladies of the household. Madam Wang said there was nothing special to instruct: “In the end, every banquet turns into a match-making affair. If you are interested, join the bustle; if you find it dull, go chat with those you know.”

Xin An smiled and nodded. Today she cared for nothing except the Zhang family’s young madam.

The Autumn Banquet was held at Prince Cheng’s country villa. The grounds were spacious, and every chrysanthemum variety on the market had been gathered there. There were chrysanthemum dishes and chrysanthemum pastries, and even the maids weaving through the guests wore clothing embroidered with chrysanthemums. The whole scene pleased the eye.

She had barely sat when she spotted Madam Liao and greeted her with a smile. Bathed in a sea of gold, Madam Liao said: “They call it the Autumn Banquet, but it is practically a Chrysanthemum Banquet. I hear most of today’s dishes include chrysanthemum.”

Xin An asked with a smile: “Have the chrysanthemums in Sister Xu’s courtyard all bloomed?”

Madam Liao moved quickly. After she, Xin An, and Lin Yao met the other day, she had people buy a great many flowers and set them throughout her own courtyard: “They have bloomed. Whenever I have a spare moment, I go look at them. It is quite a pleasure.”

“Speaking of which, there is another matter,” she added.

The Liao family’s third branch had grumbled quite a bit about her flower-buying. Because the blooms were only for her own enjoyment and not a single pot appeared anywhere but her courtyard, they assumed she bought them to help the household’s young men secure marriages. With a thin smile she said: “They do think highly of themselves.”

Now, Madam Liao treated Xin An as a vent for Liao family frustrations: [Saying it all to Xin An, even if Xin An hardly reacted, left her much more at ease.]

She said: “I can return your ten thousand taels in half a month.”

Xin An said it was not urgent: “Our marquisate has a holding outside the capital with many jasmines. When spring comes next year, I will send you a few pots. They are beautiful and fragrant.”

“That is wonderful. Oh? Your nail dye looks excellent.”

Xin An immediately recommended Physician Zhao: “Her skills are superb, and she uses fine ingredients. Look at my complexion. Silver should be spent on oneself. Shortchange anyone you must, but never yourself.”

Studying her closely and learning that Xin An regularly pampered herself at home and took bird’s nest, caring for herself meticulously, Madam Liao felt a wave of regret: “How foolish I was. I had so much dowry.”

All of it had been poured into her husband’s household accounts, and she had not even earned goodwill in return.

Now, Xin An could not bear to see anyone live as she herself had in her previous life. Besides, she and Madam Liao got on so well that being with her was even more comfortable than being with Lin Yao. She said: “Send for her to come to your house. After one session you will be hooked. I also know a few excellent jewelry and cosmetics shops. When the time comes, let’s go look around together.”

With genuine cheer, Madam Liao said: “All right. Make the invitation, and I will certainly come.”

From a distance, Lin Yao had noticed how lively their conversation was. At her side, Li Yu Yan withdrew her gaze and said softly: “The Tang family’s Second Young Madam can actually talk so well with Madam Liao. Did they not meet only at the Water Blossom Banquet? It has been such a short time, yet they look like old acquaintances.”

In Li Yu Yan’s view, these were two grand merchant families: one the daughter of the Lin Prefecture Grand Secretary, the other the daughter of a Huai River salt merchant. And Liao Zhi held substantial power.

Lin Yao smiled and said: “They have similar backgrounds and comparable circumstances, both merchant daughters married into powerful capital families. Naturally they share many topics and perspectives.”

Xin An was working hard to join and adapt to a new social circle, but she already had a circle of her own. In the capital it was limited; in Huai River her network had been full of wealthy merchants.

So it was for Madam Liao as well.

Li Yu Yan smiled, but the smile did not reach her eyes. Xin An had not been in the capital long and had first met her, yet grew close to Lin Yao. This left her faintly displeased: [She subconsciously felt Xin An ought to orbit around her and find ways to approach her.]

What she did not know was that, in her previous life, Xin An had spent a long time serving tea and water before her without ever being valued, currying favor to no effect and swallowing countless grievances: [How could she possibly cling to her in this life? Prince Cheng’s residence had power, but it was not the only power in the capital.]

Lin Yao invited politely: “Shall we go over and say a few words?”

Li Yu Yan declined, for the ladies of Duke Xiang’s household had arrived. Their entrance drew many glances; quite a few people knew the tale of Huang Wei driving Zhu You out of the house.

Xin An also looked up. At a glance she judged that the young lady in pale yellow at the back was Huang Wei. She was not tall, petite and delicate, gentle in manner, hardly the sort who looked capable of beating her husband out of the house: [Truly, appearances can be deceiving.]

“No matter how you look, she does not seem fierce,” Madam Liao said. She too had heard of Huang Wei’s exploits. “To throw a husband out and still attend a banquet afterward, one must either be extraordinarily capable or have a natal family one can rely on. She seems so kind.”

Xin An said quietly: “If one were not pushed to desperation, who would choose to be called a shrew?”

After exchanging a few words with the ladies of Duke Xiang’s household, Lin Yao came over to Xin An and asked with a smile: “Why are you not off admiring the flowers?”

Xin An laughed and said: “Everyone has already visited Sister Lin’s Qian Ya Garden. With such jade before us, today’s flowers lose a bit of their luster.”

“You and your sweet mouth,” Lin Yao said as she sat. “From afar I saw the two of you talking away. What is the topic?”

“Skincare and nail dye,” Xin An said, showing her nails. “How is it? Does it look good?”

“It does,” Lin Yao replied. Her own nails were dyed a delicate pink that made her fingers look soft and tender, while Xin An’s were more striking. “Was this done by Physician Zhao?”

“Sister Lin knows her too?”

“Physician Zhao serves quite a few ladies,” Lin Yao said. “She is skilled and discreet. How could people not seek her out?”

Just then, an exclamation drifted over from nearby: “My heavens, is it true?”

All three turned at once. The Zhang family’s young madam was speaking with great excitement, her features animated, while the lady who had exclaimed covered her lips with a kerchief as if she had heard something beyond belief.