Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Why Haven’t You Left?

“Cut to pieces,” Chun Zhi said, pointing at the pile of rags on the floor. She had not had time to burn them.

He closed his eyes for a moment and said: “Go find me a clean set of clothes.”

He ordered her around so easily that Chun Zhi almost thought she was his little maid. She replied: “I do not have men’s clothes here. When it is daylight, I will go buy you some.”

She waited, but he did not answer. She turned and saw he had fainted again.

Chun Zhi checked his breath. Even unconscious, it was steadier than before. She finally relaxed. Though he had grabbed her neck and called her shameless, he had also driven off Zhang Hu. [He is not a good man, but he is not a great villain either.]

He had already woken once, so his condition would likely not get worse in the second half of the night. Chun Zhi carried her chair into the storeroom where the soybeans were kept and hid her banknotes in a jar. She dozed in the chair for two hours, then got up to grind beans and make tofu.

It was still raining outside, though lighter. She took an umbrella and went to the nearby clothing shop.

Shopkeeper Qian San Niang knew Chun Zhi well. The shop was not open yet, but Chun Zhi called until she came yawning to the door. Qian San Niang said: “Well now, Chun Zhi, a rare guest. Buying new clothes so early? Planning to dress up and beat the top scholar’s wife in looks?”

Linshui Town was not big. Any lively news spread across town within half a day. Qian San Niang had of course heard that Top Scholar Lu had come home in glory with his new wife and had thrown away his child bride.

“What are you saying?” Chun Zhi answered. “A relative came to stay with me yesterday. He does not have a decent set of clothes. I am buying for him.”

She did not dare say she picked up an injured man last night.

“If it is for a relative, come in and choose,” Qian San Niang said. At that, the gossip light in her eyes dimmed.

Chun Zhi went straight to the men’s clothes. Coarse cloth was the cheapest, but with that noble look of his, coarse cloth did not fit. She picked a round-collar robe in indigo blue.

Qian San Niang’s eyes lit again as she asked: “Buying men’s clothes?”

“Mm,” Chun Zhi said with a nod, and kept choosing.

“How tall is he, and what build?” Qian San Niang asked.

Chun Zhi pictured the man. He was tall with a strong waist. Even covered in wounds, he did not look weak. She said slowly: “About eight chi tall, not fat or thin, pretty strong. Will this fit? How much silver?”

Qian San Niang said: “Eight chi? This one will fit. But it is not cheap. At least two taels of silver. We are neighbors, so I will not haggle you up. If it were someone else, I would ask five.”

Chun Zhi gritted her teeth and said: “Two taels it is. Wrap it up, and add a set of inner clothes.”

“All right,” Qian San Niang said, working fast to wrap everything. “For the inner clothes, just half a string of cash.”

Chun Zhi paid with broken silver and carried the parcel home. Qian San Niang walked her to the door. After Chun Zhi left, Qian San Niang frowned and muttered: “Wait. Chun Zhi was a girl the Lu family took in. Where would she get a relative?”

Back home, Chun Zhi pushed the door open gently and saw the man still asleep. She set the new clothes by his pillow and spoke whether he could hear or not: “I bought you clothes. When you wake up, put them on and leave right away.”

The sleeping man did not react. Chun Zhi stood by the bed for a moment. Seeing no sign he would wake, she went out, pushed her cart, and set up her tofu stall.

“Ai, Chun Zhi is here,” Auntie Zhang, who sold pancakes, said with pity in her eyes. “People said you would not set up today and wanted to take your spot. I would not let them. I kept it for you.”

Chun Zhi said with thanks: “Thank you, Auntie Zhang.”

The moment she opened her stall, a line formed. Business was even better than usual. With quick hands, Chun Zhi cut tofu and wrapped it in lotus leaves for weighing. White steam curled up, making her red lips and white teeth stand out and her almond eyes glow.

Travelers passing by could not help sighing that the most famous Tofu Beauty for miles and miles truly lived up to the name.

The line was long today. Now and then an old regular asked: “Chun Zhi, are you really never going back to the Lu Clan?”

“Is it that the top scholar’s wife cannot tolerate you?”

Someone else said: “If you and Top Scholar Lu have split, that is fine by me. Otherwise where would we buy tofu this good?”

People took it as a bit of fun and said all kinds of things. Chun Zhi only smiled and said as always: “Come often.”

When they saw she did not cry or make a scene and showed no bitterness, there was no fun left to be had. They drifted away little by little.

Chun Zhi kept working. When the tofu was almost sold out, two aunties started arguing at the front: “I came first. Why are you cutting in line?”

“I was clearly here first.”

Both women were near fifty yet dressed in bright flowers. They were Linshui Town’s most famous matchmakers, Matchmaker Li and Matchmaker Zhao. Because Lu Jing Yun had stayed away for years, both had visited Chun Zhi before, eager to arrange her a new match. So she knew them.

Chun Zhi said: “No need to argue. There are exactly two pieces left. One for each of you.”

“I will take both,” Matchmaker Li said, stepping close. “Chun Zhi, before, when I wanted to find you a husband, you said you were waiting for Top Scholar Lu. Now he has married someone else. You should remarry, right? Gentryman Zhou from the south of the city has always liked you. He is willing to offer five hundred taels in betrothal gifts and take you as his second wife.”

Matchmaker Zhao bumped Matchmaker Li away with an elbow and hurried to say: “With Chun Zhi’s looks, what kind of husband could she not find? Young Master Chu from the east side has admired you for a long time. He is twenty-six and not yet married. He turns his nose up at other girls and has eyes only for you.”

Chun Zhi did not answer. She wrapped the last two pieces and handed them over, took the money, then pushed her cart home. Many people had bought tofu today. She sold out before noon, just in time to go home and cook herself a bowl of noodles for lunch.

The two matchmakers chased her all the way, talking over each other about how good Gentryman Zhou and Young Master Chu were. Chun Zhi pushed the cart fast. Once she reached the tofu workshop, she shut the door at once, leaving their chattering outside. No matter how they called, she would not open.

After a long time, Matchmaker Li and Matchmaker Zhao left while still arguing.

Chun Zhi leaned against the door and let out a long breath. She looked toward the small room and saw a young man in an indigo robe standing by the window like a jade tree. The shabby wooden window frame could not hide how good he looked, and it made her tiny tofu workshop feel grand.

Hearing the noise outside, he lifted his eyes toward her. His eyes were black as ink, deep and unreadable.

Chun Zhi walked to the window with a slight frown and said: “Why haven’t you left?”

Maybe no one had ever spoken to him like that. Surprise flickered in his eyes as he asked: “You are chasing me away?”

Chun Zhi said: “Is that not obvious?”