Not long after Madam Zhuo's funeral had passed, the concubine-born son she had raised held only a minor position as a collator in the Jixianyuan, and the wife he married was not of high social standing either. Thus, the arrangements for social formalities were all handled by Wang Shi. After days of busyness, she had genuinely exhausted her energy.
"Greetings, Aunt." Ming Baoqing bowed to Wang Shi, and Ming Baojin followed her sister's example.
Wang Shi gestured for them to sit, looking at Ming Baojin as she said, "Fourth Mistress is here too? She and Xiao Qi were born in the same year, weren't they? She looks half a head shorter than Xiao Qi."
Ming Baoqing still remembered that Ming Baojin's birth mother was beautiful and petite, and Ming Baojin resembled her greatly.
Cutting off the drifting thoughts, Ming Baoqing said softly, "Aunt is tall, and Xiao Qi's height comes from you."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Wang Shi shifted her posture to make herself more comfortable and had a maid take Ming Baojin behind the screen to the tea table for some snacks.
"How have you been these past few days?" The question was somewhat piercing, but Wang Shi simply gazed at Ming Baoqing, as if setting the stage, waiting for her to eagerly pour out her complaints.
"Having a roof over my head is already a blessing." Ming Baoqing paused before asking, "How has Uncle been lately?"
"What could be good or bad for him? After all, he was impeached several times by the Censorate. Fortunately, your uncle has always been diligent and dedicated to his duties, worthy of the nation and his conscience. Those memorials were all filled with far-fetched accusations based on hearsay. The Sage, discerning and perceptive, only issued a mild reprimand."
Wang Shi's words sounded as though she were downplaying the matter, but her tone carried a strange and twisted quality. With a new emperor on the throne, and one who employed such ruthless methods, who wouldn't fear becoming the example made to warn others?
If Ming Baoqing were Wang Shi, she would likely also resent a relative like Marquis Ming—someone whose mind was unclear yet daring enough to act recklessly.
"Fortunately, he serves at the Imperial College, where at most he is just a teaching official. The scheming and intrigue there are far less than in other government offices. The position of Vice Director typically has two appointees. The day before yesterday, a young gentleman was appointed, sharing equal status with your uncle." Wang Shi snorted coldly, but seeing Ming Baoqing's uneasy expression, she continued slowly, "Still, in a way, it can be considered that The Sage has given an indication. Your uncle can now sleep two more hours at night."
Ming Baoqing parted her lips, intending to express her remorse, but Wang Shi went on, "I had planned to sort out my own affairs before attending to yours, but I didn't expect your days to be so difficult that you sent a maid to knock on the door. Your uncle thought you were accustomed to a life of luxury and couldn't bear it anymore, so he specifically asked me to come tonight to reassure you."
When others are willing to lend a hand, what do a few barbed words matter? Ming Baoqing let out a soft sigh and said, "Thank you, Uncle and Aunt, for your concern."
Wang Shi nodded slightly and was about to speak when she saw a maid emerge from behind the screen, asking, "Madam, the young lady is a bit sleepy. Shall I take her to bathe and rest first?"
"Go ahead." Wang Shi withdrew her gaze and looked back at Ming Baoqing. After a long while, she asked, "Has there been any news from Third Young Master Lin?"
Ming Baoqing's eyes shifted away for a moment before she deliberately turned them back with feigned resolve, saying, "Ten days ago, Second Young Lady Shao forwarded a letter from him."
"What did the letter say?" Wang Shi watched Ming Baoqing's slightly pursed lips, guessing, "Did it say he would try to find a way, and at the very least, take you back to Hedong?"
Ming Baoqing's clasped hands tightened slightly, and she nodded gently.
“What do you think?” Wang Shi knew Ming Baoqing was clever enough not to bang her head against a brick wall.
Ming Baoqing straightened her back and said, “He is the legitimate grandson of the Lin family’s main branch. Though not the eldest grandson, there is no possibility left between us.”
Wang Shi sighed with deep regret, and the two fell into silence for a while before Wang Shi finally spoke again.
“Your uncle’s opinion is that it would be best to arrange a marriage for you. Sister-in-law Ying has a cousin in her maternal family—I hear he is handsome, his family is in business, and they are quite wealthy.”
Ming Baoqing was still in deep mourning; how could she have the heart for marriage? Her heart ached, and her chest felt unbearably tight, yet her tone remained calm as she asked, “A cousin? But I heard Sister-in-law Ying’s mother was an only daughter, with brothers but no sisters.”
“It’s a female cousin.” Wang Shi took a sip of tea and said, “Though it’s a distant relation, both families are in Youzhou and have a close relationship. Being in one’s homeland means having roots. I hear the young man’s surname is Zheng, three years older than you. Youzhou isn’t too far from the capital—just a hundred miles. Their family travels to the capital several times a year for business, so if you ever face any grievances in the future, you won’t lack someone to stand up for you.”
These were polite, surface-level words. Cen Shitang’s responsibility for Ming Baoqing likely ended once she married.
Though Ming Baoqing had lost her status, for a merchant family that didn’t need a bride’s dowry to supplement their finances, she was actually a good choice.
A well-born, properly raised, talented, and beautiful mistress, yet without the capital to be arrogant or domineering in her husband’s household.
“What about Mother, my sisters, and Auntie?” Ming Baoqing asked.
Wang Shi scoffed, “At a time like this, Yuan Niang, you’re still thinking of them?”
A thousand thoughts tangled in Ming Baoqing’s mind, but upon hearing this, the messy knot seemed to find its end and slowly unraveled.
“I know Auntie’s arrangements are for my own good, but I am in deep mourning and should not be discussing marriage. Even if it’s for the long term, as the eldest daughter, I naturally cannot abandon my sisters. Moreover, I do not wish to leave the capital. Setting aside Eldest Brother for now, Second Brother and Younger Brother are still in the Court of the Imperial Granaries. There may be chances to see them again in the future.”
“When will that day come? Can it even be counted on?”
Wang Shi cursed inwardly.
Ming Baoqing was being greedy. Though Ming Zhenyu and Ming Zhenyao were currently in the Court of the Imperial Granaries, who knew when they might be assigned to various offices, government bureaus, or the households of imperial relatives and high-ranking officials? Whether they would remain in the capital was uncertain, and even if they did, it would likely be difficult to see them.
Was Ming Baoqing implying that she wanted Cen Shitang to spend money and pull strings to make connections?
At the thought, Wang Shi herself was utterly unwilling. Though Madam Zhuo had died quickly, kicking the bucket without fuss, she had done plenty before her death.
On one hand, she wept and wailed, exhausting all the goodwill of the Cen Residence. On the other, she had already picked out a scholar’s family for Ming Baoqing—a family that had lived for generations on the outskirts of the capital. The young man was said to be an excellent scholar, already a Provincial Graduate at a young age. She had even calculated Ming Baoqing’s mourning period, so that once it ended, the young man would have earned his honors, and they could marry. Ming Baoqing might even have the fortune of becoming an official’s wife in the future!
'What a pipe dream!' Wang Shi could not swallow this grievance. Mama Qiu, acting on Madam Zhuo's orders, stubbornly refused to leave the Cen Residence and even secretly tried to look after Ming Baoqing, covertly exchanging coins to buy grain and meat. That muddle-headed, wretched old thing—did she think the Cen family wasn't already conspicuous enough in the eyes of The Sage? She would drag the entire Cen family down!
Fortunately, Wang Shi had long since had someone keeping an eye on her. In the dead of night, she was pushed and took a hard fall, and now lies bedridden, simply waiting to die!
What made Wang Shi even more indignant and dissatisfied was that Madam Zhuo only handed over the keys and account books of the household estate on her deathbed, and had gone to great lengths to shift and maneuver, leaving all the fertile fields and prosperous shops to the illegitimate sons!
As for Ming Baoqing's dowry, Madam Zhuo had likely also set it aside.
'Hmph, whether it stays set aside remains to be seen!'
Though Wang Shi's heart burned with anxiety, her face took on a look of urgent distress as she said, "Now is the time for each to seek their own future. Your stepmother is only five or six years older than you, still in the prime of her youth—can she endure? As for your younger sisters, if they are to marry well, they will need dowries. If our family provides for them, why not provide everything for you instead? If they marry beneath their station, you might as well cut ties early. Why keep them in sight and torment yourself?"
Ming Baoqing lowered her gaze, avoiding eye contact, and said only, "I cannot, I cannot…"
Wang Shi let out a long sigh, gauging Ming Baoqing's thoughts, and said, "Fourth Mistress seems quite likable, still young and inexperienced in social settings, so few know of her. If you are worried, I can take her back with me tomorrow to keep Xiao Qi company."
Ming Baoqing remained silent for a long while before asking softly, "As Xiao Qi's maid?"
The words 'ungrateful wretch' nearly escaped Wang Shi's lips. She held back but could not entirely conceal her sarcasm as she said, "Xiao Qi is my own flesh and blood—what's wrong with being her maid? A girl born from a maid who climbed into bed was never meant for any respectable position! Besides, Er Niang's mother was a Hu woman, and a courtesan at that. It's only because of your soft heart that you've elevated them all so high! You Mings really do stick together."
Though she spoke of the sisters, she was also criticizing Ming Baoqing.
"Aunt, I misspoke. Fourth Mistress's mother may have been a maid, but she did not deliberately climb into bed," Ming Baoqing said, though even after her own mother Cen Yanrou's attempts to gloss over the matter, it still sounded disgraceful. When others speculated, the victim became the schemer, when in truth, Marquis Ming was the greedy and immoral one. But Ming Baoqing could not speak ill of her deceased father. A thick, unswallowable bitterness rose in her mouth as she added, "Though Er Niang's mother had Hu ancestry, she is still my sister. I cannot simply marry and leave. I wish to stay."
"Stay? How will you stay? What ability do you have to stay?" Wang Shi almost accused her of clinging to the Cen family, but fearing Ming Baoqing might seize the opportunity to weep and make demands, making the situation difficult to manage, she softened her tone and said, "You have a soft heart and cannot let go—so be it. In a few days, some merchants will come to the capital on business and can take your family to Youzhou to settle. I see your sisters are all quite pretty. Once in Youzhou, with a fabricated identity as distant relatives, after the mourning period ends, it won't be hard to arrange marriages into well-off families."
The more Wang Shi spoke, the clearer it became to Ming Baoqing that she did not want to leave the capital, nor did she want to marry.
Once married, she would belong to her husband's family, and she dared not gamble on her own luck.
If she were to marry a head of household as muddle-headed as her father, who would place the entire family's future and lives on the edge of a cliff, no amount of power or wealth could protect her, let alone her younger sisters.
After all, that power and wealth were not hers.
"I still wish to remain in Chang'an."
Wang Shi fell silent, her gaze gradually turning wary.
"Those who understand the times are true heroes. I thought you, Yuan Niang, knew when to advance and when to retreat."
Ming Baoqing had yet to take a sip of tea, her lips dry and slightly chapped, but the thoughts in her mind grew clearer.
"Thank you, Aunt, for your careful planning on my behalf. As for marriage, let us set it aside for now."
Wang Shi had come today precisely to settle Ming Baoqing's future, so she would not have to concern herself with it any further.
Seeing her determined refusal, Wang Shi's tone turned sharp: "If you won't marry, then what are your plans?"
The implication was that marriage was the plan Wang Shi had for her. If she married into Youzhou, she would at least receive some dowry.
If she rejected Wang Shi's plan, then she would have to make her own!
Ming Baoqing's eyes flickered several times before finally settling on Wang Shi. "After all, we have a place to stay now, with beautiful mountains and waters. We can manage to get by."
"So you say. Very well, you have backbone." Wang Shi truly had not expected Ming Baoqing to respond like this, a trace of mockery flashing in her eyes. "In the end, it's because you look down on Young Master Zheng's family background, isn't it?"
Ming Baoqing opened her mouth, but before she could reply, Wang Shi waved her hand dismissively. "Since you have such lofty aspirations, I have something to report to your uncle."
Feeling displeased, Wang Shi sent Ming Baoqing off to rest.
Having slept on straw mats for many days in a row, even though she finally had a bed, Ming Baoqing could not fall asleep.
She lay quietly in bed for a long time, then turned her head to look at Ming Baojin's round little head and asked softly, "Does Fourth Mistress think it's better in our small courtyard or at the Cen Residence?"
Ming Baoqing was too conflicted in her heart, so she posed the question into the void.
Unexpectedly, Ming Baojin actually turned over, opening her sleepy eyes. "Of course it's better in our small courtyard."
"Why? At the Cen Residence, at least we wouldn't have to worry about food and clothing," Ming Baoqing asked.
Ming Baojin rubbed her eyes, growing more awake. "Did Aunt ask you to live at the Cen Residence?"
"No, she asked you to go," Ming Baoqing said, not mentioning that it was to serve others.
Ming Baojin felt confused. "Just me alone?"
"Yes," Ming Baoqing replied softly.
"I won't go," Ming Baojin said decisively. Even at her young age, she understood the hardships of living under someone else's roof. "I don't want to live in someone else's home."
She was not conflicted at all, unlike Ming Baoqing, who tossed and turned until dawn before dozing off briefly, only to be awakened by a maid not long after.
The mule cart that took them back was the same one, but this time it was loaded with goods: two baskets of eggs, two baskets of cured fish and meat, two sacks of rice, one sack of millet, and two packets of brown sugar.
"Wow," Ming Baojin chirped happily, tiptoeing to climb in. The maid helping Ming Baoqing onto the cart quickly whispered, "Young Miss, don't speak."
Ming Baoqing looked at her, and the maid said softly, "Young Miss, these were arranged by Sixth Madam. She spent money to have them secretly loaded onto the cart last night. Second Madam doesn't know. If Steward Qu finds out, Sixth Madam will be scolded."
It was still very early. Wang Shi did not even show her face. Steward Qu stood on the steps watching from a distance, her expression stern.
Cen Shitang was the second son of the Cen family, while Ming Baoqing's maternal uncle Cen Shixin was the sixth son. Sixth Madam naturally referred to his wife.
Ming Baoqing's throat tightened, nearly bringing tears to her eyes. She turned her head aside and whispered softly, "Please thank Sixth Aunt for me."