“Zhenniang, do you know whether you were wrong in the ancestral hall or not? Being able to be sisters in this lifetime is already a supreme stroke of fate. Even if you cannot be close, you must not attack each other like this.”
Grand Aunt Yuan stood above Lu Zhenyi, her gaze like a torch, forcing Lu Zhenyi to lower her head. Trembling, she replied, “Zhenniang knows she was wrong.”
“Knowing you are wrong is good enough.” Grand Aunt Yuan stepped forward to ease the atmosphere. “As long as the two of you understand, today is a good day for Brother Zheng’s wife to enter the household. The two of you can go inside later to keep the new sister-in-law company.”
As Grand Aunt Yuan made these arrangements, Old Madam Kou thought of her eldest daughter who had passed away young, and her heart inevitably felt a pang of discomfort. She sat alone in the seat of honor, leaving Grand Aunt Yuan to manage everything inside and out.
Third Madame Qiao managed the household finances. Usually, when Second Madame Qu was free, she also frequently came to help. At this moment, the two madames were busy rushing about, while Madame Zhang used her pregnancy as an excuse to avoid walking around, choosing instead to sit directly in the front hall.
Madame Qu and Madame Qiao cast sidelong glances toward Madame Zhang’s direction. With the tacit understanding of two sisters-in-law who had known each other for years, they understood each other’s thoughts without a single word, holding hands as they spoke softly.
“Fourth Sister-in-law simply has all the luck. When their fourth branch’s son gets married, she ends up bossing the two of us sisters-in-law around instead.” Madame Qiao glanced back. She had always held many complaints against Madame Zhang, and seeing Madame Zhang comfortably seated and settled in her chair only fueled her irritation.
Madame Qu blinked, refusing to look toward Madame Zhang. Glancing down at the hem of her skirt, she whispered in a low voice, “The Zhang woman hasn’t just been like this for a day. Now that she is pregnant, she will only become more arrogant. Madame Zhang isn’t even attentive to her own biological daughter, Huiniang, let alone Sixth Lad, who was born to the late Madame Wu.”
“Enough of that. Guests are arriving; let us not ruin the joyous occasion.”
A maid was holding a mirror to help Madame Qiao rearrange her appearance and attire. Madame Qu also leaned in to check herself in the mirror, and once she was certain her makeup and clothes were entirely proper, she said, “Come, let us go outside to greet the guests and leave this place where we can neither see nor be bothered by them.”
Grand Aunt Yuan was reprimanding Minor Concubine Yuan in a corner. “You need to rein yourself in lately.”
“Aunt.”
Grand Aunt Yuan looked at Madame Zhang, who was feeling unwell and sitting on a chair being tended to by Lu Huiyi, and said, “I don’t mind when you stir up trouble with Madame Zhang normally, but now she is carrying the Fourth Master’s child. If she cannot give birth safely, do not blame me for holding you accountable.”
“Aunt, how could this niece be someone who lacks such sense?”
“Very well, very well. Just bear with it for a while. Who told the other woman to have news in her belly?”
Minor Concubine Yuan felt bitter in her heart. She wanted to bear children too! With the husband and wives of the fourth branch having no news of children for over ten years, surely they could not blame everything on her and the others, she grumbled inwardly.
Seeing Madame Zhang sit down slowly with a pale complexion, Lu Huiyi anxiously crouched down beside her knees. “Mother, is your body feeling unwell?”
Madame Zhang shook her head. “Lately my appetite has been poor, and I feel somewhat nauseous. It is nothing major; just allow me to rest for a moment.”
Mother Hu took a paper parcel out of her purse containing several sour plums. Madame Zhang picked one up and placed it into her mouth.
Lu Huiyi waited for a moment, and seeing that Madame Zhang’s expression eased considerably after eating the sour plum, she finally felt at ease.
It appeared to be nothing more than morning sickness.
Just as Lu Huiyi stepped outside and headed toward the female guests’ seating area, she happened to run into Madame Qiao’s daughter, Eleventh Young Miss Lu Muyi.
Lu Muyi seemed to have just finished chatting with Lu Zhenyi, and she did not mention Lu Zhenyi at all in front of Lu Huiyi.
“Huiniang, when will you return to the women’s academy?”
The Lu family hired tutors within the estate to run a private school to teach the young masters, allowing the Lu daughters to join in and learn to read and write in the adjacent room.
In addition to the regular tutor, the women’s academy had specifically hired instructors for the zither, chess, painting, embroidery, and etiquette. This spring, they had even invited Senior Scholar Gao to teach etiquette.
Senior Scholar Gao had previously served as a senior lady official in the imperial palace, with “Senior Scholar” being her official title. She was among the first batch of female officials in the palace, witnessing a full forty years of the Yue court from the founding of the dynasty under the late emperor. Just after the new year, she cited advanced age and failing physical strength as reasons to submit her resignation to the emperor and the Noble Consort Wei.
Upon leaving the court, she resided in a small courtyard outside the palace, living the carefree life of a crane and wild goose every day. At the time, the Gao family residence had been bustling with activity every day, with visitors from noble households nearly wearing down Senior Scholar Gao’s threshold. In the end, Old Madam Kou personally stepped forward to invite her to the Lu family.
“Isn’t it because Sixth Brother is getting married? Tomorrow morning, the Sixth Sister-in-law must greet all her relatives. Third Aunt mentioned that the women’s academy is giving everyone a holiday today and tomorrow anyway. I cannot keep slacking off; I must return the day after tomorrow no matter what.”
“Sister is returning so early? Your body. What did the physician say?”
A smile blossomed on Lu Huiyi’s face as she took Lu Muyi’s hand. “Thank you for your concern, elder sister. Huiniang has already recovered.”
Lu Huiyi’s relationship with the sisters of the other three branches or other cousins at the women’s academy could hardly be called good. Though they were called sisters, they were actually no different from strangers. Furthermore, with that troublemaker Lu Zhenyi spreading nonsense in between, the sisters all viewed her as a gloomy, eccentric young lady.
Do not be fooled by Lu Muyi coming over to show concern; their relationship was merely ordinary. Lu Muyi’s ability to keep her eyes on all sides and her ears attuned to everything was well known, and she had actually come over to build connections and fish for news.
Since she wanted to find out, Lu Huiyi would let her know that she, Lu Huiyi, was returning to the women’s academy.
This time, not only would she study diligently, but she would also astound everyone.
If she wanted to change the future of the Lu family, she first needed to find a backing, such as her grandfather, who held the greatest authority in the family. And the women’s academy was the best opportunity for her grandfather to notice her.
In the afternoon, the sunlight was pleasant as it filtered through the winding corridors and followed the meandering path. Ahead of them, the banquet for the female guests was set up around the Qingfeng Lake.
Lu Huiyi spotted Princess Shouyang among the crowd at a single glance.
Because Shouyang’s mother was Old Madam Kou’s eldest daughter, she and Lu Qizheng were very close cousins, and she had also come this time to visit her maternal grandfather and grandmother. Because of this, Lu Huiyi was able to meet her today at the wedding banquet.
She was the friend Lu Huiyi was most familiar with in the capital. Later, after Lu Huiyi left the capital and remarried into the Prince of Xing’s estate, Shouyang also became the Princess of Yu in those intervening years. Due to differing stances after marriage, the two of them were forced to gradually drift apart.
Shouyang disliked her life as the Princess of Yu, and Lu Huiyi also understood her difficulties. The Prince of Yu was violent and frequently beat or cursed the consorts and concubines in his inner courtyard; Shouyang’s life was far from easy.
Shouyang was the granddaughter of the Empress Dowager’s younger brother. The Empress Dowager’s maternal family now consisted only of Shouyang and her reclusive brother. Having lost both her parents in childhood, Shouyang had been raised by the Empress Dowager’s side. Since the current emperor was not the Empress Dowager’s biological son, it was only after the Duke of Cao’s estate called off the marriage that the Empress Dowager considered having Shouyang marry into the imperial family.
Among the surviving princes in the palace, the Third Prince, the Prince of Xing, and the Fourth Prince, the Prince of Shen, were already married. The Seventh Prince, who later became the Prince of Jing, was the son of the deposed empress and not worth fearing. Even looking back fourteen years later, the Prince of Yu was still considered a very good choice.
However, if Shouyang did not wish to marry him this time either, she would lend a hand to help.
As Lu Huiyi walked closer just then, she saw a faint shadow of worry lingering across Shouyang’s face, almost imperceptible.
Had the Duke of Cao’s estate already called off the marriage at this juncture? Lu Huiyi could not quite recall.
Lu Huiyi did not ask rashly, stepping forward to greet her as usual. “Eldest Cousin Shouyang.”
Shouyang’s gaze lingered on her for a good long while before she spoke. “Why has Huiniang suddenly changed so much? It startled me for a moment, and I almost failed to recognize which beautiful younger sister this was.”
“Perhaps falling ill recently burned away all the cloudiness in my mind.”
“You fell into the water on the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Were you truly that ill?”
Now it was Lu Huiyi’s turn to be startled. This was a family matter of the Lu family, and the inside story was hardly glorious. How had word of it spread outside? “Cousin, how did you hear about this?”
“It has already spread throughout the capital, saying that the sisters drank too much wine during the Mid-Autumn Festival and mistook the moon in the water for the moon in the sky, accidentally pushing you into the water while jostling one another.”
Naturally, she could not say that Lu Zhenyi had quarreled with her and pushed her into the water. Not only would that ruin Lu Zhenyi’s reputation, but all the young ladies of the Lu family would be implicated as well.
Lu Huiyi nodded silently. “That must be it. I drank too much wine that day and cannot remember it very clearly.”
Seeing Lu Huiyi’s expression, Shouyang knew the truth was far from that simple, likely nothing more than minor squabbles among sisters. With so many daughters in the Lu family, it was nothing out of the ordinary.
Chatting as they walked, Lu Huiyi and Shouyang ascended the steps into the flower-viewing pavilion. The terrain here was quite elevated, allowing them to see the scenery outside the courtyard walls far in the distance.
With no one else around, Lu Huiyi asked Shouyang why she was so full of worry. Having left the palace accompanied by two palace maids, Shouyang instinctively looked back.
“Why is Cousin fretting? Could it be that you are thinking of your own upcoming marriage?” Lu Huiyi teased.
Shouyang suddenly chimed in, “Huiniang, Heir Cao wants to call off the marriage.”
A look of extreme astonishment crossed Lu Huiyi’s face, while she thought to herself that the cancellation of the engagement was indeed still on the eve of happening.
Lu Huiyi comforted her, saying things like the heir of the Duke of Cao lacked discernment and Shouyang deserved someone far better.
Her words were entirely true. The Duke of Cao’s estate would be raided and confiscated next spring on charges of treason, and by then Shouyang would have to thank Heir Cao for his grace in refusing to marry her.
Shouyang did not hold much affection for Heir Cao to begin with, but she was seventeen this year, and just as the wedding documents were about to be registered for him to welcome her into his household, the engagement was abruptly called off at the very last moment. Shouyang felt that the Duke of Cao’s estate was bullying her as an orphan girl without parents to rely on.
Things having reached this point, she had no intention of salvaging it and did not wish to speak of the marriage anymore. Casually shifting the topic, she brought up another matter.
“It is quite a coincidence as well. On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Seventh Highness also accidentally fell into the water, and the young eunuch who served him suddenly hanged himself the next day. Who knows what happened.”
This was a palace taboo, and Lu Huiyi ought not to have inquired about it. However, in her past life, she had never known that such a thing had happened in the palace. Whoever was responsible, why hadn’t they struck harder and drowned that person completely?
She remarked casually, “Perhaps the wind in the palace was simply too strong.”
Lu Huiyi asked how the Seventh Prince’s health was, and Shouyang replied that he was completely unharmed and completely fine. Lu Huiyi felt a deep sense of regret in her heart.
As dusk approached, the sound of gongs and drums from the wedding procession finally carried in from outside the courtyard.
“The Lu family truly lives up to being a prominent and prestigious family of many decades. Such a grand wedding!”
“Even the weather is cooperating. It has been drizzling and overcast for half a month, yet today it cleared up for a whole day.”
The commoners gathered along the street discussed animatedly.
“The bride has arrived!” The Lu family’s matrons beamed with joy, and hearing the commotion ahead, they greeted each other and crowded forward to witness the ceremony.
After Shouyang finished those few words with her in the afternoon, she had returned to the banquet, while Lu Huiyi, accompanied by Chuntao and Qingzhu, hid up in the pavilion to watch. Sixth Brother, wearing wedding robes and a flower pinned to his head, rode past on a tall, spirited horse.
A youth full of proud and unbridled spirit.
As the final hope of the Lu family, she hoped that no matter what happened in the future, he would remain just like in her past life, passing the imperial examinations as top scholar and rising to the Grand Secretariat.
Lu Huiyi smiled contentedly, immersed in the joyful atmosphere.
“Let us go. We shall go see Sixth Brother and Sixth Sister-in-law,” Lu Huiyi said to the two maids.
After drinking the nuptial wine, Lu Qizheng still had to head to the outer courtyard to entertain guests, but before leaving, he did not forget to bow respectfully to his various sisters.
“My wife is entrusted to all my younger sisters’ care.”