The steward walked through the foyer and into the drawing room.
Several members of the Second Branch were playing mahjong with Qin Yanting. Qin Yanting and Seventh Master Qin Yanlou sat opposite each other, flanked by Third Cousin Qin Yange and Yanlou’s wife, Wei Dongqing.
The steward walked up behind Qin Yanlou, leaned over, and whispered the news brought by the clerk.
“What are you two whispering about? So secretive!” Qin Yanting glanced at them and threw down a tile.
“It’s quite a story,” Qin Yanlou said. “Huai’an’s new wife went to the gambling house today. She actually cut out a piece of Royal Purple jade. And coincidentally, Lu Fengchun was there. After she left, Lu Fengchun said some very inappropriate things at the door. The clerk realized who she was and rushed over to tell us immediately.”
Just then, Wei Dongqing spoke up. “Sister-in-law, listen to this! That Lu Fengchun just never gives up! Years ago, he wanted to use our caravan routes to smuggle opium. Yanlou refused because it was immoral. That’s how the feud started. Honestly, he is so petty! The Lu family ended up doing the trade anyway through other channels, right? It’s been over two years, and he still comes around causing trouble every few days!”
“He picks on the weak and fears the strong! He never dared to mess with you when you refused him your ships, did he?” Qin Yange said.
Before she finished speaking, Zeng Juemi and Qin Yanchi walked in.
“Who made the Third Sister angry? Sounds like a lot of resentment!” Zeng Juemi poured himself a glass of whiskey, flopped into an armchair, and asked, “Playing mahjong? Why didn’t you call me?”
Logically, the children of the Second Branch should be older than those of the Third, but the late Second Master had a fiery temper and ran a caravan business, making many enemies. Years ago, the Second Branch suffered a catastrophe that nearly wiped them out. The children of the first wife all passed away young, and the First Wife herself became a nun.
The current Seventh Master and Third Sister are children of the second wife. In the Qin family, boys and girls had separate ranking systems, and Third Sister was the youngest girl.
“It’s Lu Fengchun again!”
Wei Dongqing stood up. “You want to play? Take my place then. I was just about to go check on the kitchen.”
So Zeng Juemi moved to take her seat. He looked at her tiles and asked, “What did Lu Fengchun do now?”
“He has his eyes on Huai’an’s wife.”
“He certainly knows how to pick targets!”
His words drew surprised looks from everyone at the table.
Qin Yanting looked Zeng Juemi up and down, then turned to Qin Yanchi who was reading a newspaper on the sofa. “Ninth Brother, where did you two go today?”
Qin Yanchi put down the paper. “We had lunch at Hongyun Restaurant. The manager didn’t know we were coming and gave our private room to Huai’an’s wife. It was quite a misunderstanding.”
He conveniently omitted the part where Zeng Juemi tried to peek.
“So how did she run into Lu Fengchun?” Zeng Juemi asked.
Qin Yanlou repeated what the steward had said, then frowned. “The Main Branch values their pride and never asks us for help, but that doesn’t mean we should let them suffer retaliation for our sake. We have to do something. However, Lu Fengchun is unpredictable and knows my face. If he notices my men protecting her, it might backfire.”
“Easy. Use my men,” Zeng Juemi said casually. “I doubt he dares to mess with my brother.”
“When did you become so enthusiastic?” Qin Yanting looked at her brother-in-law suspiciously.
“Hey! We are family after all! Can’t just stand by and watch, right?” Zeng Juemi looked a little guilty and pulled Qin Yanchi in. “Right, Ninth Brother?”
Qin Yanchi remained neutral. “If the brother-in-law handles it, it might look too official. If the Qins do it, Lu Fengchun might just get more aggressive to prove something. You are the best choice for this.”
“See? I told you!”
Having made the decision, they dropped the subject and continued their game.
***
**Meanwhile, at the Qin Residence**
Jiang Ci had just returned home when Wenzhu approached her. “Madam, the Old Mistress requests your presence.”
Jiang Ci knew this was about her coming home late. It was time for a lecture on rules and discipline.
As soon as she entered the room, she saw Madam Qin’s face pulled long with displeasure.
“Greetings, Mother.”
“Leave us. I wish to speak to the Young Mistress alone.”
“Yes, Madam.”
Wenzhu led the maids out.
Madam Qin stared at Jiang Ci without offering her a seat. Her voice was cold. “I explicitly warned you this morning, yet you treat my words like wind passing through your ears. You’ve been out the whole day! Your heart has truly run wild!”
“I don’t understand what you mean, Mother.”
“You don’t understand? Look at the time! A newlywed young mistress, out alone for so long and returning so late! What will people say?”
Jiang Ci looked her straight in the eye. “To be honest, Mother, I thought I would be back early. But once I was out, I realized I should buy a rickshaw for convenience. I’ve never gone out much before, so I didn’t know where to buy one. I was too shy to ask just anyone, so we went to a restaurant to eat and asked the manager for directions. Then at the shop, I had to arrange for a puller as well… time just slipped away.”
She paused and added, “Speaking of which, there is something I need your advice on. On the way back, the puller told me that the shop I bought it from, Baofeng Firm, is owned by our relatives. Since I didn’t know them, I didn’t mention my name or who I was. I’ve been worrying all the way back if I was rude or lacking in manners. That’s why I didn’t notice how late it was.”
Madam Qin’s anger was instantly diverted.
“You didn’t mention who you were? That was actually the right thing to do. We don’t interact much with the Third Branch. If you had said you were family, they might have refused to take money. But for a family like ours, owing favors over a hundred or two hundred dollars is truly unnecessary.”
“As they say, ‘an elder in the house is a treasure’. Only Mother understands these worldly matters.”
Flattered, Madam Qin’s last trace of displeasure vanished. She waved her hand. “Alright, alright. You’ve had a long day. I won’t keep you. Go rest.”
“Yes, thank you, Mother.”
Jiang Ci had cleverly dodged the interrogation and returned to her courtyard.
Because of this incident, she stayed indoors for the next few days.
Firstly, once school started, she would have plenty of opportunities to go out.
Secondly, she had brought back those pieces of colorless glass variety jade, and she needed time to absorb their energy.
When she was scanning stones at the gambling house, she had realized one thing: this body was still too weak.
Absorbing energy while using her ability puts a huge strain on her. It was like a person with a weak stomach trying to eat a feast—even if not everything was absorbed, the burden was still heavy.
She needed to improve her ability to strengthen her “digestion.”
As for the remaining raw stones, she had left them at the jade shop for now.
***
Time flew by, and soon it was the first day of school.
The maids in the house gathered around, whispering as they looked at Jiang Ci in her uniform.
“Madam looks so young in this outfit! Just like an unmarried girl!”
“Well… isn’t she practically still a virgin? She and the Young Master haven’t even consummated the marriage yet…”
“How cruel you are! Be careful she hears you!”
Jiang Ci didn’t hear them. She got into her rickshaw alone.
The student uniforms of this era were simple and plain. Female students didn’t wear jewelry. They usually wore their hair in a single long braid, perhaps with a simple hairpin or a jade bracelet.
Jiang Ci didn’t want to stand out, so she followed the trend, wearing her hair in a braid and no makeup.
Yet, her complexion was far better than before. Her ability had improved significantly, almost reaching Level 1. If she could find one more high-quality colorless jade today, she would level up, and the congenital weakness of this body would be completely cured.
She arrived at Huaxi Girls’ School, collected her textbooks, and followed the teacher to class.
It was a missionary school, so English was emphasized. Except for Chinese Literature, all other books were in English.
To help her catch up, she was placed in a special class for married women, regardless of age, with a pace similar to the younger girls. It was effortless for her.
The subjects were different from modern middle schools: Classics, Arithmetic, English, Music, Etiquette, Art Elective, and a unique subject for girls—Home Economics.
For Art, there were three options: Piano, Dance, or Painting.
Considering she ran a jade business, she thought it would be good to improve her aesthetic sense, so she chose Painting.
Because of this, during the lunch break, she headed to the largest department store in the city to buy art supplies.
She had just walked a few steps inside when she ran into two people.
When Qin Huai’an saw Jiang Ci, he froze for a moment. He walked out of the fashion boutique, frowning. “So this is what you meant by ‘going to school’. Is this your real plan?”
Liang Manyin followed him out. Hearing this, she realized that this student in front of her was actually Qin Huai’an’s legal wife.
She immediately felt awkward and wanted to retreat back inside.
But Qin Huai’an grabbed her arm, saying arrogantly, “Why hide? What we have is real. It’s not her place to interfere!”
Suddenly, applause came from behind Jiang Ci.
Lu Fengchun walked up and stood beside her, a smirk on his face.
“Those are brave words, Young Master Qin. But… I heard that this lady right here is the one you married properly with all the ceremonies. Isn’t that right?”
His words caused a stir. Everyone shopping in the mall perked up and started gathering around to watch the drama unfold.