A noble foreign man came to Ruyi Harbor. He was blond and had blue eyes. His name was Fernando, and people said his family once had princes in Portugal. He loved the mysterious Eastern country and insisted on sailing far away. When he arrived in the East, his little daughter was born. He heard about the local wedding custom of “ten miles of red,” so he stubbornly wanted to prepare a Chinese-style dowry for his daughter.
This foolish man met another foolish man.
Xu Miaoxue’s father, Xu Gong, was from Shatou Village in Dinghai County. He was a famous craftsman. His wood and bone inlay work was known even in Ningbo. Chen Sanfu brought Fernando to his workshop, and Xu Gong accepted the job at once.
“Brother Fei, look,” Xu Gong said excitedly, waving his hands like a child. He even drew on the wall.
“A golden wedding bed with a hundred children carved on it, a grand sedan chair with birds flying to the phoenix, Yue kiln green porcelain cups with pine and crane designs, gold and silver embroidery robes, pearl crowns, rosewood screens, red-lacquered buckets for children, and ten redwood chests with fine locks and copper hinges, filled with silver ingots that ring when they move. Only this kind of dowry can show how noble your daughter is!”
There was fire in his eyes. Half was joy at meeting someone who understood him, and half was wild ambition.
He wanted foreign nobles to see the beauty of Eastern crafts. He wanted to leave his work in another land and pass it down for many generations.
So two hundred craftsmen crowded into the small workshop and worked day and night for two winters. Xu Gong designed every piece himself, drawing late into the night. His fingers were cut and bleeding, but he never felt tired.
The advance payment was already used to buy wood. Xu Gong even used his old house as collateral to borrow money, but it was still not enough. At first, villagers only watched. But in those years, silver ships often came to private ports, and many fishermen became rich. Greedy people then encouraged others to invest money with Xu Gong and share future profits.
Villagers used all their savings, even old women took off their wedding bracelets.
On the day Chen Sanfu’s ship was loaded, the mast was full of red balls, and the cargo was stacked with red-wrapped dowries. In the sunset, it looked like half the village’s lives were being taken away.
Then the “Crying Sails Incident” happened.
Shatou Village cried for three months. Xu Gong disappeared for three days, and then his body was washed ashore. He left behind his old parents, his wife, and his children.
“Pay the money back! Pay the money back!”
Those days, Xu Miaoxue heard this every time she woke up. Her mother could not bear the shame and ran away at night with her son. No one knew where they went.
Xu Miaoxue thought her mother could only support one child, so she took her brother. Xu Miaoxue was left alone in the village. The villagers knew an orphan could not repay the money, so they only cursed her.
She wanted to live, so she went to her grandparents’ home and begged. She knocked her head until blood soaked into the stone floor. After three buckets of water, the blood still could not be washed away. Finally, because of their reputation, they took her in.
That year, Xu Miaoxue was eight years old.
On her first night in the Cheng house, no one cared about her. She had not eaten all day, so she drank water from the shrine. Then she was beaten thirty times on her hands. Only then did she know people were watching her, waiting for her to make a mistake.
But that water from the shrine was the sweetest water she had ever drunk. She learned her rule for living: she had nothing, but she could trade pain for what she wanted.
Cool water in her throat felt like her mother’s hand on her wounds.
Half awake, Xu Miaoxue opened her eyes. It was already morning. Someone had carried her out of the salt pond and was feeding her water.
She blinked and came back to her senses, but she did not give the man a good look.
“None of your business.”
Cheng Kaishou answered calmly, “If you die, it will affect my exam.”
His words were cold, but his hands carefully opened a cloth bag and took out a hot meat bun for her.
“I really owe you,” he said helplessly, with Alittle kindness.
It was strange. Cheng Kaishou was the only person in the Cheng family who treated Xu Miaoxue well, but they never spoke nicely to each other. To others, they even looked like enemies.
Xu Miaoxue did not fight with food. She grabbed the bun and ate slowly. After some food, strength slowly came back to her body.
“Why are you still here? If your mother sees you, I’ll be the one in trouble again,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“Last night…” Cheng Kaishou hesitated, then asked, “Where did you go?”
“What does it have to do with you?”
“Your mother and brother have sent money back to the village to pay debts. Recently they even sent hundreds of taels,” he said seriously.
“Yes, so what? Debts should be paid.”
“They can send money, but they never send a letter to ask about you.”
Xu Miaoxue fell silent.
“You sent that money in their names, didn’t you? Why did you do that? Did you remember something?”
“Remember what?” she asked, confused.
Cheng Kaishou looked strange for a moment, then asked firmly, “How did you earn so much money?”
She finished the bun and answered lazily, “How else can a woman make money?”
Cheng Kaishou breathed heavily. He was angry, but he was polite and did not shout. He only stared at her, as if trying to dig a hole in her face.
She felt uneasy and reached into his bag.
“Not full yet. Is there more?”
“Xu Miaoxue, you are really terrible,” he said, still staring at her.
He was one of the few who understood her. He could tell when she lied and when she told the truth.
He knew she used cruel words to push people away because she hated others worrying about her. Her sharpness was not born with her. It was forced into her, hurting others and herself. But it was her only weapon.
The Cheng family treated her badly, so she fought back at everyone to protect herself.
He should be used to it, but he was still angry. Angry that she did not care about herself, angry that she said such careless words.
She made it worse. “Yes, I’m terrible. Stop caring about me.”
He finally lost control. “What are you doing outside? Making money is not easy! Don’t throw your life away! For all these years, no one in the village forced you to pay back the debt!”
“But I want to go home!” Xu Miaoxue shouted.
She had not said the word “home” for a long time. Tears almost fell, and she bit her teeth to hold her feelings back.
“As long as I pay the debt, my mother and brother can come back. We can be together again and honor my father properly. What did he do wrong to die like that in the wild?”
Cheng Kaishou was a scholar who could write beautiful essays, but now his mind was empty. He did not know how to answer.
Yes. What did Xu Gong do wrong? He was hardworking and kind. Why did his whole family fall apart?
People always say hard work will be rewarded.
But maybe that is just a beautiful lie. Only a few lucky people prove it true. Many who work hard still end in tragedy, and are forgotten.
He looked at Xu Miaoxue. She was old enough to be an adult, but still thin like bamboo. Her face was pretty and bright, like wild grass growing again in spring, showing no sadness.
If she had grown up in a good family, many people would have wanted to marry her.
But now, no one dared to marry her, afraid of her family’s bad luck.
The Crying Sails Incident was a big war between Chen Sanfu and the Ming court, written in history books. But no one noticed that a small family was destroyed because of it.
After a long time, he finally said, “Wait for me. When I pass the exam and become an official, I can help you. You should not carry all this alone.”
“Peiqing, my life is already ruined,” she said calmly.
Peiqing was Cheng Kaishou’s courtesy name. When she used it, it meant this was a rare moment when they spoke honestly.
“I don’t care what happens to me. You still have a future. Just remember me when you become rich.”
In a few words, she put on her careless mask again.
“Then don’t do dangerous things and drag me into it,” he said stiffly, but his voice sounded like a plea.
She laughed. “Don’t worry. No woman has ever caused nine families to be killed.”
Cheng Kaishou did not relax. “Don’t give up like this. Even if you must repay the debt, it can’t be done in one day.”
“Yes, I planned to take it slowly, but…” She smiled half jokingly. “What if the goods my father made back then still exist?”
“What nonsense are you talking about? During the Crying Sails Incident, all the goods at Ruyi Harbor were burned.”
“I said what if. If they still exist, and are shipped to Portugal to finish my father’s business, wouldn’t my good days come? Maybe I’ve been unlucky because my father’s wish was not fulfilled. If we finish it, he can rest…”
“Xu Miaoxue!” Cheng Kaishou could not take it anymore. She sounded rude, but she clearly wanted to fulfill her father’s last wish.
He sighed like an old mother. “Living a steady life is better than anything. I’ll deal with my mother. As long as you don’t provoke her, you’ll be fine.”
Xu Miaoxue smiled and stood up.
For a moment, Cheng Kaishou felt a killing determination in her eyes, not something a young girl should have. But it disappeared quickly.
“Where are you going? Your wounds are not treated yet!”
She tilted her head and said casually, “Cousin, the outside world is dangerous. Don’t ask about adult matters. Go back to your mother and drink milk.”
She waved and left the salt pond.
Cheng Kaishou was left helpless and worried. He stood up and chased after her, but when he went outside, she was already gone.
Like a slippery eel.
He sighed. He had never been able to control this troublesome cousin.
He was always too soft on her. But his mother was not.