Once Bai Sanzhuang finished explaining how he had obtained the jade pendant, the members of the Bai family praised him for his actions. Saving someone in distress was exactly what one ought to do. Over the years, despite their poverty, the Bai family had also received help from many people.
“Sanzhuang, you did the right thing. Doing this is accumulating merit for your sister,” Bai Muban calculated in his mind. The day Sanzhuang saved the old man and the young boy was the very same day they had found Little Fuyuan; it was surely a way of bringing her good fortune.
“Look at how well this jade pendant suits Sister.” Bai Sanzhuang held the pendant by its golden silk ribbon, dangling it before Little Fuyuan’s eyes to tease her.
The emerald-green jade complemented Little Fuyuan’s pink, tender face perfectly, as if they were made for each other. Little Fuyuan’s dark, luminous eyes followed the swaying pendant.
“Yi-yi, ya-ya…”
What a beautiful piece of jade! Third Brother is so kind! Thank you, Third Brother!
Seeing his little sister’s incredibly cute expression, Bai Sanzhuang recalled the young master he had saved. Both were as delicate as porcelain, the most beautiful children in the world. If the jade suited the young master, it surely suited his sister.
Madam Zhen took the jade from Sanzhuang and moved closer to where Grandmother Bai was sitting. Together, the mother and daughter-in-law inspected the piece carefully.
“Can you make anything of it?” Grandmother Bai asked.
“I can’t tell. It’s the first time I’ve seen jade with this kind of pattern,” Madam Zhen replied, shaking her head.
Grandmother Bai thought for a moment and said, “Since it’s a gift of gratitude for Sanzhuang’s good deed, there shouldn’t be anything improper about it. Let Little Fuyuan keep it to play with.”
Madam Zhen looked as if she wanted to say something but hesitated. Finally, she nodded slightly and tucked the jade pendant carefully beneath Little Fuyuan’s mattress.
The rest of the family had no idea what riddles Grandmother Bai and Madam Zhen were speaking in, but they were used to it. The two often spoke in such a manner; they simply took it as the unique way the mother and daughter-in-law interacted.
“Father, Mother, Grandma—when Sanzhuang and I passed through the village, we heard people discussing how our family has a daughter now and that we are destined for wealth. They even say Sister brought a school of large fish to us the moment she was born,” Bai Erzhuang mentioned the village gossip.
As a scholar, Bai Erzhuang knew what happened to individuals labeled as “harbingers of luck.” The previous dynasty loved to recruit people with extraordinary abilities. Those labeled as “lucky” were often seized to pray for rain or drive away locusts. During wars between nations, so-called “Lucky Stars” were even made to stand on city walls to attract divine favor, only to be turned into pincushions by arrows. Their families were often executed or exiled.
He felt it necessary to discuss the implications of the “Lucky Star” rumors with the family.
Grandmother Bai’s heart skipped a beat. Although she had emphasized to the villagers not to speak of the Bai family’s daughter bringing wealth, she couldn’t stop the mouths of the village gossips. The story of Little Fuyuan attracting the fish was becoming more fantastical by the day, dominating the village’s “trending list” like a new top-tier celebrity.
“Since Erzhuang brought up the rumors about our daughter bringing fortune, I have a few words of advice for everyone while we’re all here. The nonsense spouted by that wretched lame Taoist is not to be believed. Whether our lives improve or not has nothing to do with Little Fuyuan. We can’t control what outsiders say, but our own people must not speak recklessly,” Grandmother Bai lectured with a stern face.
“Your grandmother is right. the rumors outside are getting more and more bizarre—even talk of Empresses and Dowagers has come out,” Madam Zhen said, her heart racing just from hearing Xie Chuntao’s retelling.
“From now on, if you hear anyone saying such things, you can’t just pretend you didn’t hear it. You must dispel the rumors. If word gets out, attracting the soldiers and officials would be the least of our problems,” Bai Erzhuang added seriously.
Upon hearing that soldiers might be involved, the entire Bai family looked terrified.
“Erzhuang is right. Everyone, remember this: do not join in the hype! If you meet someone talking nonsense, you must correct them!” Grandmother Bai rapped her knuckles on the table.
“Understood,” Bai Dazhuang and his brothers promised, patting their chests.
“We remember, Great-Grandma!” Dalang and Sanlang raised their small fists and vowed.
Little Fuyuan listened, somewhat confused. Isn’t being lucky a good thing? Back in the hospital when she was getting injections, her Mama had prayed every day for luck to descend upon her. Mama had said she hoped Fuyuan would be a person protected by fortune.
Forget it, I won’t think about it. Little Fuyuan felt a wave of sleepiness and let out a yawn.
Seeing his daughter was sleepy, Bai Muban added a few more pieces of charcoal to the stove. Ever since Little Fuyuan arrived, the fire in the main room of the Bai house burned day and night. The fire grew brighter, and the entire room became warm and cozy. Little Fuyuan hummed comfortably, tilted her head, and curled up in Madam Zhen’s arms to enter dreamland once again.
“Sister is asleep. Everyone out, out!” Bai Muban began ushering his sons out of the room. He was worried that the rowdy boys would wake his daughter. The sons instantly became as quiet as quails, gazing longingly at their sleeping sister, though none moved.
Under Bai Muban’s firm insistence, Bai Dazhuang led the group of men out of the main room.
“Sanzhuang, stay behind.”
Just as Bai Sanzhuang stepped out, Bai Muban called him back.
Xie Chuntao knew the three elders had something to discuss with Sanzhuang, so she stood up and gave Yu Jingui a look. “Sister-in-law, I’m going to cook. Why don’t you help me tend the fire?”
Yu Jingui sat in her chair, leaning against a soft cushion, too comfortable to move. She cursed Xie Chuntao for being meddlesome in her heart. She didn’t want to go out; the main room was so warm and pleasant.
“Eldest Sister-in-law, my stomach hurts,” Yu Jingui muttered, clutching her belly and frowning.
“Are you carrying a golden egg or something? Tending a fire isn’t heavy labor. Do you really expect the whole family to wait on you hand and foot before you’re satisfied?” Grandmother Bai couldn’t stand Yu Jingui’s behavior and shamed her in front of the whole family.
Logically, as a great-grandmother, she shouldn’t micro-manage a grandson’s wife, but Madam Zhen was always too soft-hearted to control the temperamental and lazy Yu Jingui.
“If you’re not feeling well, go back to your room and lie down. Dazhuang or Erzhuang can tend the fire,” Madam Zhen said to Yu Jingui.
Yu Jingui stood up, clutching her handkerchief. She flipped the curtain of the main room open with great force and twisted her body as she stomped out, showing no sign of a stomach ache at all.
Bai Sanzhuang was used to the friction between his grandmother and his second sister-in-law and remained unbothered. Once the two sisters-in-law were out, he moved to the center of the room. He had guessed what the elders wanted to talk about. He sat in the chair opposite them, straightening his back as he waited for his parents and grandmother to speak.
“Sanzhuang, I heard that your employer, Manager Xu, wants you to be a matrilocal son-in-law?”
Bai Muban had heard this from Grandmother Bai the day after he returned from Huai City. He had been looking for a chance to find out the specifics from his third son. Although he didn’t approve of his son marrying into the wife’s family, if Sanzhuang was willing, he would have nothing to say—other than considering that son lost to him forever.
“There is such a proposal,” Bai Sanzhuang said carefully.
As soon as he spoke, Grandmother Bai’s face darkened. The last time Manager Xu came to propose the match, she hadn’t given him any face at all, throwing out the gifts he brought and nearly chasing him out of the house. She hadn’t expected that despite her decisiveness, they still hadn’t given up.
Madam Zhen’s heart also hung in suspense. As his mother, she knew Sanzhuang had been headstrong since he was a child. When he dropped out of school to become an apprentice, not even a team of oxen could have pulled him back. She wasn’t worried about anything else, except that her third son might choose to marry into the Xu family just to fund the fourth son’s education.
A man who married into his wife’s family had a hard life, constantly criticized for being dependent on his in-laws. She didn’t want her son to end up in such a situation. Furthermore, she had two other concerns: first, if her son and the Xu daughter were truly in love, it would be one thing, but if he didn’t like her, he would be failing her; second, if one brother sacrificed himself to provide for another, it would easily cause discord among the siblings.
“Don’t even think about this matrilocal marriage unless I’m dead,” Grandmother Bai’s voice was high-pitched, shaking dust from the eaves.
In her sleep, Little Fuyuan gave a start. She wiggled her body, and Madam Zhen, pained for her, gently patted her back.