As the heat of July faded and the autumn equinox drew near, a touch of withered yellow crept onto the branches. The lush phoenix trees in the huafang were not as dense as they had been a few days earlier. Shen Hui sat on the threshold of the small central door, gazing blankly as the maidservants tended to the flowers and plants.
After Consort Zheng secluded herself to recuperate from her illness, those who had been interrogated, such as Nanny Guan, gradually returned to their masters’ sides. But Shiwu was like fallen leaves swept away by a broom—gone without a trace.
Shen Hui knew, of course, that she had gotten what she deserved, yet she still had no heart to gloat.
Liu’er noticed Shen Hui’s gloom and pointed at clusters of chrysanthemums to cheer her up: “Sister Ah Hui, look, the huafang has cultivated so many varieties of autumn chrysanthemums. I heard from a few sisters that the yellow ones are called ‘Golden Treasure Appearance,’ the white ones ‘A Handful of Snow,’ and the rest—pink, green, purple—all have such elegant names.”
“They are elegant,” Shen Hui nodded absently.
“Sister, why aren’t you happy?” Qi’er asked a huafang maid for a chrysanthemum that had been trimmed off and tucked it into Shen Hui’s hair.
The golden autumn chrysanthemum was as bright as the blazing sun. Paired with a crimson hair ribbon, it made Shen Hui’s features appear festive and lively, greatly enhancing her complexion.
“Sister Chun Tao from the princess consort’s side told me that Shiwu was given ten strokes of the cane and famai from the wangfu. Where will she be sold?” she sighed.
“Shiwu was so wicked, Sister, why pity her?” Liu’er curled her lip slightly. “As for where she’ll be sold, it depends on whether the slave trader is short on silver. If not, she’ll be kept for a couple of days to heal her wounds, then sold to gentry around Chang’an. If short, she’ll likely be hastily sold to merchants traveling north and south. But at least she was once a servant of the wangfu. No matter what, the slave trader would never dare send her to those… filthy places.”
“That’s a relief.” Hearing this, the heaviness in Shen Hui’s chest finally eased a little. “It’s not that I pity Shiwu, it’s just… feeling sorrow for one’s own kind.”
Shiwu had brought it upon herself, but as a fellow woman, Shen Hui did not wish to see her end up in brothels or pleasure quarters.
“Sister, let’s go find Sister A Wei to eat something. You said once your stomach is full, your mind becomes happy.” Liu’er and Qi’er exchanged a glance, then pulled Shen Hui up and hurried through the huafang.
Across the way, smoke curled from the chimneys of the Servants’ Kitchen, bustling with activity once more.
“A Wei, you’re roasting phoenix tree seeds.” Shen Hui could now spot her sister in a crowd at a glance. She grabbed a handful of freshly roasted seeds and began cracking them.
Shen Wei was packing dishes into a food box belonging to some senior maid—she didn’t know which—and added a plate of dried fruit: “Now that the previous matter is settled, people ordering dishes have gradually increased again. Nanny Zhang gave some silver to the purchasing granny and took away quite a few good ingredients. Look, there’s scallions, and fresh chives, bean leaves, lettuce, water spinach, and amaranth.”
She pointed them out to Shen Hui.
“What will you do with these scallions?” Shen Hui suddenly craved scallion oil noodles.
“The tender ones will be kept for stir-frying with eggs, the old ones for pickling.” Shen Wei smiled. “How would Sister like to eat them?”
Shen Hui linked arms with her. “Good sister, how about trying to make fried scallion oil?”
Since Shen Hui suggested it, Shen Wei naturally obliged. Making fried scallion oil was quite simple and succeeded on the first try. Without fresh hand-pulled noodles on hand, they tossed it with chess-piece noodles. The aroma of scallions combined with the richness of the oil was fragrant without bitterness. Topped with a spoonful of crushed pork cracklings, the four of them—Hui, Wei, Liu’er, and Qi’er—ate without a moment to spare for idle chatter.
Shen Hui was no freeloader when she came to the kitchen every few days for kai xiaozao. She would use her monthly allowance to cover the costs. The money she saved wasn’t much, and by the end of each month, it always reminded her of her previous life during university holidays, working part-time as a tutor—earning money one day and spending it the same day, with meal expenses even more extravagant than usual.
After quickly finishing a bowl of noodles, Shen Hui sighed, "A Wei, you're truly amazing. It's fortunate I brought you into the wangfu. Otherwise, leaving you in a small manor estate would have been a waste of your talent. If you were a thousand-mile steed, I could be considered your Bole."
"Bole?" Shen Wei was unfamiliar with this allusion.
Shen Hui slowly explained it to her.
"Sister, I have something to ask of you," Shen Wei said after listening, both admiring her sister's knowledge and nervously raising her eyes. "I'm not good with words. Could you write down what you would say in different situations for me? I'll try my best to memorize it, to prepare for unexpected needs."
"A formulaic approach," Shen Hui suddenly understood.
"That should be the meaning," Shen Wei said, not knowing what a "formulaic approach" was, but she felt her sister wouldn't be wrong.
Shen Hui patted her shoulder. "No problem, leave it to your sister."
After agreeing to this, Shen Hui selected two or three types of fruit and flower cakes from the kitchen, carrying a food box to Aunt Duan's room.
As soon as she entered, Shen Hui immediately put on a bright smile. "This servant greets Aunt Duan, wishing you eternal peace. I noticed the newly roasted phoenix tree seeds from the Servants' Kitchen were quite good, so I took the liberty of bringing a portion for you. There's also sugar cake and chrysanthemum pastry—please try them as well."
"Hmm, leave them here," Aunt Duan replied, leaning against a three-legged armrest with her eyes closed, her stern brows carrying a trace of weariness and a faint, almost imperceptible nostalgia.
"Aunt, are you tired? Let me massage your shoulders for a bit to help you relax," Shen Hui offered, moving closer.
Aunt Duan startled, opening her eyes. Seeing Shen Hui's flattering demeanor, she frowned with disdain. "Stop, Shen Hui, what are you doing?"
"Aunt Duan, you wouldn't think I'm being overly attentive without reason, suspecting I'm up to no good, would you?" Shen Hui stomped her foot in feigned grievance.
"Otherwise?" Aunt Duan leaned back lazily, poking Shen Hui's forehead. "Between you and me, if you have something to say, just say it directly."
"Yes, I wanted to ask you for more paper," Shen Hui said, massaging Aunt Duan's legs as she explained Shen Wei's request.
"So that's it. I thought you had suddenly become diligent, studying day and night, and had already copied all the books for the next few days. Turns out it's sisterly affection," Aunt Duan said helplessly. "Fine, it's in the lower part of the bookcase. Go get it."
After speaking, she suddenly reached out and grabbed Shen Hui, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Be careful lately. There have been two unfamiliar eyes lurking outside the Beast House."
Shen Hui's expression turned serious, her demeanor sharpening. "Whose people?"
"Tian Nüshi," Aunt Duan said cryptically, not intending to elaborate further. "But fortunately, your aunt is Madam Xu. No matter how bold Tian Nüshi is, she fears the wet nurse serving by the master's side and wouldn't dare to target you. You're being implicated because of me."
"Aren't you going to take precautions in advance?" Shen Hui had long heard that Aunt Duan had been framed due to the conflict between the two side consorts, Cui and Zheng, which caused her to fall from being a Steward in charge of the storerooms to becoming an aunt in the Beast House.
It seemed the mastermind behind framing Aunt Duan was likely Tian Nüshi.
Aunt Duan shook her head silently, her voice faint and distant. "A thief may steal for a thousand days, but no one can guard against theft for a thousand days. My dear senior apprentice sister and I have been fighting from the palace to outside it. I'm afraid it will only end when one of us is dead."
"Aunt, that sounds truly terrifying," Shen Hui said, still young and full of fighting spirit. "But don't worry, I definitely won't hold you back. Let Tian Nüshi come at us—who wins and who loses is still uncertain."
In the original story, the protagonist Shen Wei gradually sold wontons, opened a restaurant, and became famous in Chang'an for her culinary skills. By the age of twenty, she was summoned to the palace to serve as a nüguan in the Food Preparation Department of the Palace Food Service Bureau.
At that time, there was a Fourth Rank nüguan who assisted the Empress in managing palace affairs, and her surname happened to be Duan.
"You…" But now, Aunt Duan, exhausted from endless overt and covert struggles, could only gaze at Shen Hui with unconcealed envy, thinking to herself how wonderful it was to be young.
Manor estate.
Outside the side gate, five or six sturdy horses galloped through the night, their riders all muscular and radiating a heavy, menacing aura.
The leader, a man standing eight feet tall and holding a long blade, knocked on the door knocker.
Shen Father, the Steward of the manor estate who had come to answer the door as agreed, blustered with false bravado, first shouting angrily, "How dare you! This estate is under Prince Chu's name. How could you truly dare to cause trouble here? Get lost now! Liu Dalang, do you believe that I'll immediately write to the great prince and hand over you reckless men who ignore the xiao jin and leave the city overnight to the Imperial Guards?"
"Get lost?" The man called Liu Dalang laughed instead of getting angry, his expression mocking. "Steward Shen, if my master had no backing at all, how could he possibly run a gambling den in Chang'an city?"
He pulled out a document from his robe, personally written by the magistrate of Wannian County and stamped with an official seal, permitting them to leave the city after sunset. "Let me tell you, the ultimate master behind us bears the surname Xue."
The current Empress is of the Xue clan.
Chang'an city is divided into two counties: Chang'an and Wannian, each governed by a magistrate, with their superior being the Metropolitan Governor.
Capital counties differ from others; the magistrates hold the Fifth Rank and have the authority to attend court and participate in governance. To command the magistrate of Wannian County to write such a document, Liu Dalang's master was certainly no ordinary member of the Xue family.
"Duke of Zhao?" Shen Father pondered for a moment, then shuddered in fright, retreating inside the gate.
It's over… truly over!
Of all the gambling dens he could have owed money to, why did it have to be the Duke of Zhao's?
The Duke of Zhao is Empress Xue's nephew. His late father died serving the country. Although he was born to a singing courtesan as an illegitimate son, who could have predicted that none of the first wife or three concubines taken by the late Duke bore a son? Thus, he had to inherit the title.
Therefore, at the mere age of thirteen, the Duke of Zhao became the head of the Xue family. His birth mother died early, his legal mother couldn't control him, and his aunt the Empress indulged him, raising him to be utterly lawless. Now, fourteen years later, he had become the most untouchable dandy in the capital.
Liu Dalang put away the document and sneered, "Steward Shen, repaying debts is only right and proper."
Shen Father had no choice but to plead desperately, "Brother Liu, the Duke of Zhao is my great prince's cousin. Our masters are close, so we are practically family. How about granting me a little more time? Once the wangfu distributes the monthly allowance, I will definitely repay you."
"Who's family with you?" As the beam above is crooked, so the beam below is askew. Liu Dalang spoke arrogantly, kicked Shen Father to the ground, and flashed his blade, pressing it against the other's neck. "Don't think we're just country bumpkins you can fool. The wangfu only gives its stewards a monthly allowance of fifteen hundred coins. Even with the rice and cloth distributed, it's at most five taels. But you owe my master a full one hundred and twenty taels."
"Nonsense! It was clearly just over fifty taels." Shen Father couldn't believe it, but fearing the blade's unpredictability, he protested softly.
For a wangfu steward, fifty taels certainly wasn't much. However, Shen Father was addicted to gambling and had completely drained his family's resources. Where could he possibly get more money?
"Steward Shen, as you grow older, the silver grows too." Liu Dalang laughed heartily. "I recall that if you don't repay the money soon, by next month the debt will grow to three hundred taels. The wangfu has orders forbidding subordinates from gambling. What do you think will happen if I make a fuss about this to your master…"
The Duke of Zhao was a master of indulgence—drinking, feasting, whoring, and gambling. His princely mansion boasted lavish pavilions and towers, and he had even expanded a polo field specifically for the sport. His stables housed several prized Ferghana horses. Moreover, he was a favored patron of the renowned courtesan Yun Duzhi from Pingkang Fang, often splurging thousands in gold to win her favor. Such a lifestyle could hardly be sustained on his official salary alone.
At the Xue family gambling den, what proved more profitable than gambling debts was the interest accrued on them.
"Please, just a little more time—I will repay it," Shen Father wept bitterly, overwhelmed with regret.
Truly, heaven had no eyes—how could he have lost?
Liu Dalang sheathed his knife. Specializing in debt collection for the gambling den, he knew better than to push a man to his death. "Fine, I'll give you five more days. If you still haven't repaid by then, we'll settle this at the wangfu."
As soon as the men left, Shen Father scrambled back to his room on all fours, ordering Lady Jiang to hurry and summon the coachman to prepare the carriage.
"Let's go, to Chang'an, to find those two girls," he muttered, eyes bloodshot and filled with a frenzied determination. "I am their birth father. I've already shown mercy by not pursuing them for running away. Now that I'm in trouble, they cannot abandon me."
Author's Note:
Black and White Impermanence: Old gambling ghost, we'll be waiting for you on your way to Chang'an. [covering face and peeking] [covering face and peeking] [covering face and peeking]
After watching some abstinence-themed content, I was deeply shocked by the various "stellar" examples of humanity like Brother Yehao, so I really wanted to write such a character, haha.