The steward received his orders and, not daring to delay, immediately summoned every servant in the residence who could be sent out on errands.
“Listen carefully!” The steward stood in the front courtyard, his voice lowered yet filled with utmost gravity. “Madam has ordered us to find a girl born in the Yi-Mao year, Ji-Mao month, Yi-Mao day, and Ji-Mao hour. The child should be six years old this year. Whoever finds her will be heavily rewarded!”
The servants exchanged bewildered looks.
“But… how are we supposed to find her?” a young page asked, scratching his head. “We don’t even know whose family has had a daughter.”
“Go and ask!” the steward barked, glaring at him. “First, go to the town constable’s office and check the household registers. Have the village heads ask around every village as well. Ask at the apothecaries which families have bought medicine for six-year-old girls in the past few years. Don’t miss a single trace! And search the tea stalls, restaurants, and inns in town. Keep a close eye on any women and children who have come here fleeing hardship, and question them one by one!”
The servants accepted their orders and scattered, their hurried footsteps carrying them into the streets and alleys of Qingshui Town.
Nanny Zhou was not idle either. She changed into coarse blue cloth garments, concealing the dignity of a nanny from a noble household. Taking only a little maid dressed just as plainly, she headed toward the busiest market street in town. As she walked, she kept watch in every direction. Whenever she saw a girl of five or six, she would stop to scrutinize her for a while and ask a few questions about her age and origins. She went from one end of the street to the other and questioned more than a dozen households, yet found not the slightest clue. Her brows drew together more and more tightly.
When she reached the entrance of Huichun Hall, her steps suddenly halted.
On the bluestone pavement beneath the apothecary’s steps sat a wan, emaciated woman, clutching a four- or five-year-old boy tightly in her arms. The child’s small face was flushed red with fever, his eyes squeezed shut, and his cracked lips were peeling. He did not even have the strength to whimper. Anyone could see that he was seriously ill. Beside the woman stood a thin, tiny girl with two loosely tied braids. Mud flecked the ends of her hair, and her clothes were covered in layer upon layer of patches, though they were still fairly clean. The girl simply stood there quietly, neither crying nor making a fuss. From time to time, she reached out to wipe the tears from the woman’s eyes. Her little body was held perfectly straight, and she looked to be about five or six years old—the very age they were seeking.
Nanny Zhou’s heart gave a slight leap. Suppressing her eagerness, she walked over at an unhurried pace and crouched before the woman, her voice gentle. “Sister-in-law, your child has been running a fever for several days, hasn’t he?”
The woman raised her head. Her eye sockets were red and swollen, and her eyes were filled with bewilderment and despair. Seeing that it was a kind-looking old nanny, she nodded awkwardly. “Y-yes… he’s my youngest son. He’s had a fever for three days and three nights. We can’t even get water into him. If he doesn’t take medicine soon, I’m afraid… I’m afraid he won’t make it…” As she spoke, her voice choked with sobs.
Nanny Zhou nodded. Her gaze fell on the girl beside the woman, but she pretended to be asking casually and said, “Is this your eldest daughter? She looks very obedient. How old is she this year?”
The woman wiped away her tears and nodded again. “Yes. Her name is Qingqing. She just turned six.”
Six years old.
Nanny Zhou’s heartbeat suddenly quickened. Her hand clenched slightly, but her expression remained unchanged. She merely sighed, her tone carrying a hint of pity. “Judging from your circumstances, you must have come here fleeing hardship, haven’t you? Bringing two children along, you must have suffered terribly on the road.”
Her words struck directly at the woman’s sorrow. Tears welled up at once. Covering her face, she sobbed quietly, unable to say a word as she nodded frantically.
Nanny Zhou waited for her to cry for a moment before slowly speaking. Her gaze fixed steadily on the woman. “Sister-in-law, to be honest, there was another reason I asked the child’s age. My master has come from the Capital and is looking for a six-year-old girl to enter the residence and serve the Young Master, keeping him company while he studies and plays. She need only be obedient and sensible. I took one look at this girl and saw that her features are proper and her temperament steady. I truly like her. I just don’t know what her birth pillars are. If she suits our eyes and her birth chart matches as well, that would be her good fortune.”
The woman froze for a moment, clearly not expecting such a question. After hesitating briefly, she saw that the old nanny before her did not look like a wicked person and finally answered truthfully, “She was born in the Yi-Mao year, Ji-Mao month, Yi-Mao day, and Ji-Mao hour.”
Every character matched. It was precisely the Four Pillars of Pure Yin Madam was looking for!
Nanny Zhou felt as though a great weight had fallen from her heart. Suppressing her surging emotions, she allowed the smile on her face to deepen, though there was a deliberate gentleness hidden within it. “What a coincidence! Truly, what a coincidence! This birth chart is exactly what my master wants! Sister-in-law, look at how sick your son is. What will happen if you delay any longer? But as things stand, I’m afraid you don’t even have the money to buy medicine, do you?”
The woman’s sobbing stopped at once. She looked at Nanny Zhou, a glimmer of hope flashing in her eyes before quickly fading. Lowering her head, she spoke in a painfully hoarse voice. “How could I have any money…? We spent all our travel money fleeing the famine. The children’s father went out to find work, but he hasn’t found anything after half a day. I… I truly have no other way…”
Nanny Zhou drew a silver ingot from her sleeve, worth about ten taels. It gleamed coldly in the autumn sunlight. She then took out several pieces of broken silver and added them to it, making a total of twenty taels, before gently placing the money on the bluestone pavement before the woman.
“Sister-in-law, I’m a nanny from the Lu Family here in town. The Lu Family is an old noble family from the Capital. Though the rules in the household are strict, we never mistreat our servants. If Qingqing is willing to come back to the residence with me, the household will provide all her food and clothing from now on. She’ll wear fine-cloth garments, eat white rice, and receive a monthly allowance. She’ll never again have to flee hardship with you. Take these twenty taels to buy medicine and treat your child first. With what remains, find a courtyard to settle in and let the child’s father find steady work, so that you can live properly.”
The woman stared blankly at the heavy silver on the bluestone pavement. Twenty taels—enough to feed and support the three of them for more than two years. Her son’s illness could finally be treated!
But then she turned to look at Shen Qingqing beside her. The girl’s bright eyes were fixed on her. There was no fear in them, only a faint bewilderment. The woman’s heart felt as though it had been savagely cut by a blunt knife, and the pain made it difficult to breathe. Her lips trembled, and for a long while she could not speak.
She wanted to refuse. She wanted to hold both children and endure everything together. But when she lowered her head and looked at her youngest son, who was faintly clinging to life in her arms, that thought was strangled in an instant.
She could not let her son die, even if… even if she had to send her daughter away.
Shen Qingqing gently tugged at the woman’s clothes. Her small voice was soft, yet exceptionally clear.
“Mother.”
The woman lowered her head to look at her daughter. Tears welled up again, and she suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace, as though she wanted to press her into her very bones and blood. Her whole body trembled uncontrollably.
“Qingqing, Qingqing, Mother… Mother is sorry…”
Held in her mother’s arms, Shen Qingqing lightly patted her back, just as her mother usually comforted her. Looking up at her mother’s tear-reddened eyes, she asked softly, “Mother, if you have this money, can Little Brother’s illness be cured?”
The woman nodded frantically, tears striking the crown of Shen Qingqing’s head. “Yes, yes, he can be cured. Qingqing, your little brother can live…”
“Then all right.” Shen Qingqing nodded. There was not much expression on her small face, though a barely perceptible trace of disappointment passed through her eyes. She asked again, “Then, when Mother has money later, will you come and take me back?”
“I will! I definitely will!” the woman answered hurriedly. Holding her daughter’s small face between her hands, she spoke each word with utmost solemnity. “Once Mother has settled down and earned some money, I’ll come take Qingqing home right away. Mother will never be separated from Qingqing again!”
Shen Qingqing looked into her mother’s eyes. After remaining silent for a moment, she gave a soft “Mm,” then reached out to wipe the tears from the woman’s face. Her little finger brushed across her mother’s rough cheek, her movements gentle.
“Mother, don’t cry. Little Brother’s illness is more important. If I go with the nanny, Little Brother can take medicine, and you won’t have to kneel and beg people anymore.”
The woman held her daughter and wept as though her heart were breaking. A thousand words clogged her throat, but in the end, they became only one choked sentence.
“Qingqing, Qingqing, you must be well…”
Shen Qingqing nodded, then wriggled free of her mother’s arms and stood straight. She looked toward Nanny Zhou.
“Nanny, I’ll go with you.”
Nanny Zhou breathed a sigh of relief. A genuine smile appeared on her face, and she bent down to take the girl’s hand. Seeing that the little hand was clutching the hem of her clothes, the fingertips pale from the force, she slowed her movements and gently guided her instead.
“Good child, let’s go.”
She then stuffed the silver into the woman’s hands and reminded her, “Sister-in-law, take the child inside and get the medicine quickly. Don’t delay any longer.”
The woman’s hands still trembled as she gripped the silver. Watching Shen Qingqing’s retreating back, she suddenly dropped to her knees with a loud thump and kowtowed toward Nanny Zhou and Shen Qingqing. Her forehead struck the bluestone pavement with a dull sound.
“Please, Nanny, take good care of my Qingqing! I… I will remember your kindness!”
Nanny Zhou hurriedly helped her up. “Get up quickly. Getting medicine for the child is what matters. It was fate that brought us together.”
The woman climbed to her feet and carried her son into the apothecary. After taking two steps, she suddenly turned around and looked toward Shen Qingqing.