Shen Qingqing raised her head and looked at Madam Lu with her clear black-and-white eyes, then gently nodded.
“You’ve seen it yourself. Yuer is gravely ill, unconscious and unresponsive, and the physicians are completely helpless,” Madam Lu said, her voice carrying a hint of a sob, though she tried to keep it gentle. “We consulted a Daoist priest, and he said that only if you and Yuer hold a wedding ceremony and marry, with you protecting him, will he have any hope of surviving.”
She paused, then looked at Shen Qingqing’s innocent, bewildered gaze and explained in greater detail, “Holding a wedding ceremony means becoming a family. From now on, you will be Yuer’s wife. You’ll have to stay with him and take care of him. But Yuer can’t move right now, so we can only find a rooster to stand in for him and hold the ceremony with you. Are you willing?”
Shen Qingqing froze for a moment. She did not quite understand what “holding a wedding ceremony” or “wife” meant, but she understood “take care of Yuer” and “let him survive.” She thought of the boy on the bed, burning red with fever and calling “Don’t go” in his dreams. She thought of the silver Nanny Zhou had given her mother. If she refused, would they have to return the silver to Nanny Zhou? What would happen to her little brother’s illness then?
She was silent for a moment before raising her head. Her gaze was firm, and although her voice was soft, every word was clear.
“I’m willing.”
Seeing her small body and determined eyes, Madam Lu’s tears suddenly welled up. She squeezed Shen Qingqing’s hand tightly and said through her sobs, “Good child, you’re being wronged. Our Lu Family will certainly not mistreat you.”
Seeing this, Nanny Zhou hurried forward and said softly, “Madam, the auspicious hour has arrived. We should begin.”
Madam Lu nodded, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and gestured for Nanny Zhou to start.
Nanny Zhou walked over to the bamboo cage and carefully lifted out the red-crested rooster. She tied a length of red silk around its neck, then had a young servant support the rooster and stand beside Shen Qingqing.
She herself stood to one side, acting as the master of ceremonies. Her voice was solemn but concise. “The auspicious hour has arrived. The wedding ceremony begins.”
There were no guests offering congratulations, no elaborate rites—only the few people in the front hall and the quiet red-crested rooster standing there.
“First bow to Heaven and Earth,” Nanny Zhou called softly.
Following what Nanny Zhou had taught her beforehand, Shen Qingqing knelt on the ground and kowtowed. Beside her, the servant pressed down on the rooster’s body, making it lower its head slightly in a gesture of ceremony.
“Second bow to the elders.”
Madam Lu sat in the principal seat and watched the scene before her as tears slid down her cheeks once more. She nodded gently, accepting the bow. Shen Qingqing kowtowed again, while the servant continued to hold the rooster down so it could perform the ceremony.
“Bride and groom bow to each other.”
Shen Qingqing turned and knelt toward the rooster beside her. Her small body showed a trace of nervous restraint, but not the slightest unwillingness. The servant pressed down on the rooster, making it lower its head slightly in Shen Qingqing’s direction, and the ceremony was complete.
Nanny Zhou let out a breath of relief and said softly, “The ceremony is complete.”
Madam Lu rose and walked over to Shen Qingqing. Taking the girl’s little hand, she slipped a small Mutton-Jade Bangle over her slender wrist. The bangle was milky white and lustrous, with a rich sheen. It hung loosely around her wrist, its cool jade resting against her skin and feeling very comfortable.
“This is a welcoming gift for you,” Madam Lu said, her voice still hoarse. “Today’s arrangements were rushed, so I’m giving you this for now. From this day forward, you are the Young Madam of the Lu Family Ancestral Residence. I’ll be counting on you to take good care of Yuer.”
Shen Qingqing touched the jade bangle on her wrist and nodded gently. “Please rest assured, Madam. I’ll take good care of Young Master.”
Physician Wu stood to one side, watching this simple yet weighty ceremony and looking at Shen Qingqing’s clear eyes. An indescribable feeling suddenly welled up in his heart.
Nanny Zhou handed the rooster over to a servant to take away, then said to Shen Qingqing, “Young Madam, I’ll take you to see Young Master first, then send you to the eastern side room to rest. You’ll have to get up early tomorrow to take care of Young Master.”
Shen Qingqing nodded and followed Nanny Zhou toward Qingyuan Pavilion.
The red candles in the front hall continued to burn. Madam Lu stood where she was, gazing at Shen Qingqing’s thin, small figure. Then she thought of her son on the bed, folded her hands together, and prayed silently in her heart: Yuer, you must get better.
The eastern side room of Qingyuan Pavilion had already been given a simple cleaning by the servants and was to serve as Shen Qingqing’s temporary resting place. There was a small wooden bed covered with a soft blue cloth mattress; a simple dressing table with a bronze mirror and a peachwood comb; and a small wooden cabinet standing in the corner, where she could keep her clothes and personal belongings.
Moqin held the old clothes Shen Qingqing had changed out of and asked softly, “Do you still want these clothes? They’re torn to pieces.”
Shen Qingqing nodded emphatically. Her little hand gently touched the stitching on the old clothes, each stitch sewn by her mother. “I want them. Mother made them.”
Seeing the seriousness on her face, Moqin nodded. “Then I’ll wash them clean before putting them away. Young Madam, you should rest for now.” As she spoke, she helped make the bed for her.
Shen Qingqing lay down beneath the blue cloth quilt that had been warmed in the sun. It was warm and carried a faint scent of sunlight. She kept her eyes open, looking at the moonlight outside the window. Passing through the window lattice, the moonlight cast a grid-like shadow on the floor. Everything was quiet.
She thought of her mother, her little brother, and A-Zheng in the ruined temple. Where was Mother now? Had her little brother’s fever gone down? Was A-Zheng still curled up in a corner of the ruined temple? Did he have anything to eat? Did his wound hurt?
Then she thought of Lu Chengyu on the bed, of what she had promised Madam Lu, and of the red-crested rooster that had stood in for him at the wedding ceremony. She did not know what “wife” meant, but she knew that she had to take good care of him and help him get better.
She turned over and pulled the quilt higher, covering her thin shoulders. Her eyes reddened slightly, but she did not cry.
The moonlight outside the window remained still and quiet as it fell upon her small figure.
At that same moment, twenty li away, in the ruined temple, A-Zheng was curled up in a cold corner, completely unable to sleep.
He lowered his head and looked at the strip of cloth wrapped around his arm. It was an old piece of cloth, washed pale, that Shen Qingqing had torn from the hem of her clothes. It had been tied in a crooked knot and still carried a faint scent of incense ash.
He thought of the way she smiled, revealing two little canine teeth, her brows and eyes curving; of how she had stuffed half a steamed corn bun into his hand, leaving a trace of warmth in his palm; of how her eyelashes had trembled as she bent her head to bandage his wound; and of the faint Plum Blossom Mark on her forearm, soft beneath the sunlight.
He remembered her saying, “A-Zheng, you have to live well.”
He clenched the strip of cloth around his arm until his knuckles turned white. He did not know whether he could live well. He only knew that after she left, the ruined temple felt emptier and colder, and even the sound of the wind blowing through it seemed especially lonely.
He suddenly wanted to ask her: What is your name? Where have you gone? Will you come back?
But in the end, those words could only be swallowed down into his heart. He did not even know her name.
The wind blew in through the broken window of the ruined temple, carrying the chill of late autumn. A-Zheng curled himself up even tighter, but he gripped the strip of cloth in his hand more firmly.
Early the next morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten and the faint light outside the window had only just filtered through the lattice into the eastern side room, Shen Qingqing woke up. She had always been vigilant. Besides, this was the unfamiliar Lu Family Ancestral Residence, and she had not dared to sleep deeply through the night. Worried about Lu Chengyu, who lay unconscious in the main room, she propped herself up and sat up as soon as dawn broke.
At home, she had also risen before daylight to help her mother start the fire and prepare vegetables, never sleeping late. Now, she dared not be negligent. She quickly put on her clothes and straightened her collar, then quietly made her way toward the main room. She remembered Madam Lu’s words: she had to take good care of Young Master.