Old Madam Jiang, Xueying, Jiang Chuan, Dayong, State Duke Xiao's Estate, Jiang Lingyuan, Jiang Lingzhi, Xiao Yan, Jiang Xun, Mammy Wang, Lancui Pavilion, Second Young Master Jiang, Lady Lu, Lady Gu, Jiang family, Jiang Manor, Lady Chu, Di Hong, Wei Lan, Di Qing, Fourth Madam Xiao, Shun Garden, Old Madame Xiao, Yunrou, Minister Jiang, Liu Sanniang, Shangjing, Xiao Jingyi
Lady Chu's expression froze as she frowned and demanded, "What is this about? Explain yourself clearly, Yuanyuan!"
Jiang Lingyuan cried as if tears cost nothing at all. "He is holding onto everything most valuable that Wei Lan left him! He's only willing to give me those worthless shops as my dowry!"
"What?"
Lady Chu's expression changed as well, her whole body trembling with rage. "I raised him with my own hands, and he always said you were his favorite younger sister! How can he still be so guarded against us, mother and daughter?"
Clutching Lady Chu's arm, she wept, "Mother, Second Brother refuses to help me, and we have no other options left. If this drags on any longer and my belly starts to show, I won't be able to face anyone ever again!"
Lady Chu frowned, her face as dark as water. It was true—while Lady Xiao could afford to drag things out, Lingyuan's belly simply could not wait.
After a moment of silent deliberation, a resolute look crossed Lady Chu's face. "Then we'll spread the word about the bride-swapping! We'll tell everyone that Xiao Yan forced himself on his sister-in-law in the bridal chamber and ruined the Second Young Miss Jiang's purity, which is why the Eldest Young Miss had to swap brides in the mourning hall!"
"Mother!"
Jiang Lingyuan was startled, her eyes widening in sheer disbelief. "It was so hard for Old Madame Xiao to suppress this matter! If you spread it about, my reputation will be completely ruined! How will I ever face society after this?"
Lady Chu grasped her hand. "Silly child, what is a reputation worth? Only when this matter blows up to the point where Lady Xiao cannot contain it will you be able to marry into the State Duke's Estate! Once you are married in and become the eldest grandson's legitimate wife, who would ever dare point fingers behind your back?"
After a brief silence, Jiang Lingyuan realized this logic made sense and agreed, "Mother, I'll listen to you."
***
Jiang Lingzhi planned to check out the shop Jiang Xun had given her so she could figure out how much silver she had on hand.
After instructing Di Qing and Di Qing to take good care of Xiao Jingyi at the estate, she took her maids and headed out.
On Shangjing's bustling Yong'an Street, the crowds flowed endlessly, and business in every shop was thriving.
Instead of going straight into Lancui Pavilion, Jiang Lingzhi chose a similarly lively teahouse across the street, intending to observe the shop's business first.
"A pot of Biluochun, a plate of cloud-flake cakes."
"Right away!"
Just as Jiang Xun had said, the jewelry shop was doing a roaring trade. In the space of a single cup of tea, people constantly streamed in and out, their faces wreathed in smiles as they left, clearly very satisfied with their purchases.
Jiang Lingzhi inwardly marveled at Jiang Xun's generosity.
As the mistress and her maids chatted casually, it wasn't long before she heard the conversation in the neighboring private room growing heated.
"...Hey, I heard that Xiao Yan, the eldest grandson of State Duke Xiao's Estate, ruined Minister Jiang's Second Young Miss on his wedding day... Tsk tsk tsk, and now he won't own up to it or marry her..."
"Really?"
"Of course it's true! Why else do you think the Eldest Young Miss swapped brides?"
Jiang Lingzhi: "..."
Xueying's eyes widened in shock. "Mistress, didn't the Old Madam already suppress this matter? How are there still rumors going around?"
Jiang Lingzhi gave a cold laugh. Why? Because Lady Chu and Jiang Lingyuan had been driven to desperation, of course.
Lady Lu had been forced to cough up the dowry, and she was undoubtedly unhappy about it. In retaliation, she went to pressure the Jiang family into returning the dowry.
Otherwise, why would the Jiang family have all marched out in full force on her return visit home to force her into a divorce?
Wasn't it so that when she divorced, she could haul her dowry back to the Jiang family, only for it to be handed over to Lady Lu through Jiang Lingyuan?!
Both Lady Lu and Lady Chu fancied themselves matrons of high-ranking noble houses, well-versed in all manner of inner courtyard schemes and intrigue. They believed they could easily chew up and swallow an innocent country girl, leaving not even a scrap of bone behind.
Yet they never expected Jiang Lingzhi's bones to be hard enough to crack their teeth.
Their calculations had all come to nothing, driving them to desperation.
Jiang Lingzhi was even a little curious as to why Lady Lu was so greedy that, just to get her hands on the dowry, she didn't even care about Jiang Lingyuan being pregnant.
The people in the next room were talking more and more wildly, so she lost interest in listening. "Let's go, let's take a look at the shop."
"Yes."
Dayong had an open-minded culture where women could also engage in commerce and trade. The proprietress of Lancui Pavilion was a sharp-tongued, capable woman known to all as Liu Sanniang.
Seeing Jiang Lingzhi enter, she hurried over with a warm greeting. "Mistress, come on in and take a look. What kind of jewelry are you looking to buy? I'll fetch some suitable pieces for you to inspect."
Noticing that Liu Sanniang's smiling face looked very kind, Jiang Lingzhi produced the jade pendant and handed it over to establish her identity. "I wonder if Second Young Master Jiang mentioned to you that he has given this shop to me."
Liu Sanniang looked her over, took the jade pendant, inspected it carefully, and smiled. "I know, I know. Yesterday the Second Young Master specifically sent someone to say he was giving the shop away—ah, to the Fourth Madam of the State Duke's Estate."
Jiang Lingzhi smiled. "That saves us some trouble."
Liu Sanniang led her further inside. "Mistress, this shop of ours has quite a few years of history, and business has always been good. Let me show you around, and later I'll have someone bring the account books over for you to examine."
Jiang Lingzhi thought to herself that Jiang Xun hadn't been wrong; Liu Sanniang truly handled things very properly.
With a jewelry shop like this in her hands, what else did she have to worry about? She could just sit back and count her money!
She replied amiably, "No need to look at the accounts today. Just come to the State Duke's Estate once a month from now on to report the accounts to me."
Liu Sanniang readily agreed. "Understood, Mistress can rest easy."
Jiang Lingzhi nodded, took a turn around the shop, and then headed out.
By then, the sky was growing dark. Glancing back inadvertently, she spotted the hawker selling candied haws—the very same one she had seen on her return visit home.
Subconsciously, she called out, "Hey, candied haw seller, come here!"
"Coming right up, Milady!" The hawker smiled broadly as he lowered the bundle of candied haws from his shoulder. "Have a look, Milady, which skewer would you like? I'll get it for you!"
This hawker made his candied haws with exquisite craftsmanship, creating quite a few varieties from the hawthorn berries alone.
There were pitted ones, unpitted ones, and ones stuffed with walnut kernels inside. Jiang Lingzhi had never tasted any of them and didn't know how to choose.
After hesitating for a moment, she simply asked for one of every kind and told her maids to pick whatever they wanted to eat.
With so many people on the street, Jiang Lingzhi was too embarrassed to eat the candied haws right then and there, so she planned to go back to the carriage to taste them.
Who would have thought that just as she reached the carriage, a hand reached out from the side, grabbed her arm, and whipped its other hand upward, knocking the skewers of candied haws right out of her grasp.
Jiang Lingzhi stared in astonishment as the round, crimson skewers of candied haws traced an arc through the air and landed heavily on the ground.
They were stained with mud, crushed underfoot by passing pedestrians,
and dismissed by someone as sticky to the soles of their shoes.
With red-rimmed eyes, she turned her head and glared furiously at the culprit: "Second Young Master Jiang, if you're sick, go see a doctor!"
Jiang Xun sneered, "You still have the nerve to play the bully with me? Rumors about Lingyuan and Xiao Yan are flying everywhere, and this isn't your doing?!"
Finding him utterly ridiculous, Jiang Lingzhi stared back and retorted, "What does this have to do with me? Did you even investigate before coming to interrogate me?"
"You're still arguing?" Jiang Xun felt as though he had just heard a colossal joke. "If not you, then who? Aside from you, who else would go to such elaborate lengths to harm Lingyuan?"
Jiang Lingzhi mocked, "If you don't know who it is, why don't you report it to the authorities? Why pin the blame on me so casually? What, are you thinking of dragging me back to the Jiang family to administer family punishment?"
Jiang Xun flared up in response, "You think I wouldn't?!"
In truth, that was precisely what he had thought at first.
He had gone to the State Duke's Estate first, but failing to catch anyone there, he had come straight to Lancui Pavilion.
On the way over, he had already decided that whether Jiang Lingzhi cried, made a fuss, or threatened to hang herself, he was going to punish her severely with family rules!
Yet now, he felt as though he might have been cursed; looking at Jiang Lingzhi's face, he simply couldn't harden his heart.
She looked far too much like the mother in his memories.
In a muffled voice, Jiang Xun asked, "It really wasn't you?"
Suppressing her anger to keep her tears from falling, Jiang Lingzhi said, "If you don't believe me, why bother asking?"
Jiang Xun gave her a deep look. "Fine, I will look into this matter. If I find out it was you, I'll make sure you regret it."
Jiang Lingzhi replied with utter indifference, "If you have nothing else to say, will Second Young Master Jiang please let go of my arm?"
Silently, Jiang Xun released her arm.
Looking down at her empty hands, Jiang Lingzhi instinctively turned to look for the candied haw hawker, but the man had long since vanished.
Her tears could no longer be contained, rolling down her cheeks in large, heavy drops.
***
She couldn't control her fury, and she raised her foot to kick Jiang Xun hard in the back of his knee.
Then, terrified that he might retaliate, she scrambled quickly into the carriage. "Second Young Master Jiang, consider that kick compensation for my three skewers of candied haws."
Drawing in a sharp breath of pain, Jiang Xun muttered a low curse.
By the time he straightened up to settle accounts with Jiang Lingzhi, the carriage had already galloped away.
It took him quite a while to catch his breath and calm down. He turned and stepped into the teahouse not far away.
Wuyou Teahouse was famous throughout Shangjing and indeed the entire Dayong.
With its elegant layout, reasonable prices, and clientele ranging from high-ranking officials and nobles to ordinary citizens and underworld figures, everyone loved coming here to drink tea and chat in leisure.
Precisely because it attracted all sorts of mixed company, it was an extremely convenient place to dig up minor gossip and rumors.
This very teahouse had belonged to his late mother, Wei Lan.
He made his way with familiar ease up the steps to a window-facing private room on the second floor.
Soon, a waiter brought tea inside. "Second Young Master, please enjoy your tea."
"Where did those rumors outside come from?" Jiang Xun picked up his teahouse cup, took a sip, and made a displeased face. "Bring me some chrysanthemum tea instead, I need to cool my temper."
Jumping to conclusions first had been his fault, but that didn't mean Jiang Lingzhi's tough attitude would make him firmly believe she had nothing to do with it.
So he was going to investigate and get to the bottom of it right now.
If it really was her, he would do exactly as she said—report her to the authorities, have her locked up, and teach her a proper lesson!
The waiter nimbly removed the tea and replaced it with hangbai chrysanthemum tea. As he poured the tea for Jiang Xun, he answered the question just asked: "Second Young Master, those reports originally started from an old woman..."
As Jiang Xun listened, his heart gradually sank.
He abruptly picked up the tea cup on the table and chugged half a pot of tea to douse his mood, tossed down a piece of silver, and left with a dark face.
Returning to the Jiang Manor, he headed straight for the inner courtyard without a word. Just as he stepped across the ceremonial moon gate, he spotted servants carrying a corpse wrapped in a straw mat, hurrying toward the side gate.
"...Stop right there!" he shouted. "What's going on?"
The servants turned around. Seeing it was the Second Young Master, they hurriedly put down the mat and came forward.
"Reporting to the Second Young Master, it's Mammy Wang. She drank too much wine and fell into the water... The Mistress told us to take her away and bury her so she wouldn't bring bad luck to the estate."
With an inscrutable expression, Jiang Xun gave an "oh."
It sounded like she had gotten what she deserved... but why was the timing so convenient?
The old woman the waiter had described earlier was precisely Mammy Wang from the manor.
He had just been thinking of coming back to question her, and now Mammy Wang was dead.
Was this truly an accident, or some sort of cover-up?
He had no way of knowing.
"Second Young Master, it's about to get dark. If you have no other orders, we'll go take care of the body."
"Go ahead," Jiang Xun replied expressionlessly.
Standing there as the sky grew steadily darker, he suddenly felt as though he could no longer see things clearly.
***
When Jiang Lingzhi returned to the State Duke's Estate, she ran head-on into Lady Lu, who was walking briskly with an unsightly expression.
Following behind her was a mammy with a cloth wrapped around her head. Looking closer, it turned out to be Mammy Wang, whose hair bun had been sliced off by Jiang Lingzhi's knife.
The moment the mistress and servant laid eyes on Jiang Lingzhi, they nearly suffered heart attacks.
Their already grim expressions turned even uglier.
Yet Jiang Lingzhi remained entirely oblivious, cheerfully greeting them instead, "Oh, Eldest Sister-in-law! So late, where are you off to?"
Lady Lu glared resentfully at Jiang Lingzhi.
Unable to hold back any longer, she sneered in a sarcastic tone, "Going to the Jiang family to propose marriage, of course! The Fourth Sister-in-law doesn't know yet, do you? Your Jiang family's daughter is going to be a concubine."
Being a concubine was hardly an honorable status; whichever sister had a concubine in the family would automatically lower her own standing by a fraction.
Yet Jiang Lingzhi didn't care in the least. She merely clicked her tongue, wearing an expression of profound sympathy. "Then Eldest Sister-in-law won't be able to get her hands on that generous dowry this time."
Furious, Lady Lu gritted her teeth, snorted coldly, and swept off in a huff.
Yunrou couldn't help spitting out a retort, "Pft, what kind of person is that!"
Xueying pulled her back. "Don't bother arguing with her. This is what you call lifting a stone only to drop it on your own feet. From now on, I'm afraid there will be plenty of lively spectacles to watch in the First Branch courtyard."
Yunrou nodded. "That's true."
Dragging her two gossiping maids along with her, Jiang Lingzhi returned to Shun Garden.
As soon as they stepped inside the courtyard, they noticed several pots of peonies had been added.
The servants explained that Second Madam Gu had sent them, and they were the extremely rare and precious Yao Huang peonies.
Yunrou was pleasantly surprised once more. "Fourth Madam, the peonies in the Second Master's courtyard are always the prettiest, and they treat them like absolute treasures. I can't believe the Second Madam was actually willing to send us several pots like this."
Xueying agreed, "Indeed, these pots all have strong roots and robust seedlings, and there are still several flower buds that haven't opened yet. If we care for them properly, they can bloom all the way until mid-May."
Jiang Lingzhi smiled. Second Madam Gu had a clever and exquisite mind.
Knowing she had ridden the coattails of the peony banquet's success, this was her way of sending a gift of thanks to show goodwill.
She nodded. "Then take good care of them. Springtime is the best season for flower viewing."
"Serve the evening meal, I'm hungry."
She was in a good mood today, so she was going to eat two bowls.
***
Over at the Jiang Manor, Lady Chu and Lady Lu were back and forth, negotiating the marriage.
Lady Lu's tone was cold and hard. "Mistress Jiang, Second Young Miss Jiang has given herself to Xiao Yan, and our State Duke's Estate isn't unreasonable either. We agree to take her as a concubine. We'll come to welcome the bride in three days."
Lady Chu's expression was unsightly in the extreme. "Lady Xiao, why push things to this point? Lingyuan and Xiao Yan are genuinely fond of each other, and she is carrying Xiao Yan's child. Do you have no regard for that at all?"
Lady Lu replied apathetically, "She has to enter the State Duke's Estate first before she can be considered of the Xiao bloodline."
Hiding in the side room, Jiang Lingyuan heard Lady Lu's demand that she become a concubine and flew into a rage. She rushed forward, knocked over the incense burner on the kang table, and smashed every vase in the room into pieces.
"Mistress Jiang, go persuade her. I'll give you the space of a cup of tea. If she doesn't agree, I'll be leaving."
Seeing Lady Lu's attitude, Lady Chu knew she had no other choice and had no choice but to head into the side room.
The moment Jiang Lingyuan saw Lady Chu, she cried out immediately, "Mother, I won't be a concubine! I won't be a concubine!"
With a heartbroken expression, Lady Chu patted her shoulder. "Don't cry, don't cry."
Consumed by anger and resentment, Jiang Lingyuan wept, "Mother, it's all Jiang Lingzhi's fault! Why did she have to steal my dowry? Why did she have to harm me like this... Sob, sob..."
Lady Chu sighed. "But Yuanyuan, matters have reached this point, and we have no other options..."
When Minister Jiang learned of the matter, his stance was absolute: he wanted to use a length of white silk to strangle Jiang Lingyuan to death to uphold the moral standards of the Jiang family.
No matter what Old Madam Jiang or Jiang Xun said, they couldn't sway Minister Jiang.
If Lady Lu hadn't shown up, Lingyuan would already have descended to the Yellow Springs.
***
Jiang Lingyuan was well aware of this.
She sat in a daze for a moment, then raised a hand to wipe away her tears, asking with lingering grievance, "Why should I?"
Even now, she remained utterly unconvinced.
In her eyes, Jiang Lingzhi was nothing more than a country bumpkin who had usurped the position of the Minister's legitimate eldest daughter, become the lofty Fourth Madam of the Xiao family, and even been conferred the title of a First-Rank Lady of State.
Across the entire Dayong, the number of First-Rank Ladies of State could be counted on one hand, yet that wretched girl had somehow occupied one of those positions.
Meanwhile, she was a daughter carefully cultivated and raised by the Jiang family since childhood, and now she was pregnant with the State Duke's Estate's child, yet she was being forced to serve as a concubine.
Lady Lu sighed again, lowering her voice. "According to your mother's view, you should agree to it. Being a concubine doesn't matter much; at least it's a favored concubine. As long as you can hold onto Xiao Yan's affections, you needn't worry about lacking an opportunity to be elevated to a legitimate wife later."
Two trails of clear tears fell from Jiang Lingyuan's eyes. "Why should I be a slave while she gets to be the mistress?"
Lady Chu's expression darkened slightly, her eyes filled with heartache. "Mother heard that Xiao Jingyi won't live past three months. That wretched girl won't be swaggering around for much longer."
Pausing, she added softly, "Yuanyuan, once you marry over there... you'll be able to wait for the right moment and act."
Jiang Lingyuan's expression froze. She looked at Lady Chu in confusion, as if grasping something, her eyes brightening slightly. In the end, she nodded. "...Alright."
After sending Lady Lu away, Lady Chu went to the study to find Minister Jiang.
Minister Jiang was in the middle of painting. Hearing Lady Chu say that Jiang Lingyuan was willing to become a concubine, he didn't even raise his head. "Despicable."
A trace of resentment flashed through Lady Chu's eyes. "Master, Lingyuan is someone who grew up right before your eyes. Do you not care for her even in the slightest?"
Minister Jiang cast a cold, indifferent glance at her, sending a shiver of chill up Lady Chu's spine for no reason.
Looking away, he lowered his gaze back to his painting. "Get out."
Suppressing the tears threatening to spill, Lady Chu shot him a bitter look.
Though they had been husband and wife for decades, she still found him distant and unfamiliar.
All of his tenderness and affection seemed to have been reserved solely for Wei Lan. The moment Wei Lan died, a part of him had died with her, leaving behind nothing more than a cold, unfeeling walking corpse.
Lady Chu's eyes were pitch black with gloom.
She hated Wei Lan.
She hated that accursed, loathsome woman to her very core!
Clearly, she had been dead for so many years, yet she still firmly occupied Jiang Chuan's heart.
Even though he had married her as his second wife, he had never treated her as anything more than a piece of furniture, refusing to touch her even once all these years!
And now, Jiang Lingzhi, that wretched little hussy, was just as sickening as Wei Lan—blocking Lingyuan's path and snatching away Lingyuan's things!
She truly deserved to die... Lingyuan, you must not show the slightest bit of mercy toward that wretched girl!
Lady Chu closed her eyes, her face pale and haggard, and turned to leave the study.
Jiang Xun was lying on his bed in a daze, recalling the events of the day, when a few light knocks sounded at his door. "Second Brother, are you asleep?"
He hurriedly got up to open the door for her. "Lingyuan, you're here so late? Is something the matter?"
With a bitter smile, Jiang Lingyuan said, "Second Brother, I only came to tell you that I've agreed to the State Duke's Estate's terms. In three days, I will be marrying over to be a concubine."
*A concubine.*