Chapter 119: A Sisterly Conversation

The steward of the Guan household stepped out of the courtyard gate, locked the door behind him, and hurried to the Mingzhu Pavilion to report.

“Go tell the kitchen that no one in the Embroidered Brocade Courtyard needs dinner tonight,” An Yi said with a cold sneer. She had long anticipated Madam Huang’s threats. This woman wielded her reputation as a weapon, expecting to intimidate her, but An Yi wanted her to know she was unafraid.

So the matron mistreated the concubines—what of it? Who would openly accuse the matron of wrongdoing? The An brothers had a jealous mother. As long as she publicly declared she would not take concubines, many would still come seeking marriage. As for her reputation—if it was ruined, so be it. She never intended to marry anyway.

Dusk fell, and rain began to patter against the banana leaves in the courtyard, the sound crisp and sharp. Everything was soaked, adding to the chill. In the cold winter, hunger made the cold bite deeper. Time passed slowly, night deepened, and the wind drove the rain harder. The inhabitants of the Embroidered Brocade Courtyard waited eagerly but received no steaming dinner, hungry and cold.

The meals these days had been meager. Madam Huang had long since eaten all the pastries, and now the courtyard had nothing left to eat.

“What is the kitchen doing? Why hasn’t dinner arrived yet? Are you all dead? Why haven’t you sent someone to check?” Madam Huang, spoiled and pampered, finally felt the pangs of hunger and shouted angrily.

“Second Madam, the door is locked; we can’t get out,” Green Twig replied weakly.

“That wretched girl! Ouch!” Madam Huang spun sharply and kicked a bamboo basket. “Move these coals outside.”

“Second Madam, I have no strength; I can’t move them,” Green Twig said, sitting on a wooden stool, unmoving. The real reason was fear—fear that An Yi would punish them again. Skipping one meal wouldn’t kill them, but several would starve them to death. Under someone else’s roof, it was best to lower one’s head and endure.

The other maids also sat still. Madam Huang, lacking the strength to pace inside, sat in the imperial concubine’s chair, cursing An Yi repeatedly. Born to an official family and well-educated, she didn’t know coarse curses. Instead, she kept repeating that she would never let An Yi off, that one day An Yi would kneel before her begging for mercy, that she would humiliate An Yi in every conceivable way, and curse her to remain an old maid, mocked by all.

At first, a few maids tried to reason with her, but soon they stopped, numbly listening to the tirade.

People often say that it’s better to sleep hungry than to eat full, but when truly hungry, sleep is impossible. The stomach twists and knots. Nearly a dozen people in the courtyard spent the night in restless agony.

At dawn, the wind ceased and the rain stopped. The An family men had already left for official business at the yamen. An Yi instructed Xiang Qin, “Go to the kitchen and have them prepare a pot of porridge and some steamed white buns. Send them to the Embroidered Brocade Courtyard.”

Xiang Qin nodded and left.

An Yi went to the Well Fence Garden to have breakfast with Mrs. Luo, then brought Fang Rong and the Guan steward’s man to the Embroidered Brocade Courtyard.

Madam Huang glared at An Yi as she entered, eyes bloodshot with deep hatred. She suddenly stood and charged toward An Yi, shouting, “You wretched girl, I’ll kill you!”

After cursing all night, her voice was hoarse. Hungry and weak, she stumbled after a few steps and tripped over the bamboo basket, falling flat on her face.

An Yi lowered her gaze and smiled lightly as she looked down at Madam Huang sprawled on the ground. “Auntie, it’s not New Year yet. No need to pay such respects.”

Madam Huang lay there for a long while, unable to get up.

An Yi looked down on her for a moment, recalling how noble she had looked the first time they met. A hint of mockery flashed in her eyes. “Someone help Auntie up. It’s cold, and the ground is damp. She’s been paying her respects long enough.”

Green Twig and the others exchanged glances and went to help Madam Huang to her feet.

As soon as she stood, Madam Huang cursed loudly, “You wretched woman! You dare treat me like this? The Huang family will not let you off.”

“Auntie, at this point, do you still think the Huang family is your support?” An Yi sneered. “If the Huang family was willing to back a concubine, the Censorate would never approve, and my father cannot bear the guilt of favoring a concubine over a wife. You’d better behave and stop testing my patience. If you dare do this again, I will starve you to a withered husk.”

“How dare you!” Madam Huang growled, bravely but trembling inwardly.

“Green Twig, you and the others, go have your breakfast. Auntie is unwell and can’t eat. Let her rest properly in her room. Don’t disturb her. Understood?” An Yi said firmly, making it clear she was serious and capable.

Green Twig and the others looked at each other and replied in unison, “Understood.”

Madam Huang watched them leave, suddenly uneasy. “You lowly maids dare betray your mistress? Don’t forget whose hands hold your contracts!”

Green Twig’s face paled, caught between fear and defiance.

“If Auntie starves to a husk, will you use your contracts as funeral paper?” An Yi asked coldly.

“You malicious woman! You won’t—”

Suddenly, Fang Rong sprang forward with swift hands, pressing a vital point on Madam Huang. “Miss, Auntie didn’t sleep well last night and is weak. She can’t even speak clearly. It’s better to let her rest.”

“You don’t need to worry. Her curses won’t come true,” An Yi smiled.

“Early in the morning, listening to ill omens is unlucky.” Fang Rong carried the now unconscious Madam Huang to bed and tucked her in.

An Yi and the others withdrew from the room.

At that moment, the kitchen staff arrived with the porridge and buns. The servants in the Embroidered Brocade Courtyard, no longer concerned with Madam Huang, hurried to the side rooms to eat.

By mid-morning, Li Ruoxian and her son arrived as promised.

“Mother, this is my second senior sister, Li Ruoxian, and this is her son, Cheng Ruizhi,” An Yi introduced them to Mrs. Luo.

“Madam Cheng, young master Cheng,” Mrs. Luo smiled warmly.

“Auntie, please don’t use formal titles. Just call me Ruoxian and him Ruizhi,” Li Ruoxian said. Though close in age to Mrs. Luo, she was a generation senior to them because of An Yi’s position.

“Very well, Ruoxian, Ruizhi, please sit. The cook makes good pastries—please try some,” Mrs. Luo said cheerfully.

The four sat to drink tea and nibble pastries, mostly the two mothers chatting, sharing childhood anecdotes and embarrassing stories about the other two.

Before noon, An Qing and his sons returned to join the guests. Since there were only two visitors and Cheng Ruizhi was junior to An Yi, there was no separation of male and female seating; they dined together, emphasizing closeness.

After the meal, Cheng Ruizhi accompanied An Kang to see the rare books he had collected over the past two years. An Yi and Li Ruoxian went to the Mingzhu Pavilion, where Xing Ren served tea and then left.

“Second senior sister, thank you for letting Fang Rong stay with me. These days, I’ve been grateful for her company. Now that I’m back home, I shouldn’t keep her—it’s too much talent wasted,” An Yi said with a smile.

“That decision isn’t mine to make. You should ask her,” Li Ruoxian laughed.

“Alright.” An Yi went to the stairwell. “Fang Rong, come up for a moment.”

Fang Rong responded and ascended, bowing to both of them upon arrival.

“Fang Rong, do you wish to stay with me, or return to Zhengzhou with my second senior sister?” An Yi asked.

“I wish to stay and serve you, miss,” Fang Rong answered without hesitation.

Li Ruoxian nodded seriously. “Since you’ve decided to stay, you must serve my junior sister with utmost dedication.”

“I will serve you wholeheartedly, miss,” Fang Rong promised.

Li Ruoxian took a pouch from her bosom, withdrew a folded paper, and handed it to An Yi. “This is Fang Rong’s indentured servitude contract.”

An Yi accepted it with a smile. “Thank you, second senior sister.”

“No need for such formalities among sisters,” Li Ruoxian laughed.

“Fang Rong, you may leave now,” An Yi said.

As Fang Rong’s footsteps faded downstairs, Li Ruoxian looked at An Yi expectantly and asked, “Nineteenth junior sister, has anyone come to find you these days?”

An Yi’s eyes flickered. “Second senior sister, what do you mean by that?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Li Ruoxian frowned. What was Young Master Gong up to? So many days had passed and he had not come to propose. Was he planning to back out at the last moment?

“Second senior sister, your question doesn’t sound like ‘nothing.’ If there’s something, just say it plainly—no need for riddles.”

“I’m leaving the capital in a few days. If he doesn’t come, I’m starting to worry.”

He—or rather, she?

An Yi slightly frowned. “Who is he?”

“Young Master Gong.”

“Young Master Gong? Why would he come to find me?” An Yi asked, puzzled.

“To propose marriage.”

“Ah? Propose marriage?” An Yi blinked in confusion. “Why would he propose to me?”

“Of course he would. You were alone together in the sinkhole for so long. If he dared to abandon you after that, I’d have your second brother-in-law issue a bounty to hunt him down,” Li Ruoxian said sternly.

An Yi had nearly forgotten about the sinkhole incident. “Second senior sister, we were stuck there for objective reasons. That doesn’t mean we have to marry because of it.”

“Objective reasons or not, I don’t know, but I do know he has to take responsibility and marry you.”

“I don’t want him to take responsibility. I don’t want to marry.”

“Nineteenth junior sister, men marry and women wed when they come of age. It’s always been so. Don’t talk nonsense. If you don’t marry, what will you do when you’re old? Who will you rely on?” Li Ruoxian pressed. She hadn’t expected An Yi to think this way.

“Master didn’t marry either,” An Yi replied.

“You and Master are different. Master wanted to marry but couldn’t,” Li Ruoxian said.

“But whether Master wanted to marry and didn’t, or I don’t want to marry, the result is the same,” An Yi said with a faint smile.

Li Ruoxian frowned. “Nineteenth junior sister, why don’t you want to marry?”

An Yi pursed her lips, then after a long moment said carefully, “Men are often unfaithful. Rather than watch him with others, I’d rather not marry and live quietly.”

“Nineteenth junior sister, you can’t lump all men together. Many have multiple wives and concubines, but some men only wish to marry one wife. Like your second brother-in-law, he—” Li Ruoxian raised her hand, and the cup in it shattered against the window.

***
This novel is first published by Xiaoxiang Academy. Please do not reproduce.