20
Due to the imperial decree arranging her marriage, Ming Tan had lost her appetite for several consecutive days. Yet, no one seemed to notice her gloomy mood. Far from putting up lanterns and decorations in any ostentatious manner, everyone in the household was nonetheless brimming with pride and joy.
On the day the imperial marriage decree was bestowed, the monthly allowances for all servants in the household were tripled. When the young maids ventured out to purchase rouge and cosmetics, merely mentioning they were from the Marquis of Jing’an’s residence prompted shopkeepers not only to sell but also to gift items, insistently pressing two boxes of osmanthus-scented hair oil into their hands.
Gift-bearers arriving to offer congratulations came in an unending stream, with excuses of every kind impossible to turn away; invitations addressed to Lady Pei and the several young ladies of the Ming household piled up like snowflakes.
If on ordinary days Ming Tan was the little ancestral master of the Jing’an Marquis’s residence, now she had become the great ancestral master; the entire household kept their eyes fixed expectantly on the Zhaoshui Courtyard, fearing only that she would make too few demands, failing to demonstrate just how diligently they could attend to her wishes.
“…By the way, the little maids sweeping outside the courtyard have become so exceedingly beautiful that these past few days they walk with their backs straight as boards; though they are merely girls of eleven or twelve, everyone who sees them addresses them as ‘Older Sister.’ Tell me, Young Miss, isn’t that amusing?”
While combing Ming Tan’s hair, Lü’e chattered incessantly: “This humble servant and Suxin have also benefited from the Young Miss’s favor; both Brocade Splendor Workshop and the Gilded Pavilion have sent garments and jewelry to us.”
“My lady, you wouldn’t believe it! Rumors outside say that the Princess of Dingbei holds the garments from Jinxiu Workshop and the hair ornaments from Cuojin Pavilion in such high esteem that everyone has rushed to place orders there. The queue for custom hairpieces at Cuojin Pavilion is now booked until early next year!”
“Of course, no matter how booming business gets, crafting items for you, my lady, remains our utmost priority. The manager of Cuojin Pavilion has already declared that they will forge a brand-new set of hair ornaments especially for you this time—ones you are sure to adore!”
Suxin rarely joined in with Lü’e’s banter, but this time she chimed in: “What’s so surprising about that? Our young lady is Cuojin Pavilion’s greatest benefactor; have they ever failed to prioritize her above all others?”
Suxin’s words were not mistaken; indeed, Jinxiu Workshop, Cuojin Pavilion, and Ming Tan shared a profoundly deep connection.
Two years ago, Ming Tan herself devised a novel design and commissioned the then highly renowned Wangzhu Pavilion to craft a gold-and-silver filigree hairpin adorned with blessings, intending it as a trousseau gift for her cousin who was soon to marry.
Wishing to keep her trousseau gift a secret until the proper time, she specifically instructed her maid to conceal their family’s identity when sending her to Wangzhu Pavilion.
However, Wangzhu Pavilion was notorious for treating customers according to their perceived status. While they normally served the Marquis’s household with utmost deference, upon seeing the maid who came to order the hairpin dressed plainly and looking unfamiliar, they assumed she represented merely an ordinary wealthy family and casually assigned the work to an apprentice artisan.
That apprentice, lacking skill yet fond of cutting corners and shirking responsibility, skimped on materials and effort. When the hairpin was finally completed and returned to Ming Tan, she immediately spotted something amiss.
At the time, she restrained herself from making a scene, instead seeking out finer items to augment her trousseau. She also commissioned the newly opened but still quiet Cuo Jin Pavilion to craft a hairpin following the original design.
A few days later, while a group of noble ladies were chatting at a flower-viewing banquet about their recent acquisitions of clothing and jewelry, she brought out the two hairpins for their appraisal. She said little beyond that, merely offering a casual remark praising the craftsmanship of Cuo Jin Pavilion.
In truth, to ordinary eyes, there seemed little difference between such items; yet these noblewomen possessed discerning gazes. The quality of materials and the degree of refinement were all immediately apparent to them with just a single glance.
Within a single night, Wangzhu Pavilion, once highly favored, quietly fell into disfavor among the daughters of prestigious families.
Some daughters of officials and wealthy families gradually realized that jewelry from Wangzhu Pavilion was no longer in vogue; everyone had shifted their attention to the newly opened Cuojin Pavilion in the northern part of the city. Consequently, business at Wangzhu Pavilion visibly plummeted.
Cuojin Pavilion and Jinxiu Workshop shared the same owner. Initially, Ming Tan’s few offhand remarks had helped Cuojin Pavilion establish a firm foothold among the numerous jewelry shops in the capital. Grateful for this, both the owner and the shop manager always exerted utmost dedication whenever handling affairs for the Jing’an Marquis’s household.
Now that Ming Tan had become the betrothed Princess of Dingbei, both establishments had risen in prestige thanks to her favor. As Su Xin had remarked, prioritizing the meticulous crafting of hair ornaments for her ahead of others was merely a matter of course.
However, neither Su Xin, Lü’e, nor even Ming Tan herself realized that the extraordinary dedication shown this time stemmed from reasons quite different from those in the past—
“What… what? His Majesty has bestowed a marriage upon the Prince? The Princess is that, that young lady from the Marquis of Jing’an’s household?” Upon hearing the news of the imperial decree, Fu Shu, the chief steward of the Dingbei Prince’s mansion, was so astonished that his eyes widened in disbelief.
Yet the young attendant delivering the message felt that beneath Fu Shu’s surprise lay an inexplicable joy. Bowing respectfully, he reported, “Fu Shu, it is absolutely true. The imperial edict has already been proclaimed; by now, probably everyone in the capital knows about it.”
Hearing this, Fu Shu rose, clasped his hands behind his back, and paced back and forth several times, muttering to himself, “An imperial decree bestowing marriage—does this mean the Prince willingly agreed to take her as his wife? If the Prince were unwilling, His Majesty would never have issued such a decree…”
Thinking it through, Fu Shu nodded, convinced that this matter was indeed highly plausible.
At dusk, when Jiang Xu returned to the residence, Uncle Fu seized the pretext of delivering the account books to observe his master’s demeanor for a while.
Seeing that their prince did not appear displeased, he gathered his courage and asked, “Your Highness, I heard His Majesty has bestowed a marriage alliance between you and the fourth young lady of the Jing’an Marquis’s household?”
Jiang Xu did not flip through the account books; instead, he simply raised his eyes and said directly, “Uncle Fu, if you have something to say, just speak your mind.”
“Then this old servant shall speak?” Uncle Fu ventured tentatively. Upon receiving Jiang Xu’s silent permission, he straightened his back and spoke vividly, “This old servant believes the marriage arranged by His Majesty is excellent! Your Highness is usually occupied with warfare and military affairs, paying no attention to these noble young ladies, but this old servant knows clearly: this young lady of the Ming family stands head and shoulders above all other maidens in the capital! Most importantly, this young lady of the Ming family is exceedingly kind-hearted!”
Kind?
Jiang Xu glanced at Uncle Fu.
“Does Your Highness know about the Cuo Jin Pavilion that was newly established in our residence two years ago?”
The prince’s estate owns numerous properties, which are usually managed by Uncle Fu and a few trusted stewards; how could Jiang Xu possibly have the leisure to keep track of every shop?
Uncle Fu never expected him to know anyway, so he continued, “Two years ago, just after the Cuo Jin Pavilion opened, war broke out in the northern regions. That scoundrel from the Ministry of Revenue embezzled military funds, deceiving both superiors and subordinates. You sent messengers at top speed, ordering our household to raise the military expenses first. In total, we advanced three installments amounting to several million taels of silver!
“Our household did manage to produce the sum, but raising it so urgently forced us to close many shops. It was hardly a favorable season, and many establishments struggled with cash flow. Fortunately, the newly opened Cuo Jin Pavilion generated income that could be used to cover losses elsewhere. Speaking of the Cuo Jin Pavilion, its story is inextricably linked to the young lady of the Jing’an Marquis’s household…”
Jiang Xu listened patiently as Uncle Fu recounted the entire connection between the Cuo Jin Pavilion and his prospective princess consort.
As he spoke, Uncle Fu’s address for her不知不觉 shifted from “the young lady of the Jing’an Marquis’s household” to “Her Highness the Princess.”
“…Our Princess holds Cuo Jin Ge in particularly high regard. It is said that Jin Xiu Fang and Cuo Jin Ge share the same owner; consequently, she also greatly favors the garments from Jin Xiu Fang. Therefore, this old servant has always instructed the shop managers below to serve with utmost diligence. Since this was never a matter of great consequence, I never mentioned it to you before. Tell me, isn’t this imperial betrothal exceedingly auspicious, bestowed with remarkable destiny?”
“…”
Uncle Fu’s meaning was clear to Jiang Xu. However, he didn’t quite understand what this had to do with kindness.
Uncle Fu continued unabated: “This old servant has already made up his mind. Our Princess must be the most distinguished young lady in the capital! I have already given orders to present a set of hair ornaments to the Princess in the name of Cuo Jin Pavilion, using that box of supreme-quality Eastern Pearls from our princely manor’s treasury! That box of Eastern Pearls gleams with lustrous radiance; their quality is one in ten thousand! Even Her Majesty the Empress likely does not possess such treasures. What does Your Highness think?”
“…”
Hasn’t everything already been arranged?
He rubbed his brow bone and said in a calm tone, “It’s up to you.”
–
Uncle Fu was wholeheartedly determined to uphold his mistress’s dignity, yet in truth, whether or not she possessed that set of eastern pearl hair ornaments, Ming Tan, as the betrothed Princess of Dingbei, already commanded immense prestige in the capital.
Indeed, the status of being the betrothed Princess of Dingbei greatly satisfied Ming Tan’s vanity. Yet whenever she thought of the endless troubles awaiting her after marrying into the prince’s household, and especially concerning her own appearance and reputation which she held so dear, she found it difficult to summon a smile.
On this day, Zhou Jingwan and Bai Minmin came to the mansion to keep her company while arranging flowers; she held a pair of scissors in hand, absentmindedly trimming the branches.
Meanwhile, she never ceased speaking aloud about just how inappropriate this marriage arrangement truly was.
With her heart so unsettled, the flower branches scattered within the porcelain vase were naturally trimmed without any hint of the sparse, distant elegance that defines true floral artistry.
Actually, Bai Minmin could understand why Ming Tan favored the second young master of the Shu family. What she couldn’t quite grasp, however, was how Prince Dingbei could possibly be as dreadful as Ming Tan claimed.
Bai Minmin asked, puzzled, “You keep calling him a brute—have you actually met him?”
“Of course I have. Didn’t we see him at the Shangyuan Palace banquet?”
“…?”
“I was seated much closer than you, and even I couldn’t see clearly. Did you?”
Ming Tan made another swift snip with her scissors. “Does it need to be seen clearly? Don’t you remember what he said to Gu Jiurou?”
“Wanwan already explained last time: that was His Majesty’s intention to bring down the Marquis of Cheng’en’s household. His Highness, the Prince of Dingbei, merely acted accordingly. Moreover, at that palace banquet, I was seated relatively close. Taking advantage of a moment when no one was watching, I stole a glance. Although I couldn’t see clearly, from afar, His Highness the Prince of Dingbei certainly appeared extremely imposing.”
Ming Tan replied, “Father, do you also find him extremely imposing? Of course someone big and burly would appear imposing; you’d probably find even a wild boar imposing!”
Zhou Jingwan covered her mouth with a light cough. “A-Tan, since you haven’t even met him yet, aren’t you being prejudiced against your future husband?”
How could she not be prejudiced?
Speaking arrogantly and recklessly, killing without blinking an eye, and trusting subordinates like Shen Yu, that hot-headed fool—how good could such a fiancé possibly be?
Seeing Ming Tan’s strong resistance, Bai Minmin suddenly suggested, “How about this then? Let’s find an opportunity to secretly catch a glimpse of him first. What do you say?”
Hearing this, Ming Tan’s scissors suddenly paused in her hand.