Helping Cheng Danruo was merely a tiny part of Xie Xuanying’s life. As the son of the Marquis of Jinghai, the most favored young man of the present day, and a disciple of the great Confucian scholar Yan Hongzhi, his schedule in Suzhou was extremely packed.
He had to pay visits to his family’s old connections – his grandfather had been enfeoffed as Marquis of Jinghai entirely for his merits in resisting the pirates, and along the coastal region there were many heroes who had fought against the pirates, with numerous families having aided the Xie family greatly in those years. Now that the elders had passed away, the younger generations shared no personal affection, yet the great clans of Jiangnan were eager to forge ties with the nobility.
Moreover, Yan Hongzhi’s lectures at the Spring Breeze Academy were not purely about teaching.
In essence, the struggle over the philosophy of the mind was currently determined by the status and prestige of the leading figures, but in the future it would hinge on the development of their successors.
Yan Hongzhi also hoped to disseminate the ideas of “Pure Sincerity” within the academy, drawing more literati into the fold of the School of the Mind and carrying forward the doctrines of his sect.
As a disciple, Xie Xuanying was not only the public face of Pure Sincerity but also a target for challenge.
Gao Chong, in particular, took great delight in having the students debate with him.
The results, naturally, were rather dismal.
The students had to exert themselves tremendously just to focus their minds on the debate topics, rather than gaze upon a beauty sipping tea, a beauty reading and composing poetry, or a beauty standing by the lotus pond, before whom all blossoms paled in comparison.
In private, Gao Chong lambasted Yan Hongzhi as “despicable and shameless,” while Yan Hongzhi retorted that his students “lacked steadfastness.”
The two sides traded barbs back and forth for several days, until all were weary and called a truce to go on a spring outing.
The elders played chess and strolled through the gardens together, while the younger generation drank wine and composed poetry by the shores of Taihu Lake.
“Young Master Xie, please have some tea – this is Longjing from my family.”
“Young Master Xie, do try this crispy pork from Baiweizhai – it’s a Suzhou specialty.”
“No, no, no – this crab shell pastry is the signature offering of a century-old shop. I sent someone to queue for it early this morning; you simply must have a taste.”
“Young Master Xie…”
“Young Master Xie…”
Xie Xuanying’s face remained expressionless.
He was used to it.
Men acting infatuated were far more terrifying than women – at least young ladies had their reserve and would not persist in fawning over him with such dogged determination.
From that perspective, among the students at the Spring Breeze Academy, Chen Zhixiao was actually fairly tolerable. His attitude toward Xie Xuanying was not so blatant; though he did show a degree of closeness, he betrayed no trace of infatuation.
Nevertheless, Xie Xuanying despised his views and always kept him at a cool distance. Today, as they sailed on the lake, he pretended to be listening to the zither, refraining from joining the others in their banter. Yet being so near, fragments of their conversation still drifted into his ears intermittently.
“Day before yesterday, the Headmaster asked about your marriage prospects, Brother Chen – seems he might be planning to play matchmaker for you,” said a frivolous youth of fifteen or sixteen, teasing his classmate after drinking. “Brother Chen, are you looking forward to it?”
Chen Zhixiao replied, “Stop your nonsense. Matters of marriage are, of course, decided by one’s parents.”
“An esteemed teacher is like a father – if one could have one’s match arranged by a mentor, it would make for a fine tale.” They were all young men, after all; it was impossible not to talk about marriage and women. The only difference lay in which women could be spoken of openly and which could only be alluded to. “Perhaps in the future, he will no longer be merely ‘like a father.'”
Xie Xuanying cast a glance at Chen Zhixiao.
They were speaking of the Headmaster’s daughter. Her given name was unknown, but they knew she was the fourth in her family and renowned for her literary talent – the apple of her father’s eye.
When Xie Xuanying had accompanied his teacher to pay a visit, she had been painting in the study, so he had only caught a brief glimpse. He could not recall her features clearly now, only that she had seemed a delicate and graceful young woman.
Chen Zhixiao waved his hand and said, “This concerns a lady – let us speak no more of it.”
“We haven’t said anything at all.” His classmates laughed heartily and teased, “Who did you have in mind, Brother Chen?”
Chen Zhixiao immediately fell silent.
Then another classmate, older and already married, said, “Chunhui (Chen Zhixiao’s courtesy name, meaning ‘spring radiance,’ taken from the line ‘Who says the inch-tall grass can repay the spring sun’s warmth’), if your wife is virtuous, your household will be at peace. Only with a kindred spirit can one truly harmonize family and home. Have you ever considered what kind of wife you would want?”
This was spoken with mature gravity, and all present nodded in agreement.
Emboldened by the wine, Chen Zhixiao cast off his usual restraint and said, “Naturally, I would want a virtuous and gentle woman as my wife.”
“What do you mean by ‘virtuous’ and ‘gentle’?”
“One who reveres her in-laws, nurtures her children, regards her husband as her heaven, and manages the household with proper order.” Chen Zhixiao gave the standard answer.
Someone cut to the quick. “And what of learning and talent?”
Chen Zhixiao hesitated. Of course, he wished to become the Headmaster’s son-in-law, and Lady Lv was quite to his liking. Yet when it came to a woman’s virtue and ability, he did not wish for his wife to be overly learned.
“If she has read the Four Books and understands a measure of principle, that is enough,” he answered. The “Four Books” he referred to, of course, were the Four Books for Women.
Sitting at the prow of the boat, gazing at the distant lake scenery, Xie Xuanying gave the faintest, almost imperceptible sneer and thought to himself: How vulgar.
He did not understand why people of this age all applied the same set of criteria when choosing a wife.
Virtuous and magnanimous, filial and gentle – were all the women men could possibly love carved from the very same mold? Even the women in Biographies of Exemplary Women were each unique in their own ways.
And yet, Xie Xuanying also felt a measure of bewilderment.
He was certain that he looked forward to a meeting on some future day, when he would give his heart to someone. She might be as radiant as spring blossoms, or as serene as the autumn moon – love arising from no known cause, yet deepening with every passing moment.
But where was she?
Above, there is paradise; below, there are Suzhou and Hangzhou. Suzhou, nestled by Taihu Lake and dotted with numerous gardens, naturally boasted the finest scenery.
But this was, after all, the territory of the Spring Breeze Academy – and Gao Chong’s homeland as well. After lingering for several days, Yan Hongzhi finally set off at a leisurely pace, returning to Songjiang.
In Songjiang Prefecture, he had a study called the “The Original Mind Studio”, named after the saying: “The childlike heart is the purest, free of all falsity – it is the very first thought of one’s original mind.”
In the sweltering heat of summer, Yan Hongzhi would retreat to The Original Mind Studio to escape the heat and devote himself to reading.
Xie Xuanying accompanied him at his side, and every three days, he would go to Luxiang Garden to pay his respects to his aunt, Madam Gu.
In the splendid chambers, plums and cherries were chilled over ice in bronze vessels, and wisps of cool air drifted in on the breeze stirred by the maids’ fans, dispelling the summer heat.
“You are here – do sit down quickly.” Madam Gu greeted her nephew warmly. “Have some lychee syrup brought out.”
Xie Xuanying took his seat and accepted a cup of lychee syrup handed to him by a maidservant. The blended fragrances of smoked plum, cassia, honey, and musk whetted his appetite.
He raised the cup and sipped slowly, his complexion smooth and luminous as jade -indeed, even finer and warmer in tone than the finest porcelain.
The more Madam Gu looked at him, the more she adored him. “The person you asked me to find – there is already news,” she said. “In Qinghe, Huai’an, there is an Elder Madam who once served as a palace apothecary and attended to the Dowager Consort. However, she only just celebrated her fiftieth birthday this year, so I fear she may no longer be willing to travel and toil.”
Xie Xuanying nodded.
After palace ladies-in-waiting were released from service, they were often married off to minor officials – at the very least, they became the wives of petty officers. Even if still hale and hearty today, such a woman would likely be unwilling to wait upon others again.
“There is also a Lady Wu from Shaoxing Prefecture,” Madam Gu continued. “Her grandfather was once an imperial physician; she studied medicine from childhood and has considerable renown in the inner chambers. Three years ago, she married a centurion at Linshan Guard – but then the pirates raided, and she was left a widow less than six months into the marriage.”
Madam Gu sighed twice and said, “After much deliberation, I think Lady Wu is the most suitable choice. However…”
Xie Xuanying read her expression. “Is there some complication?”
“Lady Wu’s marital family is a great clan in Shaoxing. I have heard that her in-laws refuse to let her remarry and intend to arrange for an heir to be adopted.” Madam Gu looked troubled. “Even if I were to intercede on your behalf, they may not be willing to let her go.”
For a woman to practice medicine was hardly a prestigious reputation. If a family was well-off and lacked for nothing, who would allow a widow to go out and earn a living? Great aristocratic clans were even more protective of their face – if they let her leave, they would undoubtedly be accused of mistreating a widow.
Xie Xuanying frowned slightly but had nothing to say.
“Is there anyone else?”
“There is one more I know of, but…” Madam Gu hesitated greatly. “She is still an unmarried maiden. If she were to go out and practice medicine, it would likely ruin her prospects for life.”
“You’re joking,” Xie Xuanying said impassively. “An unmarried daughter – her parents would naturally never give their consent.”
Chatting with her nephew, Madam Gu was rather at ease and casually explained, “That’s not quite the case – her parents have both passed away, and she now lives on the charity of relatives. So it may not be entirely out of the question.”
“Though being free of family ties is all well and good, one must also consider her medical skill.” Xie Xuanying adopted an air of skepticism. “A young woman – I fear she would lack experience.”
Madam Gu said, “Her father studied under an imperial physician, and I have heard that she too has practiced medicine since childhood. However, whether she specializes in gynecology, I truly do not know.”
Xie Xuanying nodded, as if setting her aside, and asked again, “Is there anyone more suitable?”
“It is not so easy.” Madam Gu smiled wryly. “In the Jiangnan region, women who are literate are no longer rare. But for an ordinary family, mere literacy is already quite remarkable. If a woman also understands some accounting and household economics, she would have nothing to fear even when marrying into a great household – why would she take up medicine?”
In essence, literacy was the privilege of wealthy families. But a young lady of noble birth would never study medicine; even if she had some knowledge passed down through her family, she would not treat others.
On the other hand, for a girl of modest means, literacy was already difficult to attain. Even if she learned her family’s medical arts, unless the household was in dire straits, her first choice would still be to marry and bear children.
Madam Gu pondered back and forth and finally had to admit, “By your criteria – skilled in medicine, literate, and preferably free of family entanglements – after all my deliberations, only Miss Cheng fits.”
Xie Xuanying frowned and set forth an even more exacting standard. “Is there no female physician in her thirties, with years of practice and upright character?”
Madam Gu scolded him playfully, “Then you might as well ask at the palace.”
Indeed, no place had more female physicians than the imperial palace. The founding emperor had once decreed that local authorities should select medically trained women, who would be examined by the Imperial Medical Institute and entered into the rolls for future summons.
But Xie Xuanying shook his head and said softly, “There are scarcely any female physicians left in the palace now.”
At the dawn of the dynasty, this system had proven quite effective, and many folk female physicians were summoned to serve as ladies-in-waiting. But times had changed; later emperors favored eunuchs, and the system of female officials had already fallen into disrepair – let alone that of female physicians.
Madam Gu sighed helplessly. “Then there is nothing to be done.”
Xie Xuanying set down his cup and said, “How about this: find a woman who is unwell, and have that physician make her diagnosis. Only if she truly possesses genuine learning and skill will I send her up to the capital.”
“That is only proper.” Madam Gu smiled slightly. “As it happens, the lotus flowers in the garden are in full bloom.”
The Gu family was a powerful clan in Songjiang Prefecture, and Luxiang Garden was renowned as the finest garden in the entire prefecture.
Throughout the four seasons, Madam Gu hosted countless banquets – feasts of tortoiseshell in spring, fragrant feasts of green in summer, tidal-viewing gatherings in autumn, and plum-appreciation feasts in winter… Truly, not a single season passed without celebration.
Now that it was summer, with the lotuses in glorious bloom, inviting ladies and young misses of corresponding status to admire the flowers could never go amiss.
Xie Xuanying said, “Then I shall leave it in your hands.”
Three days later, the Chen household received Madam Gu’s invitation.
Lady Huang naturally accepted and sent back a reply in her own hand. But after dismissing the serving woman, she fell into difficulty.
Madam Gu’s banquets were the premier social events in Songjiang. On any ordinary day, she would certainly bring her two illegitimate daughters along to attend. In particular, Chen Wan-niang had not yet been betrothed, and taking her out for others to see could only be beneficial – whether or not she ended up being matched here in this locality.
But unfortunately, Lady Mo had just passed away.
According to the customs of the current dynasty, “For a son, for his father and mother; and for an illegitimate son, for his own mother – all observe three years of mourning in sackcloth. For the legitimate son and all other sons, for a concubine-mother – all observe one year of mourning with a staff.”
At present, both Chen Wan-niang and Chen Rou-niang were in mourning. How could they go out to feast and make merry?
“Alas.” She sighed and said to her maid, “Call Dan-niang to come.”
Cheng Danruo arrived promptly. “Madam.”
Lady Huang explained the situation in a few brief words and said, “Take out the fabric that Madam Gu gave you. I will have the embroiderers make you a set of clothes in haste. On the first day of the feast, you shall accompany me.”
“But,” Cheng Danruo hesitated, “if neither of the sisters can go, and I go alone…”
Lady Huang said, “Madam Gu sent you that gift specially – it is only fitting that she see you in it. This matter is settled.”
Cheng Danruo had no objection to getting some air, so she nodded in agreement.
