Twilight had not fully fallen, yet lamps were already lit along the corridors of the Prefect’s residence, bright and splendid.
Three days earlier, Prefect Cui had received a letter from Huainan: His Highness the Second Prince would soon come to call. Thus the whole residence had been carefully arranged, awaiting the honored guest at any moment.
Back residence of the Prefect’s manor.
Mistress Yang, dressed in rich finery, was checking the evening meal with her matron, while also asking after the arrangements for the guest quarters.
Only after confirming everything was in order did she sit down to sip some tea, and ask about the front courtyard: “They are still drinking tea in the front hall?”
“Yes,” the Momo bowed. “Madam need not worry. People are watching closely. As soon as the honored guests rise, a servant will report at once. You may take your ease.”
Mistress Yang held her teacup, giving a helpless little smile: “By rights, since my nephew is coming to visit me, his aunt, I need not be so tense. But he is, after all, of imperial blood, no ordinary man… The last time I saw him, he was still half a boy. In a blink nearly ten years have passed—I don’t know what he looks like now.”
The Momo laughed: “Prince though he may be, he is still born of your elder sister’s womb. His coming here to Jinling especially to visit you shows his filial kindness.”
Though Madam Yang had reverence toward the imperial clan, thinking of her elder sister softened her heart.
As she and the Momo reminisced about their girlhood, Cui family’s Sixth Niangzi, Wenyin, came gliding in.
The young lady in a willow-green brocade gown smiled gently: “What are Mother and Momo chatting about? I could hear laughter from outside.”
“My daughter is here.” Madam Yang stretched out a hand to her beloved youngest child, beckoning her to sit beside her, eyes full of affection: “We were talking of your aunt. Before she entered the palace, she was very strict with me and your two uncles. Once I made a mistake, she punished me to copy the family rules. I wrote till midnight, fell asleep, and half-awake I saw her covering me with a robe… She was all hard words and soft heart.”
“So Mother was this mischievous in youth, even punished to copy the rules?”
Cui Wenyin was surprised, then thought of her elegant, dignified Consort-aunt, and said: “No wonder when I was in Chang’an last year, Aunt saw me for the first time and said I looked less like you, more like Father.”
Madam Yang’s lips curved faintly, but she said no more—only: “Your cousin Jin is in the front drinking tea with your father and brothers. Soon he’ll come to the back courtyard to greet me.”
Because she had met the Second Prince several times in Chang’an last year, Cui Wenyin felt at ease, smiling: “Cousin Jin has rendered merit in pacifying the rebellion this time. When he returns to Chang’an, His Majesty will surely reward him, and Aunt will also be gladdened.”
Yang nodded, smiling in relief: “Yes, your cousin Jin is an excellent one.”
Though the Crown Prince had been named ten years earlier, in these years he had accomplished little, while the Emperor remained vigorous and unwilling to yield power. Even between father and son, with time the Emperor grew increasingly displeased with the Crown Prince.
What’s more, the Crown Prince’s mother—the late Empress Zhao Yi—had been chosen for the Emperor by Empress Dowager Xiaoan. The Emperor had long resented this “stepmother,” and thus had little affection for that consort as well. If not for the fact that the Crown Prince was both the legitimate and eldest son, and ministers pressing him, the Emperor would never have appointed an heir while still in his prime.
In recent years, the younger princes had grown up, and among them, the outstanding—like the Second and Third Princes—far outshone the Crown Prince, and won much more of the Emperor’s favor.
Thus, whose house the throne would ultimately fall to was still uncertain.
If the Second Prince were to ascend the realm, the Yangs and Cuis would share in his glory—splendor and wealth beyond compare.
The mother and daughter chatted idly. When the rain outside eased a little, a maid came to announce: “Madam, the two young lords are leading His Highness the Second Prince and Lord Pei this way.”
Madam Yang brightened, quickly rising from her couch with the help of her maid: “Good, good, good.”
Supported by Cui Wenyin, she went out to greet them.
In the outer courtyard, beneath the dim heavens, two rows of maids held lanterns aloft. Behind them came four outstanding young gentlemen.
By order of rank, they were: His Highness the Second Prince, Sima Jin; Lord Pei of the Pei clan, Pei Xia; and the two young lords of the Cui family.
Standing at her mother’s side, Cui Wenyin’s gaze was instantly drawn, through the fading light, to the most striking among them.
Though he wore nothing more than an ordinary ivory robe, silk sash at his waist, a jade hairpin in his hair—the only ornament a plain jade safety buckle at his belt—
That pale, refined face, elegant as jade; that tall, slender figure, like bamboo, like pine—truly a man of ethereal grace, like one beyond the mortal world.
So this was the dazzling gentleman of the Pei clan?
Cui Wenyin stared for a moment in a daze, unable to help but sigh inwardly—no wonder Cousin Shouan was infatuated with him, and why the noble girls of Chang’an all looked so wistful whenever the heir of the Pei clan was mentioned—
With such a celestial gentleman, what lovestruck maiden could fail to be moved?
When the young men drew closer, both sides exchanged formal greetings.
Madam Yang gazed at the Second Prince with maternal affection, tears faintly glimmering in her eyes: “Good child, it is kind of you to remember your aunt. Come inside quickly and sit.”
Then she inclined her head courteously toward that tall, jade-like figure of the Pei clan: “Pei Langjun, no need to be so formal. Many years ago, I once met your mother—she was a woman of great bearing, unforgettable to this day. How is her health, has she been well of late?”
Pei Xia raised his hands in salute: “Thank you for your concern, Madam. My honored mother now resides in our old residence in Luoyang, all is well with her.”
“That is good.” Yang nodded, smiling as she beckoned them: “It is cold outside, come in and talk.”
The group entered and sat according to rank.
Cui Wenyin obediently sat at Madam Yang’s side. As a maiden of the inner chambers, this was not her place to speak, so she only sat quietly listening.
Yet her eyes could not help but stray toward that white-robed gentleman, feeling how could any man’s every move be so graceful, so refined…
Before, she had thought Xie Wuling the most handsome youth she had ever met. But now, upon seeing this Lord Pei, she found herself unable to judge which was superior.
If one spoke of looks, Xie Wuling was more strikingly beautiful.
But in bearing, Pei Shouzhen was without peer.
Only pity—this Pei Shouzhen was already betrothed…
As the thought arose, Cui Wenyin suddenly remembered something else—
Yes, Pei Shouzhen’s fiancée, her given name seemed to be Shen Yujiao!
Last year in Chang’an, during the Shangsi Festival, Duke Yingguo’s household held a spring banquet, and she had attended with her cousins.
Everyone was chatting and laughing when one cousin tugged at her sleeve, urging her to look ahead.
She followed with her gaze, and saw in a pavilion not far away, a maiden in a pale moon-white robe, jade pendant swaying, hair coiled neatly, her demeanor gentle and serene, sitting with a faint smile.
She was indeed a delicate beauty, but why point her out in particular?
Puzzled, Cui Wenyin heard her cousin whisper: “That is the young lady betrothed to the Pei heir, Shen Yujiao! You don’t know how many noble girls in Chang’an envy her!”
Only then did Cui Wenyin understand—so this was the future matron of the Pei clan. Truly fortunate indeed.
Shen Yujiao.
That name slipped unbidden into her mind—and overlapped with the name her personal maid had recently inquired after.
Cui Wenyin was startled. Could it really be such a coincidence? The bride-to-be of Xie Wuling was also called by that name?
But then, it was not uncommon for people in this world to share names.
Besides, one was destined to be the matron of a great northern clan, while the other was but the wife of a southern street rogue. Between north and south, worlds apart—it must surely be a case of shared name, nothing more.
Still, this name Yujiao—could there be some hidden magic in it, that all who bore it would marry handsome husbands?
If not, should she herself change her name to Cui Yujiao, and see if one day she too might find such a fine gentleman?
—
As dusk deepened, a light drizzle began again outside.
In a small courtyard in the city’s south, lamplight flickered dimly.
“You didn’t see it—the fine steeds of that noble retinue, how magnificent they were! Well-fed, sturdy, their coats gleaming smooth and bright!”
At the supper table, Xie Wuling spoke to Shen Yujiao of what he had seen that day, full of yearning: “If in this life I could own such a steed, with the sky so vast and the earth so wide, I could ride freely to the four seas!”
Shen Yujiao, seeing his excitement at the mention of fine horses, could not help but laugh softly: “Don’t be in such a hurry. As long as you do your duty well and earn your superiors’ favor, you will one day ride such a horse.”
“That’s what I think too.” Xie Wuling looked at her and said, “If we had such a horse, when the child is born, I’ll take you to Lingnan. A thousand li a day—in just three or four days, we’d be there!”
Shen Yujiao froze, not expecting he still remembered his promise to take her to Lingnan.
Her eyes softened threefold without her noticing. She placed some food into his bowl: “All right, I’ll wait for that day. But for now, hurry and eat, the dishes are getting cold.”
Xie Wuling answered with a hearty “Good,” and picked up his bowl, eating in large mouthfuls.
After supper, Xie Wuling cleared the bowls and table, while Shen Yujiao returned to the room to bathe.
As the weather turned colder, she had reduced her baths from once every two days to once every three—firewood for heating water was no small expense. With the household’s means as they were, she could not be as fastidious as before, and could only adapt.
By the time all was tidied, night was deep.
After lulling Ping’an to sleep, Shen Yujiao listened to the unceasing patter of rain outside. Thinking for a moment, she retrieved a new quilt from the chest and carried it to the hall.
“Xie Wuling, I’m coming in.”
She spoke softly, pushing the door open with her elbow.
Inside, she saw the man lying on the floor twisting about, as if hastily trying to hide something. “Why didn’t you knock!”
“Didn’t I call out first?”
From the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of crimson satin beneath his quilt. Shen Yujiao’s brows drew slightly together: “What… are you doing?”
Following her gaze, Xie Wuling’s face flickered with discomfort. He quickly shoved the red thing deeper into the bedding: “Nothing! It’s the middle of the night, instead of sleeping you’ve come to me for what?”
“I thought the rain might last all night. The ground is damp and cold—you’re sleeping there, so I brought you another quilt.”
Shen Yujiao bent down as she spoke, placing the folded new quilt beside his bedding, though her eyes still could not help straying toward that deliberately hidden patch of red.
“What are you staring at so randomly for?”
Xie Wuling gave a light cough. “If you keep staring, I’ll pin you down on the bed and let you look all you want.”
Shen Yujiao: “…?”
Her cheeks heated, and in her heart she cursed him shameless, but aloud she muttered, “Who wants to look!”
Xie Wuling didn’t take her words, only tilted his head toward the newly delivered quilt. “Since the quilt’s here, go back and rest.”
Shen Yujiao noted his unusual reaction and grew suspicious.
Then recalling that glimpse just now—bright red silk, it looked like… a woman’s corset?
Could it be some keepsake of affection from a favored beauty? Or else… some strange hobby of his?
“What are you still standing there for?”
Xie Wuling slanted his gaze at her, his tone lazy. “Don’t tell me you’re planning to stay tonight and sleep together?”
Shen Yujiao bit her lip, casting him a glare. “Be serious.”
Xie Wuling spread his hands innocently. “How am I not serious? It’s not like I’m the one sneaking into your room in the middle of the night.”
Shen Yujiao choked on her words.
When it came to quick tongue, she could not win against him. But thinking of that flash of red fabric, she hesitated, then decided to speak plainly: “I know I’m with child, and even after marriage, for a time I cannot let you near. If you have that need and go outside to find some sweetheart… outside, I cannot control you. But you… must not bring it back here.”
That was her bottom line.
She knew men were fickle and lustful. Sons of noble houses kept bed-servants and concubines; even ordinary men sought sweethearts outside, or pleasures in brothels.
Xie Wuling was at the peak of youth, and with his handsome face, surely many young ladies would want a night’s delight with him.
Though she longed for “one lifetime, one pair only,” she also knew it was just a dream. To demand it too harshly would only trap herself and add sorrow.
Hearing her sudden words, Xie Wuling’s brows knit. “What sweetheart outside?”
Shen Yujiao pressed her lips lightly. “No need to argue. I am not some jealous shrew who cannot tolerate such things.”
Xie Wuling froze for a moment. When he realized her misunderstanding, he almost laughed and cried. “When did I ever find a sweetheart? What I have is…”
The words reached his lips, then he abruptly cut off.
Shen Yujiao frowned slightly, looking at him quietly.
Xie Wuling cleared his throat, avoiding her gaze. “Anyway, don’t let your thoughts run wild. I may not be of great ability, but I’m no two-timing philanderer sneaking around behind my wife’s back. As for what you saw just now—it’s nothing like what you’re thinking!”
“Then what are you hiding?”
“Don’t ask.” Xie Wuling said, “In a few days, you’ll know.”
Shen Yujiao’s curiosity remained, but seeing the man before her looking open and guiltless, she had to suppress her doubts. “Fine.”
She stepped out of the hall, closing the door. “Rest well. I’m going back.”
“Jiaojiao.”
The man suddenly called.
Shen Yujiao paused in closing the door, raising her eyes. “Hm?”
Xie Wuling looked straight at her. “Whether you believe it or not, in this life, I’ll only ever recognize you.”
Only her?
Shen Yujiao’s gaze trembled faintly. After a moment’s silence, she lowered her eyes. “Mm. Sleep.”
The wooden door shut.
She looked out at the pitch-black curtain of rain. Should she believe him?
Inside the door.
Xie Wuling lowered his eyes, pulling from the quilt that piece of red bridal veil.
He knew—she hadn’t believed him.
But it didn’t matter. He had a whole lifetime to make her believe.
—
The next morning, the rain had stopped, though the air was still damp and chilled.
The Second Prince had originally wanted to stroll around Jinling City, but upon hearing that Pei Xia was going to Tongtai Temple to visit Master Jingkong, his interest was piqued, and he took along the two young lords of the Cui family to accompany him.
The young gentlemen rode fine steeds through the bustling market streets, clothed in finery, graceful and handsome, naturally drawing many sidelong glances.
The Second Prince held his reins, smiling to Pei Xia. “Shouzhen, just one round through these streets and I can’t imagine how many hearts of Jinling’s young ladies you’ve already captured.”
Pei Xia, still cold and aloof, said, “This minister already has a wife at home. Your Highness, please don’t make such jokes of me.”
The Second Prince said, “How is that a joke? It’s envy, and I don’t have enough time to envy you as it is.”
At the side, the Cui family’s eldest son also laughed. “For a refined man like Brother Shouzhen, surely beauties abound at his side, sleeves fragrant with red powder, no?”
Before Pei Xia could answer, the Second Prince spoke for him. “You don’t know—though he has such a fine face, he’s a block of wood who doesn’t understand romance. Once, in Xuanzhou, a lovely maid offered herself to his bed, and he rejected her without a thought.”
The Cui son was astonished. “Brother Shouzhen so unmoved? Could it be that Sister-in-law is too strict?”
The Second Prince said nothing, only cast a glance at Pei Xia.
Pei Xia rode on, his expression unchanged. “My wife is virtuous and dignified, not a jealous woman. As for me, just as His Highness says, I’m dull to such things, and hold little attachment to women’s charms.”
At these words, the other three young men glanced at one another, each seeing surprise in the other’s eyes—
They were all men, all in their prime. Who wasn’t tempted by women?
Was this Pei family heir truly the reincarnation of Liu Xiahui, or… cough, did he have some hidden condition not known to others?
They let the thought stay only in their minds, and with laughter steered the talk elsewhere.
As the others chatted about the night scenery along the Qinhuai River, Pei Xia sat high on his horse, absent-mindedly taking in the sights of Jinling City.
All of a sudden, a slender, graceful figure came into view.
Pei Xia was taken aback—why did that figure look like Yunian?
“Shouzhen, what are you looking at?” The Second Prince’s voice called.
“Nothing, just a trick of the eyes.”
Though he said so, he still couldn’t help but take two more steps forward, and once again glance back at that plain-clothed figure.
The woman had slightly turned to the side. Though she wore a veiled hat, beneath the gauze her belly showed a faint swell—clearly pregnant.
Most likely he had been away from home too long, to conjure such an illusion.
His wife should be in the Luoyang residence, chanting sutras and scriptures—how could she possibly appear here in Jinling, hand in hand with a peasant woman, on the street?
The corner of his lips curved in self-mockery. Withdrawing his gaze, he tightened the reins and followed the Second Prince and the others toward the city gates.
On Jinling’s streets, the crowd surged, bustling with life.
Aunt Liu clutched Shen Yujiao’s hand tightly. “Jiaoniang, you must stay close to me. If we get separated, I wouldn’t know where to look for you.”
“All right.”
Shen Yujiao answered softly, but frowned, glancing toward the city gates.
Just now, why did it feel… as if someone was watching her?
It must just be an illusion, from not having gone out for so long.
“Come, come, come. Today no matter what we must go to the Shingwong Temple and offer incense.”
Aunt Liu led her toward the busiest spot, muttering all the while: “According to Jinling’s customs, before a new bride marries, she offers three sticks of incense to Shingwong Niang Niang, and then Shingwong Niang Niang blesses the young couple with harmony and smooth days. Your marriage with Ah Ling may have been hurried, but the proper rites should still be done.”
Shen Yujiao knew that marriage customs varied by region. Since she was now in Jinling, she should follow Jinling’s ways.
So early this morning, after tidying up, she had left Ping’an in the care of Aunt Liu’s second daughter-in-law, and gone with Aunt Liu to offer incense.
She hadn’t expected Shingwong Temple to be so crowded—Jinling was truly even more prosperous than she had imagined.
“After burning the incense, we’ll stop by the market to buy some vegetables,” Aunt Liu said, glancing at the sky. “These past few days the northwest wind has been blowing. The nights are damp and chilly. I only hope that in two days, when you and Ah Ling wed, Heaven shows mercy and doesn’t bring rain—otherwise it’ll be hard to set out the banquet tables.”
Shen Yujiao also looked at the hazy gray sky, sighing faintly, a little wistful. “Let’s hope so.”
She really did not much like rainy days.
—
That day, not until dusk did Shen Yujiao and Aunt Liu return home, carrying two baskets brimming with fruits and vegetables.
She had meant only to accompany Aunt Liu, but seeing how Aunt Liu haggled fiercely with the vegetable sellers, words flying back and forth until sparks nearly flew—so spirited that Shen Yujiao herself felt a rush of excitement, and foolishly bought a heap of vegetables too.
Fortunately, these were things that could be eaten. Not really a waste of money, right?
Thinking so, she parted from Aunt Liu at the gate, and pushed the door open.
Who would have thought, the moment the courtyard gate swung open, there was Xie Wuling, bare from the waist up, standing beside the big water vat. One hand held a ladle, the other a bath cloth, as water splashed down—he was bathing.
At the sound of the gate, his scrubbing paused. Turning, he saw the little lady at the door, baskets in hand, standing frozen with cheeks burning red.
“You’re back?”
He spoke as he continued scrubbing with the towel, his tone as natural as if this were nothing unusual.
Shen Yujiao stared at his strong, bare torso, and at the thin cotton underpants clinging wet and nearly see-through against his body. Her eyes felt scorched; she quickly turned away, flustered and annoyed. “Why are you bathing in broad daylight?”
And wasn’t he cold? Why not heat water, and wash inside with a tub?
“I got off duty early today. Since you weren’t home, I had nothing better to do, so I just took a bath.”
Watching her stiff back, Xie Wuling almost laughed. “Me getting clean—isn’t that to your benefit? Otherwise, come wedding night, if I climb into your bed stinking, wouldn’t you just kick me out?”
Strange, really—though she’d lived in that room only two months, somehow the whole place had taken on her fragrance, so pleasant.
Thinking the wedding was just days away, he decided he might as well be diligent, scrubbing himself clean from head to toe three days in a row. Then, when he got into her bed to hold her, she wouldn’t dislike him.
At his mention of the wedding night, Shen Yujiao’s cheeks burned even hotter, but she couldn’t muster any retort.
After all, him wanting to be clean was indeed a good thing for her.
“Then… then you keep washing.”
Setting down the baskets, Shen Yujiao said, “I’ll go to Aunt Liu’s to fetch Ping’an.”
Without another word, she hurried out of the courtyard and closed the door.
Watching her hasty retreating back, Xie Wuling chuckled. Truly a thin-skinned little lady.
But her shyness only made him look forward even more to the wedding night.
Even if they could not truly consummate that night, just holding her in his arms in bed—just thinking of it…
A burning heat rose in his chest.
Xie Wuling froze, then glanced down at himself, his handsome face coloring with embarrassment.
D*mn. He couldn’t keep imagining things.
Muttering a curse, he quickly scooped up a ladle of cold water from the vat and poured it over himself, dousing the fire.
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