Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Mother carried me, along with a whole cartful of newly bought things, to the new residence.

As we passed the study, we heard the unmistakable sounds of passion from inside.

There was not a single maid around. Xu Weilan had done it on purpose. This was the route Mother had to take to return to her room.

Mother did not cry or make a scene. She only covered my ears and carried me away, heading to her own new room to arrange our things.

We slept soundly that night. Mother even snored.

The next day, Father came back with an exceptionally beautiful scarlet dress for Mother.

“In a few days, Madam Zhou is holding a polo gathering. Wear this dress when you go.”

Mother smiled and said yes.

Father walked over, clasped Mother’s hand tightly, and handed her all the household tally keys. “Yao Niang, you will always be my wife who shared my hardships. I, Bai Ruosheng, will never let you down.”

As his emotions rose, he even shed tears.

Mother looked at him as if she were looking at a child, smiling as she comforted him.

“Don’t say that. I always knew my husband was a dragon among men. Even if I had to do it all over again, I would still save you when you were selling yourself to bury your father, bring you home, and settle you in properly.”

Father froze for a moment, as though he had finally remembered that old incident from years ago. The guilt in his eyes grew even heavier.

Father had originally planned to spend the night in Mother’s room, but Mother refused him on the grounds that she was unwell.

After Father left, Mother examined the dress and found an embroidered character hidden in the inner garment-the last character of Xu Weilan’s name.

Mother stroked that character. There was no hatred in her eyes, not even resentment. Instead, there was something there I could not understand.

On the day of the polo gathering, Mother really did put on that dress. Early that morning, Xu Weilan even kindly sent an old maidservant over to do Mother’s hair and makeup.

Even the hair ornaments had been brought from the Chancellor’s Mansion.

Mother still looked as though she had met a benefactor, thanking her again and again.

Under Mother’s earnest gratitude, Xu Weilan did not even bother hiding her mockery.

“Honestly, you really are stupid. So stupid I almost find you adorable.”

“Is that so? Then it is my honor. When Young Miss smiles, your grace is unmatched. You are truly beautiful, more beautiful than anyone I have ever seen.”

My mother spoke with utter sincerity. There was even a shimmer of tears in her eyes, as if she were gazing up at an immortal.

Xu Weilan said in disgust, “Are all you country people a little wrong in the head? Why do you look so slow-witted?”

Mother lowered her head in embarrassment. “I never studied, so my mind is a little slow.”

Xu Weilan snorted, looking down on Mother even more from her lofty perch.

She deliberately waited until Mother was fully dressed before setting out with her.

After we arrived at the polo field, everyone who passed pointed at Mother. Some secretly laughed.

Mother acted as if she heard nothing, a smile fixed on her face the whole time.

Madam Zhou came over to speak with Mother. She was a forthright woman.

“Madam, your clothes and hair are certainly unique, but they are not suited to today’s occasion. Your build is similar to mine. Come with me and change.”

Mother smiled and shook her head.

“Thank you for your kindness, Madam, but this is Miss Xu’s goodwill. I am only a country woman. It is only because my husband passed the provincial examination and was later promoted by the Grand Chancellor that I have today, that I can stand here and speak with you and all the other madams.

“Miss Xu is a good person. She knew this was my first time attending such a banquet, so she specially sent an old maidservant to dress me up and bring me here. I do not know how to play polo either, so I will simply watch from the side.”

Mother’s smile was simple and pure. For no reason she could explain, Madam Zhou’s anger turned toward Xu Weilan.

Most of the women present were noble young ladies raised in luxury. Born and raised at the foot of the imperial city, whose ancestors had not produced titled lords?

The people who had been secretly laughing at Mother a moment ago could no longer laugh. One by one, the way they looked at Mother filled with pity.

Madam Zhou could not stand it. Her father and Xu Weilan’s father were sworn enemies.

She pulled Mother over and scolded Xu Weilan, “You are an unmarried girl coveting another woman’s husband, and that is bad enough. But you dare treat his lawful wife like this? Who does not know this dress was yours-”

At this point, Madam Zhou gritted her teeth. Seeing Mother’s bewildered gaze, she swallowed the rest of her words. “Xu Weilan, you have gone too far.”

Xu Weilan wanted to speak, but when she also saw Mother’s bewildered eyes, she lowered her flag and ceased fire.

She still wanted to keep watching Mother make a fool of herself in that outfit. Besides, she did not want the matter to blow up. If it reached my father, it would do her no good.

Surrounded by her friends, she was led to another area to listen to opera. Mother was taken by Madam Zhou to her own tent for tea.

Madam Zhou came from a distinguished family.

My father was only a fifth-rank official, so my mother never would have been treated this way in the first place.

But because Xu Weilan had stirred up such waves, my mother was pushed toward the very heart of the noble ladies’ circle as well.

Sometimes, taking sides was not a matter of personal choice. You were swept along, forced forward against your will. But for my mother, this was exactly what she had expected.

She lowered her head timidly, looking innocent and pitiful.

“Have I caused you trouble?”

Madam Zhou was a kindhearted woman. Jishan Hall in the suburbs had been founded by her. If she could offer relief to beggars, how could she possibly look down on my mother?

“What trouble could there be? I only worry I have not received you properly.”

She poured tea for my mother, and my mother reached out to accept it.

When Madam Zhou saw my mother’s aged, rough hands, covered in chilblains, she could not help frowning deeply.

Like a startled sparrow, my mother hurriedly hid her hands. “I-I’m sorry.”

Madam Zhou took a deep breath, dismissed the maids attending her, then took my mother’s hand in hers, her gaze full of kindness and pity.

“Heavens have mercy. How did this happen? There is no one else here. Tell me without fear.”

My mother smiled shyly and tried, embarrassed, to pull her hand back. Madam Zhou would not let go. Instead, she exposed all the wounds my mother had tried to hide.

“It… it is nothing, really. Ruosheng lost both his parents. After I married him, I did all sorts of work to pay for his studies. I sold tofu pudding, embroidered, washed clothes… Those jobs were tedious and difficult, but they paid well.”

Madam Zhou’s eyes reddened with heartache.

“Then what about these longer wounds? How did you get them? You are not allowed to lie to me!”

My mother did not think much of it.

“Ruosheng is a scholar. How could he do farm labor? I got these while going up the mountain to chop firewood.”

Madam Zhou flew into a rage.

“You treated him so well, and he-he wasted all those years reading the books of sages! Read them straight into a dog’s belly, more like! How dare he treat you this way! Just you wait, I will have the censorate impeach him! I would like to see whether that official hat on his head can still stay there!”

My mother shook her head. Timidly, she held Madam Zhou’s hand with her other one.

“No, Madam! You have misunderstood Ruosheng. He treats me very well. He promised me that once he passed the provincial examination, he would repay me properly. I am only a village woman, yet now, because my husband has made something of himself, I have become an official’s wife. I have nothing to be dissatisfied with.”

The pity in Madam Zhou’s eyes nearly overflowed.

She pitied my mother for still not knowing that the latest betting pool outside was on when my father would cast off his wife of hardship and grandly welcome Xu Weilan, the Prime Minister’s legitimate daughter, into the household.

She took a deep breath and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief.

“You are far too naive. One day he could sell you, and you would still count the money for him.”

My mother shook her head.

“That would never happen! Ruosheng is so good to me. Our feelings run deep. I am his savior, you know. We pledged ourselves to each other because back then, he sold himself to bury his father, and I spent all my savings to help him lay his father to rest…”

My mother spoke bashfully, her expression full of girlish sweetness.

In Madam Zhou’s eyes, it was unbearably painful to see. Her heart ached for my mother’s innocence.

After the banquet ended, before we returned home, Madam Zhou sent several boxes of ointment for my mother.

“I had these specially prepared. Apply it three times a day, and after four months, the scars on your hands will fade.”

My mother was overwhelmed by the favor. Her eyes instantly reddened, and she looked at Madam Zhou almost choking with emotion.

“May I come visit you often?”

She lowered her head, timid and humble.

“I was born lowly and am not welcomed anywhere. I know they all laugh at me. Only you do not despise me as a crude village woman, and you are even kind to me.”

Madam Zhou patted my mother’s shoulder and wiped away her tears.

“Come whenever you like. There will always be a place for you in my residence.”

After we left, in less than fifteen minutes, the story of my mother and father had spread through the circles of noblewomen in the capital.

Everyone knew that my father had been bought by my mother.

That my mother had given him a new lease on life, and had supported him all these years besides.

Madam Zhou was a renowned woman in the capital. When people arranged marriages, or when two branches of a family were dividing property unfairly, they all liked to invite her to sit in judgment and give a fair ruling.

The speed at which these words spread may not have been without her help in pushing them along.

She pitied my mother and hoped to use public gossip to pressure my father and the Chancellor’s Mansion, leaving my mother a path to survive.

And that was exactly what my mother wanted.