Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Liu Yi’s bridal veil was embroidered by Liu Rong, who had stayed up for several nights until her eyes were bloodshot. The phoenix she stitched was lifelike, appearing as if it were about to take flight.

Concubine Yang scolded her for being useless, wasting her health to make a wedding garment for Zhou Mengxian’s daughter, yet she simultaneously added oil to her daughter’s lamp and guided her needlework.

“Fine, who told your eldest sister to be such a good girl?”

Concubine Yang held the bridal veil. Its brilliant red reminded her of when she first entered the household. Madame Zhou had sat in the seat of honor and ordered her to strip off the small red jacket she was wearing.

Madame Zhou had said that red was for the primary wife, and a concubine was not worthy of it.

Now Liu Rong’s marriage was also set. Although she had secured a connection to the imperial family and the title sounded prestigious-a Secondary Consort-wasn’t she still just a concubine?

“I am useless; I cannot protect you. What was the point of fighting with Zhou Mengxian for half my life? You still have to go and be someone’s subordinate wife.”

Liu Rong leaned softly against Concubine Yang’s lap. “Mother, I just don’t want to leave you.”

Concubine Yang wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. “If I were the one in charge of the household, I would support you for the rest of your life.”

The day of Liu Yi’s wedding finally arrived. She was carried to the sedan chair on her brother’s back.

Firecrackers exploded, the red paper casings scattering like flecks of blood.

Guests trampled over the red paper, clinking glasses and laughing amidst the constant noise.

Liu Tai watched from a distance as Liu Yi boarded the sedan chair. The eight-bearer carriage, accompanied by the blare of pipes and drums, carried her from one household to another. It wasn’t far, yet they were now worlds apart, and it would be difficult to meet again.

Madame Zhou showed a rare moment of genuine emotion, repeatedly dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief to avoid ruining her makeup.

She was getting older and wore a thick layer of powder; if tears washed tracks through it, she would look like a clown on a stage, meant for people’s amusement.

Liu Rong wept incessantly. Her own wedding date was set for three months later; it was unclear whether she was crying for her eldest sister or for herself.

They called it “ritual wailing.” Crying before the wedding showed dissatisfaction with one’s natal family, while crying after showed dissatisfaction with the in-laws-there was always a reason why one shouldn’t cry. Only on this so-called day of great joy did these girls have the right to weep in front of everyone.

Concubine Yang was not permitted to come out and see her off. She leaned against the courtyard gate, straining her ears to listen to the master of ceremonies.

Every time a rite was announced, she asked the old nanny beside her if that same procedure would be included when Liu Rong married.

The answer was always no. The imperial family’s induction of a consort followed a different set of protocols. The old nanny comforted her, saying that a Secondary Consort would still be recorded in the imperial genealogy.

Only then did Concubine Yang let the matter rest.

Although she had given the Liu Clan a son and a daughter, she was not eligible to be buried in the Liu family ancestral tomb.

She worried her daughter would end up like her, with no one to offer sacrifices to her soul.

Fortunately, Liu Chengshan was a fifth-rank capital official, making him more valuable than her own destitute father.

In her youth, Concubine Yang had also been the daughter of an official, but her family’s fortunes had declined. At her lowest point, she had accompanied her mother to sell tofu on the streets.

That was when she met Liu Chengshan.

Taking Concubine Yang as a concubine was perhaps the most rebellious thing Liu Chengshan had ever done. She had thought there was at least a shred of sincerity between them.

Never mind. Whether it was sincerity or pretense, what did it matter in the face of Liu Chengshan’s career?

In this wedding of the Liu Clan, not a single woman was happy.