Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The change came on the night the Heir went out to socialize. Originally, Liufang and I took turns keeping night watch, one night each, and that day should have been my turn. But when the Heir returned to his room reeking of wine, she went up to him and asked if he would like some soup or porridge.

Liufang was dressed far more lightly than usual, and her makeup was especially different as well. I knew something was off, but the Heir had been drinking and his stomach felt unwell. Since he wanted some lotus leaf porridge, I could only go make it.

After I left, the Heir bathed, and Liufang followed him in. The two of them entered the bath chamber and did not come out for four hours. The wet nurse and Mama Cui secretly went in to take a look, then turned around and went to report to Madam.

I carried the porridge over and secretly stole a glance. Behind the Heir, Liufang’s face was flushed, her cloudlike hair was disheveled, and her clothes were in disarray. She already looked like someone the Heir had taken into his bed.

On the second day after she served him in bed, the Heir paid out of his own pocket to raise Liufang’s monthly allowance to that of a concubine-two taels of silver. Although the Heir had not yet taken a wife, so Liufang could not be formally acknowledged, she already had the treatment of a woman of his chambers.

An indescribable sense of loss settled in my heart. It was the Heir’s first experience of intimacy; surely it would leave a deep impression. Perhaps that alone would be a lifetime’s guarantee.

I had missed an opportunity. I could not help mocking myself. I was going to become a concubine anyway; as long as the method worked, why bother clinging to any false sense of dignity?

Years of having enough to eat and drink had made me forget that this place was even crueler than the workplace. Chances to turn one’s fate around vanished in the blink of an eye.

Seeing that I was somewhat dejected, Mama Cui took hold of me and whispered into my ear.

“Old Madam and Madam may not tolerate such methods. Just do your own duties well. Until the very end, you must never lose heart.”

Mama Cui’s words jolted me awake. Becoming the Heir’s bedchamber maid was not difficult. The difficult part was being tolerated by the principal wife. Underhanded methods drew attention, and a person might die without even knowing where the blow had come from.

Still waters ran deep. I swallowed all my unwillingness and disappointment and became even more considerate and attentive toward the Heir.

After the new year, Old Madam and Madam began looking over candidates for the Heir’s official wife.

I heard that starting from the Lantern Festival, Madam received a basketful of invitations in the form of calling cards, attending garden parties and flower-viewing banquets at various manors. Naturally, the flowers she was viewing were the young ladies of each family.

Old Madam, too, actively invited relatives, friends, and old acquaintances to bring their daughters over. With ginseng slices in her mouth, she forced herself to stay alert and chat with people. She kept so busy that all the maids in Shou’an Hall had no time to come gossip with me.

The Marquis Manor was now at the height of its power, and the Heir was clever and courteous. Naturally, there was no shortage of interested buyers.