Lin Jinlou had grown up in the lap of luxury, surrounded by beauty and indulgence. Having sampled every shade of rouge and powder, he had just hosted a banquet where he specially ordered two sedan chairs to bring over the three top courtesans from the House of Joy. At this moment, his waist was adorned with an emerald handkerchief given to him by the famous courtesan Xiao Cuixian to wipe his mouth. Yet, the sight of this plainly dressed girl before him suddenly caught his eye. From afar, she had merely seemed somewhat pretty, but up close, he was stunned, unable to help but look again and again.
Her jet-black hair framed a snow-white oval face, with long brows and red lips. Her large, clear eyes shimmered like water, now lowered with lashes thick as fans. Though young, she possessed a radiant beauty that grew more striking the longer one looked—utterly flawless.
Lin Jinlou felt his mouth go dry, his heart pounding violently in his chest. He longed to lean down and inhale the fragrance of the magnolia flower in her hair, wondering if it was as intoxicating as he imagined. Yet, as if under a spell, he couldn’t move. How absurd—this was just a little maid, yet she seemed so noble and reserved, untouchable and unapproachable.
Xianglan had already noticed Lin Jinlou’s increasingly heated gaze, which made her deeply uncomfortable, as if she were a piece of meat being lusted after. A breeze carried the scent of alcohol and faint traces of heavy perfume from him, and she thought, Lin Jinlou is so handsome, but what a rake. He must have just come from some pleasure house—has his fire not yet cooled, and now he’s set his sights on a little maid like me? Her expression grew colder as she took two more steps back, bowing her head and asking, "What does Master require?"
Lin Jinlou cleared his throat softly. "What’s your name? Which household do you serve? I don’t recall seeing you before."
Xianglan kept her hands at her sides, answering dutifully, "This servant is called Xianglan. I serve Cousin at Gauze Snow Dock."
Lin Jinlou frowned. "You’re from the Cao family?"
Xianglan replied respectfully, "This servant belongs to the Lin household. The Madam assigned me to serve Cousin."
Only then did Lin Jinlou’s brow relax slightly. Seeing her still with her head lowered, he felt a flicker of displeasure and was about to order her to look up when his gaze fell on her snow-white, graceful neck—like fine porcelain or smooth mutton-fat jade. He couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and touch it.
Just as he raised his hand, a voice called from behind, "Master, I’ve finally found you! So you’re here."
Lin Jinlou turned to see Ji Xiang, his personal attendant, hurrying over. Ji Xiang whispered something urgently in his ear, and Lin Jinlou arched a brow. "Is that so? I thought I had them all sent back properly just now?"Ji Xiang whispered, "Of course, she was specifically sent back. Who knew Second Master Li took a fancy to Xiao Cuixian and insisted on taking her back to stay the night? Later, when he heard that Miss Cuixian was..." He glanced at Lin Jinlou's expression before continuing, "was already reserved by Master, he didn’t dare to be too presumptuous. So he demanded Cuixian’s younger sister, Xiao Cuiyun, instead. But Cuiyun is still untouched. These days, she’s written many poems for Master and even made a colorful tassel with her own hair to send to him. Master accepted them all, so she thought he had feelings for her and considered herself his woman. Naturally, she refused to comply... That’s how the commotion started. Now Cuiyun is threatening to slit her throat or hang herself, and Second Master Li is stubbornly determined to have his way with her no matter what."
Lin Jinlou laughed and said, "Li Xiao’er still has that bullheaded temper. Treating a beauty like a bull chewing on peonies won’t do. Fine, I’ll step in and mediate." As he finished speaking, he turned around only to find Xianglan had already disappeared. Thinking he’d look for the little maid later, he followed Ji Xiang away.
Xianglan ran a short distance with the pot of magnolia flowers in her arms before setting it down and wiping her sweat with her sleeve. Recalling Lin Jinlou’s intense gaze earlier, she couldn’t help but shiver. She comforted herself, thinking Lin Jinlou must have been drunk to act that way. Once he sobered up, he’d surely forget all about a little maid like her. As she neared Gauze Snow Dock, she suddenly heard someone call her name. Turning to look, she was surprised to see Song Ke standing in the bamboo grove, waving at her.
Puzzled, Xianglan approached and asked, "What can I do for you, sir?"
Song Ke smiled warmly, his eyes bright and lively, and pointed to the hem of his robe. "I was wondering if you might have a handkerchief?"
Xianglan looked down and saw a large stain on his hem—what looked like a clump of wet mud. She quickly set the flower pot down, pulled a handkerchief from her sleeve, and bent to help him clean it.
Song Ke waved his hands. "No need, I can manage." He took the handkerchief and wiped the stain himself, saying, "Thank you so much. If I hadn’t run into you, I wouldn’t have been able to appear in public like this."
Seeing Song Ke’s radiant smile, which only enhanced his striking handsomeness, and his friendly demeanor, Xianglan couldn’t help but smile back. She thought, "Such a jewel of a man—even Xiao Hang, who was once hailed as the most dashing in the capital, couldn’t compare. No wonder the Lin family’s young ladies are all smitten." The thought of her husband from her past life brought a pang of melancholy. She lowered her gaze to the stain and said, "Luckily, it’s just mud. It’ll wash out easily without leaving a mark."
Song Ke seemed relieved. "That’s good." Then, as if casually, he asked, "I never asked—what’s your name? Are you a maid at Gauze Snow Dock?"
Xianglan only replied, "I work at Gauze Snow Dock."
Noticing her reluctance to share her name, Song Ke frowned slightly. Spotting a cluster of orchids embroidered in one corner of the handkerchief, he smiled and said, "These orchids are beautifully stitched. Does your name perhaps include the character ‘Lan’?"
Xianglan had no choice but to admit, "It does. This handkerchief was just something I embroidered idly..."
"Even idly, it’s still exquisite." Song Ke’s eyes sparkled as he untied the pouch from his waist and handed it to her. "Could you take a look at this? The pouch is torn—do you think it can be mended?"Xianglan took it and saw it was a brand-new embroidered pouch with a colorful design of five children ascending the ranks, adorned with golden threads. However, there was a hole in the delicate embroidery. She couldn’t help but sigh regretfully, “This pouch is exquisitely made, and the embroidery is superb. What a shame it’s torn. It’ll be difficult to mend, though not impossible…”
Song Ke quickly said, “In that case, could you help me repair it?”
“Huh?” Xianglan’s mouth fell open. “Me? Mend it for you?”
Song Ke found her stunned expression utterly adorable. He put on a sorrowful look and said, “This pouch was hand-embroidered by my mother, meant to symbolize the auspicious wish of ‘five sons ascending the ranks.’ But I accidentally tore it the other day, and there’s no one around me with deft hands to fix it. If my mother found out, wouldn’t she be heartbroken? I noticed your handkerchief is beautifully embroidered, so I thought you must be skilled. Won’t you help me mend it?”
Just as Xianglan opened her mouth to refuse, Song Ke cut her off, “Then it’s settled. At exactly mid-morning three days from now, I’ll wait for you here to return the pouch.” Without waiting for a reply, he tucked Xianglan’s handkerchief into his sleeve and strode away.
Xianglan wanted to call after him but feared being overheard. She hastily lifted her skirt and chased after him, but by the time she rounded the hillside, Song Ke had already vanished. Worried about leaving the flowerpot unattended, she had no choice but to return, lugging the pot back in low spirits.
When she arrived at Gauze Snow Dock, Cao Lihuan had yet to return. Xianglan placed the flower on the octagonal table in the hall, then went to retrieve the pouch and examined it carefully. Sighing, she slumped onto the daybed, grumbling inwardly, “If Young Master Song just called out, wouldn’t the first, second, and third young ladies all rush to mend his pouch for him? Forget mending—they’d probably make him a brand-new one if he asked! Why insist on having an unfamiliar girl like me do it? Doesn’t he worry I’ll ruin it? How can he be so trusting? He might not care, but if rumors spread because of this pouch, not only would those young ladies tear me apart, but my life would be ruined.” The more she thought about it, the more frustrated she became. Unable to contain her irritation, she flung the pouch to the ground and stomped on it twice. Moments later, she dejectedly picked it up, dusted it off, and listlessly pulled out her sewing basket, beginning to stitch the pouch back together.
A long while later, Cao Lihuan finally returned. Xianglan had expected her to vent her frustrations—likely from being slighted by the young ladies of the Lin household—by lashing out upon her return. To her surprise, Cao Lihuan silently retreated to her room, summoning Hui’er inside and shutting the door tightly behind them. They remained secluded for a long time without emerging.
(Note: The last paragraph about the novel's performance and reader engagement has been omitted as it is not part of the actual novel content.)
OpenNovel