Huamei grew increasingly puzzled. She hurried around the artificial hill and saw two maids burning a pile of clothing. One had a square face with small eyes and a tall, stout figure—this was Huairui, who had previously served Cao Lihuan. The other was thin, short, and slender—Yingluo, a maid attending Wang Shi.
Yingluo stood far back, covering her face with a handkerchief, while Huairui crouched down, her nose and mouth wrapped in cloth, using fire tongs to toss garments into the flames.
Huamei quickly asked, "Why burn perfectly good clothes? Who gave you permission to burn them here? What if a fire breaks out?"
Yingluo initially ignored Huamei upon recognizing her, but after several questions, she replied, "Hanfang from Third Miss’s room went home to visit family a couple of days ago. She returned with a fever, and the doctor diagnosed smallpox—it’s very serious, she’s just waiting to die. Our Madam has provided silver to move her to an empty room, with only a maid who’s had smallpox before tending to her. Her clothes were ordered to be burned. Third Miss found it too unlucky to burn them in the courtyard, and taking them outside the second gate risked infecting others, so we’re burning them nearby in the garden for cleanliness." She then urged Huairui repeatedly, "Hurry up and finish burning them! Madam is waiting for a report!"
Huairui remained silent, her face dark with displeasure. After Cao Lihuan left, she had relied on her parents’ influence to serve under Lin Dongling. Unlike Cao Lihuan, Lin Dongling, raised in privilege, cared not a whit about whose esteemed servant your parents were—she showed no face at all. Huairui, accustomed to laziness and trickery, offended Lin Dongling several times and was demoted to menial tasks outdoors. Today’s clothing burning was a dangerous, life-threatening chore, and Huairui, seething with resentment, dumped the remaining clothes into the brazier, nearly smothering the fire. Yingluo stamped her foot and scolded, "Are you trying to die? If it goes out, what then? We’d have to relight it! In this tight space, we might get infected too!"
Upon hearing it was smallpox, Huamei’s companion Zhicao turned and fled in fright, calling from behind the rockery, "Miss Huamei, don’t stay here! Let’s go back!"
Huamei agreed verbally, took two steps back, and as she turned to leave around the hill, her eyes caught an inconspicuous embroidered handkerchief on the ground. In one corner was embroidered the character "Fang," likely fallen from the clothing pile. A wicked scheme instantly formed in Huamei’s mind. Quietly picking up a twig, she used it to flick the handkerchief away unnoticed while the others were distracted. Rounding a corner, she took out a Brocade Pouch from her sleeve, emptied its contents, used the twig to place the handkerchief inside, then held it by its strings as if nothing had happened and returned to the Hall of Knowing Spring.Upon entering the room, Huamei immediately stuffed that bundle behind the small table in the corner. Though she was usually composed and calculating, having such a deadly object hidden in her room made her heart flutter uncontrollably. She took a deep breath and sat up. Whenever she felt anxious and restless, she would always ask Xique to brew her a cup of pearl tea. But Xique had long been taken away and sold off. Unable to summon Zhicao, she had to get off the heated kang herself and retrieve a small porcelain jar painted with a landscape scene from the cabinet. Opening it, she found the tea leaves were completely gone. Ever since Lin Jinlou had grown tired of her, the regular monthly supplies had been cut off, and even the meals and soups had become unpalatable. If she hadn’t used her own silver to bribe the servants, how could her palate, now accustomed to the luxuries of wealth, tolerate such coarse rice and spoiled food? She had initially sought help from her maternal family, secretly sending a letter home through Zhicao, but it seemed to have sunk into the sea without a trace. Her brother, Du Bin, who used to visit the Lin family frequently, had now disappeared without a trace, as if he considered her dead. Trapped within the mansion, with every move watched, even if she had a hundred schemes, it was difficult to execute them. Now she was on the verge of destitution—should she take that final step?
Huamei stared at the corner of the wall, her expression dark and inscrutable.
To cut a long story short.
At dusk, when the lanterns were lit, Lin Jinlou returned home. As soon as he entered the Hall of Knowing Spring, he spotted a woman wearing a pale purple cloak embroidered with magnolia branches, standing under a banana tree with her back to him. Her figure and silhouette resembled Xianglan’s, so Lin Jinlou walked over and said, "Why are you standing in the wind?" As he spoke, he reached out to embrace her waist.
But when the woman turned around, it turned out to be Huamei. Lin Jinlou was taken aback and immediately released his hand, frowning slightly. "Why is it you?"
Huamei also appeared greatly surprised and flustered. "I was feeling unwell this morning, afraid I might have caught a chill last night. I didn’t go to the ancestral hall to kneel this morning, but now that I’m feeling a bit better, I was just on my way there..." She half-lowered her head, turning her face to the side, and said sorrowfully, "I remember the punishment you gave me, and I dare not forget it for a moment... These days, I’ve had no appetite for food or tea. Whenever I think of my mistakes, I feel ashamed of the favor you once showed me. I wish I could just die..." Her willow-like brows were tinged with sorrow, and her bright eyes brimmed with emotion, giving her a unique beauty. She then took out a jade pendant from her sleeve and handed it to him, saying, "This jade was a gift from you... I braided a tassel for it using a strand of my own hair and silk thread. It’s a token of my thoughts for you, and a symbol of my determination to cut my hair and repent..."
Lin Jinlou glanced at it and indeed saw a white jade pendant carved with magpies perched on plum blossoms, adorned with a colorful tassel. He gave it a cold look, released his hand, and was about to leave.
Seeing this, Huamei hurriedly knelt on the ground and cried out mournfully, "Eldest Master, I truly know my wrongs!" With a thud, she knocked her head against the blue brick floor.
Lin Jinlou stopped in his tracks but didn’t even turn his head. Instead, he raised his voice and shouted, "Where is everyone? Where have you all gone?"
The matron assigned to watch Huamei had been secretly hiding behind a pillar, observing the scene. Hearing Lin Jinlou’s call, she had no choice but to brace herself and run over with a forced smile. "What are your orders, Eldest Master?"
Lin Jinlou said, "If she’s caught a chill, move her out tonight. Don’t let her spread the sickness. It’s almost the New Year—we don’t need such bad luck!"
The matron bowed and nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes."
Lin Jinlou strode off toward the main residence.
Huamei felt a roaring in her ears. She had already knocked her head with such force earlier that she saw stars, and now she felt even more dizzy and disoriented. Her gaze grew vacant, and as she knelt on the ground, she swayed a couple of times before collapsing in a heap.The old woman hurried forward to pull her up, and saw that Huamei's eyes were wide open and staring blankly, as if she had passed away. Even when pinched or twisted, she showed no reaction. The old woman shook her head and said, "Amitabha, what a sin, what a sin... Huamei, you... you must ease your heart..." After murmuring a few more words, she noticed Huamei still staring vacantly without responding. The old woman grew somewhat flustered. She had taken Huamei's silver earlier and turned a blind eye, allowing her to wait in the courtyard for Lin Jinlou's return. Now, fearing she might be implicated, she hastily pulled Huamei up from the ground and hurriedly pushed her back into her room.
Huamei sat on the kang, completely unaware that the sky had darkened completely.
Although Lin Jinlou had ordered her to be confined and made to kneel in the ancestral hall every day, she still clung to a sliver of hope—after all, he hadn't driven her out like he had with Luanr, had he? Besides, among the women in Lin Jinlou's inner courtyard, she had once been the most favored, even Zhao Yuechan had yielded to her a little. How could she resign herself to leaving just like that? After a month or so, no matter how great Lin Jinlou's anger was, it should have subsided. If she dressed up nicely, spoke softly, and humbly admitted her mistakes, there might still be a glimmer of hope. It was this thought that had sustained her until now. She made sure to dress elegantly every day, reminding herself not to forget her past glory.
But today had ended like this.
Huamei felt her heart slowly grow cold, a chill seeping through her entire body, even her bones felt as if they were frozen. She couldn't stop trembling.
Just then, the door creaked open, and Zhicao entered carrying a food box. Not noticing a stool in front of her, she stumbled over it and nearly fell. She couldn't help exclaiming, "Oh dear, why hasn't anyone lit a lamp in such a dark room? I almost fell. If I had dropped the food box, you'd have nothing to eat tonight." Grumbling under her breath, she fumbled to set down the food box and lit the oil lamp.
Huamei watched the faint light, took a deep breath, straightened her posture, and smoothed her hair with both hands.
Zhicao arranged the dishes from the food box on the kang table. The two dishes had long gone cold, and the steamed buns were hard. She placed the chopsticks in front of Huamei and said with a mocking smile, "Miss, please eat." She had already overheard the maids and old women gossiping about how Huamei had tried to seduce the Eldest Master today and ended up humiliated. One of the maids had taunted her, "Oh, Zhicao, you've risen in status now, serving Mei Yiniang! You're different from us who fetch water and sweep the floors! Must be quite glorious, huh?" Zhicao spat and retorted, "Don't mock me with that talk! Mei Yiniang? What Mei Yiniang? A fallen phoenix is worse than a chicken, let alone a quail. If she didn't know her place, I wouldn't even spare her a glance!" She had deliberately gone to fetch the meal late, and seeing the once-proud concubine in such a state, Zhicao felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.
But Huamei didn't eat. She stared at Zhicao for a long moment, then suddenly smiled warmly and beckoned, "Zhicao, come here." She motioned for her to sit on the kang, reached into a chest, and pulled out a five-tael silver ingot, holding it out to her. "I have a favor to ask of you. If you do it well, this silver is yours."
Zhicao reached out to take the silver, but Huamei pulled her hand back.
Zhicao licked her lips and asked, "What is it? Do you want to send a message to your family or ask the kitchen to prepare extra dishes? Just give the order, Miss."Huamei sighed and said, "Last night I had a dream. The Grand Duke Jupiter told me this year brings unfavorable fortune, then gave me a pot of orchids, saying a sinister woman has crossed me. He told me to throw a handkerchief I’ve used into her room, and all would be well. When I woke, I was desperate—the orchids given by the Grand Duke surely point to Xianglan! Dear sister, the Eldest Master has confined me; besides kneeling in the ancestral hall, I can’t even leave my room. I must trouble you to do this for me..."
Upon hearing this, Zicao waved her hands repeatedly. "No, no! How could I possibly enter the main quarters? Before I even reach the door, the maids inside would tear me apart, let alone throw in a handkerchief! My lady, have you lost your mind, having such dreams?"
Huamei pleaded gently, "I know it’s difficult, which is why I’m offering you five taels of silver. Just toss the handkerchief through the window—I’ll be watching from here. Once you’ve thrown it in, anywhere will do, and I’ll give you a pair of exquisite silver hairpins too, alright?"
Zicao, being greedy by nature, felt tempted. She thought to herself that it was just a handkerchief, nothing important, and succeeding would earn her these rewards, equivalent to a year’s allowance. So she agreed readily. Huamei couldn’t help but sneer coldly, gritting her teeth as she muttered, "Lin Jinlou, isn’t Chen Xianglan your treasure? I’ll make her die! And take your life along with it!"
The next morning, Huamei indeed gave Zicao a brocade pouch. Zicao opened it and saw there was truly only an embroidered handkerchief inside. She tiptoed to the main quarters but noticed people coming and going constantly, making it hard to act. Turning around, she saw Huamei still watching from afar, so she pretended to go around to the back of the house and casually tossed the pouch away.
Just then, Zidai came walking toward her and asked, "Why throw away a perfectly good thing?"
Zicao, who had been itching to gossip, told Zidai about Huamei’s dream as a joke, adding, "She’s no ordinary one—last time she even dared to use charms to curse the Eldest Master. Who knows what trickery is in this handkerchief? If it’s discovered, wouldn’t I be in trouble? I only pretended to help her out of pity—who’d really do such a thing?" With that, she left.
But these words struck a chord with Zidai, who thought to herself, "Zicao makes sense. Huamei must be up to some mischief, surely targeting Xianglan..." As she pondered, she picked up the brocade pouch and, unnoticed, threw it through the rear window.
That morning, Xiao Juan was tidying Xianglan’s trunks, pulling out clothes that were seldom worn from the bottom. Xianglan said, "Give the unworn ones away. Later, pick a few nice ones for Yingge—her father is still ill, and money’s flowing out like water. This year, to save silver, she plans to make do with just the two sets the household provides. The Lin family, high and low, only have eyes for wealth—I fear she’ll have a hard time."
Xiao Juan laughed. "You’re always so soft-hearted, miss."Xianglan sighed, "She's had a difficult life and is an honest person. Lending a hand is like accumulating virtue for myself." Neither of them noticed that a brocade pouch had been thrown through the window, landing among the sorted clothes. Just then, Yingge came over, took a few new garments, and thanked Xianglan profusely. Her young maid, Dingxiang, spotted the exquisitely crafted brocade pouch among the clothes and, feeling an immediate fondness for it, quietly slipped it into her sleeve and took it away.
That same morning, Huamei reported to Lin Jinlou, gathered her personal belongings, and left the Lin residence.
Within a few days, the smallpox outbreak in the Lin mansion grew increasingly severe. The second branch fared relatively well, with only one maid carried out, but the Hall of Knowing Spring saw several fall ill one after another—first Dingxiang with a high fever throughout her body, followed closely by Yingge and Zhicao. Qin Shi was greatly alarmed and promptly sent Lin Jinyuan to stay with trusted relatives, ordering all smallpox patients to be moved to the rear annex.
Lin Dongling said to Wang Shi, "I originally said our household was unsettled at year's end. Aunt should have followed last year's example for her birthday celebration—holding Buddhist ceremonies at the temple, staying a couple of days while fasting. But you wouldn't listen to me. Now we must go out and worship properly, especially the Smallpox Goddess at Qixia Temple."
Wang Shi then discussed this with Qin Shi, who sighed, "I've been thinking the same. Initially, I thought with two happy events to prepare for, we wouldn't make a big fuss about the birthday and let it pass. Never expected such troubles to plague our household. We should indeed visit the temple to worship. Let's choose an auspicious date in the next couple of days and set out."
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