Chapter 13: Luring the Snake
Taking advantage of the good afternoon sunlight, Lianqiao brought the bedding from the room out to the courtyard to air. The old quilt had thin, sparse cotton filling—barely a thin layer—and stood out glaringly among the thick, vibrant quilts hung across the yard.
Chunying was directing a few young maids to hang several quilts from Zhang Lan’s room on the clotheslines outside. Compared to the dull quilt in Lianqiao’s hands, the ones Chunying handled were embroidered with exquisite peony patterns and stuffed with freshly carded cotton from that year, plump and thick at a glance. The weight of the quilts pulled the clotheslines downward, and Chunying called out sharply, “Be careful! Don’t scratch the backing—it’s fine satin!”
Lianqiao didn’t spare her a glance, walking straight to the other side and effortlessly hanging her quilt on the line. The quilt was so light it barely weighed anything, making the task easy. Seeing Lianqiao, Chunying let out a mocking laugh. “Oh, Sister Lianqiao, you’re personally airing the quilts too?” She glanced at the quilt on the line and added, “Come, all of you, learn from her. Look how capable Sister Lianqiao is—she can hang a quilt all by herself without breaking a sweat. Not like us, struggling even with several people lifting.”
The young maids tittered, and one of them giggled, “Maybe the quilts in the young lady’s room use such fine cotton that they weigh nothing. Must be so comfortable to sleep under—not like ours, thick and heavy as lead.”
Lianqiao smoothed out the wrinkles on the quilt, ignoring their teasing. Unrelenting, Chunying pressed on, “Lianqiao, why only air the young lady’s quilt? Why not hang yours and Zisu’s out too? Let’s see if your quilts are just like the young lady’s—different from ours.”
The maids burst into laughter again. Such open and veiled mockery, implying that Jiang Ruan’s quilts as a mistress were inferior to those of the servants, was truly excessive. Lianqiao’s willow-leaf brows furrowed in anger, but just as she was about to retort, a sweet-faced young maid hurried over. “Sister Lianqiao, you asked me to find—”
“Luzhu,” Lianqiao cut her off. “Wait a moment.” She finished smoothing the last wrinkle on the quilt before turning around and taking the maid’s hand. “Come, let’s talk over here.”
The two walked aside, heads close together as they whispered. After a while, Lianqiao picked up the empty wooden basin and left. Once she was gone, Chunying called out to the young maid who was about to follow. “You’re Luzhu, right?”
Luzhu glanced at Chunying timidly. “Yes.”
“Don’t be afraid,” Chunying said, though her voice carried an edge. “What were you and Lianqiao talking about just now?”
“N-nothing,” Luzhu shook her head, staring down at her feet.
“What’s there to fear? I won’t bite you,” Chunying’s tone turned harsh. “Why would Lianqiao seek you out for no reason? What were you two whispering about? You know who really runs this place. If you don’t explain clearly today, don’t expect to stay in this estate any longer.”
“No!” Luzhu’s head snapped up, her eyes red with distress. “Sister Chunying, please don’t drive me out!”"As long as you explain things clearly, I naturally won't do anything to you," Chunying said. "I'm not an unreasonable person. You look unfamiliar, probably a new maid. Do your work well, and in the future, I won't let anyone bully you."
"Really?" Luzhu looked up, her expression hopeful.
"Why would I lie to you?" Chunying's tone grew even gentler, convinced there was something suspicious about Lianqiao's actions.
"Actually, Sister Lianqiao didn't ask me for anything major," Luzhu said. "She just heard my embroidery was good and asked me to stitch a water lily over the torn part of the young lady's dress so it wouldn't show."
Chunying eyed her skeptically. "That's all?"
"Yes," Luzhu nodded.
"How strange. The young lady never cares about her clothes. Why would she suddenly want a water lily embroidered on her dress?"
"Well..." Luzhu hesitated.
"What else?" Chunying pressed.
"I heard they got a rare Moonflower from outside. Tonight, the young lady is going to the pear garden to admire it and wants to dress nicely, not to slight such a precious flower." Luzhu blurted it all out. "They say the Moonflower is extremely rare, a variety that blooms on winter nights."
"Moonflower?" Chunying found it odd. "The estate got a Moonflower? I never heard of this." She glanced at Luzhu. "Alright, that's all. You may go."
Luzhu acknowledged and left. Once she was gone, Chunying muttered to herself, "Given the current situation, how could she still be in the mood to admire flowers? And even if she were, why go to such lengths for a dress? She never cared about these things before. This is too unusual—there must be another reason. I must find out what they're really up to."
In the side courtyard, Zisu was taking books out of a chest to air them in the sun. The yard was filled with volumes spread out to dry as she carefully turned the pages. "These books of yours are well-preserved, miss. After the New Year, the rooms get damp, so we must air them often." She paused thoughtfully. "Back when the mistress was alive, she loved books too and would sun them every day."
"Mother came from a military family yet collected these precious books just to please someone, but in the end, they've fallen into my hands," Jiang Ruan said softly, gazing at the books in the yard.
The Zhao family had been a lineage of generals for generations, accustomed to the blood and grit of the battlefield. All the men were military heroes, but the sole legitimate daughter, Zhao Mei, fell in love with Jiang Quan. The entire Zhao family opposed the match, yet Zhao Mei insisted on marrying him, leading the family to sever ties with their only daughter.
After their marriage, Zhao Mei learned Jiang Quan admired scholarly women, so she scoured the land for rare books and studied them diligently. Yet not long after, Jiang Quan married Xia Yan, the capital's most talented woman, as his noble concubine.
This chest of books—Zhao Mei never lived long enough to finish reading them. Meanwhile, Xia Yan rose from noble concubine to become the current Madam Jiang. Jiang Ruan smiled bitterly. Her mother never realized before her death that if someone truly didn't love you, no effort could win their affection. From the past to the future, Jiang Quan never loved scholarly women—he only loved Xia Yan, who happened to be one."Miss, are you thinking of Madam?" Zisu observed Jiang Ruan's expression. "If Madam were still here, she would surely be comforted to see how intelligent and sharp you've become."
Jiang Ruan smiled faintly, neither confirming nor denying. Zisu walked back and was startled to see the book in Jiang Ruan's hand. "Why are you reading military strategy again? There's no need to go to battle now. Miss should read some poetry or novels instead."
"Even without going to battle, enemies will come knocking," Jiang Ruan's gaze fell upon the words in the military text before her: Lure the enemy out of hiding.
(End of Chapter)
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