Zhоu Shаоjin аlso notiсеd sоmеоne apрrоaching. Вeforе Grаnnу Shаng соuld walk ovеr, she tugged at Jiying’s sleevе аnd whispеred, "Lеt’s rеturn tо thе cаrriаgе! Whо knоws who thеse peорle аre?"
Jiying didn’t think much оf it, but as Chеng Chi’s maid, shе hаd tо rеsресt Old Mаdаm Guo’s stаtus аnd thоse аround hеr, еspeсiаlly sinсe she was аccomраnуing the оld lady.
She smilеd аnd nоdded, rеturning with Zhоu Shаоjin tо Оld Mаdаm Guo’s sidе.
Thе group mаde thеir wау towаrd thе саrriage waiting bу the embankment.
Thе apprоaching сarriаgе cаme to a halt with a "whoa." A young man in his twenties jumped down and, upon seeing Zhou Shaojin and the others, looked quite surprised. He quickly turned around and spoke softly to someone inside the carriage.
Shortly after, the carriage curtain was lifted, and an elderly scholar in his sixties, dressed in blue robes, stepped down with the young man’s assistance. He cupped his hands toward Cheng Chi and said, "I never expected to encounter a gentleman in such a remote place. This humble one is surnamed Song, from Changsha Prefecture. I’ve brought my descendants out for an excursion. Meeting by chance is fate—would your family care to join us in watching the tide here?"
Cheng Chi observed the elderly scholar’s spirited demeanor, elegant speech, and smooth, childlike complexion, guessing he was either a renowned scholar or an elder from a family of generations of literati. Seeing the young man, though barely twenty, refined and poised in his movements, Cheng Chi felt even more certain of his assumption.
"Sir, there’s no need for such courtesy," he replied with a smile. "Fine scenery is meant to be shared. Please, feel free to enjoy it as you wish!"
Upon hearing this, the elderly Mr. Song smiled and stroked his goatee, saying to the young man, "Yijun. Please invite your sister and nephew down. This gentleman doesn’t seem like a rigid person either."
The man called Yijun smiled and complied. Several sturdy maidservants jumped down from the accompanying carriage, setting down footstools to assist a young woman in the bloom of her youth as she descended. They then helped a child of about eight or nine years old down from the carriage.
The moment the child’s feet touched the ground, he dashed toward the sandy shore.
The maidservants behind cried out, "Fifth Young Master, be careful!" and hurried after him.
The young man laughed heartily at the sight.
The young woman, however, frowned and said, "You’ll spoil him like this."
The young man chuckled. "Sister, you worry too much. Fifth Young Master has just been cooped up for too long. When I was his age, I climbed onto the roof to catch swallows, and Father never said a word. How could he be spoiled just by running around?"
"You always have an answer for everything," the young woman sighed helplessly. "I can’t argue with you, so I won’t. Nurse Huang, hurry and bring Fifth Young Master back." This last instruction was directed to the maidservant by her side, though it was clear the siblings shared a close bond.
The young man scratched his head with a grin, exchanged a few words with the elderly scholar, then returned to the carriage to fetch a gift box before walking toward Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi initially had no intention of engaging further, but glancing over, he noticed Old Madam Guo watching him. He knew that if he simply walked away, his mother would surely lecture him later. So he nodded amiably toward the man and said, "My surname is Cheng. I’m from Jinling, accompanying my mother and niece to watch the tide."The young man hurriedly said, "My surname is Huang. I came out with my family elders, sister, and nephew. These are pastries from Wufangzhai. I apologize for disturbing your elegant gathering and beg Old Madam and the young lady not to take offense." As he spoke, he presented the gift box.
Qin Ziping promptly stepped forward to receive it. He then turned and handed a packet of tea leaves to Huang Yijun.
Cheng Chi smiled and said, "This is rock tea brought by a friend from Fujian a few days ago. Please have the old gentleman and the young master try it."
Huang Yijun quickly bowed respectfully in thanks.
Suddenly, a loud roar erupted from the river.
Everyone on the embankment instinctively turned to look.
A white wave came rushing forth with lightning speed, roaring as if the river were flowing backward. It crashed against the embankment, sending spray soaring several zhang high, like a water monster opening its maw to swallow people whole. Even Zhou Shaojin, sitting inside the carriage, panicked and cried out, leaning backward as if trying to escape the massive wave.
"The tide is surging!" Cheng Chi didn't even bat an eyelid. With his hands clasped behind his back, he calmly watched the tide recede with a "whoosh," soaking the ground. He remarked lightly, "It came a few moments earlier than I calculated."
Huang Yijun, however, paled dramatically. Exclaiming "Oh no!" he hurriedly looked toward the riverbank.
The child was tightly held in the arms of the maidservant attending her.
He couldn't help but sigh in relief.
The child's face was deathly pale. Only after the tide receded did she react, bursting into loud wails.
The elderly Confucian scholar surnamed Song walked over.
The child immediately threw herself into his arms, crying pitifully, "Grandfather!"
The elderly Song scholar chuckled and said, "You never listen when I tell you things. Now you understand how powerful it is, don't you?"
The child nodded repeatedly, tears as large as soybeans clinging to her tender little face, looking utterly adorable.
The young woman also approached, about to say something, when another tidal surge rushed in.
The young woman and the elderly scholar shielded the child, hastily retreating.
The spray from this surge was even more ferocious than before. Blocked by the embankment, it roared like an enraged water beast, turning to crash against a nearby hill. Water droplets danced in the air like dragons.
At such a moment, who still had the mind to worry about propriety between men and women?
Zhou Shaojin gasped and lifted the carriage curtain, clutching Old Madam Guo's arm urgently. "Look, look!" she cried.
Old Madam Guo chuckled, "I see it, I see it!" As she spoke, she reached out her hand.
Nanny Lu quickly helped Old Madam Guo alight from the carriage.
Zhou Shaojin and the others also got down.
Cheng Chi hurriedly said, "Step back a bit. Be careful not to get swept away by the tide."
Only then did everyone believe his words were no exaggeration.
Wave after wave of lake water surged forth, the roaring sound unceasing, crashing and churning between the embankment and the hill, making the air grow damp.
Suddenly, people seemed as insignificant as ants.
The elderly Song scholar couldn't contain his excitement, clapping his hands and exclaiming, "Heaven arrays clouds like thunderous battalions, earth rolls silver mountains like ten thousand galloping steeds. Magnificent! Magnificent! To witness such a grand spectacle in this lifetime is enough! Enough!"
Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but smile faintly.
After a while, the tide gradually subsided.
Like a child tired from play, it grew quiet for the moment.
The embankment was left soaking wet.
The elderly Song scholar, still brimming with passion, waved to Huang Yijun and said, "Come. Let's go to the Tide-Watching Tower in Xiaoshan."
Huang Yijun hesitated, saying, "But my sister..."
The elderly Song scholar was taken aback, then sighed softly in disappointment. "Then let's return to Hangzhou City."
Upon hearing this, the young woman's eyes reddened. "Yijun, accompany Father-in-law to Xiaoshan. I can return to Hangzhou City with the maidservants for protection."
The elderly Song scholar seemed somewhat moved by this suggestion.Huang Yijun hesitated.
The woman bit her lip, then suddenly bowed to Old Madam Guo and said, "Madam, could I follow you? Once my father-in-law and younger brother return from Xiaoshan, they can come fetch me."
Cheng Chi remained silent.
Zhou Shaojin could sense his displeasure.
She couldn’t help but glance toward Old Madam Guo.
Old Madam Guo smiled and said, "Helping others is helping oneself. There’s no need for such courtesy, young lady. If the old gentleman doesn’t mind, you may follow us." As she spoke, she pointed toward the direction of the Zong family’s villa. "We are staying as guests at the home of Master Zong, the wealthiest man in Jiangnan."
Old Mr. Song felt somewhat embarrassed and said, "Why don’t you come with us to Xiaoshan to watch the tidal bore? I hear the tides there are different from here…"
Zhou Shaojin noticed a flicker of irritation in Cheng Chi’s eyes.
She whispered to Old Madam Guo, "That place is sure to be crowded. Otherwise, Old Mr. Song wouldn’t hesitate about bringing this lady along. Let’s just go back! Even if we went to Xiaoshan to watch the tides, we’d only get a distant view from the observation tower. How could that compare to this, where the waves seem to fly right over our heads? If I hadn’t come to the Qiantang River and seen it with my own eyes, I would have thought the descriptions in books were exaggerated."
Zhou Shaojin’s words made Old Madam Guo laugh.
She said, "Very well, we’ll listen to you. Let’s return to the villa."
Zhou Shaojin smiled sweetly, her gaze subtly shifting toward Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi still wore a gentle expression, but she inexplicably sensed that his mood had improved.
Old Mr. Song and Huang Yijun were still uneasy, so they personally escorted the woman to the Zong family villa where they were staying. Old Mr. Song also handed a name card to Cheng Chi, saying, "I’ll trouble you with my daughter-in-law. Just find a side room to settle her in."
Cheng Chi calmly accepted the large red, gold-sprinkled name card—the kind only those who had passed both imperial examinations could possess—and couldn’t help but be astonished.
The old scholar surnamed Song was actually holding the name card of Song Xu, also known as Song Jingran, the Minister of Revenue, Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion, and Reader-in-Waiting of the Hanlin Academy.
Cheng Chi smiled and had someone fetch a name card from Cheng Jing to give to the old scholar surnamed Song.
The old scholar laughed heartily and said, "So you are family of Chancellor Cheng! This is truly a case of water flooding the Dragon King’s temple—family not recognizing family!"
Cheng Chi exchanged a few pleasantries with the old scholar and learned that he was Song Min, father of Song Jingran, while Huang Yijun was Song Jingran’s brother-in-law. The young woman was Huang, Song Jingran’s second wife, and the child was Song Jingran’s fifth son, Song Sen.
With this connection, Song Min felt at ease and no longer held back.
The two families exchanged courtesies. Song Min entrusted Huang to Cheng Chi’s care, had the coachman unhitch the carriage horse, gently patted the horse’s neck, and left behind all the accompanying servants except for the coachman. Then, he and Huang Yijun rode off on horseback, taking Song Sen with them toward Xiaoshan.
Cheng Chi’s eyes gleamed thoughtfully.
It was said that Song Jingran came from a merchant background, which explained his skill in calculations.
As for Song Jingran’s father, who hailed from the Hunan-Hubei region yet was adept at horseback riding—this showed that the Song family was no ordinary merchant clan focused solely on trading goods between north and south.
Meanwhile, Old Madam Guo began conversing with Huang.It turned out that Song Jingran's mother had passed away over a decade ago. His father had never remarried and lived alone in their hometown in Changsha. In February of this year, Old Mr. Song caught a cold and was bedridden for over a month before recovering. Deeply concerned, Song Jingran specifically asked his brother-in-law to accompany his wife and son to bring his father to the capital to live out his years in comfort. However, Old Mr. Song was fond of traveling, so he took them on a journey, eventually arriving in Hangzhou… which led to today's acquaintance.
“This is truly fate!” Ever since Cheng Chi mentioned Song Jingran, Old Madam Guo had taken note of him. Now, unexpectedly encountering Song Jingran’s wife, she was naturally very enthusiastic and said, “Madam, you need only rest here and wait for Old Mr. Song and Young Master Huang to return. Although I am staying in Master Zong’s villa, I have brought my own servants. Please do not hesitate to ask if you need anything.”
※
Sisters, here is today’s update.
PS: I only found out from a friend’s text that today is Little New Year’s Eve. However, it seems we in the south celebrate on the 24th, while the north celebrates on the 23rd. Still, I wish you all a happy Little New Year’s Eve! May the new year bring new beginnings and good fortune!
※ (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please vote for recommendations and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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