Chapter 172: Full Moon
The New Year passed in the blink of an eye. After eating yuanxiao during the Lantern Festival, it was time for the Imperial Academy to reopen.
Gu Jinrong, accompanied by his newly selected book boy Zimo, packed his trunks and prepared to leave for the Imperial Academy. Jinchao brought two boxes of his favorite pastries and made a special trip to see him off.
In his study, Gu Dezhao was giving him instructions: "The Imperial Academy is not like the clan school—its rules are extremely strict. Your attire, gait, meals, and conduct must all adhere to proper decorum. There are regulations for everything, from the lecture halls and dormitories to dining and bathing. A first offense may be forgiven, but a second or third will be questioned, and a fourth will result in expulsion. As a privilege student, you must be especially mindful of these matters. Do not disgrace the Gu family... In just one more month, you’ll take the provincial examination. You’re still young, so it’s normal if you don’t pass. Even your father had to take it twice before succeeding."
Gu Dezhao had also studied at the Imperial Academy, so he made sure to caution Gu Jinrong about every detail, fearing he might misstep.
Gu Jinrong stood with his hands clasped behind his back, listening attentively. He seemed much more mature now, his features firmer and more resembling his father’s.
Jinchao watched with a quiet sigh of relief. Leaving the pastries in the hall, she quietly returned to Beautiful Embroidery Hall.
In her past life, raised under Song Yiniang’s care, Gu Jinrong had never amounted to much. She still remembered how, half a year after her marriage in that life, Gu Jinrong and a few friends had been racing horses through the streets and crashed into a noodle stall. The owner grabbed him by the collar and refused to let go, demanding five hundred taels in compensation. Unable to argue his way out, Gu Jinrong borrowed five hundred taels from a classmate, the son of an official surnamed Jiang, to pay the man. Upon returning home, he immediately asked Song Yiniang for the money to repay the debt.
When their father found out, he was furious and summoned Gu Jinrong for questioning: "A noodle stall worth five hundred taels? Do you think the Gu family’s silver is picked up off the ground?"
At the time, she had been home for a visit, sipping tea nearby. She heard Gu Jinrong mutter, "They wouldn’t let me leave without paying, and with so many people watching on the street, I couldn’t bear the shame." Then he added carelessly, "It’s just five hundred taels. If you don’t want to pay, just take something from my room to cover it!"
Their father grew even angrier: "Everything in your room—did you earn any of it yourself? Taking things back and forth, it’s still the Gu family’s property!"
He then called Song Yiniang over and scolded her: "He asked, and you just gave it to him? Is this how you manage household affairs?"
Song Yiniang immediately knelt, weeping pitifully: "This is all my fault..."
Gu Jinrong snorted coldly: "Why blame Mother? I did this myself—I told her to give me the money. If you want to hit me, then hit me! I’m a man—I’ll take responsibility for my actions!"
Their father trembled with rage: "How noble of you..." He shouted for Li Guanshi to bring a cane, but Song Yiniang and Gu Lan rushed to shield Gu Jinrong, crying and begging for mercy. Gu Lan even pleaded, "If Rong-ge didn’t want to pay, he could have just invoked the Gu family’s name. He was only trying to protect our family’s reputation and avoid trouble, Father!"
With the cane in hand, their father couldn’t bring himself to strike.
She had watched silently as Gu Jinrong was disciplined.
Later, Gu Lan accompanied Gu Jinrong out. After a long silence, their father finally said to her, "...If only your mother were still here." It was the first time in that past life, after her mother’s death, that he had ever expressed such longing for her.Gu Jinzhao closed her eyes, as if transported back to her past life—those bleak and lonely days. No one had truly been on her side, not even Gu Jinrong, who had begun addressing Concubine Song as "mother." There had been no place for her in the Gu family, and in the Chen family, she had been utterly alone, with only her trusted maid Liu Xiang to rely on.
The mere thought sent a chill through her entire body.
When she opened her eyes again, the daylight filtering through the Korean paper greeted her. Qingpu's gentle voice reached her ears: "Miss, it's already Chen hour. Young Master came by earlier and left you a sandalwood hairpin carved with cloud patterns."
She had slept an entire day away. As she rose, Caifu and Baiyun entered, carrying a little jacket, a skirt, and a copper basin of warm water to assist her with her morning ablutions. Gu Jinzhao asked Qingpu, "Has Rong-ge already left?"
Qingpu smiled in reply. "He left before dawn." She then showed Jinzhao the sandalwood hairpin.
The cloud patterns were exquisitely carved.
Jinzhao smiled and instructed Baiyun to store it away in the chest.
Noticing the turquoise-inlaid gold hairpin Caifu had chosen for her, she couldn't help but ask, "Why this hairpin? Where's the plain silver circlet I usually wear?"
Caifu chuckled. "Have you forgotten? Today is the full-month celebration for our Eleventh Miss."
When they had first returned to the Gu family, their birth order hadn't been rearranged. Madam Feng hadn't mentioned it, so naturally, no one else brought it up. But the day after their return from Bao Xiang Temple, Madam Feng summoned them all and announced that since Fifth Madam had also given birth and Gu Dezhao's branch had rejoined the main family, their birth order would be reorganized. After the rearrangement, Fifth Madam's newborn became the Eleventh Miss.
And Gu Jinzhao became the Second Miss.
However, within each branch, old habits died hard—over a decade of familiarity wasn't easily changed.
Madam Feng's decision to reorganize the birth order finally put the newly returned Gu Dezhao branch at ease. Gu Xi had once confided in her: "Eldest Sister, when I heard the maids in Grandmother's quarters call me 'Cousin Miss Xi,' it always gave me the creeps—as if we were just distant relatives here for a free meal... Now it sounds much better." She was now ranked eighth and found the new order quite agreeable.
Gu Jinzhao understood their unease in the ancestral home, especially since they rarely visited Madam Feng's quarters.
The next day, she took Gu Xi and Gu Yi to pay their respects to Madam Feng, who rewarded each of them with a pair of beaded hairpins.
"...Has the gold locket from the Baodi shop arrived yet?" Gu Jinzhao asked. She had already gifted the Eleventh Miss a pair of gold anklets but worried they might be too heavy for the child, so she decided to add a gold locket engraved with the baby's name.
Caifu reported it had arrived the previous evening and showed it to Jinzhao.
Once properly dressed, Gu Jinzhao made her way to the eastern compound.
Today was the Eleventh Miss's full-month celebration, and not only were close friends and ladies of the Gu family attending, but Changxing Marquis's Wife was also coming again, bringing gifts for her granddaughter—a little jacket, swaddling clothes, a bib, and hand bells. Even Lord Gao, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, had sent Fifth Madam's aunt as his representative. The Gu residence was bustling with endless streams of guests, carriages filling the front courtyard, and servants rushing about without a moment's rest.
Madam Feng moved from the eastern to the western compound to receive guests, where six banquet tables were set up in the banquet and rest area for the ladies to socialize.Marquis Changxing's wife, Gao Shi, brought a note to Madam Feng and said, "...It was Man'er's great-grandfather who first chose this character. We'll only use it if you, as the in-laws, find it agreeable." She unfolded it to show Madam Feng—the character 'Tang' was written on it.
Gu Jinzhao pricked up her ears upon hearing this. Man'er was the milk name of the Eleventh Young Miss, and the great-grandfather referred to was the current Grand Academician and Minister of Rites, Lord Gao. It seemed the marquis's wife had asked her father to name the Eleventh Young Miss. As the legitimate eldest daughter of Gu Wuye, she should belong to the same generation as Jinzhao, bearing the generational character 'Jin.' Thus, she would be called Gu Jintang—a fine name indeed...
However, Madam Feng might not be pleased.
Madam Feng's expression revealed neither joy nor sorrow. After receiving the note, she praised it and handed it to Fuling, then continued conversing with the marquis's wife.
A short while later, the child was brought out by the wet nurse. After being nurtured for over a month, she was now plump and fair-skinned. The ladies gathered around to admire the newborn. Given the child's preciousness, no one dared to hold her casually, and she was soon returned to Fifth Madam after a brief moment.
The ladies then rose to visit Fifth Madam.
Madam Feng called the young ladies of the Gu family to accompany her back to the eastern courtyard.
Gu Jinzhao noticed an unfamiliar girl standing behind Madam Feng. The girl was quite tall, wearing a qian-red brocade jacket with floral patterns and a dark green twelve-panel Xiang skirt. She had a pair of golden gourd earrings and wore her hair in a peony bun adorned with two red crepe silk flowers. Her complexion was fair, but her features were rather plain—her cheekbones slightly prominent and her chin sharp and long, giving her a somewhat unkind appearance.
Gu Jinzhao overheard Gu Lian whispering to Gu Lan, "...She looks like a country bumpkin who just wandered into the city. Who is she?"
Earlier, the banquet hall had been crowded, so no one had noticed her.
Lan Zhi, standing beside Gu Lian, whispered, "Young Miss, she's a relative from Tai Furen's ancestral family. When I was overseeing the gifts in the front courtyard earlier, an old man in his seventies arrived on a donkey cart, and this girl stepped down from it, claiming to be a cousin from the Feng family."
Gu Lian found this amusing and sneered, "...Could she be a poor relative here to sponge off us? If so, she should go to the Feng family—what's she doing here? Our household has never had a donkey cart before!"
Lan Zhi chuckled and added, "Exactly! The driver tried to lead the donkey into the stables, but the donkey threw a tantrum, tugging at the reins and refusing to go in. Everyone watching the gifts burst out laughing... In the end, the driver had no choice but to tie the donkey to the ginkgo tree outside the stables."
Gu Lian and Lan Zhi continued whispering and giggling among themselves.
Madam Feng entered the room and sat on the Arhat bed, pulling the girl to stand before her. She beckoned the others over and said with a smile, "...This is a relative from my ancestral family, surnamed Cheng, named Baozhi. She's a generation above you all, so you may address her as Cousin."
Gu Jinzhao glanced at Cheng Baozhi. Though Madam Feng held her hand, she didn't seem particularly affectionate, quickly forcing a smile to blend in with the others.
Madam Feng's ancestral family was merely a provincial scholar's clan from Liangxiang—respected in the countryside, but after marrying into the Gu family, Madam Feng felt her status was inadequate and thus became especially reserved. Over time, her ties with the Feng family grew distant, and she no longer interacted with them, let alone their relatives...
Why, then, was Madam Feng treating this Cheng Baozhi with such familiarity? There was nothing particularly noteworthy about her. Moreover, Madam Feng had gone out of her way to summon everyone and introduce her—it was truly puzzling.Cheng Baozhi then began chatting with everyone.
A maid brought out several plates of pastries—pineapple sugar, sweet dew cakes, and delicate flower-shaped fruit crisps—along with a compartmented box filled with almonds, dried longan, and other treats. Cheng Baozhi couldn’t help but exclaim, “How lavish the households in the capital are! They’ve served so many delicacies.” She turned to Gu Lian with an ingratiating smile. “Niece, have you ever heard of a famous dessert called pea-flour cake? I’ve heard it’s sweet, fragrant, and refreshingly delicious. I wonder if I’ll be lucky enough to try it during my visit to the capital!”
The others exchanged odd looks. Pea-flour cake was nothing more than a common snack in the capital—established noble families wouldn’t even serve it to guests.
Gu Lian couldn’t hold back a laugh. “Auntie, you should enjoy these treats instead. These pastries are far rarer—even the Emperor enjoys them in the palace!”
Cheng Baozhi seemed to realize she had misspoken and fidgeted awkwardly with her sleeves. Madam Feng remarked coolly, “If you want to try it, we can have it made for you. But now isn’t the season—you’ll have to wait until summer.”
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