Chapter 18: New Year's Eve
On New Year's Eve, Father had the servants set up tables by the lakeside pavilion, hang lanterns, and place lotus lanterns on the lake. By evening, Father, Concubine Song, and the younger sisters were seated together, while Concubine Guo and Concubine Du, being of lower status, stood to serve them.
Father said cheerfully, "The kitchen has prepared dumplings with three delicacies, cabbage, and shepherd's purse. Some are stuffed with Golden Beans, so be careful while eating." His handsome face was radiant, with no trace of the recent unpleasantness with Mother.
Jinchao, however, shook her head inwardly. Gu Xi was only eight—what if she accidentally swallowed a Golden Bean? Father really didn’t think things through.
Gu Lan, on the other hand, smiled and said, "This is a good omen. Whoever finds a Golden Bean will surely have a smooth and prosperous year ahead."
In the end, everyone ended up finding Golden Beans in their dumplings. Jinchao even got two, which she tucked into her pouch.
After the dumplings and dishes, the kitchen served desserts—frozen pears, jujube paste cakes, dried persimmons, white sugar pear crisps, and other pastries, all presented on tall stands and porcelain plates. Jinchao stood up and said, "Father, please enjoy the meal. I’m afraid I must excuse myself first."
The moment she rose, Gu Lan immediately turned to look at her, her face still smiling, but her eyes unreadable.
Concubine Song, seated beside Jinchao, gently squeezed her hand and said with a smile, "Chaojie, is there something urgent? Could you stay a little longer? Leaving the feast early isn’t very auspicious..." It was considered inauspicious to leave the New Year’s Eve dinner prematurely.
Jinchao smiled. "I was just thinking that Mother is alone in her room. I’d like to keep her company."
Hearing this, Father nodded approvingly. "She can’t bear the wind and must be lonely in Slanting Cloud Garden. It’s good that you’re going to accompany her."
Gu Jinrong glanced at her as if wanting to say something but turned his head away to gaze at the lotus lanterns floating on the lake. The cool night breeze made the lanterns shimmer faintly on the water, creating a beautiful sight. Jinchao left the feast with Qingpu, pausing to glance back at the lanterns.
Lotus lanterns...
The year she first arrived at the Chen Family, Third Master Chen hosted a Lantern Festival celebration. Chen Xuanqing had prepared an entire lake of lotus lanterns for Yu Wanxue, which flowed like a dazzling river of stars from a distant stream into the lake, outshining all the other lanterns at the festival. At the time, Jinchao had thought Chen Xuanqing was reserved and unexpressive. She hadn’t realized that when he truly cherished someone, he could love them with his entire being.
Watching them had felt like grit in her eyes—uncomfortable. And of course, the one who felt that discomfort was her. She had thought that simply looking at him was one thing, but enduring the pain that came with it was entirely another. Later, after the crowd dispersed, she had her maid help her carefully reach down and fish out one of the lanterns, which she kept in her study. Holding that stolen lantern, her heart had raced as if it had truly been a gift from him.
...Thankfully, all of that was in the past. Seeing Mother’s Slanting Cloud Garden ahead, Jinchao smiled.
Mother was still awake, with Mama Xu helping her wash her face and hands. The room was bathed in the soft glow of candlelight, but the silence made it feel particularly desolate.
Jinchao thought of the laughter and chatter from the lakeside pavilion.Hearing her arrival, Mother looked up with evident delight, beckoning her over to sit beside her, yet couldn't resist chiding, "...How dare you leave the New Year's Eve feast so early!" Jinchao nestled her head against Mother's bosom, cooing, "Without you, Mother, it can hardly be called a New Year's Eve feast."
She then pulled out her embroidered pouch, opening it with a smile to show Mother: "I found two Golden Beans in my dumplings. Let's hang them on your bed curtain to pray for favorable weather and bountiful harvests."
Madam Ji gazed at her daughter with amusement, thinking she still seemed like a child. She summoned Mama Xu to fetch red silk threads, crafting them into a plum blossom Chinese knot to hang the beans on the bed curtain. Madam Ji caught the festive mood: "Will you stay with me tonight to see in the New Year, my Jinchao?"
Jinchao beamed. "Of course! But simply waiting would be dull!" She had Mama Xu bring more multicolored silk threads, wanting to make Chinese knots with Mother, even pestering her: "Yours are the most exquisite, Mother! You must make more for me!"
With a resigned smile, Madam Ji selected several threads and began weaving. Her knots were indeed masterful—incense coils, skyward stools, elephant-eye blocks, and double diamond patterns took shape under her nimble fingers, each vivid and lifelike.
Mothers always excel at things their daughters don't, Jinchao mused, as if this were true of every mother.
At this moment, the maids had been dismissed to join the servants' New Year feast, leaving only Mama Xu in the room chatting with them. None noticed when someone arrived at the doorway.
"Mother..." It was Gu Jinrong's voice as he stepped past the screen, holding an embroidered pouch.
Seeing the mother and daughter, along with Mama Xu, all looking at him, he frowned slightly before nodding. "Elder Sister." He'd noticed Jinchao leaving the feast earlier and, thinking of Mother but wishing to avoid Jinchao, had timed his visit carefully. He'd assumed she would have left by now, yet here she lingered.
Noticing the dark blue pouch embroidered with the Three Friends of Winter in his hand, Madam Ji asked cheerfully, "What brings you here, Rong'er? Have you also come to gift Mother Golden Beans?"
Gu Jinrong looked surprised. "How did you know?"
Madam Ji pointed to the bed curtain in the inner chamber. "Your sister brought those. You two truly share the same thoughts!"
Jinrong coughed, tightening his grip on the pouch. How was he to know Jinchao had the same idea!
Jinchao, however, smiled warmly. "We're making Chinese knots for fun. Would you like to join us?"
Jinrong pressed his lips together. "No, Second Sister has invited me to keep vigil with her."
The chill in his tone was unmistakable. Jinchao thought, He's only twelve—still unable to feign harmony with me. She simply said, "Oh," adding casually, "Then go ahead."
As Jinrong turned to leave, he caught sight of Jinchao chatting with Mother, selecting one of her knots and asking with a laugh how it was made. Her profile, softened by candlelight, bore an uncanny resemblance to Mother's—perhaps five parts out of ten.
Jinrong doubted his eyes. Jinchao didn't resemble Mother at all; she took after their youthful maternal grandmother, radiant as a blooming Haitang flower. Yet his steps faltered. Mother was ill—wouldn't abandoning her to keep vigil with Second Sister be unfilial?
He approached again. "Since Elder Sister has invited me, I should naturally stay longer with Mother!" He sent his page boy to inform Gu Lan that he wouldn't be joining her after all.Mama Xu chuckled at his awkward expression and brought more silk threads for the mother and her two children. After playing with Chinese knots for a while, Jinchao suddenly had an idea and asked for white radishes from the kitchen’s earthen cellar.
Madam Ji was puzzled, “What do you need those for?”
Jinchao merely smiled without answering. When the radishes were brought, she also requested a small knife used for trimming threads and began carving the radish with deft fingers.
Not only Madam Ji and Mama Xu, but even Gu Jinrong watched intently. Jinchao’s nimble fingers soon carved out a Chang’e flying to the moon, holding the Jade Rabbit in her arms. The figure of Chang’e was lifelike, with flowing sleeves and ethereal ribbons.
Madam Ji had no idea Jinchao possessed such skill and marveled, “My Jinchao has such clever hands!”
Jinchao toyed with the knife and recited, “Behind the mica screen, candlelight casts deep shadows, the long river of stars fades as dawn approaches. Chang’e must regret stealing the elixir, facing the blue sea and dark sky night after night.” A sudden pang of loneliness flashed through her heart. Did the lines about Chang’e regretting stealing the elixir and facing endless solitude also apply to her?
It was she who had harmed Yu Wanxue’s child, leading to her own confinement in a small courtyard, dying alone of illness!
In her past life, after Yu Wanxue fell from grace, she often visited Jinchao in her small courtyard. Having miscarried and unable to bear children again, with Chen Xuanqing taking concubines, Yu Wanxue felt lonely and sought Jinchao’s company, bringing many gifts. She was genuinely kind-hearted and treated Jinchao with great warmth. Jinchao had been blinded by resentment and jealousy, never realizing how deeply she had wronged her.
Madam Ji, however, remarked, “What a pity. This would be perfect for the Mid-Autumn Festival, but now it’s New Year’s Eve. Chaojie, why not carve a qilin for good fortune?”
Snapping out of her thoughts, Jinchao quickly waved her hand, “...I can’t do that! I only know how to carve Chang’e!”
Gu Jinrong, though, kept his gaze fixed on his elder sister. Had he imagined it, or had there truly been a trace of... melancholy in Gu Jinchao’s expression?
Though it was supposed to be a night of staying up late, Madam Ji, weakened by her frail health, retired early. Left alone with Jinchao, Jinrong found himself at a loss for words. As the maids returned, Jinchao asked Moyu to bring a Go board, smiling as she said, “Your elder sister can at least keep you company with a game to ward off sleep!”
Jinrong doubted her skill, and after a few rounds, she was thoroughly defeated. Jinchao admitted cheerfully, “I’m just a dabbler. These few games are enough.” She added, “You should head back now. There’s the ancestral worship tomorrow morning. I’ll stay up for the vigil.”
Her candid admission made Jinrong see her as carefree and unpretentious. After a pause, he unexpectedly said, “...It’s good that you can play at all.” He meant it kindly—after all, Gu Lan couldn’t even do this. But the moment the words left his mouth, he realized they might not sound complimentary and struggled to explain.
As he left Slanting Cloud Garden, he glanced back, struck by the thought that perhaps this elder sister wasn’t at all like the rumors or Gu Lan’s descriptions. She gave him a peculiar feeling, one he couldn’t quite define.
Outside, a young maid was waiting for him. He recognized her as Mu Jin, Second Miss’s attendant. She curtsied and said with a smile, “...Our Second Miss has been waiting for you.”
Gu Jinrong frowned, torn between concern and reproach. “Second Sister is still waiting... She really shouldn’t, it’s so late!” Yet he quickened his steps toward Cui Xuan Yuan.
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