That day, Yun Yinge was punished by Li Dianshan and ordered to clean the large kitchen of the Bureau of Palace Provisions alone. By the time the lights were extinguished, she still hadn't finished, and not daring to light a lamp, she continued cleaning by the faint moonlight. Seeing this, Zhenzhen and Fengxian went together and quietly helped Yun Yinge complete the remaining work.
The three of them worked in the dark, finally managing to wipe down all the areas that needed cleaning. Exhausted, they sat side by side under the window where moonlight streamed in to rest. After a while, Fengxian turned to Yun Yinge and said, "You were actually quite unfairly punished this time. Those two tasks assigned to you were just delivering food to the nobles—what's so difficult about that? Why did you keep refusing, ending up in such a tough situation now?"
Yun Yinge didn't explain, burying her head in her knees and remaining silent for a long while before starting to sob again.
Zhenzhen patted her shoulder gently to comfort her, saying, "If you have any difficulties, you might as well tell us. Perhaps we can offer some ideas. Even if we can't solve the problem for you, at least we'll know the reason, and next time we can help you handle similar tasks in time."
Yun Yinge remained silent. Fengxian then said, "Well, I suppose you have your difficulties and can't explain them in detail. In that case, in the future, if there are things you don't want to do, just tell us first. We'll ask the female officials in advance to let us do them for you."
Wiping her tears, Yun Yinge choked up and said, "I trust both of you sisters and am willing to tell you everything, but this matter isn't too big or too small—I'm so confused I don't know what to do... In any case, I hope you'll keep it a secret for me and not tell anyone else for now."
Seeing Zhenzhen and Fengxian both nod in agreement, Yun Yinge began to explain: "I come from Mingzhou and am the only child in my family. When my father was young, he made a living by giving massages and scrubbing backs in a perfumery. Later, after saving some money, he opened his own perfumery, which gradually grew bigger. Now it's quite well-known in Mingzhou."
Zhenzhen asked, "Is it the 'Yun Yi Gua' perfumery?"
Yun Yinge confirmed it, and Zhenzhen exclaimed, "I've heard of it. It's the top perfumery in Mingzhou, with several branches."
Yun Yinge continued, "My mother is a cook. She used to work for a wealthy family before marrying my father, and then helped him manage the shop. In her spare time, she taught me cooking, so I've known how to cook since I was young. But my parents never let me work as a cook outside. They even hired a tutor to teach me reading, writing, and music, always raising me like a proper young lady, hoping to find me a good husband and free me from the fate of being looked down upon as someone from a lower class."
Fengxian sighed, "Your parents treat you so well. They must be very concerned about your marriage, right?"Yun Yingge nodded and said, "Since I was fourteen, they had been sending matchmakers everywhere to find a good family, hoping to marry me into an official household. However, no official family was willing to form a marriage alliance with merchants or artisans, let alone one like ours, which ran a bathhouse... Later, a matchmaker we hired said there was a scholar who matched my age and appearance, came from a respectable family, was intelligent, and was certain to pass the imperial examination in the future. The only issue was his current poverty—he needed financial support for his studies. She suggested our family marry him and fund his education. Once he achieved success, I would naturally become the wife of a scholar-official. My parents arranged to meet him, and I secretly observed him from behind a screen. He was indeed handsome, with elegant manners and speech, so the marriage was quickly settled, scheduled to take place after he participated in the imperial examination."
Zhenzhen began to understand: "So, he was one of the presented scholars at the celebratory banquet? Since he passed, wasn’t that a joyous outcome? But why did you end up in the Bureau of Palace Provisions?"
Yun Yingge replied gloomily, "It’s a long story. After we were engaged, he often wrote me letters and arranged several private meetings. We were both pleased with each other’s appearance and temperament, and his letters were always filled with affection. I was convinced he was my destined partner and begged my parents not only to fund his studies but also to move him into a new residence and provide him with a substantial monthly allowance... We fulfilled every request he made. He lived up to our expectations, achieving first place in the Provincial Examination and becoming the top scholar of the prefecture."
Fengxian understood: "With his sudden fame, I’m afraid he began to change his mind."
Yun Yingge nodded. "He was originally an obscure, impoverished scholar, but after becoming the top scholar, his home suddenly became crowded with visitors—those seeking marriage alliances, flatterers, people offering to fund his journey to the capital for the imperial examination, and even matchmakers... He mentioned he was already engaged, but when others inquired and learned he was to marry me, they sneered, saying he was destined for great success and should not marry into a lowly class. They mocked that if his colleagues found out his father-in-law was a bathhouse attendant, they would ridicule him endlessly, and such a marriage would hinder his career... Hearing such remarks repeatedly, he grew uneasy and came to my home, subtly hinting at breaking off the engagement. But my father was furious upon hearing this, berating him for ingratitude and, in a fit of anger, even taking off his shoe to strike him. He declared the engagement would not be broken, and if the scholar insisted, he would rather kill the ungrateful man and pay with his own life, considering it a fair trade. Seeing my father’s resolve, the scholar dared not mention breaking the engagement again. He offered some placating words with an apologetic smile and slipped away."
Zhenzhen said disdainfully, "This man is unscrupulous. Once he had the intention to break off the engagement, he would not give up easily and was bound to resort to underhanded schemes."Yun Yinge's eyes reddened again. She covered her mouth to suppress the sobs rising in her throat, taking a moment to steady her voice before continuing, "Later, he wrote to me again, asking to meet at a secluded spot by the river near a bridge. He told me not to tell anyone and to come alone. I trusted him completely, so I kept it from my parents and went quietly. When I saw him, he looked utterly despondent, saying his mother had threatened to kill herself if he married me. I told him I couldn't do anything either—my father wouldn't listen to anyone and would fight to the death at the mere mention of breaking off the engagement. My fiancé then said, 'We're trapped between two impossible choices. Either way, we'd be unfilial, and there's little joy left in living. Why not go to the underworld together and be a devoted couple in peace?' In a moment of madness, I thought everything he said made sense. Overwhelmed by sorrow, I agreed to die with him. He took my hand, led me to the middle of the bridge, and pulled me into the water."
Fengxian sneered, "He knew how to swim, didn't he? You certainly didn't."
"Sister, you're right. That's exactly what happened. But at the time, I didn't understand—or perhaps I didn't want to believe it..." Yun Yinge sobbed. "After I fell in, I struggled, flailing my arms, but I couldn't reach him. For a moment, I surfaced and saw him swimming. I tried to call out, but the water quickly dragged me under, and I nearly drowned... Fortunately, fate spared me. After struggling for a while, a passing boatman rescued me. When I regained consciousness, the kind boatman asked where I lived and took me home."
Zhenzhen asked, "Did your father try to hold your fiancé accountable?"
Yun Yinge replied, "My father went to his house, but he hadn't returned. Instead, his mother insisted I had seduced him into jumping into the water, weeping and demanding my life in return. At the time, there was no trace of him—alive or dead—so my father couldn't pursue the matter further. From then on, he never appeared in Mingzhou again. My parents wanted to find me another match, but after that ordeal, I lost all hope for marriage. I was heartbroken and depressed for a long time. Later, I heard the Bureau of Palace Provisions was selecting palace attendants to enter the palace. It occurred to me that if he were alive, he would surely go to the capital for the imperial exams. On a whim, I applied. To my surprise, the selection was based solely on culinary skills, not background. I was chosen and entered the Bureau of Palace Provisions..."
Remembering the incident at the Wenxi Banquet, Fengxian said, "You refused to serve food at the Jingyi Pavilion, which means your fiancé was there."
Zhenzhen added, "And you didn't want to face the Shen family mother and daughter, which means your fiancé is connected to the Shen family."
"Yes," Yun Yinge sighed deeply. "My fiancé is the Tanhua, Fu Junyi."
A brief silence fell among the three. After a moment, Fengxian asked Yun Yinge, "Now that things have come to this, what do you plan to do?"
Yun Yinge said, "I don't know—that's why I'm so distraught. I'm powerless. Even with my father by my side, I couldn't do anything to him. Now he's achieved the rank of Tanhua and is about to marry the vice chancellor's daughter. I'm just an insignificant little palace attendant—what can I do? I suppose I can only watch helplessly as he gains a beautiful wife, wealth, and prestige.""He lured you to your death while escaping himself—clearly intentional murder, a violation of the law. We cannot let him off easily," Zhenzhen said solemnly. "This matter should be made public so he receives the punishment he deserves. Such a wicked man, if allowed to rise smoothly through the ranks, who knows how he might harm the nation and its people in the future."
"Even so..." Fengxian asked Yun Yinge, "Do you have evidence of his plot to harm you?"
Yun Yinge hesitated. "I have the letters he wrote to me, including the one where he asked to meet me by the river. I brought them all to the capital."
"Just arranging to meet you by the river isn't enough," Fengxian said. "He could argue that he only wanted to meet and say goodbye, never expecting you to drown yourself after he left. Or he might claim that he did indeed jump into the river with you to seek death, but like you, he was rescued... He has many ways to defend himself."
Yun Yinge sighed. "That is also my concern."
Fengxian said, "If you don’t want to keep enduring this while he enjoys success, the most urgent task is to stop him from marrying Councilor Shen’s daughter."
Zhenzhen nodded in agreement and added, "It’s difficult for us to meet Councilor Shen. I noticed that the young lady of the Shen family is quite clever and graceful. Perhaps we should find a way to tell her about this first. Since it concerns her lifelong happiness, she surely wouldn’t want her future ruined by such a man."
Yun Yinge said, "But even if we tell her directly, she might not believe us. If she accuses us of framing her husband-to-be, we’d have a hard time explaining ourselves."
Zhenzhen thought for a moment. "In two days, it will be the Dragon Boat Festival. Today, I heard Consort Li invite the Shen family mother and daughter to attend the palace’s Dragon Boat Festival banquet. Perhaps we can think of a way to subtly inform Miss Shen about this..."
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Note:
Perfume Bathhouse: A public bathhouse during the Southern Song Dynasty.
(To be continued)
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