Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen: The Situation (Part 1)

The room fell silent, amplifying every sound around them. After the time it took for a stick of incense to burn, they heard slow, deliberate footsteps approaching from the staircase.

"Go take a look," Eleven Miss suddenly looked up from her knotting work and instructed Winter Green, "See what Ten Miss is doing!"

Winter Green had been anxious about the First Mistress's arrival, but with Eleven Miss showing no signs of action, she hesitated to speak up. Now that Eleven Miss was sending her to gather information, she immediately brightened, smiling as she responded respectfully, "Yes," and tiptoed out.

After a short while, she returned. "Eleven Miss, it was the First Mistress—she just left."

Eleven Miss paused in her knotting and asked, "What expression did the First Mistress have when she left?"

Winter Green pondered for a moment. "It was the same as usual; there was nothing different."

A true expert.

Eleven Miss thought to herself.

The soft footsteps from the staircase echoed again.

The two looked at each other.

"Go take a look quickly!" Eleven Miss whispered.

Winter Green immediately went and soon returned. "Eleven Miss, it's Ten Miss. She's coming down the stairs, wrapped in a grey crane-patterned cloak, accompanied by Zhu Tao."

Eleven Miss looked thoughtful.

Normally, Ten Miss’s footsteps echoed loudly on the stairs, but today, her steps were surprisingly light and quiet. Instead of bringing her usual companions, Bai Zhi or Nine Miss, she had chosen to bring the young maid Zhu Tao. Could this be related to the First Mistress's visit?

The thought flashed through her mind, and Eleven Miss immediately said, "Go see where Ten Miss is heading."

Winter Green nodded and quietly slipped out.

Eleven Miss finished knotting a bat before Winter Green returned.

"Eleven Miss, Ten Miss went to Fourth Mistress's place," she said with a solemn expression, "I wanted to follow and listen to what Fourth Mistress and Ten Miss were talking about, but the maid by Fourth Mistress's side was standing outside the room, so I didn’t dare to get closer."

Three years ago, Ten Miss had shoved Eleven Miss to the ground. To outsiders, the matriarch claimed it was an accident—"The floor was slippery, and Eleven Miss lost her balance." However, in private, she was furious with the master for indulging his concubines, which had led to the young misses becoming arrogant and lacking any sense of sisterhood or proper decorum. The master didn’t dare argue.

Fourth Mistress Yang had been gifted to the master by his superior while he was serving as a high-ranking official in Shaanxi. By the time the matriarch learned of her existence, Fourth Mistress Yang was already pregnant and managing the master’s salary and the family’s private funds. Realizing the situation, the matriarch sent her most beautiful maid, Lü, to the master. Lü soon became pregnant, and before the child was born, the matriarch elevated Lü to the position of Fifth Mistress. However, Fifth Mistress, despite her beauty, was weak-willed and was quickly overshadowed by Fourth Mistress. Seeing this, the matriarch sent another young and beautiful maid, Lu, to the master, and she gave birth to Twelve Miss. By then, the master had already been appointed as the governor of Fujian, and the three daughters had grown up accompanying him in his official capacity. Because of the incident, they were placed in Green Bamboo Pavilion and strictly educated by the capable maids and older women assigned by the matriarch. Fourth Mistress Yang was punished by being forced to kneel in the ancestral hall.

The cold weather brought illness to Fourth Mistress, and she was moved to a small two-room wing next to the Shuangxing Courtyard to recover. She remained in that wing for three long years, her health never fully recovering.

During these three years, the number of times Ten Miss visited Fourth Mistress could be counted on one hand. Unexpectedly, as soon as the First Mistress left, Ten Miss went to see Fourth Mistress.

Eleven Miss couldn’t help but doubt that this was just a coincidence.

Moreover, Fourth Mistress had posted a maid outside the door during their conversation, adding to Eleven Miss’s suspicions.

Eleven Miss’s fingers moved swiftly. "Find a flat box to store the two knotted cords I’ll finish soon."

Winter Green was slightly surprised. "Are you going to personally give the cords to the First and Second Mistresses?"

Eleven Miss sidestepped the question. "I’m going to pay my respects to the matriarch and take the opportunity to deliver these cords."

When Eleven Miss arrived, the matriarch’s room was alive with laughter and conversation.

Zi Wei and Zi Yuan were holding a scroll of calligraphy in front of the matriarch, while Fifth Miss sat leaning against her, pointing at the scroll. "Look, isn't this character beautiful? I imitated the ancient seal script. And this one is modeled after Wang Xizhi's running script..."

The matriarch smiled and nodded, clearly pleased with the work.

Seeing Eleven Miss walk in, the matriarch waved her over. "Come and look at the 'Hundred Longevity Chart' your sister has written."

"It's done already?" Eleven Miss thought, secretly surprised. She greeted the matriarch with a smile and then exchanged pleasantries with Fifth Miss. "Is this for an embroidery design? Sister, you were quick!"

Fifth Miss returned the greeting and smiled. "I was in a hurry because we need to send a birthday gift to Elder Sister's family. I hope there are no imperfections that would make it difficult for you to embroider."

"I don't see any imperfections," Eleven Miss said with a smile as she examined the work.

On a six-foot square piece of rice paper, a variety of scripts—regular, clerical, seal, running, and cursive—were written in different sizes, which secretly amazed her.

Regardless of the skill level, the effort alone was admirable.

Eleven Miss hadn't expected Fifth Miss' calligraphy to have reached such a level.

The matriarch also smiled. "I think it's beautifully done!"

"Thank you for your compliment, Mother," Fifth Miss replied modestly.

The matriarch then instructed Zi Wei and Zi Yuan to give the scroll to Eleven Miss. "Use this for embroidery!"

Eleven Miss curtseyed and Amber quickly stepped forward to take the scroll.

The matriarch pointed at the box in Amber's hand. "What's that?"

Eleven Miss smiled. "These are tassels I made for Brother Rui."

Hearing this, the matriarch's eyes lit up. "Let me see."

Amber hurriedly opened the box and handed it over.

Two colorful threads representing the five elements—white, blue, black, red, and yellow—lay quietly in the bright red velvet box. On closer inspection, the threads were intricately woven into a plum blossom design, with five jujube-sized bats in the center.

"This is exquisite," the matriarch praised, clicking her tongue. "With these two tassels, Eleven Miss' needlework is among the best in Hangzhou."

Hearing this, Fifth Miss' eyes flickered.

Eleven Miss smiled. "I could create such tassels only because Mother kindly invited a master from Hangzhou to teach us."

Hearing this, the matriarch’s eyes softened with satisfaction. "Go and deliver them to the two concubines before it gets late."

Eleven Miss smiled and was about to curtsey and leave when a young maid came to report that Ten Miss had arrived.

Everyone looked surprised, and even the matriarch raised an eyebrow.

Ever since she caught a cold and developed asthma after kneeling in the ancestral hall three years ago, the matriarch had excused Ten Miss from the morning and evening greetings during the winter.

Recalling the events before she left, Eleven Miss felt a little uneasy, sensing that Ten Miss' sudden visit wasn't as simple as it seemed.

"Bring her in quickly before she catches a chill and starts wheezing again!" the matriarch instructed the young maid, her tone carrying a hint of disdain.

Everyone in the room looked around, pretending not to hear.

Moments later, the young maid led in Ten Miss, who was wearing a gray crane-patterned silk cloak.

Eleven Miss was slightly stunned.

She had come directly from Fourth Mistress's place to the matriarch's without even changing her clothes...

The young maid carefully helped her remove her cloak, revealing a half-new, half-old grass-green persimmon tile-patterned silk jacket.

"Daughter pays respects to Mother." She knelt down gracefully, her figure as lithe as a willow.

The matriarch accepted her full bow before raising her hand. "Why have you come in such cold weather? If you catch a cold, how can I rest easy?" She then ordered Xu Mama, "Bring a cup of ginger tea for Ten Miss. Her constitution is weak. Unlike Fifth Miss, who is as tough as a monkey born from a stone, she doesn’t fear wind or rain. And unlike Eleven Miss, who wears her winter clothes even before the north wind blows, leaving me nothing to worry about."

Although her words were spoken with a smile and in a caring tone, Eleven Miss felt an unusual sensation hearing them.

Fifth Miss, listening, had already begun pouting, tugging at the matriarch's sleeve. "Mother, I'm grown up now, yet you still scold me like this. I won't stand for it—how can I be a monkey born from a stone, while you hold Ten Miss in your palm and Eleven Miss is so well-behaved that you don't have to worry?"

"Look, you're shaking me until I'm dizzy. Aren’t you just a little monkey?" The matriarch laughed, holding her forehead.

Everyone joined in with laughter.

Eleven Miss then stepped forward to greet Ten Miss.

Ten Miss, whose face was usually tight and unsmiling, now wore a faint smile. It softened her striking features, making her look like a summer flower in full bloom, breathtakingly beautiful.

Eleven Miss felt her heart tighten. She thought of the first time she had met Fourth Mistress, that winter when everything seemed so fresh and hopeful. Fourth Mistress, dressed in a brightly colored grass-green persimmon tile-patterned silk jacket and a scarlet sable cloak, carried a cobalt blue enameled hand warmer. She walked over with elegance, her presence so ethereal that Eleven Miss almost doubted her own senses.

Just waking up, Eleven Miss had been hazy, thinking she had fallen into a dream where an ancient beauty from a painting had come to life. It wasn’t until Fourth Mistress's warm, tender hand gently touched her forehead that she felt a sense of reality.

Eleven Miss remembered the deep affection on Fourth Mistress's face. "Poor child, it's all our Ten Miss's fault. I'll make her come and apologize to you."

As she spoke, Fourth Mistress's willow-leaf-like eyebrows furrowed slightly, as if very worried.

However, before Fourth Mistress even left her courtyard, Xu Mama called her to the matriarch's room. After that, Eleven Miss had never seen Fourth Mistress again... She wondered what she looked like now.

The thought sent a shiver down her spine. The clothes Ten Miss wore were once worn by Fourth Mistress, though they had grown old...

Eleven Miss dared not think too much as Ten Miss greeted her. "You're here too, sister!"

"I was just about to go to Second Mistress and Third Mistress’s place." In front of the matriarch, Eleven Miss never referred to Duan as First Mistress.

Ten Miss nodded with a smile.

Seizing the opportunity, Eleven Miss bid farewell to the matriarch. "Mother, I will go to the mistresses' place now."

The matriarch’s attention was fully on Ten Miss and she nodded absentmindedly, barely registering Eleven Miss’s words.

Eleven Miss felt a weight lift off her shoulders and hurriedly retreated with Amber.

As the door curtain fell, she heard Ten Miss's laughter. "...I came because I was worried about Mother's health in this cold weather."

Eleven Miss quickened her pace.

Amber remained silent, following Eleven Miss hurriedly away from the matriarch's room. Only when they were a distance away did Amber speak up. "Miss, you should put your cloak back on!"

Eleven Miss slowed her pace and continued toward the two mistresses' place.