Chapter 395

**Chapter 400: New Year (Part 1)**

The room was quiet, with the distant sound of night watch clappers echoing faintly.

Yang Shi rustled as she turned over in bed.

Qiao Lianfang’s blank stare kept flickering before her eyes.

Mama Yang, who slept at the foot of the bed, sighed inwardly upon hearing this.

“Lady Yang, would you like me to pour you a cup of hot tea?” She threw on her outer robe and sat up.

Since she couldn’t sleep anyway.

Yang Shi thought for a moment and gave a soft “Mmm” in response.

Mama Yang brought the tea and moved the oxhorn lantern from the kang table by the window over as well.

Yang Shi leaned against the headboard, holding the teacup in a daze.

Mama Yang tugged her lapels and sat by the bedside. “Lady Yang, what are you thinking about?”

“Nothing!” Yang Shi replied, feigning nonchalance, and took a few sips. But when she looked up again, she couldn’t help but ask, “Mama, tell me—was sending Qiao Lianfang to Dajue Temple the Madame’s idea or the Marquis’s?”

Mama Yang was puzzled. “What difference does it make? Qiao Lianfang ended up being sent there anyway!”

“How could it not matter?” Yang Shi shook her head slightly, her voice as faint as a mosquito’s hum. “If it was the Madame’s idea, the Marquis might still hold some lingering sentiment. But if it was the Marquis’s idea...” Her expression grew uneasy, her fingers gripping the teacup turning white at the knuckles.

Mama Yang didn’t quite catch her words and chuckled. “Lady Yang, who are you talking about?”

“No one, no one.” Yang Shi composed herself and handed the teacup back with a smile. “It’s late. Let’s rest. We still have to pay respects to the Madame early tomorrow!” With that, she lay back down.

Mama Yang stared at the barely touched tea in her hands, perplexed, and moved the lantern outside the bed curtains.

Qiu Hong couldn’t sleep either, tossing and turning at the foot of the bed.

Lady Wen yawned. “If you can’t sleep, take your bedding and go sleep on the kang by the window in the parlor—the east side has a heated partition, so it’s just as warm. Stop disturbing my rest.”

Hearing Lady Wen’s mild tone, Qiu Hong grinned cheekily. “Aren’t you just as sleepless as I am, Lady Wen?”

Lady Wen didn’t respond.

Qiu Hong continued, “Lady Wen, what kind of place is Dajue Temple? Qiao Lianfang came back like a completely different person. When I curtsied to her, she actually returned the courtesy—gave me quite a start!”

Lady Wen sighed softly. “Let’s not talk about this. Hurry up and sleep. From now on, just steer clear of Qiao Lianfang when you see her.” Recalling Qiao Lianfang’s restrained demeanor, she added, “She’s just returned. The ways she learned in the temple haven’t faded yet. She’ll be back to normal in a few days.”

“Mmm!” Qiu Hong chuckled and lay down.

Over the next few days, she couldn’t help but stare whenever she encountered Qiao Lianfang. She noticed that Qiao Lianfang’s expression gradually softened, and her movements lost their former stiffness. However, neither Qin Yi nor Lady Yang paid her much attention. Only Lady Wen would greet her with a smile and exchange polite but hollow small talk.

Qiao Lianfang no longer pouted or gave people cold looks as she used to. Instead, she would nod distantly before retreating to her courtyard, staying inside all day.

Qiu Hong also noticed that Lady Yang, who had only visited sporadically before, had returned to her usual habits. Aside from accompanying Lady Wen to pay respects to the Madame morning and evening, she would bring her needlework during her free time. As she sewed, she would chat with Lady Wen, often trading old stories. Lady Wen, who wasn’t skilled in needlework and had little patience for prolonged sitting, would frequently drift off mid-chat, leaving Yu Er to keep Lady Yang company. Unfazed, Lady Yang would sit quietly, sewing while waiting for Lady Wen to return, radiating quiet composure.

“Lady Wen,” Qiu Hong asked curiously, “what exactly is Lady Yang embroidering? She’s always got needlework in hand, but I’ve never seen her finish anything. She just keeps talking to you...”

Lady Wen was currently digging through trunks with Yu Er for suitable clothes.

The eldest son-in-law’s family would be sending New Year gifts early the next morning, and by custom, the Shao family would send a respectable matron to pay respects to Eleven Miss. Worried that the older women might arrive early and catch her on her way to greet Eleven Miss, Lady Wen was agonizing over her attire—how to dress appropriately without appearing frivolous. Hearing Qiu Hong’s question, she immediately scowled at her and cut her off. “If you’ve got so much free time, go sweep the courtyard with the junior maids!”

Lady Wen feared that the head housekeeper might suddenly decide to inspect her courtyard. Using the excuse of preparing for the New Year, she set all the maids and older women in her household to work cleaning the courtyard.

"My lady," Qiu Hong said aggrievedly, pouting as she looked down at the pile of clothes in her arms, "am I not helping you look for suitable attire?"

"Then that should keep you quiet!" Lady Wen replied, pulling from the bottom of the chest a brand-new dark green plain-faced Hangzhou silk jacket. "What do you think of this one?"

Before the two could answer, Dong Hong parted the curtain and entered. Seeing Qiu Hong and Yu Er, she paused slightly.

Lady Wen immediately asked, "What is it?"

Dong Hong hesitated briefly before stepping forward and lowering her voice. "My lady, His Lordship has gone to Qiao Lianfang’s quarters."

Lady Wen's expression froze for a moment before she smiled. "It was Qiao Lianfang’s turn to attend him tonight, so it’s only natural that His Lordship went there." She then hastily pulled out a rose-red jacket with gold-threaded embroidery from the chest. "What do you think of this one?"

Qiu Hong and Dong Hong exchanged a glance, and Qiu Hong smiled. "The dark green one is still better. Paired with the pine-flower-colored butterfly-patterned eight-gored Xiang skirt, it looks dignified without being too rigid."

"Then go find that pine-flower-colored butterfly-patterned eight-gored Xiang skirt."

Noticing the skirt was right beside Lady Wen, Qiu Hong shot Dong Hong a meaningful look and said with a smile, "My lady, you’ve been standing for so long—you should rest. Let me accompany you to the inner chamber. Dong Hong and Yu Er can continue searching here."

"You just want to shirk your duties!" Lady Wen laughed as she walked toward the inner chamber with Qiu Hong, who was carrying a large pile of clothes. "Using me as an excuse!"

Qiu Hong simply giggled in response.

******

Cui Er stared in surprise at the maid who had come to deliver the news.

"It’s true," the maid whispered. "His Lordship has gone to Qiao Lianfang’s quarters."

Cui Er’s face darkened, and she hurried into the inner chamber.

There, she ran into Qin Yi.

With a smile on her lips, her face looked even more kind and amiable as she emerged from the heated shrine room where the Bodhisattva was enshrined.

"What’s wrong?" she asked, her mood having been excellent lately, making everything seem pleasant. "You look like someone owes you three hundred taels of silver."

"My lady," Cui Er said urgently, "His Lordship has gone to Qiao Lianfang’s quarters."

The smile froze on Qin Yi’s face.

She clenched her rosary beads tightly and turned back into the heated shrine room.

******

Eleven Miss, freshly bathed, sat on the large kang—a heated bed-platform—by the window in the inner chamber, wearing a rose-red jacket. Her fair face still bore a rosy glow from the hot water, like a red lotus blooming in June—simple yet radiant.

"My lady, your hair is so beautiful," Amber said as she stood before the kang, combing Eleven Miss’s freshly dried hair with a boxwood comb.

"It’s just too much trouble to wash it each time," Eleven Miss replied with a smile, fingering her raven-black tresses.

"Who else does it like you, my lady? Washing your hair every few days," Amber chuckled. "And you don’t like scented hair oil or perfumed waters." After a pause, she added, "Nor do you wear fresh flowers."

Eleven Miss laughed. "Who says I don’t wear fresh flowers? Don’t I wear gardenias and magnolias?"

"But you wear them at your lapel!"

They bantered cheerfully until Hong Xiu entered.

"My lady, His Lordship has gone to Qiao Lianfang’s quarters."

Amber’s comb hand froze mid-air.

"I see!" Eleven Miss’s smile dimmed slightly as she told Hong Xiu, "You can go rest now."

Tonight was Hong Xiu’s turn for night duty, but Eleven Miss disliked having anyone stay in her room overnight. Those on night duty usually slept on the large heated kang by the window in the eastern side room. Though called night duty, it really just meant sleeping in the main quarters with the warmth of the floor heating. What was once a dreaded chore had now become a coveted perk.

Hong Xiu smiled, said "Yes," and left.

Amber pressed her lips together. "Madam, maybe I should take night duty tonight! Like old times, I could sleep at the foot of the bed, and we could chat."

"Don’t you have enough to do already?" Eleven Miss chuckled. "Tomorrow we must distribute all the New Year items—candies, incense, lanterns, potted plants, and other small things—to different places. You’ll be busy enough. Go rest early too! We can talk after the New Year."

"Madam!" Amber faltered, words stuck in her throat.

Eleven Miss knew what was weighing on her, but some matters couldn’t be avoided simply by worrying or trying to ignore them.

Smiling, she took the comb from Amber’s hand. "Go and rest."

Amber nodded glumly, curtsied, and turned to leave.

After a few steps, she glanced back despite herself.

"Madam!" She knelt before Eleven Miss. "When Lady Yang joined the household, you offered each of us give her one day, but the Marquis said that wouldn’t make half a month, so he reduced the concubines’ visiting days to three… Even during your mourning period, the Marquis stayed with you. This time, couldn’t you just…"

Unmarried, she blushed, unable to finish her sentence.

"The schedule was set by me, but whether he follows it is entirely up to the Marquis." Her gaze grew complicated. "There are things you don’t understand." Her voice softened. "I could find a thousand ways, a million reasons to keep him by my side. But why should I?"

Amber was stunned.

Eleven Miss helped her up.

"Just because he is the Marquis?" Her voice turned wistful. "Because he provides for me? Because he shares my bed… None of these are reasons…"

In the quiet room, Eleven Miss’s resigned voice lingered, leaving Amber’s heart heavy, her eyes stinging. Her words of advice died on her lips.

"Go and rest."

Eleven Miss patted Amber’s hand.

Suddenly, she realized this gesture was much like Elder Madam’s.

Had her own mindset grown so old?

A faint smile touched Eleven Miss’s lips.

Hong Xiu burst in, cheeks flushed with excitement. "Madam, madam, the Marquis has returned!"

"Madam!" Amber tightly grasped Eleven Miss’s hand, joy spilling over in the corners of her eyes and brows. "The Marquis is back!"

Eleven Miss smiled gently, a spark in her eyes she didn’t even realize was there.