Chapter 691

Chapter 699: Striving (Part 1)

The thin white Songjiang cotton twill was soaked with sweat, clinging tightly to Jin Geer's body as if he'd been fished out of a river.

Standing outside the window, Lady Eleven felt a pang of heartache and turned her face away, hoping to avoid the distressing sight. Yet her gaze inadvertently met Lord Xu's, who stood beside Jin Geer with a bamboo switch, sternly supervising their son.

Lord Xu coolly looked away and struck Jin Geer’s calf with the switch. "Stand straight!" The switch landed with a dull thud.

Lady Eleven couldn’t help but close her eyes briefly.

"Yes!" Jin Geer straightened slightly, his voice calm but laced with exhaustion.

Her eyes moistening, Lady Eleven gathered her skirts and quietly hurried away from Shuangfu Courtyard.

"Madam, please don’t worry," Amber consoled her. "His lordship knows his limits. Young Master Jin will be fine."

"I know," Lady Eleven replied, dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief. "Since Jin Geer has chosen this path, the stricter the marquis is with him, the better his chances of survival..." Despite her words, tears continued to fall.

Amber sighed softly. "Madam, Young Master Jin is still young. Perhaps after training with the marquis for a while, he’ll find it too exhausting and give up. Or maybe when he grows older, he’ll discover something else he prefers and won’t go to the northwest after all."

"Let’s hope so," Lady Eleven exhaled deeply. "Let’s go back. Jin Geer said he wanted lion's head meatballs today." She then muttered to herself, "Didn’t he say he disliked the south? Then why ask for lion's head meatballs? That’s a southern dish..."

The maids and older women following her dared not utter a word, biting back laughter.

The atmosphere lightened momentarily.

They ran into Zhi Hong.

"Madam, the Dowager requests your presence for a chat." Since falling seriously ill at the beginning of the year, the Dowager’s health had weakened considerably. She spent half her days in bed, no longer receiving relatives or friends who came to pay respects, nor involving herself in household affairs. Instead, she whiled away her time playing cards or chatting idly with Madam Du, Zhi Hong, and Yu Ban. Rarely venturing out, Lady Eleven had arranged for two literate maids to read storybooks or Buddhist scriptures to her for entertainment.

Having just paid her morning respects less than an hour ago, Lady Eleven wondered what urgent matter had prompted this sudden summons.

Pondering, she followed Zhi Hong to the Dowager’s quarters.

The Dowager appeared in good spirits, lounging on the large heated kang by the window, propped against a crimson embroidered pillow. Yu Ban fanned her gently while one of the maids Lady Eleven had assigned read Buddhist scriptures aloud.

Noticing Lady Eleven’s arrival, the Dowager massaged her temples with a frown.

"Are you feeling unwell?" Lady Eleven sat beside the kang and asked softly.

"No," the Dowager replied, her frown deepening. "I wanted to tell you something... but I can’t remember now."

"If you can’t remember, don’t force it," Lady Eleven said with a smile. "You can tell me when it comes back to you."

"But I knew it just a moment ago..." the Dowager muttered discontentedly. "Let me think carefully."

*Respecting the elderly as one’s own elders, and caring for the young as one’s own children.*

Lady Eleven was touched and took the fan from the maid to cool the Dowager herself.

"Why aren’t you playing cards with Madam Du today?"

Distractedly, the Dowager replied, "I sent her to look for my bracelet. I remember having a red agate bracelet, but it’s been missing for days..." Suddenly, her eyes widened as if it came to her. "Ah, that’s right! I remember now." She grasped Lady Eleven’s hand. "I meant to ask you—have you made arrangements for Young Master Jie's marriage? Lady Danyang said that Miss Xin’s wedding is set for next March. Since Young Master Jie is the elder brother, how can Miss Xin marry before her brother? You should hurry and settle Young Master Jie’s marriage soon!"

Lady Eleven broke out in a cold sweat.

They weren't even from the same branch of the family—since when were such formalities necessary? Even among blood siblings, it wasn’t unheard of for a younger sister to marry before her elder brother. But the Dowager spoke as if Young Master Jie and Miss Xin were blood siblings.

What had come over the Dowager?

"Yingniang hasn't had her hair-pinning ceremony yet, and it's a long-distance marriage," she said with a smile. "We agreed during the betrothal that we'd set the wedding date after Yingniang's ceremony."

"Oh!" The elder madam nodded in sudden understanding. "No wonder Jie Geer hasn't married yet!" Then she added, "Alright, that's all. You may go attend to your duties. I'll call Madam Du to play cards with me."

Lady Eleven agreed with a smile, but over the next few days, she carefully observed the elder madam and found that she was not only forgetful, but she would sometimes repeat the same sentence several times, forgetting what she had just said.

"My husband," she said hesitantly, "Mother's memory seems to have declined significantly..."

Lord Xu looked puzzled.

Lady Eleven shared her observations with him. Just as they were talking, a maid came in and announced, "The Second Lady has arrived!"

They immediately ceased their discussion.

"I think Mother... is having trouble remembering things lately... sometimes her speech also..." The second madam glanced at Lady Eleven and then at Lord Xu, as if unsure how to phrase it.

Lord Xu and Lady Eleven exchanged glances.

The second madam only occasionally visited the elder madam, yet she had noticed it too.

"Lady Eleven was just telling me the same thing," Lord Xu said tactfully after a pause. "I’ll ask Physician Liu to come tomorrow for an examination... If necessary, we can move her to the main residence so we can take better care of her."

Lady Eleven suspected that the elder madam’s condition was likely due to the natural decline of old age—a condition that couldn’t be treated with medicine and would only worsen over time. Since the elder madam lived in her own courtyard with maids and matrons around, it wasn’t as convenient as living together.

"Since Jin Geer has moved out, I can clear out the east and west wings," she mused. "It should be just enough space."

"You have many duties and frequent visitors—having Mother move in might be inconvenient," the second madam said. "Perhaps she should move in with me?" But she immediately reconsidered. "No, my place has too many staircases, making it hard to move around." After hesitating, she added, "I’ll move in with her instead."

"That won’t do!" Lady Eleven quickly objected. "Second sister-in-law still has your writing to attend to..."

The second madam waved her hand lightly. "Those matters can wait. Taking care of Mother is more important." She stood up. "It’s settled then." She looked at Lady Eleven. "Sister-in-law, dispatch some servants early tomorrow to move my belongings."

"As for Mother, just tell her I’ll be staying with her for a while since I have nothing pressing to do." She had everything arranged and was firm in her decision.

"Let’s wait for the physician’s diagnosis first," Lady Eleven suggested. "If Mother’s memory is indeed failing due to age, we should also inform fifth uncle and his wife. This is a long-term matter—we can’t have Second Sister-in-law shouldering all the responsibility. After discussing with fifth sister-in-law, we can make proper arrangements. What do you think?"

"No need for such trouble," the second madam said. "One of you manages the household, the other has children to care for, and there’s Xin Jieer’s dowry to prepare..."

Before she could finish, Lord Xu interjected, "Let’s follow Lady Eleven’s suggestion. First, have the physician examine her. If Mother is truly unwell, we’ll discuss it together later."

With his decision made, the second madam could say no more. After chatting a bit more about the elder madam’s unusual behavior, she took her leave.

The next day, Physician Liu came and simply said the elder madam was "getting older—it’s natural for hearing and eyesight to weaken," advising them to "assign more attendants to serve her." He then prescribed a restorative tonic and left.

Lord Xu called Xu Lingning and Xu Lingkuan to discuss the elder madam’s condition, but the second madam had already moved into her quarters.

Waiting outside, Lady Eleven and fifth sister-in-law exchanged glances before hurrying to the elder madam’s courtyard.

On the way, fifth sister-in-law whispered to Lady Eleven, "She’s already a widow who observed chastity, and now she wants to be a model of filial piety too... As if the rest of us aren’t dutiful!"

Lady Eleven gave a rueful smile.

Upon entering the elder madam’s courtyard, they saw Jiexiang overseeing the servants to move trunks.

She hurried forward to greet Lady Eleven and fifth sister-in-law.

There was no point showing displeasure in front of the maids.

Suppressing her displeasure, fifth sister-in-law acknowledged with a nod like Lady Eleven before heading to the inner quarters.

The elder madam sat smiling by the window on the heated platform bed, while the Second Lady knelt behind her, carefully combing her hair with a serious expression.

The golden morning sunlight streamed through the window lattice, gilding her in light.

Her expression was serene and calm, her voice gentle and kind, her movements tender and unhurried, as though the elder madam were delicate porcelain to be handled with utmost care. "…Who knows when that book will be done… The Splendor Courtyard is so cold and quiet, so I came to keep you company!"

The elder madam listened, her face lighting up with joy. "As long as you’re happy, as long as you’re happy!" Then she called out loudly to Madam Du, "Hurry, prepare the warm chamber—the Second Lady will rest there." As she spoke, she caught sight of Eleventh Miss and the fifth madam from the corner of her eye. "What brings you here?" Then, beaming, she took the Second Lady’s hand. "Your second sister-in-law found it too lonely where she was, so she’s come here to liven things up!" She looked utterly delighted.

For a moment, Eleventh Miss felt her eyes grow moist.

"Wonderful!" she forced a smile. "Now things will be lively here."

"Indeed!" the elder madam said cheerfully.

Eleventh Miss couldn’t help glancing at the fifth madam, who had been so angry earlier.

The fifth madam stood frozen, caught in hesitation, clearly taken aback by the closeness between the Second Lady and the elder madam.

And so, the matter was settled. But it wasn’t over yet—the elder madam summoned Lord Xu and explicitly told him to hurry up with Jie Geer’s wedding: "Before Xin Jieer’s!"

Lord Xu thought for a moment and said, "Then, should we inform the fourth aunt? See if the matter can be moved forward to spare Mother from worrying about it every day. If it’s not possible, we can have the bride enter the household first and consummate the marriage later when she’s older."

Understanding the elder madam’s feelings, Eleventh Miss immediately wrote a letter to Yuhang. By mid-July, a reply came from Yuhang, asking for the exact wedding date.