Chapter 11: Birthday Gift

Chapter 11 Birthday Gift

"Yuhua [Zhang Yuhua]~"

"Shanshan [Shanshan]~"

From way off, Liu Yun heard her father step through the door, hollering at them in his big voice.

He looked like he'd just come back from a fun trip, all cheerful and chipper.

"Father!"

A young lady's supposed to be all cute and bubbly, so Liu Yun hiked up her skirt and scampered over, plowing straight into her dad's arms.

"Ouch..."

Reaching out to catch his daughter, who barreled into him like a little bull calf, Liu Shiwen chuckled and said, "You're a grown girl now, yet still so reckless—you almost broke these old bones of mine."

Only then did Liu Yun realize how hard she'd plowed into him, so she quickly let go and patted his chest to help him catch his breath.

"I just got so excited seeing you back, Dad. You okay?"

Liu Shiwen waved his hand, chuckling to say he was fine.

Once the family of three got together, they had a whole bunch of warm, heartfelt talk.

"Oh, right—we should send word to our Ying'er at the Imperial Academy."

With that, Zhang Yuhua immediately sent Guanqi off to the Imperial Academy.

Before going inside, Zhang Yuhua also made a point of using pomelo leaves dipped in water to brush the bad luck off her husband.

Once they heard the master of the house was back, the kitchen started cooking up a storm, laying out a huge table of dishes, and everyone was all smiles.

After all, it wasn't easy to find a kind and generous master—if he'd really gotten into serious trouble, they'd have lost their jobs too.

Now that the master was back safe and sound, they had a spring in their step, and the food they made tasted even better than usual.

At dusk, Liu Ying also came back from the Imperial Academy on leave, and the family of four happily gathered around the table to eat.

"So the Dali Temple prison isn't as scary as people say—not only did you get three meals a day with meat and veggies, but the cell had a bed and a table too. Other than no sunlight, it was actually pretty clean and neat."

"They even brought roast goose!"

At the mention of roast goose, Mom and the three kids all laughed. Dad had a real weakness for good food and loved roast goose—he'd have one every single day without fail.

Who'd have thought he could still get his roast goose fix in jail?

Mom and the kids had been worried sick that Dad might be suffering in that prison, but hearing this at dinner, they were all left speechless.

They'd really worried for nothing.

With the crisis over, the Liu household went back to its usual easygoing vibe, full of laughter and joy.

As the lanterns went out, everyone headed back to their own courtyards. The couple—her combing her hair, him sprawled out on the bed—couldn't help but sigh, "Man, there's no place like home~"

Zhang Yuhua chuckled and teased, "Weren't you just saying at dinner that the prison was great, with roast goose every day? Now it's not so great anymore?"

Facing his wife's teasing, Liu Shiwen grinned and said, "I was just kidding—nowhere's as good as home, especially with you right here beside me." After a few more jokes, Liu Shiwen got down to business.

"With the Crown Prince stepping in, the Chen family's gonna be in trouble by tomorrow~"

That reminded Zhang Yuhua. She quickly finished combing her hair, climbed onto the bed, and tugged at her husband, who was just about to doze off. "Don't go to sleep yet—I've got something important to tell you."

"What is it?"

Even though they were in their own room, since it involved that person, Zhang Yuhua still kept her voice low and laid out the whole story from start to finish.

From the polo match all the way to today's visit to beg for mercy.

As his wife spoke in a low voice, Liu Shiwen's brow gradually furrowed. Finally, the couple exchanged a look, and he asked, his voice trembling, the same question he'd asked before.

"Do you think the Crown Prince has taken a shine to our daughter..."

This time, Zhang Yuhua wasn't as quick to answer as before. She hesitated, then said, "Probably not."

The couple stared at each other for a long moment, until Zhang Yuhua finally made the call: "Whether he has or not, our Shanshan isn't cut out for that place. After her birthday this year, let's start scouting out a good husband for her."

"Got it, I'll keep that in mind."

Liu Shiwen agreed without hesitation, already starting to mull over potential candidates.

Brother Yang's third son seemed pretty promising.

...

Just as Liu Shiwen had said, the day after he got out of the Dali Temple prison, the Chen family was found guilty.

With the Crown Prince stepping in to investigate, the shady tricks that Uncle and Nephew Chen had pulled during the construction of Wanshou Pavilion were exposed for all to see.

Honestly, if that Chen family gentleman had just built Wanshou Pavilion properly and not skimmed off the top, things wouldn't have gotten this far.

But karma comes around, and heaven's got eyes.

This matter touched the royal family's dignity, and His Majesty was furious. Even with Grand Scholar Chen begging for mercy, things still ended badly for Uncle and Nephew Chen.

One was executed on the spot, and the other, for failing to keep his nephew in line, was demoted and sent to a local post—he'd probably never set foot in Yanjing again in his lifetime.

Minister Wei, who'd covered for Uncle and Nephew Chen, also got chewed out by His Majesty and fined six months' pay.

What surprised the Liu family even more was that the open Vice Minister of Works position just fell right into Father Liu's lap.

The decree praised Liu Shiwen as loyal, hardworking, exceptionally capable, virtuous, and upright—worthy of such a heavy responsibility.

When the imperial edict was read out in the Liu family courtyard, the whole family was stunned for a good few moments. It was only after the eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonies smiled and reminded them that they respectfully accepted the edict and tipped him.

After seeing him off, the whole family was so happy they were tearing up.

"Congrats, Dad, on the promotion!"

Liu Yun said with a big smile, her voice all sweet and bright.

She was genuinely happy for her dad—only their family knew how hard it had been for him to get this post.

Because he came from a poor background with no connections, no matter what position he held, the good gigs never came his way. What was left for him was always the heavy, tedious, nitty-gritty official work.

But Dad stayed diligent, quietly taking on the jobs that aristocratic brats and officials wouldn't touch.

Not only that, but he always finished them thoroughly and properly.

Liu Yun[Liu Yun] often felt sorry for her father whenever she saw it.

Now that the emperor had finally taken notice, it truly seemed heaven had opened its eyes.

That night, not only was Liu Yun too overjoyed to sleep, but Liu Shiwen[Liu Shiwen] and his wife were just as sleepless.

With a promotion in office, custom called for a "burning-tail banquet," but Liu Shiwen had always been low-key, and since he had only secured this fourth-rank position by filling the vacancy left by the Chen family, after much thought, the family decided to just treat themselves to a nice meal to celebrate.

And because of this happy occasion, Liu Yun's birthday ended up being a bigger deal than usual.

Originally, she had planned only to invite two or three close friends for a modest gathering, but her father, with a grand wave of his hand, insisted on hosting a small banquet at home, telling Liu Yun to invite all the well-bred young ladies in all of Yanjing for a lively celebration.

This kept Liu Yun busier than ever, sending out invitations to the various ladies she was on good terms with.

Liu Yun was gentle and kind by nature, treating others with sincerity. Though she wouldn't say she was close to every official's daughter in Yanjing, she could safely say she'd never made an enemy, and could even have a cordial chat with the prickliest Seventh Miss of the Shen General's household.

Without a doubt, she would be hosting many ladies at this year's birthday celebration.

Counting that evening, she would need to send out a total of thirty-seven invitations!

Her seventeenth birthday was shaping up to be quite the bash.

...

A few days before the birthday banquet, Liu Yun took Jin He[Jin He] to Bao Yue Zhai[Bao Yue Zhai].

With so many ladies invited, she needed to serve them something nice, and Bao Yue Zhai's pastries were the perfect pick.

Her father had generously given Liu Yun a sum of money to buy treats the ladies would enjoy.

Liu Yun also quietly chipped in some of her own money, since her storybooks had made her a decent amount over the years, and she could well afford it.

She planned to add more silver and buy a few extra boxes of Bao Yue Zhai's translucent flower cakes to make sure her guests were well taken care of.

The Liu family was frugal, and Liu Yun was not one for extravagance either. She rarely splurged on these translucent flower cakes, only treating herself to a box on her birthday or during festivals to satisfy the craving.

Even so, it stung a bit to shell out that much.

But that sting was soon replaced by an unexpected delight.

"Really? You're not just pulling my leg?"

Inside Bao Yue Zhai, the air was thick with the sweet scent of pastries. Liu Yun stood amidst it, and upon hearing the shopkeeper's words, her heart felt like it was soaring.

The shopkeeper was a comely young woman surnamed Xu, with a gentle, friendly demeanor. She answered with a bright smile, "Of course it's true. Our boss and his wife are deeply in love. Tomorrow is the missus's birthday, but unfortunately, she's been sick for months with no sign of getting better. He wants to earn some merit for her, praying for blessings and warding off bad luck, so he promised that if any young lady born on the same day and month as his wife comes in to buy pastries, they'd be free."

"What a coincidence—you, Miss Liu, are exactly that person. Whatever pastries you want, just say the word, and they'll be delivered to your door tomorrow."

Liu Yun's heart raced with excitement, her eyes shining as she asked hesitantly, "Then may I have ten boxes of the translucent flower cakes?"

With that many flower cakes, she could definitely treat all her lady friends well.

Shopkeeper Xu replied warmly, "Of course you may. But this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance—are you sure you only want ten boxes of translucent flower cakes?"

With that, Shopkeeper Xu gave a playful wink, the hint unmistakable.

Liu Yun's heart started pounding again, her mouth dry as she stammered, "Th-then, how about ten more boxes of jade dew balls?"

Shopkeeper Xu beamed and said cheerfully, "Coming right up!"

Then she added with a sweet smile, "Why not also add ten boxes of crystal dragon-phoenix cakes?"

The translucent flower cakes, jade dew balls, and crystal dragon-phoenix cakes were the three signature offerings of Bao Yue Zhai.

In the end, Liu Yun couldn't resist, her cheeks flushing as she agreed.

As she walked out of Bao Yue Zhai, her heart was still racing.

"What luck this year—to run into something like this! How amazing!"

She figured getting thirty boxes of Bao Yue Zhai's pastries for free was already lucky enough, but little did she know, something even better was still to come.

On the way to the Eastern Market, a richly dressed but clearly confused old woman tripped and fell in front of her carriage.

No one knew her, and she seemed dazed, just muttering that she wanted to go home.

Liu Yun asked, and when the old woman said her son was Wan Changxing, the owner of Hua Zhen Lou, Liu Yun, moved by compassion, had her sent to Hua Zhen Lou.

When Manager Wan saw his dementia-stricken mother safely returned, he was deeply grateful to Liu Yun and declared that whatever hairpin or jewelry she liked in his shop that day, he'd give it to her.

Liu Yun had only seen it as a simple good deed and repeatedly declined, but Manager Wan insisted time and again. Unable to refuse his sincerity, Liu Yun picked a silver hairpin with great restraint.

However, Manager Wan was not pleased.

"Miss Liu, are you looking down on the life of my old mother? To pick such a cheap trinket—go on, choose again!"

Liu Yun switched to five or six different hairpins, but each time, Manager Wan stopped her.

"No, no, these are all inferior goods, hardly worthy of my old mother~"

Liu Yun had never met such a strange person before—someone so eager to give away something precious.

In a fit of mild irritation, she pointed at the jade bracelet enshrined in a glass case at the very center of the hall and said deliberately, "Then I want that one. Would Manager Wan be willing to part with it?"

Everyone in Yanjing knew that Hua Zhen Lou had recently acquired a piece of top-grade se-se jade, meticulously crafted into a bracelet, which had drawn the admiration of countless noble ladies.

But its price was exorbitant—a full fifty thousand taels of silver—sending many wealthy ladies away in defeat.

Even affluent merchants and officials with vast fortunes couldn't manage to take it home.

The nation's laws favored agriculture over commerce and imposed strict limits on merchants' adornments.

Merchants' wives were forbidden from using gold, silver, pearls, jade, or brocade for ornaments, and were barred from elaborate hairstyles, bold makeup, or excessive gold and silver embellishments.

Hairpins, tiaras, combs, and the like could not be made of gold, silver, jade, jadeite, pearls, or glass—only copper, iron, bamboo, wood, bone, or horn were permitted.

For weddings, gilded silver or glass was temporarily allowed, but true gold and silver were prohibited.

As for official households, even those with ample wealth wouldn't spend ten thousand taels on a pair of bracelets for their wives or daughters.

If someone were foolish enough to do so, being impeached by the censors for extravagance would be the least of their worries—the greater fear was the emperor suspecting them of corruption or bribery.

Thus, this pair of se-se jade bracelets had sat in Hua Zhen Lou for three months without a single buyer, becoming the shop's treasured centerpiece.

She had assumed that asking for this would make Manager Wan refuse outright.

Yet, not only did Liu Yun see no hesitation on Manager Wan's face, but she instead saw satisfaction on his usually shrewd countenance.

"Now that's more like it~"

Liu Yun was dumbfounded again.

After a cup of tea, Liu Yun, leaning on Jin He, stepped out of Huazhen Tower, feeling as if her wrist weighed a ton.

She looked down and saw the Sese jade gleaming with a vibrant green glow under the sunlight, so dazzling it was mesmerizing.

It was really hers now?

The whole way, Liu Yun was in a daze, mulling it over.

Standing at the doorway of Huazhen Tower, Wan Changxing watched the Liu family's carriage depart and finally breathed a long sigh of relief.

"This birthday gift should surely please the honored guest."

"This Miss Liu is truly destined for great fortune!"

Wan Changxing murmured to himself, his eyes gleaming with excitement at having glimpsed a hint of heavenly secrets.

Author's note:

Update

Next chapter on Tuesday

Babes, drop more comments to get things buzzing

I'll post more next ranking cycle—six days a week

Lastly, I'm not sure which story to write next. If you're interested, check out my column and pick whichever catches your eye. I'll decide based on my inspiration then.