Chapter 2 Jinling Pu Liu
In the world, there are as many wealthy and powerful as there are poor and destitute peasants, and Jinling, a land brimming with gold, is no exception. Qian Peilan was well aware of this truth, so when she left her hometown in Lingnan at the age of fifteen to seek a career in Jinling, she was determined to climb to the heights of wealth and not to fall into the pits of poverty.
Pei Lan was plain in appearance and not particularly intelligent, but she was blessed by God with a pair of skillful hands. The embroidery and tassels she made were among the best among other embroiderers. She got up early to set up her stall and worked late into the night, working for four or five hours without a single bite to ensure she had enough food and clothing. Fortunately, young Pei Lan was alone and free in Jinling. She had no worries about her family's absence, and she lived a happy life. She even managed to save a little money. However, when her mother came to live with her younger brother, not only did she have two more mouths to feed, but she also had to pay for her younger brother's schooling. Gradually, Pei Lan's life became increasingly difficult. The more work she did, the later her nights became, but her purse became lighter and lighter, and it would hardly make a sound after shaking it for a long time. On a freezing cold night, Pei Lan rubbed her frozen, red hands, looked at the hastily made tassel purses on the table and the pitifully small amount of charcoal in front of her, and she fell into deep sorrow.
"I didn't come to Jinling to live this kind of life." Pei Lan gritted her teeth and made a vow to the small, dusty statue of Bodhisattva in the room that she would find the fastest and best way out.
For a girl, the quickest way to have a life of luxury is to find a good husband who has everything he needs. Marriage has always been the best opportunity for young girls to escape from the sea of suffering. Her mother, Qian Lao Niang, was very supportive. She took out the family tree that she had painstakingly searched for in the ancestral temple and meticulously copied, and told her daughter again without getting tired of it: "My dear daughter, I have always told you that my grandfather's brother was a member of the Privy Council, and you are the descendant of a powerful official! You come from an official family! As the saying goes, a tortoise must marry a tortoise. We come from a family of wealth and power, so we must be extremely cautious when looking for a relative, so as to find a suitable match. We must not lose our composure."
Pei Lan found her mother's words rather strange, but she couldn't find any fault with them, so she agreed. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. Although her mother often boasted of being from an "official family" and a "descendant of a powerful official," such a prestigious title didn't actually afford Pei Lan any special treatment in terms of food, clothing, housing, and transportation. Having lived on begging and working as a maid since childhood, it was difficult for both mother and daughter to judge each other's financial situation. They could only use the most superficial observation of the man's appearance as the primary criterion for choosing a husband.
After a long search, Pei Lan finally found a matchmaker and a date at Liushaotou, a man who lived in the Su Wang Mansion in Jinling and frequently visited the prince. The man, You Kang, looked like a scholar and rode a horse. After dinner and a stroll through the market accompanied by the matchmaker and her mother, the mother and daughter returned home, harboring ulterior motives.
"Mom, he's too stingy. I like that box of rouge so much, and it's not expensive. I've hinted to him for a long time, but he still doesn't want to give it to me." Pei Lan complained.
"How can he be stingy? Didn't he pay for our meal? Today's meal, with pork knuckle and roast goose, was the best we've had this month." Old Lady Qian was dissatisfied with her daughter's vulgarity. "I really want to say something to you. We are from a family of officials. How can you expect others to give you gifts on your first meeting? If someone doesn't know us, they'd think we were some unsophisticated, uncouth people who'd never seen the world and were trying to take advantage of us. How shameful."
Pei Lan pouted: "Mom, do you think he is good?"
"Well, of course it's not bad," nodded Old Lady Qian. She wasn't a country bumpkin like her daughter. As a child, she'd lived with her grandfather's younger brother's legitimate son for two years. She'd witnessed the grand ceremonies of the Privy Council's descendants, and she knew that what she saw wasn't reality. Poor people spent their money wisely, often choosing the most expensive and fancy outer layer of clothing, and wearing their invisible underwear underneath, no matter how tatty it was. The rich, however, were accustomed to fine goods, and their food, clothing, and daily necessities were more simple and comfortable. They favored elegant outerwear to highlight their sophistication, while their inner garments were expensive to protect their pampered skin. Old Lady Qian said earnestly, "My dear, have you noticed? Just now when we were shopping at the flower market, he knew all the orchids like the back of his hand. He knew which one was worth a fortune and which one was hard to come by. You asked the one with the most beautiful flowers, and he said that was the cheapest. But when I asked the shopkeeper, it was true! This is what a noble person should be like. Only noble people can afford to play with orchids. My dear, even if you don't believe me, you should at least believe yourself. Was the clothes he was wearing just now a valuable item? Just tell me if it was?"
Pei Lan carefully recalled the dark patterns on the clothes, which reflected an extraordinary light. As an expert, she naturally recognized it as the finest Shu brocade. She couldn't help but believe in her mother and even felt a little scared: "Mom, if he is really so good, he won't be taken away by someone else!"
Old Lady Qian smiled confidently, "Don't be afraid! I've already asked, and the matchmaker said that boy really likes you. I think this will definitely work out!"
Pei Lan was overjoyed, her round face flushing with the shy blush of a young girl, like a large birthday bun daubed with peach rouge. That night, this embroiderer, too busy to dream all day, for the first time in her life, thought of embroidering her own wedding dress. She dug out a few balls of gold and silver thread from the bottom of her chest—material she'd secretly saved from embroidering fans for several wealthy ladies. She'd previously only thought of selling them for a good price, but now she had changed her mind: she wanted to use them herself, embroidering them on her own gorgeous dress. As the descendant of a powerful official, she was bound to marry with brilliance!
Under her mother's arrangement, the betrothal gifts were quickly delivered to the family. The matchmaker said that Prince Su valued Master You Kang and specially allocated a courtyard for him to marry. Upon hearing this, the mother, daughter, sister and brother of the Qian family were so happy that they couldn't sleep all night. Pei Lan simply stopped her business and devoted herself to herself. After more than half a month, she finally made her wedding dress bloom with a large cluster of gold-edged pink peonies. She herself wanted to transform into a graceful and elegant peony, blooming under the command of Prince Su. She hugged her wedding dress and immersed herself in sweetness: Will she be able to attend Prince Su's family banquet in the future? Ah, then she wouldn't have to embroider her own clothes, and she could live a good life with others tailoring her clothes and being picky about the embroidery work.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. When the sedan chair was carried into the small street corner next to the Su Wang Mansion, Pei Lan realized that her husband was actually just a servant hired by the Su Wang family to take care of the flowers and plants! He was not even a proper servant in the Su Wang family! The so-called frequent visits with the Su Wang were simply because the Su Wang often loved to buy those exotic flowers and plants, so he brought him with him to carry the flower pots. And this "Su Wang's small courtyard" was just a small house next to the palace that the Su Wang bought for peace and quiet. He left it empty. When he heard that the Su Wang was going to get married, he casually allocated it to him to live in. If the prince wanted to demolish the house to expand the garden in the future, he would have to return it.
As for that fancy outfit he wore for the blind date? Ah, it was a worn-out coat that Prince Su's son had simply thrown to him. He patched it up and wore it to the blind date, and it really frightened Pei Lan and her daughter.
A bolt from the blue! Her dream of gold was shattered! On her wedding night, Pei Lan burst into tears. She resented the matchmaker for her mismatch, introducing her to a laborer like You Kang, who tended the garden. She resented her mother for lying to her, saying You Kang wasn't stingy, but that was how rich people behaved. But amidst all the resentment, Pei Lan still resented herself. If she hadn't been so poor at judging people, allowing him to easily win her hand without spending a penny, how could she have married the wrong person?
Looking at her wedding gown, stained with snot and tears, Pei Lan felt a pang of bitterness. Fate had cruelly mocked her. How could she be a peony? She was merely a willow in Jinling City—although strong and plump, her life was far from hers. She had once been a member of a wealthy family, now living far from home by embroidering, now married to a laborer who earned less than she did. This life was truly a life of frost, wind, and rain.
Pei Lan used the failed marriage as a perfect example for educating her daughter. She didn't completely deny her mother's words, but she incorporated her own blood and tears into them. So, she told her daughter more than once how You Kang had deceived her, and then, with her tassel tied, she warned her meaningfully: "Yanru, you must know that your grandmother's grandfather's brother was a member of the Privy Council, and you are the descendant of a powerful official! You come from an official family! As the saying goes, grasshoppers mate with locusts. In this world, it has always been about marrying off the rich and powerful, and we must be extremely cautious when looking for a relative. Your mother was anxious and lost her composure back then, so she hurriedly married your father. They were not a good match, and your life will not be as comfortable as the two willow trees at the gate of the prince's palace. Fortunately, your father was not a slave, and he was not a real servant. He just worked under the prince. Yanru, you must remember that when it comes to getting married, the matchmaker may not find the best person, but the one you choose, the one your parents choose, is the best. Because the matchmaker will deceive you, but you won't, and neither will your mother."
Upon hearing this, little You Yanru was filled with respect for her mother's sophistication and experience.
Pei Lan added, "Also, the most important factor in judging whether a man is worth marrying is whether he's willing to spend money on you when pursuing you. The more he spends, the more he cherishes you. If he's willing to spend lavishly, then he's the most worth marrying. You must grab him and hold on tightly. Do you understand?"
Yanru heeded her mother's words. Despite living in a small courtyard that could be reclaimed at any moment, and despite her parents' constant struggle to make ends meet, forced to bow and scrape, she knew she was descended from a prominent family and would marry into a wealthy family, riding in a sedan chair carried by eight men. Qian Peilan was delighted by her daughter's pride, but she also realized she couldn't be like her own youth, completely ignorant of the real rich and powerful. Living among the truly wealthy and famous would, on the one hand, allow Yanru to truly appreciate the meaning of wealth and privilege, and on the other, enhance her chances of marrying into a prestigious family.
So, this strong but sad Jinling willow turned its attention to the largest women's college in the area.
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