On a morning when the autumn frost had just begun to fall, the copper rings at the corner gate of the prime minister's residence were covered in white frost. As I walked toward the backyard on thin ice like broken jade, I heard two housewives squatting at the base of the wall whispering. The sound of their bamboo brooms scraping across the bluestone slabs was punctuated by whispers like broken gold:
"...Matchmaker Wang from the west lane sprained her ankle yesterday. She said she was punished by heaven when she was arranging a marriage for the Wang family!"
"Serves her right! It's her fault for always trying to push a good girl into the fire. I heard that the other day, when Prince Wang crawled out of a dunghill and ran all the way home, his father chased him with a feather duster and beat him, calling him 'disgraceful thing' as he beat him!"
With a smile on my face, I quickened my pace towards the Young Marquis's Courtyard. Before I even reached the Moon Gate, I heard a loud clang, followed by the angry voice of Young Marquis Su: "I said! Prepare your horse! I want to go for a stroll on Suzaku Street!"
As I opened the door curtain, I saw him pound his gilded broadsword into the ground, sending frost flakes cascading down from the cracks in the brickwork. The little bully wore a brand-new stone-blue arrow-sleeve top, his hair combed sleekly, with a wisp of hair sticking out from his forehead, like a fur-ridden animal. "Sister! You're finally here! Tell me, how did you get Fatty Wang into the dung heap? Did you use any magic?"
I tapped his ahoge, suppressed my laughter, and sat down. "What kind of magic is that? It's just that the horse got scared. What are you doing out in the street?"
"I'm so proud!" Young Marquis Su put his hands on his hips, his broadsword gleaming golden in the morning light. "How dare those people say bad things about you? I'm going to ride my 'Chasing Wind' around the street three times and let them all know that my sister is under the protection of Young Marquis Su! If anyone dares to make such a fuss again, I'll..." He paused, remembering my previous lesson, and angrily changed his words, "I'll just scare them with my broadsword and let them know how powerful I am!"
The servant beside him handed over the saddle with a bitter face: "Young Marquis, your 'Chasing Wind' ate too many soybeans yesterday, and today..."
"What happened today?" Young Marquis Su glared.
The servant swallowed his saliva and said, "The fart was really loud today. I was afraid... I was afraid it would startle passersby..."
"Pfft..." I couldn't help but burst out laughing. Young Marquis Su's face flushed red, and he kicked the servant on the butt: "Stop talking! Then...then I'll walk!"
I held him back. "Come on, it's windy out here, be careful not to get cold. Your sister is a celebrity now, people recognize her wherever she goes. Do I really need you to liven things up?" I pinched his chubby cheeks. "You, on the other hand, should study hard with the Grand Tutor and become a well-versed young marquis in the future. That's the only way to bring honor to your sister."
Young Marquis Su was beaming with joy, and just as he was about to say something, he heard hurried footsteps outside. Mo Zhu came running in breathlessly, a strange look on his face. "Miss, please go to the waterside pavilion! Madam... Madam sprayed bird's nest porridge all over Madam Liu's face!"
A sweet, fishy smell filled the waterside pavilion. Lady Liu, wearing a lilac-colored gauze jacket, had dropped a white jade bowl to the ground, half a red date stained among the broken pieces. Madam Liu stood hunched over, her hair and face covered in sticky bird's nest, a few golden dates dangling from her bun, looking like a pastry fresh from a honey jar.
"This is rebellion! This is truly outrageous!" Liu grabbed the teacup on the table and was about to smash it, but stopped abruptly when she saw me. Her face instantly changed to an expression of grievance. "Jinli, you've come at the perfect time. Please judge for me! Tell me, you pushed the young master of the Wang family into a pile of horse manure in the street. How can this be tolerated? If this gets out, people will only say that I, as a stepmother, am a bad parent!"
She became increasingly agitated as she spoke, tears welling up in her eyes. "Someone from the Wang family just came and said that if you don't give us an explanation, they'll report you to the authorities for causing trouble! Jinli, your father values his reputation the most. How could you..."
"Mother, you're wrong," I interrupted, picking up a broken piece of porcelain from the floor and running my fingertips along the smooth edge. "That day, the young master of the Wang family stopped the prime minister's carriage in the street, hurling obscenities and insulting the legitimate daughter. According to the Ming Dynasty Code, this is already a crime of 'molesting in public.' As the prime minister's daughter, I retaliated in self-defense. How could that be considered 'picking quarrels and provoking trouble'?"
Liu was choked by my words, her eyebrows raised. "You... you dare to talk back? What about the horse manure?"
"What a coincidence," I said, smiling innocently. "The horse was startled and raised its front hooves, and Young Master Wang stepped back and fell into a dung bucket on the side of the road. It was a pure accident. I'm sure the Wang family are reasonable people and won't dwell on the 'accident', right?"
"You!" Liu was so angry that her whole body was shaking, and her hands were trembling as she pointed at me. "What an 'accident'! Su Jinli, don't think that just because you have your father's protection, you can do whatever you want! I'm going to find your father right now and ask him to judge this matter!"
As she spoke, she walked out, her skirt sweeping across the dressing table, making the jade ornaments on it clink. I watched her furious back, a sneer curling at the corner of my mouth. Aunt Liu followed behind, glaring at me as she walked, bird's nest dripping down her cheeks like two transparent snots.
When I arrived at the study, Liu was kneeling on the floor, weeping. Prime Minister Su, with his back to us, stood by the window, gazing at the leafless sycamore tree. Sunlight filtered through the window lattice, casting dappled shadows on his dark official uniform like an ancient ink painting.
"Master, please help me!" Liu cried bitterly. "Jinli...she's too presumptuous! The Wang family is such a powerful family. If she humiliates the young master of the Wang family like this, where will the reputation of the Prime Minister's Mansion be in the future?"
Su Xiang slowly turned around, twisting a string of red sandalwood Buddhist beads in his hand, each bead polished to a shine. He glanced at me, his gaze pausing on the magnolia hairpin on my temples—that was the one my elder sister gave me yesterday, and it now made my face look like a bright moon.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
