benefactor
The first day of the eighth lunar month was Wei Kang's birthday. The afternoon before, Granny Wang came to Qingwu Garden to inform Xi Chun to go to the ancestral hall next to the Grand Garden to worship Wei Kang after noon the next day.
After lunch, Xichun changed into a light blue long coat, over which she wore a dragonfly blue vest, and a white horse-face skirt. These clothes were given to her by Aunt Liu last time, and Aunt Liu was right; they fit her figure perfectly.
When Xichun arrived, Wei Changsong and Zhang Yunyao were already at the entrance of the ancestral hall. She hurried over and bowed to them, saying, "Daughter-in-law greets father-in-law and mother-in-law."
"Hmm." Zhang Yunyao glanced back at Xichun and responded, then continued to check if the offerings prepared by the maid were complete.
Wei Changsong had been straightening his sleeves with his back to Xichun, only turning around when he heard her greeting. He hadn't seen Xichun since Wei Kang's funeral. Xichun had her head down, and he glanced up at her figure; in over a year, the girl had grown into such a slender young woman.
"Happy spring."
When Xichun heard Wei Changsong call her name, she quickly looked up at him.
But in Wei Changsong's eyes, he saw a pair of charming eyes gazing at him with a bewildered look. Xichun's face was like a peach blossom, her small lips red without makeup; her face was even more alluring than her figure. Wei Changsong felt a sudden itch in his heart.
Seeing that the other party had nothing to say, Xichun lowered her head and looked at the bluestone bricks on the ground. On the bluestone bricks, a small ant was carrying a piece of pastry crumb towards its hole.
Seeing that Xi Chun had lowered her head again, Wei Changsong was racking his brains for something to say to her when he heard Wei Qiao's voice before he could even open his mouth.
"Father, Mother, I'm late." Wei Qiao, dressed in a white robe and with a white jade hairpin in his hair, walked gracefully to the crowd.
"I have met my father and mother."
Zhang Yunyao and Wei Changsong nodded slightly in response.
Wei Qiao then looked at Xi Chun beside him and asked, "Is this your sister-in-law?"
Xi Chun tensed up the moment she heard Wei Qiao's voice. Although his voice sounded quite different from the day he was drunk, she immediately recognized him. Xi Chun caught a glimpse of his clothes out of the corner of her eye, and as he walked, a pair of dark boots stopped beside her. Hearing Wei Qiao ask her a question, Xi Chun felt flustered. He was drunk and unconscious that day; he shouldn't remember her.
Xi Chun looked up at him, then curtsied and gave a slightly ingratiating smile, "This concubine greets my uncle."
"Sister-in-law, there's no need for such formalities," Wei Qiao said with a smile, returning the greeting to Xi Chun.
Xi Chun was momentarily stunned by him; this man was even more handsome than he had been in the candlelight that night. He had thick eyebrows, thin lips, and a face as smooth as jade. Xi Chun had never met the gaze of such a handsome man before, and she almost couldn't help but laugh, quickly lowering her head. Wei Qiao's gaze was normal; he probably didn't recognize her. Xi Chun felt a surge of relief.
Upon seeing Wei Qiao, Wei Changsong recalled the previous incident and wanted to teach him a lesson. "Today is your elder brother's birthday, and you shouldn't be late. However, someone as arrogant as you would certainly disregard the rules of brotherly respect. How could I dare to blame you? It's already quite good that Lord Wei remembered to come."
Hearing Wei Changsong's sarcastic remarks, Wei Qiao's lips curled into a mocking smile. "Although today is a day off, His Majesty summoned me to the palace with some instructions, and I had no choice but to comply. As soon as it was over, I rushed back. Father said that I don't remember brotherly love and respect, but I have no such intention. I have always remembered my elder brother and have never forgotten him."
Wei Changsong saw no trace of remorse on Wei Qiao's face. He wanted to say a few more words, but was interrupted by Zhang Yunyao.
"Everyone's here, and the offerings are ready. Let's begin the worship." She then gave Wei Qiao a cold glance.
Zhang Yunyao and Wei Changsong placed the offerings on the altar in order, while Xichun and Wei Qiao knelt on the prayer mats to worship.
The ancestral hall was a cold and somber place, but Xichun never felt afraid when she came; instead, she felt a sense of warmth. She was illiterate, but after a while, she could recognize the two characters "Wei Kang" written on the memorial tablet. Xichun knelt and prayed devoutly, hoping that her brother Wei Kang would soon ascend to paradise.
The ceremony concluded in less than half an hour. Wei Changsong and Zhang Yunyao then walked through the passageway and left the ancestral hall.
Wei Qiao turned and walked out. Xi Chun finished her final bow to Wei Qiao and then got up and left the ancestral hall. Wei Qiao was tall and had long legs, so he took long strides. By the time Xi Chun left the ancestral hall, Wei Qiao had almost reached the purple azalea bushes by the pond. Suddenly, Xi Chun saw a servant boy beside Wei Qiao who looked very much like the person who had helped her with money on the boat. Xi Chun lifted the hem of her skirt and ran towards Wei Qiao.
Zhao Yu caught a glimpse of Xi Chun running towards them and quickly turned to Wei Qiao, saying, "Second Young Master, the Eldest Young Mistress is running this way."
"Yes." Ah Gui turned his head and glanced over, saying, "Could it be the eldest young mistress coming to see the second young master?"
Wei Qiao frowned imperceptibly, but continued walking forward. Seeing that Wei Qiao showed no sign of stopping, Zhao Yu and A Gui had no choice but to follow.
Seeing that they didn't stop, Xichun headed towards the path encircling the east side of the Love Moon Pond. The Love Moon Pond was an oval-shaped pond, wider in the east and narrower in the west. Xichun ran to the path on the right and blocked Wei Qiao and his group at the junction of the Love Moon Pond and the small garden.
Xi Chun was panting heavily, clutching her chest as she ran. A Gui and Zhao Yu looked at her with some surprise; they had never seen a young lady run like the eldest young mistress.
Wei Qiao frowned and was forced to stop. He lowered his head slightly to look at Xi Chun in front of him. Her hair was slightly loose, without any jewelry, and a few strands of hair swayed in front of her forehead. Her face was flushed, and fine beads of sweat clung to her forehead. Her eyelashes fluttered, and her eyes were large and bright, like two sparkling crystals.
"Sister-in-law, what brings you here?" he asked, his eyes narrowing slightly and his tone somewhat mocking.
Xi Chun looked past Wei Qiao and at A Gui beside him. She recognized him as the man who had given her money on the boat from Hukou Ferry to Xinjiang. He had said he was giving it on behalf of his master, so wasn't Wei Qiao her true benefactor? Xi Chun was about to speak when she suddenly gasped for air and began to cough incessantly.
Wei Qiao saw her coughing in his direction and took two steps back. He then caught a glimpse of Xi Chun's red satin shoes stained with grass juice beneath her white horse-face skirt, and he looked away in disgust.
After coughing for a while, Xi Chun stood up and happened to meet those disgusted eyes. Following his gaze, she saw the hole in her shoe. Although she had mended it, because she didn't have matching thread and her skills weren't as deft as Wei Kang's maid's, the hole looked quite conspicuous. Realizing this, Xi Chun blushed and quickly moved her foot further into her skirt.
Wei Qiao caught a glimpse of her footwork out of the corner of his eye, and his disdain lessened slightly. Seeing that Xi Chun remained silent, he said, "If there's nothing else, sister-in-law, I'll take my leave now."
"Ah?" Xi Chun snapped out of her reverie and remembered her business. She pointed at Wei Qiao, "I... I came to find you. You helped me before, and I wanted to thank you." Xi Chun spoke sincerely, and then bowed deeply to Wei Qiao.
Wei Qiao was momentarily stunned and accepted Xi Chun's greeting. He stared blankly at Xi Chun's face. He couldn't recall ever having any dealings with Xi Chun, let alone helping her.
"Huh?" Zhao Yu looked at Wei Qiao in disbelief, then turned to A Gui and whispered, "When did the Second Young Master help the Eldest Young Mistress? I don't remember!"
Ah Gui rummaged through his memories, but couldn't recall anything. He shook his head at Zhao Yu, "I've never heard of it either."
Seeing that Wei Qiao seemed unable to recall the matter, Xi Chun walked over to A Gui and said urgently, "It was on the ship from Hukou Ferry to Xinjiang that you gave me one tael of silver in the corridor of the passenger ship's kitchen. You said your young master asked you to give it to me. At that time, all the money I had on me was stolen by a pair of thieves on the ship. I had no money for food, and I was refused when I tried to help out in the kitchen in exchange for food. It was that one tael of silver you gave me that kept me from starving, and it was thanks to that one tael of silver that I was able to walk from Xinjiang to the capital."
After Xichun finished speaking, she turned her head and looked at Wei Qiao expectantly, "Do you remember now?"
Wei Qiao was completely confused. A year ago, when he was an imperial envoy traveling incognito to find elixirs for the emperor, he did indeed travel by boat through the Xinjiang River, but he absolutely did not do anything such as having A Gui send money to Xi Chun.
"A-Gui," Wei Qiao said, somewhat angrily.
After hearing Xichun's description, Agui remembered the whole incident. It happened on the passenger ship from Hukoudu to Xinjiang. When he and Zhao Yu boarded the ship, they noticed a pair of thieves they had seen in Lianzhou City, who were showering Xichun with attention as she boarded alone. He bet Zhao Yu that the two were approaching Xichun to swindle her out of all her money, while Zhao Yu thought they might have a moment of kindness. The bet was one tael of silver. Sure enough, on the sixth day of the journey, when the ship arrived at Zhangling, the couple disembarked with their belongings. Later, rumors spread that Xichun had been drugged and robbed of her money by the two.
Zhao Yu, having accepted his loss in the bet, gave him one tael of silver. He had originally planned to go to the passenger ship's kitchen to buy a pot of wine, but instead encountered Xi Chun, who had been refused service by the kitchen manager. Xi Chun said she had been hungry all day, and he felt sorry for her, so he stopped her in the corridor and gave her the one tael of silver. Fearing that Xi Chun would refuse to accept it, he pretended to be Wei Qiao, slipped the money to her, and then turned back to his cabin.
"Yes, that's what you ordered back then. Second Young Master, you really have a bad memory." A-Gui stepped in to smooth things over, and then gave Wei Qiao a pleading look.
Wei Qiao understood; it must have been A Gui who did it behind his back.
Seeing that things were just as she had thought, Xi Chun bowed to A Gui and Wei Qiao again, saying, "I really thank you so much back then, otherwise I wouldn't know what to do."
Ah Gui chuckled and pointed at Wei Qiao with both hands, "Young Madam, you're too kind. It's all because our young master is kind-hearted."
Wei Qiao pursed his lips and saw Xi Chun giving him a grateful look. He glared at A Gui, the instigator. He said coldly, "So much time has passed, sister-in-law, you don't need to take it to heart. I have things to do, so I'll take my leave now."
After saying that, he turned and walked forward, leaving Agui and Zhao Yu behind. The two smiled and nodded to Xichun, then followed Wei Qiao.
Xi Chun was in high spirits. She had unexpectedly encountered her benefactor, who happened to be her brother-in-law. After thanking him, a weight was lifted from her heart, and she paid no attention to Wei Qiao's impatience. Her grandfather had always said that you can't judge a book by its cover; some people may look fierce, but they are actually kind-hearted. She felt that Wei Qiao was one of those people.
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