The Beauty Within the Gates
Chapter 12
At the end of the third month, the spring breeze brushed past the tip of her nose, faintly carrying the scent of blooming flowers that left her feeling refreshed and invigorated.
Wen Shuse’s excitement was hard to contain, aside from the dizzying thrill of sudden fortune falling into her lap, this was the first time she had taken on the weighty responsibility of managing a household. Her chest swelled with fiery determination.
Her father had left for Fuzhou. Though he had left the family’s wealth to her, Grandmother wouldn’t truly risk putting all the eggs in one basket. The funds she was allowed to handle were limited to the quarterly household expenses her father sent back for the expenses of the main branch of the family and her own allowance. As for the teahouses and shops in Fengcheng, those remained in Grandmother’s hands.
But Xie San was different. He handed over all the wealth and affairs of the second branch of the Xie family to her, without the slightest reservation.
To be trusted like that, she absolutely could not let him down.
Though she lacked the reputation of a virtuous madam of the house, she was willing to try. When the household was finally well-managed, even if she left the Xie family, no one could say she had eaten for free or come and gone without a trace.
When Uncle An came to see her, Wen Shuse greeted him with the utmost courtesy. She sat upright in the official-style chair, had Aunt Qing serve tea to Uncle An, and spoke politely, “This junior has little experience. Please guide me, Uncle An.”
Perhaps it was because Xie Shao, that prodigal son, had set such a poor example beforehand, seeing her like this, Uncle An’s old eyes welled with tears. At that moment, he saw hope. He went through the account books with her, line by line, from beginning to end.
From sunrise to sunset, Wen Shuse’s initial passion and fervor were eventually worn away by the dry, monotonous numbers on the pages.
After sending Uncle An off, she reclined in the comfort chair, just beginning to gather her thoughts, when Nanny Fang came in to report that Biyun, the senior maid from the Eldest Madam’s courtyard, had arrived.
To be addressed as “Eldest Madam” could only mean she was the mother of the eldest son. If not for Xie San, that woman might very well have become her mother-in-law. Unsure what the visit was about, Wen Shuse instructed Nanny Fang to let her in first.
Biyun swept aside the curtain and entered the room, but she wasn’t looking for Wen Shuse. After offering a perfunctory curtsy with a muttered “Third Young Madam,” her eyes immediately darted around the room before turning to ask Nanny Fang behind her, “The Third Young Master isn’t back yet?”
Her demeanor made it clear she held no regard for Wen Shuse.
It was true that young madam had entered the household under somewhat questionable circumstances, but now she was the formally recognized wife of the Third Young Master. After personally witnessing the Third Young Master stand up for her in front of the First Madam, Xiangyun gained confidence. Without waiting for Nanny Fang to respond, she stepped forward and answered, “Young Master is busy. And you, sister, what business do you have?”
Biyun hadn’t expected a maid from the Wen family to speak up. A flicker of surprise crossed her face. She glanced at Xiangyun with a flash of undisguised contempt in her eyes. Without acknowledging her, she simply turned to Wen Shuse with a faint smile. “Third Young Madam, I’m here today on the First Madam’s orders to collect next month’s allowance for cosmetics and powder from the Third Young Master. Since he’s not back yet, I’ll wait outside for a bit.”
Suddenly, her expression changed as if she’d remembered something important. She feigned a look of annoyance. “Oh, look at me, I completely forgot the Third Young Master now lives in the west wing. I must’ve disturbed your rest, Third Young Madam. I’ll take my leave now.”
Xiangyun nearly choked on her own anger, such a blatant act!
She raised her chin and shouted loudly at Biyun’s retreating figure, “How fortunate! Young Master handed over the household account to Madam today. Looks like you’ll need to turn right back around and speak with our Madam after all!”
Sure enough, the woman in front halted in her tracks, turned around, and looked back at Nanny Fang.
Nanny Fang nodded. “Xiangyun is right. The Young Master handed the account books to the Third Young Madam today. From now on, if the household needs to request funds from the Young Master, they’ll need to go through the Third Young Madam.”
How is that possible?
Biyun looked utterly stunned. Who in the household didn’t know she was a mere stand-in? If the Third Young Master could truly tolerate her, why would he have moved to the west wing? The only reason she was still allowed to remain in the courtyard was to appease the Old Madam. Once the Old Madam recovered, there would be a letter of divorce, and her time in the Xie family would have been nothing but a fleeting dream…
But Nanny Fang was one of the Third Young Master’s people, she wouldn’t lie.
After a long pause, Biyun finally collected herself. Though she still couldn’t make sense of the Third Young Master’s foolish decision, for now, she had no choice but to lower her head. She turned back and walked over to Wen Shuse. This time, her tone was far more polite, “Third Young Madam, about the Eldest Madam’s cosmetic expenses for next month…”
Wen Shuse still had a buzzing in her ears from listening to Uncle An all day long. She hadn’t expected to be put to work so soon. She casually asked, “How much?”
The phrasing of the tone sounded exactly like the Third Young Master.
Biyun breathed a sigh of relief. “Five hundred taels.” She waited expectantly for a money order to be issued, but then saw the young woman in the reclining chair slowly sit up and ask, “Which shop?”
Which shop?
Such a simple question and yet perhaps one no one had ever asked. Biyun was caught off guard, staring blankly at the woman as a look of confusion gradually surfaced on her face. She quickly replied, “The Cui family’s on West Street.”
The young madam’s expression darkened with displeasure. “You mean to say, Cui Nian of the Cui family, who’s sworn brothers with my husband How dare they try to swindle the Xie family behind his back?”
Seeing Biyun’s face go blank with confusion, Wen Shuse explained, “Perhaps the Eldest Madam isn’t aware? The Cui family’s cosmetics may come in pretty boxes, but that’s all they’re good for. The actual powder inside is sourced from Qingzhou and where does Qingzhou get theirs? From Quanzhou, of course! The Eldest Madam’s maternal family, the Ruans, are renowned perfume merchants in Quanzhou, supplying eighty percent of the region’s exported rouge and face powder. The Cui family might fool others, but how dare they deceive the Eldest Madam?”
The more she spoke, the angrier Wen Shuse became. She straightened her back, her voice rising with conviction. “Our Eldest Madam is from a noble family, delicate and refined, and her face isn’t some big jade platter. At most, she uses ten boxes a month and ten boxes cost five hundred taels?” Her brows furrowed even tighter. “The Cui family takes the very powder produced by the Eldest Madam’s own family, repackages it, and then sells it back to my husband at dozens of times the price. Do they take my husband for a fool? Do they have no conscience at all?”
Biyun stood there, utterly dumbfounded.
“This won’t do. I have to go to my husband right now and tell him he’s been swindled.”
She abruptly stood up, startling Biyun so much her soul nearly fled her body. She rushed to block her, stammering, “Third Young Madam, w-wait…” Flustered, she added in panic, “The Eldest Madam’s powder isn’t all from the Cui family. There are others… I—I really can’t remember right now.”
Wen Shuse didn’t press her further, her expression softened slightly. “I thought so. That Cui family really has a thick skin.”
Biyun hurriedly agreed, “I must have remembered wrong.”
Wen Shuse didn’t pursue it anymore. Her mind was still preoccupied with protecting the Xie family from fraud, continued earnestly, “Don’t we have our own cosmetics shop in the Xie family? I’ve used their products before and they’re just as good as the Cui family’s. If the Eldest Madam ever runs short, she can take what she needs from our shop. We can’t let outsiders make easy money off us for nothing.”
She turned and called over Nanny Fang. “Nanny, go to the cosmetics shop tomorrow and look into this. How can the powder used by the mistresses of the household be neglected like this? And on top of that, make them spend their own money to buy it…”
“No need to trouble yourself, Third Young Madam…”
Watching the colors drain and return to Biyun’s face like a painted mask, Xiangyun felt a wave of satisfaction rise in her chest.
The young madam was not like the Third Young Master. If he squandered money, it was on himself, but letting outsiders take advantage? Not a chance. Just look at the dowry of the Eldest Young Lady Wen as an example.
Half an hour later, Biyun came out empty-handed. As soon as she stepped outside, a breeze blew past, and only then did she notice the cold sweat soaking her back.
At that moment, she realized this Third Young Madam… was no pushover.
She rushed back to repeat Wen Shuse’s words to the Eldest Madam, not leaving out a single word. The more the Eldest Madam listened, the more furious she got. “Does she really think she’s the Third Young Madam of the Xie family now?”
And once again, her hatred for Xie Shao was reignited.
“Let him fool around with other things if he must but to hand over something as serious as the household accounts? Has he never heard of Second Miss Wen’s… reputation?”
That very night, the Eldest Madam went straight to the Old Madam’s courtyard. “Mother, you wouldn’t believe the character of that Second Miss Wen…”
Ever since the Xie family’s eldest son had been betrothed to the Wen family’s eldest daughter, the Eldest Madam had maintained close ties with Old Madam Wen. She knew everything about the Wen family.
That Second Miss Wen was a complete spendthrift, wearing a new outfit every day without repeats, bathing in milk, drinking only morning dew collected from Green Mountain. It was even said that all her bowls and utensils were made of gold. As for jewelry? There was no need to even mention it.
The Old Madam Xie was suffering from a heart condition, and the Eldest Madam’s words struck right at the sore spot, nearly lost her breath in anger.
The Eldest Madam pressed on, relentless. “She’s been in the household for less than half a month, already calling in painters and craftsmen to renovate the courtyard, spending our Xie family’s money like it grows on trees! And yet today, when I sent someone to collect five hundred taels, she refused to give a single coin! Back when the Second Master returned to Fengcheng with fifty thousand taels of gold, how many eyes were fixed on us? If it weren’t for all these years with the Eldest Master shielding us at the front lines, how would we have any peace today…”
The Eldest Madam went on and on, but Old Madam Wen didn’t hear a single word except for that one phrase: “refused to give a single coin.” Her eyes suddenly lit up, and her anger gradually eased. She kept a calm face while the Eldest Madam finished her complaints. She listened expressionlessly until the rant concluded, then waited for her daughter-in-law to leave before immediately sitting up in bed and calling out to Nanzhi, “Quick, go call Nanny Fang over!”
—
Yesterday, Xie Shao had promised to accompany her on the customary newlywed return to her maiden home. Wen Shuse had spent the whole night thinking about her grandmother. She woke before dawn and, unable to sleep any longer, got up and started packing.
Afraid that Third Xie might go back on his word, she sent Xiangyun early to stand guard at the entrance of the west wing.
After leaving the Pei residence the night before, Xie Shao had been dragged to the White Pavilion by Zhou Kuang and Cui Nian, where they listened to Western Xia merchants perform songs the entire night.
Western Xia’s singing was different from that of Great Feng. Their lyrics were brazenly amorous, without the slightest restraint. The innate rakishness in every man’s bones, once stirred, burst forth like floodwaters breaching a dam. When the song ended, the hall erupted with raucous cheers from all the young men.
It was very late when Xie Shao returned to the mansion. He was sleeping soundly when the noise suddenly began at his ear.
“Young Master, it’s already morning.”
“It’s a quarter past the hour.”
“Half past now, Young Master, Young Master…”
“Xiangyun, please don’t raise your voice. The young master is still sleeping…”
Xie Shao turned over and sat up. His head was aching and heavy. As he got dressed and stepped outside, his eyes were still bleary but the young lady standing at the door looked bright and refreshed. She smiled and waved at him, “Husband, time to head out.”
She sure changed her tone quickly.
Xie Shao ignored her, told Minzhang to prepare the return gifts, and followed behind the lively young woman who looked like she might bounce right out of the courtyard.
“Husband, is there anything you particularly like to eat? Any dietary restrictions? I’ll let the cook know in advance.”
Xie Shao sounded completely disinterested. “Anything is fine.”
“Then I’ll decide,” she said, turning her head again to continue chatting. “Husband, do you have plans today? On my wedding day, I’d just returned from the estate and didn’t even have time to enter my room before being pushed into the bridal sedan. Today I want to pack my belongings properly, which might take some time. I’m telling you in advance, so you won’t rush me, alright?”
She’d dropped her usual sharp tone and was now speaking in a more pleading manner. That radiant face, filled with anticipation, somehow looked much more pleasing to the eye.
Xie Shao naturally knew why she had gone to the estate. He understood what it felt like to be forced into marriage. Since he had already agreed to take her home, there was no need to dampen the mood. “By noon, at the latest.”
Noon would be more than enough, as long as he didn’t expect her to just drop in and leave right away. “Thank you, husband!”
Satisfied, the young lady turned away and didn’t speak to him again. One radiant with energy, the other utterly listless. Just as they stepped out from behind the screen wall, they saw Old Madam Xie standing at the gate.
Only yesterday, when Xie Shao had gone to visit her, she had looked pale and frail, lying in bed. Now, seeing her up and about caught him off guard. “Grandmother?”
But Old Madam Xie’s gaze was fixed on Wen Shuse. “This must be Shuse? Look how lovely and vibrant she is, one look tells me she’s truly a Xie family member now…”
Married for half a month, this was the first time Old Madam Xie had seen her new granddaughter-in-law. The astonishment in her eyes wasn’t for show, she truly hadn’t expected the Second Miss Wen to be such a strikingly beauty.
Having learned from Nanny Fang that the Third Young Madam would be returning to her family today, she figured she couldn’t obstruct the agreement between the husband and wife. If she couldn’t stop it, then she might as well go along too.
These two families couldn’t remain deadlocked forever. Sooner or later, they would have to face each other. She didn’t believe that the old fox from the Wen family could still hide the girl right under her nose!