The Beauty Within the Gates
Chapter 8
She had spent a fortune to enshrine that bodhisattva, pouring out her sincerest prayers for a worthy husband and even gilding its statue in gold. And this was how the bodhisattva repaid her?
A deity who couldn’t even handle her one request had no business enjoying her gold.
Xiangyun nodded furiously, fire in her eyes. “Don’t worry, miss. I’ll have someone scrape it clean first thing tomorrow. And if you’re still not satisfied, we’ll toss the whole statue into the incense burner and let it choke on ashes.”
Aunt Qing, ever the more composed, sent Qiuying to shut the doors tight, locking out all of the Xie family’s servants, and only the Wen family remained inside. Then she turned back, her voice low and flustered, “Second Young Lady, what should we do now?”
“Do we even have a way out?” Wen Shuse asked bitterly, her last trace of resistance clinging to the edge of her voice.
Aunt Qing leaned in, lowering her tone to a conspiratorial whisper, “There is one. I’ll sneak you out tonight. Officially, it was the Eldest Young Lady who was married today. If you’re gone by dawn, and the Xie family comes to claim their bride, they’ll be asking for her, not you…”
She hadn’t even finished when Qiuying, wide-eyed, blurted out in disbelief, “Aunt Qing, that’s throwing the Eldest Young Lady under the cart!”
Aunt Qing froze, turning back in surprise. Under Qiuying’s accusatory gaze, she faltered, then looked away, sheepish. She had momentarily forgotten there was someone here from the “other camp.”
True, the scheme doomed the eldest sister, but what other choice remained?
A heavy silence settled over them.
Wen Shuse hadn’t really expected a miracle. She was tired of charging blindly into brick walls. With a long breath, she let go of the last thread of resistance and accepted her fate, “I’ve made up my mind. Third Xie it is. He’s agreed too.”
“Second Young Lady…”
“Miss…”
Judging by the looks on the three women’s faces, one might think she was headed to her execution. Wen Shuse couldn’t help but recall something her father once told her: If you want to get along with someone, focus on their strengths.
So, she pushed aside that dreadful first meeting, banished it from memory entirely, and told herself that tonight would be their new beginning.
“Actually, the Third Young Master isn’t so bad,” she said, half to them, half to herself. “Just look at him, such a handsome face. Tall, broad shoulders, narrow waist, every feature exquisitely carved. Skin smoother and fairer than most ladies’. Not just in Fengcheng, even across all of Zhongzhou, you’d be hard-pressed to find another man like that.”
“And think about it, his father may have resigned, but he was once the Imperial Chancellor. Even a starved camel is bigger than a fat horse. The son of a former Chancellor holds a higher status than even the eldest son of an ordinary noble house. This very residence was bestowed upon Minister Xie by the Emperor himself! He’s rich and good-looking. Honestly, this is a perfect marriage. I came out ahead.”
That, right there, swallowing bitter herbs and calling them honey was the essence of her performance.
Whether she was trying to comfort them or herself, even she wasn’t quite sure. But as the words left her mouth, something inside her loosened. Her chest felt a little lighter. A flicker of something almost like hope stirred.
Truly, she thought, one must always cultivate the ability to find beauty in things, not for anyone else’s sake, but just to stay sane.
As long as that man kept his mouth shut and didn’t appear before her too often, she could very well live out her days happily in the Xie Mansion, sustained by the image she’d conjured in her own mind.
With her thoughts sorted, she settled into her new reality.
Since returning from the estate last night, she had been swept straight into the bridal chamber without so much as a chance to rest. Then came the sleepless wedding night, followed by the bridal procession at dawn. Exhaustion pressed in on her from all sides. Suppressing a yawn, she rose without waiting for anyone’s reaction and said calmly, “Help me change.”
____
After leaving, Xie Shao headed straight for Old Madam Xie’s courtyard.
By the time he arrived at the entrance, the place was already in chaos. A crowd had gathered inside, and the family physician had just finished taking the old madam’s pulse. He was giving instructions to a maid to accompany him to the pharmacy when he nearly bumped into Xie Shao, still in his wedding robes.
Startled, the physician paused briefly, then bowed with a respectful, “Third Young Master.”
Xie Shao glanced inside and asked, calm but direct, “How is Grandmother?”
“Her qi is stagnant and her spirit is weakened,” the physician replied. “I’ll prescribe a tonic to help her rest tonight. We’ll reassess her condition in the morning.”
With a curt nod, Xie Shao stepped past him.
In the inner room, Old Madam Xie lay propped up on the bed, pale-faced and wheezing heavily. Seated at her side was Madam Wu, carefully spooning water to her lips. “This is all the Wen family’s fault for breaking their word. Tomorrow, we’ll demand an explanation but you mustn’t torment yourself over this, Mother…”
The sound of beaded curtains rustling behind her made her turn. She blinked in surprise to see Xie Shao entering, “What’s the groom doing here at a time like this?”
“Aunt, leave us. I need to speak with Grandmother.” His tone brooked no argument as he strode to the bedside. His towering frame loomed like an immovable mountain, forcing Madam Wu to rise reluctantly. “Very well. But mind your words, don’t upset her further.”
One by one, the remaining servants were dismissed, leaving the room hushed and still.
Xie Shao pulled over a stool and settled into the seat Madam Wu had just vacated. He studied Old Madam Xie, now too furious to speak, then leaned in with a sudden, disarming smile. His dark, fox-like eyes crinkled at the corners, radiating a charm so potent it could steal breaths. A pity Wen Shuse hadn’t witnessed it, had she seen him like this, perhaps her worries tonight might have eased.
“Grandmother, to be honest, Second Young Lady Wen is the one I truly like…”
—
It took quite an effort to calm the old madam, and by then, it was already late into the night.
Second Wen should have finished tidying up by now.
Dragged back to the mansion in the middle of the night to become the groom, and then leaving before dawn to fetch the bride, he was starting to feel drowsy. He hurried back to his courtyard.
Upon entering, he saw that the Xie family’s maids were all waiting in the outer room. The double doors to the inner room were tightly shut. They told him she wasn’t ready yet, so he sat on the cushion mat in the outer room waiting. Before he realized it, he dozed off with his head propped on his hand. His forehead nearly hit the table before he suddenly woke up. He stood and walked to the inner room. Seeing no movement inside, he lost patience and instructed Nanny Fang, “Knock.”
Nanny Fang immediately stepped forward and called, “Third Young Madam…”
Xie Shao: …
She wasn’t wrong to call her that. Nanny Fang had overheard their conversation in the room earlier and knew they had decided to go along with the marriage. From now on, Second Young Lady Wen was indeed the Third Young Madam of the Xie family.
The doors quickly opened from the inside. Aunt Qing came out and bowed to Xie Shao, “Young Master, you’re back. The young lady waited a while for you, but she couldn’t hold out and has already gone to sleep.”
Xie Shao said nothing, but there was visible exhaustion on his face.
Aunt Qing understood and turned back to call Qiuying and Xiangyun out as well.
The mess in the room had already been tidied up. The toppled stool was set upright again, and a clean stack of bedding had been laid out on the floor near the bed with pillows and blankets neatly arranged, yet it lay conspicuously empty.
Hadn’t they said she’d gone to rest?
Xie Shao frowned, puzzled. He looked around and soon spotted her. She was indeed resting… but on his bed.
His brow twitched. So much for sticking to her word. Without concern for whether he’d wake her, he called out sharply, “Second Wen,” and strode over.
Standing by the bedside, he reached out to nudge her but before he could touch her, the girl suddenly turned inward, clutching the brocade quilt tightly around herself. Half-asleep, she murmured a single word like a dream, “Grandmother…”
The soft quilt had been curled into a cocoon around her. She had wrapped herself completely, leaving only half her head visible. The way she curled into herself looked just like an ostrich burying its head at the first sign of danger.
The red wax candles flickered on the chandelier above, occasionally letting out faint crackles, the flames jumping with each sound. Xie Shao froze, his hand still in midair, and after a long pause, finally withdrew it.
If not for him, she would’ve been the magistrate’s wife by now.
A girl, newly married, only to realize on her wedding night that her groom was not the one she’d hoped for. With no path to turn back, forced to make do under someone else’s roof.
She really was… quite pitiful.
As soon as that treacherous wave of sympathy rose in his mind, Xie Shao knew he couldn’t bring himself to disturb her. He turned away, entered the washroom, took off his wedding robe, washed up, and returned to the room only to find the woman on the bed still sleeping soundly.
He gritted his teeth and lay down on the floor bedding. The moment his back hit the ground, a sharp ache pierced his lower back.
He, Xie Shao, when had he ever slept on the floor?
The more he thought about it, the more annoyed he became. Whatever sympathy he had vanished without a trace. Turning his head in frustration, he called out, “Second Wen, do you have no shame?”
Only the steady rhythm of her breathing replied.
Tossing and turning for a while, sleepiness finally overtook him. Even the ache in his lower back didn’t seem so bad anymore. Just as he was about to doze off, a sharp, shrill operatic voice rang out from the front courtyard. The singing, high-pitched and piercing, cut through the night, echoing through several courtyards until it reached him. His temper surged.
He rolled over, yanked the blanket over his head to muffle the noise, and didn’t even know when he finally fell asleep. By the time he opened his eyes, it was already bright outside.
He sat up, lifting the bedding off of him. His whole body ached like a bow that had been strung too tightly, both sore and stiff.
His scattered thoughts slowly returned, and only then did he remember that he’d gotten married last night. He turned toward the bed, looking for the shameless culprit who had taken his spot only to find the bed empty.
Wen Shuse, on the other hand, had slept wonderfully. The mattress on the bed had been padded with several layers, soft and warm, not unlike the one in her room at the Wen Mansion. It was perfect for early spring. She lay down last night and, in the blink of an eye, morning had come.
Seeing that he hadn’t woken yet, she made sure to claim the washroom first.
She was just rinsing her mouth with salt water when a gust of wind swept up behind her. Before she could spit, a shadow loomed behind her close enough that she felt the heat of his anger before he even spoke. “I told you last night that I can’t sleep on unfamiliar beds!”
Wen Shuse, still facing away, quickly lifted her wide sleeve and spat out the mouthful of salt water she had been holding before turning to face him.
Her bridal makeup from the previous night had been washed clean, revealing a fresh, fair face. Morning sunlight poured through the open lattice window, and when their eyes met, they could see each other more clearly than the night before. Gone was the glamorous glow of wedding night cosmetics and what remained was like a piece of jade stripped of darkness, quietly luminous.
But her expression didn’t show the slightest hint of guilt as he had expected. Instead, she looked at him with mild suspicion, “Bed unfamiliarity is a mental block. You just need to get used to it. From what I see, husband slept just fine. Didn’t you just wake up?”
He had been so exhausted that he could’ve fallen asleep anywhere. Of course, she could say that standing there without a sore back. He wanted to remind her of her place, but the way she casually called him “husband” distracted him more than he expected.
Even if this marriage was not a matter of mutual love and was full of ups and downs, being addressed so sweetly, husband, from the lips of a rather pretty young woman first thing in the morning was… unexpectedly disarming.
Then he glanced at the washroom. Half of the display shelf was already filled with her things, all bright and colorful, each item reminding him plainly that he was now a married man.
Since he had agreed to the marriage, he couldn’t really throw her out now. Pressing his palm to his forehead, he rubbed at the corner of his eye, then turned and strode out like a gust of wind, his oversized outer robe still loose around him, barking for his attendant Minzhang at the door, “Clear out the west wing.”
From that one glance in the morning, Wen Shuse didn’t see him again for the rest of the day.
News of her marrying the Third Young Master would soon reach the Wen family. She needed to inform Grandmother before the rumors spread. After washing up, she quickly sent Qiuying back with a message.
But what excuse could she give?
Without thinking too hard, Wen Shuse blurted, “Just tell her I fell for the Third Young Master. He’s so handsome, I was completely swept off my feet the moment I saw him.”