Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Marriage Proposal In September of the first year of Qingzheng, during a crisp and refreshing autumn season, a joyous piece of news spread through Liuxia Town in Jiangnan. The reclusive young miss of the Shen family was publicly seeking a husband to marry into her household within the town. As soon as the news spread, unmarried young men across the town—from eighteen-year-old lads to twenty-eight-year-old stalwarts—all scrambled and rushed toward the Shen residence. Matchmakers from neighboring prefectures and counties also swarmed in. For a time, the passing carriages and horses were so numerous they nearly crushed the muddy roads of this tiny lotus village. For over a month straight, the streets and alleys were packed every day with townspeople eager to watch the spectacle. A visiting stranger puzzled aloud, "I hear the Shen lady is twenty-four years old this year, well past the usual age for marriage, and she is looking for a resident son-in-law to marry into the family. Why are people still rushing there day after day? Is she born with celestial beauty, or overflowing with literary talent?" "You hit the nail on the head there—her wealth is practically overflowing! Living in our town's Feiyuan Garden is none other than the Yijiang Shen clan, one of the three major silk merchant empires in Jiangnan. Who wouldn't want a piece of that pie?" The locals gathered by the roadside cracking melon seeds. Seeing that the gates of Feiyuan Garden had yet to open, several matchmakers outside the dark-lacquered Phoebe nanmu doors were already striking high notes to fight for the honor of being the first to enter that day. One matchmaker claimed her young gentleman was as elegant as a jade tree, handsome enough to rival Pan An. Another claimed her young gentleman could compose essays the moment he opened his mouth and write poetry within seven steps. Yet another stepped up, declaring her young gentleman knew everything from astronomy above to geography below, with a vast and peerless erudition. A crowd of matchmakers stood on the blue-white stone steps, waving their handkerchiefs and arguing until spittle flew. The moment the front gates creaked open with a grinding sound, their eyes lit up as they surged inside. Only for a cry of shock to suddenly echo from the estate: "Oh no, the young miss is gone!" In the back courtyard of Feiyuan Garden, atop the pink-walled, blue-tiled roof, a young woman draped in a moon-white plain-patterned damask skirt with a sheer gauze cloud-cape perched precariously sideways. Hearing that cry of alarm, she hurried to jump down, stumbling slightly as she made a narrow escape from a clumsy landing. Xiao Shao, waiting outside the wall, caught her by the arm. "Are you alright, Young Miss?" "It's true that 'diligence in craft prevents decay, while idleness brings disarray'—my wall-climbing skills are getting rusty..." Shen Shuyue caught her breath in place, and hearing the chaotic footsteps echoing from inside the wall, she lifted her skirt and bolted. "Let's go, quickly!" The two hurriedly boarded a dark-wood carved-flower carriage parked nearby. As the carriage rumbled away from Lianyuxiang lane—where Feiyuan Garden was located—Shen Shuyue finally let out a sigh of relief, readjusting her crooked cloud-bun. Sitting beside her, Xiao Shao tenderly brushed the dust off her skirt. "Your father is really something else, driving this matchmaking farce to such extremes. Just to force the young miss to meet suitors, he even resorted to confinement, making it so humiliating and difficult for you just to step outside." Hearing this, Shen Shuyue paused her hands, which were fixing her hair. Beneath her snow-white brow, two slender, gracefully curved moth eyebrows—possessing all the classic charm of Jiangnan—creased softly, casting a layer of melancholy over her clear, beautiful dark eyes. And wasn't that the truth? She had clearly agreed with her family a few years ago that she had no intentions of getting married in this lifetime. Back then, her father had smiled warmly and said, "If you don't want to marry, then you won't. As long as our Chanchan lives a peaceful and contented life, your mother's spirit in heaven would certainly think the same!" Who would have thought her father would suddenly turn his back on his words this year? Starting from the beginning of the year, he had repeatedly brought up her marriage, as if he had completely forgotten what he said back then. Over the past half-year or so, her father had successively arranged several matches for her with families of equal social standing. Seeing that she was dissatisfied with all of them, he had now simply cast aside family background and was widely recruiting a resident son-in-law, as if casting a wide enough net would guarantee catching a fish. Whether casting more nets would catch fish, she wasn't sure. But she certainly learned that the bigger the forest, the wider the variety of birds you find. When those matchmakers played matchmaker, they loved to praise people as if they had no equal on earth or in heaven. But the moment she met the actual men... The ones supposedly as handsome as Pan An were so ghastly she feared Pan An's coffin lid wouldn't stay shut, and he'd come back in her dreams tonight to air his grievances. "They claimed he knew all about astronomy and geography, yet he didn't even know that the emperor had changed this year and the reign title had been altered, nor could he tell millet from broomcorn millet growing in the fields. They claimed he could compose poetry in seven steps, yet right in front of her, he came up with something like: 'On the twenty-seventh of the seventh month, drenched like a drowned chicken.' Wait, does that even take seven steps? Old nanny Hu's five-year-old granddaughter in her courtyard could do it in three! Day in and day out, these matchmaking sessions made her eyes go black with despair time and time again. To make matters worse, her grandmother, who had always doted on her, didn't speak up for her this time either, tacitly approving her father's plan. Seeing both her father and grandmother acting as if they were possessed, she was truly at her wit's end and could only resort to praying to the gods and Buddhas. With this thought, Shen Shuyue turned to ask Xiao Shao, 'The person you ran into this morning, do they truly possess supernatural powers?' Because she was confined to the house and unable to leave, Xiao Shao had originally planned to go to the temple in her stead to burn incense and banish bad luck, only to be intercepted halfway by a physiognomist and fortune-teller. That master had told Xiao Shao that someone in her household was facing a marital tribulation, and he held the method to resolve it. Xiao Shao replied, 'I think he really does have supernatural powers! I figured at worst I'd be scammed out of some silver, and our family has plenty anyway—what if it really did concern the young miss? So I had him explain it in detail. Who would have thought that with just a few words, he blurted out the young miss's childhood nickname? If he weren't truly gifted with supernatural powers, how could he possibly know such a private matter?' Shen Shuyue nodded with a surprised look on her face. 'Let's treat a dead horse like a live horse and go take a look.' Passing through rows of residential neighborhoods and riverways crowded with black-awned boats all the way, the carriage finally came to a stop at the entrance of a secluded alley. Shen Shuyue put on her veil hat and stepped down. Through the sheer gauze shielding her face, she spotted from afar a fortune-telling stall set up with a cloth canopy in the alley. Underneath the canopy sat a wobbly mixed-wood table with a missing leg, a wooden bench, and a tattered cloth banner with holes in it. The stall owner wore plain clothes with unkempt hair and a thick circle of stubble and beard around his face. He was propping up his chin and dozing off. Hearing footsteps, he barely managed to crack open one eyelid, looked up at the two of them, and lazily said, 'Here for a reading?' His voice actually sounded younger than his bearded, weathered face, seeming to belong to someone not even thirty. Xiao Shao asked, 'Master, have you forgotten? This morning you said my young mistress was facing a marital tribulation and that she had to come in person to get the solution.' 'Oh, it's you,' the stall owner said, looking at Shen Shuyue while yawning. 'Take a seat. Right hand.' Shen Shuyue looked around the empty surroundings. The stall owner awkwardly let out an 'ah' and said, 'I forgot, the guest stool broke, so I'll have to trouble the young miss to stand for the reading.' Shen Shuyue frowned and exchanged a skeptical look with Xiao Shao. Judging by this setup, how did this look anything like someone reliable? Still, since they had already come all this way... She pushed her bulging money pouch forward and obediently extended the palm of her right hand. 'If the master can truly resolve my predicament, I'll pay to have this stall of yours completely renovated.' 'The young miss is quite a decisive person.' The man opposite her smiled as he took the money pouch, weighed it in his hand for a moment before setting it aside, and lowered his head to read her palm. After studying the crisscrossing palm lines for a moment, the stall owner shook his head and clicked his tongue. 'Looking at the young miss's marriage line, there certainly are quite a few ill-fated entanglements here.' With her having to look at eight or ten weirdos and oddballs a day now, did that even need to be said? Shen Shuyue retorted unhappily, 'Does that mean there's no saving it?' 'Not necessarily, not necessarily. The so-called marital tribulation is nothing more than missing a true partner and being entangled by ill-fated ones. As long as the young miss identifies her true partner, no amount of bad entanglements can find a way in.' 'With so many people, how am I supposed to recognize which one is the true partner?' 'Why is the young miss only looking at newcomers?' The stall owner raised an eyebrow. 'Reading your palm, the young miss's true partner appeared seven years ago. It should be your old sweetheart.' 'What old sweetheart? Where would my young miss get an old sweetheart? How can you casually ruin someone's reputation like this!' Xiao Shao widened her eyes, grabbed Shen Shuyue by the arm, and pulled her back. 'Young miss, it looks like this guy is just a jianghu swindler. Let's—'" Shen Shuyue raised a hand to interrupt Xiao Shao. Beneath her thin veil, her long, dark eyelashes blinked gently. "You said... seven years ago?" "Indeed." Shen Shuyue pondered for a moment. "Go on." A deep smile touched the fortune-teller's face. "Your hearts were truly attuned to one another, yet fate cast you both to separate ends... After seven years apart, you have finally found the chance for a reunion. As for this person—you might think they are worlds away, but in truth, they are right before your eyes. If the young miss still cherishes old affections, today is the very chance for you and him to mend the broken mirror." Half an hour later, in the Qiyun Courtyard of Feiyuan Garden. The vermilion pavilion, with its flying eaves, upturned corners, and carved railings with patterned windows, was nestled amidst a courtyard of brilliant red maples and yellow ginkgo trees. Inside the bright parlor, Shen Shuyue sat before a pearwood table with upturned ends near the window, resting her chin in both hands as she gazed out at the flowering trees. Her mind was entirely filled with the fortune-teller's parting words. Xiao Shao had declined today's prospective suitors on her behalf. Returning to the room and seeing her in a trance, Xiao Shao finally couldn't help asking, "Young Miss, could what that physiognomist said be true? Do you really have an old sweetheart? You hadn't moved to Liuxia seven years ago, so you must have still been studying in Linkang. Could that person be a fellow student of yours?" Shen Shuyue didn't answer right away. She was pondering it herself. An old sweetheart... did that person count? Back when she was studying at the academy, life was far too stifling and boring, and she had indeed pinned her affections on someone. Reckoning it up, it was right around seven or eight years ago, but... Shen Shuyue said, "A sweetheart is someone where both hearts are drawn to each other, right? If I hold affections for someone, but they have no feelings for me, can they really be called a sweetheart?" "Ah? Didn't that fortune-teller say that you and this person had a mutual affection? Young Miss, did you ever make your feelings clear to him back then?" "Do you take your young miss for someone who refuses to give up until she crashes straight into a southern wall?" Shen Shuyue stood up, pulled open the bookshelf, and took out an old volume from a storage box at the very bottom. From inside fluttered a faded, pressed sweet osmanthus flower and a yellowed piece of stationery. Xiao Shao leaned in to look. The handwriting on the stationery was neat and rigorous, every single stroke carrying a kind of aloof, cold air that seemed to push people away a thousand miles— "Miss Shen's intentions have been understood by Pei, yet Pei truly harbors no such feelings. I now return this flower, hoping the Miss will bestow it upon someone truly suitable and find a good match soon." Xiao Shao exclaimed, "How can there be such a blind person in this world, actually rejecting the Young Miss's advances!" "You can't put it that way." Unlike Xiao Shao's righteous indignation, Shen Shuyue wore a gentle and calm expression as she gracefully sat down. "Your young miss isn't a pile of silver coins that everyone loves. If he doesn't like me, naturally he has the freedom to refuse. How could I be so unreasonable and overbearing?" Hearing this, Xiao Shao lowered her head in shame. Just as she was about to say that her young miss was still magnanimous and reasonable, she raised her eyes and saw Shen Shuyue tightly pressing her lips together, her fingers trembling slightly as she pinched the stationery. As the trembling grew more intense, a crisp crunch of paper being crushed echoed through the quiet room. Shen Shuyue's mouth turned down at the corners. "...He really is blind!" After a moment of astonishment, Xiao Shao hurriedly started rubbing Shen Shuyue's back to soothe her. "Young Miss, don't be angry or sad. Didn't this Lord Pei wish for you to find a good match soon? Then we'll do just as he wished—we'll go find one and show it to him!" Shen Shuyue's sorrow vanished instantly as she slowly turned her head to glare at Xiao Shao. "You certainly know how to pick the sorest spot." ...Oh right, almost forgot, wasn't she currently being forced to do just that? And the matches she was finding were thoroughly aggravating. Xiao Shao rubbed her nose sheepishly. Shen Shuyue let out a long breath, composed her emotions, and brought her thoughts back to the matter at hand. "So... this really can't be called a sweetheart, right?" "It doesn't seem so. This doesn't match what the fortune-teller said at all." "Then was I swindled after all?" Shen Shuyue said, still puzzled. "What on earth did he hope to gain by scamming me?" If that fortune-teller had taken her silver, it would have been easy to explain. Yet just as she was leaving the stall earlier, he had returned the money to her, saying she could pay him his fee once she truly resolved her predicament. Xiao Shao offered, "Or perhaps it wasn't an intentional scam—maybe his skills are just rusty, and he only got half of it right?" "So wouldn't all my scrambling this morning have been for nothing?" Shen Shuyue slumped her shoulders dejectedly, then glanced at the crumpled letter on the desk. "Oh, it wasn't all for nothing. Look, I've even broken a long-standing heart." "It's all my fault for trusting people so easily, which has harmed the young miss..." "It's not your fault. It's a nickname that only family members know. If I were in your shoes, I might also believe in his supernatural powers." Xiao Shao nodded, her brows furrowed, and was about to ask what to do next when she suddenly heard a knock on the door. Granny Hu from the courtyard arrived carrying a full load of all sorts of gift boxes. Granny Hu: "Miss, would you like to see the gifts you received today?" During the period when the Shen family was looking for a son-in-law, not only did matchmakers come to the door, but many people also sent gifts in private, trying to find another way to win Shen Shuyue's favor. Since the first person set this precedent, the area in front of Feiyuan Garden has been piled high with gift boxes almost every morning, and a whole basketful is collected as soon as the gates open. Shen Shuyue waved her hand without looking up: "I won't look. As usual, return what can be returned, and for what can't be returned, we'll estimate its value and convert it into silver." "Yes, young lady." Shen Shuyue sighed and looked again at the old pressed flower beside her. Years ago, she made this hibiscus pressed flower that could be preserved for a long time and sent it along with a letter expressing her feelings, but the recipient returned the flower as if it were a gift to be avoided. At that time, she felt wronged, thinking that if she was going to refuse, she should just refuse, why be so resolute as to return such a worthless flower. Now that I'm in your shoes, I understand. When people are facing someone they don't like, they won't accept a single gift or owe a single debt. She must have lost her mind, to actually imagine that there might be other hidden stories behind the events of that year because of two absurd judgments. Thinking of this, Shen Shuyue shook her head to herself. She looked up and saw Granny Hu carrying the pile of things, preparing to turn around. "Wait a minute," Shen Shuyue's gaze suddenly became fixed, "What's at the very top?" When Granny Hu looked down, she saw that there was indeed something eye-catching on top of the stack of gift boxes in her arms. It was a branch of newly sprouted green leaves, with buds yet to bloom. Granny Hu: "Miss, this flower branch was pinned to the door knocker this morning. It looks like a hibiscus."