Wu Shan said, “During the Dragon Boat Festival, I went with mother to Beijing to visit father. We thought it had been a while since we’d seen you all.” He continued, “Sixth Uncle is now observing government affairs in the Ministry of Justice. We ate zongzi together during the Dragon Boat Festival.”
Dou Shiheng had also earned the title of Imperial Academy Scholar.
Dou Dechang quickly asked, “How is my father?”
“He’s doing well,” Wu Shan smiled. “I think he’s even gained some weight since being at home.”
Then his eyes twinkled mischievously, and his expression turned cunning: “I have some good news to tell you all…” he dragged out the last words teasingly.
Dou Dechang ignored him.
But Dou Zhengchang smiled and asked, “What good news? Are you going to Beijing?”
“How is that good news!” Wu Shan scoffed. “I’m so carefree and happy at home. Under father’s watchful eye, I wouldn’t be allowed to put down my brush until I’d practiced five thousand characters each day.”
Pang Jixiu clicked his tongue: “So many!”
Wu Shan finally smiled and said, “Starting tomorrow, I’ll be studying at your Dou family school too!”
It took Dou Zhengchang and the others a moment to react.
“Why are you suddenly coming to study at our family school?” Dou Dechang asked curiously. “Is your mother willing to let you leave home?”
Wu Shan’s mother was his father’s second wife. Wu Songnian’s first wife had died early without children.
Wu Songnian had only remarried to Bi shi, Wu Shan’s mother, after becoming a jinshi scholar.
Bi shi came from an official’s family and had vowed in her youth not to marry anyone below the rank of provincial graduate. She was already twenty-three when she married and took three more years to give birth to Wu Shan.
Therefore, she was especially fond of her children. To let Wu Shan study under their scholarly uncle, she had been willing to stay in their hometown rather than follow Wu Songnian to his post in Beijing.
“Father has a leg ailment,” Wu Shan explained. “Now that he’s older, walking is difficult. Mother is very worried and wants to go to Beijing to take care of him. But she’s also concerned about me. Fortunately, during the Dragon Boat Festival, we met Sixth Uncle at Fifth Uncle’s house. Sixth Uncle said if Father agreed, I could study with you all, with Sixth Aunt looking after me. Both Father and Mother thought this was good, and Fifth Uncle wrote a letter to Madam Dowager. Mother came this time specifically to send me to study.”
Only then did they realize Madam Wu had also come.
“This is wonderful, wonderful news,” Dou Zhengchang smiled cheerfully.
But Dou Dechang grabbed Wu Shan around the neck: “You rascal, you’ve finally landed in my territory!”
Wu Shan laughed heartily, clasped his hands and bowed, pretending to beg for mercy: “Great hero, please show mercy!”
Everyone burst into laughter.
Dou Qijun and his brother Dou Qitai entered one after another.
“What’s going on here?” they both asked with smiles.
Pang Jixiu quickly explained about Wu Shan coming to study at the Dou family school.
Dou Qijun and Dou Qitai insisted Wu Shan should treat them all.
Wu Shan waved his hand grandly: “Everyone who’s here today gets a share.”
Pang Jixiu’s family owned a teahouse, and after connecting with the Wang family, they had also opened restaurants and pawnshops. Having grown up in these establishments and with a group of idle helpers at home, he was an expert in eating, drinking, and merrymaking.
Hearing this, he immediately said: “Let’s go to Jingfu Spring. During summer they make special iced bowls with river delicacies. Their lotus seeds, lotus roots, water chestnuts, and fresh fox nuts are all grown in their own ponds. Ordinary water chestnuts are usually harvested when old and sold by street vendors, with unsold ones going to medicine shops. Young water chestnuts don’t weigh much and medicine shops won’t take them, so no one wants to harvest them. But Jingfu Spring’s iced bowls use the most tender water chestnuts regardless of cost. They cook to a light yellow color and are served with fresh walnuts, fresh almonds, and fresh hazelnuts, all presented on tender lotus leaves. The red is red, the white is white, and the green is green – just looking at it refreshes your spirit, let alone eating it…”
In the scorching summer heat, before he could finish speaking, everyone was already salivating.
Dou Qitai quickly said, “I’ll go call Fourth Brother.”
Among those of the Qi generation, Dou Qijun was fifth, Dou Qitai was sixth, and fourth was Dou Qiguang, Dou Yuchang’s second son and Wu Shan’s cousin.
Since Wu Shan was treating, how could they leave him out?
Dou Zhengchang went to inform Madam Dowager.
Bi shi was a fair and plump woman with a round face who looked very kind when she smiled.
She was somewhat worried.
Second Madam Dowager smiled and said, “Don’t worry, Zhi’er will be with them, and they’ll be in Zhending County. Nothing will happen.”
Dou Qijun had earned his xiucai degree last year.
Bi shi felt slightly reassured.
Second Madam Dowager had the steward arrange for several reliable servants to accompany Dou Zhengchang and the others to Jingfu Spring.
Seeing it was people from the Dou family, Jingfu Spring’s manager quickly offered them the best private room and personally introduced the menu. With Pang Jixiu’s jokes and banter, the atmosphere was very lively.
When the iced bowls with river delicacies were served, Wu Shan said, “Let’s go visit Fourth Sister at the estate tomorrow?”
The chatter in the private room suddenly stopped, and everyone’s eyes fell on him.
Wu Shan’s eyes flickered, and he quickly added: “In this hot weather, I hear Aunt Cui’s estate has everything. We can use visiting Fourth Sister as an excuse to go fishing, swimming, and eat fresh lotus leaf rice… Wouldn’t that be fun? Better than being cooped up at home every day.”
Pang Jixiu’s heart was pounding, but then he heard Dou Dechang grin and say: “Great idea! Let’s go swimming at Aunt Cui’s place.”
Dou Qiguang never went anywhere except to study. If it weren’t for Wu Shan treating today, he definitely wouldn’t have come.
Looking at the glaring sunlight outside, even he was tempted, let alone the others.
“Then it’s decided,” Dou Qijun said. “Someone needs to inform Madam Dowager, but I definitely can’t be the one to ask. If I go, this plan will definitely fail.”
Everyone could barely suppress their laughter.
“I can’t ask either,” Wu Shan said. “My mother will be staying at the Dou residence for several days.”
“Then I’ll go ask!” Dou Qiguang said hesitantly. “I’m just afraid Madam Dowager won’t agree.”
“Fourth Brother is honest,” Dou Qitai said with a grin. “If Fourth Brother asks, Madam Dowager will definitely agree.”
Sure enough, Madam Dowager immediately agreed.
The group went to the estate in grand fashion.
Dou Zhao was bent over her desk drawing new shoe patterns for Grandmother when she heard the commotion, giving everyone quite a start.
Aunt Cui stopped everyone: “No swimming in the river. Just rest in the courtyard, and I’ll have people make lotus leaf rice for you.”
But how could the young men sit still? They were already splashing toward the river.
Seeing she couldn’t stop them, Dou Zhao called over the servants who had come along: “All of you go stand guard by the river, spacing yourselves every few steps.” She then called Hong Gu, “Go to the village and find some good swimmers to watch the river. Pay them one tael of silver per day. If all the young masters are safe and sound, reward each person with two more taels. If anyone starts drowning, twenty taels for each person saved.”
Hong Gu immediately went to the village to find several strong, healthy men.
Seeing people standing guard nearby, Dou Zhengchang and the others played even more recklessly.
Pang Jixiu seized an opportunity to quietly climb ashore, saying he was tired and wanted to go inside for some water.
The servants naturally wouldn’t be suspicious.
Seeing the courtyard was quiet, Pang Jixiu was wondering whether to go directly into the room or call out from the wide-open window lattice — he knew how to deal with smiling courtesans, but didn’t know how to approach a ten-year-old girl, especially one of such high status. He had no advantages in her presence.
Suddenly, voices came from the open window lattice: “…sister loves it most, I thought Fourth Sister would definitely like it too, so I had my servant buy a bottle. Smell how fragrant it is?”
Pang Jixiu carefully crept closer.
He saw an egg-sized glass bottle on the kang table, a gilt bottle with an amber-colored body, exuding luxury amid its splendor.
He was shocked.
This was Western perfume.
He quickly peered inside.
He saw Wu Shan’s face, still bearing traces of childhood innocence.
Damn, he thought, how old is he to already know how to pursue women!
No wonder he wanted to come play at Aunt Cui’s estate!
As Pang Jixiu was internally complaining, he heard Dou Zhao say: “Thank you, Fourth Brother Wu. This perfume is very fragrant.” Then she gracefully accepted the perfume and asked about Wu Shan’s time in Beijing.
“Beijing truly lives up to being the emperor’s capital and an important metropolitan region. Not only is it populous and full of treasures, but the streets are so wide that four carriages can travel side by side…” Wu Shan excitedly told Dou Zhao about Beijing. Dou Zhao sat there smiling and listening quietly, but her thoughts had wandered far away.
Next summer, she would find an excuse to have Grandmother stay at the Dou residence for a while, so Grandmother wouldn’t have to get up early to water the melon seedlings. Perhaps this could prevent her sudden death.
This time when returning from the estate, she should bring Gan Lu and Su Juan back to the Eastern Residence!
She should also visit Tuo Niang. She had heard that Tuo Niang and Cui Four were getting along well, and the Cui family liked this honest and dutiful daughter-in-law. She had now established herself firmly in the Cui family…
Suddenly there was a commotion outside.
Dou Zhao, worried about the group in the river, quickly stuck her head out the window lattice and called to Hong Gu: “What happened?”
Hong Gu, carrying things in both hands, came out from the kitchen and said urgently: “I’ll go check.”
Dou Zhao urged Wu Shan: “You go look too?”
Wu Shan said “Oh” and ran out.
About half an hour later, Hong Gu returned.
“Young Miss, it’s fortunate you had us find good swimmers to stand by the river,” she said, her face pale with lingering fear. “Young Master Guang can’t swim, and while horsing around with Young Master Tai, he slipped and fell into the water… If the people by the river hadn’t acted quickly, Young Master Guang might not have come up.”
Dou Zhao let out a sigh and sincerely said, “I hope this lesson will keep them from coming swimming again.”
Hong Gu repeatedly agreed.
The group had come in high spirits but left dejected.
After a hasty dinner at the estate, they returned to the Dou residence.
That evening, Grandmother pointed at the rose perfume on the kang table: “Where did this come from?”
“Fourth Brother Wu gave it to me,” Dou Zhao said frankly. “He said he brought it back as a gift from Beijing.”
Grandmother held it and examined it for a good while, then wordlessly put it back in its original place and went straight to bed.
Two days later, Dou Qijun came to visit Dou Zhao: “Thanks to Fourth Aunt’s arrangements for people that day, or something serious would have happened.”
Though he was of a younger generation, he was the oldest and the only one with a scholarly title. If anything had happened, his responsibility would have been the greatest.
“I was just being cautious,” Dou Zhao smiled. “You needn’t take it to heart.”
Dou Qijun still formally thanked Dou Zhao.
A few days later, Wu Shan and Dou Qiguang came to thank Dou Zhao: “This was my suggestion. If anything had happened to Old Fourth, how could I face Fourth Cousin?”
Dou Zhao had to be modest again.
Wu Shan came several more times under the pretext of expressing thanks.
Grandmother would invite him to eat each time, asking in detail about his family affairs. Once, Dou Zhao even heard Hong Gu tell Grandmother: “Bi shi is a person with great ambitions, warm and courteous to others, very generous…”
Realizing Grandmother’s intentions, Dou Zhao found it both amusing and exasperating.
Leave a Reply