Regret

"Madam, everything that needed arranging in the garden and the reception hall is ready. All that remains is to bring out the tableware for tomorrow's banquet. The last banquet was held when the Heir Apparent returned and the two young masters were adopted into the family. The cups and plates have probably gathered dust, so it would be best to bring them out and wash them today, ready for use tomorrow."

"You've thought of everything."

Lin Yunwan raised a hand, telling Ping Ye to give Nanny Yuan the tally.

As Ping Ye handed it over, she said, "They're all glassware and jade. Please be very careful with them."

Nanny Yuan smiled. "Don't worry, miss."

Before leaving, she thoughtfully added, "Madam, I saw Old Madam Xia and Eldest Aunt Jia walking in the garden early this morning. From the direction they were going, they seemed to be heading to Old Madam's place. Perhaps Old Madam will send someone to invite you over for a chat later."

"I know," Lin Yunwan said.

After Nanny Yuan left, Ping Ye went to find clothes and jewelry for Lin Yunwan to wear when receiving guests.

Lu Chang'gong had eaten his fill. He put down his bowl and chopsticks and said, "Mother, I'll go back first, then."

"Why the hurry? If Old Madam sends for me, you should come along. I've told you about Old Madam Xia. She's an elder who has read widely, and her youngest son, Third Master Jin, is only ten years older than you, yet he passed the county examination three years ago. He's an impressive young man too."

"You've had little contact with guests from outside the household. Now that you have the chance, come and see how high the mountains beyond are."

Touched, Lu Chang'gong said, "Thank you for making plans for me, Mother."

Lin Yunwan teased him. "Just don't go blind. A blind man has trouble making friends wherever he goes."

The boy had never been able to stand teasing; a single remark made him shy.

Sure enough, Lu Chang'gong pressed his lips together and said, "I won't go blind." His voice was low, as though he were defending himself without much confidence.

After breakfast, he said, "Then I'll go back and change."

He always dressed plainly when he came to see his mother, because she too often wore simple clothes.

But he ought to dress a little more respectably to meet guests. With the jade pendant his mother had given him as well, he would cut no less imposing a figure.

"Go on."

Lin Yunwan went to the meeting hall to take care of household affairs. Half an hour later, Wei Shi did indeed send someone for her.

"I'll be right there."

Back at Drooping Silk Hall, she changed her clothes. Zhu Qing came to attend her and finally found a chance to speak. She ventured, "Cousin Miss has quite the tricks up her sleeve. She's even gotten her hooks into Young Master Qing. How long has she been living with the Lu family?"

Lin Yunwan smiled without answering, keeping the secret behind it from Zhu Qing.

Zhu Qing thought Lin Yunwan did not realize the importance of the matter and said, "I think Cousin Miss wants to fly onto a branch and become a concubine. Madam, you must be on your guard! She isn't as loyal and easy to manage as I am."

"Why not use this chance to drive her out? Then everyone can have some peace and quiet. She was the one who got the idea herself; we'd only be going along with it, so it shouldn't cause any trouble."

Lin Yunwan said mildly, "Then you'd be helping her."

"What do you mean?"

Lin Yunwan smiled mysteriously. "If she wants to be a concubine, we should grant her wish. Being a concubine is what will leave her damned beyond redemption."

Once she became a concubine and acknowledged Qing as her son, mother and son would finally be reunited.

A concubine forever, a concubine-born son forever, never able to hold their heads high.

Unless Lu Zhengliu dared to favor a concubine and cast his wife aside!

But she believed he did not have the nerve to go so far as to destroy the marquis's household with his own hands for one mere woman.

Zhu Qing was utterly bewildered.

"All right, I'm going to see Old Madam. If you want to come, come along. If not, go back to Rain Apricot Pavilion."

"I'll go."

Zhu Qing followed her, and did not press her about what she had left unexplained.

Madam could not be wrong. Following her was the right thing to do.

The two had just gone out when Lu Chang'gong arrived, having changed his clothes as well.

Lin Yunwan straightened the ornaments at his waist for him. "Why did you come out in such a hurry?"

Lu Chang'gong rubbed his nose. "I knew you were going to the meeting hall, so I practiced my handwriting for a while before coming over."

That was why he had been delayed.

But this time he had not lost himself in it; he had kept an eye on the time and hurried over.

Lin Yunwan laughed at him. "I never said you couldn't practice during the day."

They were chatting and laughing when Lu Zhengliu arrived too.

"Heir Apparent."

Zhu Qing saw him first and curtsied in greeting.

Lu Chang'gong also hurriedly turned around. "Father."

Lin Yunwan said coolly, "Heir Apparent."

Lu Zhengliu walked to her side and looked at her expression, the corners of his mouth dipping slightly. "You treat the boy well."

Lin Yunwan glanced at him. She found the remark strange; it did not sound like praise.

"Mother asked me to go to her courtyard with you. Old Madam Xia and Eldest Sister are there with her."

Lin Yunwan nodded, and the four of them led a group of maids to Wei Shi's place.

She deliberately walked with Lu Chang'gong and Zhu Qing, keeping away from Lu Zhengliu.

He noticed it himself and deliberately lengthened his stride, walking ahead of them.

After he had gone some distance, he listened intently to the sounds behind him. Lin Yunwan was talking to Lu Chang'gong again.

The corner of his mouth curled in a cold sneer.

She really was warm toward a mere adopted son.

"All right, no more formal greetings. We're all family here, so make yourselves comfortable."

When they arrived at Wei Shi's place, she spoke to Lin Yunwan and Lu Zhengliu with a broad smile.

But in front of their relatives, none of them dared neglect the rules. They greeted their elders one by one before taking their seats according to seniority and age.

They were the same people they had seen that day. Third Master Jin, who had not appeared before, still had not shown himself.

Old Madam Xia smiled faintly. "He said there were too many women in the inner courtyard. We called him several times, but he refused to come."

Eldest Aunt Jia said, "My brother-in-law is the most particular about propriety."

Lin Yunwan joined in. "It seems Chang Gong will have to wait until tomorrow's banquet to see Third Master's remarkable bearing for himself."

Lu Chang'gong immediately stood up and said, "I've long admired him." After saying this, he grew curious. What was Third Master Jin really like? Could he be even more accomplished than Uncle Yi?

By the time he sat down, the elders had already moved on to another topic.

When women gathered together, they talked about little beyond caring for their husbands and raising their children.

Old Madam Xia said appreciatively, "The child Yun Wan has brought up has much of the Lin clan's character."

Wei Shi smiled. "I only hope she has a child of her own too. That child would have even more of the Lin Family's fine character."

Eldest Aunt Jia glanced at Lin Yunwan and Lu Zhengliu and said with a smile, "I've never seen a better-matched couple. He's talented and she's beautiful. If they had a son, what an outstanding child he would be!"

As the family continued to tease them, Lu Zhengliu's heart stirred. If Lin Yunwan bore him a son who took after her in looks or intelligence, surely he would be a favored son of heaven.

He could not help turning to glance at Lin Yunwan.

But she remained indifferent throughout.

For some reason, Lu Zhengliu suddenly felt a little regret.

He regretted agreeing to take Ge Bao'er as a concubine.