Inside the Grand View Garden, before Crane Pine Hall.
This secluded courtyard was the residence of the Xie Clan's Old Madam. Its vermilion gates remained tightly shut on ordinary days, and idlers were forbidden entry. Whoever dared step inside without the Old Madam's permission would certainly face punishment.
Yet behind this rule lay a story that made one sigh.
That year, Xie Hong had still been a child. By the lotus pond at Crane Pine Hall, he had rescued a little maid who had slipped into the water, only to come down with a severe chill himself.
Several imperial physicians had been summoned to the estate. Even teachers from the Academy who understood medicine had been invited to examine him, yet his condition showed no sign of improving.
The Old Madam had been so anxious that she could neither eat nor sleep. Every day, she knelt before the Buddha, burning incense and praying. After he recovered, she established a strict rule: without her personal permission, no servant could step even half a pace into Crane Pine Hall.
In the early years, the Xie Clan had not had an easy time among Bianjing's great aristocratic families.
The Old Master had died young, leaving behind an enormous family fortune and several little children. The Old Madam alone had held everything together, acting as both stern father and loving mother as she raised the children to adulthood.
As the youngest son, Xie Hong had displayed an exceptional character from childhood. Diligent and eager to learn, he possessed filial piety and brotherly respect, treating his elder brothers with reverence and humility.
When he was young, his elder brothers had left home one after another to seek fame and success. It had been Xie Hong who set aside his Academy studies and shouldered the burden