Chapter 34 — Chaos
Purple Streets of Chang'an · Page 1 of 4
When Gao Shi stepped outside, her wet nurse hurried to meet her. Seeing her face ashen, the nurse's heart skipped a beat, and she asked in a low, anxious voice, "What happened?"
"Mad, mad! They're all mad!" Gao Shi was trembling with fury. As she spoke, she swept her eyes over the courtyard.
The courtyard was silent. Beneath the eaves, the great red lanterns cast their light on the blooming hostas beside the steps, lending even the flowers a touch of added brilliance.
She came from a great family; an empty courtyard did not mean there was no one in it.
"Go fetch the coachman and tip him a tael of silver," Gao Shi instructed the nurse. "We set out for Nanwa at once."
The carriage and its driver both belonged to Squire Li of the same village, who, upon hearing that Wang Xingyi had been restored to office, had insisted on lending them to the family. It had been agreed that they would return tomorrow evening; now the man would have to drive through the night, so a tip was unavoidable.
The nurse knew something had gone awry, but she had come out of the Gao household and understood propriety. She asked nothing, summoned the coachman, made the excuse of urgent family business, and left the Dou house first.
On the road, they encountered Dou Juan's carriage.
The nurse gave a little "oh" and smiled. "That may be the Seventh Master of the Dou family, returned!"
The implication being: ought they not greet him?
But Gao Shi seized the nurse's arm and ordered the coachman, "Do not stop!" Her voice was somewhat hurried.
The two carriages passed each other.
Gao Shi let out a long breath and murmured, "How could I have the face now to greet anyone of the Dou family!"
Only then did the nurse lean close to Gao Shi's ear and whisper, "What is it?"
Gao Shi had been in this nurse's care since birth, and had afterward endured ten hard years at her side in the Wang household; the woman was like kin to her. She concealed nothing, and recounted the whole affair from beginning to end.
The nurse was dumbstruck. "What's to be done? What's to be done?" she fretted. Then, thinking of Gao Shi's rush to Nanwa by night, she took her hand and admonished her without cease. "On the nineteenth day after you and the Elder Master were wed, he followed the Master to Xining Guard. Between you and him there is only obligation, no affection—do not lose your head. This is a matter between brother and sister; a word of advice is all very well, but whatever you do, do not stand alone and hold the line against them. You know the Old Madam's temper. All these years, but for you, how could the Wang family ever have bought land? How could the young mistress have carried on her trade? You have tended the Old Madam more devotedly than a own daughter, yet whenever the Old Madam speaks of family affairs, she always puts the young mistress ahead of you. That Pang woman married in against her will; when the family had not a coin to its name she already looked at you askance, and relying on the Second Master's doting compliance, she would insist on contesting precedence with you. Now the Master is restored to office, and heaven knows what she is scheming! Do not let it come to pass that the whole household finds you an eyesore."
"Every mother dotes on her daughter—my own mother dotes on me, does she not?" Gao Shi offered a feeble defense, then said, "The reason I must hurry back is to persuade the Elder Master to have my father-in-law intervene and bring my sister-in-law home by force. Otherwise, if Pang is allowed to keep stirring the pot, even should my sister-in-law be brought back, I fear it will by then have become a scandal known to all—and that would be a mortal disgrace!" Her expression was helpless.
The nurse nodded again and again. "So long as you know your own mind, I am at ease."
Over there, Dou Yan saw a carriage pass by and could not help turning to look back.