Chapter 88
Chapter 88
Opening a Hundred Orifices (1)
“Aye, the Ministry of Rites is leading load after load over, who are those betrothal gifts for?”
“I’ve counted, there are a total of thirty-eight betrothal loads. This direction…”
The two passers-by exchanged looks.
“Go, go, let’s follow and take a look.”
Who knew that this walk would lead them to Ronghe Lane, right in front of the Senior Grand Secretary Zheng’s door.
Guarded by the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Justice and the Capital Guard, the loads of betrothal gifts rumbled towards the Senior Grand Secretary’s front door. The Senior Grand Secretary’s chief steward welcomed the guests at the doorway with a beaming face. Bold red lanterns hung high at the doorway, and there were red festive fabric decorations everywhere; one could tell with a glance that there was to be a wedding.
“This, this… Could it be that the Senior Grand Secretary still has another daughter?”
“Buddy, you’re lagging with the news! These betrothal gifts are precisely for our Great Liang’s number one beauty, Lady Zheng!”
“Wasn’t Lady Zheng with the State Preceptor just recently……”
“Who knows, the number one beauty probably has some skills. The moment the State Preceptor left, the crown prince, ah, no, he’s now Ji Wang, cried and made a fuss, insisting on marrying Lady Zheng, saying now that he’s a disabled person, he can’t be the crown prince anymore, but he still needed to have something worth living for. He insisted on marrying her as if possessed, and if he wasn’t allowed to, he would just keep kneeling at Anju Gate forever!”
“In the end, His Majesty couldn’t do anything about all the fuss he was making. His heart ached for his son after all, and so, he let him do what he wanted.”
“Isn’t Ji Wang’s arm——”
The man looked up to the sky and made a chopping gesture.
“Isn’t this ‘beauty brings about disaster’? He’s already like this, and still throwing a fit about wanting to marry her, well, I guess that’s what you call infatuation.”
The women were mostly envious that Lady Zheng would still have someone waiting for her with such heartfelt feelings at this point, while the topics the men discussed were much more serious.
Great Liang had a relaxed stance towards freedom of speech, and there were no restrictions over what could be said and discussed. Not only the literati, but even ordinary folk enjoyed discussing this interesting story that was a mix of amour, the bizarre, and politics.
“Now that things are like this, what about Second Lady Liu? Will the Liu family be willing to take this lying down?”
“Oddly enough, not only did the Liu family neither cry nor kick up a fuss, as soon as Ji Wang broke off the engagement, they married Second Lady Liu off to Jin Wang as his concubine. But luck wasn’t on their side, His Majesty installed Huai Wang as his successor in the end.”
“Move them here, move them here.”
The Zheng’s chief steward led the porters in joyfully. After load upon load of betrothal gifts went through, he led the assistants from the Ministry of Rites and Ministry of Justice to the parlour for tea and to some gifts of silver. On the other side, Ji Wang led a group of men on horseback with great aplomb to deliver the live wild geese1. When he reached the entrance, he tossed his horsewhip.
“Where’s Wan’niang?”
“The lady is in the main hall; she’s currently speaking with the madam.”
Ji Wang ordered someone to deliver the live wild geese to where the betrothal gifts were, then hurried to the main hall, and pulled Zheng Wan out from right in front of Madam Wang.
“Wan’niang, Wan’niang,” Ji Wang pulled Zheng Wan to the side. “I’ve done what I promised you, don’t forget to honour what you’ve promised me too.”
Zheng Wan raised her head towards him and asked smilingly:
“Has Ji Wang explained to His Majesty that you want to use the Plum Gardens for rest and recuperation?”
“Naturally. Imperial Father has promised it to me for half a year.”
Perhaps it was because Zheng Wan’s smile was just too beautiful, and too gentle, that Ji Wang took her hand in his without thinking. “You’re always welcome in my Plum Gardens, but when you go to the Upper Realms, don’t forget about me.”
——————————
[ Guixu Sect | Xuanqing Peak ]
“Ah, Li Wei, hello. You’ve done well, as your teacher, I haven’t misjudged.”
Tian He Xianjun2 sat in the principal seat of the summit, and his old heart was greatly comforted as he looked at the young disciple beneath him. Judging from this, he truly was a luxuriant green pine, exceptionally outstanding. He had gone to the mortal world for not even three months, and had another breakthrough again.
A nineteen-year-old cultivator in the Savant stage, it was a completely unprecedented feat, and very unlikely to ever be repeated.
Whenever Tian He Xianjun thought about how he had obtained such a talented disciple that was like beautiful jade, he would become very pleased with himself; even the frequency with which he stroked his beard became higher.
“I specially requested Jing Su Xianjun to make a divination for you back then. The hexagrams had revealed that you had not yet lived out your destiny in the mortal world. Now that you have returned, and fulfilled your mortal destiny, do you feel that your head and heart are pure and clear, and that you’re no longer encumbered by any concerns?”
Cui Wang pursed his lips and gave a soft “Mm” in reply.
Third Senior Brother Li Siyi immediately voiced his discontent.
“Master, why didn’t you get Jing Su Xianjun to make a divination for this disciple too? Perhaps I might have also had a breakthrough. Besides, with Little Junior Brother’s temperament, what kind of mortal concerns would he have?
“He doesn’t even have a heart.”
“What’s the matter with you, you brat! You want a divination? Fine! We’ll talk after you get rid of your womanizing ways!”
Third Disciple Li Siyi’s interpretation of the Way of Impassiveness was a version in which he could pass through fields of flowers, and yet not have a single leaf cling to him3. Compared to Cui Wang’s cold and aloof behaviour, he was always surrounded by the fairer sex wherever he went——
This was a cause of a great headache for Tian He Xianjun.
Footnote:
1 Wild geese are migratory birds that migrate punctually every year, forming a neat line and taking care of each other on the way. These characteristics are similar to the ancient definition of what a married woman should embody— The punctuality represents trustworthiness and dedication, the neat line represents that there is an order from the elderly to the young, and taking care of each other reflects the task of honouring her parents-in-law and taking care of the house after marriage. When a man gifts the woman a wild goose, he is hoping that she will have the same qualities. Also, as the wild geese only have one mate throughout their lives, they are also a symbol of loyalty. A man’s gift to a woman with a wild goose also represents an oath of loyalty to the woman.
2 Xianjun: 仙君; literally translates to ‘Immortal Monarch’.
3 Pass through fields of flowers, and yet not have a single leaf cling to him: This is a Chinese saying that originally refers to a person who’s unaffected by all the flowers (women) around him, and is a true gentleman. In modern times though, it is now often used as a metaphor for a man who is involved with many women, yet does not belong to any one person, nor does he give any one of them any hope or ideas about a lasting future. They seem to be passionate, but in reality, are ruthless. Most of these people have superb emotional means, have no scruples in doing things, and lack a sense of responsibility, hence, they can “walk through the fields of flowers” without a “single leaf” clinging to them. Despite the ancient setting, I would think the author is using this phrase as the modern metaphor, describing Li Siyi as an unscrupulous womanizer, as it makes more sense in the context.