Chapter 106 — The Wu Family

Wu Ao seized the chance to cut short the father and son's talk, and said with a smile: "...there will be plenty of time after the evening meal."

Wu Songnian was well pleased with his son's lessons and went smiling into the main hall.

The corners of Wu Shan's mouth were lifted, yet there was not a trace of mirth in his eyes. He followed his father inside.

Wu Ao could not help sighing.

After she had seen her husband washed and changed, she could not resist asking him: "Did you not say Lord Cai had invited you to drink today? How is it you are back so early?"

Wu Songnian shook his head with a smile. "Do not speak of it—old Cai has gone off to act as a matchmaker for someone!"

"A matchmaker?" Wu Ao was taken aback. "Why would he go and play matchmaker for anyone? Who has such prestige as to prevail upon him?"

Cai Bi's learning was of the first order, but his character was of the first order in snobbery as well; had Cai Bi and Dou Bingheng not been in-laws, their family would never have had dealings with him under any circumstances, and even as it was, Wu Songnian would not lightly darken the Cai family's door save for some pressing matter.

"It is Lord He," said Wu Songnian. "He wishes to seek the Dou family's young lady in marriage for his youngest son, and has asked Cai Bi to act as matchmaker." Then he added, "From what Cai Bi let slip, it seems Lord He feared the Dou family would refuse, and so asked him to step forward and see the match through no matter what."

Wu Ao's eyelids twitched. "Miss Dou Juan? Which in the ranking is she?"

"How should I have inquired into that?" said Wu Songnian. "Yuanji has seven brothers in all; there must be several nieces in the household."

"Nieces?" Wu Ao was confounded. "Would that not be a mismatch in generation?"

"Just so!" Wu Songnian frowned. "Otherwise, why call upon Cai Bi? For one thing, he is connected to the Dou family by marriage, which makes it easy for him to say what needs saying; for another, apart from Cai Bi, how many men could dream up such cunning schemes and cite the classics this way and that to make the whole affair sound plausible?" Then he added with feeling, "By the looks of it, the He family is set on this match. This is Yuanji's good fortune too—if Elder Zeng retires, with Elder He's wholehearted support, Yuanji's entry into the Grand Secretariat is beyond doubt."

Wu Ao's heart churned in an instant like water come to a boil.

Her husband did not know how many young ladies there were in the Dou family; she knew perfectly well.

Of the Dou family's nieces of marriageable age, there was only Dou Chu.

The thought had barely crossed her mind when she heard her son cry out in dismay: "Could it be Shouyuan?"

Husband and wife could not help turning to look at Wu Shan.

They saw their son standing there frozen, quite beside himself.

The two exchanged a glance, and then heard their daughter Wu Ya retort loudly: "How could it be Shouyuan? She was raised in the countryside at Zhending. How would the He family know of her? It must be Dou Ming. Dou Ming is, after all, also the maternal granddaughter of Lord Wang..."

"Quite so, quite so." Wu Shan seemed to come back to himself; though his brow was beaded with sweat, he suddenly came alive again, saying with unexpected delight, "Shouyuan is betrothed to the Wei family of the Jining Marquis's household; it cannot be her, it cannot be her..."

Wu Songnian's expression, however, changed drastically. He said in a stern voice: "Look not at what is contrary to propriety, listen not to what is contrary to propriety. We should not be discussing other families' affairs behind their backs. Both of you go down now! I have something to say to your mother."

Wu Shan and Wu Ya withdrew.

Wu Songnian's face grew graver still, and he asked Wu Ao: "The Fourth Miss you spoke of—is she this Shouyuan?"

Wu Ao nodded.

"The one the He family means to marry is most likely this Shouyuan," Wu Songnian said in a low voice. "Today Lord Cai went to the Jining Marquis's household."

"What did you say?" Wu Ao said in shock. "That cannot be! That Dou Yan is already betrothed to another family—how could the He family still marry her? Is it possible that without Dou Yan, the He family cannot find a wife?" Yet in her heart there was a mingling of sweet and sour, bitter and hot, and she could not tell what it was she felt.

"The He family is of such eminence; they would not marry his niece merely to curry favor with Yuanji," said Wu Songnian, and even he found it absurd; hands clasped behind his back, he paced about the room. "He Yu is the youngest son; when a man takes a wife, he takes virtue... I fear that Fourth Miss... is no simple matter!" The more he thought on it, the more a note of reproach crept into his voice. "In the matter back then, you should have consulted me first. A good wife is half of one's fortune; our household is thin in sons, while the Dou family has nephews and nieces in abundance—if we could have married Miss Dou Juan, our Shan'er would have someone to lean on..."

Wu Ao's face went white and red by turns, and for a long while she could not utter a word.

Wu Shan, who had been hiding beneath his parents' window and listening, seemed to lose all strength; he slid down and sat upon the ground against the screen wall carved with western lotus.

Wu Ya, who had followed her brother in all things, bit her lip and gazed at him, a dark cloud gathering in her eyes.

※

To the sisters and brothers who follow this book, I am making up for tomorrow's update.

Begging for pink votes...

※