A Willing Mistake, My Lady – Chapter 51
by Little PandaMountains of Gold and Silver
Ah Tang’s bad luck and endless flying vinegar
Having been busy for nearly three months, Jiang Ning finally found time in the midsummer heat to gather at Jiang Manor. Of the cargo in her ship’s hold, what had been sold or wholesaled left less than a third remaining in bits and pieces.
However, more than half of the precious jewelry remained. The buyers in small localities were already saturated; she’d have to go to larger regions to sell the rest.
Even so, the silver they’d earned was already eight or nine times their initial capital. Besides, after the batch of goods they secured before departure was sold to foreign nations, their capital had essentially been recovered.
The success of this maritime voyage was enough to equal a lifetime of earnings for other merchants. Some merchants, seeing the immense profits behind this maritime trade, had already booked their spots for the second voyage. But venturing out to sea was no simple feat; those who missed it this time wouldn’t necessarily have to wait several years for the next.
Jiang Ning’s success had already made quite a few people restless. Fortunately, the brothers under her command had followed her since childhood; whether out of fear or gratitude, their loyalty would hold for the foreseeable future. If anyone wished to make a move against her, it wouldn’t be something they could pull off overnight.
“I heard someone already tried to arrange a marriage for you? They even offered two whole mountains as a betrothal gift?” Jiang Chenyu asked, sitting on a stone stool under the shade of a large tree, unable to hold back her smile.
“Don’t listen to those people’s nonsense. Your father wants no part of any marriage! They’re just a bunch of jealous fools who saw me make silver and are dying to get a piece of the pie. As if I don’t know their dirty little schemes—they’re actually willing to throw their own sons into the bargain!” Jiang Ning sat with her legs splayed on the other side of the stone bench, casually picking up a piece of fruit and taking a bite.
“Listen to you. How does marrying you count as throwing their sons away?” Jiang Chenyu disagreed. Although Jiang Ning didn’t have the typical temperament of a woman, she had her own charm and could easily find someone suited to her.
“They’ve all got their calculations made, but your father isn’t falling for it. Besides, I don’t think much of them anyway. Tell them to wash up and go to sleep!” Jiang Ning said dismissively.
“Sigh, a good match is indeed hard to find, but you’ll cross paths with one eventually,” Jiang Chenyu said with a meaningful smile.
“Let’s talk business. I came here this time to deliver your silver. Since I’m the one operating out in the open, keeping all this money on me is far too dangerous. I’ll take this opportunity to give you your share.” Jiang Ning pulled out a ledger from her breast pocket, detailing the past three months of business.
“Why would I need to look at this? Chuntao did all these accounts anyway.” Jiang Chenyu pressed her hand down on the ledger.
“You trust the two of us that much? What if I ran off with Chuntao and we partnered up to embezzle your silver?” Jiang Ning teased.
“If you trust someone, don’t suspect them; if you suspect them, don’t trust them. Besides, you only gave me a cut out of friendship to begin with. Whether it’s a bit more or a bit less, it’s all profit for me. Oh, and by the way—this time, I’m only accepting a fifty-fifty split. We can’t go by the old sixty-forty split anymore. Although I put up more capital than you did, your hard work has long exceeded the value of my extra funds.” Jiang Chenyu really couldn’t bring herself to take the lion’s share again.
“Alright, we’ll do as you say.” Jiang Ning wasn’t one to hesitate.
“Then let me give you a rough summary. When we set out, we bought 100,000 taels’ worth of porcelain, tea, silks, and the like. Once we crossed the South Seas1, we sold all those goods. Converting it to silver, we got 400,000 taels. Expenses for bribing officials and clearing the path along the way came to about 100,000 taels. With the remaining 300,000, we selected local specialties from several small kingdoms in the South Seas, though the bulk of the funds was spent on jewelry.” Jiang Ning flipped through the ledger, giving Jiang Chenyu a rough breakdown of the accounts.
“After being busy for these three months, we’ve sold two-thirds of the cargo, bringing in 1.8 million taels. Subtracting 200,000 taels for the imperial court and 100,000 taels for our forty crew members, we have 1.5 million taels2 left in hand.” At this point, the usually boisterous Jiang Ning leaned in close to Jiang Chenyu’s ear, whispering the figure.
Jiang Chenyu tapped her fingers lightly on the tabletop to calm her racing heart. Although she’d grown up surrounded by commerce, earning such an immense fortune still left her incredibly thrilled, even if she managed to maintain a calm facade.
Her share of this two-thirds sold was already 750,000 taels. Once everything was completely sold off, her total share would reach exactly one million taels. This voyage had truly allowed the two of them to turn their fortunes around.
“You guys, carry the chests on the carriage inside! Be gentle, don’t go bumping and breaking the bottles and jars inside—these are all precious glazed glassware and jade!” This was pure nonsense. Aside from gold and silver ingots, anything else inside would be jewelry and silver notes.
Four large mahogany chests were carried into Jiang Manor by sixteen burly men. The gold, silver, and jewels inside were all secretly prepared by Jiang Ning in her own cabin, without any outside hands. Although everyone knew the contents were valuable, no one would have guessed they were openly packed with glittering gold and silver.
Everyone knew the sea voyage had brought back a fortune, but those jewels were traded in secret. No one knew exactly how much silver they had sold for. What people could see was only what was displayed on the surface. Jiang Ning’s room was guarded day and night by her younger brothers, and no unauthorized person was allowed near.
Although the chests had been moved to the storehouse and locked, they were filled with solid gold, silver, and jewels. This sudden wave of extreme wealth made her quite uncomfortable. Having too much money made even deciding where to store it a chore—it was truly a mixture of joy and worry.
Although there was a hidden compartment behind the wall of her bedchamber, it wasn’t convenient to have people carry the chests directly in there, so they were all locked in the storehouse for now. She quietly opened them with a key to take a peek; even in the dim storehouse, the brilliant luster of the gold and silver remained blinding.
Now she had her work cut out for her. She’d have to act like a hamster, using small boxes to transfer the treasures from the large chests into her hidden compartment. Though the space inside wasn’t massive, it could easily hold three-quarters of it. Moving mountains of gold and silver was truly a happy trouble to have.
When she had the time, she’d have to bury them in different places. After all, one should never put all her eggs in one basket.
Jiang Ning gave her crew a pouch of silver and sent them off to drink, while she stayed behind to have dinner with Jiang Chenyu. Chuntao was as busy as a little swallow, flitting about the kitchen.
When Shen Hetang returned home, she saw Jiang Ning acting as if this were her own house, dressed in a thin robe and leaning close to Jiang Chenyu’s ear. She had no idea what they were talking about, but her wife was laughing so hard she was doubled over. To make matters worse, that damned Jiang Ning’s hand, of all places, was resting right on Jiang Chenyu’s waist.
Shen Hetang had a massive headache dealing with this bandit, who’d take liberties with her wife the moment her back was turned.
She cleared her throat as she entered the courtyard. Her wife turned around, her small face flushed, clearly showing that the three of them had been having a wonderful conversation.
“Ah Tang, you’re back! Dinner’s just about to be served. Jiang Ning’s here today; she finally managed to free up some time.”
“What wind blew our busy lady here today? Are you staying for a few more days? Otherwise, Chuntao’ll be dreaming of running off to the seaside all day!” Shen Hetang despised herself a little for her own pettiness. But her wife’d said she arrived just in time. Did that mean if she hadn’t made it back, the three of them wouldn’t have even waited for her?
Shen Hetang’s habit of eating vinegar3 was acting up again. She simply couldn’t stand seeing Jiang Chenyu being so close to anyone else.
“Young Master, you’re slandering me! Every time I go to Jiang Ning’s place, it’s to do work for Miss,” Chuntao protested, her lips pouting in rebuttal.
“Brother Shen’s back! I’ve got to have a few good drinks with you.” Knowing that Shen Hetang’s tolerance for alcohol was mediocre at best, Jiang Ning acted as if she had found some leverage over her.
“Since our guest has arrived, I must naturally accompany Boss Jiang to her heart’s content.” One might lose the battle, but one must never lose the posture; regardless of whether she could actually drink, she absolutely couldn’t back down first.
“Let’s eat first. We can talk while we eat!” Jiang Chenyu invited everyone to the table.
The two nannies brought out a table full of delicious dishes. Since the small table indoors couldn’t hold everything, they took advantage of the fading daylight to dine at the Eight Immortals table4 in the courtyard. The square table and long benches were wonderfully spacious. A gentle evening breeze blew, and the residual glow of the setting sun gilded their faces in gold, rendering both people and scenery splendidly soft.
“Chuntao, you don’t have to worry about not having enough of a dowry now, do you?” Jiang Ning handed Chuntao a small box of her own. Whether in the past or during this voyage, Chuntao had proven herself to be a highly capable helper. Even though she had done her work on Jiang Chenyu’s behalf, it didn’t stop Jiang Ning from rewarding her separately.
“I don’t want to get married. I’ll stay by Miss’s side forever,” Chuntao said coyly as she poured wine for everyone.
“Oh, look at you spending money. I was only joking last time. Naturally, I’ll be the one to provide her dowry,” Jiang Chenyu said, merely exchanging polite pleasantries.
“You only call it pleasantries after the silver’s already in hand. You’re definitely swindling me,” Jiang Ning retorted, giving her no face.
“So what if I swindled you? Our Chuntao accepting it is giving you face.” Jiang Chenyu didn’t hold back either; it’s clear at a glance that the two of them were very close friends.
“Miss…” Chuntao protested with a drawn-out whine, as if the two of them were performing a double act to trick Jiang Ning out of the silver in her pockets.
Jiang Chenyu chuckled and said no more. This was another conversation Shen Hetang couldn’t join in on. Aside from drinking her wine, she’d asked the old servant to bring her half a bowl of vinegar, dipping every single dish in it before eating.
“Why are you dipping everything in vinegar?” Jiang Chenyu stole a glance at her and asked in confusion.
“It’s nothing. Just trying to sober up,” she replied, even maintaining a warm, gentle smile on her face.
Hearing this, Jiang Chenyu didn’t pay her any more mind, which instantly made Shen Hetang feel even sourer.
Since it was already late and Jiang Ning’d been drinking, it wasn’t safe for her to return alone, so she was put up in the guest room for the night.
Having been in high spirits today, Jiang Chenyu’d also drunk a few extra cups. She rested her head on her arms, leaning against the edge of the wooden tub, her expressive peach blossom eyes now hazy and unfocused, like a clear pool shrouded in mist.
The flush on her cheeks was more beautiful than any rouge, her pink lips were pouted, and her long hair fell lazily behind her. She sat there, completely uninhibited, snatching the soul of the person standing right in front of her.
The sourness in Shen Hetang’s heart sweetened slightly. I’m really too easy to coax, she thought. She doesn’t even know I was eating vinegar, yet I’ve already let it go on my own.
“Hurry up and come out. Don’t play around in there,” she said, stepping forward to gather her long hair. She tied it into a loose ponytail with a hairband and used a cloth to wring the excess water from the ends. Her hair was too long and’d take ages to dry, and it was already late.
Jiang Chenyu wrapped both arms around her neck, giggling foolishly and refusing to stand. Shen Hetang had no choice but to pull her up, wrap her in a blanket, and carry her out.
“Ah Tang, I like you… That year when you saved me from that drunkard, I branded your face into my mind.” Jiang Chenyu reached out in her dazed state, tracing the contours of Shen Hetang’s face with her finger.
The person holding her froze mid-step, a terrible premonition rising in her heart.
Yet, unwilling to let it go, she asked, “When did this happen? How come I don’t remember?”
Her voice trembled slightly, entirely of its own accord.
“How can you not remember? It was me! Oh, maybe I was too small back then, so it’s not your fault you didn’t recognize me.” Jiang Chenyu grew a bit agitated when she heard that Shen Hetang didn’t remember, but then she reasoned that her appearance’d changed too much. It was only natural that the other couldn’t recall. As long as this person belonged to her now, she didn’t mind.
“How old were you then?” Shen Hetang went cold all over, her mild state of intoxication having long since vanished. Still, she asked once more.
“Ten,” Jiang Chenyu recalled in a daze. “You looked about two or three years older than me, so you must’ve been around thirteen or so. I remember you were injured, and even your trouser leg was covered in blood. You still have that thin scar on your leg right now.” She had secretly inspected that scar before, and it must’ve been left behind from that time.
Shen Hetang didn’t even know how she managed to walk over to the bedside. Laying her down on the brocade quilt, she squeezed her long lashes shut. A faint ache throbbed in her chest, making it difficult for her to breathe.
Footnotes
- Nányáng (南洋) is the historical Chinese term for the South Seas, referring broadly to the geographical region of Southeast Asia, particularly the coastal and maritime trade routes.
- Liǎng (两), or tael, a traditional Chinese unit of weight used as currency for silver. One tael is approximately 37 grams.
- Chīcù (吃醋), literally translating to 'eating vinegar', is a common Chinese colloquialism used to describe romantic jealousy, originating from a famous Tang dynasty imperial court anecdote.
- Bāxiānzhuō (八仙桌), or Eight Immortals table, is a traditional large square wooden table designed to comfortably seat up to eight people, commonly used for family dining.
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