A Willing Mistake, My Lady – Chapter 63
by Little PandaAn Unexpected Reunion
“This beauty is mine today!”
Jiang Chenyu arrived before the gates of Wanxiang Pavilion, accompanied by Cuiwan. She hesitated, unsure of how she was supposed to get inside. How had those two managed to slip past just now?
With no other choice, she could only steel herself and head in. But just as she took a step, she was blocked by the porter1 at the door.
“Hold on. Miss, this is no place for the likes of you. You had best go home as early as you can, lest trouble breaks out and no one can clean up the mess!” The porter eyed Jiang Chenyu with shifty, rat-like eyes, wondering to himself: Is she here to catch an adulterous husband?
Although the young lady was plainly dressed and wore a veil, his years of experience told him she was no ordinary woman. Just her clear, autumn-water eyes alone could easily outshine eighty percent of the girls in the pavilion. He figured this little lady’s husband must have grown tired of the fresh flower at home and come here to seek a change of pace.
Looking at only half her face, the porter had already conjured a grand drama in his mind.
Jiang Chenyu drew a gold nugget the size of a fingernail from her purse and slipped it into his sleeve. She deliberately slowed her movements as she pulled it out, ensuring he could clearly see it was gold.
“Little brother, please make things easy for us. I’m not here to start a fight. My husband sent someone to inform me that he’s too drunk to return, so I came to fetch him.” Jiang Chenyu spoke with an air of gentle warmth, looking completely unlike someone who would cause a scene. Behind her, Cuiwan forced a smile that was meant to look polite but turned out somewhat menacing.
“You must understand that this is a brothel. Once you two go inside, don’t blame me if anything happens. I know nothing.” The porter looked at the gold bean in his hand and eagerly bit it to leave a mark. When he looked up again, his smile was so wide his eyes were squeezed shut.
“Yes, of course!” Jiang Chenyu hastily pulled Cuiwan inside, slipping through the doors. Money really did make the world go round.
She had never expected that she would one day enter a brothel. Truly, the turns of the world were unpredictable.
“Did they mention which room?” Under the cover of the crowd, the two of them squeezed their way up to the second floor, only to realize they had forgotten to ask which room Jiang Ning was in.
“Jiang Yi only left with Chuntao-jiejie. He didn’t tell me!” Cuiwan was also bewildered. The two of them had become like headless flies. Surrounded by drifting women clad in sheer silks and carousing men, they stood out like sore thumbs in the middle of the hallway.
They had been too impulsive. Why had Chuntao disappeared as well? Could something have gone wrong? At that thought, Jiang Chenyu felt a prickle of anxiety.
She had not even managed to get the first one out yet, and now the second was lost too. What was she supposed to do?
She looked at the circle of nearly twenty rooms lining the upper floor of Wanxiang Pavilion. Which one could it possibly be?
“Oh? That looks like Chuntao and the others. Cuiwan, go, follow them!” A group of people emerged from a room in the distance, seemingly on the verge of descending the wooden stairs on the west side. If they didn’t catch up now, they would lose them.
Hearing Jiang Chenyu’s command, Cuiwan quickly set off in pursuit. Jiang Chenyu figured that since she had spotted Chuntao, she might as well head outside to wait for them. After all, she could hardly search every single room one by one.
Yet she still felt a lingering reluctance at not finding Jiang Ning. Thus, on her way back, she couldn’t help but peer through any slightly ajar doors she passed.
At that moment, a short young master who had just stepped out of the latrine caught sight of a beauty unlike any of the pavilion girls. She wore a light veil over her face, and even the curve of her bent waist was exquisitely graceful. Though he couldn’t see her face clearly, her slender, elegant posture left no doubt that she was a rare beauty.
Rubbing his hands together, he felt his interest pique. He had not expected the pavilion to offer such entertainment. They certainly knew how to play.
Unaware that someone had approached from behind, Jiang Chenyu carefully peeked into the room ahead, only to find it did not contain the person she was looking for.
Disappointed, she decided she should return to the carriage. With Cuiwan no longer by her side, she didn’t dare linger too long.
Suddenly, she felt her hair loosen from behind. Her ink-black tresses cascaded down like silk, glowing with a soft, golden halo under the light of the overhead lanterns.
The gently swaying strands seemed to brush against the very heart of the young master of the Li family, dazing him. He reached out, eager to caress that flowing, silky hair.
Jiang Chenyu abruptly turned around, her gaze sharp with vigilance as she stared at the infatuated dandy before her. Sensing trouble, she did not panic too much, knowing her maids were nearby and Jiang Ning was also in the building. Stealing a quick glance at the young master, she immediately turned and ran toward the staircase.
The young master of the Li family felt his heart skip a beat upon seeing her picturesque features. But before he could even react, the ethereal little beauty slipped away right under his nose.
“Miss! Don’t run, Miss!” The young master of the Li family called out, giving chase in his drunken stupor.
Seeing him give chase, Jiang Chenyu ran even faster. However, the corridor was narrow and cluttered with groups of patrons chatting and laughing, blocking her path. It was a massive nuisance.
The bystanders assumed the two were merely playing some sort of game, watching the chase with great amusement.
Just then, around the corner ahead, a slender, straight-backed figure was dragging a slightly sturdier man toward another corridor.
At the sight of that familiar back, Jiang Chenyu’s eyes welled with tears. She had thought she was too busy these past few days to think of her, but perhaps she had only buried her longing so deeply that she had not dared to disturb it.
“Ah Tang!” She called out hastily toward the figure’s back.
Shen Hetang, who was busy dragging Heir Wei to pay a visit to Miss Ye, suddenly heard a familiar voice calling her name from behind. Believing herself to be hallucinating, she turned her head anyway to steal a glance.
That single glance froze her in place. Jiang Chenyu was running toward her, her long hair streaming behind her. Even with the veil, how could Shen Hetang fail to recognize her own wife?
She immediately let go of Heir Wei and parted the crowd, taking two quick steps forward.
Jiang Chenyu threw herself directly into her arms, nearly tripping over her own skirt. She wrapped her arms tightly around Shen Hetang’s neck, the tip of her nose turning red with grievance.
“What are you doing here?” Shen Hetang stabilized her with one arm, gently patting her back as she spoke softly.
Before Jiang Chenyu could answer, the young master of the Li family came stumbling after her, throwing himself forward.
Seeing that the man was about to crash into them, Shen Hetang quickly scooped Jiang Chenyu up by her waist. Planting her foot on the handrail of the wooden stairs, she leaped down to the lower floor with her wife in her arms.
The broad hem of Jiang Chenyu’s skirt flared in the air as they spun, and the two of them landed steadily on the landing halfway down the stairs.
The onlookers on both sides erupted into cheers and whistles, making the hall exceptionally lively.
Having thrown all his weight into catching the beauty, the young master of the Li family lunged forward only to hit empty air, slamming face-first into the corridor railing. This prompted another round of roaring laughter from the crowd.
A bystander recognized the fallen man as the son of the Vice-Minister of Rites and quickly helped him to his feet.
Though he had taken quite a bruising, the young master of the Li family remained obsessed, looking around in bewilderment for the vanished beauty.
Looking down through the open balustrade, he spotted his newly discovered beauty resting right in the arms of the Little General. Instantly re-energized, he stood up straight.
“Wait a moment, Brother Shen! I spotted this stunning little beauty first. How could you just snatch her away?!” he protested, looking down at the two of them with an anxious face.
“Brother Li, this beauty threw herself into my arms of her own accord. It simply proves that we’re fated. Why don’t you yield her to me today?” As she spoke, Shen Hetang felt a sharp pinch at her waist. The culprit, meanwhile, remained demurely buried against her chest.
“That won’t do! How could you? Little General Shen, you’d better return this beauty to your older brother here. The moment I saw her, my heart went wild. I truly yearn for her!” The young master of the Li family stood there rubbing his hands, looking both pathetic and deeply infatuated.
Shen Hetang was provoked to a laugh by his ridiculous display. Shards of ice were hidden in her smiling eyes as she spoke coldly, “No.”
“Come now, Little Brother Shen. We’ve gone out to play so many times. Last time, when I introduced you to the most beautiful girl on the pleasure boat, Miss Zhizhi, you didn’t even spare her a glance. Why must you fight with your older brother over this one?”
The son of the Vice-Minister of Rites was quite a character. He was clearly an idle strawbag2 who frequented brothels, yet he insisted on playing the part of a devoted lover to every woman he met. He liked to posture as a refined scholar, looking down on the unrefined ways of vulgar men.
“I happen to have the whim today, and she is the one I want. I will not yield!” Watching the persistent Young Master Li, Shen Hetang began to lose her patience.
Snuggled in her embrace, Jiang Chenyu’s hand pinched her waist again—even harder this time—upon hearing that she frequently visited brothels and pleasure boats. So, without my supervision, she has really lost all restraint, indulging in wine and women?
Though petite, Jiang Chenyu still reached Shen Hetang’s chin. Having kept herself buried in the other’s chest for so long, she felt too embarrassed to lift her head now.
Seeing how well-matched the two looked, the onlookers began to tease, “Since the beauty clearly favors General Shen, Young Master Li had best give her up!”
At this point, the Shen family’s practically invisible brother-in-law stepped forward. Heir Wei found himself in a tight spot—with his brother-in-law on one side and his close friend on the other, he was momentarily at a loss as to whom to support.
Ultimately, he offered hesitantly, “Zinian, Ah Tang has only recently returned to the capital after a long absence. Let him have his way this once. Do it as a favor to me!”
“Brother Wei, you’re clearly favoring your own family! Everyone says General Shen is to wed County Princess Qingyang in a matter of days. Does he really dare to be so brazen at a crucial time like this?” Though Li Zinian seemed soft, he was surprisingly stubborn.
The moment those words left his mouth, Shen Hetang’s other side of her waist suffered a brutal pinch. Her brow twitched slightly, but a faint smile touched her lips as she captured the mischievous hand in her own.
“I do as I please. Brother Li, you’re poking your nose where it doesn’t belong. Today, this woman is mine. It’s merely a bit of theatrical indulgence; I’m sure the County Princess won’t mind. There’s no need for Brother Li to worry on my behalf.” Shen Hetang’s expression gradually grew cold.
With that, she gently tilted Jiang Chenyu’s chin up and bestowed a heart-fluttering kiss upon her lips through the veil. Then, taking her by the hand, she led her down to the first floor, refusing to waste any more breath on a patron pretending to be a refined scholar.
Jiang Chenyu lowered her eyes and followed quietly, allowing herself to be led through the crowd.
Seeing Shen Hetang boldly kiss the beauty, Li Zinian turned and grabbed Heir Wei, complaining, “Look at his attitude! How could he treat a beauty so rudely?”
Heir Wei felt a headache coming on. This fellow was decent enough in other aspects, but he had an annoying habit of trying to sound cultured. They were all just a bunch of good-for-nothings3, yet Zinian insisted on mimicking the romantic elegance of scholars.
“Young Master Li, why don’t you teach me how to recite poetry instead? That little lady isn’t one of our girls. Why on earth were you chasing her? She was clearly here for the Little General. Don’t be so foolish!” A striking beauty across the way, leaning against her doorframe with one hand, teased.
“She was not one of the pavilion girls?” Li Zinian murmured, his enthusiasm instantly evaporating as he fell into a daze.
“Let’s go drink, Brother Li. If another fine one comes along, I will surely keep her for you,” Heir Wei said, ushering Young Master Li toward their private booth.
“Hmph. Even if there were, I doubt you’d save her for me. How’s that courtesan lady of yours at home doing anyway?”
For all his average looks and mediocre talents, Young Master Li possessed remarkably high standards. He had no interest in vulgar beauties4, a pickiness that frequently made him the laughingstock of his friends.
“The courtesan? You sure have your eyes on a lot of things!” Heir Wei replied, rolling his eyes in annoyance.
As Shen Hetang led Jiang Chenyu out of Wanxiang Pavilion, they crossed paths with Cuiwan, who had just returned from her search.
“Master?!” Cuiwan gasped, her expression filling with excitement at the sight of Shen Hetang.
“Didn’t I tell you to stay by your mistress’s side? Where did you go?” Shen Hetang kept her voice low, but the gravity in her tone was unmistakable.
Not daring to talk back, Cuiwan lowered her head. “This servant knows her mistake.”
“It’s not her fault. I was the one who sent her away,” Jiang Chenyu quickly intervened on Cuiwan’s behalf.
“I’ve yet to ask you—what are you doing here?” While Shen Hetang was overjoyed to see Jiang Chenyu, finding her inside Wanxiang Pavilion left her with a lingering sense of dread.
“We came to look for Jiang Ning. She was here negotiating business and couldn’t get away,” Jiang Chenyu explained, gently squeezing Shen Hetang’s palm.
“Let’s get in the carriage first,” Shen Hetang said, lifting the curtain.
“Mmh… All right.” The entrance of a brothel was indeed no place to catch up after a long parting.
Cuiwan took her place at the front to drive the carriage. She had already told her that Jiang Ning was taken back by Chuntao and Cuidie, and she had run back alone to find her mistress.
Inside the carriage, only a single hand-held lantern hung to provide a dim light. Under its soft glow, Jiang Chenyu removed her veil, revealing her exquisite, hibiscus-like face.
She said nothing, merely staring at Shen Hetang with her large, luminous eyes.
The person who had been so confident moments ago suddenly felt a wave of foreboding.
“So, General Shen is soon to tie the knot with the County Princess? And with this little woman, you’re merely playing a part?” Jiang Chenyu stared into her eyes, her voice completely devoid of emotion as she interrogated her.
“Don’t listen to his nonsense. I’ve been driven ragged these past few days. But things are finally about to be settled. I was just thinking of bringing you to the capital in a few days,” Shen Hetang explained, pulling Jiang Chenyu onto her lap and wrapping her arms around her slender waist.
“Busy visiting brothels? Enjoying wine and women? Do you have a favorite girl here?” Jiang Chenyu’s voice remained soft and cool, carrying a somewhat chilling edge in the dark carriage.
Seeing that she was truly upset, Shen Hetang cupped her cheeks and pecked her tender pink lips twice before saying, “I don’t have a favorite girl. Coming here was solely to handle the matter with the County Princess. It won’t be long before you can enter the General’s Manor openly. I’ll carry you in on my back, all right?”
“Hmph, as if I’d believe your nonsense. Visiting brothels all for the sake of the County Princess… If the day ever comes when you marry her, I’ll surely prepare a magnificent gift for you both.” In truth, as long as Shen Hetang said there was nothing between them, she believed her. She simply didn’t want to let her off the hook so easily.
Seeing her pout so deeply that a tiny crease appeared on her nose, her curled eyelashes fluttering like little fans, Shen Hetang thought she looked less angry and more like she was throwing a spoiled tantrum.
She gathered Jiang Chenyu’s cascading hair and bound it with a purple silk ribbon from the carriage curtain. The thick, silky strands glided smoothly through her nimble fingers, quickly drawn back into a neat gather that draped behind her shoulders.
Softened by this gentle, attentive gesture, Jiang Chenyu lost the desire to bicker any further.
Shen Hetang’s long fingers slid to her delicate neck, gently pulling her down as she tilted her own chin up to meet her.
Only then did the argumentative atmosphere fade.
As the carriage neared the inn, Shen Hetang’s disgruntled voice rang out again.
“Why does she go to the brothel, and my wife has to go fetch her? We need to find her a partner as soon as possible. Whether she marries off or takes a wife, she needs to settle down quickly so she stops coveting what is in other people’s bowls.” It was truly a case of not fearing the thief stealing, but fearing the thief constantly eyeing your things.
“Hehehe, it is not that easy for her. Besides, we are business partners, so this naturally doesn’t count as just helping her.” Jiang Chenyu was thoroughly amused by her sour expression.
“Still, it won’t do. She cannot use my wife. Let her find her own helper,” Shen Hetang grumbled, repeating herself as if refusing to listen to reason.
“It’s already this late. Aren’t you heading back?” Jiang Chenyu asked, glancing at the large, round moon outside.
“They say a brief absence exceeds a new marriage. Why should I leave?” Shen Hetang replied, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Jiang Chenyu’s pale cheeks flushed red in the darkness of the carriage, but she didn’t insist on sending her away.
By the time Madam Shen realized Shen Hetang had not returned home, three days had already passed. Only then did she belatedly send someone to ask the Heir’s Wife about her sister’s whereabouts.
The Heir’s Wife merely sent word back telling her not to worry, assuring her that the person couldn’t possibly be lost, and then heard nothing more of the matter.
She had likely been extremely busy lately, running about to arrange the entrance of Heir Wei’s new concubine.
Given Shen Hetang’s true identity, it was impossible for her to accept any imperial marriage. It was best to settle this affair as quickly as possible, then bring her own wife over to serve as a shield.
Shen Yunshu had no choice but to offer up Heir Wei. After all, she was bound to Shen Hetang by blood; if the family faced ruin, she would go down with them, so this matter was no different from her own.
Yet after Miss Ye was brought into the household, though Heir Wei raised no objections, the former courtesan concubine was thoroughly displeased. The Marquis Manor, which had enjoyed only two days of peace, was plunged right back into chaotic domestic strife. To everyone’s surprise, the newly arrived Concubine Ye was no pushover; she possessed a remarkable talent for overcoming strength with gentleness.
Terrified that three women would stage a play5, Heir Wei was so frightened he stopped coming home altogether.
Of course, all of that lay in the future. For now, the new concubine had only just entered the household, carried through the back gate in a modest sedan chair.
Carrying the savings she had painstakingly gathered, Ye Qingyao was carried into the Marquis Manor. Upon her departure, the Madame of the brothel had been quite loath to see her go, specially gifting her a golden phoenix hairpin as a keepsake.
“Qingdai, once you are in the Marquis Manor, you must behave yourself. Do not let the Heir grow weary of you. Heir Wei’s rear courtyard is already home to our Wanxiang Pavilion’s previous top courtesan. If there is anything you do not understand, you can simply ask her.” The Madame had secretly thought that Heir Wei grew tired of the old and favored the new rather too quickly, but then, who could complain when the man possessed both power and wealth?
“Mama, you don’t need to worry. I must thank you for your care over all this time. Qingyao will take her leave now.” Ye Qingyao curtsied gracefully.
With that, she departed Wanxiang Pavilion. Originally, she had planned to save enough money to seek out a quiet water town in Jiangnan to live out the rest of her days.
Who could have foreseen that she would end up confined here? Yet, being arranged to enter the Marquis Manor was indeed an unexpected turn of events. Ah Yin had told her to treat it simply as renting a room; someone else would handle the rest, and she could only follow her arrangements.
After all, this was a breakthrough. Once the current storm blew over, wouldn’t it be far easier to slip away from the Heir’s estate?
Having reasoned it through, Ye Qingyao slung her small bundle over her shoulder and, carrying her hopes for a future of freedom and happiness, became Heir Wei’s fifth concubine.
Meanwhile, upon hearing that Ye Qingyao had been carried into the Marquis Manor in a modest sedan chair, the County Princess caught a cold and had been bedridden and listless ever since.
Feeling a twinge of guilt, the Dowager Empress didn’t dare mention the imperial marriage again, deciding to wait until her granddaughter recovered.
As long as that stepsister who had led her astray had been settled and could no longer entangle her, the other matters could easily be delayed.
Footnotes
- The term 'guīgōng' (龟公), literally 'turtle duke,' historically referred to a male worker or gatekeeper in a Chinese brothel.
- The term 'cǎobāo' (草包), literally 'straw bag,' is a colloquial insult used to describe someone useless, foolish, or lacking in real ability.
- The idiom 'jiǔnáng fàndài' (酒囊饭袋), literally 'wine skins and rice bags,' is a derogatory term used to describe useless people who only know how to eat and drink.
- The idiom 'yōngzhī súfěn' (庸脂俗粉), literally 'common grease and vulgar powder,' is used to disparage women of mediocre appearance or low class.
- The popular saying 'sān gè nǚrén yī tái xì' (三个女人一台戏), literally 'three women make a drama,' suggests that when three women gather, gossip, drama, or conflict will inevitably ensue.
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