Jin Niang had just stepped out of the Fourth Young Miss’s chamber when she saw a crowd gathered around a woman as delicate as carved jade. This must be Madam Wu, the second wife. She appeared to be in her thirties, wearing a sable fur headpiece with glimpses of an exquisite phoenix hairpin beneath. Her attire consisted of a grand crimson robe embroidered with auspicious patterns and a skirt adorned with golden thread. Her face was as fair as a lotus blossom, her eyebrows slender as willow leaves, and her delicate fingers adorned with gemstone rings.
"How truly luxurious," Jin Niang sighed inwardly. Madam Wu seemed even more opulent than the first wife, Madam Jiang.
A bystander chimed in, "Indeed, she is wealthy. Though the Second Master’s official career is modest, he excels in managing finances. Their granaries overflow with grain—people even call him the Deng Tong of the Zhou family."
Madam Wu entered the main hall and waited for Madam Jiang to take her seat before sitting down herself. Smiling, she said, "I should have come to see you sooner, sister, but the Second Master insisted I rest due to my poor health. Now that I’ve recovered, my first visit is to you."
"I know how much your husband dotes on you. The blood-red bird’s nest I sent was a gift from my maternal family. Simmer it into congee daily—it will do you good," Madam Jiang replied.
The two sisters-in-law had always been on good terms, so Madam Wu greeted the nieces warmly, praising each in turn. She was especially fond of the eldest girl, Huihui: "She looks so dignified and lovely—a testament to your upbringing, sister."
The Fourth Young Miss was among them, though she detested Madam Wu. Just the sight of her stirred disgust. Who could possibly like such a hypocritical woman, demure as a chrysanthemum yet skilled in flattering men? In that novel she had read, Wu Luan was the character she despised most.
Of course, Madam Jiang was no saint either—a haughty woman who flaunted her status as the principal wife and her family’s prestige, looking down on everyone. The two of them were truly birds of a feather.
Madam Wu had come to discuss arrangements for the aunt’s birthday celebration with Madam Jiang. "Her birthday falls on the eighteenth of the first month. Since she and her daughter usually stay with you, sister, we’ve had little chance to host them. I thought we might set up a few tables under our flower canopy that day. What do you think?"
Madam Jiang was delighted. She had never gotten along with the aunt and resented having to fund her birthday celebration. Now that Madam Wu was taking charge, she feigned reluctance before agreeing. "Very well, we’ll all gather at your place for the festivities."
"Then it’s settled." In truth, Madam Wu had no desire to entertain the aunt, whose recent return had made her financial struggles obvious. But in a prominent family like theirs, social obligations were unavoidable—especially with the matriarch still presiding over the household.
Thus, Madam Wu maintained a cheerful demeanor, appearing genuinely pleased.
The other young misses were excited about the upcoming outing, but the Fourth Young Miss found Madam Wu utterly insufferable. The aunt had been cruel to her, yet here she was, fawning over the woman.
The affairs of the masters had little to do with the seamstresses like Jin Niang. By day, she worked on shoes for the Fourth Young Miss, and by night, she hurried to finish Yan Hong’s flat embroidered slippers. Fortunately, Fang Qiaolian was also up late, sewing a skirt for the Second Young Miss. The two of them stifled yawns as they worked by lamplight.
"If only we could go see the lantern festival too," Fang Qiaolian said wistfully.
Jin Niang shook her head. "Such is the life of a servant. Whether we can go depends entirely on the masters. Since we don’t serve the young misses directly, it’s unlikely."
Fang Qiaolian chuckled. "The stewardesses get to go out, though."
"True, those matrons live better than many wives from lesser households." Still, Jin Niang had no desire to remain a servant. But she held her tongue—Fang Qiaolian hoped to stay in the mansion, and there was no point in arguing.
After working until their hands and feet grew numb with cold, the two finally retired to bed.
Meanwhile, the Zhou family planned to attend the lantern festival together. The matriarch insisted her granddaughter join them. Though Madam Jiang disliked the aunt, she bore no grudge against the girl—after all, she was just a child. "Don’t worry, Mother," she assured the matriarch. "I’ll have Shishi look after her."
Zhou Shishi, Madam Jiang’s eldest daughter, was gentle, attentive, and dignified—quite unlike her mother’s blunt nature. Following her mother’s instructions, she took her younger sisters to visit Miss Mei and shared tales of her time in the capital. "In front of the imperial palace in Kaifeng, they erect a ‘mountain scaffold,’ and across from it stands the Xuande Gate, a hundred zhang away. You must dress warmly."
"Don’t worry, Elder Sister. Aunt had a new outfit made for me—I’ll wear that," Miss Mei replied. Unlike her mother, she disliked inconveniencing others.
She then had the outfit brought out for inspection. The others marveled at its lavish gold embroidery and vibrant colors, praising it profusely. Though Miss Mei found the garment overly ornate, she accepted their compliments. Yet when they set out, she realized with dismay that she alone was dressed so flamboyantly—the Zhou girls all wore elegant, light-colored gowns.
Her sensitive nature made the contrast all the more distressing. Unaware of this, the aunt had been given a hundred strings of cash by the matriarch to ease her New Year’s expenses. After gambling away five strings at a high-stakes Zhou family card game, she heard from her daughter’s maid about the outfit incident. Frustrated and seeking an outlet for her anger, she lashed out.
"They deliberately wore plain white skirts because they knew you’d be dressed like that! In the capital during the Lantern Festival, white is the fashion—how could your elder sister not know this?"
Mei Pan'er was both anxious and indignant. "Mother, Elder Sister Shishi has been nothing but kind to me!"
She longed to keep the peace, fearing her mother’s temper would isolate her further. But her meekness only incensed the aunt, who berated her for lacking backbone.
Their argument, conducted behind closed doors, soon spread throughout the Zhou household. Jin Niang grew even more determined to steer clear of the aunt—a woman with no sympathy for those beneath her. As an outsider hired by the family, she knew Madam Jiang would never side with servants over kin, no matter how much she disliked the aunt.
She would need to tread carefully from now on. At least the aunt hadn’t remembered that Jin Niang had made the controversial outfit—had she been blamed, reason would have offered no protection.
A few days later, after delivering the finished shoes to the Fourth Young Miss and Yan Hong, Jin Niang received twenty coins as a reward, along with plates of fresh oranges and golden peaches.
"Such fine fruits are too generous for this servant," Jin Niang protested.
The Fourth Young Miss smiled. "They’re nothing special. We had plenty left over from the aunt’s birthday celebration. Consider it thanks for your hard work."
Jin Niang accepted gratefully. Noticing the absence of incense in the room—only a white, gold-trimmed porcelain plate holding fragrant citrons—she silently admired the young miss’s refined taste.
After leaving Fourth Miss’s quarters, she went to see Yan Hong. When Yan Hong saw the pair of shoes Jin Niang had embroidered with the "Three Drunken Hibiscus" pattern—so exquisitely lifelike that the flowers seemed to ripple like light upon water—she gasped in admiration. "Your craftsmanship is truly unmatched. I can hardly bear to wear these shoes!"
"Don’t say such things, sister. Aren’t shoes meant to be worn? If you ever need anything in the future, just let me know." Over the past few days, Jin Niang had observed that Yan Hong was far more agreeable than Lv Ying—gentler in temperament, seldom bossing others around, and fair in her dealings. She was happy to befriend her.
Yan Hong slipped the shoes on, finding them a perfect fit, then drew closer to Jin Niang. "Come here," she said softly. "I have something to tell you, but you mustn’t share it with anyone."
Jin Niang hurried over, and Yan Hong whispered, "The Old Madam mentioned that the household of the Aunt and her daughter is short on attendants. She plans to select a skilled seamstress from the needlework room to send there. I’ll put in a good word for you with Madam. But if the Old Madam insists on her decision, even Madam may not be able to intervene. You should prepare yourself."
The news struck Jin Niang like a bolt from the blue.
