“Embroidery.”
Shi Youlan blurted it out. “What fine things has the Empress never seen? If we give her some vulgar trinket, it will only make us look insincere.”
“I’ll embroider a Hundred Longevity picture by hand. It will be dignified and show our sincerity. When the Empress sees it, she’ll know that our marquisate has put thought into her gift.”
Madam Liu froze for a moment, then a smile spread across her face. She reached over and patted the back of her daughter’s hand.
“You’re always so quick-witted. How did I not think of that? A Hundred Longevity picture—what a wonderful meaning. And since you’ll embroider it yourself, the Empress will certainly like it.”
Shi Youlan nodded, though she felt far from confident.
Her embroidery could only be considered average.
A Hundred Longevity picture required one hundred different styles of the character “longevity,” each one neat and beautiful. It would be no easy task for her.
But the words had already left her mouth. She couldn’t very well take them back now, so she could only steel herself and get started.
Madam Liu eagerly instructed the maids to search the storehouse for the finest silk and embroidery threads. She also sent someone into town to buy several copybooks of Hundred Longevity designs for Shi Youlan to use as reference.
Sitting on the couch, she counted the days on her fingers. There were still twenty-three days until the Empress’s birthday. They should have enough time to finish a Hundred Longevity picture.
“Youlan, don’t go out for the time being. Concentrate on your embroidery at home.”
Madam Liu lifted her teacup and took a sip, her tone leaving no room for argument.
“I’ll send word to the princess and tell her you’re feeling unwell. You can go keep her company again once the embroidery is finished.”
Shi Youlan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but swallowed the words.
She had originally hoped to find an opportunity to ask the princess why she treated her so well. It seemed she wouldn’t be getting that chance now.
In the days that followed, Shi Youlan shut herself away in her courtyard and embroidered from dawn until dusk.
Her needle moved back and forth through the silk, making a faint shushing sound.
Her hands were steady, and her stitches even, but she worked slowly.
After three days, she had only completed seven or eight characters. At that rate, she would never finish in twenty-three days.
Madam Liu was so anxious that sores had broken out on her lips. She came to Shi Youlan’s courtyard two or three times a day.
One moment she would say a character was crooked and had to be undone and redone; the next, she would insist that the color was wrong and the thread needed to be changed.
Distracted by her constant comments, Shi Youlan grew irritated and pricked her finger with the needle. A bead of blood welled up and soaked into the white silk, standing out painfully bright.
“Mother, could you please stop? The more you talk, the worse I embroider.”
Shi Youlan put her finger in her mouth.
The bleeding stopped, but there was no way to remove the stain from the silk.
She stared at the spot of red, sighed, then picked up a pair of scissors and cut away the small piece of fabric before laying down new thread.
Madam Liu’s expression darkened after being snapped at by her daughter, but when she saw the needle mark on Shi Youlan’s finger, her heart softened.
She walked over and sat beside her, picked up the needle and thread, and embroidered several stitches in her place.
Madam Liu’s embroidery was far better than Shi Youlan’s. After only a few stitches, the character “longevity” seemed to come alive, its strokes fluid and its proportions balanced.
“Let me teach you. When embroidering characters like these, your mind must be calm, your hand steady, and your breathing even.”
Madam Liu handed the needle back to her daughter. “You’re rushing too much. The more anxious you are, the worse your work will be. Take your time. If you embroider five characters a day, you can still finish in twenty days.”
Shi Youlan took the needle and drew a deep breath, slowing her movements.
The very next stitch was indeed much better than the ones before it.
It was not as refined as Madam Liu’s work, but at least it looked pleasing to the eye.
Slowly, her mind settled, and her hands grew steadier with every stitch.
Outside the window, the sunlight shifted from east to west, and the shadows moved slowly across the silk.
Shi Youlan lowered her head and embroidered one stitch at a time.
Loose strands of hair fell over her forehead, covering half her face. Her lips were pressed together slightly, and she looked utterly serene.
A maid brought in tea, set it on the table, and quietly withdrew, not daring to disturb her.
Day after day passed, and Shi Youlan’s Hundred Longevity picture was more than halfway complete.
During this period, her embroidery skills improved by leaps and bounds. What had initially been barely passable was now exquisite.
Whenever Madam Liu came to look, she praised the work without end, saying that her daughter’s skill was almost on par with the palace embroiderers.
Shi Youlan knew her mother was flattering her.
She also knew perfectly well that her embroidery was still far inferior to that of the palace embroiderers.
But she no longer cared. Her purpose had never been to create a masterpiece that would astonish the world. She only wanted the Empress to see the sincerity behind her gift.
Just as Shi Youlan was working hard on the Empress’s Hundred Longevity picture, an unexpected guest arrived.
It was Madam Lin, the wife of Lord Lin, a Hanlin Academician. She came from the Lu family of Jiangnan, a true scholarly household.
Madam Liu froze when a maid announced the visitor. The melon seeds in her hand nearly spilled all over the floor.
She never would have imagined that the Lin family would come calling.
Though the Yongning Marquisate still carried the title of a noble house, everyone knew it had long since fallen into decline.
A distinguished family like the Lin family would not normally spare them so much as a glance.
Madam Liu hurriedly straightened her collar, swept the melon-seed shells into a handkerchief, and arranged her hair before a bronze mirror. Only then did she hurry out to receive her guest.
Madam Lin was standing in the front hall.
She wore a lotus-colored beizi robe and had nothing in her hair but a single white jade hairpin. There was not a trace of jewelry on her, yet she possessed an unmistakable air of refined distinction.
When she saw Madam Liu, the corners of her lips curved into a perfectly measured smile—not overly warm, nor in the least bit cold. There was not a thing to fault.
“Madam Liu, forgive me for coming without notice and disturbing you.”
Madam Liu hurriedly invited her to sit and instructed the maids to serve their finest tea.
At the same time, she was inwardly wondering what had brought Madam Lin here.
After exchanging a few pleasantries—remarks about the weather and their health—Madam Lin continued speaking with impeccable composure. Every word seemed to have been carefully considered in advance.
Madam Liu was so thoroughly led around that she began to feel dizzy. Unable to discern her guest’s purpose, she could only keep smiling and respond as best she could.
Madam Lin set down her teacup and cast her gaze around the hall. The smile on her lips deepened slightly.
“Your residence is so tastefully arranged. Madam Liu, you certainly know how to manage a household.”
The compliment warmed Madam Liu’s heart. She gave a few modest replies, but her face had already blossomed into a wide smile.
Then Madam Lin smoothly shifted the subject to Shi Youlan.
“At the last flower-viewing gathering, I caught a distant glimpse of your Second Miss. She is truly beautiful, and she carries herself with such grace.”
The moment Madam Liu heard someone praise her cherished daughter, her eyes lit up. Yet she pretended not to care.
“Oh, you flatter us. That girl is terribly clumsy. All she knows how to do is embroider.”
Madam Lin shook her head, her tone so sincere that it did not sound like empty politeness at all.
“Madam Liu, you are far too modest. I heard that Second Miss’s embroidery is superb. Even the princess has praised her.”
Madam Liu was so delighted by the praise that she nearly brought up every compliment her daughter had received since childhood.
Madam Lin went on to praise Madam Liu several more times, saying that she had raised her daughter well, that although the marquisate kept a low profile, its family principles were upright. Her words moved Madam Liu so deeply that her eyes grew moist.
In all the years since she had married into the marquisate, she had never before received such praise from a family of this standing.
For a moment, Madam Liu felt as though she and Madam Lin had known each other for years.
