Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 019

Chapter 19: Introduction

An Zhi never liked banquets. They were just a place where people came and went and schemed against each other. There were few people she could really talk to or like, so it was better for her to stay alone.

She had to say that the garden of Weiyuan Marquis Mansion was really nice, with rockery of different heights and two cranes. She heard that the monthly maintenance cost of the garden was over a hundred taels of silver.

An Zhi was tired from walking, so she took a rest in the pavilion.

“Miss, the dinner is almost about to start. We can sit for a while and then leave.” Binglu reminded from the side.

An Zhi nodded, leaned on the railing, and looked at the lotus leaves that had just emerged from the pond.

“Cousin, I knew you were here.” A girl about ten years old threw herself into An Zhi’s arms.

The girl’s name was Li Sihui, the daughter of Madam An, and the youngest of her generation in the Marquis Mansion. Because she only had a brother, and her other sisters were much older than her, some of whom were grandmothers, it was impossible for her to play with them. So, she often went to An Zhi to play, and the two of them had a good relationship.

An Zhi took Li Sihui in her arms and pinched her round face. “Sihui, I see your face has become smaller. Why have you lost weight?”

“Ah, isn’t it my brothers and sisters-in-law? My mother is still alive, and even though she is a second wife, she is clamoring to divide the family.” Li Sihui sighed.

Madam An was only in her early thirties, seven or eight years younger than the oldest Marquis Weiyuan. The second and third wives were about the same age as Madam An.

In most families, the family would not be divided when the parents-in-law were still alive, but the Li family was different. Madam An was a stepmother, not the biological mother of the three masters. If they waited until Madam An died before dividing the family, Weiyuan Hou and his brothers would probably die first.

So recently the second and third branches of the Li family had been clamoring to split up.

In reality, the old Marquis of Weiyuan had already divided up his property; only the three wives still lived in the mansion, and in reality, they were already living their own lives. However, living under the same roof meant they had to pay their respects to their eldest brother, his wife, and Madam An, and everyone wanted to be the head of their own household, so the second and third wives were eager to split up.

The current division of the family would not harm anyone else in the Li family, but it would slightly damage the reputation of the An family.

Madam An originally wanted to wait until her son and daughter were married before dividing the family business. By then, it wouldn’t matter whether her reputation was good or not. But now the second and third wives didn’t want to wait any longer, so the two sides were in a stalemate.

“How old are you? Why do you worry so much?” An Zhi rubbed Li Sihui’s face. “Your mother arranged this matter, and you can’t help. Besides, today is your mother’s birthday. You ran here to hide. Aren’t you afraid of being scolded?”

“Oh, I’d have forgotten if you hadn’t mentioned it. I wasn’t hiding, I came here specifically to call you.” Li Sihui gave An Zhi a mysterious smile. “Several ladies are here today, including Madam Wang, the Minister of Works. She keeps talking about you and wants you to come over and meet her.”

An Zhi understood that Madam An wanted to introduce some ladies to her.

“Cousin, please get up quickly. If you are late, mother will scold me again.” Li Sihui pulled An Zhi.

An Zhi was reluctant. She remembered that the eldest son of the Wang family was already married, leaving behind two sons, one legitimate and one illegitimate, both three years older than An Zhi. The Minister of Works was a second-rank official, a higher rank compared to An Zhi’s family background. She wondered which son Lady Wang was visiting her for.

She didn’t care about either one, but since Madam An was helping her to make the connection, she couldn’t refuse, so she still had to go and take a look.

After coming out of the pavilion and turning around the pond, Madam An saw a familiar figure. Li Sihui next to her addressed Pei Que first.

An Zhi also bowed and wanted to call him Fourth Uncle, but she thought of what Pei Que said that day, so she swallowed the title and called him Fourth Master Pei in a low voice. However, Pei Que did not seem to be satisfied with this title, and there was no smile on his face.

After walking around the rockery with Li Sihui, Li Sihui breathed a sigh of relief. “I was really scared just now. That Fourth Master Pei had such a grim expression. I almost thought I had offended him.”

An Zhi smiled and curled her lips, saying, “He was born with that cold face, you don’t have to take it too seriously.”

After saying that, An Zhi saw pavilions and towers, with laughter and talking sounds inside. She took Li Sihui’s hand and walked in with a smile.

As soon as she arrived at the Li courtyard, An Zhi came to celebrate Madam An’s birthday. This was her second time coming today.

Madam An sat at the top, and a group of ladies sat at the bottom, separated by the left and right sides. When they saw An Zhi come in, they all stopped talking and looked at An Zhi. Soon, someone started praising An Zhi’s beauty.

An Zhi saw the maid beside Madam An bringing in new tea. She walked over to take the tea and served it to Madam An herself. “Aunt, it’s so lively here. I was outside just now and just heard the laughter and knew that the ladies had arrived.”

“Yes, today is your aunt’s birthday, so naturally we sisters have to come.” It was Madam Wang who spoke. Compared with other ladies, she looked at An Zhi with more scrutiny.

An Zhi had seen Madam Wang several times, but they had never spoken. Today was the first time she met her.

Madam Wang had a round and plump face, but she looked younger than the widowed Madam An. She gradually showed a look of approval, but there were many other ladies present, so she didn’t want to show it too obviously, so she changed the subject.

It was difficult for An Zhi to leave after she arrived, so she served Madam An on the side, occasionally interrupting and telling a few jokes. Soon the banquet started and she was free.

At the banquet, An Zhi naturally could not sit at the same table with these ladies. She had to sit with the young ladies.

Before today, everyone thought that she and Lin Shuyao were good sisters, so they put them in the same position.

Not long after An Zhi sat down, she saw Lin Shuyao sitting next to her with an annoyed look on her face.

“Sister Lin, when I think about it carefully just now, those words were really abrupt.” An Zhi picked up the wine glass and took the initiative. “I really didn’t mean anything else. It was just a small guess. I never thought it would make Sister Lin angry. I’m really sorry. This glass of wine is for you. Sister, you shouldn’t hold a grudge against me for not drinking it, right?”

This bitch-like sarcasm was something An Zhi had learned from Mistress Xu. She’d previously believed her status as Pei Yu’s fiancée was superior, and so she’d been a bit pretentious. But things were different now. She was merely the daughter of a fourth-rank official, without a powerful backer. She could only learn other skills.

Lin Shuyao wanted to throw wine at An Zhi, but she couldn’t do that. Originally, her family was arranging a marriage for her, but then Pei Yu broke off the engagement. She thought she had her chance and turned down the previous proposer. But now Pei Yu had been expelled from the Pei family. Although she liked Pei Yu, she would not marry him without the support of the Pei family. So, if she wanted to start the marriage discussion again, she needed a good reputation.

An Zhi saw Lin Shuyao pick up her wine glass. The others at the table were busy with other things, but they were actually paying attention to the two of them. An Zhi smiled at Lin Shuyao and drank it all in one gulp. Then she leaned close to Lin Shuyao’s ear and said in a voice that only the two of them could hear, “Sister Lin, now that Pei Yu has been expelled from the Pei family, you’re immediately starting to discuss marriage. Isn’t that too realistic?”

“An Zhi!” Lin Shuyao couldn’t help but yell, and everyone at the next two tables looked over.

But An Zhi reacted first, her eyes red with grievance.