Four Delicate Offenders – CH 010

Chapter 10. Cry, Cry Like You’ve Lost Your Own Sister.

Far away in the capital, Jiang Heng finally received the devastating news and practically wailed as he stepped through the door. He never imagined that after losing his wife last year, he would suffer the pain of losing his beloved daughter this year. Although he and Si Si had quarreled over domestic matters, what father did not love his daughter? Now, an earthquake had taken her away. He could not understand why all the other noble ladies in Youzhou were safe and sound, while his daughter was gone.

The coffin had already been placed in the front hall. He went forward, intending to see her one last time, but was stopped by Liu-niang.

“My Lord, please do not look…” Liu-niang said, tears streaming down her face. “Bricks and tiles have fallen from the roof; it’s… a complete mess. Seeing it will only upset you. It’s better not to look.”

Jiang Heng swayed, his outstretched hand hovering in mid-air before he finally withdrew it, muttering, “I am sorry, My Lady; I did not take good care of Si Si…”

Liu-niang sobbed uncontrollably, “It’s my fault for not taking good care of the young lady. Even if you do not blame me, I am ashamed. But thinking about it, perhaps the young lady’s bond with the County Princess was deeper, and you could not keep her. Now that she’s gone, she’s probably going to find the County Princess. My Lord, please take care of yourself. There are still many things to do, and I need your instructions.”

Xuepan watched her mother weep uncontrollably, momentarily lost in thought.

She had previously asked her mother how to end things now that things had come to this. The men sent out earlier failed to find Yunpan’s whereabouts, and there were no records of her renting carriages in the city’s major rental shops. They could not possibly have sprouted wings and flown out of Youzhou City. Yunpan and her maid, two living people, seemed to have vanished into thin air, disappearing without a trace. Her mother was somewhat panicked, but after much deliberation, she concluded there were only two possibilities: either she had been taken in by someone in the city, or she had been kidnapped by bandits and tricked into going to a brothel.

If she had been taken in, three or four days had passed, and the disaster was gradually subsiding; she should have reappeared by now. However, the second possibility suited them better. They had gone through all this trouble just to use someone else to humiliate the eldest daughter of the Marquis’s family. But the lack of news, while a relief, still left them with some unease. With her father about to return from the capital, what if he noticed something amiss? How could she cover it up?

Regarding this, Liu-niang was not worried. Jiang Heng was easy to fool; even if the corpse were right in front of him, he might not be able to tell if the person lying there was his own daughter. The only option now was to continue the charade. Jiang Yunpan had been “dead” for several days; even if she returned, there was no place for her in this house. She’d either become someone’s concubine or a nun in a Taoist temple. The County Princess’s darling, the pampered noble young lady at the grand banquet, ended up like that—it was incredibly satisfying for those who had previously looked down on her.

“Just pretend that Yunpan is lying in the coffin,” Liu-niang instructed Xuepan. “Cry, cry like you’ve lost your own sister. Your father will see it and be comforted; he will naturally love you even more in the future.”

Xuepan had no opinion and listened to her mother completely. The fact that Yunpan was still alive was a thorn in her side. Human greed was truly boundless. At this moment, I really wish Yunpan were dead. How wonderful it would be if she were dead; she would not have to bear the shame, and her family could finally rest in peace.

Liu-niang continued to amplify her grief, “With our mistress gone, we are heartbroken, but the Duke of Dongchang’s family is delighted. They originally said their second son could not be engaged before our mistress, but now what are they worried about? She’s gone; they are probably eager to propose to the wealthy family.”

This remark ignited Jiang Heng’s anger. Though filled with resentment, he was ultimately powerless to do anything. He simply let out a good cry and then sat down to sigh deeply.

Liu-niang stopped crying, wiping away her tears as she asked for instructions, “Since she’s gone, she should be laid to rest. Master, how long should the coffin be kept in state? Find someone to choose an auspicious burial site.”

Jiang Heng said dejectedly, “An unmarried child is not considered an adult yet. Keep the coffin in state for three to five days, then bury her.”

“Should we send someone to the Duke of Shu’s residence to deliver a message? The Duchess is, after all, her aunt. Although we have not had much contact, what if she causes trouble in the future…?”

Jiang Heng had no time to worry about such things. He frowned and said, “It’s my own daughter. Whether she’s good or bad is my decision as her father. When do outsiders have the right to interfere? Do I have to answer to them after my daughter’s death?”

Liu-niang finally felt relieved. To be honest, she did not care about those two good-for-nothing aunts in the Jiang family. She had worked hard to curry favor with them all these years; they would not say a bad word about her. As for that Duchess of Shu, she was arrogant and haughty, relying on her husband’s high rank to never seriously look at the Jiang family. Now that her niece had died, she might shed a couple of tears at most, but once the coffin was buried, the marriage was completely severed, and they would have no further dealings with each other—that was a clean break.

“In that case, I will handle the rest. My Lord is already troubled and has to deal with things outside. If he does not take care of himself, he might collapse from exhaustion.”

Jiang Heng nodded, his head bowed, sighing repeatedly, “These are turbulent times… The Emperor has dispatched the Duke of Wei to inspect the disaster situation, and he’s also serving as the Governor of Youzhou. This time, it’s a truly effective measure. The officials in Youzhou have all done their utmost to demonstrate their determination to provide disaster relief. If we do not contribute a single penny, it would not be right. I am thinking of donating the entire dowry left by the Duke’s family after the engagement is called off so that Li Xin will not have any ammunition to cause trouble later.”

Liu-niang was actually a little reluctant. The Duke’s family had given a very generous dowry—five hundred taels of silver and twenty taels of gold—a sum that would be considered quite high even among the marriage alliances in the capital. Donating it all now would be like throwing it into the water—at least it would make a splash. Sending it to the disaster relief fund might perhaps earn them a reputation for virtue, but for a woman confined to the inner quarters, it was definitely not a worthwhile deal.

“How about…Master, go and inquire. Perhaps we should follow your colleagues’ example?” Liu-niang said softly. “It’s not that we are unwilling to contribute, but it’s important to avoid standing out in a donation. People might say the Marquis’s Mansion is overflowing with gold and silver, attracting the court’s attention to investigate our household’s income, which would not be good.”

Jiang Heng considered it carefully and realized it made sense. He immediately changed his mind, ordering someone to fetch fifty taels to keep with the carriage, to decide what to do once they reached the yamen.

Suppressing his grief, the repeated loss of loved ones had numbed him somewhat. As he was leaving, he glanced one last time at the dark coffin. Seeing Xuepan and Yupan keeping vigil in the mourning hall, he felt a slight comfort amidst his grief; at least he still had two daughters and a son to warm his elderly father’s heart.

With the household in chaos, the arrangements outside could not be neglected either. Jiang Heng boarded his carriage and sent a servant to the Youzhou yamen. On the way, he encountered several carriages from dukes and marquises, indicating that others had already expressed their intentions, while he was the only one left behind.

Everyone was watching closely to see which way the wind was blowing. The Duke of Wei was the Emperor’s nephew, and the Emperor’s lineage was not strong. He had a prince in his youth, but he died after only two months. Now, he only had a princess. The future succession might be chosen from among his three nephews.

It was like placing a bet; no one knew who would ultimately inherit the throne, nor who the Emperor truly favored. Anyway, as long as they were imperial nephews, he should try to win them over as much as possible; just in case he bet on the right person later, at least he could become a familiar face.

When Jiang Heng hurriedly arrived at the yamen, he ran into the Transport Commissioner and his entourage coming out. They met in the courtyard, and Cao Muqing was slightly taken aback. “Why is Marquis Jiang here, too?”

The news of the death of the eldest daughter of the Founding Marquis’s family had long been known throughout the town. The family was currently holding a funeral, and the fact that the bereaved family could still find time to come amidst their busy schedules seemed to say nothing more than that Marquis Jiang had unwavering loyalty.

Jiang Heng forced a smile. “I am too late; I’ve been so busy with family matters…” He glanced inside, tugged at Cao Muqing, and lowered his voice, “Commissioner, I rushed here and did not have time to inquire how much relief money my colleagues contributed. Since I’ve happened to run into you, please give me some pointers.”

Cao Muqing’s wife had acted as matchmaker for the Founding Marquis’s family and the Duke of Dongchang’s family. He knew the inside story of the broken engagement. While it was wrong for Second Young Master Li to have fallen for someone else and betrayed the Jiang family’s eldest daughter, the Jiang family’s practice of only returning the betrothal gifts and not the bride money was also highly distasteful. Furthermore, Jiang Heng’s lax household management was criticized behind his back. Although Cao Muqing was outwardly polite, he was not entirely sincere.

“A lot or a little, it all depends on each person’s willingness. It’s just a matter of how much effort one has,” Cao Muqing replied ambiguously.

Hearing Cao Muqing’s words was as if he had not heard a thing; Jiang Heng remained completely bewildered. He could only inquire further, “How much did the Grand Canal Commissioner contribute? How much did the Duke of Dongchang’s mansion contribute?”

Cao Muqing stroked his beard, feigning profundity. “I am merely a lowly Transport Commissioner; I have to act according to my superiors. Commissioner Zhang contributed forty taels of silver earlier, so naturally, I must contribute less than he did. As for how much Marquis Jiang intends to contribute, that’s up to you.”

This made it clear. He was only a seventh-rank nobleman; there was no need to be the biggest spender. Contributing forty taels, like Commissioner Zhang, would be sufficient.

Jiang Heng cupped his hands in thanks to Cao Muqing, “Thank you, Transport Commissioner.”

Cao Muqing responded with a soft “Ah,” indicating there was no need for such formalities. He then added, “I heard your daughter suffered an unfortunate misfortune…” Seeing the shadow fall on Jiang Heng’s face, he did not press further but patted Jiang Heng’s shoulder with a sigh, “Marquis Jiang, please accept my condolences.” He then cupped his hands in farewell.

Jiang Heng stood in the courtyard. The weather in the fifth month was already getting hotter, but the thought of Si Si sent chills down his spine. When the Jiang and Li families first got engaged, Cao Muqing’s wife was the matchmaker. Who knew that this time she might turn around and become the matchmaker for the Li and Yan families?

“The person’s gone anyway; there’s no point in arguing anymore,” Jiang Heng sighed, instructing his servant to fetch the money from the carriage before stepping through the main gate of the yamen.

Before the halberd rack on the east side of the main hall, a large desk stood, where a prefect and several clerks were summarizing accounts and making records. Looking up and seeing Jiang Heng enter, they quickly stood up, bowed, and greeted him, “Marquis Jiang.”

Jiang Heng had some dealings with the officials in Youzhou; he had even shared drinks with the prefect earlier. Now that the prefect was on official business for the envoy, he naturally exchanged a few polite words, nodding and saying, “Prefect Sun, you’ve worked hard.”

Sun Tongpan replied earnestly, “Serving the country, how could I dare complain of hardship? Marquis Jiang, your arrival…”

Jiang Heng gestured to his servant to present the money pouch, then turned to Sun Tongpan and said, “Youzhou has suffered a disaster, and we naturally must do our part. This is forty taels of silver raised for the government; please use it for disaster relief.”

Upon hearing this, Sun Tongpan raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly, ordered the silver ingots to be accepted and recorded, and tucked his hands behind his back, saying, “Marquis Jiang’s family has encountered misfortune; I imagine their household is also in dire straits, barely able to support themselves, yet… Such concern for the people of the city is truly admirable, Marquis Jiang.”

Jiang Heng, still grieving the loss of his eldest daughter, was momentarily confused by Sun Tongpan’s words. He hesitated and asked, “Then, Prefect Sun… how much did the dukes and marquises in the city each donate?”

Sun Tongpan glanced at the donation book. “The Prince of Sheng donated three hundred taels, the Duke of Dongchang two hundred taels, and the rest of the prefectures roughly one hundred taels each.”

Jiang Heng was stunned. It took him a while to realize that Cao Muqing had led him astray.

Madam Cao and Madam Li were on good terms. The Founding Marquis’s family had broken off the engagement and withheld the bride money, which must have greatly displeased them. Now, by falsely reporting the amount of relief donations and tricking him into contributing, people would say that he was so stingy in the face of a natural disaster—the dignified Founding Marquis had donated less than a minor official.

However, the amount recorded in the official accounts could not be changed, and he only had fifty taels in the carriage. Jiang Heng was both angry and resentful, but he could not show it on his face.

Just as he was feeling annoyed, a messenger at the gate announced that the governor had returned.

Jiang Heng looked towards the gate and saw a palanquin with a dragon and tiger design parked before him. The accompanying soldiers arranged the footstools, then stepped forward and lifted the curtain. The person inside bowed and stepped out. The bright sun shone on a purple silk robe with a round collar, making his complexion appear even more radiant.

Perhaps due to some physical weakness, he was still dressed dignifiedly in a white gauze undergarment despite the heat. A plain silver belt accentuated his slender and upright waist. Although somewhat thin, he was by no means weak. Upon seeing Jiang Heng from afar, he smiled and bowed respectfully.