Spring in the Hall of Paintings

Yun Jing was unwilling to accept her fate, but no matter how much she resisted, she was still under the control of Guo Luoluo. As a concubine-born daughter, her life was not her own to decide. This was the sorrow of being a concubine’s daughter. Yun Lan had once confided in Yun Wei, not persuading or stopping Guo Luoluo, and Yun Lan had gone to the horse yard to let her horse run wild to clear her mind. When she returned, Yun Wei clearly saw Yun Lan’s sweet smile and bright, sparkling eyes. Yun Wei didn’t need to ask—she knew that Yun Lan had met the Fourth Prince again, for only the Fourth Prince could have such an impact on Yun Lan.

“Wei, are you daydreaming again? I’m about to collect the cards!”

The old lady, Madam Jue Luo, chuckled as she watched her granddaughter, Yun Wei, staring at the leaf cards. Yun Wei came to her senses, but it was too late. She pouted her lips and, resting her cheek in her hand, said reluctantly, “It’s so hard to win, Mamu. Can’t you lose to me just once? I have no more copper coins left.”

To prove she wasn’t lying, Yun Wei shook her purse, but not a single copper coin fell out. The old lady ordered the little maid to collect the leaf cards, then gently pulled Yun Wei into her arms, feeling tender affection as she said with a laugh, “How about I give you that pair of vases instead?”

“No, I want to win them fairly!” Yun Wei rubbed against the old lady’s embrace, clenching her little fist and said coquettishly, “I will win, and when I do, Mamu won’t be able to bear it.”

“You little rascal, you really are my little rascal,” the old lady pinched Yun Wei’s nose and asked, “What were you thinking just now?”

Leaning against the old lady, Yun Wei thought for a moment and decided to tell the truth. Her mother, Fucha, had once said that the old lady couldn’t tolerate deceit. If she treated others sincerely, the old lady would feel it, and falsehoods wouldn’t last. Besides, there was a reassuring feeling about the old lady that reminded Yun Wei of her mother.

“I was thinking about Fourth Sister’s words. What does love mean exactly? What is first love? Mamu, I don’t understand. Does he love Fourth Sister? Will she be happy when she sees him?”

The old lady gazed at her granddaughter’s confused eyes, and holding Yun Wei, she sighed, “Wei, I don’t know what love means either, as described by Lan. But after living for so many years, I’ve only learned one thing—nothing remains unchanged. Lan has chosen the hardest path, and we shouldn’t follow her. The only thing the princes care about is power and honor.”

Leaning back on the cushion, the old lady relaxed, and Yun Wei gently took a beauty hammer, lightly tapping the old lady’s legs as she whispered, “Did I say something wrong, Mamu? I’m not jealous of Fourth Sister, I’m actually a little worried about her.”

“Yun Wei, let me tell you a story. A few years ago, there was an exceptional young woman, noble and intelligent, who fell in love with a noble young man. They were very much in love, and despite her family’s objections, she insisted on marrying him. Her family had no choice but to support her. After they married, they were inseparable, admired by all. But… five years later, they began to distrust each other, constantly arguing. The handsome young man had become a youth focusing on his career, while the woman shed her youthful innocence and became the head of the household, facing the constant arrival of new concubines.”

Yun Wei paused, asking, “Mamu, they must have made vows, right?”

Madam Jue Luo closed her eyes and, in a tone somewhere between certainty and ambiguity, said, “Yun Wei, words from men are the least trustworthy, especially when they’re in the heat of passion. A man’s heart is vast and can hold the world; it cannot just hold one woman. When it comes to power, not even the goddess of the moon has any value.”

“The prince, a noble-born prince, will never be content bowing his head. They can only fight for power, and the women around them will suffer the most.”

“What happened to the young woman? Did she resign herself to her fate?”

“She refused to resign, so she went mad. She set fire to their house, and the fire burned all night.”

Yun Wei noticed that the old lady did not want to continue the conversation, so she quietly massaged her legs. The young woman in the story must have been someone familiar to her grandmother, or else the old lady wouldn’t have been so sentimental.

The old lady closed her eyes and said softly, “She was my sister. The man back then also promised to be with her for life. Yun Wei, I’ve been widowed for many years, so I can’t offer you much advice on this. But you should observe how your mother conducts herself. Watch how she slowly made your father fall deeply in love with her. Intense passion doesn’t always last; it’s the steady, enduring affection that is the smartest way. As for Lan, I’ve said this before: she thinks she can handle it, but when she faces the First Wife’s protocol, Yun Lan… it worries me. She’s never understood people’s hearts. She thinks she can change things, but… the Fourth Prince won’t give her that chance. He was raised and personally educated by the Emperor.”

Yun Wei blinked, confused. How did this matter relate to the Emperor? She called out softly, “Mamu, I don’t understand.”

“The Emperor is the son of the late Emperor. He was raised by the Empress Dowager and helped onto the throne. Having learned from the late Emperor and Consort Dong’e’s mistakes, the Empress Dowager won’t repeat them.”

At that moment, Yun Wei didn’t fully understand. She stored the old lady’s words in her heart, intending to reflect on them later. These were wise and valuable pieces of advice, precisely what she had been lacking.

After the third daughter of the Tong family, Yun Xin, married and left, the first wife, Madam Jueluo, didn’t neglect her. She prepared a dowry of thirty-six loads, including gold, silver, jewelry, antiques, medicinal herbs, and clothes for all four seasons—everything was of the finest quality, without anything subpar. The old lady, Madam Jue Luo, had long made it clear that no matter which granddaughter got married, she would provide them with a property as part of the dowry. The size of the property depended on how much the old lady favored the granddaughter.

Based on the surrounding market value in the capital, the property in Yun Xin’s dowry was worth about five to six thousand taels of silver, which showed that the old lady had quite a bit of private savings.

Three days after her marriage, Yun Xin returned to her family, her face glowing with a shy and happy smile. Her new husband, Shumulu Qi Feng, was tall and handsome, and the Tong family’s wives were all very pleased. According to tradition, the first wife asked Yun Xin, “How is your husband?”

Yun Xin’s face flushed with sweetness, and her expression made everything clear. Her cousins teased her playfully, and Yun Lan was quite skilled at extracting information with a few casual remarks. She managed to get a lot of details, and Yun Wei and the others were amazed. Yun Xin became even closer to Yun Wei, which was natural, since the third husband, Qi Feng, worked under Yun Wei’s father.

Yun Jing’s marriage was a different story altogether. It seemed that Guo Luoluo used some kind of method, as Yun Jing became much more obedient and reserved. She spoke very carefully, not daring to say much among her sisters. If it weren’t for the old lady’s intervention, Guo Luoluo might have been even harsher. Since it involved Yun Lan’s reputation and the future of the third master, Rongzhi, Guo Luoluo would no longer show mercy. The third courtyard was thoroughly reorganized, and many maids and servants were punished.

Yun Jing’s marriage was less grand than Yun Xin’s. Although her dowry also included thirty-six loads, most of it was subpar. Even though there were antiques, they were not particularly valuable. Guo Luoluo didn’t dare to go too far, so Yun Jing’s wedding was lively, but it was handled according to the standards for a concubine’s marriage—nothing extra, nothing less, just as it should be. The old lady, though unable to fully avoid faults, still gave Yun Jing a property similar in size to Yun Xin’s, but the location was different.

As spring turned to autumn, it quickly became the thirty-fifth year of the Kangxi Emperor’s reign. That year, the Emperor ordered a personal military campaign against the Zunghar tribe, and both the second master, Rongxuan, and the third master, Rongzhi, of the Tong family were included in the expedition. War was imminent.