Li San snorted and did not reply.
Dou Akou breathed a sigh of relief, patted her chest, sat down, and even managed a suppressed laugh at Xu Li.
Gu Huaibi glanced between Xu Liren and Dou Akou, then subtly hooked his arm around Fu Jiuxin's shoulder: "Brother Fu, this little girl is really smitten. Are you just going to watch her bring Xu Liren back like this? Exchanging flirtatious glances right under your nose?"
This isn't like Fu Jiuxin at all.
Fu Jiuxin said calmly, "It's alright."
Dou Jincai was pressuring Dou Akou to go on blind dates. Rather than watching Dou Akou marry into another family, he figured it was better to let Xu Liren keep her occupied for now. At least he could control what was happening right under his nose.
In the distance, a bird was chirping and hopping on a plum tree. Fu Jiuxin closed the tea lid and watched the bird from afar.
Gu Huaibi followed Fu Jiuxin's gaze and saw the bird that was hopping happily suddenly seem to have been hit by something. Before it could even chirp, it fell from the plum blossom branch and landed with a thud in the snow.
The man smiled and said, "Birds always return to the forest."
Rabbit Lantern
"Sir! Oh dear! Sir!"
Dou Akou's voice came from across a flowerbed.
Fu Jiuxin's brow twitched, and the stroke of the character he wrote flew far off. He was frowning as he looked at the paper when Dou Akou ran in: "Sir! Can you give me ten strings of cash?"
Fu Jiuxin didn't even look up. He crumpled the paper, unfolded a new sheet of Xuan paper, and began to write: "What do you need money for?"
"Sir, today is the Lantern Festival. I want to go to the street to buy lanterns and candied hawthorns."
"Where's your New Year's money? And your monthly allowance, all that pocket money your dad secretly slipped to you without telling me, have you spent it all?"
Dou Akou had prepared her explanation when she arrived, but she was still very nervous at this moment and stammered, "Sir, that money... I wanted to save it as my dowry."
Upon hearing this, Fu Jiuxin slowly glanced at her.
Dou Akou quickly lowered her head. Actually, she had used all her money to buy supplements and clothes for Xu Liren. She still remembered how painful Xu Liren looked when he had his last attack. Although he refused to say what kind of illness he had, it was always good to eat more supplements. Also, the weather was so cold, yet he was wearing so little. So Dou Akou went to the pharmacy on the street to buy some high-quality ginseng, and then went to the clothing store to buy a newly made satin cotton-padded jacket. She didn't know why, even though she didn't buy much, she suddenly didn't have much money left.
Dou Akou secretly hoped that her husband hadn't seen through her.
Fu Jiuxin stared at her for a while, then put down his pen and said casually, "Is ten strings of cash enough?"
"That's enough! That's enough to buy a big tiger lamp!" Dou Akou exclaimed joyfully.
Fu Jiuxin was about to take out his money when he casually asked, "Is anyone going shopping with you?"
Dou Akou pouted: "I originally wanted Xu Li to come with me, but he refused... Sir, sir, would you please come with me?"
Fu Jiuxin paused in taking out his money, then pulled out a string of coins: "I'm not going. Here's the money."
“Sir… I only have one string of cash here… We agreed on ten strings.” Dou Akou said anxiously.
"Just this one string of cash."
Dou Akou gave a wronged "Oh," took the money, and thought that although there was no tiger lantern, a string of cash would be enough to buy a small rabbit lantern.
Watching Dou Akou disappear through the door, Fu Jiuxin put down his pen, unable to write anything more.
He sat quietly for a while, then called over a maid: "Take the young lady out, make sure nothing happens to her, and don't let her eat too much."
Just as Dou Akou stepped out, a guest arrived at the Dou residence.
Dou Jincai laughed heartily and went out to greet him: "Brother, you've finally arrived. It's already the fifteenth of the first lunar month and you're only now coming to wish me a Happy New Year. You're really slow."
The visitor was a colleague of Dou Jincai, a royal merchant who mainly dealt in cosmetics for the concubines and imperial consorts in the palace. His surname was Shui.
The two old men exchanged pleasantries and then sat down for a detailed discussion.
Dou Jincai knew that Master Shui had always loved the sound of string and wind instruments, so he asked Xu Liren to play the zither to entertain the guest.
Master Shui's purpose in coming here was very simple: to propose marriage to Dou Akou. Of course, he wasn't proposing it for himself, but for his eldest son.
"Brother, I brought some rouge and face powder specially made by my family's Yanxia Pavilion to give to Akou. She looked so tiny when she was little, but now she can wear rouge and face powder and get married."
Dou Jincai was also quite moved. He was very satisfied with this marriage. The two families were colleagues, of similar social standing, and their children were of marriageable age. It was a natural and logical arrangement for them to become in-laws. He wanted to agree immediately, but he declined, saying, "Brother, let me ask Akou what she thinks when she gets back. Girls are easily shy, so I'll give you an answer in a few days. You—"
Suddenly, a sharp "clang" interrupted his unfinished words. They looked over and saw that one of the strings on Xu Liren's guqin had broken. He was a skilled musician, and even though the string was broken, the lingering sound still carried a slight tremor and lingered in the air.
A broken string is an ominous sign, and Dou Jincai immediately flew into a rage: "Xu—!"
"Wait a minute." Master Shui interrupted him, looking at Xu Liren who had raised her face in amazement. Her face, which was even more enchanting and beautiful than a woman's, now carried a hint of arrogance, disdain, and conceit, making one want to tame this beautiful beast.
Master Shui stared at Xu Liren with fascination: "Brother, how about giving me your position as a musician?"
Dou Jincai readily agreed, "Okay."
The last time he refused to give Xu Liren to Li San, firstly because he didn't like Li San, and secondly because Dou Akou refused. Now that his longtime friend had asked for her, Dou Jincai was naturally willing to give her away, considering it a favor.
He's just a musician. So what if he's a frivolous person who bought it? We can just compensate him with another musician later, or pay him double the price.
Master Shui was staring intently at Xu Liren when he heard that Dou Jincai was so agreeable, and he became excited and beamed with joy.
Xu Liren coldly stared at Master Shui. He knew very well the old man's filthy thoughts. He curled his lips at Master Shui and gave him a smile. Sure enough, the old man became even more infatuated and looked extremely disheveled.
So that afternoon, Xu Liren left the Dou residence empty-handed, following Master Shui.
Dou Akou bought a string of candied hawthorns and a small rabbit lantern with a string of coins on the street. She ate the candied hawthorns while listening to the vendors chatting on the street corner.
A vendor next to her was selling cosmetics and face powder. She chatted with the vendor selling trinkets about business first, and then the conversation turned to the Imperial Merchant Shui Family.
The vendor said that the old man, Mr. Shui, was said to have homosexual tendencies. Some people had personally seen dead bodies carried out of the back door of the Shui family's house. They were all handsome young men. Some of the lucky ones who didn't die were all ruined by his sexual abuse and couldn't get out of bed for ten days or half a month.
Others sighed and said that this was a hobby only for wealthy families, while others felt sorry for Master Shui's several beautiful concubines, and so on.
Dou Akou was extremely embarrassed. When she was in Qingyong City, she often spent time with Tang Xunzhen, who would sometimes impart information to her that Fu Jiuxin considered absolutely "bad," so Dou Akou knew what homosexuality was.
She just didn't expect that Uncle Shui was this kind of person.
Dou Akou finished eating the last candied hawthorn on the street corner and happily went home. She planned to tell Xu Liren the gossip she had heard so that the two of them could have a laugh together.
She searched the entire Dou residence but couldn't find Xu Liren. Dou Akou was getting anxious; where else could Xu Liren have gone besides the Dou residence?
Dou Jincai was about to go find Dou Akou to talk about Master Shui's marriage proposal and ask her opinion when he saw Dou Akou rushing over angrily. He frowned and said, "Akou, stop right there! What about the etiquette your teacher taught you?"
Dou Akou almost grabbed Dou Jincai's beard: "Dad! Have you seen Xu Li?"
“Xu Liren? Oh, your Uncle Shui came to visit us today. He was short of a musician, so I gave Xu Liren to him.”
A thunderclap seemed to roll out from the ground, and Dou Akou's eyes widened in surprise: "Giving someone away? Giving Uncle Shui away?"
Dou Jincai was a little puzzled by his daughter's strong reaction: "Yes, he's just a musician. If your master asks, I'll just buy him another one—"
Dou Akou jumped up, stepping on the last word of Dou Jincai's name, and cried out in a tearful voice, "Father, you are a wicked man!"
She ran away crying and screaming.
Dou Jincai stood there, stunned, unable to recover for a long time.
Dou Akou was so anxious that she paced back and forth. She remembered what the street vendor had said, and then she thought of Xu Li's beautiful face. The more she thought about it, the more frightened she became. After thinking it over, she decided that she could only go to find the teacher first.
When Fu Jiuxin heard Dou Akou's voice, he pressed his forehead. He calmly raised his head to look at Dou Akou: "What is it now?"
Looking up, she saw the shimmering light in Dou Akou's eyes, brimming with a pitiful charm.
Fu Jiuxin was startled, and her hands instinctively clenched tightly: "Who bullied you?"
“Xu Li…Xu Li was taken away by Uncle Shui…” Dou Akou sobbed, “Sir, please take me to find Xu Li…”
Fu Jiuxin slowly loosened his clenched fist and looked quietly at Dou Akou: "You called me here for this?"
Dou Akou nodded, looking at Fu Jiuxin with anticipation.
"Dou Akou, go by yourself, I can't help you." Fu Jiuxin stood up and indifferently looked away from her.
“Sir!” Dou Akou was disappointed; she hadn’t noticed the change in how Fu Jiuxin addressed her.
Fu Jiuxin ignored her.
Dou Akou was both angry and disappointed, and shouted, "I know, sir! You never liked Xu Liren, so you must be very happy to see him being sent away. Now you refuse to take me to find him. You must be doing this on purpose! You are just like my father, a wicked person!"
Fu Jiuxin paused, then slowly raised his eyes and said, word by word, "I deliberately watched Xu Liren being taken away? I'm happy about that?"
His expression was calm, but Dou Akou felt a chill run down her spine. She took a few steps back and stammered, "Sir..."
"Am I a bad person?"
"Sir, no, I..."
"Do you still think that I instructed your father to send Xu Liren away?"
Fu Jiuxin remained expressionless, pressing closer step by step.
Dou Akou was truly on the verge of tears this time. She hurriedly explained, "No, sir—"
Fu Jiuxin turned around: "Dou Akou, the Shui family is at the corner of Zhuque Street in Ziwei Qingdu. You may use this place."
Dou Akou knew she had said something wrong and angered her husband. She wanted to explain to him and act coquettishly, just like she had done in the past when she angered him. However, thinking about Xu Liren's whereabouts and the rumors circulating in the neighborhood, she hesitated for a moment, then turned and went out.
Fu Jiuxin had been facing away from her without moving. Only after Dou Akou had been gone for a long time did he slowly turn around, intending to continue painting the orchid he had been painting. He slowly ground the ink, but just as his hand was about to pick up the brush, he suddenly changed direction, grabbed the inkstone, and slammed it heavily against the door. The inkstone shattered, and ink splattered all over the floor.
Hearing the noise from Fu Jiuxin's room, the servants quickly bowed and asked from outside the door, "Mr. Fu, what happened?"
Fu Jiuxin hissed, "Get lost!"
Little Mandarin Ducks
Dou Akou rushed out of her house and ran wildly towards Zhuque Street.
It was already dark, and lights were on in every household. Dou Akou, panting heavily, lifted her skirt and finally saw two bright red lanterns in front of the Shui family's house.
The servants at the gate recognized her as the daughter of the Dou family. They assumed she had just slipped out of the house to play and let her in, while sending someone to inform the Dou family to bring her in.
Dou Akou ran into the intricate courtyard of the Shui family home, unsure of where to go. She grabbed a passing maid: "Sister, where is Uncle Shui?"
"Miss Dou, the master has gone out on business and hasn't returned yet."
"Then...did Uncle Shui bring back a very handsome boy today?"
The maid's face paled. Of course she knew that Master Shui had brought a young man back today. Earlier, she had been gossiping with her sisters, saying it was a pity that the young man would be ruined by Master Shui again.
Now that Dou Akou had asked, she didn't know what to say for a moment. Seeing Dou Akou's anxious expression, she thought that this young man probably had some connection with the Dou family, so she answered truthfully: "Yes, the master has placed him in the side room, right over there."