Chapter Thirteen: Meeting Father

  A young maid, dressed in bright and clean clothes, stood at the door with a face as smooth as water chestnuts, her cheeks flushed with a healthy glow, her head slightly bowed, revealing half of her slender neck. A pair of emerald earrings adorned her small ears, matching the jade hairpin slanted on her head. Gua Erjia caught a whiff of perfume and saw that this maid, barely fifteen or sixteen years old, had an air of maturity about her. From her attire, it was clear that she was a personal maid who had been granted permission to show her face, serving the elderly duke.

  "Third Master is well, Fourth Master is well." The tone was slightly raised at the end, and with a diligent opening of the curtain, "You've come just in time, Old Master is awake."

  "This is the second master of the mansion." Zhicheng pointed at Zhiyuan, "Yingtao has met the second master before."

  Cherry slightly dazed, slender vermilion phoenix eyes raised, with an indescribable charm and seductive tone, "Second Master is well." The voice and intonation are not inferior to those of the Jiangnan thin horses, able to make the masters' bones soften a little.

  Zhiyuan furrowed his brow, speaking seriously: "Auntie is recuperating here, you don't say serving Auntie, but instead dress up so gaudily, one look and it's clear you're not a demure person."

  "Third brother, although the inner house is managed by the ladies, but Mother is getting old and can't think of everything. Having filial piety towards Ama doesn't mean following her in every matter. As sons, we must distinguish between what's good or bad for Ama. Blindly being filial will only harm Ama, and those unscrupulous women will take advantage of her. If anything happens to Ama, it would be our fault for not being filial."

  Zhiyuan Yizheng said, "Second brother, although Xingtao is a slave, she has been allowed by Mother to serve beside Ama and has been very diligent in her service. Mother says that when Ama's body recovers a bit more, she will promote Xingtao to be a lady-in-waiting."

  "Nonsense! Auntie Ama will be sixty this New Year, and you want to marry a 15 or 16-year-old little girl as your concubine? Do you still care about the reputation of the Duke's Mansion? What kind of morality is this?"

  "Get in here, you good-for-nothing, disobedient child!"

  A loud shout came from the house, cutting off Zhiyuan's words. He walked in, and Guajia Shi gave a seemingly smiling glance at Cherry, who was badly hurt. With her outstanding appearance and charming demeanor, she had captivated the hearts of men, but her own husband, Zhiyuan, disliked such coquettish and unseemly behavior. Cherry had used the wrong approach, and Guajia Shi straightened her waist. "You think I'm a lustful and lecherous person who can't move his feet when he sees a woman?"

  Xiu Yao followed Gual Jia into the house, where a set of dark wood furniture was arranged, with four glass windows that opened upwards. The room was well-lit, and on the couch sat an old man with white hair and wrinkles, his queue thinning to just a small bunch at the back of his head. He pointed at Zhi Yuan, his whiskers trembling:

  "Rebellious son, as soon as you returned to the capital, you didn't let me have a good time. The Duke's mansion is a noble family with a long history, but you're not even proficient in martial arts. You're just a foolish son who only knows how to follow the teachings of Confucius and interfere with my personal affairs."

  The old man was very annoyed, having not seen his second son for over a decade. He had been somewhat worried about him, thinking that he would have become more refined and less stubborn after rising to office. But who knew that his nature wouldn't change? The old man liked the way his daughter-in-law spoke, but his second son didn't.

  "Ama, don't be angry, Second Brother didn't intentionally provoke you." Zhicheng stepped forward to support the old man and help him catch his breath. "Second Brother, look at how angry Ama is, quickly apologize to her."

  As soon as he came back, he annoyed the old man. Zhicheng seemed to be helping Zhiyuan speak, but in fact, he was provoking the old man's anger even more. Zhiyuan knelt down: "Mother, I am thinking of you, for the sake of the Duke's family rules and reputation. If one is not upright, how can they serve the Emperor? Moreover, your grandson is going to marry a wife, and your granddaughter will be married off, if the family reputation is tarnished, their marriages will be affected. I am thinking of our descendants, that's why I advise Mother to cultivate her character."

  The old man angrily said: "You still have the nerve, are you deliberately trying to infuriate me before returning to Beijing? The eight banners and noble families, adding fragrance with red sleeves is a beautiful thing, how did it become improper behavior when it comes out of your mouth? Think back to when Ama was alive, it was also like this. You, Zhiyuan, are not like your father, nor like your ancestors."

  The son is not like the old one, it's an extremely severe saying, it's the father's disappointment and disgust with his son. Zhiyuan said: "Ama, you've forgotten how Mafa left?"

  The old man swallowed the angry words that came out of his mouth, and the handsome ancestor died of typhoid fever on the surface, but in fact he was only slightly ill with a cold. During his convalescence, he was fascinated by beauty and couldn't control his lower body, and after several spring breezes, he emptied the energy in his body. The minor illness turned into a major one, and the medicine was useless, so he died with regret. The handsome ancestor had many wives and concubines, and satisfying their demands was exhausting.

  Zhiyuan advised: "Son is not in charge of Auntie's household affairs, you should take care of your body, son can only do his filial duty well. Although son's martial arts skills are not good and his riding and shooting skills are poor, son will take the imperial examination and become a civil official, which will also bring glory to the Duke's mansion."

  The old man was amused by Zhiyuan, "I'll see how you can bring glory to our family gate. I've seen it, and I've said it. You go and pay your respects to your wife, I can see that you're troubled."

  "Ahma, that's not right." Zhiyuan spoke again, "You've seen your son, but haven't received the bows of your grandson and granddaughter, how can we leave?" Shu Mu glared at Zhiyuan, "How did I raise such an unromantic and unappreciative son like you?"

  The old man was furious, after all these years, Zhiyuan hasn't changed a bit, his way of talking is still maddening. Although the old man has a weakness for women, he's also an experienced official who has been through ups and downs, so he can't help but wonder how Zhiyuan managed to rise from a low-ranking official to being favored by the emperor, with such a temper, how did he get excellent evaluations from the Ministry of Officials all these years?

  Zhi Cheng Zhi Hao was even more annoyed, and became even more certain that Zhi Yuan had a powerful backer. Zhi Yuan said: "Even if your son is a blockhead, he's still your son."

  "Does he take after his mother?" The old man swallowed the second half of the sentence and changed his words: "According to the letter, you've had two sons and a daughter?"

  Shu Xuan and Shu Yi stepped forward, knelt behind Zhi Yuan, and knocked their heads: "We have seen Ma Fa."

  The old man looked at his two grandsons, Shu Xuan being the elder one. However, he could see that Shu Xuan had taken after his father, Zhi Yuan - both were equally foolish and silly. As for Shu Yi... The old man had seen many people, but this grandson with a hint of a smile on his lips was particularly clever. Finally, he turned to Shu Yao and asked, "Does she have any deficiencies?"

  "Regarding your question, Shu Yao is fine, just a bit tired from the journey. After resting for two days, she'll be okay." No one who knew Shu Yao believed this, not even Guwalgiya herself.

  The old man liked beautiful women, but he never gave a second glance to his daughter-in-law, Gual Jia, who was bright and elegant. He kept a close eye on the relationship between his son and daughter-in-law, saying "This girl has a good fortune."

  Guarjia hung her head, is this what Zhi Cheng said about the old master's words being incoherent? The old man's words were not shallow, but he was fond of beauty, and in this regard, he followed the romantic style of his ancestors.