A Poor Man's Son-in-Law: He Picks Up the Daughter of a Duke's Mansion at the Start

On October 13th, just as dawn was breaking, Zhao got up.

She changed into the fine cotton dress Wang Xiu had given her—blue with white flowers, one she rarely wore. Her hair was neatly combed and tied into a bun at the back of her head. She looked in the mirror and then put on the pair of silver earrings. These were bought for her by Lu Qingyan with his first stipend after he passed the imperial examination.

Inside the main room, Lu Tiezhu squatted on the threshold, smoking, his pipe glowing intermittently. Lu Qingyan was already dressed and checking the gift box he was to take—it contained the silk that the Deng family had sent yesterday, untouched.

"Mother, I'll go with you," Lu Qingyan said.

Madam Zhao shook her head and took the gift box from his hand: "I'll go myself. You're a scholar; if you go, it will only embarrass the Deng family. This is something I, as your mother, must do myself."

Lu Dashan hitched up the donkey cart, and Yunniang, heavily pregnant, came out of the west room and handed over an oil paper package: "Mother, I've made some pancakes for you to eat on the way."

Zhao took it and glanced at Shunhua, who was standing under the eaves. The little girl's face was still a bit pale, but her eyes were bright and clear. She nodded to her.

The donkey cart creaked and groaned its way out of the village. The morning mist was thin, and the rice paddies beside the road had already been harvested, leaving only stubble of rice. Zhao sat on the cart, her back ramrod straight, but her hands were tightly gripping the hem of her clothes.

Upon arriving at the Deng residence, she was led inside by the same head maid from yesterday. This time, she wasn't in a side hall, but in a small flower hall outside the main hall. Madam Deng sat at the head of the table, dressed even more opulently than yesterday, her face expressionless.

"Has Grandma Lu come to her senses?" she asked bluntly.

Madam Zhao curtsied and placed the gift box on the table: "Madam, I have come to thank your family for your kindness."

Mrs. Deng frowned slightly.

"It's a blessing that Shunhua has caught the eye of the household," Zhao said in a steady voice, each word clear. "But I thought about it again and again last night, and things at home are really not in accordance with the rules."

"What are the rules?"

"Our third son, Qingyan, is nineteen this year." Madam Zhao raised her head, her eyes earnest. "He is a scholar who has passed the imperial examination. According to custom, he should get married first. But this boy is focused on his studies and says he will go to the capital to take the imperial examination next year. We will discuss marriage after the examination."

She paused, and seeing that Madam Deng was listening, she continued, "The third son is not yet married, how can his younger sister marry first? If word gets out, people will laugh at our Lu family for having no manners. If Shunhua really enters the household, wouldn't the gossip make Madam feel embarrassed when she takes her out to social events?"

This was a well-chosen statement. It both highlighted Lu Qingyan's status as a successful candidate in the imperial examinations and preserved the Deng family's reputation.

Madam Deng's expression softened slightly, and she picked up her teacup and took a sip.

"Furthermore," Zhao pressed, "our second son, Xiaoshan, is still unmarried. Although he's not young, he's still ahead of Shunhua in the family line. If he were to marry his sister before his brothers, it wouldn't be right with the elders in the clan."

As she spoke, her eyes reddened slightly: "Madam is also a mother, she understands this difficulty. They are both her children, and she can't bear to see either of them suffer."

Mrs. Deng put down her teacup and sighed, "Old Mrs. Lu is a wise woman." She glanced at the gift box on the table, "Since that's the case, it's not good to force it. Take this satin back with you and make some clothes for the children."

"No, no, I wouldn't dare," Zhao hurriedly declined. "These things originally belonged to our household; we..."

"Take it," Madam Deng waved her hand. "Consider it a good deed. Your Qingyan is a scholar who has passed the imperial examination; he has a bright future ahead of him. Even if this marriage doesn't happen, the goodwill remains."

Zhao then accepted it with profuse thanks.

Once she left the Deng residence and got back into the donkey cart, she realized that the back of her clothes was soaked with sweat. A cool autumn breeze blew by.

On her way back to the village, she didn't go straight home but detoured to the cloth shop in town. She used the bolt of silk that the Deng family had returned to exchange for several bolts of thick cotton cloth—blue for the men, blue for the women, and a piece of red with small floral patterns for Tao Hua and Shun Hua.

It was already noon when I arrived home. The whole family was waiting for me in the main room.

Shunhua was the first to come forward, taking the cloth from her hand and looking at her with bright eyes.

"I refused." Zhao patted her daughter's head, her voice a little hoarse. "From now on, I'll find you a good family. I don't care about money, I just want a good person."

Shunhua's eyes reddened, and she lowered her head.

In the main room, Lu Qingyan stood up: "Mother, you've worked hard."

"It's not hard work." Zhao sat down on the stool, only then realizing that her legs were weak. "Madam Deng is reasonable and didn't make things difficult for me." She explained the whole story in detail, and when she mentioned using the reason that "her brother is not married," Lu Qingyan nodded.

"Mother is right," he said. "I'm going to the capital next year, so I really won't be able to think about marriage. We'll talk about it after the exams."

Lu Tiezhu squatted on the threshold and said in a muffled voice, "Shunhua is still young, there's no rush."

"She's thirteen," Zhao said softly. "In other families, she'd be ready to be introduced to someone by now. But we'll wait two more years. After Qingyan finishes her exams, and after things are more stable at home."

She looked at Lu Xiaoshan: "Xiaoshan too. When spring comes, I'll ask around. We're doing well now, so we don't have to worry about finding a good girl."

Lu Xiaoshan was polishing a bonsai base when he heard this. He paused, his ears turned slightly red, and he didn't say anything.

Yunniang came out of the west room, holding her pregnant belly, and said with a smile, "Mother, I was just telling Dashan yesterday that the house will be even more lively after the baby is born. There's really no rush for Shunhua's matter."

The atmosphere lightened.

In the afternoon, Lu Qingyan called the whole family to the main room. Several bolts of new cloth were spread out on the table.

"I'll go find a tailor in a couple of days," he said. "I'll have two winter coats made for each of me. Mother, please choose the styles carefully, don't skimp."

Zhao touched the blue cloth; the material was thick and soft to the touch. In the past, she wouldn't have dared to touch such cloth.

"That's too expensive," she said habitually.

"No expense needed." Lu Qingyan took out a purse from his pocket, poured out a few pieces of silver, and said, "This is the share I just received from the Yawen Bookstore, fifty taels. It won't cost much to make clothes."

The whole family was stunned. Fifty taels of silver was enough for a farmer to earn for several years.

"Third Brother is amazing!" Tao Hua clapped her hands.

Shunhua looked at the silver, then at Lu Qingyan, her eyes sparkling.

At night, Lu Qingyan wrote letters under the lamp. One was to Yawen Bookstore, discussing the topic for a new storybook. The other was to Lin Guangbiao, inquiring about the shipping schedule for the southward journey next year—he wanted to see the state of maritime trade for himself.

After finishing writing, he went into the courtyard. The moonlight was perfect, illuminating the newly renovated courtyard. A light was on in the west room, and he could vaguely hear Yunniang and Lu Dashan talking. In the east wing's work shed, there was the soft rustling of planing wood—Lu Xiaoshan was working hard again.

The door to the main room creaked open, and Zhao came out, holding a piece of red cloth with small floral patterns in her hand, gesturing it over Shunhua's body.

"Mother, aren't you asleep yet?"

"Go to sleep." Madam Zhao turned around. In the moonlight, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes were deep, but her eyes were gentle. "Yan'er, when I went to the Deng family today, I stood up straight."

She paused, then said softly, "Because I know my son is promising, and our family can stand on its own two feet."

Lu Qingyan nodded.