Chapter 33: Each Winter Rain Brings a Deeper Chill

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Front Hall.

Madam Fan sat serenely in the seat of honor, every inch the dignified matriarch. Rolling her Buddhist prayer beads between her fingers, she said leisurely, “I hear that Jinzi has recently brought another woman into the household?”

The old nurse below hurriedly bowed and replied, “That is indeed the case, Old Madam.”

Then she added, “She is most likely bathing and changing at this very moment. Once she has finished dressing, she will come to pay her respects to you.”

Madam Fan gave a slight nod. At once, a maid beside her brought over a bowl of ginseng broth, from which she took a small sip.

“For three generations, the Fan family has had but a single male heir. Our line is indeed rather thin. Bringing several respectable young women into the household to help the family branch out is only proper.”

The prayer beads in Madam Fan’s hand came to a halt. “And how are things in the rear courtyard?”

The minor matter of Hu Yingying disciplining the various women had naturally reached her ears long ago. Yet she understood the art of managing a household: one must neither be deaf nor blind, but neither should one act as the family patriarch.

The old nurse understood at once and smiled. “Rest assured, Old Madam. The master and mistress are deeply affectionate toward one another. How could a few trivial matters drive them apart?”

As she spoke, Fan Jin and Hu Yingying entered with the ease of people thoroughly familiar with the household.

“Mother…”

The two were just about to perform their formal greetings when Madam Fan’s face broke into a smile.

“We are family. There is no need for such empty formalities. Jinzi, come and tell me—how much did you gain from this journey?”

Fan Jin immediately began recounting several amusing incidents from his travels, soon making the old lady laugh heartily.

Before long, another servant came to report that Miss Qinghe, the new addition to the household, was waiting outside.

At this, the smile vanished from the old lady’s face. She said coolly, “Have her come in.”

“Yes,” the maid replied.

A moment later, a young girl with a round, babyish face and a bun tied with a blue ribbon came in, leading Qinghe at a measured pace.

As soon as Qinghe entered, she performed a distant curtsy.

“Greetings to Old Madam, Master, and Madam.”

Next came the tea ceremony. The old lady took a silver ingot and a fine jadeite bracelet from the tray, then dismissed the girl with little ceremony.

It was still too early for her to address anyone by a more intimate title. At the very least, she would have to bear a child of the Fan family before she could earn a little favor in the old lady’s eyes.

Even concubines were divided into ranks. A woman formally brought into the household could never be lumped together with one casually taken in. A concubine with an official status and one without a title were worlds apart.

After lunch, Fan Jin once again went to the rear courtyard. Beneath a rose trellis, he sipped tea and read while servants came and went, cautiously carrying the books from his study outside to air them in the sun.

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Spread open on the stone table before Fan Jin were two books. One was a collection of Zhu Xi’s reflections on the Four Books and Five Classics; the other was an anthology of model eight-legged essays from the current dynasty.

The latter in particular contained the most widely circulated classic essays of the age.

Under the Ming imperial examination system, once the examinations were over, all the papers had to be returned to the candidates. As a result, many celebrated eight-legged essays were passed down and circulated widely.

At present, Fan Jin was reading the essays written by the other candidates who had passed the Guangdong provincial examination this year.

Although Commissioner Zhou had repeatedly praised his writing, saying that its maturity was no less than that of the other successful candidates and that his foundation in the eight-legged essay was especially solid, the fact that he had ranked only seventh showed that the others possessed genuine talent as well.

Even if hidden dealings or the examiners’ personal preferences had played some part, the essays on the examination papers still had to be convincing enough to preserve appearances.

The stone of another mountain may serve to polish jade.

As future competitors in the metropolitan examination, they ought to understand one another as thoroughly as possible.

Besides, since crossing into this world, he had yet to see the original owner’s examination paper.

“Gurgle…”

“Gurgle…”

When Fan Jin finally came back to himself, his stomach had begun to protest. He looked up and discovered that it was not yet time for dinner.

But a living man could always find a way to survive.

With a thought, Fan Jin instructed the servants to have the kitchen prepare some food. He also ordered them to set up a brazier nearby for warmth.

As the snow-white silver coal in the brazier slowly caught fire, the small space soon grew pleasantly warm. The price, however, was a piece of coal worth a full ounce of silver. It burned without smoke or odor and was exceedingly comfortable.

Back when he had been struggling against both hunger and cold, he naturally could not afford such extravagance. But now that he had passed the examination, why should he continue living as poorly as before? Otherwise, what would have been the point of passing at all?

Before long, a servant hurried over carrying an exquisite food box. When the lid was lifted, a rich fragrance filled the air.

Stir-fried beef, three-delicacy soup, seasonal vegetables, stewed chicken soup, and a pot of fine blue-and-white wine.

They were only a few simple dishes, yet they were enough to whet the appetite.

After finishing his meal and reviewing his essays for another hour, Fan Jin watched as the sky gradually darkened. The setting sun slowly sank beyond the earth, leaving only a few streaks of golden afterglow along the horizon.

A little later, the sky suddenly dimmed further, as though veiled beneath a thin gray gauze. A hazy, dreamlike glow spread across the heavens, and several distant peals of thunder rumbled faintly.

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“It will probably rain soon.”

Fan Jin muttered under his breath, then gathered up his books and handed them to the servant standing nearby. With his hands clasped behind his back, he returned to the study.

By the time he came out again, a bitter wind was howling outside, sweeping dead branches and fallen leaves against the doors and windows. Muffled thunder rolled without end, and raindrops came pelting down.

Though it was winter rain, its violence was no less than that of a summer storm. In the blink of an eye, the city and surrounding wilderness vanished beneath a deluge, transformed into a world of rain.

Torrents battered the blue-brick roofs and walls, cascading down within moments like strings of pearls.

Fan Jin went to the main hall for dinner. With nothing else to occupy him, he sat chatting with his wives and concubines, telling them tales from legends and popular storybooks.

“It is said that in the beginning, Heaven and Earth were not yet separated, and all beneath the sky lay in chaos, boundless and unseen. Then Pangu broke through the primordial darkness, and from that moment clear and turbid were divided…”

Fan Jin paused when he saw that all his wives and concubines wore utterly bewildered expressions. He changed his manner of speaking.

“Legend has it that long, long ago, the world was divided into four great continents: the Eastern Victory Divine Continent, the Western Ox-Herding Continent, the Southern Jambu Continent, and the Northern Kuru Continent.

“Upon the Eastern Victory Divine Continent stood a small kingdom called Aolai. Within that kingdom was a mountain called the Mountain of Flowers and Fruit. On the mountain stood an immortal stone, containing a divine embryo and arranged with nine orifices and eight apertures.

“Then one day, the immortal stone suddenly split apart. Exposed to the wind, it transformed into a stone monkey!

“This monkey possessed all five features and all four limbs. Once it landed on the ground, it learned to crawl and walk, then bowed in worship toward the four quarters.

“From its eyes shot two beams of golden light that pierced the heavenly court…”

The birth of the Monkey King, his apprenticeship under Patriarch Subhuti, his borrowing of treasures from the Dragon Palace, his great havoc in Heaven…

As Fan Jin narrated in his unhurried voice, a strange and wondrous world gradually unfolded before them—a world ruled by immortals and overrun by demons. In the hall, an unusual light blossomed in every person’s eyes.

Fan Jin, however, was soon overcome by weariness. After yawning several times, he forced himself to say, “Quickly, go west and invite the Buddha Tathagata…”

Then his voice trailed off.

“This…”

All the wives and concubines stared at him in stunned silence.

In the end, Hu Yingying was the first to recover. She brushed her sleeve and ordered, “The master has been studying all day and is already exhausted. None of you should trouble him any further…”

Then she called Qinghe by name.

“What are you waiting for? Go and help the master back to rest!”