The weather was getting warmer, and by the beginning of the second lunar month, Qiu Shi had changed out of her thick woollen garments and into thin ones.
On this day, after Qiu Shi finished her dinner, she took her two grandchildren for a walk in the garden. This was a habit she had developed, walking for two quarters after dinner if the weather was good.
Liuyin walked over briskly and informed her, "Old Lady, Han Gao has returned."
When Qiu Shi heard this, she immediately asked the nursemaids to pick up her two grandchildren and urged, "Go, let's go back." She needed to ask Han Gao how Yuxi was doing in Yu City.
When Qiu Shi returned to the Changle courtyard, she heard Mama Li informing her, "Old Lady, Han Gao has been called by Duke Han and will be back after he has finished talking with him. This letter is from Fourth Gunainai[1] to you."
Qiu Shi grumbled discontentedly. "Can't they talk about it later? It's not going to be that bad, either!" Didn't they know she was anxious? What a nuisance. But although she complained, she didn't ask anyone to call Han Gao over, as her son's business was more important.
Han Jianming was in his study, reading the letter Yuxi had written to him. She requested a physician and a few people for her to use. That wasn't all. Above all, she asked him to find someone to redress her grievances. After reading the letter, Han Jianming couldn't help but laugh. "This girl......" People said that a married-off daughter was like poured-out water[2]. However, this girl did not even have consciousness of being a married-off daughter. Even though Han Jianming said so in his mouth, he didn't mind at all. The more people Yuxi wanted, the better the momentum on her side. Yuxi was a person who knew how to repay a favour. The more Han Jianming gave in now, the more he would get in return.
After folding the letter, Han Jianming stood straight and asked Han Gao, "How is Fourth Gunainai[1] doing in Yu City?" Han Gao, too, was very much his trusted confidant, second only to Han Hao, who was by his side.
Han Gao nodded. "The Fourth Gunainai[1] is doing well in Yu City. I have heard from people in the Yun House that the Fourth Guye[3] is also obedient to Miss, and she has been taking care of everything inside and outside the residence. Not only does she keep the backyard in order, but the guards in the front yard are also respectful of Madam."
Han Jianming nodded and said, "That's good. If the Old Lady is looking for you to ask questions, don't hide anything from her. Whatever the Old Lady asks, you will tell her everything you see and hear." The one thing his mother talked about most these days was Yuxi in the border town.
After Han Gao left, Han Jianming immediately called for the Chief Steward. Since Yuxi had asked for some people, he had to satisfy her.
Compared to Han Jianming's general questions, Qiu Shi's questions were more detailed. "Is Yuxi used to eating in Yu City? Is she still not accustomed to the climate of that place? Has she lost weight......" Once she met Han Gao, Qiu Shi asked a series of questions that made Han Gao not even know which one to answer.
Ye Shi said with a smile, "Mother, there is no hurry. Ask him slowly." After reassuring Qiu Shi, Ye Shi asked, "Does Guye[3] treat the Fourth Gunainai[1] well?"
Han Gao nodded. "Guye[3] treats Fourth Gunainai[1] very well. Even though he's busy with military affairs, Guye[3] will always come home no matter how late."
Qiu Shi's heart settled when she heard this answer. "Has Yuxi lost a lot of weight?" In Yu City, there was a shortage of food and clothing, and one could not even buy good things when one had money.
Han Gao smilingly replied, "Don't worry, Old Lady. Fourth Gunainai[1] looks extremely well, no worse than when she was in the capital. Fourth Gunainai[1] even asked me to bring word to Old Lady, saying that the Old Lady should not worry about her and to take good care of your health. She will have a good life in Yu City."
At these words, Qiu Shi's eyes turned red. At that time, she thought she should find a family within the capital or one living nearby for Yuxi. How could she have known that Yuxi would be married to the northwest and it would not be easy to see her again? She did not know that it would be the year of the monkey and the month of the horse[4] for her to see Yuxi again.
Seeing that the current situation was not right, Ye Shi immediately changed the subject by asking, "I heard from the Lord Duke that the Fourth Gunainai[1] had set up a school in Yu City. What is this all about?" Some said it was a school, and others said it was emergency relief for the children of those poor families. There were so many different opinions that even the people from the Duke of the State's residence could not say for sure.
Han Gao had been in Yu City for three days, so he naturally had to inquire about these matters. "Many people in the border towns lived in misery, without enough food or clothing, and many children died in the middle of winter. Hearing this, Madam was moved by compassion and set up this school to provide these children with three meals daily for free, so they could be fed, clothed and survive the cold winter months in peace."
Ye Shi was a bit surprised to hear this and asked, "Then why is it called a school when it can be called a shelter?" One could call it a school as one wished.
Han Gao explained, "Fourth Gunainai[1] is worried that these children will fight when left with nothing to do, so she lets them learn to read in the morning and practise martial arts in the afternoon. That's why it's called Qingming Hall."
Qiu Shi thought more realistically. "With so many children studying and learning to read and write, it can be costly." Learning to read and write was the most expensive, and she wondered if Yuxi still had any money. Qiu Shi had forgotten that she had given Yuxi more than 20,000 taels of silver at the end of last year.[T/C]
Han Gao shook his head. "It doesn't cost a lot either." After saying that, he told the two of them about the idea Yuxi had come up with and said, "It won't cost much this way."
Qiu Shi laughed at his explanation. "This child has one strange idea after another. But not to mention, it's convenient." With hundreds of children reading and learning to read, the cost of writing that required writing brush, paper and ink would be really expensive. Not to mention Yuxi, even their entire residence could only afford to pay for some of them. But Yuxi's method was more suitable, as it allowed those children to learn to read and write without costing them so much.
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Ye Shi couldn't help but praise Yuxi, "Si Mei[6] is so clever." In the morning, the children would learn to read and write, and in the afternoon, they would practise martial arts. Once the children studied something, they wouldn't get into trouble, killing two birds with one stone.
Qiu Shi asked, "I've heard that life is tough in Yu City. How tough is it? Can you tell me more about it?" Hearing that a child would not survive the winter, Qiu Shi's heart couldn't tolerate it. She had started to spend most of her time worshipping Buddha in the past few years, and her heart got softer over time.
What Han Gao knew about Yu City came from Han Ji. "Yu City has been at war for years, and many soldiers have died in battle, leaving behind orphans and widows, most of whom have had a hard time." There were very few ordinary people in Yu City, and basically, most of the Yu City citizens were from military families. While normal people could move to other places if they couldn't make ends meet there, military families couldn't. When the father died, the son had to take over in going to war. Because of this, there used to be children as young as 12 or 13 years old in the army. Marshal Qin later abolished this condition, and the children were only allowed to serve in the military when they reached fourteen. Just like the two brothers, Lu Zhu and Lu Bai, Lu Zhu had to be in the army when he turned fourteen.
Qiu Shi put her hands together and said, "Amitabha Buddha...... Did Ming-er say when he will send people to Yu City again?" She prepared to donate some money to help these children. Although it would be like trying to put out a blazing cartload of firewood with a cup of water[7], at least it would allow those children to have a few more full meals.
When Ye Shi heard this, how could she not understand what Qiu Shi was thinking and said with a smile, "I will also donate some when the time comes, just to show my support."
Han Gao told the two of them, "When the school was first established, many wives also expressed their willingness to donate money, but the Fourth Gunainai[1] refused, saying that if someone donated money, it would be too much to handle. She said that if they wanted to contribute, they should send some rice, noodles, meat and vegetables to the school to feed the children. Later on, many ladies in Yu City sent food."
Qiu Shi could not understand the meaning of Han Gao's words, so she asked with a smile, "If she won't accept other people's money, does that mean she won't also accept my money? Moreover, the money is not for her, so how can she refuse it? Can't this girl do this thing properly?"
Ye Shi comforted Qiu Shi with a smile, "Mother, Si Mei[6] has done the right thing. After all, this is the first time she has done this. There's a reason she's not asking anyone else to spend their money on it. Even if it doesn't go well, no one will say anything. If she takes donations from these ladies and does a bad job, she'll end up with many complaints."
Qiu Shi nodded. "That's true."
After talking about the school, Qiu Shi asked many more questions, all of them very detailed. For example, was Yuxi's pregnancy reaction strong and was the child well now? How could Han Gao know the answers to these questions? Thus, he just stood there with a wooden face and kept shaking his head to show that he didn't know.
Ye Shi said with a smile, "You can withdraw." Han Gao was an adult man, so he would not have paid attention to her xiaogu[8] in these aspects. If they had asked an old woman servant or a maid, they would be more likely to know about them.
Qiu Shi said to Ye Shi, "Qing-er, I want to take out all my private wealth and send it to Yu City so that Yuxi can help more of those poor children." Of course, the private property Qiu Shi was talking about here was the silver she had saved, not all of her estate. Qiu Shi was so generous now because she believed in Buddhism. It convinced her that doing good deeds and accumulating more blessings would benefit her children and grandchildren. It was also because both her sons had made their own fortunes and did not rely on her money to get by.
Ye Shi paused for a moment and said with a smile, "All this money is Mother's, so Mother can use it however Mother wants." Although it was a little heartbreaking, her mother-in-law had a lot of private savings. But as she said, it was her mother-in-law's personal wealth, and it was her freedom to use it however she wanted.
Qiu Shi patted Ye Shi's hand and advised, "Money is something that doesn't come with life and doesn't go with death, so why not use it for some good deeds? It will also bless the children and grandchildren of the Han family."
Ye Shi smiled a little.
When Ye Shi returned to the Master Courtyard, Old Woman Hua could not help but ask, "Madam, isn't the Old Lady being too generous?" In the past few years, Old Lady Han had spent a lot on the temple incense and giving out congee, but Old Woman Hua did not expect Old Lady Han would be even more generous this time, as she wanted to donate all her savings.
Ye Shi replied, "These are the Old Lady's private savings. I don't have the right to peck at what she wants to do with them." If she refused her mother-in-law's words, those who didn't know the situation would think she was conveting her mother-in-law's private savings!
Old Woman Hua added, "The Old Lady's private savings must be several tens of thousands of taels of silver, and she gave it all to the Fourth Miss. My Lady, do you think Fourth Miss will frankly use it for the children?" What Old Woman Hua meant was that Yuxi would enrich herself with it.
Ye Shi's face turned pale as she cautioned, "Mama, you must never repeat this kind of thing." If her xiaogu[8] were truly money-minded, she would not have taken her own money to help those children. Moreover, even if her xiaogu[8] wanted to embezzle, they would have to catch her with evidence. If her mother-in-law and husband discovered nothing was happening and she was only talking nonsense, she wouldn't know what they would think of her. The more this Mama Hua got older, the more confused she became. It seemed like the time to find a chance to let Old Woman Hua rest honourably. If she let Old Woman Hua stay around any longer, she worried that Old Woman Hua would affect her daughter.
Footnotes Full List
- (a respectful form of address for a married woman used by members of her parents' family) married daughter
- A well-known Chinese phrase: once a daughter is married off, she is no more a member of her parents' family
- son-in-law (used by the bride's family)
- Chinese idiom: long time off
- Even if she remembered it, she would still think that it wouldn't be enough. What do you expect? She's a mother. She will always be worried about her children. Especially the ones that are far away from her.
- si=fourth, mei=younger sister, short form for Meimei
- Chinese idiom: utterly inadequate measure; useless attempt
- husband's younger sister/sister-in-law
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi