Chapter 93 — Refusal (Pink Ticket 780 Bonus Chapter)

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She had assumed the Dou family would first settle the matter of her betrothal to the Wei family, never imagining they would simply set the Wei family aside altogether.

Marry Wu Shan?

Whose idea had this been?

Had they not been scheming all along to use her marriage as a piece on their board? Why this sudden change of course? Or had something changed in Wu Songnian's official post?

Dou Yan asked Suxin, "Is this news reliable?"

By rights, Fifth Uncle's letters should not have been so easily overheard.

Seeing that Dou Yan showed neither shyness nor joy at the glad tidings, Suxin was taken aback and stared at her in bewilderment, her voice dropping despite herself: "This match was sought by Old Madam Wu herself from the Third Madam, and now Fifth Master has agreed as well. It is all but certain, and so the word got out..."

Dou Chi frowned.

She had been too careless.

From the proposal to the promise, some days must have passed, and yet she had noticed nothing.

She needed to find Chen Yanzhou and discuss the matter with him.

Dou Yan rose and went to the study, her face grim.

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The Second Old Madam was deeply displeased as well.

Behind closed doors she poured out her grievances to Lady Ji: "...What is all this talk of a friend in need? So long as it is not a family close to the Wangs, it will do. But Shouyuan could plainly have made a better match—why must she be married into the Wu family?"

"Fifth Uncle has his own considerations, which he likely could not explain clearly in a letter." Lady Ji, whose face had blossomed into smiles when she first heard the news, now answered the Second Old Madam somewhat perfunctorily. "Fortunately, Lord Wu and Old Madam Wu are of noble character, and the Wu family's Fourth Young Master is one we watched grow up before our very eyes. He is honest and plain of heart, and he and Shouyuan might well be called childhood sweethearts—better, at any rate, than marrying a stranger. And what Fifth Uncle said makes sense as well: at least Shouyuan will have married into a family close to our own. Were she to marry elsewhere, there is no telling but the Wangs might win her over."

The Second Old Madam remained stubborn: "Shouyuan has never been close to the Wangs since she was small..."

"A daughter obeys her father at home and her husband when married," said Ji Guan. "However much Shouyuan may dislike the Wangs, she can hardly defy her husband, can she? Otherwise, how would the Pang family have dared stage that 'hero saving the beauty'?"

The Second Old Madam was silent for a long while. Then she sighed and said with some helplessness, "Then go and send word to the Wu family, before Old Madam Wu returns to the capital. Have the birth characters matched."

Suddenly a bright, clear laugh rang out in the room: "Who is getting betrothed? I wonder if I might beg a cup of wedding wine?"

Lady Ji and the Second Old Madam turned to see Ji Yong standing in the doorway, all smiles.

Since matters had come to this, there was no use saying more; it would only make the Wu family uncomfortable should they hear of it, thinking themselves looked down upon, and needlessly sow discord between the two households.

The thought flashed through the Second Old Madam's mind, and she chuckled: "It is your Fourth Cousin and Wu Shan. The two of them are to be betrothed!"

Ji Yong was astonished. Into his mind leaped at once Dou Yan's dignified, spirited face and Wu Shan's gentle, harmless smile.

Why, the two of them were quite well matched!

And yet, by comparison, Dou Yan seemed the more boyish, with a greater share of fortitude, while Wu Shan was the more girlish, with a greater share of softness.

He thought of the groaning men sprawled across the ground and the unrecognizable Pang Kunbai he had seen when he arrived at the country manor.

What sort of sight, he wondered, would Dou Yan and Wu Shan make together?

The more Ji Yong thought, the more amusing he found it.

He asked the Second Old Madam, "When are they to be betrothed? Shall I help carry anything over? I remember when my elder sister married, she had me help move her dowry, and on the third day, when she returned home, it was I who went to fetch her..." A note of excitement he could not quite conceal threaded through his voice.

Though already a provincial graduate, he was still at heart a child, and at the first hint of festivity he could scarcely contain himself.

The Second Old Madam's gaze softened as she looked at him. "That was the wedding and the homecoming. For now they are only matching birth characters; there is nothing yet for you to help with. If you are willing, come to Zhending in a couple of years and drink at their wedding. Shouyuan has no younger brother yet, so when the time comes, you shall stand in as her elder brother and help move the dowry just the same."

"Gladly, gladly!" Ji Yong said happily. "When the time comes, Madam, do not forget to send our family an invitation. Wherever I may be, I shall be sure to come."

"I will, I will!" the Second Old Madam said with a smile. The two of them chatted for a long while, and gradually the Second Old Madam came to accept that Dou Yan was soon to marry Wu Shan; her spirits improved greatly, and she stayed to take the evening meal with Lady Ji before returning.

Dou Yan arranged to meet Wu Shan the next morning in Lady Ji's courtyard.

She wanted to have a proper talk with Wu Shan before they exchanged the betrothal cards. If they could part on good terms, so much the better; if not, she would have to resort to sterner measures.

She truly did not want Wu Shan to hate her.

Chen Yanzhou, for his part, urged Dou Yan: "Miss, I beg you to think twice before acting. Young Master Wu is truly a good man. If a fine match could be made of this, it would not necessarily be a bad thing."

At the least, Wu Shan would not interfere with Dou Zhiwei's decisions.

Dou Yan smiled bitterly. "I truly have no wish to accompany another boy through his growing years, not knowing what manner of man he will become once grown..."

Chen Yanzhou did not understand.

Dou Yan did not explain. The next day she dressed plainly and went to pay her respects to her grandmother.

Her grandmother had likely heard the news as well. She beamed and studied her unceasingly, saying, "Our Shouyuan has become a grown young lady—prettier with every passing day." Then she had Hong Gu bring out a red-lacquered box painted in gold and gave it to her. "This is my favorite set of head ornaments. I give it to you now."

Dou Yan fretted inwardly.

Thank goodness she had acted quickly and arranged to meet Wu Shan. A few more days of delay and the situation might well have become unmanageable.

Feigning ignorance, she asked her grandmother with a grin why she was giving her a present, and then, putting on a show of delight, accepted the set of gold hair ornaments inlaid with southern pearls. "Once it's given to me, it's mine," she declared. "You mustn't take it back!"

Grandmother was overjoyed, beaming so wide her mouth could scarcely close.

Only then did Dou Ci go to the Sixth Aunt's quarters.

She had lived here some years before, and Lady Ji to this day kept the western wing room she had once occupied exactly as it had been. Even now she occasionally spent the night there, and the place was like a second home to her; no one was surprised by her arrival.

She chatted with Lady Ji about flowers and plants for a good while, then accompanied her on a walk around the eaves and the back of the house, and Wu Shan arrived.

Dou Yan boldly asked Wu Shan to paint a fan leaf for her: "...just like the one you did for Third Cousin-in-law last time."

Wu Shan glanced at Lady Ji, his face flushed.

Ji Wan said, "Go on, go on! There's ink and brushes ready in Hui's study."

Wu Shan murmured his assent and went off to Dou Yong's study.

Dou Yan followed along to watch, just as she always had.

Lady Ji sat on the kang going over the accounts for the past few months.