Chapter 258 — The Dark Room

With silver greasing her palm, the old woman naturally told him everything she knew—and whatever she did not know, she pieced together with guesswork and invention until the tale stood whole.

Or perhaps men and women see the world through different eyes, and each measures it by a different rule.

In this old woman's view, the Dou family's Fourth Miss was simply too soft: "...with an aunt who dotes on her like that, and an elder aunt to stand up for her, what has she to fear? If it were me, I'd have gone to the capital long ago and driven that Wang woman back where she came from, instead of sitting here waiting for her to put on airs and play the grand lady in the capital!" At this she could not help but heave a long sigh, and a trace of sympathy crept into her voice. "Still, I don't blame the Dou Fourth Miss. They were raised on the Admonitions for Women from the time they were small, and in all their dealings they hold to the proper forms and the straight path—so of course they are too soft in what they do. Now the Lang family's Fifteenth Madam, on the other hand—I saw her a few times myself when she was still an unmarried girl, a delicate, tender beauty, the sort who feared to speak too loud and walked as if she dreaded crushing an ant beneath her foot. Yet in little more than ten years she not only took charge of the Lang household's purse strings but began meddling in the family's affairs as well. She has become a heroine on whose shoulders a horse could prance, and what's more, she has taken a bitter grudge against the Pang family. Several great deals of the Pangs—deals that could have brought them back from the brink of ruin—were all spoiled by the Lang Fifteenth Madam." As she spoke, a glint of malicious glee showed on her face.

The old woman was as mean-spirited as her looks suggested, yet through it all she never once spoke a word against the Dou family's Fourth Miss.

Dou Qizhong could not help drawing a deep breath, and asked about the Lang family's Fifteenth Madam: "...who is she?"

The old woman gave a chuckle, her face brightening with excitement, and, waving her hands and fairly acting out the tale, she recounted the whole affair of the feud between the Dou and Zhu families and the Pangs, and at the end added: "How could the Lang Fifteenth Madam not hate the Pangs? If not for the Pangs, she would long ago have been the Seventh Madam of the Dou household—the wife of a presented scholar!"

Tao Jun's head was aching from listening. Seeing the old woman spinning her fancies and holding forth on matters she plainly did not understand, he could not help saying: "The Lang Fifteenth Madam is, after all, only a woman. She has a father-in-law above her and a husband below her. Even if she can meddle in family affairs, at most she can glance over the account books—how could she possibly ruin anyone's trade?"

The old woman thought of those few bits of broken silver, and fearing she had answered wrongly and that he would demand it back, grew flustered at once: "Anyone can see you're a scholar, and know nothing of business. Here in Zhending Prefecture, apart from little general stores like mine, nearly every shop worth its salt is a branch of the Dou family's trade. If the Lang family means to seize the Pang family's business, and the Dou people stand by and say nothing, who would dare wade into those muddy waters? Say someone wanted to speak up for the Pangs—even if he saw it plain, he wouldn't dare make a sound. Offend the Dou family, and you may as well stop living in Zhending!"

He had not expected the Dou family to be so arrogant in Zhending.

Tao Jun could not help frowning.

Seeing this, the old woman was greatly displeased.

I answered whatever you asked, told you all that should be told and more besides. And you are still not satisfied—do you mean to use this as a pretext to take back that silver?

At this thought she set her jaw, shot a glance at the youth sitting on the steps before her shop, basket on his arm, selling pears, and signaled him to keep an eye on the shop for her. Then, tossing a "I'm off to the privy" at Tao Jun, she whisked away to the back courtyard.

Tao Jun saw that what the old woman told him was vastly different from what he had surmised, and his interest died. He sat smiling wryly for a long while, and when the old woman did not reappear to refill his tea, he simply left a few coppers on the table. He and his attendant strolled out of the general store and settled into an inn in Zhending.

Over the next few days he questioned several more people, and the answers he got were much the same.

He could not help looking a little dazed.

His attendant said worriedly, "Sir, if what those people say is true, what are we to do?"

This marriage—it was he, Tao Jun, who had brokered it, who had built the bridge!

He still remembered with perfect clarity how he had counseled the Duke of Yingguo at the time.

And now, when he returned, how was he to answer to the Lord Defender of the Realm?

Tao Jun smiled bitterly.

Someone knocked at the door.

The attendant went to open it.

It was the pear-selling youth.

Who had the stomach for pears at a time like this?

The attendant was about to shoo him off, but Tao Jun had sharp eyes and recognized the boy who had been selling pears before the old woman's door a few days before. His heart stirred; he quickly put out a hand to stop the attendant and asked the boy, "What is it?"

The pear-selling youth grinned and said, "Old Mother Yu says there's ten coppers in it for me if I bring you a message."

Tao Jun nodded to his attendant, who took out ten coppers and handed them to the boy. Only then did the youth smile and say, "Old Mother Yu says you're to go to her place at once—she has something important to tell you!" And with that he went pattering off.

The attendant looked at Tao Jun.

Tao Jun thought for a moment, then said, "Come, let's go see what medicine this old woman has hidden in her gourd!" She only wanted to squeeze a few coins out of him; so long as what she had to say was of use, spending a little silver was no matter.

The attendant assented, and accompanied Tao Jun to the old woman's general store.

As they passed through the long alley that every road to the general store must cross, someone suddenly called out behind them, "Mr. Tao!"

Tao Jun turned back. Before he could make out who it was, a searing pain burst at the back of his head; his vision went black, and he collapsed, strength draining from his limbs.

In the instant he fell, his mind was clear as a mirror: he had been struck from behind, and had walked into someone's trap.

This time, most likely, there was little hope of coming out alive.

He had never thought he would capsize in a ditch and meet his end here.

The Duke of Yingguo was far away in the capital; by the time word reached him that Tao Jun had vanished, he would most likely be rotted into a heap of earth.

A deep unwillingness surged in Tao Jun's heart... and he lost consciousness.

※※※※※

He did not know how long it was before Tao Jun came to.

All was pitch-black before his eyes, and his head rang and throbbed with a stabbing, pulsing pain.

He did not dare move. He lay still for a long while, gradually growing used to the darkness, and only then realized that he seemed to be shut up in a room, with what felt like straw beneath him giving off a rotting, moldy stench that turned his stomach.

At the very thought, he felt as if he could bear it no longer, and was about to retch.

Yet he saw beside him a dark shape jutting up—something that seemed to be lying there at his side.

A chill of horror ran through him.

After watching in silence for a long while, the dark shape slowly stirred and let out a groan of pain.