They made reverence to Yueniang, and she returned it. “I feel that, this time, I have entertained you very poorly,” she said, “but I will send you something later.” She asked Li Jiao’er and Ximen Dajie to see the nuns to the gate. “Mind the dog,” she said.
When the nuns had gone, she sat down again with Aunt Wu. “This business has made my arms numb and my fingers as cold as ice,” she said. “I only had a mouthful of tea this morning, and there is nothing but that in my stomach.”
“Over and over again, I have advised you not to quarrel,” Aunt Wu said. “You never listen to me. Now you are getting near your time. Why do you make this trouble?”
“You saw the whole affair,” Yueniang said. “Am I the one who causes the trouble? You might as well talk about a thief arresting a policeman. I can give way to everybody but nobody will give way to me. There is only one husband here, and she wants him all for herself. She schemes and plots with that maid of hers. They do things that no other person would ever dream of doing. Though they are women, they have no idea of decency. She never looks at herself, but opens her mouth and pours forth insults. When Li Ping’er was alive, she was constantly having rows with her. She was always coming and telling me one thing and another that Li Ping’er had done wrong. She is the kind of woman who is always causing trouble. She has an animal’s heart and a human face. She never admits saying anything. She takes such dreadful oaths they would frighten anybody. But I will keep my eyes open and watch her. I will see what sort of an end she comes to. When we had tea, I sent for her mother. How could I have dreamed she would send her away? She was all ready to make trouble with me. She sneaked up here determined to do so. Well! I am not afraid of her. Let her tell my husband, and he can divorce me.”
“We were all in the room,” Yuxiao said. “I was standing near the fire, but I did not hear the Fifth Lady come in. I never heard a sound.”
“She walks like a spirit,” Xue’e said. “She always wears felt shoes, so she doesn’t make any sound. Don’t you remember the trouble she used to make for me when she first came here? She said all sorts of things about me behind my back, and my husband beat me twice in consequence. At that time, Sister, you said it was my fault.”
“She is accustomed to burying people alive,” Yueniang said. “Today she thought she would try her hand on me. You saw her beating her head on the ground and rolling about. When he comes back and finds out about it, I shall come off worst.”
“You mustn’t say that, Mother,” Li Jiao’er said, “the world cannot be turned upside down.”
“You don’t know,” Yueniang said. “She is one of those nine-tailed foxes. Better people than I have died at her hands. How shall I escape? What flesh and bones have I that they can withstand her? You have been here several years, and you came from the bawdy house, but you are worth a dozen of her. See how desperate she was yesterday. She dashed into my room and called him. She said: ‘I’m not going to wait for you if you don’t come.’ It looked as though he belonged to her, and she had the right to have him. I shouldn’t care if he hadn’t gone to her room every night since he came back from the Eastern Capital. Even when it was somebody’s birthday, she wouldn’t let him go. She wants all ten fingers to put into her own mouth.”
“Why do you worry about it so much?” Aunt Wu said. “You are nearly always ill. Let him do what he likes. If you are trying to fight other people’s battles, you will be the one to suffer.”
Yuxiao brought some food, but Yueniang would not touch it. “My head aches, and my heart feels very queer,” she said. She told Yuxiao to put a pillow on the bed so that she might lie down, and asked Li Jiao’er to keep Aunt Wu company. Miss Yu was going, so Yueniang gave orders that a box of cakes and five qian of silver should be given to her. Then the girl went away.
It was about noon when Ximen Qing came home after trying the case at his office. General Jing’s man came to ask for his return card. Ximen Qing said to him: “Thank your master for these valuable presents, but they are really too much. I should like you to take them back now, and I will accept them when I have been able to do what he wishes.”
“My master gave me no orders,” the man said, “and I dare not take them back. It will be just as well if they are kept here.”
“In that case,” Ximen Qing said, “thank your master for me. Here is a card to take back to him.” He gave the man a tael of silver.
Then he went to Yueniang’s room. She was lying on the bed. He spoke to her several times, but she would not answer. He asked the maids what was wrong, but none dared to tell him. Then he went to Jinlian’s room. She, too, was lying on the bed, and her hair was in disorder. He asked her what the trouble was, and again he got no answer. Then he went to pack up some silver, and, when General Jing’s man had gone, he went to Yulou’s room. Yulou knew that the secret could not be kept so she told him about the quarrel between Yueniang and Jinlian.
In a great state of excitement, Ximen Qing went to Yueniang’s room again. He held her up in his arms. “Why did you have this quarrel?” he said. “You know you are not in a fit state of health. Why do you take that little strumpet seriously? Why did you have a row with her?”
“I did not quarrel with her,” Yueniang said. “It was she who started the trouble, I didn’t go to her: she came to me. If you wish to prove it, ask the others. This morning, out of kindness, I got tea ready and asked her mother to come and join us, but, in a temper, she had sent her mother away. Then she came herself, tossing her head and shouting. She rolled about on the floor and beat her head on the ground. She got her hairnet in a mess. It was a marvel she didn’t strike me, and, if it hadn’t been for the others keeping us apart, we might have rolled about together. She is so used to bullying people that she thinks she can bully me. She said several times that you married her irregularly and that she would ask you to divorce her and she would go away. For one word I said, she said ten. Her mouth was like the Huai River in flood. How could a weak person like me withstand her? She knows how to put the blame on others. She made me so angry I didn’t know where I was. As for this baby, he will never be born, not even if he is a prince. She made me so ill my belly feels ready to burst, and my guts hurt as though they were dropping out of me. My head aches and my arms are numb. I have just come back from the closet, but the child didn’t come away. It would have been better if it had come, then I shouldn’t have been troubled any longer with it. Tonight I will get a cord and hang myself. Then you will be free to go to her. If I don’t hang myself, I shall surely be murdered as Li Ping’er was. I know you will think things very unfortunate if you can’t get rid of more than one wife in three years.”
Ximen Qing was terribly excited. He put his arms around Yueniang. “Good Sister,” he said, “don’t worry about that little whore. She doesn’t know the difference between high and low, what is sweet and what is sour. Don’t be angry. You are worth more to me than all the others put together. I will go and beat her.”
“Dare you?” Yueniang said. “She will tie you with a pig’s-hair cord.”
“Let her say so to me,” Ximen said. “If I get angry with her, I will kick her till she doesn’t know where she is. How do you feel now? Have you had anything to eat?”
“I haven’t tasted a thing,” Yueniang said. “This morning, I got the tea ready and waited for her mother. Then she came and screamed at me. Now I feel very ill. My belly hurts and my head aches. My arms are all numb. If you don’t believe me, come here and feel my hands. They are still cold.”
Ximen Qing stamped his feet on the ground. “What shall I do?” he cried. “I know. I’ll send the boys for Doctor Ren.”
“What is the use of sending for Doctor Ren? He can do nothing. If it is to live, it will live, and, if not, it will die. If it dies, so much the better for everybody. A wife is like the paint on the walls. When it is faded, another coat is put on. If I die, you will make her your first wife. She is clever enough to manage this household.”
“I’m surprised you
have patience even to quarrel with her,” Ximen Qing said. “You ought to treat her as dung and leave her alone. If we don’t send for Doctor Ren, the anger will get into your system and we shan’t be able to get it out again. Then it will be too late to do anything.”
“Send for old woman Liu, and I will take her medicine,” Yueniang said. “I will ask her to use a needle on my head and get rid of the headache.”
“That’s absurd,” Ximen Qing said. “What does that old whore know about women’s ailments? I shall send a boy with a horse for Doctor Ren at once.”
“You can do so if you like, but I won’t see him.”
Ximen Qing paid no attention. He went to the outer court and said to Qintong: “Get a horse at once and go for Doctor Ren. Be quick. Bring him back with you.” Qintong got a horse and was away like a cloud of smoke. Ximen Qing went back to Yueniang’s room and told the maids to make some gruel. But when the gruel was brought, Yueniang would not eat it.
Qintong came back and said Doctor Ren was at the palace and his people said he would come the next morning.
Yueniang saw that messengers had come several times from Master Qiao to invite Ximen Qing. “The doctor will be here tomorrow,” she said. “You had better go or our kinsman Qiao will be angry.”
“If I go, who will see to you?”
Yueniang laughed. “You silly fellow,” she said. “None of this. Off you go. There is nothing seriously wrong with me. Leave me alone. Perhaps I shall feel better. If I do, I’ll get up and have something to eat with my sister-in-law. Don’t be so excited.”
Ximen Qing said to Yuxiao: “Go for Aunt Wu at once, and ask her to stay with your mother. Where is Miss Yu? Tell her to come and sing for your mother.”
“Miss Yu has been gone a long time,” Yuxiao said.
“Who told her to go?” Ximen said, “I wanted her here for another two days.” He kicked Yuxiao.
“She saw this was no place to be at, so she went away,” Yueniang said. “Yuxiao is not to blame.”
“You wouldn’t kick the one who insulted Miss Shen,” Yuxiao murmured.
Ximen Qing pretended not to hear this. He dressed and went to Master Qiao’s house. Before the first night watch, he returned and went to Yueniang’s room. Yueniang was sitting with Aunt Wu, Yulou and Li Jiao’er. Aunt Wu hurriedly went away as soon as he came in.
“How do you feel now?” Ximen Qing said.
“I have had two mouthfuls of gruel with my sister-in-law,” Yueniang said, “and my stomach feels rather easier. But I still have the headache and backache.”
“That is all right,” Ximen said, “Doctor Ren will be here tomorrow and he will give you some medicine to expel the anger and strengthen your womb. You will soon be well again.”
“I told you I didn’t want the doctor, but you would send for him. This is nothing serious, and I don’t want any man to come and fiddle with me. You will see whether I am able to go out or not tomorrow. What did kinsman Qiao want with you?”
“Oh, it was only an entertainment to celebrate my coming back from the Eastern Capital. He was very kind, and had made a lot of preparations. There were two singing girls, and his Honor Zhu was there. But I was so anxious about you, I couldn’t eat a thing. I had a few cups of wine and came back as soon as I could.”
“You smooth-tongued rascal,” Yueniang said. “These flowery phrases and flattering expressions are too much for me. What is making you so extraordinarily pleasant? Even if I were one of Buddha’s incarnations, you would give me no place in your heart. If I died, you wouldn’t think me worth a jar of earthenware. What did Qiao say to you?”
“He is thinking of applying for honorary rank, and he has prepared thirty taels of silver. He wants me to speak to Prefect Hu about it. I told him there would be no trouble about that because, yesterday, Hu sent me a hundred copies of the new calendar, and I hadn’t sent him anything in return yet. When I did, I said, I would send a card and ask him for a nomination. Qiao wouldn’t agree. He said he must offer his thirty taels. If I help him, he said, it would be very much to his advantage.”
“Did you take his money?” Yueniang said. “You ought to do something for him if he asks you.”
“He is going to send the money tomorrow. He was going to send presents too, but I stopped him. I think if I send Hu a pig and a jar of wine, that ought to be enough.”
That night, Ximen Qing stayed with Yueniang.
The next day was Censor Song’s party. Tables were arranged in the great hall, and everything was made ready. Thirty musicians from the Prefecture came early in the morning, with four conductors and four soldiers. Shortly afterwards, Dr. Ren came on horseback. Ximen Qing took him to the hall, and they greeted one another.
“Your servant called for me yesterday,” Dr. Ren said, “but I was on duty. When I came home last night, I found your card, and I have come this morning without waiting for my carriage. May I ask who is ill?”
“My first wife has suddenly become disturbed in health, and I should be glad if you would examine her,” Ximen said.
They drank tea. Then Dr. Ren said: “Yesterday, Mingchuan told me you had been promoted. I must congratulate you now and send my presents later.”
“It is really not an occasion for celebration,” Ximen said, “I am so illfitted for the office I hold.”
He said to Qintong: “Go to the inner court and tell the Great Lady that Doctor Ren has come. Ask them to get the room ready.” Qintong went. Aunt Wu, Li Jiao’er and Meng Yulou were with Wu Yueniang. He gave them Ximen’s message. Yueniang did not move.
“I told him not to send for the doctor,” she said. “I don’t want any man here, staring at me and putting his fingers on my hand. I want some medicine from old woman Liu, nothing more. Why should he make a fuss like this to satisfy that man’s curiosity?”
“But he is here now, Mother,” Yulou said, “we can’t tell him to go away without your seeing him.”
Aunt Wu also insisted. “He is a physician to the royal family,” she said. “You must let him feel your pulse. We don’t know what is wrong, or where the trouble lies. This is the only way we can find out. It will be good for you to take his medicine and put your blood and air in order. You mustn’t let the thing go too far. Old woman Liu knows nothing about medicine.”
Yueniang went to dress her hair and put on her headdress. Yuxiao held the mirror for her, and Yulou climbed on the bed and brushed her back hair. Li Jiao’er arranged her ornaments, and Xue’e put her clothes straight. In a very short time she looked like a carving in jade.
CHAPTER 76
Master Wen Falls into Disgrace
The golden cups are always in their hands
They pledge each other without ceasing.
No thought of earthly things disturbs their quiet hearts.
Year after year, men are the same
In every place, the same flowers bloom.
Let us sing and recite poems
To increase the joy that comes from this inspired wine
And when we have drunk our fill,
Call for the flute and strings.
When we are in our cups, things are today
As they were yesterday.
Only the scholar Wen is here no more.
When Ximen Qing found that Wu Yueniang was not yet ready, he came himself to hurry her. When she was dressed, he asked Dr. Ren to come. Yueniang came from her bedroom and made a reverence towards the visitor. Dr. Ren turned and bowed. Yueniang sat down on a chair facing the doctor, and Qintong put an embroidered cushion on the table. She held out her arm, and Dr. Ren felt her pulse. After this, she made a reverence and went back to her room. One of the boys brought the doctor tea.
“Your lady,” said Dr. Ren, “appears to be suffering from disorder both of air and blood. Her pulse is feeble and sluggish. As regards the air, it is partly because she is with child, but also because she has not been taking sufficient nourishment. Then, too, she has been angry and so stirred up the fire in her liver. This makes her h
ead and eyes ache. She takes things too seriously, and the result of this is a certain melancholy in the abdominal region. The blood and air in her body are not evenly matched.”
Yueniang sent Qintong to tell the doctor that her head ached, her arms were numb, and her belly very painful. She had backache and no appetite.
“This is evident,” the doctor said. “I have already said as much.”
“As you say, she is with child,” Ximen Qing said. “Indeed, she is near her time. She has had occasion to be angry, and her anger has been unable to find a satisfactory outlet. She feels depressed in consequence. I hope, Doctor, you will give her the best medicine you can think of. I shall be more than grateful.”
“I will do what I can,” the doctor said. “I will send her something to make her stomach easier, to set the air in the right channels and, generally, to strengthen her internally. But when the lady has taken the medicine, she must avoid all further occasion of anger, and she must be careful what she eats,”
“You will remember the baby, Doctor?” Ximen said.
“My medicine will nourish and soothe it.”
“My third wife, too, has pains in the stomach,” Ximen Qing said. “If you have anything likely to do her good, will you be so kind as to prescribe for her?”
“Certainly. I will send her some pills,” Dr.. Ren said.
He went to the outer court. On the way, he saw the company of musicians and asked Ximen Qing whom he was entertaining.
“His Excellency Song and his officers are entertaining Governor Hou here today,” Ximen told him.
The doctor was astonished. His respect for Ximen Qing increased accordingly. Indeed, when he was taken to the gate, he bowed so often that he paid twice the usual degree of honor to his patron.
The Golden Lotus, Volume 2 Page 43