Chapter 4 — The Dowry Without a Name

One day before the birthday banquet, the manager of the Tuong Ky shop personally led his men to deliver the goods. Three crates of bird’s nest, sealed tight, were unloaded in the foyer, yet the manager refused to leave.

"I must trouble the Lady of the House to settle the account," he said with a polite bow.

Ta Hoai Can frowned at me. "Was it not agreed that this should be placed on the Marquis’s ledger?"

The manager offered a conciliatory smile. "My deepest apologies, Your Excellency. Previously, the manor’s purchases were made through the Lady’s personal account at our humble shop. However, the Lady has now instructed us that her account is reserved solely for items she personally selects."

Ta Hoai Can turned his gaze toward me. "Pay for it now, and after the birthday banquet, you can have the finance department reimburse you."

"And what will the finance department use to pay?" I asked coldly.

"It is merely a matter of a hundred silver taels. Must you make things so unsightly in front of outsiders?"

"It is not unsightly," I replied, gesturing toward the crates of bird’s nest. "Either pay for them now, or have the manager take them back and exchange them for osmanthus rice wine instead. The guests will still have a sweet soup to enjoy, and no one shall go hungry."

The Matriarch, leaning heavily on her cane, stepped into the room. "The menu has been set. To change it on the eve of the banquet—are you intentionally trying to humiliate me?"

"Then I suggest Mother settles the account herself."

"Where am I to find so much ready cash on such short notice?"

"The jade bracelet on your wrist is quite valuable."

The Matriarch immediately hid her hand inside her sleeve. I turned my attention to Ta Hoai Can. "The Doan inkstone in your study is also of great value."

He flicked his sleeves in annoyance. "That is an heirloom left by my father."

To Lien, standing behind him, reached out as if to pull the golden hairpin from her hair. Her fingers brushed the ornament, but her movements slowed. She was waiting for someone to stop her; previously, someone always had. But this time, Ta Hoai Can was staring at his inkstone, and the Matriarch was protecting her bracelet. No one looked at her. To Lien’s hand froze mid-air. Unable to pull the pin, she was forced to lower it in front of everyone. Finally, the mask of fragility she always wore began to crack.

"It is only a few boxes of bird’s nest. Why must you make things so difficult for me at such a time?"

The foyer fell into a heavy silence. I had waited a long time for this moment—the moment she finally stopped pretending she did not desire them.

"A month ago, you claimed you would rather cough until your dying breath than drink a single drop of my bird’s nest," I said, meeting her eyes. "Now that you have stopped coughing, you are suddenly becoming so agitated over a few boxes of it?"

To Lien retreated half a step. The Matriarch, too, turned to look at her. After a long, stifling silence, the Matriarch slowly slid the jade bracelet from her wrist. "Take it to the pawn shop."

Her voice sounded as if it were being squeezed through her teeth. By the next morning, that bracelet had been exchanged for bank notes. When Matron Chu returned, the Matriarch had not even touched her breakfast. Yet, the banquet had to proceed as scheduled; the Marquis’s manor valued its prestige above all else, especially now that the jade bracelet was gone.

When thirty bowls of the bird’s nest soup were served, the first person to be praised was not the Matriarch, but To Lien. The Lady of An Quoc, after taking a spoonful, smiled at her. "To, you are young, yet your heart is so meticulous. This banquet has been arranged with such perfection."

The ladies seated nearby nodded in agreement. "To is not in the best of health, yet she still exhausted herself for the Matriarch’s sake; it is truly rare."

"The Marquis’s manor is blessed to have someone so grateful and well-mannered."

The Matriarch’s expression finally softened, and even her gaze toward To Lien became gentler. To Lien sat below the Matriarch, dressed in pale green robes, wearing nothing but a simple silver pin in her hair, appearing as ethereal as ever. She lowered her head, her voice just loud enough for half the table to hear. "You are too kind. I only thought that since the Matriarch is advanced in years, the banquet could not be too sparse. Much of the work was still handled by the Lady of the House."

I set my teacup down with a sharp clink and let out a light laugh. "You are too modest, To."

Everyone at the table looked toward me. I spoke at a leisurely pace. "Yesterday, the menu was chosen by To herself, and it was she who explicitly requested this bird’s nest. As for the funds, Mother pawned her bracelet so Matron Chu could secure the ingredients. I am the one who contributed no money and gave no orders, so I dare not claim credit for this display of filial piety."

The table went deathly quiet. The Matriarch’s grip on her chopsticks tightened. The smile on To Lien’s face froze. The Lady of An Quoc looked at the bowl in front of her, then at the Matriarch’s bare wrist, her eyes filled with unspoken meaning. "So that is how it is."

To Lien hurried to say, "Lady, why must you speak so plainly? I was only worried that you were overworked, which is why I wished to share the burden."

"If you truly worry about my exhaustion, then refrain from saying ‘much of the work was still handled by the Lady of the House’," I replied, staring at her. "You are being filial to Mother, and I am simply helping to clarify the identity of the benefactor so that the guests do not thank the wrong person and cause you any grievance."

To Lien gripped her handkerchief tightly, no longer pretending to be indifferent to fame or profit. A moment later, she suddenly broke into two sharp coughs. Ta Hoai Can immediately stood up. "Lu Minh Duong!"

I lifted my eyes to look at him. "Do not call me. Call a physician."

He choked on his words. I turned to my maid, Thanh Hoa. "Go summon Physician Truong. Have two matrons accompany him to ensure the pulse reading is recorded in detail. If To is truly ill, move her back to the Listening Rain Pavilion to recuperate at once. Do not allow anyone to use the excuses of the banquet to disturb her rest."

To Lien clutched her chest, her tears shimmering, suspended, and refusing to fall.