Chapter 163 — The Third Place Scholar

Lady Han realized she had misspoken, and her face flushed scarlet.

Not wishing to embarrass his wife, Ji Qi changed the subject. "Has any word come from Grandfather?"

Lady Han relaxed a little and muttered, "The letter only went out a few days ago. How could there be word so soon?"

"Then you must keep a close watch on Jianming." Ji Qi gave a few more instructions and left for the yamen.

After thinking it over, Lady Han went to Ji Lingze's rooms.

It so happened that Lady Liu, the fourth young madam of the Han family, and Han Su, the tenth young miss of the Han family, were also visiting Ji Lingze.

The room was full of Han kinswomen, and the atmosphere was consequently all warmth and intimacy.

Lady Liu was a daughter of the Liu family of Yixing who had married into the Han family of Huzhou. Having known Lady Han since childhood, she seized Lady Han's hand the moment they met and congratulated her in a loud voice, then took the tea from the maids' hands and offered it to her in person. Settling herself snugly beside Lady Han, she made a few pleasantries before asking about Ji Yong's marriage prospects: "...His aunt cannot simply indulge your cousin's whims. There are times when one must be firm."

Ji Lingze pressed her lips together in a smile and exchanged a glance with Han Su.

The Liu family had many daughters; Lady Liu herself had two full sisters still unwed, one of whom had once matched couplets with Ji Yong and earned the praise of the Ji family's old master.

Lady Han was already vexed over the business between Ji Yong and Dou Zhiwei, and hearing this put her out of temper. She frowned and said, "Jianming grew up in the old master's household; his marriage must naturally be decided by the old master. I am only a woman of the inner quarters—in judgment and in insight I cannot begin to compare with the old master. In this matter I shall simply wash my hands of it and wait contentedly to become a mother-in-law!"

Inwardly, however, she was thinking that if the old master, to cut short his son's foolish hopes, should settle a match for him out of hand, it had better not be a girl of the Liu family. If for no other reason, a girl with such a gossiping, loose-tongued manner would certainly never please her son.

Then a trace of regret rose in her.

She had come intending to sound out news of the Dou family's fourth young miss, but with Lady Liu here, it seemed there would be no asking now.

Lady Han made small talk with Lady Liu, schooling her patience.

Ji Yong, meanwhile, was talking with Dou Yan.

Dou Yan had failed the metropolitan examination.

"Why must you hurry back so?" Ji Yong urged Dou Yongjun to stay. "Better to wait for the results of the palace examination. You can read the model essays of the top scholars, and by comparison see just where you fall short." He added, "I have business in Zhending as well. We can travel back to Zhending together then."

The Ji family already had a residence in the capital—what business could he have in Zhending?

Dou Yan was astonished.

Ji Yong laughed. "My fourth sister's coming-of-age ceremony fell right at the time of my examination, and I never even sent her a congratulatory gift. After the palace examination I must sit for the selection of Hanlin bachelor, and once I am observing government affairs at the Hanlin Academy, I fear I shall have little chance to leave the capital. This is just the moment to get out and travel a little."

He spoke with perfect candor, and everyone knew that Dou Yan was already betrothed, so Dou Yan suspected nothing. He laughed and said, "You want to slip away for some fun, and you drag me along as your shield. Well, what can I do? You are my elder, so I shall take the loss." He agreed to go to Zhending with Ji Yong.

Ji Yong was delighted and had a table of dishes set out. The two ate and talked of the metropolitan examination until the moon stood high overhead.

Within a few days it was the first day of the third month.

Ji Yong changed into a brand-new straight-fronted robe of sapphire-blue Hangzhou silk and went to the Western Garden.

After a day of the palace examination, Ji Yong, sure enough, was named the third-place scholar, the tanhua.

Every aunt and distant uncle of the Ji family came to offer congratulations.

Yet Ji Yong felt a stifled anger in his chest that would not disperse, and his face was dark.

He took out the wooden hairpin he had carved for Dou Yan and gazed at it a long while, then with a "pa" flung the box into the corner of the bed and lay down on the reclining chair in his study, feigning sleep. Though guests crowded the house, not a corner of his eye or brow stirred.

Zixi and the others were frantic, yet none dared urge him to go receive the guests.

Lady Han came in, wearing a jacket of bright red silk embroidered all over with gold. Seeing Zixi and the rest standing at the study door, she lowered her voice. "What is it?"

Zixi quietly told Lady Han how Ji Yong had thrown the box holding the wooden hairpin into the corner of the bed.

Lady Han was both startled and pleased. She was startled that her son should indeed be so taken with the Dou family's fourth young miss; she was pleased that he might, for that very reason, be too embarrassed to appear before her—and in the long run, that might not be such a bad thing.

She was just about to instruct Zixi to take good care of Ji Yong when the study door swung open with a creak, and Ji Yong came out.

He showed no surprise at seeing his mother.

Given that he had not come out to greet those who had come to congratulate him this year, it was only to be expected that his mother should come look in on him, anxious as she was.

He nodded to his mother and said, "I will go to the front courtyard to receive the guests now," then handed the camphor-wood box in his hand to Zixi. "This is my coming-of-age gift for the Dou family's fourth young miss. Ride hard and deliver it to Zhending yourself."

His ease was so complete that it left both Lady Han and Zixi somewhat discomfited. Fortunately Zixi was quick-witted and soon smoothed away that trace of awkwardness, stepping forward respectfully to take the box and departing with an answering word.

Ji Yong had much on his mind and did not pay much attention to his mother and Zixi. When Zixi had gone, he asked his mother, "Would you like to sit in my room a while? I will change my clothes and go to the front courtyard."

"Very well!" What her son was playing at, Lady Han could not guess. She followed him into the hall.

It was five days later when Dou Yan received Ji Yong's letter. Having read the letter in the camphor-wood box, she could not help laughing aloud.

It happened that Suxin came in just then with fresh peach cakes from the kitchen. Seeing her, she laughed and asked, "What does Young Master Ji say in his letter?"

Dou Chu put the letter away, smiling. "He says that when the palace examination began this time, the Emperor strolled once around the great hall, and seeing that he was the youngest, looked him over closely twice. He suspects the Emperor never read his essay at all, and only named him tanhua because he was the youngest. He read the essay of the top scholar, Cai Guyuan, carefully, and it was not written nearly so well as his own..."

Suxin could not help laughing too.

Dou Yan tasted the peach cake and said, "Cousin Ji is still like a child. He knew my birthday was coming, yet he insisted on waiting until he had made the tanhua before sending a gift. If he had failed this examination, I daresay he would not have spoken to me for years. When all is said, he still remembers what I said about him and Dou Ming carrying on like fools."

Suxin nodded and poured Dou Yan a cup of tea. "This Young Master Ji may be very proud, but he is straightforward and open-hearted—which actually makes him easy to get along with."