Chapter Nineteen: Secret Sorrow, Heart's Trace

  Jinxiu Pavilion, being located in the westernmost corner of the Hou Mansion, had many advantages, but in Chen Lan's opinion, the greatest one was its quietness. At least, the servants from the Hou Mansion wouldn't come here to idle around without a reason, and there were fewer visitors on ordinary days, making it suitable for focusing his mind to read books. After all, those official and private publications were all written in complex characters and vertical layout, requiring him to calm down before he could truly delve into them.

  She used to dislike people accompanying her when reading, and today after returning from Chen Yan's place, she even made an excuse to be quiet for a while, sending everyone away, including Hong Luo Xue Fang. Sitting in the empty room, she took a deep breath before opening one of the two books Chen Yan gave her, carefully looking at those familiar symbols.

  The Ming dynasty in the Chu and historical books, although there are many similarities, did not close the country, and from Nanyang to Xiyang, even farther away, there were merchant ships traveling far oceans. As a result, many families were willing to send their children to learn translation and recognize foreign languages. Although people who knew foreign languages were not extremely numerous, in the capital city of Beijing alone, there were several hundred. However, this book was repeatedly rejected by many publishers because it was deemed absolutely not written by the Taizu Emperor's own hand. This was due to the fact that the handwriting was crooked and twisted, and those ghostly symbols-like foreign languages were not any language familiar to the translators of the Four Barbarian Institutes.

  Others may not recognize it, but Chen Lan felt an instinctive sense of familiarity the moment she saw it. As she struggled to read line by line, her hands holding the book were already trembling slightly. No wonder people said it was fake after reading it, because it wasn't in English, French, or Latin, but in pinyin, which is only taught in elementary school these days! After flipping through several pages, she believed that every word and sentence on this page was indeed written by Emperor Lin Changhui himself, although the pinyin did look a bit awkward.

  It was as if Lin Changhui's life had come to an end, and he was speaking his final soliloquy. But instead of boasting about his great achievements in driving out the Tartars and taking over the empire, he spoke in a calm tone about how he came from modern times and what he did after becoming emperor. Perhaps because he had been immersed in this era for too long, his words were half-classical and half-vernacular, but they carried a certain air of authority.

  "After the Song Dynasty, the common people's women gradually had the bad habit of binding their feet. I deeply abhor it and will ban it as soon as I ascend to the throne!"

  "The corrupt Confucian scholars are useless to the country, it should be established with military power, all people value martial arts, then the Western powers will have no opportunity to rise..."

  "Industry and commerce are the way to enrich a country, so we open up maritime trade, collect commercial taxes, which is heavenly principle and earthly righteousness. In the 38th year of opening up the sky, commercial taxes finally surpassed agricultural taxes, great fortune for the world..."

  "Since the Yuan Dynasty, the bad habit of burying alive has been prohibited; widows who guard their chastity to the death have been prohibited; women are not allowed to sit with men, and even if they talk, it will be gossiped about by others, which is really a joke in the world... The difference between legitimate and illegitimate sons is just because of their mothers, how cruel! All sons should inherit the family business like legitimate sons..."

  As she read on, Chen Lan couldn't help but admire this colleague from modern times. She had read many classics since the Tang and Song dynasties without finding any signs of historical changes, and had long suspected that the root cause lay with Lin Changhui. Now, looking at his account, she thought that only a founding emperor could have made so many reforms. However, when she was completely absorbed in it, almost forgetting the time, she discovered that several pages seemed to be torn out in the middle, and she had already turned to the last page, where there were only a few simple lines of text on the blank page.

  "I thought I could change an era, but in the end, I couldn't even change people's hearts."

  Looking at the vermilion characters that were completely different from the previous ink marks, Chen Lan felt a chill run deep within her heart. From just now to now, except for the familiar pinyin, Lin Changhui had always referred to himself as "I", but only here did he refer to himself as "me". The entire page of blank space in conjunction with the vermilion characters seemed to convey an inexplicable sense of despair and coldness. However, this book was already finished, and even if she were curious again, there would be no place to find answers. Therefore, placing the book on a shelf in an inconspicuous position, she turned around and walked back to her desk, about to sit down when a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.

  Apart from knowing that maritime trade is now exceptionally prosperous and that women do not need to bind their feet, Lin Changheng's other points did not leave much of an impression - if women were truly as free as Lin Changheng said, why would the Hou Mansion still have such complex rules? As for the useless Confucian scholars... where did the current cabinet come from, and why are the imperial examinations almost identical to those of the Ming dynasty?

  As she thought about it, Chen Lan felt her heart in a mess. Just then, through the window, she seemed to hear some movement in the courtyard. Before long, Hong Luo came into the room, stepped forward quickly and whispered: "Miss, Fourth Miss has arrived, her eyes are red and swollen, saying that she has something to discuss with you."

  Fourth Miss? Chen Huai?

  Chen Lan's mind flashed back to Chen Huan following behind Chen Bing - laughing when she laughed, keeping silent when she should, like a shadow of her older sister, even the number of teeth she showed when smiling seemed calculated. Thinking of Chen Bing's frantic appearance today, she added a few more points of disgust in her heart. Just as she was about to find an excuse, voices were already heard from outside. Helpless, she could only glance at Hong Luo and signal for her to go out first with Xian Fang, then hesitated for a while before leaving the room.

  "Third sister!"

  "How did you four sisters come?"

  Chen Huan immediately went up to welcome Chen Lan as soon as she came out, and then stammered to explain: "After Mother found out about the second sister's reckless scolding of the third sister, she was so angry that she fell ill again. So the second sister can't leave for the time being, and I was sent to apologize to the third sister on her behalf. Such a big thing happened at home, and the second sister was confused and mistakenly said something wrong to offend the third sister. You are magnanimous and will definitely forgive her this time."

  As Chen Hu said this, he actually lowered his body as if to kneel down. Chen Lan was taken aback at first, then immediately gave Hong Luo a signal with her eyes. Hong Luo hastily supported Chen Hu's arm from the side and said: "Fourth Miss, what are you saying? What's all this fuss about? We don't know anything about it, Miss hasn't mentioned a single word. It must be just a small matter, why bother you to make a special trip?"

  "Red Spiral said, 'What's the big deal? It was chaotic at that time, and Second Sister was just acting on impulse. There's no need to apologize specially.' Chen Lan glanced at Chen Huang's expression and found that not only were her eyes slightly red and swollen, but there were also faint finger marks on her jawline. Suddenly, she felt a pang in her heart. After Red Spiral helped the person sit down, she sat down beside them and comforted, 'After Fourth Sister returns, please advise Second Aunt and Second Sister to calm down. This matter is not yet settled, and Uncle may not be in trouble. Also, starting tomorrow, we'll have to manage the household together. You should rest well and gather your spirits for then.'"

  Chen Huan was originally hanging his head, and when he heard this, tears suddenly fell down. Seeing that it wasn't good, Chen Lan naturally comforted him repeatedly. But just then, Chen Huan suddenly stood up and knelt down in front of Chen Lan like a stick of incense. Facing this scene, the people in the house were even more stunned, and Qin Fang hurriedly took the maids out, leaving only Hong Luo.

  "Third sister, there's something I dare not say, but in the past, it was my fault. However, I'm not mother's biological child, so I had to follow second sister... That time when fourth brother fell into the pond, it was also second sister who instigated the second son of Duke Dongchang. Chen Huan said while wiping away tears with her handkerchief, then pitifully continued, "This time too, I heard that Old Lady called me and third sister to manage the household, mother got extremely angry, second sister slapped me in a fit of rage! Mother also said, let me watch what third sister does, record everything no matter how small, so she can reason with her later. But I feel it's really unfair to third sister, thinking that I must speak up..."

  "Fourth sister, don't cry anymore, I've never blamed you, you can say these things to me, and I'll be very grateful!"

  Chen Huan burst into tears as she spoke, her face streaked with rain and looking pitiful. Chen Lan couldn't help but glance at her empty wrist, thinking of the jade bangle that Princess Jin had given her, which was now on Chen Bing's hand. She secretly sneered to herself, but maintained a gentle smile on her face as she comforted Chen Huan with a few words, then helped her sit back down in the chair and signaled Hong Luo to fetch some water.

  In a moment, Hong Luo led in a little maid carrying a copper basin to wait on Chen Xuan as he washed his face. Then, making an excuse that his hair was disheveled and his makeup was not properly arranged, she pulled him into the inner room to have it done up again. Just then, Chen Lan discovered someone outside the door curtain and hastily asked who it was. Immediately, Yun'er slipped inside.

  "Miss, is Fourth Miss looking for you to express her feelings?"

  Since learning about today's events from Su Mu Hu Jiao and that Chen Lan is going to manage the household, Yun Er's face has been full of disdain. Seeing Chen Lan nod slightly, she couldn't help but sneer: "In the past, those who bullied Miss were never without her participation. Now that she knows which way the wind is blowing, she comes over to fawn on us? It's not that easy! Miss mustn't be deceived by her. You don't know, Fourth Miss is a sly one. In the past when Second Madam was in charge, there were sisters who entrusted things to her, hoping to get a good position. She accepted their gifts but didn't accomplish anything, and then she claimed she had done her best and said a lot of good words for them. Instead, she framed the eldest sister-in-law and sent her away to be married off. To say that Second Miss just looked down on people is one thing, but Fourth Miss has no shame at all!

  "Alright, say no more!" Chen Lan was exasperated by Yun'er's sharp tongue and glared at her before saying in a low voice, "Later, you escort her for two steps, then pay attention to whether she returns directly to the Purple Tranquility Residence or goes somewhere else. Be careful, don't let anyone notice our actions."

  "Don't worry, miss!"

  Before long, Hong Luo led out Chen Yun, who had been newly dressed and made up. Probably due to the reapplication of makeup, Chen Yun's previously sallow and pitiful face had regained its radiance. Wearing a white silk jacket with silver and red trim, she looked like a beautiful peach blossom. She came forward to pay her respects to Chen Lan, thanking him profusely and chatting for quite some time before taking her leave. Yuner naturally saw her out the door.

  Two quarters of an hour later, Yun'er rushed back in a flurry, bringing with her the news that Chen Lan had expected.

  Chen Huan left Jinluo Pavilion and went to Cuiliu Residence of the Third House, where he surprisingly met Luo Yiniang!