Chapter 4

The prison was dim and damp, the air thick and foul with a sour, rotting stench.
There was a men’s cell and a women’s cell; the cramped jail was packed with people.
A small window set high let in a faint thread of light, dim and oppressive.
The masters, madams and young misses who had once been pampered sat in twos and threes on the floor, grumbling at one another.
Members of the Mu clan blamed the main branch for stirring trouble and ruining them.
Those from the Mu household snapped back, “You’ve been enjoying the fruits, using the main branch to swagger and reap benefits; now that trouble’s come, what right have you to complain?”
There was no peace between the main branch’s first and third houses either, “You blame me, I blame you,” tearing at one another like squabbling hens.
Only the second branch sat quietly in the corner, staying out of it.
Mu Wanqing, spent from outwitting and outmaneuvering, had fallen asleep against her mother’s warm chest.
Madam Qian looked at her daughter’s pale face with pity; the child had bled so much from her forehead, her strength was sapped.
Alas, she couldn’t even brew a nourishing soup for her daughter.
Mu Wanqing didn’t know how long she’d slept before a sudden cry woke her.
“The old madam’s awake!”
The Mu family all turned at once to see the old matriarch being helped up, trembling, and propped against the wall.
“Mother.” From the opposite cell Mu Zhongde was overcome with emotion. “I’m so glad you’re all right.”
Old Madam Mu was the household’s elder, clever and formidable, the Mu family’s pillar of strength.
Now she looked a decade older, haggard; the kindly lines of her face had taken on a hint of harshness.
She barked loudly, “Stop crying. The Mu family hasn’t reached the end of the road yet. Outside there are countless friends and relatives scrambling to rescue us. Shu’er and Wan’er will find a way, surely we’ll get out of this safe and sound.”
Those two were the matriarch’s own daughters, both well married.
Her few words calmed the terrified crowd; experience still beats youth.
“Eldest, think of any reliable friends or relatives, find a way to ask them for help.”
“Yes.” Mu Zhongde answered at once.
Old Madam Mu had come through the household’s ruthless struggles; even at this point she remained composed.
“Eldest daughter-in-law, third daughter-in-law, contact your natal families, get your in-laws to pull whatever strings they can to get us out. The Mu family will not forget this favor.”
These two were wives from the direct line; she had handpicked them, families of equal standing.
The only one not named, Madam Qian, the second daughter-in-law, felt uneasy all over.
Her natal family… best not to mention.
Both daughters-in-law agreed, but Madam Yao hesitated. “But how do we contact the outside?”
They had nothing now, no money, no power, no influence. How could they reach anyone?
Old Madam Mu looked confident. “I have a way.”
Seeing her so sure, a flicker of hope lit the Mu family’s hearts.
Old Madam Mu was a capable woman; before long she’d struck up a lively conversation with several prison guards.
She learned one guard came from generations of the same work and had even managed to become a minor headman, Old Madam Mu’s eyes glittered.
“Officer, how many children do you have?”
The guard had seen fallen officials’ families before, but being addressed with respect and warmth pleased his vanity immensely.
“Three sons.”
“You’re blessed. Are they all married?” Madam Mu asked kindly. “If not, I could do you a great favor and find a match.”
The guard’s heart stirred. “My youngest son isn’t married yet.”
Madam Mu smiled even more warmly and pointed to Mu Wanqing, dozing in the corner. “Look at my granddaughter, how about her? Gentle and obedient since childhood, well-mannered and educated, skilled in music, chess, calligraphy and painting. I dote on her. If you don’t mind, I’ll promise my granddaughter to your youngest son, what do you think?”
“Well…” The guard was tempted. Society was ranked, guards were at the bottom, low-born, worlds apart from officials.
The two daughters-in-law he’d married were illiterate low-born women; he’d dreamed of changing his family’s fortunes even in his sleep...
To marry an official’s daughter, improve his bloodline and bring cultured refinement, it would be a tremendous boon, something once unimaginable.
But it would carry risk.
The court’s rules said that if a disgraced official’s female relatives had been betrothed, and the groom’s side was willing to honor the engagement, the bride could be taken away.
It wouldn’t drag their married relatives into trouble.
That’s the rule, but people instinctively avoid risk and seek profit.
After all, who doesn’t have a few in-laws, what if they got dragged in?
Old Madam Mu smiled at her concubine-born son. "Second son, I've found a good place for Third Miss so she won't have to suffer alongside us. What do you think?"
Second Master Mu felt something was wrong but couldn't put his finger on it. As a father who loved his children, he naturally wanted his daughter freed from hardship. "Thank you, Mother..."
Eldest Master Mu's eyes flickered; he said nothing.
Before Second Master Mu could finish, a cool, icy voice rang out, "If it's so good, why not let your own granddaughter go?"
It was Mu Wanqing. She sat up, brushing the messy hair from her face.
"Oh, me? I'll let my younger sisters enjoy the comforts."
If she didn't wake up soon she'd be hauled off and sold, Old Madam Mu clearly had no scruples.
Her birth father had been coddled into uselessness, sold off, and even helped tally the coins.
"My daughters are still young," Madam Yao jumped up anxiously. "Wanqing, this is Grandmother's good intention, you mustn't disappoint her."
"Third Aunt, that's not right," Mu Wanqing replied earnestly. "Grandmother often tells me to revere and love my elder sisters and never contend with them. The younger ones are little; one must yield to them in everything.
After all, they're Grandmother's legitimate granddaughters. My father is of a concubine, and our second branch has no blood ties to Grandmother. My sisters are nobler than I am, I understand that."
Only then did the guards understand, 'the most cherished granddaughter' was a lie!
Others heard it too, their faces clouding with mixed expressions.
Madam Qian couldn't help but panic. "Grandmother, traditionally parents decide their children's marriages; I don't agree, "
Her words were cut off by Old Madam Mu's angry bark. "You in the second house, how dare you defy your matriarch? Do you want to be divorced?"
Mu Wanqing hadn't intended to pick a fight, she was already a prisoner, but the old woman's move was too vile; it crossed her line.
She said evenly, "Good then, divorce quickly. Let my mother escape with her life. At last, grandmother will have done one decent thing."
Old Madam Mu stared at her with a cold, venomous look; Mu Wanqing was utterly unfazed and flashed her a nasty little smile.
Still acting like the unchallengeable old matriarch, was she?
Mu Zhongde exploded in fury. "Mu Wanqing, how dare you speak to Grandmother like that? Whatever happened to manners?"
In the Mu household, Madam Mu sat at the very apex of the pyramid.
Beneath her came the brothers Mu Zhongde and Mu Zhongwen, then their sons, daughters, and daughters-in-law.
The second branch's Mu Zhongping was at the very bottom, without an ounce of say; even the third branch's children looked down on Second Master Mu.
Mu Wanqing smiled casually. "Uncle, the century-old Mu family was ruined by your hands. Generations' foundation wiped clean because of you, and you dare speak of propriety? Anyone with an ounce of shame would have killed themselves to atone."
Few things wound a man deeper than that.
Mu Zhongde trembled all over; his eyes were rimmed in red.
They all looked at one another, at a loss.
Old Madam Mu fixed Mu Wanqing with a venomous, cold stare, then suddenly put on a stern face and lectured solemnly.
"Listen well: every member of the Mu family must put the clan above all, even to the point of sacrificing their own lives. Now that disaster has befallen the Mu household, all descendants bear an unshirkable duty to ensure the family's survival."
Her authority was immense; the Mu family habitually lowered their hands and accepted her admonition. "Yes."
She looked coldly toward her concubine-born son. "Zhongping, you are also a descendant of the Mu family; you've been sheltered by us for decades, living in silk and satin. It's time you paid your due to the Mu family."
Second Master Mu's mouth tasted bitter, as if he'd swallowed a bowl of bitter herbs. Just because they were of concubine birth, were they always to be shoved forward first when trouble came?
Eldest Master Mu, no surprise for a former high official, his composure intact, quickly recovered and took up the posture of the eldest brother. "Zhongping, do as Mother commands. She cannot be wrong."
Third Master Mu nodded vigorously. "Yes, yes, sacrificing one to save the whole family is worth it. Second brother, what are you still hesitating about?"
Madam Qian grew frantic. Why should her daughter be sacrificed?
She was about to speak when Mu Wanqing gently pressed her hand down. Wanqing lifted her face and sighed. "Ancestors of the Mu family, your descendants are good for nothing, selling women to buy honor is their specialty. Uncle, Third Uncle, what an achievement you have."
At that sarcastic barb, the Mu family members flushed scarlet.
"Mu Wanqing, you bear the Mu name; you have responsibilities, " Old Madam Mu, who ruled the household like law, would not tolerate anyone challenging her authority.
Mu Wanqing thought of herself as even-tempered, but with a matriarch like this, reason had no purchase.
So she rolled up her sleeves, time to fight.
"What splendid official-sounding rhetoric, dressing selfishness and malice in the robes of great righteousness. This is the power of rhetoric; elder brother, second brother, take note."
She let a small smile curl at one corner of her mouth, a faint sneer. "Grandmother, if anyone has benefited most from the Mu family it's the children of the main branch. They are the legitimate descendants, best food, best clothes, best rooms; they live in the largest courtyards and eat the finest meals. Now, when sacrifice is required, shouldn't they step forward?
Privileges and duties come together. It makes no sense that all the benefits belong to them while they shove the dirty work onto others."
Old Madam Mu wore an expression of outrage and, as if it were self-evident, said, "The legitimate line are the family's most precious scions. They are the hope of the clan..."
And concubine-born children are there merely to pave the way, what use would they be otherwise?
Mu Wanqing couldn't help laughing. "They're parasites, good for nothing. When trouble comes they scurry behind their parents; people with no backbone."
Her tongue was poison, each word driving a nail into the Mu family's sore spots.
Isn't it so? Since the house was ransacked, which of the descendants has shown any backbone? They're all wailing and begging for mercy.
They saw through it, but couldn't admit it, the Mu family couldn't keep up appearances.
Old Madam Mu shook with anger. "Zhongping, you need to control your daughter, what has she become? She's ruined the Mu family's face completely."
"So the Mu family still cares about face after all," Mu Wanqing said, eyes wide in mock surprise, her expression exaggerated. "This is the first I've heard, ha."
A single “hehe”, so devilishly beguiling.
Old Madam Mu felt the blood rush straight to her head; her face flushed crimson and she grew dizzy.
Second Master Mu, afraid she might harm herself and drag his daughter into it, hurriedly pleaded, “Wanqing, say fewer words.”
Now that Wanqing had made her move, it had to go somewhere.
This was the perfect moment to shatter authority, break free of restraints, and remake the order.
A thin, cold smile tugged at her lips. Come on, bring out the trump card!
Those around her felt an inexplicable chill and shivered in unison, as if something terrible were about to happen.