In a blink of an eye, it was already the mid-autumn, and the weather had grown increasingly colder day by day.
A few days ago, the people from Gao fu had come over to visit Xie fu. Upon their arrival, Leng shi went to welcome them at the main hall. As they had arrived early, seeing that Xie Zhen and Xie Xun were still asleep, Leng shi did not wake them up.
By the time Xie Zhen had woken up, she was already alone in her wing.
Changing into a high-collared lace cape embroidered with peonies, she went about her usual routine, combing her hair into a neat bun, and placing a few strings of beads and silk flowers in the bun. They moved from side to side as she walked, and made her seem active and cute. She walked around for a while but didn’t find Xie Xun, and only after finding a maid did she then realise that she was with Leng shi in the main hall.
“Ah Xun, what are you doing?” She ran into the hall with a suspicious look on her face.
Xie Xun stood on the rose wood drum stool. Facing the mirror decorated with four birds circling a flower branch, the small dumpling shook her head, saying, “Big sis come see, am I pretty or not like this?”
Going closer to look, Xie Zhen then found that she was wearing Leng shi’s jade cicada hairpin.
Forcing herself not to laugh, Xie Zhen looked around, and Xie Xun suddenly thought of changing her hairstyle into a spiral bun. She had a hairpin in her bun and her face was still immature, yet she seemed to be pretending to be a grown-up, so she was both funny and cute to look at. All young girls fantasised of being grown-ups, and little Xie Xun was no exception.
Xie Zhen, in a serious voice, commented, “Really pretty, almost as though you’re flawless.”
Xie Xun repeatedly asked, “What flaws?”
She climbed down from the stool, and swayed over to Xie Zhen, intently gazing at her.
In a flash, Xie Zhen thought of an explanation, and pointed to the makeup on the dressing table. “Ah Niang always puts some rogue and powder on, why don’t you try putting some on?”
Clapping her hands, Xie Xun agreed, “Of course!”
Quietening down, the two troublemakers sneakily looked around, both thinking the same thing. Xie Zhen said, “Ah Niang is at the main hall right now, we mustn’t let her know.”
Xie Xun nodded, and pursed her lips. “Both of us are not allowed to tell her.”
The two small dumplings were in agreement, and surrounded Leng shi‘sdressing table. The movement in the room actually couldn’t be concealed from the maidservants outside; the two were too naive, actually assuming that no one would know what they were doing. Shuang Yu and Shuang Yan looked at each other helplessly, but alas, could only await Leng shi’s return.
Xie Zhen opened the lotus lacquered purple box, which contained a bright red piece of rogue. Picking up a piece, she started to draw on Xie Xun’s face, telling her, “Make sure you don’t move.”
Xie Xun obediently stayed still.
After she finished drawing on the rogue, Xie Zhen opened another box. Inside were some finely-ground powder, and remembering how Ah Niang’s face always became whiter after patting it on, she then took a handful of it and spread it on her sister’s face. After that she drew on her eyebrows, put on lipstick… After she finished Xie Xun’s big makeover, Xie Zhen clapped her hands, saying, “I’m done!”
Xie Xun excitedly looked into the mirror, but with just a glance she was shocked silly by the strange creature looking back at her, loudly crying out, “Ugly!”
The two sisters had inherited their mother’s skin colour, and originally were already quite pale. After Xie Zhen had spread so much powder, Xie Xun became so much whiter that she looked as pale as paper. In particular, as her cheeks and lips were bright red, coupled with the fact that her eyebrows had been drawn till they were stark black, it almost seemed as though a female ghost had appeared in the world of the living!
Understandably, Xie Xun felt sad and started crying. Afraid that her sister would make her look like that again, she decided never to return to the dressing table.
Xie Zhen also thought that she didn’t look that good, and guiltily said, “Why don’t you draw on me too?”
Whining as she jumped down from the stool, she wouldn’t agree despite whatever Xie Zhen said. “What if I make Big Sis become as ugly as I am?”
Upon saying this, she cried even harder.
Hurriedly comforting her, Xie Zhen said, “Ah Xun doesn’t look ugly, Ah Xun’s actually very pretty! No one is prettier than Ah Xun!”
Hearing the disturbance in the room, the maidservants rushed inside. The moment Shuang Yu caught sight of the mess they’d made of Xie Xun’s face, she couldn’t help but laugh and ask, “What happened?”
Mumbling, Xie Xun replied, “Big Sister Shuang Yu laughed at me, Big Sis is definitely lying…”
Xie Zhen immediately pushed the maidservants out, thinking of ways to deal with the situation. “There’s nothing wrong, I just need to say something to Xie Xun, both of you hurry up and leave…”
The two worriedly looked back and said, “But…”
Without even finishing their sentences, they were pushed out of the room by Xie Zhen. They were too afraid to retaliate and accidentally injure the precious little descendant, so they stood outside, unblinkingly staring at the big gates in front.
On the other side of the doors, Xie Zhen ran into the inner room, asking, “Xie Xun? Xie Xun?”
At that moment, Xie Xun was standing on a wooden stool, blankly staring at the ground.
She originally wanted to wash her face, but the copper basin was too high up, and she couldn’t reach it no matter how hard she tried. In the end, she had accidentally struck her head against the stool, and the jade cicada hairpin had been knocked loose.
The jade hairpin had fallen to the ground and broke into two pieces.
Xie Zhen arrived in front of her, and followed her gaze to the ground. Immediately, she was stunned, and gaped widely.
Xie Xun was so scared that she actually couldn’t recall how to cry, and looked at her helplessly. “Big sis, what should we do…I accidentally broke the hairpin…”
That had been Ah Niang’s favourite hairpin; she would definitely scold her! Just thinking of Ah Niang sternly teaching her a lesson frightened her till she shrunk slightly, and large tears came rolling down her cheeks. She cried like she normally would, making herself look pitiful and lovely, but with the strange makeup on her face, her tears smudged he rogue, making her look both embarrassing and ridiculous.
Xie Zhen was older than her, and so quickly calmed down. Going over to the drum stool, she took a towel from the shelf above it, wet it, and then used it to wash her sister’s face. “Don’t be afraid, let me think of a solution.”
Saying this, she bent down a little to wipe her face clean, and Xie Xun didn’t dare to move at all, staying still the whole time. She blinked at her sister, face full of hope.
After Xie Zhen finished wiping the makeup off, she picked up the two broken pieces of the jade hairpin and thought hard for a while.
What should she do? Ah Niang would come back soon, and if she saw this scene right after returning, she would definitely get angry.
Why not they throw it away? If Ah Niang couldn’t find it, then it would just be a matter of time before she forgot about it entirely.
But what if Ah Niang found out…In the end, she didn’t dare to throw it away.
After all, she was just a small child. In the eyes of young children, their parents’ things were all strange and mystical.
Just as she was stuck in a dilemma, Shuang Yu called out from outside. “Second young miss, third young miss, the Madame has called both of you to go to the main hall to welcome the guests.” Saying this, she opened the door and entered.
At that moment, Xie Xun was anxiously pacing around, asking, “Big sis, what should we do? Will Ah Niang beat me?”
Chapter 7.2: Accident (2)
In a panic, Xie Zhen wrapped the two broken pieces in a silk shirt, clutching it to her chest, and sneaked out of the room.
She said, “That won’t happen, after all, there’s still me!”
As they had locked the door, Shuang Yu and Shuang Yan couldn’t go inside. When the two little girls finally came out, they both sighed in relief. Although the maidservants were curious about what they’d been doing in the room, they didn’t have time to ask, as they had to hurry them over to the main hall.
*
Apart from Old Madame Gao and a few other Madames, Gao Xun and Gao Tongtong, along with several other children, were all present in the main hall.
Gao Tongtong had specially dressed up for the occasion. She was wearing a set of new clothes that were especially bright, and she’d also patted a thin layer of powder on her face. As she was only eight years old, even though she looked pretty, her appearance still didn’t suit her age.
Her hair was combed into a different hairstyle, and she’d pinned a jade cicada hairpin in it. The hairpin was actually quite similar to Leng shi’s own one.
The moment Xie Zhen and Xie Xun entered the room, the first thing they noticed was the hairpin on her head.
Leng shi had them separately greet a few elders, before saying, “Ah Zhen, Ah Xun, why don’t you bring these big brothers and sisters over to the Inner Courtyard to play?”
Hearing this, Xie Zhen nodded, and lead the group of children outside.
On the way there, Xie Xun constantly looked over to the hairpin that Gao Tongtong was wearing, her face full of curiosity. Gao Tongtong assumed that it was because Xie Xun found her to be very pretty after dressing up, and couldn’t help but raise her head higher.
Xie Zhen also wanted to take a look but was unfortunately stuck with Gao Xun who endlessly chattered on, so she couldn’t turn around at all.
Seeing her look of delight, Gao Xun asked, “Ah Zhen, where are you taking us to?”
Pointing towards the front, Xie Zhen said, “There’s a small courtyard over there, and inside there’s a pond and a swing. There’s also Big Qiansui and Small Qiansui that Ah Xun and I are rearing; I’ll bring all of you over there to look at them!”
The courtyard was called Spring Flower Dock, and it was specially prepared by Xie Liqing for his two daughters. It was a small garden belonging to the pair, so they could decorate it however they wanted to, and could also rear whatever they felt like rearing. No matter what they did to the garden, Xie Liqing and Leng shi both didn’t care too much. Xie Zhen brought the children over, and they saw that there was actually a small pond, and inside the pond, there were about a dozen carps, along with one big and one small turtle, Big Qiansui and Small Qiansui.
There was a bridge leading across the pond, and at the other end were some fake mountains. At the foot of these, there were many flowers and lush grass growing. This was Xie Zhen and Xie Xun’s masterpiece. Unfortunately, it was already autumn, and most of the flowers had withered due to the cold, leaving behind a couple of chrysanthemums.
On the other side of the courtyard were two swing sets. One of them was Xie Zhen’s, and the other Xie Xun’s. Oftentimes the two little troublemakers would swing on these and compete to swing higher than the other, and their laughter could be heard from afar.
The two younger children, Second and Third Madame Gao’s respectively, immediately ran over to the swing sets, each of them taking up one, and started to swing.
Xie Zhen pretended to be calm about it and didn’t stop them, but normally she didn’t let anyone touch the swings.
Gao Xun and her squatted beside the pond, and she hesitated for a while before asked, “Do you know…”
She was mumbling and stuttering, seeming to be quite embarrassed. Anticipating her question, Gao Xun seemed to be anxious for as long as half a day before she finally asked, “Do you know where Gao Tongtong bought her hairpin from?”
Gao Xun asked, “You like that one?”
It wasn’t that she liked it, but it was just that if she knew where to buy it, then she could find a similar one and bring it back. As long as she placed it on Ah Niang’s dressing table, she wouldn’t suspect a thing.
Despite this, she couldn’t tell him the truth, and could only heavily nod her head. “I think it looks pretty good.”
Gao Xun thought that his chance had finally arrived, and hurriedly said to the little fairy, “I gave that hairpin to Big Sis for her eighth birthday, so of course I know where to buy it from! If you like it, then I’ll buy one for you tomorrow!”
Xie Zhen’s eyes lit up, and they sparkled as she asked, “Really? Can you bring me there? I want to look around!”
Gao Xun’s eyes were even brighter than hers as he answered, “Of course, of course!”
Having removed the large burden in her heart, Xie Zhen was full of smiles, and sincerely said, “Thank you! You’re truly a good person!”
Gao Xun’s heart immediately exploded with happiness, and he felt that she was shining so bright that it made him dizzy.
It was just that he had forgotten, the next day was actually the Mid-autumn festival, and he’d already made plans to go out with Li Yu…Ah, never mind, he could just go with both of them.
*
At that time, Xie Xun was still tirelessly following after Gao Tongtong.
Gao Tongtong was a little annoyed, so she asked, “Why do you keep on following me?”
Xie Xun was shorter than her by a head, so she craned her neck to look at the hairpin, and step by step she followed after her. “Can, can you let me see your hairpin?”
The longer she looked at it the more it looked like Ah Niang’s hairpin, so she wanted to know if Gao Tongtong could give it to her. If they placed it back on Ah Niang’s dressing table, would Ah Niang find out?
Gao Tongtong had zero interest in the courtyard. She’d dressed up so well just for Xie Rong…but after going round and round, she still hadn’t caught a glimpse of him, and due to her disappointment she was a little impatient.
Gao Tongtong replied, “No way, don’t follow me anymore.”
Xie Xun widened her footsteps as she ran after Gao Tongtong, and in a businesslike tone said, “I just want to get a glimpse of it…Just a glimpse!” Saying this she pointed one pudgy finger up to show that she just wanted one look at it.
Still, Gao Tongtong was completely unaffected by her pleas and arrogantly said, “Even one glimpse is not allowed. I really like this hairpin, what if you accidentally break it?”
Xie Xun rushed to deny this, “I won’t!”
Again and again she continued to pester Gao Tongtong, and reached out to grab her sleeve, softly pleading, “Big Sister Gao Tong…”
That was Gao Tongtong’s newest set of clothes, so how could she bear to just let Xie Xun grab it like that? At that time she was quite annoyed, and pushed her away, saying, “If I say that you cannot then you cannot!”
Xie Xun lost her balance and was pushed quite far away.
It almost seemed like she would crash into the fake mountain. the fake mountain was quite rough and full of rocks, if she crashed into it, she would probably get injured and start bleeding. From afar Xie Zhen saw this scene, and she anxiously ran over, yelling, “Xie Xun!”
When she was rushing over, Xie Xun was already in a familiar embrace.
Raising her head, she saw her big brother Xie Rong.
Xie Xun was was slightly aggrieved, and pursed her lips wanting to cry, “Big brother…”
Xie Rong tightly held her and patted her head before turning to look at Gao Tongtong. His expression was stern, and he frowned. Even at a young age, he looked incredibly imposing.
Even without saying anything, he already made people feel quite pressured.
Definitions:
Qiansui: 千岁 means one thousand years old, which is a reference to the long lives of turtles.
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The hairstyle that Gao Tongtong is sporting looks like this:
Fake Mountain: Basically some rocks stacked together artfully.
Mid-Autumn Festival:
An important festival to the Chinese,the festival is held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar when there is a full moon, which is about late September to early October of the Gregorian calendar. Most people celebrate with their family and friends by eating mooncakes, carrying and releasing brightly lit lanterns and watching lion dances. Some people also burn incense to moon deities like Chang E’, who is a famous chinese characeter who some believe to be living on the moon.
There are also many shops selling sweets and some people also set off fireworks on the streets, which is why Gao Xun planned to go out with Li Yu.