The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

Chapter 85 : Marquis Taining’s Residence (2)

When girls got together, they mostly ate, drank and be merry¹Chinese idiom : idle away one’s time in pleasure. Sometimes they went to watch a play or played some games together. However, today was somewhat different, and Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangsmiled towards Yuchen and said, “I have heard that Miss Chen is proficient in all of qin, chess, calligraphy and painting. I wonder if I can have the privilege to listen to one or two songs today?”

From the first time Yuchen saw Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang, she could confirm one thing, that Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangwas acting very hostile to her. She replied with a smile, “Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangis over praising me. Being proficient is out of the question, it just that I have nothing to do to pass the time at home.”

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangheard this with a smile and stepped into the conversation, “Elder cousin⁶biaojie : daughter of one’s father’s sister, or of one’s mother’s brother or sister, who is older than oneself, your qin skill is also excellent. Why don’t you and Miss Chen play a piece of music separately and let us have a good time?”

“Miss Yuchen and Miss Yuxi have learned from Teacher Song together. Fourth Miss also should not refuse, right?” Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangsaid with a smile. She had some doubts about Yuxi, so she tried to probe her with one thing or another.

Yuxi responded with a decent smile, “Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang, I have limited qualifications and I don’t have the right to acknowledge Teacher Song as my teacher.” When she saw Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang’s face looking surprised, she smiled and continued saying, “Though I did obtain a bit of Teacher Song’s affection. So, I had learned painting and calligraphy from Teacher Song. As for music theory and poetry, I didn’t learn them because I didn’t have the talent.“

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangsaid nothing after hearing this. Since Yuxi could say it in front of so many people, she definitely wasn’t lying to her.

Yuchen played ‘Three Stanzas of Plum Blossoms’. This song praised plum blossoms for defying cold and frost. It was considered a tenacious character for fighting against the wind, so it was also used to praise people with noble sentiments. Yuchen in essence was noble in her nature and moral character, so, once she played this piece of music, it left a lasting appeal to those who listened to her song.

Three Stanzas of Plum Blossoms

While, Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangplayed a song called ‘Song of Early Spring’. The first half of this song showed a kind of mood where on a spring morning, people were tired and kind of lazy in combing their hair. After entering the second half, the rhythm turned lively and bright. The mood was happy, with flowers blooming like a piece of brocade⁷Chinese saying : a flourishing scene of prosperity, showing that spring was very much in the air! At the end of the song, it gave people another kind of spring scenery. Although it was beautiful, it would never last forever. After thinking about how short life was, people would obviously feel sorrowful. This noob translation was translated by a noob translator きつね. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.blogspot.com.

Song of Early Spring

After Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangdone played her song, the scene at the banquet immediately became quiet.

After a few seconds, Yuchen returned back to herself. She then went to Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long lifeXianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangand commented, “Xianzhu’s qin sounds are like the sounds of nature. Yuchen feel ashamed of her inferiority.” Although she lost, she didn’t feel any shame. She knew that there were many people outside who could play much better than her.

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangreplied with a smile, “I am two years older than Younger Sister Yuchen, and I have taken advantage of it.” She knew that Yuchen was the most arrogant, as ordinary people could not easily enter her eyes. Only in this way, she could shorten the distance between the two of them.

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangfelt that today’s opportunity was rare as she said, “Elder cousin⁶biaojie : daughter of one’s father’s sister, or of one’s mother’s brother or sister, who is older than oneself, today’s weather is so good, why don’t we write some poems?” She was actually not very popular among the ladies. It was not because she was hard to get in touch with, but she always wanted to write poems every time, which made people around her felt that her obsession was a bit too much.

Peony Tree

This is for my own reference since I have never seen a peony tree. I thought it would be a big tree.

Image Source | Cricket Hill Garden

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangknew that her younger cousin⁸biaomei = daughter of one’s father’s sister, or of one’s mother’s brother or sister, who is younger than oneselfloved for poetry was in a state of insanity. If this was before, she would have refused it tactfully. But now, she won’t spoil Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy clouds’s fun. She happened to see several peony trees blooming nearby and said, “What does younger cousin⁸biaomei = daughter of one’s father’s sister, or of one’s mother’s brother or sister, who is younger than oneselfthink about peony?”

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangfelt pretty good, “Peony is the king of flowers. Using peony as the topic is naturally extremely good.”

In the presence of Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangand Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangwho had the highest status in the banquet, since both of them had decided it this way, other people naturally unable to refute their words. To refute their words was the same as showing that they didn’t give any face to Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangand Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang.

Zhou Shiya was not good at poetry. She was racking her brains just to write a single poem. She thought for a long time, but she still couldn’t come out with anything. When she looked up, she saw Yuxi was very leisurely eating some snacks. Zhou Shiya lowered her voice as she asked, “Are you going to write a poem?”

Yuxi was preparing to hand in a blank white paper later. “I can’t write it.”

Zhou shiya also didn’t want to write, but she didn’t have the courage to do so. She eagerly said, “If you don’t write one, you will be laughed at by others later on, and when you return home, you will surely be punished.” By just handing over a blank sheet, wouldn’t it prove that a young miss of the Duke of the State’s residence was really a disappointment!

“If they want to laugh at me, I can’t do anything about it . I already said just now that I am not good in poetry. I didn’t even attend Teacher Song’s poetry class. So, it doesn’t matter even if I’ve been called out for sending in blank paper,” replied Yuxi. At the beginning, Momo⁹wet nurseQuan also advised her to learn poetry and musical instruments, by saying that these two skills would help in keeping her appearance and would stop people from making a joke off her when she married out in the future. But what could she do when she simply couldn’t learn them? Without any talent, it was useless for her to force herself. This noob translation was translated by a noob translator きつね. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.blogspot.com.

Zhou Shiya thought for a moment and then asked, “If you lose the face of the residence, won’t you be reprimanded by your aunt and grandmother when you go back?”

Yuxi answered indifferently, “If they want to reprimand me, then I will just let them reprimand me. I really can’t write any poem, and I can’t resort to deceit! Besides, the residence has my Third Sister, who is enough to keep up appearances.“ She was not a perfect person like Yuchen, and it was unlikely for her to be like Yuchen. She also believed that there was nothing shameful about that. She also did not believe that all the girls present here were masters of poetry and painting.

Two quarters of an hour later, more than 20 girls handed in their poems. In the end, Yuchen was chosen as the one who wrote the best and won the first prize. The worst was naturally fell on Yuxi, who handed in a blank paper.

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangwas somewhat surprised. Even if one could not write poetry, one would rack one’s brain to write a poem just to complete the task in this kind of occasion. It was the first time for her to see a person handed in a blank paper. “Please invite Miss Yuxi to come over,” said Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangto a maid nearby. Yuxi was busy whispering to Zhou Shiya at a corner of the garden.

Yuchen was not surprised that Yuxi would hand in a blank sheet of paper. Yuxi had that kind of temperament where she would not say it straight, would not go round the curves and skirting the corners¹⁰Chinese idiom : to beat about the bushnor would she resort to deceit.

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangtook out a blank paper which only written with the words ‘Yuxi’ on it and asked, “Miss Yuxi, did you hand this?”

Under everyone peculiar eyes, Yuxi frankly admitted that it was hers. Now that she dared to hand in a blank paper, she was ready to be laughed at.

Yuchen did not want to lose the reputation of the residence over this matter, so she smiled and said, “This younger sister of mine has never been good in music theory and poetry since she was young, but she paints very well, especially peony and chrysanthemum.” She brought up this matter to give face to Yuxi.

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangfrowned.

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwanginterjected with a smile, “Since Sister Chen said that Miss Yuxi’s peony paintings are excellent, if Miss Yuxi doesn’t mind, how about painting one instead of poetry?”

Being asked to compose a poem, but instead handed over a blank paper could also be said that she had no talent. Now Yuchen had said that her peony painting was good. If she pushed this off, she would not only lose the face of the residence, but also Yuchen’s face. Of course, being scolded was a trivial matter, but she was afraid that if she carried the reputation of a straw bag¹¹fig. good-for-nothingin the future, then her future marriage would have to fall several grades. So, she nodded and said, “Okay. But I draw very slow and it will take a long time.” This noob translation was translated by a noob translator きつね. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.blogspot.com.

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwanglaughed heartily, “No harm, we will wait.” This person was clearly different from the hearsay, and she didn’t know what kind of secret this person had.

Maids and old women servants of Marquis Taining’s residence immediately brought over brushes and various colours of paints. Yuxi also didn’t act melodramatic. She just spread open the rice paper and began to draw on the table.

The most important thing in painting peony was colouring. If there was no good colour, no matter how good her skill was, it would end up useless. However, Yuxi was very sensitive to colour and had never made any mistakes in this area.

Yuxi drew the painting really slow. People around her had become impatient and started to look around. They got together in twos and threes to talk and gossip. Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwangand Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangwere happily chatting with Yuchen. Even Zhou Shiya was wool-gathering.

A maid walked up to Chen Xue and said, “Miss, the dishes are already served on the table. It’s time to invite all the girls to have their meals.”

When Yuchen heard that they were going to have meals, she looked over at Yuxi who was bowing her head while painting and said, “Let’s have a meal first! When our meals are over, Yuxi’s painting should be finished.“ If she let everyone waited for Yuxi, they would surely be dissatisfied.

After lunch, most of the girls went home with their elders, and a small part went back to the garden with Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangand Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwang.

When they arrived at the garden, Yuxi just finished painting the peony.

It took several times longer than other people for Yuxi to paint a painting. Today, in order to save time, she only drew a peony bloomed brilliantly surrounded by green leaves. On the upper right corner of the painting, there was a poem by Liu Yuxi, a poet of the Tang Dynasty : ‘Wild herbaceous peonies grow with exuberant colours, pond lotuses are pure and free of passions, only tree peonies epitomize the essence of beauty, whose blooming presence decorates Peking City.’ (Translation of the poem was taken from China Shande.)

Yuxi’s peony was exquisite in brushwork and bright in colour. Though it couldn’t be compared with famous artists, it also had its own characteristics.

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangsmiled and said, “This peony is a good painting, but unfortunately there is only one.” Although Yuxi was good at painting flowers and plants, she was extremely lacking in drawing things that moved. Her painting was unique but not of high standard. However, Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwanghad seen a lot of good things, so, Yuxi’s painting still didn’t manage to enter her eyes. She could get a pretty good one, which already had received a very high evaluation.

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwanggave Yuxi an unexpected look. With this kind of painting, it was impossible for a person to be this mediocre. She wondered what made she felt that Han Yuxi looked like a different person. She said with a smile, “Miss Yuxi just said that she painted slowly. If she was given more time, wouldn’t she be painting till evening?”

Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwanglaughed, “I was too happy that it slipped through my mind.”

Yuchen took advantage of that moment to raise the feeling of interest towards Yuxi by saying, “Junzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwang, in fact, my Fourth Sister are not that good in painting, but embroidery. Among us sisters, our Fourth Sister’s embroidery is simply the best.“ If it were not for the fact that Yuxi had not yet completed her set of double-sided embroidery, Yuchen would have long ago publicized Yuxi’s ability to create double-sided embroidery.

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwanglooked at the pouch at Yuxi’s waist and asked smilingly, “Miss Yuxi, your pouch is looking especially exquisite. Did you embroider it yourself?”

Yuxi took off the pouch from her waist and said, “Well, I embroidered it myself. I like roses very much, so I embroidered roses on the pouch.”

Heshou²he = harmonious, shou = long life Xianzhu³Princess of the Fourth Rank/usually granted to daughter of a Junwanglooked at Yuxi’s clothes which were also embroidered with roses, and her jewelleries were also made with pattern of roses. How could this be considered as common love? This was an obsession. Just like Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwanginfatuation with poetry, who had totally became obsessed with it. Qingxia⁴qing = green grass, xia = rosy cloudsJunzhu⁵Princess of the Third Rank / usually given to daughter of a Qingwangtook the purse, looked at it carefully and nodded, “Sister Yuxi’s embroidery work is better than the best embroidery woman in our official residence.”

The smile on Yuxi’s face remained the same as she responded, “I only embroider when I have nothing to do on weekdays. It’s just to pass the time.” She was unwilling to be mentioned in the same breath with embroidery lady.