Chapter 142: Winter Day Search for Daiyu

Shi Xiangyun didn't think that much; she was determined to invite Jia Jing to the poetry gathering and continued, smiling, saying:

"I know Third Brother is very busy, but you have dozens of days off during the New Year!"

"New Year's Eve and Lantern Festival are days for family reunions; you should be at home."

"Or whenever you have a free day, we could hold it in your courtyard; this isn't just my wish, they're just too shy to say so!"

"Besides, Xiangling has been learning poetry from Lin Daiyu for more than two months and has now made some progress; won't you evaluate Lin Daiyu's teaching outcome?"

Daiyu leaned on the Yin Pillow, covering her face with a silk handkerchief taken from somewhere, exposing only a pair of eyes, and looked at Xiang Yun with a smiling, lyrical gaze:

"I only said one thing—earlier you said, 'They're just too shy to speak.' I've taken note of that."

"If tomorrow Baichai wants to hold a poetry gathering, if Tan Girl wants to hold one, even if Xichun's house wants one, I will promise them all on your behalf."

"Just say, 'Miss Shi said it; you were too shy to speak, so she said it for you.' Either way, you're a 'spokesperson'; don't try to back out later."

Xiang Yun, hearing this, became so anxious she jumped up and said:

"Sister Lin is teasing again!"

Baichai laughed and said:

"She is accustomed to being someone who teases."

After Xiang Yun and Daiyu laughed and joked for a while, they again pestered Jia Jing to agree.

Jia Jing thought for a moment and looked out the window.

To the northwest, dusk was heavy, and the new moon was like a knife.

He couldn't help recalling his recent conversation with Yuanyang and the entrustment Jing Sheng Di had given him a few days earlier, and said:

"During the festivals, I may not have free time; although the court grants us rest, the military duties over at Ba Shang are so busy that they cannot pause even for a moment."

"So, choosing an auspicious day is less practical than seizing the moment; I just got a poem while chatting with Yuanyang, so why not write it down for the sisters to appreciate!"

After speaking, Jia Jing walked to the writing desk in the room and picked up a brush.

Hearing Jia Jing's words, Xiang Yun shouted joyfully:

"That works too! Grind the ink quickly! Grind the ink quickly!"

Baichai stepped to the edge of the desk and said softly:

"I'll do it!"

She rolled up her sleeves, ground the ink, moving with practiced ease.

Yingchun moved behind Jia Jing, eager to see how he would write.

Xichun simply climbed onto a chair and perched on the edge of the desk.

Daiyu had Xiang Yun read it to her.

Jia Jing pondered briefly, then set his brush down and wrote the poem's title and preface:

"Winter Day Search for Daiyu's Illness, Promptly Showing the Sisters"

In the winter of the ninth year of Jing Sheng, a search for Daiyu's illness occurred in a small courtyard. Xiang Yun demanded a poem, and the refusal could not be avoided.

Baichai ground the ink, Yingchun held the paper, Xichun leaned over the desk to observe, and Daiyu lay on the bed laughing.

The sisters gathered around, and thus this piece was composed.

Also shown to the sisters: the nation rests on our shoulders; we dare not decline.

After Xiang Yun finished reading the title and preface to Lin Daiyu, she widened her eyes and said:

"'Demand a poem, refusal not avoided?' Third Brother, are you turning me into a bandit?!"

Baichai smiled and covered her mouth, saying:

"If you become a bandit, I become an ink‑grinding pageboy."

Yingchun's face flushed slightly, and she said hesitantly:

"I was just standing here, I didn't hold the paper!"

Xichun laughed the most joyfully:

"I 'leaned over the desk to observe', hehe! I'm in the poem too!"

Daiyu also laughed; she was mentioned not only in the poem's title but also in the preface. Others were mentioned once, she was mentioned twice, so this poem could be considered written for herself!

After everyone's laughter, Jia Jing continued to write:

"With weak strength yet heavy duties, my spirit grows weary over time; even if I exhaust my waning ability, I cannot bear it. If it benefits the country, life and death matter not; why should we shun or chase fortune and misfortune? The household doors have been swept clean of dust, yet the world still hangs the New Policies banner. As long as the ruler's grace is as deep as the sea, this heart will forever serve the Nine Heavens."

When he reached the final sentence, Jia Jing paused; the tip of his brush hovered over the paper for a moment before finally touching down.

Xiang Yun leaned in at the front; Jia Jing wrote a line and she read it aloud, and when he finished, she also read it aloud, then after a moment of thought said:

"'With weak strength yet heavy duties, my spirit grows weary over time; even if I exhaust my waning ability, I cannot bear it'? Third Brother, is this a self‑deprecating remark or are you truly this exhausted?"

Baichai carefully contemplated the whole poem in her mind for a moment, a thoughtful look appearing in her eyes, and she intoned solemnly:

"'If it benefits the country, life or death matters not; why should we avoid or pursue fortune and misfortune?' This means that as long as it serves the nation, one does not shy away from life or death, asking only whether it is right to act. One does not place personal fortune or misfortune as paramount, but puts the nation's interest first."

"'The household doors have been swept clean of dust, yet the world still hangs the New Policies banner.' This says the home is spotless, but the implementation of new policies in the court remains difficult; the banner remains unfurled, requiring full effort without complacency."

"'And the final two lines express resolve, grateful for the ruler's sea‑deep grace, offering one's liver and gall to repay the family and country.' This is not for oneself, but a sincere heart devoted solely to the nation."

"'Third Brother's poems always speak his aspirations directly, expressing his broad heart and ambitions openly. Unlike the poems of us daughters, which are often delicate, sentimental, and full of melancholy over things.'"

When she reached the end, Baichai's voice lowered, she lifted her eyes toward Jia Jing, a sparkle in her gaze.

She had just sighed that a good match is hard to find, a soulmate even harder!

But now isn't that soulmate right beside her?

Xiang Yun said:

"'Third Brother's poem is indeed far stronger than our usual 'chanting chrysanthemums' and 'chanting willows' poems.'"

"'Poetry expresses aspirations; I suggest that at our next poetry gathering we also write such grand‑hearted, heroic poems.'"

Daiyu took the paper handed over by Xiang Yun, read it over twice, and suddenly felt a touch of melancholy, a sense of empathy.

People like Third Brother and my father are probably all devoted to the country, disregarding their own safety.

My father, stationed in Yangzhou as a salt inspector, has long regarded life and death as trivial; his letters repeatedly convey a resolve to fight to the death and to entrust his affairs to others.

Now Third Brother thinks the same way; as long as it benefits the family and country, he will not shy away from fortune or misfortune.

But what about them? Where are they themselves?

And where are their relatives, like me?

Daiyu's expression grew somewhat dim.

As for Yingchun beside them, she was thinking, raised her gaze to Jia Jing, and it was rare for her to speak up with a joke.

"With Third Brother's poem, we fear we too shall become like Fei Yanggu, our names echoing through the ages!"

Xiang Yun disagreed, retorting:

"How could they be the same? Fei Yanggu is infamous for all time, whereas we are truly a fragrant tale that will last through the ages!"

"If Third Sister knew she had missed such a good opportunity, she would probably regret it to death!"

Xichun blinked and said:

"Fragrant through the ages? When I grow up, won't everyone know I used to lie on the desk as a child?"

Everyone burst out laughing together.

After another span of time for a cup of tea, the evening deepened, and only then did people gradually take their leave from Daiyu's small courtyard.

……