Chapter 26: Chapter Twenty-Six

The Shen family's Shen Yun, drunk as a lord, gulped a bowl of sobering soup outside the bridal chamber, letting the cool breeze blow away the alcohol on him before pushing the door open.

Li Jiao dared not wash up early; seeing Shen Yun arrive, she put on the guise of a virtuous wife and good mother to greet him onto the bed.

Seeing his bride beside him, Shen Yun felt a little embarrassed and said, "I could have returned to the room earlier, but Brother Xie had to fetch his wife back, delaying me a bit. By the way, his lady—I recall she's about your age—so we could become acquainted later."

Hearing that Xie Junling had also come to the wedding feast, Li Jiao, for some reason, felt her heart twist with worry, and a hint of sourness arose. She ought to have been Xie Junling's wife, shouldn't she? If that day… Xie Junling had come, then she would be circling around him, exchanging verses with him and adding fragrance with her red sleeves.

Li Jiao sobered up; suddenly thinking of Shen Yun's mention of Lu Bao'er made her heart tremble, and she said somewhat dissatisfied, "But I heard his wife is from the countryside?"

A country girl, to acquaint herself with Li Jiao, the legitimate daughter of the Li family—how dare she?!

Hearing this, Shen Yun was somewhat surprised. Naturally, men are more coarse than women and don't fuss over status; as a man of letters, he values character and learning—how could he judge by official rank?

Actually, this is also what Shen Yun tells himself to calm down; although he is only a seventh-rank Hanlin official, he has lofty ambitions and will surely rise straight to the blue clouds.

Seeing Li Jiao's narrow horizons, he furrowed his brows again and advised his bride, "What's wrong with being from the countryside? Brother Xie too is a country lad, yet he composed a splendid piece."

Li Jiao did not want to oppose Shen Yun on her wedding day, so she didn't argue. She yielded, nodded, and said, "Yes, husband, you're right."

Shen Yun's mood eased; he then carefully examined his flower-like bride, his heart fluttering. He blew out the lamp and thus got onto the bed with Li Jiao. Flowers opened and fell, orioles wept, swallows chirped—in the blink of an eye it was morning.

Shen Yun had a two-day wedding leave; upon rising in the morning, he, as poetry describes, traced Li Jiao's eyebrows and painted her floral forehead ornaments.

The newlywed couple, in their marital bliss, naturally cherished mutual affection.

He led Li Jiao to see his mother, Madame Cui, who gave Li Jiao a red envelope; Li Jiao then offered tea to Shen's father. After acknowledging the parents-in-law, Madame Cui kept Li Jiao behind for some intimate advice.

Madame Cui was naturally delighted that her son had married such a high-born young lady. Yet, having heard some rumors lately that Li Jiao was indiscreet and had plotted against her son, she now grew dissatisfied with Li Jiao.

It was only this morning that Li Jiao's grandmother in her room informed Madame Cui that her chastity remained intact, there being a spot of red on the bed, whereupon Madame Cui finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She feared that those noble households were unclean, daring to send all sorts of seductive spirits into a pure family's home!

Madame Cui smiled and said, "Ah Jiao, I too started as a daughter-in-law and worked my way up to mother-in-law. Naturally I know a daughter-in-law has her difficulties, and elders have theirs. Now that you have married into my Shen family, you are the Shen family's daughter-in-law; your natal family's etiquette no longer counts—you must take your husband as your superior, do you understand?"

The meaning of these words is that no matter how illustrious Li Jiao once was, she is now a member of the Shen family; it's not her place to put on airs—she should simply respect her elders.

Li Jiao bit her lower lip and forced out a reply: "Yes, daughter-in-law understands Mother's meaning."

Li Jiao never expected that on the very first day of her marriage, Madame Cui could not restrain herself from asserting her authority over her; how would she thereafter manage the household servants? She couldn't help thinking of Xie Junling, whose parents are both dead—if she had married into such a household, would there be none of these mother‑in‑law/daughter‑in‑law tensions?

This was the first time Li Jiao felt envy toward Lu Bao'er.