A Gallop on the Embankment with Spring Breeze - Chapter 6 - Concubine Zhao

Proofread by Fu Tianying

Standing on the Yinding Bridge, one could only see one curved corner of Shichahai which seems like a part of a girl’s sleeve, nifty and refreshing.

Shichahaiin’s morning is bustling with noise and excitement. Several old men are strolling with bird cages in hand; a few vendors are preparing to sell goods; and there are some young scholars who walk around, enjoying the beautiful scenery and discussing national affairs and people’s livelihood.

Walking down the Yinding bridge, Ma Tian’en looks around as he walks and greets people now and then. Wu Zhong found Ma Tian’en has a large circle of acquaintances: young masters, wharf boatmen, vendors and so on. No matter who they are, Ma Tian’en greets them warmly with a broad grin.

They keep walking for a while and the panorama of Shichahai slowly emerges. The sky is clear and bright in the summertime. Gilded with the rising sun, white clouds nestle sluggishly in the blue and bright sky. Boats loaded with food and various goods are coming and going.

Seeing the passing boats, Ma Tian’en sighs with depression. Wu Zhong stares at him in a confusion, wondering what Childe Ma is worrying about.

“I am afraid that you do not know. In the previous dynasty, the goods were shipped directly to Jishuitan Lake through the waterway. When it came to Ming dynasty, the Beijing city was reconstructed and rivers were rebuilt to be underground rivers. Thus, the goods were only shipped to water-gate and then handled manually and officials would charge for every sack of goods. The river was blocked and dredged over and over again but it was not fixed essentially. I guess someone does not want it to be fixed. Even if I had to fix it, I would have done it well. If only we had a complete waterway! It would save time and money as well as labor.” Wu Zhong felt a stab in his heart when he saw sadness and indignation on the face of Ma Tian’en for the first time.

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“Did you come up with those all by yourself?”

“Of course. My father thought I knew nothing about business on the wharf. I did know little about it, but talking with my various friends acquainted me with it unconsciously. You know, life is not easy for those who make a living on the wharf, including Ma family. You could tell it from gray hair on my father’s head.

“Uh, how could I hear that Master Ma, the householder of Ma family, got annoyed by his idle son so much so that his hair turned grey?”

“How could it be possible! Only a rumor. Master, you are a sensible scholar and how could you believe those groundless suspicions?” Ma Tian’en denied it rightfully.

Unexpectedly, Wu Zhong redirected the topic, “So, you want to be a hero to uphold justice?”

“Sure.I want to knock all those bad guys out here and the people in the Second Dam could live a better life then.”

“All right. Have you ever thought of that? You fight off those bad guys and a new bunch of greedy officials will emerge soon. How could you solve it essentially by fighting? The fundamental way as well as the only way to fight against corruption is to be an official in power supported by the emperor. But I think it is pretty good that you could come up with that.”

“Then if you become a high-ranking official one day, remember to fight against those greedy officials.” Ma Tian’en stares at Wu Zhong adoringly. “Sure enough, he is not the same as those former teachers. He did not scold me at all. Instead, he praised me!” Ma Tian’en thought.

“Well, I will keep that in mind.” Wu Zhong nodded heavily as if he made a commitment. Naturally, he strokes the hair of Ma Tian’en gently and then stepped forward.

The lotuses in Shichahai are delicate and graceful, though not very large. The lotuses fling back their heads towards the pouring sunshine as if smiling brilliantly. Without the grandeur of endless stretch, they just thrive around the edge of Shichahai, embroidering green and red stripes around the blue sea suitably.

The two chatted while walking. Wu Zhong told Ma Tian’en some poems about lotus and listened to Ma talking about legends of Shichahai. They talked and laughed together in perfect harmony for the first time.

They came back home after noon. At that time, Ma Tian’en caught sight of Concubine Zhao. She came over with a snack box in her hand.

“Aunt, you’ve brought delicious food for my dad again, right?Have you saved some for me?” Ma Tian’en walked towards her smilingly.

“How could I forget you? The fresh-made plum cake will soon be sent to your room. Mr. Wu, would you like to taste some?”

Concubine Zhao is a typical southern woman, petite, slim with fair skin. Her voice is not loud, but rather crisp and clear. Though in her thirties, she just looks like a girl in her twenties. Whenever she talks with people, she always wears a gentle, kind and warm smile. She is nothing like the grumpy mother of Ma Tian’en who chastened Ma with a feather buster or punished him to kneel in the ancestral shrine. Thus, Ma was always around Concubine Zhao when he was young. Naturally, that was vehemently opposed by Ma’s mother, afraid that he might be led astray. Being a typical southern woman, Concubine Zhao is good at making various pastries and cakes. She always makes delicious cakes for Master Ma. In the meantime, she would send some to Tian’en secretly, afraid of being spotted by Ma’s mother.

Concubine Zhao turned around and walked away. Watching her back as she departed, Ma Tian’en explained to Wu Zhong, “She is the third concubine of my father. Maybe the surrounding environment of Ma family is favorable to the conception of girls. My mother bore four kids, three of them are girls except me. The other five concubines of my father bore three girls, too. Only concubine Zhao had a son before, but unfortunately, he died at birth. What a poor woman she is! She is awfully sweet and kind to me; even my mother cannot match. Maybe she thinks of her dead son whenever she sees me.”

Wu Zhong has long known that Ma Tian’en is the only son in Ma family and basks in myriad love from others. He saw before by accident that Ma Tian’en rescued a girl and knew Ma was good by nature. That’s the reason why he found a kid to act in coordination with him and served as the teacher of Ma. All that he did was aimed at avoiding man-made misfortunes.

That day, an attendant of Tian Ronghua told him that Tian and other scholars invited him to watch lanterns on the river. Embarrassed to refuse the invitation, he followed the attendant and walked to the riverside. However, those scholars did not arrive as promised. Moreover, he was pulled down into the river by the attendant in his unwariness. When he was rescued, that attendant had already disappeared without any trace. Having no personal vendetta with Tian Ronghua, he could only think of Childe Hu as the plotter. In fact, he did not have any feud with Hu. Hu Chunqiu bore a grudge against him just because Scholar Qian thought highly of Wu’s talent. Hu family was the rich and powerful in the local. How could he counter against Hu? The only way for him was to find a secure place to avoid Hu. Ma family was the only one who can compete with Hu family both in wealth and power. Therefore, he devised a plan to stay in Ma family.

At that time, Yanzi ran over in a hurry. She was going to tell something to Ma Tian’en and was stunned for a moment when she caught sight of Wu Zhong.

“Childe…”

“What’s the matter? is the house on fire?”

“No. It is Madam, your mother. She went to your room. She thought you were ill. But you were not there. She was mad at your servant, A’Shun. You’d better run for it.”

“Why should I hide? I was out with my teacher to study poetry and I am going to recite the poem to my mother, right?” Ma answered while staring at Wu Zhong with a flattering smile. His smiling eyes were like the crescent moon.

Wu Zhong thought his student had a lot of merits. Why not be a good teacher in that case?

“Well. You could tell Madam that Ma Tian’en did go out with me and learns poetry composing. Tian’en, since we have watched the lotuses, you edit the poems we composed and hand them over to me tomorrow. Remember, you have to write them neatly.” Then Wu Zhong strolled away, leaving a stunned Ma Tian’en behind. In utter astonishment, Ma Tian’en thought, “How could you do that? We did not compose a poem at all!”