Lost in her thoughts, she suddenly noticed a young miss in a pink-blue woven floral blouse, with a little servant girl of about eleven or twelve, walking towards her. The young miss was beautiful, graceful, and calm, the very Fifth Miss who was to be introduced to Jiujin.
Upon seeing Fifth Miss An, Cai Wei hurried over, bent slightly in greeting, and said with a smile, "Hello, Fifth Miss!"
The Fifth Miss paused when she saw Cai Wei, returned the courtesy with politeness, and said with a light smile, "There’s no need for formalities, dear sister Cai Wei. As you are grandmother’s esteemed guest, please just call me Sister Ziyi. Using formal titles between us would seem very unnatural."
Cai Wei asked with a smile, "Is Ziyi your given name?"
An Ziyi nodded, "That’s right!"
Cai Wei laughed, "Truly, the phrase ’She will properly manage the household’ applies to you, Sister Ziyi!"
A blush came to An Ziyi’s face as she had been teased by Cai Wei. But, there was no blame in her voice as she lowered her head, grinned lightly, and said, "You are too kind, sister Cai Wei."
This Miss Ziyi had a gentle and easygoing temperament. She was neither arrogant nor pretentious; precisely the kind Cai Wei liked. Hence, Cai Wei was happy to spend some time getting to know her, testing her attitude towards Jiujin which would aid in helping them both.
"Sister Ziyi, ahead in the garden, I saw a lake surrounded by beautiful scenery. If you don’t find my lowly status as a roasted meat skewers vendor to be off-putting, would you like to accompany me for a walk there?"
She deliberately humbled her status, calling herself a small vendor of roasted meat skewers, to see how An Ziyi would react to Jiujin’s status. If she looked down upon or underrated Jiujin, it would not be worth pursuing this marital affair. Jiujin was a good, honest, and upright man, deserving of a good woman to be his match.
An Ziyi said, "Sister Cai Wei, there’s no need for you to belittle yourself. As the saying goes, ’a hero is not defined by his origins’. Today, you may be a roasted meat skewers vendor, but who knows? Tomorrow, you might become the First-class Madame of the court. Furthermore, as long as someone acts righteously, even if they were a skewers vendor, they would be better than those hypocrites who preach righteousness."
Though Miss An’s words were gentle, they held great weight, demonstrating that she didn’t look down on Jiujin the slightest bit. On the contrary, she greatly approved of his character. The An Family elders approved, and Miss An was affectionate. Uncle Zhou and Aunt Zhou would surely agree as well. If only Jiujin would agree, this wonderful match would be made...
However, getting Jiujin to agree was not something easy. Although Jiujin was honest and straightforward, he was also a stubborn person. Once he made up his mind, he wasn’t easily swayed.
Secretly, Cai Wei began to consider how she could get Jiujin to agree to this marriage...
The two young ladies strolled along the lakeside, chatting idly while enjoying the lake’s scenery.
The lake was beautiful, planted with various lotuses. During the summer, the various colored lotuses bloomed in competition, resulting in a beautiful sight. Unfortunately, they were out of season. However, there were still other pleasures, such as opportunities for fishing or rowing upon the lake. The intricate rocks produced by Tai Lake, placed within the garden, reflected beautifully on the water, subtly showing some of the essence of the Jiangnan watertown gardens.
Through her conversation with An Ziyi, Cai Wei learned that this divine-looking Miss Ziyi was, surprisingly, raised by a concubine of Old Master An.
In the An Mansion, there was a tradition that before the sons of the family married, two chambermaids were allowed to live in their rooms. However, the mansion’s rules were very strict. The chambermaids were not allowed to get pregnant before the arrival of the official wife. After the wife moved into the room and gave birth to a child, the chambermaids were only allowed to discontinue ’pregnancy prevention soup’ and became mothers with the wife’s permission. Once they gave birth, the chambermaids could be elevated to the status of a concubine. However, the children they bore couldn’t be raised by them and couldn’t call them mother. They were raised by the wife and only able to call the wife as their mother. Sister Ziyi had been raised by the First Mistress of An in a similar way after leaving her own mother.