'Pao-yue has a great knack,' Madame Wang said, 'of dealing contemptuously with you, his cousin.'
'Mother,' Pao-yue smilingly protested, 'you are not aware how the case stands. When cousin Pao-ch'ai lived at home, she knew nothing whatever about my elder cousin Hsueeh P'an's affairs, and how much less now that she has taken up her quarters inside the garden? She, of course, knows less than ever about them! Yet, cousin Lin just now stealthily treated my statements as lies, and put me to the blush.'
These words were still on his lips, when they perceived a waiting-maid, from dowager lady Chia's apartments, come in quest of Pao-yue and Lin Tai-yue to go and have their meal. Lin Tai-yue, however, did not even call Pao-yue, but forthwith rising to her feet, she went along, dragging the waiting-maid by the hand.
'Let's wait for master Secundus, Mr. Pao, to go along with us,' demurred the girl.
'He doesn't want anything to eat,' Lin Tai-yue replied; 'he won't come with us, so I'll go ahead.' So saying she promptly left the room.
'I'll have my repast with my mother to-day,' Pao-yue said.
'Not at all,' Madame Wang remarked, 'not at all. I'm going to fast to-day, so it's only right and proper that you should go and have your own.'
'I'll also fast with you then,' Pao-yue retorted.
As he spoke, he called out to the servant to go back, and rushing up to the table, he took a seat.
Madame Wang faced Pao-ch'ai and her companions. 'You, girls,' she observed, 'had better have your meal, and let him have his own way!'
'It's only right that you should go,' Pao-ch'ai smiled. 'Whether you have anything to eat or not, you should go over for a while to keep company to cousin Lin, as she will be quite distressed and out of spirits.'
'Who cares about her!' Pao-yue rejoined, 'she'll get all right again after a time.'
Shortly, they finished their repast. But Pao-yue apprehended, in the first place, that his grandmother Chia, would be solicitous on his account, and longed, in the second, to be with Lin Tai-yue, so he hurriedly asked for some tea to rinse his mouth with.
'Cousin Secundus,' T'an Ch'un and Hsi Ch'un interposed with an ironic laugh, 'what's the use of the hurry- scurry you're in the whole day long! Even when you're having your meals, or your tea, you're in this sort of fussy helter-skelter!'
'Make him hurry up and have his tea,' Pao-ch'ai chimed in smiling, 'so that he may go and look up his cousin Lin. He'll be up to all kinds of mischief if you keep him here!'
Pao-yue drank his tea. Then hastily leaving the apartment, he proceeded straightway towards the eastern court. As luck would have it, the moment he got near lady Feng's court, he descried lady Feng standing at the gateway. While standing on the step, and picking her teeth with an ear-cleaner, she superintended about ten young servant-boys removing the flower-pots from place to place. As soon as she caught sight of Pao-yue approaching, she put on a smiling face. 'You come quite opportunely,' she said; 'walk in, walk in, and write a few characters for me.'
Pao-yue had no option but to follow her in. When they reached the interior of her rooms, lady Feng gave orders to a servant to fetch a pen, inkslab and paper.
'Forty rolls of deep red ornamented satin,' she began, addressing herself to Pao-yue, 'forty rolls of satin with dragons; a hundred rolls of gauzes of every colour, of the finest quality; four gold necklaces....'
'What's this?' Pao-yue shouted, 'it is neither a bill; nor is it a list of presents, and in what style shall I write it?'
Lady Feng remonstrated with him. 'Just you go on writing,' she said, 'for, in fact, as long as I can make out what it means, it's all that is needed.'
Pao-yue at this response felt constrained to proceed with the writing.
This over lady Feng put the paper by. As she did so, 'I've still something more to tell you,' she smilingly pursued, 'but I wonder whether you will accede to it or not. There is in your rooms a servant-maid, Hsiao Hung by name, whom I would like to bring over into my service, and I'll select several girls to-morrow to wait on you; will this do?'
'The servants in my quarters,' answered Pao-yue, 'muster a large crowd, so that, cousin, you are at perfect liberty to send for any one of them, who might take your fancy; what's the need therefore of asking me about it?'
'If that be so,' continued lady Feng laughingly, 'I'll tell some one at once to go and bring her over.'
'Yes, she can go and fetch her,' acquiesced Pao-yue.
While replying, he made an attempt to take his leave. 'Come back,' shouted lady Feng, 'I've got something more to tell you.'
'Our venerable senior has sent for me,' Pao-yue rejoined; 'if you have anything to tell me you must wait till my return.'
After this explanation, he there and then came over to his grandmother Chia's on this side, where he found that they had already got through their meal.
'Have you had anything nice to eat with your mother?' old lady Chia asked.
'There was really nothing nice,' Pao-yue smiled. 'Yet I managed to have a bowl of rice more than usual.'
'Where's cousin Lin?' he then inquired.
'She's in the inner rooms,' answered his grandmother.
Pao-yue stepped in. He caught sight of a waiting-maid, standing below, blowing into an iron, and two servant-girls seated on the stove-couch making a chalk line. Tai-yue with stooping head was cutting out something or other with a pair of scissors she held in her hand.
Pao-yue advanced further in. 'O! what's this that you are up to!' he smiled. 'You have just had your rice and do you bob your head down in this way! Why, in a short while you'll be having a headache again!'
Tai-yue, however, did not heed him in the least, but busied herself cutting out what she had to do.
'The corner of that piece of satin is not yet right,' a servant-girl put in. 'You had better iron it again!'
Tai-yue threw down the scissors. 'Why worry yourself about it?' she said; 'it will get quite right after a time.'
But while Pao-yue was listening to what was being said, and was inwardly feeling in low spirits, he became aware that Pao-ch'ai, T'an Ch'un and the other girls had also arrived. After a short chat with dowager lady Chia, Pao-ch'ai likewise entered the apartment to find out what her cousin Lin was up to. The moment she espied Lin Tai-yue engaged in cutting out something: 'You have,' she cried, 'attained more skill than ever; for there you can even cut out clothes!'
'This too,' laughed Tai-yue sarcastically, 'is a mere falsehood, to hoodwink people with, nothing more.'
'I'll tell you a joke,' replied Pao-ch'ai smiling, 'when I just now said that I did not know anything about that medicine, cousin Pao-yue felt displeased.' 'Who cares!' shouted Lin Tai-yue. 'He'll get all right shortly.'
'Our worthy grandmother wishes to play at dominoes,' Pao-yue thereupon interposed directing his remarks to Pao-ch'ai; 'and there's no one there at present to have a game with her; so you'd better go and play with her.'
'Have I come over now to play dominoes!' promptly smiled Pao-ch'ai when she heard his suggestion. With this remark, she nevertheless at once quitted the room.
'It would be well for you to go,' urged Lin Tai-yue, 'for there's a tiger in here; and, look out, he might eat you up.'
As she spoke, she went on with her cutting.
Pao-yue perceived how both she was to give him any of her attention, and he had no alternative but to force a smile and to observe: 'You should also go for a stroll! It will be time enough by and bye to continue your cutting.'
But Tai-yue would pay no heed whatever to him. Pao-yue addressed himself therefore to the servant-girls. 'Who has taught her how to cut out these things?' he asked.
'What does it matter who taught me how to cut?' Tai-yue vehemently exclaimed, when she realised that he was speaking to the maids. 'It's no business of yours, Mr. Secundus.'
Pao-yue was then about to say something in his defence when he saw a servant come in and report that there was some one outside who wished to see him. At this announcement, Pao-yue betook himself with alacrity out of the room.
