A Flower’s Shade (21 page)

"You bitch, you insatiable bitch!" for the first time, Huaifu cursed her, his heart brimful of poison.

X
iaoyun and Zha Liangzhong ran into each other in the corridor, and looked at one another without amity. Liangzhong greeted him awkwardly: "Master Xiaoyun, where are you going?" Xiaoyun looked at him coldly said nothing. Everyone in the Estate, from the highest to the lowliest, knew that Liangzhong was an indefatigable suitor; everyone talked about it behind his backs, and even outside the Estate this was the case. Unavoidably, Xiaoyun felt a kind of sourness towards Liangzhong, though at the same time he felt irrepressible smugness.

Both of them happened to be going to see Miss Yu. Entering the courtyard, Xiaoyun suddenly remembered something as he turned around and was about to leave. But Miss Yu had already heard him coming, and she shouted at him: "Xiaoyun!"

At the sound of her calling him, Xiaoyun hesitated a moment and then suddenly changed his mind and resolved to stay. Liangzhong could tell almost immediately that some kind of understanding existed between Xiaoyun and Miss Yu, but, being shameless, he still tried to ingratiate himself with Miss Yu, as though he didn't know anything about it, "Your complexion is lovely these days, Miss Yu."

Miss Yu's eyes were shining, and she ignored Liangzhong entirely, staring straight at Xiaoyun, and saying uncomprehendingly, "What is it now? You're going to leave before you even got here? I've been waiting a long time for you."

Xiaoyun said coldly, "You have a guest." Liangzhong looked at the two of them; he was used to the frigidity Miss Yu showed him, but he couldn't understand why Miss Yu would tolerate the frigidity Xiaoyun exhibited towards her. Women really were unfathomable. Liangzhong was sure that he was an old hand at flattering women, but he still hadn't made sense of Miss Yu's temperament. "He doesn't count, that's no damn guest." Miss Yu looked at Liangzhong, seemingly unaffected by Xiaoyun's coldness. Quite the opposite, she asked him caringly, "You were fine, why are you upset again?"

Xiaoyun realized that Liangzhong was watching them. He smiled faintly and dissembled, "I'm not upset…why should I be upset?" Miss Yu pouted, "Not upset! Just look at yourself." Xiaoyun now smiled in earnest and said, "I'm happy now, aren't I?"

Liangzhong, standing nearby, was unwilling to be overlooked. He seized the opportunity to ingratiate himself with Miss Yu, "That's true, Xiaoyun is telling the truth. Who could stay upset when they see you, Miss Yu? As long as you're happy, Miss Yu, we all have to be happy. Even if we're upset, we have to conscientiously pretend to be happy, isn't that so, Master Xiaoyun? See, Master Xiaoyun doesn't answer, that means…" Miss Yu broke out in loud laughter at these attempts to curry favor. Xiaoyun also broke into laughter. Liangzhong continued to blither, "I guess you don't even know who you really are to us, Miss Yu. Let me tell you, though I don't know if you'll believe me, how people talk about you on the outside. On the outside, they say you're holding the big red knot of marriage in your hands, and that you might throw it for someone to catch at any moment."

"What nonsense. I don't have any red knot of marriage in my hands." Of course Miss Yu knew that Liangzhong was trying to cajole her, but she enjoyed this kind of compliment.

"Nonsense, from me, Zha Liangzhong? You can say what you like about me. But what you don't know is that last time when all the suitors were here, if you had gone outside onto the big street and collared anyone, and asked—just asked anyone—whether they knew about it, why if he hadn't been able to tell you the truth of the matter from top to bottom, then I'm a goddamn liar. I'm telling you the truth, in this town of ours, if you want to know who's most famous, I'm sure you won't believe me if I tell you, no, you won't believe me." Liangzhong was beaming, gesturing persuasively, "Do you know who it is? It's—it's you, Miss Yu."

Xiaoyun stood there silently, he knew that this was just exaggerated flattery on Liangzhong's part, although he also knew that Miss Yu's huge fortune was making many mouths water. Who would marry Miss Yu in the end was a question that was keeping a lot of people in the town in suspense. Who fell in love with Miss Yu, or who Miss Yu fell in love with—that wasn't important. What people were generally interested in was who would end up in possession of the Zhen property.

Since Miss Yu was happy to listen, Liangzhong continued his voluble encomium, until it began to annoy even the temperamental Miss Yu, "Don't just keep going, alright, is that all? Are you done?" Miss Yu interrupted Liangzhong rudely, "The whole room is echoing with your voice, it's annoying. If there's something you want to say, say it, and if you've got wind, then fart it. And if you're done, then buzz off!"

Liangzhong smiled ingratiatingly, in any case he was shameless, he didn't care. He held it in for a moment, and then, right in front of Xiaoyun, he said openly, "I made an offer through your sister-in-law, and I think you ought to give me an answer! There's never a moment that you're not in my mind! Miss Yu, give me an answer."

Miss Yu said, "Didn't I give you my answer long ago?"

M
iss Yu had kicked Liangzhong out of the house. He didn't mind at all that he had once again run into a brick wall. A few steps outside of Miss Yu's rooms, he began to hum a little tune. A watched pot never boils, and Miss Yu was an untamable spirit. It would take time to slowly discipline her. He pursued his pleasant calculations as he walked along the corridor, and when he had almost reached the great Estate, he turned back and gave a look around before rushing off for Suqin's courtyard.

Having gained no advantage with Miss Yu, why not make it up at Suqin's? Liangzhong slipped into her courtyard like a thief, scratching past a bush of blooming roses, and lifting the bamboo curtain over the door, he stepped into Suqin's room. Suqin was looking bored, sitting in front of a square table playing dominoes. It hadn't occurred to her that Liangzhong might appear, and she was greatly surprised. Liangzhong peered around, approached the table, and began to lay hands on her.

Suqin stood hastily up, and put her finger over her own lips to hush him. Then she tiptoed to the door, raised the curtain, went out, and stood in the courtyard. As though there was nothing going on, she stood and looked briefly all around, then slipped back into the room. Liangzhong was waiting for her at the door, and as soon as she came in, he embraced her. Suqin made no coy struggles, but lit up like firewood meeting a spark, more impatiently than Liangzhong. Ever since last time at the hotel, Suqin had been waiting for this opportunity. When Suqin suggested they go into the bedroom, Liangzhong said why go to the trouble, in the parlor was just fine.

When men and women really do begin an affair, they become amazingly brave, like they've excreted some new source of courage. They forget all of their worries, and think only of making use of the time they have. They don't speak much either, they just get straight to the point. Suqin was tall and large, Liangzhong couldn't even carry her, so he just had to drag her towards the table, and, having reached its edge, he lifted her up to perch on it. Suqin's hands were busy, freeing the knickers beneath her cheongsam, and the two of them wasted no more time, but went about the business in broad daylight. But even at this critical juncture, Liangzhong couldn't keep his mouth shut, and told Suqin with great zest how he had been turned away cold by Miss Yu.

If he had said nothing, nothing would have occurred, but hearing these words, Suqin grew angry, cursing Liangzhong for a miscreant, to be thinking of another woman at a time like that. Liangzhong let her curse, but quickly discovered that she really was angry, and so he made use of his techniques for mollifying woman, his stream of pretty words. He had been born with a great capacity for saying pretty words to women, he had an impressive store of them, and he spoke only a few lines before Suqin was placated.

As he was talking, Ai'ai rushed in unexpectedly. No one had counted on this abrupt apparition, and Liangzhong and Suqin were both thrown into a panic. With their four bare legs on the edge of the table, their bodies began to tremble involuntarily, and they had no place to hide. Ai'ai blushed, her gaze fixed unswervingly on Suqin.

"Ai'ai!" Suqin didn't know what she ought to say, she wanted to explain to Ai'ai, but it was not the kind of thing that can be explained away so quickly.

Ai'ai's eyes were filled with hatred. She looked at Suqin the way a child before the age of reason might look at a scene she should not have seen, completely stunned. The look on her face was very much like that of a mental patient. Liangzhong quickly recovered from the awkwardness, calmly fastened his belt, grimaced contemptuously at Ai'ai and—without making any sign to Suqin—squeezed past Ai'ai and out. But Ai'ai stretched her hands out to hold him back, and hysterically prevented him from leaving, "You beast! You can't go! Explain yourself!"

Neither Suqin nor Liangzhong could ever have dreamt that Ai'ai would do such a thing. Even in their dreams, they could never have believed that Ai'ai would go to such extremes. Clearly, it wasn't Ai'ai's intention to scream and shout, thereby bring these adulterous acts to the whole world's attention, but nevertheless Ai'ai's behavior was beyond the bounds of reason. She stubbornly blocked the door, like any jealous lover who has burst in to a room to catch people in flagrante delicto, and now she refused to let Liangzhong pass, regardless of what he said. Liangzhong couldn't squeeze his way past her, and so he had to turn back and ask for help from Suqin. Suqin stammered, "Ai'ai, listen to me, listen to me…"

Ai'ai said agitatedly, "I don't want to listen to you, I want to listen to him, I want to listen to what this beast has to say, what, after all, does he want?" Short and slender and with a beautiful face, Ai'ai was too agitated now. She had not only lost her sense of reason, but she was showing signs of madness. If Suqin hadn't restrained her, she might have rushed upon Liangzhong and clawed and kicked at him, slapped him and torn at him, for dear life.

W
hile Liangzhong was up to no good in Suqin's rooms, Miss Yu and Xiaoyun were left together in her chambers. Xiaoyun wore a look of irrepressible displeasure. He had an unspeakable loathing for Liangzhong, he loathed his gallantries to Miss Yu, and loathed also the liking Miss Yu had for these hypocritical comments. Liangzhong's purpose was so naked, he visited on account of the property, and Miss Yu's purpose was equally naked, she was using her enormous property as a lure with which to tease Liangzhong. This was her pleasure and her honor.

Miss Yu said, "Liangzhong's been gone so long. Are you still upset? Aren't you finished being angry yet?" Xiaoyun said, "Who said I was angry? Besides, when I, Yuan Xiaoyun, get angry, it won't be on account of someone like him." He struck an attitude of supreme indifference. "Angry or not, whether I say so or not, but I know the answer well enough myself." Miss Yu smiled and said, "It's a good thing I treat him badly; if I treated him a little better, who knows how angry you might get?" Xiaoyun said bitterly, "It's true, you do treat him badly. If you treated him better, he'd come toadying around here even more often." Miss Yu laughed, greatly tickled, "You men really are something. If he wants to come, what can I do about it? Besides, you're such a fool. Just because he wants me to marry him, do you really think I'll do anything of the kind?"

Miss Yu had let her smugness get the better of her, and that provoked Xiaoyun. He now wore an expression of utter indifference. "Whether you marry or not, what does it matter to me?" Miss Yu laughed even harder, saying in between giggles, "Fine then, then I really will marry him. In any event I've already made up my mind. One of these days I'm just going to set myself up in a really high place and chuck down the big marriage knot, and whosoever's head it falls on, that's whom I'll marry. Let me tell you, it could well be that the knot falls on Liangzhong's head. Stranger things have happened in this world of ours. What do you think, Xiaoyun?"

Xiaoyun grew even angrier, feeling that she really had no call to be so self-satisfied. No doubt she thought that he was jealous of Liangzhong, but really it was Liangzhong who ought to have been jealous of Xiaoyun. Xiaoyun didn't give a damn about her property, and he had never thought of marrying her, either. Xiaoyun was confident that he had no shortcomings as a man, he had slept with her more than once, made passionate love to her, but none of that amounted to him liking Miss Yu, it would still be more accurate to say that he disliked her. It didn't take liking a woman to want to sleep with her; sometimes, dislike could also be a motivation. Making love to a woman might express not only love, it might also represent hatred. He smiled sarcastically at Miss Yu and said, "What, you really thought I was jealous? You did, didn't you?" "You know best whether you're jealous or not," Miss Yu answered, still laughing.

Xiaoyun said, with a touch of malice, "I'm telling you, jealousy is something that depends on the individual. As for me, I'm never jealous. Miss Yu, have you considered whether you're worth my jealousy? Besides, what is there for me to be jealous about? I never wanted to marry you, you never intended to marry me. What is there for me to be jealous about?"

Miss Yu's coloring suddenly changed, she understood the barb concealed in these words. Despite everything they'd done together, her relationship with Xiaoyun still incorporated such profound enmity. "I know what you think of me, the daughter of the house, spoiled rotten, a shameless woman like me, even if I wanted to marry you, you wouldn't have the guts to consent. Of course you don't care. That's right, what does it matter to you whom I marry?"

Xiaoyun was speechless. He somewhat regretted having spoken too harshly, too unfeelingly, too little like a man ought to speak. All of a sudden, Miss Yu was truly upset. They were natural adversaries, whenever they ran into each other, a fight was inescapable. She crawled onto the opium bed, snatched the pipe, watching Xiaoyun, and trying to appease him, "Hey, it's fine, I don't want to argue with you, I can't win the argument, come over here, prepare the opium for me, Xiaoyun."