Chapter 8
Meilin
Meilin made sure Ailin got plenty of alone time in the garden with Enze by posting Ming-ming and Begonia as scouts at key points in the house in case Fulan’s servants came to spy.
The couple might not be aware of Meilin’s efforts, but good works brought their own reward.
She knew Ailin would be much happier after talking to Enze, and, after all her sacrifices, Ailin deserved more happiness than anyone.
If Enze could stand up to Fulan’s domineeringness after getting some encouragement from Ailin, that would be even better.
In the days following Ailin and Enze’s conversation in the garden, Meilin was happy to see Ailin’s mood lightening, but she was disappointed that nothing else changed.
Ailin and Enze were both so quiet about their relationship that neither one confronted Fulan or Mama about the planned move to Suzhou.
About a week later, Uncle Meng arrived at Nuolan Garden.
Meilin waited anxiously in the front courtyard as the sound of men, carts, and horses grew louder.
Junyou had gathered the whole family to meet Uncle Meng, whom he had last seen during Father and Mama’s wedding.
Junyou had only been a child at the time.
Back then, Mama and Uncle Meng were educated but poor orphans with few prospects.
In the intervening years, Uncle Meng had become a matrilocal son-in-law, which was not very impressive, but he had helped his in-laws, the Jiang family, make a fortune in the silk trade, which was quite impressive.
When the gate opened for the visitors, Uncle Meng walked in with a dozen brawny but neatly dressed guards. He himself looked as dignified as could be in a fur-trimmed pīfēng cloak. Meilin was struck by how much he resembled Mama, except that he was younger, taller, and bearded.
“That man sure is showy for a zhuìxù,” Fan Fulan whispered to Junyou, who was only a few paces ahead of where Meilin waited with her mother and sisters.
Meilin stiffened in indignation, but to her surprise, Junyou whispered back, “He is one of the most successful silk merchants in Jiangnan, as well as a scholar who once passed the prefectural exams. We should try to make a good impression.”
Meilin swelled with pride. Junyou was not the most caring brother, but he was occasionally sensible. She hoped Fan Fulan was sufficiently humbled.
Fan Fulan curtsied silently when Uncle Meng approached.
Junyou bowed. “It is very kind of you to care for my stepmother and sisters, sir. Thank you for coming all this way to escort them to Suzhou.”
“Taking care of my own sister and nieces is no trouble at all.” Uncle Meng patted Junyou’s shoulder. “You’ve changed quite a bit since the last time I saw you, young man.”
Mama stepped forward. “Junyou has grown up well, hasn’t he? He looks like his father did at his age, and he’s a father himself now. You’ve changed as well, Jiehan. Look how tall you are!”
“And you’re as intent as ever on treating me like a child, jiě.” Uncle Meng talked to Mama like he had seen his older sister yesterday rather than decades ago. “Why did you not come join me in Suzhou earlier? Did you think my invitations were empty courtesies?”
Despite Uncle Meng’s teasing, Mama swept him into an embrace as if he was still the younger brother from her childhood rather than a middle-aged merchant who towered over her.
“I’m going to miss Junyou and little Heli,” Mama admitted after releasing Uncle Meng and stepping back.
Meilin winced at her sincerity. Despite how meagerly Junyou reciprocated her affection, Mama genuinely loved him as a son.
She hadn’t told him about Fan Fulan’s rudeness, saying it wasn’t good to provoke fights between couples.
Meilin doubted that Junyou would care much about women’s issues either way, but it didn’t matter now that they were leaving.
Ailin, Meilin, and Ming-ming were introduced to Uncle Meng in order from eldest to youngest. Then the work of moving commenced.
Uncle Meng’s men moved like fish through water between the horse-drawn carts by the front gate and the inner courtyard that held Meilin’s family’s belongings.
The men’s efficiency in loading boxes onto carts showed extensive experience with loading and unloading cargo.
Suzhou was said to be a city through which all the goods of the empire flowed, and after seeing Uncle Meng’s men in action, Meilin believed it.
She didn’t yet know how she felt about moving to such a big city so far from home.
Their pace of life was shifting very fast.
Her feet felt leaden as she meandered through the old courtyards of Nuolan Garden, soaking up her last moments in the familiar places.
The stalks in the bamboo garden that swayed like dancers at a banquet, the orange persimmons that hung on the tree like lanterns at New Year—these might never be hers to behold again.
Outside Father’s old study, she paused for several minutes. When she strained her heart and memory hard enough, she thought she could hear the lingering echoes of his zither. Unready to say goodbye, Meilin wiped at her eyes.
The sight of Ailin made her pause. If her sister, who was being physically separated from her love in addition to their home, could remain composed, then Meilin should too. She moved toward Ailin, grateful her tears had stopped.
“Is there any work for us to do?” Meilin asked as matter-of-factly as she could. Ailin didn’t respect excessive sentimentality.
“I was about to check our rooms for left-behind items. Would you like to join me?”
Meilin linked her arm with Ailin’s, determined to be more like her.
Together, they crossed the moon gate into the inner courtyard, first checking Ming-ming’s room because it was the easiest place to start.
Like a dandelion seed ready to float away on the wind, Ming-ming had the fewest belongings to move.
“Begonia said she was accompanying Ming-ming to the front gate because she wanted to see the horses,” Ailin explained as they surveyed the empty room.
Meilin and Ailin headed to Mama’s room, where they found Uncle Meng and one of his men carefully taking apart Mama’s rosewood bed for transport.
“I’ll hire the best joiner in Suzhou to put this back together, don’t you worry, jiě,” Uncle Meng said to Mama as he gently set a deconstructed bedpost on the ground.
“Are you sure it won’t be too heavy for the riverboat?” Mama’s voice was laden with worry.
“Of course I’m sure. The barge can carry twice as much as what you have so far.”
Mama’s eyes glistened with tears. “Oh, Jiehan, I don’t know how to thank you.”
Uncle Meng handed Mama an embroidered handkerchief from his pocket. “No thanks are needed, Xiuyun. We’re family.”
As overwhelmed as Meilin felt by the changes taking place, seeing Uncle Meng’s warmth with her own eyes was reassuring.
She wished her brother Junyou was more like Uncle Meng.
With his support and a whole crew of servants to help, perhaps the relocation to Suzhou wouldn’t be all loss.
Through effort, they might even be able to turn it into an opportunity.
By the time everything was loaded onto the horse-drawn carts, there was only time for a quick meal of noodles before the moving party had to set off.
Uncle Meng had rented a carriage so Meilin’s mother and sisters could travel down Qixia Mountain to the banks of the Yangtze River and remain shielded from both outside eyes and the elements.
Despite Meilin’s determination to be strong, her stomach began turning as soon as the carriage started to move.
“Perhaps some fresh air would help,” Ailin suggested as she drew aside the curtain of the carriage’s back window.
Meilin turned her face to the window, searching for relief. Behind the moving carriage, Begonia was walking and chatting companionably with the hired hand who had helped disassemble Mama’s furniture. Beyond them, farther up the hill, stood a figure that made Meilin gasp.
Enze’s outline was growing smaller and smaller. In the madness of moving day, Meilin had completely forgotten about him. “Ailin, Enze is staring at our carriage! Did you say goodbye to him before we left?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Are you sure you bid him farewell properly?” Ming-ming asked in a cheeky voice.
Ailin blushed, but Mama cut in. “I’m sure Enze will visit us as soon as he can.”
Meilin tried to smile. Outside the carriage window, Nuolan Garden was no longer visible, but she continued to breathe in the scent of the place she’d once called home.
The view of the mountain was a study in contrasts: The branches of the trees were bare, but the ground was covered by a carpet of crimson stars.
As the carriage wheels crushed the maple leaves underneath their tread, the air was filled with a sharp sweetness.
The chaos of the wharf exceeded Meilin’s expectations, not that she really knew what to expect beyond the books she had read and the stories she had heard from Father.
Docked by the shore were vessels of all shapes and sizes.
Everything was a confusion of oars, masts, and rudders.
And that was only the boats. The people were even more varied.
Boatmen, dockhands, and porters wove in and out of crowds.
Intermittent flashes of blue and green silk signaled the presence of local government officials who were followed by trains of attendants.
The women who were outside were working: helping on fishing boats, selling street food, or sashaying near the piers in garish clothes.
Meilin felt exposed as she ascended a plank onto a massive, double-masted barge, but she tried to be brave.
Even if being so far from home made her long for a place to hide, she should be treating this experience as an adventure and opportunity.
It would be difficult to help her family if she had a negative attitude.