Chapter 5 - Dowry

Dowry

“Second Miss, the Eldest Miss gave this to you as a wedding present.”

Mu Mingtang opened the box and looked inside. There were some hideous jewelry made of gold which Jiang Mingwei didn’t want. She closed the box and held it: “The Eldest Miss is polite. Although she is older than me, I am her sister-in-law. I am higher than her in terms of seniority. We are all from the same family. What are you doing so politely?”

The maid was speechless. Not long ago, this maid served behind Mu Mingtang. When Mu Mingtang lived in Jiang Mingwei’s courtyard, the people who served around her were all Jiang Mingwei’s old servants. Jiang Mingwei was back, so those maids returned to their true master as they wished.

Mu Mingtang also felt that Jiang Mingwei had a problem with her eyes. Even though these gold accessories are not so good-looking, they could be useful. Still, gold looks good.

The maid rolled her eyes secretly and said with a stern face: “Second Miss, you are very polite. Now the wife is buying a dowry for the eldest lady, and the eldest lady is going to marry the Princess of Jin, so she can’t show her timidity on the front. These hairpins do not fit the identity of the palace of the Prince of Jin. So I thought that Second Miss should use them.”

“Yes, I can use it all.” Mu Mingtang had already put away the box and said, “I have nothing to give back to the Eldest Miss. Then I wish Eldest Miss and King Jin a good relationship for a hundred years and will never be separated for a lifetime. Well, you can go. “

What a foolish woman. She thinks that she will do well without the Jiang family?  The maid secretly scolded Mu Mingtang and went away with a black face.

Mu Mingtang signed and looked at the jewelry box for a while. Now I don’t have the support of the Jiang family. So, no need to care about those people. Jiang Mingwei gave me some valuable things. I can turn them into money when I want. Hmmm…as long as I have money, I can live well.

She stood up and hurriedly found a place in her room to hide the box of gold jewelry. She was now living in a guest room without personal maids.

Mu Mingtang recalled how she lived in the Jiang family as the Second Miss for a year. She was not allowed to walk in large strides, not allowed to laugh loudly, even had to eat in small bites. And when she did whatever she wanted, she was pointed by maids. She felt suffocated by past incidents.

Mu Mingtang got a box of gold jewelry for nothing. Even if someone used gold to insult her, they couldn’t trample on her dignity as much as possible. She thought about it for a while and suddenly realized something. Today Jiang Mingwei reminded me. Tomorrow I will remind the Jiang family to prepare a dowry for me.

Next day, Mrs. Jiang called best tailors in the capital to prepare wedding clothes for Jiang Mingwei.

Several shopkeepers gathered around Mrs. Jiang, and helped her to choose the most suitable fabrics. One of the female shopkeepers shook off the fabric and showed Mrs. Jiang: “Madam, this fabric is the most luxurious. The color is bright red with golden lines[1] It is most suitable for a wedding dress. You see..”

Mrs. Jiang cried out in surprise but didn’t say anything. So, another person hurriedly tugged at her own fabric: “The dark pattern is indeed low-key and luxurious, but it’s far away, so it’s hard to see. Mrs. Jiang, you might as well take a look at our fabric. There are three layers in this fabric. Weaving, walking under the sun during the day, the light on the fabric seems to flow, and at night, it looks like a different color!”

“It’s such a skill!” Mrs. Jiang signed sincerely. She took both the materials and tried to compare them. “I like both. Both the materials look auspicious. How can I choose?”

“Mother, if you can’t make up your mind, just buy them together.”

Mrs. Jiang was startled after hearing Mu Mingtang’s voice. She didn’t know when Mu Mingtang came. The maid who tried to stop Mu Mingtang bowed helplessly and said: “Madam, this servant can’t stop the second young lady.”

Looking at the expressions of the maids, Mrs. Jiang could probably guess what happened. She waved her hand and said, “It’s ok. It’s none of your business.”

After the maid retreated, Mu Mingtang stepped forward and reached out to touch the fabric: “It is a good material. It feels like running water. I think both are good-looking, why should my mother choose? Buy them all.”

Mrs. Jiang was embarrassed, and the female shopkeepers looked at each other and saluted with apologetic smiles: “Second Miss.”

“Ladies don’t need to be too polite, get up.” Mu Mingtang said with a smile, “My eldest sister and I are getting married recently, and the wedding is in a hurry. Mother is running errands for us.”

Us? What are you talking about? Mrs. Jiang frowned, but in front of the outsiders, she had to watch her mouth: “Mingtang, I’m looking at your sister’s dowry today. You’re not in a hurry.”

“Aren’t you in a hurry?” Mu Mingtang reluctantly rubbed his fingers on the fabric a few times before letting go: “I’m going to marry King Qiyang. King Qiyang and King Jin are both royal family members. I thought my sister and I would get an equivalent dowry.”

Mrs. Jiang became frustrated. “Mingtang, Mingwei is the eldest young lady. So, your and her dowry can’t be the same. I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

“Impossible?” Mu Mingtang smiled. “King Qiyang is the direct son of the late Emperor. Even the Emperor has said that King Qiyang is no different from his children, and he is going to marry a wife from the same family as the Emperor’s son. So they treat the two princes differently?”

Mrs. Jiang’s face became dark, and she could not utter a single word. She pursed her lips and glanced at the female shopkeepers. The shopkeepers understood and immediately bowed to resign: “Mrs. Jiang and Second Miss have something to say, we can’t be bothered, so we’ll leave today.”

“Ladies, walk slowly.” Mu Mingtang greeted the guests with a smile. “It’s hard work, no need to move these fabrics out. Just keep them all, I like them. Mrs. Jiang will settle the bill later.”

Several female shopkeepers quietly looked at Mrs. Jiang, and Mrs. Jiang was boiling with anger: “Jiang Mingtang, you can stop.”

“My surname is Mu, ma’am.” Mu Mingtang raised her head and said: “As the Princess of Qiyang, I even have this power. Don’t you have any?”

Mrs. Jiang glanced at the female shopkeepers and gritted her teeth: “Put it down first, I will send someone to settle the accounts.”

Female shopkeepers praised Mrs. Jiang for her generosity and slipped away hurriedly.

After the people left, Mrs. Jiang stood up and scolded Mu Mingtang. “What do you want to do? You’d better remember your identity. Do you think being the Princess of Qiyang will give you the ability to fly over the Jiang family? “

“Yes.” Mu Mingtang smiled and said, “It was Lord Jiang who recommended me to be Princess Qiyang. So this time, the Jiang family should prepare a dowry for me. It seems Mr. Jiang and Mrs. Jiang have lost their memory. Do you forget that I was going to marry King Qiyang?”

“You! Shameless……” Mrs. Jiang pointed at Mu Mingtang and cursed angrily.

Mu Mingtang also got annoyed with Mrs. Jiang’s behavior. So she raised her voice and said: “Is this your attitude towards the princess? Don’t forget my identity. Now I’m not a commoner as in the past. The Emperor has said that he wants to hold the wedding of King Qiyang, and everything, the ritual system is even higher than that of the King of Jin. If you neglect my dowry, you are demolishing the emperor’s platform. I said, what Jiang Mingwei has, I want what. If not, I will cut my hair.[2] When the royal palace of Qiyang comes to welcome the bride, no one will get on the sedan chair, so you can push your precious daughter to make up for it!”  Mu Mingtang snorted and walked away.

Mrs. Jiang was struck dumb. She began to shiver. Seeing that, maids hurriedly surrounded her: “Madam!”

Unexpectedly, Mu Mingtang came back after the maids finished shouting.

She bent down and picked a piece of fabric. Then she realized that it was heavier than she thought. So she swept her eyes twice, pointed to the most sturdy-looking maids, and said, “You, you, and you, hold the rest of the fabric, and come with me.”

Everyone was dumbfounded. And nobody moved.

When Mu Mingtang realized that the maids didn’t intend to help, she swept a cold glance at them. “I am the Princess of Qiyang bestowed by the royal family. Can you resist the decree?”

“The servants dare not.” The maids glanced timidly at Mrs. Jiang and walked toward Mu Mingtang to help her.

Mu Mingtang gave Mrs. Jiang a mocking smile and walked away with the maids. “I like this red and bright color the most. Be careful. If it gets dirty, I’ll ask you guys!”

After Mu Mingtang walked away, the maid came around and supported Mrs. Jiang worriedly: “Madam, look…”

“What a shameless villain…., I see how long she will dance like that. Mrs. Jiang shouted in anger, she fell down while covering her heart, and the maids quickly supported her: “Madam, calm down, don’t ruin your body with anger.”

End of chapter 5

Translator Notes:

1.Wearing red wedding dresses has been a Chinese wedding tradition since the Ming Dynasty  over 650 years ago. Red symbolizes good luck, happiness, and prosperity. ↵

2. In ancient China, cutting hair was to signify the death marriage. Basically it’s a statement of divorce. ↵