Chapter 11: The Brother-in-law

Lan Yunjin was, of course, delighted that her elder sister would be coming to Chang’an. But the thought of Pei Ye accompanying her caused a sudden, inexplicable tightening in her chest.

Pei Ye had only confessed his feelings shortly before his death. That year had been her thirtieth year of marriage into the Duke’s household.

For all those decades, she had never once suspected that the woman Pei Ye loved was her sister.

When news of her sister’s death reached Luoyang, Lan Yunjin’s grief was so deep it numbed her soul. She locked herself in her chambers, refusing food and drink, sobbing that she wished to return to the Lan estate.

Back then, both she and her sister had just stepped out of the boudoir into married life. Though she had resisted the idea of marriage and despised the so-called matches arranged by matchmakers, her sister had told her, “Once you are married, you are a wife. After that, going wherever you wish becomes much easier.”

She had painted a picture of possibilities that Yunjin could travel from Luoyang to Chang’an to visit, or her sister could return to her natal home, and even a journey south to Yangzhou to admire the scenery of Jiangnan would not be out of reach.

That conversation had given Lan Yunjin something to hold on to.

But her sister had died. Her mother-in-law had barred her from returning to her natal home, saying it would bring ill fortune.

All those hopes, all those visions, had been destroyed the moment the news came.

As for Pei Ye?

Yunjin had been too consumed by grief to even wonder how he had taken her sister’s death. She only remembered that he buried himself in his study, reading obsessively, never showing his face.

After his death, his steward Wenbo accompanied her to sort through his study, to pick one or two objects he had cherished in life to be buried with him.

Though she was addressed as “Duchess,” Lan Yunjin had always kept the household well in order. She made a point of remembering each master’s and Madam’s likes and dislikes such as what tea they preferred, what food they enjoyed, even their birthdays.

Pei Ye was not picky about food, and he always drank Maojian tea from Hengzhou.

The study was filled wall-to-wall with bamboo scrolls and paintings. Lan Yunjin seldom went there and had no idea which classics or paintings he favored most.

She wandered aimlessly until she picked up an unrolled bamboo scroll lying on the desk, along with a string of Bodhi beads.

She asked Wenbo if these two items were suitable.

Wenbo hesitated. He didn’t say it outright, but his meaning was clear that the bamboo scroll was of little significance to Pei Ye.

Sensing his reluctance, Yunjin told him to search again.

From a cabinet, he retrieved a scroll inscribed in small seal script with a seven-character poem.

Yunjin recognized the handwriting, it resembled her sister’s by seven or eight parts out of ten.

Wenbo kept his head low, unable to meet her gaze, as though a mountain pressed upon his back, crushing the air from his lungs.

Slowly, he said, “This humble one thought with this precious item to accompany him, the master would not be lonely.”

Even though Lan Yunjin had once heard Pei Ye confess his feelings to her face, finding this trace of her sister here made him seem all the more unfathomable.

When had he met her sister?

When had his feelings begun?

For thirty years, had he simply kept this hidden, nursing it in the dark?

—

Near midnight, Yunjin awoke from a nightmare, her spine chilled.

Beside her, Wei Xiao’s steady breathing marked his deep sleep.

She raised her arm and wiped the sweat from her brow.

In her dream, Pei Ye had come to the general’s estate, demanding to know of her and her sister.

“Which one of you is Yunying, and which is Yunjin?”

The refined, mild-mannered gentleman had been twisted by shadow into a man of grotesque fury, a figure of obsession, ready to devour her sister whole.

“Had a bad dream?”

Wei Xiao had turned on her side. Though he appeared to sleep deeply, his reflexes were sharper than anyone’s.

Yunjin’s heart lurched. “No,” she blurted.

Wei Xiao shifted closer, closing the space between them.

He was young, but in height, strength, and mind, he was far from ordinary.

At first, Yunjin had thought of him as a junior, dismissing him because of his age, assuming he would be an easy husband to manage.

Now, he was proving to be the most difficult person in the general’s estate.

His gaze fixed openly on her face.

“Are you thinking about your sister’s arrival tomorrow?” he asked.

Yunjin was a poor liar.

She denied it quickly, but her flustered, uneven voice betrayed her.

So, the so-called perfect “talented woman of Luoyang” in those marriage records was not above falsehood.

She murmured assent.

Not wishing to speak further, she chose to retreat instead, resting her palm against his chest and murmuring, “Husband, tomorrow you’ll tire yourself going to meet my sister. Rest now.”

Wei Xiao lowered his eyes. His robe was loose at the front, and her fingertips pressed lightly against his skin.

They shared the same silk quilt, and the scent of citrus from her evening bath wrapped around him. Wei Xiao felt himself unravel.

“You should rest too.”

Closing his eyes, he felt the stirrings of arousal again.

Momo Zhou had continued sending him medicinal broth, but following Lan Yunjin’s advice, he had stopped drinking it.

His illness had not improved.

The fingers that had begun to withdraw were not allowed to go. Wei Xiao’s grip was firm, not letting her have her way.

That night, Lan Yunjin slept restlessly.

—-

The heavens were unkind. Just as Wei Xiao was preparing to leave the residence, dark clouds gathered. Lan Yunjin instructed Momo Zhou to bring him an umbrella.

Sitting in the main hall, she listened to the roar of the wind, the sound unsettling her.

If it were her own nature guiding her, she would already be at the general’s gate, waiting for her elder sister.

A heavy rain finally came, drenching the flowers inside and outside the courtyard until they swayed and drooped.

Because the new bride’s younger sister and brother-in-law were arriving, Madam Zhang had taken the matter to heart, preparing an east wing room, choosing two maids, and furnishing it with all the daily necessities.

“Madam, the young master and the others have returned!” Madam Zhang’s close maid came in, closing her oil-paper umbrella, shaking the rainwater from her skirt. “Madam, your younger sister truly looks exactly like you. I was so stunned just now.”

Madam Zhang smiled, rising from her seat, and gave her maid a playful scold. “Enough, don’t say such things before outsiders, or they’ll laugh at your ignorance. Twins are called twins for a reason, if they didn’t look alike, why would they have such a name?”

The other ladies in the hall smiled silently.

Young girls and young masters craned their necks, tiptoeing to get a clear look at their aunt’s younger sister.

But Wei Xiao’s tall figure blocked them completely.

Outside, a servant held up an oil-paper umbrella as the rain poured down in heavy drops.

Just then, Lan Yunjin stepped out of the hall and stood beneath the eaves.

The dusky sky made the amber-colored qixiong ruqun she wore stand out vividly.

With every step, the delicate ivory skin at her neckline showed faintly, soft and fresh as a budding flower, yet her bearing remained that of a refined lady, beyond reproach.

“Elder Sister.”

The ladies in the hall froze for a moment. If not for seeing those bright lips move, they might have thought it was Lan Yunjin speaking.

If Lan Yunjin was a lotus rising from water, her sister was a blazing, thorned rose.

Yunjin gave a soft smile, her features radiating the poise of an elder sister, even her smile was restrained, hiding her teeth.

“Was your journey well, younger sister?”

Lan Yunying replied, “Knowing I’d see Elder Sister in Chang’an, the whole journey was easy, even the food and lodging didn’t seem inconvenient as before.”

The sisters linked arms, chatting and laughing.

Beside Wei Xiao stood a man of equally tall stature, the young heir of the Duke’s household,calm and composed Yunjin’s brother-in-law. He stood straight like a piece of finely carved jade, without a single visible flaw.

Pei Ye’s sleeves hung down, his hands trembling inside them.

He looked toward Yunying with reverence and devotion, not daring to taint his gaze with the slightest impropriety toward a married woman.

Her makeup was as gentle as ever, her manner always putting her younger sister first.

Yunjin turned her eyes toward him and nodded. “Brother-in-law.”

Pei Ye’s hands inside his sleeves suddenly went limp. He nodded, a bitterness rising in his throat. “Elder Sister.”

Yunjin quietly let out a breath of relief.

Outside, the rainwater poured as though from a waterfall, relentless.

Maids entered the hall carrying tea and pastries.

The young ladies and young masters gathered merrily around the table.

The sound of their chatter mingled with the rain outside, like pearls falling upon a jade plate.

Wei Jun whispered to the other young girls, “Auntie’s clothes aren’t the same as her sister’s!”

“And besides the clothes, what else is different?”

Wei Jun rubbed her eyes hard, staring at the sisters. She scratched her chin in thought. “If Auntie wore that beautiful outfit, then there’d be no difference at all.”

Third Young Lady Wei, at the age of losing her baby teeth, spoke with a lisp, “Stupid! Didn’t Grandmother just say, twins are, of course, exactly alike.”

Wei Jun puffed her cheeks in protest, slapping the table. “Third Sister! Did you forget what Auntie taught you? Don’t call people names. You’re learning the bad things from Uncle Wei Xiao and are always calling people stupid!”

The girls’ clear voices carried easily through the single screen that separated them. Wei Xiao heard every word.

He curled his lips slightly. He’d have to be more careful in the future; best not to curse in front of the little ones.

As for Lan Yunjin’s sister—

When he first saw her, he was struck by how different her personality was from his wife’s.

Feeling slightly awkward, he had only glanced at her briefly.

Thinking of this, Wei Xiao let his gaze drift back to his wife.

She wore a short-sleeved, narrow-sleeved top in greenish-blue, embroidered with faint lotus blossoms, a shoulder scarf draped around her.

Her sister, by contrast, was lively and engaging, chatting warmly with the other ladies.

Pei Ye sat to Wei Xiao’s left, only a year younger than him.

The women spoke happily together; as husbands, they merely had to accompany them.

Pei Ye restrained the urge to look at Yunying, unwilling to lose his composure.

Besides, she had never known that they had met before; to her now, he was nothing more than her younger sister’s husband.

Brother-in-law: Pei Ye turned the word over in his mind. He was Yunjin’s husband, yet he could not rid himself of this shameful, detestable desire. Who could he claim to be worthy of?

Still… if it was only in the capacity of a brother-in-law, to gaze from afar upon her face, what harm could there be?

With that self-justification, Pei Ye feigned taking a sip of tea, letting his eyes drift again to her serene, lotus-like face.

Like a cat greedy for fish, or a long-suffocated man gasping for air, he stole one look after another, greedily breathing in what was not his to claim.

And yet, he had neither eaten nor breathed deeply but still, his back was damp with sweat born of guilt and shame.

He was a disgrace to the title of gentleman.

“Brother-in-law.”

Wei Xiao’s voice was cool and sharp.

Pei Ye, startled, nearly spilled his tea.

He looked up at Wei Xiao and asked, feigning calm, “Brother-in-law, what is it?”

Wei Xiao replied with leisurely precision, “The tea has just been boiled. Be careful not to burn your hand.”

“Thank you for the reminder,” Pei Ye said his Adam’s apple bobbing as he raised the cup.

He did not look away from Wei Xiao’s gaze.

Wei Xiao’s lips curved faintly. “No need for thanks.”

Cultural Notes:

1. 1. Qixiong ruqun: A traditional Han-style dress where the skirt is tied above the bust, popular during the Tang dynasty.

2. 2. Maojian tea: A high-quality green tea from Hengzhou, prized for its delicate aroma and taste.

2. 2. Bodhi beads: A Buddhist prayer bead string, often used for meditation or as a keepsake symbolizing enlightenment.

2. 2. Small seal script (xiaozhuan): An ancient form of Chinese calligraphy, standardized during the Qin dynasty.