Lady Earthquake

Lady Earthquake Chapter 6

Three years later came the hottest summer that the oldest inhabitant of Bushan could recall. Lord and Lady Zang removed to their Summer Residence on the brink of the Thousand Li Forest a whole month earlier than they ever had before, which gave the signal for other families of note to leave the increasingly smelly streets of their township behind. General Li's household followed suit, though his Summer Residence was smaller, older, and less convenient than his town-manor. For the first time, even the Flame of Zhao and Fuzhu declared a vacation, seeking higher ground and cooler breezes.

General Li's house in the hills had three separate buildings; the main residence hall in front connected by a covered walkway to a good-sized building in the left-rear holding the bedrooms, and a kitchen and servant's hall at the farthest point from the other two. Ten minutes of walking brought one to a small waterfall that laughed and chuckled to itself all day as it sought the valley below. The view from the top of the stone outcrop took in all the elements of a classic landscape, clumps of trees, blue-crowned hills, and a swift-flowing stream drawing the eye toward a misty distance. On the other side, there were the homes of nearby families to visit as well as fields of wildflowers and the pleasant woods that grew deeper and more ominous the farther one penetrated.

The first week was spent in paying calls and receiving callers. An'er found herself playing the lady of the house as her mother was increasingly too unwell to take on that duty. She also received invitations to the activities of the social elite, at least of those with younger family members. There was an open-air picnic party, an evening of poetry and riddles, and a fishing competition followed by a long night of cooking, singing, and flirtation. The girls wanted to talk about boys, the boys wanted to talk about their glorious futures, the chaperones smiled, and An'er wished she were alone with her sword.

About ten days after their arrival, An-Xia sighed and leaned her head on her hand, instead of writing down the clues of a word-game for another party that night. She noticed ink on her finger-tip and stuck it in her mouth. It tasted better than the fish had; she had never been fond of charcoal.

"You are not having a good time?" Her grandfather appeared in the doorway of the house's Great Hall which also served as a study and a daily dining space.

"Oh, yes, delightful," she said, sitting up and putting a smile on her face. "The breezes here are really heaven-sent. I am sleeping so well."

"Yet there was a light on in your bedroom long after you had retired."

"Sleep stayed far from me because I was reading a poem Young Mister Fan gave me. It is a new form; a narrative rather than mere impressions. As though one were watching a play unfold."

"May I borrow it? It sounds intriguing."

She did not want him to laugh at her for reading any of the sloppy love lyrics that were exchanged between the hero and his insipid beloved. Last night's reading had ended with the poem flying across the room, flung there when the silly girl had let her lover be stabbed by bandits even though there was a hunting knife within her reach. The poet had described the position of the knife, the imminent danger, and the heroine's excuse that she was too frightened to pick up the blade. The poem had thus taken wings into a wall.

"Oh, you would not like it. The hero is a soldier and the author gets all the military details wrong."

"Typical. Well, if you cannot sleep at night, I have the remedy, much healthier than poetry. Come outside the gate."

The Summer Residence was surrounded only by a palisade of bamboo stakes that allowed a breeze to blow through the gaps to the residence. Some of the greener ones had even replanted themselves, giving the whole place a sweetly rustic appearance. A wicket-gate was made like a giant knot from more trained bamboo.