When she lifted up the bed drapes she saw her young mistress lying on the bed, her hair in tussles and wearing a long face. Hongniang thought it might be unwise to give her the letter just then, so she left it on the dresser where Yingying would stumble across it on her own.
Just then, Yingying turned over and sat up. got out of bed and began speaking to Hongniang in an irritated voice, moving over to the dresser to straighten her wild hair. When she reached for the comb she was startled by the sight of the letter, and then noticed Hongniang giggling in the reflection of the mirror. She immediately tore the letter open and read it in a single breath; her face turned scarlet as she began to blush and her heart pounded at the passionate words and fervent lines of poetry.
Yingying considered the letter for a moment, then threw it on the ground and whirled on Hongniang.
“You foolish girl! Who gave you permission to bring this letter to me? I’m the daughter of a distinguished family of the late and noble Prime Minister. How dare you tease me with such a letter! I’ll report this to my mother, and she’ll teach you how to behave with a good beating. I’ll see that your legs broken!”
Hongniang knew her young mistress was bluffing, and she played along.
“Mistress, it was you who sent me to see him. Scholar Zhang asked me to deliver this letter. As I’m illiterate, how could I possible know its contents? I told you I didn’t want to go see him, but you forced me to! Now I return with a letter and you want to have my legs broken? Why’d I help you in the first place? Well sister, no need for you to tell Madame Cui, I’ll turn myself in and give her the letter.”
Hongniang then picked up the letter and headed for the door. Yingying rushed after and grabbed her from behind.
“Wait, wait! I was just kidding, you know…”
“Please let me go.” Hongniang said with a pouting face.
“How is Scholar Zhang?”
“I won’t tell you anymore of it.”
Yingying really believed Hongniang was actually mad at her. She pulled her closer and continued to implore her.
“Please, my good sister, do tell me.”
Hongniang wouldn’t do so much as to open her mouth. Yingying asked her to sit down and began to try and soothe her.
“You know I was just kidding – we’re like sisters, after all. How could I possibly bear to let my mother beat you? Dear sister, please, say something.”
Seeing how nervous her young mistress was, Hongniang couldn’t keep back a smile. She told Yingying that Zhang Sheng had been thinking of her endlessly, to the point where he couldn’t even eat or drink. He simply lay in bed all day, sighing to himself. He was much thinner than before, and whenever he mentioned Yingying his eyes would well with tears. He was in a truly pitiable state.
Yingying sighed, “We should go find a good doctor to look after him.”
“Scholar Zhang is afflicted with a broken heart. Medicine cannot help him.”
“Hongniang, if it weren’t for your sake, I would show my mother this letter to prove this man’s worth. But how could he ever face my mother again, having written such things? Yes, he saved our lives and was sorely mistreated, but we’re now sworn brother and sister and there can be no other feelings between us. Thank the gods for your good discretion – if someone should find out about this it’d be a disaster.”
“Who are you joking? Everyone knows you’re the cause of this poor scholar’s depression. You’re afraid that others will find out that he wrote you that letter and your mother will get wind of it. He was forced to climb the roof and now you’ve taken away the ladder; what do you expect of him anyways? If you keep this up, he’ll really be left with no way out.”
“Fine then, I’ll write him a letter and let him know he shouldn’t do stuff like this anymore.”
Yingying quickly wrote the letter and handed it to Hongniang.
“When you deliver this to Scholar Zhang, tell him that I sent you only because I consider myself his sister and I have no other intentions. If he keeps up with this behavior, I’ll have to inform my mother.”
