Proofread by Fu Tianying

As Ma Tian’en approached the door, she stopped for a while. She patted her chest to calm down, then cautiously pushed the door open.

A teacup was flung towards her, but Ma Tian’en had prepared in advance to shun in other side and caught it.

“Mom, you’d better not smash the teacup next time, hadn’t you? It will cost our money again if you smash it into pieces.”

“Ma Tian’en, how dare you play truant and come back!” Ma Tian’en heard her mother’s roar.

“Oh! you misunderstood me. You wronged me. Mother! I didn’t escape from school today. It was my teacher who took me to Shichahai to see the lotus and taught me to write poems. When I came back with my teacher, Yanzi saw it. Yanzi, tell my mother, is it true?”

“What the master said is true. Madam, the master was back with the teacher just now.”

“Really? Did you two cheat me together?” Madam Ma looked at the two in front of her with aggressive look. Ma Tian’en is likely to lie, but Yanzi should not dare to cheat her.

“Of course, it is true, it’s truer than the jewelry my dad sent you.” Ma Tian’en immediately walked forward and made a look of being serious: “I have no courage to lie to my mother even if I cheat other people. Also, you can get the answer if you ask my teacher. He will definitely not collude with me.”

“Why does A’shun say it is you who let him wear your clothes and disguise you in your room?” Madam Ma obviously did not believe her daughter.

“I don’t like that suit, so I gave it to him. It is a joke I played with him letting him disguise as me so as to see whether he is loyal to me. A’shun, I am pleased with you, you can leave now.” Ma Tian’en spoke carelessly and gave a leaving wink at A’shun.

A’shun knelt on the ground. Looking at Madam Ma, he did not dare to move even if he wanted to stand up.

“Madam, the master did go out with the teacher. They have composed lotus poems today. I heard the teacher let her write them down tomorrow. When you see the poems, you will know the master didn’t tell a lie.” Yanzi kindly came to the master’s rescue and did not see the young master had changed her face when hearing the words of the lotus poems.

“Mr. Wu is really excellent. Few words as you could write before, it is amazing that you can make poems after a few days’ learning. We have such a good fortune as all these will be handed over to you in the future. You can’t always idle away, doing nothing decent. I will be unworthy heir of our ancestors, disappointing our posterity. You need to study hard from Mr. Wu.” Madam Ma waffled on something for a while. All these words are so familiar that Ma Tian’en could recite them. But she still pretended to listen carefully.

“Mom, I know it. Take it easy, and how about coming out first in the palace examination and asking the Emperor to reward you as Imperial Madame Ma?”

“You? I will thank god if you won’t make any trouble. I am afraid that someday I will die just because of your making too many troubles.” Madam Ma sighed.

“Mom, don’t say that. You must live a long life. Actually, you look pretty, but you dress in old fashion. Concubine Zhao knows how to dress well. You two are almost at the same age, but you look much older than her.”

“You silly girl! I am the woman that you father married after a series of legal procedures. I was carried by the sedan with eight men when entering this house. How dare you compare me with those concubines! I think you need be taught a lesson!” Then, Madam Ma stood up and went to grab the feather duster in the bottle next to the table. The scared Ma Tian’en quickly squatted on the ground and hugged Ma’s leg. “Mother, mother, you misunderstood. I mean you looks pretty, and if you care more about your dressing, you will be more beautiful.”

“Man should marry a wife from the perspective of her virtue while getting a   concubine because of her good-looking. It is the woman’s duty to make sure her appearance and behavior to be formal and to look after her husband’s parents.”  Saying these, Madam Ma stopped suddenly and said, “alright, I need a rest.”

Seeing her mother was about to get out of the door, Ma Tian’en took a deep sigh. At this time, Madam Ma suddenly said, “Tomorrow, you should send one copy of your lotus poems to me and your father.”

Ma Tian’en’s heart is crying. The sense of reverence for Wuzhong she just generated disappeared and only complaints remained.

When Madame Ma returned to the room and saw Ma Chaosheng drinking tea. According to her understanding of him, he must be waiting for her and feet a little anxious. Indeed, when he saw her back, Ma Chaosheng put down the teacup in his hand and stood up.

“Madam, does Tian’en come back? She is still a child. It’s understandable for her to be playful. You should avoid being too strict with her. After all, it is impossible for us to ask her to join in the Imperial Competitive Examination. Know a few words and avoid making big mistakes. That’s enough.” Before Madam Ma spoke, Ma Chaosheng already found excuses for Ma Tian’en. There is an old saying, “A kind mother makes a bad son.” But this saying is not suitable for Ma’s family. Ma Chaosheng always feels sorry for his daughter. Such a good daughter is regarded as a boy because he followed his wife’s advice and told others he had a son. He had thought that he had several concubines, and someone is sure to give birth to a son. When he has a real son, he will tell others Ma Tian’en is actually a girl. Who knows that after so many years, he has no son at all. Ma Chaosheng also has a younger brother called Ma Chaoyang, but they do not get along well since he was a child. His brother is greedy and likes to benefit himself at other people’s expense. He has two sons. Since Madam Ma gave birth to a girl, Ma Chaoyang was clamoring to pass on one to him, letting him inherit the business of the Ma family. As for his sons, the older is a yes man and is always obedient to his father. The smaller one has inherited his father’s character. Ma Chaosheng decided to let Ma Tian’en pretend to be a son, because he didn’t want his brother or either of his sons to be the heir of the family. His lovely daughter, who should be coddled, but has to live like a man, especially the man of the Ma family who needs to learn how to live in the water from an early age. It was much harder for her. So Ma Tian’en has been particularly spoiled by her father.

Madam Ma was not born in an ordinary family. She was the only daughter of Li Dafu, the ringleader of Datongbang of Luo faction and definitely the apple of her family’s eye. The ancestor of Luo faction, Luo Qing, was born in a military family. He was a soldier of transporting grain served in the Wei-so system (garrison) in Miyun of Beijing. One day, he suddenly comprehended something and converted to Buddhism. Then he preached among the boat people and had many believers. They were managed by different regions. The Datong River is governed by Li Dafu. Madam Ma is vigorous in nature, likes to play outside. Ma Tian’en has the same character of Madam Ma. At that time, when Ma Chaosheng just took over the business of Ma family, he was marginalized by other gatekeepers, especially the Tian family. One day he went to a restaurant on business and came across the daughter of Li Dafu, who forgot to take money with her while eating outside. Ma Chaosheng helped her to pay the bill, and the girl fell in love with Ma Chaosheng at first sight. Finally, they got married. With the help of Li Dafu, his father-in-law, Ma Chaosheng overcame the difficulties at the very beginning, and the Ma family became the head of the five dams. Therefore, Ma Chaosheng always respects his wife. Although he has several concubines for wanting a son, he usually sleeps with Madam Ma. Over these years, he gives up the idea of having a son and seldom sleeps with other concubines except Concubine Zhao, who is gentle, and he occasionally stays overnight with her.

Madam Ma was dissatisfied when she found that her husband was afraid of her being too mean for their daughter. “In your heart, am I so terrible? You two all detest me. If you like gentle women, you should not marry me at first.”

“No, no, Madam is a real woman. The ordinary woman cannot be compared with you. It is my blessing to marry you.”

Madam Ma was a little embarrassed when her husband tried to cheer her up. She quickly changed the topic. “Ma Tian’en went out with Mr. Wu instead of playing truant. She said they went out to enjoy lotuses and make poems. Tomorrow she will show them to us.”

“Good, Mr. Wu is really brilliant. Only in a few days Tian’en can write poetry. It seems that I need to increase his salary.”

“Yes, I have talked about this with Tian’en.”

At present, Wuzhong, who is going to be paid higher, is now reading in the room. All of a sudden, he stopped and frowned in thought of what Ma Tian’en said during the day: corrupted officials hindering the construction of the canal. He started to write something carefully with the book down and paper prepared.