Chang’an Small Restaurant Chapter 39
Translated by Pure
Chapter 39 Techniques of Vilification
Who would have thought that Miss Chu, who was dead set on following her feelings, would be hit right in the head and become badly bruised even before she could ‘go for it’.
Shen Shaoguang had yet to finish preparing her new menu when the pair of Chu Residence’s young lady and servant came back. The young lady's face was pale, with tears brimming eyes; she looked more of a cut a sorry figure than when she had first arrived during the heavy snowfall that day.
Shen Shaoguang hurriedly asked her to sit down. The young lady's hands were shaking so much that she could hardly hold her teacup.
Maid A’Jin was both anxious and distressed. She opened her mouth several times, as if wanting to say something, but swallowed it back. Silently, she looked at Shen Shaoguang with pleading eyes.
After sending A’Yuan and A’Chang to the front store, Shen Shaoguang sat quietly in front of the young lady.
After calming down for a while, Miss Chu wiped her tears with a handkerchief, stood up and gave a heavy hearted curtsied. "I deeply regret not listening to your advice, Miss. I went and brought humiliation on myself..."
Shen Shaoguang hurriedly stopped her.
"When I arrived, Huan Seven was with some friends, he was very surprised at my appearance. One of his friends asked—" Miss Chu bit her lip, "he asked, 'Could this be the leman Miss Chu mentioned in your poem, Seven?'"
"I was dumbfounded to hear this question. Huan Seven looked at me, smiled, and answered with a ‘yes’. His friends then followed up saying things such as 'Seven, your poems are indeed very practical, what an attractive and talented leman.'
Shen Shaoguang didn't know how to comfort her. This Huan Seven is just so...
"In a fit of anger, I scolded Huan Seven and threw back the love token he previously gave me. We will never cross paths in the future."
"What about those letters?" Shen Shaoguang asked.
"They are all still in Guangming Temple, together with my luggage." Miss Chu sniffed and softly replied.
"Are these letters now of no use?"
Miss Chu nodded and then shook her head. "I thought he was muddling through and stalling, but I didn't expect that the meeting would be such an unbearable scene. Why should I indemnify myself for someone like him?"
Shen Shaoguang applauded, "Miss, your words are extremely correct! There is a saying in our hometown which states 'avoid sunk-cost fallacy', and also the belief that 'everyone will come in contact with the dregs of society once in their lives'. If you meet one and recognize them as a scum, quickly throw them off, and then it’ll be all over.”
"His actions are truly low-class. I don’t know what kind of poems he wrote to portray me so miserably so." Miss Chu looked both mournful and resentful. "I really want to go back to the past and beat my muddleheaded self to death."
Shen Shaoguang patted her arm. "Forget it. 'Fret not over bygones and the forward journey take[1].'"
Perhaps it was Shen Shaoguang's unperturbed demeanor and compassion that gave Miss Chu a sense of security, or perhaps she was emotionally unstable from the traumatic experience, Miss Chu actually confided in Shen Shaoguang about her past.
"Although I come from a merchant family, we are relatively respected in my hometown. I have three older brothers and I am the youngest daughter of the bunch. My mother and father had loved and cherished me dearly since I was a child, I had never suffered in any way before. Last year, our residence hosted a grand banquet, and it was there I met Huan Seven by chance... We started to interact with each other since.”
Shen Shaoguang nodded. Her family had protected and cradled her too well, making it easy for her to be deceived by a scumbag.
"He only said that my family was rich and honorable, and it was only right for him to pass the preliminary round of imperial examinations before asking my hand in marriage. After he left for the capital city, my father wanted to find me a matchmaker, so I told him about Huan Seven. My father explained to me that Huan Seven was not sincere. Mentioning that although the Huan Residence was poor, they still carry the prestige of a high-ranking family, which meant a mismatch in family status. He continued to persuade me that even if I married him, an uncomfortable life would follow so it was better for him to find another good match for me." Miss Chu covered her mouth and shed tears of sorrow, "I am really unfilial, I actually snuck out with just A’Jin."
Recalling the hardships and perils on their journey, losing her money, and encountering plausible but fallacious kidnappers, Miss Chu broke down and sobbed, "I was really confused!"
"Miss—" A’Jin cried with her.
Seeing that she had twisted her handkerchief beyond recognition, Shen Shaoguang took out her own and handed it over. "Hatred will not build up overnight for one’s own dear daughter. Go back and admit your mistake to your parents, just be more cautious from now on." This was another advantage of the Tang Dynasty; it was not as conservative here. It sounded as if this young lady had a good relationship with her family, so she should not be punished too much after she returns.
Miss Chu nodded.
After everything was disclosed, Miss Chu’s mood seemed to have settled down a bit, but she still had some doubt and apprehension in regards to Huan Seven's poems. "Will he write our matters into poems and turn it into a household name?"
Shen Shaoguang could understand why Huan Seven used this as inspiration for his poems. He wanted to flaunt that he had gotten ahold of a beautiful girl. The crucial point was that he had no intention of marrying this beautiful girl. Feeling pleased with himself, he wrote it in a poem and bragged about it to his good friends. This was akin to the modern age where some men liked to brag in their social media about how many girlfriends they previously had.
Shen Shaoguang hesitated for a moment, but decided to act upon her emotions and help this poor girl. She had helped her best friend get back at her cheating boyfriend in her previous life, so there was no harm in doing it again now.
Shen Shaoguang seemed to be simultaneously possessed by the spirit Jing Ke[2], Nie Zheng[3], and that evil fu manchu mustache Head Commissioner from the government repository. She coughed twice and said, "This matter is not completely helpless..."
Miss Chu raised her head, her eyes still red and bright after crying. "Please enlighten me, Miss."
"It doesn't matter what he writes, as long as people don't believe its authenticity."
Miss Chu frowned and wondered: how can we control whether others believe it or not?
The simplest method is to create a public persona for Huan Seven. "If Huan Seven was known to be someone who had many romantic affairs, so much so to the point of being unreliable, do you think there would be anyone investigating the genuineness of his future poems?"
Shen Shaoguang picked up a roasted chestnut from the fruit plate and threw it back into the fruit plate. "If you want to take and hide a chestnut that you can’t eat, the best method is to throw it into a chestnut pile. The other chestnuts are just as big and fragrant, so how can this one stand out?"
Miss Chu understood Shen Shaoguang’s theory, but didn't know how to put it into practice.
"It’s quite simple. You must have read chuanqi[4] before, right?"
Miss Chu nodded.
"Just write a few anecdotes in the style of those chuanqi about Huan Seven." Shen Shaoguang really had no limits when it came to moral lines. She had no psychological burden when mentioning methods of defaming people. "For example, Huan Seven had received the grace of a famous courtesan from Pingkang Lane. The courtesan believed that he was her future, but in the end, Huan Seven sold her off for money." This was obviously referring to the story of Du Shiniang[5].
"A second instance, Huan Seven chanced upon a beautiful fox demon immortal, and had a spring tryst, but because of this his fortune was overturned. Complacent in love, disappointment in studies." This was inspired by <Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio>.
"Another example, Huan Seven encountered… ahem!" Shen Shaoguang coughed, "some female taoists who were proficient in collecting essence. He was imprisoned and managed to escape with great difficulty, which is why he has such a pale complexion..." The narrative of this story was obviously taken from some not-so-wholesome Ming and Qing Dynasty-based light novels.
Miss Chu looked at Shen Shaoguang with a red face, and after a while, she suddenly started to giggle.
Shen Shaoguang also cracked up.
Miss Chu laughed and laughed, and started to cry again.
Shen Shaoguang pursed her lips. Was her console unsuccessful?
"My trip to the capital, to have experienced its flourishing and to have met you, Miss, was not made in vain." Miss Chu smiled at Shen Shaoguang, with tears still in her eyes.
Shen Shaoguang just smiled. It would have been better not to have experienced this at all.
Shen Shaoguang continued to educate Miss Chu on various tips for defaming people, "The name should be altered, but not too much. If the name is not changed, the readers may recognize it at a glance, but will arouse suspicion; if it changes too much, it will be hard to guess, and will lose its meaning.”
"If the name conversion is done well, it’ll allow people to contemplate and think, ‘isn't this so and so?’ The more they think about it, the more they believe it is! People who’ve read these anecdotes will then begin to argue whether their speculations are correct or not. Humans are always more inclined to believe their own conjectures, and also, this method will incur more readers.”
This was also the reason why the modern online forums replaced the subjects’ names with acronyms. Just guessing that this was *** could raise the news to a popular discussion.
"It's best if the various stories you make up include some of his personal traits, such as his poor family or his pale complexion..."
Hearing her say ‘pale complexion’, Miss Chu blushed again. She probably wouldn't be able to use the term ‘pale complexion’ in the future.
After instructing her on the guidelines, Shen Shaoguang also coached her on the techniques of vilification, including where the engravings store in the West Market were, which bookstores sold chuanqi, and how to hire someone to sell on her behalf, etc.
These vilification activities saved Miss Chu from her lovelorn and self-blame. By the time she left Shen Indelible, her expression looked much better.
Perhaps Miss Chu felt uncomfortable even breathing the same air as Huan Seven, so she moved out of the Lane the very next day. After a few days, someone sent Shen Shaoguang several engraved chuanqi and a letter.
Shen Shaoguang read the letter first; it was Miss Chu’s bid farewell to her. Very good, for those who have a home to return to, it's best to go home.
She then took a look at the chuanqi, and laughed. Aiyo, Miss Chu has quite the talent... her writing, tsk tsk...
At the same time, Pei Fei was also clicking his tongue as he showed Lin Yan the chuanqi book.
Lin Yan frowned, "Is this referring to Huan Cheng?"
Pei Fei smiled and nodded. "How interesting! He must have offended a fellow scholar. This generation of literati are very interesting, I must have a thorough discussion with them one day."
On the contrary, Lin Yan felt that this apathetic style incurred a sense of déjà vu, especially when he turned to the ‘female taoists’ section at the back. He couldn't help but recall the ‘foster mothers’ mentioned by the proprietress surnamed Shen...
Lin Yan confiscated the chuanqi book from Pei Fei and said calmly, "Are you no longer entangled by infatuation now?"
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The author has something to say:
Shen Shaoguang's bottom line for moral integrity isn’t very high, please forgive her.
—
Footnotes:
[1] ‘Fret not over bygones and the forward journey take’ - Is a verse from the poem <Ah, Homeward Bound I Go!> (归去来兮辞) by Tao Yuanming, a poet and politician who was one of the best-known poets during the Six Dynasties period. This poem is the realization that the previous has passed away and will never come back, but one's ideals can still be pursued in the future. That there is no need to save the mistakes that have been made in the past, knowing that one can still work hard to do things well in the years to come and prevent regrets from happening again. The translation of the certain quoted phrase 'Fret not over bygones and the forward journey take (悟已往之不谏，知来者之可追)' can be interpreted as 'Realizing that the mistakes of the past are irreversible, knowing that there is still time to make amends for the future'.
Read the full poem translation here - https://www.sohu.com/a/241577949_100015507
[2] Jing Ke (-227 BC) - a youxia during the late Warring States period of Ancient China who was celebrated in verse and fiction as would-be assassin of King Ying Zheng of Qin 秦嬴政 (later the First Emperor 秦始皇)
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jing_Ke
[3] Nie Zheng (4th c. BCE) - is particularly associated with a story called Nie Zheng Stabs the Han King
Source: http://www.silkqin.com/09hist/qinshi/niezheng.htm
[4] chuanqi (传奇) - a form of fictional short story in Classical Chinese first formed in the Tang dynasty. The chuanqi of the Tang period frequently use incidental poems, set their story in the national capital Chang'an, finish with an instructive moral, and are narrated by someone who claims to have seen the events himself. These stories consisted of anecdotes, jokes, legends, and tales involving mystical, fantastical or legendary elements. The authors did not want to present their works as fiction, but modeled themselves on the literary style of the biographies in the official histories. They went so far as to credit specific people as authorities for the story, however fantastic, and give particular times and places as settings. The authors of these tales were also more careful about the art of storytelling than authors of earlier works, and a number of them have well-developed plots.
source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuanqi_(short_story)
[5] Du Shiniang (杜十娘) - is a popular story and theater plot in China. The plot concerns the courtesan Du Shiniang, the daughter of a fallen official, who falls in love with a literati, Li Jia.
You can read the full story here - https://people.wku.edu/haiwang.yuan/China/tales/dushiniang_b.htm
