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^ \ Perfumed Lad y in Solitud e ^ f Lady Purity said irritably, 'Here I am vexed to death, and you are smiling! If you continue to smile, see if I won't pull off your yellow beard!' It was only then tha t Yang became serious, 'You can only blame yourself fo r what ha s happene d today . Yo u hav e alway s spoil t Perfume d Lad y despit e m y warnings. Instead, you argued, "I have neither family nor relations, so I depend on her entirely to take care of me in my old age and when I die. Whom shall I spoil if it is not her?" See? See? Now you have "picked up a rock and dropped it on your feet". The way I look at it, you might as well be accommodating to the very end and marry Governor Tian yourself in place of Perfumed Lady! ' Purity spat on his face and blushed. 'Yang Longyou! How is it that you have the nerve to talk such rubbish at your age? There might be substitution i n other matters, but how can it be so in a marriage?' Yang made a face an d replied, 'Wh y not? The crucia l thing now i s that th e bridal sedan chair must not be allowed to go back empty. We have t o leave my brother-in-law with some sense of dignity, otherwise there will be a great disaster!' Purity too felt tha t with a bandaged wound on the forehead, Perfume d Lad y could not ver y well be a bride. Furthermore, Lord Ma would most certainly no t allow them to get away with it. The only alternative would be a good hiding for her an d her daughter i n the Distric t Magistrate's court. On th e other hand, sh e was unwilling to go in the sedan chair and take Perfumed Lady' s place. 'Tian Yang's face is dry and all shrivelled up,' she thought to herself, 'and there are no more than just a few teeth left in his mouth. Am I not seeking misfortun e for myself to marry a man more dead than alive?' But she reasoned, 'If I do not take 207 The Peach Blossom Fan on this misfortune myself, then the misfortune will befall Perfumed Lady . I might as well be kind t o her t o th e very end an d le t her fulfil he r wish. That way , the relationship betwee n u s a s mothe r an d daughte r will no t b e rendere d entirel y meaningless!' Noticing her silence, Yang knew that she had agreed . With great relief he urged her, 'Purity, you are a smart person. All along you have conducted yourself in a decisive way. The attendants downstairs are getting impatient. Please change your clothes quickly!' Feeling a little embarrassed, Purit y hesitated, 'No ! I am already about thirty , and I am old! How could I marry anyone!' Yang addressed Purity saucily, 'You are plump and fair; at a distance you look like a girl of sixteen. Even close by, you do not look over twenty. There are only two or three as beautiful a s you in the Qinhuai River region. Just the pair of flirty eyes alone i s sufficient t o mak e ol d man Tia n swoon . Quickly change ! Quickl y change!' Purity stare d a t hi m an d sai d wit h coquettis h reproach , 'Yo u can affor d t o rejoice at my sorrow!' Patting his chest Yang bragged, 'I shall take care of everything for you!' Recalling that she had lived in Nanjing for about twenty years without having ever left, and anticipating her journey to Huaiyang in place of Perfumed Lady , she bemoaned her uncertain future i n a strange land without friends. In great sorrow, she was quite unable to stop her flood of tears. Sobbing sh e said, 'Lor d Yang, once I am gone, I fear I shall never return t o Nanjing again! ' With a sigh Yang said soothingly, 'Lad y Purity, do not be sad! Having spen t half a lifetime i n "a world of the winds and the moon", it is time for you to have a permanent home. It is not a humiliation for you to be Governor Tian's concubine. At the present moment the situation is...

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