Waiting for My Beloved

Qin Xiu was a talented young man from a poor family. He passed the imperial examinations and placed third in the palace exam. At the Qionglin Banquet, when the emperor asked about his past, Qin Xiu mentioned that his birth father had died young and that his mother had worked hard in the fields to support his studies. The emperor was moved to tears, yet Qin Xiu never mentioned that he had a fiancé.

At the height of his fame, countless prominent families were eager to arrange a marriage with him. But his mother insisted that he marry Lin Shu, a farmer’s child from a humble family who had grown up in their household, was five years older than Qin Xiu, and could offer him no advantages. Neither side would back down, and the marriage was put off. Then Qin Xiu became embroiled in the Third Prince’s iron-smelting case and was exiled to the frontier. The imperial decree came from that very same emperor. Friends who had once laughed and chatted with him changed their tune overnight. They would not even lend him twenty taels so his elderly mother could have some money for her old age. Twenty taels was worth less than half their seal or a single hairpin.

People judge others by success or failure. When Qin Xiu was sent to the frontier in shackles, all he could worry about was what would become of his mother. While he was stationed on the border, a letter came from home: his mother had been taken to the countryside by his fiancé, who was caring for her.

Ten years of hardship left his face weathered and his hair frosted with gray. Only a few letters crossed thousands of miles of mountains and rivers to tell him that his mother was doing well.

When a general amnesty was declared, he received a letter while packing his things: his mother was gravely ill, and he must return at once. After he mounted his horse to head home, a second letter arrived. The village chief had asked someone to write it for him. It said that both of them had passed away.

When he returned to his village, the house was in disarray and the walls had partly collapsed. But the few acres of farmland belonging to his family were neat and green. The village chief led Qin Xiu, who no longer knew the way, to the fields and said, “Xiao Shu was always worried you’d come home with nothing to eat. He worked until he could barely get up, but he still made sure to tend these few acres.”

In the evening breeze, Qin Xiu suddenly felt a chill on his face. He realized he was already in tears.

He weeded the graves of his mother and Lin Shu, bowing over and over again. After downing a few cups of cold wine, he somehow returned to the days of his youth, when he was still studying at the village school.

The door creaked open. In the light stood a farmer’s child holding a hoe. His rough clothes and simple hairpin could not hide his breathtaking beauty. A little nervously, he asked, “Are you going to study? I boiled you an egg.”

Qin Xiu was too stunned to speak.

Given another chance, he would only try not to let down the people he should have cherished.

From the shou’s perspective: After Lin Shu’s father died, his second uncle could no longer afford to raise him. He rowed him to the Qin family and begged them to take him in, even going so far as to knock his forehead bloody. Before leaving, his uncle told him to work hard and learn how to make people like him. Lin Shu became someone waiting for his future husband. When his adoptive parents had a son, Qin Xiu, it seemed only natural that they would marry. Lin Shu knew Qin Xiu disliked him: he was older, could not recognize a single character, and was always covered in dirt. But at least he had done a good job of following the first part of his uncle’s advice. When Lin Shu was sixteen, people from all over the village came asking to marry him, while Qin Xiu was studying. By the time Lin Shu was twenty-one and already considered an old farmer’s child, Qin Xiu placed third in the palace exam and said nothing at all about marriage. Later, when Qin Xiu was exiled to the frontier, Lin Shu waited for him to return.

May my beloved be safe and well. May my beloved pass the exams. May my beloved... never forget me.

A few notes:

1. At first, the shou has no romantic feelings for the gong. He only wants to repay a debt of kindness.

2. The gong will take the imperial exams, and there will be political intrigue.

3. The two will not be intimate before the gong comes of age.

Theme: Remaining steadfast in poverty and not abandoning one another in riches.