Chapter 84: The Mo Family

After she lay down, she couldn’t fall asleep for a long time. Although she had no particular affection for her husband, now that she was married to him, she was a member of the Mo family in life and a ghost of the Mo family in death. No matter how dissatisfied she was, she could only swallow her grievances along with her tears and endure.

That night, she didn’t drift into a hazy sleep until very late. But as soon as the sky began to lighten, Gao Huichun was already awake. Wealthy families had their morning rituals. It involved managing the household, attending to her parents-in-law and husband. Even in a home with servants, these were the daily duties of a daughter-in-law. The morning and evening greetings, in particular, were of utmost importance.

The Mo family hadn’t always been a prominent household. Before Mo Rongxin’s father passed the provincial examination, he was just an ordinary citizen, a merchant by trade. It was only after the old master Mo became a provincial graduate that the family’s status rose, becoming what one might call a “gentry family.” Although Mo Rongxin himself hadn’t even passed the lowest imperial examination, he had purchased the title of an imperial student, which barely maintained their respectability. However, in the eyes of the “proper gentry” of Guangzhou, his family was considered counterfeit. Those who truly despised them called the Mo family the “Worn-Out Boots Party.” Someone even coined a slogan for them: “The father acts like a eunuch’s son, the son like a beggar’s father.” But the Mo family had controlled the Wenlan Academy for decades, they had money, and both father and son were skilled social climbers. So, they were never openly cast out from the ranks of the gentry. Still, the top gentry families in Guangzhou never associated with them. When they needed to deal with the academy, they would only speak to the headmaster.

Perhaps because they were looked down upon by the “authentic” gentry, the Mo family placed extreme importance on “etiquette and propriety,” desperately trying to prove they were a family of scholars. When she first married into the Mo family, she suffered a great deal because of this strict etiquette. She was ridiculed by her sisters-in-law, teased by her father-in-law’s concubines, and even the favored maids in the household would call her “Miss Beggar” behind her back.

After enduring these few years, Gao Huichun’s observance of etiquette was finally impeccable. She rose early, washed, and dressed, and as usual, went to her father-in-law’s main quarters to pay her morning respects.

Accompanied by a maid, Gao Huichun entered the courtyard and saw that the doors to the main room were already open. She was slightly surprised. Although Mo Rongxin insisted on “etiquette,” he himself indulged in debauchery every night. He wouldn’t go to bed until after midnight and naturally couldn’t wake up early. Sometimes, he wouldn’t even come home at all after a night of carousing. Because of this, the Mo family had developed a new custom: the younger generation would not enter the main room to pay their respects. A kowtow on the veranda was considered sufficient.

Unexpectedly, her father-in-law was already up today. He was sitting in the center of the room, being served breakfast by the Third Concubine. His complexion, however, was not good; it was rather pale.

Gao Huichun entered and kowtowed. Mo Rongxin nodded and said, “You may rise.”

Normally, the next words would have been, “You are dismissed.” But Mo Rongxin didn’t say this, and Gao Huichun didn’t dare to leave on her own. She could only stand with her hands respectfully at her sides, awaiting his instructions.

After a long while, she finally heard her father-in-law ask, “Huichun, is your father in good health lately?”

This gave her another small shock. It wasn’t a festival or a holiday, nor was it a formal occasion. Why was her father-in-law suddenly concerned about her father’s health?

In truth, she had no way of knowing if Gao Tianshi was well or not. Gao Huichun rarely returned to her maiden home, perhaps once or twice a year. Furthermore, Gao Tianshi paid little attention to her. When she did go back, besides the obligatory kowtow, there were no other words exchanged between father and daughter. Except for what she could glean about her father’s affairs from conversations with her mother, he was almost a stranger to her.

But she had to answer. She quickly replied, “Thank you for your concern, Master. My father is in good health.”

“You haven’t been back to your family for a long time, have you?” Mo Rongxin put down his spoon and took the small Australian towel handed to him by the Third Concubine to wipe his mouth. “You may go home for a few days tomorrow. Take some gifts with you.”

Now Gao Huichun was even more confused. It wasn’t a festival or holiday, why was she suddenly being told to visit her family? Since it was her father-in-law’s wish, she couldn’t ask why. A trip home would be nice, though; at least she could have a private talk with her mother.

She thanked him and withdrew. Not long after returning to her room, the housekeeper arrived with men carrying loads of gifts. Usually, when a daughter-in-law returned to her maiden home, the gifts were simple things like roasted meats, preserved goose, and various fine pastries—what were known as “courtesy gifts”—with some silks and fabrics at most. This time, however, not only were the usual courtesy gifts present, but there were also many valuable items like silks from Suzhou and Hangzhou, and various imported goods. Among them were two catties of Liaodong ginseng. Gao Huichun roughly estimated the value of these gifts to be over five hundred taels of silver. This was no ordinary “generous gift.”

“These are all gifts the Master has arranged for the Fifth Young Mistress’s visit home,” the housekeeper said with a fawning expression. “There is also a letter personally written by the Master. Please trouble the Fifth Young Mistress to deliver it to her father for his perusal.”

Gao Huichun now understood. Her father-in-law must have some urgent matter to discuss with her father. But in the past, her father-in-law would usually go to meet with her father in secret. Why was he suddenly using the pretext of her visit home? She had heard that the “Kun” bandits had recently entered the city. Could it be related to that?

A thousand questions arose in her mind, but she kept her expression neutral and said, “I understand.”

“We appreciate the Fifth Young Mistress’s trouble,” the housekeeper said with an exceptionally warm smile. In all her years since marrying into the family, she had never seen him smile so genuinely—it was usually a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. He bowed again and continued, “The Master has already given instructions: starting this month, your monthly allowance will be increased by one tael of silver, and your food allowance from the household will be increased by five mace…”

Gao Huichun stood up and said, “Please thank the Master on my behalf.”

The housekeeper said, “This is all the Master’s grace. I only ask that the Fifth Young Mistress look after this humble servant in the future—” He added that the Master had said there were too few servants attending to the Fifth Master’s quarters and that several more would be assigned to them. He also mentioned that the courtyard where she and her husband lived was to be renovated, and another courtyard had been assigned to them, requesting her to move in the coming days.

The new courtyard was not only larger, but also in a much better location. This sudden attentiveness made her very uncomfortable. In the past, when Gao Huichun’s quarters were short a servant for rough work, she had to wait a long time for a replacement. In the end, she had to bribe the housekeeper to get one. The sudden rise in her status within the Mo family made her secretly suspicious. Could it be that the matter Master Mo wanted to discuss with her father was of monumental importance? The thought made her worried.

Lin Biguang stood on the time-reporting platform commonly known as the Twin-Gate Tower. This pavilion, originally built in the Song Dynasty, was ten zhang and four chi long, four zhang and four chi deep, and three zhang and two chi high. The upper part was a tower, and below were two large, parallel gates, giving it the name “Twin Gates.” In the Song Dynasty, Guangzhou artisans like Xian Yunxing had created a “copper pot water clock” and placed it in the tower. During the day, time placards were hung, and at night, a watchman’s rattle was sounded to mark the hours, making it a crucial part of Guangzhou’s timekeeping system.

Now, the headquarters for the demolition of illegal structures on Chengxuan Avenue was set up on the Twin-Gate Tower. Several blood-red banners hung from the tower, with large Song-style characters proclaiming: “Illegal Structures Will Be Demolished!”, “Violent Resistance to the Law is a Dead End!”, and “Illegal Buildings Are Not Protected by Law.”

The Twin-Gate Tower was swarming with menacing-looking detectives. They held crowbars, shovels, and large baskets, each one rubbing their hands together, eager to put on a good show for their new masters.

Outside, fully armed soldiers of the National Army stood guard. Early this morning, they had been suddenly dispatched to seal off both ends of Chengxuan Avenue and all its side streets, prohibiting any pedestrian or vehicle traffic.

Surrounded by a crowd, Lin Biguang ascended the Twin-Gate Tower. He leaned against the railing and stood firm. Looking down at the street below, the shanties that squeezed the main thoroughfare into a narrow slit hadn’t changed much since he’d looked yesterday. He raised his binoculars to look into the distance. It seemed a few places had been demolished, but most remained untouched.

A cadre from the Naturalized Citizens ran up to report, “Reporting, Chief! All preparations are complete!”

Lin Biguang asked, “How effective has the propaganda been?”

“Only a few shopkeepers have dismantled their own structures,” the cadre said, troubled. “Many were very polite and promised they would do it themselves, but they haven’t made a move yet.”

Lin Biguang nodded. This was within his expectations. The so-called “persuasion by reason” had to be backed by “force.” He turned to the group of cadres, big and small, who followed him and said:

“Comrades, this is our first battle in the transformation of old Guangzhou and for the benefit of its people. We must fight this battle well. Not only must we successfully demolish these illegal structures and return a clear and clean Chengxuan Avenue to everyone, but we must also let the people of Guangzhou understand our resolve and show that we are a civilized, progressive new regime that takes the welfare of its citizens as its mission! Therefore, throughout the demolition process, everyone must adhere to the three points of discipline we announced in the meeting: do not damage the shopkeepers’ tools of trade or goods; do not privately take building materials or goods; and do not take money from the shopkeepers for any reason—not even for a drink of water.”

“Yes, sir!” the cadres responded in unison.

“As for you,” Lin Biguang turned to look at the dozen or so squadron and team leaders of the detective force, “the discipline is the same.” He spoke slowly, “I know you’ve always had your own rotten rules, and that this sort of thing is a good opportunity to get rich and make some extra money. I advise you all to be smart about it and stop trying to skim from the pot. If anyone dares to take so much as a single tile or half a brick, they can pack their bags and go join their old bosses.”

“We wouldn’t dare!” Hearing they might have to go join their former bosses, the detective captains were terrified and quickly declared their loyalty.

“Announce the plan of action!” Lin Biguang commanded. “Xie Buliao, you report!”

Xie Buliao quickly stepped forward, uncovered a large display board on the tower, revealing a large-scale schematic map of the demolition operation for Chengxuan Avenue. It was covered with dense markings of data and colors.

He began to explain in detail the work areas and tasks for each team:

All demolition teams were assigned a section of the street, with each team responsible for one part. Within each team were different work groups: one specializing in demolition, one for moving goods and business equipment from the shanties, one for transporting construction debris, and another specifically to prevent shop owners and their employees from causing trouble or obstruction. Each had its own duty, and the division of labor was clear.