Resumen del episodio 19 de Faithful
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Wu Lian, contemplating a recovered plum blossom embroidery at Yanyu Tower, found his thoughts drifting to a profoundly impactful period of his childhood. He often spent time with his concubine mother, Chen Yingxue, who loved embroidery and singing, spending the long days in the inner courtyard with her. Chen Yingxue explained to him that before her marriage, she worked in an embroidery shop and embroidery was her only notable skill.
She viewed it as a vital way to pass the long and otherwise stagnant days in the inner courtyard, fearing her life would be without purpose if she had nothing to occupy her. Young Wu Lian frequently sought refuge with Chen Yingxue to escape his parents' constant and bitter arguments, often feeling caught in the middle, unable to escape. His father would chastise him for still reading "Er Ya" at the age of ten, deeming him "wooden-headed" and unlike himself.
His mother would swiftly retort, accusing his father of constantly demeaning her merchant background and implying that her "ignorance" disgraced the Wu family. She reminded him that he had only married her due to his family's financial struggles, seeking the continuous stream of money from her family. His father, in turn, criticized her "vulgar" acquisitions of gold and silver, contrasting them with his own expensive antique paintings, one costing "500,000 copper coins" and another "1,000,000 copper coins."
His mother scoffed, pointing out that his family had not produced an imperial scholar in three generations and accusing him of hypocrisy. One evening, after a particularly heated exchange between his parents, Wu Lian expressed a desire to stay with Chen Yingxue. She gently urged him to return home, explaining that his father disliked him lingering in her courtyard, but promised to make his favorite glutinous rice balls in wine the following day.
Chen Yingxue presented Wu Lian with two sachets, exquisitely embroidered with plum blossoms, which she had prepared for his upcoming birthday. He declared that plum blossoms would thereafter be his favorite. Inspired, Wu Lian asked her to teach him embroidery, and she patiently guided him on how to properly hold the needle. One day, while accompanying his mother to a dye shop, Wu Lian was left in the care of the nanny.
However, the nanny excused herself to the privy, leaving Wu Lian unattended. During his wanderings, he inadvertently witnessed a clandestine event. Upon returning home, his father interrogated him about what he had seen. Wu Lian lied, claiming he had slept in the carriage and seen nothing. His father, dismissing him as "useless," initially ordered a servant to secretly follow his wife if she left the house again, but then reconsidered and revoked the instruction.
Wu Lian went directly to Chen Yingxue's room and began embroidering. When she returned, he proudly displayed his work, which she praised. He reiterated his earnest wish to learn. Chen Yingxue, concerned, tried to dissuade him, asserting that embroidery was an unsuitable pursuit for a boy and that he should dedicate himself to studying for a promising future.
Wu Lian countered by noting his father's lifelong studies had yielded little, while the act of stitching brought him an "inexplicable tranquility," allowing him to finally understand her profound love for embroidery. He vowed to learn even if she refused. Witnessing his unwavering determination, Chen Yingxue reluctantly agreed to teach him, but only on the condition that he kept it an absolute secret from his father, emphasizing that it was because he was a boy.
Wu Lian readily gave his word. Wu Lian's embroidery skills quickly flourished. He presented Chen Yingxue with a plum blossom piece he had completed in half a month. She marveled at its realism, admitting his skills now surpassed her own. Observing his injured index finger, she tenderly applied medicine, stressing that an embroiderer's index finger was their "most vital asset." He promised to protect his hands and keep them dry for several days.
Soon after, some boys from the family burst into Wu Lian's room, scattering his embroidery materials and ridiculing him for engaging in "feminine things," noting his hands were "whiter and tenderer than a woman's." Wu Lian's father learned of this. He stormed into Chen Yingxue's room, discovered the plum blossom embroidery, and furiously tore it to pieces. He raged that she was corrupting his son with "disgraceful things" and trying to ruin him.
He struck her, severely beat and scolded her, and declared she would be confined to her courtyard, to be sent to the country estate the next day. Wu Lian was then forced to kneel in the courtyard, enduring a severe beating while his father ordered all his embroidery to be burned before his eyes. That night, Wu Lian secretly entered Chen Yingxue's sealed courtyard through a hidden hole.
Seeing the slap marks on her face, he expressed deep remorse for causing her trouble. Chen Yingxue gently comforted him, stating that although she was childless, "Bodhisattva had mercy on me and sent you to me," and that his daily visits had sustained her through "the last few years." She then softly informed him that she was being sent to the country estate the next day and that future meetings would be difficult.
Wu Lian offered to plead with his father, but she stopped him, cautioning against provoking his father while he was still angry. She tried to frame the move positively, saying the estate would be peaceful and preferable to the small courtyard. Heartbroken, Wu Lian asked if she was abandoning him.
She explained that as he would soon come of age, it would be inappropriate for him to visit the backyard, and that her only wish was to know he was well. He promised to visit her at the estate, and she agreed to await his visits. The following morning, desperate to secure funds for Chen Yingxue, Wu Lian rushed to a pawnshop, pawning a "top-quality Lantian jade" pendant for 50 taels, although he believed its true value was higher.
He hurried back, only to find Chen Yingxue had tragically hanged herself. Distraught, he sat in her room from dawn until night, lost in the overwhelming memories of their shared embroidery moments. At first light, Wu Lian, carrying his belongings, left his home, ignoring his mother's emotional pleas. His mother cried out, asking if he was abandoning her for his concubine mother.
He responded with chilling finality, declaring his "real mother" had died yesterday, and vowed never to set foot in the Wu family home again. Years later, Wu Lian's burgeoning Yanyu Tower began to flourish after Mrs. Zhao, a prominent figure in Huaizhou City, was captivated by his unique Yanyu Embroidery.
He explained that this technique revealed "different images in the misty rain," illustrating with a pear blossom design that appeared as budding up close but fully bloomed from a distance, creating a "dreamlike feeling." He offered her the sample, promising she would witness its magic on a rainy day. Impressed, Mrs. Zhao pledged her house's future embroidery commissions to him if his claims proved true. Her endorsement significantly boosted his reputation and the Yanyu Tower's success.
A matchmaker, Mrs. Wang, soon approached Wu Lian with a marriage proposal from the prestigious Zhang family of Huaizhou Prefecture, which had produced a prime minister in the last three generations. Mrs. Wang highlighted the Yanyu Tower's fame and Wu Lian's good character, assuring him that the Zhang family valued a suitable life partner for their legitimate daughter, Zhang Rong'er, over mere status or wealth. Wu Lian readily accepted, considering it a great honor to marry into the Zhang family.
Following their marriage, Wu Lian and Zhang Rong'er paid a customary visit to her parents. Zhang Rong'er's mother expressed her relief at Wu Lian's kind treatment of her daughter, noting that despite his merchant status, his fame in Huaizhou made this marriage "the best result" given Zhang Rong'er's "current situation." Zhang Rong'er affirmed her contentment. Later, Wu Lian informed Zhang Rong'er of his plan to establish an embroidery school at Yanyu Tower to take in disciples.
He instructed her to leverage her social connections among Huaizhou's female gentry to promote the school, without delving into further questions. Zhang Rong'er diligently followed his instructions, gathering many young women. During one such gathering, a woman arrived late, explaining she had been facilitating a marriage proposal between Sun Erlang and Miss Cao.
The other women were astonished, questioning why the esteemed Sun family, whose Elder Master Sun was a retired tutor to the Crown Prince, would marry into the modest Cao family. Zhang Rong'er clarified that Miss Cao had been studying at Yanyu Tower and had gifted Mrs. Sun a longevity-themed embroidery for her recent birthday. Mrs. Sun, who valued needlework and virtue and particularly admired Yanyu Embroidery, was greatly impressed by Miss Cao, which led to the approved match.
This story sparked widespread interest, with other women eagerly expressing their desire to send their own daughters, including one's youngest daughter and another's six-year-old daughter, to Yanyu Tower for embroidery lessons. Wu Lian then instructed Nanny Chen to prepare the largest possible embroidery frame. He announced his intention to embroider "Fallen Plum Blossoms," explaining that plum blossoms on branches were "too vulgar," while those "fallen in the snow are the most beautiful."
Observing a ruined plum blossom embroidery he had worked on for years, Wu Lian remarked that he found it increasingly "tacky" and felt no regret over its state. He declared his ambition to harness the collective talent of the entire Yanyu Tower to create an even "grander" and "more impressive" Yanyu Embroidery that would be universally celebrated.
