The matchmaker’s aide handed An Hei the portraits. He took them and pretended to have a look. But even though he held each of them for a moment, it was painfully obvious to Madam Lin that none of the portrayed women got more than a casual glance.
An Hei arrived at the last portrait and lowered it. "Are those all women?"
The matchmaker gulped. "No, no. Of course, there are others. Do none of them appeal to you?"
An Hei remained silent and just handed the portraits back. The two women exchanged a glance. He couldn’t have expressed it more clearly. Madam Lin refilled An Hei’s cup. "Maybe you could tell me which of them was most to your liking? Then I could show you matching women."
An Hei smiled noncommittally. My taste? He considered how to best describe Yang Ling Ling. "I’d like a woman who doesn’t marry a man just because of his status. She doesn’t need to have a status of her own. The extent of her dowry is irrelevant as well."
The matchmaker’s face fell. Is he trying to say the girls in the portraits don’t look as if that description fit them? Considering An Hei’s appearance and the fact that he had two servants with him that were dressed well themselves her aide had mainly brought portraits of girls from the upper class. The exceptions being some daughters of middle-class households which stood out through exceeding beauty or notable talents. Without fail, there were women who paid heed to a man’s status and wealth first of all. — After all, that was what their families requested of them. — But in the matchmaker’s eyes, this applied to every woman. A girl that didn’t mind her husband’s status would probably even believe that she could find an acceptable husband without a dowry.
The matchmaker’s smile slipped even further at this thought. Thinking of girls who would believe such a thing one immediately came to mind: Yang Ling Ling. It was just that she had already promised her to somebody else and she didn’t want to antagonize the Wu family.
Matchmaker Lin considered. A man who cares for neither status nor wealth … That would be the perfect husband for one of the Yang-daughters. If I could pitch him to Jin Jin, I’d have one problem less. With this idea in mind, matchmaker Lin adjusted her professional smile and stood up. "Please, wait a moment. I am sure there are many women like that. Let me choose some portraits myself."
An Hei nodded. He hoped that Ling Ling’s portrait would be in there this time. He couldn’t ask for it directly but he also didn’t have any desire to view the portraits of those women who were meaningless to him.
The matchmaker arranged some portraits from the middle class and added a few daughters of more distinguished houses. Finally, she slipped in Jin Jin’s portrait near the end of the pile. If he didn’t take a liking to any of the women until then, she could specifically point her out to him. If one or two of the others already appealed to him before that, it was alright with her as well. She would find somebody else for the first daughter of the Yangs.
She returned with a confident smile and handed An Hei the newly-chosen portraits. She stayed right next to him and watched how he viewed one portrait after the other again. Quickly, she had to realize that he didn’t examine them any more closely than the ones before. He soon reached the end and didn’t seem to have found what he was looking for.
The matchmaker prepared to speak up but didn’t know what to say. Before she could find the right words An Hei turned over the pile and browsed through some portraits until he reached the one of Yang Jin Jin. He moved the others behind it and showed it to the matchmaker. "Better." He handed her the pile and grabbed his teacup, taking a sip as if waiting for her to find others for him again.
The matchmaker looked confused at the pile of portraits from which Jin Jin’s face greeted her. She frowned. "Better?" she repeated.
An Hei nodded.
"So … this woman is to your liking?" She presented him Jin Jin’s portrait again but An Hei didn’t even glance at it.
"Not her. Someone similar."
The matchmaker froze.
An Hei turned towards her and furrowed his brow. "Is there a problem?" He couldn’t get rid of the feeling that something was wrong. Shouldn’t she have, as soon as he mentioned Yang Jin Jin, remembered her sister Ling Ling? Why didn’t she do something and instead seemed frozen? It couldn’t be that another suitor really had come forward already? Could his luck be so bad?
An Hei looked at her sister’s portrait again. The two of them resembled each other with the only difference being that Jin Jin seemed more mature.
"Ah …" The matchmaker recovered slowly. "Let me get the portraits of the other girls. Maybe it’s better if you see all of them."
"Mn, that would be for the best." That way, he could directly pick out Ling Ling and wouldn’t need to skirt around it any longer.
The matchmaker hurried outside, put down the portraits An Hei had already seen, and gathered the others. She glanced at Ling Ling’s portrait which she had placed beside the pile earlier and moved it into the chest of drawers. Instead, she put Jin Jin’s portrait in between the others again. She had the feeling her new guest might be satisfied with Ling Ling but she rather wanted to keep out of trouble. The Wu family’s son had only been pleased with Ling Ling and the Yang family had to marry off their daughters regardless of which man came forward. They couldn’t be fussy. Matching the two of them would be convenient for everyone. But if this stranger saw Ling Ling and requested her as his bride, this beautiful situation would end in disaster. Yang Ling Ling could only marry one of them and thereby one family would be offended.
It’s better if he doesn’t see Yang Ling Ling, then nothing can happen. Who knows? If he sees Jin Jin between all those women again she might appeal to him more than before and he will decide on her.
Her decision was on behalf of her business and would have worked in many cases, but of course, it was different with An Hei since he had only come for Ling Ling. He once again only glanced at the portraits before returning them and shaking his head. "Are those all?" he asked and frowned. It displeased him greatly that Ling Ling’s portrait still wasn’t in there.
Did somebody really beat me to it? Or is the matchmaker withholding her portrait because of another reason? Maybe she is already considering somebody else for Ling Ling? He couldn’t find another explanation and even if he only came back because of his promise, the idea discomfited him. She is mine — the snake king’s — fiancee. She waited ten years for me and thought of me every day. How could another man dare to covet her?
It was his pride that he felt hurt in. But it was also the memory of Ling Ling’s yearning gaze and the words spoken in faith the previous evening that let him decide that no other man than him could get her. Ling Ling is mine. No other man shall ever have her.
The matchmaker broke out in a cold sweat. Her guest seemed by no means at all satisfied. She could already see him standing up and leaving and seemed to hear the other matchmakers’ mockery when he went to one of them to search for a wife. But disregarding Ling Ling, she had already shown him every portrait.
"That —" Before she had time to apologize and get a chance to placate him the door opened and her second aide entered.
"Madam Lin, I brought them over."
The matchmaker glanced uneasily at An Hei and tried to inconspicuously wipe away the cold sweat on her forehead. "Are her daughters with her?" she asked her aide in a low voice.
The girl nodded.
Madam Lin turned to An Hei. "Please, wait a minute. Just now, a lady arrived with her daughters. Let me have a look to see if one of them might be a suitable wife for you."
An Hei impatiently waved her away. He wasn’t interested in other guests. He only wanted to seal his engagement with Ling Ling. Maybe I shouldn’t waste my time here but rather choose a more direct way. What keeps me from visiting her estate and directly calling on her mother?
Yuan Hao and Nong Bai exchanged a glance and then walked to their king’s side, worry written in their features. "Your Majesty, how come your fiancee was not among the women? Could we be at the wrong place after all?"
An Hei shook his head. "No. Her sister’s portrait was there, so this is definitely the place where they went. Who knows what the reason is? Maybe the matchmaker is being dishonest."
The two of them nodded, glancing at the door where the woman had left. "We can’t let her get away with this." Otherwise, would their king ever find a wife?
Meanwhile, matchmaker Lin had gone to the front and greeted Madam Yang who had indeed brought her daughters along with her. The General’s widow was all smiles. She had hoped to find a passable husband for one of her daughters but never in her wildest dreams would she have dared to imagine that a suitor would come forward right the next day. "Madam Lin, you really are a master of your trade!" she praised without realizing how distressed the woman in front of her seemed.
"Don’t, don’t. You’re flattering me too much, Madam Yang. It’s your luck having such outstanding daughters." Her gaze roamed over Ling Ling and Jin Jin. "The suitor is the second son of the Wu’s. A really good match for your daughter."
Jin Jin grimaced as she heard that the suitor was only the second son of the family and she seemed even less content when the matchmaker mentioned the family’s name. The Wu family had money but not the status she expected from her husband. Jin Jin desired to return to the upper circles of society through her marriage, which she had slowly been crowded out of because of her father’s death. A son of the Wu’s certainly couldn’t fulfill that wish. The second son of the family was even worse since he would never be the head of the family.
Ling Ling lowered her gaze as well, but her thoughts were with An Hei. Mister An, if he has chosen me instead of sister Jin Jin, then it’ll be too late. My mother won’t reject him in favor of a promise I have gotten as a child and which she doesn’t take seriously.
Yuan Hao and Nong Bai were just as anxious as her. If the matchmaker refused to even show the portrait of their king’s fiancee, then there could only be one reason for that: She already had other ideas for her. In that case, they had to hurry!
"Your Majesty … maybe we should find another way after all. I don’t think we can trust this matchmaker Lin."
An Hei nodded, having had the same thought already. "We should probably return to the estate of the Yang’s and directly ask Madam Yang." Saying so, he stood up and made his way out, Yuan Hao and Nong Bai right behind him. He wouldn’t waste more time when the situation was already this urgent. Every minute that he senselessly sat around, was one minute that another man could find out about Ling Ling being eligible for marriage.
In the other room, the matchmaker’s lips slowly curved into a smile while she considered the future of the two girls. Ling Ling and Jin Jin looked similar enough and An Hei had more or less praised Jin Jin. She didn’t believe that she was unable to convince him of her good points. It was just a question of trying a bit more "Actually …," she initiated slowly and turned to look at Madam Yang again. "Actually, another guest is waiting right in the other room. He is a little picky but he did give words of praise for your other daughter. I could imagine that he’ll decide on her if he were to see her firsthand. The portraits don’t live up to your daughters’ beauty and grace at all." She raised her hand to her mouth and laughed.
Madam Yang’s smile widened. Only one day and her daughters had both gotten suitors! She couldn’t have been happier. "But of course! Ah, it’s just …" Her smile fell and she pressed her lips together. "How much are the two men in a hurry? The dowries of the girls …"
Matchmaker Lin waved her worries aside. "Don’t worry about that, Madam Yang. Both men don’t lack in wealth. They won’t care how big the girl’s dowries are. As long as they know that they will have a pretty and reliable wife at their side with your daughters, it will be enough."
"Ah, great." Madam Yang tried not to show just how thrilled she was but was unable to hold back from patting her daughters’ hands. "Do you see? Now, our worries will end. Soon you’ll both be married women." She sighed and thought of her husband who had fallen way too soon in the war. Husband, do you see? We endured the eight years after your death and now your daughters will marry soon. Our worries are gone! "Ah, right. The other suitor, who is he? Do we know his family?"
The matchmaker froze and laughed embarrassedly. "Oh, how awkward! He just came in. I didn’t even have time to ask his name but still told you about him. This was really my negligence."
"An Hei," it sounded from the other side of the room.
A man stood in the door who made Madam Yang and her daughters smile. Like the matchmaker, they saw at a glance that this man was special. Jin Jin sighed in relief. She didn’t know his background but she was sure that he was a better choice than the second son of the Wu’s.
Her sister beside her gaped at the man. "Mister An," her lips formed before she raised her hands in shock and covered her mouth. She had spoken too softly to be heard by anyone. Only An Hei and his two subordinates behind him whose gaze hadn’t left her for even a moment noticed. The king of the snake tribe smiled.
The promise he gave merely on a whim back then seemed to hold greater value now.
