Her Sachet
HER SACHET
By Wenke Liu
2023 Spring
Jade Sachet. Photo by the author.
“My lord, may I ask what pattern you want to be engraved on the jade sachet?” Said an old craftsman, with a distinct Suzhou accent. On his palm lay a piece of warm suet jade, which had been carved into the shape of a sachet. This is his family skill. This old craftsman has been dealing with jade carvings all his life in the city of Suzhou.
This should not be a difficult question, but it makes the newly appointed director of Suzhou City ponder for a while. He hesitated and said, “It’s been too long, I don’t remember the detailed pattern on the original sachet. Please create according to your ideas.”
The old craftsman stared at the young official as if trying to find something in his face. “Then I want to hear your story, my lord. It will help me to create work that you are satisfied with.”
The official’s gaze moved to the street scene outside the window as if he had fallen into a distant memory.
It was 10 years ago; at that time, he was a poor student. Neighbors liked to call him Wang Sheng (王生) because Sheng (生) is a word to describe intellectual or scholar. His impoverished family went out of their way to get him a place in the best school in Suzhou, and he can only repay his parents by studying hard and gaining fame in officialdom. Fate, however, did not favor this young man who was dedicated to learning, but capsized the boat he was riding on the way from Suzhou to Jinling, the place he was going to take the imperial examination. He swam to shore with all his might, but his only suit of clothing was torn. Therefore, he had to find an embroidery workshop to mend his clothes. It was also at that time, he met Yao Niang (瑶娘).
When the door of the workshop opened, he saw a face that reminded him of apricot blossoms in spring. Perhaps surprised by his poor situation, she smiled and asked, “Are you here to make clothes, sir?”
The girl did not feel embarrassed or shy about speaking alone with a man, on the contrary, she was very gracious. This virtually relieved Wang Sheng’s pressure. He met her smiling eyes and whispered yes. But it was not until he entered this small and exquisite courtyard that he realized that his package had disappeared into the river.
“I don’t have money, for the clothes.”, He could hardly look at the girl in front of him anymore. He was waiting for her reprimand to drive him out, to drive a person who was dressed only slightly better than a beggar out of the workshop.
The girl waved her hand naturally and led him into the embroidery workshop. “I can help you mend the clothes if you’d like to help me sort the stuff here.” She pointed to the neatly hung silks and cloths on the wooden racks and spoke.
This is not a difficult request, and Wang Sheng, fortunately, has a few days to spare. He started to do odd jobs in this small embroidery workshop. At first, other embroidered women came to see him, but they did not approach the room where he lived but whispered in the courtyard not far away. But on the second day, everyone was busy with her own work, as if his existence was just a wave of water caused by stones.
Yao Niang did not shy away from this man who came suddenly. She introduced Wang Sheng to all her colleagues. If Wang Sheng did not always insist on eating in the outer hall, he might be able to become friends with other embroiderers. However, in Wang Sheng’s mind, it was almost impossible to become friends with lower-class women engaged in the handicraft industry. Of all the people, he only talks to Yao Niang.
At night, Wang Sheng tossed and turned, unable to sleep. He kept thinking of Yao Niang’s hands when mending his clothes, and the sachet on her waist. Maybe that’s the source of her faint fragrance? He thought so and sank into a dream. When he awoke from the dream, he felt ridiculous. Yao Niang is just a little embroiderer, but he, Wang Sheng, is someone who will be a high official after the examination. How can she be worthy of him? On the contrary, it should be Yao Niang who is obsessed with him, a handsome young man with a bright future.
“When I become a famous official, I will marry her as my concubine.” He often fantasized about this. Yao Niang, who was oblivious to his thoughts, occasionally smiled at him, and he took it as a signal. But Wang Sheng didn’t notice that Yao Niang often smiled. She would smile when she saw the swallows that fell into the courtyard, and she would also smile when she picked a beautiful bouquet of flowers. She smiles the happiest when she embroiders a work she is satisfied with. All these are beyond the scope of Wang Sheng’s concern.
“When Autumn’s Golden wind embraces Dew of Jades,
All the love scenes on earth, however many, fade”[1]
When Yao Niang passed by the corridor, Wang Sheng began to chant poems. He hoped to impress her as a “talented scholar”.
Through the curtain of hanging flowers, Yao Niang noticed him. She walked lightly, like a jumping bird. “I like this poem,” She said, “Clouds float like works of art; Stars shoot with grief at heart. It sounds like we are creating our embroiderers but using the sky and clouds.”
She left with this sentence. At that time, Wang Sheng couldn’t understand that there was another world in embroiders’ hands, and that world would not coincide with his world.
And Wang Sheng would also leave at dawn after this night. The clothes Yao Niang mend for him were neatly stacked on the shelf in the workshop. That was where he saw Yao Niang’s sachet. She might be drying the petals in the sachet to put it in such a conspicuous place. Wang Sheng put the sachet in his sleeves, left with his secret unilateral commitment to Yao Niang in his heart.
“What happened next?” Asked the old craftsman.
“I haven’t seen Yao Niang since I left. I have been looking for her after the examination. All I have is the sachet.”
“May I ask you why you like her, my lord?”
“Because I have a commitment. I want to marry her when I get a position in the officialdom.”
“I am afraid I have a different opinion,” said the craftsman, “You did not fall in love with her. What attracted you was her appearance; you know nothing about her world. She was a craftswoman; did you like her work? Or put it this way, have you ever paid attention to her work?”
“The sachet…” Wang Sheng explained somewhat palely.
“You lost it, and even forgot the pattern on it, my lord,” The craftsman shook his head, “forgive me for being blunt, what you are seeking for years is just an imagination of a perfect woman in your mind.”
The official suddenly realized what he said is the truth. For years, what he thought about was her beauty, kindness, and virtue. But this is such a thin image that it cannot describe a woman’s rich life at all. There are many embroiderers living in the city of Suzhou, supporting their life with their own hands. Yao Niang may be living happily among them. Why should he disturb her?
He smiled and was relieved. “Please still make me a jade sachet,” he asked, “It may remind me of the beautiful world I missed.”
Reflection:
I would like to do creative writing because this story suits the city of Suzhou very well. The literati culture encourages men to pursue their careers by studying and taking the imperial examination, which is the background of Wang Sheng. At the same time, the craftsman culture provides the background of Yao Niang, as Suxiu (苏绣) is one of the most important name card of Suzhou. The significance of the jade sachet is complicated because as a token of love, the sachet does not represent any mutual love in this story. It is closer to a totem of Wang Sheng’s obsession. However, Wang Sheng never cares about the pattern and shape of the sachet he took from Yao Niang, just as he does not care about Yao Niang’s life and pursuit. This somehow reflects some men’s attitudes toward love and marriage. In this story, I want to show some progress Suzhou women made in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. I also want to express my own idea of love and marriage, and women’s value in a romantic relationship.
What I want to highlight is that this is a typical, but not that typical story of a talented scholar and beauty (才子佳人). The hero is not a perfect man. He has strong self-esteem and confidence. Because he was immersed in Confucian culture, he looked down upon lower-class women, which also made him unable to make soul communicate with Yao Niang. When talking about Qin Guan’s poem, they were focusing on different aspects. Wang Sheng hopes to express love with it, while Yao Niang hopes to have superb embroidery skills.
What I find most difficult is the image of Yao Niang. At first, I wanted to portray her as a typical Jiangnan talented woman. But I changed my mind soon because I admire a Gu Erniang-like woman image more. Women like Gu Erniang, although from the lower class, represented a progressive attitude towards working and living. This is a unique characteristic of Suzhou women. Even though I gave Yao Niang an open ending in this story, I hope she is free to pursue her embroidery career.
Notes:
[1] “[七夕特辑]《鹊桥仙·纤云弄巧》（英文版）许渊冲译.” 中国日报, August 20, 2015,
http://language.chinadaily.com.cn/2015-08/20/content_21657316.htm
Bibliography:
Ko, Dorothy 高彦颐. Guishu shi: Mingmo qingchu jiangnan de cainü wenhua 闺塾师: 明末清初江南的才女文化 = Teachers of the Inner Chambers: Women and Culture in Seventeen-Century China. Trans. Li, Zhisheng. Nanjing Shi: Jiang su ren min chu ban she, 2005.
“[七夕特辑]《鹊桥仙·纤云弄巧》（英文版）许渊冲译.” 中国日报, August 20, 2015, http://language.chinadaily.com.cn/2015-08/20/content_21657316.htm
“苏州工匠日 ‘苏作精神’（第一篇）–中国玉雕说‘苏作.’” 苏州工匠日 “苏作精神”（第一篇）–中国玉雕说”苏作” – 苏州市地方志编纂委员会办公室. 2021. Accessed May 7, 2023 http://dfzb.suzhou.gov.cn/dfzb/szdq/202105/86976cafbade4cfbbe2bffb3d697a0fe.shtml.
