The official was quite pleased with his new adventure but insisted that steps should be taken to persuade hhis wife to consent to the union, Friends offered their services, but for long time the elder lady proved adamant and when the concubine paid her a visit she refused to see her, Further efforts, however, were made to reconcile the two parties and eventually it was arranged that the concubine should make obeisance to the wife and so acknowledge her as her superior, afler which she would be allowed {o live in the house, The spirit of compromise" was further reflected by an arrangement whereby the husband would live with each of them in turn, staying one week with his old love and at the end of the period crossing over to spend seven days with the new arrival, it being of course necessary that the two women should live on. opposite sides of the courtyard, This arrangement continued for some considerable time and proved satisfactory as far as the husband concerned, The two women were bitter enemies, however, and Incredible as it may seem, they never spoke to one another, though to other persons the wife openly declared that the concubine had never been educated and so had no right to pose a schoolgirl, and in fact she had formerly been 'a member of another profession altogether, The concubine believing that she is in favour with the husband jared her rival as much as possi Yooked forward to the day wh the proud mother of a son. At this stage the laomahtzu, or female attendant of the wife, played an important part in the life' of the courtyard, for under instructions from her mistress she occupied a room on the same side of the yard fas the concubine, By listening care fully she was able to report many of the conversations which took place between the young girl and the husband.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.