Chapter 2 Streets: Bianjing City is full of places that cost money...

Bianjing not only had a loose division between residential areas and markets, but also no curfew. The shops on the streets were all decorated with lanterns, so they were brightly lit even at night.

The restaurant was magnificent, with its carved railings and jade steps, and a roof of glazed green tiles. The guests in the east-facing private room peeked out from the window; they were probably refined scholars and poets, reciting poems with their hands behind their backs.

The mung bean soup stall was set up under a thatched shed. The old lady lifted the lid, scooped up a bowl with a wooden spoon, and even though it had cooled down early, it still had a refreshing coolness, taking away a lot of the summer heat.

Seeing some bowls piled up beside the old woman, Lu Qiong carefully asked, "Auntie, how many bowls of mung bean water can this hold?"

The old woman smiled, her face crinkling with laughter: "It could hold sixty or seventy bowls if it were full. Your bucket looks about the same size as mine. Are you going to sell mung bean water too?"

Fearing she might misunderstand and think he was trying to steal her business, Lu Qiong quickly waved her hand: "That's not it. I'm thinking of setting up a stall near Longjin Bridge, but I don't know how to get started."

The old woman had been selling mung bean soup for several years and had seen many others set up stalls like her, but they often stopped coming after a short time. She assumed that this young lady was the same way, and besides, there were many people in Bianjing, so she wasn't worried about her stealing customers.

"Then you have to register at the 'street office' first, otherwise you'll be fined if the 'patrol officer' sees you later."

This patrolman must be the "city management officer." Seeing how honest the old woman was, Lu Qiong quickly thanked her and even counted out six copper coins to ask her for two bowls of cool mung bean water.

The old woman had a long coin box hanging on her bucket. She would drop all the copper coins from her palm into it with a clattering sound, and without pausing, she would pick up a wooden ladle to scoop out mung bean water. If it was cold, she would bring out the teapot, set up a fire pit underneath, and take charcoal from the charcoal basket to burn, so that the tea would not get cold.

"Here you go, ladies!" The old woman handed a bowl to Lu Qiong, and then served another bowl to Lu Xuan.

It had a refreshing sweetness, likely from the addition of icing sugar, and a slightly cool sensation, beneficial for both energy and summer heat. Lu Qiong finished it after a few bites, licked her lips, still wanting more, and called out to Lu Xuan.

After these few incidents, Lu Xuan was already afraid of her older sister calling for help. This time, calling her would definitely cost money again, and there were places to spend money everywhere in Bianjing City...

She sighed and put down her bowl: "Sister, don't say anymore. Now that we've bought everything, let's hurry back."

Lu Qiong: "..."

Why did she always feel that Lu Xuan was looking down on her? Lu Qiong smacked her lips and had no choice but to leave the stall.

Remembering that there wasn't much coarse salt at home, enough for only a few days, Lu Xuan told her older sister to wait where she was while she went to buy "smuggled salt." She dared not let Lu Qiong manage the money anymore.

Although private salt trade was not permitted by the imperial court, some traders still took the risk, since salt trade was a more profitable business than selling tea or silk.

From the perspective of ordinary people, this was also beneficial. Official salt tasted bad and was expensive, while private salt was cheaper, costing only twenty coins per pound. Even Lu Qiong often lamented that it was fortunate there was private salt, otherwise her family would not have been able to afford salt all these years.

Nearby was a storytelling stall. The storyteller stood in front of a low wooden platform, slamming his ebony gavel down on the platform with a thud: "...Lu Yan held a long spear in his hand. Seeing that beast with its mouth full of fangs about to pounce, he tensed up and thrust straight at the beast in one go. To find out what happens next, please listen to the next episode."

"That's it? You haven't finished yet."

"Did you hit him?"

“It’s really heartbreaking that it always stops at such a crucial moment.”

"If I didn't seduce you with those words, would you still come to listen next time?"

The crowd gradually dispersed, and Lu Qiong was pushed to the side of the alley. There was a puddle of water on the blue bricks on the ground. She ducked carefully to avoid the water, but did not notice that there was someone in front of her and bumped straight into someone. She exclaimed in surprise.

Looking up, he saw that the man was of extraordinary appearance, wearing a long indigo robe. He said slowly, "It was my rudeness that offended you, young lady."

Lu Qiong was startled by his appearance. He only came to his senses after hearing his words and shook his head: "It was I who offended you, young master. I apologize."

Seeing that he only nodded, Lu Qiong walked around behind him and quickly put the matter out of her mind.

Lu Xuan returned from buying salt but didn't see her older sister at the same spot. She was anxious and was about to look for her when she luckily bumped into her on the road.

She didn't pursue the matter of why Lu Qiong was delayed, and pulled her outside, saying, "It's almost noon, sister, you should buy some dry food so you can eat if you get hungry on the way."

It was hot and I didn't have much of an appetite, especially since Lu Qiong had just finished eating. She waved her hand and said, "I'm not very hungry now. We can get something to eat when we get back. We can't be so extravagant. We should save money in the future."

Lu Xuan sighed inwardly. Her elder sister had spent seventy copper coins today on medicine, candy, and a bucket of food, and she paid quickly and readily. These days, even a few copper coins for a single dry meal made her feel the pinch; it was truly increasingly difficult to understand.

Before leaving the city, the two did not forget to register their vendor information at the street office. They paid twenty coins in exchange for a "certificate" with the official seal of the street office, which was essentially a "business license". This certificate was only valid for one month, and they would have to pay again afterward.

In Bianjing, you have to pay taxes everywhere: street vendor tax, city entry tax, and even property sales have property deed tax.

Lu Qiong also inquired about buying a shop. A shop in a good location in the city is worth a thousand taels of silver, and the monthly rent is ten taels of silver. Even a small shop costs at least three taels of silver a month!

A shop the size of Jishetang would cost ten or so taels, while Xinglin Hall would only cost two taels.

Even if she sold everything she owned, she couldn't take over a shop. She should just set up her tea stall first and live a stable life.

*

Bianjing was originally an arid place. The previous dynasty built the Tongji Canal to introduce the "Bian River", which was recorded as "a vital place in the world, controlling the flow of boats and carriages, controlling the throat of Hebei, and connecting the Huaihe River and the lakes for transportation".

The banks of the Bian River are bustling with streets and alleys, and shops line both sides of the Rainbow Bridge, with a constant flow of traffic. On the west side of the bridge, next to the city wall, stands a "Tax Office," where tax officials are sitting in the hall, handling official business.

Xie Xun was on his way to the tax office when he saw the young woman he had bumped into earlier coming out of the street office across the street. She was following behind another person, her face contorted with grief, which was quite amusing.

Qingxian, following behind, was puzzled. Why was his young master suddenly laughing? Had he exhausted himself going outside the city a few days ago and become mentally impaired?

That won't do. He can't bear the blame if his wife finds out. He'll go to Jishetang on the way and get some medicine for the young master. But is this symptom a sign of kidney deficiency or spleen deficiency?

Xie Xun refocused his attention and turned to enter the tax office.

Recently, the imperial court sent a caravan that brought back many novel things, one of which was the seed of the "kapok". It is said that it can grow into something called cotton, which can be woven into cotton clothes to keep warm in cold weather.

Xie Xun became interested after hearing this and immediately used his connections to obtain a large number of seeds. Unfortunately, the planting season had already passed, and they would have to wait until next year to plant them. That was also the reason for his visit today.

Inside the tax office, a desk was set up in the center of the hall, with sandalwood incense burning on a side table. Wisps of smoke curled through the gaps in the incense burner, then dissipated into nothingness.

A man wearing an official hat stood in front of the hall, writing on paper with a brush. A minor official was patiently grinding ink beside him. The faint scent of ink and sandalwood lingered in the hall, making people feel comfortable.

The tax official was also an acquaintance of Xie Xun. Upon seeing him arrive, he immediately stood up and bowed, asking, "Young Master Xie, what brings you here?"

Xie Xun returned the greeting and said, "I brought back a new batch of goods from Hangzhou. The goods are still on their way back. I have come here to file for tax payment in advance. I hope Lord He will do me a favor."

Merchants entering the city would take a "ticket" to the local tax office to register, and their goods would be exempted from a lot of taxes. This was a good policy of the imperial court to benefit the people, and the tax officials naturally agreed to it.

Xie Xun exchanged a few pleasantries with the tax official and then came out of the tax office. Suddenly, he stood still on the blue bricks of the street.

Qingxian, who was behind him, didn't notice where she was going and bumped into him, crying out, "Why did you stop, young master..."

Xie Xun frowned and distanced himself from him with obvious disdain: "If you have an eye problem, you should go to a doctor, not bump into me."

While rubbing his head, Qingxian muttered to himself, "That young lady didn't say that when she bumped into you... How come I'm the one getting scolded?"

Xie Xun stood with his hands behind his back, simply smiling at Qingxian.

But Qingxian, seeing this, knew that the young master was getting impatient. She immediately became anxious and dared not cause any more trouble. She only remembered one thing: "Madam sent someone to say that if the young master does not get married soon, she will hold a banquet at home and invite the young ladies of all the noble families in the city to choose a beautiful woman for the young master..."

The conversation inevitably turned to his marriage. Ever since Xie Xun came of age, his mother had worried about this matter every single day. This trip to Hangzhou had given him a chance to catch his breath, and now he had no patience to listen to the end, so he tossed his clothes aside and strode away.

Qingxian watched his retreating figure and murmured, "Why did the young master leave so soon... Madam said that she would keep him locked up in the house until his marriage was settled. Now that the young master has gone back, he's just walking into a trap... Alas!"

*

They returned at dusk, just in time for dinner.

There were still some pomegranate blossoms left at home, so Lu Qiong decided to make stir-fried pomegranate blossoms with meat. After removing the petals, stamens, and stems, Lu Qiong left the hexagonal sepals, took them into the kitchen, sprinkled them with coarse salt, and set them aside.

Lu Xuan squatted in front of the stove to add firewood, lit dry straw with a flint and steel, and threw it in with a whoosh, and the fire slowly started.

The surroundings were quiet, with only the sound of burning firewood and the gurgling of boiling water.

Lu Qiong broke the silence: "We're going to Bianjing to set up a stall tomorrow, so don't be late."

Lu Xuan suddenly straightened her back: "I can definitely get up."

Seeing her mature demeanor, Lu Qiong laughed and said, "When we make money, we'll rent a shop in the city and buy you a big house to live in."

Hearing this, Lu Xuan stopped laughing, her heart began to feel heavy, and she slowly added firewood to the stove.

She didn't take her elder sister's words seriously. Although Bianjing was a large city, there were so many people of high status that there was no way the two of them could hide there. It was just wishful thinking.

Today she witnessed firsthand that there are places to spend money everywhere in Bianjing City: brothels, teahouses, and taverns. If you're not careful, all the money in your purse will be gone.

As the fire in the stove grew larger, the temperature of the pot wall rose, producing a sizzling sound.

Lu Qiong took the last small piece of cured pork, sliced ​​it thinly, chopped the scallions and garlic and put them in a bowl, poured some lard into the pot, put the cured pork in and stir-fried it until fragrant, added seasonings and pomegranate flowers and stir-fried it until it was ready to serve.

The aroma was irresistible, making Lu Xuan's mouth water. She couldn't wait to grab a bowl, pick up a piece of meat, and savor the perfect balance of lean and fatty meat, which was savory, delicious, and chewy.

She took another bite of the pomegranate blossom, and her eyes lit up instantly. Although the taste was mild, it was quite delicious with the aroma of meat, and she couldn't help but eat more than half a bowl of rice.

My older sister may not be very bright, but all her cooking is absolutely delicious!

Seeing that she was eating happily, Lu Qiong smiled and poured a spoonful of sauce over the rice, making it golden and shiny, which also made her more hungry.

Fortunately, the plan to set up a stall in Bianjing has finally been settled.