Chapter 6 Being a concubine is better than suffering outside.
"How can you not get married!" Madam Lin said earnestly, as if she had heard something shocking. "With your looks, if you're lucky, you could even enter the mansion of a prince. Even being a concubine would be better than suffering outside. If you observe three years of mourning, which family would want you then?"
Although she was unwilling to admit it, her elder sister's daughter was indeed beautiful. She had been tortured by the Mingjing Division a few days ago, but her beauty was not diminished. Instead, she had gained a more pitiful and delicate appearance.
Back then, her elder sister was able to surpass her only because of her looks. She understands men's minds best. If those nobles and royalty were to see Ji Chan, many of them would probably be tempted.
Madam Kobayashi never hid her ambition to curry favor with the powerful and wealthy. If it weren't for the fact that her daughter looked too much like her husband and her appearance was rather ordinary, she would have paved the way for her daughter long ago.
Now that her daughter is completely focused on Xue Mingtang, the only person she can rely on is this niece.
Mrs. Kobayashi felt she had already considered her niece's best interests, and this was clearly a win-win situation, but Achan was not persuaded in the slightest.
Listening to Madam Lin's vision of a bright future for her, Achan said, "Thank you for your kindness, Aunt. But my mother warned me repeatedly that I could only marry and become a proper wife, and I must never degenerate into a depraved person."
Madam Lin's face immediately fell, and she snorted coldly, "You really don't know what's good for you. With your current status, even if you marry a scholar, they would look down on you. You still want to be a proper wife? It's all because of your mother that you've been raised to be such a blockhead."
Xiao Lin began to ramble on and on about Lin, as if she wanted to express all the grievances she had held against her over the years.
Achan simply sat quietly to the side, listening without arguing or responding.
Just then, a maid announced from outside: "Madam, the eldest young master has arrived."
When Ms. Lin heard that her son had come, she didn't show any joy on her face. Instead, she frowned and asked, "Why is he here instead of studying at the academy?"
It's no wonder she was cold to her son. Before the New Year, she discovered that her eldest son hadn't come home for several nights in a row. After questioning the servant who served her son, she learned that her son, on whom she had placed so much hope, had been persuaded by someone to go to a gambling den.
When she went there, her son already owed the gambling den more than a thousand taels of silver. She had to send her maid back to the mansion to get the money to pay off the debt; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to take him away.
When she got home, she told her husband about it. Her husband gave their son a severe beating and said that if he continued to gamble, he would kick him out of the house.
Mrs. Kobayashi was also furious and chimed in, but her son pushed her, and she almost fell over.
Because of this, she now finds her eldest son particularly displeasing.
Zhao Wensheng, who had just come in from outside, heard his mother's words and said with a smile, "I heard that Mother has recently developed a fondness for river delicacies. On my way to the academy, I saw a vendor selling live fish, so I bought some from the vendor and then returned home."
Just as her eldest son said, she had severe morning sickness during the first three months of her pregnancy, vomiting everything she ate and suffering a lot. Now, six months pregnant, she craves the smell of fish.
Unfortunately, fresh fish is scarce this month, so the meal wasn't very satisfying.
Knowing that her son was concerned about her, Madam Lin's brows relaxed, and she scolded him playfully, "No wonder you smell of fish all over you. You're so thoughtful."
As she spoke, she gently touched her bulging belly: "Your little brother, I reckon, will love eating fish. Unlike you, when I was pregnant with you, I craved sweets."
“My son doesn’t like sweets,” Zhao Wensheng muttered, then turned to notice Ji Chan, who was dressed in a plain-colored jacket and skirt with delicate features. A hint of amazement rose in his eyes. “This young lady is…”
"What girl? That's your aunt's cousin, Ji."
"Oh, so it's my cousin. Why haven't I seen her come to visit before?" Zhao Wensheng stared intently at Achan.
"Alright, don't ask any more questions about your cousin."
Xiao Lin didn't want her son to have too much contact with Ji Chan. If her son took a fancy to his niece, would they really want to arrange a marriage between relatives?
She absolutely could not agree to Ji Chan entering her Zhao family.
Zhao Wensheng glanced at Achan a couple more times before reluctantly turning his gaze away.
Seeing this, Madam Lin's face turned cold: "You should be going back to the academy by now, lest the teacher complain to your father."
"Yes, son understands."
"Also, your father said you weren't very talented to begin with, so you have to work harder than others. If I find out you're causing trouble outside again, I'll have your father send you back to your hometown."
Zhao lowered his head and replied listlessly, "Your son wouldn't dare."
When he turned around, Achan clearly saw the anger in her cousin's eyes.
After Zhao Wensheng left, Madam Lin turned her attention back to Achan. She seemed determined to get Achan married, explaining the benefits of marriage from various perspectives and even using herself as an example.
Madam Lin always felt that, apart from her two children not being very good, her life after marriage was extremely good. Her husband doted on her and there were no other concubines in the house. She was a hundred times better off than her elder sister, who didn't even know that her husband was keeping a mistress.
After listening to Kobayashi's boasting, Achan complimented him with a few words.
Then she said, "Look at you, you can't do anything, you don't even have a livelihood, and you still want to observe three years of mourning for your mother? I'm afraid you'll starve to death in less than a month."
After thinking it over, Ah Chan realized that Ji Chan really didn't have any skills to make a living, since no one expected that she would need them one day.
As for Achan herself, in terms of skill, she is indeed the same.
Actually, she didn't specifically go to learn it. It was just that during the year she was separated from her parents, she only grabbed a book from her mother's table, a book on incense making.
Later, when she missed her parents, she would read books and eventually memorize them.
"Auntie is overthinking it. Achan has learned incense making, which can also be used to make a living."
"You know how to make incense? How come your mother never mentioned it before?" Madam Lin looked incredulous.
"I only learned it in my spare time, and my mother doesn't know about it."
"Anyone can talk, but whether you can support yourself depends on your abilities. Since you think you're capable, make a calming incense tomorrow, and I'll give it a try."
Ah Chan gently declined, "Auntie is pregnant now, so it's best if she doesn't touch the incense."
She could make incense suitable for pregnant women, but people's hearts are unpredictable. If something really happened to Ms. Lin, it would be bad if someone framed her. She didn't want to cause trouble for herself.
"Then let's make a fragrance that repels mosquitoes."
Achan chuckled: "Auntie, there aren't any mosquitoes at this time of year."
Ms. Kobayashi was getting impatient: "You've been making excuses when I asked you to make a fragrance. You've been lying to me, haven't you?"
Ah Chan was helpless; she rarely met someone as self-centered and impatient as Ms. Lin.
“Since Aunt wants it, then I will prepare an insect repellent incense for Aunt tomorrow.”
"Okay, I'll wait at home." As she spoke, Madam Lin yawned, and Mama Sun quickly went to help her lie down.
Seeing this, Achan also got up to say goodbye.
Before covering herself with the blanket, Mrs. Lin waved her hand and instructed Granny Sun to take Achan out later.
After Ah Chan left the main room, she waited outside for a short while before Mother Sun came out smiling.
After seeing Achan off at the gate of the Zhao residence, Madam Sun took out two silver notes from her sleeve and gave them to Achan when she saw that no one was around.
Ah Chan was somewhat taken aback when she held the two one-hundred-tael silver notes: "What does Mama Sun mean by this?"
Madam Sun smiled and said, "This was prepared by Madam. Madam said that in order to prevent the young lady from feeling that she, as her aunt, does not care about you, she wants you to take the money to buy a few more clothes and use the rest to buy spices. If the young lady's skills are really good, there will be more benefits in the future."
Ah Chan accepted the money without much hesitation and said, "Please thank your aunt for me, Aunt Sun. I will come to visit again tomorrow."
"Alright, take care, young lady."
As Chan walked down the street, her mind still on Ms. Lin.
This aunt is truly a difficult person to describe. You could say she's a good person, but her cunning and selfishness are so obvious that they'd practically jump out of your face.
You might call her bad, but in the entire capital, there are actually more than just one illegitimate daughter connected to Ji Chan's maternal grandfather's Lin family. Yet, she's the only one who inquired about Ji Chan's whereabouts and even gave her money.
Perhaps Kobayashi gave her money to buy spices just so that she could have another "selling point" in the future, but it is already very rare for someone to remember her and be willing to lend a helping hand when she is down on her luck.
Unlike her, so much time has passed since she came from the Northern Wilderness to the capital, and no one cares about her life or death.
Standing on the bustling street, Achan felt inexplicably lonely.
The pedestrians around her, some with smiles on their faces, others hurrying along, all had homes to return to after a busy day. But she had no home.
It wasn't until she was accidentally bumped into that Ah Chan was able to pull herself out of that depressed mood.
Human life is so short, she has so many things to do, where would she find the time to think about people and the past that are no longer relevant to her?
Demons may waste time, but humans can only look forward.
Right now, she needs to exchange some money first, and then go to the West Market to buy commonly used spices. Although most of the spice recipes in that book are not for ordinary people, she still knows some common spice recipes.
Achan first went to the money exchange and exchanged twenty taels of silver for four twenty-tael silver notes.
For an ordinary family, twenty taels of silver would last a long time. Ah Chan strolled around the West Market and bought a bunch of common spices, but it didn't cost her more than five taels of silver.
However, as she was leaving, she saw a piece of uncarved black wood at a wood carving stall.
The stall owner said it was a piece of fifty-year-old willow wood that turned black shortly after being cut down. Willow wood is generally of average quality, but this color is rare. If she wanted to buy it, it would cost at least one tael of silver.
After hesitating for a moment, Achan still bought the log. It was a willow tree that grew in an extremely yin place. She didn't need it now, but she might need it in the future.
The shop owner didn't offer delivery service, so Achan had to find someone in the market to carry her wood back. The porter said the logs were heavy and Changpingfang was far away, so he would have to use a cart and charge her ten coins.
Achan thought it was too expensive and was haggling with the other party when a group of Mingjing Guards suddenly rushed into the West Market.
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