The Dragon Boat Festival's mugwort fragrance, like a gentle dream, lingered through the streets and alleys of the capital, yet to fully dissipate. Meanwhile, the doors of bookstores across the capital were plastered with scarlet notices, like a striking declaration from the city at a specific moment. The newly replaced signs flanking the vermilion-lacquered gate of Jinyun Bookstore rustled in the morning breeze, as if proclaiming the bookstore's mission and commitment. The gold-painted inscription on the sign read, "Disaster Relief Edition of 'The Oil Seller', Buy One Get One Free, Proceeds Free," gleaming in the sunlight, drawing the attention of passersby.
Su Jinli stood gracefully on the steps of the bookstore, her eyes scanning the bustling scene outside. She saw a bearded man, clutching ten storybooks, struggling to squeeze through the crowd. The red ribbon emblazoned with the words "Disaster Relief Hero" on the front of his coarse cloth jacket drooped crookedly to his navel, a look both comical and endearing. Su Jinli couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Miss, please take a look at this account book..." Lingge hurried to Su Jinli's side with small steps, holding a book with red pen annotations in her hands. Her slender fingertips gently poked at a line of numbers, a trace of worry in her expression. "The Jiangnan Booksellers Alliance has pirated copies of 'The Oil Seller' and reduced the price to two cents per copy. They also hired some scoundrels to shout at the street corners, saying that we are taking advantage of the disaster to make a fortune." As soon as she finished speaking, there was a sound of slamming on the table across the street. Then, the sharp duck voice of the shopkeeper Qian pierced through the noisy crowd and came clearly: "Su Jinli is so cruel! She traded the tears of the victims for money!"
Upon hearing this, Su Jinli's lips curled up slightly, revealing a hint of sneer. Without saying a word, she snatched the wolf-hair brush from Ling Ge's hand. Her eyes fell on the blackboard at the door of the bookstore. She crossed out the words "20% off special edition for disaster relief" that were originally written on it. Then, she wrote quickly, "Jiang Yan and 100 officials jointly signed, willing to use their salaries as a guarantee" in twelve large characters. The handwriting was strong and powerful, as if it had an irresistible force that pierced the morning mist. The ink slowly seeped down along the grain of the wooden board, just like blood and tears dripping on rice paper, telling the hardships and determination behind this disaster relief operation. As soon as she finished the last stroke, she looked up and saw Jiang Yan and the Dali Temple Minister walking side by side from the corner of the street. Jiang Yan was wearing a stone-blue official robe, and the hem of the robe was still stained with mud that was accidentally splashed when he checked the accounts last night, which showed how busy and hard he was running around for disaster relief.
"Madam," Jiang Yan raised his hand, gently wiping the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, revealing the frayed wristband on his wrist, a witness to his countless days and nights of toil. "Lord Wang, the Minister of Personnel, has donated half his salary, and seventy-two editors from the Hanlin Academy have also jointly signed a petition." He leaned slightly to the side, and the Dali Temple official behind him unrolled a roll of rice paper. The vermilion ink shone glossily in the morning light, as if it were a symbol of justice and love. "These are the signatures of a hundred officials, and they have been sent to the Ministry of Public Security for record." The Dali Temple official's voice was steady and powerful, adding a solemnity and authority to the disaster relief operation.
As they spoke, a gong suddenly rang out at the street corner, the sound spreading from far away and drawing everyone's attention. The emperor, dressed in his ordinary clothes, approached with steady steps, carrying a gilded food box from the Purple Palace. From a distance, he thrust the food box into Su Jinli's arms, a bright smile on his face as he declared, "Su Jinli! I want to invest in your 'Storybooks to Save the Country'!" The moment the food box opened, ten gold ingots tumbled out, clattering onto the counter, colliding with abacus beads with a clattering sound like a stirring melody. "This is my personal money. I'll give you ten copies of 'Flying Foxes' to entertain the disaster victims!" The emperor's words revealed his concern for the victims and his support for the righteous cause of Su Jinli and others.
The Empress Dowager, supported by her maids, slowly followed the Emperor. The pearl headband on her head trembled slightly with her steps, shimmering with a soft light. The Empress Dowager walked up to Su Jinli and, smiling, handed her a brocade square box. The lid of the box opened, revealing a stack of mulberry paper banknotes neatly stacked inside. "I'm using my own private money to buy some rice seeds for the disaster victims." The Empress Dowager's kind eyes fell on Jiang Yan's belt. "I heard you pawned your jade ring? I'll reward you with a bigger one later." The Empress Dowager's words were full of admiration for Jiang Yan and concern for the disaster victims.
Princess Shou'an, like a cheerful little bird, squeezed through the crowd, clutching a sugar painting. The sugar threads from the painting still clung to her fingertips, and her face was filled with an innocent smile. "Sister Su! I've exchanged all the money I've saved for candied haws for copper coins!" She loosened her clenched fist, and twenty-three copper coins tinkled and clattered into the donation box. The crisp sound was like the most beautiful musical note. "Grandpa Zhang said that sugar paintings can also be exchanged for food!" Princess Shou'an's words, filled with childlike innocence and kindness, warmed the hearts of everyone present.
Suddenly, a burst of laughter broke out in the crowd. Su Jinli turned around and saw Shopkeeper Qian hiding at the door of the silk shop with a panicked look on his face. The abacus in his hand fell to the ground with a "click", and the beads rolled into the gutter like frightened birds. Behind him, his servant was frantically tearing up the "Jinyun Bookstore Profiting" flyer, but was chased all over the street by the young Marquis Su holding the toy sword. While chasing, the young Marquis Su shouted: "Dare to say bad things about my sister! Look at the sword!" His serious and cute look caused everyone to laugh again.
"Mr. Accountant," Su Jinli gently pulled out a handkerchief and wiped Jiang Yan's sweat. The wolf-hair brush in her hand inadvertently drew a crooked fox on his official robe, a fox that seemed to convey their relaxed yet determined mood at the moment. "How many bags of millet can you buy with that box of gold?"
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