Chapter 12 Chapter 12 The commercial street on the third night of the Lunar New Year was not hot...
The commercial street was not very busy on the third night of the Lunar New Year, but Zuiyuelou was very lively.
This was a brothel. Most of the girls there were unrelated and had no relatives to turn to; the madam was also a widow who had fled the war, living alone in Xiaofangpan City. Therefore, the brothel only closed for three days and opened for business on the third day of the Lunar New Year.
Young Master Huang staggered out of the restaurant, holding a girl in his arms. He reeked of alcohol, his eyes blurry as he stared at the girl for a moment, then pinched her cheek, saying, "Wait, wait, I'll come back tomorrow!" He burped and walked unsteadily toward the end of the long street.
There were four people lying on the wall at the corner. They were Jiang Wan, Jiang An and his two disciples.
"Master, look, he is coming!" Wang Er rubbed his hands excitedly.
Jiang Wan watched intently as Mr. Huang walked, drinking from his wine jug. As he passed a corner, his form was obscured by the wall's shadow. Suddenly, his vision went dark, and he felt a round object descend from the sky, enveloping him. The bright lights of the long street suddenly vanished. He reached out his hand, only to touch a rough, prickly cloth bag.
A voice rang in his ears, a little hazy and distorted through the cloth bag, but he could still hear the excitement of the eagerness: "Come on, come on, it's trapped!"
The footsteps were getting closer, and then he felt fists hitting his back, hands, and legs through the bag. He felt the pain and tried to dodge, but the bag tripped him again. His brain, paralyzed by alcohol, couldn't even tell how many people were on the other side.
"Master! Master! Please spare me. I will give you as much silver as you want!" After a while, he couldn't bear it anymore and cried and begged for mercy.
Outside the bag, Wang Da and Wang Er were beating with all their might, showing no sign of stopping. Usually, the brothers, bullied by the Huang family, wouldn't dare fight back, but this time, they finally had a chance for revenge, and neither of them wanted to let it go so quickly. But upon hearing Young Master Huang's screams, the brothers stopped and looked at Jiang Wan questioningly.
Jiang Wan gestured "enough." She simply wanted to avenge her brother and reclaim the stolen money. If he were maimed or killed, the Huang family would undoubtedly launch an investigation. Even if they obscured Young Master Huang's vision with a sack and remained silent, they could still be discovered. Jiang Wan's current abilities weren't enough to confront the Huang family.
After this incident, she realized that simply escaping slavery was not enough. In order to better protect her family and to bring those who hurt her to justice, she had to become stronger and a successful businessman.
She had to have her own shop as soon as possible.
She'd had this idea before, but the Huang family's shop was in short supply, with merchants from all over the city vying for it. Besides the hefty rent of thirty taels of silver a year, they also required the tenant to have a prosperous business to attract more customers. Jiang Wan had originally planned to slowly build her reputation, but now she couldn't wait any longer; she had to find a way to build it quickly.
Fortunately, the two apprentices were obedient. Wang Da struck Young Master Huang on the back of the neck with a knife, and the latter fell limp to the ground. The two brothers untied the cloth bag, dragged the unconscious Young Master Huang out, and searched his pockets, but only found 60 taels of silver.
"What about the remaining twenty taels?" Wang Er wondered.
Wang Da slapped his head in regret, "He must have spent it at Zuiyue Tower! Damn it! If I had known I would have grabbed a bag and beaten him up before he went in."
Jiang Wan didn't care much. In her eyes, earning twenty taels was not difficult: "That won't do. If he is awake, he might recognize us, and that would be troublesome."
Jiang An nodded in agreement and looked at his sister: "But how did you know he would come to Zuiyue Tower?"
"Because of this," Jiang Wan squatted down, pulled off Mr. Huang's mink coat, and patted the pockets of the coat. "At noon, when he pulled up the chair, the hairpin came out."
Mr. Huang was carrying a hairpin, clearly a gift for a woman. If it was for a concubine, he would have given it on New Year's Eve or the first day of the new year. Waiting until the third day to give it to a woman he couldn't see in the previous two days, but could see today.
This easily reminds us of Zuiyuelou, which opens on the third day of the Lunar New Year.
Jiang An's expression showed sudden enlightenment. Jiang Wan shook the mink coat in his hand and tossed it to his two apprentices. "I think this coat is worth a few bucks, so I'll give it to you to keep warm—but don't wear it outside, or the Huang family will see you."
"Is this really possible?" Wang Da and Wang Er were clearly surprised that their seemingly delicate and delicate master would actually strip someone's clothes. However, since it was the bully's coat, the brothers felt no psychological burden. Wang Da thanked the master and gave the coat to his younger brother.
Jiang Wan and Jiang An sent the two brothers to their residence.
"Okay, it's getting late, you two should go back quickly and be careful on the road." Jiang Wan reminded.
After seeing the two brothers off, Jiang An deliberately put on a stern face and said, "You're quite good. You've learned how to hit people with a bag. Tell me, where did you learn that from?" Although he had a stern face, a smile filled his eyes.
In fact, Jiang An was very pleased that his sister could leave behind the rules and regulations of her previous life in the capital and become a free woman who was not so gentle and virtuous, but was capable of protecting herself and surviving anywhere.
Jiang Wan made a face and said mischievously, "I learned this from my brother. I grabbed a stick and used it to beat people."
"Good, you've learned how to make fun of your brother," Jiang An's stern face broke into a smile, and he helplessly tapped his sister's nose. His gaze lingered on her forehead, but he suddenly stopped smiling. His eyes were pitch black, and it was hard to tell what he was feeling.
"What's wrong, brother?" Jiang Wan was a little surprised to see his expression change. She stretched out her hand and waved it in front of his eyes, and he came back to his senses.
"I asked someone before the Lunar New Year, and they said your tattoo can't be removed," Jiang An said softly, with a sense of vicissitudes of life in his tone. "After the Lunar New Year, I'll take you to get the most beautiful pear blossom makeup to cover it up. You'll definitely be more beautiful than before, okay?"
His sister had once been innocent, headstrong, and carefree, with fair, radiant skin and a smile that would bring dimples to her cheeks, like a pear blossom in its first bloom. But after a day of exile and three months of suffering, Jiang An felt a distinct change in his sister. She had become strong and intelligent, capable of shouldering the burdens of the family. She also kept everything to herself, never revealing it, rarely displaying overt emotions. Jiang An often couldn't guess what she was thinking, or even sense her moods. Even on New Year's Eve, the day she was freed from slavery, he didn't notice much joy from his sister.
Perhaps even if I could return to the capital someday, I wouldn't be able to go back to the way things were before. Just like this tattoo that signified my status as a criminal slave, it could only be covered with makeup and could never be erased.
Jiang Wan touched her forehead, a shallow depression where the tattoo had been. The touch brought back fragments of the original owner's memories. Over the past few months, the Marquisate had gone from prosperity to neglect, from renown to widespread condemnation... Though she hadn't personally experienced the blood and tears, the separations of life and death, she felt the pain of falling from a height.
Over the past month, she had already merged with the original owner without realizing it. So when Jiang An said that, she clearly understood what her brother was thinking.
"I don't want to cover the tattoo." She patted her brother's hand comfortingly, her tone gentle but unyielding. "Brother, I don't want to compare myself with the past. I just want to live a good life in the future. This tattoo will remind me of this humiliating past where I was at the mercy of others. It reminds me that I can't let my guard down even a little bit to protect you and Mom."
"I don't like those people. Magistrate Li, Madam Li, and that scoundrel named Huang. It seems that Magistrate Li and Madam Li helped me escape slavery, but if it weren't for the luminous cup and my promise to make them a gift, they wouldn't care about me at all." Jiang Wan pulled her brother to sit against the wall, hugging her knees and looking at the bright lights of the long street. "Merchants value profit, and officials value power. They gather when there's profit to be made, and disperse when there's no profit to be made. They only care about whether you have what they want."
Clouds obscured the moon, and the night sky seemed even darker and endless as the lights and the moon shone. Jiang Wan looked out at the long, brightly lit street, a smile on her lips, but she felt out of place amidst the hustle and bustle of people.
This was the first time Jiang An saw grievance in his sister's eyes since January.
"Everyone I met before was like this. Even I was a bad guy who only talked about interests. Only mother and you are different. You really care about me and want good for me, so I must protect you." Jiang Wan tilted her head and touched Jiang An's shoulder with her arm, showing a bit of cuteness, as if the loneliness and grievance just now were all Jiang An's illusion.
Jiang An had no idea that his sister had been reborn, nor did he know what Jiang Wan had experienced in her previous life. He could only clumsily pat her head and try his best to comfort her: "You're not a bad person. You take care of mom, earn money to help your brother with his burdens, and you even escaped slavery on your own. You're the most amazing and best sister."
If he knew that someone had already been replaced inside his sister's shell, would he still feel the same way? Jiang Wan thought about this, feeling guilty, but also greedy for this little warmth. He didn't dare to speak anymore and rubbed his head against Jiang An's palm.
The brother and sister walked around for a while and then returned home. After settling their mother down, Jiang Wan returned to her room alone, closed her eyes, and turned on the system.
A new system prompt sounded in her mind:
"Skills are passed down through generations. Congratulations to the host for successfully accepting a disciple and contributing to the inheritance and promotion of handicraft techniques. You have completed the mission [Teaching by Words and Deeds] and received ten points."
The remaining points on the system interface changed from 22 to 32.
Jiang Wandian entered the tool chest, intending to look for tools suitable for making celadon. After looking around, he found that most of the useful tools were out of his reach; the cheaper ones were available in the small square pan city, which could be purchased with silver.
...Okay, okay, I won't watch for that long, I'd better go work and earn points.
Jiang Wan snorted in anger, turned off the system, and began to think about what to make that would sell well.
She decided to make celadon bowls. Firstly, celadon was new at the time, so there was room for improvement. Moreover, celadon bowls were both beautiful and practical, so they would sell faster. Secondly, she wanted to try different ways to make celadon, in preparation for a birthday gift for the Lady of the County.
During this era, celadon was still in its infancy. The products sold on the market were primitive celadon. The body was soft and easily soaked in water, and the iron pigment used resulted in uneven color and easy fading. Improvements could be made by reducing the iron content to increase transparency, increasing the body's hardness, and improving the glaze's color.
However, given the local firing standards, improving the body's hardness was difficult, and coloring porcelain required extremely high-quality pigments, which were difficult to find at the time. Therefore, Jiang Wan decided to start by reducing the iron content, using coral stone instead of iron oxide as a colorant.
Jiang Wan remembered researching coral stone in her previous life. It was a cobalt compound, often found underwater. She recalled encountering a lake outside the city when her original owner first arrived, overflowing with aquatic plants. She wondered if she could find any of these stones tomorrow.
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