Chapter 52 Chapter 52 The itinerary was agreed upon...
After agreeing on the itinerary, Yili paid a deposit of two thousand taels of silver. Since this was her first transaction, she would inspect the goods before departing in seven days and then return to Wusun with the caravan.
After the discussion, Yi Li extended her nail-painted fingertips and gently tapped the tattoo on Jiang Wan's forehead. "Boss Jiang, you're a free businessman. Why do you still have tattoos? Boss Jiang is young and beautiful. A tattoo wouldn't look good on you."
Jiang Wan touched her forehead and felt a small, uneven patch on her buttocks. She hadn't covered the tattoo to remind herself that her family wasn't free yet.
Now that she had redeemed her family, there was really no need to keep the mark. This time, she was delivering goods to the Wusun nobles, and keeping it was inconvenient. She should find a makeup artist to help her apply some eyebrow makeup that wouldn't fade easily to cover it up.
After leaving Yi Li's residence in Xiaofangpan City, Jiang Wan casually asked Zi Yan, "What kind of eyebrow makeup is popular in the Great Zhou right now? You're in the capital, so you're most familiar with trends. Can you give me some suggestions? I'd like something long-lasting and durable, to cover up my tattoos."
Zi Yan thought for a moment and said, "There are three common types of eyebrow makeup: plum blossom makeup, slanted red makeup, and beautiful pear makeup. Beautiful pear makeup is white in color and doesn't conceal tattoos very well, so it's not recommended. The first two types of makeup are red, and their placement and size are suitable for covering tattoos."
He faced Jiang Wan, took two steps back, looked at her face carefully, and suggested, "But I think plum blossom makeup is more suitable for you."
Jiang Wan raised an eyebrow: "Why?"
"Wind and frost condense into icy bones," Zi Yan said. "You are like the plum blossom. The more wind and snow you encounter, the more vibrant and proud it becomes."
It was clearly just a playboy's flirting with a beautiful woman, but with the help of Zi Yan's deep voice and serious eyes, Jiang Wan actually felt like he had met a soulmate.
She couldn't help but secretly despise herself for letting her values follow her appearance.
"You seem to know a lot," Jiang Wan said half-jokingly, "Is this how you usually coax your wife?"
"I, I just came of age this year and haven't married yet." Zi Yan explained hurriedly.
Seeing the other person's panic, Jiang Wan laughed: "Then let's do the plum blossom makeup. I'll go to the night market to find a makeup artist. You can go back first. You don't have to accompany me."
"Wait a minute!" Zi Yan's voice rose slightly due to his urgency. "Well, it's almost midnight now, the makeup girls should be asleep. Let me help you put on your makeup."
"You can do this?" Jiang Wan was shocked.
She can carry hundreds of pounds of cabinets at great speed, has good hearing, is skilled in martial arts, has good handwriting, and understands poetry and books... That would be fine, but she can even put on makeup?
Jiang Wan's inner thoughts: What other surprises do you have that I don't know about?
Zi Yan scratched his head. "My sister also liked eyebrow makeup when she was dating, so I learned a little bit from her. It shouldn't be too ugly. Do you want to try it?"
Jiang Wan: "How much does it cost to paint once? You..."
She originally wanted to complain about whether he was short of money, but she felt the air pressure around her suddenly drop, so she instinctively swallowed the rest of her words and looked up at the man next to her.
The other party pursed his lips, looking unhappy. "One hundred taels at a time, will you give it to me?"
Jiang Wan clutched his pocket tightly: "Are you trying to rob me? I don't have that much money."
"Then I'll owe you that first."
Jiang Wan scratched her head, unable to figure out what words had upset this person. But for the sake of a hundred taels of silver, she decided to try and appease him.
So Jiang Wan grabbed the man's arm and shook it, softening his tone: "Then if I behave better next time and don't make you angry, can you reduce some of the money?"
Jiang Wan observed Zi Yan's expression as she spoke. Anger initially grew on his face, but as she shook him, his hard, cold face softened, and he seemed to be torn between anger and non-anger.
Finally, he sighed and raised his hand to touch Jiang Wan's hair, but his right hand stayed on her head for a few seconds and did not fall down.
His tone was quite helpless: "Okay, okay, there's really nothing I can do about you."
The two of them found a cosmetics shop, but the shop was about to close and the proprietress was dozing off in a recliner.
After explaining my purpose, the proprietress yawned and pointed to the dressing room. "It's empty inside, go put on yourselves. There aren't many people here right now, so I'll give you a discount. Five cents will be enough. But hurry up, I need to go to bed in half an hour."
Jiang Wan handed the money to the proprietress and dragged Zi Yan to the dressing room. She heard the proprietress mutter behind her, "Young couples these days really know how to have fun. They come here to put on makeup in the middle of the night."
Her eyelids twitched and she quickened her pace like a thief.
It must be said that Ziyan's plum blossom makeup technique was quite professional. Jiang Wan looked at herself in the bronze mirror. First, there was a little red between her eyebrows, then the shape of the plum blossom was quickly outlined, and then the bright red slowly spread to the center of the flower.
Her eyebrows felt cool, and the soft bristles of the pen tip gently rubbed against her skin, without any discomfort, but instead made her relax.
Jiang Wan suddenly asked, "Have you met Duke He?"
The paintbrush in front of her forehead paused, and she felt the tip of the brush tremble slightly.
This reaction is probably more than just recognition.
It seems that she had guessed wrong before. The man behind her couldn't be just an unnoticed bastard.
But if not, what was the identity of his mother that she was still not allowed to be mentioned even after her death for many years?
Jiang Wan didn't want to believe it, but she already had the answer in her heart.
Royal.
Since they met, she has always wanted to uncover Zi Yan's identity, but now she dares not guess.
She hoped to spend her life peacefully with her family, preferably away from the vortex of power struggles. When He Wanrong's case was overturned, she would buy a small courtyard in Dunhuang and live there, where she could study porcelain peacefully.
If Zi Yan's identity was revealed to be a member of the royal family, they might not even be able to be friends.
Jiang Wan was lost in thought as she was thinking, and it was Zi Yan's voice, "The painting is done," that brought her back to her senses.
Looking closely, the girl in the mirror was beautiful and slender, with black hair like clouds. Her red plum blossom makeup covered her tattoos and also made her skin look fair and translucent. Although her clothes were simple and without any jewelry, she was still beautiful and charming.
But Jiang Wan no longer had the excitement he had when he came. He stood up silently and said goodbye to Zi Yan.
The moonlight illuminates the way home, which is lonely and long.
The next seven days were incredibly busy. On the second day of the second lunar month, Jiang Wan allocated 150 taels of silver, and his brother Jiang An went to Dunhuang to purchase building materials and hire local workers to construct the factory. Meanwhile, Jiang Wan rented an abandoned factory in the northern suburbs, storing the materials needed for porcelain production there. He then recruited fifty experienced craftsmen and spent half a day teaching them how to make porcelain for both the Wusun wares and the other wares sold in the shop.
That evening, she discussed the arrangements for the Wusun trip with her family and three apprentices. After discussion, Jiang An would stay to oversee the construction of the workshop, manage the newly hired craftsmen, and care for his mother. Wang Da would manage the shop in Dunhuang, while Wang Er would run the shop in Xiaofangpancheng. Chen Xi would go with Wang Da to Dunhuang Prefecture, helping him manage the shop during the day and learning embroidery from He Wanrong at night.
Considering that it would be inconvenient for Jiang An to travel back and forth, Jiang Wan bought a carriage. In Dunhuang, Jiang Wan bought two houses near the West Market for his brother and two apprentices to rest.
On the third day of the second lunar month, Jiang Wan bought four donkey carts for transporting goods, two horse carts for the caravan to rest, and a cart for food and water, for a total of seven carts. Jiang's mother helped prepare tents, dry food, feed, water, and emergency medicines.
The mother and daughter contacted an experienced merchant caravan and hired two strong men with business experience in the Western Regions, a female guide, and two guards for the high price of ten taels of silver. After hearing about Jiang Wan's plan, Fang Hong expressed her desire to visit Wusun and joined the team.
At this point, including Jiang Wan, Yi Li, and Zi Yan, the caravan now had nine people. Yi Li was the only one who couldn't drive, so there was no need to hire a driver.
Compared to many of the more famous caravans in the Western Regions, Jiang Wan's caravan was much simpler. Survival in the desert was difficult, so most caravans consisted of a dozen or so people gathered together to facilitate emergency response.
But with so many people, more carriages and more water were needed. On the one hand, it was difficult to manage, and on the other hand, her funds were not abundant.
After three days, Jiang Wan had already spent nearly nine hundred taels of silver. During the month she'd been away, her mother and brother had to live, and she needed money for the factory, materials for making porcelain, lodging and lunch for the workers, and servants hired by the Jiang family branch in Dunhuang Prefecture...everything cost money.
She has to spend sparingly.
On the fourth and fifth days of the second lunar month, several members of the caravan gathered to discuss their itinerary. According to the guide's precise calculations, they would depart from Xiaofangpan City on the morning of the ninth day of the second lunar month, following the Wusun Ancient Road, and arrive at the Wusun Royal City around the twenty-sixth day of the second lunar month.
After staying in the city for five days, we set off for Loulan on March 3rd, arrived on March 18th, stayed for five days, set off again on March 23rd, and returned to Xiaofangpan City on April 9th. The trip took a total of two months.
After agreeing on the itinerary, the guide explained the precautions again and then everyone went back to prepare.
After working non-stop for several days, Jiang Wan was exhausted and slept for two days. After traveling through time, her sleep improved a lot, and she slept until noon.
On the afternoon of February 8th, everything was ready.
Jiang Wan sat inside, writing a letter to Aigu, reassuring him not to worry and explaining her itinerary. The warm early spring sun streamed in, and Jiang Wan looked out the window as her mother stuffed the carriage with her favorite snacks and rations.
The two new coats Jiang Wan's mother had made for her were placed beside her bed. Jiang Wan picked one up and stroked it gently. The stitching was delicate and dense, and the feel was very soft.
She smiled slightly, but her heart was filled with bitterness and reluctance.
It has been two months since we last met, and I don’t know if I will miss home now that I am in a foreign country.
Jiang Wan looked at her mother's back greedily for so long that her mother turned around and asked curiously, "Wanwan, what are you looking at?"
Jiang Wan put down the pen in his hand, stood up and hugged his mother, burying his little face in her arms and rubbing it:
"Mom, I can't bear to leave you."
"Hey, hey, mom is here." Jiang's mother patted Jiang Wan's back lovingly, "You're a grown-up girl now, but you're still like a little girl."
"No matter how old I am, I'll always be Mom's little cotton-padded jacket." Jiang Wan stuck out her tongue. "Mom, stop working. I'll treat you to a delicious meal in the city tonight, okay?"
Jiang's mother smiled and said, "Okay, I'll enjoy the happiness with my Wanwan too."
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