At noon, they arrived outside the city gate. Wang gave Uncle Gao 200 coins for the ride, and the family got off the ride. Uncle Gao fed the donkey at the teahouse, rested for a while, and then walked back. He wanted to get back to Xiangluo Village before dark.
The few of them said goodbye to Mr. Gao, rented a mule cart, and entered the city.
The prefectural city was much more magnificent than the county town. The main road in the city was paved with bluestone slabs and was very wide, with shops lined up on both sides. Most of the shops were small buildings with several floors, blue walls, black tiles, red doors and windows, and were extremely gorgeous. Some large shops were decorated even more lavishly, with many colorful lights hanging outside. Many canopied carriages were running in the middle of the road, and people were bustling on both sides.
Dabao opened his mouth wide enough to fit an egg in. Huihui and Qiqi also poked their heads out of the cloth and looked around.
Chen Afu smiled and pinched the little boy's face, and said he would take him out to see the world more often in the future.
After leaving the main street, we passed several streets and alleys, and the roads became narrower and narrower, and the houses were not as grand and spacious as before. The houses here were of varying quality, some were new brick and tile houses, and some were low old houses.
Wang said that Chen Shi's family lived in this alley.
There was a shop selling sesame cakes at the entrance of the alley, and Chen Ahfu got off the car and bought ten. It was already late noon, and Chen Shi and his wife were busy, so it was not a good idea to let them busy themselves with making lunch.
The mule cart stopped in front of a small shop and Wang said, "We've arrived."
This is a small shop selling sundries. The shop is called Chen San's Sundries. The red paint on the folding door and the doorposts has faded, and some places are even mottled and peeling. There is another small shop next door, which sells oil. This is Chen Shi's shop divided into two and rented out.
Just as they unloaded their things, a man came out of the shop and laughed loudly, "Sister-in-law, I thought you would come in the next few days, and I've been looking forward to it."
This man looked somewhat like Chen Ming and Chen Ye, wearing a half-worn silk gown, in his early thirties, of medium height, fair-skinned and handsome, with a short beard. It was Chen Shi. Of the three brothers in the Chen family, Chen Shi was the most handsome.
He looked at Chen Afu again and said, "Afu is getting more and more handsome. Do you recognize your uncle?" He then greeted Alu and Dabao.
Looking at his sincere smile, the fatigue of the car ride was relieved a lot. Chen Afu and his sister called him "Third Uncle" and Dabao called him "Third Grandpa".
At this time, a woman in her thirties and a girl came out of the shop.
The woman was Zhang, and the girl was Chen Shi's daughter, Chen Aman. Zhang was average looking, with a kind face. Chen Aman looked like her father, a very pretty girl.
Chen Ming and Zhang had three children. The eldest son Chen Ayu was fourteen years old, the second daughter Chen Amman was twelve years old, and the youngest son Chen Atang was nine years old.
Several people walked through the shop into the backyard. The backyard was not big. Opposite the shop were two side rooms with two side rooms. On the left were three low houses, a kitchen, a storeroom, and a toilet. On the right was only a chicken coop, which shared a wall with the next door.
Chen Shi invited them into the right side room. There was a kang next to the window, and a pair of old boxes beside the kang. In the back was a small stove made of earthen bricks, probably used for heating in winter.
This was the house of the brothers Chen Ayu and Chen Atang. Now it has been given to their family of four, and the two brothers live in the living room.
Zhang was about to go to the kitchen to roll noodles for them, but Wang stopped her and said that they had bought sesame cakes and that they could just drink water and eat the cakes. Zhang went to make a pot of white cabbage and egg soup for them.
After they finished their meal, Dabao and Alu lay on the kang to rest, while Chen Afu and her daughter took out the things they were going to send.
In addition to the two baskets of fresh vegetables and two packages of snacks sent by the eldest wife and the old lady, the second wife sent a few pieces of satin, Chen Shi's was a bright blue, Zhang's was a brown-yellow, the two brothers Chen Ayu's was a moon-white, and Chen Aman's was a scarlet. In addition, the two brothers were given two pens, two ink sticks, two knives of fine rice paper, Chen Aman two flowers and a few ribbons.
Chen Shi was an expert in knowledge. He was shocked when he saw these things. He said, "Oh, this material is from Jiangnan, and these two pens are from Wen Shang Zhai in Beijing. How can you give us such valuable things?"
Wang smiled and said, "There are more at home." She briefly told him about making things for the young lady of Tangyuan and about Dabao playing with her. She also mentioned the big room's fuss over the satin and asked them not to wear the satin to the countryside.
He added, "…It's not that we don't want to give things to the eldest wife. My boss has always said that we want to repay uncle. It's just that sister-in-law, ah…we don't dare to give more."
Zhang sneered, "That Hu is really shameless. She dares to do this in front of my uncle and mother-in-law. You are right to do this. Once you get used to her, she will definitely scrape off several layers of your land." Zhang was very angry with Hu.
Chen Shi sighed, "My eldest brother is a good parent. When we were a family, he protected us brothers. Now that we have separated, he protects his wife and children. Alas, it's just that he didn't find a good wife, and my eldest sister-in-law is too extreme."
Chen A-man held the piece of satin with a smile on her face, gesturing to make something beautiful. She also said that two kinds of buttons are popular in the capital now, one is called the large chrysanthemum button, and the other is called the small plum blossom button, which are very beautiful. Many wealthy families go to the Nishang Embroidery Workshop to buy clothes or make clothes. The clothes there use these two kinds of buttons. The buttons are also sold separately, but they are too expensive.
Finally, she wrinkled her nose and said, "It's a pity that the buttons sold by the Nishang Embroidery Shop are too expensive and we can't afford them. A few days ago, Sister Qiu and I went there to see how the buttons were made. Even if ours are not as beautiful as the ones sold, they can still fit the occasion. But before we could take a closer look, we were chased out. If this dress was paired with chrysanthemum buttons or plum blossom buttons, oh, I don't know how beautiful it would be."
Chen Ahfu laughed. Chrysanthemum buttons have become popular, and they have also created a plum blossom button. The young lady of the rich family is really capable. I heard Jin Yanzi say that her family seems to be in Shizhou Prefecture, the provincial capital, and her business has spread to Dingzhou Prefecture, more than 200 miles away. Thinking about it again, Jin Yanzi also said that her family seems to be related to Chu Hanyan. The Chu family is in Dingzhou Prefecture, so maybe they have business dealings.
You can also try your luck with your own dolls at the Nishang Embroidery Workshop. If the cooperation is good, you may have some good ideas...
Wang Shi laughed and said, "The chrysanthemum button was made by Ah Fu and sold to the young lady of a wealthy family. Otherwise, how could we have the money to treat Ah Lu's illness?" Seeing Chen Aman's surprised look, she added, "It's a pity that we agreed with them that we can't make this kind of button for a year, nor can we sell it for money. We can't afford to offend those nobles, so we have to listen to what they say."
Chen Aman pouted regretfully.
Zhang smiled and said, "This satin is soft and tender, and is suitable for making spring clothes. When the deadline comes next year, I will ask your second aunt and Sister Afu to tell you how to make it."
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