Chapter 1
"Squeak—"
The long-neglected, dilapidated door groaned in pain.
Ning Qingxi entered the room, enveloped in wind and snow.
She was dressed in thin clothes and was so thin that she looked like she was made of paper; a slight gust of wind could sweep her away.
After entering the house, she patted the snowflakes off her clothes, pulled out an oil paper package from her bosom, and playfully waved it in front of the two children in the house: "Guess what this is?"
The two equally thin, monkey-like children twitched their noses, their eyes shining brightly: "It's roast chicken!"
Ning Qingxi chuckled and patted the little girl's head: "Get me a bowl."
The little girl skipped happily to the cupboard, while Ning Qingxi pulled up a stool and sat down to warm herself by the crackling stove fire.
The wind and snow outside were getting heavier. It was a fine day, and flowers were harder to keep alive on such days. So she served flowers to others, and the clients paid her more.
She pulled her sleeves together, listening to the rustling of snowflakes outside.
"Sister, have I been a burden to you...?"
Ning Qingxi turned her head and asked, "Why do you say that?"
The sickly-looking little boy on the bed said, "Because of my illness, I can't help my older sister with anything, and she has to find food for me."
"You're overthinking it," Ning Qingxi said with a smile. "Even without you, I still need to eat."
—A dilapidated house that could collapse at any moment, and three people who could die at any moment.
This is the current situation in Ning Qingxi.
Fortunately, he had a skill: before transmigrating, he learned gardening, a skill that everyone hated. After transmigrating, he actually managed to make a living using this skill.
We're not full, but we won't starve either.
Ning Qingxi sighed, tore off a chicken leg and stuffed it into her mouth. Seeing the two children staring longingly but not touching their chopsticks, she asked, "Aren't you going to eat?"
Ning Qingshan shook his head: "Father said..."
"Father is dead."
Ning Qingxi grabbed her hand and tore off another chicken leg: "If you want to eat, just take it, understand?"
Ning Qingshan nodded with a blank expression, it was unclear whether he had taken it all in.
"the same as you."
Ning Qingxi spoke to the little boy on the bed.
The "father" she mentioned was no good. He used to rely on being the only one in the family who earned money, and he always let his children eat and drink for free, which is why they all seemed timid and hesitant.
However, he died. He was wrapped in a straw mat and thrown out. It is said that he went crazy from drinking in the middle of the night and froze to death.
Therefore, Ning Qingxi taught her younger siblings a principle.
That means surviving is the priority.
She glanced at Ning Qingyuan, who seemed to be the most likely to die, and sighed silently in her heart.
Living like this isn't a solution; she needs to find a way to earn more money.
The next morning, Ning Qingxi went out in the wind and snow.
Three miles north of the village is the south gate of the capital. She helped wealthy families arrange flowers and plants, and was paid wages every day.
But it was only enough to make ends meet; there was no spare money at all.
However, today was quite unusual. Ning Qingxi was passing by an intersection when she saw a group of workers building a platform. She took a few more glances out of curiosity. When she finished her work at noon and came out, she saw that the platform had been set up with several tables and chairs on it. Several people who looked wealthy were sitting nearby. One of them was tall and had long legs. He was dressed in a sky-blue outfit and was sitting in a chair, idly playing with a fan in his hand. She guessed that he was some rich kid.
Ning Qingxi looked away and tapped the shoulder of the person next to her: "What are you doing?"
The man was engrossed in watching the spectacle, not even turning his head: "A wealthy merchant from the south has come and bought a piece of land to build a house. Right now, the platform is full of garden designers, drawing up plans on the spot. It's a competition to see who can draw the best and the biggest house, the bigger the better!"
I don't know when it started, but wealthy businessmen have always liked to build gardens. And these gardens are not ordinary gardens; they must be both elegant and spacious, so that people can tell at a glance that the owner of the house is both refined and rich.
Coincidentally, Ning Qingxi was a semi-expert.
She asked, "Do you know how to register for this competition?"
Upon hearing this, the man turned around and looked Ning Qingxi up and down.
Although the man had a handsome face, he was pale and thin, and his dark, coarse cloth clothes were patched in many places.
But his eyes were calm, making him seem genuinely confident.
"You... want to participate?"
Ning Qingxi nodded: "Anyway, the master will only waste some ink, paper and inkstones. It's no big deal if I spend some time on it."
"Here's a piece of paper. Sign your name and address on it. When the competition officially starts, just remember to show up on time."
Ning Qingxi looked in the direction the man was pointing and saw a red paper in front of the man in the sky-blue robe, with a writing brush and inkstone next to him. Several names had already been written on the red paper, leaving only a few empty spaces. On the platform, several men who looked quite dignified were boasting, surrounded by a group of people praising them.
Ning Qingxi made a quick decision, squeezed to the front of the stage, stepped forward, raised her hand, and loudly proclaimed, "I want to sign up!"
The host built the platform here to show off his wealth to everyone. On the wall next to it, there was a sign that the first place winner of the garden design plan would receive a prize of 100 taels of silver and would also be able to participate in the subsequent garden design, with wages paid separately.
The prize money was generous, but there were no requirements. So, in one morning, people with real talent, those who were just trying to get by, and those who were just there to join in the fun filled three pages with their names. Huo Yanci was invited over, and throughout the morning, countless people with yellow and black teeth showed him how to write the characters in their names.
They're obviously just here to make fun of him.
After the initial novelty wore off, Huo Yanci became sleepy. He buried his face in the collar of his furry cloak, held a hot water bottle in his hand, and began to doze off.
"Hello, I'm here to register."
Huo Yanci opened her eyes and looked at the person in front of her.
She's too thin.
This was his first impression of the person.
The girl in front of me was hard to tell whether she was thirteen or fourteen, or seventeen or eighteen. She looked like a little bean sprout, with very little flesh on her face. The only striking feature was her eyes, which shone brightly.
He pointed to the paper in front of him: "Write your name here, and the time is next to it. Go to the Zhang family to attend the ceremony when the time comes."
Ning Qingxi grabbed a corner of the red paper and glanced at it. At first glance, the writing was simply blinding, each character ugly in its own way. Some people even seemed to have never learned to write, their writing resembling scribbles.
Ning Qingxi paused for a moment, took the pen, found a spot in the corner of the red paper where she had scribbled, wrote her name, handed it over, and glanced at the competition time.
It happened three days later, on the morning of the next day.
After she left, Huo Yanci looked at the still-wet ink marks on the red paper.
The three characters signed there were barely legible, and the handwriting was immature and not particularly attractive.
When Ning Qingxi returned home, she saw Ning Qingyuan, who looked sickly but was helping to put firewood into the stove, and Ning Qingshan, who was rummaging through the cupboards looking for rice and flour. Only then did she realize that she had forgotten something.
She deliberately took a long detour today to visit the homes of wealthy people in the capital, and then forgot to buy food!
Ning Qingxi slapped her forehead, mentally calculated how many coins she had left, then waved her hand and told her younger siblings, "No need to cook, I'll take you out to eat today."
Upon hearing this, Ning Qingshan's eyes lit up, but Ning Qingyuan said, "But sister, we don't have any money."
Ning Qingshan's eyes darkened.
Ning Qingxi patted their heads and said, "Don't worry, I have money. Let's go to the city to eat!"
The two of them cheered and jumped for joy. Ning Qingxi looked at the two children and felt infinitely gratified.
After entering the city, Ning Qingxi led her younger siblings through a maze of turns until they found the largest restaurant in the capital, with three large characters written on it: Zuixianlou (Drunken Immortal Restaurant).
There were four buildings in total. I don't know what the interior furnishings were, but they seemed to be unconnected to each other. They were magnificent and luxurious. Today, there must be some important guests. The servants at the door were busy coming and going, carrying boxes and boxes inside.
Ning Qingxi certainly didn't have the money to eat here. She turned around and went to a small shop next door. The wooden planks on the door frame were bare, with only a sign sticking out on one side that read "Rulai Noodle Shop".
The sun was high in the sky, and the small shop was bustling with activity. The clinking of wine bowls and the chatter of voices created a lively atmosphere. When people arrived, the waiter greeted them.
Ning Qingxi tugged at her younger brother and sister-in-law, found a seat by the window, and ordered three bowls of vegetarian noodles, a plate of pork, and a plate of stir-fried vegetables.
The two children had never seen anything like this before. They both curiously propped their heads up and looked out the window, especially Ning Qingshan, who turned to ask, "Sister, who are those people outside? They look so rich."
Ning Qingxi was rinsing the bowls and chopsticks with hot water when she heard this, so she turned her head to look.
The shop was noisy, and Ning Qingxi didn't even know when a procession of carriages had arrived outside. The carriages behind were all glittering gold, and even the four corners of the carriages were adorned with golden bells. Only the one at the head of the processions looked extremely plain.
The next moment, a man dressed in a sky-blue robe entered the restaurant surrounded by a crowd. He was all smiles and laughter as he walked in, and only then did Ning Qingxi get a good look at him.
He was tall and slender, dressed in thin clothes but always with his hands tucked into his sleeves. Judging by his stature alone, he was a fine person. What was even more striking was his face. He had sword-like eyebrows and bright eyes, and a handsome appearance. His eyes were slightly lighter in color under the sunlight. His face was more plain than gorgeous, but a red mole under the corner of his eye made up for it. When he smiled, he had a somewhat bewitching charm.
Ning Qingxi suddenly thought that this person would probably stand out even more if he wore all pink.
She paused for a moment, poured out the water in her cup, refilled it with tea, and pushed it in front of the two people, saying, "I wonder, with such a generous offer, which family's young master are you?"
Ning Qingyuan looked at the group of people with envy, then looked down at his own clothes.
She's still a young girl, and she's already reached the age where she cares about her appearance.
Just then, the waiter brought out all the noodles and dishes, and Ning Qingxi invited the two of them to eat.
Children are simple-minded; when they see food, they forget everything else and focus solely on eating noodles, devouring them in a flash.
Ning Qingxi chewed on her beef, thinking that she should take on more work. Spring was just around the corner, and she looked through all the closets in her house. The few clothes she had that were still wearable were all tattered and patched on top of each other. She absolutely had to buy some new clothes.
Especially after she transmigrated, she only had two outfits to wear in rotation. If it weren't for the different colors of the patches, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Both outfits were made of shockingly poor quality material. The dark, coarse cloth outfit felt like a sack, chafing her neck, wrists, and thighs until they ached.
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