28 Rice wine and mung bean ice dumplings (Part 2)
◎This lipstick suits her◎
Jiang Qinglan walked forward quickly.
Today, unusually, she wore a bright, primrose-colored dress.
A purple rose is pinned on the side of her hair.
A light rose-colored lipstick spreads across the cherry lips.
Dressed like this, she looks bright and charming, just like a hibiscus moistened by rain or a crabapple shrouded in mist.
Seeing Yang Song sweating profusely and the peonies beside him blooming, she understood and said:
"Mr. Yang is so polite. You came here to show me your respect. Why did you bring anything with you?"
She spoke politely, but Hu Zi beside her was very honest and had already started moving the peony into the house.
Yang Song was about to wave his hand and say that the flowers were not from him, but he saw Jiang Qinglan had already cast his gaze towards the shade of the tree.
There stood Xie Linchuan, wearing a sky-blue robe and holding a gold-sprinkled fan.
Yang Song suddenly felt that speaking at this moment seemed to be asking for trouble.
He was such a smart guy that he kept his mouth shut and quickly followed Hu Zi to move the peonies.
When Jiang Qinglan saw Xie Linchuan, he was obviously stunned.
Now she knew what it meant to be “bright as the sun and moon in my arms, blazing as the lightning beneath the rocks”[1].
She immediately lowered her eyes and made an excuse for the heat in her ears - maybe the weather was too hot.
With her eyes lowered, she saluted with her arms crossed: "Mr. Yan."
Xie Linchuan's gaze paused for a moment on her lips, and he thought: This lipstick really suits her.
He smiled, and fanned his hair with a gold-sprinkled fan:
"So, Madam Jiang has opened a shop here. I was wondering why she couldn't find it at Zhongwa."
Jiang Qinglan is not a person obsessed with beauty, he was just not paying attention for a moment.
At this time, she calmed down and said generously:
"It's my fault. I was so busy decorating the new store that I forgot to inform you, Mr. Yan."
Then he led the people into the house:
"Please come in and sit down, Young Master Yan. Now that we've opened the restaurant, we have more food to eat, and you'll have more places to spend your fifty taels of silver."
With a whoosh, Xie Linchuan put away the fan and walked slowly into the house.
He pretended to be calm on the surface, but the further he walked, the more panicked he became.
Looking past the bright peony flowers beside the counter, I saw Yang Song talking to a little girl of four or five years old.
I don't know what he said, but the little girl burst into laughter, and he himself was also very happy and couldn't help laughing.
Xie Linchuan immediately became furious and wanted to crush the man to death.
This guy! Who sent the peonies? Did he tell Madam Jiang?
In the past, when Xie Linchuan went out to drink with Zhu Ming and others, just setting foot in any restaurant was considered a great honor.
It was always the shopkeeper who sent them gifts, never the other way around.
Now, compared with Yang Song's huge peony flower, he looked out of place with nothing in his hands.
The tea berries that Madam Jiang gave him were even bigger than the ones she gave Yang Song! No, I can’t lose face!
He reached out and fumbled around in the pouch around his waist, and actually felt a round object.
"Madam Jiang—" he suddenly spoke and called her.
He placed a small golden ball on the table, his face full of excitement:
“This is my gift.”
The ball was half the size of a thumb, very round, and had intricate patterns on its surface.
Under the light, the small ball sparkled with golden light, revealing its compelling nobility.
Jiang Qinglan's eyes widened.
She gave Yang Langjun tea berry pills and he gave him a pot of peonies in return. It was only natural.
What's the meaning of giving a golden ball to Mr. Yan? Are all the second-generation rich people so extravagant and unfashionable that they don't give anything else besides money?
She gently pushed the ball towards him: "Mr. Yan, this... is too valuable. You haven't used up the fifty taels last time."
Xie Linchuan poked it with the handle of her fan, and the little golden ball rolled towards her again.
If it went any further, it would have rolled off the table, so Jiang Qinglan had no choice but to hold it in her arms. She was lost in thought as she watched the golden light glittering in her palms.
"Then it will be the food allowance for next year." Xie Linchuan's eyes flashed and he smiled proudly, as if he was a little proud of his own wit.
"Since you have a shop here, you won't run away."
Jiang Qinglan was a little confused. What did "she won't run away" mean? Did he think she had run away?
She also vaguely felt that although Mr. Yan was handsome and a god of wealth, he was not a good match for her and her small shop.
We're in different circles, so it's hard to force our way in. Perhaps it's inappropriate to send him an invitation.
But she is a businesswoman, and the customer is in the store at the moment, she can't kick him out, right?
Just pay more attention in the future.
She suppressed her chaotic thoughts and smiled slightly: "Mr. Yan, try our new iced glutinous rice balls."
——
The Xinghua Restaurant was bustling with activity, and the winery next door was also doing good business.
Shopkeeper Zhou loaded two jars of pine flower wine onto the carriage and told Caizhu, "Hurry and send them to Mr. Wang's house. Make sure they arrive before the banquet begins."
Caizhu received the order, jumped onto the carriage, and whipped the horse's buttocks.
Shopkeeper Zhou watched the carriage go away, nodded, and was very satisfied with the new maid.
He was originally looking for someone to drive the cart, and had originally intended to hire a boy, but unexpectedly, this maid volunteered, saying that her legs were faster than the boy's and her price was cheaper.
Shopkeeper Zhou looked at Caizhu coldly, and only felt relieved when he saw that it was true.
Caizhu drove the carriage across the Eight-Character Bridge and headed south along the Imperial Street. She did not stop when she arrived at Mr. Wang's house.
When we were almost at Xinkaimen, we turned our horse around and turned into an alley.
Yanshu was already waiting at the back door of Lu's mansion, holding a lantern.
Caizhu got out of the car, holding a covered porcelain bowl in her hand, and saluted the dark figure beside the willow tree: "My dear."
Lu Fei's body was shrouded in the thick darkness of the night, and his facial expression could not be seen clearly.
Caizhu said, "The Xinghua Restaurant opened this evening. Madam Jiang gave these to the neighbors. They're called ice dumplings."
Lu Fei took the porcelain bowl and let the cold air flow around his hands, thinking: When did she learn to make these strange things?
Caizhu continued, "There are three young men who seem to be old friends of Madam Jiang. Two of them even brought gifts."
"My dear?" Lu Fei stammered.
He didn't ask again, but his slender, bony hand gripped the bowl even tighter.
【Author’s words】
[1] From Shishuo Xinyu.
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