Chapter 39 The Fragrance of Mother-of-Pearl (Part Two) Aunt Guan visits.
It was already early summer, no wonder the sun was so scorching. Youjun stood in front of the weaving workshop, looking at the sun on the street and hesitant to go any further. A bright bead of sweat adorned her brow, like a forehead ornament. Her maidservant saw it, smiled, and handed her a handkerchief.
She lightly dabbed at her sweat, then held the handkerchief in her hand to examine it. "Where did this come from?"
"Not a girl's?"
It was a clean, gray silk handkerchief, without any embroidery. She had never owned a handkerchief like this before. Thinking back, she remembered it was the one Yu Qi had handed her when she went to the Lychee Garden to see him and cried while talking about her younger brother. The maid who washed it probably thought it was hers and washed it again, returning it to her room. Today, her mother happened to be wearing this handkerchief for her makeup.
The manager of the weaving workshop came out carrying the account book. "This is last month's account. I'll put it in the carriage for you, young lady."
Youjun snapped out of her daze, her expression turning solemn. “The three thousand bolts of cloth that Guangzhou requested must be spun out by next month. Giving you a few extra days has only made you lazy. What kind of business can you do if you can’t deliver on time? I think you’ve been doing this as manager for seven or eight years and you must be tired of it.”
The shopkeeper, holding a stack of account books, bowed and nodded, "Don't worry, young lady, I will definitely urge them on."
"Not only do we have to urge them, but we also have to keep a close eye on them. Don't let the rush make you neglect the quality. Honesty is the most important thing in business. If you ruin my Guan Youjun's reputation, I will hold you accountable."
"Yes, yes, please rest assured, young lady!"
Youjun nodded, watching him put the account book in the carriage before stepping out from under the eaves. Just then, she saw Magistrate Wang's sedan chair being carried past on the street. She stopped in front of the carriage and asked, "Where is Magistrate Wang going?"
The shopkeeper said, "Tongshoutang opened up ahead, so I guess we're going to eat at their banquet."
The name sounded familiar. "Isn't that Mr. Yu's pharmacy? So his family also lives on this Liuli Street?"
The woman with the makeup on smiled and shook her head. "I'm not quite sure."
The two boarded the carriage one after the other, heading to the jewelry store to check the accounts. As the carriage moved forward, Youjun slowly peered through the small curtain and finally saw the Tongshou Hall. The ground in front of the hall was covered with bright red firecracker debris. Just then, Yu Qi was seeing off a guest at the door when a gust of wind blew, swirling him into the falling red rain.
This pharmacy is quite large. For someone his age to have built it from scratch and become a leader in the industry is quite impressive, especially considering he's a meticulous and intelligent person. Youjun smiled and tossed down the curtain, "We should also come and offer our congratulations. Speaking of which, Mr. Yu has been kind to me."
Niangzhuang quickly realized that he meant he hadn't pursued the case closely enough. She nodded and said, "But I don't think Mr. Yu is easy to get along with; he's cold to everyone."
Youjun glanced at her silently, then said softly, "It seems there is no sunshine, yet there is sunshine."
Before long, they arrived at the jewelry store. She put away the ledger, asked the shopkeeper to bring some rare and fine items into the inner room, and while drinking tea, she and her maid slowly selected items at the table. After much deliberation, they finally chose two cat-eye-sized rubies and sapphires.
He originally wanted to have a gold bracelet made and set on it, but then he thought better of it, "Gold is too vulgar, and the young girl Xiaoyuer wouldn't like it."
Niangzhuang had met Jiuli once before. Recalling it, she nodded with a smile, "Why don't we find a nice and exquisite box to put it in and give it to her? She can use it to inlay whatever she wants."
Youjun immediately asked the shopkeeper to bring several boxes for storing things, but after looking at them, they were just some gaudy brocade boxes, unsuitable for storing these two stones.
The shopkeeper said, "We have some nice wooden boxes in our pawnshop, all made of good materials. Why don't you go there and look for them, young lady?"
He went to the pawnshop and opened the storeroom. There were piles of wooden dressing boxes on the shelves, all brought in to be pawned. Although the items were good, they were flashy but impractical. Once pawned, they lost half their value. Those who redeemed them were too lazy to redeem them again, and those who wanted to buy them couldn't afford them. Most of them ended up gathering dust on the shelf, only to be given to him as gifts when someone bought a valuable antique or rare item.
The storeroom was dimly lit. As Youjun slowly walked along the shelves, suddenly a crow cawed twice and flew out from some corner, landing above her head. Then, with a thud, something fell from the shelf. Youjun looked closely and saw that it was a small, black lacquered wooden jewelry box, about the size of her palm.
She picked it up, finding it a suitable size, and blew away the accumulated dust, revealing exquisite mother-of-pearl patterns. The sides of the box featured connected patterns of colorful clouds chasing the moon, while the front depicted a graceful image of Chang'e, the Moon Goddess, holding a jade rabbit in her arms. It was an incredible coincidence, as Jiu Li was born in the Year of the Rabbit.
The box gradually released an ancient sandalwood fragrance in her hands, like a wisp of soul winding and coiling around her. She smiled, holding the box, her eyes fixed on it, as if she couldn't see anything else. Suddenly, she seemed to hear a sound in her ear, a high-pitched, delicate woman's voice, like two rows of a woman's soft, white teeth suddenly biting into her ear.
She turned around abruptly and saw Niangzhuang and the shopkeeper standing behind her. The door had been closed sometime earlier, making the room even darker. The room was filled with the scent of sandalwood, like being trapped in a coffin.
She was a little suspicious. "Did you hear that?"
The woman asked, "What did you hear?"
"There's a woman laughing. Isn't it you?"
“It wasn’t me.” Niangzhuang shook her head, her face full of doubt. “Miss, you must have misheard.”
Youjun frowned. It was clearly right next to her ear, a sound that seemed to be both crying and laughing. She glanced suspiciously around the storeroom and saw a dark shadow curled up in the corner—it was a living creature. She cautiously approached, and the thing suddenly jumped up, meowed, and disappeared. It turned out to be a black cat.
She was truly shocked. She straightened up and turned to the shopkeeper, saying, "Even the storeroom, which we don't go into often, needs to be swept and cleaned regularly. Look at all this dust."
She put the two gemstones into the mother-of-pearl box, then boarded the carriage and headed back, turning onto Liuli Street. From the carriage, she saw that the guests at Tongshou Hall had all left, and the ground in front of the door was covered with fallen petals, like a theater after a performance, with fruit peels and melon seed shells scattered all over the ground. The setting sun shone on the row of greasy medicine cabinets behind the counter, where Yu Qi was inspecting the small drawers with his back turned. Behind him, dust floated in the air, creating a desolate scene.
She suddenly thought of Cai Jin and said hesitantly, "It's getting late, I'll send it tomorrow."
Just as she was about to lower the curtain, she saw two people emerge from the alley next to the shop. One was Qi Xubai, and the other was Jiuli. They were truly a perfect couple. She let go of her hand and smiled knowingly inside the carriage.
Yu Qi turned around, just as the carriage passed by the shop. He went to the counter, walked to the door, and looked out onto the street. There were few pedestrians, and most of the surrounding shops were closed. In the afterglow of the setting sun, even the once prosperous city of Nanjing seemed deserted. Looking this way, he saw Jiu Li and Xu Bai standing at the alley entrance, probably coming out from the ceremonial gate and waiting for the carriage.
The afterglow spread across the ground as if on fire, forcing him to step back inside the door. He listened intently, but heard nothing.
Jiuli said, "Thank you."
Xu Bai paused for a moment, then turned to look at her. "What are you thanking me for?"
"In the afternoon, I heard from Brother Zhang that the Ministry of Justice reviewed Lin Mo's case and ultimately found Meng Ran guilty of private revenge. She should have been innocent, but she was also accused by Master Li and had to serve six months in prison before she could go home."
So that's what they were talking about. Xu Bai had almost forgotten what Meng Ran looked like, let alone how he remembered to defend her. But looking at her bright, smiling face in the setting sun, he decided to take the credit and nodded with a smile, "No need to thank me."
Her suggestion reminded him, so he took out a silver ingot and handed it over. "Now that your pharmacy has opened, I'd like to trouble you to get some medicine for Old Man Meng and give it to Sister Zhou. They are neighbors and have always had a good relationship. She'll probably take care of Old Man Meng."
Jiuli refused, saying, "Hey, my family owns a pharmacy, why would I need you to spend so much money?"
"You mentioned it to Mr. Yu last time, didn't he forbid you from dispensing medicine for free? It's just money, nothing to fuss about, why make him angry?"
The carriage arrived, and he hesitated to withdraw his hand. Jiu Li had no choice but to accept it and watch him board the carriage. Once he was seated, he lifted the curtain and said with a smile, "I'm not just saying this as a polite gesture when I invited you to my home. I'll send an invitation to Mr. Yu in a couple of days. You must come."
She held the silver and nodded repeatedly, suddenly realizing that his smiling face was somewhat childlike, making it impossible not to fulfill his requests, and naturally ignoring her own feelings.
She walked into the shop and saw Yu Qi standing behind the counter, head down, working on an abacus. She placed the silver ingot on the counter and said, "Now I can finally get medicine for Old Man Meng, right?"
Yu Qi guessed that Xu Bai had given it to him. He glanced at the silver but didn't look up. "Give it back to him."
"Why?"
Why would you accept money from someone else for no reason?
She glanced at it dismissively. "This isn't for me! Someone paid me to get medicine for Old Man Meng. Just because you're not kind-hearted doesn't mean you can't allow others to do good deeds."
He chuckled, "Lord Qi is so busy with state affairs, would he have time to concern himself with the affairs of such insignificant people?"
Jiuli sometimes really couldn't understand him. He clearly disliked Xu Bai's writing, yet he insisted on writing letters to the old lady. It seems that even he himself couldn't figure out this contradiction. People often live their lives in such a muddle.
She stretched out her arm, gently fiddling with the abacus beads, her face lowered, "Look at how you're describing people. They've really done their best in Meng Ran's matter. Otherwise, if Meng Ran had arbitrarily convicted that Lord Wang, wouldn't that have cost her her life? Well, I heard from Brother Zhang that she'll only be detained for a few months, and then she'll be released."
Yu Qi raised his head, lifted the abacus, and with a whoosh, all the pieces returned to zero. He didn't argue, but simply took the silver and asked, "What kind of medicine do you want?"
"I don't know, I can't figure out what's wrong with him." She rested her elbows on the counter, offering a fawning smile. "Why don't you take a look?"
He sneered, "I'm not that kind of person."
Jiuli had anticipated his response and didn't hold out much hope. She simply raised her eyebrows slightly and pursed her lips, letting it go.
The next morning, after having breakfast, Jiuli went back to her room for a nap. Unable to sleep, she sat on the couch and opened the window, only to see Yu Qi coming out of the east wing across the street. He was wearing a dark blue round-necked robe and black silk shoes, as if he were about to go out. Just as she was about to ask, Yu Qi waved to her first. She smiled and quickly ran out, going around to the other side. Du Zhong also happened to come in from the front yard and told her that he had already hired a carriage.
"Hired a carriage? Where is Uncle going so early in the morning?"
Yu Qi didn't answer, but casually glanced at her and asked, "Are you going or not?"
Who cares where he goes? I'd love to go out with him anyway. She nodded emphatically, heading back to her room to change. Afraid he wouldn't wait for her, she turned back every few steps, saying, "Wait for me!"
She came out but couldn't find him. She hurriedly ran to the shop and saw him talking to Fengqiao. Her heart relaxed, and she happily got into the carriage to wait for him.
Du Zhongzao sat inside carrying his medicine chest. She sat opposite him and asked, "Where are we going?"
"Weren't you going to see Old Man Meng for a medical consultation? Didn't you know?"
"My uncle said yesterday that he wouldn't care."
"Didn't Qi Xubai give me the silver? Master said early this morning that if you take someone's money, you have to do their bidding. Anyway, that silver ingot will be more than enough for medical treatment and medicine."
Jiuli was delighted, but rolled her eyes, "He knows there will be leeway even before he's even examined you?" Just then, Yu Qi got into the car, and she quickly greeted him with a sweet smile, "Uncle."
Ping'an Lane was about an hour's drive from Liuli Street. Jiuli was so sleepy in the carriage that she leaned her head on Yu Qi's shoulder. Yu Qi glanced at her, then closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, pretending to sleep. However, the sweet rose scent emanating from her kept getting to him, making it impossible for him to fall asleep. He had no choice but to open his eyes again and glance at her thick, curled eyelashes. A sliver of light filtering through the curtain danced on her eyelids, making her restless. So he reached out and pulled the corner of the curtain, as if he were embracing her.
As she passed the entrance to the Lychee Garden, a commotion woke Jiu Li. She peeked through the small curtain and saw several bricklayers, carpenters, and gardeners pushing carts in and out; it seemed they were decorating. Could it be that this garden really had been bought by that Chu Fengchun from last time?
She suspiciously lowered the curtain and glanced over. Yu Qi's shoulder was wet; she guessed it was from her drool. Embarrassed, she took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth and then wiped his clothes. Du Zhong chuckled across the room, so she threw the handkerchief at his face and glared at him fiercely.
Upon arriving at the Meng family home, they first went to find Aunt Zhou, and together they went to the Meng family home to examine Old Man Meng. Old Man Meng was lying in bed, staring blankly at the group. "Where is Xiao Ran? Where did she go? Why hasn't she come home after all this time?"
Aunt Zhou hurriedly smiled and said, "Didn't I tell you, Miss Xiao Ran went to work for a wealthy family?"
"What kind of work do you have to do these days?"
"It's a wedding, and many things need to be made before the wedding, so Miss Xiaoran is staying at the manor for the time being. Don't worry, Miss Xiaoran told me before she left that she wanted me to take care of you. Miss Xiaoran has gone to make a lot of money. Look, she hired a famous doctor for you outside, and he's here today to examine you."
He then stepped aside to allow Yu Qi to take his pulse. After the examination, he found nothing seriously wrong, but the man was often paralyzed on his bed and unable to move, so various illnesses began to appear.
He stood up and said, "Even if the lower half of your body is immobile, you should still move the parts that can move every day. Since they are muscles and bones, they should be stretched out, and you should also go outside to bask in the sun often."
Aunt Zhou invited the group out, saying with feigned difficulty, "He is partially paralyzed. Even if my mother-in-law and I are home all the time, we still can't get him to move."
Jiuli squeezed forward and said, "Sister Zhou, isn't your husband a furniture maker? Does he know how to take a taxi? If he does, I'll pay for a taxi pass for Old Man Meng to use. Wouldn't that make things easier for him?"
As he spoke, he took out a tael of silver from his purse and was about to hand it over when he turned to look at Yu Qi's expression and snorted, "I'm using my own monthly allowance. At worst, I'll just buy fewer odds and ends this month."
Therefore, Yu Qi could not say anything to her and walked into the courtyard first. He heard Zhou Sao laughing and saying to her from behind, "I heard from my mother that a young and beautiful couple came to our house and said they wanted to make a bed. They asked a lot of questions. I thought at the time that it was probably Miss and Lord Qi. Sure enough, how would Miss know that my husband can make furniture?"
Du Zhong, walking beside him, also heard this and wished he could bury his head in the ground of the Meng family's house. Yu Qi gave him a sharp glance, then turned to look at Jiu Li, who quickly chuckled, "Oh dear, that was all your old lady's guess!"
After speaking, she hurriedly ran to Yu Qi, her head bowed as if she had done something wrong. As they walked out of Ping'an Lane and onto the palanquin, she dared not look at him, afraid of being scolded.
Sure enough, as soon as he sat down, Yu Qi said coldly, "They guessed wrong, can't you even say a word in your defense?"
She could only mutter under her breath, "It's not a big deal."
"If a young woman's reputation is not important, what else is?"
She glanced at him sideways. "Is reputation more important than life?"
"Was it a matter of life and death for you back then?" He just stared coldly at her. "If it wasn't a matter of life and death, why did you let people smear you with a man in such an ambiguous way? If word got out, who would want to propose marriage to you in the future?"
This displeased her, so she simply raised her head and said, "Do you still need someone to come and propose marriage? Don't you already have someone in mind? You even invited the old lady here, and now you're saying such things."
"It's just a candidate, it might not necessarily be him."
She turned her face to the side. "If we're going to choose someone, why can't it be him? What's the point of all this fuss?"
Yu Qi felt a surge of anger. "That's choosing a husband for you. Do you think it's something casual?"
She choked back a word, her neck stiffening as she retorted, "If I absolutely have to choose, I'd rather choose him!"
This "what if" leaves room for maneuver, but Yu Qi simply cannot circumvent that. He stared at her silently, and finally had no choice but to turn his eyes away helplessly.
Du Zhong's eyes darted around, fearing the gunpowder would burn him, so he huddled in a corner, barely daring to breathe, wishing no one could see him at that moment.
Returning home, the sun was high in the sky. Jiuli jumped down from the carriage, feeling thirsty. Ignoring everyone, he hurried through the shops and went straight to the back to drink tea. Just as he entered the second courtyard, he heard people laughing and talking in the main room. Two of them were an old lady and Yuqing, and there was a woman's voice that sounded familiar, but he couldn't remember who it was.
Upon entering the room, one could see some items on the table in the outer room, clearly gifts from someone. Looking further to the right through the screen, one could see Guan Youjun and the old lady sitting on the couch talking, with Yuqing and Niangzhuang sitting opposite them on stools, each of the four of them holding a bowl of iced cheese and eating.
The old lady turned her head and saw Jiuli come in. She smiled at Youjun and said, "Look, you're back. Our girl can never sit still at home. When we were in the countryside, she loved to take the girl for a walk around the mountains."
As she spoke, she pulled Jiuli closer to look at her face, scolding her playfully, "It's so hot outside today, look at how sweaty you are. The city is not like the countryside, where everyone knows each other. I think there are more people in Nanjing than in Suzhou, all coming and going from the south and north. There might be thieves among them, yet you insisted on going out with your uncle. Where are your uncle and Du Zhong?"
"She's drafting a prescription in the shop." Jiuli saw that the old lady was holding a new Suzhou embroidery fan, and when she saw that Youjun had a similar one, she knew that it was a gift from Youjun. She then walked up to Youjun and curtsied, "Aunt Guan."
Youjun, fanning herself, said, "Miss, are you hot from running around outside? Luckily, I brought two fans with me. The old lady just picked one up, and there's still one left. Niangzhuang, go and get it."
Niangzhuang got up, took out a screen, brought in a flat box, opened it for Jiuli to see, and the old lady also peeked in, then looked at the fan in her hand, "I just picked this one randomly, see which one you like, I'll give it to you."
Youjun smiled from the side, "The old lady really dotes on her granddaughter, no wonder Miss Yu'er has this kind of personality."
Seeing that the old lady had already accepted the gift, Jiuli felt it would be impolite to refuse. So he took out the fan to express his gratitude, sat down next to the old lady, and craned his neck, saying, "Auntie, you are a very important person and you are always busy. How come you have time to come to my house today?"
Youjun smiled and said, "I heard that your pharmacy opened yesterday. I should have come to congratulate you yesterday, but I was busy with other things and didn't have time, so I'm late."
As they spoke, several pairs of eyes turned to the outer room upon hearing Yu Qi enter. Youjun glanced at him briefly before turning her gaze back to the old lady and smiling, "Mr. Yu is here. Where is the young master?"
Yu Qi said, "Du Zhong is still out there preparing medicine."
The old lady noticed that there was a layer of sweat on his forehead, and she wanted to say something but couldn't open her mouth, so she could only glance at Yuqing.
Yuqing went out to greet him, "Would the master like tea or chilled cheese?"
"Have some tea." He walked gracefully behind the screen and saw that Old Madam Jiuli was holding two new fans in her hands, which she guessed were gifts from Youjun. He bowed to her and said, "How could I dare to trouble Miss Guan to spend so much?"
Youjun smiled and said, “It’s not much of a expense. These are all our own products. The market prices outside sound intimidating, but they don’t actually cost much. I heard that your house was very lively yesterday. Almost all the well-known doctors and pharmacists in Nanjing came, and even Lord Wang and Vice Minister Zhao of the Ministry of Personnel came to offer their congratulations. How could I not come in person? So I prepared a small gift and came here. Please forgive my abruptness, sir.”
Then she had her maid bring in the remaining small boxes. One of them was a long, narrow brocade box. Inside was a ginseng of excellent quality. She said, “A few years ago, one of our shopkeepers went to Liaodong and got some good ginseng, which he gave to me. I’ve been keeping it at home and haven’t been able to use it. I thought it might be useful at your pharmacy, so I brought one for you as a congratulatory gift.”
Yu Qi glanced at the box and smiled, "Such a precious gift, I am unworthy to accept it. Miss, you should take it back for your own use."
"So many people came to congratulate you yesterday, and I'm sure they brought quite a few gifts. Are you not going to accept them all, sir?" Youjun turned to the old lady with a smile. "Sir, you helped me a lot in the past. If it weren't for you, my brother would probably still be dying with regrets. If you don't accept my gift, I'll just assume that you look down on me or don't like this gift. Or maybe you're afraid that this gift will be too much for you, and that I might need your help in the future?"
As she spoke, she smiled and turned to look at Yu Qi, "Sir, please rest assured, I, Guan Youjun, have been doing business in Nanjing for ten years and have rarely asked anyone for favors."
“I have never been able to help you much, Miss.” Yu Qi didn’t like to argue with people, so he could only nod. “Then I can only accept it. Keeping the ginseng in my shop is just for safekeeping. If you need it in the future, Miss, please feel free to come and get it.”
Youjun said to the old lady, "Mr. Yu is too polite."
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Author's note: Thank you for reading.
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