Chapter 38: The fish lanterns on the branches of the double-fruited fruit tree are turning
After seeing her, Lu Lan did not stay for long. He just stood there for a while and then turned around to lead his horse.
"Lord Lu."
"Um?"
"Um...Xiangxiang prepared mung bean tea for you at home."
Wei Jinyun placed his hand on the cart handle, rubbing it back and forth. "Remember to drink it when you get home."
Lu Lan turned around and said, "I just had some at home. It was delicious."
His eyes swept over her sunburned face again, and he spoke gently, "It's easy to get sunstroke in hot weather. Eat more."
She seems to have lost a lot of weight.
Yuanbao led two younger brothers out of the shop to greet him. Lu Lan waved to it, took out a dried loach from the oil paper in his arms, and fed it one.
Yuanbao quickly finished chewing and rubbed his palm. Lu Lan's brows relaxed, and he held it in his arms and tickled its chin. He was very good at making his raccoon happy.
"I didn't eat it."
Lu Lan looked up and saw her dazed look. He explained, "There are quite a few raccoon slaves at Changmen, so I brought some with me."
She nodded.
Lu Lan teased Yuanbao for a moment, then returned to his horse. As he passed her, he noticed the scholar next door was looking at him unfriendly. He raised his eyes, scanning the man with undisguised scrutiny.
Zhang Renbai was startled by the look and quickly lowered his head.
Until Lu Lan's figure passed the arch bridge and slowly disappeared from Wei Jinyun's sight, she frowned slightly and asked her sister, "Can eating more cure sunstroke?"
She had been influenced by her grandfather since she was a child, and she knew that sunstroke could be treated with acupuncture or by prescribing herbs like patchouli water, Poria cocos, and Atractylodes macrocephala...
Wei Jinyun thought for a while before noticing that Lu Lan was heading back towards Changmen. Recalling how tired he looked just now, he suddenly began to curse those vicious pirates in his heart.
"Yes, yes."
Wei Fuling smiled until her eyes narrowed into slits. She rubbed Maodou's yellow fur and made small dimples on it with her fingers. "Sister, eat more and you will be healthy. If you are healthy, you will not get sick."
"well."
Wei Fuqiu rubbed Yuanbao's belly as he rolled on the ground, "Master Yuanbao was bribed by a little loach, right?"
When she got home today, the first thing she touched was not Luffa's head. Luffa was deeply hurt. He immediately lay down in front of her and rolled over like Yuanbao.
"Master Lu has worked so hard."
Seeing Lu Lan leave, Xiao Zhang held his trowel and said, "It may seem so lively in Changmen, but the pirates outside Pingjiang Prefecture are really bad."
"right."
Erniu also nodded and said, "Master Lu has gone back to the Changmen Wharf again. I really want to wipe out those pirates!"
They were not curious about the reason why Lu Lan came. They just kept muttering about killing the pirates and turned around to scrape the putty again.
Wang Qiulan's dinner, at the request of her granddaughters, has recently stopped with stir-fried loofah and edamame. However, these two dishes still appear on the table: loofah and egg drop soup, and stir-fried edamame with pickles.
People in Pingjiang Prefecture are obsessed with them in summer.
The two younger sisters piled up a mountain of meat in Wei Jinyun's bowl, including peeled white shrimps and meat-stuffed stewed eggs, making sure to replenish their sister's flesh.
The night is more comfortable than the day. The moisture from the Lindun River and the Bifengfang River is blown by the night wind, passing through the shops in front of Tianqing Temple, bringing them a touch of coolness.
Grandma made a lily and lotus seed soup, cooled it in well water, and drank a bowl before bed, which quenched her thirst and soothed her mind. Wei Jinyun drifted off to sleep, pondering the filling and mold for the cookies.
Yuanbao seemed to appear in her dream, circling around her while she was making snacks, meowing with his pair of green eyes.
*
The rooster at Mengge'er's house crowed later today, and its voice wasn't as loud. Yuanbao leaped onto the wall to take a look. He saw it standing there, looking listless. The rooster raised its head to look at Yuanbao, and saw the chicken feather toy Yuanbao was showing off in his mouth. It crowed loudly, rushed onto the water tank, and used the momentum to flutter up to the top of the wall.
It didn't have Yuanbao's agility, and it pounced directly into Wei Jinyun's yard. When it landed, it finally realized that besides Yuanbao, there were two other figures below.
Yuanbao stands in the middle and the younger brothers stand on both sides.
The big rooster stared at them with his eyes rolling around, and soon he was chased so hard that he screamed and yelled, "The insidious kitten is bullying the weak with its numbers." He gathered all his strength and pounced back, leaving chicken feathers all over the ground.
Wei Jinyun rose early in the morning and stood in the kitchen, making jam. There were bayberries, peaches, and fresh pomegranates, big and plump, with flesh as bright red as agate, and you could squeeze out a sweet juice.
I made a lot of glutinous rice cakes today, so I didn't have time to go to the prefectural school in the afternoon. After completing the order for Zhang's Stationery Shop, the remaining dozen or so pieces were packed by the idle young man and mung bean soup and delivered together.
Qiaoguo comes in various shapes and is also called Xiaoyan'er. It is a fruit made from oil, flour and molasses. It is a must-eat during the Qiqiao Festival on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
Wei Jinyun kneaded a large amount of dough on the chopping board, mixing it with red yeast rice, gardenia flowers, water celery, and pomegranate juice to create various colors. She planned to steam half of it and mix it with red dates, candied beans, and sesame candy, while baking the other half and stuffing it with jam.
She pinched the dough into thin pieces, rolled them out, filled them with candied bean paste and sesame candy, and slowly molded them into shapes. Rabbits, little birds, carp. With a pinch, a pinch, the dough instantly became a flock of tiny, leaping creatures. She couldn't waste the old molds, either. Jasmine and Peony molds were used, so she just gently pressed the dough into them, saving her a lot of effort.
The charcoal fire crackled in the clay stove, and steam rose from the steamer. The aroma of noodles, candied dates, sesame seeds, and the sour and sweet taste of jam filled the kitchen and drifted through the windows to the shops.
In order to avoid fainting from the heat in the kitchen, Wei Jinyun had already prepared all the snacks at dawn, and sat in the yard to drink two bowls of ice-cold lily and lotus seed soup.
Wei Fuqiu and Wei Fuling wore the new clothes Wang Qiulan had made them and spread their favorite books on the stone table to dry. The seventh day of the seventh month, at the transition between summer and autumn, was a good time to dry books to prevent them from getting bookworms.
"Sister, grandma has also made new clothes for you, go and put them on quickly."
Wei Fuqiu saw Wei Jinyun lying in a rattan chair, rocking and eating watermelon seeds, and she almost pushed the rattan chair into the bathroom with Wei Fuling.
In the corner of the kitchen was a small room, about a foot wide, built last month to serve as a bathroom. Wei Jinyun had been sweating profusely lately, and had to go to the bathroom several times a day to shower.
The tub in the bathhouse would be filled with well water, boiled and cooled by Wang Qiulan during the day, so it was convenient to add more hot water. During the Song Dynasty, many shops sold bath beans. These bubbles formed when you rubbed them with water, much like soap, and could be used for bathing or facial cleansing, with a variety of scents to choose from. They were a bit pricey, costing a hundred coins each. Fortunately, they were durable, stored in several small wicker baskets, one for each person, and lasted for months for the four of them.
There was also a shop selling mint rose water and herbal ointment, which were used to cool the body and repel mosquitoes. They were all kept on the second floor. After earning money, Wei Jinyun bought these necessities for himself and his family without any scrimping.
Wang Qiulan's needlework was so exquisite that she could be a seamstress. The ramie cloth Wei Jinyun had recently bought was thinner than her previous woven fabric, making it light and breathable. She fashioned it into a sky-blue jacket and a lotus-pink folded skirt, embroidered with delicate clusters of blooming jasmine.
"Sister is so beautiful."
Wei Fuqiu held Maodou in her arms and watched Wei Jinyun drying her hair. The half-dried black hair mixed with the faint scent of Poria cocos was blown onto her face by the oncoming breeze. She felt that her sister was fragrant all over.
Wei Jinyun had a rare moment of leisure. She had been busy for more than an hour in the morning preparing snacks and mung bean soup. Now she sat down to chat and laugh with her sister, tease the cat and play with the puppy. She felt very comfortable.
The seventh day of the seventh month started to get lively from daytime. There was a constant stream of people in front of the shops in front of Tianqing Temple. They were all wearing all kinds of clothes, and even their hair was combed higher than usual, with beautiful hair flowers and pearl hairpins in their hair.
A girl, carrying a bamboo basket, went from house to house, dyeing the nails of guests who called her with marigolds. She brought her own bamboo stool, and in the basket were freshly picked marigold petals, red and pink piled together, with a stone mortar and a bag of alum powder beside them.
"Sister, dye yours too."
Wei Fuling looked at her with envy, and when the girl reached the door of the shop, she gently shook Wei Jinyun's arm.
"My sister makes desserts, and the guests like clean hands."
Wei Jinyun shook her hair, reached out to call the girl who was dyeing her nails, and chuckled, "Dye one for Sister Qi and Sister Ling."
The girl, named A Yuan, looked young, but she was very experienced in painting her nails.
Wei Fuling moved a small stool over, and A Yuan picked a handful of the brightest red petals, mixed in a pinch of alum, and pounded them carefully in a stone mortar. Soon it became a sticky floral paste.
"Hand out."
A Yuan spoke softly. She dipped a bamboo clip into the floral mud and smeared it across Wei Fuling's nails, achieving the perfect thickness without any excess. She then wrapped it with a fresh leaf and secured it with thin thread. Her hands were steady, neither tightening the thread too tightly nor letting the mud leak out, even filling the cracks between her nails.
Wei Fuqiu wanted to dye her flowers pink, so A Yuan changed them to light pink petals, added less alum, and pounded them finer. The result was a tender peach color, which looked very beautiful.
"Wrap it up and unwrap it at night. It's guaranteed to be bright and translucent, and won't wash out. It's perfect for going to the night market."
As she spoke, she tied a small knot on her wrapped fingers and stared at their two hands raised in the air. She couldn't help laughing, "Your two sisters are really obedient. They can stay still while I dye them."
While Wei Jinyun waited for her younger sister to get her nails dyed, her hair dried. She paid the money, tied her hair up, and combed it for her two younger sisters. Seeing how proud they were, she thought they were going to be beautiful girls for the Qiqiao Festival. Wei Jinyun braided their hair into pigtails, wrapping them around the sides twice, and then added the velvet flowers she had bought for them when she met her great-aunt.
After staying at home and eating watermelon until dusk, Wei Jinyun took her two jumping sisters and pushed the cart to the stall.
The busiest street is Shantang Street.
Every shop already had lanterns hanging, and today there were many more. Vermilion, moon-white, and lilac gauze lanterns hung from the eaves, and the tassels of the lanterns in the corridor swayed gently in the evening breeze, casting shadows.
Qiqiao is a girls' festival, and the women who come and go are the most lively amidst the lanterns. Some hold a round fan, stopping every few steps to chat and laugh with their companions. Young women carrying fish lanterns run, their lanterns reflected in the river beneath the arched bridge, as if fish were chasing after their skirts. Others gather in groups of three or five, discussing which brand's perfume is the finest, which silk feels the smoothest.
The street stalls had already been set up, much earlier than Wei Jinyun.
The gambling stall was the most lively. The stall owner held up a brocade box, which contained small bamboo tools and exquisitely embroidered sachets. Many people gathered around to guess the numbers. Those who won had a lot of laughter, and those who lost were not upset, as they could also try a cherry honey pancake as a consolation prize.
This was the kind of bustling place they were looking for. Wei Jinyun and her sisters carefully pushed their cart through the crowd, stopping at a vacant spot next to the stalls. The peddler thought the spot was too small, but it was perfect for Wei Jinyun's cart.
Behind Wei Jinyun stood a large camphor tree. A row of fish lanterns, each in a different pose, illuminated her countertop. She and her sister had originally prepared lanterns, two lotus lanterns suspended from the tarpaulin of the cart, one on each side. With so many fish lanterns illuminating the area, the two lotus lanterns seemed insignificant.
The night wind blew her banners and made the small windmill on it spin.
As soon as the cart stopped, three or five girls about the same age as Wei Jinyun came over.
Two types of snacks were piled high on a bamboo plate. The rabbits and sparrows were adorable, while the jasmine and peony were delicate, fragrant with dates and sesame. On another plate, the bunny ears were toasted to a golden brown, their tips slightly crispy and a good bit of crispy crumbs scattered on the side.
“What beautiful cookies.”
One of them held up a round fan and couldn't help but sigh, "You have such a skillful hand. How much is one?"
"Six coins."
Wei Fuling stood beside the cart and introduced, "Sister, do you want to try the soft one or the crispy one?"
Seeing her like this, she couldn't help laughing, "Then give me one like this. It's as soft as a bird and as crisp as a rabbit."
She paid the money, took the oil paper bag handed to her by Wei Jinyun, and each took a bite.
The Que'er Qiaoguo (a type of fruit) is plump and springy, soft and fluffy, revealing a juicy, sweetened red date and bean filling. The roasted rabbit, with its crispy crust, crackles with a bite. The tart sweetness of the bayberry bursts forth, punctuated by the sweetness of the pomegranate, making it impossible not to take another bite.
"Is the filling inside fluid?"
She pinched the crispy chocolate and found it novel. She praised Wei Jinyun, "It tastes great."
The qiaoguo (dough cakes) served during the Qiqiao Festival are often colorful and shaped in various shapes, even into figures wearing armor. While eye-catching, they all taste similar and use similar fillings.
She didn't have high expectations for the taste of the cookies, she just wanted to eat them for the festive atmosphere, but she didn't expect that the cookies made by the lady in front of her were surprisingly delicious.
"Que'er, didn't you just eat? Won't you feel indigestion after eating these two?"
The three or two girls around her raised their fans and laughed at her, "Is it really that delicious?"
"Why don't you just buy one and try it?"
The one called Que'er said to Wei Jinyun, "Young lady, please help me pack three more. I will take them back to my parents."
With the support of the Bo Ma stall, more people came to Wei Jinyun, and she was very busy.
The soft and fluffy sesame candy flavor is complemented by a crispy interior that oozes out different jams, creating a sweet and sour taste that helps alleviate the greasiness. The unique flavor makes these snacks sell quickly.
"Ouch, I'm being squeezed to death."
Lu Lingxiang finally squeezed through the crowd and saw that there were only a few cookies left on the table. She sighed, "I'm late!"
"No, Xiangxiang is not late."
Wei Jinyun bent down and took out two large plates from under the table. "Today's snacks are unlimited."
"Quickly pack me a dozen or so and I'll take them to Tangtang. They can't squeeze in."
Lu Lingxiang extended her hand and handed the silver to Wei Fuqiu who had come over. "Jinyun, you really know how to choose a place. You had to put it here in the bomai. It's so crowded."
"Sister Xiangxiang, you are dressed so beautifully today."
Wei Fuqiu stared at Lu Lingxiang, who was wearing a pink silk dress and a pearl hairpin, and handed the wrapped fruit to her.
Lu Lingxiang usually wears tight clothes and jackets, and she is so beautiful that she can't take her eyes off her.
"Sister Qi, be good."
Lu Lingxiang could easily tell the difference between Wei Fuling and Wei Fuqiu. She pinched Wei Fuqiu's face and said, "Sister Xiangxiang will bring you a good book tomorrow."
"Sister Xiangxiang, you are a fairy!"
Lu Lingxiang finally squeezed out, but was pushed by someone from behind. She staggered and almost dropped all the snacks. Fortunately, a hand reached out to her to support her.
But the hand just supported her and then quickly retracted.
"Why are you here?"
Lu Lingxiang looked up and saw Zhan Wenxing, dressed in a dark suit, standing a few steps away, surrounded by flowing colorful lights and crowds of people.
She continued to ask, "Are you in such a hurry? Why is your face so red?"
"Hmm...we're walking a little fast."
Zhan Wenxing's face got even hotter, and he subconsciously reached out to scratch his head, "What a coincidence, Miss Lu, Miss Lu... Do you want a fish, a fish lantern? I bought it on the way."
In his other hand he held a beautiful herring lantern.
"Adjutant Zhan, how many days have you not slept?"
Lu Lingxiang reached out to take the Green Fish Lantern, and lifted it closer to Zhan Wenxing. Her brows knitted slightly, "You have a black eye."
"Water, there are many water bandits."
Zhan Wenxing took two or three steps back. "But there are many people in Pingjiang Prefecture who are begging for Qiao today. It's also night time, and we have to patrol the streets. I'm afraid something might happen."
"Is the second brother here too?"
"Um."
"Help me hold the chocolate."
Zhan Wenxing took the chocolate fruit, but Lu Lingxiang quickly grabbed his leather belt and walked forward with the lantern in hand. "I'll patrol with you. You can take this opportunity to get some sleep."
He was pulled by Lu Lingxiang's leather belt and stumbled through the crowd, heading towards Lu Lantang and others not far away. She distributed the cookies to them and kept two for herself and Zhan Wenxing.
"My leather belt..."
Zhan Wenxing was at a loss as she pulled the leather belt and passed by her sisters.
Everyone held up a round fan and looked at him from left to right.
"Then reach out your hand."
Zhan Wenxing subconsciously rubbed his palms, where calluses were left from years of sword-holding and martial arts practice. He looked at her white hand, which was as smooth as jade under the fish lantern, and was a stark contrast to his own.
"Hmm...a leather belt would be nice."
She is the moon in the sky.
he......
Wei Jinyun took trays of glutinous rice cakes from under the cart, and by the time the vendor nearby closed his stall, she had sold most of the glutinous rice cakes.
The peddler was in great distress. His stall had been going well, but then a few young ladies showed up with brilliant literary talent and won all the goodies he had been given by guessing whatever they said. Fortunately, he had made a good profit today. He ate a honey-fried cake, bought a few glutinous rice cakes from Wei Jinyun, packed up his stall, and went home.
"You are finally clean."
Lu Lantang drank a bowl of lychee paste to moisten his throat, "Please pack me two to bring to Grandpa."
"Look, you've driven away other people's business."
Zhou Zhuqing stood beside Zhou Zhaiyue, waving a round fan, chewing a piece of chocolate fruit in her left hand with relish.
"My sister and Sister Tangtang drove them away together."
Zhou Zhaiyue and the Wei sisters were catching spiders in a jar. There were many spiders under the fish lantern, and they had already caught five or six. They wanted to see how many spider webs they could make tomorrow morning.
Lu Lantang and Zhou Zhuqing were rivals in every aspect, including the hawker stalls. Not only were they guessing the contents of brocade boxes or flipping coins, but they were also competing to see who could pull off the most bamboo rings.
The few close friends following behind her were either wearing hairpins full of pearl hairpins they had won, or holding a few mohe, or carrying rabbits and chicks eating grass in bamboo cages... There was really no room to take them all.
During the Qiqiao (Qiqiao) festival, vendors put in a lot of thought into displaying girls' toys to attract them. They hoped to make a fortune, but they were intercepted halfway.
"Jinyun, do you want to go to the temple fair? There are river lanterns there."
Lu Lantang took the oil-paper package, but when she saw Wei Jinyun's smile, she quickly asked herself and answered, "Forget it, you won't give up until you fill this earthenware jar with money today. Xiangxiang gave you the nickname 'Money Maker', and it's really not a joke. But you better be careful, it's just the three of you sisters now."
Wei Jinyun hummed a few times and stuffed more cookies into the oil-paper bags of the remaining sisters. They each chatted with her for a few moments and gave her the chickens they had bought in the gambling game that day.
The main thing is that carrying a chicken to release river lanterns doesn’t seem very elegant.
"Can you eat all of Grandma's loofah vines?"
Wei Fuling poked the three chickens' heads and said, "This way you're good chickens."
The chicken didn't understand and just stared at her and clucked.
"Never mind, when you grow up, go teach the big rooster from Mengge's house next door a lesson."
Wei Fuling shared the crispy skin of a cookie with the chickens. After a long moment, she muttered, "If we could really eat loofah vines, that would be fantastic."
Although Bo's stall was gone, the crowds in front of Wei Jinyun's cart were no longer so dense, but it was still bustling. From time to time, new customers would be attracted by her chocolates and buy a few.
Wei Fuqiu and Wei Fuling sat on the small bamboo chairs they brought with them, one holding a money jar and the other chatting with the chicks, neither of them feeling bored at all.
"Lord Lu?"
While fiddling with the Qiao Guo, Wei Jinyun caught a glimpse of a corner of a red robe. She looked up and saw Lu Lan again. He was not wearing official clothes, but casual clothes, as if he didn't want to disturb the excitement of the Qi Qiao Festival.
"Qiqiao is in full swing, come and patrol the streets."
"Are you going back to Changmen Wharf later?"
"Um."
Lu Lan frowned, trying to dispel the fatigue of the past few days. His eyes fell on the exquisite snacks for a moment. "You don't need to call me 'you' when you see me."
"Master Lu, do you want to take a nap?"
Wei Fuqiu held the money jar and stood up to offer her small bamboo chair. "As the pride of the people of Pingjiang Prefecture, you must also take care of your health. Otherwise, if you collapse from exhaustion, there will be no one to protect us."
Lu Lan stared at Wei Fuqiu who walked towards her and was a little surprised for a moment.
"I'll set up a stall for another hour."
Wei Jinyun put more than ten snacks in an oil-paper bag and placed them on the table. He lowered his eyes and said, "My Lord, you really need to take care of your health."
The wind continued to blow the small windmills on the table, and they squeaked as they turned. She stared at them, her hand unconsciously stroking the bamboo clips holding the cookies.
"Master Lu, come here quickly!"
Wei Fuling placed the small chair under the camphor tree and waved to Lu Lan.
Lu Lan stood there for a moment and then walked over.
She had her back to him, and when the wind blew, the fish lanterns on the tree rustled, and the falling light and shadow flowed through her hair.
"Master Lu, if you wear this, no one will recognize you."
Wei Fuqiu took out the small sun hat that Wei Jinyun asked Madam Wang to make for them and gently covered Lu Lan's head with it.
"I'll call you later."
Wei Jinyun said in a low voice without turning around.
People continued to come to the cart to buy the glutinous rice cakes. Some noticed the figure under the camphor tree and came to Wei Jinyun's side to mutter, "Madam, why are you selling the fruit by yourself? Can't he get up and help you? You are such a lazy man."
Lu Lan, standing under the camphor tree, raised her hand to adjust the brim of her straw hat.
Wei Jinyun exclaimed "Ah", patted her shoulder when he saw her accept the cookies, and quickly disappeared into the crowd.
When the snacks were almost sold out, Wei Jinyun gave some snacks to herself and her sister as a midnight snack.
She shook the filled earthenware jar with satisfaction. She thought she had earned at least two strings of coins from the chocolates in one night. She really wished every day could be a festival.
Wei Jinyun took a bite of the chocolate fruit in his hand, turned around and saw half of Lu Lan's face with closed eyes revealed through the brim of his hat.
The fish lanterns swayed, casting mottled shadows.
She turned back in a flash.
Today's sesame candy filling is a bit sweet.
-----------------------
The author has something to say: According to my calculations on the lunar calendar, it's already the end of July, and my family of four has been in Pingjiang Prefecture for a month and a half. Today, I'm the Impatiens Ayuan passerby [sunglasses], who came to claim it.
Soliciting names for three little chicks.
Today's sesame filling was praised by all customers, not too sweet. [猫头]
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