Chapter 10 World One
The spices are mostly made of sandalwood, water, wine, or processed tea leaves, and the aroma can be strong or weak.
But the flavor always fades, and eventually the carefully crafted spices end up as a pile of useless waste.
It is often placed in sachets, or mixed with coarse grains and sewn into soft pillows to ensure a good sleep.
Bao Shan went to the spice shop, hoping to learn some methods of preserving fragrance, but the response he got was nothing more than—
There is no other common way except to stay away from hot and humid places.
Baoshan bought some of every kind of spice, and when she came out of the shop, her whole body was scented with fragrance.
Just as she walked out of the shop, several people blocked her way. Looking at Zhang Shang in front of her, Baoshan frowned.
Zhang Shang stared at the treasure fan intently. Just as he raised his foot to take two steps forward, the pain in his right hand suddenly woke him up.
He took a deep breath and smelled only a fragrant scent, a mixture of several aromas, which did not seem strange to him.
Instead, it feels like falling into a fairyland, filled with fragrant aroma.
"How about I buy all the spices in the shop and give them to you?"
"No need to send me off."
Seeing her defensive look, Zhang Shang's burning passion cooled down a bit, and he spoke slowly.
"I was impulsive that day and didn't consider your feelings.
But Baoshan, my feelings for you are evident to all, and will never be false.
If you are willing to return to the Zhang Mansion with me, I will marry you immediately and give you the title of Madam."
Baoshan was unmoved. She fluttered her eyelashes and spoke word by word.
"My uncle and my parents were once close friends. Let's not talk about what happened back then. I'm now by the young marquis's side, and I prioritize him in everything.
You and I are strangers now, so don't mention anything like marriage anymore."
Zhang Shang was speechless.
"Young Marquis?"
The attendant beside him quickly explained that it was the young Marquis Mu, the disaster relief envoy from the capital, and the one who injured Zhang Shang's right hand.
Bao Shan didn't want to talk to them any more, so she walked around Zhang Shang and the others and left.
Zhang Shang's eyes were bloodshot, and his intact left hand was crackling, but he restrained himself from chasing after him.
Bao Shan used the spices he bought and tried many methods, and finally came up with a simple one.
She did not go looking for Feng Hui, but went directly to find Mu Nanxing.
"I have a way to preserve the fragrance. It can keep the fragrance longer."
Mu Nanxing had already learned from Feng Hui that she had this method, so she was not surprised.
Hearing Bao Shan's words, Mu Nanxing's eyes were moved. He took out a golden nanmu box from the luggage in the cabinet, which was engraved with lotus patterns.
Mu Nanxing took out a sachet and handed it to Baoshan.
The sachet was placed in Baoshan's hand. It was about half the size of a palm and was made of the finest silk. Judging from the needlework and thread, it didn't look like it was made by an embroiderer. The embroidery works of embroiderers were usually dense and delicate, and rarely made mistakes.
It was probably made by a girl in the boudoir, and it was a practice piece. There were some mistakes in the stitches, so they had to be taken apart and re-embroidered.
There are several orchids embroidered on the sachet. The emerald green threads converge into orchid leaves, and at the top are changed into silver-white threads, embroidered into the shape of orchids.
Bao Shan gently stroked the sachet with his fingers. On the lower right corner of the sachet, a single character, "羽," was emblazoned in the same orchid color. The color was much paler than the orchid itself, likely due to its owner's frequent caressing.
Baoshan's heart moved slightly, and a look of curiosity appeared on his face.
"Who embroidered this? The material of this sachet is not suitable for holding spices."
As Bao Shan spoke, her slender fingers pointed at a corner of the sachet. She rubbed it gently and then placed it in front of Mu Nanxing.
Her slender fingers looked particularly white against the yellow silk.
Following the slender fingers upwards, there is her soft and boneless palm, which is like the finest white jade, making people unable to resist touching and playing with it.
But the owner of the hand seemed unaware and was explaining why the sachet should not retain fragrance.
"This kind of fine silk easily lets its fragrance escape. It's like a clay pot with a hole in it. Even the most mellow and strong wine will lose its aroma if placed in it."
Mu Nanxing's tone was slightly deep.
"It was a gift from an old friend."
It cannot be changed.
Baoshan loosened her hands that were kneading the fine silk and asked softly.
"Is this sachet important?"
Mu Nanxing looked at her, and Baoshan's momentary depression was easily noticeable.
He didn't have to answer this question. If the sachet was not important, why would he put it in the box and why would he look for a way to preserve the fragrance?
Baoshan raised her eyes, which were full of brightness, but her willow brows were shrouded in sorrow.
"It's okay not to change the sachet, but it will just take a little more effort."
Baoshan loosened the sachet's string and poured the spices inside into her palm. The finely crushed brown spices spread across her palm.
It feels a little dry to the touch, but when I sniff it with my nose, the smell isn't too strong.
In addition, the sachet is showing signs of being worn, which shows that it has been stored for a long time, and its owner wants to keep it for even longer.
The spices were poured back into the sachet without missing a single grain, and the precious fan was tied up again.
She sewed a cloth bag with white cloth, which was slightly smaller than the sachet. She brushed a layer of clean water on the inside and outside of the bag, poured all the spices into the bag, and then placed the bag in the sachet.
Mu Nanxing took it and felt that the fragrance was stronger than before.
“No matter what method you use, spices will eventually lose their flavor.
If the young marquis really likes this taste, he might as well go to the spice shop and ask the clerk to help him mix some so that he can replace it frequently.
If the spice is precious and the clerk cannot identify it, the young marquis will go and ask the old friend if he can give him some more."
Mu Nanxing thought of Li Qingyu, the gentle look in her eyes when she embroidered the sachet, and her momentary confusion when he took the sachet away from her.
Go ask Li Qingyu for it?
If it were any other time, Mu Nanxing would have been delighted. He had found such a good way to talk to Li Qingyu for a few more words, but now...
Mu Nanxing felt more timid than happy.
This sachet carries the affection in his heart because he values this affection.
So he treasured it very much, but never brought it to Li Qingyu.
Mu Nanxing withdrew his thoughts and looked at Baoshan, who was treating the sachet with such care, as if he saw himself.
The problem of preserving the fragrance was solved, but Baoshan did not leave. A hint of hesitation flashed across her face, but she still spoke.
"Today, I met Zhang Shang again. For the sake of our friendship with Uncle Zhang and my parents, I will no longer hold grudges against him about what happened before."
Although Bao Shan stayed beside Mu Nanxing as a maid, she did not want Mu Nanxing to treat her as a maid.
It is natural for me to be kind to the young marquis. It is the natural law of nature.
But Baoshan's kindness to Mu Nanxing had other intentions, and Mu Nanxing should know that.
When a maid is wronged or frightened, she should keep it in her heart and not cause trouble to her master. This is what a loyal servant does.
But Baoshan is a woman. Because of her fear and worry, she seeks the care of a man. She wants the man to be her support and to provide shelter for her helpless body.
“I thought that since I listened to Uncle Zhang and put an end to the matter, I would not be disturbed by it.
But after meeting Zhang Shang today, I couldn't move a single step.
Thinking back to what happened that day, I am still scared, even more so than before.
As for Zhang Shang, I can’t forgive him either. When I see him, I only feel disgust and fear…”
As Bao Shan spoke, tears filled her eyes. Mu Nanxing still held the sachet in her hand, which she placed horizontally on the table.
There were only a few fingers between the two of them, and Bao Shan suddenly grabbed Mu Nanxing's hand and held her in her arms.
"Young Marquis..."
As soon as the three words came out, the sparkling water light, like a broken string of pearls, fell slowly onto Mu Nanxing's hand and onto the sachet he was holding tightly, leaving a few water marks.
Mu Nanxing was initially annoyed by being touched, but the plaintive, mournful words, "Young Marquis," burned him like a stone in the chest.
When a beautiful woman cries, it is hard not to feel pity and sympathy for her.
This has nothing to do with the love between men and women, it is just that beautiful things always make people sigh when they are destroyed.
Moreover, Bao Shan's hair was slightly disheveled from crying, but she still looked pitiful and sympathetic. Her eyes, washed by tears, were even brighter. But inside them, there was a shimmering light, and pearl-like tears hung in her eye sockets.
Because she was stimulated, she regarded Mu Nanxing as her only support at this time, like a drowning person, clinging to the only life-saving plank.
If the plank were pulled from such a woman's hands, leaving her to sink into the river of fear, unable to breathe, how cold-hearted and hard-hearted she would be.
Bao Shan gently pulled Mu Nanxing's hand. Even though she was afraid, she didn't use any strength, squeezing Mu Nanxing's hand until it turned red. She just hugged it with both hands, like a young bird, protecting its support and not letting anyone take it away.
Even if she used all her strength, Mu Nanxing could easily let go, not to mention that she was just holding it loosely.
Because of crying, the words she spoke were intermittent and could not form a complete sentence.
"I've never hated such a person in my life... I was saddened by the treason, but I'm still thankful... I'm thankful I'm still alive..."
The hands of the two people, the man and the woman, are really very different in size.
Baoshan could barely hold one of Mu Nanxing's hands with both hands.
When Mu Nanxing saw the sachet, he remembered Bao Shan’s visit today and was absent-minded for a few moments.
She was frightened when she went out today, but she still came here, embroidered the cloth bag for him, and found a way to preserve the fragrance.
She probably didn't want to talk about it today. She started by saying that she met Zhang Shang, and everything that happened afterwards was probably beyond her expectations.
Mu Nanxing did not pull his hand out of the treasure fan, probably because she had found a way to preserve the fragrance for him.
Until Baoshan held it with both hands, and covered the large but warm palms with two touches of unusual softness.
In an instant, it was as if I fell into the land of tenderness, so tender and sad.
But Mu Nanxing immediately stood up and pulled out his hand, which should have been taken out long ago.
A thin layer of sweat appeared on the tip of his tall nose, his eyes were slightly wide open, and although the color of his face did not change, his neck was already red.
"Young Marquis?"
Bao Shan still looked innocent. Mu Nanxing was about to scold her sternly and tell her not to enter or leave his house in the future.
Baoshan seemed to be frightened by his appearance at this moment, and tears rolled down her face, looking so pitiful.
"go out."
Baoshan spoke softly.
When the redness on Mu Nanxing's neck faded, he found that the sachet he had been holding tightly in his hand had disappeared.
Mu Nanxing was anxious and searched hurriedly, and finally found the sachet at the corner of the table.
It's just that it has been squeezed into pieces.
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