"Shopkeeper?"
As they were talking, a slender woman came out from the back room of the spice shop.
"This must be the big boss, right?"
"My name is Zhao Pin'er, and I greet you, sir." A young and gentle woman came forward to greet him.
The woman wore a red plum blossom and gold-threaded jacket, a silver-gilt dragonfly hairpin inlaid with jewels, a gold-threaded white patterned brocade skirt with epiphyllum and rain patterns, and milky satin shoes embroidered with pearls. Her eyelashes were long and thick, slightly curled up like palm-leaf fans.
The stone behind Yun Yishu swallowed hard as it looked at Zhao Pin'er's appearance.
"This is..."
"This is the manager of our spice shop. Let me tell you, Pin'er is one in a hundred. I had to beg her to come all the way from Quanzhou."
"The master is too kind in praising my daughter."
"Master, would you like to take a look at the spices?"
Yun Yishu nodded and walked to the cabinet where the spices were placed.
"Is this Sichuan peppercorn?"
Yun Yishu pointed to the bright red peppercorns in the bag and asked, "These are common peppercorns, and they can be found in the capital, but the aroma and numbing spiciness of these Da Hong Pao peppercorns are much stronger."
"Hmm, these peppercorns look pretty good. They'll smell amazing stir-fried with meat." Shi Tou swallowed hard.
"The boss has a good eye."
"Oh, you even have turmeric! How much is this turmeric?"
"Thirty copper coins per catty, one string of cash for ten catties."
Hearing this amount, Yun Yishu was somewhat surprised. He had originally worried that only high-ranking officials and nobles could afford this turmeric, and that it would likely go unnoticed if left here.
"Why is it so cheap? Is this turmeric from Loulan?"
"This is turmeric produced locally in Quanzhou. Because it is located near Loulan, its quality and appearance are no worse than those from Northern Chu. If it were turmeric from Northern Chu, it would be more expensive than this."
Zhao Pin'er took out a piece of turmeric from a white cloth bag next to her and handed it to Yun Yishu. "This is turmeric that was transported from Loulan yesterday. Please take a look and see if its quality is the same as the turmeric from Nanyang and Quanzhou."
Yun Yishu took the Northern Chu turmeric that Zhao Pin'er handed him, compared the two yellow spices in front of his eyes, smelled them, and nodded slightly.
"Yes, they are indeed similar. The turmeric from Nanyang has a stronger and better flavor than the turmeric transported from Loulan."
Kang Qiming raised an eyebrow at Yun Yishu, looking like he had struck gold.
"Ping'er, I'll leave things here to you. I'm going out for a stroll with Brother Shu."
"Take care, sir." Zhao Pin'er curtsied slightly in farewell.
After leaving the spice shop, Yun Yishu and Kang Qiming strolled around the shops in the area, discussing the market prices, and before they knew it, it was dark.
At night, large lanterns were hung everywhere, illuminating the pitch-black night with extraordinary brightness.
There were acrobats, vendors selling all kinds of snacks, storytellers, and girls performing shadow puppet shows.
"What a lively night!" Shi Tou exclaimed. He had served Yun Yishu in the palace since he was a child and had never seen the night scene of ordinary people.
The stone's little eyes were wide open, greedily taking in the scenery before it.
"you do not say!"
"The night market is truly ablaze with lights, and the tall buildings are bustling with beautiful women!"
"Qiming, can't you speak properly? You keep saying things I can't understand." Yun Yishu gave Kang Qiming a dissatisfied look.
"Okay, okay!"
"You, a prince, can't even write a poem..." Seeing Yun Yishu's murderous look, Kang Qiming swallowed the rest of his sentence.
"By the way, when is your royal sister coming back?"
"My sister wrote to say that she has built a clinic in the northern frontier and is busy saving lives every day."
"The little princess is so lovely and kind-hearted."
"Tell me, why are you so concerned about my imperial sister?"
"Oh dear, we're such good brothers, your sister is like my god-sister, of course I have to take good care of her!" Kang Qiming hooked his arm around Yun Yishu's neck.
“It’s almost dinner time. There are many snacks on this street, let’s eat as we walk,” Kang Qiming suggested.
"They sell crystal cakes here, Stone, go buy some!"
Shi Tou bought three crystal cakes and gave them to Kang Qiming and Yun Yishu.
These crystal cakes have a thin, translucent dough layer, filled with various flavored fillings, including sweet ones like red bean and black sesame, and savory ones like mung bean, corn, and pork.
"Mmm, it really has a crispy, crumbly texture, a cool sensation on the tongue and teeth, and a sweet and pleasant taste."
After eating the crystal cakes, Shi Tou bought some snacks such as Baoluo rice noodles, fermented rice vinegar, lotus root with vinegar, and braised tofu. They walked and strolled along until they reached the place where the others had parked their carriages that morning.
"Qiming, I'm going back to the palace. You should go back to your residence soon too."
"I'm leaving now, see you later. If I don't go back soon, the old man will start yelling at me."
The two waved goodbye.
...
Two weeks later, Yun Duoduo prepared to return to Nanyang.
Inside the main tent, Yun Duoduo found Jin Jinzhi and said, "Brother Jinzhi, the Empress Dowager wrote a letter saying that she misses Duoduo very much, and Duoduo is going back."
"I feel at ease knowing that the clinic is managed by Bai Zhi and Zi Zhu."
"I have already written to my father and will be setting off back to Nanyang soon."
After returning home, her third brother will presumably have already prepared her small courtyard. Once she returns to Nanyang, she can open a clinic.
"Tomorrow, I will stay at the clinic for another day, and then I will leave northern Xinjiang the day after tomorrow morning."
Jin Jinzhi felt stiff all over as she listened to Yun Duoduo's words, and her heart ached with a bittersweet feeling.
He put down the military map in his hand, bent down, and pinched Yun Duoduo's cheek.
"Are you going back so soon?"
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