A woman exclaimed in alarm, "Shopkeeper, is your food unclean? She's got diarrhea from eating it!"
The woman with stomach pain lowered her head and didn't argue. The people around her started to get restless, wondering if the diarrhea was really caused by stale food. If so, they wouldn't dare to eat it again!
Qin Xiaozhou immediately stepped forward and helped the woman up. "Miss, what's wrong?"
Could it really be food poisoning? She couldn't take the ordeal. The woman's hands were ice-cold, as if she had just returned from a snowstorm in the middle of summer. Seeing the woman's embarrassed appearance, Qin Xiaozhou had a guess. "Does the young lady need to change her clothes?"
Changing clothes is actually a polite way of saying "going to the toilet." People in ancient times were reserved, especially women. They were embarrassed to say it openly in public, so Qin Xiaozhou gave her a way out.
Sun Yuanyuan asked anxiously, "Tan Xue, what's wrong with you?"
Tan Xue clutched her stomach. She dared not refuse to answer Sun Yuanyuan's question, so she could only whisper, "I... I have an upset stomach. I might be menstruating."
Surrounded by women, menstruation was not unusual for them. One of the women sitting next to Tan Xue quietly moved a little away from her and muttered, "If you're menstruating, you shouldn't come out to see people. Aren't you afraid of bad luck?"
Tan Xue felt increasingly embarrassed. She hadn't expected it to happen so suddenly today; otherwise, she wouldn't have gone out. Many people are superstitious about menstruation. In families with strict rules, women can't even sit at the table with their elders during their period.
Qin Xiaozhou was furious, but she couldn't confront the client, so she could only comfort Tan Xue, "This isn't anything unlucky. It just means your body is growing and changing. There's nothing embarrassing about it."
Seeing that Qin Xiaozhou didn't mind, Sun Yuanyuan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "You should have said so earlier! You scared us. You should go with the shopkeeper now."
If it really is food poisoning, then we won't be able to eat such delicious food again, which would be such a pity. Just yesterday, her father had someone buy cake rolls and send them all the way back to their hometown. If her grandmother likes them, she might even come to Fenggu County to escape the summer heat and discuss her marriage. Her father is just a county magistrate, so if her marriage is to go further, she still needs her grandmother's approval.
Qin Xiaozhou took Tan Xue to the backyard. Tan Xue changed her clothes and used a menstrual belt. Her earlier helplessness and embarrassment eased, and she remembered to thank them. "I'm sorry for causing trouble for the display case earlier. Thank you for not minding me."
While she was changing clothes, Qin Xiaozhou cooked sweet fermented rice with eggs. "What's wrong with that? Menstruation is just a sign of a girl's growth and development. It's part of our bodies. What's there to be disgusted about? Miss Tan will feel better after drinking this. I just touched your hands and they were cold. It's clear that you are usually afraid of the cold. You can eat more of this sweet dish to improve your cold hands and feet."
Tan Xue held the bowl, feeling the warmth spread from her palms to her heart, and was very grateful. "Thank you so much, shopkeeper. I've had this problem since I was a child, and I've suffered every time I have my period these past two years."
Qin Xiaozhou comforted her for a moment and then wrote down the recipe for the fermented rice wine and eggs, saying, "It will get better with more rest."
Women in this world also have a tragic fate. Unless absolutely necessary, they rarely see a doctor for women's illnesses and can only endure them in silence.
After finishing a bowl of sweet fermented rice with eggs, Tan Xue's complexion improved considerably, and she returned upstairs. Sun Yuanyuan's eyes lit up, "Tan Xue, your outfit is really beautiful, I've never seen this style before."
Tan Xue was originally wearing a long, light gray gown over a wide-sleeved top that concealed her figure. Moreover, Tan Xue was rather thin and short, and the top of the gown made her appear shorter. Now, she was wearing a pale yellow gauze shirt over a pure white ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with a fitted waistline, which instantly made her stand out and look radiant.
"These clothes were found for me by Manager Qin, and I like them too."
Qin Xiaozhou carried the hot red date milk upstairs to Tan Xue, explaining with a smile, "This was originally my aunt's clothes. It's new and was just made these past two days. Young ladies should nourish themselves more these days and avoid drinking cold things."
Sun Yuanyuan's eyes lit up, "You made these clothes yourselves?"
The young ladies around were quickly drawn in as well; who doesn't love pretty clothes and jewelry!
Qin Xiaozhou had long wanted to develop the clothing industry and expand her business; this outfit was designed to achieve that effect when she took it out earlier.
"We made it ourselves."
Sun Yuanyuan was delighted. "Shopkeeper, could you make me two outfits?" She then added, "The price is negotiable."
He took out a five-tael silver ingot and placed it on the table, saying, "This is a deposit; you can pay more after it's finished."
Qin Xiaozhou was overjoyed and took the opportunity to say, "Miss Sun, you can see that this shop is currently selling food. If we want to make clothes, we need to find another shop and hire embroiderers. We won't be able to open for a while."
Upon hearing this, Sun Yuanyuan immediately became anxious. "You don't need to worry about finding a shop. I'll have someone help you find one. Recruiting embroiderers is also easy. Your shop has a good reputation among women. As long as it's your shop, all the embroiderers will be vying to come."
Qin Xiaozhou almost couldn't suppress the smile on his face. The county magistrate had a decent reputation; he wasn't exactly incorruptible, nor was he a major corrupt official. But after all, he was the county magistrate, a person of the imperial court. Even if he wasn't corrupt, he still had power and influence, and was above others. With Sun Yuanyuan helping to make arrangements, as long as they were in this county, no one would dare to cause trouble for the clothing store.
He immediately pledged his loyalty, saying, "It is our honor to serve Miss Sun. I will make arrangements tomorrow to open the shop as soon as possible, and we hope you will come to visit us then."
Whether people genuinely liked the clothes or were doing it out of respect for Sun Yuanyuan, none of them would refuse to wear them.
Two or three other women noticed Tan Xue's food, including Sun Xunqiao, who was Sun Yuanyuan's cousin. Although their ancestors were three or four generations removed, they were no longer close. However, her family still lived a good life in Fenggu County thanks to Magistrate Sun. She herself suffered from severe menstrual cramps and was covered in cold sweat. Just now, she saw Tan Xue in so much pain being helped to walk, but after returning, her complexion had improved and she seemed much more energetic.
At this moment, Sun Xunqiao was more concerned about regulating her menstrual cycle than about clothes. Her mother said that if things continued like this, it might affect her future fertility. Marriage and childbirth are important matters for a woman, and she didn't want to delay them now.
So she pulled Qin Xiaozhou aside and asked her. As soon as she asked, the young ladies and girls became interested and gathered around. Qin Xiaozhou then told them about the ways to treat cold hands and feet, including fermented rice wine with eggs, some of which could be drunk as tea, and soaking feet before bed every night was also an excellent method.
After Qin Xiaozhou finished speaking, Sun Xunqiao said, "I can soak my feet at home by myself, but can you buy the rest of the things at your store?"
She hesitated, saying, "Some things need to be bought at the pharmacy. If people find out I go to the pharmacy, they might suspect that I'm unwell, which would be bad for finding a spouse."
ah?
Qin Xiaozhou was stunned. Even going to the pharmacy would be affected? She once again felt the hardships faced by women in this era. "Okay, I'll get things arranged these next few days."
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