Madam Qian hesitated and said, "I’ve mentioned it, but I think that since Wuyuan is just next door, just over the mountain, if the child is good, it wouldn’t hurt to marry there!" She emphasized, "Your father had also said when he was alive, as long as you children are happy, we parents are fine with anything!"
Song Jiyun said nothing for a long while, then said, "If the parents are not good, how can the children possibly be happy?"
Even in future generations, girls who marry far away face many inconveniences, let alone in these times when transportation is inconvenient.
If she didn’t know any better, it might be okay, but knowing it, why should she suffer like this?
But Madam Qian was persistent and said, "For your marriage, your father had checked every slightly suitable family in Liang County and still didn’t find one satisfactory."
The implication was, why not try looking outside.
Song Jiyun also felt that she shouldn’t jump to conclusions and should gather more information. She said, "Then I’ll have someone carefully inquire about the Xiong family."
At that, Madam Qian was satisfied and smiled, "If it’s good, let’s also settle your third sister’s marriage."
Song Jiyun broke out in a sweat.
In her heart, Song Jixue was still a child.
Yet, that was society for you. She could be independent, but she couldn’t force others to live the same way.
"I’ll keep it in mind," Song Jiyun promised Madam Qian. Then, Madam Qian began to tell her about today’s events at The Eight Immortals Nunnery, "They said the town was blocked up completely, many people returned without achieving anything, they can only try again another time."
Song Jiyun nodded and told her mother about today’s grand scene, saying, "If you want to see the statues, you could come with me to the kiln factory in a few days. I have made six Buddha statues."
Ready for a prime commodity!
To her surprise, Madam Qian disapprovingly said, "They’re not being offered in the hall, what’s so good about them?"
What really is the difference between those offered in the temple and those not offered in the temple?
Those not offered in the temple even look clearer.
Naturally, Song Jiyun wouldn’t argue with her mother about this; she said, "Would you like me to bring back a foot-high statue of Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy for you? In a couple of days, when the kiln opens, all the statues suitable for household worship will be ready."
"It’s not like buying dishes or bowls, you can’t just take them from your kiln factory whenever you please," Madam Qian refused without a second thought, "If we’re to worship a Bodhisattva at home, it should definitely be one that’s been consecrated by high monks in the temple. Don’t worry about this; I’ll visit The Eight Immortals Nunnery myself when the time comes."
Song Jiyun felt embarrassed.
It was at this moment that she truly appreciated how brilliant Yuan Yunzhong’s idea had been.
After seeing off Madam Qian, she instructed Xiang Zhan to send some sobering soup to Yuan Yunzhong.
Xiang Zhan covered her mouth and chuckled, "Miss, if you waited for your instructions, the day lilies would have wilted—I had it sent to the kitchen earlier. By now, Young Master Yuan should have already drunk the sobering soup and fallen asleep."
Song Jiyun was not stingy with her praise and patted her on the head, commending her, "You really are a considerate little jacket, getting more capable as you grow."
Giggling, Xiang Zhan called for a maid to bring in hot bath water for Song Jiyun, and while attending her bath she chatted, "Young Master Yuan must have been really tired. When I went there, he hadn’t changed his clothes, his face was all red. He was lying on the Drunken Master’s Chair with his eyes closed, and when Young Master Shao spoke to him, he hardly responded. When I brought the sobering soup, he didn’t have me put it aside like usual, but took the bowl and drank it straight away.
"Young Master Shao even asked him what was wrong, but he didn’t say a word. He even uncharacteristically gave me a handful of pieces of silver."
Soaking in the hot water, Song Jiyun felt so comfortable that all her pores opened up. She leaned back against the special bath pillow and lazily asked, "Really? Is Young Master Yuan that stingy? He doesn’t usually reward you folks?"
"Not really," Xiang Zhan immediately defended Yuan Yunzhong, "Young Master Yuan not only frequently rewards us, but he is also very generous. However, he rarely rewards us himself; it is usually Young Master Shao or Liu Zi who rewards us on his behalf. Like today, it was the first time he personally grabbed a handful of pieces of silver to give to me!"
Song Jiyun half listened while Xiang Zhan prattled on and unknowingly drifted off to sleep amidst her chatter.
Meanwhile, at Yinyu Hall, Yuan Yunzhong couldn’t sleep at all.
Just a few cups of Jinhua Wine, how could they have gotten him drunk?
He was just somewhat distracted.
Among his peers, he was considered well-traveled and knowledgeable. Yet, he had never encountered a girl like Song Jiyun. She had a kind of tenacity that helped her to never easily give up, no matter what difficulties she faced.
If one path was blocked, she’d simply take another.
No matter what, she would make it to where she wanted to go.
At times, seeing her struggle so hard, he couldn’t help but lend her a hand.
Unexpectedly, in their eyes, he had become the ideal son-in-law for the Song Family.
A man capable of supporting Song Jiyun in managing family affairs.
The laughter from those in the small tavern echoed in his ears once again.
A handsome man and a beautiful woman... better affection... helped disperse the crowd... a golden boy and jade girl...
Annoyed, he simply got dressed, got up, and walked out of the room.
The moonlight was soft, casting a moist glow on the rhombus-shaped cobblestones in the courtyard.
Yuan Yunzhong stared at the pitch-dark room opposite him.
He pushed the door and entered.
Moonlight spilled inside; Shao Qing was sound asleep, breathing deeply.
Yuan Yunzhong watched, inexplicably feeling uneasy.
He kicked the corner of Shao Qing’s bed.
"Who! Who!" Shao Qing’s face was panicked, eyes not even open, yet he sprang up like a carp.
Yuan Yunzhong suddenly felt a bit better inside.
He didn’t even glance at Shao Qing and turned around to leave his room.
"Young Master, what did you call me for?" Shao Qing shouted in confusion at his retreating figure. "Is there something wrong with Miss Song?"
Yuan Yunzhong paused in his steps.
Had he really been paying too much attention to Song Jiyun?
Even Shao Qing subconsciously thought that he was looking for him in the middle of the night because of Song Jiyun?
Was he getting too close to Song Jiyun?
Yuan Yunzhong lay down in bed, closed his eyes, and decided to force himself not to think about this matter anymore.
The innocent clear themselves, time will eventually dispel the rumors.
But why did he feel even more choked up thinking this?
*
These past few days, the business at the Song Family Kiln Factory had reached a point where getting a single order was difficult, and some were even reselling orders at twice to three times the price, earning a profit from the difference.
She had no choice but to work through the night with Zhou Zheng, striving to have every order picked up by the customers themselves. Even so, they couldn’t prevent people from making transactions at the docks.
Some even rushed to order their regular porcelain, thinking this would give them priority for the Buddha statue orders, no matter how Zhou Zheng explained, it was futile.
Zhou Zheng was so frustrated he kept gulping tea. "It seems like we have to raise the prices."
Song Jiyun was more relaxed, pouring him another cup of tea, she said, "If the profit exceeds one times, people will take risks; if it exceeds ten times, they’ll resort to murder and arson. It’s unstoppable; raising prices isn’t feasible either, we can only think of releasing new Buddha statues and re-pricing them."
Which was indirectly raising the prices.
Zhou Zheng felt Song Jiyun seemed more like a store manager than him, and he gave up, saying, "I’ll listen to whatever the owner decides."
But Song Jiyun felt the real profit lay in the several large Buddha statues stored at home.
She said, "Have you spread the word yet, saying we can produce larger Buddha statues than those at The Eight Immortals Nunnery?"
Zhou Zheng chuckled heartily, pulling out two orders. "One for Mount Jiuhua, one for Mount Wudang." 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎
The young lady had predicted it like a prophet.
They had stockpiled three statues of the Three Pure Ones.
Just right for Mount Wudang.
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