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墨書 Inktalez
Wudang County, though bustling and prosperous, has a refined layout. As they walked along, restaurants, eateries, pharmacies, and Silk Shops were everywhere. Sister Wang was fine; after all, she frequented this place often. However, Qin Yaru had not seen such a marketplace in many years, leaving her dazzled and somewhat dazed.
Fortunately, Sister Wang had many items to purchase and did not notice her unusual state.
After being stunned for a while, Qin Yaru came to her senses, lightly patting her cheek. She pulled Sister Wang to buy colored paper. Although this colored paper was much cheaper than silk, it was still not inexpensive. With thirty wen, Qin Yaru could only buy three large sheets of pre-cut paper, which meant each large sheet cost ten wen!
She was taken aback but dared not spend all thirty wen; instead, she bought four sheets of patterned paper: one apricot yellow, one pink, one light green, and one dark orchid. The colors were decent; although not very uniform, they were usable. She spent a total of ten wen and even got some flawed scraps as extras from the shopkeeper.
Sister Wang laughed teasingly: "Consort Qin got a bargain; it must be because the shopkeeper thinks the Wife is beautiful that he offered such good terms. Usually, you can't even buy a large sheet for fifteen wen."
Qin Yaru suddenly realized she had forgotten that at this time, writing materials were extremely expensive. Ordinary families could hardly afford to send their children to school; those who could read and write were highly respected.
Sister Wang then took Qin Yaru to buy some needles and thread. As she had said, Qin Yaru's beauty brought her many advantages. The shopkeepers and assistants who saw her couldn't help but blush. Sister Wang haggled effectively and soon bought a large bundle of items.
Looking at the cart filled to the brim with their haul, Sister Wang beamed with joy and patted Qin Yaru's hand: "Next time you go out shopping, you must bring Sister-in-law along so she can save some money for Brother Xu to buy wine."
Qin Yaru chuckled. Sister Wang's husband Xu Meng was a county clerk—tall and sturdy with an upright appearance. He was good in every way except for two flaws: he was afraid of his wife and fond of drinking, with his fear of his wife being the more prominent issue. Ever since marrying Sister Wang, he had to suppress his cravings for alcohol unless Sister Wang allowed him to indulge by personally buying him some.
Such a man would be rare even in modern times.
The two continued wandering until they reached a Hubei Pastry Shop where they ordered two Hu Bing and a few dishes.
The pastries were quite tasty; however, the dishes were bland and tasteless. After trying a couple of bites, Qin Yaru refused to eat more. Sister Wang noticed immediately that she wasn't used to the food and said with a smile: "Just eat a few bites; you can't go without food or your body won't hold up. When we get home, Sister-in-law will steam fish for you; Brother Xu just caught two fat carp."
Sister Wang coaxed and persuaded her until Qin Yaru reluctantly picked up her chopsticks again. The problem was that there was no oil in the dish at all; it was entirely stir-fried with water and lacked seasoning—there seemed to be hardly any salt.
At this time, oil was extremely precious; only nobles could afford fried foods. For ordinary folks, being able to add even a couple of drops of oil when stir-frying was considered fortunate.
Both women ate until they were half full. As they sat down to finish their meal, Sister Wang looked at Qin Yaru with a hint of sadness in her eyes: "Consort Qin should also spend some time with Zhao Di; that child has it tough."
Qin Yaru was taken aback, and then she saw Sister Wang gritting her teeth: "What do you mean marrying off a daughter to enjoy a good life? It's simply selling your daughter. Guo Cheng from Guo Family Village is already fifty-eight this year. Last year he bought six concubines, and two died within a year, while two others went missing. It was my family’s Xu Meng who took people to verify the corpses—one hung himself, and the other drowned. If they were living well, why would such beautiful girls think of seeking death?"
Sister Wang was furious, her face turning red: "Mrs. Sun is simply heartless. Is Zhao Di really her biological daughter? She actually rushed to send her off to be mistreated. Even if she wants her daughter to be a concubine, what kind of person is that? If she were to properly look for a wealthy family, sell her off as a concubine for a few years, save up some dowry, she could still marry better afterward. Zhao Di is only seventeen; getting married in two or three years wouldn’t be too late..."
"Zhou Erlang is the same; he's completely under his wife's thumb and doesn't dare say a word. He doesn't even care about his daughter's life; he's such a coward!"
Sister Wang muttered a few complaints, filled with dissatisfaction but feeling helpless. The father wanted to send his daughter to be a concubine, and the girl didn’t object; what could they outsiders do?
Qin Yaru frowned. Zhao Di was going out to become a concubine? For Zhao Di, being a concubine might not be too bad; many daughters from common families were willing to serve as concubines for wealthy families for a few years. Ordinary men were also quite willing to marry concubines from wealthy families, thinking they were better than maids since they had been mistresses before and had qualities that maids or daughters from common families couldn’t compare to.
But Qin Yaru didn’t believe that the hypocritical old man Zhou Erlang would consider Zhao Di’s well-being.
In her past life, Zhao Di hadn’t been out for even a year when the incident with Chen Wulang arose. She hadn’t paid attention at all and didn’t know anything about that woman’s fate. Now that she thought about it, her relationship with Zhao Di had been so good, yet she hadn’t even considered it; her nature was indeed too indifferent.
"Eh? Zhou Erlang?"
Just as they exchanged a few casual words, they saw Zhou Erlang coming out from the neighboring Wu Family, swaying as he headed to Hu Bing Shop for a meal.
As soon as he entered, he spotted Qin Yaru, and his eyes lit up immediately with an almost lewd glint. If it weren’t for his honest face blocking it, even Sister Wang would have noticed.
Although he had been frightened by Qin Yaru that day, Zhou Erlang actually enjoyed this kind of thing more; the more fierce she was, the more appealing it became to him. He went home dreaming about it at night, wishing he could experience her charms.
"You went to the Wu Family? Hmph, I thought you were an honest man; all men are no good!" Sister Wang said coldly.
Hearing her voice, Zhou Erlang snapped back to reality and quickly put on an awkward expression, stammering without saying anything. Sister Wang shook her head: "Forget it; your shrew of a wife is like that; it's no wonder you went looking elsewhere."
The wife of the Wu Family, known for her beauty, was quite famous in Wudang County for running a half-open door business.
Before Sister Wang could think further, she turned around and suddenly saw Qin Yaru’s face turn pale as she stared blankly at Zhou Erlang, fear evident in her eyes.
Sister Wang was startled and didn't care about Zhou Erlang anymore. She half-embraced her shoulder and asked urgently, "What happened? What's wrong?"
Zhou Erlang also looked tense, squinting and staring at Qin Yaru, seemingly afraid she would do something.
"I... I..." Qin Yaru buried her head in Sister Wang's embrace, stealing a glance at Zhou Erlang, tears streaming down her face. Sister Wang was so shocked that she didn't know what to do, and even the other diners at Hu Bing Shop couldn't help but look over. The elderly Old Shopkeeper left the counter, repeatedly saying, "Wife, what's wrong? Don't cry, don't cry."
Qin Yaru was beautiful and delicate; as she silently shed tears, she appeared even more pitiful, stirring the emotions of everyone present—men, women, young, and old.
"Sister-in-law, am I going to die?"
Sister Wang was taken aback for a moment before her expression changed. She hurriedly asked, "What happened? Where do you feel unwell?"
Immediately, someone nearby wanted to call a doctor—Qin Yaru bit her lip, glanced at Zhou Erlang again, lowered her head, and softly said, "Sister-in-law, I had a dream last night!"
Everyone was stunned for a moment before the atmosphere relaxed. Sister Wang chuckled and patted her chest, reaching out to pinch Qin Yaru's delicate face: "Is it just a nightmare? Look at you; you scared Sister-in-law half to death."
But Qin Yaru still looked terrified, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.
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