When the two distinguished young men appeared at the entrance of the residence, the old women and neighbors idly sitting along the street craned their necks, pointing and whispering about them. Some even approached, hoping to strike up a conversation with their new neighbors. Unfortunately, the man was not as approachable as his wife. He entered the carriage without a sideways glance, showing no interest in chatting with the neighbors.
Once inside the carriage, Zhao Quan couldn’t wait to interrogate his companion. He whispered, “Didn’t Miss Lian bring you food today? Why did you come here to eat? Don’t tell me you’re falling for her?”
Cui Xingzhou ignored him, slowly responding, “Brother Zhao, you should know how the old Marchioness would react if she learned of your thoughts.”
This statement immediately dampened Zhao Quan’s accusatory fervor. After all, Zhao Quan’s mother was even more pious than his devout wife. If she discovered he had taken a fancy to a bandit’s wife, her recitation of the tight curse would surely be the death of the Marquis!
Cui Xingzhou’s mere mention of this was enough to deflate Zhao Quan. Still, he persisted, grumbling, “Never mind me. I suspect it’s you, Brother Cui, who can’t resist Madam Liu’s beauty. You’ve fallen for her, haven’t you? Aren’t you afraid I’ll report this to the Imperial Consort and Miss Lian?”
Having just consumed half a jar of huadiao wine, Cui Xingzhou felt lazy though not tipsy. He reclined in the carriage and drawled, “Do as you please…”
Zhao Quan was irritated by his friend’s nonchalant attitude, yet he couldn’t help but feel envious. Indeed, what would happen if he did report it? When had Cui Jiu ever feared anyone?
Although Cui Xingzhou had a mother above him, she was gentle and always deferred to her son’s wishes. There was currently no official wife in the prince’s mansion, and his fiancée, Miss Lian, catered to Cui Jiu’s every whim. Even if Cui Xingzhou were to keep a mistress, Miss Lian would likely select the most potent of ten donkey whips to brew a tonic for the prince!
Reflecting on this, Zhao Quan couldn’t help but envy Cui Jiu’s unrestrained lifestyle, answerable to no one. His eyes reddened with jealousy. Thinking of his sorrows, Zhao Quan spoke frankly, “You’re so carefree. It’d be a waste not to keep a few mistresses…”
Knowing his friend was being foolish, Cui Xingzhou couldn’t be bothered to respond to such nonsense. He simply turned over and drifted off to sleep.
Meanwhile, back at the North Street residence, Liu Miantang watched her husband’s carriage until it disappeared before cheerfully leading Mama Li back home. The neighbors who hadn’t managed to speak with Master Cui now pursued Madam Cui, engaging her in idle chatter.
“Madam Liu, we got a good look at your husband today. How can he be so handsome? I dare say even the legendary Pan An couldn’t compare!” Old Lady Yin remarked, offering some melon seeds.
Old Lady Zhang, who had previously suspected Liu Miantang of being a merchant’s mistress, hurriedly tried to mend their neighborly relationship. She offered a wooden stool for Miantang to sit on, saying, “I once caught a glimpse of Master Cui’s back and thought he looked extraordinary. You two truly make a perfect couple… I wonder, does your husband have any unmarried brothers? Are they as handsome as him? My uncle’s niece is fifteen and ready for marriage!”
“My husband is the ninth child in his family. His older brothers are all married in the northwest, and he’s the only one who stays in the capital. There aren’t any suitable younger brothers, but I’ll ask if he has any eligible cousins and let you know if there are,” Liu Miantang replied, now feeling proud that her neighbors recognized her husband’s good looks and knew he wasn’t some middle-aged merchant.
She sat down graciously, cracking melon seeds and chatting, happily accepting the old women’s compliments. The North Street was filled with a warm, neighborly atmosphere, with a handful of melon seeds lasting an eternity of conversation.
Just then, an elderly scholar came stumbling towards them, guided by one of Miantang’s shop assistants. Liu Miantang’s keen eyes recognized him as Mr. Chen, the Hate-Brush Scholar, from afar.
Seeing his urgency, she stood up and walked a few steps forward to meet him. Mr. Chen, out of breath and excitement, could barely speak coherently, “Madam… Madam Cui, it… it worked!”
He pulled out a piece of cotton cloth from his bosom, unwrapping a shattered plate fragment. Liu Miantang quickly took it and examined it. There was a dragonfly on it, and upon closer inspection, one could make out the clear silhouette of a woman – Mr. Chen had finally succeeded in painting on the smooth porcelain plate.
Unfortunately, perhaps due to kiln temperature issues, the hand-painted plate had cracked during the final firing. However, now that Mr. Chen had mastered the technique of applying paint to create the image, recreating it wouldn’t be a problem.
At that moment, the worry that had been weighing on her mind for days finally dissipated. Liu Miantang felt she could now spread her wings and soar.
The next day, Miantang rose early and went to the kiln where Mr. Chen was temporarily staying. He had already painted three more plates, which were being fired in two separate kilns for color setting.
By sunset, one plate had cracked, but the other two had set perfectly, with the paintings beautifully preserved.
Having lived in Lingquan Town for over a month and having visited various porcelain workshops, Liu Miantang had become acquainted with many in the industry and learned about the unwritten rules of the trade.
Selling porcelain depended thirty percent on the quality of the ware, thirty percent on the reputation of the shop, and the remaining forty percent on the shopkeeper’s ability to promote the goods.
Promotion relied heavily on storytelling. For instance, the top-ranked He Family Old Brand in Lingquan Town boasted that their kiln had once been personally evaluated by the beloved Imperial Consort Xi of the previous emperor.
The story goes that before entering the palace, Consort Xi was quite mischievous. Once, while accompanying her father to buy porcelain, she entered a kiln workshop and, inspired by the tale of the swordsmiths Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, playfully cut a lock of her hair and threw it into the kiln. To everyone’s surprise, when the kiln was opened, it produced top-quality porcelain with seven-colored flowing light.
The previous emperor, who doted on Consort Xi, also fell in love with Lingquan Town’s seven-colored porcelain. From then on, the He Family Old Brand became the imperial supplier.
When the emperor deposed the crown prince and instated Consort Xi’s son, Liu Tang, as the new heir, who successfully ascended to the throne to become the current emperor, the He Family Old Brand’s position in Lingquan Town became unshakeable.
Liu Miantang had no intention of surpassing the He family to become Lingquan Town’s top brand; she merely hoped to sell her plates at a good price and establish a reputation. However, following the path of Lingquan Town’s old brands, her “Jade Fired Porcelain Workshop” had everything ready except for a notable story.
For now, Miantang couldn’t find the First Emperor’s fingernail or a strand of Yang Guifei’s hair, so she reverently displayed the two plates on fine sandalwood stands, waiting for a discerning noble to discover these marvelous creations.
Unfortunately, those who entered her shop were mostly common folk. Although Miantang enthusiastically explained and directed them to look at the dragonfly’s eyes, their only response was to exclaim “How impressive!” before falling silent. The reason was simple: their offered prices were far too low to justify Mr. Chen’s painstaking efforts.
Liu Miantang’s mind raced with countless suitable stories for her shop, all with exciting plots but lacking a noble character. She couldn’t help but sigh deeply.
On this day, as the midday sun shone brightly and the fragrance of food wafted through the courtyard, two tables of different heights were set up in the North Street residence. Miantang and Cui Jiu sat at the higher table, while Mo Ru and Mama Li, the two older women, ate at the lower table near the kitchen door.
Masters and servants eating together clearly didn’t conform to the rules of a prince’s mansion. However, this was Madam Liu’s household, and she insisted that since it was mealtime, they should eat at separate tables. Waiting for the masters to finish before the servants could eat would require reheating the food, and wasting firewood. In a modest household, there was no need for such formalities.
Cui Jiu gestured for the servants to follow Madam Miantang’s wishes. He had been coming home for lunch these past few days when he was free. This was partly due to being forced by the camp’s cook; after the prince had found a cockroach with eggs in his mess hall food a few days ago, he had the cook severely beaten with a paddle and no longer wished to eat at the camp.
However, as a military leader, it wouldn’t look good to have his private meals prepared. After much consideration, Cui Jiu decided to come to Lingquan Town for lunch and have dinner packed to take back with him.
So, these days, Cui Xingzhou had been eating lunch with Miantang. After all, he was determined to make Terrjrse wear a green hat, and acting convincingly would lure Lu Wen into his trap, wouldn’t it?
When Miantang heard that her husband’s chess teacher’s wife was ill and couldn’t manage meals during the day and that he had to study chess manuals at the chess house in the evening, she readily agreed to pack dinner for him. Moreover, as an apprentice, one couldn’t neglect their master, so the food box couldn’t contain just pickled radishes. Thus, every meal included fish and meat, with an effort to avoid repetition.
However, every time Miantang inspected the kitchen and returned to calculate the expenses, she felt alarmed. She asked Mama Li where the money for all this meat and vegetables was coming from.
As Mama Li was about to fabricate a lie, Mo Ru, who was helping to deliver firewood nearby, cleverly interjected that the master had earned reward money for solving a difficult chess position.
Miantang nodded in admiration upon hearing this. Although chess gambling and regular gambling differed by only one character, the act of moving chess pieces versus shaking dice created entirely different atmospheres.
Her husband was so intelligent, playing such a marvelous game of chess that he could solve difficult positions and earn money to support the family! She felt ashamed of her uselessness, unable to immediately earn money to allow her husband to study chess without worrying about mundane financial matters.
After much contemplation, Liu Miantang couldn’t help but exclaim at the dinner table, “Husband, what do you think about me stopping Prince Huaiyang’s carriage?”
At the lower table, Mo Ru had just swallowed a braised egg when he heard Madam Liu’s plan to stop the prince’s carriage. Startled, he inadvertently swallowed half the egg whole, choking and rolling his eyes, alarming Mama Li who hurriedly poured him water and patted his back.
However, the main character, Cui Jiu, remained calm and asked Miantang with a smile why she wanted to stop the carriage.
Miantang placed a peeled shrimp in Cui Jiu’s bowl and eagerly explained, “You don’t know, husband, but Prince Huaiyang is known for his filial piety. It’s said that for the Imperial Consort Dowager’s recent birthday, the prince made a grand gesture by ordering a complete set of porcelain from the He family. Just for a tea set alone, it cost five hundred taels! That’s enough to buy several houses!”