“Zhenniang, are you alright?” Everyone sighed in relief when they saw Zhenniang catch the ink stick.
“I’m fine, how much strength could Run’er have?” Zhenniang smiled, then gave Xi’er a light smack – the boy was just too mischievous.
Aunt Jinhua hurried over and checked Zhenniang’s hand. Seeing only slight redness and no serious injury, she relaxed, then pulled Run’er from behind her and spanked him a few times as punishment.
Zhenniang examined the ink stick in her hand. At first, she thought it was their family’s Li ink, but weighing it, she found it lighter than Li ink. The saying went “ten thousand strikes for light glue” – Li ink was known for its extensive pounding and hammering, making it characteristically heavy. This piece was different.
Looking at the inscription, she saw it read “Dragon Guest of Luzhou” and understood – this wasn’t Li ink at all.
Moreover, seeing the fish-scale pattern on its surface and the patina that had formed, Zhenniang was certain this was an ancient ink stick.
Ancient ink? Dragon Guest of Luzhou? Zhenniang pondered, then brought the ink to her nose and detected a faint lotus fragrance. The scent was so subtle that most people wouldn’t notice it, but having learned ink-making from her grandfather since she could walk in her previous life, Zhenniang knew ink compositions intimately and could detect even the slightest scents.
Dragon Guest of Luzhou? Lotus fragrance? Combining these elements, Zhenniang couldn’t help but think of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. There was a legend about Dragon Fragrance ink – supposedly, when Xuanzong was a magistrate of Luzhou, one night while writing, he saw a small Taoist priest in black clothes, tiny as a fly, appear on his ink stick. The little priest saw him and called out “Long live Your Majesty!”
When Xuanzong asked about his identity, he replied, “I am Dragon Guest, the spirit of the ink.”
It was quite a miraculous tale.
Later, after Xuanzong ascended the throne, remembering the Dragon Guest incident, he created ink using lotus juice and named it “Dragon Fragrance Formula.”
This was likely the origin of Dragon Fragrance ink’s name.
Over time, the fragrance ingredients changed from lotus to borneol and musk.
In other words, Tang Dynasty Dragon Fragrance ink originally used lotus as its fragrance.
Given this ink stick’s inscription as “Dragon Guest of Luzhou,” Zhenniang suspected it might be Emperor Xuanzong’s personal Dragon Fragrance ink. While she couldn’t be certain if it was made by the emperor himself, she was confident it was genuine Tang Dynasty Dragon Fragrance ink.
“Aunt Jinhua, this ink is extremely valuable. Please keep it safe and don’t let Run’er damage it,” Zhenniang smiled as she handed the ink to Jinhua.
“Oh, this ink might be valuable to others, but our family has plenty of ink. You see, Run’er’s father runs a tea house in Suzhou, and for social connections, our family’s Li ink has quite a reputation. I’ve gathered some ink that was allocated to your Sixth Uncle to send to Run’er’s father,” Aunt Jinhua laughed as she took the ink.
She stuffed it into a nearby package and reorganized it – Run’er and Xi’er had been so naughty they’d completely messed up her previously arranged package.
“Aunt Jinhua, this isn’t our family’s ink – it’s an ancient piece from the Tang Dynasty. It’s worth thousands in gold. Isn’t it too precious to use for social connections?” Zhenniang quickly explained, knowing Aunt Jinhua didn’t recognize its value.
“What did you say? This ink is from the Tang Dynasty?” Sixth Uncle’s eyes widened as he snatched the ink back from the package. He examined it, but having never been interested in ink-making or studying it, he couldn’t tell much. However, he knew Eighth Brother was extremely knowledgeable about ink-making and wondered how much Zhenniang had learned from him. He anxiously asked for details.
“Yes, this ink stick uses lotus as its fragrance, which is characteristic of Tang Dynasty Dragon Fragrance ink. Looking at the inscription ‘Dragon Guest of Luzhou’ – Emperor Xuanzong once served as magistrate of Luzhou, and Dragon Fragrance ink got its name from the ink spirit Dragon Guest. Using this inscription, this ink might be the emperor’s creation. Of course, I can’t be certain of that, but if it is, this ink stick would be incredibly valuable,” Zhenniang explained, then added with a smile, “Sixth Uncle, please keep it safe – it might become a family heirloom!”
Hearing this, Old Master Li Six clutched the ink stick nervously, his face tense. He said, “You girls are teasing me, speaking of such far-fetched things. I don’t know if I can believe it. I’ll go ask your Ninth Uncle tomorrow.”
He then turned to Li Jinhua: “Daughter, sort out all the ink. Don’t rush to send it to Suzhou. I’ll take it to the ink workshop tomorrow to have someone examine it. If it is so valuable, we can’t casually give it away as a social gift.”
“Yes, alright, I’ll sort it all out,” Li Jinhua quickly nodded.
“But Sister-in-law, you must leave some pieces! Old Master Su in Suzhou is having his birthday, and my brother promised his Second Sister-in-law he’d send some Li ink. Otherwise, my Second Sister-in-law will be angry with my brother,” Wang Erzi anxiously protested as he watched Li Jinhua remove the ink from the package.
“What do you mean, Second Sister-in-law? Where did this Second Sister-in-law come from? Has Uncle-in-law taken another wife in Suzhou?” Zhenniang perked up at Wang Erzi’s words. This was perfect timing – she’d been thinking of writing to her father to investigate her Uncle-in-law’s affairs in Suzhou, and now Wang Erzi had let something slip.
Old Master Su? Second Sister-in-law? This must be the secondary wife that Uncle-in-law had secretly married.
Of course, Zhenniang knew she had to feign confusion, questioning whether Uncle-in-law had taken another wife to alert Sixth Uncle and Aunt Jinhua.
“Mm, Erzi, explain this. Who is the Second Sister-in-law?” Old Master Li Six glared at Wang Erzi with a dark expression.
Aunt Jinhua also stared at Wang Erzi in bewilderment.
Wang Erzi’s face flashed with panic. He swallowed before explaining, “Old Master, Sister-in-law, Miss Zhenniang, you’ve misunderstood. The second Sister-in-law is the wife of the second manager. Everyone at the shop calls her that. Old Master Su is the Second Sister-in-law’s father. My brother often says he couldn’t run the tea house in Suzhou without the second manager’s help, so when Old Master Su celebrates his birthday, my brother agrees to send some Li ink to please the second manager and his wife.”
Wang Erzi’s explanation seemed reasonable enough, but the panic in his eyes gave the impression of a guilty conscience.
Aunt Jinhua might not have noticed, sighing in relief and repeatedly saying, “That makes sense.”
But Old Master Li Six had lived long enough to see through such things.
Seeing Sixth Uncle’s expression, Zhenniang knew he was suspicious. The next step would be verification – if Uncle-in-law had truly taken a secondary wife, it couldn’t be hidden for long.
“I think we should keep the family ink here. It’s all inherited from our ancestors and shouldn’t be given away carelessly. Jinhua, go into the city with Zhenniang later and get some ink from the workshop to send to Run’er’s father,” Old Master Li Six instructed.
“Yes, Father,” Aunt Jinhua agreed.
Wang Erzi also relaxed, secretly wiping his sweat. He didn’t care what ink it was, as long as there was ink to deliver and complete his task.
The group continued chatting idly, though each was somewhat distracted with their thoughts.
Just then, Changgen returned with the others, bringing a wooden bucket of raw lacquer – enough for Zhenniang’s needs.
Afterward, Jinhua and Zhenniang went into the city together, then split up – Jinhua to get ink from the workshop, while Zhenniang and Xi’er headed home with the raw lacquer and bamboo trays.