(Note: This chapter includes some additional background about Han Li Shi’s land purchase from the previous chapter. Those who have read it can review it, but it’s not essential to the plot.)

The New Year arrived in the blink of an eye.

This year, the Li family’s sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and fourth branches celebrated together. The way of the world is that what has long been united must divide, and what has long been divided must unite. The same was true for families – after many years of separation, the various branches of the Li family had now come together again.

In the sixth branch, Old Master Six had fallen seriously ill due to the Li Jincai incident. Young Master Run, having lost his father, had become noticeably dejected. Seeing this situation as untenable, Aunt Jinhua temporarily entrusted the branch’s properties in Li Village to Changgeng, the estate manager. She brought Old Master Six and Young Master Run to the ancestral residence.

After all, they were family – being together to talk things through could ease their minds.

Throughout the New Year, the atmosphere was festive, and with the daughters-in-law visiting each other, the Li household was filled with joyous sounds. Young Master Xi spent his days leading Young Master You and Young Master Run in climbing onto roofs and pulling off tiles.

If it weren’t for the New Year custom against beating children, given Madam Zhao’s temperament, these three youngsters would certainly have gotten a good thrashing.

Time passed swiftly, and soon it was February.

“Zhenniang, who are you planning to take with you to Nanjing? Tell Seventh Grandmother, and I’ll help you arrange it,” they discussed while walking through the various workshops of the ink factory.

Spring had arrived, bringing the peak season for the ink factory. Throughout the Li family ink works, from smoke collection to ink mixing and drying, not a single person could be found idle.

“Well, I’m not yet familiar with the situation in Nanjing, so I don’t need to bring many people initially,” Zhenniang said thoughtfully. “Sister Ma has been working with me these days, and I find her capable. I think Sister Ma’s family of three would do. Brother Ma is not only skilled at ink grinding but also strong. We’ll need his strength for moving luggage along the way. Little Ya is diligent and quick-witted; she can help me run errands.”

Little Ya was Sister Ma’s young daughter. Sister Ma had mentioned to Zhenniang several times that she hoped her daughter could work for Zhenniang, and since Zhenniang approved of the girl, she took this opportunity to bring it up.

“Yes, Sister Ma’s family of three would work well,” Seventh Grandmother nodded. These three were exactly who she had in mind, considering that Sister Ma had been working with Zhenniang since she joined the ink factory. They were essentially Zhenniang’s people now.

“And then there’s Elder Brother Zheng,” Zhenniang continued. “He learned glue brewing and ink-making methods from Master Qin. The Nanjing ink shop will need someone like him, and he also travels to Nanjing twice a year with Manager Shao. He’s familiar with the area and has some industry connections, so I think he’d be suitable.”

“Indeed, even if you hadn’t suggested it, I would have recommended him. Most of the business dealings in Nanjing are handled through Fuli and Jingming’s branches. Having him go along will help you quickly understand the situation in Nanjing,” Seventh Grandmother said.

Her expression darkened as she continued, “In recent years, not only has the income from Nanjing’s operations decreased, but they’ve also required additional maintenance fees from us. Manager Shao felt something wasn’t right, but as he’s just a manager, and since Jingming’s branch provided reasonable explanations, I couldn’t say much. When you go there, investigate this matter thoroughly for me.”

“Yes, I understand,” Zhenniang nodded.

In the past, the Li family’s ink shop in Nanjing had been quite substantial. Although they had sold part of it due to tribute ink matters, they still retained some properties. At the very least, the rental income from the shops should have been considerable.

“Oh yes, Seventh Grandmother, I want to bring one more person – Ergou. In business, we inevitably have to deal with street idlers and ruffians. Ergou is familiar with handling such matters, so having him along would make those issues easier to manage,” Zhenniang added.

“Hmm, I hadn’t thought of that. Ergou going is fine,” Seventh Grandmother nodded. Indeed, business requires dealing not only with officials but also with various social elements. Ergou would be perfect for this.

“That should be enough,” Zhenniang concluded after some thought. For the initial setup, these people would suffice. Once the ink shop was established, they would need to send more ink craftsmen from here.

“Then let me recommend one more person,” Seventh Grandmother said, seeing that Zhenniang had no more suggestions.

“Who is it, Seventh Grandmother?” Zhenniang asked curiously.

“Your Second Aunt,” Seventh Grandmother smiled.

Second Aunt? Zhenniang was surprised. The second Aunt was a widow who rarely left home. However, thinking it through, Zhenniang understood Seventh Grandmother’s careful consideration.

In Nanjing, she would inevitably have to deal with Elder Aunt. Moreover, the Jingming family watching over the properties in Nanjing seemed to be of the same generation as her father, though their relationship was somewhat distant. The generational hierarchy couldn’t be changed. Having a Second Aunt there to support her would make dealing with the elders much more convenient, as the Second Aunt could handle such interactions.

Additionally, Nanjing had many scholars and literati, making custom-made ink popular. These custom inks often required carving new plates, and Second Aunt’s plate-carving skills were praised even by Uncle Jingdong. The ink shop would certainly need such expertise.

Seventh Grandmother had indeed thought this through thoroughly in recommending Second Aunt.

“Thank you, Seventh Grandmother, though I hate to trouble Second Aunt,” Zhenniang said gratefully.

Although everyone was helping with the ink factory’s business, it was clear that Seventh Grandmother was arranging for Second Aunt to be Zhenniang’s backup.

“It’s no trouble at all. I already discussed it with your Second Aunt a few days ago, and she agreed. It’ll save her from growing moldy staying in this big house with this old woman,” Seventh Grandmother joked.

After this, they discussed the travel arrangements.

Zhenniang then took Sister Ma to Four Treasures Street to buy some gifts, as they needed presents for Elder Aunt’s family in Nanjing. As merchants from Hui Prefecture, they also needed to visit several chambers of commerce officials, and there were grandfather’s old friends to call upon. Appropriate gifts were essential for these visits.

Unexpectedly, upon entering Four Treasures Street, they found the entire street crowded around Huiyuan Money House.

After the Li Jincai incident, Sun Baiyi had been implicated to some extent. However, since Huiyuan Money House was registered under Sun Baiyi’s household, Wang Cuiqiao had expended some effort to help resolve his situation. Afterward, it was said that Wang Cuiqiao had sent Sun Baiyi to work on the boats, and now Sun Baiyi’s brother, Sun Qianyi, was in charge of Huiyuan Money House.

Wang Cuiqiao had used this incident to emerge from behind the scenes, moving toward legitimacy. Now all the locals knew that she was the owner of Huiyuan Money House.

With Wang Cuiqiao’s years of connections, Huiyuan Money House had become the largest money house in the county. It was said that Wang Cuiqiao was planning to open a branch in Nanjing next.

Wang Cuiqiao had originally come from Qinhuai River in Nanjing – that was her true domain.

“What’s happening over there?” Zhenniang asked a passerby.

“The Sun family is marrying off their daughter, and the Tian family is here to receive the bride,” the person replied.

Zhenniang then understood – today was Sun Yuejuan’s wedding day to the Tian family.

She stood at the entrance of a paper shop and watched as Tian Benchang, dressed in a groom’s red robe, sat proudly on horseback in front of Huiyuan Money House, cutting quite a dashing figure.

“Look, the bride is coming out!” the crowd in front called out excitedly.

Sun Qianyi carried Sun Yuejuan to the bridal sedan chair. With a string of firecrackers celebrating many sons and grandsons, the wedding procession set off with music and fanfare. A group of five or six-year-old children ran behind, laughing and playing.

Life’s paths are countless.

While Sun Yuejuan was entering her married life in a grand household, Zhenniang was about to embark on her journey to Nanjing.

The tenth day of the second month.

At the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), Zhenniang rose early. As she went downstairs, she smelled the fragrance of douhuang guo (bean cakes).

Madam Zhao, Madam Zheng, Madam Du, and others had gotten up in the middle of the night to prepare a package of Dou Huang guo for her.

Although the land route from Huizhou to Nanjing was shorter, it was unsafe due to bandits. So they decided to take the water route.

The journey would go from Xin’an River to Hangzhou, then to Suzhou, and from there directly to Nanjing via the Grand Canal. The trip would take ten to fifteen days, so they needed to prepare plenty of provisions.

“Perhaps Zhenniang shouldn’t go after all. It’s not good for a young woman to be too prominent. Besides, traveling outside… what if…” When it was time to depart, Madam Zhao suddenly became uneasy.

She remembered seeing Jingfu off to Suzhou early one morning just like this, and he had never returned.

As they say, once bitten by a snake, one fears even rope for ten years. Madam Zhao was in just such a state, worried because of what had happened to Li Jingfu.

Zhenniang, already carrying a package, understood that her mother was thinking of her father.

“Mother, don’t worry. I’m running a business, not traveling as a merchant. I’ll be staying in Nanjing city – what could happen? If anything unexpected happens, it might be that I suddenly bring a son-in-law home for you!” Zhenniang teased comfortingly.

“You shameless girl, how improper!” Madam Zhao was amused by Zhenniang’s joke, knowing that at this point, Zhenniang had to go.

She waved her hand dismissively, “Go on then before you irritate me more at home.”

Zhenniang waved goodbye with a smile, bid farewell to the family, and went to meet the others at the ink factory.

“Chouma is coming too?” At the ink factory, Zhenniang discovered another addition to their group – Chouma.

“What, not welcome?” Chouma’s face was cold and seemingly unfriendly.

“How could that be? It’s good that you’re coming, Chouma.” Zhenniang nodded. If Chouma was part of the group, Seventh Grandmother must have approved, so she wouldn’t object.

“At my age, I should travel while I still can move about, lest tomorrow I become too weak to go anywhere even if I want to,” Chouma explained coldly, then let Ergou help her into the carriage.

Zhenniang and the others also boarded the carriages – three in total.

After saying goodbye to everyone, the carriages set off toward Yuliang Dock outside the city.

Little Ya sat by the carriage window, occasionally lifting the curtain to look outside – this was her first time traveling far from home.

Soon they reached the Three Li Pavilion outside the city.

From a distance, they could see a chastity memorial arch, its tall stone structure missing several corners, showing signs of decay.

“The Luo family fell from grace, and no one maintains the arch anymore,” Sister Ma said with a hint of regret.

“This is the Luo family’s chastity arch?” Zhenniang asked curiously. Mentioning the Luo family reminded her of Luo Wenqian – there had been no news since his last letter. Beyond the passes was now Tartar territory. She wondered what kind of work he was doing there.

“Yes, this arch has been here for several decades. The Luo family had a daughter called Luo Mengzhen who was highly skilled in ink making. Unfortunately, fate was unkind – her fiancé died before they could marry. Unexpectedly, Luo Mengzhen proved to be of strong character and burned herself to death in her chamber. When the prefect learned of this, he praised her highly and memorialized the throne, resulting in this arch,” Sister Ma explained.

“Oh.” Zhenniang nodded. In her previous life, she had visited many such arches, each with a story that was incomprehensible to later generations but revered in this era.

Turning her face, Zhenniang suddenly noticed Chouma with closed eyes, faint traces of tears gleaming beneath them.

“Chouma, what’s wrong?” Zhenniang asked with concern.

“Nothing, just old eyes watering in the wind,” Chouma said flatly.

“Little Ya.” Zhenniang quickly instructed the girl sitting by the carriage edge.

“Yes, Miss Zhen.” Little Ya promptly lowered the curtain and tied it securely with rope to keep the wind out.

Afterward, the carriage fell silent, with only the sounds of wheels and hooves accompanying their journey.

Soon, they arrived at Yuliang Dock. The Li family had already purchased boat tickets, and two porters came to help move their luggage onto the boat.

Just then, several yamen runners passed by the shore escorting some prisoners.

“What did these prisoners do?” some merchants from out of town inquired.

“You don’t know? This was the biggest case in Huizhou last year. The leader impersonated an Imperial Guard official, swindling people all along the way. Many people were deceived, but he finally fell in our Huizhou prefecture. The one behind him is an accomplice, originally a son-in-law of the Li family who betrayed them by conspiring with others to deceive the family. Serves him right – I heard they’re being exiled to Qiongzhou,” explained a knowledgeable bystander enthusiastically.

This person held goodwill toward the Li family and spoke up in their defense.

“Oh right, a few days ago, there was a woman with a child who said she was the sister of the main criminal. Such a sin – she was implicated too and sold by the officials. I heard Tian Rongchang from the Tian family bought her. That Tian Rongchang has nothing but thoughts of debauchery in his belly – I suspect he has ill intentions,” added an idle porter waiting for work, clicking his tongue.

Zhenniang, standing nearby, was startled to hear that Su Shi had been officially sold and bought by Tian Rongchang.

She knew about the sentencing of Su Shi’s brother and Li Jincai – they deserved their fate.

But she hadn’t expected this outcome for Su Shi, though thinking it through, it was logical. Su Shi’s brother had committed a major crime, and with Li Jincai’s scheming, Su Shi, caught in the middle, could hardly avoid being implicated.