In the early morning, they walked from Wazi Gate in the west of the city to the north, and in the afternoon, they made their way back from the north to the south.
Ying Xiaoman still couldn't bring herself to spend money on hiring a carriage. The two peach blossom branches she had picked outside Wazi Gate had their stems wrapped in water-soaked cloth. One was left at the new house in Seven Scholars Lane, while the other was brought back home.
One of them carried a bundle, the other cradled the peach branch, and they stubbornly walked for a whole hour back to Tongluo Alley.
Halfway through, as they passed Dongming Bridge, shops lined both sides of the long street, and the aroma of food wafted to their noses. Ying Xiaoman's stomach growled audibly, and she pulled Seventh Young Master to sit down at a roadside stall, buying two bowls of wonton soup.
Seventh Young Master asked her, "You mentioned earlier that you knew a tea master near Dongming Bridge. Which shop is it?"
Ying Xiaoman felt a bit embarrassed, her gaze flitting to the black-edged red flag hanging diagonally across the street. Han Xing Residence.
The tea there was too expensive. On rainy days when the tea master had free time, she would use the excuse of seeking shelter to go and chat for a while. On sunny days when business was good, she never went to disturb them.
Seventh Young Master followed her gaze to the "Han Xing Residence" flag, his eyes lingering for a moment before returning to his food, taking a bite of his wonton.
"Everything is expensive in the capital. I've been meaning to ask... Miss Xiaoman, do you have enough money?"
His words hit a sore spot.
Walking from the north of the city to the south, the soles of their shoes had worn thin, and the sun was scorching. Why didn't they hire a carriage? Simply because money was tight, and they couldn't bear to spend the hundred and twenty wen for the fare.
"We still have the fan," Ying Xiaoman said, chewing on a wonton skin. "We had bad luck running into Third Son Mo last night, but we'll go to the ghost market another day to sell the fan. That should ease our financial situation considerably."
At the mention of the fan, Seventh Young Master had some thoughts.
The ivory fan was valuable; he had originally assumed it was a family heirloom of the Ying family... but when he had examined it earlier, he noticed a 'yan' character carved on the fan ribs. It didn't seem like an heirloom.
Could it have been passed down from her mother's family?
As he ate, Seventh Young Master asked, "Must it be sold at the ghost market? That place is chaotic and could cause problems."
"This ivory fan of yours is of high quality, worth over fifty strings of cash. If you took it to a reliable pawnshop, you could at least get half its value. Miss Xiaoman, please consider it."
Ying Xiaoman, who had been slowly eating her wontons, suddenly tensed up at the words "pawnshop." "Not the pawnshop!" she exclaimed.
Seventh Young Master paused mid-scoop, his gaze shifting to meet hers, a questioning look in his eyes.
Ying Xiaoman looked troubled. "How should I explain this... In any case, that fan cannot be taken to a pawnshop. Do you understand what I mean?"
Seventh Young Master: "Hmm... I think I understand now."
That fan was certainly not a Ying family heirloom.
More than that, its origins were likely questionable. That's why she would rather take her chances at the ghost market than go to a pawnshop.
Many thoughts ran through his mind, but he said nothing, calmly finishing his bowl and setting down his spoon.
"Thank you for the wontons, Miss Xiaoman. Five wen per bowl, I'll add it to today's account."
Ying Xiaoman, feeling satisfied and content after the meal, no longer dwelled on her worries and small troubles. She waved her hand magnanimously.
"I should be thanking you for accompanying me to the ghost market. Walking from the west of the city to the north, and then to the south—such a long journey must have left you hungry. This meal is my treat."
When they returned home to Tongluo Alley along the riverside, it was late afternoon, just as households were beginning to prepare dinner.
Their return caused quite a stir, with peach blossoms trailing their path into the narrow alley. More than one neighbor caught sight of Seventh Young Master.
Aunt Yang stood outside her courtyard gate, hesitating to speak.
"Sister-in-law Ying, isn't your household registered as female-headed? That young man who came back with your Xiaoman—yes, the tall one wearing a conical hat and carrying a bundle—could he be a son-in-law you've taken in?"
Xiaoman's adoptive mother stood awkwardly at the door, unsure how to respond. She repeated several times, "A relative from our hometown," "Xiaoman's father—um, her cousin's eldest son," "Yes, yes, a distant cousin..." managing to fend off the questions.
Aunt Yang clicked her tongue in admiration. "Your cousin's son has such a fine figure! Trim waist, long legs. Is he betrothed back in your hometown...?"
Ying Xiaoman slipped into the small courtyard like a fish through water, beckoning behind her for Seventh Young Master to follow. He quietly entered the west room.
Aunt Yang hadn't come today just to pry into their private affairs. She had important matters to discuss and had brought a full bamboo basket of items.
Zhi's mother, the Xu family widow who had passed away after a fall during the flood disaster, had long since passed her seventh day after death.
The official report had been verified by the authorities, and Shuntian Prefecture had allocated a plot of land in Louze Garden outside the city, burying Aunt Xu's coffin in an eight-foot grave. That had happened five or six days ago.
"Your Ying family isn't well-off either, and it's not easy to feed an extra mouth like Zhi. You've also contributed your share for the funeral expenses and paper money. Now that the funeral is over, there are some odds and ends left. We all discussed it and decided to leave everything, be it money or goods, to your family. Here, it's all in the basket."
Aunt Yang insisted on leaving the basket, and Xiaoman's adoptive mother couldn't refuse. She brought it in and rummaged through its contents.
Half a basket of gold and silver joss paper, several chi of plain cloth, a few white candles, and at the very bottom, a full string of cash.
"The neighbors have returned the share we contributed."
Xiaoman's adoptive mother sighed as she set down the basket. She took out a white silk flower and called Zhi over, pinning it to the little girl's bun. "Not giving is one's duty, but giving is an act of kindness. Remember the kindness of our neighbors."
Zhi nodded, not fully comprehending.
A child her age was more interested in the shiny gold and silver joss paper. "Is this money for my mother? If we burn it in the stove, will she receive it?"
The adoptive mother comforted her, "In a few days, we'll be moving. Before we move, we'll visit your mother's grave once more and burn it for her in person."
After sending Zhi to her room, the adoptive mother wiped her reddened eyes and turned to scold her own daughter.
"Gallivanting all over the city with the man from the west room without a word, and even letting the neighbors see! Don't you care about your reputation?"
Ying Xiaoman peeked out from behind the peach branch, flashing a smile at her adoptive mother, and handed over the fully blooming peach blossoms. "I brought these back from Wazi Gate in the west of the city."
Holding the heavy branch of flowers that had been carried from so far away, its stem still warm from Xiaoman's hands, the adoptive mother's anger instantly dissipated.
Ying Xiaoman thought Seventh Young Master was truly a good person. He had gotten up with her in the night, spent half a day running around, from the south of the city to the west, then to the north and back again, wearing down the soles of his shoes, without a single word of complaint.
She had already made up her mind to keep him.
"Mother, we're moving in a couple of days. Let's have the guy from the west room move with us to the new house," she said, searching the room for vases to put peach blossom branches in. "The rent for the new place is two strings of cash per month, and he's willing to pay half."
Her adoptive mother opened her mouth, about to say something.
Ying Xiaoman continued, "He was a great help during our trip to the ghost market. He often says that he wants to repay the kindness that saved his life. It's not just talk; he's really trying to show his gratitude. I think he's a good person. Look."
She playfully swayed the blooming peach blossom branch in her hand.
"Isn't it pretty? I carried it all the way from the west of the city to the north, and then from the north to the south. A few times when I got tired of carrying it, he took it without a word, never suggesting that I should throw it away."
Her adoptive mother didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "He hasn't paid a single coin, went on a trip with you, helped you pick a couple of peach blossoms, and now you think he's a good person? When your father was alive, I always said you were an easy target, little girl."
The door latch on the west room's side clicked softly from the inside.
Seventh Young Master spoke through the door, "I've already agreed with Miss Xiaoman that I'll pay off my debt as soon as possible."
The adoptive mother was shocked. "He can hear what we're saying in our room?"
Ying Xiaoman suddenly remembered how her name had been inexplicably revealed.
"The room is too small. Every little sound gets into his ears."
Her adoptive mother lowered her voice and continued to scold, "Anyone can make promises."
"We thought he came to the capital from elsewhere to do business, but it turns out he's a local snake! Your father used to say that city folks are crafty, and he's also involved in a murder case. I'm really worried that you, an outsider, might be taken away and sold by him."
Ying Xiaoman wasn't afraid at all. "Mother, I have two pairs of iron claws now."
Iron claws were formidable weapons. She had demonstrated them once at the ghost market, and that Third Son Mo, who claimed to be a notorious playboy in the capital, had turned pale with fright and fled in panic, hadn't he?
Seventh Young Master from the west room was a good person, willing to repay kindness, and aware of her capabilities. She didn't believe he would sell her.
She thought her reasoning was sound, but unfortunately, it couldn't convince her mother at all.
Her adoptive mother continued to scold while sewing, "You have two pairs of iron claws, so he can't sell you? That bear you hunted in the mountains had two pairs of paws too!"
Ying Xiaoman looked bewildered.
It seemed to make some sense...
But she still stuck to her opinion, "The guy from the west room isn't a bad person. If anyone asks about him, just say he's our cousin."
Her adoptive mother sighed, "Even a cousin needs a proper title. You won't let me ask about his family background or name."
"He's the seventh child in his family. Mother, you can call him Seventh Young Master from now on."
It was the time when the sun was setting behind the mountains, its light filtering through the clouds, reflecting off the river bend, and shining into the Ying family's home deep in Tongluo Alley in the south of the city. The light from the west shone through the window, illuminating the ivory fan held by slender fingers.
Not just the fan ribs, but the entire fan face was carved from ivory, perfectly formed and gleaming.
The exquisite ivory fan opened in the sunlight. The fingertips skillfully opened and closed it with a gentle touch.
Snap.
This west room only received sunlight in the evening. Taking advantage of the golden light, the young master inside carefully examined the fan's carved work and engraved marks.
His gaze fixed on the vermilion seal carved at the end of the fan ribs.
"Yan."
The fan was valuable, looking like a collection piece from a great family. How did it end up in Xiaoman's hands?
The surname Yan was rare. Come to think of it, there was a famous Yan family in the east of the city, the Marquis of Xingning's Yan family. He wondered if there was any connection to this fan...
His mind stirred, and he suddenly remembered a rumor he had heard before his incident.
There was vague talk about a strange incident of a girl being forcibly abducted on the street by the Marquis of Xingning's family.
It was considered strange because the one said to have abducted the girl was actually Yan Erlang from the Marquis of Xingning's family.
The Marquis of Xingning's manor was of noble birth and related to the imperial family by marriage. The legitimate Yan Erlang was expected to inherit the title in the future. Yan Erlang had grown up in and out of the palace, under the watchful eyes of the Emperor and Empress Dowager. Although he couldn't avoid being somewhat frivolous and unrestrained, his overall conduct was considered proper.
Yan Erlang didn't lack for beautiful women around him, and he had just started his official career, earning the Emperor's trust. With such a promising future ahead, why would he risk losing it all by forcibly abducting a commoner girl?
The Yan family's explanation was that the girl from a humble family had voluntarily offered to sell herself to the manor, but they couldn't agree on the price. She had initially agreed but then broke the agreement.
At the time, Eleventh Young Master had mentioned it to him over drinks, treating it as court gossip, and they had only discussed it briefly.
Could it be such a coincidence that the humble beauty forcibly taken by Yan Erlang was actually...
As he was pondering, the adoptive mother called from the stove, "Dinner's ready, come and eat, everyone."
The finely crafted, top-quality ivory fan was folded and gently placed on the kang bed inside the room.