The spring breeze warms the fragrant courtyard, while melodious songs float from the flower pavilion and beautiful dancers twirl lightly.
In the Spring Blossom Tower, the most renowned restaurant in the capital, a group of notorious young noblemen gathered in a private room, drinking themselves into a stupor in broad daylight.
Among them was Third Son Mo, son of Deputy Minister Mo from the Ministry of War.
Intoxicated, Third Son Mo kept mumbling incoherently.
"You don't know... I encountered such an incomparably beautiful young lady! Ah, both beautiful and fierce, she torments my heart!"
The crowd of young nobles laughed uproariously, "A delicate beauty turning into a shrew when angry, that's not really fierce."
Third Son Mo waved his hand, "It's not just shouting and scolding! The young lady's voice is crisp and pleasant to hear, not fierce at all. What's fierce is her hand wielding a knife! One slash separates flesh from bone, two slashes skin and carve meat. This lady I met, she's a rare beauty who runs a butcher shop in the capital, a true beauty of the meat market!"
The young nobles became extremely interested. They stopped drinking and watching the dancing beauties, instead noisily urging Third Son Mo to say more about this rare butcher shop beauty, curious about her looks and fierceness.
But Third Son Mo refused to elaborate further.
Amidst the rowdy crowd urging Third Son Mo on, only one young man behind a decorative screen showed no reaction. Half-drunk, he allowed a courtesan's slender fingers to undo his collar, exposing half of his muscular chest. He made no move to stop her, only lazily fanning himself.
As it happened, this man was the leader among the capital's many young nobles. Today's gathering at the restaurant was to celebrate his safe passage through a recent crisis.
Not long ago, he had caused a big commotion on the streets, faced an impeachment, lost his position in the Imperial Guard, and received a harsh punishment from his family, disappearing for a whole month.
Everyone thought Yan Second Young Master had fallen because of this incident, but unexpectedly he managed to weather the storm safely and emerged to carouse again!
Third Son Mo exclaimed, pointing behind the screen, "Look at Second Young Master! Everyone's gathered close to hear about the butcher shop beauty, but he shows no interest at all. Tell us, brother, which beauty have you been thinking about these past few days?"
The one lying behind the screen was none other than Yan Yixing, the second son of the Xingning Marquis Mansion.
Yan Second Young Master said lazily, "I just took a severe beating from the family rod, only released from the ancestral hall this morning. It hurts to even move a few steps, where would I find the energy to think about women?"
Third Son Mo didn't believe him.
He pointed at Yan Second Young Master and said to everyone with a laugh, "We've all known each other for years. Look at Second Young Master today. Doesn't he seem to be getting frisky? His soul seems to have flown away. What's this? After not seeing you for a month, have you caught sight of some flower-like beauty that's captured your thoughts?"
Yan Second Young Master glanced at him sideways, "You don't know her." He didn't deny it.
The young nobles immediately burst into an uproar. They crowded around the screen, surrounding Yan Second Young Master, and asked all at once about the beauty who had captured his soul.
But Yan Second Young Master wouldn't reveal a single word, letting everyone guess wildly.
Third Son Mo called out, "Second Young Master, you're no fun! Last time when I ran into that fan-selling girl at the night market, the ivory fan bones looked like they were stolen from your house. I didn't keep it secret at all, I told you the very next day! This time I ran into the beauty at the Ying family's lamb shop, and I'm not keeping it secret either, telling you all right away—"
Yan Second Young Master's half-closed eyes suddenly flew open. He sat up from the chaise lounge, smoothed out his wrinkled clothes, picked up the delicate ivory fan beside him, and opened it to fan himself a few times.
"The Ying family's lamb shop? Did you say the butcher shop beauty's surname is Ying? The 'Ying' that means 'should'?"
"How many 'Ying' surnames are there in the book of family names? It's the 'Ying' that means 'should'." Third Son Mo, being the type to quickly forget past troubles, had already forgotten his own frightened escape earlier. Instead, he proudly played coy:
"Want to know where the butcher shop beauty's lamb shop is located? Want to see the beauty wielding a knife in person? Well, Second Young Master, that fan of yours looks quite nice..."
Without wasting a single word, Yan Second Young Master directly folded the ivory fan he had been playing with and handed it over.
"It's yours."
*
As summer approached, the weather in the capital gradually grew hotter. Cicadas chirped in the trees, and in the sultry heat, her adoptive mother suffered another bout of dizziness.
Since moving to their new home, there had been no major episodes from early spring to early summer, but this dizzy spell came on fiercely. Her adoptive mother was bedridden for two consecutive days, frightening Zhi into crying several times.
Ying Xiaoman didn't set up her stall for two days, staying home to look after her mother.
She invited two or three doctors, but after examining her mother, they all prescribed tonics to nourish yin and replenish qi. When questioned, they all gave the same explanation:
"As one ages, the body naturally becomes weaker. While we can't diagnose any serious illness, it's mainly due to overwork in her youth, leading to deficiencies in qi and blood. Take advantage of the summer to properly nourish her body with dietary supplements and medicinal foods, so there won't be major problems in winter."
When asked if taking medicine and nourishing treatments could cure her completely, the doctors all shook their heads, unwilling to give a definite answer.
Ying Xiaoman crouched by the stove, stuffing firewood into it.
Zhi squatted beside her, watching her sister make the fire, and asked puzzledly, "Can't medicine cure Auntie's illness?"
"What I'm cooking isn't medicine, it's a nourishing recipe with longan, white fungus, goji berries, and angelica root. The doctors can't diagnose Mother's illness, they only recommend dietary nourishment," Ying Xiaoman said, staring at the sparks just rising in the stove.
Come to think of it, when Yan Seventh Young Master sent over the nourishing medicinal foods before, her aunt ate them for over ten days, and during that time her complexion noticeably improved, even her cough lessened...
Unfortunately, the recipe for the medicinal food was too expensive. After finishing the medicine packages Yan Seventh Young Master had sent, her adoptive mother was unwilling to continue buying the ingredients according to the recipe. She even claimed to have burned the recipe. Who knows if she really burned it in the stove or hid it somewhere.
Knowing her mother's personality, she most likely kept it.
Ying Xiaoman glanced at her mother sleeping fitfully on the kang bed, then quietly searched around the room, opening each chest and cabinet to look for the medicinal food recipe.
After a while without finding it, her mother on the kang coughed a few times, seemingly about to wake up.
She hurriedly closed all the opened chest lids, got up to pour some red date and ginger tea.
After feeding her a cup of ginger tea... her mother shooed her out to do business.
"When I bring up finding you a marriage match, you refuse to agree, and now the butcher shop hasn't opened for several days in a row."
Her adoptive mother said between coughs, "Our household is registered under a woman's name, making it even harder than ordinary families. If we want to settle down in the capital for the long term, we need either people or money, at least one of the two."
She then waved her hand repeatedly at Ying Xiaoman, "Don't worry about your old mother, I'm fine. I've managed for decades, these couple of days won't make a difference. The sun is high, take Zhi to the shop."
Ying Xiaoman had no choice but to pack twenty catties of fresh mutton in wooden buckets, pick up Zhi, and push the wheeled cart out the door.
Mother was right, a family needs either people or money, at least one of the two.
Yan Seventh Young Master had deceived her, openly discussing revenge with her while secretly protecting the life of her enemy.
From now on, there would be no more Yan Seventh Young Master coming and going from the Ying household.
She could avenge her father on her own, then live a good life in the capital with her mother and Zhi, just the three of them.
Unexpectedly, when her mother sent her out to do business today, before she even got close to the butcher shop, she saw someone she never expected to see.
Yan Second Young Master, whom she hadn't seen in a long time, had shed his flashy clothes for a plain crimson silk robe without patterns, thick-soled silk shoes, and a leather belt—an extremely simple outfit for him. Accompanied by only one horse-leading attendant, he leisurely circled the butcher shop once, stopped in front of the five-character red paper sign of the lamb shop, stared at it for a moment, then smiled.
"This handwriting... so neat and orderly. Could it be Young Miss Ying's own handiwork? Tsk tsk, Seventh Young Master, aren't you two on good terms? Why didn't she ask you for a piece of calligraphy to make a signboard, to hang high above the entrance of this butcher shop across from the Ministry of Justice?"
Standing opposite Yan Second Young Master was a young man wearing a snow-cyan colored robe.
His thick black hair was neatly tied with an ebony hairpin in his crown, the sunlight illuminating his handsome features. As the wind blew through the hall, lifting his wide sleeves, he raised his hand to block the uninvited guest by the roadside.
It was none other than Yan Seventh Young Master.
A smile also played on Seventh Young Master's lips.
He lightly glanced at Yan Second Young Master's legs, his words immediately striking a nerve.
"I heard Second Young Master was severely punished by his family this time. Your rod wounds haven't healed yet you're running all over the city. Relying on your strong physique, aren't you afraid of ending up with a lame leg?"
Yan Second Young Master waved his fan, saying nonchalantly, "What's there to fear? If I can win the beauty's heart, even a lame leg would be worth it."
Glancing up at the sun overhead, "It's the time when officials should be at their posts. Seventh Young Master, why aren't you sitting in your office? How come as soon as I arrive, you've also changed into casual clothes and come to the meat shop? Watching so closely, hehe, are you afraid I'm spying on Miss Ying Xiaoman?"
Yan Seventh Young Master spoke in a gentle voice, "I'm not worried about you spying on Xiaoman. I'm afraid Yan Yixing might get beaten to death by Xiaoman in broad daylight, which would be troublesome to deal with."
Ying Xiaoman pushed a small wheeled cart, skirting around to the storefront. After greeting the elderly couple at the meat bun shop, she lifted Zhi down from the cart and began unloading wooden planks one by one.
Zhi held a freshly baked meat bun, standing nearby eating while she spoke, "Sister. Seventh Brother is by the roadside. He's watching you."
"I've told you before, don't pay attention to him. Pretend you don't see him."
Zhi let out a confused "Ah," then said, "Sister, next to Seventh Brother, there's also an uncle in red clothes watching you."
"That one's a bad person. Pay even less attention to him."
Zhi was startled, her eyes widening like black grapes. They had just chased away one bad person a few days ago, and now another one had come!
In Zhi's terrified gaze, the bad person wearing a scarlet robe... left Seventh Brother behind and walked towards her sister!
Yan Yixing wore a lazy smile on his face as he stopped in front of Ying Xiaoman, opening his mouth to ask about the red characters hanging in the meat shop.
"These characters are written so neatly, the more I look at them the more they seem like Miss Ying's own handwriting. Speaking of which, don't you have a connection with that Yan fellow? Since the shop is right across from the Ministry of Justice office, why not simply ask him for a piece of calligraphy to make a signboard and hang it high on the meat shop's facade? It would surely attract customers in droves..."
As he spoke, he paid attention to Ying Xiaoman's expression, looking a few times before suddenly bending down to lean in close:
"Did you cry last night? Your eyelids look a bit swollen. Who made you cry—"
Before he could finish, Ying Xiaoman raised her hand and slapped him.
The slap came fast, catching Yan Yixing off guard. He nearly got hit in the face, but thanks to the waist and leg skills honed from years of martial arts training, he managed a quick backward lean, barely avoiding it. His attendant rushed over shouting, but Yan Yixing waved him away.
Taking advantage of the moment the master and servant were arguing, Ying Xiaoman had already unloaded all the door planks. With one hand carrying a wooden bucket containing twenty catties of lamb and the other holding Zhi's small hand, the two of them went straight into the meat shop.
Yan Yixing had nearly been slapped in public, but instead of being angry, he couldn't stop laughing.
"Looks like she really did cry last night."
He looked up at the neatly written characters, then glanced back at Yan Seventh Young Master who was in no hurry to come closer from the roadside. After pondering for a moment, he asked with great interest, "Did you two have a fight?"
Yan Seventh Young Master didn't respond to him.
The meat shop opened for business. Lamb ribs hung on iron hooks, raised on long poles. The chopping blocks and cleavers were neatly arranged. Ying Xiaoman had just started her first call of "Fresh lamb—"
Yan Seventh Young Master stood at the front of the line to buy meat, standing before the shop entrance and saying in a pleasant tone, "I'll buy ten catties of meat."
*
A crisp chopping sound rose from the butcher's block.
Ying Xiaoman focused on cutting the meat.
All those who came to buy meat at the shop were regular customers. If she had done business with Third Son Mo, why wouldn't she do business with Yan Seventh Young Master?
Finely cutting ten catties of meat took no small effort. Seventh Young Master said softly, "With Yan Yixing here today, let's not give him cause to laugh at us. Xiaoman, shall we set a date to meet at that teahouse you're familiar with near Dongming Bridge, and we can talk things over in detail?"
Just as he finished speaking, the chopping sounds in the meat shop also came to a stop.
"Ten catties of prime rib meat, one hundred and twenty wen per catty, ten catties for a total of one thousand two hundred wen."
Ying Xiaoman handed over the package of meat wrapped in oiled paper and held out her hand, "Pay up."
Yan Seventh Young Master wordlessly handed over a two-guan paper note. Ying Xiaoman raised her hand to take the money.
As the paper note landed in her palm, her gaze, which had been fixed on the chopping block, finally lifted to look at the two-guan denomination.
"Don't leave, I'll get your change."
Yan Seventh Young Master's expression showed a hint of helplessness as he glanced at Yan Yixing nearby, who was craning his neck to watch the scene. "Do you really want to let him see us make a spectacle?"
The corners of Ying Xiaoman's eyes were a bit red.
She had blinked inadvertently just now, and a teardrop clung precariously to her eyelashes, neither falling nor receding. She quickly raised her hand to wipe it away, still saying: "Wait, I'll get your change."
Seventh Young Master sighed, "No need for change, how much meat does it buy? Cut a bit more. I'll take it all with me."
Ying Xiaoman weighed the amount, brought down her cleaver, and cut off eight taels of lean back meat. She wrapped it in oiled paper, handed the package to Zhi beside her, and instructed her to pass it over.
Zhi carried the oiled paper package with both hands, circling out to the front of the shop. After hesitating for a while, she said, "Sister told me not to call you Seventh Brother anymore..."
Seventh Young Master bent down to take the package, raising his hand to pat Zhi's little head. "Then just call me Seventh Young Master."
"Alright!" Zhi immediately brightened up, standing on tiptoes to hand over the eight-tael meat package, waving as she said, "Seventh Young Master, take care."
Seventh Young Master gazed at Ying Xiaoman, who was busy with her head down inside the shop. "I'll come again when I have time." He paused, glancing at Yan Yixing by the roadside, who didn't look like he was up to any good, and added a warning:
"He was summoned to the palace for a reprimand and lost his position as Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard. He also received a beating at home and has only recently been let out. If he dares to do anything improper on the street today, feel free to make a big fuss about it. Even a favored royal in-law can't escape punishment every time."
Ying Xiaoman acted as if she hadn't heard, continuing to chop meat steadily.
After his words fell, with no response from her side, Seventh Young Master didn't leave, standing quietly in place waiting for a reply.
After a while, Ying Xiaoman gave a slight nod, indicating she had heard.
Yan Seventh Young Master gave her a long, deep look before turning to leave the alley.
Watching Seventh Young Master's figure disappear into the distance, Yan Yixing raised an eyebrow with great interest.
"Sister told me not to call you Seventh Brother anymore..." This sentence was truly intriguing.
Ever since being set up on the main street last time, Yan Yixing had been stripped of his newly acquired Imperial Guard position. His family was furious, and he had endured a real beating, nearly having his leg broken, followed by kneeling in the ancestral hall for half a month.
On the surface, he appeared fine, but walking normally while pretending nothing was wrong was truly painful.
Enduring the ache in his waist and legs, he flicked open his ivory fan with a swoosh and waved it a few times. Pretending to be unaffected, he sauntered over to the shop front, squeezing past the women queuing to buy meat, and called out imitating Yan Seventh Young Master:
"Ten catties of meat."
Ying Xiaoman dropped her cleaver with a thud. "Today we only have twenty catties of fresh meat in total. I've sold ten catties, with ten left. If I sell it all to you, what will my regular customers buy? Not selling!"
Yan Yixing: ?
She could sell to Seventh Young Master but not to him?
Ying Xiaoman ignored him and called out to the crowd behind, "Auntie Gao, how much meat do you want?"
The woman who had just been pushed aside glared at Yan Yixing before coming forward with a smile, saying, "Miss Ying takes care of her regular customers' business, I'll definitely come to your shop more often in the future. We have guests at home today, I'll buy four taels of minced meat."
"Wait a moment, it'll be ready soon." Ying Xiaoman brushed aside her loose hair, wiped the glistening sweat from her forehead, and began finely chopping the meat.
Yan Yixing: ...?
She wouldn't do the big ten-catty business but would spend half the day chopping four taels of minced meat? Miss Ying, is this how little you think of him?
Yan Yixing flicked open his fan again, waving it a few times.
This feeling of frustration and sourness... rare, exquisite, worth savoring.
The frustration actually made him laugh.
Yan Yixing laughed instead of getting angry. He snapped his ivory fan shut and turned to glance in the direction Seventh Young Master had gone.
It didn't necessarily mean she looked down on him.
It felt more like... now that the main character had left, he had become the scapegoat for venting her anger?!