When Liu Rujin first joined the Ministry of Works, he was a minor official. It took him over a decade to finally be promoted from the sixth to the fifth rank. His promotion to the fifth rank was due to a letter he delivered to Beining Marquis Manor on behalf of Li Ming, for which he was rewarded.
He was grateful to Li Ming and showed great affection towards his son, Li Hui. He inquired in detail about Li Hui's studies, and asked him to bring articles every three days for his review and guidance, which was exactly what Li Hui desired.
Li Xia didn't need to meet any guests, so she slept in. After breakfast, she walked around the backyard to see what her new home looked like. Although the courtyard was small, it was exquisitely designed. It was winter now, so there wasn't much to see, but it would surely be beautiful in the summer.
While admiring the courtyard, she ended up in Fuqing Courtyard. Seeing the time, she realized it was time for lunch. She walked into Fuqing Courtyard, prepared to have lunch with Li Xin.
Having an understanding of Li Xia's appetite, Li Xin ordered Dan Mo to inform the kitchen to prepare a few more dishes. As the food was served and Li Xin and Li Xia were about to eat, Li Hui walked in.
"Brother, have you eaten yet?" Li Xin asked, intending to have a maid set the table for him.
"I've eaten, you guys go ahead," Li Hui replied, taking a seat. He waited until they had finished eating before stating his purpose for coming: the courier was returning to Liuzhou tomorrow. "You don't need to prepare anything, I have already ordered someone to do it. Just write a letter back."
"Alright, I'll write the letter now." Li Xin had a lot she wanted to say to Old Madam Lu and the Gongshun Marquis' Wife.
"Wait," Li Hui called out as Li Xin was about to leave.
Li Xin turned back, puzzled. Li Hui simply said, "Don't mention the bandit incident."
Li Xin nodded in agreement. The bandit incident had already happened and they were all safe. There was no need to cause unnecessary worry for Mrs. Lu and Li Ming. Li Hui then turned to Li Xia, who assured him, "Don't worry, big brother. I'll remind Auntie Mei not to mention the bandit incident."
Li Hui nodded. Li Xia went back to the Plum Blossom Pavilion and told Auntie Mei about the letter. Auntie Mei wasn't planning on mentioning the bandit incident either.
Li Xia was unsure about what to write to Mrs. Lu, so she simply wrote a few words of greeting. She put her letter and Auntie Mei's letter into one envelope, and asked Qiu Ling to deliver them to the front courtyard.
Without the need to pay respects every day or study, Li Xia found this life quite comfortable. After eating, she lay on a lounge chair, basking in the sun. When Li Xin walked into the Plum Blossom Pavilion, this was the scene that greeted her.
"Eldest Miss," the servant in the courtyard greeted Li Xin, putting down her work to bow.
Li Xia sat up. "Sister, come and enjoy the sun."
"Xia Xia, would you like to go shopping?" It was rare for Li Xin to suggest going shopping. Naturally, Li Xia was enthusiastic. "Great, shall we go now?"
"Let's go now, we can eat lunch outside," Li Xin suggested, unable to suppress a smile at Li Xia's energetic leap from the lounge chair. Whenever she spoke with Li Xia, she always found herself laughing.
"Wait a moment, I need to change," Li Xia said. She hadn't planned on going out, so she was dressed very casually. Since she was going out now, she needed to make herself presentable.
"Why don't we invite Auntie Mei to come with us?" Li Xin suggested, seeing Auntie Mei come out of the house upon hearing their voices.
Auntie Mei was uneasy about the two young ladies going out, but agreed. "Alright, Miss, please wait. I'll change into something more suitable." Similar to her own courtyard, Auntie Mei was also dressed very casually at home.
Li Xin sighed, truly, they were like mother and daughter. They had only been sitting for less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea, when Li Xia and Auntie Mei had changed their clothes. Auntie Mei was dressed in an aged manner, not wanting to be conspicuous. Li Xia changed into a light green skirt and blouse which was easy to walk in.
Li Hui didn't go. He had arranged for the carriage and asked Zhang Hu to follow and protect the three of them when they went out. Zhang Hu had been in the Capital City for some time, and knew which streets were lively and suitable for ladies to stroll.
Li Hui saw his two sisters to the door and handed them a roll of banknotes. He told them to buy whatever they liked, and if it wasn't enough, he'd send people to deliver more from home, and he'd settle the bill.
After Li Hui turned 13, Mrs. Lu handed over part of her dowry business for him to manage, and even assigned two competent business experts to assist him. Li Hui had a unique vision and a good business mind.
Li Xia's previous gloves and special hemostatic medicine had earned Li Hui quite a bit. Li Hui was not short of money, and naturally, he was very generous to his two sisters.
Having such a generous brother made Li Xin and Li Xia feel even better. They were talking about what they wanted to buy on their way.
Zhang Hu drove the carriage to Yongchang Street. This was where most of the Capital City's jewelry, rouge, powder, clothes, and other women's goods were gathered. Hence, it was jokingly referred to as Women's Street.
Carriages were not allowed to enter the street, so they left their carriage at a designated parking spot where someone would look after it. The three of them walked into Yongchang Street.
They first went to see the clothes, and in the shop, they saw many fashionable styles in the Capital City. After getting to know the latest trends, they bought two ready-made clothes, and also chose a lot of fabric to make clothes. After looking at the clothes and fabrics, they went into the jewelry shop.
Old Madam Lu and Mrs. Lu had given the two of them many gifts. Especially Li Xin, who received several sets of precious accessories. However, because they were so valuable, it was not suitable for Li Xin to wear them at home or when going out daily.
This time when they came to shop, Li Xin planned to pick two sets of new and light accessories that she could wear daily when going out. Li Xia wasn't interested in these things, and just watched Li Xin choose.
Li Xin knew Li Xia's personality and picked two sets each for herself and Li Xia. Auntie Mei also got one set. They bought a lot, and the shopkeeper was happy that he would get a commission. He repeatedly assured them that he would deliver everything to their house.
After seeing the clothes and jewelry, they went to visit the rouge and powder shop. As soon as they entered, they smelled a strong fragrance. Li Xia sneezed a few times, uncomfortable. Li Xia didn't want to go in. "Sis, you and Auntie go in and look. I'll wait for you outside."
Seeing Li Xia's nose had turned red, Li Xin didn't insist on her entering the shop. She looked around and saw that not far away was a teahouse. "Xia Xia, you wait for us at the teahouse across the street."
"Okay, you can take your time shopping, don't rush." Li Xia went to the teahouse with Qiu Ling and Qiu Chan.
They took a private room, and the waiter quickly brought up tea and snacks. Li Xia asked Qiu Ling and Qiu Chan to sit down, "You two sit down too, have something to eat." She said, taking a piece of snack and put it into Qiu Chan's mouth.
Qiu Chan obediently sat next to Li Xia, eating the snack in her mouth. "It's delicious."
Seeing Qiu Chan eating happily, Li Xia became curious, "Qiu Chan, to you, is there anything in this world that isn't delicious?"
"Indeed, wild vegetable soup is not tasty, it's bitter and astringent," Qiu Chan said, remembering the many times she had to eat it as a child when there wasn't enough food at home. Yet, they wanted Qiu Chan to be active, so they fed her wild vegetable soup.
The tender wild vegetables were for the family to eat, while Qiu Chan was left with the mature, tougher ones. They would be boiled with a bit of salt. Eating them was a bitter and astringent experience. As Qiu Chan spoke, she stuffed two pastries into her mouth. Pastries were delicious, but the tastiest was still meat. This reminded her of seeing a street vendor selling braised pig's head meat.
"Braised pig's head meat is delicious, I also want to eat it now," she admitted, realizing she had unintentionally mentioned the braised pig's head meat in response to Li Xia's comment.
Li Xia took out some silver coins and handed them to Qiu Chan. "Go buy two pig's heads to take home. We'll have braised pig's head meat tonight."
Qiu Chan drained her tea cup in one gulp, accepted the silver coins, and turned to run down the stairs, her footsteps echoing as she went.
