Records of the Cattle and Horses of Chang'an

Jiang Shangxian, who was forced to press the pause button, turned the last half circle firmly. His hands were clasped in front of his lower abdomen smoothly. The expression unique to a musician was completely put away on his face. He looked as well-behaved as usual. He took small steps to open the door and wanted to show his mother and grandmother, but was slapped back by the cold wind outside. He obediently put on the cloak that Cui Bianxu had given him.

"Come, let Grandma take a look." Old Madam Xia's wrinkled, aged hands slowly tied a knot in the thread. She lowered her head and bit the thread with her missing teeth, then handed Xia Zhenying's clothes to Jiang's mother. "Just iron them straight. You're just a child, so there's no need to fumigate them. It's a waste of money; they'll smell like mutton soon."

To some extent, Old Lady Xia is similar to some modern parents. She doesn't allow dating in college, considering it premature love, and urges marriage as soon as graduation comes, as if suitable marriage partners are like cabbages in the vegetable market, waiting to be picked at will.

She wholeheartedly agreed with Jiang Shangxian's decision to dress up. He was already of marriageable age and had a potential partner. If he didn't dress up now, would he wait until he was old and ugly before dressing up like an old witch?

"How about a bun?" Old Madam Xia used a comb to gently smooth the hair with osmanthus hair oil, praising Nian Nu non-stop, "Nian Nu's hair is so beautiful. If it's too thin, it will break easily, and if it's too thick, it will smell bad. This is neither too thick nor too thin, and it's so dense. It's just right."

The Jiang family only has one bronze mirror, which is in Jiang's mother's room. When she first got married to Jiang's father, she kept saying that she wanted one, so Jiang's father specially went out to buy one for her, and they have been using it ever since.

At that time, the sides of the bronze mirror were slightly curved, somewhat similar to a concave mirror, which could make the face look smaller when reflected in it.

Although the bun was simple, Old Lady Xia combed it carefully and gently, not letting even a single strand of hair fall out. "The scent of this osmanthus hair oil is still a little weak. Next time I'll buy rose jasmine oil. That one has a nice fragrance. A young lady should use something better."

When she was young, there were no such good things, and it was considered good enough to be able to use osmanthus hair oil.

Although Jiang's mother was usually very frugal and a bit stingy, she still had the heart to buy the hair oil for Jiang Shangxian. After hearing this, she felt a little aggrieved: "Mother, it's not that I don't want to buy the rose jasmine flower one, it's that Nian Nu herself doesn't want to use it. She insisted on using osmanthus or orchid flower ones, which are more common and have a lighter flavor. Otherwise, it will affect her cooking!"

When she first arrived here and heard about hair oil, she was actually against it, but she gradually got used to it. Hair oil is now similar to modern mousse. The classic Chinese bun is about cleanliness. No matter how complicated or simple the hairstyle is, there is basically no stray hair.

How can a normal person not have broken hair? Every morning when she wakes up, the broken hair on her forehead flutters in the wind like a soldier standing at attention. This is when she needs to use hair oil.

The most popular and relatively affordable hair oil nowadays is made by mixing half-opened osmanthus flowers with sesame oil, sealing it in a porcelain jar, and then putting it in a soup pot and boiling it over high heat. The porcelain jar is then placed in a dry place for ten days before being opened. The osmanthus flowers soaked in sesame oil are taken out and the oil is squeezed out forcefully. This is osmanthus hair oil.

As for orchid, the method is the same, except that the osmanthus flowers are replaced with orchid.

Because the raw materials are simple, the fragrance of osmanthus hair oil is also pure, with a light osmanthus scent, which smells like the season when osmanthus flowers bloom.

As for the rose jasmine hair oil that Old Madam Xia mentioned, it is actually made from a mixture of rose and jasmine dew and oil. This kind of thing is difficult to make and the raw materials are expensive, so it is naturally sold at a much higher price.

However, because of its strong fragrance, people can smell it from a long distance, and it has the best effect. It is particularly popular in the upper-class market. Naturally, this is the kind that Li Xueyan uses.

When Old Lady Xia heard that it was Jiang Shangxian who wanted to use this hair oil, she stopped dwelling on it and asked her, "Where's the chain that Cui Shaoqing gave you? Take it out and put it on."

"Mom, there are so many people outside tonight. What if you lose something?" Jiang's mother disagreed. It was so crowded outside. If such a valuable thing was lost, wouldn't she be heartbroken?

Old Madam Xia rolled her eyes at her, then put on a loving expression when she looked at Jiang Shangxian. She inserted a plain silver hairpin with a floral pattern between the two little chicks and said, "Nian Nu, you must remember not to be like your mother. The person who gives you gifts will only give you something again if he sees that you like it. If you wear it every day, he will go to great lengths to find you something else. If you keep it secret from the public, he will never give you anything again. How much money can a man spend on himself? If he doesn't spend his money on you, he will spend it on others. Remember this?"

Jiang Shangxian deeply agreed with this principle and resolutely implemented it: "Don't worry, grandma!"

After combing her hair, Jiang's mother put down the teapot and took out a small wooden box from the side: "Mother, should I do this makeup or will you do it?"

Madam Xia quickly waved her hands: "I haven't touched this thing in years."

Since she turned twenty-five, she hadn't used any of these. Who among ordinary people, except young ladies and daughters-in-law, would waste such money? Especially after giving birth to two children, she had to work and take care of the children all day long. How could she have the time to spend on these?

Apart from the ladies of the government and the nobles, the only people who put on makeup all day long were the prostitutes in Pingkangfang.

Jiang's mother was actually in a difficult situation as well. She hadn't used these things for several years. As the old saying goes, a widow is always surrounded by gossip. She was raising a pair of children alone, putting on makeup all day long, and people thought she wanted to remarry!

But among the three generations of the family, it seems that she is the only one who can take care of it...

Jiang Shangxian was shocked. He stretched his neck to open the box. Inside were bottles and jars, many of which were long, flat, and round. "Mother, we still have these things at home? Why don't you use them normally?"

Hidden deep enough!

"How can we have it? Your father has been gone for many years. What do I need this thing for?"

Jiang's mother rolled her eyes, took out all the porcelain jars, and opened them one by one to see what was inside. "Your grandmother said that you're old enough now and you still need to use these things. She specifically asked me to buy them, and it cost a lot of money!"

She was almost heartbroken to death!

Mrs. Xia's original words were: If Nian Nu and Cui Shaoqing really get together in the future, she hasn't even seen these things, wouldn't she be laughed at? Just buy some ordinary ones for her to practice first. Can she take the silver coins into the coffin?