Embroidered Phoenix Chronicle

In the afternoon, the massive financial drain continued!

Liu Lian didn't have much money on him; he was just accompanying her and observing. The ancients' clothing, food, housing, and transportation were much more elaborate and extravagant than modern people's. He went from one shop to another, only refusing to enter shops owned by the Du family or those that had offended this Goddess of Wealth.

The two entered a cosmetics shop, where the shopkeeper was extremely attentive. Du, with a generous wave of her hand, declared, "Take whatever you like, it's on me!" She lingered, carefully examining the small shop. Rouge, face powder, lipstick, face cream, silk flowers—a dazzling array of items, along with some exquisitely crafted hairpins and combs, and handkerchiefs—all things women cherish. The shop was bustling with customers, who strolled around, stopping occasionally. It wasn't that she disliked these delicate trinkets; it was simply that her profession dictated her short hair and neat, clean appearance. Finally, she picked up a mirror. It was a rhombus-shaped mirror, about the size of a palm, with a huanghuali wood edging, delicately carved with aquatic plant patterns. Most remarkably, it was a double-sided mirror. She looked at herself, and a strange face in the mirror startled her; she nearly threw the mirror away.

After transmigrating, her room contained only a bronze mirror, which reflected a blurry and distorted image, making it impossible to see her face clearly. Aunt Liu kept saying it needed polishing, but it was never done until she left. Liu Lian almost forgot she was living with someone else's face. People called her "Willow Leaf," "Seven Seven," or "Seventh Miss," and she would subconsciously respond. It hadn't even been a month, and she was already almost forgetting herself; others would probably forget even faster.

Madam Du had no idea what Liu Lian was thinking. Seeing her suddenly become sullen, she assumed she was worried about not being able to afford the mercury mirror, so she patted her shoulder and said with a charming smile, "Little sister, this shop belongs to your older sister. Take whatever you like; don't worry about me asking you for money!" As she spoke, she ordered someone to put the mirror in its case. Liu Lian was momentarily stunned, and Madam Du pulled her to pick out silk flowers. Liu Lian's mind was in turmoil; she couldn't even catch her breath and had no mind for such things. She was dazed, her face pale, and she could barely support herself. The others noticed her unusual behavior and hurriedly helped her sit down. Seeing Liu Lian's glazed eyes, Madam Du panicked. The head shopkeeper, more experienced, ordered someone to quickly bring cold water and wrung out a cold towel to wipe Liu Lian's face and hands. She even sent a shop assistant to fetch a neighboring old woman who knew how to perform gua sha (scraping therapy).

Heatstroke wasn't anything special, and it wasn't serious, so the customers gradually left. Liu Lian forced himself to stay awake and said he was fine, but Du Shi wouldn't listen. The old woman, holding a cow horn scraping board, remained silent, while the head waiter, holding a small dish of sesame oil, urged Liu Lian to try it, saying, "Whenever we have a headache or fever, we go to this old lady. She's very effective, and she's the kindest person we know!"

"There's no other way, go ahead." Du Shi stood outside the door, still shaken, muttering to herself. The shop assistant comforted her, "It's alright, it's just too hot. The young lady is probably weak and can't handle the heat!" He looked around and lowered his voice, asking, "How's things at home?" Du Shi replied lazily, "She's been made a concubine! Now she's with the old lady. Madam wants to promote her, so she asked my sister-in-law to help stop it." She gestured with her chin towards the room, "My sister-in-law's younger sister, that bracelet is definitely more useful to her than to my sister-in-law. This time, my sister-in-law did a lot of work, and offended her mother-in-law badly." The shop assistant nodded, "Your mother-in-law, whether you offend her or not, it doesn't really matter!" He then went on to talk about business. A neighbor lady came out, exchanged a few pleasantries with Du Shi, and left.

Du Shi dared not trouble Liu Ye'er any further, and sat down to rest with her. Liu Lian was preoccupied with a thousand thoughts and didn't want to talk, so Du Shi didn't want her to worry too much. A young waiter brought over two bowls of warm mint, honey, and tangerine peel tea. Liu Lian drank it and forced a smile, saying, "I'm sorry I scared you, Sister Du!" Du Shi breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "It's incredibly hot today! I was careless; thankfully, you didn't get too hot!" Liu Lian then forced herself to chat with Du Shi. Du Shi didn't dare to be careless, and only after the sun had set did she and Liu Ye'er take a carriage back, with a basin of ice in the carriage.

After returning home, Liu Liu never mentioned the matter again, and naturally, Madam Du was even less willing to say anything more. Liu Liu looked in the mirror a few more times and gradually accepted her new appearance. The little girl wasn't ugly; she had a chubby oval face, thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a rosy complexion—no less attractive than in her previous life. This was good enough; what more could she ask for!

Liu Ye'er stayed in the shade every day, while Fengxian began to instruct her in needlework. Madam Du often brought Fu Hui to join in the fun, and the group was all very happy, as if it were a holiday. Old Madam Liu didn't come to join the festivities; firstly, she knew they would feel awkward if she went, and secondly, she was busy with her own affairs. Every day, the old lady oversaw the preparation of various tonics in the small kitchen, which were continuously delivered to the backyard.

Hong Xing'er looked smugly at the various tonics and snacks that had been delivered, knowing that the old lady was only doing this because of the child in her womb. So what? There was plenty of time! One son wasn't enough; with one after another being born, forget about being a concubine; once her son grew up, the old lady would make her one! Although the second master had long since grown tired of the young mistress, she couldn't be careless. She had to keep him firmly under her control. If Du Shi were to strike while the iron was hot and also give birth to a son, ten stars wouldn't be enough to compensate for a month's worth of suffering. She would wear her own son to death, and she could only watch helplessly. But staying here wasn't a good idea; it wasn't appropriate to let the second master stay overnight. If he stayed at Du Shi's place, they'd develop feelings for each other. No, she had to find a way to turn them against each other! Perhaps she should write a letter to the second master, expressing her feelings and asking him to study hard at school and not come back. But she had no pen, ink, paper, or inkstone—how could she write? How could she send it out? It would all cost money. Where would she find the money? When she was a maid, she received one and a half strings of cash a month. Her mother took all the yearly and festival bonuses. After becoming a concubine, she was supposed to receive three strings of cash a month, but that sounded nice. There were no yearly or festival bonuses to be had, and she didn't get more than a few strings of cash as a maid. Although her food and clothing were good, she couldn't exchange them for money. The few pieces of clothing and jewelry she was given were worth dozens of strings of cash, but they were limited items that couldn't be sold. Hong Xing'er felt sorry for herself: she had finally squeezed into this pile of gold and silver, and it was bad enough that she had no name, no status, and no position, but how come she couldn't even scrape together a single piece of gold?

Hongxing'er sighed and lamented for a while, but finally went to inform the old lady that she wanted to copy Buddhist scriptures, partly to accumulate blessings for her child, and partly to calm her mind. Du Shi pursed her lips and said, "She should calm her mind!" The old maid remained silent, and the old lady said calmly, "I know, let her take good care of herself during her pregnancy and not think about anything else. You two, go to the storeroom and choose a set." Fengxian said seriously, "I just don't know which Buddhist scriptures to choose, please advise, Grandmother." Du Shi chuckled and pulled Fengxian away. Liulian found it strange, and later Du Shi told her, "What a serious young lady! She probably wants to copy scriptures for something else! Let her copy them, she knows a few characters and thinks she's a female scholar! Your eldest sister studied properly at home for seven or eight years, and even your eldest brother asks her for help when he can't write a character! She doesn't pretend to need to calm her mind! It seems she's not calming her mind, that's why she's asking for it!"