Embroidered Phoenix Chronicle

Liu Lian chuckled a few times, gazing up at the sky at a 45-degree angle. "The weather's nice today, isn't it? The sky is clear and cloudless." Constable Gong looked up at the sky and chimed in, "Yes, look how beautiful those clouds are, they look like a flock of sheep!" As he spoke, he gently turned Liu Lian's face back with the hilt of his sword, raised an eyebrow, and stared intently into Liu Lian's eyes. Liu Lian continued to ramble on, trying to change the subject.

Gong Jianyun was not fooled. He stubbornly pursued the question of why the wire was suspended. Suspicion arose in his mind, and a terrible cloud of doubt led him to think very far ahead.

Liu Lian was at her wit's end; faced with such a clueless man, she could only sigh. Turning away from his probing gaze, she pointed to his groin and stammered, "You know, the pubic hair there..."

"Which place?" Gong Jianyun looked around suspiciously, but found nothing suspicious.

"It's... oh dear, it's the hair in that... intimate area!" Liu Lian's face turned bright red, she was so embarrassed!

"You too..." Gong Jianyun cried out in disbelief, speechless! This was too much of a blow. The thing that had been bothering him all night and keeping him awake was actually that thing. He opened his mouth but couldn't say a word!

"What are you yelling about? Are you afraid others won't hear you?"

"You still know shame? My goodness, to give that thing such a refined and elegant name, you really are a genius!" Faced with a young girl, the vulgar man simply couldn't bring himself to say it. From then on, Constable Gong changed his insults to the more elegant-sounding "loser." If anyone inquired about what kind of "loser" he meant, he would arrogantly and kindly point to the person's midsection and sneer, "It's not appropriate to say!"

The term "loser" quickly spread.

Constable Gong had two motives: first, to return the jade pendant—which had been stolen in the chaos by that scoundrel Liu Waimao, who had bribed him with it, and which he had accepted; second, he was eager to know if the quick-witted, chubby girl was engaged—that little vixen, a real fox spirit! Also, the chubby girl's father had inquired about her and wanted to host a thank-you banquet, which he agreed to deliver. Liu Changli subtly informed him of the girl's background, that she had no connection to his son, and that his son had only known her for a few days; he was a clever man!

The host and guests toasted and ate until they were quite full. Liu Changli tentatively asked him, "The dragon boat races are on the fifth day of the lunar new year at Shiqiao Bridge. Will the county send anyone to maintain order? My daughter is clamoring to go watch! It's giving me a real headache!"

"Of course we'll go. I'll lead the team, Brother Liu. Don't worry, let the young lady go. Nothing will go wrong!"

This kind of job wasn't exactly lucrative; it was practically thankless work. If he took it, no one would compete with him. Thinking about seeing the little fox again in a few days, Gong Jianyun's lips curled slightly upwards, and Liu Changli also stroked his beard and smiled.

Liu Changli was a businessman who needed to maintain relationships in all aspects of his life, and he was more than happy to have connections with people in the government. Gong Jianyun was only in his early twenties, quite favored by the county magistrate, and handsome. He had no children of his own, making him a good match for Liu Ye'er. Even more remarkable was that Gong Jianyun had fallen in love with Liu Ye'er at first sight. Such a good thing was a win-win situation, so why not take advantage of it? Liu Changli was determined to be the matchmaker.

After seeing the guests off, Master Liu was surprisingly pleased. Sitting in his recliner, he ordered his son to wring out a handkerchief. Ruiqian reluctantly wrung it out for him. He had been thoroughly humiliated by his father today. Being scolded was one thing—it didn't hurt much, it wasn't like he hadn't been scolded before—but to be in front of the Seventh Miss had left him utterly disheartened! How could he ever face the Seventh Miss again?

"The day after tomorrow, you go with your two younger sisters. Do you know the Zheng family? The butcher's family. Be polite when you go, and don't look down on them just because you have a little more money! You have to make friends with all sorts of people. Who knows when the rain will come? Everyone needs someone else sometimes! Even a broken box can be used to plug a hole! Making more friends is never a bad thing." He took a sip of tea, thought for a moment, and continued, "After dinner, take your two younger sisters home, and then come back by yourself. It's time to harvest the wheat, so learn from them!"

"Father, my sister is having such a good time in the countryside, why don't we let her stay a few more days?"

"Come on! Always acting crazy, do you even act like a proper young lady? You're all tanned dark, how can you face anyone? When it's time to harvest wheat, who will take care of them? With so many unknown farmers, what if something happens to them? Send them back!"

"Oh." Ruiqian nodded in agreement.

"How do you plan to go the day after tomorrow?" Liu Changli took the opportunity to test his son.

Ruiqian didn't think much of it. "Hitch up a sedan chair, pick a small basket of peaches, and also take a bag of dried mulberries, a bag of snowflake candy, and a pair of velvet flowers." Master Liu nodded approvingly. "Don't make the basket too small. When making friends, be generous! Go on, take a break!"

That evening, Master Liu told Old Madam Liu about the matter. Regarding the three children going out to dinner, the old lady didn't say anything—it was a matter of propriety! She also didn't say anything about Gong Jianyun—the county town is so small, everyone knows who's who. That kid's alright! What the old lady wanted to say was something else entirely, "Why did you have Seventh Miss bring that constable to pay his respects to me? Wasn't Ruiqian here? Where are the servants? Not a single one? Even if you had sent her and her sister, I wouldn't have been angry!"

Liu Changli hurriedly tried to defend himself, saying, "Xiu Luan went back to her room in a huff. I was just thinking of sending her out so I could give Lao San a good scolding. That kid actually dared to fight with some thugs in the street! I was so angry that I lost my temper! I didn't mean to treat my niece like a servant."

The old lady sighed and didn't say anything more about the matter. After thinking for a moment, she said, "You should be the matchmaker. I'm of a higher generation, and there's nothing the Huo family can say. Besides, an old woman like me can't really get anything out of people in the government! You should go and make the connections! Even though it's a second wife, it's still a good match. This little hussy is quite lucky! If the Huo family isn't satisfied, you can't force them; it's too despicable and makes them look bad!"

Liu Changli agreed, his face slightly flushed. It was completely against propriety for an unmarried young woman to meet a man from outside the family. Liu Changli understood his mother's implication, so he changed the subject, "The Yuan family's son went to see the land. Seven taels is fine, but those thousand-plus mu aren't worth it, at most three taels. He's adamant about at least three taels and won't budge. I was thinking that if we buy it soon, we can plant a season of millet and sell it for two or three hundred taels in the fall. How about we negotiate the price down to three taels and two taels and we take it?"

"Is there enough money? With all the money tied up in this, how will we recoup the losses?"

"We've got enough land! As for collecting the silk, I'll figure something out."

"You decide what to do. I still have seven or eight hundred taels of personal savings here; you can use it first." This is the best thing about Old Madam Liu; she can take things in stride and doesn't live for money alone!