The sound of rustling carriages came from afar. In the alley behind the warehouse, the shadows of the trees were mottled. Two figures were sitting there, each holding a bowl of starch jelly and eating slowly.
"The few shops in Jiangning have to be managed every day. Father used to bring me here. He said that if I really wanted to manage these things, I would have to spend a lot of time to understand what I should understand. Now, few of the young masters in the family can really manage the shops well. I can manage these things well. I can take over the work of any shopkeeper … "
Through the low walls, the shadows of the trees, and the gutter, the situation in the market could be faintly seen. Ning Yi came here after class at noon. At this time, the two were eating starch jelly at the back and chatting. Su Tan'er didn't usually eat snacks. At this time, it was as if she was in the corridor on the second floor of the small building at night. Holding a small bowl, she talked about some trivial things. From the origin of the fairy dress to the ratio of some dyes and so on.
"In the Xijing Miscellany, it is recorded that the origin of the fairy dress is because of Zhao Feiyan. Before the Western Han Dynasty, the skirt actually didn't have such folds. However, it is said that when Zhao Feiyan was dancing, the skirt was pulled by a palace maid. There were wrinkles, but it looked better when she danced. Later, the palace maids followed suit. But the folds of the skirt at that time weren't like now. In the Tang Dynasty, there was a kind of beautiful pattern. It needed seven more processes than today's skirt, but it was a little troublesome when wearing it … "
"Today's clothes are white and blue. This kind of white is very troublesome to dye. There are a total of 23 processes. The dye used is very special. It doesn't use sulfur or lime … On the contrary, blue is easy to dye, but this is a color between emerald and sapphire. A very expensive dark blue star stone is used. It is the kind of stone on the second floor of the house. If it is used as eyebrow powder, it will be very expensive. There is a kind in Annan Lane. It is very small, and a box costs 15 strings of coins … "
When Su Tan'er was at home, she mostly talked about family trivia, badmouthing a bunch of idiotic cousins, or cursing her business partners. She seemed to be a little naughty as she ate. At this time, she was only talking about things related to dyeing, weaving, and clothing. She could casually point to the things that Ning Yi had on him and speak with fervor and assurance. She did not have the attitude of reciting, but she understood these things very well. It was unknown how much effort she had put into it. Ning Yi held a half bowl of starch jelly and listened to this nineteen-year-old woman, who was his wife, talk about these things. It was quite interesting.
The moving in the warehouse was still going on. Noises could be heard coming from the streets around the warehouse. Xing'er ran over and said that there was a fight in front of them. It was a gang fight between two gangs. Su Tan'er only turned her head to look at Ning Yi and said with a smile, "There are often fights here. Sometimes people die. Let's not go and watch …"
There was a hint of pleading in her words. Ning Yi nodded, "Yes, in case we get hurt accidentally." Xing'er looked at the atmosphere and ran away with a smile. Su Tan'er turned her head and shouted, "Don't get hurt."
On one side, there was the faint sound of chaotic fighting. On the other side, there was the sound of busy carriages and horses neighing. The two of them sat in the back alley and chatted. They listened to the sound of cicadas in the autumn and looked at the mottled shadows falling through the gaps between the trees. Those sounds seemed to have become a little distant. The starch jelly was not delicious. Su Tan'er took a sip and held it in her hand without touching it. A leaf fell into the bowl. She just looked at it. After a long time, she used a spoon to scoop it out and sprinkled a spoonful of sugar water on the ground.
"It's been a long time since I've had such a leisurely time. If the city gates are closed, I'm afraid we'll be even busier."
"Won't it be more leisurely if the city gates are closed?" Ning Yi took another spoonful of the half bowl of starch jelly that he had been holding for a long time.
"A few years ago, the city gates were closed for a month. I was still young at that time, but I still felt bored." Su Tan'er looked at him. "Did Husband forget about that?"
"I don't remember."
"What kind of person was Husband in the past? I can't figure it out … "
"He was probably a bookworm. Maybe he was very dumb, or maybe he was no different from how he is now … Uh, what are you thinking about with that look in your eyes?"
"I went to see Husband in the past. I went with Xiaochan and Xiaojuan to find out what kind of person Husband was." Su Tan'er thought about it and smiled. "At that time, everyone said that Husband was a bookworm. I secretly went to see Husband once. I saw him from afar, but I couldn't go up to talk to him. So, I don't know what Husband was like at that time … Husband was walking with his head lowered. He didn't know that Xiaochan and I lifted the curtain to see you in the carriage not far away."
There were screams and shouts of "murder" coming from afar. It was like a chaotic background noise. Ning Yi thought about it and smiled without saying anything. Su Tan'er tilted her head. "Is Husband angry?"
"No, he just thinks it's very interesting."
Su Tan'er nodded and smiled knowingly. "I also think it's interesting." There seemed to be some emotion in her words. Her mood was a little complicated. Of course, this complicated feeling might be different from what Ning Yi felt.
Not long after, the yamen's constables came and broke up the fight in front of them. They probably also arrested some people. When it was almost evening, Ning Yi and Su Tan'er passed through the warehouse and went to the front door. The street had returned to its normal bustling state. Pedestrians came and went, and workers carrying goods came and went. The person in charge of the store was shouting and directing work as usual. When they passed by the warehouse, a small thing happened.
It was a wooden frame that didn't look very stable. When the two of them passed by it, it shook a few times. This was because there was a worker on the opposite side who was loading a large load of goods. He probably couldn't control it for a moment and was on the verge of falling. Ning Yi saw it and wanted to use his hand to support it. However, Su Tan'er, who was walking a little ahead of him and looking at the load of goods on the other side, probably turned her head and noticed this. Almost at the same time, she waved her hand and took a step back, trying to push Ning Yi away.
Perhaps this was a subconscious action, because she didn't even have time to speak. In the end, she managed to push Ning Yi to a stop. She also couldn't completely support the large bag in front of her. White cotton ingots fell out of the bag. They were all light items, and one of them hit Su Tan'er's head. Su Tan'er squinted her eyes and shrank her neck. Only then did she let out a soft cry, "Ah …" Then she said, "Husband …" Their chests were pressed against each other's back, and the two of them were almost leaning against each other. After a moment, Ning Yi took a step back.
Even if an entire bag of cotton ingots fell and hit someone, it probably wouldn't be a big deal. However, the subconscious action of blocking the bag only helped more than helped, which made Ning Yi feel a little funny. Hidden strength. Not long after, Ning Yi said with a smile, "Do you know that if it was something else up there, it would be troublesome if it was hit?" Su Tan'er just tilted her head and smiled indifferently, "I saw it was cotton ingots, so I went over."
"Oh." Ning Yi nodded, then laughed again, "More help than help …"
"Got it …" Su Tan'er made a slightly embarrassed expression.
It was just a small matter. After tidying up her slightly disheveled hair, it seemed to pass just like that.
As the sun set, after talking with Manager Liao for a while, Su Tan'er and Ning Yi went together to find Juan'er and Xing'er. They carried a few boxes of various sizes and prepared to get on the carriage to go home. The people who were still busy on the dock would probably be busy until around midnight before they could rest.
It was almost the middle of July. On the way back to Su Mansion, along the way, they could see many stalls selling paper, bamboo, ghost money, and so on. Now the disaster victims were coming, and there were also many pedestrians who looked distressed, beggars and refugees on both sides of the road. After returning to Su Mansion, there were many new faces in such a big mansion. Just as they entered the door, more than ten people waiting in the gatehouse came to talk to Su Tan'er. Su Tan'er also smiled and nodded to say hello to them one by one. Ning Yi accompanied her contentedly. After a while, probably after a busy day, Xiaochan trotted out of the courtyard gate on the other side of the sunset. She smiled and waved at them, then quietly squeezed into the crowd and moved behind Su Tan'er silently.
On the way back to the courtyard, Xiaochan also chattered about some family situations, such as what kind of relatives encountered difficulties. Some of them had a close relationship with the first branch, or they were handled by Su Boyong, or by Su Tan'er. It was said that a distant cousin often wandered in Jiangning City in recent days. Today, he went to a gambling house and got into trouble and was detained. His mother could not find Su Boyong for help. It was said that Su Tan'er had always been easy to talk to, so now she also came to ask for help. Su Tan'er could only frown and ask about the amount of money involved, and then let Xiaochan find a guard in the mansion who was better at dealing with such things.
Similar things often happened, especially in these days, and there were more than one or two cases. Before dinner, the guard called Sun Er came over. After understanding the specific situation with Su Tan'er, he took a banknote and went out. Before dinner, Su Tan'er also went to her father's place. After dinner, when night fell, there were all kinds of people who came to visit. They were relatives from far and near. Most of them had left, and Su Tan'er could only return to her room to deal with some documents and accounts that needed to be dealt with.
Many times, Ning Yi actually felt that this kind of busyness was very interesting. For people with real intentions and goals, such as Su Tan'er, this kind of busyness usually would not cause too much trouble for her. Watching her skillfully deal with these things, Ning Yi would occasionally think of himself in the past. But in recent days, after all, he was a little overloaded.
Preparing for the ancestral worship in the middle of the seventh month, arranging and dealing with some affairs of the first branch of relatives, the closing of the city gate, and most importantly, the progress of the imperial business. At midnight, the light in Su Tan'er's room was not extinguished. After reading for a while, Ning Yi went to the courtyard for a walk. The autumn night was cool. Recently, he had been practicing the Qigong breathing method taught to him by Lu Hongti. He had not seen any results in destructive power, but he was in good spirits. He walked to the corridor under the eaves of Su Tan'er's room and stopped, sighing slightly.
The window of Su Tan'er's bedroom was open, and the desk was placed in front of the window. The light of the oil lamp trembled slightly on the desk. In the warm yellow light, Su Tan'er was lying on a few pieces of paper. At this time, she had already fallen asleep. Her slightly messy hair.
Ning Yi stood in front of the window and looked for a while, then blew out the oil lamp on the table. The window darkened, and the bright moonlight shone on the courtyard. Just as he was about to turn around and leave, there seemed to be a change in the light behind him, and there was a sound of "Oh". Ning Yi turned around and saw that Su Tan'er also sat up with difficulty. She reached out to rub her eyes in a daze, then sniffed and looked out of the window.
In the moonlight, there was some indifference in their eyes. Su Tan'er's eyes seemed to have light in the darkness, but they were not opened very wide, and there was a bit of laziness and confusion in them. "Uh... Husband..."
Under the moonlight, it was like a little girl's whisper...
*****
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