Upon returning to the room, Chen Wanqing saw her mother sitting in her original spot, currently grinding Fragrant Spirit Grass into powder.
The incense Chen Wanqing was now making was called Dream Spirit Incense. This incense could calm the mind and aid sleep, having miraculous effects for those suffering from insomnia and frequent dreams.
In earlier years, this incense had already opened up the market in Yungui County, and now it sold even more briskly, even becoming a must-have gift for many wealthy families when visiting relatives and friends.
Besides Dream Spirit Incense, there was another incense called Moonlight Essence Incense, which was also highly popular in Yungui County.
This incense was refined and produced by Chen Wanqing on nights when moonlight was abundant.
Students who had used it said that this incense was subtle and elegant, calming the mind and spirit, with the effect of stimulating literary inspiration and bringing about Divine Enlightenment.
Moreover, because the characters "Yuehua" (moonlight essence) subtly implied the meaning of "plucking the laurel from the moon palace" (i.e., achieving top honors in imperial examinations), it usually sold very well, and on the eve of exams, it was even in short supply.
Now, as November approached, the New Year was coming soon, and after the New Year, there would be the Child Scholar Examination. Consequently, Dream Spirit Incense and Moonlight Essence Incense were being ordered in large quantities.
The volume was so great that Chen Wanqing was forced to work overnight, and she hadn’t been to the shop for seven days now.
Since her mother had taken over grinding the Fragrant Spirit Grass, Chen Wanqing picked up a small brass steelyard.
The steelyard was small and exquisite, and held in her fair, slender hand, it appeared even more delicate and ingenious.
Casually using a copper spoon, she scooped a spoonful of polygonum multiflorum powder, placed it on the steelyard, and adjusted the amount as needed. Once satisfied with the weight, she weighed some poria cocos powder separately and placed it together.
Both the polygonum multiflorum powder and the poria cocos powder were ground into a powdered form but had not yet been sifted. They would be sifted together after the polygala tenuifolia was dried and ground into powder.
Speaking of this, Xu Suying couldn’t help but praise her daughter’s cleverness.
This was because polygala tenuifolia became brittle after drying, breaking easily with a snap, but it had a high oil content. When ground into powder, it formed damp clumps that simply wouldn’t pass through a sieve.
But Wanqing had a clever idea: she mixed it with a certain proportion of polygonum multiflorum powder and poria cocos powder. This way, the powder became dry, and sifting became much easier.
While thinking to herself that Wanqing was truly meant for this line of work, Xu Suying mentally reviewed the old lady’s words and mentioned the purpose of the old lady’s visit to her daughter.
“She actually has her eye on Li Cun and wants to snatch your marriage arrangement, letting Wanyue marry him instead.”
Her words were casual, but Xu Suying’s mind was tense.
She subtly glanced at her daughter’s expression from the corner of her eye, trying to discern her true thoughts.
When she first heard the old lady’s suggestion, Xu Suying found it utterly absurd, but upon a little consideration, she became wildly tempted.
After all, that was Zhao Jing, the son-in-law she and her husband had first considered for their daughter.
Unfortunately, they were a step too late, and someone else had taken the opportunity first.
Now that the chance had come, it was in such a situation, making it difficult to decide for the moment.
Chen Wanqing couldn’t stay idle; she was now processing nanmu branches, preparing to make Nanmu Adhesive Powder.
Nanmu had its own woody fragrance, good adhesive properties, and was a natural preservative, making it an essential ingredient in the incense-making process.
While busy with her work, she casually uttered an “oh,” her attitude extremely perfunctory.
Seeing this, Xu Suying laughed in exasperation. “Your mother almost got into an argument with that old lady to keep her from causing trouble, and here you are, not even willing to ask a single question more. Is this not your marriage arrangement, but mine instead?”
Hearing this, Chen Wanqing’s bright and beautiful face suddenly showed a mix of amusement and exasperation.
"Mother, what are you saying? How could I not care? It's just that I know you have my best interests at heart and will surely fight for me."
"What good is fighting? As the old saying goes, the stubborn fear the ruthless, and the ruthless fear the reckless. Your grandmother isn't reckless, but Wanyue is a troublemaker. I'm afraid this matter was stirred up by her. That girl has always had a strange streak since childhood. If she truly has her eyes on Li Cun, she might risk everything to compete with you."
If the timing were more appropriate, Xu Suying would have liked to say, "It's just a man—what's there to fight over? Three-legged toads are hard to find, but two-legged men are everywhere."
But considering that Zhao Jing's situation was uncertain, aside from him, there were truly few young men in Yungui County who matched her daughter in age, appearance, prospects, and character. Some words lingered on the tip of her tongue, but Xu Suying had to swallow them back.
Yet this matter truly unsettled her, so she continued, "When Li Cun studied at Scholar Zhao's private school back then, I never saw the old lady take a liking to him. Instead, she was dead set on clinging to Zhao Jing. Now that Scholar Zhao is gone, Li Cun's promising father has also passed away. I don't understand why the old lady insists on fighting over this."
Chen Wanqing seemed not to hear these words, focusing instead on her own tasks.
Her calm nature made her appear even more composed when engaged in things she enjoyed and excelled at. Her radiant, pearl-like cheeks occasionally flickered with joy and insight, her bright and gentle demeanor soothing even the most restless hearts just by being observed.
Xu Suying's heart also grew calmer, but when she thought of another possibility in this matter, she couldn't help but continue, "Your grandmother wants you to give up Li Cun for Wanyue, and then have Wanyue give up Zhao Jing for you…"
Thud Clatter—two soft sounds echoed as Chen Wanqing trembled, dropping the small knife and nanmu branch in her hands. As they fell, the items bounced a few times before colliding with the small stone mill Xu Suying was using.
For a moment, the usually quiet room was filled with a clamor of clinks and clatters.
"Oh, dear, slow down, child. Don't hurt your feet."
"It's fine, I'm steady. Don't worry, Mother, nothing will happen."
As Chen Wanqing picked up the items, she lowered her voice and asked, "How did the idea of swapping marriages come up? I thought it was just a matter of me stepping aside for Li Cun and Wanyue marrying him."
"It can't be that simple. If it were, your grandmother wouldn't have come. Her visit today was ultimately to persuade me to betroth you to Zhao Jing."
At this point, Xu Suying thought of the young man still helping De'an with his questions and said with an inexplicable tone, "That child Zhao Jing—I truly like everything about him. If it weren't for your grandmother clinging to him all those years ago and solidifying Wanyue's engagement to him, your father and I had planned to find a matchmaker to sound out Scholar Zhao and his wife."
"Mother, what are you saying? Wanyue and Jing-ge'er are already engaged."
"This engagement seems unlikely to hold… Jing-ge'er is such an outstanding young man. His good looks are the least of his virtues—his character and abilities are second to none. Marrying you off to him would put your father and me at ease a thousand times over. It's just a pity…"
A pity they were one step too late!
Every time she thought of this matter, Xu Suying would beat her chest in regret.
But who could have expected that after all these years, the situation would take such a turn.
With a hint of probing, Xu Suying said, "Let's suppose, dear, that if your grandmother really found a way to meddle with your engagement to Li Cun and had Wanyue marry him instead, leaving Jing-ge'er, would you still marry him or not?"
"Mother, hypothetical situations can't be taken seriously. Please don't overthink it. Besides, as for Li Cun and me, right now it's only that both families have expressed an intention to form a marriage alliance. We haven't even exchanged birth characters yet—what right do I have to 'give him up'? If Wanyue really snatches this marriage away… then what can be snatched away was never meant to be mine in the first place. If it's taken, it might even be a blessing in disguise for me. Please don't worry on my behalf."
"As for whether I'd marry Jing-ge'er, Mother, how could you also become confused when Grandmother treats marriage like a child's game? This matter doesn't just involve our family and the Li family—it also concerns the Zhao family. Grandmother can barely manage affairs within our own family; does she really think she can dictate to the Li and Zhao families as well? Not everyone has to bend to Grandmother's will. Once she meets with setbacks, this matter will naturally resolve itself."
Chen Wanqing still wore a faint smile on her face, appearing unhurried and composed—so steady and elegant in her demeanor and bearing that she truly didn't seem like a girl raised in the remote countryside.
Every time Xu Suying saw this, her heart filled with regret: Why was she born from my womb?
If only she had been more discerning during her rebirth and been born into a good family—her future prospects would be unimaginable.
But since her daughter didn't like hearing such talk, Xu Suying kept it to herself.
Instead, she pushed the small stone mill even more vigorously, grinding the Fragrant Spirit Grass inside into fine powder.
"You've grown up and have your own ideas now. Fine, I won't dwell on this matter anymore. What's meant to be ours can't be taken away, and what isn't meant to be ours can't be obtained no matter how hard we try."
Though her words sounded carefree, through the open window, listening to the young man's steady and unhurried reading voice coming from the eastern room, Xu Suying couldn't help but cling to hope: Jing-ge'er and her family were surely destined to be connected!
He was surely meant to be her son-in-law!
Last time, someone had snatched him away, but this time she felt there was a ninety percent chance it would work out!
After all, the old lady certainly wouldn't dare offend the Zhao family. If she dared to set Zhao Jing aside, the Zhao clan members would dare to smash down the Chen family's door!
Even the old lady's own daughter, who had married into Zhao Laosan's family—her own sister-in-law—wouldn't escape unscathed.
If only for the sake of that sister-in-law, when Wanyue refused to go through with it, the old lady would have no choice but to push Wanqing forward instead.