“By the way, Mother, there’s something I need to show you.” Yan Ji retrieved the finished scented balms from her basket and arranged them on the table. “I made these myself. I’m planning to take them to the market tomorrow to see if they’ll sell.”
As she spoke, she casually pried open one of the lids. A rich, elegant fragrance instantly blossomed, filling every corner of the room. The balm inside was a soft, pastel yellow, smooth and pleasing to the eye.
Yan Liu Shi picked up the small box in surprise, examining it closely from all angles. “Ji Niang, when on earth did you learn how to make something like this?”
“When I had nothing to do, I happened to find the method in an old book and decided to try my hand at it.” Yan Ji lied smoothly, offering a casual excuse. “I didn’t expect the first batch to actually turn out so well.”
Yan Liu Shi carefully snapped the lid back on, instinctively lowering her voice as if shielding a precious secret, “Tomorrow, Mother will go with you to the market to see how the townspeople take to it.” A proud smile lit up her weathered face. She had never expected her precious daughter to possess such an exquisite skill. If these truly could be sold for a good price, they would never have to worry about their future again.
“Mother, I can manage the trip alone. You should stay home and rest.” Yan Ji said. Seeing the immediate look of disapproval on Yan Liu Shi’s face, she quickly added, “Your daughter has grown up, Mother. I have to learn how to handle the world on my own sooner or later. Don’t worry. Once I earn enough silver, we’ll build a beautiful new house somewhere else and move out.”
“That works too!” Yan Liu Shi felt her heart swell at her daughter’s maturity, readily giving up the idea of tagging along. Holding Yan Ji’s hands, she beamed with absolute pride. “I always knew it. My precious daughter is brilliantly clever!”
While their room was filled with warmth and quiet joy, the other quarters of the household were having a much bleaker evening.
……
When Yan Lao Er trudged back from a grueling day in the fields, he discovered the kitchen hearth was cold, and no food had been prepared. He was just about to storm over and ask his sisters-in-law what they were playing at when his eyes fell on the empty, quiet main hall. It finally sank in that the family had split. Since his own wife was pregnant, he had no choice but to drag his aching, exhausted body into the kitchen to clumsily stoke the fire and boil a simple bowl of noodles for himself.
When he finally returned to their room, Wang Xuefeng was lounging comfortably on the bed. Upon seeing him enter, she merely offered a dismissive, “You’re back,” without shifting an inch to help him.
Too utterly spent to care about his wife’s cold reception, Yan Lao Er collapsed onto the mattress and was snoring loudly within minutes.
Wang Xuefeng shifted away from him with a look of pure disgust, turning her back to him. Now that the household had split and the silver was firmly under her own control, she needed to calculate exactly how to stretch their budget. As she planned, her thoughts naturally drifted back to Yan Ji.
Now that the mother and daughter were cut off from the main income, Yan Ji’s pampered life would surely take a turn for the worse, wouldn’t it? Just the thought of it made Wang Xuefeng smirk with dark satisfaction.
Suddenly, a terrifying realization flashed through her mind, and she bolted upright in bed.
Oh no! How could she have forgotten?! Even if they had split the family, if Yan Ji still ended up marrying Lin Zhiyan, wouldn’t she still become the wealthy, powerful wife of a high-ranking county official in the future?
No. She absolutely could not let that happen. She had to intervene.
Wang Xuefeng’s eyes darted through the dark room as a scheme began to form. She remembered a niece on her own side of the family. The girl was quite pretty, with a gentle, hardworking, and submissive temperament. Why not introduce her to the young scholar instead? After all, such immense wealth and good fortune should stay within her own bloodline!
Thoroughly pleased with her own cunning, Wang Xuefeng lay back down against her pillow. Softly humming a little tune to herself, she finally closed her eyes and drifted into a deep, satisfied sleep.
────ρя
Early the next morning, Yan Ji woke up with the dawn. After a quick, casual washing up, she tucked the scented balms securely into her basket and set off toward the town market. She hadn’t been walking for long when the slow, rhythmic creak of an ox cart echoed from behind. Turning around, she was surprised to find Lin Zhiyan sitting at the back of the cart.
“Miss Yan, are you heading into town as well?” The ox cart ground to a halt beside her. Lin Zhiyan jumped down, a flash of genuine delight brightening his eyes as he approached her.
Today, he wore a set of clean, pale green scholar’s robes that made him look even more handsome and refined than usual. True to form, a book was clutched tightly in his hand.
Yan Ji let her gaze linger on him for a beat before nodding with a bright smile. “I am. Is Young Master Lin heading to the market too?”
“I am planning to go into town to borrow a few books.” Lin Zhiyan explained, pressing his lips together as a visible wave of nervousness washed over him. “If Miss Yan doesn’t mind, why not ride together?”
Yan Ji could not have asked for a better turn of events. She had absolutely no desire to trudge all the way to town on foot. Pretending to consider the offer for a polite moment, she smiled. “Then I shall trouble you, Young Master Lin.” With effortless grace, she stepped onto the wooden board and climbed into the cart.
As the cart began to sway and lumber forward, Yan Ji sat directly opposite Lin Zhiyan. The young man didn’t dare look her in the eye. His gaze darted frantically around the cart for a few seconds before finally locking onto the open pages of the book in his lap.
Read, he told himself. Just focus on reading.
Yet the very characters he usually understood at a single glance now looked entirely foreign. After staring blankly at the same page for an eternity, he realized he hadn’t comprehended a single word. Left with no choice, Lin Zhiyan closed the book with a quiet sigh and turned his head to look at the passing roadside scenery instead.
But there was no escaping her. The faint, ethereal fragrance lingering on Yan Ji’s body drifted continuously into his personal space with each gust of wind, causing his heart to flutter for no reason at all.
“Miss Yan, are you going to the market for business?” After a long silence, Lin Zhiyan turned back, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the loose straw near her feet as he spoke.
Yan Ji offered a soft murmur of assent. “I made a few little trinkets myself and plan to sell them at the market.” As she spoke, she retrieved one of the small boxes and pried open the lid. Instantly, a crisp, invigorating scent bloomed in the open air.
The moment the fragrance hit his senses, Lin Zhiyan felt a wave of mental clarity wash over him, dispelling his morning drowsiness. Unable to help himself, he praised genuinely, “It smells wonderful! It feels remarkably refreshing and clearing to the mind. I am certain it will sell out immediately!”
Hearing his praise, Yan Ji looked thoroughly delighted. A radiant smile bloomed across her face, her beautiful eyes curving into enchanting crescents that shimmered with a captivating light.
Lin Zhiyan’s breath hitched at the sight, and he hurriedly averted his eyes, his heart hammering against his ribs.
Before long, the ox cart rolled up to the bustling entrance of the town market. Yan Ji climbed down gracefully and waved a polite goodbye to Lin Zhiyan.
Unexpectedly, a sudden pang of reluctance hit the young scholar. “Miss Yan, when do you think you will be heading back?” He blurted out.
“Probably around noon.” Yan Ji replied.
“Then…… after I finish borrowing my books, how about I meet you here and take you back as well?” Lin Zhiyan suggested in a rush. The very moment the words left his lips, regret bit at him. He felt he sounded far too forward.
Why am I being so impatient? Lin Zhiyan thought in a wave of anxious annoyance. What if Miss Yan thinks I harbor improper intentions?
To his utter surprise, Yan Ji simply nodded in easy agreement. “Then I shall trouble Young Master Lin.”
“It’s no trouble at all, no trouble at all! I will go borrow the books first and wait right here for you afterward.” Lin Zhiyan stammered, his eyes lighting up with pure joy. Offering her a shy, breathless smile, he turned and practically floated into town.
Watching his departing figure, a dark, dangerous gleam flashed through Yan Ji’s eyes. She lightly licked her lips, a soft chuckle escaping her.
This bookworm really is too easy to hook……
Shaking off the distraction, she turned and headed toward the bustling eastern market.
By the time she arrived, the morning was already well underway. Both sides of the market street were packed tight with stalls, and the raucous cries of competing hawkers rose in overlapping waves. Yan Ji only managed to find an empty spot tucked away in a remote, forgotten corner. She didn’t mind the poor placement in the slightest. Unhurriedly, she spread a piece of floral cloth she had brought from home onto the ground, carefully arranging her ten boxes of scented balm upon it.
Beside her sat an old kite vendor. Looking at the strange little boxes she was displaying, the man shook his head in silent pity. This girl won’t sell a single thing, he thought. In a dead corner like this, no one will even notice she’s there.
Once everything was perfectly aligned, Yan Ji casually pried open the lid of just one box.
Instantly, the delicate, concentrated fragrance caught the breeze. It drifted out into the main thoroughfare, and within moments, the entire section of the market was enveloped in an intoxicating scent.
“What is that? Why does it smell so heavenly?”
“So fragrant…… Where on earth is that coming from?”
“This scent…… it makes me feel so wonderfully at ease……”
It didn’t take long for the passing crowd to trace the aroma back to the remote corner. There, they discovered the source— a stall tended by a young woman in a water-blue dress. Her appearance was breathtakingly delicate, and her eyes shimmered like rippling pools, holding a gaze so expressive it felt as though they could speak.
A young lady dressed in fine, pale pink silk and adorned with exquisite hair ornaments stepped forward from the crowd, her curiosity piqued. “Is that fragrance coming from your stall?”
“It is.” Yan Ji replied smoothly. As she spoke, she opened several more boxes, releasing a complex symphony of aromas into the air.
The young lady leaned closer to sample them, astonished to find that every single box carried a completely distinct scent. Yet, each one was uniquely pleasant and evocative— some sweet and youthful, others rich and passionate.
She picked up a pale purple balm, admiring its smooth texture fondly before asking, “How much for a box?”
“Six taels.”
The young lady’s delicate brows immediately knit together in a frown. “Why is it so expensive? Even the most premium perfumes at the famous shop only cost five taels of silver!”
“Miss, every one of these fragrant balms was crafted by my hands alone.” Yan Ji explained, her voice calm and entirely unbothered. “Furthermore, I only ever make a single box of each specific scent. In other words, once you purchase this, there will absolutely never be another soul in this world who smells exactly like you. For true exclusivity, six taels of silver is a bargain.”
The young lady’s eyes brightened instantly.
Only I would possess this scent?
A rush of sheer vanity flooded her chest, making her heart race with excitement. She quickly pressed, “Is what you’re saying absolutely true?”
“Without a doubt.”
“Fine then! Give me two boxes. I want this one, and this one.” The young lady hesitated no longer. She eagerly counted out the silver, grabbed her purchases, and hurried off, already imagining how she would undoubtedly become the envied center of attention at the grand banquet in a couple of days.
Out of the ten boxes of balm, eight now remained.
The neighboring kite vendor smacked his lips in utter amazement, inwardly marveling at how effortlessly money could be extracted from a woman’s purse.
Not long after, more customers filtered into the quiet corner— this time, a pair of middle-aged noblewomen dressed in luxurious, embroidered silks. Drawn in by the captivating aroma, they approached the stall and readily purchased two boxes each.
As they handed over the silver, Yan Ji’s sharp, discerning eyes caught sight of a stubborn blemish hidden beneath the heavy powder on one of the women’s faces. Her mind whirred with immediate calculation. “Madam,” she began smoothly, “if I may be so bold as to ask…… does that persistent blemish on your face cause you much trouble?”
The noblewoman froze in surprise before letting out a self-deprecating laugh. “What? Don’t tell me you have a way to get rid of it?” Heaven knew how many expensive physician consultations and ointments she had endured trying to banish that single, frustrating bump!
“Of course I do.” Yan Ji replied, her voice brimming with effortless confidence. “However, I left home in quite a rush today and didn’t bring the remedy with me. If Madam returns to this spot in two days, I guarantee you will be thoroughly satisfied with the results.”
As a fox spirit, Yan Ji cared deeply about physical perfection and beauty. In her past life, she had once sneaked into a cultivator’s private library to pore over ancient texts on alchemy. While she had completely failed to grasp the complex art of refining immortal pills, she had accidentally mastered the creation of all sorts of miraculous beauty and skincare elixirs instead. To her, erasing a simple human pimple was child’s play.
Perhaps…… she mused, aside from making scented balms, I can also formulate medicinal ointments for pimple removal and scar healing.
Seeing how utterly assured Yan Ji appeared, the noblewoman nodded, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. “Very well. I shall hold you to your word and find you again in two days.”
Now, only four boxes of scented balm remained on the floral cloth. Before long, another wealthy young lady with extravagant spending habits drifted by and eagerly snapped up the rest of the batch in one go.
After counting her earnings, Yan Ji found that her ten small boxes of scented balm had netted her a total of sixty taels of silver. Considering the ingredients were mostly wild herbs and cheap market boxes, the production cost was practically non-existent. Calling it an outrageous, astronomical profit would not be an exaggeration.
Under the deeply envious gaze of the old kite vendor, Yan Ji packed away her floral cloth and headed straight toward the local apothecary. To create potent ointments for pimple and scar removal, a proper stock of medicinal herbs was indispensable.
By the time she finished selecting and purchasing her supplies, the sun was sitting high in the sky, signaling noon. Yan Ji made her way back to the town entrance, where Lin Zhiyan was already standing by the ox cart, waiting for her return.
The moment his eyes caught her emerging from the crowded street, Lin Zhiyan hurried over to greet her, asking casually, “How did your sales go, Miss Yan?”
“They completely sold out.” Yan Ji replied, a radiant, triumphant smile gracing her lips.
Lin Zhiyan’s own face lit up with a proud, genuine smile. “That is wonderful news. Shall we head back home then?”
“Alright.”