In the front shop, Shen Nianyi was clattering away on the abacus. Seeing the sun setting in the west, she was just about to instruct A Man to prepare to close up when she saw Da Chun sauntering in from outside, humming a little tune.
His face was glowing, and he was humming, “Today is a most auspicious day~ Everything I wish for comes true~”
Shen Nianyi looked up from the ledger, astonished. “Da Chun? Where did you pop out from?”
“Uh…” Da Chun snapped back to reality, scratching his head with a silly grin. “Manager, I… just went out for a stroll…”
A Man happened to emerge from behind the shelves and immediately spotted the sesame seed crumbs at the corner of Da Chun’s mouth. She pointed and laughed, scolding him, “You lazybones! Can’t even wipe your mouth after slacking off!”
Da Chun instinctively wiped his mouth and indeed brushed off a few sesame seeds. His face instantly flushed crimson. “No way! Young Master Pei said the work was done and told me to go out and rest for a bit…”
Shen Nianyi put down the abacus and stood up. “Where is Pei Yanshu?”
“He’s… resting in the backyard…” Da Chun shrank his neck.
“Resting?” Shen Nianyi’s voice rose. “What time is it to be resting already?”
She strode quickly towards the backyard. A Man and Da Chun exchanged a look and hurriedly followed.
The backyard was indeed transformed—the three dyeing vats were spotless, the Suzhou satin was neatly stacked, and even the ground had been washed clean.
And there was Pei Yanshu, leisurely reclining in a rocking chair under the grape arbor, engrossed in reading a copy of Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang.
Hearing footsteps, he lazily lifted his eyes. “Has Manager Shen come to inspect the work?”
Shen Nianyi looked around, unable to hide her surprise. “This… all this was done under your direction?”
“Naturally,” Pei Yanshu replied, turning a page.
“And you’re just here reading idle books?”
“What else?” Pei Yanshu finally put the book down, raising an eyebrow at her. “The work is finished. Can’t a man rest? Is Manager Shen going to mistreat a shareholder?”
Shen Nianyi was left speechless. She turned and scolded Da Chun, “And you! Didn’t you know to come help in the front shop? Wandering around all over the place, running about—what kind of behavior is that!”
Da Chun pouted, aggrieved. “Young Master Pei said this is Array Deployment, a balance of work and rest, that one shouldn’t just work mindlessly…”
“You, Da Chun!” Shen Nianyi was about to erupt when Pei Yanshu slowly rose from the rocking chair and placed his book on the stone table.
“Manager Shen,” he said, strolling to stand between them, a smile playing on his lips. “Now you’re being unreasonable. Not only did Da Chun exceed today’s quota, he even scrubbed those old vats that have been stained for years back to their original color. For such a capable assistant, rewarding him with half a day’s leisure—isn’t that only right?”
He turned to Da Chun, deliberately raising his voice. “Brother Da Chun, next time we’ll keep up the good work. Once the job’s done, I’ll treat you to a performance at Pingkang Lane!”
Da Chun waved his hands in fright, his face paling. “Young Master Pei, I… I wouldn’t dare…”
Shen Nianyi glared, her almond-shaped eyes wide with anger. “Pei Yanshu! Are you trying to corrupt my assistant now!”
“How is that corruption? This is called proper pacing. If Manager Shen doesn’t believe me—” He suddenly leaned closer to Shen Nianyi, lowering his voice with a hint of teasing. “Why not take a break yourself and come with me to appreciate the sights?”
Shen Nianyi pushed him away, the flush on her cheeks not yet faded, forcing herself to appear composed as she turned to A Man. “A Man, tell me, does what he says make any sense?”
A Man immediately stepped forward with hands on her hips, her mind racing: So it’s you, Da Chun! Sneaking out to have fun, listening to stories and eating cakes, and you didn’t even think to bring me back any! Now you expect me to put in a good word for you?
She immediately put on a stern face and pointed unceremoniously at Pei Yanshu. “Young Master Pei, that’s clearly a twisted argument! Da Chun is a shop assistant. After finishing his work, he should report back to the manager. How can he just slip out on his own to have fun?”
She turned to Shen Nianyi, speaking with righteous indignation. “Manager, if you ask me, he should be punished! Deduct half of Da Chun’s wages this month, and see if he dares do it again!”
Pei Yanshu raised an eyebrow. “Miss A Man, that’s not quite right…”
“What’s not right?” A Man refused to yield an inch. “Our manager took over the shop at sixteen. Hasn’t she worked from dawn till dusk every single day? If we all followed Da Chun’s example, sneaking off as soon as the work is done, how would this shop stay open?”
Shen Nianyi crossed her arms and gave Pei Yanshu a slight lift of her chin, her eyes filled with obvious provocation.
This was a clash of philosophies between the two managers, a contest of managerial skill.
Pei Yanshu spoke unhurriedly. “Miss A Man, you are mistaken! As the saying goes, sharpening the axe does not delay the chopping of firewood. Balancing work and rest leads to higher efficiency. Look at Da Chun—”
He pointed his fan, and Da Chun hurriedly straightened his back.
“Before leaving, he was as listless as frostbitten eggplant; upon returning, he’s as refreshed as bamboo shoots after rain! This trip back and forth saved how much time that would have been wasted on slacking?”
A Man stamped her foot in anger. “Twisted logic! It’s all twisted logic!”
“Not at all, not at all. This is the way of the sages! Even Confucius said, ‘Worry not about scarcity, but about inequality’…”
“Pah!” A Man retorted with hands on hips. “Why should he get to go out and play while we work?”
Da Chun timidly poked his head out. “I… I brought sesame cakes for everyone…”
“Shut up!” A Man and Shen Nianyi said in unison.
Pei Yanshu chuckled. “Manager Shen, your girl here is much more eloquent than you.”
“Stop arguing, stop arguing!” Da Chun was sweating profusely in his panic. He fumbled to pull several oil-paper packages from his robe and shoved them all at A Man. “Sister A Man, this one with extra sesame is for you, this one with extra sugar is for the manager, this one is for Young Master Pei…”
“Wait!” A Man suddenly narrowed her eyes. “How did you know Young Master Pei likes savory ones?”
Da Chun immediately faltered, stammering, “Well… just now when buying the cakes, Young Master Pei specifically asked for it…”
Shen Nianyi immediately seized on the flaw. “Oh—so Young Master Pei planned this all along?”
Pei Yanshu cleared his throat lightly. “Well… as military strategy says, ‘Before the troops move, the provisions must go first’…”
“First your ghost!” Shen Nianyi was so angry she laughed, pointing at Pei Yanshu’s nose. “Well done, you! Pei Yanshu! From the initial bet, to directing Da Chun’s work, to sending him to buy cakes—it was all your scheme! What kind of ‘working personally’ is this? Clearly just being slick!”
Pei Yanshu “swished” open his folding fan. The slight embarrassment of being exposed was instantly replaced by righteous confidence. “Manager Shen, let me ask you: were those three dye vats scrubbed clean?”
Shen Nianyi glanced at the spotless vats and said stiffly, “So what if they’re clean?”
“Was that batch of Suzhou silk stored in the warehouse promptly?”
“…Promptly.”
“Brother Da Chun, did he do the work quickly and well? Is he in a better mood? Is his efficiency higher?”
Da Chun nodded vigorously beside them, only to be glared at fiercely by A Man, causing him to quickly shrink his neck back.
“See,” Pei Yanshu closed his fan and tapped it lightly in his palm, “I haven’t delayed any important work, I’ve kept the staff happy, and I even treated everyone along the way. How can that be called slacking off? This is clearly… strategic planning.”
He strolled over to Shen Nianyi, leaning in slightly, his peach blossom eyes glinting with mischief. “Or perhaps, Manager Shen would rather watch me clumsily stain the silk, exhaust myself scrubbing the vats clean, and end up delaying the shop’s business—only then would it count as doing the work myself, only then would it show sincerity?”
“You…!” Shen Nianyi was left speechless by his twisted logic, knowing she couldn’t win this argument. She snatched the oil-paper package labeled “For Young Master Pei” from A Man’s hands and said fiercely, “Slacking off on the job and still wanting to eat pastries? Dream on! This is now confiscated!”
As she spoke, she took a forceful bite of the savory sesame cake, as if she were biting into Pei Yanshu’s flesh.
Pei Yanshu watched her fuming expression, the amusement in his eyes deepening. Far from being annoyed, he leisurely remarked, “So Nianyi enjoys sharing food with me. Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Shen Nianyi choked on the pastry, her face flushing red as she coughed uncontrollably. A Man quickly patted her back.
Da Chun watched the scene and whispered to A Man, “A Man-jie, should we… keep arguing?”
A Man looked at her manager, who had been provoked into a flustered state by Pei Yanshu’s mere words, and then at Young Master Pei, who appeared utterly relaxed. She felt utterly drained.
“…What’s there to argue about? Let’s eat! Manager, eat first. You’ll need your strength to deal with him later!”
Xiao Ya silently put away the “Youyang Zazu” from the stone table and set out the bowls and chopsticks.
Pei Yanshu, meanwhile, settled back into the rocking chair as if the earlier commotion had nothing to do with him. Watching Shen Nianyi struggle to drink water, he casually added, “Take your time eating, don’t choke. If you like it, I can have Da Chun buy more tomorrow.”
Shen Nianyi: “…Pei Yanshu, just you wait!”
The evening glow of the setting sun spilled into the backyard of Cloud Silk Atelier, illuminating a scene that was chaotic yet strangely harmonious.
After Pei Yanshu—this plague god, or rather, shareholder—settled into Cloud Silk Atelier, a subtle new atmosphere emerged in the workshop.
Shen Nianyi spent her days tallying accounts with an abacus, but the corner of her eye couldn’t help but drift toward the moon gate leading to the backyard. She was on guard against that carefree, wandering figure, fearing he would emerge at the most inopportune moment and stir up trouble, rippling the calm waters of her life.
One morning, just as the copper rings of the shop were being removed, Pei Yanshu, for once, was already waiting in the front store.
Today, he wasn’t wearing his usual loose robes but had changed into a dark blue narrow-sleeved casual outfit, cinched at the waist with a leather belt. Though he looked much more efficient, that air of “I am a carefree wanderer” still clung to him like a shadow.
Shen Nianyi raised an eyebrow and deliberately raised her voice. “Well, well, has the sun risen from the west today? Manager Pei actually didn’t sleep until the sun was high in the sky?”
Seeing Shen Nianyi come out, Pei Yanshu looked her up and down, his brow slightly furrowed as he shook his head. “Nianyi, I have to say, your manager’s attire is a bit too… plain and unadorned.”
Shen Nianyi wore a lotus-root-colored high-waisted ruqun today, layered with a half-sleeved outer garment. Her hair was neatly styled into a single spiral bun, adorned with a plain silver hairpin of entwined lotus branches. The cloud-patterned brocade belt at her waist was, in her eyes, the most dignified and elegant combination—maintaining the poise of a manager while retaining the grace of a refined young lady.
Now, being scrutinized by Pei Yanshu, she felt a surge of anger but forced a polite smile on her face. “What advice does Manager Pei have? Does Cloud Silk Atelier selling fabric require its manager to dress flamboyantly just to attract customers?”
Pei Yanshu wore an inscrutable expression.
“The manager is the face of the shop. Dressed like this, customers might think they’ve walked into a nunnery. For Cloud Silk Atelier to stand out in the East and West Markets, having good fabric isn’t enough—we must set trends!”
Shen Nianyi glanced down at her carefully coordinated lotus-root-colored ruqun, her cheeks flushing with irritation.
“What’s wrong with this outfit? The fabric was newly dyed last month, the belt is made from our finest cloud-patterned brocade, and even the hairpin was specially chosen to match—a plain silver entwined lotus branch…”
Pei Yanshu didn’t listen to her at all. Instead, he fetched a scroll and unrolled it, revealing several bold and avant-garde dress designs. The color combinations were vibrant, the skirts layered, blending elements of Hu and Han styles.
“Starting today, Manager Shen, you must dress according to these designs, preferably without repeating any outfit.”
He pointed to one of the designs, a pomegranate-red skirt sprinkled with gold. “I think this one suits you perfectly. Wear it tomorrow.”