Lin Shanyue simply sat there, letting her examine it without the slightest hint of nervousness.
Seeing no sign of panic on her face, Madam Liu turned her attention back to the imitation Suhe Incense. She studied it for quite a while before finally shaking her head.
“It won’t fool those who know better.”
Lin Shanyue had expected as much.
“My lady has seen far more of the world than I have. Genuine Suhe Incense is exceedingly rare. Mine is made from frankincense, tree resin, and cloves. Do you happen to have some face cream here? If you grind this incense into a fine powder, mix it with the cream, and then burn it in an incense burner, the fragrance will be indistinguishable from the real thing.”
She stopped there, but Madam Liu immediately understood what she meant. Her eyes lit up once more. After a long silence, she finally smiled.
“I see you know how to make something like this. You must have been exposed to fine things before. But why…”
She didn’t finish the question, but Lin Shanyue understood perfectly. Madam Liu was wondering how someone with such knowledge had fallen into her current circumstances.
Smiling faintly, Lin Shanyue replied, “My family’s fortunes declined. The past is best left in the past.”
Madam Liu understood at once and wisely refrained from reopening old wounds. After a moment’s thought, she nodded.
“Very well. I’ll take this Suhe Incense. Fudong, bring the young lady her payment.”
A young flower girl stepped forward immediately and handed Lin Shanyue one tael of silver.
Startled, Lin Shanyue said, “My lady, you’ve given me too much. This is worth at most five mace…”
“If it truly carries the fragrance of genuine Suhe Incense, then considering the real thing sells for two taels a jin, your asking price was already far too low. Keep it. It isn’t much.”
Warmth filled Lin Shanyue’s heart.
“Thank you, my lady. If you’re willing to give it a try, I’d be deeply grateful. If there are any problems, you can always find me at Sweetwater Lane in Guangde Ward.”
Madam Liu smiled gently in response.
As she stepped out of Flower Moon House, Lin Shanyue let out a long breath of relief.
Her heart swelled with a sense of accomplishment.
She had actually completed a business deal entirely on her own.
This was only the first step. One day she would produce genuine Suhe Incense, and perhaps many other things as well.
Filled with confidence, she tucked away her earnings and headed straight for the famous snack street in Pingkang Ward.
“Fresh hu bing! Hot hu bing straight from the oven!”
A vendor called out loudly.
Lin Shanyue swallowed.
Hu bing was one of the capital’s most famous snacks—a flaky flatbread stuffed with lamb, glistening with fragrant juices. But one cake cost a full one qian, making it quite a luxury.
Still, she’d made money today.
After a moment’s hesitation, she walked over and bought one.
Fresh from the oven, it was almost too hot to hold—but it smelled incredible.
She couldn’t bear to eat it all herself. Tearing off only a small piece to satisfy her craving, she carefully saved the rest for Little Bao.
A two-year-old should be able to eat something like this.
Having indulged herself just a little, she returned to budgeting carefully.
She stopped by the butcher’s and bought two jin of pork.
In the capital, ordinary pork cost fifty wen per jin, so two jin came to one qian. Better cuts like ribs or fattier pork belly were even more expensive.
After quite a bit of haggling, she also managed to buy a soup bone for three wen.
Though it had almost no meat left on it, it would still make a nutritious broth.
The butcher, however, was so stingy that after agreeing to the price, he scraped off two more layers of meat from the bone.
It was polished so clean it practically reflected light.
Shaking her head, Lin Shanyue continued on.
The mysterious Mirror Spirit Young Master had already given her vegetables, rice, and cooking oil, so she didn’t need those. But the house still lacked seasonings like bay leaves, cinnamon, and sugar.
Like salt, seasonings were painfully expensive.
She could only afford tiny amounts.
After wandering around Pingkang Ward for a while, the one tael she’d earned had already dwindled to just four mace.
That’s enough. No more spending.
Carrying her small basket, she prepared to head home.
Little Bao was probably waiting anxiously by now.
The imperial capital was enormous.
Between Pingkang Ward and Guangde Ward lay another seven or eight city wards. Walking home would take well over an hour.
After gritting her teeth, she finally spent one wen on a mule cart.
The money hurt to part with, but it saved precious time.
These mule carts were free to travel throughout the city wards, another testament to how prosperous the imperial capital truly was.
She finally returned to Pingkang Ward and hurried toward home.
But just as she reached the entrance to her alley, she unexpectedly spotted a familiar face.
It was the lame steward from the Marquis of Zhenbei’s residence.
Accompanied by two servants, he was wandering around Pingkang Ward.
The moment Lin Shanyue saw them, she instinctively stepped aside to avoid being noticed.
Why are they here?
When she’d searched for a place to live, she’d deliberately chosen somewhere as far away from the Marquis’s estate as possible.
They were separated by practically the entire city.
Surely they couldn’t have come all this way specifically to find her?
Frowning, she waited until the three men had walked off before quietly entering Sweetwater Lane.
Remaining cautious, she asked an elderly woman selling goods near the alley entrance,
“Grandmother, who were those men looking for just now?”
The old woman glanced after them.
“I heard they were looking for a young lady with the surname Jiang. I told them there wasn’t anyone like that here.”
Only then did Lin Shanyue relax.
So the Marquis’s household was indeed searching for her—but not because they truly cared.
More likely, they wanted to see whether, after being cast out, she was still using the Jiang family’s name to gain advantages.
Unfortunately for them…
She, Lin Shanyue, wasn’t that shameless.
Her surname was Lin.
From now on, she would have nothing more to do with the Jiang family.
She hurried back to her little courtyard and immediately went to pick up Little Bao.
Auntie Pang greeted her with a broad smile.
“You’re back?”
Lin Shanyue nodded repeatedly.
“I’m back! Thank you so much for looking after him today. I’ve really troubled you.”
“Oh, don’t be so polite! Little Bao is such a good child. He hardly cried all day. He’s just a bit skinny. I fed him some rice porridge, and he wasn’t picky at all.”
Hearing that, Lin Shanyue quickly took out a block of tofu from her basket.
It had been carefully wrapped in lotus leaves by the young woman who sold it.
The moment Auntie Pang saw it, she hurriedly waved her hands.
“What are you doing? There’s no need for this!”
“Please accept it, Auntie. Really. If you don’t, I’ll never dare trouble you again.”
She smiled sheepishly.
“To tell you the truth, raising Little Bao alone isn’t easy. I’m still worried about how we’ll manage in the future. But I’ve already seen how kind everyone in this neighborhood is. I never properly thanked everyone for helping yesterday. If you accept this, I’ll feel much better.”
Seeing how sincere she was, Auntie Pang hesitated.
“…Oh, you child…”
She looked at Lin Shanyue with genuine sympathy.
“Fine. I’ll accept it today. But you have to promise me something too. Don’t be so formal with me from now on! I have a son who’s twelve this year. His name’s Shitou. I think Little Bao and my Shitou get along quite well. Let’s visit each other often.”
Lin Shanyue smiled and agreed.
After chatting for a while longer, she finally carried Little Bao back to her own courtyard.
Everything she’d said was true.
If she really planned to build a business in the future, she’d inevitably have to rely on her neighbors from time to time.
Getting along with people was an important skill.
“Be good, Little Bao. Mommy bought hu bing today. I’ll feed you some in a little while, okay? I also bought fresh meat. We get to eat meat today!”
As if he understood every word, Little Bao burst into delighted giggles.
Lin Shanyue’s heart nearly melted.
Holding him close, she carried him into the house, intending to lay him on the bed.
But the moment she stepped inside, she froze.
A large pile of things lay on the floor.
A thick quilt.
A huge sack of food.
All kinds of supplies.
Instinctively, she turned toward the silver mirror.
“Young Master… are you there?”