“You’re mistaken. The one crying is Xinyi, not me.”
Wen Peihan didn’t fall for it and calmly threw the blame onto Ji Xinyi, who hadn’t come today.
Shen Yunshu glanced at her and smirked, but didn’t expose her.
Lanxi Workshop was the largest embroidery and jewelry shop in the Liang Dynasty capital. Its embroiderers were highly skilled; many of the imperial palace’s embroidery bureau ladies-in-waiting came from Lanxi Workshop.
The workshop’s jewelry was also renowned for its intricacy. Many nobles and royal families’ everyday garments featured pieces from Lanxi.
Shen Yunshu and Wen Peihan only went out today with a casual intent to look around; they didn’t have anything specific in mind to buy.
After all, their household already had all necessities—they were just shopping symbolically for an upcoming banquet, picking out a few items as a gesture.
Wen Peihan chose a piece of silver-red satin and one of smoky purple brocade, a butterfly-shaped pearl hairpin, a gold-threaded silk flower, a ruby and red-gold necklace, and various silk flowers to reward the maids and servants.
Shen Yunshu picked a piece of misty pink and moon-white satin for herself.
She also handed the shopkeeper some sketches she had drawn in her spare time: a magpie-reflecting-moon tassel hairpin, a goldfish ruby and red-gold hairpin, a twin-flower bead tassel pin, a lark bead hairpin, blue jade drop earrings, a red-gold plum blossom hairpin inlaid with rubies, a silver-cloud and blue-glass gemstone necklace, and a pine-and-crane longevity tassel hairpin.
These designs came from Yunshu’s memories of her past life—she had admired them before and even learned some basic techniques for making hairpins.
But after coming to this world, she realized that while the mass-produced items of her previous life were beautiful, they lacked the charm of handmade craftsmanship.
Moreover, using materials like gold and jade was costly, and finding a skilled artisan for such complex designs was almost impossible.
Now, she had the opportunity to create these intricate designs with skilled craftsmen—she had to take advantage of it.
However, she made one important clarification to the shopkeeper:
“Once these items are made, send them to the Zhenbei Wang Mansion. And one more thing: these are my own unique designs, and they’re meant for Princess Le’an. Make sure they are carefully handled.”
Of course, gifts for a princess must be unique. Yunshu’s reminder ensured the shop wouldn’t casually copy her designs for sale.
The shopkeeper had been impressed by the designs and had planned to ask who had created them, as they were so distinctive.
Although he knew from her appearance that she was a noble, he also knew that noble ladies would never want to share their personal designs.
Hearing that the sketches were drawn by Yunshu herself, the County Mistress of the Zhenbei Wang Mansion, he immediately abandoned the idea of commissioning more.
After all, the mansion had only one daughter, a County Mistress, who would never need to pay for drawings herself.
“Your presence honors us, County Mistress. Forgive my poor eyes. Greetings to you.”
The shopkeeper bowed respectfully and quickly reassured her: “County Mistress, rest assured. At Lanxi Workshop, anything made from a customer’s own designs will never be reproduced without consent.”
Shen Yunshu nodded. That was enough. Even if Lanxi Workshop’s rules weren’t strict, now that she had declared the Zhenbei Wang Mansion and Princess Le’an as recipients, they wouldn’t dare sell them.
Moreover, Lanxi Workshop had an excellent reputation; she wasn’t worried.
Actually, Yunshu had thought before about doing what many web-novel heroines did: using her skills and memories to make crafts and sell them in this era.
For example, the hairpin designs she had drawn today were very novel in this world; selling them could bring a good profit for a time.
After all, the future of the Zhenbei Wang Mansion was uncertain.
If something happened, having some secret funds would be a wise contingency. People must always prepare for the worst.
But the longer she lived in this imperial-dominated era, the more she realized her old plans were naive.
Now, the Zhenbei Wang Mansion was among the most powerful noble families of Liang Dynasty. From an outsider’s view, they had no lack of money or power. Any conspicuous wealth could bring trouble to the household.
So any side business had to be discreet, without her name attached, and with no overt connection to the Zhenbei Wang Mansion.
After all, the emperor on the dragon throne was not one to be trifled with. Even if he trusted them, there would still be oversight.
If the Duke of Zhenbei, commanding 200,000 troops, were to covet wealth, it could be construed as treason. She had never forgotten that historically, the Shen family was exiled for rebellion.
Thus, she needed another plan.
Looking at the hairpin designs in her hands, she decided she would occasionally have them made and give them as gifts during festivals—this way, her ideas wouldn’t go to waste and could serve as thoughtful presents.
“Yunshu, when did you learn this skill? These designs are not only unique but also quite beautiful. I wonder how they will look when made. Your talent is truly clever.”
Wen Peihan was drawn to Yunshu’s sketches, curious to see the finished work.
“Don’t worry, Sister Wen. Of course I brought some for you. Once the artisans make them, I’ll send them to you, and then you’ll see how they turn out.”
After browsing a bit more and seeing nothing else of interest, Yunshu let Linglong and Linlang pick a few things they liked. They happily chose a silver cicada hairpin inlaid with rubies and a jade moth silver pin.
As the County Mistress’s personal attendants, it was acceptable for them to occasionally use gold or jade items, but usually their hairpins were silver, partly as a precaution in case of poison tests.
After choosing clothing and jewelry, they rested at the Eight Treasures Tea House.
Yunshu didn’t care much for sweets but enjoyed sampling their variety of confections.
The food of this era was all high-quality and carefully prepared. Even a single pastry was intricately crafted, showing meticulous attention.
As a frequent destination for nobles in the capital, the Eight Treasures Tea House’s offerings were refined to the point of rivaling imperial cuisine.
Yunshu ate two pieces of emerald bean cake and silver-thread sugar, followed by a bowl of Eight-Treasure Sweet Curd, then leaned on her handrail, resting her chin on her palm, quietly watching the distant street scene.