Chapter 29: A New Name at Yuyaxuan

When Wei Lan woke up, the sky was already bright.

She had slept so comfortably.

Getting up, she dressed and opened the door.

 

A maidservant outside eagerly greeted her, “The master is awake.

The young lady specifically instructed that you should eat breakfast before leaving.

I’ll have someone prepare water for you to wash first.”

“Okay.”

Wei Lan stretched lazily.

No wonder, after being chastised by Lu Zijin yesterday, they were finally learning to be sensible.

 

So, after Wei Lan washed up, various breakfast dishes were brought out shortly after.

 

The pork rib porridge in the bowl was stewed until soft and sticky.

The small pastries were all fragrant and tempting.

Before she knew it, Wei Lan had eaten her fill.

 

She truly loved the food at the Lu residence now, especially the food here at Lu Zijin’s place.

 

After she was full, Wei Lan got up and headed back to Fuqu Pavilion.

Qing Zhi had arranged for four maidservants to escort Wei Lan back.

 

On the way back, Wei Lan immediately noticed a difference from before.

The servant boys and maids in the courtyard, upon seeing her, all came forward to proactively pay their respects, unlike before when they pretended not to see her.

 

Wei Lan figured they were probably scared after being dealt with by Lu Zijin.

But she didn’t really mind.

 

Soon, Wei Lan arrived back at Fuqu Pavilion.

Li Zhufeng and Zhao Linghui were still lying in their rooms recovering, but the servants in the courtyard were exceptionally attentive.

“The master has returned.

Would you like to have breakfast?” the head maidservant quickly came forward to ask.

“No, I’ve eaten.

Just prepare tea in my workshop, that’s all.”

As she spoke, Wei Lan had already returned to her bedroom.

She found a brocade box, put her silver notes safely inside, and then placed the box on the top shelf of her wardrobe.

 

After doing this, she changed out of the fine silk dress she was wearing, put on her usual work clothes, and then immediately buried herself in her workshop.

 

The maidservants and servant boys in the courtyard no longer dared to be as casual as before.

Even without being told, they had arranged shifts.

Apart from the two cooks and the two injured matrons, there were four servant boys and six maidservants.

They stood guard near Wei Lan’s workshop in groups of two, changing shifts every hour, so that Wei Lan could call them at any time.

 

Even though the master had a good temper, they didn’t dare break the rules now.

After all, several people had died last night; this was no joke.

 

Wei Lan paid no attention to these servants.

She had already taken out the jade plaque from yesterday and prepared to continue carving.

 

Yesterday’s jade plaque was made of white jade.

The material looked much better than the green jade she had used for practice before, and its hardness was also different from green jade.

 

Once Wei Lan started carving, another half a day passed.

Since she had eaten too much for breakfast, she didn’t eat lunch either.

 

It wasn’t until late afternoon that Wei Lan finally finished carving the white jade plaque.

Wei Lan carved a traditional landscape with birds and flowers, but she used many modern carving techniques, making the lines clearer and the landscape more three-dimensional.

After Wei Lan’s meticulous polishing, this piece of jade looked quite valuable.

 

She carefully rinsed the jade plaque with clean water, then put it away, opened the door, and told the maidservants to prepare water for a bath.

 

She had gotten some dust on her clothes and needed to bathe before eating.

 

By the time she finished bathing and started eating, it was almost dinner time.

 

***

 

Lu Zijin had returned to the residence around noon.

After handling various external affairs, it was already dinner time.

She rubbed her brow and instructed Qing Zhi to arrange for the meal to be served.

 

Lu Zijin sat alone at the table.

After just a few bites, she couldn’t eat anymore.

 

Seeing her poor appetite, Qing Zhi quickly asked, “Young Lady, is the food not to your liking?

I’ll go tell the kitchen to make something else.”

“No need.”

She had been busy all day and was tired, but for some reason, she just couldn’t eat much.

 

Lu Zijin thought of Wei Lan.

Yesterday, when Wei Lan had dinner at her place, she had wolfed it down, eating most of the large table of dishes.

Lu Zijin remembered the way Wei Lan ate and her eyes curved slightly.

 

Her little Qianjun ate so ravenously, anyone would think she didn’t feed her.

She wondered what Wei Lan was doing today.

 

Lu Zijin paused for a moment, surprised to find herself thinking of Wei Lan.

Then she shook her head, telling herself it was just because Wei Lan’s way of eating yesterday had left such a strong impression, which was why she suddenly remembered her now.

“Have someone clear this away.

Prepare water.

I want to bathe.”

She had mostly finished today’s tasks and would have a bit of free time to rest tomorrow.

Lu Zijin planned to go see Wei Lan.

 

They had been married for a while now, but she had never been to Fuqu Pavilion.

When she went tomorrow, she would bring plenty of things for Wei Lan.

Her little Qianjun was easy to please.

If she went to see her, she should be very happy.

 

Lu Zijin didn’t know what was wrong with her today; she kept thinking about Wei Lan.

Even now, having already bathed and lying in bed, she remembered those few days of her heat, with Wei Lan beneath her.

Lu Zijin felt something was off.

She rubbed her brow, thinking it must be because she had inhaled too much of Wei Lan’s pheromones yesterday.

Otherwise, there was no reason for her to suddenly think of Wei Lan like this.

 

Thinking this, Lu Zijin felt a little more at ease and closed her eyes to sleep.

 

***

 

On the other side, Wei Lan was the same.

Ancient life truly wasn’t as interesting as modern life, especially at night.

There weren’t many entertainment options.

Oil lamps and candles weren’t bright enough, so Wei Lan didn’t dare carve at night for fear of ruining her eyes.

After all, there were no such things as eyeglasses in ancient times.

 

Wei Lan went to bed early.

However, she slept a lot and woke up later than Lu Zijin.

She had just finished washing up and was about to tell the maidservants to bring breakfast when a commotion arose in the courtyard.

Then came the sound of the servant boys and maidservants greeting Lu Zijin.

 

Wei Lan thought she was hearing things.

After all, Lu Zijin was usually so busy; how could she possibly walk such a long way just to see her?

 

It turned out she was wrong.

Lu Zijin hadn’t walked; she had arrived in an open sedan chair carried by four people.

 

When Wei Lan went out, Lu Zijin was already alighting from the sedan chair.

Seeing Wei Lan walk towards her, her eyes bright as she looked at her, the corners of Lu Zijin’s mouth unconsciously curved up.

“Just woke up?

Have you had breakfast yet?”

Lu Zijin asked softly.

“No, not yet.

I was just about to tell them to serve the meal.

Why are you here?

Have you had breakfast?”

Wei Lan’s gaze fell on Lu Zijin as she asked.

“Mm, I’ve eaten.

I came to see you.”

As she spoke, Lu Zijin instructed the servants of Fuqu Pavilion, “Why aren’t you hurrying to prepare the master’s breakfast?”

“Yes!”

The servant boys and maids, scared to death, quickly went to prepare it.

 

Lu Zijin smiled at Wei Lan and said, “I also specifically had someone bring two boxes of small pastries.

Don’t you really like them?”

“Thank you, wife.”

Wei Lan’s eyes lit up.

The pastries from Lu Zijin’s small kitchen were truly delicious, soft and sticky, the kind that melted in your mouth.

“Come on, let’s go back to your bedroom.”

Lu Zijin smiled at Wei Lan and walked back to the bedroom with her.

 

Soon, Wei Lan’s breakfast was brought out.

She looked at Lu Zijin and asked, “Wife, do you want to eat a little more?”

“No need.

You eat by yourself.

I also had them bring you quite a few things, including fabric.

Later, have the residence tailor take your measurements and make you some more dresses.”

As Lu Zijin spoke, she pushed the small pastries she had brought closer to Wei Lan.

 

Wei Lan’s eyes widened, and she immediately started eating.

 

Seeing Wei Lan eat with such relish, Lu Zijin’s eyes curved slightly.

Lately, whenever she spent time with Wei Lan, her mood seemed especially good.

 

Soon, the two plates of small pastries she had brought were finished by Wei Lan.

Besides that, Wei Lan also ate a bowl of pork rib porridge.

Her appetite was exceptionally good.

“Are you full?”

Lu Zijin asked softly.

 

Wei Lan quickly nodded, “Full.

The pastries from your courtyard are delicious.”

“I’m glad you like them.

Let them take your measurements now, so they can make your dresses.”

“Okay, thank you, wife.”

Wei Lan obediently stood up.

Someone immediately came to measure her, and it was done quickly.

 

Soon, the maidservants cleared the bowls and plates from the table and replaced them with freshly brewed tea.

 

Wei Lan had originally planned to go out today and look at some rough stones.

But since Lu Zijin hadn’t left yet, it wasn’t convenient for her to go out.

“Wife, aren’t you busy today?

Don’t you need to go back and handle things?”

Wei Lan asked obediently, though in her heart she was hoping Lu Zijin would leave soon so she could go out and buy rough stones.

 

Lu Zijin’s eyebrow lifted slightly, as if sensing the implication in Wei Lan’s words.

“What’s this?

I’ve come all this way, and you’re not welcoming me?”

“How could that be?

I miss you very much, wife.”

Wei Lan gave Lu Zijin a professional, awkward smile and swallowed the rest of her words.

What she really missed was the good food at her wife’s place.

“Is that so?

I get the feeling you really want me to leave.”

Lu Zijin reached out and gently held Wei Lan’s chin, her fingertips lightly stroking it.

She seemed to have developed a bad habit; whenever she saw Wei Lan, she always wanted to touch her.

“No, I really want you to stay with me.”

Wei Lan said sweetly, her real intention being to coax Lu Zijin into leaving quickly so she could go out.

“Since the master misses me so much, I’ll just have to stay and keep the master company.”

As Lu Zijin spoke, her hand moved from Wei Lan’s chin to her cheek, gently pinching it.

“Huh?

How could I impose?

You’re so busy every day.

You should probably get back to your work.”

Wei Lan continued with her awkward smile.

 

Lu Zijin reached out and lightly tapped Wei Lan’s nose.

“Alright, I’ll come see you another day.”

 

Seeing her little Qiankun so eager for her to leave, Lu Zijin shook her head with a smile.

She chatted with Wei Lan a little longer and then left.

 

***

 

“Master, these things the young lady brought, should we put them in the storehouse or somewhere else?” a nearby maidservant reminded her.

 

Wei Lan looked and saw that Lu Zijin had brought her a whole series of tonics like bird’s nest and ginseng.

“Just put them in the kitchen.

I’ll have them cooked directly when I want to eat them.”

 

The servants, having been thoroughly chastised, were now exceptionally honest.

Wei Lan wasn’t afraid of them embezzling these things.

 

After giving her instructions, she headed towards the back gate of the Lu residence.

Unlike before, the few guards at the back gate immediately saluted Wei Lan when they saw her.

“The master is here!

Quickly, open the gate for the master!”

“Yes, yes!

Master, please!”

 

Wei Lan nodded to them and went out the back gate.

Her main task today was to select materials.

Tomorrow was the Jade Appreciation Competition that Xiao Nanyan had mentioned, so Wei Lan didn’t plan to expend too much energy carving jade today.

 

She brought one hundred taels in silver notes and a few dozen taels in cash, planning to buy some better quality rough stones this time.

 

Wei Lan went straight to the Eastern Market, the same place as last time.

She went to Yingniang’s shop.

Yingniang and her assistants were busy moving jade.

Seeing Wei Lan arrive, a hint of surprise showed on her face.

“It’s you, miss.

Need to buy something this time?”

Yingniang asked.

 

Wei Lan nodded.

“I want to buy some better quality rough stones.

Do you have any?”

“Naturally.

We have Hetian white jade, as well as black jade and green jade.

Which kind would the miss like?”

Yingniang asked with a smile.

“I’ll look at them all.

I’ve used up all the green jade material you gave me last time.”

Wei Lan said with a smile.

“Then miss can look at these few stalls over here.

These stalls have slightly better quality rough stones.”

Yingniang pointed further inside.

“Okay, I’ll have a look.”

 

As she spoke, Wei Lan crouched down and began selecting from the stalls in front of her.

Flawless white jade would look very nice carved into plaques or hairpins, but it mainly depended on the flaws and cracks in the jade.

 

Ancient jade didn’t have as much technology as modern times.

They wouldn’t create a fake window, only for you to find out after buying it that the inside was full of cracks.

Similarly, in ancient times, there were no high-powered flashlights to shine inside and check for cracks.

You could only judge by natural light whether there were cracks inside.

 

Wei Lan chose a piece of white jade about the size of a fist.

The outer shell had already been removed by Yingniang and her staff.

Looking at the surface, this piece of jade was quite good.

The question was, once cut open, how many impurities and cracks would be inside.

 

Wei Lan held up the piece of white jade and examined it carefully against the light.

 

While she was buying jade, quite a few people around were watching her.

After all, she was dressed in fine clothes, more like someone who would go to a high-end jade shop and buy finished jade pieces directly.

 

Wei Lan finished looking at one piece, then moved on to the next.

She examined four large pieces of white jade rough stone in succession before finally settling on one.

 

Then Wei Lan started looking at green jade.

There was even more green jade rough stone compared to white jade.

Wei Lan felt the texture of the jade as she selected, finally choosing one piece of green jade and one piece of white jade.

“Boss, I’ll take these two.

How much silver altogether?”

Wei Lan pointed to the two pieces of jade she had chosen and asked.

“That piece of white jade is of better quality.

It’s four taels of silver.

That piece of green jade is relatively cheaper, two taels of silver.”

Yingniang said with a smile.

“Okay, I’ll take these two then.

Help me wrap them in a cloth.”

Six taels of silver total, which in modern terms would be about six thousand yuan.

 

The quality of that white jade was indeed good, and the green jade material was also very fine.

Wei Lan was quite satisfied with these two rough stones.

 

Yingniang was also momentarily stunned.

Usually, when she gave a price, people would bargain with her.

That’s why the price she quoted had actually left some room.

But Wei Lan agreed too readily, which actually made Yingniang a little embarrassed.

“How about this: since the miss is such a straightforward person, I’ll throw in three extra pieces of jade rough stone as a gift.

But they haven’t had their outer shell removed yet.

The miss can go over there and pick three for yourself.”

Yingniang said with a smile.

“Sure.”

Wei Lan didn’t refuse.

She walked over to the outer stall and crouched down.

There were quite a few jade rough stones piled there, all still with their outer shells intact.

Buying this type of material was actually quite similar to modern gambling on stones; you couldn’t see the internal structure of the jade.

Whether the jade you bought was good or bad depended entirely on luck.

 

Wei Lan casually picked up a rough stone.

Although gambling on stones involved an element of luck, you could still use technique to avoid some cracked pieces.

For example, if the shape of this jade was too uneven, after cutting, it might contain fault lines inside.

 

When selecting this type of jade, you should try to choose stones with consistent structure and texture.

That way, at least you could avoid large cracks inside the jade.

As for impurities and small cracks, there was really no way to use technique to detect them.

 

Whenever someone selected jade with its outer shell, it would attract onlookers.

Wei Lan was no different.

But these people, seeing her dressed in fine clothes, didn’t crowd her, just watched the excitement from the side.

 

Wei Lan was just selecting casually, treating it as a bit of fun.

In her previous life, she had only gambled on stones once, and she had been lucky that time.

After cutting, the value of the jade was about five times the price she paid.

 

However, this kind of gambling on stones could also be addictive.

Doing it occasionally was okay, but if you really thought you could get rich from it, you were dreaming.

 

Wei Lan finished selecting her stones, took out six taels of silver from her pocket, and paid first.

 

Yingniang smiled at her and said, “Miss, I’ve already wrapped up the two pieces of jade you picked out.

Do you need these three rough stones cut open here?”

 

The most exciting part of gambling on stones was cutting the jade on site.

Wei Lan nodded and smiled, “Sure, cut them.

I’ll have to cut them myself when I get back anyway.”

“Alright then.”

Yingniang took the rough stones Wei Lan handed over.

 

There was already a lathe set up here.

Yingniang sat at the lathe and began stepping on the pedal to cut the jade.

Soon, the rough stone was cut open, revealing the internal infertile stone inside.

Generally speaking, if there was too much infertile stone in the jade, it wasn’t much different from ordinary rock.

So this piece of jade was a complete loss.

“Ah, I told you so.

This miss is just playing around.

Dressed so well, obviously she doesn’t really know jade.”

“Exactly.

Rich people just play for fun.”

“It’s all infertile stone inside.

This can be thrown away.”

 

Wei Lan thought the same and said, “I don’t want this one.”

“Okay, I’ll continue cutting the next one.”

As Yingniang spoke, she continued using the steel disc on the lathe to cut the next rough stone.

 

The outer skin of this jade was black.

One cut down, the jade inside showed a pale green color.

After fully splitting it open, they could see large cracks in the middle of both halves of the jade.

 

Wei Lan shook her head helplessly.

“What a pity.

But it should be able to carve one or two plaques.

The seed quality is still good.

Boss, please keep this piece of jade for me.”

“Certainly.”

Yingniang replied with a smile, and then began cutting the last piece of jade.

 

This piece of jade was slightly larger than the previous two.

Yingniang cut it from the middle, then handed the jade to Wei Lan.

 

Wei Lan split it open and saw that this piece of jade had a slight pinkish tint, a rarely seen seed quality.

There weren’t many large cracks inside, but there was quite a lot of internal flaws.

However, for carving ornaments or hand-held pieces, it should still be quite good.

“Boss, please wrap this one up for me too.”

Wei Lan said with a smile.

“Okay.”

Yingniang found another cloth and wrapped up the two pieces of jade rough stone that had just been cut for Wei Lan.

 

Wei Lan hugged the jade she had bought, said goodbye to Yingniang, and prepared to return to the residence.

 

By the time she reached the back gate of the Lu residence, it was almost noon.

 

When the guards at the back gate saw her carrying things, they quickly came forward eagerly and said, “Master, let this lowly one carry that for you.

We wouldn’t want you to tire yourself out.”

 

Wei Lan’s arms were indeed a bit sore from carrying them all the way.

She handed the bundle in her arms to the guard and instructed, “Be careful.

Don’t drop my jade inside.”

“Yes, yes.”

That guard, well attuned to the situation, helped Wei Lan carry the things all the way to her workshop.

 

After returning, Wei Lan had someone prepare water for a bath.

This was one of the bad things about ancient times: no matter how hot the weather, you had to wear layers upon layers of clothing.

Going out and coming back like this, she felt like she had been pulled out of water.

 

After bathing, Wei Lan had a hearty meal.

In the afternoon, she didn’t go to work on those jades.

Instead, she leisurely took a nap in her bedroom.

After all, she could still eat soft rice for now.

 

***

 

After recharging her energy all afternoon and night, Wei Lan woke up early the next morning.

She bathed, ate breakfast, and then went straight out the door towards Yuyaxuan.

 

The Jade Appreciation Competition usually started in the morning.

Since carvers had to carve on site, the time was always chosen during the day.

 

When Wei Lan arrived at Yuyaxuan, Zhao Chengye was waiting there.

Seeing Wei Lan arrive, he immediately came forward to greet her.

“Miss, our owner has already arrived.

She’s waiting for you inside.”

 

Wei Lan nodded to him.

“Okay, I’m going in now.”

 

The manager led Wei Lan all the way to Xiao Nanyan’s study.

Xiao Nanyan still had her veil covering her face.

Seeing Wei Lan arrive, she quickly said, “Everything you need has been prepared for you.

The second room upstairs will be yours from now on.

Go up and change clothes first.”

 

As she spoke, she instructed her guard, Qi Jin, “Take this miss upstairs.”

“Yes, mistress.”

Qi Jin led Wei Lan to the second floor, pushed open the door of the second room, and made an inviting gesture.

“Miss, this is it.

From now on, this room is yours.

If you need it, you are welcome to come at any time.”

“Okay, thank you.”

Wei Lan thanked her and walked inside.

 

It was only a temporary place to stay, of course incomparable to the rooms at the Lu residence.

But the rest of the things were quite complete.

On the bed lay a set of black clothing and a mask.

 

She didn’t know what material the mask was made of.

The fabric was very thin, the color was silver, and it felt like some kind of metal material to the touch.

 

Wei Lan latched the door, then began to change clothes.

This black dress was about her size and fit very well.

After changing, Wei Lan took out the white jade hairpin from her hair and casually placed it on the dressing table beside her.

Then she found a black jade hairpin from the makeup box and used it to tie up her hair.

 

After doing this, Wei Lan put on the silver mask that could cover most of her face.

Then she put on the outermost layer, a pure black hooded cloak.

 

She didn’t know what material this cloak was made of either.

It felt cool to the touch and wasn’t stiflingly hot.

As for the hood behind, when Wei Lan put it on, her entire head was shrouded inside, easily concealing her figure.

 

Wei Lan was quite satisfied with her all-black outfit.

Just looking at her, her entire aura had changed – calm, restrained, and mysterious.

The corners of Wei Lan’s mouth lifted, and she walked out of the room, heading towards Xiao Nanyan’s study.

 

Xiao Nanyan saw that she was already fully dressed and smiled at her.

“Our figures are about the same.

I had them prepare it according to my measurements.

Does it fit well?”

“It fits perfectly.”

Wei Lan said.

 

Xiao Nanyan nodded at her.

“That’s good.

Oh, by the way, have you thought of a name?

At the Jade Appreciation Competition later, the carvings for sale need to be marked with the carver’s name.”

“When evening green slips into the deep night;

And autumn dew gathers into pearls.

I’ll call myself Qinglan.”①

Wei Lan said after a moment’s thought.

 

 

① A quote from a poem by Bai Juyi of the Tang Dynasty.

 

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