Lady of Fortune, Jiao Niang

Chapter 21

Ye Jiao was initially puzzled when she heard these words, and when the man cupped her face to examine her closely, Ye Jiao looked at him in confusion: "I wasn't smoked by anything, and I wasn't burned either..."

Qi Yun's eyes also noticed the rouge box she was holding in her hands. Knowing he had misunderstood, he coughed lightly. Afraid that Ye Jiao might feel sad, he took the rouge box from her hands and set it aside, saying: "My eyes were playing tricks on me just now, I didn't see clearly. It's my fault." As he spoke, he wanted to change the subject: "The pigeon in the small kitchen is still simmering. It'll be the same if you drink it when you come back."

Ye Jiao really did want to drink the pigeon soup, since little ginseng wanted to try everything she hadn't tried before.

But Ye Jiao could see something was off about this person. After thinking about it briefly, she understood. She had finally dressed up for once, but her husband didn't like it, which made her feel somewhat disappointed: "Does it not look good?"

Qi Yun examined her from left to right, but said nothing.

If he were to tell the truth, naturally it was... not good-looking.

Second Young Master Qi had never questioned his wife's beauty. With red lips, white teeth, and delicate features, when Ye Jiao was at the Ye family, she probably didn't like going out because the more beautiful a poor family's daughter was, the more dangerous it became. This appearance was indeed very attractive.

Other women needed to apply powder and rouge to make their skin appear fair, but for Ye Jiao, she nourished herself naturally. Her skin was fair with a rosy tint, and even when she had always kept her face bare, she still looked beautiful.

But now Ye Jiao had used rouge to paint her face in blotchy patches, especially those two patches of red on her cheeks. It looked just like a doll from a New Year painting, and really couldn't be called good-looking.

However, Second Young Master Qi didn't speak so directly. He only told her: "You used too much. This rouge shouldn't be applied heavily each time, just a little bit is enough."

Ye Jiao's eyes still held some disappointment: "Would it be better if I didn't use these things at all?"

This time Qi Yun didn't agree. In his view, his Jiao Niang had good natural features and indeed looked beautiful even without makeup, but since Jiao Niang wanted to use it, he naturally wouldn't say anything discouraging like "bare-faced is better" to dampen her spirits.

Everything could never be judged by simply good or bad, it ultimately depended on whether one liked it or not.

What his wife liked, he would naturally support unconditionally.

He reached out to pinch Ye Jiao's earlobe, and Qi Yun said gently: "Jiao Niang looks beautiful without using this, and should look even more beautiful when using it. Go wash your face, I'll help you."

Hearing this, Ye Jiao looked at him with some surprise: "Husband, how do you know how to use rouge?"

"I can't really say I know how. I've never touched it before, I just saw Mother put on makeup when I was young, so I know roughly how. If I don't do it well, Jiao Niang, please don't laugh at me." When Qi Yun spoke, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly, somehow giving Ye Jiao great confidence.

Ye Jiao didn't know how to apply rouge, and from Qi Yun's meaning, he didn't really know either, but Ye Jiao just trusted Qi Yun blindly and immediately got up to wash her face.

When facing the water basin, the reflection in it was much clearer than the bronze mirror, so Ye Jiao could see what she looked like now.

...Where did this demon come from!

She instinctively stepped back, but quickly realized what had happened. Her face flushed red immediately, and she quickly washed her face clean with warm water, thinking that her husband earlier probably wasn't displeased, but rather startled.

Looking like this, it would be strange if it didn't frighten people.

After tidying up, Ye Jiao returned somewhat embarrassedly and looked at Qi Yun: "Husband, I startled you just now, didn't I?"

Qi Yun had already changed into his indoor clothes and was waiting for her. Seeing her return, he smiled and said: "How could I be so easily startled?"

Even if he had been startled, he couldn't admit it.

The man stood by the table and beckoned to Ye Jiao: "Come here."

Ye Jiao immediately ran over to sit down, looking up at him with exceptional obedience.

He had actually never applied rouge for anyone. Qi Yun hadn't even touched such things before, but for his Jiao Niang's sake, Qi Yun had just gone to wash his hands, quickly recalled the books he had read before, and even tried applying rouge on the back of his hand several times. His somewhat pale hand still had several marks on it, but he finally had a rough plan.

Talented people learn everything quickly, but Qi Yun had never thought that one day he would use his initiative on rouge.

But everything was worth it to make Ye Jiao happy.

Since his Jiao Niang had good natural features anyway, Qi Yun just lightly patted her cheeks with a thin layer.

Rouge was naturally bright red, so a light layer was perfect. As for other things besides applying it to her cheeks, Qi Yun wouldn't know how to do anything else.

He then took the lip rouge and dotted it on the center of her lips, gently spreading it.

These were originally very simple steps, and Qi Yun didn't feel he was doing particularly well. At least he didn't know any of the lip makeup styles that other young ladies liked to paint.

However, Ye Jiao's face was exceptionally cooperative. With good skin quality, smooth and delicate skin, and beautiful features, simple decoration was enough.

Especially after applying the red lip rouge, she became even more bright and beautiful, and soft...

Qi Yun's fingertip paused slightly. His originally focused and careful gaze shifted, unconsciously concentrating on her lips, and he pressed them again.

Soft and bright red.

Qi Yun could still remember the warm sensation when she kissed his cheek.

Jiao Niang didn't know what Qi Yun was thinking. Seeing some redness appearing on his pale face, she couldn't help but worriedly grasp Qi Yun's wrist: "Husband, are you feeling unwell?"

Qi Yun immediately let go and looked away, coughing lightly: "No, it's nothing serious."

Ye Jiao also felt that his pulse was fine, thinking she had misunderstood. She smiled at Qi Yun and turned to look at herself in the mirror.

In the bronze mirror, what appeared was still a blurry outline. Ye Jiao looked left and right but couldn't see clearly, so she returned to the water basin and leaned in close to look.

Even though it still wasn't very clear, she could vaguely see a lotus-like face inside, much better than the colorful mess from before.

Ye Jiao immediately smiled. Little ginseng also loved beauty. Who wouldn't like to look more attractive?

She turned around and smiled at Qi Yun with curved lips: "Husband painted it so beautifully."

Qi Yun's just-calmed emotions were stirred again by this bright smile. Trying his best to maintain his usual composure and calm, the man said: "It's because Jiao Niang is naturally beautiful, so naturally everything looks good."

But Ye Jiao shook her head: "That colorful mess just now didn't look good."

Qi Yun couldn't help but laugh, pulling Ye Jiao's hand and changing the subject: "You don't seem to like this bronze mirror."

Ye Jiao was always honest with him: "It's not that I don't like it. Usually when it's just sitting there it looks quite nice, but it doesn't reflect people clearly."

The bronze mirror in Qi Yun's room was in the style currently popular on the market.

One side was smooth, the other had carved patterns. When placed there it looked like an exquisite work of art, but when it came to clarity, it really couldn't be called clear. When reflecting people it was like there was a layer of mist, and the one in Qi Yun's room was even less clear than ordinary ones.

This was probably because Qi Yun himself wasn't someone who liked looking in mirrors and had no need for bronze mirrors. After Ye Jiao arrived, she only used it when doing her hair. No one had paid attention to whether it was actually useful or not.

The bronze mirror was more like a necessary item in the room, just placed there without anyone thinking about actually using it.

But after Ye Jiao arrived, everything became lively, and things that should be used naturally had to be put to use.

Now that Ye Jiao mentioned it, Qi Yun thought about it and said: "I'll get a better bronze mirror later, though even the best ones won't be particularly clear. But I've heard merchants mention before that there's a type of mirror in the Western Regions that's much clearer than bronze mirrors."

Ye Jiao heard a new term: "What's a merchant caravan?"

Qi Yun explained: "They do business with Western Region merchants. They gather together to form caravans, selling our things there and buying their things to bring back, earning the price difference in between. They always make substantial profits, though there are quite a few dangers too."

Ye Jiao knew nothing about business matters. Making money was naturally happy, but having dangers was always bad: "If there's danger, Husband, don't go."

"I'm just asking them to buy some things, not only your mirror, but also some decorations for the wine shop that need to be brought back by them." Qi Yun didn't elaborate, just reassured Ye Jiao.

But in the man's heart, the merchant caravan was something for the future. He was even preparing to organize one himself once he had the capital.

Besides that, there were many other things he would gradually start doing.

Just having a thriving wine shop couldn't provide much protection for the Qi family.

If Qi Ming could pass the imperial examinations, that would naturally be good, but the imperial examination was something no one could predict. Whether one could pass or not depended not only on ability but also on fate. Even in the final round, it depended on the emperor's preferences, making it really hard to guess.

Qi Yun would help Qi Ming with his future, but other matters still had to depend on himself.

Nowadays merchants were no longer discriminated against, and could even receive some preferential treatment in many cases. But Qi Yun was very clear that to gain benefits from the merchant path, having just a few small shops wouldn't work.

He had many things to do. Taking it step by step, he ultimately had to provide protection for himself and Jiao Niang.

Tightening his grip on Ye Jiao's hand, Qi Yun said softly: "Let me draw your eyebrows."

Ye Jiao nodded with a smile: "Good."

Looking up at Qi Yun, Ye Jiao watched this person carefully use the eyebrow pencil to draw her eyebrows with such focus. The more she looked, the more she felt Qi Yun was handsome.

Ye Jiao worked hard to recall the words she had recently learned.

Sharp features, bright and starry eyes, all in all, very handsome.

The woman could feel the eyebrow pencil being carefully brushed on her eyebrows. After both sides were done, Ye Jiao asked softly: "Is it finished?"

Qi Yun seriously picked up the wet cloth beside them and wiped her eyebrows: "Not yet, wait a moment."

At the same time, the man sighed inwardly. They say that ancient couples drawing eyebrows for each other was a sign of intimacy, but when actually doing it, it was much more difficult than applying rouge.

Those men who could make eyebrow drawing a daily routine must have steady hands that wouldn't shake, plus the good skill to make eyebrows symmetrical.

Fortunately, Qi Yun's luck wasn't bad today. After trying twice, he managed to get them right. Though they weren't extremely beautiful, he had painted them lightly, so they were passable.

He once again felt grateful that having a beautiful wife was a blessing. With good natural features, she wasn't afraid of being experimented on.

But on his face, Qi Yun remained calm and composed, as if he had just done something trivial. After Ye Jiao happily went out, Qi Yun put on his robe again, took his hand warmer, and went to Liu Shi's courtyard.

No matter what, he had to ask Liu Shi for someone who could do makeup to teach Jiao Niang, whether Jiao Niang learned it herself or he learned it himself.

After all, Second Young Master Qi really couldn't guarantee that he'd be lucky enough to paint symmetrical eyebrows next time...

Ye Jiao got on the ox cart, accompanied by Lady Dong and Nanny Liu.

Liu Shi had specifically sent Nanny Liu to accompany them. She felt that Ye Jiao had a gentle temperament, and if this was her first time going out, it would be fine if nothing happened, but if they encountered some trouble, their gentle and obedient daughter-in-law might easily be intimidated by others. Having Nanny Liu accompany them was also for protection.

Ye Jiao was also familiar with Nanny Liu. She had accompanied her on the Return Home Visit before, and it was still her this time. As soon as they got on the cart, Ye Jiao distributed the pastries she had brought to them.

Nanny Liu looked carefully and could see these were several taro flour dumplings, made with dried and ground taro mixed with flour to form the wrapper, with chicken filling inside. They were called pastries, but were actually more like a staple food.

Not many families at home could make this, and it wasn't easy to buy outside either. Only the chefs in a few restaurants in town had this skill.

It seemed the rumors about Second Young Master successfully negotiating business with restaurants and shops were indeed true.

Nanny Liu had always followed Liu Shi and knew somewhat about family matters. Even if she guessed correctly, she would only be happy for their Second Young Master.

She had always heard Liu Shi mention privately that Ye Jiao was blessed, not only blessed herself but also able to share her blessings with Qi Yun.

Nanny Liu was superstitious, so naturally she treated Ye Jiao with even more respect.

Lady Dong was different. She couldn't tell what was special about these dumplings, just thought they tasted good. She was also preoccupied with talking to Ye Jiao later about the cultivation methods for those medicinal flowers, making her somewhat absent-minded.

However, Ye Jiao didn't focus her attention on either of them, just concentrated on eating the taro flour dumplings bite by bite, touched her stomach, and looked completely satisfied.

The distance from the Qi family to town wasn't close, but fortunately the roads were all main roads, flat and wide, so the ox cart moved quickly.

Soon after finishing the dumplings, they arrived at their destination.

Ye Jiao lifted the curtain to look outside, feeling that the streets here were much more bustling. There were also some street vendors on both sides, many shops were open, and the Qi Family Wine Shop was located not far from the street entrance.

Lady Dong linked arms with Ye Jiao beside her: "This is a good location. It must not have been easy to acquire. The business will definitely be thriving."

This statement was half flattery, half sincere.

Nowadays it was no longer the time when "good wine needs no bush." The Imperial Court encouraged commercial development, and all kinds of shops were opening more and more. Having good products required not only good promotion, but also good locations.

Lady Dong and her husband managed the Qi family's medicine shop. Although their location was also decent, it was far from being as bustling as this place.

Looking with some envy, Lady Dong was calculating in her heart that she should have her husband go curry favor with the master. They couldn't just watch others eat meat while they drank plain soup.

Manager Song stood at the door with a beaming smile, waiting for the auspicious time. Seeing the Qi family's cart arrive, he hurried forward: "Second Young Mistress, please take your time." Then he turned to a young assistant: "Quickly bring a stool to help Second Young Mistress down from the cart."

Ye Jiao lifted the curtain and came out. Without letting anyone help her, she stepped on the stool and got down from the cart herself. Looking up at Manager Song, she smiled and said: "Manager Song, my husband sent me to take a look. I hope I'm not interfering with your business?"

When Ye Jiao got down, Manager Song was somewhat surprised in his heart. This was the first time he had seen Ye Jiao wearing makeup, and he hadn't expected her to have such outstanding looks.

Qi Yun saw Ye Jiao all the time, so naturally he couldn't detect the difference in Ye Jiao. But Manager Song didn't see her often, so when he suddenly saw her, he felt the change was quite significant.

Besides her complexion, there was also her temperament. Not a trace of her former poverty could be seen. Instead, she looked like a pampered young lady soaked in a honey pot.

But Manager Song didn't stare. He quickly looked away, smiling on his face: "No interference at all. Second Young Mistress, you look so well today. Please come inside and sit." As he spoke, Lady Dong and Nanny Liu also got down, and Manager Song smiled and instructed the assistants: "Take these distinguished guests to the second floor and prepare the finest tea."

However, when Ye Jiao sat by the window on the second floor, she saw through the window that there were about four or five people coming this way from the side, looking aggressive.

Ye Jiao was somewhat curious: "Are they also here to watch the excitement?"

Lady Dong looked and frowned slightly: "They don't look like they're here to watch the excitement. They look like troublemaking ruffians."

Soon, Lady Dong's words were proven correct. Those people stood right in front of the shop, and the leader shouted loudly: "Our Manager Sun says your shop is disrupting the feng shui of Sun family's money exchange. If you want to open, pay up first!"

Upon hearing this, Lady Dong said in a low voice: "As expected, they're here to cause trouble. Who announces their own name before starting trouble?"

If they weren't stupid, then they had malicious intentions and were here to make trouble.