Surviving in the General's Mansion - Chapter 17: Seeds

Chapter 17: Seeds

“I want to go too!”

Xia Heng had only just told Chuqing that she wanted to go out and buy some seeds, and asked whether Chuqing could submit a request to leave the mansion, when she received that excited reply.

Little girl, this won’t do. Of all the things you could learn, you chose to learn slacking off?

Xia Heng felt as though she had led someone astray, and an odd sense of guilt crept over her.

“Today is the fifteenth, you know. There’s a market! I was just thinking of going to take a look too. Let’s go ask Mo Bai!”

Chuqing had somehow understood Xia Heng’s guilty look. As she answered, she grabbed Xia Heng-who still had no idea who Mo Bai was-and dragged her away.

The two of them found Mo Bai standing guard outside the general’s room.

“Ahem, Mo Bai! Is the general busy today?”

Chuqing copied Xia Heng’s manner, trying her best to sound composed.

Mo Bai rolled his eyes so hard they nearly vanished into the heavens.

“Chuqing, if you have something to say, just say it properly. Don’t learn from those people outside who spend all day talking in circles.”

As Mo Bai sharply complained, he also shot Xia Heng a covert glare, his eyes brimming with the fury of a man whose own little girl had been led astray.

Xia Heng was completely baffled. She had no idea how she had offended this pretty boy she had not even met before.

You may be decent-looking, but that doesn’t mean you get to discriminate!

“Today is the fifteenth, and there’s a market. We want to go out and look around.”

Chuqing immediately went along with it and answered quickly. As she spoke, she tugged at Mo Bai’s sleeve and gave it a little shake.

Having received a clear answer, Mo Bai was satisfied. He reached out and smoothed Chuqing’s maid bun, which had been ruffled a little by the wind, and said gently, “Go on, then. Come back early.”

Chuqing answered happily, then grabbed Xia Heng and ran off again.

……

“Ah Heng, if you keep staring at me, you’re going to get stabbed by a candied hawthorn skewer.”

Xia Heng quickly looked at the road and dodged a deadly jab from the old man carrying the candied hawthorn sticks.

“You…”

“Hm?”

“Mo Bai…”

“Oh, he’s my fiancé!”

Chuqing’s eyes sparkled.

“Pfft!”

Xia Heng failed to hold it in.

“What’s wrong? We have a marriage agreement!”

“How old are you?!”

“I already turned sixteen! Ours was a betrothal arranged when we were babies. We’ve been engaged for more than ten years already.”

“Only sixteen!”

“Ah Heng, what are you talking about? At this age, you can already get married!

And Mo Bai is a year older than me. Once things settle down, we can hold the wedding banquet.

Honestly, at my age, I’m actually considered late!

Sister Zhaohong is eighteen this year, and she’s already the mother of two children!

Not long ago, she resigned through Steward Zhao and went home to look after her children.

And Sister Qingliu went back to her hometown to get married too!”

Xia Heng, who had suddenly realized that she was dragging down the ancient world’s marriage-and-childbirth statistics, silently wiped her face.

“Ah… Right. No wonder he seems so gentle with you.”

For once, Chuqing noticed that she seemed to have accidentally poked Xia Heng’s sore spot.

“Oh, but we’re not married yet. And Mo Bai serves by the general’s side, so we don’t know how much longer it’ll be before things settle down.

Speaking of which, Ah Heng! Do you have someone you like?”

“Ah. I don’t deserve one.”

Xia Heng waved weakly.

Chuqing grabbed Xia Heng’s arm.

“It’s fine! You’ll find someone eventually.”

Xia Heng was not sure whether she had just seen a glow of pity on Chuqing’s face.

“Don’t worry. The aunties and uncles in the mansion love playing matchmaker for people!

Once we get back, I’ll ask them to keep an eye out for you. If they really can’t find anyone, the General’s Mansion will support you!”

“Uh! That really won’t be necessary…”

“Oh! There’s a foreign peddler over there! Looks like he has lots of interesting things. Come on, Ah Heng, let’s go take a look.”

The moment Chuqing discovered a fresh new stall, she lost all interest in chatting and rushed straight to the peddler’s stand by the street, picking through the goods.

“Come one, come all, take a look! You two young ladies, what would you like?”
The peddler had a head of red hair and spoke in a thick, halting version of the official tongue.

“I’ve got everything here, and it all came from across the big blue sea! Pick whatever you like, have a look!”

“We’re hardly fine young ladies, you know. You’re saying these came from the other side of the sea?”

“That’s right…”

Chuqing lightly covered her lips and began bargaining with the vendor.

No wonder people said shopping was a woman’s nature, no matter the era.

Chuqing was having the time of her life picking things out.

Xia Heng couldn’t hold back either. Silently, she reached out and joined in.

Oh-ho!

“What’s this?”

“Oh, those are seeds. They came from across the sea too! But the ship took on water during the voyage!”

The vendor mimed a storm-tossed ship.

“A lot spilled out, and they all got mixed together.”

“If you want them, this whole bag is yours for thirty wen!”

A heaven-sent opportunity!

Xia Heng, who badly needed seeds as cover, took out thirty wen without another word.

Buyer and seller both thought to themselves:

Is there really such a good deal?

Chuqing didn’t pay it much mind.

In the end, Xia Heng and Chuqing each picked out some spices as well. It had to be said, compared to the price of the spices, the seeds might as well have been free.

Perhaps because the two of them had bought so much, when they were about to leave, the peddler added, “Those seeds were soaked in water, so there’s no guarantee they’ll sprout. Next time I get new stock, come find me and I’ll give you a discount!”

Xia Heng quickly nodded to show that she would definitely come again.

After buying the spices, Xia Heng accompanied Chuqing to a fabric shop and bought some cloth for making men’s clothes.

Needless to say, it was exclusively for Mo Bai.

After that, the two of them went to play ring toss by the street. Xia Heng expended a heroic amount of effort and finally managed to win one clay figurine.

Chuqing, on the other hand, was impressive. Out of ten rings, she won four prizes:

Two adorably clumsy-looking little clay figurines, a handkerchief, and a small handwoven bamboo basket.

“Here, for you!”

Chuqing lifted the little bamboo basket and placed it in Xia Heng’s hands.

Xia Heng didn’t stand on ceremony. She put the bag of seeds she had just bought into the basket, and there was still some room left.

The rich aroma of fresh mutton soup from the roadside was simply impossible to resist. Chuqing and Xia Heng followed the scent straight to it.

Each of them had a bowl of mutton soup with a flatbread on the side.

With the cries of countless street vendors and the chatter of passersby all around them, they ate until their bellies were round.

If only there were chili sauce, it would be even better!

Xia Heng glanced at the bag of seeds in the bamboo basket, a plan already forming in her mind.

When they returned to the General’s Mansion, Mo Bai was waiting by the side gate as if lying in ambush.

“Is the general looking for me?”

Xia Heng pointed at herself foolishly.

Seeing Xia Heng’s goose-like blank expression, Mo Bai felt his irritation flare.

He truly could not understand how his fiancée had ended up hanging around with such a blockhead.

He would never admit the two of them were birds of a feather. Never!

“Who else? If he wasn’t calling for you, why would I be here looking for you?”

Hearing the undisguised disdain in Mo Bai’s words, Xia Heng hurriedly withdrew her hand and scratched her nose.

“Then should I go put down the things I bought first?”

“You dare make the general wait?”

Xia Heng had no choice but to carry her little bamboo basket and follow behind Mo Bai. After several twists and turns, they arrived back at Cang Chuli’s main residence.

Cang Chuli was still dressed in moon-white robes. He sat on the couch in the study, holding an account book in one hand and a teacup in the other, his brows slightly knitted as though he were pondering something.

When he saw Mo Bai bring Xia Heng in, he set down what he was holding.

“Master, I’ve brought her. I’ll take my leave.”

Cang Chuli gave a faint nod, but his gaze seemed nailed to Xia Heng.

Xia Heng felt prickles all over her body. At this moment, even Mo Bai’s sarcastic attitude suddenly didn’t seem like a problem anymore. She had to forcibly restrain herself from reaching out to him in a desperate plea for him not to go.

Seeing how uncomfortable Xia Heng looked, Cang Chuli smiled instead.

“You seemed much braver when you were filing your complaint.”