Liang Chen Mei Jin

Chapter 137: Onion Sugar

Did Grandmother mean... she wouldn't force him to marry Gu Jinzhao anymore?

Ji Yao didn't know what to say for a moment. Upon learning he wouldn't have to marry Jinzhao, he felt not joy but rather a tinge of disappointment.

He understood Ji Wu Shi's methods. In truth, he had already made peace with it beforehand. Apart from Gu Jinzhao, Ji Wu Shi wouldn't allow him to marry anyone else. He had even contemplated how to propose to her—would Jinzhao be happy if he went to the Gu family to seek her hand? She would probably agree to marry him, right?

They could live in the same courtyard together—one sleeping in the eastern chamber, the other in the western. The western chamber was colder, so he would take that one. Even if they didn't love each other, getting along shouldn't be a problem.

Gu Jinzhao was gentle and preferred quiet, but she loved gardening. When she had stayed with the Ji family before, she had particularly enjoyed playing the qin. Her qin could be placed in his study, by the window, where a Chinese flowering crabapple grew outside. She would see it whenever she played. She seemed to dislike being alone, always surrounded by maids and matrons. Then he could assign more maids to serve her, making it lively.

Ji Yao often thought about these things. The more he pondered, the more marrying Gu Jinzhao didn't seem so difficult. It might even be quite enjoyable—she had once baked crab-shell cakes for Grandmother in the warming pavilion. He had tried them again later, but none tasted as good as hers...

Ji Yao paused before saying, "Grandmother... I wasn't trying to refuse this marriage."

Ji Wu Shi waved her hand, smiling helplessly. "It was selfish of this old woman to disregard my own grandson's wishes just for my granddaughter's sake... You don't have to humor me. If you don't like her, just say so, so I won't waste my efforts."

Ji Yao was momentarily at a loss for words, afraid Ji Wu Shi might truly call off the arrangement. He stood up, his voice tense. "Your grandson doesn't dislike her either. When you asked me last time, I had already considered it... In any case, don't worry. After Fourth Brother's wedding banquet, I'll come and tell you immediately!"

This time, he didn't even bid farewell before striding out of the western chamber.

Ji Wu Shi watched Ji Yao's retreating figure, a smile gradually forming at the corners of her lips.

Mama Song, observing from the side, also smiled. "Our Second Young Master does have feelings for the young mistress. Usually so proper, yet he forgot even to take his leave. Second Young Master, who always has the final say before the stewards and whom nothing fazes, was actually rendered speechless by you... Tai Furen is truly wise."

Ji Wu Shi stroked the Bodhi beads in her hand and said slowly, "That's just his nature—he doesn't want what's handed to him, but once something is no longer his, he suddenly becomes fond of it. It's not that I provoked him—he grew up with Jinzhao, so there's always some affection. There's nothing I don't know... Tomorrow, have Ji Can accompany Ji Yao to Baodi to help oversee the furnishings for his room. Jinzhao should go along too. Go and inform them one by one."

Mama Song acknowledged and left.

Jinzhao had napped for a while and woke to find it already dark outside the Lattice Window. She called Qingpu in to ask the time, saying, "...Why didn't anyone wake me? It's past dinner time, isn't it?"Caifu replied, "It's already past Xu hour. Mama Song came by once and saw you were asleep, so she told us not to wake you. The small kitchen has prepared some food, all your favorites—sliced cold meat, braised seabass, stir-fried mushrooms, and shredded young cucumber salad..."

Jinchao said, "I can't eat any of that. Just bring me a bowl of plain congee." Caifu acknowledged and left, while Qingpu helped Jinchao get up, draping a cloak over her shoulders. She relayed Mama Song's message: "You can just sit on the kang... I wanted to let you know, Mama Song mentioned that you should accompany Fourth Young Master Ji to Baodi tomorrow... Staying cooped up in the Ji family all day isn’t good for you, so it’d be nice to take a trip to Baodi. Plus, you can help Fourth Young Master with some advice—it’s a good opportunity."

When Jinchao heard that Ji Yao was also going, she understood Ji Wu Shi's intentions.

Jinchao felt both amused and exasperated—her grandmother’s efforts were in vain.

Perhaps she should speak to her grandmother. She couldn’t keep burdening Ji Yao like this—he was already nineteen by nominal age.

Early the next morning, Ji Wu Shi personally came to rouse Jinchao from bed.

Seeing Ji Wu Shi pick up a gold hairpin with a butterfly-loving-flower design, Jinchao was startled and quickly said, "Grandmother, I'm still in mourning!"

Ji Wu Shi chuckled at her. "Why so flustered? As if I’d devour you! Do you think your grandmother doesn’t know you’re in mourning?" She set the gold hairpin aside and instead chose a pair of jade lotus-petal hairpins for Jinchao. She paired them with an ivory-white diamond-patterned satin jacket, a slate-blue eight-panel moonlit skirt, a goose-yellow vine-patterned belt, and a pouch embroidered with the Eight Auspicious Symbols and adorned with blue-purple tassels. The ensemble was elegantly subdued, perfectly appropriate for mourning.

After scrutinizing her from all angles, Ji Wu Shi finally allowed Jinchao to leave with Qingpu.

Ji Yao and Ji Can were already waiting for her. Ji Can was whispering to Ji Yao but turned to Gu Jinzhao when she arrived. "...Cousin, you’re just in time! On our way to Baodi, we can stop by Ansong Alley for some savory soy milk!"

Ji Yao teased him, "Still daring to go to Ansong Alley? If I recall, the young master of Xiangyuan Tower lives there. Didn’t you lose over three hundred taels betting on cockfights with him last time?"

Ji Can muttered, "You’re one to talk. Didn’t you follow his bet and stake a hundred taels? My money ended up in your pocket..."

During their last visit to Ansong Alley for cockfights, Ji Yao had been goaded by the Xiangyuan Tower heir into casually betting a hundred taels. With odds of one to three, he’d won exactly three hundred taels.

Despite it being gambling, Ji Yao raised an eyebrow and solemnly admonished Ji Can, "When I bet on cockfights, it’s to build rapport with the Xiangyuan Tower heir. What about you? Were you trying to befriend the rooster?"

Gu Jinzhao watched from the side, finding the brothers quite entertaining.

Ji Can stomped in frustration. "Second Brother, must you humiliate me like this?"

Turning back to Jinchao, he pleaded, "...Cousin, don’t tell Grandmother about this. If you keep it a secret, I’ll pay for your bowl of savory soy milk!"

Jinchao stifled a laugh—two copper coins for a bowl of soy milk, and he made it sound like a grand favor. She nodded solemnly. "With such bribery from Fourth Cousin, how could I possibly tell Grandmother? I’ll save it for when your new sister-in-law arrives—then I’ll tell her!"Ji Can glared at her, "...Learning to be sharp-tongued from Second Brother, aren't you? Fine, I won't say anything more!" He angrily boarded the carriage first.

Ji Yao, on the other hand, had a servant bring over a carriage step. He waited until Gu Jinzhao had boarded before getting on himself.

The interior of the carriage was spacious. It was lined with soft satin embroidered with interlocking branches in sapphire blue, with fine cloth curtains in autumn fragrance color, arranged very comfortably. The carriage left the Ji family estate and headed straight for Baodi. Baodi wasn't far from Sanhe, and a bit further was Wuqing. The young master of the Du family, who was engaged to Gu Yi, was from Wuqing.

Baodi was the most prosperous area in Tongzhou, with official roads that were wide and smooth, lined with various shops, temples, and teahouses for travelers to rest. It was just after the new emperor's ascension, and the streets were bustling with crowds. Porters, street vendors, farmers in brown short coats, peasant women carrying bamboo baskets, and plainly dressed young girls...

Jinchao lifted a corner of the curtain to look outside. The last time she had come to Baodi was when she was twelve years old. But that was the twelve-year-old of her past life, now a blurry memory. She faintly remembered that past this road was the canal, which was extremely busy. The docks were crowded with boats. Stevedores unloading goods, clerks keeping accounts—the flow of people was countless, and nearby was the Ji family's largest goods warehouse. The goods unloaded from the ships went straight into this warehouse.

On that arched stone bridge, there were sellers of scissors, dough figurines, mortise-and-tenon baskets, and one making scallion candy.

Jinchao spoke to Ji Can, "...I still remember when I was little, Fourth Cousin secretly brought me to Baodi to eat a bag of scallion candy."

Ji Can thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "Cousin, you're remembering wrong. It wasn't me who brought you. It was Second Brother. That time, you two slipped out without any servants. Grandmother was beside herself with worry when she heard and sent people everywhere to look for you. When Second Brother brought you back, Grandmother coaxed you to sleep, and Second Brother was punished by kneeling in the ancestral hall for two days."

Jinchao only remembered a child holding her hand as they walked across the bridge. The two children had been lively and cheerful. But as for who it was, she couldn't recall at all. She asked Ji Yao, "Second Cousin, did I get you punished by making you kneel?"

Ji Yao shook his head and smiled slightly, "I was the one who took you out. How could it be you getting me in trouble?"

He had always remembered this incident.

That was when Jinchao was just five years old, fair and tender, with her hair in little buns. She looked as adorable as a child sitting beside the Goddess of Mercy. Little Jinchao had heard her maids talk about how fun it was to make scallion candy and had desperately wanted to see it for herself. At the time, she was studying with Ji Yao, and she tugged at his sleeve relentlessly, forcing him to take her to see it.

Ji Yao, dizzy from her pestering, took only her and a money pouch, slipping out through a side gate.

He had promised to take her to see the scallion candy maker, swearing it would be worth it.

Ji Yao was only about seven years old then. The two children wandered around Tongzhou, miraculously avoiding being kidnapped by child traffickers. When they got tired, they sat by the canal, watching the boats come and go. Ji Yao started to feel scared, but little Jinchao was still delighted, finding everything novel and not afraid at all.

Ji Yao found the scallion candy seller on the bridge, and they watched the entire process from start to finish—boiling the syrup, pulling the sugar strands, cutting the candy into pieces. Ji Yao bought a bag for little Jinchao, who ate it all and thought it was wonderful, not giving him a single piece.Ji Yao led her home while asking her what the taste was like. Little Jinchao finished the last piece without even saying a word to him.

When the two returned to the Ji family home, they found the household in complete chaos, with everyone searching for them. Ji Wu Shi sternly coaxed little Jinchao to go to bed, then personally took a rattan cane and gave Ji Yao a beating before sending him to the ancestral hall to kneel in punishment. Ji Yao knelt there full of grievance—he wasn't the one who wanted to go out, nor was he the one who ate the candy, yet he was the one who got beaten and punished. He knelt stubbornly for half the day without shedding a single tear.

From that moment on, Ji Yao began to dislike Gu Jinzhao, thinking this cousin of his was both domineering and annoying.

Now, looking back on childhood memories, he no longer harbored any dislike for Gu Jinzhao. He had never done anything so bold as sneaking out of the Ji household with her. He could still vaguely remember the scene—two children holding hands, swaying slightly as they walked across the bridge.