Zhenzhen waited until nightfall but still did not see her mother return. She rushed to the yamen to inquire, and Magistrate Cui personally came out, his expression grave as he told her that Qiu Niang was a palace maid who had escaped from the imperial court many years ago. Cheng Yuan had already taken her out of the city and would escort her back to the palace to be dealt with by the Empress Dowager.
Zhenzhen felt as if struck by lightning and immediately wanted to pursue her mother. But when she ran to the city gate, she found it tightly shut, guarded by soldiers, and she could not leave. Zhenzhen decided to wait until dawn, planning to chase out of the city as soon as the gates opened. Suddenly, she saw Xiangye rushing over in a panic. Upon seeing her, Xiangye cried out repeatedly, "Something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened at the restaurant!"
Ji Jinglan sent people overnight to seal off the accounting room of the Suitable Treasure Tower, confiscate all account books, inventory the wine brewed by the Suitable Treasure Tower, and take Pu Bo away.
Ji Jinglan currently held the official position of "Superintendent of Tea and Salt Taxes for the Eastern Zhejiang Circuit," overseeing tax and financial affairs in the prefectures and counties of the two Zhejiang circuits.
Among the tax revenues of the current dynasty, income from the alcohol monopoly ranked third, after the summer and autumn taxes and the salt monopoly. The annual revenue from alcohol taxes accounted for twenty percent of the total, with the two Zhejiang circuits contributing the most, far surpassing other regions. The court strictly controlled the collection of alcohol taxes and restricted restaurants from brewing their own wine. In the capital, restaurants were divided into large-scale "main shops" and the rest as "branch shops." Wine yeast was sold exclusively by the government and only to main shops, with the price already including taxes. Branch shops were not allowed to brew wine privately and could only purchase wine from official wine warehouses or main shops. In various prefectural cities, official wine bureaus were established to brew wine and sell it to restaurants. However, in counties, towns, and villages, to support small restaurants, they were permitted to brew their own wine, with alcohol taxes collected at fixed rates. But if a restaurant's profits from brewing exceeded a certain amount, its brewing rights would be revoked, and the wine would revert to official monopoly, meaning exclusive sale by the official wine bureau.
When Ji Jinglan first arrived in Pujiang, Zhenzhen's extravagant banquet left a deep impression on him. Now, at the village banquet, he saw that the Suitable Treasure Tower used only its own brewed wine. Judging by its scale, he concluded that the Suitable Treasure Tower's wine profits must have exceeded the permissible range for private brewing. He immediately sent people to seal off the Suitable Treasure Tower and carefully examined its accounts. He discovered that, based on its wine profits, the Suitable Treasure Tower's brewing rights should have been revoked three years ago, reverting to official monopoly. However, Pu Bo had misreported a portion of the wine profits from the past three years as income from other goods to avoid taxes, and the county yamen had failed to detect this, allowing the restaurant to continue brewing its own wine.
As a result, the Suitable Treasure Tower was sealed off. Pu Bo, who was detained, consistently insisted that Qiu Niang and Zhenzhen were unaware of the situation. He claimed that the mother and daughter were solely focused on culinary arts and leisure activities, respectively, and did not manage the accounts. The alteration of the accounts was entirely his own decision, driven by fear of losing the brewing rights, which would cause the Suitable Treasure Tower to lose a major selling point and be defeated by competitors like the Mussel Tower. Ji Jinglan believed that the Wu mother and daughter were indeed unaware. He remarked, "With Wu Qiuniang's shrewdness, it is impossible that she knowingly included her own brewed wine in the village banquet while aware that the restaurant's wine profits exceeded the limit. And if Wu Zhenzhen knew, she would not have so carelessly invited me to drink her family's brewed wine."
Ji Jinglan reported the situation to the prefectural government, imposing a hefty fine on the Suitable Treasure Tower. Pu Bo's punishment was set as "three years of penal servitude." Magistrate Cui Yanzhi was also impeached by Ji Jinglan for lax supervision and dereliction of duty, resulting in his demotion and transfer to another region.
Zhenzhen sought an audience with Ji Jinglan to plead for Pu Bo, saying that although Pu Bo's actions were foolish, they were not driven by selfish motives. Seeing her mother and daughter alone and struggling, he had done everything in his power to help them over the years, and his wages were only enough to cover his basic living expenses. He was by no means a greedy person. She begged Mr. Ji to show mercy and, if punishment was necessary, to punish her instead, but to spare Pu Bo.Ji Jinglan immediately refused, "I have long since ascertained that you were not involved in the affairs of Suitable Treasure Tower before the betrothal cancellation banquet. This blame does not fall on you. What you must do now is raise the fine and submit it as soon as possible."
Despite Zhenzhen's repeated pleas, Ji Jinglan remained unmoved. Left with no choice, she stared straight at him, recalling how he had tricked her into revealing information at the village banquet. Uncontrollable anger flickered in her eyes.
Seeing this, Ji Jinglan asked her, "Do you hate me very much?"
Zhenzhen remained silent for a moment before countering, "There are two answers—one more pleasant to hear, the other less so. Which would you like to hear?"
Ji Jinglan smiled and said, "Let's start with the pleasant one."
Zhenzhen replied, "You hold your position and enforce the law impartially. There is nothing to criticize."
"Not bad. Seventh Young Lady is not unreasonable," Ji Jinglan remarked before asking again, "And the less pleasant one?"
Zhenzhen gritted her teeth and said, "I truly wish I could fry you into lamb head rolls."
Ji Jinglan laughed heartily, stood up, and with his hands clasped behind his back, walked over to Zhenzhen. He then asked her, "Do you think I am a cold and heartless person, incapable of understanding Pu Bo's sincere devotion to you and your mother, and even willing to impeach Magistrate Cui, who was my fellow candidate when we traveled to the capital for the imperial examinations?"
Zhenzhen remained silent.
Ji Jinglan spoke slowly, "Every criminal can offer a host of pitiable reasons, but judgments are based on the outcome of the case, not on personal sentiments. All who pass judgment must keep four words in mind: the law shows no mercy."
However, Zhenzhen's plea seemed to have had some effect. In this dynasty, the heaviest penalty for penal servitude was three years. When implementing Pu Bo's punishment, Ji Jinglan invoked the "Reduced Caning Law" and requested the prefectural authorities to replace the three-year servitude with twenty strokes of the rod on the back. Thus, Pu Bo received twenty strokes on his back. Though he suffered physical pain, he was spared the loss of three years of freedom.
After Pu Bo was punished, he was taken home and lay prone on his bed, unable to move. His back required daily dressing changes. At that time, Zhenzhen had already rushed to Lin'an to inquire about her mother's whereabouts. The other women at Suitable Treasure Tower, constrained by the propriety between men and women, exchanged glances and felt too embarrassed to change Pu Bo's dressings. Finally, Xiangye stepped forward, saying, "What's so difficult about it? It's not much different from curing air-dried meat!"
Xiangye went to Pu Bo's room, deftly changed his dressings, and asked if it hurt. Pu Bo replied, "Of course it hurts, but the punishment was lighter than I expected. At least it didn't break the old bones in my back."
"Of course it was lighter," Xiangye said casually as she cleaned up the leftover medicine. "I only spent a year or two of my private savings to buy wine for the executioner's assistant."
In Lin'an, Zhenzhen found no news of her mother whatsoever. The Lin'an Prefecture completely ignored her request to search for her mother, and the imperial palace was impossible to approach—she was shouted away by the Imperial Guards from a distance. Upon hearing the news, Yang Shenglin rushed over and asked friends and relatives in Lin'an to help inquire about Wu Qiuniang's whereabouts, but to no avail. Qiu Niang seemed to have vanished into thin air. Zhenzhen was at her wit's end and cried for many days. As the deadline for paying the fine approached, she had no choice but to return to Pujiang to handle the matter.
Fengxian helped Zhenzhen carefully examine the assets of Suitable Treasure Tower. Zhenzhen then realized that although the restaurant had done good business over the years, there was not much cash on hand. Most of the income had been used for necessary expenses and restocking, while the remainder had been largely squandered by her. To gather enough for the fine, the only option was to sell the restaurant.Zhenzhen reflected on the chain of events and suddenly realized that her current predicament stemmed entirely from her own ostentatious display and boasting. She could not help but weep bitterly once more, refusing food and drink all day. In just a few short days, she had grown haggard and worn.
Fengxian consoled her, saying, "Crying won't resolve your troubles. The most urgent matter now is to gather enough money for the fine. If the restaurant cannot be saved, it's no great loss to sell it temporarily. As long as you are safe and well, that's what matters. Our teacher started from nothing back in the day. As long as we sisters unite, the Suitable Treasure Tower will surely rise again."
Encouraged by her words, Zhenzhen pulled herself together and prepared to sell the restaurant. However, the establishment was sizable, and few could afford to pay the full amount in one lump sum as she required. Even those interested in buying took advantage of the situation to drive down the price, offering sums so low they could make one's blood boil.
At this time, Yang Shenglin sought her out for a talk, offering to purchase the restaurant at market price. He said, "Taking courtesans on outings was my wrongdoing, and I have always felt guilty toward you. Now, I hope you will sell the restaurant to my family. This is not an attempt to take advantage of your misfortune and swallow up the Suitable Treasure Tower. Think of it as me temporarily taking over. Once you've weathered this crisis, whenever you wish to reclaim it, I will return it to you at any time."
Seeing his apparent sincerity and having no better alternative, Zhenzhen agreed. She accepted the Yang family's money to pay the fine and handed over the Suitable Treasure Tower to be managed by the Mussel Tower.
Some of the original staff of the Suitable Treasure Tower stayed on to work under the management of the Yang father and son, while others, enticed by offers from wealthy households for the sake of their livelihoods, left. The sisters scattered like birds and beasts, with only Xiangye and Fengxian remaining. Xiangye primarily took care of Pu Bo, while Fengxian resolved to accompany Zhenzhen in starting anew, running a small shop themselves while awaiting Qiu Niang's return.
During this period, Zhao Huaiyu often visited them. Seeing their difficult circumstances, especially Zhenzhen's evident sorrow, he suggested, "Recently, news has come down from the prefecture and county that next spring, twenty young women under the age of twenty skilled in culinary arts will be selected to enter the Bureau of Palace Provisions. Since the Seventh Young Miss wishes to find her mother, why not take this opportunity to participate in the selection? If you enter the palace in the future, there will surely be a way to meet your mother."
Zhenzhen thought this feasible but worried that her culinary skills were not refined enough to be selected. Fengxian said, "I can teach you. You grew up in the Suitable Treasure Tower, and you're clever—you must have talent. With a few months of diligent practice, there's a chance you'll be selected."
Thus, Zhenzhen began learning from Fengxian, starting with knife skills and diligently honing her craft. However, this routine did not last long. One day, several well-dressed women who appeared to be servants from an official household arrived in Pujiang. After some inquiries, they found Fengxian and surrounded her, smiling and bowing repeatedly, saying, "We've finally found the Second Young Miss. All these years, the Madam has missed you day and night. The General has searched for many years and has finally learned of your whereabouts. He sent us to bring you home."
According to them, Fengxian's father was Ling Tao, the current Prefect of Jingnan. He had long been stationed at the border with his troops, which was why they referred to him as the General. Fengxian had been lost at the age of six when Ling Tao was traveling with his family to take up his post. Now that she had been found, they were to take her to Jingnan to reunite with her family.
Delighted that Fengxian could reunite with her family, Zhenzhen urged her to return with these servants. Fengxian, however, showed no joy and privately told Zhenzhen, "I don't want to go back. They say I was accidentally lost, but I remember clearly—I was sick at the time, and my father snatched me from my mother's arms and abandoned me on the road outside Pujiang City. If not for meeting our teacher, who knows what would have become of me."Zhenzhen found it hard to believe: "How could any biological father abandon his own daughter simply because she fell ill? There must be some misunderstanding, I suppose?"
Fengxian sighed, "He considered me an ill-omened person and never treated me well."
Though extremely reluctant, Fengxian eventually followed the maidservants to Jingnan, for they had told her a piece of news: "The mistress is gravely ill and longs for your return."
With Fengxian gone, Zhenzhen had no one to guide her in her culinary studies. Though Xiangye would occasionally visit, she couldn’t stay long, as Pu Bo was bedridden for an extended period. Remembering that Zhao Huaiyu had once instructed the Mussel Tower on cooking, Zhenzhen asked if he could teach her. Zhao Huaiyu replied, "In truth, my knowledge of cooking is limited. The few dishes I taught the Mussel Tower were learned from a friend. This friend, however, is truly erudite and holds unique insights into scholarly cuisine. If you could learn from him, you would undoubtedly benefit greatly. However, he is not in Pujiang but currently resides in Mount Wuyi. I wonder if it would be convenient for you to travel there."
Zhenzhen thought that this friend had only taught Zhao Huaiyu a few techniques, yet they had made the Mussel Tower shine brilliantly—clear proof of genuine talent. Seeing Zhao Huaiyu speak so highly of him, her curiosity grew even stronger, and she decided to journey to Mount Wuyi. Zhao Huaiyu then wrote a letter of introduction and handed it to Zhenzhen.
On the envelope were written a few words: To be respectfully opened by Mr. Wenqiao.
Mr. Wenqiao—what a stodgy, old-fashioned name. Zhenzhen thought to herself, he must be a white-haired old gentleman, most likely.
(To be continued)
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