Chapter Forty-Nine: In the Spring Light

It was still early in the afternoon; the cart had not yet been brought back. Most likely, Hu Tao and Er Niu were still keeping guard at the stall, while Nie Yunzhu had returned home ahead of them. She gathered some camphor wood to burn into ash, and was truly surprised when she saw Ning Yi arrive.

Preserved eggs required more than twenty days to cure. When they first planned to go into this business, they had prepared a batch in advance. Of course, since Nie Yunzhu was not entirely confident, most of the quantity had been added at Ning Yi’s insistence—but now, it seemed even that wasn’t enough.

She had mentioned to Ning Yi that supply might not meet demand, and he had offered a few opinions, nothing out of the ordinary—just the usual approaches to increase supply and reduce consumption. The solutions themselves were nothing special: rationing out the number of eggs each restaurant received, coordinating with everyone involved, and speaking a few good words. As for increasing supply, there was no shortcut—she simply had to work faster. These past few days, Nie Yunzhu had been exceptionally busy, but she never shared much about her troubles with Ning Yi during their morning chats, only giving cheerful reports of her progress.

Ning Yi had suggested she use camphor wood ash to cure the eggs, so she made a point of burning some every day. Today, the wood was damp, and before long, the kitchen was filled with smoke. Ning Yi helped her clear it out, and it took quite some effort before the haze was gone. They drew out some of the damp firewood from the stove, leaving a small flame to burn slowly. Ning Yi sat by the stove, watching the fire, while Nie Yunzhu washed her face and hands. She then handed him a damp towel to wipe his face. As she passed it to him, her cheeks flushed and her wrist trembled slightly, though no one but herself would have noticed.

Since guests rarely visited, there were only two towels in the house—hers and Hu Tao’s. It would not do to let Ning Yi use Hu Tao’s towel, so she had no choice but to offer her own. The gesture felt a bit too intimate, and in her heart, it was as if a little mouse was scurrying about. She watched as Ning Yi took the towel and used it without a second thought. Then she took it back, saying lightly, “Li Heng, where have you come from just now?”

“I just came from Old Qin’s place,” Ning Yi replied, tossing another stick onto the fire. “It all started as a bet with Kang Xian. I went to show off a little just now—felt quite proud.”

“That’s good,” Nie Yunzhu replied, and she felt a quiet joy at his words. She had worried that the terms of the wager might not be met and that he would lose face, but she hadn’t expected things to progress so quickly. “Another restaurant asked for preserved eggs this morning. That makes six now…”

“So soon?” Ning Yi mused. “But on that street, these are probably the only places that can afford them. If you can keep it up at this scale, it should be enough…”

If they didn’t plan to expand, and only did this for amusement, supplying these few establishments was already the limit for Nie Yunzhu and Hu Tao. Whether or not to grow larger was her decision; Ning Yi had no intention of interfering. Nie Yunzhu thought for a moment, then crouched down beside him with a smile.

“It all happened so quickly, I can hardly believe it. To be honest, just a few days ago, I was worried I’d let you down in your wager.”

He laughed. “The bet was just a joke, really, nothing important. But of course, it’s best to win—ha ha.”

“That old gentleman is a prince consort, you know. When I delivered eggs to his house last month, I saw his grand mansion—the Princess’s residence. When you introduced him earlier this year, I wondered if it might be the same person. I never thought it really was. Li Heng, you’re quite remarkable, to be able to chat and joke with someone of such rank.”

She meant no flattery by this. Men of Kang Xian’s station should have been elders to Li Heng, and when people of such different generations met, it was always with the deference of a junior. Even when the elder was kind, it was always toward a younger generation. But Li Heng seemed to treat everyone with ease, and that was something she had never seen before. Then again, thinking about it, she herself had become one of those around him.

“We met through chess—there’s little self-interest there,” Ning Yi said as he poked the fire. “They’re all sensible elders. I respect his scholarship and his views—that’s enough. So, you already knew who he was?”

“Of course I’d heard of him. Before you introduced us, I may have seen him once or twice… perhaps twice. One year, there was a performance on Egret Isle, and the Minister was there, though there were so many people, I can’t remember them all…” She recalled the events, then laughed softly. “And at the time, there were so many young talents present. Hu Tao and the other girls were all focused on those scholars. There were some who talked about the great officials at the main table, but although the Minister was learned, he was a prince consort and already old, so he was easily overlooked. I suppose he doesn’t remember me either…”

“Oh?” Ning Yi gave a sly grin. “Too busy remembering those young talents, eh?”

If someone else had teased her like this, Nie Yunzhu might have felt uncomfortable, but at this moment, she only smiled. “Yes, when a woman performs, it’s natural to notice the young scholars. Back then, I liked to remember the wealthy ones—though if they were also learned, that was even better. I would curry favor, always calculating how much more I needed to redeem myself…”

She paused, then said, “Li Heng, do you know Li Pin, Li Dexin?”

“I do. I mentioned them before—they’re in an academy now.”

“What about Cao Guan?”

“I’ve heard of him.”

“And… Gu Hong, Gu Yanzhen?”

She spoke the last name while watching Ning Yi’s expression. He thought for a moment. “That one I haven’t heard of… who is he?”

“It’s nothing, just another scholar.” She lowered her head and smiled. “Someone unrelated.”

There were some things Nie Yunzhu hadn’t told Ning Yi, and indeed, it wasn’t suitable to bring up. Gu Yanzhen had been coming to the stall to see her recently, saying kind things. He was sincere, but to her, it was a bit troubling. Especially since small issues had started to arise. Gu Yanzhen had apparently learned from Hu Tao that she was still unmarried, and over the past few days, he had even helped her find new customers for the preserved eggs. The restaurant this morning wasn’t one of those nearby, as Li Heng had supposed, but further away, and Gu Yanzhen had used his influence to have a friend look after her.

Of course, she couldn’t mention any of this. When business is good, it’s hard to refuse someone’s kindness. Gu Yanzhen simply thought, “If you want to sell these eggs, I’ll help you,” not knowing that she was already nearly overwhelmed. Meanwhile, Li Heng said, “These few places are enough,” which warmed her heart, but there was no way to ask him how to manage this growing business. She had suspected that the expansion might be Li Heng’s doing, but that was not the case. She certainly couldn’t tell him that another man was helping her, and that man was someone she’d known from the past…

She cared about what Li Heng thought, so it was better not to say anything. Anyway, business growing was a good thing. If it got much busier, she’d have to hire help—perhaps have Er Niu’s family lend a hand… She’d never imagined it would come to this. All she had wanted before was a modest, honest life, tending her cart each day.

She kept all this to herself, and Ning Yi could have no idea. From his perspective, the preserved egg business was already at its limit for Nie Yunzhu, and he had even told Li Pin that his friends needn’t join in further. A couple of days ago, Li Pin had asked him: “Li Heng, what is your relationship with the woman selling preserved eggs?” Ning Yi had simply replied that she was a friend, and Li Pin had not asked further. He sensed nothing amiss.

Meanwhile, Gu Yanzhen had sought out Li Pin about the matter a few days earlier. At the time, Gu Yanzhen was vexed and direct. Once he realized that the seller was the woman he had once admired, Li Pin did not reveal Ning Yi’s name. He was cautious—Ning Yi was a son-in-law of the Su family, and whatever the truth, rumors of impropriety would be dangerous. So he simply said it was a friend’s pastime, and reminded Gu Yanzhen that Yunzhu might still be unmarried. Later, Gu Yanzhen confirmed this with Hu Tao and let it go.

For Ning Yi, the preserved egg business was a small matter, something to chat about while jogging in the mornings, never the center of his life.

In the mornings, he taught the children. In the afternoons, he had rented a place near Yushan Academy. When he wasn’t visiting Old Qin or Nie Yunzhu—which, truth be told, he didn’t do often—he would begin his own chemical research there. He had only some ancient texts on chemistry. These books recorded phenomena, though they bore little resemblance to modern chemical theory. Still, they pointed him in the right direction.

Aside from works like "Dream Pool Essays," he fashioned some basic iron frames to hold ceramic bottles as makeshift test tubes, used oil lamps for heating, and gathered metal, wooden, and clay vessels of all kinds, along with whatever chemical reagents he could find. To be honest, the Wu Kingdom already had some workshops that used chemical reactions, but what he was doing looked more like alchemy than industrial research.

He had long since forgotten most of his school chemistry, though some reactions stuck with him from his varied work experience. It wasn’t systematic—more like a scattered tech tree in a game. The ancient texts sometimes jogged his memory, if only a little. He had to start simply, so he tried random combinations to observe the results. For example, he put rusty iron into acid and heated it; once the rust was gone, he made a note of it in his little notebook. He could recall that rusting was a process of oxidation, but what it meant to reverse it, or the chemical equations involved, he had forgotten. Whenever he remembered a concept, he recorded it, trying things out as best he could.

His chemical explorations focused first on strong acids like sulfuric and nitric acid, as they produced obvious reactions and were easy to observe. The most important thing was caution, for any mistake could be disastrous. There were a few advanced techniques he could manage: if needed, he could make gunpowder, industrial alcohol, or even high-proof spirits—the distillation process was simple. Eventually, he planned to make an alcohol lamp, although he couldn’t recall exactly why it was better than an oil lamp—probably because it was smokeless. He understood the outlines of large-scale chemical industries, but lacked the supporting technology. Some things, like basic steel-making, were simple enough—it would be reckless in modern times, but here, it was fine. He remembered the process well enough and would try it if the need arose.

The early stages of exploring chemical reactions were rather dull, and most of the time, he had no idea what he’d produced. Xiaochan was often with him. While he experimented inside, she wandered idly beneath the eaves, sometimes asking, “Master, are you trying to make elixirs?” The little girl occasionally imagined her master would one day fly away. Sitting under the eaves, swinging her legs over the railing, she’d listen to him tell stories from "Journey to the West" or "Investiture of the Gods," feeling both anxious and hopeful.

Most of the time, her master gave her a sense of reliability and steadiness, but romance, to a young girl, was just such things. So, during slow moments, she’d listen to his voice, let her imagination wander—if her master suddenly flew away, she’d cry for a long time; but if he took her with him… that was a happy thought. Then she’d remember, he’d have to take Miss along too… Sometimes she’d sit there, lost in daydreams, sneaking glances at the door, telling herself not to think such things, then quietly slip inside, appearing before her master with a cute smile: “Master, is there anything Xiaochan can do?”

“Out,” he said, wearing a mask and weighing strange powders.

“Oh…” Xiaochan slunk out. The spring sunshine was lovely, the grass lush, birds calling. The little maid hugged her knees beneath the eaves, gazing up at the sky with her own secret thoughts, feeling a nameless loneliness amid the sparse wildflowers blooming in the courtyard.

Inside the room, Ning Yi glanced at the window and frowned. He’d warned her to be careful—though the chemical system was unsophisticated, there were still corrosive and slightly toxic substances in the room. Though the little maid was usually clever, he couldn’t let her handle these things. Then he continued to tell stories from memory, and before long, the girl was happy again: “Master, master, Xiaochan and Miss heard a story at the restaurant yesterday…”

She began to chatter away. Before long, Ning Yi finished his experiments and came out. Xiaochan’s spirits lifted, and they walked home together as usual, chatting along the way. It was only in that room that her master seemed a little withdrawn; sometimes he’d look back at the house in the glow of sunset and make a face at it.

Aside from Xiaochan, most of Ning Yi’s social life revolved around Su Tan’er. In the context of their times, the relationship between the two was rather peculiar…

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Book Recommendation: Title: The First Young Master Book Number: 1815450 Synopsis: He is the most domineering man on the continent. Faced with beauties’ advances, he takes them one after another, relying on his bold, unyielding ways and a life philosophy of stepping on anyone who crosses him. With an overwhelming majority of votes, he is indisputably crowned the First Young Master of China!

Next chapter will be released at midnight ^_^