Chapter 28: Jiao Cang "Delicate Concealment" (Are You the One)

 FlamingoBees 

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 Jiao Cang "Delicate Concealment" / Are You the One

 Chapter 28: 

 

According to Li Mama, this young lady usually had a fierce demeanor. When disputes arose with craftsmen over shoddy work during the renovation of the shop, she single-handedly argued with three big men, managing to get them to reduce their pay and apologize.

So why was she now so tearful over a few articles of clothing? Perhaps after her previous tearful plea for a divorce, she discovered that he was easy to talk to under a tearful assault and was trying the same tactic again?

Cui Jiu deliberately dragged out his words, saying, “It’s still too troublesome…”

Liu Mian Tang did not press the issue. Her eyes quickly filled with tears, and though she struggled to keep her composure, she continued to gently knead his legs. However, as she looked down, the tears seemed ready to fall, making the situation rather irksome.

After enduring for a while, Cui Jiu suddenly realized that allowing her to cry over such trivial matters was quite annoying. He changed his approach and said, “If you don’t mind the trouble of washing and drying, I can have Mo Ru bring back two boxes of clothes, so you can change and wash them here…”

His words immediately made the tearful young woman smile through her tears and attentively massage his shoulders. She then asked, "I can prepare some local specialties for the neighbors, but what should we give to your esteemed teacher? Should I accompany you to the chess academy to deliver the gift in person to be more thorough?"

Cui Jiu had become quite adept at lying recently, but he hadn’t reached the level of fabricating an entire chess academy just to maintain a falsehood.

So when Liu Mian Tang expressed a desire to accompany him, he responded without hesitation, "The teacher's wife is very jealous and doesn’t allow him to talk to other women. If you go, it might not be appropriate... The chessboard you bought is very nice; let’s use that as a gift for the teacher."

The chessboard Cui Jiu referred to was the beautiful jade chessboard that Liu Mian Tang had bought for three taels of silver.

Hearing this, Liu Mian Tang hesitated, "But... I bought that for you..."

Cui Jiu, however, knew that the chessboard had actually been a gift from Lu Wen. If Liu Mian Tang knew this, she would likely want to sever all ties with the rebel. If she kept the chessboard, it would become a constant reminder of her connection to Lu Wen, making it harder for him to justify his leniency toward her.

Seeing Liu Mian Tang's reluctance, he gently said, "If that's the case, then we don’t need to give anything to the teacher. Other items might be too ordinary..."

Liu Mian Tang, considering Cui Jiu's words, agreed that the chessboard would be a fitting gift for his esteemed teacher, as her other prepared gifts seemed less suitable.

Moreover, since the chessboard was made from imitation jade, it didn’t seem worthy of her husband. Now that she had earned some money, she wanted to buy him a better one.

However, she liked this chessboard and wanted to see her husband play with the white jade pieces. So she slipped out of her shoes, placed the chessboard on a small table, and said to Cui Jiu, “Since we’re giving this to the teacher, why not let my husband try it out first? See if it’s comfortable for the teacher to use.”

Cui Jiu smiled, “Do you know how to play chess?”

Liu Mian Tang recalled her time watching games at the academy gate and blinked, “I didn’t know much before, but I think I learned a bit later. I can’t remember too clearly…”

Since she knew how to play, Cui Jiu, feeling a bit bored, was happy to spend some time playing a game with her.

The white jade chessboard was indeed exquisite, and it highlighted Liu Mian Tang's fair, delicate wrists as she arranged the pieces, her fingertips gleaming slightly.

Cui Jiu, not blind to the beauty before him, casually placed his pieces on the board.

In no time, Liu Mian Tang hesitated and asked, “Husband, do you think I’ve won?”

Cui Jiu examined the board closely, fell silent for a moment, and then nodded. Liu Mian Tang had indeed won the game in just a few moves.

Seeing her husband’s approval, Liu Mian Tang giggled and said shyly, “Husband, why did you let me win? It would be better to play a proper game so I can improve my skills!”

However, Cui Jiu seemed uninterested in making jokes. With a slight, almost imperceptible smile, he silently began to reset the pieces, preparing for another round.

This time, Cui Jiu made the first move, setting up traps and strategically positioning his pieces.

Liu Mian Tang, relying solely on her instincts, found herself feeling increasingly cautious with each move, sensing danger all around. As she glanced at her husband, who was intently focused on the board with a serious expression, her admiration for him grew.

Her husband truly was a master of chess!

The game went on for a while longer. Liu Mian Tang made a small mistake and lost to Cui Jiu. Despite the loss, she still felt happy. After all, her husband was a chess expert, and it was only natural that she couldn’t win every time.

However, Cui Jiu's expression after winning the game seemed less than cheerful. Liu Mian Tang wondered if her performance had somehow dampened his spirits.

Having spent time with Cui Jiu, Liu Mian Tang could distinguish between his genuine smiles and his polite, formal ones.

As she packed up the chess pieces and wrapped the board, she asked, “Husband, are you unhappy?”

Cui Jiu gave a slight smile and said, “No, I was just wondering where you learned such intricate moves.”

Liu Mian Tang’s playing style closely resembled that of a certain rebel who called himself Zi Yu. It was easy to imagine that she had spent her time on the mountain playing chess and attending to the rebel, passing the time in this manner.

This was quite different from the weak, delicate woman he had originally thought might be treated roughly by bandits.

Seeing that Cui Jiu seemed to be in a somewhat sour mood that day, Liu Mian Tang could only remind him warmly to come home for dinner when he had free time from the chess academy.

When Cui Jiu returned to the military camp after leaving North Street, his mood was somewhat relieved.

In recent days, his mission to deploy troops to Qingzhou, officially for assistance but actually to establish a defense, had revealed many hidden truths he hadn’t known before.

For instance, the rebels in Yangshan were secretly supported by several influential local gentry.

With the young emperor ascended to the throne, the major affairs of the court were controlled by the former Xihuang Concubine, now Empress Dowager Wan’an.

When Empress Zhou was deposed and Prince Liu Dan died, the once-powerful Zhou family fell overnight, and the Yang family, formerly of lesser status, rose to dominate the court.

The Yang family, now in power, adopted a policy of greed and exploitation, abandoning the previous emperor's policy of nurturing and rest. They imposed ever-increasing taxes and recently introduced a land redistribution policy aimed at local gentry, clearly intending to force them to give up their wealth.

Elsewhere, land redistribution had already begun. However, in Zhenzhou, where there had been famine and rampant banditry, and with the growing strength of the rebels, several officials sent to implement the policy were killed on their way. 

Thus, the reform was put on hold and no one dared to bring it up again.

Now, Cui Jiu considered that the reason the local rebels remained strong was closely related to those gentry who resisted the tax reforms.

But with Lu Wen now defeated and seeking to surrender to General Shi, it remained to be seen whether those gentry would come up with new excuses to resist the Yang family's tax reforms.

The Yang family, unable to collect taxes from Zhenzhou, had long found alternative methods.

A distant relative of the Yang family had started a large silver business—Tongli Money House.

Tongli Money House was widespread throughout the Great Yan’s counties, and the Yang family was the biggest backer of this money house.

Typically, a portion of the tax revenue collected from various counties, beyond being stored in the local government’s treasury, was also deposited into the Tongli Money House as a favor to the Yang family. The money house was well-managed and yielded significant interest, making it a lucrative business.

To ease the relationship between Zhenzhou and the Yang family, Cui Jiu, like the local officials, had been depositing a large sum of silver into Tongli Money House every year.

This year was supposed to be no different. When the military officer presented the tax revenue from Zhenzhou’s territory, Cui Jiu had initially planned to deposit most of it into Tongli Money House as usual.

However, he hesitated.

Even someone as naive as Liu Mian Tang knew not to put all her eggs in one basket. Given the current delicate relationship between Zhenzhou and the imperial court, if things turned sour, there was a risk that the money could be seized and not accessible.

Reflecting on this, Cui Jiu deliberated for a while and decided to follow Liu Mian Tang's example. He kept this year's local expenses aside and arranged for the majority of the remaining funds to be transported to the long-vacant treasury of Zhenzhou Prefecture. The previous years' tax revenues would also be withdrawn monthly.

As for the pretexts, they were readily available: he was about to marry his cousin Lian Binglan, and the expenses for the prince’s wedding were numerous! Using the excuse of extravagant wedding preparations to justify moving a large sum of money was only logical.

For the time being, the "couple" on North Street were both deeply engrossed in managing their finances.

However, the concerns for Liu Mian Tang were relatively straightforward. After the sale of the painted porcelain plates by Master Chen, the shop had a steady flow of funds and exuded an air of refined elegance.

Liu Mian Tang used the money to hire artisans to repair the curtains and set up a separate elegant room in the shop. With luxurious peonies and blue-green vases on display, esteemed guests could leisurely enjoy tea and fruit on silk-covered armchairs while admiring the high-quality porcelain from their studio.

Recently, Liu Mian Tang also acquired several representative pieces of porcelain from Lingquan Town, which significantly elevated the shop’s prestige.

It was only with the shop's upgraded status that she discovered there was a porcelain merchants' association in town. However, only well-known porcelain shops in the town were eligible to join. Shops like Burned Jade Porcelain Studio, established by outsiders, typically lasted no more than a month before closing down, and thus had no chance of reaching the association's threshold.

Now that the their Porcelain Studio had established itself, the gilded invitation to join the merchants' association naturally arrived at Liu Mian Tang's counter.

The shop’s clerk, Gui Sheng, who had previously worked at other porcelain studios and was considered a semi-expert in the field, understood the significance of the invitation. He congratulated the boss’ wife, noting that they had firmly established themselves in Lingquan Town.

Liu Mian Tang was pleased and took the matter of joining the association very seriously. On the day of the association's incense offering at the beginning of the month, she rose early, had Li Mama prepare water for a bath, and changed into a new silk dress. She lightly applied the box of perfume her husband had given her. With her attire and appearance meticulously arranged, she set out with great formality.

The merchants' association in Lingquan Town was hosted by the prestigious He family, known as the top establishment in town.

As a royal supplier, the He family was affluent and powerful, unmatched by other porcelain shops in Lingquan Town.

As a new member of the association, Liu Mian Tang's first task was to pay her respects to the head of the He family, Master He.

Master He, aged forty-seven, was in his prime. It was said that he had personally attended to the porcelain studio during the visit of the Empress Dowager, Xi.

When Master He was informed that Burned Jade Porcelain Studio was coming to pay their respects, he looked up and was surprised to find that the head of this Porcelain Studio was a young woman who was not yet twenty.

She might be beautiful, but sending a woman to represent the business... it seems like they don't take the association seriously!

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