CHAPTER 372: CHAPTER 369: BECOMING FAMOUS

After Miss Xu returned to the Xu Family, she went into her room, sat on a chair with a stern face, and said nothing until Mrs. Meng came to check on her.

"What’s the matter?" Mrs. Meng asked, "Was today’s poetry gathering not successful?"

Miss Xu still remained silent.

Mrs. Meng sighed, "Both of you are like this. I just came out of your second brother’s room. These days, he’s been refusing to eat anything, not listening to anyone, still preoccupied with Yang Wu. At a time like this, if Yang Wu really was the descendant of Prince Guangyang, I would just turn a blind eye and let him be. Now that Xie Family has returned, Yang Wu is just a joke, yet he remains so obstinate, truly infuriating me."

Hearing this, Miss Xu unexpectedly showed a trace of self-mocking smile, "Mother should be thankful that it is Yang Wu whom Second Brother fancies, not Xie Liangchen."

Mrs. Meng didn’t know where this was coming from, could it be that Xie Liangchen grew up in the village and didn’t understand manners?

Miss Xu said, "Otherwise, with Xie Liangchen’s methods, Second Brother would have sold our whole Xu Family to her." Thinking of Xie Liangchen’s splendor at today’s poetry gathering, and Song Xian’s intimacy with Chen Zigeng, Miss Xu could hardly breathe.

"What do you mean by this?" Mrs. Meng asked, "Did Xie Liangchen scheme against you?"

Miss Xu looked seriously at Mrs. Meng, "Mother, in the future, you must be cautious of Xie Liangchen. She is not the farmer woman you think; indeed... she is ruthless and cunning, with myriad strategies."

Mrs. Meng’s expression changed slightly, "What’s really happened?"

"I’ve been used by Xie Liangchen," Miss Xu said, "By tomorrow, the pen and ink shops and fur shops in the Capital will be trying their best to get to know Chen Family Village to obtain the pink wax paper and wool felt from them."

Not to mention that Meng Changshu and Miss Yan would secretly find someone to help Xie Liangchen draw medicinal herbs; she carefully reviewed those herbal illustrations and found they indeed held merit.

When Xie Liangchen came to the Capital, many people wanted to mock her; after all, when they arrived in the Capital, they were silent, and their attire was very shabby.

But from now on, no one would scoff at Xie Liangchen or the impoverished and remote Chen Family Village.

Miss Xu opened the box at her side, the wooden box looked quite ordinary, but when opened, the pink wax paper inside was remarkably captivating.

And then there was that piece of flower felt, looking so exquisite and beautiful that even in Miss Xu’s carefully arranged boudoir, it was still so eye-catching, just like Xie Liangchen.

Mrs. Meng’s face also showed a look of astonishment, she took the pink wax paper out of the box and examined it carefully, this wax paper... was genuinely good, at least not inferior to the collection of wax paper from the previous dynasty collected by the master.

Mrs. Meng’s mind was blank, and it took her a while to come to her senses, "This... is really produced by Chen Family Village? Did Xie Liangchen give it to you? It’s not something she bought from the previous dynasty, claiming it was made by Chen Family Village, to deceive us deliberately?"

"No," Miss Xu affirmed, "If it weren’t made by herself, how could she bring out so much? I know how to discern these. If there were any mystery, I wouldn’t leave Xie Family like this."

Miss Xu finished speaking and looked at Mrs. Meng, "Is making wax paper so difficult? Is there no paper workshop that can make better ones than this? I must ask Father... Father might not know."

Miss Xu stood up wanting to go outside, but was stopped by Mrs. Meng’s intervention, "Your father hasn’t left the office yet..."

After saying this, Mrs. Meng remembered, "There are indeed good wax papers."

Miss Xu’s eyes lit up, she turned to look at Mrs. Meng,

Mrs. Meng said, "The golden paper made by Jianguo Temple is better than this, moreover, the recipe for making golden paper belongs to the abbot of Jianguo Temple, if the abbot is willing to disclose it, naturally a paper workshop can make even better wax paper."

Miss Xu grabbed Mrs. Meng, "Mother, go ask someone to inquire about the abbot, we can donate incense money, as much as we can."

Mrs. Meng patted Miss Xu’s arm, "This isn’t something that can be done in a hurry, I have to seek someone to arrange to meet the abbot while gradually negotiating with him."

Even if the abbot of Jianguo Temple agreed now, it couldn’t stop the momentum of Chen Family Village at present.

Miss Xu took a deep breath, recognizing the circumstances before her, this loss she could only swallow.

...

Director of the Ministry of Rites, Yan Family.

Mr. Yan carefully observed the paper his daughter brought back, gently stroking the paper with his fingers, "Is this newly made paper?"

Miss Yan nodded, "It’s what Miss Xie prepared before coming to the Capital, Father knows Miss Xie, right? She’s the granddaughter of Prince Guangyang."

Mr. Yan naturally knew.

Miss Yan continued, "Father, look at the medicinal herbs drawn by Miss Xie."

Miss Yan carefully handed over the herbal drawings to Mr. Yan, "Miss Xie asked us to continue drawing these herbs on the wax paper. Once we finish the herbal sketches, they will be sent to the eight states. Next spring, those states will also start cultivating herbs like in Zhenzhou. Once the herbs grow, the people will be able to harvest and dig them."

"Miss Xie said, many people know about herbs and can harvest them to sell, yet they are unaware of the value and properties of those herbs. Many merchants exploit this and profit from it, while others misuse herbs for treatment, leading to harm. If such things were submitted to counties or villages for consultation at any time, incidents could be avoided. Soon, there would be more people familiar with herbs."

Mr. Yan carefully examined the herbal drawings, "Indeed detailed, the drawings are very realistic, it’s commendable that even what flowers bloom and fruits come forth are clearly written."

Mr. Yan stroked his beard as he spoke, "This must be shown to the people at the Imperial Hospital."

Mr. Yan looked at Miss Yan, "Did Miss Xie mention if this could be shown to others?"

Miss Yan nodded, "It’s allowed."

Mr. Yan looked at the wax paper again, "Do they need to be drawn on this wax paper?"

Miss Yan happily stated, "Miss Xie also said, if there’s not enough wax paper, she is willing to provide more."

Mr. Yan also took the wax paper, "Then I will take it to inquire further, after figuring it out, I’ll tell you, fine paper like this shouldn’t be used carelessly, it’s better to be clear before putting pen to paper."

Unexpectedly, her father would help like this; Miss Yan was genuinely pleased, "Then I’ll wait for Father’s news."

Mr. Yan left Miss Yan’s room, Miss Yan had witness a great deal at the poetry gathering, her mind kept restless. After sending her father off, she sat in the chair reminiscing for a while before her emotions calmed slightly. When she wanted to examine the wax paper again, she realized everything taken from Miss Xie was now in her father’s hands.

Miss Yan looked at the maid sewing nearby, "Why do I feel Father took things without intending to return?" Earlier, Father left too hastily, also appearing too indifferent before her, wasn’t Father the most fond of this kind of paper?

Miss Yan had a bad premonition.

...

Meng Changshu paid his respects to Old Mrs. Chen and Xie Shao Yuan and then left by carriage.

As soon as Xie Liangchen returned to the room, she and Xie Shao Yuan immediately calculated the accounts, the military supplies sent by Chen Family Village to the eight states had all been reimbursed in silver coins by the court to several villages.

However, before this batch of silver coins could warm up, Xie Liangchen sent it to produce paper and wool felt, fortunately, they would soon be able to sell some goods and earn some silver coins.

With sufficient silver coins, the paper workshop could continue producing paper without pause.

When Song Xian and Chen Zigeng entered the room, they saw Sister Chen quickly working with the counting rods.