Qin Junyao looked up at the opulent two-story building before her, her gaze falling on the gilded plaque that read "Nichang Workshop." She then glanced down at her own clothes and those of her grandmother.
"Grandma," she asked, turning to her, "if we go in dressed like this, won't we be kicked out?"
Qin Junyao had not visited this particular street during her previous trip to Northwest City. The people walking by were all expensively dressed and affluent, clearly not ordinary folk.
"Yao Yao," Qin Grandma said, pointing to the plaque of Nichang Workshop, "today the first thing I'm teaching you is how to recognize a plaque."
"See the pattern beneath the plaque? Shops with this emblem absolutely do not bully their customers."
"Do you know why?"
Qin Junyao shook her head, though she had a inkling. She was too familiar with that pattern – a yellow five-pointed star.
"Those with this emblem have all joined the Five-Star Merchants' Guild established by the Holy Empress. Shops like Nichang Workshop, Zongxiang Si Hua Candy House, Huicheluo Grand Restaurant, Lai Yi Dao Escort Agency, and others marked with one star are all establishments opened by the Holy Empress."
Qin Junyao listened as Qin Grandma explained the grading system of the Five-Star Merchants' Guild and its entry requirements, her mind wandering slightly. Were those bizarre shop names serious? And they had been open for centuries? Had the Lai Yi Dao Escort Agency not gone bankrupt from being attacked?
Upon entering the shop, they were warmly welcomed and treated no differently from other customers. They were simply led to the cotton fabric section. Qin Grandma started from the most basic cotton fabrics and moved to the brocade section, teaching Qin Junyao step by step. Looking at the weaving patterns of some newly released fabrics and asking the shop assistants about their origins, she could roughly identify which workshop or noble family produced them. Besides fabric types, she also spoke articulately about color and material matching, prompting the shopkeeper to repeatedly ask Qin Grandma about her profession. When they bought ready-made clothes, the shopkeeper even gifted them some hair accessories to match their outfits. Qin Grandma personally styled Qin Junyao's hair and, finally changing her own headscarf to one that matched her clothes, transformed from a rustic old lady into a distinguished madam.
Qin Junyao found it strange that when Qin Grandma discussed fabric matching and selecting ready-made clothes, there was no hint of gaudy red and green. Where did that bright red headscarf and the red and green checkered outfits come from? It wasn't until they reached the Huicheluo Grand Restaurant. The interior was decorated in the style of modern vibrant ethnic prints, and the staff all wore matching headscarves, arm sleeves, and aprons made of the same bold patterns. Qin Junyao understood the source of her grandmother's inspiration.
"Yao Yao, see that fabric? Only this Huicheluo Restaurant has it. Back then, our young lady wanted to buy this fabric to make clothes for us, but unfortunately, this shop didn't sell it. Alas." Qin Grandma's tone was full of regret.
After a hearty Northeast Chinese meal, Qin Junyao, still somewhat dazed, walked out of the Huicheluo Grand Restaurant, repeatedly looking back at the waiter in a floral jacket greeting customers at the entrance. Encountering familiar things in an unfamiliar time and place made Qin Junyao feel not only a sense of connection but also a touch of the uncanny.
At that moment, a man with a jade-like complexion, sharp brows, and sword-like eyes, dressed in a white long gown, stood by a second-floor window, feeling the cold wind. Seeing Qin Junyao and her grandmother leave the restaurant, he turned, preparing to descend from their private room.
Suozi, sitting by the door, grabbed his wrist. "What are you doing? They're about to arrive," he whispered.
Hearing Suozi's words, the man in the white gown returned to his senses and turned back to the window. Qin Junyao's figure was no longer visible on the street below. He stroked his clean-shaven chin. Northwest City was so vast, he wondered if they would meet again. This man who recognized Qin Junyao was Zhao Liangcai. His current identity was not the general of the Northwest Salt Guard Army, but a merchant, Boss Zhao. Thinking of the newly dressed and beautiful Qin Junyao, Zhao Liangcai adjusted his sleeves. He was doing well for himself now.
"General Lu, how have you been?" Suozi's voice, accompanied by the sound of a door opening, echoed from behind Zhao Liangcai.
"Deputy Officer Zhou, please don't tease me. I am merely a deputy general and dare not be called a general."
"Are you perhaps Boss Zhao? You are indeed a distinguished young man, truly distinguished."
Zhao Liangcai turned back, smiling and greeting Deputy General Lu. After so long, he had finally managed to get close to this significant figure.
.
Qin Junyao and Qin Grandma returned to their inn, collected their luggage, and moved to another one. The staff and owner of the first inn had looked at them with the obvious suspicion of people who believed they were swindlers. The two, who had transformed from patched clothing to appearing wealthy, could hardly blame others for their assumptions.
In the new room at the new inn, Qin Junyao lay on the bed. Despite the brazier in the room, it still felt a bit cold. Even a wealthy person's private room wasn't as warm as the large communal bed with a heated brick platform. Having spent the entire day wandering the streets with Qin Grandma, Qin Junyao had truly broadened her horizons. It was impossible to remember everything Qin Grandma had told her in just one day, but Qin Junyao deeply felt something that existed in modern times but was not fully openly acknowledged: privilege and class. Which streets could commoners not walk on, which shops could they not enter? What kind of fabrics could officials wear but not merchants, wearing them being a crime? What kind of jewelry could a main wife wear, but a concubine could never touch, lest she incur the main wife's punishment? These were but a few examples. This made Qin Junyao grateful that the family she had encountered so far was good, and had not sold her out despite her peculiarities. Doctor Sheng was also good, remembering the bond they had formed while fleeing in the forest, and asking no questions about the origin of her medicinal herbs. However, no one could guarantee that everyone she met in the future would be so kind, so she had to be extremely, extremely careful. What Qin Grandma had truly taught Qin Junyao today was to understand her own place in this era. Not every woman was like the Holy Empress; the Holy Empress's achievements were also due to the capable people who supported her.
.
From that day on, Qin Grandma began taking Qin Junyao around Northwest City. They saw horse-drawn carriages pulled by two horses, which only officials were permitted to ride, and they saw abandoned houses where beggars gathered. They saw teacups worth a hundred taels of silver and young maids sold for only three taels. Qin Grandma's principle was to look, listen, and ask a lot, but buy little. While she didn't buy, Qin Junyao secretly purchased quite a bit. She was also preparing to sell two more aged ginseng roots when they left Northwest City. Based on the seven roots she had sold previously, Qin Junyao guessed that for the ginseng from her spatial artifact, one day and night equated to one year. The two large roots she had dug up were likely over a hundred years old. Doctor Sheng had mentioned that ginseng over a hundred years old would fetch ten times the price, so Qin Junyao felt confident spending money.
.
More than ten days passed in a flash, and the time entered late November. Qin Junyao tightened her cloak, looking at the Wanhuahao building adorned with various ribbons and silk flowers, and wondered why Qin Grandma had brought her here.
"Yao Yao, do we still have money?" Qin Grandma leaned forward, peeking through the gap in the gate of Wanhuahao.
"Ah? Yes," Qin Junyao replied, her head tilted as she made eye contact with a beautiful woman at a window upstairs. She gave an awkward smile and lowered her head to answer her grandmother.
Qin Grandma's eyes lit up. "Do you have twenty taels?"
"Yes."
Receiving her granddaughter's reply, Qin Grandma chuckled and raised her hand to knock on the door. Qin Junyao, startled, quickly tried to stop her, "Grandma, you can't just knock here!"