Mo Lixia thought the man's voice was pleasant—pleasant enough that he probably wasn't hard on the eyes, either. If his face was injured, wearing a mask all day had to be uncomfortable.
She'd been awake since morning without even a sip of porridge. Now, at last, she took a mouthful of steaming hot congee.
Across from her, Mu Tong watched her eat with open envy, practically drooling. "Li'er, you're cruel. I only had a tiny bowl this morning—a tiny bowl, do you hear me? I'm starving."
Mo Lixia glanced up. "Mu Tong, you have to learn to resist temptation. If you can't endure a bit of rice porridge, what will you do during the New Year? It won't be just porridge on the table then."
Mu Tong buried her face in the quilt, fuming. Mo Lixia stifled a laugh and hurried to finish, or she was going to be hated to death.
As she removed Mu Tong's needles, she heard Yu Fu shouting excitedly from outside. "Li'er! Li'er!"
"I'm here," Mo Lixia called back, then murmured to Mu Tong, "Listen to how excited she sounds."
Yu Fu burst in, arms full of boxes, and set them down on the table with a thud. "Of course I'm excited! Why aren't you two out there? The shop is packed—packed! I even went in pretending to be a customer, bought a few boxes, and praised them a little. Next thing I knew, all the young ladies who were just watching started fighting to grab them. That little girl you hired couldn't handle it at all. Thank goodness Mo Yan is there."
"Wait—are we sold out already?" Mu Tong blurted, then turned to Mo Lixia. "Li'er, how many did you even make?"
"About fifty or sixty boxes," Mo Lixia said. "It's our first day—I didn't think there would be—"
Before she could finish, both of them stared at her.
"What?" she asked, confused.
"Li'er, do you have any idea how many people I told to come?" Mu Tong shot back. "How could that possibly be enough?"
"How many?"
"Dozens!" Mu Tong said quickly. "And my mother heard we opened a fragrance shop—she was thrilled. She was even worried we wouldn't have enough money and gave me a lot. These past few days she's been telling everyone about the fragrance shop in the south of the city. She said she's coming today, and she wants to buy more boxes to gift to the Empress in the palace!"
Yu Fu chimed in at once. "Exactly! That's just Mu Tong's side. I brought dozens too. I went to my grandmother's, my aunts', even the households of my uncles' concubines and secondary wives. I told all my sisters' households as well."
Mo Lixia's head started to ache. This was something she truly hadn't anticipated. She'd assumed that on opening day, even with Mu Tong and Yu Fu, they'd see maybe a dozen customers—twenty at most.
"Now what?" Mu Tong asked, panicking. She'd never dealt with anything like this.
Mo Lixia stayed calm. She picked up the boxes Yu Fu had purchased and handed them to Xiqiu. "Go out through the back gate and deliver these to Mo Yan. Tell him the scented balms are sold out for today. If any ladies still want them, have them leave their address and a deposit. Tell them we'll send someone to deliver tomorrow."
"Yes, Miss."
"Will that work?" Yu Fu asked anxiously.
"It has to," Mo Lixia said with a helpless shrug. "The bigger problem is we need flowers—now. I thought these few dozen boxes would last a couple of days, so I didn't stock fresh flowers in advance."
"I'll send people to the plum grove in the west of the city," Mu Tong said immediately.
"That's probably our best option."
"Miáoníng," Mu Tong ordered, "go notify Lin Ming. Have him take a few men to the plum grove and pick flowers—quickly, and pick a lot."
"Yes, Your Ladyship."
During renovations a few days earlier, Mo Lixia had specifically asked Mo Yan to cut a small door into the back courtyard for easy entry and exit. Once they'd arranged everything, the three of them slipped through the back gate to check on the shop.
Mo Yan and Huiyao were inside, explaining something to the customers and trying to keep order.
The three of them didn't dare step in.
"Right," Yu Fu said suddenly. "Li'er—near the city there's an estate with a huge stretch of flowers and plants. It was a gift from His Majesty to my father. Let's go pick from there too."
"Is it far?" Mo Lixia asked. From the look of things, they'd need to make far more than they'd planned.
"Not far—just two streets away."
"Then stop standing around," Yu Fu said, already hurrying forward. "Let's go."
Mo Lixia shook her head, amused, then said to Mu Tong, "Come on."
Before leaving, she told Xiqiu and Hongshang to bring extra cloth sacks.
Outside, the snow still hadn't melted. The wind cut sharp and cold. Yet inside the carriage, the three of them felt nothing but eagerness, their spirits burning hot.
As the carriage passed Julongzhai, one window on the second floor stood open.
If they'd looked up right then, they would have seen a man in a mask standing there, brows tightly drawn, eyes fixed on the street below as he watched for a long time. Only after a great while did he turn away, glance around the room, then lean down to check the small creature in his arms. His mood seemed to ease.
When Zhanchen arrived at a private room with Mo Chen, only Prince Kang was there—seated by the window, holding A-Mu.
"A-Mu—why are you here?" Mo Chen dashed over the moment he saw it.
"Chi-chi!" A-Mu squeaked, then jumped straight into Mo Chen's arms.
"Mo Chen, don't be rude," Zhanchen scolded, grabbing him. "Pay your respects to His Highness Prince Kang at once."
"My little brother is still young and doesn't understand propriety. Please forgive him, Your Highness," Zhanchen said quickly.
Mo Chen, hearing the word "prince," hurriedly followed his brother's lead and bowed. "This one was reckless. Please don't blame me, Your Highness."
Yi Junlan looked at the small boy—short, still childlike. He'd heard the child was her disciple. The prince's expression softened into a faint, indifferent smile. "It's fine. There's no need to be so restrained here… Gu Qing, go get the young master some snacks."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Thank you, Your Highness," Zhanchen said.
"Thank you, Your Highness," Mo Chen echoed carefully, mimicking his brother.
"You're too polite. Sit down and warm yourselves," Yi Junlan said, then signaled Han Feng to close the window.
Zhanchen patted Mo Chen's head. "Go sit."
"Yes, Brother." Meeting a prince for the first time, Mo Chen was visibly nervous. He sat obediently off to the side, hugging A-Mu.
Zhanchen looked around the room. "Where are the young prince and Ying Han?"
Yi Junlan took a sip of tea. "No idea."
Zhanchen was used to his manner and didn't press. He sat down as well.
Mo Chen fed A-Mu a piece of pastry and scolded it in a hushed voice. "You little brat, running off like that. Do you know how worried Master was? Behave from now on, got it?"
"Chi-chi," A-Mu squeaked again, as if nodding.
Zhanchen laughed softly. This little chinchilla really did resemble his sister—never able to stay put.
"Your Highness," Zhanchen said, his tone turning steady, all teasing gone. "It's nearly year's end. I heard Prince Liang is coming this time."
"Yes," Yi Junlan replied.
"Should we…" Zhanchen began, then trailed off.
Yi Junlan shook his head. "Not yet. They have preparations on their side. We'll watch and respond as things change."
Zhanchen understood exactly who "they" meant. "Still—better to stay guarded."
As they spoke, Liu Jing and Ying Han arrived as well. The guards behind them set several boxes of incense on the table, then withdrew to the side.
"Zhanchen," Liu Jing said, pulling off his cloak, "so this is where you've been hiding. Your sister's shop opened today—how could you not go show your support?"