Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Zhong Yizhu hadn’t been idle during the time Pei Mu was away.

He filled bamboo-patterned paper bags with fragrance pills and stacked a small pile behind the various pills on display, which not only showcased the packaging but also made the stall look richer and more appealing.

Gong Laosi came over during a spare moment and suggested that Zhong Yizhu leave a portion of his fragrance pills at his stall so he could help attract customers.

So Zhong Yizhu took another new bamboo basket, filling half with packaged pills and the other half with improvised compartments—using paper bags to create small compartments, each holding one pill of a different scent for display.

By the time he delivered the pills, he hadn’t even showed any displeasure, but the man who had stolen his business glared at him with resentment.

Zhong Yizhu didn’t even spare him a glance. If the man wanted to take the crooked path, then he couldn’t blame Zhong Yizhu for using such means. Morality was for those who understood reason, not for petty scoundrels.

Back at his stall, Zhong Yizhu continued packaging pills. During this time, a few customers came and went.

Most were normal—buying one or a few pills for personal use or as gifts—except for one man who seemed a bit odd.

This customer was new, appeared to be in his thirties, dressed elegantly, but his face wasn’t particularly friendly, and his eyes were sharp and shrewd. After Zhong Yizhu introduced all the different pills to him, he didn’t say much, simply asked for one of each type, put them in his basket, and left.

Zhong Yizhu watched his retreating figure with a slight frown, instinctively feeling that something was off.

Before he could dwell on it, a young woman’s voice sounded beside him, pulling him back to reality.

Zhong Yizhu turned to look and recognized her immediately—she had been his very first customer the first time he set up his stall.

He smiled and greeted her, “Feel free to browse, miss. There are many more scents than last time you were here. Would you like me to recommend something?”

No matter the time, a seller like Zhong Yizhu—who remembered his customers and maintained a pleasant attitude—was always well-liked. Besides, with his good looks and bright smile, he was simply charming.

Liang Meng’s eyes curved as she smiled, revealing two dimples. She hadn’t come with her second brother today; instead, she brought her personal maid, Xiao Cui. She had come hoping to find him by chance, and she was delighted to have succeeded.

“I came looking for you. Last time, I sent Xiao Cui to the West Market but couldn’t find your stall. I thought you weren’t coming anymore.”

Zhong Yizhu smiled apologetically. “I’m sorry to have made you come all this way for nothing. I came once during the Qiqiao Festival, but we must have missed each other. Today, I have a full stock, so please take your time and choose.”

Liang Meng didn’t bother with the men’s products. She sniffed all the fragrance pills meant for women and young men, and ended up buying one of each except for two scents she didn’t particularly like.

Seeing this, Zhong Yizhu felt he had to remind her, “These pills all have roughly the same shelf life. If you buy so many, the scent might fade before you can use them all.”

“I know,” Liang Meng said, only to have her maid Xiao Cui interject.

“Our young lady likes to switch up her scents. Once the scent fades, she just gets new ones. Before this, she used pills from Liu’s Fragrance Shop, the best in town, and she switched them out every month too. Young master, you don’t need to worry about that.”

The maid’s tone carried a hint of the arrogance typical of wealthy households, but compared to many rude and insolent servants, she seemed fairly well-mannered. Zhong Yizhu had seen plenty of such attitudes and wasn’t offended.

He wrapped up the pills they wanted and handed them over with a smile. “Take care, miss.”

The maid took the pills, but Liang Meng didn’t move. She hadn’t paid much attention to the sachets on the stall earlier, but she just noticed that the sachets on display matched the scents of the pills, and she was pleasantly surprised.

She picked up each one to examine them, finding it quite interesting how the scented pills matched the sachets. Moreover, the embroidery on the sachets was exquisite, no less than what she saw in her usual shops. She pointed at the ones she liked. “Pack these sachets for me too.”

She was generous, buying eight sachets at once. Zhong Yizhu not only willingly rounded down the price but also threw in an extra sachet with a different pattern.

Liang Meng clearly enjoyed Zhong Yizhu’s little creative touches. Holding a sachet, she had an idea. “Why don’t you deliver the pills to me from now on? I’m getting a bit tired of the ones from Liu’s Fragrance Shop and want a change. You can bring me a new batch every month, and if you have new scents or new sachets, bring those too. I’ll order for three months first, how about that?”

“Of course, no problem.” Zhong Yizhu’s eyes crinkled in surprise and delight. While home delivery would be a bit more trouble, such an order meant a stable stream of customers for his small stall and could even open up more business opportunities.

He noted down the Liang family’s address, asked Liang Meng which scents she disliked, and agreed on a delivery schedule before seeing her off with a smile.

Zhong Yizhu dropped the silver coin he had received into his cash box, producing a crisp clink.

He sidled over to Pei Mu, unable to hide his joy, and whispered, “Did you hear that? We have a fixed monthly order now.”

“I heard.” Pei Mu unscrewed the bamboo tube and brought it to his lips. “Drink some. Your lips are dry.”

Zhong Yizhu held his hand and took several sips, then licked his lips. “It’s sweet.”

“Mm.” Pei Mu wiped the moisture from the corner of his mouth with his finger. “I soaked some candied fruit for you.”

The tightness in Zhong Yizhu’s chest from the morning seemed to melt away with that honeyed drink. Seeing that the sign Pei Mu had put out was already attracting passersby, Zhong Yizhu’s fighting spirit reignited. He stood up and returned to the front of the stall, starting to call out to customers.

Pei Mu continued to help by collecting money and also handled packaging. From time to time, he glanced at the stall not far away, various thoughts turning in his mind, but he suppressed them for now.

With Gong Laosi’s cooperation on that end, Zhong Yizhu’s countermeasures were working quite effectively. By midday, the fragrance pill business hadn’t taken too big a hit, and about half of the pills they had brought were already sold. Normally, the afternoon business should be even better, and they might be able to pack up early like the first time.

Zhong Yizhu had even told Pei Mu that if they finished early today, he wanted to visit the Zhong family ancestral home first to talk to his mother about embroidering new sachets.

But to their surprise, shortly after lunch, things took a sudden turn for the worse.

The rival stall across the way had devised a new nasty trick—

A young man appeared behind the stall, calling out to customers. Not only did he copy the sign Zhong Yizhu had written—“Qiqiao Magpie Fragrance Pills, One of a Kind”—but he also placed a few hastily made magpie paper bags on the stall. They were crooked and uneven, and the red magpies, with no festive reason and out of context, seemed utterly absurd, but they were enough to deceive customers.

Zhong Yizhu felt as if he had been doused in filth. His true self had been stolen and covered up.

In an instant, the contrast between the two stalls became stark: one was bustling and crowded, the other cold and empty.

By mid-afternoon, they still had nearly eighty fragrance pills left unsold. Even Gong Laosi couldn’t help cursing, while that young man’s shouts grew even louder.

Zhong Yizhu silently put away the sign he had displayed earlier. Pei Mu listened to the other stall shouting the slogan he had written and abruptly stood up, but Zhong Yizhu stopped him by grabbing his hand.

Zhong Yizhu looked up at him, then reached out with his other hand to hold him with both hands.

“Don’t be angry,” Zhong Yizhu said softly.

Pei Mu looked at Zhong Yizhu, and all his fury turned into deep distress.

He had watched Zhong Yizhu from the very beginning, when he wasn’t confident in his own skills, step by step to his present state. He had seen him painstakingly blend the pills, cleverly arrange the stall, busily introduce scents and serve customers, slowly building a reputation… to have all that stolen by such despicable means—how could he stand it?

He held Zhong Yizhu’s hand back. “I am angry. And I’ll make him pay.”

Zhong Yizhu bit his lip. For a moment, he truly wanted to join Pei Mu in recklessly smashing the rival stall. They could just stop vending here and rent a shop instead.

But that would be playing right into the other’s hands.

If they left for good, the impostor would have free rein to replace them and enjoy all the fruits of their hard work. How could he accept that?

Even if it meant wearing himself out, he would stay and see who gave up first.

Zhong Yizhu glanced at the bustling stall nearby and muttered, “If only I had anticipated this and rented that stall outright earlier.”

Market stalls could be rented long-term, just like Gong Laosi did. But since their business wasn’t stable yet and they only came once a month, Zhong Yizhu hadn’t considered it. Now, someone had taken advantage of that gap.

Even if they wanted to rent it back now, it was probably too late. The other party had gone this far, and they had likely already prepared and secured a long-term lease.

Pei Mu caught the self-blame in his tone and immediately countered, “Who can think of everything the first time they do business? Blame Second Master Zhong for not teaching you better.”

“You…” Zhong Yizhu started to speak, but Pei Mu frowned and continued, “Blame me for not earning enough silver. Blame the Pei family for making you hesitate. Blame me for not being able to drive those two out of the market. Blame me for not being able to help you at all…”

"No!" Zhong Yizhu said, sounding unusually urgent as he looked at Pei Mu, tugging at his sleeve to stop him from continuing.

Pei Mu stopped speaking and looked down into his eyes.

"Since you don't blame me, then don't blame yourself either. We'll figure something out together."

"Mm." Zhong Yizhu's nose pricked with emotion, but he knew he couldn't cry here, or the other party would only become more smug.

He sniffled and forced back his tears.

The warmth of their palms slowly seeped into him, gradually quieting the chaos in his heart.

Business was never smooth sailing; the worst that could happen was starting over.

Since things had already gotten this bad, Pei Mu untied his money pouch and tied it around Zhong Yizhu's waist.

"We've come a few times but never really got to take a look around the market. Today's big market day should have plenty of new stalls. Go get yourself something good to eat; I'll keep an eye on the stall here."

Zhong Yizhu said there was no need—he wasn't a kid, and he wasn't that much of a foodie. Pei Mu then changed tack, saying he felt like having some pastries and asked Zhong Yizhu to buy some for him.

While the two were locked in this back-and-forth, someone suddenly stopped in front of their stall.

"Wrap up all these incense pills for me. I'll buy them all off you."

Pei Mu looked over in surprise, but didn't look pleased, because he noticed Zhong Yizhu's brow had furrowed.

Zhong Yizhu turned around and immediately recognized the young man who had just that morning bought one of each of their incense pills.

He didn't say yes or no, only asked, "May I ask what you intend to do with so many incense pills?"

Xu Lan lifted his chin slightly. "You don't need to worry about what I'll do with them. Since you can't sell them anyway, sell them to me at a discount. I'm doing you a favor by taking them all off your hands, so you won't be stuck with leftover stock."

"But I have one condition."

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Author's note: A hefty chapter was stillborn, and the reason was the neighbor's beagle... I'm truly exhausted by the noise, folks. My head is full of 'wer wer wer.' I promise I'll update more after it leaves (hopefully it's just here temporarily).

Let me send everyone a little red packet to make up for it, boohoo.