YBTS - 12

Su Hongmeng had already received the new fragrance and dealt with Princess Yuyang, which made him feel much more at ease. He no longer felt the need to be so cautious and gentle with the newly established “little ancestor.”

He was still angry about his eldest daughter’s hidden motives. Upon hearing Ding Shi’s suggestion, he sneered, “Even a dog gets a bun to eat and wags its tail in return. She’s just an ungrateful wretch! She only knows how to play tricks on me! I won’t give it to her! The dilapidated house she wanted is her problem. She can use the dowry money her mother left her to fix it!”

Ding Shi had been circling the issue, using a strategy of feigned retreat to advance, and she wanted to hear Su Hongmeng say just that. So, she smiled, comforted Su Hongmeng for a few moments, and then changed the subject to the matter of selecting a dowry for their daughter.

Su Hongmeng was not interested in these things and told Ding Shi to handle it herself. He had recently taken up his new post, and all his passion was focused on his career. When it came to marrying off his daughter, he preferred to avoid any trouble.

A respectable dowry was a matter of honor for the Su family, and he couldn’t let the Lu family look down on them. If Ding Shi handled it splendidly, he, as the Office of Trade and Exchange official, would also look good.

However, his cold treatment of his eldest daughter didn’t last for long.

A few days later, Princess Yuyang heard from her steward that the fragrance was actually blended by a blind woman. She was amazed and had her steward send a message for Su Luoyun to come and help her appraise some newly acquired spices.

This honor made Su Hongmeng excited. He temporarily forgot about the family’s “tight” finances and even specially hired a retired palace nanny to go to Sweetwater Alley to give Su Luoyun some crash courses on palace etiquette, to ensure she didn’t behave inappropriately in front of the princess.

As for her dress and headwear for her visit to the Prince Consort’s Residence, Su Hongmeng personally ordered them to be prepared.

Su Caijian looked on with envy, but she couldn’t say anything resentful. She just felt that her betrothal was only a few months away and she was supposed to be the center of attention in the Su family. How had her sister returned and stolen her thunder?

Ding Shi had thought she had suppressed her stepdaughter, but she hadn’t expected Su Luoyun to quietly use Lu Lingxiu to get a connection to the princess. Although she was smiling on the outside, she was seething on the inside.

That damned girl! How dare she not avoid Lu Lingxiu! She probably regretted her decision and was now trying to steal Caijian’s man!

So, at night, she couldn’t help but slowly fan the flames in Su Hongmeng’s ear, suggesting that Luoyun should feign illness and not go to the Prince Consort’s Residence to show off.

Unfortunately, Master Su’s ambition for his career was at its peak. When it came to matters related to his career, everything else had to take a back seat!

On the day Su Luoyun was to enter the residence, Master Su made a special trip to Sweetwater Alley early in the morning and instructed Luoyun to mention him to the princess and put in a few good words for him.

Luoyun listened halfheartedly, thinking her father was overthinking it.

For a small merchant’s daughter like her to see the princess was just a whim of the noblewoman. She wasn’t a important guest. As for her father wanting to use this to get a promotion, that was simply wishful thinking.

Su Hongmeng was a little angry at his daughter’s discouraging words. “How can I not get through to you? Haven’t you heard that success depends on human effort? Where is all that sharp-tongued cleverness you use to ask me for money? When you see the nobles, don’t be willful. Be sweet with your words! What a pity, why didn’t the princess let me go? If I could have gone, I would have never wasted such an opportunity...”

Su Luoyun didn’t like Su Hongmeng’s nagging. She used the excuse that she was afraid of being late and left Sweetwater Alley early.

When Su Luoyun arrived at the princess’s residence by carriage, as instructed by the steward, she was too early and had to wait in a side room. She wondered if the princess would remember to see her after her tea party.

Since losing her sight, Su Luoyun didn’t really like being in unfamiliar places.

Darkness enveloped her, the smells that entered her nose were strange, and she didn’t know where each brick under her feet led. All of this combined to give her an extremely uncomfortable feeling.

She tried her best to suppress the discomfort in her heart. She listened carefully and could faintly hear the laughter of women from the nearby garden. It was probably the princess and her guests having a great time drinking...

Xiangcao was by her side, looking at the young lady’s straight back. She whispered, “Are you tired of sitting? Maybe the princess has forgotten about meeting you. Should I go and ask the steward?”

Su Luoyun shook her head. Princess Yuyang wanted to see her, but it was probably just to pass the time. She was already prepared to turn around and go home, so how could she be so rude as to ask someone to remind the noble princess that she had forgotten?

Just then, the steward of the Prince Consort’s Residence suddenly came to invite the Su family’s eldest young lady.

With Xiangcao’s support, Su Luoyun followed the small cobblestone path to the warm pavilion in the back garden.

As soon as she entered the pavilion, the sensitive-smelling Luoyun almost sneezed from the overwhelming scent.

The hall must have had countless nobles in it, all wearing various perfumes. The scents, heated by the underfloor heating, blended into a pungent odor.

She knew she couldn’t be rude. Before the sneeze could come out, she pinched the inside of her arm hard and managed to hold it back. Unfortunately, she used too much force, and the pain caused tears to well up in her eyes...

She didn’t know that amidst the music and laughter, a pair of eyes had been fixed on her the moment she entered.

Naturally, her small, subtle movements and her red, watery eyes, like a rabbit’s, were all silently taken in by that person.

The others in the hall didn’t notice Su Luoyun. She was just standing awkwardly at the entrance when a lazy male voice said, “Grand-Aunt, you seem to have a new guest.”

That magnetic voice finally made Princess Yuyang, who was in the middle of a lively conversation, turn her head and see Su Luoyun standing at the entrance.

“You must be the expert perfumer, Miss Su?” Princess Yuyang, who was nearly forty, asked with a smile.

Su Luoyun quickly followed the rules, walked a few steps forward, and bowed respectfully to the direction of the female voice.

Princess Yuyang hadn’t expected a merchant’s daughter to have such an outstanding appearance. When she thought about how she couldn’t see, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pity.

“I thought I had seen all the beauties in the capital, but I didn’t expect such a lovely person to be hidden among the common people... Someone, give her a seat!”

After Su Luoyun thanked the princess, she sat up straight and respectfully answered the princess’s questions.

It turned out that the princess wanted to create a unique incense for her husband’s birthday. She had recently acquired a piece of top-quality ambergris. But the servant in charge of the warehouse said the incense was spoiled, so she thought of Miss Su and wanted her to check the quality.

Su Luoyun took the incense and carefully broke off a small piece, bringing it to her nose to sniff it. A fishy smell hit her, and it seemed to be unusable.

Su Luoyun, however, relaxed her brows. “Princess, this is indeed a top-quality incense. But this incense is very delicate. If it’s not handled with a special method, it will get damp. The remedy is simple: just wrap it in yellow paper with lime and place it in a box to absorb the moisture. Also, you need to use a fine-bristled brush to brush off the impurities on the surface of the incense. Have people handle it with their hands, just like they handle jade. Once the incense is covered in oil and develops a patina, it can be preserved for a long time.”

Princess Yuyang was very happy to hear this. She simply handed the incense over to Su Luoyun and instructed her to fix it. If the scent she blended was suitable, she would also present it to the empress.

Many of the noble women present, hearing that she was the daughter of the Shouweizhai owner, also brought up their desire to buy the “Faint Pear Fragrance” perfume balm that the princess had mentioned.

The perfume the princess had been wearing recently was too unique, and it made them want it too.

After Su Luoyun noted down the noblewomen’s requests, she thanked Princess Yuyang and took her leave.

After all, this was a social gathering for nobles. She was just a small interlude to provide some entertainment, so she had to be perceptive and leave at the right time.

But just as she left the warm pavilion and was about to head back, a lazy male voice rang out behind her. “Miss, please stop!”

This voice was the same one that had reminded Princess Yuyang to notice Su Luoyun earlier.

Su Luoyun couldn’t see and could only turn around blankly. The steward of the Prince Consort’s Residence by her side said, “Miss Su, the young master of the Prince of the North’s Residence seems to have something to say to you.”

Su Luoyun’s heart skipped a beat. The young master of the Prince of the North’s Residence? Wasn’t that her noisy noble neighbor? What... did he find out where the letter on the cat’s neck came from?

Before she could think about it, she bowed to the source of the male voice and waited to see what the master of the “spider’s cave” had to say.

With almost no sound of footsteps, the lazy male voice drifted down from above. “Miss Su, you can make perfumes. I would also like to ask you to blend a fragrance for me.”

Along with his words came his scent. Perhaps the young master had been in the hall for too long and had picked up various mixed scents. He was standing too close, and the complex and rich scent rushed to her nose. It also seemed to have a hint of medicinal smell...

This time, Luoyun was completely unprepared. Her nose tickled, and she could only barely cover her mouth and nose with her sleeve, letting out three big sneezes.

Luoyun knew she had been rude. After she finished sneezing, she immediately knelt down and apologized to the young master.

She kept her head down and didn’t dare to get up. After a while, she heard the voice from above her laugh. “Miss, you’re good at blending fragrances, but it seems you don’t like their smell. Was my scent too much for you?”

Luoyun didn’t dare to admit it and quickly said, “Young Master, you’re overthinking it. This commoner has recently caught a cold. It was truly rude of me. Please don’t be offended...”

Han Linfeng bent down and looked at the woman on the ground. Although she had her head half-bowed, there was a touch of red on her cheek, making her look more embarrassed than scared.

It seemed... she really hadn’t recognized that he was the person who had once held a knife to her neck.

Thinking this, Han Linfeng spoke again languidly. “I hear that Miss lives not far from Green Fish Alley. We’re close neighbors. My residence often hosts banquets, and the music is elegant and worth appreciating. I would like to invite Miss to grace my residence and have a drink sometime!”

Su Luoyun thought to herself: Thanks, but no thanks. I hear the sound of the string instruments from your residence every night! Besides, why would an unmarried girl go to the residence of a notorious young master?

It seemed that Han Linfeng was indeed a frivolous and reckless wastrel!

But she couldn’t afford to offend him. She just said in a low voice, “I have just accepted a few orders from some noblewomen, so I’m afraid I’ll be too busy for a while. Besides, I am a merchant’s daughter with no knowledge of music. If I were to go to your residence, I would only be a vulgar person who ruins the pleasure of music, and I would be unworthy of the elegant music of your musicians...”

Han Linfeng’s handsome face showed no expression. He just tapped his palm with a paper fan and sighed regretfully. “What a pity... Such a beauty, but a common person. She doesn’t even like music...”