Ren Tingting

When the chest was opened, it revealed a suit of armor in remarkably complete condition. Yang Xuan examined it and said, "Old shopkeeper, tell me yourself. Whose family heirloom did you swindle?"

"Heh heh, there was once a wealthy family whose fortunes later declined, so they started selling off their possessions. I wasn't interested in their shop or farmland. Apparently, their ancestors were military commanders, and they collected many weapons and suits of armor. Most of them were badly damaged, but this one is still a fine piece. All I can tell is that it's from either the Sui Dynasty or the Tang Dynasty. I haven't identified the exact type of armor yet. If you like it, take it for a hundred silver dollars," the old man said smugly.

"Ha, old man, a hundred silver dollars? You're not just robbing me anymore—you're planning to eat me alive." Yang Xuan sneered. "I agree that this is a fine piece, but it looks like standard Tang Dynasty armor. It can't be worth much. How about you sell it to me for thirty silver dollars?" Yang Xuan suggested again.

"Get lost! You're even more ruthless than I am. Look at these complicated armor plates and ornaments. Do you think they could belong to an ordinary soldier? What dynasty's standard armor was made this finely? At least eighty," the old man insisted.

"I've bought so many things from you. As a regular customer, I should get a discount. How about fifty? I won't be coming just this once. I'll come often in the future too. We should think long-term, right?" Yang Xuan teased.

Just then, a tall girl in a pink Western-style dress trimmed with lace curiously examined the shop and the two men before asking, "Do you have any rouge and makeup boxes with a more antique style?"

The girl looked about eighteen and stood around 165 centimeters tall. She was youthful and gorgeous, wearing a matching pink lady's hat. With her large eyes and small mouth, she looked like an exquisite doll.

Her skin was extremely fair. She was probably the daughter of a wealthy family, with a delicate, pale complexion and the beauty typical of a Suzhou and Hangzhou girl.

"Heh heh, young lady, you came at an unfortunate time. A week ago, I had a very beautiful rouge box from the Ming Dynasty, but sadly, it was sold." The old man glanced at Yang Xuan slyly and pretended to regret it.

"That really is a shame. I know many foreigners, and they wanted to see some of the things from our country's past." The girl looked disappointed.

Yang Xuan recognized the girl as Ren Tingting at once. He had not expected Ren Tingting, who liked Western things, to buy antiques from her own country as well.

"You plan to buy an antique rouge box so you can show foreigners our Chinese culture, right?" Girls of this era who dressed in Western styles generally preferred Western culture. Western culture had a particularly strong impact on Hua country during this period, so Yang Xuan made a guess.

"That's right. Many of my foreign friends have Western-style rouge boxes that look beautiful, so I wanted them to see our Hua country's rouge boxes too. Unfortunately, they're all sold out." Ren Tingting nodded.

"Do you like makeup?" Yang Xuan asked.

"Yes. I never realized that makeup involved so much knowledge. My mother started teaching me when I was very young." Ren Tingting sounded proud.

"Actually, many foreign cosmetics contain hydroquinone, phenol, and certain heavy metals." Yang Xuan smiled. He had grown up playing with many girls. As those girls grew older, they often taught him about cosmetics whenever they chatted, leaving him thoroughly overwhelmed. He had never expected that knowledge to give him something to talk about with women later.

"Huh? You're a man, but you know so much about cosmetics? By the way, what are those things you mentioned—quinone and powder or whatever? I've never heard of them." Ren Tingting asked curiously.

"Hydroquinone is a chemical substance. If it's added to cosmetics, it can enhance their whitening effect, but it can damage many of the body's internal organs. Most seriously, its effects are hereditary. In other words, if too much of it is used, it can be passed on to the next generation and cause birth defects. Phenol is similar to hydroquinone. It can damage your cells, blood vessels, and central nervous system. For example, when you get older, your blood vessels may rupture easily. If a blood vessel in your brain ruptures, that's what people commonly call a stroke. Damage to the nervous system can cause slowed reactions or even a coma." Yang Xuan explained.

"You know so much. In the past, people only taught me how to apply makeup. No one ever taught me how cosmetics were made. I never knew there were so many complications. According to what you're saying, cosmetics can't be used at all?" Ren Tingting asked fearfully.

"Not all of them. Many cosmetics in our Hua country are made from natural ingredients. Not every European cosmetic is bad either. The major brands and those made by hand from natural ingredients tend to be better. Besides, you're so young and beautiful that you don't necessarily need makeup. Maybe just a light touch would be enough." Yang Xuan smiled faintly.

Ren Tingting gazed at Yang Xuan with admiration. "You know so much. You're amazing."

"Thank you. I have many friends in this line of work, so I've heard about it from time to time." Yang Xuan was modest.

"Looks like I shouldn't just learn how to apply makeup in the future. I should also find out what ingredients cosmetics contain." Ren Tingting nodded.

Yang Xuan discreetly took a box from his storage space and handed it to Ren Tingting. "Young lady, since you want to introduce our country's culture to Westerners, take this."

"Can I? This must be quite expensive. I can't accept such a valuable gift from you." Ren Tingting's face showed both delight and reluctance.

"Old man, tell her how much I paid for it." Yang Xuan laughed.

"Don't bring that up! You finally said it yourself just now. Before I had even appraised it, you'd already bought several antiques. As for this rouge box, you said it wasn't worth anything, so I gave it to you as a free gift." The old man glared resentfully.

"There, young lady, you heard him. I didn't pay anything for this rouge box. It was a free gift, so I'm giving it to you." Yang Xuan waved it off.

"Then I'll accept it. By the way, you look about my age too, so stop calling me 'young lady' all the time. I'm not little anymore—I'm eighteen. My name is Ren Tingting. What's yours?" Ren Tingting accepted it happily.

"My name is Yang Xuan. And I'm twenty-four, quite a bit older than you, so calling you 'young lady' isn't wrong." Yang Xuan teased.

"Miss, it's getting late." A voice drifted in from far outside the door.

"Yang Xuan, I'll be going now. Where do you live? If I have any questions in the future, can I come find you?" Ren Tingting asked cautiously.

"Of course. I became Uncle Nine's disciple, and for now I'm staying at the mortuary outside town." Yang Xuan replied.

"Bye-bye." Ren Tingting waved.

"Bye-bye."