As the year-end approached, Bianjing grew lively. People busied themselves stocking up for the New Year; after a whole year, they had to eat and use something nice. Street vendors hawked every kind of wares, and the crowds pressed shoulder to shoulder. It was truly prosperous.
Though the scholars who had journeyed to the capital for the examinations could not reunite with their families at home, they traveled about with all manner of friends. After all, the finest scholars from across the country had gathered here, and making friends was an essential skill for scholars, so they did not feel lonely. Fellow wanderers at the ends of the earth, they comforted one another.
When scholars went strolling, they did little more than admire the ladies, sample some food, and browse bookstores, painting shops, and stores selling brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.
A group of scholars wandered farther and farther from the main streets until, in a corner of the market, they finally discovered two neighboring shops. One was called Wang's Fragrance Shop, while the other was called Three Flavors Book House.
The two shops were complete opposites. A pile of carriages stood outside the fragrance shop, some clearly belonging to noble ladies, others obviously carrying wealthy households' matrons and maids. They queued up in a buzzing crowd, announcing their family names as they did so. Naturally, those from loftier households went to the front, and the way they fawned on the powerful while trampling the weak was truly something.
The scholars drew near to ask around and learned that this was a business created by the famed Wang Ziyan, specializing in goods for the nobility. Anything inside cost dozens of strings of cash at the very least, while some went for hundreds or even thousands. There were even things called