Miao Shuihua picked up her teacup and took a small sip. "I heard from the workers by the river that you and Shopkeeper Jin jumped into the river to commit suicide yesterday?"
Wu Shaoyang sat up straight in a panic, " Miss Miao, Shopkeeper Jin and I are completely innocent, nothing has happened..."
Miao Shuihua chuckled, put down her teacup, and asked, "Oh... then why don't you consider me?"
Wu Shaoyang stared at Miao Shuihua, momentarily stunned. When he finally came to his senses, he hurriedly picked up his teacup, only to find the tea too hot and splashing everywhere.
He frantically wiped the table, his face turning bright red from his ears to his neck. After a long while, he finally dared to look Miao Shuihua in the eye. " Miss Miao, I'm sick... I just keep wanting to die."
Miao Shuihua raised an eyebrow, "Before you die, could you perhaps have some contact with me?"
Wu Shaoyang stared at the girl in astonishment. Not wanting to hurt anyone, he told the truth, "I have an agreement with Manager Anzhi Hall: once I've collected a thousand taels, I can die."
Miao Shuihua nodded and thought seriously for a while, then said, "I'll help you put together the paper."
Wu Shaoyang froze, his mind buzzing. In his fifteen years of life, this was the first time someone had said to him, "I'll be with you." Or was it to be to save money together to die?
Wu Shaoyang stared blankly at Miao Shuihua, "What will you do if I die?"
"Let's not get engaged yet. Once we've raised a thousand taels, if you still want to die, I won't stop you."
Wu Shaoyang breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, a smile playing on his lips. "Thank you for your trouble, Miss Miao."
Miao Shuihua looked at his silly expression and laughed heartily, "It's nothing... Didn't you want to make money? Come help out at my dock tomorrow? You'll definitely get paid."
Wu Shaoyang was exceptionally good at accounting; he managed to rent out half a street's worth of shops all by himself. However, in order to earn more money, he still accepted Miao Shuihua's invitation.
"Alright... but I have to go to the Anzhi Hall to take my medicine sooner or later, otherwise I'm afraid I'll die before I even earn a thousand taels."
Miao Shuihua smiled and nodded, "No problem, I'll go with you to take your medicine..."
"It's me again, accompanying you." Looking at the girl's bright and cheerful face, Wu Shaoyang suddenly wondered what it felt like to have someone by your side.
"Okay, let's go together."
After the meal, Miao Shuihua invited Wu Shaoyang to stroll along the riverbank pier, agreeing that they would go to the Anzhi Hall together when it was time for him to take his medicine.
Inside the Anzhi Hall at this moment.
A man in Jin Shanyao. His eyes were sunken, with dark circles under them, and his gaze was unfocused. " Shopkeeper Jin, I've heard you're a sick fortune teller from Qingzhou Prefecture. I'd like to have my fortune told..."
Jin Shanyao in her hand holding the folding fan, raised her eyes, and her gaze swept over him from head to toe like a small knife.
"Young master, first of all, let me clarify that I am not ill. Secondly, may I ask if you are looking for a person or an item?"
It took the man a while to realize his slip of the Shopkeeper Jin, please forgive me. I am Bai Yunjin, the owner of Cloud Brocade Workshop in Jing'an Prefecture."
For the past six months, I've been suffering from insomnia every night and my speech has become incoherent. I hope you can forgive me.
Jin Shanyao her folding fan and said in a deep voice, "It's alright... I'm not one to hold grudges... Tell me, what do you want to ask?"
Bai Yunjin, who had just sat up straight, slumped back down. "To be honest, since last year, I've always felt that there's something unclean around me."
I would wake up in the middle of the night, chilled, with embroidery thread always wrapped around my neck. At first, I didn't pay much attention, but after a while, something felt off, especially when I got up at night. There were always footsteps behind me... but when I turned around, there was no one there.
Jin Shanyao smiled and nodded, "This is quite a big matter. Let's take a look first."
Bai Yunjin stared speechlessly at Jin Shanyao, " Shopkeeper Jin, didn't you say you didn't hold grudges?"
"Yes... so we need to determine if you have any illnesses first before discussing anything else."
Bai Yunjin had come all this way, so he naturally didn't want to leave empty-handed. He placed his hand on the pulse pillow.
Meng Anzhi concluded, "Severe insomnia led to hair loss and lethargy... A few doses of sleeping pills will do the trick."
After Jin Shanyao smiled at Bai Yunjin and said, " Shopkeeper Bai, you're just experiencing mental confusion due to insomnia; there's not a trace of ghostly energy about you."
Bai Yunjin didn't believe him. " Shopkeeper Jin, everything I said is true. Why don't you... take another look?" As he spoke, he leaned forward and brought his forehead close to Jin Shanyao's eyes. "Look, is my forehead dark?"
Jin Shanyao back slightly, waving her fan and laughing, "Your darkness has nothing to do with ghosts or monsters. How about this, I'll draw you a sleep-aid talisman to ensure you have no dreams all night, how about it?"
A sense of helplessness welled up in Bai Yunjin's heart. Before he came to Qingzhou Prefecture, he had invited countless monks and Daoist priests, and even held several water and land rituals.
The money was spent like water, but it was of no use whatsoever. If he hadn't heard that Shopkeeper Jin of the Anzhi Hall was indeed quite capable, he wouldn't have come all this way.
He sighed, rubbing his temples resignedly, Fate Dao, "Give me one of each Sleep-Aiding Talisman and Evil-Warding Talisman. How much?"
Jin Shanyao held up two fingers, "Two hundred taels."
Bai Yunjin's breath hitched, and he almost fainted. He had already found out that Anzhi Hall only sold Cooling Talisman for five coins each! This was clearly taking advantage of his being an outsider to raise the price.
Bai Yunjin suppressed her displeasure and forced a smile, " Shopkeeper Jin, could you possibly lower the price?"
Jin Shanyao her head, " Anzhi Hall prohibits bargaining."
He gazed at the Jin Shanyao with an unfathomable look in his eyes, then took out two hundred taels of silver and placed it on the table.
Jin Shanyao swiftly drew two talismans, dried them, and handed them to him. Seeing that Bai Yunjin hesitated to take them, she asked in confusion, "What's wrong... don't you want them?"
Bai Yunjin clenched her fists silently. "It's all in black and white, Shopkeeper Jin, you're not joking, are you?"
"My talismans are always like this. If you don't believe me, go ask anyone on the street."
Bai Yunjin smiled apologetically, "I was blind to the value of gold inlaid with jade." After saying that, she took the gold, carefully folded it, and then got up and left Anzhi Hall.
After the person left, Meng Anzhi said, "Auntie, there was something strange about that person's smile..."
Jin Shanyao handed her two hundred taels of silver, saying, "A smile that hides a dagger; this person is ruthless."
" Shopkeeper Bai!" a voice called out from outside the shop.
Jin Shanyao looked in the direction of the sound and saw Madam Jiang and Jiang Jinshu blocking the Bai Household's carriage.
She pushed Jiang Jinshu forward, " Shopkeeper Bai, this is my daughter! She could separate threads when she was three, and she could embroider handkerchiefs on her own when she was five. She knows all the common stitches on the market nowadays."
As Madam Jiang handed over the handkerchief, she looked at Bai Yunjin with a nervous yet expectant gaze, her heart pounding when the other remained silent.
"This was embroidered by my daughter. Although it's a simple stitch, the color scheme is beautiful. Look at the colors and shape of the morning glories, aren't they lovely?"
Bai Yunjin took the handkerchief, her fingertips twirling the silk thread. She thought to herself that the girl did indeed have some talent. Then she looked at Jiang Jinshu, who was an ordinary girl with plain features, except for her clear and bright eyes.
What a pity...
He returned the handkerchief to Madam Jiang, saying, "I'm sorry, sister-in-law... Cloud Brocade Workshop's apprenticeship program has ended." With that, he boarded his carriage and left.
Madam Jiang's faint hope was completely shattered...
Jin Shanyao called out to Madam Jiang through the window, " Xiu'er... didn't you say you weren't going to send Jinshu to be an apprentice?"
Madam Jiang led her daughter to the window and sighed, "He's practically at our doorstep! He just wanted to bring the child over to give it a try, but Cloud Brocade Workshop's requirements are so high."
As she spoke, she tapped out a rhythm, " Jinshu's embroidery is so beautiful! Even a ten-year-old child might not be able to embroider as well as her. I don't want Shopkeeper Bai to just take a look."
Jin Shanyao took the handkerchief and examined it; the embroidery was far superior to Qing He's. "It's better that you weren't chosen... Let our Jinshu stay home with you."
She stretched her arm out the window, gently pinched the little girl's hair, and asked with a smile, "Am I right, little Jinshu?"
Jiang Jinshu looked at her and smiled shyly.