It was almost dark when the zongzi were cooked.
Ji Shiyu lifted the pot lid, and white steam billowed out, carrying the fragrance of bamboo leaves and the sweet aroma of glutinous rice, filling the entire kitchen.
He scooped the rice dumplings out one by one and placed them in a bamboo basket to drain. Jiang Wantang handed him a plate beside him. The two of them did not speak, but their actions were perfectly coordinated.
Shen Yuzhou, drawn by the aroma, ran over from under the eaves, still clutching half a half-finished moxa stick in his hand. He stood at the kitchen doorway and peered inside. " Brother Ji, is it ready to eat?"
Ji Shiyu glanced at him. Since it was almost over and there was no need to cook in the kitchen, he didn't seem irritable. "Let it cool down a bit."
Shen Yuzhou didn't leave; he stood at the door waiting. Shen Yuzhou had never wrapped zongzi himself before, so he was naturally very excited to do it himself this time.
Not to mention, it was in a place that fulfilled his dream of living in seclusion.
He's even been spending much less time on his phone these past two days.
Of course, this is also because there is no electricity at Brother Yuan here.
They survived entirely thanks to the power banks they bought in bulk, plus the signal collector that Meng Xu had prepared.
By the time the zongzi were served, it was already getting dark.
Two oil lamps were lit in the courtyard, casting a dim, yellowish light that illuminated the table and softened the outline of the rice dumplings.
Shen Yuzhou untied the cotton thread, peeled back the bamboo leaves, and revealed dark brown glutinous rice filled with red beans and peanuts, steaming hot.
He took a bite, and it was so hot that he gasped for breath. He didn't spit it out, chewed it a couple of times, and found it exceptionally delicious.
Cheng Yanqiu sat down next to him, took one as well, peeled it open, glanced at it, then looked at Ji Shiyu: "Is there meat inside?"
Ji Shiyu nodded. "The cured pork was sliced this morning."
Qiguan Yuan did not sit at the table. He sat on the stone steps under the eaves, holding a cup of tea in his hand. The tea had been brewed that morning and had already gone cold, but he did not change it.
He looked at the people gathered around the table in the courtyard, but made no move.
Pei Yubai took a zongzi from the table, peeled it, walked over to Qiguan Yuan, sat down next to him, and handed the zongzi to him.
Qiguan Yuan glanced down at it, took it, took a bite, chewed twice, and swallowed. "Why is it salty?"
In previous years, the rice dumplings that Jixian sent him were always sweet.
Pei Yubai said, "There are also sweet ones. Teacher Ji prepared two kinds. Some of the guests eat sweet things, and some eat savory things, so I made two kinds."
Qiguan Yuan didn't take any more. He finished the half-eaten rice dumpling, folded the bamboo leaves and placed them on the ground next to the stone steps, picked up his cool tea, took a sip, and continued watching the people in the courtyard.
Pei Yubai sat next to him, did not return to the table, and finished the remaining half of the zongzi in his hand.
The two sat side by side on the stone steps, their silver and black hair pressed together in the twilight.
As night fell completely, Shen Yuzhou and Cheng Yanqiu rolled the prepared moxa sticks in cotton paper, lit two of them, and placed them in the ceramic jars at the four corners of the courtyard.
Inside the building, staff members were also using moxa sticks to repel mosquitoes.
A thin, straight wisp of smoke rose from the top of the mugwort stick, spreading through the air and carrying the distinctive bitter aroma of mugwort.
The smoke slowly spread in the twilight, enveloping the entire courtyard in a thin layer of bluish-gray.
After applying the ointment, those who had been bitten by mosquitoes were no longer bitten, and everyone was finally able to sit down in peace.
Shen Yuzhou squatted in the courtyard, watching the wisps of smoke rising, and said to Cheng Yanqiu, "This mugwort really works!"
Cheng Yanqiu stood beside him. " Teacher Qiguan said couldn't be false. Besides, using moxa sticks to repel mosquitoes has been mentioned in some popular science videos."
Qiguan Yuan stood up from the stone steps, placed the empty teacup on the windowsill, and turned back to the main room.
The others sat in the courtyard for a while before gradually leaving. Shen Yuzhou went back to his room, and Cheng Yanqiu chatted with Lin Yanru a few minutes before also going back.
Ji Shiyu and Jiang Wantang walked through the courtyard one after the other, separated by a pomegranate tree.
The photographer turned off his camera, carried his equipment, and retreated to a side courtyard. The courtyard fell silent, with only the wisps of smoke from the moxa sticks slowly rising in the night.
Pei Yubai followed Qiguan Yuan into the main house.
Qiguan Yuan sat down on the couch by the window, picked up the row of small white jade jars on the table, sixteen in total. He stacked them together and placed them on the corner of the table.
Pei Yubai sat down next to him, with a small distance between them.
Qiguan Yuan didn't look at him, but stared at the wisps of smoke rising from the courtyard outside the window. "I'm going to the Northwest after the Dragon Boat Festival."
Pei Yubai turned his head to look at him. "What is it?"
Qiguan Yuan turned his gaze from the window and focused it on his fingers.
He untied the Dust-Settling Red Cord from his wrist, wrapped it around his finger, and slowly coiled it once. "I'm helping a junior with some matters. It's nothing major, but I need to go there in person; it involves someone very important to me."
Pei Yubai looked at his fingers twirling the red thread for a while, then said, "I'll go with you."
Qiguan Yuan's fingers paused for a moment, the red thread slipped from between his fingers, and he released it. "Of course. Remember when I said I'd take you somewhere?"
Pei Yubai reached out and hooked the red thread in Qiguan Yuan's hand. "I remember."
"I don't know how long I'll be gone, but most likely when you return and visit that place again, you'll understand why. Pei Yubai, I know you care about the old friend I mentioned. But it's not something I can explain in a short time, so please wait a little longer, okay?"
Pei Yubai's fingers were still on his wrist, not withdrawing. "As long as you like."
Qiguan Yuan glanced at him, then withdrew his hand, stood up from the couch, walked to the table, picked up the stack of small white jade jars, pushed open the back door of the main room, and went to the backyard.
Pei Yubai followed behind him. Qiguan Yuan walked to the storeroom door, pushed it open, and put the stack of small white jade jars back on the shelf.
The warehouse was dimly lit, with moonlight streaming in through the high windows, casting a soft glow on the bottles and jars.
After placing the jars down, Qiguan Yuan didn't leave immediately. He stood in front of the shelf for a while, then reached out and touched the lid of one of the porcelain jars.
The jar was made of blue and white porcelain, and the glaze gleamed coldly in the moonlight.
The value must be quite high. Pei Yubai didn't know much about antiques, but he could tell that everything in Qiguan Yuan's storeroom was a good item.
It's highly likely that the live stream today captured a lot of things, which could potentially lead to some investigations.
He planned to verify the origin of these items with Yuanyuan. If they were legal and legitimate, he would first resolve any unnecessary troubles for Yuanyuan.
The next morning, just as dawn broke.
There were sounds of people walking around in the yard. Ji Shiyu was chopping vegetables in the kitchen, the sound of the knife hitting the cutting board was very rhythmic.
The other guests squatted under the old elm tree in the courtyard, crushing the leftover mugwort leaves from yesterday and rolling them into new mugwort sticks.
When Qiguan Yuan came out of the bedroom, he had changed back into his usual red robes, and his silver hair was tied up with a peach wood hairpin, revealing his entire face.
He walked into the yard, stood under the old elm tree, and looked up at it.
Before the sun rose, the clouds on the horizon were tinged with a pale gold, which shone on the red ropes covering the trees, turning the red into an orange-red.
Shen Yuzhou stood up and asked him what he was supposed to do today. Qiguan Yuan said that there were no tasks today and he could move around freely, but he would need to leave tomorrow.
After breakfast, the other guests went about their own business.
As Pei Yubai had predicted, in the afternoon, someone in the live chat recognized the value of the items in the warehouse.
A viewer with the ID "Cultural Relics Enthusiast" posted a long comment, listing the possible dates and origins of the bottles, jars, calligraphy, paintings, and ancient books he saw in the video.
Of course, even if he listed a lot, it was only the tip of the iceberg in Qiguan Yuan's warehouse.
He couldn't find the origin of most of these things.
However, anyone in the know can tell at a glance that none of these things are simple.
Shen Yuzhou secretly described it in his mind: even a museum couldn't compare to the variety of items here.
After the comments were posted, the live stream was quiet for a moment, and then the comment section started to discuss.
As this netizen's post went viral, more netizens with knowledge in this area joined the discussion.
Later on, it even attracted the attention of professionals.
However, since they cannot truly confirm whether these items are genuine or fake, they have not taken any action yet.
Qiguan Yuan sat by the window, turned to the last page of the book, closed it, placed it on the table, stood up, walked into the yard, and glanced at the Tree of Fate.
Pei Yubai happened to walk up to him and saw what was going on online.
" Yuanyuan, are those things in your storeroom your collection?"
Qiguan Yuan's attention was drawn back, and she looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Are you interested in those things?"
Before Pei Yubai could speak, Qiguan Yuan said, "I forgot to tell you, Yue Lao Temple around Cloud-Hidden Town belong to me. Over the years, I've accumulated quite a few believers, and some people bring any new or interesting things they get to the Yue Lao Temple."
" The Yue Lao Temple, so they put it in my warehouse. If you like it, have someone take it away."
"It takes up quite a bit of space, and I'm too lazy to take care of it, so I just left it in the warehouse."
Although Pei Yubai was the heir of the Pei Family, he was still shocked by the extravagance of his daughter Yuanyuan.
So, his family had several months' Yuanyuan of ancient artifacts from the Yue Lao Temple, yet he still went to sell red ropes to raise money for transportation?
Pei Yubai was also charmed by Qiguan Yuan's behavior.
However, since the source is legitimate and it wasn't stolen by Yuanyuan, if it was a gift from a worshipper, then the Yue Lao Temple probably has a record of it.
There shouldn't be any problem.
In the evening, Qiguan Yuan took out another stack of small white jade jars from the storeroom and sat in the main room to continue grinding medicine.
Pei Yubai sat opposite him, holding a book in his hand. He flipped through a few pages but didn't turn the page, his gaze falling on Qiguan Yuan's hands as he pounded medicine.
Qiguan Yuan's fingers gripped the stone pestle, applying light pressure, each strike just enough to crush the medicinal herbs.
Pei Yubai stared for a while, and as Qiguan Yuan continued to rub against him, he went to get some more medicinal herbs, including a ginseng that looked to be of excellent quality. Pei Yubai was somewhat bewildered.
Unlike Pei Yubai, who only vaguely recognized ginseng, those in the live stream who knew some pharmacology watched in silence Qiguan Yuan, holding a pile of incredibly valuable medicinal herbs, began grinding them without blinking.
???
What are you doing?
Pei Yubai asked the question everyone wanted to ask, " Yuanyuan, what are you doing?"
Qiguan Yuan glanced at him and then said, "Making the ointment yesterday was quite enjoyable. Grinding the herbs was indeed a rather pleasant process, so I gathered some herbs to grind and pass the time."
"If Brother Yuan wants to pass the time, you can choose some more common medicinal herbs. If you need these herbs in the future, you'll have to go through some trouble to find them." Shen Yuzhou noticed their situation and was also shocked by Qiguan Yuan's actions.
Qiguan Yuan was confused. "But these are the worst quality items in the warehouse."
Shen Yuzhou was on the verge of tears.
He's not exactly poor, so why do I still feel like crying after hearing that?
Qiguan Yuan said, "I've seen some prescriptions in medical books, so I won't waste them by grinding them up. If you want them, I'll give them to you."
Pei Yubai chuckled, "My father has all sorts of ailments, Yuanyuan can give them to me."
Qiguan Yuan nodded. "Then you may take them all."
[...]
[ Shen Yuzhou plays me, hahaha]
["But these are the worst quality items in the warehouse." [Cries while covering mouth]]
[I kept laughing at Yuanyuan for being a pitiful old woman, but it turns out the clown was me?]
I really don't have time to mess around with you two rich, money-grubbing couples.
When Pei Yubai learned that the items in Qiguan Yuan's warehouse had not been obtained through improper means, he called Pei Zhongkang Pei Yubai asked him to find a few people to help Qiguan Yuan obtain some proof.
in case.
Preparing in advance can save a lot of trouble.
Pei Zhongkang was naturally watching the live stream with Shen Lingyi, and when he saw Qiguan Yuan's things, he immediately thought of this.
At least some proof of origin should be retained.
It wasn't that they were overthinking it, but Qiguan Yuan had just too many things in his possession, so it was best to make all the necessary preparations in advance.
After grinding the medicinal herbs, Qiguan Yuan returned to his bedroom, sat on the couch, picked up the book again, and turned to the page he had read yesterday.
Pei Yubai sat down at the table, put the rolled moxa sticks into a bamboo tube, and placed the bamboo tube on the windowsill.
Qiguan Yuan turned a page of his book without looking up and said to Pei Yubai, "We're going to the Yue Lao Temple Under the Moon tomorrow. I need to speak with Jixian before we leave, so let's get some rest today."
Pei Yubai put the bamboo tube away, stood up, walked to the bedside, closed the book in Qiguan Yuan's hand, and placed it on the low table beside the bed.
Pei Yubai picked up the oil lamp, blew it out, and the room darkened. Moonlight shone in through the window and fell on the floor.
Pei Yubai lay down next to Qiguan Yuan.
The next morning, when Qiguan Yuan woke up, Pei Yubai was already up.
He was alone in the bedroom; the blankets were neatly folded and placed at the foot of the bed.
The sky was bright outside the window, and there were voices in the courtyard. Shen Yuzhou's voice was the loudest, saying that something was growing well.
Qiguan Yuan sat up, changed his clothes, and went out. Everyone was standing in the courtyard. Ji Shiyu and Jiang Wantang were standing next to the stone table, Shen Yuzhou was squatting in front of the flower bed, Cheng Yanqiu was standing next to him, and Lin Yanru and Su He'an were standing under the old elm tree.
Pei Yubai stood at the courtyard gate, holding a bamboo hat in his hand.
When Qiguan Yuan came out, he glanced at him but didn't come over.
Qiguan Yuan walked to the well, drew a bucket of water, washed his hands, straightened his clothes, and glanced at the sky. "Let's set off after breakfast."