Ink Burns

Chapter 28 The Disappearing Lip Balm

People's relationships will become closer when they share the same secrets.

For example, Zhou Liniang, although her fear of He Shi almost surpassed her father who beat people up after drinking, she didn't seem so scared when she thought of the two of them huddled on the third floor looking at brains.

In fact, they gradually developed a sense of intimacy - seriously speaking, He Shi had never harmed her. She wanted to stay, so He Shi found ways to help her stay. Although she was asked to deliver letters, she was also given silver after delivering the letters. Last time, after delivering the letter to the silk shop, she spent half an hour to run back and forth, and was given a small piece of silver.
Although she didn't like money, this approach was comforting and at least made her feel useful.

Later, I watched He’s paintings.

Stunning.

Very stunning.

The painting "Pair of Crows on Snowy Trees" is skillfully executed, with the autumn colors of Quehua, the shades of light and dark, the dryness and wetness, and the arrangement of virtual and real, and white space quite cleverly.

Painters look at the paintings, not the painters. Although He's paintings were copies, it was enough to see the blending of spiritual energy, melancholy and anger. On the back of the paper as thin as a cicada's wing, the soul and mind of grass and tree roots, flowers, birds, animals and insects, farming and fishing were brought together. Such a painter could not paint his own paintings, which made Zhou Liniang feel heartbroken.

Well, after feeling a little distressed, Zhou Liniang wanted to slap herself twice - she was really meddling in other people's business! Looking at He's evil appearance of swallowing up everything, who needs to feel sorry for her! Who can give her the face to suffer?
Apart from Zhou Liniang, another example is Huang Zhi from Zhimu Hall. After she half-spoken the whole story with Shanyue that night, she has become closer to him in the past few days. She came to visit him very frequently and reported news in the same ear. She first reported, "The painting has been sent out!" and then, "Mrs. Luo, the wife of Magistrate Liu, is being asked to go to the Madam's mansion!" On the third day, Shanyue received the news that she and Duan were going to Liu's mansion in the east of the city.

Duan personally went to the Qunfang Garden. Behind her, Huangqi brought two little maids holding a row of vermilion lacquered trays. She wore a lake blue horse-faced skirt with colorful edges inside, and her jacket was also bright apricot. Although the pearl headpiece on the back was made of small beads, it was a style not seen among ordinary people in the market.

Duan happily helped Shanyue dress up: "The old master picked out your paintings as soon as he saw them. The paintings that were presented the day before yesterday will be shown today. Judging from how smoothly things develop, I'm afraid he will have to give you a dowry in the coming years!"

Shanyue had her ears pierced. In the circus, the boss wanted her to wear flowers in her ears. During the hottest days of summer, they poked her ears with needles. The weather was hot, and she had to wear flowers every day, so the holes didn't grow well. They became swollen and blocked from time to time, making her forehead hot and the back of her head dizzy. It was extremely uncomfortable.

After reaching the "bridge bone", he ate with a pen in his hand. These external items were no longer needed, so Shanyue let the ear holes grow and close. Only the small sunken holes on the surface of the skin and flesh could be seen, but no flesh that had grown back from the holes could be seen.

Seeing that she had pierced ears, Duan picked up the silver needle earrings and tried to put them in. When she couldn't get them in, she secretly exerted force with her hands.

Shan Yue didn't feel the stinging pain in her ear hole at all, and her mind was filled with the second half of the sentence "I will buy you a dowry when the year comes!" - After leaving the Cheng family, where else could she go to seek revenge? !
There is not much time left for her.

Now she has thousands of threads in her hands, but she can't find the end of the thread, and she has to weave all the threads into a dragnet.

Shan Yue sat stiffly in front of the bronze mirror like a puppet, blood oozing from the holes in his two ears. Small beads of broken rice fell on his earlobes as expected, making the bright red bloodstains look even more scorching.

Duan didn't care whether she would bleed or not, she only cared whether this person was adorned beautifully. After the earrings were finally put on, she let out a long breath, looked up at the bronze mirror, and placed her hands on Shanyue's shoulders with a smile: "Look, people still need to dress up. In the past, I only saw that you had a good foundation. Now, with some powder and lipstick, you can be the daughter of the county magistrate!"

Shanyue looked at the bronze mirror quietly, but his eyes drifted to Duan's wrist.

There is a circle of bruises on both wrists.

Duan seemed to sense Shanyue's gaze, and she pulled her hand upwards, hiding the purple marks in her sleeves. She pulled open the corners of her bright red lips, revealing two small dimples on the face of a woman who was already close to her prime. "I bumped into her by accident." Shanyue retracted his gaze and gave her a timid smile. "Everyone in the mansion is counting on you, please take care of yourself."

Songjiang Prefecture is not big, and you don’t even need to cross a bridge to go to the east of the city. The style of the houses in the east of the city is completely different from that of the Cheng family. The tall pillars at the gate demonstrate the dignity of the official family.

The Liu Mansion was at the end of the alley. Entering from the side door, passing through three gates and four halls, Duan and Shanyue walked familiarly on the blue bricks. A servant came forward to greet them, and Duan nodded in greeting.

Shan Yue's eyes were fixed on the ground, but his peripheral vision took in the entire scene.

Abnormally familiar.

Why is a merchant's wife so familiar with the house of the former prefect?
After walking around the corridor in the courtyard, Duan left Shanyue alone under the patio and hurried into the dark inner hall. The inner hall was blocked by six glass partitions, and one could only see the flying eaves and bats spreading their wings under the eaves.

Shan Yue stood still with his head down and eyes closed. From time to time he could hear Duan's clear laughter and the drawn-out voice of a strange man coming from the inner hall.

The man was not young anymore, and his voice was deep and hoarse, as if he had hidden decades of scheming and cunning in his throat.

"Turn around!" Duan's voice came from the inner room: "Shan Yue, turn around!"

Shanyue took a step forward, with his chin pressed tightly against the collar of his clothes, and turned a small circle on the spot.

"Raise your head!" Duan's voice came from the inner hall: "Shanyue, raise your head!"

Shan Yue slowly raised her head, her eyelashes drooping slightly, blocking the light in her eyes.

There was no sound in the inner hall for a long time.

Shanyue stood there alone: Do you still want to see your teeth?

To judge the physical condition of livestock, you usually have to open its mouth wide and look at its teeth.

In the end, they didn't even check their teeth. About half an hour later, Duan walked around the glass partition screen and came out of the dark inner hall. She was busy fixing her jacket and clothes as she walked. She looked bright and happy. "Let's go!"

As they were about to leave the gate of Liu Mansion, Duan grabbed Shanyue's hand, clapped her hands, and released all her excitement: "It's done! The old master thinks you are good! Starting tomorrow, you will study with the girls in the family, learning poetry, songs, etiquette and manners! The old master said that you should come here every five days, and he asked someone to invite a maid from the inner palace to teach you the rules!"

Duan was very excited: "I said it can be done! You are the most beautiful girl among the girls who can paint well! You are the best painter among the girls with good looks! If you can't do it, there will be no one else in the whole Songjiang Prefecture!"

Shan Yue lowered her head in embarrassment to hide the surprise in her eyes - Duan's bright red lip balm had disappeared without her knowing when.

(End of this chapter)