***
Not long after Qin Mu took Gu Hanyan out, small snowflakes began to fall from the sky.
This is the first snow of the year. Zhongshan Mountain in the east, Yuhuatai in the south, Shitoushan Mountain in the west, and Muxishan Mountain in the north are all shrouded in misty snow, leaving only vague silhouettes.
The streets did not become deserted because of the snow. On the contrary, people went out of their homes to enjoy the snow. Yuhuatai, Mochou Lake, Xuanwu Lake and Qixia Mountain are all ideal places for people to enjoy the snow.
The streets are filled with luxury cars and crowds of people, especially today is the day when the Qin Dynasty holds imperial examinations. The scholars have gone to take the exams, but near the Imperial Examination Hall, thousands of their family members and servants are waiting outside with eager anticipation.
All kinds of vendors swarmed in, vying to sell their goods, and the sound of their hawkers was very lively.
Gu Hanyan was born in Songjiang Prefecture and this was her first time in Jinling City. She didn't dare to lift the curtain to look at the street scenery. What's more, Qin Mu, who was sitting next to her, kept holding her hand, making her feel uneasy.
Qin Mu liked her eyes the most. When he saw her eyes for the first time, he was reminded of Lin Daiyu, with two eyebrows that seemed to be frowning but not frowning, and a pair of eyes that seemed to be happy but not happy. There was always a layer of mist in her eyes, and there was some confusion in the haziness, as if she was a fairy who was not of this world.
Qin Mu let go of her hand and asked in a gentle voice, "Are you cold?"
Gu Hanyan replied softly, "Not cold..." She was so nervous that she was almost sweating, how could she feel cold? Her head almost drooped down to her chest, and her slender neck, with skin as soft as water and bones as jade, was extremely clear and moving.
"Don't keep your head down all the time, okay? I like your eyes the most. Looking into your eyes makes me feel like I'm falling into a dream."
"King Qin..." Gu Hanyan was so embarrassed that she didn't know what to say. Her fragrant face was flushed as if she was drunk. Her slender jade fingers kept twisting her belt.
"Come, don't be nervous, take a look at the scenery on the street." Qin Mu gently helped her loosen her light fur coat, then rolled up the curtain halfway, leaving only a layer of gauze through which she could see the scenery along the street.
There were evergreen pines and cypresses on the open space beside Taoye Ferry. A stage was built under the trees, and the audience stood on the stage to watch the play. In addition, two female stages were built with wooden strips and boards next to it. There were curtains on them, and many female relatives were sitting on the stage, and their beautiful figures could be vaguely seen.
The streets are full of sedan chairs, shops are lined up, and people are crowded with cars and horses. There are all kinds of signs and advertisements. The buildings on both sides are Buddhist temples, government offices, stages, houses, archways, and waterside pavilions. Layer upon layer.
The shop signs such as "Tea House", "Gold and Silver Shop", "Pharmacy", "Bathroom", "Painting Apartment", "Picture Mounting", "Bookstore", "Engraving and Inscription", "Lexiantang Famous Books Exchange", and "Official Letters" are dazzling.
On the blue and clear Qinhuai River, painted boats are drifting, music and singing are playing, fishing boats are shuttling back and forth, and the black boats are becoming more poetic in the mist of snowflakes...
Gu Hanyan was mesmerized by the prosperous and beautiful scenery, and her nervous mood was finally relieved. When her cherry-like lips were slightly pursed, her cheeks would reveal shallow dimples, as light as smoke, just like her name.
In front of the gold bead shop with a signboard "Exchange gold beads" on the street, there is an old man wearing glasses. Glasses are imported goods, but since the opening of the sea in the Longqing period, a large number of Western goods have poured in, and glasses have long been common.
Qin Mu had the sedan chair stopped here and told Gu Hanyan, "Don't call me the King of Qin in front of others. Call me husband. Remember that?"
Gu Hanyan nodded shyly, Qin Mu smiled, and took her out of the sedan chair and into the store.
The old man in the store stood up quickly, pushed his glasses and bowed, saying, "Please come in, my two distinguished guests. Sir, do you want to exchange gold beads or buy some gold and jade jewelry for your wife?"
"You are welcome, boss. Please allow my wife to take a look at the pearls and jade jewelry in your store first."
"Please come this way, my dear husband and wife."
"Husband...Husband, I have jewelry, so you don't need to buy these."
Qin Mu turned around and whispered to her, "This is the first time your husband gives you a gift, how can you refuse it? You have to at least choose one."
The old shopkeeper quickly took the two men to the counter, where were many exquisite wooden boxes of different sizes, padded with silk and filled with all kinds of gold and jade jewelry.
Under Qin Mu's urging, Gu Hanyan had no choice but to choose a pair of red gold heart-shaped earrings, which should be the cheapest.
"Boss, how much is this?" Qin Mu asked.
The old man pushed his glasses frame again, looked outside the store, and then asked, "Excuse me, sir, are you going to pay in silver or in banknotes?"
When Qin Mu heard that someone was coming, he asked casually, "How much silver?" He deliberately left a space after the word "zi" so that it would sound like "Silver, how much?"
"Sir, these red gold heart-shaped pendant earrings are extremely delicate and exquisitely made. They are made entirely of red gold and are genuine. Your wife is as beautiful as a fairy, so this pair of red gold heart-shaped pendant earrings is perfect for her. Our store is a century-old store and we are honest and trustworthy. We will only charge you twenty taels..."
"for you."
"Uh... Sir, our store..."
"You don't accept banknotes?"
"No, no, it's just... didn't you just say you would pay the money?"
"Who said I paid silver? I was asking how much silver you have? If you don't think silver is too heavy, I think it's too heavy. Who wants to carry that when you have treasure notes? Look! The Great Qin Law clearly stipulates that one string of Great Qin treasure notes is equivalent to one tael of silver and one thousand copper coins. Here are twenty strings of treasure notes. Keep them."
The old man wanted to say something, but when he saw a bailiff from Jiangning County passing by the door, he quickly shut up and accepted the two Daqin treasure notes with a face value of ten strings of cash, thinking it was bad luck.
As Qin Mu and Gu Hanyan walked out of the store, they heard the old man behind them shouting to the shop assistant, "Lu Er, take this banknote to Huitong Bank and exchange it for silver. Go, go!"
Qin Mu pretended not to hear and took Gu Hanyan straight to the sedan chair, walking along the bank of Qinhuai River towards the West Water Gate. After Gu Hanyan got into the sedan chair, she seemed to want to say something, but she opened her mouth and swallowed it back.
Qin Mu took out a ten-string Daqin treasure note and asked her with a smile, "Have you seen this treasure note?"
"I haven't seen him." She quickly glanced at Qin Mu with her smoky eyes, then lowered her head, "But... but I've heard of him."
"Do you think I'm a bit of a rogue?"
"No...no."
"Relax a little. You are so hesitant when you speak. Oh, stick out your tongue so I can see it. Do you have a short tongue?"
This time, Gu Hanyan's head really dropped to her chest. Through her clothes, her breasts should be hemispherical in size. There were no padded bras these days, so the size and height were real and easy to judge.
Qin Mu couldn't bear to tease her anymore and asked softly, "What else do you want to buy?"
"I'm not buying it." This time she finally said a complete sentence.
Qin Mu put his arm around her delicate shoulders, sniffed her intoxicating fragrance and said with a smile, "We agreed to spend all this money. It's rare for me to have time to come out. Can you just accompany me to relax?"
When Gu Hanyan was embraced by him, her body suddenly tensed up, then slowly softened, and she replied softly: "I really don't have anything I want to buy. I will accompany the King of Qin to buy anything."
Qin Mu's considerate actions and calm tone made her originally uneasy heart feel warm.
In particular, his seemingly casual and intimate behavior unknowingly brought them closer, making Gu Hanyan soon feel that he was no longer so strange.
Nowadays, ladies of noble families rarely have the opportunity to go out for a stroll, but deep down, who doesn’t want to go out and take a look
It is even more precious to be brought out by her husband. This day is enough for her to remember for the rest of her life.
Qin Mu took her along the street, and from time to time he went into shops to buy some things. He stayed the longest in a calligraphy and painting shop called "Jinling Huayu";
For the first time ever, Gu Hanyan took the initiative to offer to buy two paintings, one was "Elegant Gathering at the Lanting Pavilion" and the other was "Snowy Night in the Lin Palace". Both paintings were signed "Zhang Hong".
It was said that Zhang Hong was from Suzhou and was a key figure in the Wu School of Painting. However, the two paintings together only sold for 40 strings of cash. Qin Mu bought them without blinking an eye.
In each store, Qin Mu encountered the same situation as he encountered in the Jinzhu store. The store owners were reluctant to accept banknotes, although they were afraid of the law and dared not refuse. But for the same product, if you said you would pay with banknotes, the price would be 5% higher.
In other words, the Qin Treasure Note had just been issued and it had already depreciated by 5%.
Qin Mu then took Liu Hanyan to Huitong Bank and saw that the bank was crowded with people, most of whom were holding banknotes to exchange for silver.
*******************
ps: There was a heavy rain at noon, with thunder and lightning. The Internet was cut off at home, so I could only drive my broken motorcycle in the rain to the Internet cafe to update. Brothers, please give me some monthly tickets and rewards since I am soaked!
.(To be continued..)
...