Chapter 58
Support the site + read ad-free for just 12 coins a chapter.
Shen You understood very little about ancient fabrics and textiles.
Silk, satin, damask, and brocade each had numerous subcategories beneath them, and only professionals could distinguish between the different types.
The fire-proof cloth was even more mysterious since it differed from what modern books described.
Truth be told, the fabric was breathtakingly beautiful, so it was no wonder that even the emperor treasured it as a precious item.
“How did you manage to bring this out from the palace?” Shen You asked with curiosity.
Wen Zhi spoke with casual indifference, as if the matter was perfectly natural. “I asked the old emperor for it.”
Shen You fell silent. Even the crown prince couldn’t obtain such an item, yet the emperor would give it to someone else?
Regardless of how it happened, the item was now in her hands. She walked to the counter and began setting up the access permissions carefully.
“There, it’s ready. Would you like to go outside and test it? Even when the shop is closed, you can still enter the courtyard.” She said with anticipation gleaming in her eyes.
Wen Zhi chuckled softly when he saw her expectant expression. She was probably curious about how the access permissions would work. It appeared that he was the first person to receive fixed visitor privileges.
This realization made the corners of Wen Zhi’s lips curve upward even more.
He was wearing white robes today, his black hair secured with a jade crown. The hem of his garments shimmered with a cold, ethereal light under the moonlight, giving him the aura of an ancient high-ranking minister. And when he smiled, he became even more enchanting and captivating.
Shen You found herself stealing a few extra glances at him.
“Your official position in Great Qi must be quite high, right? If it’s inconvenient to say, then never mind.” She ventured.
“There’s nothing inconvenient about it.” Wen Zhi smiled. “I suppose I’m still considered the National Preceptor.”
Shen You drew in a sharp breath. Sure enough, it was just as she had suspected. He held a position of great authority.
“I have one small question. Is your identity in the modern world legal?” She asked carefully.
Wen Zhi paused for several seconds. What kind of strange question was this? “Where exactly do I look like some kind of outlaw?”
“No, I mean this fabric needs to be appraised by someone, but its origin…” She trailed off.
Wen Zhi nodded slightly. “It’s fine. You can say it came from me.”
Shen You didn’t know whether it was her imagination or not, but she felt that he seemed somewhat pleased when he said those words.
After Wen Zhi left the shop, Shen You locked the door but didn’t continue working on antique restoration.
That night, she lay in bed until dawn, not only completely unable to sleep but feeling incredibly energetic and alert.
Since she couldn’t sleep at all, she got up in the middle of the night to work, focusing intently on restoring antiques until eleven in the morning. Her progress increased rapidly, yet she still didn’t want to sleep nor did she feel tired.
She was like someone who had been injected with stimulants, and she had never loved work this much before.
Only then did she understand what Wen Zhi had meant the previous day. The ginseng that was several hundred years old had a powerful delayed effect, which explained why it was so valuable.
She no longer dared to consume any more of it.
While she was working overtime due to her inability to sleep, Luo Ziya also returned to the medicine shop with others in tow. Liu Zheng came personally, and knowing that Shopkeeper Shen had sent someone to his residence, he dared not delay.
The medicine shop had already been sealed with official notices. Luo Ziya looked at this scene with both anger and anxiety.
Clearly, the problem wasn’t with her family’s medicine shop, and the officials had said just two days earlier that they would investigate the matter thoroughly.
Several people who had received help from the medicine shop were speaking favorably on their behalf, while others stood outside the county office voicing accusations.
“The last time I was ill, the medicine they prescribed for me was expensive, and it took more than twenty days to cure me. I think they deliberately give patients expensive medicines that don’t cure their illnesses.”
“Five days ago, when my mother was critically ill, I knelt here begging them to come treat her, but they refused to provide medical care. This is truly divine retribution!”
“This is unconscionable! They talk about having the heart of a parent as a physician, but such harmful medicine shops should be shut down!”
Luo Ziya became furious and couldn’t restrain herself from stepping forward to argue.
“Your family was in financial difficulty and couldn’t even pay the consultation fee, yet my grandfather went to your house late at night to treat your mother without charging a single coin. Your mother was already on her deathbed, and even the best medicine would only keep her suffering like a living corpse in bed. That’s why grandfather advised you not to waste money buying medicine! How can you spread such lies!”
When that man saw Luo Ziya, his eyes showed some guilt, but he continued shouting that the doctor had looked down on his family’s poverty and claimed that his mother could have been saved but was told she couldn’t be.
However, the surrounding people weren’t fools. Seeing his hesitation, they guessed the truth and naturally stopped supporting his claims.
The family involved in the incident was still crying, and the gray-haired old man was pushed down. The medicine shop’s assistant quickly went over to help him up.
In the crowd, a burly man with small eyes like soybeans was filled with malicious glee.
The old fool had refused when he demanded that Luo Ziya, that disobedient daughter, be handed over to him.
What did women need to learn medicine for? They should obediently get married instead!
Once the old man was imprisoned, let’s see how he could continue to obstruct his plans.
However, just when the verdict should have been pronounced, someone suddenly whispered something in the county magistrate’s ear. The official then hurriedly walked down and bowed respectfully to a young man.
Not only were the troublemakers beaten with wooden boards, but when the burly man saw that things were going badly and tried to escape, he was seized by two men on either side and thrown before the court.
The county magistrate no longer dared to show favoritism.
Those who had made false accusations were dealt with according to the law, and he even helped Luo Ziya sever family ties. Throughout the entire process, he was drenched in cold sweat as he watched the person sitting nearby drinking tea.
Liu Zheng held a higher official rank than him, and everyone knew that Liu Zheng was the crown prince’s man.
If he had known earlier that the medicine shop had such powerful backing, nothing could have made him accept bribes.
Luo Ziya supported her elderly grandfather and, after bowing to Liu Zheng, left the county office.
“Ziya, what’s going on? How do you know a noble from the capital?” The old man asked with concern.
“A young lady helped us. She’s the shopkeeper who kindly bought my hairpin.” Luo Ziya answered quietly, not mentioning the strange aspects of that shop.
“Where is she? We should prepare some gifts to visit her.” The old man coughed twice. The other party was their family’s benefactor who had helped them twice, so they should visit to express their gratitude.
Luo Ziya pressed her lips together and thought of an excuse. “She has already left this place and should have reached the capital by now.”
Meanwhile, Shen You was searching through her phone contacts, considering whom to ask to examine the fire-proof cloth. She didn’t personally know anyone who specialized in research on ancient silk textiles and fabrics. There were none in the antique street either.
The ancient clothing available in the market was mostly from the Qing Dynasty, while earlier pieces were almost entirely housed in museums, but Old Master Xu and Professor Li could certainly find the right people.
After thinking it over, she called Xu Jiayan. And hearing that there was something that even she couldn’t appraise accurately, he was somewhat surprised but more curious about what it could possibly be.
Soon, he gave Shen You a reply, arranging to meet that afternoon at a private tea house.
Shen You looked at the address he sent, packed up her things, and left with the fire-proof cloth.
This tea house was located beside South Lake, where the auction had been held previously.
The environment and service were impeccable, and the prices were equally impressive. Even the cheapest tea service cost three digits.
Shen You arrived earliest since it would be rude to be late when she had asked these experts to help with appraisal.
Before long, Xu Jiayan and Professor Li arrived, followed by Old Master Xu who had rushed over from home.
Old Master Xu was clearly a regular customer here, because the moment he entered, the tea house manager came out personally to receive him. After the tea was served and only the four of them remained in the private room, Old Master Xu smiled and spoke.
“When Jiayan called me, I couldn’t wait to see what it was.” Anything that required both him and Professor Li to be specially invited must be no ordinary item.
“I can’t determine its value either. I’d hate for it to be some rare object…” Shen You looked troubled.
“Child, if Old Xu and I can’t appraise it accurately, we’ll just consider this an outing for tea. There’s no loss, and we certainly won’t blame you.” Professor Li said kindly with a smile.
Today, with him present, even if they made a mistake, he would take responsibility.