Chapter 48: Little Lin's Job Hunt

When An Chunfeng first arrived in the Great Liang Dynasty, her initial thought was to find a medical clinic where she could work part-time while studying.

From the memories of the original body, she learned that her predecessor's father was an itinerant physician who knew some unique secret remedies, and her mother was a midwife who delivered babies.

This left An Chunfeng quite speechless; the original body clearly possessed some obstetric knowledge, yet she had managed to put herself into a difficult labor and nearly died from it.

It was hard to say how much of this was due to sheer negligence and how much was deliberate.

In truth, An Chunfeng herself knew a bit of medicine, but that was limited to some acupuncture, massage, and theoretical knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine she had self-studied in modern times to regulate her own health. She had very little understanding of traditional herbal medicine.

Now that her daily life was basically stable, she planned to find a good physician to prescribe medicine and treat her sleep disorder.

As a local, Qiushui would surely know where to inquire about medical clinics.

Having made up her mind, An Chunfeng did not linger long at home. She tidied herself up and went out.

The moment she opened the door, her expression suddenly sank. There was a pole with two buckets of water placed at her doorstep, along with Qiu Rong, who was looking at her timidly.

"An, An Mistress, this is the cleanest, the cleanest well water I drew this morning... the very first load!"

"Qiu Rong, I said yesterday that you people are not to bring this matter up again, nor are you to come and disturb me. If there is a next time, I will go to the Jingzhao Prefecture office to report you for harassment!" An Chunfeng said coldly.

A weak resolution brings endless trouble; she did not want any further association with the Qiu family whatsoever.

Had she not been delayed in sleeping yesterday because of Mrs. Qiu, she would not be suffering from this splitting headache right now.

Carrying his water buckets, Qiu Rong left crestfallen.

From Qiushui, An Chunfeng learned of an excellent physician located in the North City, but there were far too many patients there, and seeing the doctor depended on "fate"—translated to the Great Liang Dynasty, that naturally meant "silver coins."

Consultations were only held in the morning, and it was best to go early to queue up and wait. The medicine was also expensive, costing at least one tael of silver per dose.

An Chunfeng was thrilled to hear this; it was normal for a specialist physician with great skill to have a bit of temper.

As long as she could get better, never mind queuing and paying high fees, she would gladly wait for ten days or half a month.

This was the world of traditional Chinese medicine, not a market dominated by Western medicine. Surely every physician here was a living Hua Tuo, and their pulse-taking far exceeded instrumental examinations.

Having inquired about the location of the clinic, An Chunfeng went to check on the custom-made autumn clothes.

When she left the Tang family estate, she had only brought two thin sets of summer clothing. With autumn approaching and mornings and evenings turning slightly cool, she needed to add warmer garments.

As it was the changing of the seasons, going to a ready-made garment shop would yield nothing of good quality, so Qiushui had spared a needlework woman from her own shop to make clothes for her.

An Chunfeng was now living as a widow, so bright and flashy fabrics were out of the question; she could only wear plain and simple cotton and linen coarse clothes.

While the fabric could be rough, the tailoring and stitching could not be casual. Since An Chunfeng could not wear gold and silver jewelry for matching accessories, nor could she embroider vibrant flowers and grasses on her skirts and dresses.

Aside from two sets of completely unembroidered plain garments, An Chunfeng had her own pattern designs for the other clothes—not the oversized, trendy flowers popular in the capital, but a cluster of vines winding around the neckline.

Delicate purple wisteria vines extended from the overlapping front lapels down to the waist, then spread out across the hem of the skirt, forming winding branches on coarse cloth that concealed a bold flair within their plainness.

Another set of garments also featured wisteria, though it consisted only of a few scattered, falling flower petals.

This unique pattern left Qiushui green with envy: Tsk, tsk, tsk, this Mistress An truly produces masterpieces effortlessly.

The business with the Hundred Flowers Pavilion had already begun, and several needlework maids were spinning around in a flurry of activity.

Everything from the cutting of the clothes to the embroidery patterns had been drawn by An Chunfeng. Seeing this new pattern, her immediate reaction was to use it on halter-neck dresses, but An Chunfeng stopped her: "Don't use wisteria anymore; I will draw other patterns for those."

This was the color she loved, giving off a mysterious aura, and she wanted to keep it for herself.

As for the clothing and accessories used by the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, she had already planned them out. Aside from halter-neck nightgowns, she was prepared to replicate whatever modern nightclub girls wore.

Because seeing the doctor required queuing up for an appointment early in the morning, An Chunfeng returned to Pear Blossom Alley after inspecting the autumn clothes.

Qiushui had said the clinic was in the North City and not too far away, but not trusting her own sense of direction, she decided to go scout out the route that very day.

Back in Pear Blossom Alley, someone was waiting for her at the door once again—it was Little Linzi from the brokerage agency, whom she hadn't seen in a few days.

Little Linzi was still wearing a half-sleeved linen shirt. At the moment, the sun was beating down on him, causing beads of sweat to form on his temples. Seeing An Chunfeng returning with a food box, he eagerly stepped forward to take it: "Good day, Elder Mistress!"

An Chunfeng handed the food box over for him to help carry, pulled out her key to open the door, and asked casually, "Is there something going on at the brokerage agency? Come inside and talk!"

Upon entering the courtyard, Little Linzi stood rigidly in front of the spirit wall. An Chunfeng told him to place the food box on the table under the veranda and added, "Little Linzi, go wash your hands in the kitchen, and bring a set of bowls and chopsticks to eat with me!"

She had a headache today and her appetite wasn't very good, so she had simply bought some pancakes and dumplings from a snack shop. Since it was already noon, she figured she might as well let Little Linzi eat with her.

Little Linzi shook his head hastily and stepped back: "You are too kind, Elder Mistress, I cannot intrude upon you."

"Oh! Does the brokerage agency have rules against that?" An Chunfeng did not force the issue and sat down at the table by herself.

After hesitating for a moment, Little Linzi said, "I have been dismissed by the brokerage agency!"

"Ah! What happened? Then why have you come here?" An Chunfeng put down the already opened food box and asked with some surprise.

She had witnessed Little Linzi's situation at the agency and advised him to change jobs. Just a few days ago, he had sworn up and down that he would persevere; how had he gotten fired again?

Bullying newcomers was common in every industry, and it was hard for beginners to get ahead. Honest kids like Little Linzi were even more likely to suffer grievances.

Lifting his chest and summoning his courage, Little Linzi said, "Third Master said I am slow-tongued, dull-witted, and too upright, so I'm unsuited for work at the brokerage agency.

A couple of days ago, Elder Mistress wanted to hire someone to keep watch at the door. I was wondering if you might have a suitable candidate in mind. If Elder Mistress doesn't mind, I am willing to come work for you!"

This amounted to poaching his former master's clients. Saying it made his face turn beet red. If his family hadn't been desperately short of money and food, he would never have done something against the rules.

"You want to come work for me? Tell me your expected wages first, and how much work you can do. I do not take in lazy people or loose-lipped gossips here." An Chunfeng calculated slightly in her mind and felt that keeping Little Linzi might not be a bad idea, provided she got clear on the reasons.

Earlier, she had wanted to hire someone to keep watch, but after seeing those middle-aged maidservants at the agency, the idea had faded.

Trying to harmonize and get along with a deeply scheming stranger while accommodating her habit of sleeping during the day felt like a difficult task.

However, Little Linzi was honest and not overly stubborn; it was merely a young man's rustic simplicity that made him feel out of place in a venue like the brokerage agency. Moreover, he was quite familiar with the streets of the capital, making him useful to keep around as an errand runner.

Little Linzi quickly explained, "Previously, I did odd jobs at the agency—sweeping various courtyards, repairing houses, and even taking clients to view properties when the agency was too busy. The pay was two hundred wen a month... only, I need to go home for one hour every day."

He had worked as a handyman at the agency, rushing around busily every day, but because of his youth, no matter how much he did, he was still treated as a junior laborer.

"Go home for one hour? Why?" There was no issue with his previous duties, and the wage was surprisingly low, but hearing this last part made An Chunfeng frown.

She had no objection to a one-hour daily break, but with this requirement to go home, Little Linzi's employment prospects would narrow considerably. No employer would let a worker casually leave for home, and working as a personal valet or attendant would not allow for daily absences from duty.