Chapter 62: The Landlady Is Her

An Chunfeng curved the corners of her lips. Having only spent a few days together, Little Douzi had already grown particularly fond of her.

They had agreed yesterday that he would stay home for a day, yet barely had a single night passed before he was back again.

Beside him, however, Little Linzi wore a dark, frowning expression as he glared fiercely at his younger brother. This unruly fellow had been told not to disturb Mistress An unless there was a matter, yet he always found an excuse to come.

Even when chased out, he would wait in the alley, making it impossible to guard against him.

"Little Douzi, halt!" Seeing that Little Douzi still intended to follow An Chunfeng into the courtyard, Little Linzi immediately stepped forward to block his path.

Fearing capture by his older brother, Little Douzi scurried around An Chunfeng, as nimble and slippery as a pea: "Eldest Brother, I'm just going to say a few words to Mistress An and then I'll leave!"

"No way. This is simply lacking manners. Get back home!" Little Linzi refused to believe him.

An Chunfeng looked on with a smiling gaze at the playful bickering between the brothers.

No matter how spry Little Douzi was, he still could not outrun a youth with long legs and arms. After barely two rounds, he was caught by Little Linzi.

Just as Little Linzi was about to drag Little Douzi away, the boy immediately wailed and flourished a lake-blue sachet in his hand: "Mistress An, Elder Sister Xue'er asked me to bring this over! Truly, I'll just deliver this sachet and leave right away."

"Little Linzi, let him enter the courtyard!" An Chunfeng spoke up. She had remained silent until now precisely to test whether Little Douzi was lying.

Whether the child came to her for novelty or because she had bought him treats, she could understand it, but he must not lie.

Now, seeing Little Douzi produce a sachet and claim it was made by Rong Xue, she decided to let him in.

Granted permission, Little Douzi immediately tilted his head, pursed his lips in grievance toward Little Linzi, and said, "Eldest Brother, why won't you believe me? Although I talk a lot, I have never lied to you. It really was Elder Sister Xue'er who sent me."

Realizing he had wronged his brother, Little Linzi chided angrily, "Who told you to come running to Mistress An's place every single day? If Mistress An doesn't scold you, I will. You're nothing but an unruly nuisance!"

From entering the courtyard until the door was shut, the brothers kept up their bickering.

Since moving into Pear Blossom Alley, aside from a few unpleasant encounters, this courtyard was filled with vitality for the very first time. An Chunfeng even felt a growing anticipation for meeting Tang Mu, wondering if her six-year-old son would be just as joyful.

Once An Chunfeng had seated herself properly in the parlor, Little Douzi presented the sachet: "Mistress An, this is a scent pouch made by Elder Sister Xue'er, so it will be convenient for you to fill it with chrysanthemums and dogwood for the Double Ninth Festival."

"Ah! Is it time for the Double Ninth Festival already? Isn't it still early?"

Aside from visiting Qiushui, An Chunfeng had spent these past few days solely at home taking medicinal treatments and weaving lace ribbons. Shut off from the world, she had completely lost track of the seasonal festivals.

Little Douzi blinked. "It's not early. There is half a month left until the Double Ninth Festival, and Mistress An can dry petals early to make scent pouches.

Elder Sister Xue'er said this is to thank Mistress An for the cloth you gave her.

She wants to make more sachets and fill them with herbs so that when the Double Ninth Festival arrives, we can sell them at a high price."

An Chunfeng smiled faintly and said, "Very well, I accept this sachet. Go to the kitchen and have your older brother dish out some food for you!"

Little Douzi shook his head vigorously. "No. Elder Sister Xue'er said I could only come here to deliver the scent pouch, and once it's delivered, I must hurry right back so as not to trouble Mistress An."

With that, he gave a proper bow and withdrew from the parlor.

Yet as he left, he took a detour to the kitchen, made a funny face at the person inside, and waited until Little Linzi chased after him feigning a blow before swaggering openly out the courtyard gate!

An Chunfeng held the scent pouch and turned it over to inspect it from all sides.

The scent pouch made by Rong Xue was octagonal, its double-layered silk crafted from scraps she had begged from the fabric shop. Through Rong Xue's deft stitching, they formed a delicate little pouch.

With no embroidery, the scent pouch was as plain and pure as a tranquil lake, perfectly suited for An Chunfeng's status as a widow.

The ancients believed that wearing chrysanthemums on one's arm on the Double Ninth Festival, or carrying dogwood inside a scent pouch close to one's body, could ward off disaster and misfortune.

Generally, the scent pouches used by individuals were made by family members or exchanged as gifts.

If there truly was no one in one's household skilled in needlework, they could also be purchased on the street.

Rong Xue had sent it so early, likely fearing her thoughtful gesture would be preempted by others.

An Chunfeng thought very well of Rong Xue's idea to use fabric scraps to make scent pouches to sell for money during the Double Ninth Festival.

Truly, children of the poor mature early. Rong Xue was eleven years old and had a physical disability, yet she was doing her best to help lighten the burden on her older and younger brothers.

The fact that she still remembered to send the very first sachet to her showed that she was also a person of deep sentiment and loyalty.

In the afternoon, at the Wanfu Agency:

Nanny Yu had long been waiting in the tea room, and the plump head steward was extremely courteous: "Nanny, the people below have already notified Mistress An, and she has agreed to attend the appointment on time."

By this time, Nanny Yu had removed her veil. Her face lacked the humility and pity she had shown outside the medical clinic, replaced instead by a cold and aloof detachment.

"Good, thank you for your trouble, Head Steward!"

As the landlord holding the most tenants under the Wanfu Agency, Nanny Yu was fully qualified to sit while the head steward made his report.

Knowing that Nanny Yu harbored dissatisfaction, the head steward gave a bitter smile and lowered his voice. "Nanny, I was well aware that Xiao Lin went to work at Pear Blossom Alley. I even instructed the agency not to pursue the matter, figuring that since he was an unregistered person without official status, we would let him be.

After all, the agency has so many staff members to feed, and Xiao Lin lacks competence; we cannot simply keep idle hands."

He could not understand why the replacement of an unregistered odd-job laborer by the agency had caught Nanny Yu's attention, prompting her to make a special inquiry.

The head steward knew that even after his explanation, Nanny Yu would offer no reply.

Sure enough, Nanny Yu lowered her gaze. "Very well. This old woman requires some peace and quiet; Head Steward, attend to your own business. When Mistress An arrives, guide her straight here!"

Acknowleging the command, the head steward turned and walked out, considerately closing the door behind him.

Once he was gone, Nanny Yu's expression softened. She closed her eyes slightly, twirled the prayer beads in her hand, and waited in tranquility.

As time passed, the door was finally knocked upon, followed by the head steward's voice from outside: "Nanny, Mistress An has arrived!"

Nanny Yu opened her eyes as An Chunfeng stepped into the room.

"Nanny... Yu? It's you!"

Though the matron before her no longer wore a veil, An Chunfeng recognized her at a single glance.

Her inner suspicions vanished instantly, replaced by curiosity: Was Nanny Yu here to collect her rent?

Today, Nanny Yu wore simple, plain-colored lined garments, her hair styled into a drooping bun, pinned with a single dark, lustrous wooden hairpin.

Her skin was fair, her nose refined, her brows lightly brushed with powder, her lips tinted with a faint stain, and the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes faintly visible.

There was not a trace of cosmetics about her, and her entire aura seemed as weightless as a drifting autumn leaf. Had Qiushui not mentioned her age, one would never have guessed she was over forty.

An Chunfeng already knew that the row of houses she rented belonged to the Jiaofangsi (Music Bureau), but she had never expected that the person waiting for her here would be none other than the Jade Guanyin who had knelt and begged for medicine that day.

"Mistress An, please forgive this old woman for meeting you in this manner. My status is truly too humble to pay a visit in person!" Seeing the astonishment on An Chunfeng's face, Nanny Yu smiled and nodded, confirming that she had not mistaken her identity.

"Mistress An, please take a seat! Please have some tea!"

Tea sets were arranged on the table, and Nanny Yu personally poured a cup for her.

"You are too kind, Nanny!" An Chunfeng was somewhat flattered.

Having spent three months with Qiushui, the two had never pried into each other's personal affairs.

That very morning, anticipating that she might have to deal with people from the Jiaofangsi in the afternoon, An Chunfeng had specifically inquired about the former personnel of the bureau.

Qiushui had made no secret of it, telling her everything she knew, naturally focusing primarily on Nanny Yu.