Chapter 18

Under the bright moon and amidst the faint fragrance,

"What are you asking?" Shimei looked up at Baishi.

The sunlight and shade were just perfect, softening Baishi's usually sharp gaze and giving him a gentler appearance.

"Did you see the jade hairpin?" Baishi, standing still, asked Shi Mei in a low voice. The distance was just right, allowing his slightly warm breath to brush gently past her nose.

Squinting slightly against the bright sun, Shi Mei's peach blossom eyes curved into half-moons, and her thin lips slightly upturned as if smiling. Baishi was reminded of the way Xiao Fuzi looked up at him that day outside the shop, a surprising similarity.

Unaware of Baishi's thoughts, Shi Mei continued looking up, replying, "Yes, I saw it. It was made of white jade."

Baishi gently pulled the black wooden box from Shi Mei's hand, his fingertips inadvertently brushing against the back of her hand, accompanied by a subtle flutter of his eyelashes.

Shi Mei was momentarily overwhelmed, unsure whether to look at Baishi's hand or continue meeting his gaze.

Baishi opened the box with one hand, extracting the jade hairpin and held it close to Shi Mei's nose, "Smell it."

As the hairpin neared, Shi Mei detected a faint, elegant fragrance. However, up close, the scent seemed to disappear.

Shi Mei recognized the stone from her recent reading in Truimei's library: Xiangyu, or fragrant jade.

Xiangyu can be both a jade and a medicinal material, classified into three grades based on its quality. The lowest grade is fragrant from afar but foul up close. The middle grade maintains the same scent regardless of distance. The highest quality Xiangyu, rare and precious, emits a pervasive fragrance from afar but seems ordinary at close range. This high-grade Xiangyu is ideal for jewelry, emitting a cool, subtle fragrance that adds an air of nobility.

"Is this Xiangyu?" Shi Mei asked softly.

Pleased with her knowledge, Baishi nodded, "Do you know its origin?"

Shi Mei hesitated, "Xiangyu is extremely rare, mostly relics from ancient times, rarely found in the modern world. However, any fragrant piece must be aged jade."

Baishi nodded in acknowledgment, storing the hairpin away, and inquired, "Can Xiangyu be used in making incense powder?"

Shi Mei paused, then shook her head, "That's difficult..."

Baishi waited patiently for her to elaborate.

"Jade is a hard stone that doesn't alter under fire," Shi Mei

Baishi nodded slightly after hearing Shi Mei's explanation, indicating he understood.

Then, Baishi fell silent, seemingly lost in thought, as they both stood close to each other.

After a quiet moment, Shi Mei asked him, "How is your friend's case progressing?"

Baishi raised his eyebrows slightly, looking somewhat disappointed as he shook his head, "Still no clues." He then gently guided Shi Mei towards a nearby stone table, gesturing for her to sit.

As Shi Mei walked over, the housekeeper appeared seemingly out of nowhere, serving tea for them.

Shi Mei's cheeks flushed, wondering if the housekeeper had been timing their conversation or just happened to be watching.

Holding his tea cup, Baishi said, "His seventh-day ritual just passed. Without finding the culprit, we can't give him peace. It's hard to explain."

Shi Mei felt a chill hearing these words from the jianghu, lifting her cup to sip the hot tea, "Hmm, good tea."

Baishi commented, "It's white tea from Anji. If you like it, I'll pack some for you to take home."

Shi Mei, holding the tea cup, nodded as she placed it on the stone table, "Yes, that would be nice."

Baishi smiled and continued sipping his tea, lost in his thoughts.

The two sat in silence until the housekeeper approached Baishi and whispered something in his ear.

Realizing she had been sitting for a while, Shi Mei said, "I should get going."

Baishi nodded, and as Shi Mei glanced at the box in his hand, she asked, "Can I take this with me for now? I'll see if I can discover anything useful to help you."

Baishi agreed, and Shi Mei took the box. As she reached the door, she returned, pulling out a brocade box from her embroidered pouch and handed it to Baishi.

Bai She, opening the package, found it contained several black pills, looking somewhat puzzled.

Shi Mei explained, "I made this based on the contents of your friend's sachet. It's designed to counteract that fragrance."

Baishi looked puzzled as Shi Mei elaborated, "I've added mint, skullcap, peony bark, Prunella, gardenia, and dandelion, along with dragon brain and musk to form dragon-phoenix tea balls. These ingredients counteract the hallucinogenic effects of the fragrance." She then produced a small silver pendant.

Bai She examined the item: a silver chain with a delicately crafted, hollow silver sphere that could be opened and closed. The sphere was intricately engraved with two entwining dragons.

"This is called a perfuming ball, designed to hold those scent pellets. One can last for two months," Shi Mei whispered. "It won't look bad on a man either..."

Bai She smiled slightly, murmuring a soft "Thank you."

Shi Mei, her cheeks flushed, held the tea leaves the butler had prepared for her and left. As she exited, she clumsily knocked over a flowerpot and hurried away.

Bai She watched her leave until she was out of sight, then lowered his gaze to the box of spices and the perfuming ball in his hand.

A while later, the butler returned, informing, "Master, Miss Chen has returned to the Fragrance House. The second master is waiting in the front hall."

Bai She composed himself, placed a scent pellet inside the perfuming ball, and carefully attached it to his knife's handle. The silver knife matched the silver perfuming ball perfectly. He sniffed it, detecting no strong fragrance, and felt satisfied. Placing the silk box in his robe, he headed to the front hall.

Shi Mei, holding the tea leaves, returned to the Fragrance House. Xiaohui came up to meet her, asking, "Sister Mei, did you go out for the whole afternoon just for this?"

Shi Mei muttered, "Oh, I had some tea for a while."

"The tea from Bai Residence must be good," remarked Hongye and Zan Yu, having finished their tasks, as they walked back.

Shi Mei looked around, handed the tea leaves to Xiaohui with a smile, and asked, "Do we have anything to eat? I'm hungry."

"I bought big buns from Jiangnan Chun," said Hongye, as Zhong Bo brought steaming, soft, and fluffy buns. Each person got one, and Xiaohui brewed a pot of tea with the leaves Shi Mei brought back. They ate buns while sipping tea.

Zan Yu nodded in agreement, "Yes, it's really good tea."

Shi Mei asked them, "How's the shop coming along?"

"Almost ready, we can open in a couple of days," replied Hong Ye, "but we're still short on some items."

After a moment of thought, Shi Mei suggested, "Let's wait another half a month to open, shall we?"

Zan Yue agreed, "That's true. We still need quite a few things, it's not just about having the fragrances."

"Are you still thinking about helping Baishi with that case?" Hong Ye asked Shi Mei, noting her distraction. "You seem preoccupied."

Shi Mei nodded, "I owe him for helping me with my divorce. I don't want to be indebted to him."

Hong Ye and Zan Yue exchanged glances and teased, "Haven't you already helped him find some clues? Aren't you worried your debt might keep increasing instead?"

Shi Mei blushed and glared at them, provoking laughter from everyone.

After finishing the buns, the trio washed up and lit colorful lanterns in the evening, gathering in the courtyard to enjoy the cool breeze.

Little Fu Zi, comfortably lounging on a stone bench, groomed its belly fur while Shi Mei scratched its back with a peachwood scratcher, eliciting contented purrs as it rubbed against the table.

Hong Ye practiced her swordplay under a peach tree in the courtyard.

Zan Yue, also lively and a daughter of a noble house, joined Hong Ye with a peachwood sword, eagerly learning from her.

The maids nearby engaged in various activities, including playing chess, drawing, and practicing calligraphy, all amid cheerful banter.

Shi Mei, absent-mindedly playing with Little Fu Zi, was asked by Xiang Er, "What are you thinking about, Sister Mei?"

"Hmm…" Shi Mei shook her head, handing the scratcher to Xiang Er before standing up, "I need to go to the fragrance workshop." She then hurried off.

Xiang Er, puzzled, turned to Zan Yue, who had just returned with her sword, "What's up with Sister Mei?"

Zan Yue, sipping her tea, replied, "Ah, this white tea really has a unique taste, it's got Mei completely absorbed."

Arriving at the fragrance workshop, Shi Mei sat down with an embroidery hoop and pulled out several books from a box.

There were too many books left by Truemei, many of which Shi Mei hadn't yet finished. Perhaps completing them might yield some new insights.

Flipping through the pages and examining the white jade hairpin, Shi Mei read until late into the night, finally dozing off as sleep overtook her. Xiang Er then helped her back to her room.

The next day, Shi Mei woke up early, sitting in bed and staring at the jade hairpin, her brows slightly furrowed.

"Sister Mei?" Xiang Er approached, "You've been staring at it for half an hour since you woke up."

"Hmm," Shi Mei nodded, remaining silent.

"Today's the 15th, we need to visit the Empress Dowager to pay respects," Xiang Er said, taking out fine garments from the wardrobe to dress Shi Mei.

Suddenly, Shi Mei looked up and asked, "Xiang Er, did you dream last night?"

Startled, Xiang Er turned and asked after a moment, "Sister Mei, did I talk or shout in my sleep?"

Shi Mei pressed, "Did you really have a dream?"

"Yes!" Xiang Er nodded, "A very frightening dream."

"What dream?" Shi Mei prodded.

"Hmm…" Xiang Er pondered, "I saw many people moving around, just shadows without faces, all blurred, it felt chillingly cold."

Shi Mei, pondering, asked, "Yesterday during the day, did you see a lot of people, walking back and forth as if in a dream?"

Xiaohui, startled, then recalled, "Oh yes, now that you mention it, it did seem like that."

Sighing, Shi Mei realized her suspicion was correct. She had seen a white figure moving back and forth in her dream the previous night. Initially frightened, she later thought the figure resembled Bai She. On waking, she remembered spending the day with Bai She and thought it was a case of 'daytime thoughts leading to nighttime dreams'.

After asking Xiaohui, Shi Mei understood that both she and Xiaohui had seen illusions in their dreams, involving people they had seen during the day.

Shi Mei immediately asked Xiaohui to inquire with others, and Xiaohui reported that everyone else had slept soundly.

Looking at the white jade hairpin she always kept by her pillow, Shi Mei realized that only she and Xiaohui, who slept in her room, smelled the fragrance of the jade, causing their strange dreams.

Shi Mei got out of bed and rushed to the fragrance workshop, recalling a record about fragrances and dreams.

Finding Chen Ruomei's notes, Shi Mei searched them thoroughly. Xiaohui hurried her, saying, "Sister Mei, we're running late. Let's look at it after returning from the palace."

Hurriedly changing, Shi Mei took the notes with her in the carriage, reading them on the way to the palace with Xiaohui.

As the carriage stopped at the palace gate, Shi Mei gleaned useful clues from the notes, planning to consult Bai She upon her return.

At that moment, the carriage curtain was lifted, and Xiaosi said, "Miss, there seems to be a banquet in the palace today. We can't take the carriage inside; we'll have to walk."

Shi Mei nodded, peeking outside the carriage, noticing several carriages parked in front of the palace gate.

The Empress Dowager's chief eunuch had already come out to greet her, saying to Shi Mei as she alighted, "Ah, Princess, you're finally here. You haven't visited the palace in half a month; the Empress Dowager has missed you terribly."

Shi Mei, feeling a bit guilty, replied, "Eunuch Liu, I've been busy preparing for the shop these past few days. How is Mother doing?"

"She's well, just missing you," said Eunuch Liu, leading Shi Mei inside.

Shi Mei glanced around at the bustling activity in the palace and asked, "Eunuch Liu, why are there so many people here?"

"Oh," Eunuch Liu nodded with a smile, "The old tribal king of the northwest recently passed away. The new tribal king, Chahak, is here today to receive his official appointment from the Emperor."

Shi Mei couldn't help but laugh, exchanging a look with Xiang Er, finding the name quite odd.

Seeing their amusement, Eunuch Liu added, "You shouldn't laugh, really. There are many unusual names in the tribal states. Just the other day, I heard of one called Chak Ala."

This made Shi Mei and Xiang Er laugh even harder.

As they continued forward, laughing, they heard Eunuch Liu greet someone, "Oh, Your Highness."

Looking up, Shi Mei and Xiang Er saw several people approaching, led by Qin Xiang Lian, the Fourth Prince.