Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Bianjing, a lane where the poor lived, named Carbon Alley.

A family stood crying at their doorway.

"My child! You're finally home!"

A woman wailed, slapping her thighs with both hands, nearly losing her balance.

"Damned kidnappers!"

A man wearing a short ru and straw sandals had tears and snot streaming down his face but still remembered to support his wife.

Ye Zhan, who was surrounded by them, was also wiping her tears.

She was originally an orphan and had worked hard to become a master chef. She had an accident while searching for ingredients and traveled through time.

After the time travel, she became a maid in a wealthy family and had only just gotten used to the environment.

Unexpectedly, two days ago, she received the news that she had actually been kidnapped!

The kidnapper, who had mistakenly abducted the eldest princess's daughter, was caught and revealed many old crimes. She was one of the victims.

Just then, she heard that the Ye family had sold all their assets and never stopped searching for their daughter over the years. Now that they were reunited, they hugged her and cried. As an orphan, Ye Zhan was deeply touched.

When she arrived here, the original body had already succumbed to illness. Thinking of their separation and her own lack of family, tears welled up in her eyes.

"Thank you, officers!"

The birth mother suddenly remembered something while crying and quickly got up to pour water.

"We’ve been neglectful of you. Let me make some tea for you both."

The two officers waved their hands. "It's inconvenient to trouble you. We need to follow our superior's orders."

Only then did they notice a young man standing like a pagoda not far away.

He was dressed in a red and gold floral shirt, with iron armor over it.

In the sunlight, the silver armor reflected like a thousand frosty points. A bright red belt accentuated his slim waist, broad shoulders, and narrow hips.

Ye Zhan praised in her heart, "What a lively young man!"

Seeing everyone looking over, the young man nodded politely.

"We from the Jinwu Guard are assisting in handling the case, not considered superiors. Please feel free."

Ye Zhan thought in her heart. Her experience as a maid in a wealthy household gave her some understanding. She knew that the Jinwu Guard was the imperial bodyguard.

It seemed they were sent because the small county princess went missing, and the emperor’s personal guards were tasked with finding her.

The birth mother, Mi Fengniang, didn’t care about that. She first praised, "Officer, what a presence."

She then served Liu’an tea to the guests and called out to her husband to buy lychee paste and watermelon pears from the market.

"Please, don't trouble yourselves," the Jinwu Guard interrupted Mi Fengniang. "We’re on duty and can’t stay long."

With a look, he indicated that they were to depart.

Mi Fengniang hurriedly tugged at her husband.

The two enthusiastically saw them off: "You officers are our saviors! If you pass by in the future, please do us the honor of stopping by."

In the midst of her busyness, Mi Fengniang didn't forget to drum up business: "I don't know if you three are married? I'm one of the top matchmakers on this street."

After saying that, she slapped her thigh: "I'm being foolish, officials like you wouldn't need a matchmaker like me for matrimonial affairs, it would be the high-ranking matchmakers in purple jackets who handle that."

Later, Ye Zhan learned that matchmakers in the Song dynasty were also ranked,

Matchmakers like her mother, who only carried a sunshade and wore a skirt, were at the lowest level, while the high-ranking matchmakers in purple jackets were the ones who handled matrimonial affairs for officials.

Her compliments hit the mark perfectly,

The officers laughed, clearly pleased,

Although they hadn't planned to say much, they added a bit more: "The kidnapper has been apprehended, and the eldest princess is overjoyed to have found the young county master. In a few days, there will be a prayer ceremony at the Great National Temple, and they will be giving away money. If you wait by the mansion gates, you might get some reward money."

Ye Dafu and Mi Fengniang smiled even more brightly.

They bowed and saw the officers off before pulling their daughter inside: "My child, come in quickly."

Only then did Ye Zhan get a clear look at her new home.

The house had only one brick wall; the rest were made of wood.

It was obviously an illegally constructed lean-to built against someone else's brick wall,

You had to duck to avoid hitting your head on the low doorway,

Inside, the furniture was even more dilapidated:

A red-lacquered table missing a leg and a pitted wooden stool,

A daybed with chipped fretwork, picked up from who knows where, served as a bed.

A coarse hemp curtain hung from the rafters, dividing the space between men and women.

It was more like picked-up junk rather than furniture.

Ye Dafu uneasily rubbed his hands: "This... it's not as good as other people's homes."

Mi Fengniang also glanced at her daughter's expression, her face full of apprehension.

Ye Zhan felt a bit of a sting in her nose; despite their shrewdness, her parents were anxious about whether she would approve.

So she forced a smile: "Father, Mother, the place is fine, and I really like it."

The two elders breathed a sigh of relief and pulled their daughter's hand, asking her to sit:

"We were afraid you wouldn't be accustomed."

Ye Zhan put down a paper package of snacks she had been carrying and opened it to offer: "I made these snacks in the manor’s kitchen before coming here. Please try them, Mom and Dad. Consider it my way of making up for lost time."

Their eyes filled with tears as they took the snacks from their daughter’s hands and tasted them: "Such a sensible child, even if you hadn't made them well—"

The second "well" hadn't even been spoken before they both fell silent:

Wow, how fragrant!

Mi Fengniang picked a delicate pink pastry shaped like a peony flower. As she ate, the snow-white crispy layers fell apart in her mouth, melting instantly.

Its cloud-like softness was endlessly enjoyable, letting the pastry's flavor shine through.

The filling was smooth mashed peas, a light yellow with no grit. It must have been finely strained and stirred many times over. The sweetness was mixed with a faint fragrance of rose.

Mi Fengniang glanced at the other pastries. The filling exposed in the peony flower was light pink, likely a mix of mashed peas and rose petal filling. The rose scent cut through the sweetness, making the pastry refreshingly sweet without being too rich.

Ye Dafu chose another type: a pastry with a golden-brown crispy crust, topped with a red dot.

As he ate, the outer golden-brown crispy layers immediately unfolded, revealing the freshness inside.

Curious, he examined the inside of his bite—beneath the soft outer layer were two fillings, one golden yellow and another loose, sawdust-like substance.

Worried he might find it unfamiliar, Ye Zhan explained to her father, "The golden yellow part is salted egg yolk, and the loose part is pork floss I made."

Ducks were plentiful in Bianjing’s waterways, so salted egg yolk wasn’t uncommon. But what was this pork floss? Not one to ponder much, Ye Dafu took a bite.

The salted egg yolk was soft and crumbly, bursting with flavor. It was oily without any fishy taste, and the egg yolk oil filled his mouth, bringing immense satisfaction.

The pork floss was amazing—slightly salty, it dissolved instantly, leaving a lingering rich flavor.

The golden crust, orange egg yolk, and amber pork floss blended together to create an incredible aroma!

This was even after it had cooled down; Ye Dafu couldn’t imagine how fragrant it must have been fresh out of the oven.

Could this really be their daughter’s work? They couldn’t quite believe it.

They put away the remaining pastries and told their daughter about the past: "When you were born, you were as beautiful as a flower. At a young age, you were like a golden boy or jade girl from a painting, destined to bring blessings to our family."

Perhaps because she was so adorable, she was kidnapped by traffickers when the family visited Jinming Pond in Bianjing during the Double Third Festival.

Neighbors said, "Even if the girl is found, preparing her dowry will cost money. It’s better to have lost her."

But the Ye family insisted on finding their daughter. Since she was lost in Bianjing, they even moved the entire family there to facilitate the search.

This move led to the family’s decline.

The Ye family had been prosperous farmers in the suburbs of Bianjing, with dozens of acres of land, a cow, two donkeys, and three large tiled houses. During the busy farming season, they could even afford to hire tenants.

But after moving to Bianjing, with the daily expenses, the cost of searching for their daughter, and being scammed by people claiming to have leads, the family quickly became impoverished.

The whole family had to fend for themselves:

Ye Dafu opened a stall, his wife helped people arrange marriages and became a matchmaker, and the other children worked various jobs. The Ye family struggled to make a living while searching for news of Ye Zhan, facing many hardships.

As the conversation reached dusk, the siblings gradually returned home, and the family reunited, tears in their eyes as they shared their life stories.

The Ye family seemed to have a twin gene. The couple had a pair of twin sons and a pair of twin daughters, plus a younger girl, making five children in total.

Their children’s names were precious gems: "Gold, Silver, Jade, Lamp, and Liuli." It felt like their home was filled with treasures.

The two brothers looked identical but had very different personalities.

The eldest brother, Ye Jin, is eighteen years old, dressed in a decent black jacket, with a clean-shaven face and a large red rose tucked into his hair. He always wears a smile and seems very slick.

The second brother, Ye Yin, has a straight nose and a circle of beard around his face, with a sturdy, upright build. His shoes and socks have some dust on them.

Their professions are also different; the eldest brother is an idler who helps the young masters in taverns by pouring wine and running errands, while the second brother is a fire officer at the military patrol office.

The eldest sister, Ye Yu, who is a twin with Ye Zhan, looks different.

At fifteen, she has honey-colored skin and an oval-shaped face, with a sharp chin and an upturned nose, giving her a playful look.

A cord keeps her long sleeves rolled up high, her hair is neatly combed to the side, adorned with a colorful paper banner. She is capable and currently works as a quzao niangzi, serving wine and small dishes.

The youngest daughter, Ye Li, is ten years old. She wears her hair in double plaits, each tied with two water-red hollyhock flowers, looking smart and clever. She is learning the art of shamanic medicine from a famous local practitioner.

Ye Zhan looked at her family, and they looked back at her:

With an oval face, fair skin that glows, delicate features that aren't overpowering, exuding a gentle and approachable demeanor,

she wears a purple-pink jacket, paired with a sky-blue pleated skirt, and a deep purple overcoat reaching below the knees. The patterns of dragonflies and lotus flowers embroidered at the hem of her pants peek out from under her skirt, making her look like a green lotus in the summer, standing tall and graceful.

There are no other accessories on her body, giving her a simple and unadorned appearance.

Mi Fengniang wiped her tears and said, "You're dressed so simply; you must have gone through a lot."

The people of Bianjing are particular about their attire. Even women from poor families like ours wear some accessories. For instance, Mi Fengniang wears a bracelet made of peach wood, and her eldest daughter has a black wooden comb in her hair, not completely plain.

Ye Zhan shook her head and said, "I do have accessories, but..."

The senior maid advised against showing wealth before knowing the character of relatives, so she specially removed Ye Zhan's accessories before she left.

"I was sold at the age of four and given drugs by the traffickers, so I don't remember much of my past, only that I was sold to the prestigious Du family, who are successive officials."

She told her family about her life.

"I started by stoking the fire in the kitchen, and after a few years, I gained the favor of the third miss's senior maid, Lianhua, and served her closely for a few years."

"Even maids need to be served?" Mi Fengniang clicked her tongue in amazement.

"In wealthy households, maids are like deputy young ladies, with two junior maids serving their daily needs. Lianhua was gentle and would share her holiday bonus with us servants. I was specifically responsible for carrying water and pouring tea, and I didn't suffer much."

"In the end, as a slave, life and death are not in our own hands, my poor child!"

The mother hugged her daughter and started crying again, with her older siblings comforting her.

Ye Dafu wiped his eyes and handed a handkerchief to his wife.

Ye Zhan continued, "The third lady of the Du family found the poem 'Carving Jade into a Cup' elegant and gave me the name Yu Zhan. Who would have thought our names together form 'Jade Cup,' showing how destined we are."

"This is truly heartbreaking," the mother wiped her tears again, "My good daughter became a servant and couldn't even keep her own name..."

The family members also rubbed their eyes.

At that moment, they heard the bell ringing from the distant bell tower: "Dong—Dong—Dong..." a total of one hundred strikes.

While still wiping away tears, Mi Fengniang issued a command: "It's time to settle accounts at dusk! At least twenty wen!"

The family, who were just wiping tears, quickly gathered around the square table, sitting on stools,

from the oldest, Ye Dafu, to the youngest, Ye Li. Everyone started taking out money from their pockets.

They threw copper coins into the square basket on the table, creating a constant clinking sound.

Ye Zhan: ?