Chapter 62 Entertainment Quarters

Chapter 62: Washa and Goulan

Once the chores at home were done, Chang Jinhua took her sewing basket and a few pieces of cut cloth and headed to the Zhou family's home. Meng Wan sat on the kang, holding a piece of white fabric and comparing it to an old garment, marking it with gestures.

Song Tingzhou saw that he couldn't bring himself to cut the fabric after a long while, so he put down his book and went over to help.

"Even if you cut it wrong, it's fine. If you really don't want to do it, we can just go to a shop and buy ready-made clothes. Then we can tell Mother that we made them ourselves."

Meng Wan frowned and cut the fabric reluctantly. "Better not. It's just a few stitches. If it's sewn poorly on the inside, no one will laugh. I need to get used to making them myself."

Song Tingzhou took the cut fabric from his hands. "You cut, I'll sew."

Meng Wan felt it was unfair to let Song Tingzhou do all the sewing, so he suggested, "How about this: you sew for me, and I'll sew for you?"

Meng Wan worked on the inner garment for a while, gradually feeling more skilled. When he checked on Song Tingzhou's progress, it was about the same as his own. He felt encouraged, believing he was improving quickly, and sewed with even more enthusiasm.

After a while, he tapped Song Tingzhou. "Let's stop and rest. The inner garment isn't urgent."

In the summer heat, without air conditioning or ice, wearing an inner garment underneath would just make you sweat. Everyone instead wore a small undershirt and shorts, with an outer short robe on top, and either a skirt or loose pants below. They would switch to inner garments when autumn approached.

He put away the two half-finished inner garments and cut a small piece of fabric to make an undershirt.

Song Tingzhou sat beside him, picking up his book and flipping through it, though his gaze occasionally wandered to Meng Wan's serene profile.

An undershirt was simple and quick to make. Some embroidered patterns on nicer ones, but for someone like Meng Wan, just stitching the edges neatly was already an achievement.

After finishing a new one, he immediately took it out to wash and hang it. At the door, he said to Song Tingzhou, "Cousin, I'll go cook dinner."

Song Tingzhou sighed and called him back. "Wan'er, come here."

Meng Wan entered the room, puzzled. "Is there something else?"

Lu Chunfang and Chang Jinhua had gone out visiting together and weren't back yet. Only the two of them were home, so Song Tingzhou pulled him into his arms without hesitation.

"Can't you call me something else?"

Meng Wan was taken aback for a moment, then smirked. "What do you want me to call you?"

He rested his hands on Song Tingzhou's shoulders and whispered, "Zhou Lang~"

Song Tingzhou tightened his arms around Meng Wan's waist and hummed quietly in response.

Meng Wan tried to push him away but failed, laughing through his tears. "That's so embarrassing. Who calls their husband that?"

Song Tingzhou pressed his lips together. "Some people do."

Meng Wan narrowed his eyes, a sharp look in them. "Who? Where did you hear that?"

"A classmate said so." Song Tingzhou's expression was stubborn.

Meng Wan asked, "A classmate? Did his wife call him that in front of you?"

Song Tingzhou struggled. "No, but my classmate said that at home, he is always called that!"

"Heh." Meng Wan let out a light laugh. "Calling you that is fine. Haven't I called you that at night?"

Song Tingzhou's ears turned red at that. He looked down, avoiding Meng Wan's gaze, but his hand didn't leave Meng Wan's slim waist. "I want to hear you say it during the day too."

Meng Wan thought about it—they were married, and such a small request wasn't impossible to fulfill. He relented. "I'll call you 'husband' in front of others, okay? If you disagree, I won't call you 'husband' at all."

Song Tingzhou had no choice but to nod reluctantly. He hugged Meng Wan and kissed him for a while before letting him go.

That evening, Meng Wan made cold noodles. Since many fruits and vegetables weren't ripe yet, he could only make a sauce with mushrooms and diced pork. He cut a few cucumbers into shreds to mix with the noodles.

When Chang Jinhua and Lu Chunfang returned, Meng Wan had already prepared the sauce and shredded the cucumbers, and was boiling the noodles by the stove.

He was sweating from the heat, and Song Tingzhou grabbed a handkerchief to wipe his brow. Then he went to the alley to fetch a bucket of fresh water. The water drawn from the well was ice-cold and sweet, perfect for cooling the noodles.

Meng Wan was too hot to bear, so he drank a bowl of well water, mixed a bowl of noodles, and carried it to the courtyard to eat. When he turned around, the others had all followed him out with their bowls.

Chang Jinhua lifted a strand of noodles with her chopsticks; they were smooth and chewy. "Why don't we make a stone table to eat outside? And buy some ready-made wooden stools from the carpenter. That way, we won't have to move the table when it rains—just the stools."

After sunset, there was a cool breeze outside, and Meng Wan felt refreshed. "I think that's a good idea. I'll ask the stonemason tomorrow after closing the shop."

Song Tingzhou's two-day holiday ended, and he had to start going to school early and returning late again. Li Yaqin took a leave, so Meng Wan simply reduced the amount of goods they made that day. With her gone, Chang Jinhua, who had been holding back words, poured everything out to Meng Wan.

"Yesterday, when your Chunfang sister-in-law and I went to the Zhou family, I heard some gossip about the Li family."

"What gossip?"

Rarely did Chang Jinhua relax so much with outsiders now. Meng Wan humored her and sat beside her to listen.

"Auntie Zhou said that Qin Niang's moral character isn't good. She told me to be careful and watch out for her being alone with Da Lang." Chang Jinhua lowered her voice, afraid of being overheard.

Meng Wan raised an eyebrow. "Oh? How so?"

"Auntie Zhou said that after her son got engaged the year before last, Li Yaqin came to their house and made a scene. She claimed that she had waited for her son for several years and turned down many marriage proposals, but now he was marrying someone else. The matter blew up, and all the neighbors knew about it." Otherwise, Auntie Zhou wouldn't have volunteered this information. She was afraid people would misunderstand that her son actually had something with Li Yaqin, so she proactively told the new neighbors, aligning the Song family with her.

Meng Wan pondered. "Could it be that they really did have a past? Otherwise, why would she ruin her reputation like that?" Indeed, any normal person would think that way.

Auntie Zhou had been in a tough spot. Her son and Li Yaqin were about the same age. When they were young kids with hair in tufts, they had joked around a few times.

But they weren't from wealthy families with servants reporting every word and action. In the marketplace, children ran around aimlessly, and what they said was quickly forgotten.

If Auntie Zhou's son had been a failure, Li Yaqin might not have held onto childhood jokes for years. But he had inherited Auntie Zhou's good looks, was talented, and ambitious.

In the west of the city, there was a famous old restaurant called Ruifeng Tower. Auntie Zhou's son had worked there for several years as a waiter, was appreciated by the owner, became a junior manager, and later managed to marry the second daughter of the head manager. He was a true success story—the most promising young man in Liudi Alley. How could Li Yaqin, who had been waiting for the Zhou family to propose, bear that?

Spoiled by her family, she had been willful that year. Regardless of the consequences, she stormed into the Zhou house and made a huge scene.

Auntie Zhou's son had first met his fiancée and interacted with her a few times before plucking up the courage to propose. In this era, that was practically a free love affair. How could he let some random neighbor ruin it? Flushed with anger, he said some harsh words. Li Yaqin ran home crying, and her reputation was ruined from then on.

Originally, her family could have married her off to another local family since it wasn't hard for a young woman to find a match compared to a young man, especially with the standard of arranged marriages. But after this incident, the locals gave her family a wide berth.

All of this might be true, but as for whether Li Yaqin was trying to seduce Song Tingzhou... Chang Jinhua was half-convinced.

Li Yaqin had been working in their shop for almost a month, and Chang Jinhua hadn't seen anything inappropriate from her.

But the family had only recently gotten back on steady ground. Wan'er was like a half-son to her; she had watched his growth step by step. Her greatest wish was for him and Da Lang to live happily and have two children. If someone were to interfere...

As Chang Jinhua's thoughts spun, her blood rushed to her head, and she felt dizzy.

Meng Wan noticed something was wrong. "Mother? Mother, what's wrong?"

Chang Jinhua couldn't speak; her world was spinning. Meng Wan hurriedly called Lu Chunfang, who was working outside.

"Sister-in-law, quick, help me hold Mother up. We need to take her to Tongshan Hall!"

Lu Chunfang quickly put down her work and, together with Meng Wan, supported Chang Jinhua on each side and took her to the nearest medical clinic.

Chang Jinhua lay on the clinic bed, feeling dizzy. The attending physician lifted her eyelids to examine her, then stroked his beard and took her pulse. After a long pause, he said two sentences: "This is a case of heatstroke—summer heat invading the body, disturbing the yang qi within."

Meng Wan: "Ah?"

"Please, sir, could you explain more clearly?"

The physician said unhurriedly, "Your mother has heatstroke. It's not serious. Let me prescribe two doses of herbal medicine. You can decoct and take them at home."

Meng Wan was relieved. "Thank you for your trouble, sir."

Fortunately, it was a false alarm, but Chang Jinhua still felt quite unwell for a day. Meng Wan went back, cooked some thin porridge for her, and fed her a few mouthfuls to settle her stomach. Then he personally decocted the medicine, let it cool until warm, and then fed it to Chang Jinhua.

Lu Chunfang took care of the leftover dishes and utensils. Since Qin Niang didn't show, she took it upon herself to wash them.

Meng Wan was in the kitchen kneading dough for the next morning. This task used to be done by Chang Jinhua so he could write his scripts in peace.

Through the coarse hemp curtain hanging over the bedroom door, he could vaguely see Chang Jinhua lying on the kang. She was only forty, but the years of hard work had exhausted her, making her look several years older than her peers.

Meng Wan's eyes grew hot, and tears rolled down his cheeks. Actually, their life at home was already quite good—even if they didn't run the breakfast shop, Chang Jinhua couldn't stand being idle—but Meng Wan just felt sorry for her and cried in secret for no reason.

He thought to himself, since she didn't like Li Yaqin, who was after all an outsider, and it wasn't as if they couldn't hire someone else, he might as well fire her and hire someone his mother liked instead.

The next day, when Li Yaqin came to work, before Meng Wan could figure out how to bring it up, she herself volunteered, "Wan Geer, I'm so sorry. Please look for someone else in the next few days. Once you find a replacement, I'll quit."

Meng Wan asked, "Why is that?"

Li Yaqin looked a bit shy. "I'm getting engaged soon, so I need to stay home to prepare my wedding dress and can't come out anymore."

Meng Wan suddenly realized—the day off was for a blind date.

"Then I really congratulate you."

Li Yaqin felt that only an insightful young man like Meng Wan could converse with her, so she voluntarily mentioned two more things about the marriage. "I'm already twenty, and I'm known as the local old maid. A lot of people gossip about me behind my back—I know it all."

She was proud, not stupid. Over the past few years, she had gradually come to understand many truths. She regretted her youthful indiscretions. Now that she had truly found someone to her liking, her face beamed with joy, and she spoke a few sincere words.

"Other people's gossip is just that—gossip. Family and oneself are more important. One shouldn't hurt the hearts of close family over gossip."

Meng Wan felt he could understand that. No one is born knowing how to read people's expressions. It's just that in this era, the cost of making mistakes is higher for women and young men.

But he remembered meeting Li Yaqin's mother that day—at her age, still making plans for her youngest daughter. Li Yaqin's years of idleness at home not only wore her down but also pained her parents.

Li Yaqin was stunned for a moment. "You're right. It was my pride that made my parents suffer."

In the morning, Chang Jinhua felt a little better and wanted to get up to work, but Meng Wan insisted she stay in bed.

At noon, after closing the shop, Li Yaqin went back home. Meng Wan locked the gate, tucked his money pouch away, and led her and Lu Chunfang out.

"Wan Geer, where are you taking us? The dough hasn't been kneaded yet at home, and the beans haven't been soaked." Chang Jinhua was worried about the household chores and didn't want to go out.

Lu Chunfang followed reluctantly, worried about spending money, so she said, "Why don't you two go? I'll go home and soak the beans."

Meng Wan persuaded, "It's just a little work. We'll finish it quickly when we get home. No need to fuss."

He laughed. "Just follow me. It's not like I'm going to sell you."

They went up the main street and headed north. When they were near the north gate, there was a huge entertainment venue by the roadside, with a sign made of fine rosewood that read: "Changbei Washe."

In the Yu Kingdom, the east was esteemed. The east of Changping Prefecture housed examination halls, government offices, prefectural schools, and bookshops. Low-class venues like washe were banned from the east, but they were scattered throughout other areas, big and small.

Among them, the Changbei Washe at the junction of the west and north was the largest and most famous in the area. It contained eight theaters, with troupes performing plays, storytelling, acrobatics, shadow puppetry—it was a dazzling variety.

Meng Wan saw that the entrances to the other theaters were also bustling with all kinds of people, and now and then young masters and ladies wearing veiled hats returned happily with their servants. After watching for a while, he directly pulled Chang Jinhua and Lu Chunfang toward the largest one, the Pingqiao Theater.

Pingqiao Theater was the best-located and largest theater in Changbei Washe. Two boy attendants waited outside. "Master, you need to buy tickets to enter our Pingqiao. Six wen per person, for good luck—'six six, everything goes smoothly.'"

The two attendants were street-smart—they could tell at a glance that Meng Wan and his group were first-timers at such a place. Still, they didn't look down on them and smilingly explained the rules.

Meng Wan counted out eighteen copper coins from his money pouch and handed them over. "We three are watching."

The attendants immediately handed over three slender, finger-wide hand tags. "Take these tags inside, and a server will show you to your seats."

Meng Wan took the lead, lifted the curtain, and went in. At a glance, he saw a stage set up in the center. The stage was three or four meters above the ground, with a music platform on it. Behind it was an old doorway, and through that doorway was the backstage. This theater was specially for opera troupes and was the most popular attraction in Changbei Washe.

They arrived at a lucky time—a play had just ended, and the next one was being announced.

"Zhang Xie Zhuangyuan?" Meng Wan murmured.

"Let's watch this one."

Around the stage, the audience seats were built in layers, rising higher row by row. The rows of seats together could hold over eight hundred people.

Meng Wan and his group arrived late, so their seats weren't very good, but because the stage was large, they could still see the performance clearly.

Upstairs, there were private boxes facing the stage. Meng Wan caught a waiter who was hurrying back and forth in the bleachers. "Waiter, how do the private boxes upstairs work?"

The waiter gave a perfunctory smile and said dismissively, "Two taels of silver per room. Tea can be refilled, but fruits are extra."