Chapter 31

Chapter 31

From morning to night, Zhong Yizhu's mouth hardly had a moment's rest.

Since it was the Qixi Festival, the evening was naturally the most lively time to enjoy, and Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu had agreed early on to stay overnight in the county town, so the incense ball stall could be kept open until the market closed.

But before that time even arrived, the goods Zhong Yizhu had brought were completely sold out.

Whether it was the incense balls for the young man's daughter, the incense balls for men, or the sachets made by Sun Yunniang, everything was sold out completely.

The incense balls were reasonably priced, making them perfect as gifts for sweethearts, and combined with the magpie paper bags Zhong Yizhu had prepared, they unintentionally became a trademark. Later on, many people came specifically looking for the magpie paper bags, so Zhong Yizhu’s three days of diligent work were not in vain.

Gong Laosi, who was set up nearby, had also been busy all day. His lips were chapped from talking, but his face was beaming with joy.

Today’s business had been truly excellent!

He looked at the couple preparing to pack up, smiled, and gave them his address: "Brother Pei and Zhu Ge'er, if anything comes up, you can send word to me. If you need to reserve a stall, just let me know. I’m not ashamed to say it—I benefited from your success and had the best business day ever. If you two don’t mind, I’ll shamelessly set up next to you."

"Not at all," Zhong Yizhu replied, his voice hoarse but his smile sincere. "Without Boss Gong’s help, we wouldn’t have gotten such a good spot. You also helped us tell our regular customers when we’d be here, and we haven’t even had the chance to thank you properly."

Zhong Yizhu took out a sachet he had put aside earlier from his basket and handed it to Gong Laosi. "This is a small token for your wife, Boss Gong. Please don’t refuse."

Since Gong Laosi had been working nearby, he knew that the sachet plus the incense balls would cost nearly forty wen. If Zhong Yizhu hadn’t intentionally kept it to give to him, it would have sold long ago.

He took the sachet and saw that it was embroidered with lotus roots, symbolizing deep love and lasting affection. Truly, a thoughtful gift.

"Alright then, I’ll accept it on behalf of your wife. Thank you."

Hearing that the two planned to stay overnight in the town, Gong Laosi warmly invited them to stay with him. But since it was late and they didn’t want to show up empty-handed, Pei Mu and Zhong Yizhu declined, deciding to find an inn instead.

Zhong Yizhu was exhausted, his feet sore from standing all day. Pei Mu packed up the stall, then picked up the baskets and crouched in front of him. "Come on, get on."

Zhong Yizhu blinked sluggishly. Too tired to think, he lunged forward onto Pei Mu’s back.

Pei Mu effortlessly adjusted his grip and carried him out of the market.

The busiest part of the night had passed, many of the lanterns along the street had gone out, and the young men and women were slowly heading home.

Zhong Yizhu rested his chin on Pei Mu’s shoulder, watching the lingering festive atmosphere, gradually coming to realize the special significance of this day amidst his exhaustion. He leaned close to Pei Mu’s ear and whispered, "Pei Mu, will you be with me like this every Qixi Festival from now on?"

"Yes," Pei Mu answered without a second thought, his response firm.

Pei Mu thought, not just in the future—since Zhong Yizhu had agreed, they would be bound together in this life, the next, and the one after that.

"Then it’s settled. Liars are puppies."

Zhong Yizhu reached out to link pinkies with Pei Mu, and Pei Mu lowered his head to match the gesture.

"Mm. If I lie, I’m a puppy."

Passersby on the street occasionally glanced at the young couple, their eyes full of smiles. It was a festival for lovers, so a little rebellious behavior was understandable, especially since the two of them looked so affectionate and pleasing to the eye, warming the hearts of those who saw them.

Near the entrance to the market, Pei Mu found an inn that looked relatively clean. The prices for the Qixi Festival had gone up a bit, but thankfully, rooms were still available.

The options ranged from the cheapest—ten wen per person for a shared room—to the most expensive—one hundred and eighty wen for a private room. Pei Mu paid for a mid-range room, which came with hot water and had a window to prevent it from being too dark and damp.

Once inside the room, Zhong Yizhu didn’t even have the energy to count the day’s earnings. After the innkeeper delivered hot water and he washed up, he took off his outer clothes, crawled under the covers, and fell asleep before Pei Mu even climbed into bed.

Pei Mu cleaned himself up, safely stored the money, then blew out the candle, got into bed, pulled the already-sleeping Zhong Yizhu into his arms, and closed his eyes.

The next morning, Pei Mu woke up early.

Because they had been so busy at the stall yesterday, he hadn’t had the chance to look for what he wanted.

He knew he shouldn’t bring Zhong Yizhu along for this. Zhong Yizhu was exhausted and would probably sleep for a while, so this was the perfect time to take care of it without any delays.

He quietly got up, left the room, and asked the innkeeper for information, then took out a copper coin and handed it over, asking him to watch over his husband and, if he woke up, to tell him he'd be back soon.

The innkeeper was happy to get the coin, but as he watched Pei Mu leave, he was puzzled. Why would a man with a husband go behind his back to seek out a matchmaker so early in the morning?

But he had seen weirder things, so he didn’t think much more about it.

Maybe he’s planning to secretly take a second wife... The innkeeper curled his lips and shook his head. They looked so in love when they checked in last night, but it turns out it was all a show.

Meanwhile, Pei Mu had no idea about the innkeeper’s wild thoughts, and even if he had, he wouldn’t have cared.

In truth, he wasn’t completely ignorant about matters of intimacy. In the army, those old soldiers, whenever they had some spare silver, would head to the pleasure quarters to find women or young men, then talk about it later. He knew asking around the brothel district would get him the answers, but he chose a different path.

Matchmaker Wang in the west of town had just gotten up. With all the couples made during yesterday’s Qixi Festival, the next period would be busy, so he needed to conserve his energy.

When the knock came at his door, he had just finished cleaning his teeth. He wondered who would come calling so early. When he opened the door, he couldn’t help but sigh at the handsome man in front of him.

Matchmaker Wang assumed the man had taken a liking to someone and was eager to have him arrange a match. But when he heard Pei Mu’s request, no matter how experienced he was, he couldn’t help but blink in surprise and repeat it.

"You mean you have no elders to teach you about bedroom matters, so you want to ask someone to instruct you?"

Pei Mu kept his usual cold expression and nodded. "How much silver?"

At the mention of money, the matchmaker’s surprise disappeared, replaced by a ready smile. He had served as a wedding helper before and had arranged marriages for his own son. This was simple enough. Money was money, and he wasn’t about to turn it down.

Matchmaker Wang smiled. "No need to look for someone else. I’ve been a wedding helper before; I can teach you. It’s easy. I won’t charge you much—just eight copper coins for luck."

Seeing Pei Mu nod, the matchmaker didn’t hold back and explained everything in detail.

But Pei Mu still wasn’t satisfied. "I’m satisfied, but what about him? How can he enjoy it? Will I hurt him while doing this? Will he be uncomfortable?"

The matchmaker paused, startled. When Pei Mu frowned at him, he quickly recovered and answered everything. He was secretly amazed. When he used to work as a wedding helper, it was always about convincing the young men to submit to their husbands’ desires. He had never met a man so concerned about his husband's pleasure. That young man was truly lucky.

Having worked in this trade for twenty years, Matchmaker Wang could speak about such matters without batting an eye or blushing. His words were direct and blunt. Pei Mu listened, and his mind was full of thoughts of Zhong Yizhu. No matter how cold his expression, his heart grew warm.

After leaving the matchmaker’s house, Pei Mu followed his directions to a shop and asked the shopkeeper for three boxes of ointment. As he looked at the containers, realization dawned—so that's what Wang Ping'an tried to give him that time...

The streets were slowly getting crowded. Pei Mu gathered everything he needed and rushed back to the inn.

Author’s note: I didn't have time to write tonight, so Happy New Year in advance!

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