Chapter 79: Returning Home
On the first day Qingyan received this letter, he went to town and sent a parcel, even though the cost of silver was much higher than sending letters, he didn’t mind.
In the parcel were Qingyan’s own daily wear, an incense sachet he had learned to make from Aunt Li, and a letter.
In the next letter sent from Fengyu Pass, there was a plain white handkerchief. Qingyan picked it up and looked at it for a while before remembering that it was something he had given Qiu Henian when they first started learning characters together.
He had almost forgotten about this, but Qiu Henian had kept it well and brought it with him to the northwest.
The two of them continued to exchange letters like this several times, and before they knew it, two months had passed.
…
That summer, Qingyan dared not eat anything cold for fear of falling ill again and troubling others. The vegetables in the field yielded one harvest after another. Qingyan couldn’t finish them all himself, so he sold most of them at the market and gave some to Aunt Li and Qiuniang.
The main crops planted this year were rice and soybeans. Qingyan had decided to open a shop, focusing his energy and investment there. He didn’t expand the land further; the grains produced on this plot of land were mainly for family consumption.
With rice and soybean oil available all year round, he wouldn’t need to buy them outside. Any surplus could be sold for extra income.
From late July onwards, the frequency of letters from Fengyu Pass increased. Sometimes, due to delays in delivery, Qingyan would receive two letters at the same time.
These letters were not lengthy; Qiu Henian mostly wrote about the scenery around his residence. Qingyan vaguely felt something was wrong. When he compared several consecutive letters, he realized that the recent letters all mentioned the same crabapple tree outside the window.
Though the language was beautiful and detailed, describing the changes of the tree day by day, as well as books read and food eaten, it wasn’t apparent without careful consideration. However, upon closer inspection, Qingyan realized that Qiu Henian hadn’t left the house during this period.
In “Records of Mountains and Rivers,” the construction of houses in the northwest was mentioned. Bedrooms generally faced north-south, with the stove’s east or west side as a firewall, and windows were often opened on the wall adjacent to the north side of the stove.
Outside the window was often the backyard, where fruit trees were planted. Crabapple trees were especially common. Crabapples bloomed in spring and bore fruit in autumn. They were a beautiful sight when in bloom and laden with fruit.
Yet Qingyan couldn’t help but tear up as he looked at the papers spread on the bed. Unable to leave the room, Qiu Henian could only lie on the kang day after day, looking out at the crabapple tree.
Qingyan couldn’t imagine how difficult it must be for Qiu Henian to write him letter after letter in such circumstances.
By early August, however, the letters abruptly stopped for half a month. Qingyan received only one letter during this time, with brief updates on Qiu Henian’s well-being and the usual “I miss you” at the end.
That night, Qingyan tossed and turned, unable to sleep, wishing he could set off immediately and rush to Fengyu Pass. However, as day broke, all he could do was anxiously await letters from afar and the uncertain return of the sender.
Over these months, Qingyan and the others inspected every shop available for rent in town, and in the end, they gritted their teeth and settled on a shop on the busiest street in town. The monthly rent was eleven taels of silver, paid in full for the year. The landlord had discounted ten taels, which covered the commission for the broker.
With both sides signing the contract, the shop now belonged to Qingyan and his partners. Renting the shop was just the first step; they needed to redecorate it according to their plans, measure shelves for customization by a carpenter, and design a signboard to hang at an auspicious time.
Busy during the day, Qingyan was exhausted by night, occasionally waking from dreams he couldn’t recall, heart racing after nightmares.
By late August and early September, Qingyan realized that he had received only one letter from Fengyu Pass throughout the entire month of August.
The letters he sent out, however, seemed to sink like stones in the sea, with no response.
In early September, Qingyan, Aunt Li, and Qiuniang opened “Fragrant Melody Pavilion,” occupying a whole floor of a building. They offered everything from rouge and incense paste to the latest perfumes and hair ornaments loved by women and children.
In the entire town, even the county, people had never seen such a shop. Walking through all the floors, they bought everything they wanted to buy.
The variety of styles was great, all in the latest fashion. Especially the “recommended by the shopkeeper” at the entrance was exquisitely beautiful and reasonably priced.
Qingyan also discussed with the other two and held a three-day grand opening promotion. During these three days, even San Yao and Qinlan came to help, running errands when they were off duty.
Customers who came to the shop at the beginning were mainly regulars from previous stalls, and there were many who came just for fun, with several thousand shots of firecrackers. The storefront was decorated beautifully, and passers-by, unless they were in a hurry, wanted to go in and see.
There were many things in the store with various price points. After a round of shopping, even if they didn’t buy more expensive items such as robes or jewelry, they could always buy a few trinkets for a few cents.
In addition to the variety of items, the prices were lower than those of other shops outside.
After the three days of promotion, the flow of people decreased. In the end, only Qingyan and Qiuniang remained in the shop.
Qingyan left Aunt Li with a room upstairs to make incense paste and perfumes. When she wasn’t busy, she also took care of the shop. In this way, the three of them took turns, eating and resting without delay.
After a busy day, Qingyan checked the accounts and found that the profits in these days were quite considerable, and the subsequent flow of customers was also good.
Aunt Li and Qiuniang were both very happy, and Qingyan wore a smile on his face in the shop. However, after busy evenings, he worried.
Qiu Henian hadn’t sent a letter again, and it was already three months since he left.
Qingyan made up his mind that if by the end of this month he still hadn’t received any news, he would find a way to go to Fengyu Pass himself. He would leave the shop to Qiuniang and Lishen, and ask San Yao to find someone to harvest the crops in the fields. They would share half of the harvest as their reward.
He had already inquired; the county sent supplies to the border every month. He could offer some benefits to the person in charge of the convoy and travel safely with them to the northwest.
Since he had made up his mind, Qingyan stopped agonizing over it. He prepared while looking after the business in the shop, waiting only for the right time to depart.
Days passed by, and in the blink of an eye, it was mid-September. Qingyan had almost finished his preparations for departure. He had also informed Qiuniang and Lishen.
A few days before leaving, Qingyan, not holding much hope, went to the post station to check if he had any mail.
It was on this day that Qingyan received the final letter from Fengyu Pass.
The courier at the station said that there had been continuous strong winds in the northwest, causing the official roads to be covered in yellow sand, delaying the delivery of recent letters.
Qingyan walked back towards “Fragrant Melody Pavilion,” his fingers trembling slightly as he opened the letter.
The familiar handwriting read, “I have set off from this place on my return journey. I should be home in about half a month. Please don’t worry.”
Qingyan was stunned. He lowered his head to look at the date of the signature and realized it was half a month ago.
The wind was strong in Liulin Town today, with autumn leaves rustling down. The paper in Qingyan’s hand was blown inside out, making a loud rustling sound.
Worried that the paper would be damaged by the wind, Qingyan stopped in his tracks and tried to fold the letter back into the envelope. However, the gusty wind made it difficult to fold properly.
As he focused on this task, he heard someone not far ahead calling his name amidst the howling wind.
“Qingyan.”
Qingyan tightened his grip on the letter, raising his head in confusion to see a man dressed in a gray robe, covered in dust, standing about seven or eight steps away, looking at him.
The man was tall, with broad shoulders, a slender waist, and long legs. His face wasn’t extremely handsome, but it was attractive and refined.
His calm eyes were like tranquil lake water, his high nose bridge and faint smile at the corner of his mouth exuded elegance that made people unable to help but look at him a few more times.
Qingyan stared at the man in front of him, his mouth slightly agape. His expression changed from confusion to shock and finally settled on disbelief.
His gaze involuntarily swept back and forth across the man’s almost flawless face, where the grim scar from his memory had disappeared without a trace.
Seeing Qingyan’s reaction, the smile at the corner of the man’s mouth deepened, and his gaze softened. He continued to look at him as he took a step closer.
When the two were only two or three steps apart, the man stopped and looked at Qingyan, once again speaking, “Qingyan, I’m back.”
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
After the laughter, he looked at Qingyan’s reddened eyes and felt an indescribable sourness rise in his heart, almost drowning even his throat.
