NCCnovel Chapter 138 I am blind
Chapter 138 I am blind
Xue Lan felt no guilt about having to close the shop after only one day, and Xue Tong agreed as well. However, the shopkeeper next door, Manager Tong, disagreed.
"Business has just started to pick up, and you've already started acting like a brat with your sister." Manager Tong was embarrassed to say anything to Xue Lan, because the girl looked pitiful standing there.
Besides, she's blind, how would she know anything about business management?
Xue Tong was wrongly accused and could only weakly say, "Uncle Tong, the New Year is almost here."
The little girl's voice trembled with a sob: "Since the demons of Luoxia Mountain invaded, we've been constantly on the move, and haven't had a proper New Year in ages."
Shopkeeper Tong's words came to an abrupt halt, and within a very short time, an expression of deep remorse appeared on the middle-aged man's face.
She'd be at the point where she'd sit up in the middle of the night and say I deserved to die. Xue Tong thought to herself.
Shopkeeper Tong smiled somewhat reluctantly: "Then let's celebrate the New Year. Business was good yesterday, so it won't make a difference if we celebrate for another ten days or so. Look at all the shops on the street, they're all preparing for the New Year."
After rambling on for a while, the middle-aged man finally revealed his idea: "Xiao Tong, Uncle Tong only has an older brother who is over thirty and is now married. My wife has always liked young girls, so perhaps..."
Xue Tong bowed to him: "Thank you for your kindness, Uncle Tong, but my sister is unwell, so we won't trouble you any further."
Manager Tong looked at the stubborn young girl in front of him, sighed, and walked away.
Xue Tong turned to look at Xue Lan: [How did I do?]
Xue Lan smiled and nodded: "Impeccable."
We're closing today. Where are you planning to spend the New Year? How about renting another courtyard?
Xue Lan held a warm teacup in her hand: "Then she wouldn't seem like an orphan girl from Luoxia City."
She gently skimmed the foam off the surface of the tea with the lid and slowly took a sip.
"Xiaotong, don't rush to close the shop. Go to Qianxiu Pavilion and find that... Sister Yu Niang. Ask her if she knows any single rooms for rent in the neighborhood."
"Okay, okay! You wait for me here obediently." Xue Tong readily agreed and skipped out of the courtyard gate.
A familiar shop assistant from the nearby fabric store saw Xue Tong leave in a hurry and came out to talk to Xue Lan: "Miss Xue, there are fewer people on the streets these days, so it's fine for you to let Miss Tong run around like this, but it won't work at the temple fair after the New Year."
Xue Lan was a little curious. The girl put down her teacup, tilted her head, and asked, "Are there human traffickers in the capital?"
Looking at Xue Lan's clear expression, the shopkeeper continued, "The capital is heavily guarded; naturally, no human traffickers would dare to come..."
At this point, the waiter lowered his voice: "Miss Xue should be wary of those important people."
"Noble?"
"I've heard that some noblemen in the capital prefer young girls like Miss Tong. They may appear dignified on the surface, but they're actually beasts."
At this point, the man's tone was quite indignant, and his emotions were evident even though he lowered his voice.
Xue Lan sensed some emotion in the shopkeeper's words, and the girl sat up straight: "Young man, are you the one who suffered the loss?"
The waiter looked at Xue Lan, meeting the girl's eyes for the first time.
It was grayish-white and lifeless, yet it evoked an indescribable sense of presence.
After a long silence, the waiter swallowed several times before finally speaking slowly: "My sister is like this..."
Xue Lan thought to herself, "Just as I thought. This guy must have kept these words bottled up inside for years. After saying those seven words, he started panting heavily."
The girl's voice was calm: "Have you reported it to the authorities?"
The shopkeeper seemed to find Xue Lan's emotions too indifferent. She wasn't shocked like ordinary people, nor did she worry about her sister like an ordinary elder. She simply asked, "Have you reported it to the authorities?"
The waiter nodded slightly, seemingly disappointed by Xue Lan's reaction: "Miss Xue, you should keep an eye on your sister. It's no use!"
After saying that, the shop assistant walked back into the cloth shop somewhat dejectedly.
After she left, the girl slowly took another sip of tea.
"How can a blind person like me keep an eye on people?" The girl chuckled softly, a faint red thread on her wrist connecting her to a busy shop assistant in the fabric store.
Xue Tong arrived at Qianxiu Pavilion, panting, only to be stopped by a middle-aged woman on the first floor. The woman was dressed in a smart purple outfit, her hair was all piled up behind her head, and she looked somewhat stern.
“Young lady, this second floor is where the girls in the shop do their embroidery. Going up there will only result in you getting hurt by their needles and scissors.”
Xue Tong knew that this woman was probably one of the embroiderers of Qianxiu Pavilion. The young girl took out the purse that Yu Niang had given her from her waist.
"Excuse me, auntie, I'm a friend of Sister Yu Niang. I've come today to...buy a New Year's sachet and also to visit Sister Yu Niang."
The stern-faced woman with the embroidered robe softened instantly.
"Let me take you to see the purse first. The girls upstairs are embroidering something important these days. It may take another half an hour."
Xue Tong nodded obediently: "Thank you, Auntie." Then she followed the embroiderer to look at the purses. She also learned that the embroiderer's surname was He.
"Aunt He, may I order a purse?" After looking at all the purses on the counter, Xue Tong suddenly asked He Xiuzhang.
He Xiuzhang looked at the little girl in front of her; she was well-behaved and adorable, and spoke with grace. She wore a light purple dress and looked like a delicate purple flower.
"Of course, that's possible. May I ask what pattern you'd like to embroider, young lady?"
A quarter of an hour later, He Xiuzhang finished listening to Xue Tong's description and looked at the little girl in front of her with a strange expression.
A big, fluffy white wolf with blue eyes?
What young girl would like this?
"Aunt He, can't you embroider anymore?" Xue Tong asked He Xiu Zhang.
He Xiuzhang smiled and said, "Nothing in this world is made up out of thin air. The embroiderers in the building have never seen the white wolf, so naturally they cannot embroider the spirit in your mind, young lady."
Xue Tong pointed to an embroidery on the wall, which depicted a majestic golden tiger.
[Has Aunt He ever seen a tiger?]
He Xiuzhang smiled slightly as she looked at the quick-witted young girl in front of her: "This is a painting created by a famous painter of this dynasty who ventured into dangerous territory. We embroiderers are just embroidering it onto the cloth."
The girl, who had been somewhat dejected, suddenly became excited after hearing those words.
Yes, drawing. Xue Lan is a very good artist. We can have her draw it.
[Aunt He, I'll bring the painting of the white wolf tomorrow. Could you help me embroider it?]
"If the young lady can bring her paintings, then of course that's fine."
Just then, a woman's clear and pleasant voice called out from the second floor: "Auntie, the picture is combined!"
Xue Tong looked up and happened to see one of the embroiderers who had watched the lion dance with her that day. She winked playfully at the person.
"Please wait here, young lady. Yu Niang will be down shortly."
After speaking, He Xiuzhang went upstairs, leaving Xue Tong alone waiting downstairs.
He Xiuzhang went up to the second floor, where several embroiderers had already put down their needlework and stood in a row to the side, with Yu Niang at the head.
On the long table in front of me lay an embroidery pattern that had just been taken down from the embroidery frame. It did not depict colorful flowers and plants, nor a gentle and docile cat.
Instead, it was a dark expanse of blood and black, a crimson sky, a pitch-black night, and the soldiers' cold armor reflecting a faint light.
This is only part of the embroidery design.
He Xiuzhang turned to look at the embroiderers behind her, a satisfied expression on her face: "Girls, you've worked hard. This 'Hundred Battles of Luoxia Mountain' was commissioned by the Emperor and must be delivered to Luoxia Mountain by Qingming Festival."
The embroiderers bowed in unison: "Auntie, you're too kind. It's no trouble at all."
Upon closer inspection, one could see tears welling up in the eyes of the embroiderers.
"Alright, wipe your tears, or you won't be able to embroider if you cry your eyes out. It's early, go take a walk downstairs."
He Xiuzhang looked at Yu Niang at the front: "There's a young girl looking for you down there, go down and see her."
"Yes, Mother." Yu Niang bowed slightly, and the embroiderers went downstairs.
He Xiuzhang, who remained on the second floor, sighed and walked to a figure by the window.
"General Cao, what do you think of this map?"
The middle-aged man, addressed as General Cao, had a large scar on his left cheek and a missing leg. He gazed at the embroidery before him, silently weeping. Hearing this, he nodded repeatedly, saying, "That's exactly it, that's exactly it. Thank you, Auntie."
These are survivors from the battlefield at Luoxia Mountain, sent by the Emperor to oversee the battle. The scenes depicted in this "Hundred Battles at Luoxia Mountain" were all dictated by him, which explains why the embroiderers wept.
He Xiuzhang bowed deeply to the middle-aged man in front of her.
"While our soldiers are fighting on the front lines, we women, though unable to go to the battlefield, must still do our part."
After saying this, He Xiuzhang turned around and looked at the other Xiuzhangs behind her who were wearing the same color clothes as her.
"Let's start combining the images."