Five Years After My Death, the Mad Emperor Still Summons My Spirit

Chapter 217: Chapter 217: Treasure Bead

After Ming Lingyi and Feng Shuyu signed the contract, which was drawn up in triplicate, they had to go to the Jingzhao Mansion to have it archived.

Although this was a contract between two people, according to the laws of the Dayan Dynasty, contracts exceeding a certain amount needed to be reported to the Jingzhao Mansion.

However, many people paid this law no mind. Since it was a private transaction between two parties, they felt it didn’t matter whether the Jingzhao Mansion was involved or not.

The Jingzhao Mansion wouldn’t go out of its way to send people to supervise these transactions either. After all, for the Jingzhao Mansion, it was better to have less trouble than more.

But Ming Lingyi, after signing the contract, went with Feng Shuyu to the government office to register it.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Feng Shuyu, but rather that she felt since the court had established such a policy, there must be a good reason for it. It served as a protection for both her and Feng Shuyu.

Ever since meeting at Qinglong Temple, Cai Jie and Ming Lingyi had gradually become good friends.

The reason was that Cai Jie had no friends or relatives in Shangjing City. Aside from Jiang Yuchuan, Ming Lingyi was the only person she knew.

So, she started coming to Ming’s Restaurant.

At first, she only came to the restaurant to eat. But Ming’s Restaurant had many customers every day. Business was so good that Ming Lingyi was already considering hiring more staff. Otherwise, when she finished setting up her new tavern on Vermilion Bird Street, the current staff from Ming’s Restaurant would be far from enough for the grand opening.

Back home, Cai Jie had been a well-bred young lady who’d never had to lift a finger. Even if she didn’t enter the kitchen, she could still do embroidery and other such things. Now, in Shangjing City, she found herself with nothing to do. When she was eating at Ming’s Restaurant and saw Xiao Chun and the others swamped with work, she would help out with some of the chores.

When Ming Lingyi saw this, she didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

"You’re a customer here to eat. Why are you doing all this?" Ming Lingyi said, pulling Cai Jie aside afterward.

Cai Jie fiddled with her fingers in embarrassment. "I just don’t have anything to do..."

She was all alone in Shangjing City and terribly bored. She had no friends to speak of and nothing to occupy her time. Although she was currently living in the Jiang Mansion, her relationship with Jiang Yuchuan was merely a union of convenience. They weren’t even married yet, so she couldn’t possibly get involved in the mansion’s affairs. She felt more like a guest with idle hands, which only made her feel more useless.

Ming Lingyi was exasperated. She had recently promoted a Store Manager from one of her family’s other shops to help run the restaurant, which had eased her own workload considerably.

"You don’t have to do this sort of work in the future," Ming Lingyi suggested. "However, our restaurant does happen to be hiring a few new workers. Are you free this afternoon? We could go to the brokerage to take a look. On that note, since you’ll be marrying Lord Jiang soon, you don’t have a personal maid to attend to you. Why don’t we look for one at the same time?"

And so, over time, the two became closer.

One day, Ming Lingyi accompanied Cai Jie to a gold and silver shop in Shangjing City to choose some jewelry.

Since Jiang Yuchuan had decided to marry Cai Jie, the word was already out. He had even completely broken things off with the Xie family, so there was no turning back on their marriage. Considering that neither of them was young, and their union was inevitable, Jiang Yuchuan decided not to delay any longer. He arranged to have their horoscopes matched, sent the betrothal gifts, and calculated an auspicious wedding date.

Although Cai Jie’s parents were still alive, her situation meant she had to handle the preparations all by herself.

Upon learning of her situation, Ming Lingyi took the initiative and brought Cai Jie to the East Market to shop.

The bride didn’t have much of a dowry, but she still needed the essentials. Jiang Yuchuan had given her some silver and told her to buy whatever she liked, and it would all be considered part of her dowry.

"Treasure Pearl Pavilion" was the largest jewelry shop in the East Market that specialized in Dongzhu pearls. While it couldn’t compete with the "Gold and Silver Building" in terms of gold and silver jewelry, its pearls were second to none in Shangjing.

The finest Dongzhu pearls could be more expensive than entire sets of gold and silver head ornaments, and some were so rare as to be priceless.

Jiang Yuchuan was not stingy with his future wife, giving Cai Jie a considerable amount of his private funds for her dowry.

Jewelry made from various pearls had recently become exceptionally fashionable in Shangjing City. As soon as Ming Lingyi and Cai Jie walked in, they saw an indigo velvet cloth spread over a treasure cabinet by the entrance, showcasing an assortment of Dongzhu jewelry.

In the center was a red gold dotting green feather hairpin. Its main pearl was as large as a longan fruit, its luster as soft as moonlight, and it was flanked by several smaller pearls. It was easy to imagine how it would shimmer with radiant light whenever the wearer moved.

Beside it, on a white jade hairpin, three rice beads were clustered to form a small plum blossom, looking utterly elegant. Although it didn’t have many pearls, the combination with the jade hairpin instantly created an air of refined grace.

Ming Lingyi had only just glanced around when the smiling voice of the Treasure Pearl Pavilion’s Shopkeeper reached her ears. "I didn’t expect to see you here, Boss Ming! If there’s anything you like, please don’t hesitate to ask."

Ming Lingyi turned around in surprise, seemingly taken aback that he knew who she was.

Seeing Ming Lingyi’s somewhat puzzled gaze, the Shopkeeper of Treasure Pearl Pavilion took the initiative to explain. "The Jiangnan Three Whites Stew from Boss Ming’s restaurant is truly authentic. I’ve been in Shangjing City for over ten years now and haven’t been back to my hometown in a long time. I never thought I’d be able to taste the flavors of home right here in the capital."

Understanding dawned on Ming Lingyi. "So the Shopkeeper is from Jiangnan." She smiled as well. Of course, when she opened her restaurant, she hoped her customers would be satisfied. Ming Lingyi was delighted that her food was so well-liked. "Today, we’re looking to select some high-quality pearl jewelry. Does the Shopkeeper have any recommendations?"

After saying this, Ming Lingyi added, "A sister of mine has a happy occasion coming up."

The Shopkeeper understood immediately and led Ming Lingyi to a private booth on the side. "Please wait a moment, Boss Ming."

A moment later, he returned, carrying several small boxes.

"This is a pair of South Sea Golden Pearl Earrings. Look at the pearls—perfectly round, flawless, with a beautiful inner luster. A rare find indeed. And in this box, we have something new to our shop that would make a perfect matching set with these earrings."

As he spoke, the Shopkeeper opened another, slightly larger box he was holding.

The moment the box was opened, a flicker of satisfaction appeared in both Ming Lingyi’s and Cai Jie’s eyes.

The bottom of the box was lined with cloud brocade, upon which rested a necklace of perfectly round Dongzhu pearls. Each pearl was uniform in size and suffused with a faint pinkish glow.

The entire sandalwood box seemed to be filled with the unique, gentle luster of the pearls, interweaving with the scent of sandalwood to create an atmosphere of opulent tranquility.

"Boss Ming and this young lady, please take a look at this as well."

The Shopkeeper had been watching Ming Lingyi and Cai Jie’s expressions. Seeing the satisfaction in their eyes, he felt a hint of pride as he opened the black lacquer mother-of-pearl box beside him.

"This bracelet comes from the same source as the Dongzhu necklace. As for the quality, they are comparable."

Inside the black lacquer mother-of-pearl box lay an eighteen-bead prayer bracelet. Each pearl was plump and round, glowing with a faint pink luminescence, and interspersed with green tourmaline, exuding an air of elegant nobility.

This set alone was exquisite enough to be the centerpiece of the shop.

After all, pearls of this size and perfect roundness were a rare sight.

Ming Lingyi looked at Cai Jie. Today was Cai Jie’s shopping trip, so of course, the bride-to-be had to be satisfied.

Cai Jie was indeed very satisfied. "Excuse me, Shopkeeper, how much silver for this entire Dongzhu set?"

The Shopkeeper made a gesture with his hand.

Natural Dongzhu pearls, combined with masterful craftsmanship in carving and setting, became one-of-a-kind works of art.

Their price was far higher than that of gold or silver jewelry.

A trace of hesitation flickered across Cai Jie’s brow.

Just then, a scornful laugh came from behind them.

"Country folk can’t afford things from Shangjing City. They should take a look at themselves and know their place."