Lady of Fortune, Jiao Niang

Little Ginseng didn’t have many friends. Dong-shi and her shared the same temperament and had the same fondness towards medicines, which naturally fostered a deeper bond between them.  

This prompted the Little Ginseng to think more for her. Numerous prescriptions flitted across her brain. But, among them, there were a few ingredients that she had encountered in the past, but not after reincarnating as a human.    

 At this moment, Dong-shi seemed to have recalled something. Rising from her seat, she stepped out and soon came back with a basket in her hand. 

Placing it on the table, she lifted the cloth covering it, unveiling a basketful of petals. 

These petals didn’t seem to be of the same flower, but of different varieties, constituting both petals of medicinal and common ornamental flowers. 

 Dong-shi, an avid learner of medicinal studies, was naturally aware of what kind could be mixed with the other. Thus, she partitioned the petals in the basket with the help of wooden boards by arranging them in a cross shape. With a smile, she added, “Jiao Niang, take these back.”

Peering into the basket, Ye Jiao took a quick glimpse. A trace of perplexity appeared in her bright eyes, as she inquired: “Are these petals edible?”

“They aren’t meant for consumption, rather they are meant to be added in the bath water.” With a smile, she gestured at the petals, “ All of these flower petals emit a pleasant fragrance. When added to the bath water, their fragrance suffuses your skin. You can give them a try.” 

This was a gift prepared by her for Ye Jiao. Unlike the liquor store, her family’s pharmacy doesn’t generate much income, leaving the medicinal ingredients as the only valuable commodity in the shop. 

However, Dong-shi found it extremely inappropriate to give medicinal ingredients. After all, their store was under Qi Yun’s supervision. If she gifted her medicinal ingredients, wouldn’t it be tantamount to gifting the owner their own possessions?    

 After deep contemplation, Dong-shi recalled Ye Jiao’s fondness for the medicinal flower she had previously gifted. Thus she decided upon the flower petals this time – beautiful and aromatic flowers could never go wrong.

With an appreciative smile, Ye Jia pulled the basket closer to her. While fiddling with the petals, her thoughts flew to how many ways a human can enjoy their bath. She couldn’t help but muse about the profoundness of being human. 

 Just then, her fingers momentarily paused upon a bright red flower petal.

 The shape of that flower petal was a bit different from the rest – it was pointed at both sides, but thicker in the middle. It had a smooth and soft touch, giving a pleasant tactile sensation.

And Ye Jia happened to be familiar with the flower of this unique petal. The flower was known as ‘Fengyuan’. They predominantly grow in aquatic habitats dense with flora, and could only survive when they are well-soaked in water. And the use of this medicinal flower happened to be apt for…Dong-shi’s situation. 

In the past, the little fox, in her pursuit of conceiving with the scholar, had experimented with this flower, among many of her tricks. And to her astonishment, she was met with a positive outcome.

Could this be considered Dong-shi’s wish coming true? 

At that instance, Ye Jiao, in a daze, realized that ever since she had become a human, her luck seemed to have exponentially increased.

Pinching the petal with her fingers, Ye Jiao carefully scrutinized it yet again. Only when she was sure of its identity, did she begin saying to Dong-shi, “Can you give me a few flowers of the plant? I will return them to you once I have cultivated them.” 

Though in the past, Ye Jia had never mentioned returning the medicinal herbs she had been given, she had to give this one back to Ding-shi. 

Not to mention, this flower has a nourishing effect on women. If it could be cultivated in her yard, it would surely prove to be a valuable asset.   

Slightly taken aback, Dong-shi leaned in to take a clearer look, “These are the petals of a Jixiang flower, and are arduous to cultivate. If you want, I have a few pots of them, you can take them back.”  

Ye Jiao nodded with a bright smile.

The name was aptly chosen, the flower was indeed an auspicious one. 

Realizing that it wasn’t early anymore, with Liu pozi in her toe, who had two pots in her hands, Ye Jiao bid her farewell with a basket and stepped out of the pharmacy.

Taking a seat in the ox cart, Ye Jiao began fiddling with the Jixiang flowers, which seemed to have weathered and lacked vitality. 

Dreading that the petals might fall off, she refrained from touching them anymore. Upon going back, she was intending to get a vat and nourish them back to their full health.

Turning her head, she gave the flower basket another glance. Sniffing a few petals, she found their aroma truly pleasant – at the least their aroma was far more pleasing than those of rogue she had previously used. 

The Little Ginseng placed the petals back in the basket, intending to use them in her bath back home, and see if she could truly make herself fragrant.

Reclining against a soft cushion, Ye Jiao reached out her arm and pulled the curtain open, to take a look outside.

Teeming with pedestrians on the footpath, and vendors selling an array of goods on either side of the road, the town was indeed more livelier than the villages in the countryside. 

However, Ye Jiao’s gaze was affixed on the signboards of the shops on both sides.   

Just like any other beginner in learning to read a new language, currently, Ye Jia’s interest was captured in trying to read new words. 

This one is “Hou’er Alley Pancake”, that one is “Madame Wang’s Tofu Shop”, and there was a ready-made clothing store…

Abruptly seeming to have recalled something, Ye Jiao bellowed the cart driver sitting at the front, “Please stop for a moment.”