Chapter 35.1 Snow Day’s Guests From Afar
Two girls, from their outfit, were master and maid. Not only was the young lady picturesque in conterance, but the maid was also delicate and pretty. It's just that the two’s current appearances were cut sorry figures. The young lady was wrapped in a green jade feather overcoat; its original bright and beautiful material was now dirty around the edges. The maidservant hadn’t donned on a cloak to shelter herself from the harsh snow, so her silk skirt was wet to her calves, exposing the front of her shoes which looked like it had been fished out of muddy water.
"It's cold outside, come warm yourself up by the stove." To end up like this, they probably didn't go out to enjoy the snow... Shen Shaoguang was not one to be curious of others’ misery, so she directly asked the girls to warm themselves by the fire.
The lady smiled gratefully at Shen Shaoguang and extended her gratitude. The maid was very vivacious, she thanked her too, and then busied herself waiting upon her young lady. The two of them were chatting in a clear-like-oriole voice, which was very nice to listen to; it was not as rigid as the Chang'an dialect.
"Miss, take off this overcoat. It's warm here, so it's inconvenient to keep wearing this." The maid said and helped to untie the tie of the overcoat.
Glancing at Lin Yan, who was sitting afar eating his candied hawthorn, the young lady's complexion turned slightly red. She gently patted her maid's hand away, and directly walked to the stove and extended her hand.
The servant girl was somewhat taken aback, and belatedly glanced at Lin Yan. She quickly realized that her young lady was embarrassed to reveal her completely sullied dress and shoes in the presence of a young man.
The maid had no choice but to take out a handkerchief to wipe the girl's hands, and borrowed a cloth towel from A’Yuan to wipe the muddy water on the girl's overcoat.
A’Yuan smiled and asked, "This cloak is so luxurious and beautiful, what kind of bird's feather is it made of?" She then added, "You are also wet, go stand by the stove first."
The miss also told her maid to warm herself by the fire.
Shen Shaoguang went to bring two cups of red date and wolfberry tea. "Miss, take a sip of this beverage, warm yourself up."
The lady thanked her again, took the cup, sat by the fire, and sipped the beverage in small sips. The maid bowed to Shen Shaoguang gratefully before taking her cup.
A’Yuan was spoiled by Shen Shaoguang and spoke without a filter, "How come you’re out during such weather? From your accents, you two don't sound like you’re from Chang’an."
The lady blushed, she looked at Shen Shaoguang, and then glanced at Lin Yan before replying, "We are not locals, we are here to visit relatives, but our carriage broke down on the road..."
"What relatives? Do they live in this Lane?"
"A’Yuan, are the meatballs cooked long enough?" Shen Shaoguang quickly interrupted A’Yuan.
"Ah! Thanks for the reminder, Miss. The matter’s already slipped my mind" The nosy A’Yuan quickly put down her curiosity and ran back to the kitchen.
When she went in, Shen Shaoguang apologized softly, "My maidservant is lacking in manners, she means no offense."
The lady smiled slightly, "It's okay..." She subconsciously glanced at the graceful figure on the other side, and pursed her lips. She seemed to have something to say, but was hesitant to speak.
Lin Yan savored the last bites of his candied hawthorn and perused the menu. Given the weather, a hot pot seemed like an excellent choice. While his grandmother delighted in the offerings from Shen Indelible, she hadn't yet experienced the hot pot from here. Why not order it and bring it home?
The lady finally opened up, "Miss, do you happen to know of any young man with the surname of Huan living in this Lane? He is—my cousin."
Shen Shaoguang mentally went through the surnames of the diners she knew, but none of them seemed to be surnamed Huan. ‘Cousin’... had an ambiguous meaning in this era, comparable to the term ‘friend’ in later generations. Moreover, this lady came all the way over with only a maidservant accompanying her, this matter was hard not to overthink.
Shen Shaoguang suddenly thought of a question, if this girl had run away from home to elope, did she have proper government documents? Would she be considered a fugitive? The person sitting over there was the executive deputy magistrate of Chang'an. According to Tang Dynasty law, undocumented people had to be deported back... If repatriated by the government, the outcome would be rather devastating for a girl.
"Proprietress—"
Shen Shaoguang responded, walked to Lin Yan's side, and asked with a smile, "What would you like to order, Sir?"
"I want two hot pots, one with clear broth and the other with milky broth. As for the dipping ingredients, I would like mutton and fish slices, as well as a portion of every meatball available. Vegetables and tofu are also a must. Have it packed, I’ll take it to go."
Oh wow, the once ‘only dipping one type of meat’ person now actually appreciated the allure of flavor fusion? Shen Shaoguang smiled triumphantly in her mind and replied in a brisk voice, "Okay! I’ll have someone follow you there, they’ll help you pour the broth and light the pots."
As if he knew that Shen Shaoguang was inwardly teasing him, Lin Yan looked at her quietly before saying, "Okay."
Shen Shaoguang curved her eyes, exposing a vivid smirk.
The kitchen had completely prepped all the hot pot ingredients. A’Yuan and A’Chang neatly packed two large cartons and came out carrying the two requested broths.
Lin Yan nodded to Shen Shaoguang and walked out. A’Yuan and A’Chang followed by freeloading off his carriage.
Before leaving the tavern, Lin Yan looked back at Shen Shaoguang. "Would it be possible to have another two skewers of these candied hawthorns?"
"...Sir, feel free to help yourself."
Lin Yan nodded and really took out two more.
As soon as Deputy Magistrate Lin departed, the atmosphere in the tavern finally eased.
The lady's maid asked with a smile, "That man has such a majestic presence, could he be a relative of the Emperor?"
Shen Shaoguang broke out in laughter. It could be seen that everyone, be it of ancient or modern times, were all very familiar with the matter of throwing a random pebble at the pedestrians of the capital could accurately hit three royal relatives. However, this time, this was an incorrect guess. "How could the emperor's relatives come to my humble tavern in such weather?"
The lady smiled and then gently reprimanded her maid, "Still speaking nonsense in public."
Shen Shaoguang apologized to the lady again for not knowing any man with the surname of Huan.
The expression on the lady’s face dimmed while her maid looked at her master worriedly.