Dandy Escapes From Marriage - Chapter 44

In the past few days, two things happened.

 

Firstly, Shen Ke’s task of copying books was terminated. His employer decided to give up entirely, going on strike, and no longer bothering with Master Zhang and the teacher, proclaiming that he wasn’t cut out for studying.

 

The cause of this event was the second thing.

 

He needed to help his sister by managing a cosmetics shop.

 

Ever since they saw the rouge made by Liu Shu, they thought it was a feasible plan. So they quickly had Zhang Moyang take charge of opening the shop and hiring people, while Zhang Mosheng seized the opportunity to learn how to make rouge from Liu Shu.

 

Liu Shu didn’t need to invest any capital upfront and didn’t have to manage the shop either, only taking a share of the profits, a split of thirty-seven. He took three-tenths of the profits.

 

The initial investment wasn’t much, and Liu Shu proposed that since the Zhang family had a shop in the town, they could use it first and try the waters in the town. If the feedback was good, they could open a larger shop in Huai Prefecture, where there were fewer customers.

 

Zhang Moyang agreed, and she hadn’t been away from home and had no experience in doing business, so she wanted to start small in town and improve it or cut losses.

 

On the day of the opening, it wasn’t as busy as they expected, and the two brothers and sisters couldn’t help feeling a little disheartened.

 

Shen Ke, who was temporarily caught as an accountant, held the pen for half a day, and not a single word could be written. In the end, he actually started drawing.

 

“It’s normal. Few people in this small town are willing to spend money on cosmetics, and our products have just been launched. Customers naturally need to be cautious,” Liu Shu comforted.

 

“It’s been a whole morning, and only three people have come, all just looking and not buying,” Zhang Moyang worried, “What should we do if it continues like this?”

 

“It’s just right for us to do more. Moyang and I haven’t done much,” Liu Shu thought for a moment and asked, “Your Zhang family mainly deals in cloth, right?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Then take this rose-scented rouge and use it as a gift for customers buying expensive clothes from your shop. Give them a jar each,” Liu Shu said, “People who can afford fancy clothes won’t hesitate to buy cosmetics. Let them try it out first.”

 

Zhang Moyang’s eyes lit up. “Okay, I’ll personally oversee this!”

 

Liu Shu turned to Zhang Mosheng and suddenly smiled. “Good disciple, it’s time to test your learning.”

 

Zhang Mosheng: “?”

 

“I heard there’s a rouge shop opening in the East Lane, offering free makeup!”

 

“Is that true?”

 

“Of course it’s true, and it’s Miss Zhang who does the makeup!”

 

“Then I must go and see! If it’s really free, I’ll get one done too!”

 

Word spread quickly, and within half an hour, everyone in town knew that Miss Zhang was offering free makeup in the East Lane, quickly crowding the alley.

 

A table was set up outside the shop door, with several bottles of rouge and powder. Zhang Mosheng only used these items to create different makeups for several people, causing exclamations of amazement.

 

Two young ladies were very satisfied, looking in the mirror for a long time, finally unable to resist asking which bottles of rouge she used and the price.

 

“159 wen per jar, not expensive, just the price of a casual meal at a restaurant, not even as expensive as men’s drinking money, right?” Liu Shu answered beside him.

 

Upon hearing this, everyone felt it was a good deal!

 

Shen Ke smiled slightly, stopped drawing, and finally managed to keep accounts and collect money.

 

The onlookers all raised their hands to ask for makeup, some waiting for the opportunity, while others witnessed how Zhang Mosheng created beautiful faces for everyone. They couldn’t help but exclaim in amazement. Some of them had already gone to buy the same rouge.

 

When Zhang Moyang returned after giving away the rose rouge she brought, she prepared to report happily, but as soon as she entered the door, she heard that everything was sold out, and her knees went weak, almost kneeling down.

 

“Why did it sell out so quickly!?”

 

Zhang Mosheng recounted the afternoon’s events, rubbed her sore wrist, turned to Liu Shu, and smiled, “Master, how did I do?”

 

“Very well! You truly are my good disciple!” Liu Shu gave her a thumbs-up, “It seems the feedback is quite good. We need to quickly increase the manpower to make rouge.”

 

“Okay, I’ll arrange this!” After Zhang Moyang finished speaking, she ran out to handle things.

 

“A Ke, how much did we earn today?” Liu Shu turned around to find Shen Ke and absentmindedly picked up the account book, suddenly pausing as he saw the drawing underneath.

 

The tall figure of the youth on the drawing was shooting arrows with a bow, with his hair flying and the free-spirited youth vividly portrayed on paper.

 

“Who are you drawing?” Liu Shu asked intentionally.

 

Shen Ke looked up, smiled slightly, and said, “The person in front of me.”

 

“Why are you drawing him?”

 

“Just suddenly missed him.”

 

Liu Shu grinned, set aside the drawing, and cupped Shen Ke’s face, leaning down to peck him on the cheek, smiling as they locked eyes.

 

“Can’t you be affectionate at home?” Zhang Mosheng said expressionlessly, retracting her gaze.

 

“Come on, let’s go home!” Liu Shu eagerly pulled Shen Ke to leave.

 

Zhang Mosheng: “” 

 

At this moment, a woman entered quietly, wearing a veil, standing quietly for a while before whispering, “Is makeup application free here?”

 

“Yes, would you like to try it?” Zhang Mosheng asked.

 

The woman lifted her hand, slowly removing the veil, and asked softly, her eyes lowered, “Can I do this with my face?”

 

Only then did the three see her face: fair skin, well-defined features, yet a prominent thumb-sized birthmark on her left cheek, quite conspicuous.

 

“Well…” Zhang Mosheng hesitated, looking at Liu Shu. “Can you handle this?”

 

Liu Shu stepped forward, scrutinizing the woman’s face. She instinctively stepped back, covering her face to avoid his gaze, her eyes full of panic.

 

“Don’t be afraid, he’s my master, and his skills are even better than mine,” Zhang Mosheng reassured her.

 

The woman seemed hesitant, fingers clenched into fists. At this moment, another man appeared beside her, gently saying, “If you’re worried, let Miss Zhang try it first. We’ll wait outside.”

 

The woman nodded slowly.

 

Shen Ke turned to Zhang Mosheng and said, “I’ll leave this to you. She trusts you more, so just do your best and don’t feel pressured.”

 

“Yeah, I’ll do my best,” Zhang Mosheng replied.

 

The two closed the door. Liu Shu suggested, “It might take a while. Let’s go out for a walk. It’s been a long time.”

 

“Okay.”

 

By now, it was getting late, and many people had already gone home, leaving the streets quiet. Holding hands under their wide sleeves, Liu Shu touched his finger bones and said, “When we hire someone for the shop, there will be an accountant. Then you can do what you want.”

 

“Do you know what I want to do?” Shen Ke asked.

 

“Aren’t you always writing about planting notes?” Liu Shu smiled.

 

“Yeah, so most of the time I might be in the village.”

 

“Fortunately, I don’t have the right to manage the shop, or we wouldn’t be able to see each other as often in town,” Liu Shu laughed, spotting a shop ahead, stopping abruptly and pulling Shen Ke inside.

 

Shen Ke had a deep impression of this shop, which still sold his father’s counterfeit paintings.

 

The shopkeeper recognized him at a glance, mainly because his appearance was unforgettable. He smiled and asked, “Sir, would you like to come back to buy Master Shen’s paintings?”

 

“What do you mean?” Liu Shu asked Shen Ke with some confusion. “Have you been here before?”

 

“I came to see it before,” Shen Ke said.

 

“Which painting did he see?” Liu Shu asked the shopkeeper.

 

“This one,” the shopkeeper pointed to one of the paintings, saying, “This is Master Shen’s authentic work! Each word is worth a thousand gold!”

 

Liu Shu: “How much?”

 

As soon as he heard that he was so eager to ask about the price, the shopkeeper immediately said, “Five hundred taels.”

 

Liu Shu: “One tael, do you sell it or not?”

 

Shopkeeper: “Are you kidding?”

 

Shen Ke: “It turns out to be bargaining like this? I’ve learned, I’ve learned.”

 

Liu Shu: “If you don’t sell, I’ll leave.”

 

The shopkeeper didn’t have any intention of keeping him and even waved to urge them to leave quickly.

 

Liu Shu pretended to walk out of the shop door. Seeing that he had not followed, he was so angry that he itched his teeth: “Is this thing really so valuable? I think the calligraphy and painting you wrote about aren’t worse than this so-called Master Shen’s. Can I sell him for a thousand taels?”

 

“Small characters of calligraphy and painting are not worth a lot,” Shen Ke laughed, holding his hand and leaving here.

 

“Wait, I’ll go and haggle with him again.” Liu Shu was unwilling in his heart. Angry, he still wanted to buy it as a gift for A ke.

 

“No need, the handwriting is fake.” Shen Ke said.

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Good, just as I thought, a deceitful merchant!”

 

“Or maybe the shopkeeper himself was deceived. I already warned him, but he prefers to believe what he wants to believe.”

 

“Then let’s forget about him. But who exactly is this Master Shen? Could it be the Magistrate Shen we know?!” Liu Shu asked.

 

“No, he’s Master Shen from the Hanlin Academy.”

 

“Oh, I don’t know him,” Liu Shu said. “You scared me. I thought it was that persistent Magistrate Shen. Although they share the same surname, they might not be related at all.”

 

“Just a coincidence.”

 

After wandering around for a while, the two returned to the shop and found that the girl had already left.

 

“My skills aren’t good enough. I couldn’t cover up her birthmark completely; it was just lightly concealed,” Zhang Mosheng sighed. “But the girl said she would come again next time.”

 

“Is she still so wary?” Liu Shu asked.

 

“A bit better. I’ve been mentioning you to her. Next time, you should come and try,” Zhang Mosheng suggested.

 

“Okay.”

 

As night fell, Zhang Moyang arranged a carriage for them, making it much more convenient to come and go.

 

Once home, Liu Shu hung the portrait Shen Ke had drawn for him on the wall, placing it side by side with the one he had drawn of Shen Ke himself.

 

He observed for a moment and clicked his tongue.

 

Originally thinking his own drawing was decent, the direct comparison made it clear why Shen Huai had called this one a “ghostly talisman” upon seeing it.

 

“Go take a bath,” Shen Ke said, already refreshed from his bath. Passing by him, Liu Shu suddenly grabbed his arm.

 

“Why do you smell so good?” Liu Shu sniffed from his shoulder to his neck, then licked his Adam’s apple. Shen Ke’s body stiffened momentarily, his breath seeming to stop, and he looked up at him.

 

“It’s too hot. I’m going to take another bath,” Shen Ke turned away abruptly and left.

 

The next moment, Liu Shu reminded him, “Ake, you’re clumsy.”

 

Shen Ke hesitated for a moment, adjusted his stride, and walked away quickly out of his line of sight.

 

After they had both bathed and prepared, it was getting late. They lay down on the bed almost simultaneously.

 

Shen Ke: “Let’s sleep early.”

 

Liu Shu: “Make the most of our time.”

 

Shen Ke glanced sideways. “What?”

 

Before he could finish speaking, the other turned over, lay on top of him, held his face in both hands, and kissed him for a while. Then he lowered his head to kiss his neck and instinctively pulled at his belt.

 

Suddenly, Liu Shu was pinned down by a strong force. In the next moment, everything spun around, and the two exchanged positions. He looked up at Shen Ke, who was breathing heavily, their eyes meeting as they both tried to steady their breath.

 

In the faint candlelight, Liu Shu stared into his deep, unreadable eyes, as if trying to draw him in. But after waiting for a long time, Shen Ke still seemed to be restraining some emotional surge.

 

Turning his head, he glanced at Shen Ke’s slightly trembling arm and smiled, embracing his shoulders and whispering in his ear, “What are you holding back?”

 

As if releasing a floodgate, Shen Ke loosened the hands that had been supporting his body, embraced him tightly, took a deep breath, and in a hoarse voice, suppressed with emotion, said, “Don’t say anything.”

 

“You…” Liu Shu suddenly felt a sting from somewhere, just about to speak when Shen Ke let go of his hand, abruptly lay back down.

 

Liu Shu silently smiled. Ah, A ke was so shy! He’d embarrass him to death on their wedding night hehehe.

 

He held Shen Ke’s hand, very considerately saying, “It’s okay, A ke, I’ll wait until you’re ready.”

 

After a long time, Shen Ke gradually calmed down, playing with his fingers, and finding no response from the other, he turned his head to see Liu Shu had already fallen asleep.

 

As the candle was about to burn out, he gently rolled over, staring at the peaceful sleeping face, his eyes full of indescribable tenderness. He whispered softly, “It won’t be long.”

 

Before he finished speaking, the other kicked him hard in his dream, quite forcefully.

 

Shen Ke: “”