Colored Glaze and Separation

It was like colored glaze tempered in a raging fire—no matter how cold and hard one's heart might ordinarily be, faced with the beagle's adorable appearance, one couldn't help but choose to spoil it rotten.

What else could she do?

After all, it was still young, right?

————

The grand opening of Golden Curtain Terrace was set for the fifth day of the fifth month, which happened to coincide with the Dragon Boat Festival.

Mindful of the holiday traditions, Zhou Yao had the women skilled in cooking prepare over a hundred zongzi, intending to gift them to visiting guests on opening day.

Cui Wei trailed behind Zhou Yao, craning her neck and standing on her tiptoes to peer into the kitchen, asking, "Madam, what exactly is this zongzi? In past Dragon Boat Festivals, I only ever saw willow branches and five-colored silk threads. I've never heard of zongzi before."

"Zongzi..." Zhou Yao stepped into the kitchen as Cui Wei rolled up her sleeves for her. Zhou Yao picked up a wild rice leaf, wrapped the glutinous millet inside it, then secured it with fine thread and tied a knot. In no time at all, she had wrapped one.

"This is zongzi, made by wrapping glutinous millet in wild rice leaves." Zhou Yao looked at Cui Wei and said seriously, "As for your saying you've never seen them before, I imagine... during the Zhou Dynasty, zongzi were used as sacrificial offerings. It wasn't until Master Qu threw himself into the Miluo River that they came to be used for remembrance, right down to today. Now that the common folk outside the city can barely fill their stomachs, and glutinous millet is so precious, that's why..."

Whenever she thought of it, Zhou Yao couldn't help but sigh in regret. But today, seeing Cui Wei before her, practically drooling with longing, she found it both amusing and exasperating.

"Take this one. Steam it over the stove, and once it's done, dip it in some honey and have a taste."

"Thank you, madam!" Cui Wei snatched it up and hurried to place it in the stove, afraid of wasting even a second.

Seeing how delighted Cui Wei was, Zhou Yao thought of the other servants at Golden Curtain Terrace and carefully instructed her, "After you finish eating, remember to let the others have some too. We need to wrap plenty of zongzi this time—everyone has worked hard these past days, so let's all have a proper holiday. Everyone gets a bonus on opening day."

"Yes!"

On the fifth day of the fifth month, the plaque above Golden Curtain Terrace was covered early with red silk brocade. Firecrackers crackled in unison outside, and such a lively scene drew a large crowd of onlookers.

"Today Golden Curtain Terrace reopens, selling colored glaze pieces, ornaments, and jewelry. For the grand opening, one item is eighty-eight percent of the price, and two items are half off!" Zhou Yao stood at the main entrance of Golden Curtain Terrace, hawking her wares. Once the firecrackers finished popping and the red cloth was lifted from the plaque, the interior layout, the displays, the interplay of light and shadow, the positioning of the glass ornaments—every inch, every detail—had been crafted by Zhou Yao over these many days with tremendous care.

As soon as business officially opened, it indeed won the affection of many customers.

Some days prior, the Nine Kilns had worked through the night to produce a batch of high-quality colored glaze bracelets. As if favored by heaven, these bracelets hadn't cracked or split during polishing.

Zhou Yao had a carpenter craft a mold, then remelted the leftover glass scraps into tiny beads, stringing them with fine thread to create colorful beaded bracelets.

Colored glaze was all the rage in Chang'an right now. Riding the momentum of the Western Regions envoy just returning to the city, Zhou Yao opened for business, and her first day went quite well.

"I once had the fortune to see a colored glaze ornament at a palace banquet. Brother Xu, come take a look—how does the glass here at Golden Curtain Terrace differ from what's in the palace?" A man holding a folding fan pointed straight at the glass, addressing the man beside him.

That man let out a soft tsk, studied the glass for a long while, then shook his head, feigning regret. "The piece itself is fine, but the name 'colored glaze'... well, it's open to question."

The moment he said this, the gazes of everyone around converged on him. Someone asked, "Brother, what do you mean by that?"

"'Colored glaze'—it sounds like 'separation.' Separation from home and kin." The man waved his hand dismissively. "The meaning is far too inauspicious. Such an item is better left alone!"

"So then, this glass... whoever uses it will be separated from home and kin?!"

The man addressed as Brother Xu slowly nodded. "Exactly so!"

"Besides, the owner of Golden Curtain Terrace is a woman. How could she possibly have the ambitions of a man, to build a career and establish a family?" His tone was dripping with arrogance and contempt. "Brother Zhao, let's go. Let's look elsewhere. Better not stand here too long and pick up some bad luck!"

He stepped aside and made a gesture of invitation. The two of them left just like that.

But though the men were gone, their words lingered at Golden Curtain Terrace.

Hearing what the two had said, the other customers were now in a bind. Those who had already paid for their glass now found it a hot potato in their hands.

Those who hadn't paid yet secretly congratulated themselves. Besides, everyone invited today was among the wealthy households of Chang'an. Leaving everything else aside, the thing they valued most when buying these items was the meaning behind them.

Their words were an outright insult to the craftsmanship, and their contempt for women was laid bare for all to see. How could Zhou Yao stand idly by?

She had risen before dawn that morning to prepare for the opening, dressed in her most elaborate clothing and jewelry. The gold hairpins and swaying ornaments trembled gently as she walked. She gripped the stair railing and called out to stop them. "Honored guests, please hold a moment."

"Today is a festival, and I originally had no intention of spoiling everyone's enjoyment. But seeing this scene, it's clear someone came today determined to make life difficult for me."

Zhou Yao walked down the stairs, smiling a smile that didn't reach her eyes at the two men who had been stopped. "Brother here goes by Zhao, doesn't he? Since you've seen colored glaze in the palace, you must be a man of refined taste and some worldly experience. Then surely you also know that His Majesty the Emperor, the Queen, and all the imperial consorts are deeply fond of this very item."

"So you see, what you said today... is rather inappropriate, wouldn't you agree?" She strolled slowly toward where they stood. "At the lightest, one could say you lack discernment. At the heaviest..." She paused. "One could say you are guilty of treason, offending your superiors, and cursing the imperial house..."

"You! You're clearly making wild accusations and talking nonsense! What would a woman like you understand?!" He immediately lost his composure. "I said no such thing! Everyone present can bear witness!"

That was what he claimed, but when Zhou Yao glanced back inside, all the guests there seemed to have heard nothing at all.

She let out a light snort. "You gentlemen have seen it now—this was merely a conversation between us. If the two of you are willing to retract your earlier words, I imagine... things will be a bit more convenient for you in the future, won't they?"

"Cui Wei, bring over what I had prepared."

Cui Wei understood at once. Smiling, she quickly brought the item over and handed it to Zhou Yao.

"Inside is realgar powder, specially prepared by Golden Curtain Terrace for our guests." So saying, she sprinkled the realgar powder from the box onto the two men. "On this Dragon Boat Festival, let's dispel some bad luck and ward off petty people."

The two were choked into coughing by the realgar powder. The man who had been so rude earlier now pointed a finger directly at Zhou Yao, furious. "You!"

He flung his sleeve back with a sharp motion and roared, "A woman like you, so devoid of manners, truly without upbringing! Acting so outrageously now! Utterly without propriety!!"

Zhou Yao's smile vanished completely, her eyes filled with nothing but coldness.

The man saw she wasn't speaking, assumed she was frightened, and let out a mocking laugh, about to say more.

The next moment, Zhou Yao's palm cracked across his face. The sound of the slap echoed through the entire front hall of Golden Curtain Terrace.

The man surnamed Zhao stood there completely stunned, his face turned to the side where she'd struck him. That side of his cheek instantly swelled up high, a clear handprint standing out against the red and white of his skin.

"Some people just don't know when they're well off. In the end, whether I have manners or not is none of a piece of trash like you's business." Zhou Yao icily withdrew her hand and was about to turn and leave when the man, as if unwilling to accept his defeat, snapped back to his senses, clenched his fist, and shot toward Zhou Yao—

The fist stopped an inch from Zhou Yao. When she turned to look, it was Duyun who had blocked the man's punch.

Qi Yanhan had arrived.

"Quite the lively scene here. I rushed over the moment court ended today. It seems I've arrived just in time..."

Qi Yanhan was wearing the court robes of a first-rank chancellor. Judging by appearances, he too had come straight from court to Golden Curtain Terrace, without even stopping by his residence to change.

He smiled lightly. "So bold as to come cause trouble—I wondered who it might be. Isn't it those two useless bastards from the Zhao family's collateral branch?"

"A few days ago, your family's porcelain piled up unsold, and today you come to make trouble at Golden Curtain Terrace. That's quite the show of magnanimity." Qi Yanhan still wore that smiling expression, but those of status present could no longer bear to stay and watch the scene unfold. They were subtly beginning to edge toward the exit.

There was no need to even think—today's affair would certainly spread through all of Chang'an like wildfire, and by tomorrow at the latest, it would surely reach her father the Emperor's ears.

Zhou Yao calculated whether the false identity Qi Yanhan had given her could escape the throne's notice, and whether it was even necessary to try.

She worried about business on one hand, and seethed at these low-class bastards on the other!

Qi Yanhan looked the two men up and down with mockery, taking in their clothing now dusted with realgar powder. "Hurry back and change, why don't you. Looking like that is positively disgraceful."

Zhou Yao seized the opportunity and said coldly, "Cui Wei, see our guests out!"

The Zhao family and the Xu family, was it?

Fine. Zhou Yao would remember this.

Cui Wei and the others were left behind to handle the cleanup and maintain order, while Zhou Yao and Qi Yanhan headed to the back courtyard.

Qi Yanhan took out a teacup and set it on the table. He ground the tea leaves, brewed the infusion, and properly steeped a pot of tea. Then he looked at Zhou Yao with concern and asked, "Your Highness, are you alright?"

Zhou Yao had a feeling that those people had come today specifically to humiliate her.

Even if it hadn't been her, this would have happened to someone else...

But still, she couldn't help but reflect, couldn't help but think.

She didn't speak, nor did she reach for the cup of tea Qi Yanhan offered.

The wild grass by the wall grew in tangled chaos, messy and unruly, just like Zhou Yao's tangled thoughts.

"Your Highness..." Qi Yanhan called out to her hesitantly.

He had never comforted anyone before. Qi Yanhan wanted to console her but didn't know where to begin. But he felt that Zhou Yao today looked... beautiful. Even the glass she crafted with her own hands couldn't match even a fraction of her elegance and grace.

He had once thought of Zhou Yao merely as a burden sent by the imperial family, someone to be kept in his residence. But ever since he saw her restlessness against the constraints of court rules, saw her ambition, he gradually came to realize that Zhou Yao was completely different from what he had imagined!