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墨書 Inktalez
Faced with this situation, all the swordsmen seemed to take it for granted. Those who should be chatting laughed, and those who should be working did their tasks, without a single person paying attention to the body lying there, nor did anyone step forward to say a word. Even the Steward did not glance at it, continuing to assign work to everyone with a serious expression.
Qing sheathed his sword, feeling somewhat "uncomfortable," and kicked the big man's backside with his foot, urging him to hurry along on his way to the underworld. The faster he ran, the quicker he would be reborn.
San Chun watched as some laborers came over to drag the body away, feeling a mix of emotions. This was a society of the strong; it was not about human relationships but rather about the relationships between swords. People could only communicate with swords; if one felt happy, they could draw their sword against anyone, and dying by someone else's sword was also a form of honor. Therefore, no one would find it strange or surprising; they had become accustomed to it. Countless people had died in this manner, and after so many deaths, it no longer felt significant.
In this era, those skilled in swordsmanship were divided into several levels. The lowest level was the swordsman, followed by the Sword Master, and the most powerful were the Masters. Swordsmen were further divided into many ranks; those serving as guards for a Dance Troupe were among the lowest tier. A step above them were those serving nobles, known as Warrior Swordsmen, while those serving the country were called samurai.
Someone like Qing, who could kill invisibly, had already reached a level akin to that of a Sword Master in some respects.
From that point on, Qing became famous with a single strike. In the Guard Squad, more and more people sought him out for duels; even passersby from nearby towns came to hear of his reputation.
The most troublesome among them was a fellow named Sword Thirteen, who always provoked San Chun instead of Qing.
This puzzled San Chun greatly, and she boldly asked, "Do I have a grudge against you?"
"Yes," Sword Thirteen replied without hesitation.
His eyes bulged suddenly as he pointed at her nose and shouted angrily, "You shameless person! Quail Orchid is a celestial maiden, and you dare to reject her? You really have some nerve!"
San Chun was taken aback; she realized that his targeting her was actually due to his interest in Quail Orchid.
No wonder he looked familiar; she had seen him ten years ago.
On that day, he approached Quail Orchid with several wildflowers in hand and earnestly pleaded with her, "I have admired you for a long time; I only wish for one night together. What will happen tomorrow?"
Quail Orchid smiled while covering her sleeve, saying, "Orchid has no time; do not blame me." As she spoke, she intentionally linked her arm with San Chun's, nearly leaning on her completely.
At that moment, San Chun only wanted to shake off Quail Orchid's clinginess and hardly glanced at him; she only vaguely remembered that he had an ordinary appearance.
Later on, she asked Quail Orchid, "Why didn't you go when such a handsome man invited you?"
Quail Orchid smiled softly and said, "If he were truly handsome, I would certainly go."
She then understood that it was because he thought she was ugly. In this era obsessed with beauty, men like beautiful women, and beautiful women like handsome men. In their obsession with beauty, women sometimes even surpass men.
Now, a living person stood before her. Upon closer inspection, Sword Thirteen indeed looked a bit dark, and his status was too lowly; it was truly difficult for him to gain a woman's affection. In the Seven Kingdoms, someone whose name was just a number would not have a high background.
With the tip of his sword pointed at his nose, San Chun still displayed an air of composure. She smiled and said, "If you like Quail Orchid, you can pursue her; why must you be entangled with me?"
Thirteen felt his thoughts exposed and blushed. He then shouted angrily, "You! I want to duel with you."
San Chun glanced at Qing, who held the sword hilt in his right hand and casually flicked his left hand. His eyes seemed to be smiling as he watched them, as if he were oblivious to her awkward situation or simply waiting to see the show.
She knew he clearly had no intention of helping her and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. It was all her fault for boasting about her swordsmanship being superior to his, which piqued Qing's interest. Now it seemed he wanted to see her in action to witness her prowess.
Unfortunately, boasting is easy, but reality is harsh. She hadn't wielded a sword in two years; picking it up again wouldn't happen overnight.
With a quick thought, she gently pinched the tip of her sword that was pointing at herself and smiled brightly like the morning sun. "We can duel later; right now, with flowers blooming everywhere, why don't we discuss some beauty tips? They will surely make your skin as white as snow and charming."
Thirteen was greatly moved by this. He had always been dark-skinned and often mocked as "black charcoal pot," and he had never heard of any method to lighten his skin.
Excitedly, he stammered, "Is... is that really true?"
San Chun smiled even brighter and nodded repeatedly. "Absolutely."
Taking advantage of his distraction, she moved the sword tip aside and quickly shifted to a safe position. Then she energetically promoted the beauty methods with flowery language, so much so that even Qing couldn't help but believe there might be such miraculous techniques in the world.
The two walked shoulder to shoulder like brothers. Before leaving, San Chun cast a proud glance at Qing, which in Azure Eyes appeared as helplessness mixed with curiosity. He hadn't expected her to have such skills; did she also understand women's beauty techniques?
As for beauty techniques, San Chun really didn't know much about them. However, a few days ago, she had chatted with Quail Orchid about the Shang Family. At thirty years old, she had skin smoother and whiter than that of a young girl—truly enviable.
The Shang Family had passed down some skincare methods to maintain the beauty of their Kabuki. At that time, Quail Orchid was infatuated with her and answered every question without hesitation; this opportunity allowed her to show off a bit.
One method stated: Collect the whole herb of motherwort on the fifth day of the fifth month without any soil. After drying it in the sun, grind it into fine powder through a sieve. Then mix it with flour and water; after adjusting it well, shape it into pills the size of eggs and dry them again. Use gentle heat to cook for one day and night; take them out to cool completely, grind finely again through a sieve, and store them in a dry porcelain container. When using it, add one-tenth of talcum powder and one percent of rouge; mix well and grind finely. Use this powder while bathing or washing your face or hands.
After hearing this, Thirteen felt it was too complicated. With his status, how could he afford so much talcum powder and rouge?
San Chun also knew this, so he provided him with a second method: on the third day of the third lunar month, collect the shade of peach blossoms and grind them into a fine powder. On the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, collect chicken blood and mix it, using it to apply on the face and body.
Now was the season when peach blossoms were in full bloom. Although it wasn't exactly the third day of the third month, being a few days off was acceptable. The two of them worked together, picking peach blossoms by the roadside and killing a chicken for its blood. After several days of effort, they successfully made a box of ointment.
Peach blossoms enhance beauty, and chicken blood can treat various skin diseases while nourishing the skin. San Chun gave this a lovely name: Spring Flower Red Blood Ointment.
Thirteen used it for over ten days. Although she didn't know how effective it was, later on, this method might have been learned by those making blood tofu, who added scallions, ginger, and garlic. After some improvements, it probably became what is known as chicken blood tofu today.
I heard its sales were quite good...
Seeing there was still some left, San Chun tried it on her own face. The color was indeed excellent. She was already extremely beautiful, and with this enhancement, she instantly captivated a crowd of men and women. Even many swordsmen among her guards looked at her with admiration; Thirteen's gaze towards her was also noticeably different from before.
Under her leadership, the atmosphere in the caravan became filled with springtime warmth. Everyone's faces were filled with relaxation, joy, and anticipation. It seemed that even the originally tense atmosphere had turned harmonious.
Her enthusiasm melted this warm land; beauty transformed the earth, turning bad seedlings into good trees.
San Chun outwardly humbly said "I don't deserve it," but inwardly she was delighted. This was the first time he praised her beauty in front of her, even if his words were a bit sharp.
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