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墨書 Inktalez
Elder Brother Li smiled, "This fabric is quite famous; it's called Soft Smoke Silk."
"Soft Smoke Silk? That name sounds familiar," Hanno said, tapping her chin with her finger. "Where have I heard it before?"
"In Dream of the Red Chamber," Elder Brother Li prompted.
"Oh~~~" Hanno finally remembered, "It's when Liu Laolao and Grandmother Jia were visiting Grand View Garden, and Grandmother Jia was going to use Soft Smoke Silk to cover the windows for Lin Daiyu at Xiaoxiang Pavilion?"
Elder Brother Li nodded. "That's right. When I went to the fabric shop to choose materials, I thought of you when I heard this name, so I picked it for the tent."
"Of course I like it," Hanno replied with a smile. "This big tent uses much more material than the windows at Xiaoxiang Pavilion. It shows that our treatment is even better than Lin Daiyu's!"
"You seem to prefer Xue Baochai more," Elder Brother Li remarked, recalling how his girlfriend admired Xue Baochai among the Twelve Beauties.
Hanno nodded. "Lin Daiyu is too ethereal; Baojie is more down-to-earth."
Elder Brother Li asked, "What about Wang Xifeng? Don't you appreciate her?"
"She's too fierce and has a cruel streak. Any admiration I had for her is gone," Hanno said. "Besides, after seeing more of those literary figures, I think Wang Xifeng really is like those fanfics portray—too foolish. She’s used as a tool by Madam Wang, alienates her in-laws, and fails to produce an heir for the title. All she does is serve as Madam Wang's head maid; it's utterly hopeless."
"If Baojie had married Jia Baoyu, their married life would probably be similar to Wang Xifeng's, right?" Elder Brother Li suggested. "In terms of power, Baojie wouldn't be any less than Wang Xifeng."
"But Baojie would be much more tactful, and she's well-read and intelligent."
Each of the Twelve Beauties has her own characteristics, but Hanno doesn't like them all. The ones she dislikes the most are Qin Keqing and Jia Tanchun, while her favorite is Baojie. Although many fanfics portray Baojie negatively, Hanno never wavers in her admiration for her. She believes Baojie is more genuine than the other eleven.
"Enough of this; let's get up. I'm hungry," Elder Brother Li said.
Hanno chuckled lightly. "You're just imagining it; a Golden Core Stage expert wouldn't starve even if they didn't eat."
Elder Brother Li smiled, "It's indeed a psychological effect. Although I am now a Golden Core cultivator, it still feels unreal. I can't shake off the habits of being an ordinary person."
Hanno sighed, "I feel the same way. My current life truly feels like a dream. When I wake up from this dream, I will still just be an ordinary person in modern society, but as long as you are by my side, that's enough."
Elder Brother Li held Hanno tightly, knowing that his earlier disappearance had frightened the one he cherished.
The two of them quietly nestled together for a long time before finally getting up. Instead of eating at Li Residence, they chose to dine outside. As a foodie, Hanno couldn't help but reminisce about the ancient taverns and food stalls.
The capital of the Great Zhou was bustling with activity. Hanno felt as if he were witnessing a miniature version of old Beijing or perhaps a glimpse of the ancient city of Kaifeng.
"The prosperity of Tokyo described in Meng Yuanlao's 'Tokyo Dream Chronicles' during the Song Dynasty seems to pale in comparison to this Great Zhou," Hanno remarked.
"'Tokyo Dream Chronicles'?" Elder Brother Li asked, puzzled.
Hanno explained to Elder Brother Li, "The 'Tokyo Dream Chronicles' is a collection of notes by Meng Yuanlao from the Song Dynasty. It records the situation in the Northern Song capital of Tokyo Kaifeng during the reigns of Emperor Huizong and Chongning to Xuanhe, depicting the daily lives of everyone from nobles to commoners during that historical period. It is an extremely important historical document for studying urban social life and economic culture in the Northern Song."
"Tokyo?" Elder Brother Li exclaimed in surprise.
Hanno clarified, "Not the Tokyo of Mudong Kingdom, but the ancient city of Tokyo Bianliang from the Northern Song, which is present-day Kaifeng. According to records, Tokyo Bianliang was one of the most prosperous cities in the world at that time. Prime Ministers like Cai Jing used national resources to create a magnificent paradise on earth, which ultimately attracted envy from the Jin people and led to national disaster. After the Jin destroyed the Northern Song, Meng Yuanlao fled south and often reminisced about Tokyo's splendor, thus writing this memoir."
Elder Brother Li admired his girlfriend's erudition, "It's impressive that you can read such ancient texts."
Hanno replied, "I only read it for research purposes before; otherwise, I wouldn't bother with such brainy ancient travelogues. I prefer modern prose that doesn't require much thought."
Elder Brother Li said, "Speaking of modern prose, I'm almost done with what I have on my phone. Did you bring the newly downloaded memory card?"
"I did," Hanno replied. "It's filled with the latest completed works—absolutely thrilling. There are a few harem stories in there; just enjoy them but don't follow the main character's bad examples."
Elder Brother Li laughed, "You know, I don't like the typical horse-riding protagonist either."
Hanno scoffed, "How low can the morals of authors who write horse-riding stories and their readers be? If it's a woman, she just collects a harem without fear, as if iron pestles can be ground into sewing needles. I recently read a quick-transmigration story set in a martial arts world. At first, it was decent; the protagonist only collected one girl per world, which showed some integrity, and the plot was exciting enough for me to keep reading. But as the protagonist grew stronger, his morals plummeted. He started pulling in every woman, regardless of whether they were fragrant or foul. In one arc, he even took in Gongsun Dajiang and killed the Serpent King, losing all sense of conscience. Gongsun Dajiang had killed so many innocent people just because she was beautiful, and the protagonist thought she was great. What about the Serpent King? Although he helped Jin Jiuling capture Xue Bing, wasn't that under duress from Jin Jiuling? The Serpent King's entire family was slaughtered by Gongsun Dajiang, not sparing even the children. His actions to frame Gongsun Dajiang were merely out of revenge; even if he was wrong, how could he be more wrong than Gongsun Dajiang? In the end, the protagonist not only killed the Serpent King but also wiped out all his brothers. What had those men done wrong? Just because they were men? They deserved to die for upsetting the protagonist's woman? I got angrier as I read and dropped it entirely. It's a shame for the Qd coins I spent; it's even more regrettable that such a good idea was ruined by the author. If he had just stuck to one woman per world like before, I could have continued reading."
Elder Brother Li said, "Hearing you talk about it makes me want to take a look."
Hanno shot him an eye roll. "I didn't give it to you."
Elder Brother Li rubbed his nose and suddenly waved his hand; a carriage stopped in front of them.
He pulled out a few Copper Coins to pay the driver and got on the carriage with Hanno. The carriage was spacious inside, with a long bench nailed down that could seat five or six people. Hanno and Elder Brother Li sat on the side bench against the carriage wall. Hanno leaned over to Elder Brother Li's ear and chuckled lightly, "This is quite a public carriage you've got here."
Elder Brother Li asked with a smile, "How does it feel?"
"Not bad," Hanno replied. "It would be even better if we replaced these benches with those cushioned seats from our buses."
Elder Brother Li nodded in agreement and decided to mention it to the Minister of Works when they went to court.
The carriage stopped near Longjin Bridge in the outer city. This area was bustling with activity; various shops and food stalls lined the streets, many of which Hanno had never seen or tasted before: eel buns, rotating grilled lamb, white intestines, fish jerky, frozen fish heads, ginger soy beans, sliced lamb heads, spicy feet dishes, marinated chicken skin, fine rice noodles in spicy broth, sweet sugar-coated snacks, icy cold dumplings, crystal dumplings, fresh papaya salad, medicinal papaya dishes, sweetened chicken head treats, licorice-infused cold water, lychee paste, broad mustard greens, fine grain dumplings, fragrant candies, lychee-flavored sugar sticks, knife-cut perilla paste, gold thread party cakes, pan-fried rabbit skewers, pigskin meat dishes, wild duck meat dishes, dripping crystal sashimi... Hanno's eyes widened in amazement as saliva pooled in her mouth.
"Husband, I want to eat all of this," Hanno said with a sidelong glance at Elder Brother Li. He immediately responded by buying a bamboo basket from an old man selling bamboo products and slinging it over his back.
"Order whatever you want; I'll pay for it. Anything we can't finish will go into the basket so we can eat it later at home."
Hanno giggled and playfully pinched Elder Brother Li's cheek. "Good job."
To avoid drawing attention from others for being strange, Hanno only sampled some hot foods while putting everything else into Elder Brother Li's basket. Soon after, Elder Brother Li's new look drew laughter from Yue Yunfei and Geng Shi'an as well as Mo Yan, the Princess. The four had come to find Elder Brother Li and Hanno at Li Residence after hearing from passersby that they were at Longjin Bridge and were surprised to see such an amusing scene.
"Hey there!" Yue Yunfei laughed uncontrollably, holding his stomach. "Wei Feng, you're just too funny. I can't believe you would do something so image-damaging. Are you spoiling your wife too much?"
As soon as he finished speaking, his ear was grabbed by Mo Yan, the Princess. "Listen here, what do you mean by spoiling your wife too much? If you don't spoil your wife, does that mean others can't spoil theirs?"
"I'm sorry, dear wife," Yue Yunfei quickly apologized.
Mo Yan huffed and released him, running over to Hanno and linking her arm with hers. "Hanno, how did you manage to make Li Wei Feng so obedient? Teach me!"
Hanno shot a sidelong glance at Yue Yunfei and smiled. "You don't need my teaching; didn't you already train your husband to be quite obedient?"
Qi Xueru stepped forward with a smile. "Hanno is right, Princess. You're just not appreciating your good fortune."
"I know exactly what I'm doing," Mo Yan, the Princess, replied lightly. "And don’t think you’re any different."
Qi Xueru laughed. "Yes, we’re all the same. We three are lucky to have such wonderful men."
In front of them, the three big men smiled proudly, their expressions filled with happiness and affection.
Elder Brother Li extended a hand toward Hanno, who walked over with a smile and shook his hands warmly. The other two pairs were also inspired by them and held hands tenderly.
"Let’s go to the tavern! It’s on me; let’s drink to our hearts' content!"
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