Cuddling with the Cold Female Protagonist – Chapter 26

Volume 2: The Captivating Splendor of Jingdu

Many Daughters, Many Blessings, Jade Ruyi

Facing Ji Qingchi’s frequent amorous glances, Su Yi felt her hand holding the money sweating.

She quickly smiled and said, “The greatest credit belongs to my Fulang, so of course, it should be given to him.”

            

She counted out a large portion of the copper coins and gave them to her. “My Fulang, please accept this.”

“I was just joking earlier. I and my Qizhu are one, how could I take my Qizhu’s money?” Saying this, she took out ten strings of cash [1000 copper coins, approximately equivalent to 1 liang of silver] and gave them to Feng Ruoqing. “However, Miss Feng helped just now, so this money should be given to her.”

She took another ten strings of cash and distributed them among the remaining maids and servants.

            

Her behavior was just like a virtuous Qizhu and good Fulang busy with daily expenses in the backyard of an ordinary family.

This is what is meant by differentiating between inside and outside [内外有别 | nèiwài yǒubié | Confucian principle of maintaining different behaviors inside and outside the family].

Outsiders require clear accounting, but family members do not need to be so particular.

            

Feng Ruoqing held the money, feeling it was somewhat amusing. This Miss Chi was really interesting. Could it be that she had been disguised as a man for too long and forgot that she and Su Yi were only a pretend couple?

After the money was distributed, Ji Qingchi gave her a shy smile. “Qizhu, please see, did I handle this appropriately?”

“Appropriately, appropriately.” Su Yi felt goosebumps from her saccharine words and could only force a smile. “Whatever my Fulang does is right.”

            

“Thank you, Qizhu, for your praise.” Ji Qingchi covered her lips and smiled. “Qizhu, we still have quite a bit of silver left. Should we continue selling paintings?”

Su Yi sold a total of fifty-eight strings of cash. After giving away twenty, thirty-eight remained. Subtracting the cost of paper, ink, and carving the wooden blocks, she earned about thirty strings of cash, which is thirty liang [37.3 grams ≈ 1.3 oz of silver].

Su Yi hugged the pile of copper coins and pondered, stroking her chin. “This matter requires careful consideration.”

            

She actually wanted to open a bookstore specializing in these things, but considering that a bookstore would require renting someone else’s shop, paying rent, and dealing with the street officials in the capital city, she decided it was too much trouble.

Feng Ruoqing said, “Miss, I’ve never seen the things you use for printing characters. I wonder if those things have a name? Can those wooden blocks also be used to print paintings?”

If paintings could be printed, then Ji Qingchi wouldn’t need to painstakingly paint so many. Producing thousands of copies at once wouldn’t be difficult.

            

“Printing paintings is more complicated. I have to think about whether it can be done. As for the thing for printing characters, it’s called movable type printing…” Su Yi said halfway, then suddenly remembered, “Oh dear, I have to apply for a copyright.”

When she used movable type printing to mass-produce reading materials, so many people saw it. This method would definitely spread later.

She wasn’t trying to keep it a secret. With movable type printing, expanding production and lowering the price of books, allowing everyone in the dynasty to be able to read, would actually be a good thing.

            

However, this method was something she brought to Yanxue Kingdom. Although she didn’t invent it, she was still a descendant of the Yan and Huang Emperors [炎黄子孙 | Yán Huáng zǐsūn | Descendants of the legendary Yan and Huang Emperors, refers to the Chinese people]. It wouldn’t be excessive for her to apply for a copyright on behalf of her ancestors and inherit their copyright fees, right?

Feng Ruoqing was bewildered. “What is Miss talking about?”

Ji Qingchi also stared at her with a smile. She felt that Su Yi was like a puzzle, becoming more interesting the more she tried to understand her. “I also didn’t understand what Qizhu is saying.”

            

“Um…actually, I saw this in an ancient book. That thing is called movable type printing. You know, I’m weak and sickly, so my mother collected a lot of miscellaneous books for me to read.”

This is what is meant by protesting too much.

This is it.

            

Ji Qingchi and Feng Ruoqing exchanged glances, both smiling and nodding at the same time.

“Mm, Miss Su is right.”

“Whatever Qizhu says is right.”

            

Su Yi felt inexplicably guilty and coughed lightly. “In short, I’m afraid that if this method is later discovered by others, we won’t be able to make any money. I need to go see Great-Grandmother.”

There was no intellectual property office now, and applying for a copyright was even more out of the question. Su Yi thought for a moment and felt that the best way was to tell the powerful people about this method and then get a large sum of money from them as a copyright fee.

And her Great-Grandmother, the Marques Pingyang, was undoubtedly the best choice.

            

Having made up her mind, Su Yi had Yan Can prepare the things and waited until the evening to pay her respects at her Great-Grandmother’s courtyard.

After Su Yi moved into the Pingyang Marquis Residence, Su Ban hadn’t seen her for half a month.

However, fearing that the people in the residence would judge people by their appearance and not take good care of Su Yi, she specifically bestowed many things upon Su Yi, granted her maids and servants, and also specifically allowed her to bring her own maids and servants and go out freely.

            

This contradictory attitude made many people unable to guess her true intentions.

Su Yi knew nothing about court politics and palace intrigues. Ji Qingchi, however, was well-versed in these matters. When Su Ban was giving them the cold shoulder, she guessed that Su Ban hadn’t fully believed Su Yi’s words during the birthday celebration and was deliberately doing this to test them.

So she must have planted spies around them. Their every move couldn’t escape her eyes.

            

Ji Qingchi was very astute and quickly discerned which of the maids Su Ban had given to Su Yi were spies. She deliberately gave a little extra to those spies when Su Yi usually gave things to the maids. Having received the favor, they subconsciously praised Su Yi in front of Su Ban.

Ji Qingchi’s conjecture was correct. With the spies’ unremitting accounts, Su Ban quickly learned about Su Yi’s creation of movable type printing. Listening to the spy’s description, she was somewhat surprised, but her expression remained indifferent. “My庶great-granddaughter from a concubine is truly intelligent.”

After hearing the report and then hearing the maid come in to announce that Su Yi had come to pay her respects, Su Ban thought for a moment and smiled, nodding. “Indeed, clever.”

            

Before others could spread the method, as soon as there were results, she knew to seek her, the backer. Her mind was nimble enough.
“Let her in.”

Su Yi was helped in and obediently bowed. “Paying respects to Great-Grandmother.”

Su Ban glanced at her and said indifferently, “Mm.”

            

Su Yi thought to herself that this Great-Grandmother of hers was putting on quite an act. If she weren’t a modern person, she might have been intimidated.

She calmly said some words praising her Great-Grandmother before having Yan Can bring out the movable type printing wooden block. “I won’t hide it from Great-Grandmother. In my idle time, I enjoy reading books. A few days ago, I made this thing based on a fragmented book. It can quickly print text. I thought that such a thing shouldn’t be kept private, so I specially present it to Great-Grandmother.”

It was an unremarkable wooden block. If there was anything different about it, it was only the reversed carved characters inside.

            

Su Ban had never seen such a thing before and was also very curious, but she still remembered to maintain her composure. Her eyes swept towards a maid at the side, who understood and asked on her behalf, “Does this thing have a name? How is it used?”

Su Yi replied, “It’s called movable type printing.”

She had Yan Can demonstrate it in front of them, and soon a sheet of paper was filled with printed text.

            

Su Yi explained in detail how to use this thing. The more she spoke, the brighter the light in Su Ban’s eyes became.

She was a hereditary marques. Originally, her ancestors’ fiefdom was the size of a province, but starting from the previous few emperors, there had been a deliberate effort to weaken the vassal states. By her generation, she could only reside in the capital, holding a sinecure, and the current emperor neither favored nor demoted her, almost as if she didn’t exist.

She pretended to be carefree and detached, but in reality, her ambition to achieve great things hadn’t diminished at all.

            

Seeing the thing Su Yi presented, she was overjoyed. If this thing were presented to the emperor, it would definitely earn her some favor.

“Not bad.” Overjoyed in her heart, Su Ban’s expression remained indifferent. “I’ll accept this. Someone, bring the pomegranate jade ruyi [玉如意 | yù rúyì | an ornamental object, usually made of jade, symbolizing good fortune and power, shaped like a stylized fungus or lingzhi] to Nineteenth Miss.”

Her personal maid was startled and reminded her in a low voice, “Marques, that was bestowed by Her Majesty the Emperor…”

            

Su Ban frowned. “Nineteenth Miss is frail. This Marques cares for her descendants and hopes she has many daughters and many blessings. Is that wrong?”

“This servant misspoke. This servant is guilty. This servant will bring it to Nineteenth Miss immediately.”

Over the years, the emperor had bestowed many things upon Su Ban, and each time, Su Ban had them carefully stored away. This was the first time she had given something to a descendant.

            

The personal maid fetched the item and looked at Su Yi with much more respect.

Currently, there were no female heirs in the direct line to inherit the family estate. If the Marques were to adopt an heir in the future, this Nineteenth Miss was very likely.

Su Yi accepted the item but wasn’t actually very happy. She wanted money, not this trinket, but she still had to pretend to be happy. “Thank you, Great-Grandmother.”

            

“This ruyi was bestowed upon me by the Emperor. The pomegranate symbolizes many daughters and many blessings. You are seventeen now, it’s time to carry on the family line. I heard your mother only has you as a daughter, so the burden rests on you.” Su Ban looked at her great-granddaughter, delicate and fragile as if a gust of wind could break her. She felt a bit of affection and said earnestly, “Your Fulang has a good physique. I can see that you are harmonious in your conjugal relations. However, everything must be in moderation. After you recover, you can indulge more. It’s not too late to have children. For now, focus on recuperating. Don’t spend too much energy on conjugal relations.”

Su Yi almost choked on her own saliva upon hearing these words.

Amitabha Buddha, she was still a child and couldn’t listen to such things.

            

Moreover, she and the female protagonist were both women and couldn’t have children. Not to mention, the two of them were completely innocent, even sleeping in the same bed required a large distance between them. Where did her Great-Grandmother see their harmony?

“Thank you, Great-Grandmother, for your instruction.” Su Yi complained inwardly, extremely disgusted, but still had to force a smile. “Then, I will take my leave.”

Su Ban nodded in satisfaction. “Someone, fetch some lingzhi [灵芝 | língzhī | Reishi mushroom aka Ganoderma, believed to have medicinal properties] and ginseng and send them to Nineteenth Miss’s room. Then carefully escort Nineteenth Miss back to her courtyard.”

            

Su Yi was escorted back to her courtyard, dejectedly holding the jade ruyi.

Ji Qingchi was waiting at the courtyard entrance early. Seeing that Su Yi wasn’t smiling, she was a little surprised. “Did the Marques not like the gift Qizhu gave her?”

“That’s not it, but Great-Grandmother didn’t give me silver, she only gave me this.”

            

Su Yi gloomily waved the jade ruyi in front of her, muttering, “This can’t be sold, what’s the use of it?”

Ji Qingchi recognized it at a glance as the item her mother, the Emperor, had bestowed upon Su Ban during the birthday celebration.

For a movable type printing set, Su Ban actually gave Su Yi something that was a gift from the Emperor.

            

It seemed that this Marques Pingyang’s heart wasn’t so peaceful after all.

Ji Qingchi smiled. “This is Great-Grandmother’s affirmation of Qizhu. It shows she really liked the gift Qizhu gave her.”

But I don’t like the thing she gave me. However, since this was given by the female protagonist’s mother, giving it to the female protagonist would definitely make her happy.

            

Thinking this, Su Yi handed the item to her. “My Fulang also likes this very much, right? Then I’ll give it to my Fulang.”

After giving it away, she had Yan Can help her back to her room to rest.

Ji Qingchi held the jade ruyi and looked at her departing figure, frowning.

            

She felt that after she said those words, Su Yi became unhappy.

Could it be that she said something wrong?

Which sentence was it?

            

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