Chapter 6

Chapter 5: Missing the Moon

On the southern side of Weicheng, there was a small stream that could hardly be called a stream, and beside it was a small hill that could hardly be called a hill. At the foot of the hill was a thatched cottage with a fence and a stone courtyard, which could hardly be called a courtyard. The rain clouds had long dispersed, and the particularly bright starlight shone on the stream, the hill, and the thatched cottage, instantly coating them with a beautiful silver glow.

Ning Que slowly walked under the starlight, wearing slippers, and his pace slowed even more as he looked at the thatched cottage where he and Sang Sang had lived for a long time. But as long as he kept walking, no matter how slow, he would eventually reach his destination. He pushed open the fence that could only keep out dogs but not people, walked to the oil lamp light leaking through the door crack, raised his hand to cover his lips, coughed twice, and said, "What if we go to the capital?"

The door of the thatched cottage creaked open, piercing the quiet night of the border town.

The young servant girl Sang Sang squatted at the door, her thin figure stretched long by the oil lamp light. She pressed her finger against the edge of the wooden door and replied, "Aren't you always wanting to go to Chang'an? By the way, Ning Que, when are you going to steal some oil from the artillery camp? This door has been creaking for several months, and the sound is really unpleasant."

"Now, who uses those difficult-to-handle muskets? If it's just for oil, I'll ask at the supply camp tomorrow..." Ning Que responded instinctively, then suddenly realized something, "Hey! What I wanted to talk about isn't this. If we really leave, why bother with this broken door?"

Sang Sang stood up, supporting her knees, her thin body looking particularly frail in the cool spring night breeze. She looked at Ning Que and said in a serious, emotionless voice, "Even if we leave, someone will still live in this house, and they will still open the door."

Would anyone really want to live in this remote, dilapidated thatched cottage after they left? Ning Que thought silently, and for some reason, a feeling of reluctance suddenly arose. He sighed softly, squeezed past Sang Sang, and said in a low voice, "Pack our bags tonight."

Sang Sang casually gathered her slightly yellow hair, and looking at his back, she asked, "Ning Que, I've never understood why you're so interested in that thing."

"No one can resist the temptation to become stronger. And those things are just too interesting for me."

Ning Que knew the young servant girl had guessed his thoughts. He looked up at Sang Sang's dark little face and raised his eyebrows, saying, "Besides, we can't stay in Weicheng forever. The world is so big, and there are many other countries besides the empire. We should go and see them. Even if we think small, to earn more money and get promoted faster, going to Chang'an is much better than staying in Weicheng. So this time, I must pass the entrance exam for the academy."

Sang Sang's face showed a thoughtful expression. Because she was still young, her features had not fully developed, and due to the wind and sand of the border town, her face was dark and rough. Her hair, which was yellow and thin due to childhood malnutrition, was not particularly attractive, not even pretty.

But she had eyes like willow leaves, long and slender, with a gaze as clear as ice. Combined with her lack of obvious expressions, she didn't seem like a poor, eleven or twelve-year-old servant girl but rather a mature woman who had seen through the world. This stark contrast between her real age and appearance made her seem especially cool and poised.

Ning Que knew these were all illusions. To him, the young servant girl Sang Sang was a typical simple-minded girl. They had relied on each other for so many years, and she had become increasingly lazy in thinking and acting because she was used to relying on him. Because she was lazy, she became increasingly stupid, and to hide her stupidity, she used fewer and fewer words, making her seem even more silent, cold, and mature.

"Not stupid, but clumsy," he thought, silently correcting himself.

After a long silence, Sang Sang suddenly looked up, bit her lip, and showed a rare look of fear, saying, "I heard... Chang'an is very big, with many people."

"The capital is prosperous. I heard that the population exceeded one million in the third year of Tianqi. Living expenses are extremely high. Living in Chang'an is not easy..."

Ning Que sighed. Seeing the servant girl's nervous expression, he smiled and comforted her, "There's nothing to fear about having many people. Just think of Chang'an as a larger Weicheng. I'll deal with outsiders, and you can manage the household as usual. If you're really afraid, you can stay home more."

"How much would we spend on meat, vegetables, and rice in Chang'an each month?"

Sang Sang's willow-leaf eyes widened, and she tightly clutched the hem of her dress, asking nervously, "Would it exceed four taels of silver? That's twice as much as in Weicheng."

"If I really get into the academy, I'll need to buy some good fabric for clothes. Plus, we might have guests, like classmates. If a teacher takes a liking to me, they might come to our home. So you'll need to make a new set of clothes. I roughly calculated, and it will cost at least ten taels of silver."

Ning Que frowned as he answered. In fact, he was just making it up. He wasn't very clear about the cost, and ten taels of silver might be the price of a casual meal at a high-end restaurant in Tianxiangfang—just like the famous joke in Hexi: a farmer woman working in the field, idly chatting, always thinking that the princess in the eastern palace is making meat pies, and the princess in the western palace is peeling onions, with meat pies like the sea and onions like mountains.

However, even this obviously reduced and incorrect answer far exceeded the servant girl's mental limit. She frowned and seriously suggested, "That's too expensive... Ning Que, let's not go to Chang'an, and you don't have to take the academy exam, okay?"

"Uninformed." Ning Que scolded, "If you enter the academy, you'll definitely become an official. Then we can spend ten taels of silver a month, and I can easily earn seventy or eighty taels a month in the government office. Besides, what's wrong with Chang'an? There's plenty of cosmetics at Chen Jinji."

The mention of cosmetics seemed to hit a nerve with the servant girl. She tightly pressed her lips, clearly struggling with intense internal conflict. After a long time, she answered in a whisper, "But what about the years you'll spend in the academy? My embroidery skills are average, and people in Chang'an are picky. They might not buy it."

"That is indeed a problem. I heard hunting is not allowed around Chang'an; those forests belong to the emperor... How much money do we have left?"

The master and servant looked at each other, then walked to the two large elm wood chests and opened them, reaching into the deepest part to pull out a tightly wrapped wooden box.

The wooden box was filled with scattered silver, with small silver pieces the size of fingernails clearly marked by scissors. There was only one large silver ingot, clearly saved up bit by bit, but the amount was not much.

Looking at the scattered silver in the wooden box, neither of them counted. Sang Sang said in a low voice, "We count every five days. We counted it the other night, and it was seventy-six taels, three mace, and four fen."

"It seems we need to find ways to earn more money after going to Chang'an," Ning Que said seriously.

"Sure, I'll try to improve my embroidery skills," Sang Sang replied seriously.

At night, Sang Sang knelt on the bed, quickly and efficiently arranging the bedding. Her thin knees moved rapidly, and with one press of her small hand, she created a comfortable arc in the middle of the pillow, just as Ning Que liked. Then she picked up her bedding and jumped off the cold bed, walking to the corner of the room to set up her own bed.

The lamp was extinguished, and Ning Que placed the water bowl on the windowsill, slipping into the bed under the starlight. He placed his hands on the edge of the quilt, yawned widely, and let out a deeply satisfied sigh, closing his eyes. After a while, he heard the familiar rustling sounds from the corner of the room, which he had heard for several years.

It was a night that seemed no different from the past few years. They would fall asleep under the starlight of the empire's border, but in reality, neither of the master and servant in the thatched cottage could fall asleep. Perhaps it was due to the excitement and unease of stepping into a new world, or the prosperity of the capital Chang'an, the faintly visible wealth, and the alluring scent of cosmetics. The two breathing sounds from the window and the corner of the room remained unsettled for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, Ning Que opened his eyes and looked at the faint silver glow on the window paper, saying absentmindedly, "I heard... the girls in Chang'an are not afraid of the cold, wear very thin clothes, have large necklines, and very white skin. I wonder if it's true... I was too young back then to remember."

He turned over and looked at the dark corner of the room, asking, "Sang Sang, have you been feeling unwell recently? Are you cold?"

In the darkness, the servant girl seemed to shake her head. She could be seen tightly gripping the edge of the quilt, her eyes closed, but a rare smile appeared at the corner of her lips. She whispered, "I heard the girls in Chang'an are indeed very white. They use such good cosmetics every day, how could they not be white?"

Ning Que smiled and said to her, "Don't worry, when I have money, you can buy as much Chen Jinji cosmetics as you want."

Sang Sang suddenly opened her eyes, her willow-leaf eyes reflecting the bright starlight, and said seriously, "Ning Que, this is what you promised."

"I said before, after we go to Chang'an, you must call me 'young master' to show respect."

It had been seven or eight years since Ning Que found the cold little Sang Sang in a pile of dead bodies by the roadside and brought her to Weicheng. Although Sang Sang was registered as a servant and did servant work, she had never called him 'young master.' This was not a sign of anything else but a habit.

Today, the young servant girl Sang Sang was forced to break this habit.

"Ning Que... young master... remember to buy Chen Jinji for me."

Ning Que responded, his gaze falling on the ground by the bed, where the starlight looked like frost. His heart tightened for no reason, and the empty feeling from many years ago returned. He looked back at the dark night sky, saw the stars, and began to think of his hometown, muttering, "There's still no moon tonight..."

In the dark corner of the room, Sang Sang, like a small mouse, curled up in the slightly cool bedding. She reached behind her waist, pulling the quilt to block the cool air and making the gap between the two cabinets less uncomfortable. Listening to the murmurs by the window, she thought, "Ning Que... young master is talking nonsense again."

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