Transmigrated as a Cannon Fodder Wife A in Ancient Times - Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Wei Lan propped herself up with both hands, sitting up slightly, and leaned her lips toward Lu Zijin’s neck. She couldn’t understand why people here loved biting so much.
Though Lu Zijin bit her without restraint, Wei Lan worried about hurting her. She bit gently, confirmed the spot, and lightly broke the skin, transferring her pheromones into Lu Zijin’s body.
As expected, Lu Zijin soon softened against her.
Wei Lan reached to support Lu Zijin, but as her hand touched Lu Zijin’s waist, the woman glared coldly. “Don’t touch me.”
“Okay,” Wei Lan said, retracting her hand.
“Lie down first. Let me rest against you to recover,” Lu Zijin said, her voice soft, almost weak, despite the commanding words.
“Alright,” Wei Lan replied, lying down obediently. She kept her hands off Lu Zijin, her body stiff as a poplar tree.
After a while, Lu Zijin’s energy improved slightly. Meanwhile, Wei Lan’s eyes grew heavy.
Having been drained once during the day, Wei Lan lost much energy. She had been asleep that night, only to be woken and drained again. Now, she was too sleepy to keep her eyes open, desperately wanting rest.
Lu Zijin propped herself up, looking at the nearly asleep woman beneath her. She pinched Wei Lan’s face, her voice cold. “If you want to sleep, go back. You can’t sleep here.”
“You’re so stingy. You’ve exhausted me, and I can’t even borrow half the bed,” Wei Lan grumbled, too tired to walk back to Fuqu Pavilion.
“No. I told you before, as a son-in-law, know your place. My bed isn’t for you to stay in. Get up,” Lu Zijin continued.
Wei Lan sat up, utterly unwilling, but thinking of her livelihood, she swallowed her frustration. “Fine, I’ll get up. Get off me. I’m exhausted, and I still have to walk back at night.”
As Wei Lan spoke, her stomach growled loudly. Having used so many pheromones, though she ate dinner, she was hungry again.
Seeing Wei Lan’s grumbling discontent, Lu Zijin’s lips curved slightly, but she quickly hid it.
Noticing her Qianyuan seemed displeased, Lu Zijin, in a rare act of kindness, called out, “Qing Zhi, have someone fetch the ginseng chicken soup from the kitchen. The lord is hungry.”
“Yes, Miss,” Qing Zhi replied, sending maids to get the soup.
Yun Xiang overheard, fuming. She muttered softly, “That’s century-old ginseng the young cousin prepared for the lady. What right does a useless person have to eat it?”
Qing Zhi glanced at Yun Xiang but said nothing.
Wei Lan got off the bed, dressed, and her stomach growled louder.
Lu Zijin lay comfortably, saying, “The lord can eat a late-night snack here before leaving.”
“Okay,” Wei Lan replied listlessly, determined to eat heartily, hoping to bankrupt Lu Zijin.
Soon, maids brought in the chicken soup and several delicate pastries, placing them on the table.
Qing Zhi bowed to Wei Lan. “Lord, the soup has been kept warm. Try it. The small kitchen also prepared pastries. Please enjoy them.”
Wei Lan nodded. “Good. You all leave. I’ll manage.”
“Yes,” the maids said, exiting the room.
Wei Lan picked up a peach blossom cake and ate. Lu Zijin’s kitchen was exceptional. After two bites, her eyes lit up.
The peach blossom cake was soft, sticky, and fragrant, not too sweet. Wei Lan loved it. The chefs in her patron’s courtyard were top-notch.
She tried several pastries, all delicious.
She ladled a bowl of ginseng chicken soup and sipped. The soup was fresh, with ginseng and herbs adding flavor without bitterness.
Wei Lan enjoyed it, drinking several bowls and finishing all the pastries. Looking at the empty plates, she felt satisfied.
Sitting there, she sighed. Though bitten twice in a day, this comfortable life was worth it.
Lu Zijin lifted the bed curtain slightly with her fingertip, seeing Wei Lan finish everything. A faint smile curved her lips.
Using Wei Lan’s pheromones twice today must have drained her. Still, Lu Zijin said deliberately, “Done eating? Rest a bit, then someone will escort you back.”
“Got it,” Wei Lan huffed. This lady always discarded her after use.
Seeing Wei Lan’s reluctance, Lu Zijin smiled. Her Qianyuan seemed rather amusing.
But only amusing. Wei Lan was merely a tool for her rain dew period, nothing more.
Having eaten, Wei Lan sat on a stool briefly. Seeing no movement from the bed, she got up to leave.
It was late, and she was tired, reluctant to go. But since Lu Zijin wouldn’t let her stay, she had to leave.
Fearing she’d wake Lu Zijin, Wei Lan closed the door gently.
Outside, maids waited. Qing Zhi saw Wei Lan and said, “I’ll escort the lord back.”
Wei Lan nodded. “Good.”
Exhausted and eager to rest, she said little. She felt like sleepwalking back, utterly drained.
In her bedroom, Wei Lan shed her outer dress, collapsed, and slept. She woke to bright daylight.
After resting, Wei Lan felt better. She lingered in bed, then got up. Her jade carving was interrupted yesterday, half-finished. Now, she could continue.
She washed, ate breakfast, and dove into her studio.
The three-dimensional jasper plaque with a nine-tailed fox was at the “tou hua” step. Normally, half a plaque didn’t need this, but this jasper had average quality with black spots.
Wei Lan used the “tou hua” technique to remove the spots, making the plaque more three-dimensional and layered.
Fortunately, no one disturbed her. She spent an hour using a saw bow for the “tou hua” process, then drilled a hole at the plaque’s top.
In modern times, drilling nose or straight holes was easy with electric tools. In ancient times, Wei Lan used a curved bow to rotate an iron cup with a diamond drill tip, repeatedly turning to bore a hole.
She rinsed the drilled jade in water, held it to the light, and confirmed the hole’s perfection before proceeding.
Next was the first polishing step. At the spinning wheel, she swapped the steel disc for a wooden one made from a gourd scoop. She pressed the jade against it, pedaling to spin the disc.
As the disc turned, Wei Lan sprinkled wet jade-dissolving sand on the jade’s surface, grinding carefully to avoid damaging it.
After finishing, the jade was nearly complete, with only the final “pi duo” step remaining.
This step polished the jade’s surface with leather. Wei Lan replaced the wooden wheel with leather, pedaled, and the leather rubbed back and forth via ropes.
She pressed the plaque against the leather, making it smooth and shiny.
By then, lunchtime had passed.
Wei Lan held the nine-tailed fox plaque and stepped outside. In the bright sunlight, the translucent, hollowed plaque looked stunning.
Looking at it, Wei Lan smiled. She knew she could do it. This plaque was her favorite among her recent carvings.
She felt fully adjusted to this body, regaining her past carving skill.
Li Zhufeng saw Wei Lan emerge and hurried over. “Lord, you’re finally out. It’s past noon. I’ll have food brought.”
Wei Lan found her eagerness odd but didn’t dwell on it. She nodded. “Go.”
Having carved a satisfying plaque, Wei Lan was elated, tempted to run laps in celebration.
She realized she forgot to buy cords for hanging the plaque. She planned to go out and purchase them.
Soon, maids brought lunch from the small kitchen.
Perhaps it was her imagination, but Wei Lan felt today’s food was better than previous days. She didn’t care much, picking up chopsticks to eat.
Lunch included stir-fried lamb, clear fish soup, and other small dishes. The cook’s skill was excellent, and Wei Lan ate heartily.
Still, her meals paled compared to Lu Zijin’s. Panyang City’s finest chefs worked in Lu Zijin’s courtyard, using freshly slaughtered meat and vegetables picked that morning.
Wei Lan wasn’t picky. She found her current comfortable life sufficient.
As she nearly finished, sipping fish soup, Li Mammy and Zhao Mammy approached, smiling eagerly, giving Wei Lan goosebumps.
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