Chapter 43: The Empress Dowager Summons

  The next morning, Lin Chun asked Da Shan to drive a cow cart to take himself to the town. After Da Shan accompanied Lin Chun to buy some food and daily necessities, he returned to Linjia Village first to discuss with An He about building a house for Lin's family. Lin Chun then came alone to Qianfuyuan.

  "Big brother, you've arrived. The young master has been waiting for you in the backyard since early morning. Do you want to rest for a while or meet with the young master right away?" Uncle Qian was thinking of Lin Chun's well-being, knowing that Lin Chun had also gotten up early to come to town. Looking at Lin Chun, who was only ten years old but had already become the head of the household and was gradually improving the family's livelihood, Uncle Qian felt proud of Lin Chun too.

  Lin Chun looked at Qian Shu's eyes, which were full of concern and care for him, and felt a warmth in his heart. "Uncle Qian, I'll go see the young master directly. Since he came all the way to Qingxi Town to find me, he must have something urgent. Let's not keep him waiting."

  "Alright then, Uncle will take you to the backyard now. Xiao Shui, please go and inform Qian Ling, the personal bodyguard of Young Master, that Miss Lin has arrived and will be there soon."

  "Ah! Alright, I'll go now." Xiaoshui said and ran to the backyard in a hurry. Linchun knew that Qian Uncle was letting her prepare herself so as not to be caught off guard or lose etiquette, after all she was a girl, only ten years old, but when meeting outsiders it's best to have an elder or friend present, this way also fearing damage to her reputation.

  Lin Chun followed Qian Dashi to the backyard, and before he even stepped into the yard, he caught a whiff of strong tea fragrance that refreshed his mind and spirit. After smelling it, one's spirits would lift, washing away the fatigue and languor of waking up early. Lin Chun was curious about this young master of Qian Fuyuan.

  In the courtyard, in front of the stone table, Qian Ye Li was pouring tea from a teapot into a cup with one hand. The fragrance of tea wafted through the courtyard as Lin Chun walked in and saw Qian Ye Li wearing a long black robe with a white jade belt around his waist, a jade crown on his head, and sleeves rolled up as he poured tea with a refined and elegant demeanor, like a beautiful painting. The sound of the tea flowing into the cup was melodious and pleasant to hear, the fragrance drifting freely, delighting the senses.

  Qian Uncle led Lin Chun forward, Lin Chun looked at Qian Ye Li, somewhat unwilling to disturb this beautiful scene, but was interrupted by Qian Uncle's greeting, "Young Master, Miss Lin has arrived."

  "Ah!" Qian Ye Li put down the teapot, stood up, turned around, and saw Lin Chun wearing a plain white long dress with a purple jacket on top, her black hair falling to her waist, her eyes shining brightly, yet seeming to see through people's hearts. Her whole body exuded a fresh and clean aura, what a simple and elegant woman! Compared to the girl she had seen a year ago who wore patched clothes but was not arrogant or humble, Lin Chun now seemed to have an additional layer of power that could purify people's hearts. Qian Ye Li thought to herself, no wonder she could draw so many beautiful and elegant yet simple and generous jewelry designs, her impression of Lin Chun rose another level.

  He was sizing up the young master of Qianfuyuan, who was dressed in bright and expensive clothes, with a strict demeanor, but with a hint of mischief in his eyes. Lin Chun saw that he was satisfied and surprised by himself, which didn't surprise Lin Chun, as it was easy to guess from the drawings and the huge profits they brought to Qianfuyuan. However, there was something unclear and unsaid in the depths of those whirling eyes, which made Lin Chun feel a bit strange. From all these signs, it seemed that the true nature of this young master was not what he appeared to be at this moment.

  "Hello, Miss Lin. I've long heard of your great reputation and today I finally get to see you in person. You're truly breathtaking!" Qian Ye Lai spoke up after they had both sized each other up for a bit.

  "Hello, Mr. Qian, it's great to see you today, and I'm glad we can have a straightforward conversation. Since that's the case, let's get down to business. I was wondering what brings you to Qingxi Town this time, and why you specifically wanted to see me?" Lin Chun had things on his mind and wanted to quickly resolve the matter at hand, and he also had some matters he wanted to discuss with the person in front of him, so he didn't want to waste any more time.

  Qian Ye saw Lin Chun's expression, thinking that she wanted to end the conversation quickly and didn't want to have much contact with him. The corners of her eyes were slightly raised, but she wasn't angry. "Miss Lin is indeed straightforward," Qian said. "Actually, I came this time bearing an edict from Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, inviting the designer of Qian Fu Yuan to enter the palace for an audience."

  "Imperial Order from the Empress Dowager?!" Lin Chunjing was greatly shocked in her heart. She had originally thought of keeping a low profile and not drawing attention from those powerful and wealthy people. Now that the Empress Dowager had summoned her, Lin Chunjing felt somewhat apprehensive.

  Qian Ye Lian furrowed her brow and put on a reluctant expression as soon as she heard that the Empress Dowager had summoned Lin Chunyi. She understood in her heart that Lin Chunyi had been forbidden from revealing any information about herself, even hiding everything related to herself and her family, all because she didn't want to draw too much attention, only thinking of the livelihood of her household, and under duress, came up with this plan. Although Qian Ye Lian couldn't disobey the Empress Dowager's decree, if she were to reveal the true circumstances of the Lin family, the kind-hearted and merciful Empress Dowager would surely reward them generously, rather than making things difficult for them. It was just that Qian Ye Lian wanted to see how Lin Chunyi would respond, which included testing her as well as satisfying her own small curiosity.

  "Miss Lin, I wanted to apologize to you. The Empress Dowager summoned me because of the two paintings and a necklace with a pendant that you gave me last year. When I saw those paintings, I thought they would be suitable for my grandmother at home, so I had them carefully crafted into a one-of-a-kind necklace. My grandmother liked it very much. Two months ago, the Empress Dowager held a flower appreciation banquet in the palace and saw my grandmother wearing this necklace. She asked about its origin and story. After hearing it, she summoned my mother to the palace to ask her about it."

  "About the matter of Miss Lin's family, your father and I are both clear about it. However, now that the Empress Dowager has summoned us, even if we can speak the truth, it's likely to disappoint her. You're going to Qingxi Town this time, and if you can invite Miss Lin over, I'm afraid she won't be able to work for Qianfuyuan Painting Studio anymore. If you can't invite Miss Lin over, it's probably because... Anyway, when you see Miss Lin, it would be best if you could come up with a plan that satisfies both parties - one that pleases the Empress Dowager and doesn't put Miss Lin in a difficult position." Qianye had been remembering her mother's words carefully.

  Lin Chuan actually understood in her heart that she had originally drawn the jewelry design paper for two reasons: one was to make a living for her family, and the other was to one day draw the jade key left by Pei Wushuang on the paper, attract people's attention, find her mother's maiden home, and find her maternal grandfather and other relatives. Now that she had drawn the jewelry designs and won the favor of noble ladies in Dongcheng and Guodu, the capital cities of Tianyang Country, it was only natural that the palace beauties would take notice as well. It wasn't anyone else's fault. "This matter has nothing to do with you, Qian Shao Dongjia. The fact that the designs I drew and the jewelry I made are liked by people is a normal thing. The most honorable woman in the Tianyang Country naturally wouldn't be an exception. However, my family situation is really inseparable from me. How about this: I'll personally write a letter and draw two more jewelry design papers, and have Qian Shao Dongjia bring them back to give to the Empress Dowager? The current Empress Dowager is kind and filial, she will definitely understand. This way, it also won't make Qian Fuyuan feel embarrassed. Is this method okay?"

  Miss Lin's thoughts were thorough, and the empress summoned her because of the jewelry worn by her grandmother. If Miss Lin could design two unique pieces of jewelry for the empress, making her wish come true, the empress would naturally be delighted. Moreover, with the sincere emotions revealed in Miss Lin's letter, the current empress valued filial piety and cared about the relationships between children and grandchildren. When Miss Lin described the details of her family, the empress would certainly be moved. At that time, the empress would not only not blame her but might even reward her again. Qian Ye couldn't help but admire Miss Lin's cleverness and quick thinking. Originally, Qian Ye had also wanted to ask Lin Chun to draw a few pieces of jewelry designs for the empress, both to win her favor and to comfort her. Now, Lin Chun not only agreed to draw the designs but also personally wrote a letter, which indeed surprised Qian Ye.

  "Ah, Young Master thinks it's good that way, then let's do it! If the Empress Dowager asks again, you can give her an answer. In the future, when our family is stable, we will definitely go to the capital to pay respects to the Empress Dowager! But I have another matter to discuss with Young Master today." Lin Chun thought that after all, he wasn't a professional jewelry designer, but just drew some designs based on modern jewelry he had seen and sent them to Qian Fuyuan. Although he had seen many jewelry styles in modern times, many of them couldn't be made with ancient craftsmanship and technology, which greatly reduced the number of designs he could draw. This was a very serious problem. If he didn't have suitable designs to draw in the future, what would he do?

  Lin Chun thought for a long time at home and felt that relying solely on herself to draw pictures to make a living was not sustainable in the long run. However, since the contract had already been signed, she wondered if she could reduce her workload by one picture per month or find other ways to free up time to manage the family's fields and forests, as well as open some shops. In any case, this life of hers was that of a farmer's daughter, and having land and fields was relatively stable.

  "Miss Lin can speak directly!" Qian Ye Li was impressed by Lin Chun's frankness and sincerity, and had a very good impression of her.

  "Ah, since that's the case, I won't beat around the bush either. First of all, thank you to Master Qian for helping my family find a guardian, Mr. and Mrs. Lin. Although you just instructed Uncle Qian, it was still your intention, so..." Lin Chun bowed to Qian Ye Li in gratitude, but before she could finish speaking, Qian Ye Li hastily stepped forward to help her up, only to remember that Lin Chun was a woman and quickly signaled for Uncle Qian, who was standing on the side, to assist her instead.

  "Secondly, regarding the matter of sending three designs to Qianfuyuan every month, I know that Qianfuyuan is still producing jewelry based on the third design I drew in January. Now that the wall around my house has been built, I plan to develop the land and mountain that I bought at home, and see if I can reduce the number of designs by one each month. After all, I don't have so many novel ideas in my mind. In order to cooperate with Qianfuyuan for a long time in the future, and also for the development of other family businesses, I wonder..."

  "What's wrong, Miss Lin? You and I, Qian Fuyu, have signed a contract, but there's no fixed term for our cooperation. Even if you don't want to draw another picture for Qian Fuyu now, I won't complain at all. Your previous pictures have already brought many benefits to Qian Fuyu, and I'm deeply grateful in my heart. Now, Miss Lin has a small request, how can I not agree? From now on, Miss Lin only needs to send one picture to Qian Fuyu every month. As the saying goes, 'rarity is precious', I also hope to have long-term cooperation with Miss Lin!"

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