Jade Space has Storage and Fresh-keeping Functions

Upon waking up, Xiangbei realized she needed to make a toothbrush and toothpaste from the pig bristles she retrieved yesterday. The habit of using saltwater for dental care was indeed unfamiliar. Knowing she would descend the mountain today, she picked out the azure silk outfit worn during her time in Peach Blossom Cottage. Feeling the layered chiffon outside was somewhat cumbersome, she unwrapped several layers, leaving only eight pieces resembling a modern pleated skirt over the azure underskirt. Xiangbei lifted the lightweight skirt and tied it around her waist like a decorative sash. She secured the trouser legs with thin blue cotton fabric, then cut two-inch-wide headbands from the removed fabric. She styled herself with a Western-style pineapple braid, intertwining it over her ears and tying it with a butterfly knot, securing the whole ensemble with a blue cloth to avoid entanglement with branches while descending the mountain.

Descending to the east courtyard, she called for Tong Xi to the kitchen, loading a basket with shampoo, shower gel, and various soaps. Another basket was filled with honey, honeycomb, and beeswax. The Xia brothers and Lin's eldest son emerged from their rooms, receiving baskets and heading towards the stone platform in the yard. The group, having prepared various marinating materials and fresh leg and tender belly pork in finely woven bamboo baskets lined with pomelo leaves, gathered five or six baskets. Everyone had finished breakfast and was ready for Xiangbei to lead them down to the town. Xiangbei called out to Tong Hu, whose eyes had not left her since she appeared, creating a moment that, if everyone were more familiar, might have led to some teasing banter. "Brother Huzi, could you please fetch Biaozhi and help bring those frozen pork spines downstairs?"

"Ah? Oh, alright, I'll go right away."

Xiangbei briskly returned to the corridor below her own floor, took out two large copper pots of nitrate-frozen pork spines stored in the Snow Jade Cave from last night. When the two brothers arrived to carry them to the entrance of the estate, five families, excluding the injured and Old Chen, had gathered. The Tong siblings—Chen, Xi, Hu, Biao—along with Xiangbei, formed a group of ten people, setting off. Each person carried nearly two hundred pounds on their shoulders, with Xiangbei carrying a tightly sealed, water-resistant, finely woven bamboo basket containing only the newly prepared herbs from Old Yaofu. Even with this lightweight load, she had to jog to keep up with the nine men carrying heavy loads. The mountain road took more than an hour, and Xiangbei was already feeling a bit stumbling. Tong Chen watched his mistress with concern, regretting not having brought Uncle Li along; he could have carried her himself. He wondered if they could reach the water pavilion soon and if Mr. Qiao or the young master would be there with a carriage to meet them.

As Tong Chen contemplated this, Xiangbei beside him suddenly started running. She untied the blue cloth from her head, released the chiffon wrapped around her waist, and her long green silk, along with the silver-blue headband, fluttered in the wind. The light blue skirt, like a butterfly's wings, blinked into the eyes of the mountain men, as if a creature had suddenly entered their accustomed mountain and water scenery, bringing it to life.

Meanwhile, Xiangbei also beheld a painting before her eyes—a scroll of mountains and rivers hanging from the sky. The azure sky, mountain ranges, bamboo forests, and streams unfolded like a timeless masterpiece. Next to a brown carriage, a silver-clad warrior on horseback turned back to glance. It seemed as if he had been gazing from a thousand years ago, bewitching Xiangbei to come closer, closer, and closer. Running faster, flying over countless gaps in time, through the cycles of the world, she rushed forward, heading towards the starting point of her gaze.

Cheng Mo just stared at Xiangbei, watching her run towards him, observing the fluttering of her skirt and the green silk flying with the wind. He continued to gaze until her rosy and delicate face arrived in front of him. Sitting tall on the horse, he raised his head high, a mix of anger and annoyance evident, "You're showing off, sitting so high. If you don't come down, we'll just go ourselves." This meeting seemed rehearsed many times, and even when scolded, the elation was the same. Cheng Mo laughed, from the gentle curve of his lips to a broad smile, to the joy that touched his eyebrows. He laughed heartily, and the sunlight reflected off the mountain peaks, casting a backlight on his silver attire, outlining the profile of a heroic young man dismounting with exuberance. "Little Bei, I came at sunrise, been waiting for you all along."

"Silly," Xiangbei rolled her eyes at him and walked towards the carriage. "Brother Cheng, you've endured a lot, coming here so early. In the future, don't follow him to be silly."

"Miss Tong," Cheng Tian bowed respectfully with folded hands beside the carriage. "It's my duty."

"Ah, it's hard for you to follow such a silly master." Xiangbei, while unloading the basket from her shoulder, turned to the approaching group and said, "This is Cheng Dongjia. He urgently needs the goods and has been waiting here since early morning. Let's load all the baskets onto the carriage and head back. I'll go to town with him."