Snow falls and the wind blows

Chapter 22

Xu Shilan paused for a moment, then smiled bitterly: "We've been sleeping in separate rooms for several years now. I've always slept in the study. So..."

The people around him didn't seem surprised at all, including Steward Zhang standing to the side, who also remained expressionless. Zhan Yun, standing to the side, was secretly surprised. Judging from this, this matter was not a secret in the Zhu family.

"Is the relationship bad?" Xiao Duan asked coldly, his expression unchanged.

These words shocked and angered everyone in the Zhu household. Even Zhao Ting, who was standing a little further away with his back to the crowd, couldn't help but turn around and stare at the person who had asked the question. Zhao Ting's deep eyes narrowed slightly, and his thin lips curved into a slight smile. This guy really dares to ask anything! Zhan Yun, standing to the side, was somewhat helpless. This person really asked whatever came to mind, without caring at all about what others thought.

“Young master, your question is rather impolite. This is a private matter between my aunt and uncle…” Zhu Qiaolian said softly, her beautiful eyes slightly red.

"Human life is at stake, so please answer my question, Mr. Xu." Xiao Duan interrupted Zhu Qiaolian directly, his phoenix eyes fixed on Xu Shilan without looking to the side.

Xu Shilan still smiled slightly, but the weariness on her face grew heavier: "Yes. In recent years, the relationship between my husband and me has not been very good."

"Mr. Xu never interferes with the business of the store, right?" Xiao Duan then asked.

"Yes. I don't know anything about business, and I don't know how to make cosmetics. She only asks me to go with her when she goes to collect flower petals. But I haven't gone with her the last few times." Xu Shilan said calmly, her eyes slightly moist.

"You all know about the new rouge she developed this time?" Zhan Yun asked gently, shaking the small celadon box in her hand.

Everyone said they knew. Zhu Fangqing, who kept wiping away her tears, said softly, "Sister hasn't had a good night's sleep for more than half a month because of this rouge. A few days ago, she spent the whole night trying to come up with a name for this lipstick. Finally, the rouge started selling well, and I heard from sister that many girls like this color, but how could this happen..." Zhu Fangqing couldn't continue, and covered her mouth with her handkerchief, sobbing softly.

"Whose hands does this rouge pass through before it's displayed?" Zhan Yun asked.

Zhu Fangqing just kept crying loudly. Zhu Qiaolian, with slightly red eyes and tear stains on her cheeks, answered softly, "Usually, when making rouge, the steps of picking flower petals, mashing the paste, filtering, and drying are all done by my aunt herself. The others follow along, just helping out. The grinding, mixing, and final packaging are done by the shop's apprentices. But they are all experienced craftsmen who have been doing it for over ten or twenty years, so they rarely make any mistakes."

"Was the entire process of making rouge done in the mansion, or somewhere else?" Xiao Duan glanced at Zhu Qiaolian.

Zhu Qiaolian seemed not to hear, her face slightly darkened, and she took out a handkerchief to wipe away the tears of the woman beside her. Steward Zhang, who was standing to the side, quickly spoke up: "They are all in the mansion. There are a few empty rooms in the backyard, which the eldest young lady uses to make rouge."

Xiao Duan nodded, glancing sideways at Zhan Yun, indicating that he could ask any questions he had, and that they would check those rooms later. Zhan Yun smiled slightly, indicating that he understood, then turned to the group and said gently, "There are no problems for now. Please forgive me for any offense I may have caused earlier. Please make yourselves at home."

Xiao Duan then turned to Steward Zhang and said, "Steward Zhang, please lead the way. We'd like to take a look at those rooms." Old Zhang nodded repeatedly, saying that it was only natural.

The inspection of the rouge seemed to be nearly complete. Jiang Cheng turned to look at Xiao Duan, his expression rather strange. Xiao Duan quickly walked over, and Jiang Cheng whispered a few words in her ear. Xiao Duan was slightly surprised, her pink lips parted slightly, and her brows gradually furrowed. Seeing Xiao Duan's expression, Zhao Ting and Zhan Yun also quickly came closer.

Zhao Ting was already nearby. While Xiao Duan and Zhan Yun were questioning each other, he had only turned his back and stood a short distance away, ostensibly watching the people examining the rouge, but actually eavesdropping on their conversation. He consoled himself, thinking that the less he looked at the man, the less danger he was in. However, listening to the man while simultaneously pondering the case, his eyebrows rising and falling with each word, was essentially self-deception. Seeing Xiao Duan approach Jiang Cheng and frown before even uttering a word, Zhao Ting quickly walked towards them without hesitation.

The four of them huddled together, and the two young masters looked at Xiao Duan with wide, curious eyes. Jiang Cheng sighed and could only repeat in a low voice, "All the rouge and powder displayed in this shop have been tested, and not a single box contains any poison."

Upon hearing this, all three fell silent. Xiao Duan was also momentarily troubled. Of the hundreds of boxes of rouge, only three were poisonous? This meant all their previous assumptions were invalid. As Xiao Duan pondered, his fair brows furrowed deeper, drawing a smile from Zhan Yun. This man was truly interesting! Normally, it was difficult to see any expression on his face, but when investigating cases, whether frowning, smiling, expressing frustration, or surprise, his expression instantly became lively. Although he smiled less and worried more, it was still much more pleasing to the eye than his cold, indifferent demeanor.

The group followed Manager Zhang to the rooms on the west side, where he introduced each one. One room was used for pulping and filtering, another was for air-drying, and the remaining two were used for grinding, mixing, and final packaging by the workers. The third room was only accessible to Zhu Fanghua, where color mixing, color separation, and the final fragrance grinding were all completed.

Steward Zhang is not only the steward of "Zui Zhu Yan" but also the steward of the mansion. He started helping Zhu Fanghua's father manage the shop business when he was a teenager, and later followed Zhu Fanghua's elder brother. He is extremely loyal to the Zhu family, and speaks of Zhu Fanghua with great respect and admiration.

"Where did the flower petals come from?" Xiao Duan asked softly, looking at the furnishings in the room.

"We usually go to 'Yandang Valley' in the southern suburbs, and occasionally to Wu'ai Slope in the western suburbs. We also grow some common flowers at home, but Miss always likes to take people to the mountains to pick them. She always says that petals with mountain dew on them, when ground, are the freshest in both color and taste..." Manager Zhang said, his voice slightly choked, "What on earth could have done such a thing! It ruined our shop's reputation and even harmed my young lady..."

"Besides your family, is there any other rouge shop in Hangzhou with a good reputation?" Zhao Ting suddenly asked, causing Xiao Duan to glance at him sideways. She thought to herself that this man had been absent-minded all morning, but now he was focusing on the case.

Manager Zhang pondered for a moment, then said in a low voice, "There are a few other rouge shops that are doing quite well, but none of them are as successful as our 'Drunken Beauty' shop. There's also another one that we cooperate with and regularly buys from our shop!"

"Then I'll trouble Manager Zhang to make a list later, writing down all the well-known rouge shops in the city, so that we can check them one by one," Zhan Yun said gently.

"You mean, other cosmetic shops are jealous of our shop's good business, so they did such a heinous thing?" Old Zhang rubbed his eyes, looking somewhat hesitant.

"We can't be sure who did it yet. We just want to get a better understanding of the situation from as many angles as possible," Zhan Yun explained with a slight smile.

"Judging from what Steward Zhang said, you think this is more like something someone from the manor would do?" Xiao Duan carefully observed Steward Zhang's expression and asked softly.

Manager Zhang panicked upon hearing this, waving his hands repeatedly, "No, no... that's not what I meant!" Seeing Xiao Duan staring coldly at him with her phoenix eyes, Manager Zhang hurriedly explained, "I just thought that this rouge is something that outsiders generally don't have access to. Before it was put in the shop, it was always kept in the mansion, and apart from a few master craftsmen who helped grind the incense, ordinary people didn't have access to it..."

Xiao Duan's expression grew even colder, the implication being that the people in the mansion were the most suspicious: "Can anyone in the mansion enter the room where the rouge is kept?"

Steward Zhang looked somewhat embarrassed, and after hesitating for a while, he finally replied, "Logically speaking, no one but the eldest young lady should come here. However, apart from the room where we mix colors and grind fragrances, the other rooms are not locked..." The others understood; this meant that anyone in the mansion could potentially come into contact with the rouge.

After asking a few more questions, the group headed back home. Several constables walked behind. Xiao Duan and Jiang Cheng walked closer together, while Zhan Yun and Zhao Ting walked closer together; none of them spoke much. Xiao Duan kept thinking about it, feeling that something was amiss. Just then, he heard a clear female voice from not far away: "Brother Chen, I've finally found you!"

Xiao Duan subconsciously looked up and saw a light orange figure rush in front of him in the blink of an eye, nimbly bumping Jiang Cheng aside and wrapping his arms tightly around his waist. Before he could react, a loud "pop" followed as a kiss landed on his left cheek, and a pair of bright, round eyes blinked as they looked at him: "Brother Chen, I missed you so much!"

Author's Note: Ahem, a new little friend has arrived! Qingzi, the driving force behind Xiaoting and Xiaoyun's relationship, is here! Everyone, give her a round of applause!

twenty four

Chapter Five: Green Seeds • Sour...

Xiao Duan suddenly pushed the woman back an arm's length, his delicate brows furrowing slightly, and he called out in disbelief, "Qing Zi?"

The woman blinked her round, bright eyes and smiled mischievously, "What, didn't expect that, did you?" Before Xiao Duan could react, the woman swung her arm and threw the bundle on her shoulder into Jiang Cheng's arms, who was already showing signs of being petrified. Then, she twisted her slender waist, turned around, and scolded, "Xiao Huizi, hurry up and come here!"

Not far away, a young man dressed in light blue robes slowly rose from the stone steps at the entrance of the government office, dragging two large bundles as he walked towards them. Xiao Duan frowned even more, pulling away Qingzi's arm that was wrapped around his waist: "This is ridiculous!" he said, and quickly ran towards the young man.

Jiang Cheng, clutching the pale gray bundle, slowly turned his still somewhat stiff neck and saw Zhan Yun standing calmly beside him, observing the woman before him without expression. Zhao Ting's handsome face, however, was almost the same color as his clothes, his deep eyes glaring fiercely at the girl. Clearly, if looks could kill, this "Qingzi" girl would probably have been torn to pieces by Zhao Ting long ago.

As if sensing the gazes of the people around her, Qingzi turned around gracefully, her large, cat-like eyes looking at Zhan Yun and Zhao Ting with a half-smile. She tilted her head and gently tapped her cheek with her index finger: "Gentlemen, I know I am more beautiful than flowers and exceptionally charming, but in public, with so many people watching, it's not appropriate for you two to keep staring at me like this. Don't you agree?"

Zhan Yun was taken aback by Qing Zi's words, then cleared his throat twice, gave a slight bow while holding his folding fan, and walked past the woman. Zhao Ting's lips twitched, he looked away, followed Zhan Yun's steps, and also walked towards Xiao Duan. The woman then turned her gaze to Jiang Cheng, her large, cat-like eyes blinking slyly: "This brother..." Jiang Cheng shuddered, turned around and handed the bundle in his hand to a constable behind him, then took off running towards Xiao Duan.

Qingzi reached out and snatched the bundle back from the dumbfounded young constable, muttering under her breath, "Honestly, asking you to help me carry this is doing you a favor, uncle..."

Xiao Duan had just taken a bundle from the boy when he suddenly felt his hand go empty. He turned his head and saw that Zhao Ting had taken the bundle from him. Zhao Ting looked somewhat awkwardly at the stone steps in front of the door and said, "Let's go back to the yamen first."

Xiao Duan hesitated for a moment, about to speak, when he heard Xiao Hui softly say "Hey." Turning her head, she saw that Zhan Yun had already taken the other bundle. Zhan Yun smiled slightly and said gently, "The things are quite heavy, let me carry them."