The charming beauty approached Song Ci and her companions, and gracefully saluted.
"Madam Song, Commandery Princess Dongyang, greetings from i Niang."
Song Ci: "i Niang? Is your surna Wu?"
Wu iniang, indeed, as the na suggests, just looking at her alluring charm is enough to make one swoon.
i Niang paused for a mont, then smiled and said, "My mother’s surna is Ji, and my husband’s surna is Shang. Madam and Princess may call by the family na Shang or my given na."
Niu Pan’er inquired, "How do you know us?"
"I’ve had the fortune of witnessing the Commandery Princess’s grace on the street, and since she’s the only female general in the entire Great Qing, how could I not recognize her when she’s in the capital?" i Niang replied with a bright smile.
Song Ci raised an eyebrow.
Each profession has its specialty.
Which businessperson doesn’t employ tactful strategies? Who doesn’t have a little notebook recording the influential people of the capital? The smart and perceptive naturally take careful note.
And this i Niang clearly belongs to that category of intelligent and perceptive people.
"I heard this foreign trade shop opened just a few days ago, and its goods are both novel and interesting. But I must say, no novelty can surpass the beauty of the proprietress herself. Standing here in the hall, the jewelry and gemstones lose their colors!" Song Ci praised with a smile.
With such a figure and beauty, if she were in the entertainnt industry, how could she not be popular?
i Niang: "..."
Is she teasing her?
Nanny couldn’t bear to watch, seeing that Madam’s old habit of being unable to move her feet when encountering beauty had surfaced again.
"Madam is indeed amusing. For i Niang to receive your praise is truly a fortune spanning three lifetis," i Niang laughed. "It’s rare for Madam and the Princess to visit my humble shop. Why not co to the elegant room for tea? If you’d like to see so jewelry or small items, allow i Niang to introduce them to you personally."
Song Ci had no objections, and along with Niu Pan’er, followed i Niang into the elegant room.
The elegant room was arranged with a serene elegance, featuring upholstered sofas different from the contemporary style. On the antique shelves was a wind-up music box, tinkling with tunes.
Song Ci’s eyes twinkled as she cast a glance at i Niang—could she be a fellow traveler from the future?
She had not heard from Song Zhiyuan about Great Qing’s upcoming desire to open sea trade, but was the other side of the sea truly this modern?
This world—no, to be precise—what is this realm’s frawork?
Curiosity.
Song Ci’s eyes shifted as she feigned surprise, pointing at the music box: "What kind of sorcery is this that it can sing and has little figurines spinning with it?"
Oh, how pretentious!
As soon as she finished speaking, the music box’s winding ran out, the music stopped, and the figures stopped spinning too.
Song Ci widened her eyes: "It even listens to commands!"
This naive display made everyone in the room cover their foreheads with resignation.
Music box: Such pretentious fool!
i Niang pursed her lips with a smile, picked up the music box, rewound it, and smilingly placed it back, saying: "This is called a music box. It contains chanisms inside. Once wound, it will rotate and produce music."
"Did you make this, i Niang?"
"How could I have such talent? This originates from the Western Countries, made by masters there. These are common trinkets there, beloved by young girls."
Song Ci took the music box, pretending to inspect it out of curiosity, and asked: "I’ve heard that Westerners look very strange, and their language is incomprehensible. Have you seen them?"
i Niang shook her head: "The Western Countries are too far away. I get seasick on boats, so I haven’t seen them. The Shang family has shipping, and these are brought back by our rchant ships." Niu Pan’er: "The Shang family, are they the wealthy rchants of Quanzhou, known as the benevolent Shang Zhan?"
i Niang’s eyes curved: "The Commandery Princess flatters us; that indeed is i Niang’s father-in-law."
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