263 Cross Dressing

As the group traveled, Xie Yunjin asked the artisans to tell him more about the city.

Though Xie Yunjin studied here, he rarely shopped or had fun in the city. For the past few years, he spent all his time worrying about the four little ones when he wasn’t studying.

Therefore, despite spending five to six years here, he didn’t know much about the city.

The artisans classmate Han brought were locals and were very familiar with the city. This was why Xie Yunjin asked them to show him around.

One of the artisans was very friendly and told the family everything he knew about the city and about all the important people in the city.

“Our county is poorer than other counties. However, our magistrate Hu is an upright guy. Under him is the grand commander Xu. Grand commander Xu has no sons and is more focused on giving birth to a son than on his job. He’s been going around looking for concubines in order to get a son. I heard he has nine concubines but as of now, he’s only got one daughter.”

The artisan was very happy to be gossiping.

Xie Yunjin however, wasn’t that interested and interrupted, “Do you know the county magistrate’s assistant Yang? What’s he like?”

Xie Yunjin asked about him because of Luo Xinwu comment.

The artisan responded, “He’s great. There’s also administrator Peng, who’s also great. The two of them are very dutiful. However, given that our county is very poor, they don’t have a lot of income and their families are very poor. Let me tell you, both assistant Yang and administrator Peng wear clothes that have been patched up.”

Inside the carriage, Xie Yunjin frowned. Either those two were far too humble or they were far too cunning. As a county magistrate’s assistant and administrator, they had enough to not dress like that.

Lu Jiao followed up, “Do they enjoy donating money to their neighbors?”

If that were the case, their lack of wealth could be explained. Some people enjoy helping others with their money.

The artisan shook his head, “No, they are already poor and they have no money to help others.”

Lu Jiao didn’t ask any more questions. The artisan then started talking about the merchants in the city.

“Though the county is poor, there are a few wealthy families around. Merchants in the city, for example, have lots of money. The richest of them all would be Zhang, Liang, Cao, and Wang. Those four families are the wealthiest and they all managed to set up influential partners for their children. Because of this, even the magistrate himself treats them with respect.”

Lu Jiao and Xie Yunjin exchanged glances. Zhang, Liang, Cao, and Wang… Liang Ziwen was a part of that list and that was why he acted so arrogantly and even treated Hu Shan poorly. This was all due to his family name.

Lu Jiao leaned into Xie Yunjin and whispered, “We have to be careful of the Liang family.”

Xie Yunjin’s eyes darkened, “I will.”

Since the rivalry between him and the Liang family had already formed, he had to be protective rather than reactive.

The horse carriage arrived at the street with merchants.

Xie Yunjin, Lu Jiao, Lu Gui, and the four little ones got out of the carriage. The artisan also got out from beside the coachman.

Since the slides and the fake cave were going to be outdoors all year round, Lu Jiao wanted to use wood that was sturdy. Logically, she should use plastic given plastic wasn’t afraid of wind, rain or the Sun. Sadly, no such thing existed in this era so wood was her only option.

Once the four little ones grow old enough and no longer need the playground, she’ll turn the space into a garden.

Lu Jiao brought the enthusiastic four little ones to the store. After lots of picking and selecting, she chose rosewood.

After she made up her mind, she asked the shopkeeper to cut the wood up. This shop delivered wood for free.

Lu Jiao paid for it. She didn’t rush home right away and instead, took the four little ones with Xie Yunjin and Lu Gui to stroll around the city center.

Since everyone in this family was good-looking, they attracted much attention. Lots of people pointed at them and discussed them. Of course, most of the comments were positive. Despite that, Lu Jiao didn’t enjoy the attention and soon left for home with the four little ones.

She did make several purchases before going home, such as decorations for the four little ones, and different types of food. She also bought lots of fabric and textiles for Xie Yunjin.

Aunt Qiu claimed that she was able to sew anything, from clothing to shoes. Feng Zhi also said she knew how to sew. Therefore, Lu Jiao bought what was needed to make new clothes.

Other than for herself, she bought enough material for two new sets of clothes for each of the servants as well. She thought of these new clothes as benefits provided to them by the family.

Lu Jiao then bought two sets of men’s clothing for herself and Feng Zhi. When she did that, Xie Yunjin and Fu Gui stared and asked curiously, “Why are you buying that?”

Lu Jiao smiled, “I plan on going to Baohe Tang dressed as a man.”

Xie Yunjin was quick to support, “Great idea!”

Then he studied her and added, “Even with men’s clothing, your face doesn’t look masculine.”

Lu Jiao had an egg-shaped face with silky smooth skin and watery eyes. She was obviously a woman and men’s clothing may make her uniquely alluring.

Xie Yunjin’s imagination made him worry that she may attract more attention.

Lu Jiao waved around her hand, ” Don’t worry, I will make sure I don’t draw attention.”

She then waved down the horse carriage and went home.

At the Xie family home, Lu Jiao dressed in the back courtyard. First, she used the dark powder she purchased to cover her face in order to make her skin appear more tanned. She then used a brow pen to thicken up her brows. Finally, she dotted her face a little to create the illusion of moles.

After this, she no longer appeared as attractive as she normally was. Now, she looked very average.

When the four little ones saw her in men’s clothing looking like that, they didn’t even dare to call out to her.

In the end, it was Lu Gui who spoke first, “Sister, why did you make yourself look like that?”

Only then did the four little ones confirm that this person was their mother.

The Third Born was in disbelief. He’s always tried to become more handsome so why did his mother turn herself ugly?

Xie Yunjin was very pleased with the result. Lu Jiao’s current state put him in a great mood.

“She is going to become a regular doctor at Baohe Tang. As a woman, a pretty one at that, it’s hard to gain the trust of the patients since normally, people don’t find attractive women to be capable. So she must conceal her identity.”

The First Born asked quickly, “When you’re ugly, people trust you?”

Ah, how unbelievable. How come ugly people could gain trust but pretty ones couldn’t?

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