“Xiao Bei isn’t aiming for the courtesan title, so it doesn’t matter which slot she gets,” Qing Mulan said with a smile, as a few more drumbeats sounded from the flower boat.
Qingluo nodded to the back, and several veiled women took the stage, each holding an instrument.
“Sister Mulan, why are they wearing veils?” Runniang had stopped asking questions, but Xiao E, ever curious, piped up.
“They’re the musicians, so they wear veils to avoid stealing Qingluo’s spotlight,” Qing Mulan explained, snatching a pastry from Xiao E’s plate.
“There’s plenty more over there. Why take mine?” Xiao E protested. The malt candy was the tastiest of all the pastries.
“Yours looks better,” Qing Mulan teased, reaching for the plate again.
Xiao E’s face changed, and she spat onto the plate, spraying tiny bits of saliva over the candies and Qing Mulan’s hand.
“You…” Qing Mulan nearly jumped up in anger.
Xiao E, realising she’d gone too far, saw Qing Mulan raise her hand and shrank back, nervously offering the plate with a sheepish smile.
“I don’t want it!” Qing Mulan huffed, wiping her hand on Xiao E’s clothes. “Guan Xiao E, this isn’t over.”
Children always dreaded being called by their full names, especially with Qing Mulan’s menacing expression. Xiao E, almost in tears, pouted and looked to Jin Feng for help. “Brother-in-law…”
“The pastries on the table are for everyone, not just you. Hoarding the malt candy was wrong, and spitting was worse,” Jin Feng said sternly, having no patience for spoiled children in his past life. He seized the chance to teach her a lesson.
“Oh…” Xiao E placed the plate back on the table and sat quietly, occasionally wiping her eyes, though no tears fell.
“Stop pretending to be pitiful,” Jin Feng said, unimpressed. “Do you know you were wrong?”
“I know I was wrong. I didn’t mean to spit, I was just in a rush,” Xiao E said, clinging to Jin Feng’s arm and shaking it. “Brother-in-law, I won’t do it again. Please forgive me this time.”
“Fine, fine. The malt candy’s covered in your spit now, so no one else can eat it. Take it,” Jin Feng said, giving her a light tap on the head.
“Thank you, brother-in-law!” Xiao E grabbed the plate, grinning, and ran to Qing Mulan, munching happily.
“Those two…” Jin Feng nearly laughed in exasperation.
On stage, Qingluo’s performance was nearing its end. Groups of bailiffs appeared, three per group: one carried a tray of flowers, while the other two lifted a specially designed bucket.
The bucket, labeled with Qingluo’s name, had an opening like a fish trap, allowing money to be inserted but not removed.
The bailiffs would later open the buckets from the bottom for counting, preventing tampering.
Spectators supporting Qingluo could now put money in the bucket to receive flowers, which they could keep as souvenirs or toss onto the stage.
Qing Mulan was right: at the start, the crowd’s enthusiasm was high, and many bought flowers. Most purchased one or two, some up to three or five, and a few even pooled money for a single flower.
“The power of celebrity is something,” Jin Feng remarked, watching three young men in patched robes pool their money for one flower, reminded of fans in his past life scrimping to buy celebrity merchandise.
The bailiffs circulated with the buckets, many returning full.
“That’s some fast money,” Guan Xiaorou marveled, eyeing the heavy buckets.
“Most of those buckets are filled with copper coins. The real money comes from these tents,” Qing Mulan said, gesturing to the surrounding tents.
“What do you mean?”
“Just watch,” Qing Mulan said cryptically.
Qingluo’s performance ended, but she didn’t leave, standing on stage with a radiant smile.
A shout came from a nearby tent: “The Prefect rewards Miss Qingluo with one hundred taels of silver!”
A maid paraded a tray of silver ingots before the stage.
Another maid followed, scattering a tray of flowers into the air.
Petals rained down.
“Thank you, Lord Prefect!” Qingluo curtsied toward the prefect’s tent.
“The prefect’s rich, tossing out a hundred taels like that,” someone remarked.
“Most of that money ends up back in his hands. Why would he care?” Qing Mulan said.
Her words were barely out when another shout rang: “Young Master Qian of Qian’s Trading House rewards Miss Qingluo with three hundred taels!”
Three hundred taels weighed thirty jin, too heavy for a young master to carry, so a maid displayed a silver note on stage.
“Thank you, Young Master Qian!” Qingluo curtsied again.
Another shower of petals followed.
“The prefect gave a hundred taels, but Young Master Qian gave three hundred. Isn’t he worried about upsetting the prefect?” someone asked.
“These young masters reward to flatter the prefect, since seventy percent of the contest’s earnings go to him,” Qing Mulan explained. “Why would he be upset when people send him money? That’s why the prefect leads with a reward.”
“Right, with the prefect starting, the merchants follow to save face,” Guan Xiaorou said, catching on despite her lack of literacy. “No wonder you said Qingluo’s lucky to go first.”
As they spoke, the merchants’ rewards kept coming.
Some gave three hundred taels, others a few dozen, covering the river in front of the stage with petals.
“Young Master Zhou of Zhou’s Cloth Shop rewards Miss Qingluo with five hundred taels!” another shout rang out.
“Zhou’s Cloth Shop!” Tang Dongdong turned toward the sound.
The downfall of her and Tang Xiao Bei’s family was entirely due to Zhou’s Cloth Shop.
But the tent blocked her view.
“Dongdong, stay calm. The textile factory isn’t ready to take on Zhou’s yet,” Jin Feng whispered.
Tang Dongdong sat back down.
“Brother-in-law, the petal rain is so pretty. Can we reward some too?” Xiao E asked, chewing malt candy, oblivious to adult concerns.
“We’re in Chunfeng Tower’s tent. We can’t reward girls from other houses,” Jin Feng refused firmly.
Per the contest rules, rewards of fifty taels or more were announced with fanfare and flower-scattering.
Spending fifty taels for a shout-out wasn’t Jin Feng’s style. With that money, he’d rather buy a few servants to work.
The rewards continued for nearly twenty minutes.
The bucket counts were tallied as well.
