Chapter 7: Medicinal Bath Beans

Shen Caiwei found herself slightly distracted by this flawless smile. She couldn't help but recall the three words that Pei Jiulang had uttered before leaving—"ugly monster." In her previous life, she had taken pride in her beauty; even when referred to as a mere vase, she did not mind. Although she no longer possessed her former beauty, having been raised in the well-mannered Shen family, she had never been subjected to a single derogatory remark or mistreatment. Thus, she had never had such a clear realization of just how ugly her appearance was in the eyes of others.

Shen Caiwei replied while practicing calligraphy, "Hmm, it was given by Sister Fan."

After finishing her bath, Lu Jiao personally carried her onto the couch, took a small bottle of flower essence from Lu Yi's hand, and gently applied it to her reddened snow-white skin, slowly massaging it in.

The lotus seed cake that Shen Caiwei desires is placed on a white porcelain plate, made from lotus seed paste, white sugar, and osmanthus syrup. It is cut into four small square pieces, appearing slightly translucent and white, topped with a layer of golden syrup made from simmering osmanthus flowers, honey, and other ingredients. The steaming appearance of the syrup not only stimulates the appetite.

Shen Caiheng was indeed someone with a fondness for food, but Pei's family usually imposed strict rules regarding meals. At this moment, upon hearing Shen Caiwei's words, she couldn't help but laugh and clap her hands, saying: "That's settled then. If you go back on your word, I will, I will ignore you."

Shen Caiheng looked for a while and found it uninteresting, so she turned her head to glance at the inkstone and ink stick on the desk and asked, "Your ink has a hint of floral fragrance; it seems different from the one I use."

Lü Jiao withdrew her hand and saw that Shen Caiwei was already sleeping soundly, her nostrils gently flaring. Her skin was translucent and tender, revealing a hint of innocent childishness, looking just like a small jade doll. She couldn't help but smile and tucked the blanket around her.

Women love beauty, and those deemed unattractive love it even more. If she does not wish to live her life bearing the label of "ugly," she must grit her teeth and seize every small opportunity that comes her way

Shen Caiwei reached out to rub and knead, producing a large mass of foam to apply in various places. As the water in the silver basin slowly flowed out, she extended her hand to wash it away. The birthmark on her palm began to heat up after being rinsed with hot water for a while. Gradually, Shen Caiwei could feel an unbearable stinging sensation as the water poured onto her skin, akin to the prick of needles the size of fine hairs piercing her skin. The birthmark on her palm began to heat up after being rinsed with hot water for a while. Gradually, Shen Caiwei could feel an unbearable stinging sensation as the water poured onto her skin, akin to the prick of needles the size of fine hairs piercing her skin

The girl could not help but recite a line from the Buddha, her face breaking into a smile: "Finally awake, how wonderful." The lady had only this one daughter, whom she cherished like a precious jewel. After so many days of fever, even the servants had been anxious for so long, but now they had finally made it through.

As soon as Shen Caiheng heard about food, she immediately shifted the topic, nodded vigorously, and cheerfully replied: "Yes! I want a big, big, big plate!"

Shen Caiwei has not yet practiced her large characters today, so she simply decided to use this as an opportunity to practice her calligraphy, diligently focusing on each stroke. However, her wrist strength was insufficient, causing her characters to appear somewhat loose. As a result, her speed was much slower compared to the hasty Shen Caiheng.

This sound, so faint that it stirred not a speck of dust, carries with it a profound resentment and pain that penetrates to the marrow.

A few young girls approached with small basins, while Lu Ju carefully twisted a cloth to assist Shen Caiwei and Shen Caiheng in washing their hands. Lu Yi had just finished grinding the ink and stood up to replace it with a plain incense stick in the incense burner. The Shen family had a tradition of poetry and propriety, and when it came to matters of writing and ink, the rules became considerably more numerous.

Shen Caiheng hurriedly finished copying a small chapter and leaned over to take a look, unable to help but curl her lips: "Why have you only copied 'Brother Ci's nurturing, full of hardships'?" She was still waiting to have some snacks.

After practicing calligraphy for a while, the two were already somewhat tired, so they began to eat without any hesitation

Shen Caiheng took the brush, bit the handle, and replied, "Hmm."

As the saying goes: "Regular script gives rise to running script, and running script gives rise to cursive script. Regular script stands still, running script moves, and cursive script runs." Here, "regular script" refers to the standard form of calligraphy. The three styles—regular, running, and cursive—are analogous to a person's standing, walking, and running. Therefore, beginners like her have no choice in selecting a style; they practice exclusively the regular script.

The chef had already prepared it earlier, but soon two dishes were brought up.

Because this is truly tormenting, Shen Caiwei also realizes that children's skin is inherently good and does not require the pursuit of perfection through excessive scrutiny. Therefore, she rarely uses it. Today, when Pei Jiulang called her "ugly monster," Shen Caiwei finally understood the principle that one must either advance or retreat.

Shen Caiwei took a moment to speak with her: "It will be ready soon, just wait for me a moment." In a moment of distraction, a drop of ink fell from her brush, creating a blot. Although Shen Caiwei was not a perfectionist, the blot in front of her was somewhat bothersome. Since she had just begun writing on this piece of rice paper, she simply took out another sheet and started anew.

At this moment, the sky is dim, and night has already fallen. The stars are faint and uncertain, occasionally a gentle breeze brushes past the drifting clouds, yet the bright moon remains clear and radiant

When she smiled, two shallow dimples appeared on her delicately sculpted face, as if filled with the warm and gentle sunlight of a picture book, exceedingly sweet

The two of them sat at either end, quietly practicing their calligraphy together, and the room was momentarily filled with silence

For Shen Caiwei, having someone help her bathe is indeed a matter of considerable significance. Fortunately, she is now six years old, and although she cannot completely do without assistance, she is generally capable of being self-sufficient.

The sickly girl, in a daze, suddenly began to moan in pain. She struggled to move her fingers, her delicate brows slightly furrowed. Her face, somewhat emaciated from illness, still bore a faintly charming hue reminiscent of a frail beauty, evoking sympathy. She moved her lips, murmuring indistinctly and with distaste: "Shen Caiwei... Xiao Qiguang..."

Thus, their conversation quickly shifted from Shen Caifan to what snacks to eat

Shen Caiwei finished copying a passage and finally breathed a sigh of relief: "It's nothing, just a piece of ink. Next time we meet, you can just ask her for a piece." She turned to Shen Caiheng and smiled, "Do you still want to have some snacks?"

In the end, I chose the Ai Wo Wo that Shen Caiheng liked and the lotus seed cake that Shen Caiwei preferred

Cousin Shen Caifan is four years older than them, making her exactly ten years old this year, which is the time for her to take the entrance exam for girls' school. However, she is exceptionally gifted and enjoys reading poetry and literature, already renowned as a talented young woman, and is a strong candidate for the top spot in this year's entrance examination.

After finishing the snacks, Shen Caihen returned to her own Western Warm Pavilion. Finally sending everyone off, Shen Caiwei let out a sigh of relief. She picked up the family teachings from the desk by the window and carefully read a few sections, then, feeling somewhat fatigued, covered her mouth and yawned: "Take a bath earlier today and rest early"

Shen Caiheng and Shen Caiwei naturally could not understand Shen Sanye's "good intentions". These two difficult sisters wore identical苦 faces as they prepared to go together to Shen Caiwei's Dongnuange to copy books.

The flower essence applied to the skin is cool and sweet, making one feel as if they are amidst a blooming garden. Coupled with the massage techniques learned from the old woman, it provides a most comforting sensation. Shen Caiwei had just endured pain and numbness, relying solely on her willpower to persevere. At this moment, she finally relaxed and, enveloped in the sweet floral fragrance, drifted off into a drowsy sleep.

She endured the pain, using her palm to wash away the foam from her body. After such a bath, it felt as if a layer of skin had been shed. Once the pain became numb, it was replaced by a fine, dense itch, an indescribable torment.

In a refined and elegant boudoir in the capital city

Shen Caiheng had merely asked casually, but upon hearing this, she couldn't help but feel a bit anxious and said in annoyance: "Sister Fan is really biased! Why did she only give you something and not me?"

The bath beans of the Shen family are specially formulated, also known as medicinal bath beans. According to the ancient texts, the formula includes "2 taels of Bai Zhi, 3 taels of Bai Lian, 3 taels of Bai Ji, 2 taels of Bai Fu Zi, 3 taels of Bai Fu Ling, 3 taels of Bai Zhu, half a sheng of Tao Ren, half a sheng of Xing Ren, 1 tael of Chen Xiang, 3 taels of Lu Jiao Jiao, half a tael of finely ground musk, 5 sheng of soybean flour, 2 sheng of glutinous rice, and 5 pieces of soap pods." However, the inclusion of musk is somewhat harmful—musk is present in the fragrant skin pill that caused Zhao Feiyan's infertility. Although it can make one's complexion fair and translucent, with a lingering fragrance, it has been prudently replaced with other ingredients.

Shen Caiwei's heart sank, a complex and indescribable feeling coiling around her heart like a thread, taut and tense. However, she quickly regained her composure, smiled in response, and took Shen Caihan's hand to head towards the East Warm Pavilion.

Ai Wo Wo is placed in a light blue porcelain dish, primarily made from glutinous rice. They are all shaped into small snowball-like clusters, arranged in a floral pattern for visual appeal, with each topped with a piece of red goji berry. Moreover, the filling inside each one is different, either red bean paste, sesame, or flower petals, each distinct. This perfectly illustrates the saying, "White glutinous rice enters the steamer, assorted fillings kneaded with flour."

Shen Caiwei had long been aware of Shen Caiheng's temperament, and she couldn't help but reveal a faint smile. She took her hand and pleaded for mercy, saying, "Alright, alright, it's all my fault. Once we finish copying, I'll treat you to some snacks."

Shen Caiwei waited for her hands to dry before stepping forward to select a small brush from the pen holder, handing it to Shen Caiheng, and said: "Let's copy a small chapter first. Once it's done, we can take a break and have some snacks, and continue tomorrow."

This can be considered a passive skill of the beauty mirror—when it is rinsed with hot water for an extended period, it secretes an invisible substance that, when mixed with water, can improve a person's skin texture. Shen Caiwei refers to this process as washing the nourishing cream

The desk in the Dongnuan Pavilion is positioned by the window, overlooking a corner of the courtyard where the emerald bamboo sways gently. On the desk are the writing implements such as brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones that Shen Caiwei uses daily. Green Jiao is particularly attentive, having prepared even the ones used by Shen Caiheng well in advance

Shen Caiwei took a deep breath, waited until her emotions calmed down, then grasped the pen with her hand, slightly raised her wrist, and quietly began to copy the family instructions

The maid on night duty did not clearly hear her words, but upon seeing her struggling on the bed, she exclaimed in surprise: "Miss is awake!" Unable to contain her joy, she called out, "Quickly go find the madam and Doctor Mo." At present, the Crown Prince is gravely ill, and most of the imperial physicians are stationed in the palace; it is thanks to the grace of the sage that Doctor Mo is still able to remain in the residence.

Shen Caiheng tossed aside the thread she had been pulling on and said angrily, "It's all your fault. If you hadn't gotten the book wet, we wouldn't have to copy it."