Ink Fragrance Pavilion lived up to its name - a tranquil and elegant shop permeated with the scent of ink.
The entrance was adorned with a curtain made of long strings of wooden beads. From the outside, one could glimpse shadowy figures through the gaps between the beads.
As Jiang Ning and Liu Ming'an stepped inside, the bead curtain clattered. A man emerged from behind the counter near the door. He appeared to be in his forties, neatly dressed, sporting a beard, with a perfectly measured smile on his face.
The man turned to face them and said, "Welcome to our humble shop. What would you like to purchase today?"
Liu Ming'an glanced around the store. This floor didn't display any writing implements, but was filled with various books. There were classics, histories, biographies, poetry collections, medical texts, and Buddhist scriptures - a comprehensive collection neatly organized on their respective shelves for browsing and selection. At that moment, two or three customers were perusing the books.
Directly opposite the entrance was a staircase with a sign next to it that read: "Four Treasures of the Study, Please Proceed to Second Floor."
"No need to trouble yourself, sir. We'll just have a look around first," Liu Ming'an said politely.
"Ha ha ha... I'm not the owner," the man stroked his beard with a smile, then bowed to them, saying, "My name is Yuan, and I'm the shopkeeper of Ink Fragrance Pavilion."
"Shopkeeper Yuan," Liu Ming'an returned the bow.
"Please feel free to browse. Don't hesitate to call me if you need anything," Shopkeeper Yuan gestured invitingly, then returned to his position behind the counter.
Jiang Ning's attention had been completely absorbed by the piles of books from the moment she entered the shop. Everything about being reborn in this era was fine, except for the lack of entertainment. No phones, no computers, no TV, no movies. And with Liu Ming'an's household being so poor, she could only flip through his exam preparation books during her leisure time. Unfortunately, Liu Ming'an's books were terribly dull, with only "The Book of Rites" being somewhat bearable.
Now, seeing such a diverse array of books, Jiang Ning suddenly felt she had something to look forward to in the days ahead.
Once Liu Ming'an finished exchanging pleasantries with Shopkeeper Yuan, Jiang Ning eagerly approached the bookshelves.
"Tales of Dream Women," "Chronicles of the Scarlet Fox Spirit," "Records of the Seven Ghost Wanderers," "Ten Great Cases of Liang Kingdom"...
Jiang Ning grabbed any book that sounded like a story without a second thought. By the time Liu Ming'an caught up with her, Jiang Ning was already cradling a thick stack of no less than twenty books.
Liu Ming'an took the books from her arms, and seeing that Jiang Ning was about to grab more, he quickly advised, "Jiang Ning, that's too many. They'll be hard to carry. Let's come back another time."
Jiang Ning considered this and agreed. This pile would be enough to while away quite some time.
Shopkeeper Yuan had been engrossed in checking the accounts when suddenly his light was blocked. He looked up to find the young couple from earlier had returned and were standing at the counter with a stack of books before them.
"You've made your selections so quickly?" Shopkeeper Yuan was quite surprised, as it hadn't even been half the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
Liu Ming'an smiled and said, "We've chosen these, but we'd like to go upstairs and look around. Could we leave these books here and pay for everything together later?"
"Ah, yes, of course! This way, please!" Realizing these two were today's fortune bringers, Shopkeeper Yuan didn't dare to be negligent. He came out from behind the counter and stood by the stairs, smiling broadly as he invited them up.
Liu Ming'an nodded slightly to Shopkeeper Yuan before following Jiang Ning upstairs.
"It really is a lot of books to carry," Jiang Ning suddenly spoke up, her brows furrowing slightly as if in deep thought. "We're out of rice at home and need to buy some. We're also low on oil, and I wanted to get some flour..."
The stark contrast between the person who had just moments ago fiercely declared the thugs from Gold Jade Hall to be useless, and now furrowed her delicate brows in concern over daily necessities, didn't seem contradictory on Jiang Ning. In fact, Liu Ming'an found her rather adorable as he watched her.
Liu Ming'an cleared his throat, suppressing a smile, "Don't worry. You've bought so many books, if we give the shop a few extra copper coins, they'll deliver them to our home. As for rice and flour, we can buy those from the Chen Family Rice Shop, and they can deliver to our home as well."
"Alright, let's do that then," Jiang Ning decided. In truth, she could easily store everything in her spatial storage without any effort, but that would be difficult to explain to Liu Ming'an.
At the top of the stairs on the second floor stood a shop assistant who greeted them respectfully as soon as they appeared: "Welcome, esteemed guests. What can I help you with today?"
Jiang Ning scanned the second floor and found it had a similar layout to the first, but was divided into four sections selling brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones. At the moment, four or five customers were selecting paper, and a man in his thirties was explaining something to them.
Noticing Jiang Ning and Liu Ming'an looking in that direction, the shop assistant explained, "The man in white is our boss, Yang Ruoqing. As you can see, he's attending to some customers who want to buy paper for painting."
Liu Ming'an turned to Jiang Ning and said, "I promised two friends I'd help paint a birthday congratulations picture. Shall we go take a look?"
Jiang Ning raised an eyebrow, surprised. She and Liu Ming'an had been inseparable, yet in the brief time they were apart today, he had made two friends who warranted him gifting a painting, even a congratulatory birthday picture. Moreover, when Liu Ming'an spoke of the two, his eyes held a faint smile, suggesting he was genuinely happy to have met them.
As Jiang Ning and Liu Ming'an approached the paper section, they heard the shop owner, Yang, speaking enthusiastically: "...This paper is top-quality sized Xuanzhou paper, and this roller is made of premium agarwood. You won't find these anywhere but at my Ink Fragrance Pavilion!"
As Yang spoke, he extended the scroll towards the four customers, but one of the older men held up a hand to politely decline. "We're accustomed to unsized Xuan paper. No matter how good your sized paper is, we won't be able to use it properly. It would be a waste for us to buy it. Perhaps you could show us some unsized Xuan paper instead, Mr. Yang?"
Yang let out a disappointed sigh, rolled up the scroll, and placed it on the highest shelf. He then led the customers to another section and began introducing new scrolls.
Liu Ming'an walked over, took down the rolled-up scroll from the shelf, and carefully examined it by the window. After a moment, he said to Jiang Ning, "It truly is high-quality sized Xuan paper, and the agarwood is genuine."
Jiang Ning: "..."
She didn't understand.
"How can paper be 'sized' or 'unsized'? Is it cooked somehow?" Jiang Ning asked, puzzled.
She had been quite confused listening earlier. Although she had practiced calligraphy with a brush pen in modern times, she had just bought supplies online randomly and knew nothing about these details.
"Pfft!" Liu Ming'an couldn't help but laugh, but seeing Jiang Ning's pointed look, he quickly composed himself and explained seriously: "Xuan paper is classified into unsized, sized, and half-sized based on its processing method. Unsized Xuan paper hasn't been treated with alum water. It's thicker and absorbs water more readily, allowing for rich variations in ink tones. It's often used for freehand landscape painting. Sized Xuan paper has been treated with alum water, making it harder and less absorbent. The ink doesn't spread as easily, allowing for more detailed and delicate brushwork, resulting in more refined and natural paintings. Half-sized Xuan paper, as the name suggests, falls between the two, combining their advantages and disadvantages. It's suitable for beginners to practice with."
This explanation was concise, clear, and well-organized. Jiang Ning nodded and said, "You know a lot."
Liu Ming'an smiled modestly, "I've just read about it in books."