As the largest metropolis at the time, Kaifeng gathered people from various ethnicities across China and abroad. While contributing to the local economy, these people also brought a dazzling array of customs, greatly enriching the lives of the citizens.
In addition to the common traditions of eating zongzi and dragon boat racing, wormwood-related practices were also widespread.
Almost every household could be seen with wormwood spears slanted at their doors. Many people wore wormwood sachets, dressed in clothes decorated with designs of the five poisonous creatures, and ate pastries mixed with wormwood juice, symbolizing protection against all poisons.
Wormwood has a slightly bitter taste and can be used medicinally. Pastries made with it carry a faint bitterness, which might feel unfamiliar to someone tasting them for the first time.
Yet those who enjoy it truly love it.
The next day, when Ma Bing went with Yuanyuan and Lady Zhao to watch the dragon boat races, she saw many children dressed in colorful clothes in the five-poison style, wearing five-poison shoes, running around laughing and chatting.
Families with better financial means would even specially prepare silver bells and ornaments shaped like the five poisonous creatures in advance, which the children wore, creating pleasant jingling sounds—both beautiful and auspicious.
Some children still had the “King” character painted on their foreheads that hadn’t dried yet. Ma Bing and Yuanyuan couldn’t help but recall the scene from yesterday when Lady Zhao had painted it on them, and they immediately collapsed into laughter.
May was also known as the “Poisonous May,” referring both to the hot, harsh weather and the proliferation of venomous insects. Thus, many families burned wormwood on this day, praying for stronger health and the removal of pests.
The air was filled with the strong fragrance of wormwood. Occasionally passing by restaurants and teahouses, one could also catch a faint whiff of realgar.
On a roadside open-air stage, the opera “The Legend of the White Snake” was being performed, with loud drumming and cymbals creating a lively atmosphere. It told the story of Lady White accidentally drinking realgar wine on the Dragon Boat Festival, revealing her true form and scaring Xu Xian to death.
The audience laughed and sighed along with the story, but Yuanyuan remarked, “Ah, Xu Xian was really useless!”
Lady Zhao and others laughed, saying, “You’re just a child, where have you ever seen a real snake? Don’t talk such big talk.”
Yuanyuan blushed and snuggled into Ma Bing’s arms, whispering, “Well, if a huge snake suddenly appeared at home, if it weren’t Lady White’s transformation, Xu Xian would have scared himself to death, and Lady White wouldn’t have escaped danger either…”
On that day, it was so dangerous, and Ma Jiejie saved me!
Although this was true, ordinary people naturally had limited courage, so no one argued with her. The conversation ended with laughter and chatter.
Since today was the annual dragon boat race, not only the lively Ningde Princess came to enjoy the festivities, but it was also said that the emperor, empress, and several princes had arrived, making the citizens especially excited, stretching their necks to catch a glimpse of the royal family.
The restaurant where the royal family stayed was said to be the private property of a certain prince. For these few days, it was not open to the public, reserved only for the imperial family and a few favored ministers. Ma Bing recognized Tu Yao and Yuan Gao, Yuanyuan’s father, among them.
The group wasn’t particularly interested and didn’t go to join the crowd, heading early to a pre-booked restaurant.
Yuanyuan was supposed to go with her family, but the little girl was determined not to, only clinging to Ma Bing. With no choice, the Yuan family had to send people ahead to wait for them and sent double portions of food for both Yuanyuan and Ma Bing.
Ma Bing smiled and accepted the hospitality, then took out a prepared brocade bag and placed it back on the tray. “It’s a little trinket I made. Please take it back for the girls at home to play with.”
Yuanyuan immediately leaned over and asked, “Is it those bookmarks?”
After visiting the Kaifeng government office yesterday, she finally got to stay overnight. However, she couldn’t sleep due to the sudden change in beds, spending the whole night disturbing Ma Bing, even getting up in the middle of the night to watch her making the bookmarks.
The bookmarks were extremely intricate. They had to be soaked in medicinal broth for several days, repeatedly dried during this period to allow the medicine to penetrate every inch. Finally, they were waxed, edges secured, and holes punched.
These finished bookmarks were waterproof and crease-resistant, with attached medicine that could prevent insects and decay, their fragrance lasting for a long time.
Yuanyuan found everything Ma Bing made fascinating and grabbed a set first, proudly saying, “Hehe, I’m the first one!”
Ma Bing smiled and pinched her cheek, unintentionally looking up and seeing a line of sedan chairs approaching from the opposite street. Soon after, a group of pretty girls in bright clothes descended, creating a graceful and colorful scene that made the area lively and vibrant.
Those with experience muttered unhappily, “They are courtesans from the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, Emerald Bower, and other places…”
On this rare festive occasion, even the madams felt a bit charitable, allowing their top girls to go out for a stroll.
Moreover, with many officials and nobles gathered in the city these days, if any girl was lucky enough to catch someone’s eye and become a concubine, wouldn’t that be wonderful?
However, the courtesans’ hopes were precisely what upset the officials’ wives the most:
Those girls were eyeing not their husbands but their sons and grandsons. How could they be happy about that?
The Hundred Flowers Pavilion?
Ma Bing immediately paid attention, scanning the crowd with her eyes. Sure enough, she saw Zhang Baoyue wearing a light purple gauze robe, leaning on Putao beside her.
Actually, although Putao had improved somewhat these days, she still bore some lingering illness and had developed a fear of men. The madam, reluctant to damage her pretty face and with Zhang Baoyue pleading on her behalf, temporarily assigned her to work as a maid.
Since being sold to the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, this was the first time Putao had gone out on the street. She was immediately captivated by the bustling scenes outside. If it weren’t for the watchful eyes of the pimps behind her, she might have already run away.
The little girl turned her head like a spinning top, looking around everywhere. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she gently tugged Zhang Baoyue’s sleeve. “Sister, Doctor Ma is over there.”
Zhang Baoyue hurriedly followed her gaze and indeed saw Ma Bing looking at her, instantly feeling relieved. She lightly touched her lips with the edge of her folding fan.
Ma Bing’s heart stirred slightly and nodded slightly.
This was a prearranged signal between them, meaning that Zhang Baoyue had already found the information Ma Bing needed.
Looks like she needed to visit the Hundred Flowers Pavilion soon.
“Jiejie Ma, who are you looking at?” Yuanyuan spoke to Ma Bing a few times but received no reply, so she followed her gaze. “Oh, wow, those are beautiful older sisters.”
Ma Bing smiled and nodded, then sighed, “Beautiful indeed, but for them, beauty is actually a root of misfortune…”
So many good family girls were targeted by traffickers simply because they were pretty, ruining their lives forever.
If they could really choose for themselves, they probably wished they looked as plain as Wu Yan.
A nearby unfamiliar lady muttered sarcastically, “You’re still young; don’t let yourselves be deceived by those seductive creatures, saying such nonsense. They’re only good at luring away other people’s husbands…”
Her own husband had recently fallen for a singing girl at the beginning of the year. Now he wouldn’t even bring her into the household, just keeping her outside as a concubine, making her so resentful she couldn’t do anything about it, gnashing her teeth in frustration.
Upon hearing this, Lady Zhao and others frowned.
You should go settle your own family affairs at home behind closed doors. Why speak such words in public?
Yuanyuan looked at her, somewhat displeased.
What deception? As a precious daughter of a noble family, why would I need to know about your dirty business?
Moreover, I was merely making casual remarks, nothing harmful. Haven’t you noticed the nobles upstairs openly inviting singing girls for their amusement?
Even if I did make a mistake, there’s my parents and siblings to guide me, or at least Lady Zhao here with me. Who are you to lecture me?
“Whoever this madam is, she’s certainly making a grand scene,” Yuanyuan said coldly. “I’m young and inexperienced, so I can’t tell if they’re demons in disguise or not. But I’ve only ever heard of men barging into brothels—never of brothel women openly coming to snatch people away.”
The implication was clear: if your husband couldn’t keep his pants zipped, that’s his own problem, not someone else’s fault.
After this statement, the room first fell silent, then everyone covered their mouths and giggled.
Everyone thought Yuanyuan was young and worried she might be a shy young lady who couldn’t handle the situation. They were just thinking about how to smooth things over when they saw her speak freely, not shying away from words like “brothel” or “red mansion,” delivering such a sharp yet subtle verbal jab. Everyone was stunned.
The lady immediately turned red with embarrassment but couldn’t argue back. After enduring for two quarters of an hour, she excused herself by claiming heatstroke and fled in disarray.
Ma Bing held Yuanyuan’s hand, constantly praising, “Truly, one cannot judge by appearances. I never expected you to have such talent.”
Yuanyuan blushed slightly as Ma Bing teased her, “Jiejie is making fun of me…”
When it came to verbal sparring, who could rival a young lady raised in a scholar’s family?
She just usually didn’t bother to engage. She hadn’t expected someone to be so rude. If she had kept quiet, maybe rumors would spread that “a daughter from the Yuan family envied the brothel girls.”
Her parents had long said: Yuan family children don’t provoke trouble, but if trouble comes looking for them, they won’t be afraid either!
The venue they were in were all riverside restaurants. The common people who either failed to secure a spot in the restaurants or couldn’t afford the prices gathered along the banks and bridges, as far as the eye could see, all filled with people.
Just past the morning hour, several dragon boats slowly approached from the western part of the river, greeted with thunderous cheers wherever they went.
Leading the procession were various officials and nobles—some participating for the joy of sharing festivities with the people, others compelled by social pressure. In any case, all were amateurs.
Some didn’t even know how to row after boarding the boat; some had big bellies bumping into their colleagues in front; some clutched their companions’ arms, shouting dizziness; others raised their paddles but ended up “fighting” with others’… Looking around, it was simply a scene of complete disarray.
Ma Bing and others couldn’t stop laughing, listening to the female announcer calling out names while explaining.
“…That one is Vice Minister Fu from the Ministry of Rites. The one vomiting beside him is Dr. Liu from the Imperial Medical Service… The one in front with a broad forehead, symbolizing heaven and earth united, is the third royal brother, Prince Su.”
Looking at the dignified old man in the dragon robe below, Ma Bing’s smile suddenly stopped.
Prince Su, huh…
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