With the arrival of spring, the Ye Mansion welcomed many guests, all of whom came with the sole purpose of seeing the innovative roses cultivated by Xiutong.
From the moment they entered, guests were first attracted by the giant floral columns placed at the doorway—these vine roses shaped by Xiutong were blossoming with hundreds of flowers, each the size of a fist and boasting upward of a hundred petals, the layered bloom was truly stunning.
As one walked further from the entrance, each corridor and corner was methodically adorned with various species of roses; a few were known to them, but the vast majority were unrecognizable.
In the eyes of those who loved flowers, roses were not given much importance. Had it not been for several new types of roses seen at the flower exhibition held by the State Mansion a few days ago, these people wouldn’t have bothered visiting.
Initially not holding much expectation, they came as their children were studying at the academy with the master of this family. With nothing much to do recently, they thought it would be good to have a look, but they didn’t expect that it was indeed a visit worth their while.
It wasn’t just the flowers that were impressive—the masters of the family were all incredibly good-looking and pleasing to the eye.
"Did you sisters grow all these flowers? That’s really amazing!" praised a Lady with meticulous makeup.
"The credit mainly goes to my second younger sister," Xiuya replied with her gentle and composed smile.
Xiutong smiled at the Lady, "It’s just an everyday hobby, I’m glad you like it."
The women nodded to themselves as they watched the sisters handle the situation with ease. Some of them began considering kinship, while others felt a pang of regret for the early passing of their parents. Fortunately, they had an ambitious brother; as the children spoke, he almost always received praise from the teacher for his essays. Surely, becoming a scholar was in their future, a lucky break for the three sisters no doubt!
"Oh, are those hydrangeas? How did you manage to grow them so blue?" a Lady suddenly exclaimed, looking in a certain direction with surprise.
Hearing her, everyone shifted their gaze that way—to two clusters of lush hydrangeas planted on either side of a moon gate, blossoming in a striking blue color.
"Yes, Mrs. Yang, those are hydrangeas," Xiutong replied.
People slowly walked over, curiously observing, "We have hydrangeas in our yard, too, but alas, they bloom red. I don’t like them much. Is this sky-blue one a new variety?"
Looking at the hydrangeas, Xiutong was lost in her memories. The method that changed the flower’s color was shared by her elder brother. He had said that hydrangeas change color depending on the soil’s acidity; if the soil is acidic, they turn blue; if it’s alkaline, they bloom red. Following her brother’s instructions, she extracted an acidic solution to water the plants, and indeed, within a couple of days, the flowers turned blue.
Moreover, her brother preferred calling them Xiuqiu rather than hydrangeas, though they truly did resemble embroidered balls when bloomed. Gradually, the whole Ye Family started referring to the hydrangeas as Xiuqiu.
Hence, Xiutong answered the Lady’s questions according to what her elder brother had told her. These Ladies didn’t understand anything about acidity or alkalinity; they only knew that Xiutong could extract the solution that turned hydrangeas blue. Consequently, they all wanted to purchase it, and some who were quite affluent even wanted to spend a great deal of money to transplant these hydrangeas from the Ye Mansion to their own homes.
Before even stepping into the rose garden personally arranged by Xiutong, not only had those vine roses at the entrance been ordered, but also the shrub roses seen along the way had been snatched up. Adding to that the hydrangea solution, Xiutong could be said to have earned a full pot from the start of her enterprise in Dingshui State.
Earning more money was good; it meant her elder sister would have a dowry, and in the future, they could go to Shangjing to buy a residence and estates.
Xiutong had grand ambitions; she knew that her elder brother would one day go to Shangjing to take the royal examination. It made sense for the whole family to relocate, and she planned to buy a residence for her family to live in, an estate for cultivating her roses, and a store to sell them.
Considering the high cost of housing in Shangjing, Xiutong was filled with fighting spirit.
Xiutong’s rose garden was connected to a small pond, and from the moment they saw the small pond, the exclamations of amazement from the ladies never stopped, because it was simply too beautiful!
Those with wealth in their families and who had previously tended peach gardens, Peony Gardens, apricot gardens, Chrysanthemum Gardens, and plum gardens never imagined that a rose garden could be so beautiful, surpassing even their meticulously arranged courtyards in splendor.
Moreover, the roses here were new varieties they had never seen before, with colors like deep red, bright yellow, pink, pure white, and even light purple, light blue, and green. More captivating were the multicolored blooms with layer upon layer of pink and white, yellow and white, and so on, looking incredibly dreamy, almost giving them the illusion they had stepped into the Immortal Realm.
"Did you cultivate all of these yourselves?" exclaimed a lady in awe.
Xiutong replied with a smile, "Most of them are, but some were purchased from other places."
"How did this rose become a tree? And why are there two different colors of flowers blooming on it?" queried a young lady, her voice filled with astonishment. Hearing her, the other ladies and misses gathered around, their eyes brimming with amazement.
A lady knowledgeable about flowers said, "Is it grafted? We have a grafted camellia at home, but it’s quite impressive you have grafted roses onto a tree."
"Mrs. Zhao is correct, this rose is indeed grafted. As for being impressive, I dare not claim that, it’s just that practice makes perfect with more planting." Xiutong modestly stated.
Miss Li, who fixated on the rose tree from the start, didn’t care about proficiency or impressiveness—she was smitten with the tree and asked somewhat haughtily, "How much for this tree? I want it."
Xiutong apologized, "We’re not planning to sell this rose or any of the roses in this courtyard. However, if Miss Li is interested, I have another courtyard where I’ve cultivated similar tree roses. The quality is absolutely not inferior; you are free to choose." ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ N0veI.Fiɾe.net
Initially displeased when Xiutong declined to sell, Miss Li’s mood improved upon hearing that other options were available and even better ones could be chosen.
With Miss Li leading the way, more people wanted to order roses from this garden, with some wealthy and enthusiastic individuals even offering a hefty sum for Xiutong to arrange a garden identical to hers.
Xiutong was now extremely grateful that she disregarded her brother’s wishes when they moved and rented a farmhouse on the outskirts of the city to cultivate the roses—otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to fulfill such a mass of orders.
From that day forth, the Ye Family’s roses became famously sought-after throughout Dingshui State. It was said that after the State Governor’s Wife saw the new type of roses at a friend’s place, she visited the Ye Mansion to buy some, which made them even more cherished. As the availability became scarcer with age, and the flowers were truly beautiful and novel, the prices surged.
According to Ye Qiu, he had now become a kept man, living off his sister’s success.
"Elder brother is joking again," scolded Xiutong. She didn’t do much; it was just a hobby. If not for the roses her brother bought, if not for the guidance he provided, she couldn’t have achieved what she has now.