Chapter 24 Part 1

Early the next morning, Li Mo and Meizi were ready and waiting to ride the donkey cart to go to town.

Song Dashan was worried about the two women, Li Mo and Meizi, going to town. He was planning to follow, but the donkey cart seats were tight. They finally got two donkey cart seats. One more, they had to walk to town, Song Dashan Li Mo didn’t want Tiezi to walk so far to town, so he and Meizi worked together to dissuade them. Finally, Song Dashan and Tiezi stayed at home to watch their two children. The two of them went to town together.

Li Mo and Meizi got out of the donkey cart and looked for the Chen Family’s house according to the address given to them.

Chen Xiaoting’s family lives on Marble Street, which is not far from Yamen^[1]Yamen-government office in feudal China. This street is obviously cleaner than other streets. Most people who live there have little money or power at home, which is different from ordinary people who live in the town.

As soon as he saw this place, Li Mo immediately understood Chen Xiaoting’s family background and wanted to seize this opportunity. Once the family is satisfied with her makeup skills, it will be passed on from one to ten, maybe later. Many people from other towns will come to her for makeup.

Li Mo thought about everything and calmly found Chen Xiaoting’s house according to the address and knocked on the door.

After a while, someone came to open the door. It was a woman in her fifties who saw Li Mo and asked in confusion, “Who are you looking for?”

Li Mo leaned towards the woman and said hello “Hello, Mother-in-law, I’m the beautician who came to put makeup on this young lady. I made an appointment with your daughter-in-law the other day. “

When the old woman heard this, she knew that this was the beautician her daughter-in-law talked about the other day. She was really young, she didn’t look like a beautician, but the young lady said if someone knocks on their door and claims to be a beautician, she should let them in immediately.

“Please come in quickly, please come in.” The old woman hurriedly invited Li Mo and Meizi in.

Meizi was a little restrained and lowered her head slightly behind Li Mo and did not speak.

Li Mo took Meizi behind the old woman, and within a short while, she entered a hall where Mother Chen and the young lady whom she had seen last time were all there, as well as several middle-aged women and young girls.

Seeing Li Mo coming, Mother Chen greeted her with a smile: “You are here, and I didn’t ask last time, your last name? I don’t know what I should call you. “

Li Mo smiled and replied: “My husband’s name is Song. You can call me Lady Song. “

Seeing Li Mo’s words and demeanor, Chen’s mother nodded in her heart and asked the old woman to serve tea while introducing Li Mo to others.

“Lady Song, these are my good friends. A few girls are my daughter’s friends. Today, everyone heard that you’re going to put makeup on Xioating. So they were curious and wanted to come and see how you do it. I hope you don’t mind. “

Li Mo smiled and shook her head, “Of course I don’t mind. Someone is interested in my makeup craftsmanship. I am honored. “

Li Mo told the truth. She originally had the idea of

running the business now. Since they took the initiative to see her, it is good for her. This is also a kind of advertisement.

Seeing Li Mo’s sincerity, Mother Chen’s suspicion of Li Mo decreased a little bit. She is not afraid of being observed by anyone, and it shows that she is very confident in herself. Maybe she really has great skills.

The people from the Chen Family were courteous towards Li Mo, and after drinking some tea, Li Mo offered to start putting makeup on Chen Xioating.

Everyone is waiting for Li Mo to put on makeup for Chen Xioating. There is no reason why they wouldn’t welcome Li MO and Meizi in Chen’s Boudoir.

Chen Xiaoting sat in front of the dressing table. Li Mo put the makeup box on the dressing table, asked Chen Family to bring a basin containing warm water, cleaned Chen Xiaoting’s face carefully, and then applied a layer of beauty cream. Simultaneously, Li Mo is also carefully examining Chen Xiaoting’s facial features and facial blemishes.

Li Mo thought; This Chen Xiaoting looks good. Her skin is not as dark as the village girl, but white and clean. She looked like she’d been pampered by her family. In addition, her nose, mouth, and other facial features are not particularly ugly, so overall, she looked delicate.

Li Mo likes to put on makeup for this type of beauty; such people have good foundations. There is no need to over-modify a certain place. As long as she’s properly handled, the effect will be particularly good, and she will be more beautiful.

Li Mo smiled in her heart. It seems that God is also helping her. It’s not difficult to put on makeup on Chen Xioating’s face, but the makeup will also be very eye-catching. She is confident of winning this business.

Not thinking too much, Li Mo began to carefully apply makeup on Chen Xiaoting.

Li Mo’s makeup strategy for Chen Xiaoting is the word “light.” She modifies every part carefully and maximizes the advantages of her face so that the original features can be increased to a hundred points, making the original features of her face more beautiful. Her facial features are exquisite, so Li Mo’s transformation only took half an hour, and when she was done, she felt relieved.

After the makeup was over, Li Mo finally took off Chen Xiaoting’s bun, matched her face shape to her hairstyle. She combed her hair and made a flower bun that could magnify the advantage of her facial features. She rummaged through Chen Xiaoting’s jewelry box and finally picked out the fringed butterfly hairpin. She put on the pink hairpin to Chen Xioating’s hair bun.

The make-over was finally done.

Li Mo looked at the people who were already looking forward to the outcome. She smiled and stepped back, revealing Chen Xiaoting’s face.

Before, Li Mo blocked their view so everyone could not see Chen Xiaoting’s face, only a little of her side profile, but just seeing a little part of her face had already made the people on the side excited. In the blink of an eye, Chen Xiaoting’s face becomes smooth and tender. They can’t even see the powdery texture. In fact, it didn’t look like she was wearing any makeup at all. The line of her chin looked exquisite.

What Li Mo didn’t know was that when she was halfway through, the people around her had already transformed from internal doubts and anticipation to surprise and admiration. In the end, they only had eagerness left in their hearts. Eager to see Chen Xiaoting’s face. What did it become? When Li Mo stepped aside and let them see Chen Xiaoting’s face, they were already speechless. Even though they knew that Li Mo’s craftsmanship was good, the outcome would also be good. But such psychological preparation is not enough to describe what they felt. Seeing Chen Xiaoting’s face, they were surprised. They thought: Pretty! Beautiful!

Even Chen’s mother, who always loves her daughter and thinks that her own daughter is good, has to admit that her daughter was originally just pretty, but not so beautiful, but now she’s doubtful if she’s really her daughter. Isn’t this too beautiful? This is so mysterious^[2]九天玄女= Literal meaning is Mysterious/Dark Lady of the Nine. It could also be 九天玄女 of Chinese mythology.. How could Chen Xiaoting be so beautiful?

If someone was proficient in poetry at this time, they would probably think of a word like this to describe Chen Xiaoting’s face:

Cloud-bank coiffure rising steeply,

Long eyebrows delicately arched,

Red lips that shed their light abroad,

White teeth gleaming within,

Bright eyes skilled at glances,

A dimple to round off the base of the cheek —

Her rare form is wonderfully enchanting,

Her manner is quiet, her pose demure.

Gentle hearted, broad of mind,

She entrances with every word she speaks;

(T/N: The poem was translated by Doggo. Tysm T_T)

However, they could not describe Chen Xiaoting’s face in beautiful words, but their external behavior had fully expressed their admiration.

They looked around Xiaoting and kept admiring her. Those young girls were not so calm. They were all girls of the same age. They love beauty and love to compare. They are almost as good as everyone else. After putting on makeup, Chen Xiaoting suddenly became so beautiful. If they went out together, they would probably look like a maid accompanying their young lady. This made the other girls envious and jealous, and they kept chattering around Chen Xiaoting.

Chen Xiaoting was also annoyed by these girls. With them surrounding her, she hadn’t seen what she looked like right now, and she didn’t want to care about them. She went straight to the small mirror on the dressing table and looked at herself.

At this sight, Chen Xiaoting was also startled. She didn’t dare to blink her eyes for fear that everything was just a dream.

The person in this mirror looked familiar yet unfamiliar. It is clear that her mouth is still her own, and her nose is still her own, but it has indeed changed. Everywhere suddenly looked so much better, and her face didn’t look like she was wearing makeup. It looked very natural and refined.

This is like a trick.

Is makeup really that amazing? She herself often used grease and powder, but she only manages to make her look a little bit more energetic. She couldn’t believe that makeup could change a person just like this.

Chen Xiaoting blinked and looked at Li Mo, “Sister, you are really amazing. How can you make me so beautiful? You are so amazing! “

Li Mo smiled, “It’s okay if Miss’ likes it.”

Chen Xiaoting nodded, “I like it, I like it very much, Mother, When I get married, I will hire her as my beautician, don’t find anyone else. ” The last sentence was said to her mother.

Seeing her daughter’s face that looked like a celestial being, Mother Chen’s hesitation had long since disappeared. She also hoped that her daughter would be beautiful when she married. She would refuse to find other people, so she immediately said politely to Li Mo: “Lady Song, my family Xiao Ting’s makeup on the day of her marriage depends on you, and you will have a hard time taking a walk.”

Li Mo naturally nodded and agreed.

At this time, Mother Chen took out a red seal and handed it to Li Mo, “Lady Song, you have worked so hard to take this trip today. This is our little heart. You accept it.”

Li Mo immediately rejected, “Madam, this money, I can’t accept it. Today I came here to give the Young Lady makeup for free. If you’re satisfied, you can use me as her beautician. If it’s terrible, you can reject me. That’s the reason why I came here. How can I ask for money? “

Mother Chen saw that Li Mo was really unwilling, and she thought highly of Li Mo. This woman was not like any ordinary countrywoman that was shrewd and sleek, she’s generous in her work, and she did not dare to look down upon her.

When things were settled, Li Mo saw that it was all finished and said goodbye, but was stopped by another girl on the side.

The girl glanced embarrassedly at the people around her. Her face was hot, but she still spoke to Li Mo, “Sister, you… can you do it to me too? Just like Xiaoting? …”

After saying that she was afraid that Li Mo would refuse, she immediately followed: “I am going to get married. After Xiaoting, I will also ask you to be my beautician when that time comes. “

Li Mo looked at the girl who was staring at her with longing eyes.

Smiled inwardly, nodded, “Okay, I will do your makeup, too.” She said that and put down the makeup box in her hand.

When the girl heard this, she was so happy that she immediately squeezed Chen Xiaoting away, “Xiaoting, get out of the way, and it’s my turn.”

Chen Xiaoting couldn’t laugh or cry and obediently let her sit down.

The girl’s mother was also dumbfounded by her daughter’s behavior and said with a smile, “Silly girl.”

Everyone around them laughed. The other two girls saw that what was in their hearts was being spoken by Lan Lan. They were annoyed and wondered if they could also talk about it. They also wanted to put on makeup and be as beautiful as Xiao Ting now.

Li Mo stopped paying attention to other things and focused on Wang Lanlan’s face. This girl was not born badly. But her nose was a bit collapsed and fleshy. She looked at her overall appearance, but the problem was with her. It didn’t seem to be a problem. It’s easy to modify. It’s not a problem to make her look like a fairy. Now she lowered her head and put on makeup seriously.

Naturally, the others also watched Li Mo intently for half an hour without feeling bored at all.

After Li Mo finished putting makeup on Lan Lan, other people looked at Wang Lanlan’s reborn appearance, and this time, they were completely impressed. This Lady Song is a great craftsman, and her skill is unmatched.

Wang Lanlan stared at herself and laughed stupidly at her beauty.

Seeing that Wang Lanlan is also beautiful now, the other two girls couldn’t help it, and they mustered up the courage to ask Li Mo to do them too. But now, Li Mo couldn’t agree. The delay is too early now, and she won’t be able to catch the donkey cart back to the village if she didn’t go back. She wants to buy something, but she can’t stay any longer.

When Li Mo said the difficulty, others understood. Although it was a pity, the two girls were not thoughtless people. They also sent Li Mo and Meizi out together.

Before Li Mo went out, she told the people where she lived. If necessary, they can go to her house to find her or ask someone to send a message to their village.