Several children were gathered around the table, dividing up pieces of malt candy. Tigerhead’s mouth never stopped moving, yet he still found time to join in the fun. “Invite me! I don’t want New Year’s money. Just give me a little piece of cake!”
Sparrow rolled her eyes at him, her face full of disdain. “Eat your candy. Your whole mouth is covered in sticky sugar, and you still won’t stop talking.”
Then she turned to Lin Wu, her expression suddenly sweet and well-behaved. “Sister, I’m not as money-minded as my brother. I’d be happy to work for you, and I don’t want any money!”
Qi Lang squeezed over too, rising onto his toes. “Sister, can I pay to come work at your house and help make the fluffy cakes? I work very seriously!” If he worked there, he would surely get a piece to taste. One piece would be enough; he wasn’t greedy.
The children chattered over one another, engaging in some vicious competition with Shen Guanting.
Looking at this troublesome bunch of children, Shen Guanting wished he could throw every last one of them into the river nearby. Narrowing his eyes, he smiled with exaggerated kindness. “Everyone, kindly allow us to finish discussing the important matter first. You can decide how best to make things difficult for me afterward.”
Sparrow and Tigerhead inexplicably shivered.
Sparrow immediately made up her mind. She took Tigerhead by one hand and beckoned to Lin Jing and Liang Peilan with the other. “Come on, come on! Let’s go look at the boats over there! There’s a gambling boat, and it’s great fun!”
The children scampered away in a flash.
Lin Wu withdrew her gaze and said calmly, “Shopkeeper Qi, you misunderstand. I made the decision about the recipe myself. It has nothing to do with anyone else.”
At her words, Qi Xuan turned his eyes toward Shen Guanting. The gloating in them was impossible to conceal.
As if afraid Shen Guanting hadn’t understood, he even emphasized the key point for him. “Anyone else.”
So the Young Master Shen had simply been getting carried away with his own assumptions.
Shen Guanting, however, showed no sign of annoyance. He accepted it frankly. “Anyone else, then. Still better than a stranger.”
Lin Wu ignored him and offered Qi Xuan an apologetic smile. “I appreciate your kind intentions, Shopkeeper Qi, and I won’t forget them. It’s just that this recipe is the livelihood that A Jing and I depend on. It truly isn’t convenient to share it with outsiders. I hope you’ll understand.”
Qi Xuan nodded and did not press the matter. He merely said, “Since Shopkeeper Lin has already made up her mind, I won’t force the issue. If you ever change your mind, you may come to Pillow River Tower and find me at any time. After all, Brother Guanting and I have been friends for many years. If you trust him, you ought to trust me at least a little. We’ve also done business together over those jade-soul bookmarks, so we can hardly be called strangers.”
That much was true. The jade-soul bookmarks had been a joint venture between the Qi and Shen families. Bookmarks sold in a stationery shop could not make much money to begin with. There were only so many students in Huzhou Prefecture, and bookmarks were durable things; a single one could easily last a year or even a year and a half.
At the time, Qi Xuan had wondered why the Shen family’s eldest young master had personally made the trip over for such a small bookmark business. Now he understood. What had brought Shen Guanting running was not the bookmark trade, but this Mrs. Lin.
Qi Xuan couldn’t help taking another look at Shen Guanting. He had known Shen Guanting for more than ten years, yet today he felt as though he were meeting him for the first time. Anyone who didn’t know better might think that Mrs. Lin, rather than himself, was Shen Guanting’s old friend.
Lin Wu had no idea that this little incident had prompted Qi Xuan to weigh the friendship between himself and Shen Guanting.
She inclined her head slightly. “Shopkeeper Qi, you flatter me. I know very well that you looked after me regarding the bookmarks. If I ever have need of your help in the future, I will certainly ask your advice.”
After spending more than half an hour by the river, with the sun gradually slanting westward, Lin Wu said her farewells to the Qi and Shen families and to Liang Peilan, then set off home with Lin Jing.
Laifu bounced along ahead of them, the rope pulled taut. Every so often, when he noticed that they had fallen behind, he would turn and trot back on his short little legs. Lin Jing hopped along beside him as well, still clutching the Zhong Kui opera mask he had bought earlier.
The streets remained bustling.
Children in bright clothes repeatedly ran past in noisy groups, waving colorful flags and little drums. A ring of small heads surrounded the sugar figurine stall, while cheers continued to rise from the gambling stalls. Not far away stood a magnificent three-story building with sweeping eaves and elaborate bracketed beams. It was none other than Pillow River Tower.
She thought again of Qi Xuan’s offer to buy the cake recipe. Steamed sponge cake did bear some resemblance to fermented rice cake, but the former depended on whipping eggs while the latter relied on fermentation to make it rise. If it were served in a large restaurant, it would hardly be considered anything novel. The head chefs of such restaurants naturally had their own secret recipes and techniques. The steamed cake could be given a slight variation and a fresh-sounding name; anyone who saw it would merely take it for a chef’s clever creation. It would not attract much attention.
Only…
Lin Wu withdrew her gaze and let it fall on the figure hopping merrily ahead.
“Laifu, you’re a little ghost of wastefulness!” Lin Jing said, pulling the Zhong Kui mask over his face. He bared his teeth and waved his claws at Laifu. “I’m going to gobble you up!”
Poor little Laifu had become a ghost of wastefulness without the slightest idea why, and continued scampering back and forth at Lin Jing’s side.
Watching the child and dog make such a racket, Lin Wu couldn’t help smiling.
They had spent a long time living unsettled, wandering from place to place. Only now had they enjoyed a little more than a month of peace. This life had not come easily, so they ought to cherish it while they could. It wasn’t as though making steamed sponge cake would definitely expose them, but since they could live peacefully and securely, why put themselves in the way of trouble?
Lin Wu had never cared much for material comforts. A roof over her head, clothes on her back, and enough food and warmth—that was already more than enough.
As for anything else…
She thought of the things Shen Guanting had said. With that mouth of his, mixing truth and falsehood together, she truly couldn’t tell which words were jokes and which came from the heart. At times, she felt there was a hidden meaning behind what he said, but after thinking it over, she would wonder if she had simply been imagining things.
A cool breeze swept over from the river and brushed against her face, clearing her mind and refreshing her spirit.
She shook her head. Whatever the case, none of it had anything to do with her at present.
How good her life was now. There was no one above her to control her, no relatives to maintain contact with, and only Lin Jing by her side—well-behaved and sensible. As a widow in Huzhou City, no one urged her to remarry, and no one gossiped about her. It was practically the ideal identity, offering the peace and freedom that had been so difficult to find even in her previous life.
Why wade into another mess, then?
Whether it involved a wealthy and powerful household or an ordinary family, she wanted no part of it.
“Laifu’s getting away!” Lin Jing suddenly shouted.
Lin Wu looked up and saw Laifu straining toward a stall selling dried meat. The rope was nearly pulled straight.
She hurried a few steps forward and scooped up the greedy little fat dog.
“You glutton,” she said, patting him on the head. “Have I been starving you?”
The moment she said it, she realized that she was feeling a little hungry herself. They had been out for most of the day and had walked quite a distance. It was indeed time to go home and prepare their late-afternoon meal.
Once they returned home, Lin Wu washed her hands and began preparing the meal. Although it was New Year’s Day, there were only two people in their household, so there was no need to put on any kind of show. Something simple would do.
“This is cabbage and meatball soup,” she said as she stirred the minced meat in the basin, speaking to Lin Jing, who sat on a little stool sorting scallions.
Lin Jing arranged the scallions one by one, pinching off the yellow leaves with practiced ease. He looked up and asked, “Do people eat meatballs on New Year’s Day?”
Over the past few days, he had come to understand that the foods eaten on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day all had their own significance. There were the various kinds of noodles, such as bo tuo and suo bing, wine steeped with medicinal herbs, and dishes with auspicious names like “Good Fortune in Everything”—each had its own meaning.
“There’s no particular need to eat them,” Lin Wu said with a smile. “It’s just for the pun. Meatballs symbolize a reunion, since they’re round and whole. And the fish we’re going to cook later…”
Lin Jing knew this one. He eagerly cut in, “May there be fish every year!”
He was very pleased with that symbolism. “Surplus” meant having lots and lots of money, which he liked.
Lin Wu was already accustomed to the little money-grubber’s delighted expression whenever he so much as imagined money, without even seeing any. She squeezed the meatballs one by one into the pot. There was still quite a bit of minced meat left, so she chopped some chives and mixed them in, intending to make dumplings as well.
Today was New Year’s Day. By custom, they were supposed to eat the Five-Spice Vegetable Platter, made by combining five pungent vegetables—scallions, garlic, chives, mugwort, and mustard greens. The dish represented the “Five New” and was meant to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new. It was also said to disperse the qi in the five internal organs and benefit one’s health.
But Lin Wu found the thought of simply putting those five ingredients together on a plate and serving them quite unappetizing. After thinking it over, she decided to chop them up and season them into a dipping sauce instead. Then she wrapped the chives and minced meat in dumplings, boiled them, and served them with the sauce. That way, they could honor the custom without making things difficult for themselves.
“Laifu can’t eat chives or garlic, remember not to feed him any.” Lin Wu fished the dumplings out of the pot and called to Lin Jing, who was playing with Laifu by the door. Whenever the child ate, he and Laifu shared everything happily: if Lin Jing had a bite, Laifu got one too.
“I know!” Lin Jing called back. “I’ll be careful. I won’t feed Laifu randomly. If he gets any fatter, he won’t be able to walk!”
He suddenly seemed to remember something and added, “Tigerhead told me today that Brother Ting has a whole pond of fish, and every single one of them has been fed until it’s chubby and can’t swim anymore!”
Lin Wu pictured the tall, elegant Young Master Shen feeding an entire pond of fat fish and couldn’t help laughing. “He really does mean well and manage to make things worse.”
That young master was kindhearted to an absurd degree. He helped people without regard for distance or familiarity, lent aid regardless of species, went out of his way to help others, and diligently fed fish.
Once New Year’s Day had passed, Lin Wu settled her mind and prepared to tidy up the shop. After everything was in order, she would think about opening for business. She and Lin Jing had no relatives or friends in Huzhou whom they needed to visit. Before the new year, they had already sent a letter to Nan’ya, saying everything that needed to be said.
As for how Grand Tutor Chen would make contact with the people in Nan’ya, that was not something they needed to worry about. She was merely a palace maid, and Lin Jing was only five years old. What could they possibly know? Grand Tutor Chen would naturally have his own judgment.
The shop was small enough to see straight through at a glance.
Lin Wu cleared out all the broken furniture and other odds and ends. Once the place had been swept clean, she would need to hire someone to build a stove. There was no room inside for tables and chairs, so they could only put up an awning outside the storefront. Customers would buy their food and leave, making it essentially a street-side food stall.
“Sister! Jing!”
Early the next morning, Sparrow and Tigerhead came running in. Since they did not have to attend school for the next few days, the two of them were like released colts, eager to spend every day outside.
Lin Jing looked behind them. When he saw that no one else had come, he asked, “Is Brother Ting not coming today?”
Tigerhead was wielding a feather duster and swatting dust from every corner. At that, he immediately perked up. “My brother was stopped! We’ve had lots of relatives visiting our house these past few days. He kept sneaking out to avoid them, but this morning my mother caught him at the gate.”
Sparrow leaned over and added, “Because he’s very old now, everyone wants to find him a wife.”
Lin Jing blinked, not quite understanding. “What’s a wife? Does Brother Ting need one?”
“A wife is my brother’s spouse,” Sparrow explained solemnly. “That’s what we call her. Anyway, everyone has to have a husband or a wife when they grow up. You’ll have one too, and so will Tigerhead, and so will I.”
Lin Jing understood only half of that. He pondered for a while, and eventually figured it was probably something like Father and Mother.
Shen Guanting was the eldest son of the family and should have married long ago. If he had intended to pursue the imperial examinations, he could have said that he would wait until he earned academic honors before discussing marriage. But he had no intention of taking the exams, and he had also performed his capping ceremony the previous year. Under those circumstances, how could marriage not be brought up?
The Shen family was comfortably well-off, with a simple household and none of the troublesome complications found in great aristocratic families. Shen Guanting himself was handsome and was certain to inherit the family business. Not only in Huzhou Prefecture, but in the neighboring prefectures as well, any family with an unmarried daughter considered him a most desirable match.
With the New Year visitors coming to pay their respects, there were inevitably relatives and acquaintances sounding out the family’s intentions. Those who were bolder simply brought their unmarried daughters along when they came calling.
At dawn that morning, before Shen Guanting had even stepped out of his courtyard, he was intercepted by his mother.
Madam Shen held a cup of hot tea and leaned against the doorway. Her smile was so warm and amiable that it made one’s heart prickle with unease.
“Mother, what are you…” Shen Guanting stopped in his tracks. His expression remained perfectly calm, but he had already begun making calculations in his head.
“Waiting for you,” Madam Shen said, taking a sip of tea. “You’ve been running fast these past few days. I haven’t managed to find an opportunity to speak with you at all.”
Shen Guanting smiled gently and replied unhurriedly, “Mother, how can you say that? There have been so many matters involving the caravans and shops these past few days that I’ve barely had time to spare. Your son is dull-witted and can only rise early and return late, trying to carve out a few extra hours to manage everything.”
Madam Shen looked her son up and down. His looks and talents were both outstanding, and his tongue was just as impressive.
“Guanting, I’m your mother. You don’t need to use that sort of talk on me. It may work on outsiders, but do you think you can fool me?”
Shen Guanting smiled and sat down nearby. “Mother has eyes like a hawk. How would I dare deceive you? I was merely thinking that if I could delay things for even a moment, that would be a moment gained.”
Madam Shen was so exasperated by this that she laughed. She stopped beating around the bush and asked directly, “Tell me honestly, son. Have you decided that you simply won’t marry, or have you just not met anyone who catches your eye? Give me a definite answer so I’ll know how to respond to everyone. My lips are nearly worn away from explaining things these past few days.”
Shen Guanting knew there was no escaping today. He put away his lazy, carefree expression and said, “Mother, I only returned from Nan’ya not long ago. I’ve just finished traveling and gaining experience, and the new business ventures have yet to stabilize. There are still a thousand things to sort out. I would like to spend the next year or two focusing on expanding the family business. Once its foundations are secure, it won’t be too late to discuss marriage.”
Madam Shen refused to follow that line of reasoning. She waved a hand and said, “Your grandfather and father are both still hale and hearty. They’re lively as can be. There’s no need for you to support the family yet. That excuse won’t do.”
Shen Guanting poured her another cup of tea and changed tactics. “Mother, Tigerhead is still young, and Sparrow has yet to reach her coming-of-age. As the eldest son, it is my duty to relieve our parents of their burdens. I should first oversee Tigerhead’s studies and find a suitable match for Sparrow. Once my younger siblings are a little older, I can consider my own affairs. Only then would I be fulfilling my responsibilities as an elder brother.”
Hearing this solemnly delivered excuse, Madam Shen let out a derisive laugh. “If you said that to Sparrow and Tigerhead, they’d cry for half a day. Oversee Tigerhead’s studies? He’d be so terrified he wouldn’t sleep for three nights. Don’t go using such frightening words to torment them. Our Shen family is harmonious because you leave the two of them alone. That’s what keeps the peace.”
Shen Guanting was left speechless by his mother’s retort. He could only lift his teacup and take a sip.
It seemed that all the wicked things he had done in the past had truly left him with no way out.
Seeing him like this, Madam Shen sighed. “All right, I won’t force you. But you need to understand that this marriage can be delayed for a while, not forever. When people come asking, I have to give them an answer. At the very least, give your mother a decent excuse. Don’t make me keep saying, ‘My son is still young.’ That excuse worked a few years ago, but if I use it again this year, people will start asking whether there’s something wrong with you.”
Shen Guanting lowered his head in thought and murmured, “That might not be impossible…”
“What do you mean, ‘might not be impossible’?” Madam Shen glared at him. “For the past few days, I haven’t even dared go to Ciyun Temple to burn incense. Every time I go, people pull me aside to talk until my mouth is dry and my head is spinning!”
Madam Shen grumbled, “I have to say the same things to people every day, and then come home and spar with you. It’s exhausting! When they come to corner me, I can only come and corner you. Neither of us has any right to complain about the other.”
Shen Guanting rubbed his nose and wisely kept quiet.
After a pause, she sighed again. “Guanting, you know our family’s situation. We may be merchants, but we’re not short of money. You’re handsome enough to present well, too. If you were a little homely, or if our family were poor enough to be struggling for food, your mother wouldn’t have to worry so much.”
Shen Guanting couldn’t help laughing. “Mother, are you praising me or insulting me?”
“I’m praising myself for giving birth to such a fine son.” Madam Shen shoved the teacup into his hands. “And I suppose I should blame your father for marrying me and making our family’s life too comfortable. All right, go. I’ve said everything I needed to say. Think it over yourself.”
Madam Shen drove Shen Guanting out of his own courtyard. He wasn’t annoyed. As he pondered her words, he didn’t head to Jizhen Pavilion. Instead, he wandered aimlessly until he found himself at Lin Wu’s shop.
When he reached the entrance, he saw Tigerhead holding a rag and wiping here and there, sending clouds of dust into the air. Sparrow was squatting on the floor, sorting through odds and ends, humming some unknown tune. The two of them were so busy they looked as though they were enjoying themselves immensely.
Shen Guanting stepped inside. He was tall, and when he stood in the doorway, he blocked most of the light. The already cramped shop immediately seemed even more confined.
Lin Wu looked up at him and even felt like driving him straight back out. He was genuinely in the way—and an eyesore besides.
Shen Guanting, however, showed no trace of self-consciousness. He swept his gaze around the shop, then launched into a stern reprimand aimed at Tigerhead and Sparrow. “When we made our arrangement yesterday, I thought I could use A Wu’s shop to teach the two of you how to manage a business. I never expected you to abandon your elder brother and run off. It seems I overestimated your sincerity in seeking knowledge.”
Without even looking up, Sparrow replied, “But we had an arrangement. You were the one who broke your word. Not a single glimpse of you this morning. You were the one who was rude first, but we can’t imitate you. We still came to help with what needed doing.”
Tigerhead nodded vigorously.
Shen Guanting had only just managed to escape after being lectured by his mother first thing in the morning, and now his younger siblings had left him speechless as well. He looked around him, overwhelmed by sorrow. His mother didn’t love him, his younger siblings didn’t care for him, and he couldn’t even find any comfort in this shop.
It was rare to see Shen Guanting get the worst of it against Sparrow and Tigerhead. When Lin Wu looked up and saw the dejected expression on his face, she was instantly amused as well.
Shen Guanting caught the smile in her eyes. Fine. She was enjoying his misfortune too.
Sparrow pursed her lips, but in the end she couldn’t resist telling Lin Wu and Lin Jing, “Mother cornered Brother this morning to introduce a young lady to him. And it wasn’t just Brother—she even questioned me. Every auntie and older lady who sees me grabs my hand and asks, ‘Sparrow, has your mother mentioned any particular young lady?’ I’ve heard it so often my ears are practically callused.”
Lin Wu arched a brow and lowered her head to continue wiping the counter. So this man was being pressured to marry just as fiercely.
The moment Shen Guanting heard Sparrow’s words, he wished he could throw his troublesome younger siblings straight out of the shop.
He walked to the counter and casually picked up a feather duster, giving the shelves a few perfunctory swipes. Fine dust rose from the duster and floated slowly through the beams of light.
“Since A Wu is my elder, why don’t you give me some advice? Do you think I ought to get married too?”
A Wu’s hand paused. After thinking for a moment, her tone remained calm. “A man should marry when he reaches marriageable age. There’s no question of whether you ought to or not.”
She truly had no idea how to answer. This was a life question that young people had struggled with for thousands of years. What could she possibly know about it?
Fortunately, it was no longer something she had to deal with herself.
Shen Guanting looked at her detached expression but said nothing. He merely lowered his eyes to watch the dust motes slowly rising and falling in the light. Sunlight slanted in through the doorway, making the tiny particles appear and disappear, like something impossible to grasp.
“And what about A Wu herself?” he suddenly asked, his voice much softer.
“What do I have to worry about?” Lin Wu took the rag from the bucket and wrung it dry. “As long as A Jing and I can support ourselves, that’s enough. Those matters have nothing to do with me.”
Shen Guanting was taken aback.
Nothing to do with her.
He suddenly thought of his maternal aunt, who had never married. His grandmother had died young, and his aunt had used the excuse that his mother was gone and his sister-in-law lacked the strength to manage everything, saying that she needed to remain at home and oversee the family business. Yet even so, she had endured no shortage of gossip. All sorts of rumors had circulated outside.
But Lin Wu was different.
She was a widow, and she had a child.
She could openly refuse to endure the hardships of marriage ever again. No one could criticize her, point fingers at her, or come to her door to pressure her into remarrying.
Lin Wu spread out the wrung-out rag and gave it a casual shake. The dust floating in the air scattered in all directions. All that remained in her nose was the damp smell of dust mingled with water.
Leaning against the counter, Shen Guanting’s gaze rested on her. He suddenly remembered the first time they had met in Lingzhou. Even when she had been in such dire straits, she had refused to travel south with the Zhiyun Trading House to Nanya.
He knew she had been hiding—from every choice that might drag her into a whirlpool.
There was something peculiar about Lin Wu’s presence. It was as if she stood at a slight distance from everyone, neither far away nor close, seeing everything and understanding everything, yet refusing to step inside.
Like someone standing on the riverbank, watching the water flow. The water was the water, and she was herself. Even standing beside her, he felt as though a river lay between them.
She wiped the shelves one stroke at a time, neither hurried nor slow, as if there were nothing in this world that could make her anxious.
