Tomorrow would be the Qingming Festival, and Lin Wu was planning to make some qingtuan—green rice cakes—to sell.
The weather had been fine these past few days, and many people were heading out for spring outings. Steamed buns and rice dumplings were inconvenient to carry, while jade-green cakes and rice parcels were easier to bring along. The jade cakes, with their festive color, had suddenly become very popular. Lin Wu thought she might as well add another new item.
Early that morning, Sparrow and Tigerhead came over again. Perhaps they had been thinking about their cloth-doll business, because Sparrow had been getting up much earlier than usual these past few days.
“Sister, what are those?” Sparrow craned her neck to look at the row of little green dumplings.
Lin Wu picked one up for each of them with her chopsticks and placed them in small bowls. “These are qingtuan. Look at the color. Don’t they look like the plants and grass just beginning to sprout in spring?”
She smiled as she explained, “Eating qingtuan is also called ‘biting spring.’ They say that if you bite into spring, the whole year will go smoothly.”
“Wow!” Tigerhead quickly took his and eagerly bit into it. The skin was soft and chewy, with a fresh, grassy fragrance. The filling was sweet, fluffy, and delicious.
“Mine has taro filling! It’s just like eating tangyuan!”
“Mine has salted egg yolk filling. The savory kind is good too.”
Lin Wu placed four qingtuan side by side. They were round and plump, lined up neatly, and looked quite adorable.
“Our qingtuan come in four flavors: salted egg yolk, taro, red bean paste, and taro with salted egg yolk.”
Just then, a customer carrying a bamboo basket came over. She had originally intended to buy some rice parcels to take along on her outing to the prefectural park. But the moment she spotted the row of qingtuan, she asked, “Shopkeeper Lin, what new delicacy is this?”
Lin Jing poked his head out from behind the counter and chimed in brightly, “These are qingtuan, a Qingming treat! Take a bite, and you’ll bite right into spring!”
He had memorized every word of Lin Wu’s explanation and delivered it with perfect seriousness.
The customer was amused and bought a set.
Once the first sale had been made, more and more customers began buying them. People here were particular about eating the proper foods for each season and festival; it had always been the custom. Since qingtuan suited the spirit of Qingming so perfectly, they were even more appealing than the other treats.
Most customers who came to buy steamed buns or scallion pancakes would pick up a set as well. Before long, more than half the pile of qingtuan on the stove had been sold.
The children sat around the table beneath the awning, each holding a qingtuan and chattering away as they ate. The lively scene practically served as a living advertisement.
Lin Wu had only added the table a few days earlier. The children liked gathering there, and having a table made things more convenient, so she had added several stools as well. The front of the shop was beginning to look more like a proper establishment.
The shop itself, however, was still far too small. As she added more and more varieties, the shelves had become crammed to overflowing. Everything was packed tightly together, and there was hardly any room left to walk.
Sparrow had brought something with her that day. She pulled a little cloth doll from her bag and set it on the table.
“How is it?”
It was a pale-yellow puppy sitting on its haunches, with two shiny black beads sewn onto its round head.
Lin Jing leaned over for a closer look. “It looks exactly like my Afu.”
“Of course!” Sparrow said proudly. “We made it by copying Afu.”
Qi Lang tilted his head and studied it for a moment before suddenly saying, “What if everyone buys the same one? Wouldn’t some people dislike that?”
Sparrow froze.
Chewing on his qingtuan, Tigerhead cut in, “Of course they would. Some people like wearing the same clothes as everyone else, and some people don’t.”
Sparrow’s eyes lit up. She clapped her little hands. “Then we can make clothes for the dolls! Lots of different outfits that can be changed. That way, even if people buy the same doll, they can dress them differently, and each one will still be unique—just like the mohouluo dolls. They have lots and lots of little outfits to change into!”
Lin Jing immediately began counting on his fingers. “Then we won’t just be able to sell dolls. We can sell clothes too, and make money two ways!”
Tigerhead joined in the calculation. “Two lots of money added together…”
The little heads gathered close together as they whispered and calculated. The more they worked it out, the more profitable the business seemed.
Sparrow had already fetched paper and a brush and spread them across the table. She began drawing crooked little outfits.
Tigerhead leaned over beside her and pointed. “My tiger doll needs a red cape. It should look mighty and heroic, like a great general.”
Lin Jing said, “My Afu needs a little blue jacket. Afu will be the shopkeeper.”
Qi Lang turned to look at him. “A little blue jacket is for a shop assistant. The shopkeeper should wear a long robe.”
They were all talking so enthusiastically that they had forgotten to eat their qingtuan.
At the stove, Lin Wu was wrapping qingtuan. Listening to the children’s lively chatter outside, she could not help laughing. These children had nothing but making money on their minds, and each was more shrewd than the last. No wonder they had all ended up together.
She was in the middle of wrapping another one when a young shop assistant suddenly ran in, panting.
“Shopkeeper Lin, we need to order two hundred qingtuan! They have to be ready first thing tomorrow morning!”
Lin Wu’s hands paused. “Two hundred?”
“They’re for Master Wang’s family. The whole household is going to pay respects at the graves tomorrow. There will be a lot of them, and they’re planning to go on a spring outing afterward, so they need to prepare plenty.” The shop assistant wiped the sweat from his brow. “They bought a few earlier and took them home. Madam thought they tasted good and looked festive, so she ordered more.”
Lin Wu naturally agreed. No sooner had she seen the shop assistant off than two more customers arrived, both wanting to order qingtuan. Tomorrow was Qingming, when every household would visit the graves and enjoy a spring outing. Since these qingtuan had only just appeared and no one had copied them yet, hers were the only ones available.
She did a quick calculation. Quite a few orders had already piled up. The stack of qingtuan on the stove had long since sold out, and there was still a basin of dough being kneaded by Mrs. Sun.
“We’ll have to come in earlier tomorrow morning,” Lin Wu told Mrs. Sun.
The moment the children heard that, they hurried over.
“Sister, we won’t go on a spring outing tomorrow. We’ll come help you make qingtuan!”
Lin Wu smiled and shook her head. “You focus on your cloth-doll business. Mrs. Sun and I can get here early and manage this ourselves.”
She looked over the orders Liang Peilan had written down and calculated the time. They could still handle what they had, but they could not accept any more new orders.
After noon, even after eating lunch, Lin Wu and Mrs. Sun were still busy at the stove. They kneaded basin after basin of dough, mixed bowl after bowl of filling, then wrapped and steamed the qingtuan. They were so busy they could barely keep up.
The children did not leave either. They lent a hand, clumsy though they were, and gradually began to look as if they knew what they were doing.
When Fourth Sister He came to buy qingtuan, she laughed at the sight of the bustling shop.
“Oh my, Lin, you have quite a few little shop assistants today!”
Lin Wu gave her an exasperated smile. “There have been so many customers. I was worried we wouldn’t be able to make enough.”
Fourth Sister He nodded. “That’s for sure. I came especially to buy some too. Li Shu told us your qingtuan were delicious, and he’s been thinking about them.”
Lin Wu picked one up from the steamer and handed it to her. “Here, Sister-in-law. Have a taste.”
Fourth Sister He took a bite and chewed. Her eyes immediately brightened. “These really are delicious! The texture is soft and chewy, and the filling is fragrant too.”
Seeing that she was going to buy some, Lin Wu asked, “Are you going out to pay respects at the graves tomorrow?”
Fourth Sister He shook her head. “No. My family’s hometown is far away, and they aren’t here. We’ll just pay our respects at home. These are for that boy Li Shu. He’s going on a spring outing tomorrow with his classmates from the prefectural academy, so I thought I’d buy them for him while I was here.”
Lin Wu smiled as well. “Our family is the same. Our ancestral home isn’t here either. Otherwise, if we spent the entire day tomorrow out visiting the graves, we wouldn’t be able to do business at all.”
Fourth Sister He glanced at the dough on Lin Wu’s hands, then at the neatly arranged qingtuan on the stove. She sighed. “As the shopkeeper, you have to do everything yourself. It can’t be easy.”
Lin Wu lowered her head and continued wrapping the qingtuan. “There are only two of us working here. Whenever we get a large order for a festival, we simply can’t keep up.”
She paused, then looked up at Fourth Sister He. “Sister-in-law, if you’re free tomorrow, would you be willing to come help at the shop? I’ll pay you for your work.”
Fourth Sister He hurriedly waved her hands. “Oh, I couldn’t do that! My cooking skills are terrible. I’d only get in the way.”
Mrs. Sun poked her head out from behind the stove and smiled. “Don’t worry, Sister-in-law. Shopkeeper Lin will naturally handle the fillings and seasoning. We can take care of kneading the dough and pounding the fillings. All we need is a bit of strength.”
Fourth Sister He looked at Mrs. Sun, then at Lin Wu. After hesitating for a moment, she said, “Then… I’ll give it a try? I’m cooped up at home all day anyway. It would be nice to lend a hand.”
“Thank you so much,” Lin Wu said with a smile. “We’ve been worried we wouldn’t be able to keep up.”
“Then shall we start now?” Fourth Sister He was an efficient woman. She washed her hands at once and tied on the bakery’s apron.
“What about Li Shu?” Now that Fourth Sister He had stayed behind, Lin Wu felt a little apologetic. “He must still be waiting for you at home, right?”
Fourth Sister He began kneading the dough. “That child will come looking for me on his own if I don’t return. He won’t starve.”
With one more pair of hands, they truly did work much faster. The only problem was that the kitchen was cramped to begin with. With several people crowded together, even turning around was difficult.
Lin Wu chased out the children who were hovering around and making trouble. “Go outside and discuss your cloth-doll business.”
The children giggled and ran beneath the awning, where they huddled together and began whispering among themselves.
They spent the entire day making and selling qingtuan, working so hard that their feet barely touched the ground. It was not until noon the following day that they finally had a chance to rest.
There were far fewer people in the streets. Apparently, most had gone out to visit graves and enjoy the spring scenery.
Lin Wu untied her apron, looked around the kitchen, then glanced at the few qingtuan remaining on the shelves. She let out a long breath. “Let’s close up. We’ll rest early today.”
Fourth Sister He was untying her apron. Hearing this, she smiled. “Shopkeeper Lin, you’re quite the benevolent boss, even giving everyone a holiday during the festival.”
Mrs. Sun laughed too. “That’s not all. Our shop also closes once a month, on the tenth day. This is a very comfortable place to work.”
Lin Wu folded her apron and placed it on the counter. Smiling, she said, “You need to rest well if you want the strength to work. Besides, there are other things in life besides doing business. For example, today is a festival, so we have to visit the graves. We need to make time for all that. Earning money is important, but we can’t focus only on making money and wear ourselves out. We have a long life ahead of us. It’s better to let things flow steadily over time.”
Fourth Sister He nodded. “That’s right. Your health belongs to you. There’s no point earning a fortune if you run yourself into the ground.”
As they chatted, the women tidied up the shop. Lin Wu locked the door, took Lin Jing by the hand, and walked toward Qingshui Alley.
The sun slanted across the street. Everything was quiet, with only the occasional breeze carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees.
Lin Jing looked around as he walked, his little head tilted upward. Many households had willow branches and swallow-shaped offerings called zitu yan tucked into their doorframes, the leaves and paper wings swaying in the breeze.
“Everyone wants the swallows to deliver messages, so they must be very busy today,” he said, tilting his head thoughtfully. “We’re not working today, but the swallows have to work.”
Lin Wu looked down at him. His little face was filled with such seriousness that he seemed genuinely worried for the swallows.
She took his small hand in hers. “They’re only busy during this season. Once Qingming is over, they’ll be able to rest. It’s just like us. Once we finish making qingtuan today, we can stop work. That’s how work goes—sometimes it’s busy, and sometimes it’s quiet.”
“Then they can rest tomorrow!”
When they returned home, Lin Wu set the qingtuan and the zitu yan on a small table.
Lin Jing knelt down on a little cushion, as familiar with the ritual as ever. With his hands clasped, he murmured a report on all the important things that had happened to him recently.
When he finished, he scampered back to his room and brought out his little bow. He struck a few poses and practiced with it, looking very much the part.
“I’ve already started learning martial arts, and I’m doing really well! Brother Ting often praises me. Brother Ting is my senior brother.”
Then he pulled out the little cloth dog, Afu, and held it high above his head.
“We’re going to open a shop and sell cloth dolls too, and earn lots and lots of money!”
He looked terribly pleased with himself.
Lin Wu watched from the side as she packed the qingtuan and the food container into a small bamboo basket. She also filled the gourd with water and slung it over her arm.
“Come on. Let’s go fly kites.”
The sky was clear that day, and the breeze was gentle and unhurried—perfect weather for flying kites.
Lin Jing had already brought out his swallow kite, which he had bought the day before. Its bamboo frame was covered in white paper, and a long tail trailed behind it.
“Should we bring the little fishing rod?” he suddenly asked.
He still remembered going fishing at Qingxi Garden with Brother Ting the last time. He had caught a little fish.
“I’m afraid today wouldn’t be a good day for that,” Lin Wu said, shaking her head. “There will be lots of boats on the lake, and the shore will be noisy with all the people. The fish will have been scared away.”
“All right, then.”
Lin Jing put the little fishing rod away. With the kite in one hand and Lin Wu’s hand in the other, he left the house.
There were many people on the road, all heading toward Qingxi Garden. Quite a few children were already running with their kites held aloft, the paper birds flapping noisily in the wind.
Halfway there, they ran into Sparrow and Tigerhead.
“Jing, look! My tiger kite!” Tigerhead held up a fierce-looking tiger kite and proudly showed it off. It was painted with stripes and had its jaws stretched wide. It truly looked rather imposing.
Sparrow followed behind him, carrying an eagle kite in her hands. Its wings were spread wide, longer than her arms.
“My eagle will definitely fly higher than yours!”
Lin Jing raised his own swallow kite and shook it. “My swallow can fly too, and it can deliver messages for people!”
The three children dragged their kites along as they skipped toward Qingxi Garden.
The garden was already packed with people. Boats crisscrossed the lake, while visitors enjoying the spring weather sat in groups of three or five along the shore. Children raced across the grass, and kites of every size and color floated in the sky like a lively flock of birds.
They found an open patch of ground. Tigerhead gave the instructions while Sparrow helped. Lin Jing held up the kite and ran a few steps. When a breeze caught it, the swallow began to wobble slowly into the air.
“Let out the line! Let out the line!” Tigerhead shouted from the side.
Lin Jing hurriedly released the string. The swallow climbed higher and higher, its tail streaming in the wind. From a distance, it looked just like a real swallow flying through the sky.
“It’s flying!” he cried.
He gazed upward, his eyes shining. His small body leaned into the wind, and the little tufts of hair on his head were blown into a complete mess.
Lin Wu sat on the grass and looked up at the swallow in the sky. It climbed higher and farther until it became a tiny black speck. The laughter and shouts of children filled her ears. A breeze swept over from the lake, cool and gentle, stirring the hem of her clothes.
Shen Guanting stood by the ship’s rail, gazing at several black specks rising on the horizon. He could not make out what kind of kites they were; they drifted far away, rising and falling against the gray-white sky. The wind came from the south, pushing them northward.
Shen Qi stood beside him and watched for a while before sighing. “I suppose Miss Sparrow and Young Master Tigerhead are flying kites today as well. What a pity that on such a fine day, we’re still out here rushing about.”
“I happen to be quite skilled at flying kites myself. I can send one soaring high into the sky, loosening the string when it grows taut and tightening it when it goes slack.”
Shen Guanting withdrew his gaze and shot him a glance. “Your kite-flying skills amount to losing one kite after another. If the question is who is best at bringing business to the kite vendors, then you truly are a master.”
Shen Qi was unconvinced. “It’s not that my technique is poor! The strings simply weren’t strong enough, and the wind was too fierce. Besides, a kite only counts as a good kite if it gets lost. The higher it flies, the sooner it disappears.”
Nearby, the helmsman, Zhao Tou, laughed when he heard this. “Flying a kite and sailing a boat probably follow much the same principle. As long as you hold the string, the kite can’t get away; with the shore behind you, the boat will always have somewhere to return to.”
