At the entrance to the market, Lin Wu was stopped by the tax clerk, who gestured for her to uncover the cloth over the basket. Seeing that it contained pastries, he collected five wen.
In theory, the “stall tax” was thirty wen for every thousand wen of goods—that is, three percent of their value. But since determining the value of the goods was difficult, the amount actually assessed depended entirely on the tax clerk’s judgment. Sometimes, it even came down to whatever mood they happened to be in that day.
As usual, the two of them went to the spot beside Second Madam Zhao’s flower stall.
The moment she arrived, Second Madam Zhao smiled and said, “Mrs. Lin, you’re finally here! Two or three customers came looking for you earlier. We thought you weren’t coming today.”
Lin Wu smiled. “I made one more basket today, so I was a little late leaving the house.”
“That’s how it is with selling food. It’s the hardest kind of work.” Second Madam Zhao had been setting up her stall at the morning market for years, so she naturally understood how difficult it was. If one were to ask which trade at the market was the most exhausting, food stalls would certainly rank among the worst. Thus, even when she saw another stall doing brisk business, she never felt jealous. Unlike a restaurant, a food stall could not charge high prices. No matter how well business went, it was still money earned through hard labor—one basket steamed at a time, one coin saved at a time.
Lin Wu had assumed business might not be as good as yesterday’s. After all, tea pastries were not something everyone bought every day. Yet not long after she had set up, customers began coming one after another, and quite a few were returning customers.
“My mother-in-law loves these pastries.” The older woman who had bought some yesterday now purchased four at once. “She’s getting on in years, so her appetite is weak and her teeth aren’t what they used to be. But your jade cakes are light and soft, just right for her stomach. You must come regularly from now on, Madam.”
“These pastries do take some time to make. I wanted to prepare more today, but I ended up being late. I’m truly sorry,” Lin Wu explained as she deftly wrapped the cakes.
“They must take a great deal of work. Anyone can see how much care went into their appearance.” The older woman had initially thought that one cake cost as much as a meat-filled bun, which seemed expensive. But now that she considered it, such delicate tea pastries were surely troublesome to make. Five wen was practically a bargain. If they were sold in a restaurant or teahouse, they would probably cost ten wen apiece.
No sooner had the older woman left than Zhou Wenjin arrived. This time, he was not alone. Two young scholars in long robes followed behind him.
“Wenjin, you didn’t deceive us, did you? How could such elegant pastries be sold at a morning-market stall? Perhaps you lost to Brother Han at yesterday’s poetry gathering and deliberately tricked us into making a wasted trip today?” The speaker was a young man in a long robe trimmed with gold thread. His voice reached them before he did, and he was laughing as he teased Zhou Wenjin.
“Why would I deceive you?” Zhou Wenjin was not offended. He merely pointed ahead. “Since you’re already here, see for yourselves.”
The group came to the stall. At the sight of the emerald-green jade cakes, the richly dressed young man froze for a moment. His gaze then traveled from the plain yet tasteful bamboo basket, to the stallkeeper, and finally to little Lin Jing, who stood nearby with a serious expression.
The bamboo basket was simple but charming. The stallkeeper’s clothes were neat, and her features were lovely. Even the little boy stood straight and proper; though so young, he wore the solemn expression of a schoolmaster. Set against those glistening green pastries, everything gave the young man the impression that these were no ordinary people. Perhaps they were reclusive masters who had chosen to hide themselves in the bustle of the marketplace, selling pastries merely for pleasure.
With that thought in mind, he found the jade cakes even more extraordinary.
Lin Wu, of course, had no idea what convoluted thoughts were running through his mind. She greeted Zhou Wenjin instead. “Master Zhou, you’re here. Did you enjoy the pastries yesterday?”
“Very much.” Zhou Wenjin nodded. “My classmates all liked them. They added considerable charm to the poetry gathering.”
The richly dressed young man began praising them even more enthusiastically, his voice rising and falling dramatically. “More than enjoyed them! These cakes are the color of spring water, delicately sweet without being cloying, with a lingering and understated flavor. They are quite plainly the taste of mountains and rivers, the fragrance of ink and literature! Truly, a hidden gem in the marketplace, beloved by both refined and common tastes!”
He had not come to buy pastries today. He had come to play the discerning patron who recognized a thousand-mile horse at a glance!
Lin Wu was taken aback. She felt that even her own sales pitch could not match this man’s emotional flourish. Unable to help herself, she smiled. “You flatter me. I’m simply glad they suit your tastes.”
The young man immediately ordered ten. Zhou Wenjin and the other scholar each bought four. In a single transaction, nearly twenty cakes were sold.
After the three men left, Lin Jing was squatting on the ground, carefully placing the counted coins into the money pouch a few at a time, when a delighted voice suddenly interrupted him.
“Headmaster, they’re right here! Sister Lin and Jing are right here!” Tigerhead pulled Headmaster Xu through the crowd.
“Tigerhead, you’ve come again,” Lin Wu said with a smile when she saw him.
Lin Jing remained absorbed in putting away the coins and did not have time to stand.
“I came to buy cakes. Headmaster ate my cakes yesterday, so he came to pay me back…” Tigerhead chattered without pause, complaining to Lin Wu about Headmaster Xu’s misdeed.
Headmaster Xu gave a light cough before saying, “Mrs. Lin’s pastries are refreshing and delicious. It isn’t only Tigerhead who keeps thinking about them. Even the guests at the academy praised them after tasting them.”
Seeing that the woman selling the pastries was neat and well-groomed, with a calm and composed manner, he felt that someone capable of making such fine tea pastries must indeed possess something uncommon about her.
“You flatter me, Headmaster,” Lin Wu replied politely.
“Jing, Jing, what are you doing?” Tigerhead had already crouched beside Lin Jing.
“I’m putting away the money.” Lin Jing finally placed the last coin into the pouch and raised his head, his voice steady.
“Wow! That’s a lot of money!” Tigerhead stared at the bulging little money pouch, his eyes wide.
Lin Jing gave a small nod. He lifted his chin, his voice carrying a hint of pride. “We sold eighteen jade cakes just now and took in eighty-one wen.”
“Eighteen! Jing, your business is doing so well. Good thing I came quickly, or I wouldn’t have been able to buy any today.”
Headmaster Xu listened as the two children spoke. He glanced over and saw that the little boy beside Tigerhead had regular features, a quiet demeanor, and an air of intelligence and refinement. He felt an instant liking for him and asked, “You sold eighteen cakes and knew that you took in eighty-one wen. Did you work that out yourself?”
Lin Jing looked at him seriously. “My mother worked it out, but I know it’s eighty-one wen too. Ten cakes are forty-five wen, four cakes are eighteen wen, and another four cakes are eighteen wen. Put together, that makes eighty-one wen.”
Although he had not yet learned addition with two-digit numbers, he had remembered exactly how Lin Wu had grouped the cakes and counted the money.
“Jing, you’re amazing!” Tigerhead puffed out his little chest, taking pride in him as though he had accomplished something himself. “Have you already learned the multiplication table?”
Lin Jing blinked in confusion. “What’s a multiplication table?”
Tigerhead cleared his throat, straightened his expression, and began reciting with a solemn wag of his head. “One times one is one. One times two is two, two times two is four. One times three is three, two times three is six…”
“Then, in your opinion,” Headmaster Xu interrupted Tigerhead at the height of his enthusiasm, smiling as he asked, “why are ten cakes forty-five wen?”
Tigerhead came to a complete stop. “Um… eight times nine is seventy-two… but there’s no ten…”
Lin Jing tugged at Tigerhead’s sleeve and reminded him softly, “Two cakes cost nine wen.”
He held up both hands, gesturing as he explained, “Ten cakes are five groups of two cakes, so that makes five groups of nine wen.”
Tigerhead’s eyes lit up, and he hurriedly continued, “That’s right! Five nines are forty-five!”
He looked proudly at Headmaster Xu. “This won’t stump us! And, Headmaster, Jing isn’t a student at our academy, so you can’t assign him homework.”
Headmaster Xu looked at the little hand Lin Jing had raised and couldn’t help smiling. “The little lad has an excellent memory and a keen mind. He truly possesses rare intelligence.”
He stroked his beard. The child was still so young and had never formally studied arithmetic, yet he had gone from “two pastries cost nine coins” to “ten pastries would be five times nine coins.” His reasoning was clear, and he had repeated the entire process in an orderly fashion. His powers of observation and memory were far beyond those of ordinary children.
He turned to Lin Wu and said gently, “The little lad is bright and gifted. If Mrs. Lin is willing, you may send him to the academy for elementary lessons in the future. The academy holds examinations for young children every season, and those who pass may enroll.”
Lin Wu hurriedly thanked him. “Headmaster, I’m truly grateful for your high regard. Once things at home have settled down, if we have the opportunity, I will certainly bring him to the academy to pay my respects.”
Tigerhead bounced happily nearby. “That’s wonderful! Jing, then you can come to the academy every day! We can study together and leave school together. I’ll show you the way around!”
Lin Jing said nothing. He merely pressed his lips together and moved closer to Lin Wu.
“Mrs. Lin, there’s no need to rush. The academy’s doors are always open to children who wish to study.” Headmaster Xu paused, then continued, “There is one other matter I’d like to discuss. The academy will be hosting a lecture gathering in the middle of the month, and we’ll need some tea and pastries for our guests. Your jade pastries are elegant and most suitable. Would it be possible for you to supply some?”
“Of course. Thank you for your consideration, Headmaster.” Lin Wu agreed at once.
“You’re too kind. If all is in order, the academy steward will come by in the next few days to discuss the quantity and price with you,” Headmaster Xu said.
Lin Wu nodded and gave him the address of their little courtyard.
Headmaster Xu bought another eight pastries before preparing to leave with Tigerhead.
Lin Jing looked at Headmaster Xu, then at Tigerhead. Suddenly, he called out, “Tigerhead, Mother and I made some very pretty bookmarks. We’ll give them to you and Que’er when they’re done.”
“Wow!” Tigerhead hurriedly trotted back. “What kind of bookmarks? Let me see!”
“They’re not finished yet.” Lin Jing shook his head, then looked toward Lin Wu.
Lin Wu thought for a moment before answering with a smile. “That’s right. They should be finished in another two days or so. If it’s convenient, perhaps the academy steward could bring them to you when he comes?”
“I’ll come with the steward to pick them up!” Tigerhead eagerly chimed in. “Thank you, Sister Lin! Thank you, Jing!” Only then did he follow Headmaster Xu away, looking back every few steps.
Lin Wu rubbed Lin Jing’s little head. “You told Tigerhead so quickly?” Children really couldn’t keep things to themselves. Whenever something fun came to mind, they always wanted to share it with their friends right away.
But Lin Jing quietly edged closer to her. Rising onto his toes, he cupped his little hands around his mouth and whispered, “That headmaster can buy lots and lots of pastries. Maybe he’ll like bookmarks too, and buy lots of those as well…”
Lin Wu froze for a moment, then couldn’t help laughing aloud. Little Lin Jing was even more worried about their family business than she was.
About an hour later, all the pastries had been sold. Lin Wu packed up the stall, bought some fresh vegetables at the market as usual, then took Lin Jing’s hand and headed out.
“We still need to buy peach gum.” As they reached the entrance to the market, Lin Jing suddenly tugged at her sleeve and looked up to remind her.
Lin Wu pinched his little headscarf. “If A Jing hadn’t reminded me, I would nearly have forgotten. But peach gum is only sold at medicine shops, not here in the market.”
With that, the two of them continued toward the main street and entered an herbal medicine shop to buy a packet of peach gum.
On the way home, Lin Jing kept glancing beneath the trees along the roadside. Whenever he spotted a leaf that caught his fancy, he picked it up and tucked it into his little cloth pouch.
When they reached a quiet alley, he suddenly moved closer to Lin Wu and lowered his voice. “I don’t want to go to the academy.”
“Why not?” Lin Wu slowed down and looked down at him.
He raised one finger at a time as he counted. “I have to help light the fire in the morning, and we have to make pastries. I also have to water the scallions and cilantro, sell the pastries, collect the coins, and make bookmarks…”
“If I go to the academy, who will do all those things?” He looked up at her with complete seriousness, then slowly shook his little head. “There won’t be any time to study.”
Hearing how clearly and methodically he laid out his concerns, Lin Wu felt both a pang in her heart and the urge to laugh. “By the sound of it, our A Jing really is terribly busy. But you still have to go to the academy. Just think—if our pastries sell better in the future, say we have to sell one hundred and fifty in a day, how will you work out the money?”
Lin Jing fell silent. His little brows gradually drew together. He couldn’t calculate how much one hundred and fifty pastries would cost.
“See? Even I can’t work it out,” Lin Wu said, bending down to pat his shoulder. “You’ll have to wait until A Jing goes to school and learns arithmetic before you can help me calculate everything properly. In the future, keeping the household accounts and taking stock will all depend on you.”
Little Lin Jing’s face slowly grew taut. He suddenly felt the immense weight of responsibility.
“You can water the scallions either before school each morning or after classes end. As for collecting money and doing the accounts…” Lin Wu continued to coax him, “once you’ve learned the skills at school, you’ll certainly be able to calculate faster and more accurately than you can now. Going to school is important. We won’t rush anything—we’ll take it one step at a time.”
Lin Jing lowered his little head, apparently still mulling it over. Suddenly, he looked up. “Then I can take the bookmarks to school and sell them. That way I can go to school too, right?” As long as it didn’t delay their efforts to make money, that was fine.
Lin Wu laughed despite herself. She couldn’t help worrying for the academy. If Lin Jing really went to school, he would probably become a thorn in the teacher’s side.
“A Jing is right,” she said, taking his little hand. “In the future, our bookmark business may truly depend on you.”
The two of them continued their very serious discussion of the family business all the way back to the little courtyard.
After putting everything away, Lin Jing first squatted beside the scallion patch and watched it for a while. Then he went to inspect the pieces of leaf-vein he had spread out on the fine cloth. With his hands clasped behind his back, he made a thorough inspection of the entire house before returning to carefully empty out the leaves he had collected and spread them out to sort through once more.
Lin Wu had just finished tidying up. When she turned and entered the kitchen to prepare lunch, he followed her in and sat by the stove, helping watch the fire and add kindling.
Just as he had said, he was busy from dawn to dusk without pausing for a moment—a genuinely hardworking little man.
They had only just finished lunch when Little Zheng came to collect the letter.
Lin Jing stood at the doorway, watching the mule cart grow smaller and smaller until it finally disappeared at the end of the alley. He raised his little face to Lin Wu. “How long will it take for our letter to arrive?”
“It’s hard to say. It should take at least several days.” Lin Wu calculated silently. They had already been in Huzhou for several days. Once the letter reached Shen Guanting, it would take more time to travel there. By then, they would probably have arrived at Nanya.
Nanya.
Lin Wu murmured the unfamiliar name inwardly. That distant place seemed impossibly far away, yet it also felt like somewhere they could never quite avoid. She took Lin Jing’s hand and returned to the courtyard, then turned and slid the bolt into place. Her gaze swept over the patch of scallions that had yet to sprout.
She only hoped that everything would go smoothly for them in Nanya.
Back inside, it was time for Lin Jing’s favorite part of the day: counting up their earnings. The little boy eagerly went to pick up the heavy cloth bag, but it was simply too heavy for him. With both arms wrapped around it, he staggered two steps, his little face flushed from the effort. Lin Wu hurried over, took the bag from him, and carried it to the table.
“It’s too heavy, A Jing. Don’t strain yourself—you’ll hurt your wrists.” Lin Wu gently patted his small arms and, after making sure he was all right, emptied the copper coins from the cloth bag.
“I know,” he said.
Lin Jing climbed onto a chair with practiced ease and leaned over the table, his little face instantly turning serious as he carefully sorted the copper coins into piles, one by one.
Aside from the two pieces given out for tasting, every pastry had sold. They had earned three hundred and twenty wen in total. After deducting the cost of ingredients and the five-wen tax, their net profit came to two hundred and ten wen.
Lin Jing stared at the neatly sorted piles, his eyes shining. “There are three hundred-wen piles and one twenty-wen pile!”
“That’s right—three hundred and twenty wen. That’s quite a lot of money. We have you to thank for helping call out to customers and collect the payments.” Smiling, Lin Wu took out four copper coins and placed them gently in his open palm. “Since we earned more today, A Jing’s wages have gone up too.”
Lin Jing closed his hand around the coins, then pulled out his little money pouch and put them inside one by one. As he did, he murmured, “Yesterday, I sent four wen to Sister Qing and Brother Jue. Today, I earned four wen…”
He was still muttering when he suddenly turned to Lin Wu, as if he had discovered something extraordinary. “Huh? If you count it that way, the money… the money came back again!”
Lin Wu immediately understood that he was practicing the way she had been keeping accounts these past two days. She smiled and said, “That’s wonderful! A Jing has earned so much money. You’re the breadwinner of Sister Qing and Brother Jue’s household now.”
At once, Lin Jing straightened his small back and clenched his fists, full of determination. “I’m going to earn lots and lots of money in Huzhou! I’ll buy Sister Qing and Brother Jue lots of delicious food, and buy A Wu food, clothes, and a big courtyard!”
