The carriage passed through the city gates and headed toward the outskirts.
Lin Jing and Tigerhead lifted a corner of the curtain and leaned against the window, peering outside. The bustle along the road gradually faded into the distance, and the houses grew sparse. Every so often, they saw a few pedestrians hurrying along with their heads lowered, their footsteps brisk.
Farther ahead, the scenery slowly began to change.
Simple shacks started appearing along the roadside, crooked structures pieced together from broken planks and dry grass, crammed tightly together. Several children squatted by the roadside, wearing old padded coats covered in patches. Their faces were red from the cold. When they saw the carriage coming, they instinctively rose and hurried out of the way.
Lin Jing watched them until the carriage had gone past and they disappeared from sight.
After traveling another stretch, the carriage finally stopped in front of a compound.
The gate of the Warm Benevolence Home was brand-new, its black-lacquered doors gleaming. A plaque hung above the entrance, bearing the three characters “Warm Benevolence Home.” It was clearly newly made, the paint still bright.
A middle-aged man wearing a blue changpao-style vest stood at the entrance. When he saw the carriage stop, he immediately arranged a smile on his face and hurried forward to greet them.
“Young Master Shen! We’ve been looking forward to your arrival! My surname is Li, and I’m the steward here. I was specifically waiting to receive you.”
Shen Guanting gave a slight nod. His expression remained calm, and his tone was courteous and even. “Steward Li, you’re too kind. By rights, my father should have come in person, but he’s been busy these past few days, so I’ve brought my younger brother to look around instead. Mr. Yun happened to be going the same way, so he came along to take a look as well.”
“Oh, to have Mr. Yun grace us with his presence is truly an honor!” Steward Li hurriedly cupped his hands toward Yun Jianshan, his manner exceedingly attentive. “Please, come in, come in.”
The group followed Steward Li inside.
The compound was spacious, with clean blue-brick paving. Two rows of rooms stood to either side, all with new doors and windows. Several pots of greenery had been placed in the courtyard, looking fresh and lively.
Lin Jing thought that this place was even roomier and tidier than the courtyard in their own Clear Water Lane.
Steward Li led the way, talking without pause. “Everyone here has been settled properly. They receive two meals a day, with both plain rice and congee available. With the New Year approaching, and thanks to the generosity of benefactors like yourselves, they can even have a little meat. Officials from above have come to inspect us several times, and they all said we’ve done a good job. It’s something our prefecture can take pride in.”
After spending the past few days receiving wealthy households who had come to deliver New Year gifts, Steward Li had become thoroughly practiced at it. He led them around the various parts of the compound, explaining as he went.
“We operate according to the regulations set by the imperial court. Besides providing food, clothing, and other necessities, we also give those with useful skills some work to do. This is the embroidery room, where they make sachets and handkerchiefs. Over there is the weaving room, where they can produce coarse cloth.”
“Look, the children here are well-behaved too.” Steward Li led them to the rear courtyard and pointed to several plots of vegetables. “Not much can be grown in winter, but we do have radishes and cabbages. The pickled vegetables and cucumbers are all prepared by the residents themselves.”
They then arrived at a side courtyard. Steward Li pointed to several rooms and said, “Winter brings a great deal of illness, so we pay close attention to everyone’s health. We’ve specially hired a physician to take their pulses, and we keep medicine in stock as well. Ordinary colds and chills can be treated here.”
They toured the compound from top to bottom. Everyone there was indeed dressed neatly. Though the clothes were old, they had been washed spotless, and everyone’s hair was combed and arranged properly. Quite a few people warmly greeted them when they passed by.
Yet whenever Lin Jing saw them, he could not help thinking of the people curled up by the roadside.
They were led to a small tea room.
As soon as Yun Jianshan sat down, he asked, “How many people are currently living here?”
Steward Li immediately replied, “There are currently one hundred and seventeen. All are registered local residents—elderly people living alone and orphans with no one to rely on. Their backgrounds have been checked one by one according to the court’s new regulations. All the records are complete, and there can be no mistakes.”
Yun Jianshan nodded without saying anything.
Shen Guanting took over, his tone warm and polished. “Steward Li, you’ve worked hard. Along the way, we saw that everything here was neat and well organized. You’ve clearly put a great deal of effort into managing the place. We’ve delivered the supplies and seen everything for ourselves, so this trip was not in vain.”
Steward Li waved his hands repeatedly. “Young Master Shen, you flatter me! It’s all thanks to generous people like you. Because of your kindness, the residents here have a steady meal to eat.”
Tigerhead sat beside Shen Guanting, looking around curiously. Then he suddenly spoke up. “Uncle, I noticed that there’s still plenty of room here. There are so many people outside by the roadside who have nowhere to go. Why don’t they come here?”
Steward Li’s expression did not change. He patiently explained, “You’re still young, so there are some things you don’t understand. This home was built according to the court’s new regulations. Anyone admitted must have household registration and be a respectable law-abiding citizen. Those refugees have no registered place of origin, and their backgrounds cannot be confirmed. If one of them were to cause trouble after coming in, wouldn’t everyone else here be endangered? Besides, the court’s funding and grain allowances are calculated by headcount. If we admitted even one person without official registration, the accounts wouldn’t balance.”
Tigerhead exchanged a glance with Lin Jing, and neither of them said anything more.
Shen Guanting added mildly, “What Steward Li says is reasonable. These are the rules, and rules have their own reasons.”
With that, he rose to his feet. “I’m sure the steward still has official business to attend to. We’ve delivered the supplies, so we won’t impose any longer.”
Steward Li hurriedly stood and tried to persuade them to stay. “Young Master Shen, you’re leaving already? The tea hasn’t been finished. At least stay a while longer. Quite a few people here would like to thank you in person…”
“No need.” Shen Guanting was already walking out.
Lin Jing followed him. When they reached the entrance, he could not help turning back for one last look.
Once they had left the compound, Tigerhead could finally no longer hold back his questions.
“The Warm Benevolence Home isn’t short of food or clothes. Why did we still have to bring all those things here?”
Lin Jing nodded vigorously and joined in. “That’s right! There are so many people by the roadside who don’t have clothes to wear or food to eat. Why didn’t we give the things to them instead?”
Yun Jianshan slowly spoke. “You’re both right. The people by the roadside do need these things more.”
He raised his eyes toward the distance, his tone calm. “But many things in this world cannot simply be given to whoever ought to receive them. The Warm Benevolence Home is run by the authorities, and the authorities have their rules. Once the rules have been set, they must be followed. When supplies are delivered here, they can be entered into the accounts. When officials come to inspect the place, they can see rows of buildings and sacks of grain.”
“What about the people outside?” Tigerhead scratched his head.
Yun Jianshan let out a sigh. “The people outside aren’t included in the rules. They have no household registration and no official identity. The authorities cannot manage them, nor can they spare the attention. Matters they cannot manage can only depend on ordinary people lending a hand.”
Lin Jing listened with a puzzled look. He tilted his head up at Yun Jianshan. “So the things at the Warm Benevolence Home are actually meant for the people within the rules. Those outside the rules can only wait for others to help them?”
Yun Jianshan nodded, then shook his head. “Help can sustain someone for a time, but not for a lifetime. It can reach one place, but not everyone along the road. Rules are dead, but people are alive. When you grow up, if one day you reach a place where you can change the rules, remember what you saw today.”
At those words, Shen Guanting glanced at his teacher, then lowered his head to look at his little junior brother, who was listening earnestly beside him.
He reached out and patted Lin Jing’s small shoulder. “These aren’t things a little boy like you needs to worry about yet.”
After they climbed back into the carriage, however, Shen Guanting did not order the coachman to return to the city.
“Go a little farther,” he said.
When the carriage slowed again, Lin Jing lifted the curtain and saw an open stretch of ground ahead. Several tents had been erected there, with great pots steaming beneath them. A long line of people stretched out in front, so long that he could not see the end.
The people in line were all dressed in rags. There were stooped old men and women clutching infants in their arms.
Food was being handed out beneath the tents: one bowl of porridge and one flatbread per person.
The carriage stopped a short distance away. The group got down and walked toward the tents.
A middle-aged man in coarse clothing hurried over and cupped his hands toward Shen Guanting. “Young Master, what brings you here personally? The wind is strong out here. Please, come sit inside the tent.”
Shen Guanting waved a hand. “We just went to Cinu an Home, so we stopped by on the way back.”
He glanced once more at the endless line. Among those waiting was a child about Lin Jing’s age, so thin he looked little more than skin and bones. He stood pressed against a woman, staring fixedly at the steaming pot.
Shen Guanting withdrew his gaze. “Reduce the supplies being sent to Cinu an Home and allocate the extra here instead. Continue the distribution for another three days. With the New Year approaching, let them have something hot to eat.”
The man agreed repeatedly.
The group was in no hurry to leave. They simply took a few folding stools and sat behind the tent.
The outskirts of the city were colder than the city proper, and the wind blew straight into their faces with a chilly bite. But Lin Jing and Tigerhead were bundled up in thick clothes, round as little balls, so they were not bothered.
Every now and then, they glanced toward the long line. Some of the people wore old padded jackets covered in patches. Others still wore thin summer shirts, shivering in the wind.
“It must be so cold,” Lin Jing said. He lowered his head and patted the soft, fluffy jacket he was wearing. “Back then, Mama and I didn’t have soft, thick clothes. We could only put on lots and lots of thin layers, but the wind would still sneak inside, crawling everywhere like little bugs. It was cold at night too. The blankets were thin, and we had to lie there for a long, long time before we could fall asleep. Our feet were always freezing.
“So we wore all our clothes to bed and covered ourselves with whatever clothes were left, piling them on top of the blanket to make it heavier.”
As he spoke, he began to smile, his tone bright and cheerful. “But my mama was very clever! She would put the charcoal from the stove into a clay pot and place it by the foot of the bed. That made it just a little bit warm.”
He gestured as he spoke, as if recounting something amusing.
“Later, we bought a bed warmer. It had a little hollow on top that was just the right size for my chin. I hugged it while I slept, and it kept me nice and warm.”
Tigerhead sat nearby, listening in stunned silence. From the time he was born, he had always had warm clothes in winter, thick bedding, and braziers filled with glowing coals. He had never imagined that being “warm” could be such a difficult thing.
Shen Guanting sat to one side without saying a word.
He only felt something suddenly give a faint tug at his heart. It did not hurt, but he could not bring himself to ignore it.
He had seen many people living in poverty—the exiles on the road to Nan’ya, the people gathered at the porridge tents outside the city, the refugees in ragged clothes with dull, numb eyes. He had heard countless stories of hardship: families torn apart, homes destroyed, fields strewn with the dead from famine.
Perhaps every person in that long line had suffered even more than this child once had.
Yet the few light, casual words spoken by Lin Jing affected him more deeply than anything he had witnessed with his own eyes, more deeply than any lengthy account of suffering.
He thought of Lin Wu.
She was always so calm and composed, so thoughtful and meticulous. Her letters were filled with the small details of everyday life, yet she never complained and never asked anyone for help.
Only now did he realize that she had once lain awake at night, frozen with cold, warming herself with charcoal in a clay pot. Even the bed warmer she bought could only be one with a flaw.
And yet she had made her way forward, one step at a time, until she had reached where she was today—until she could make thick cotton jackets for her child, stuff his little cloth bag with crisp pastries and dried meat, and prepare plump, generously filled pancakes for them.
Suddenly, Tigerhead let out a sob and threw his arms around Lin Jing, his eyes turning red. “Jing! I’m sorry—to you and your sister! Your family had such a hard time, and I was always eating your food! I—I won’t eat it anymore!”
Lin Jing tilted his little head, looking puzzled. “Why not? We’re doing very well now.”
He counted on his fingers. “We have thick clothes, lots of delicious food, and Little Lucky. I can even go to the academy. I think we’re doing great.”
Then he furrowed his little brows and looked toward the endless line, sighing like an old man. “It’s just that they’re not doing well. They don’t have anything. If everyone had a mama like mine, then everyone could live a good life. But there’s only one person in the whole world like my mama.”
Shen Guanting suddenly gave a soft laugh, the corners of his eyes curving. “That’s true. There’s only one person in the whole world like your mother.”
Yun Jianshan sighed as well and slowly nodded. “There aren’t many people fortunate enough to meet a mother as good as yours. Your mother is capable, she treats you well, and she has raised you to be so sensible—that is because she has put her heart into it. The mothers of the people in that line may also have done their best, but they were unable to protect their children. It isn’t anyone’s fault. The world itself is simply too harsh.”
Lin Jing thought for a moment, then said, “Then when I grow up, I’ll be like my mama and help them too.”
Yun Jianshan smiled and nodded slowly. “Good. When you grow up and have the ability, go and help more people. Then you can become the kind of good person others are lucky enough to meet.”
Tigerhead thumped his chest. “Then I’ll become a good person who helps others too!”
The two boys immediately began chattering excitedly about their grand ambitions, though no one knew what exactly they were plotting.
Shen Guanting, meanwhile, rose and returned to the tent to take care of the porridge distribution.
After talking so much, Lin Jing’s mouth had gone dry. He took out his little gourd and tipped his head back to drink several mouthfuls of water. Then he opened his small cloth bag and skillfully handed out crisp pastries to everyone. Soon, the sound of their crunching filled the air.
Just as they were eating with relish, a boy of about twelve or thirteen walked out of the line.
He was thin and dressed in coarse but tidy clothing. His eyes were clear and forthright. Unlike the other people in line, who shrank back timidly, he openly surveyed his surroundings.
When he saw Tigerhead’s clothes, he guessed that the boy came from a wealthy family. But rather than hesitate like the others, he walked straight over and stopped a short distance away. Holding his bowl, he drank his porridge while eyeing the food in Lin Jing and the others’ hands.
Lin Jing noticed his gaze and turned to look at him.
The boy did not avert his eyes. When he saw Lin Jing looking back, he simply said, “My name is Liang Peilan. What are you eating? It smells delicious.”
As he spoke, he carefully wrapped the flatbread he had just received in a clean piece of cloth and placed it in the cloth bag slung across his body.
Lin Jing answered first. “My name is Lin Jing. We’re eating crisp pastries.”
Tigerhead could not help looking the boy up and down. He did not seem like someone who had come to ask for relief.
“My name is Shen Linzhou,” he said. “Why aren’t you eating your flatbread?”
“I’m taking it home for my mother,” Liang Peilan replied frankly.
Tigerhead blinked, then asked, “Why didn’t your mother come to get some? If she came, she could receive two portions.”
He thought for a moment, then suddenly smacked his palm with his fist. “Ah! Is she sick?”
Liang Peilan shook his head, his tone perfectly even. “My mother wants to keep our room for herself. Once we leave, my aunt will take it over.”
Tigerhead and Lin Jing stared at him, utterly bewildered.
“Our family just came back from the capital,” Liang Peilan continued, paying no mind to whether the two of them understood. “Oh, my father was dismissed from office and struck from the rolls, so we came back with nothing. No money, no work. I can only come here for gruel.”
Yun Jianshan listened from the side and felt that the child was sharing rather more than their shallow acquaintance warranted.
Lin Jing did not quite understand what “dismissed from office and struck from the rolls” meant, but he understood “came back with nothing.” After thinking for a moment, he took a thin crisp from the oiled-paper packet and held it out. “Here, you can have this. It’s crisp and fragrant.”
Liang Peilan did not refuse. He reached out and took it. “Thank you.”
He bit into it and chewed. His eyes lit up. “It’s delicious!”
Then he asked, “Where did you buy it? Once I have money, I’ll go buy some too.”
Lin Jing puffed out his little chest proudly. “My mother made them. Go to the morning market. You’ll find us beside the flower stalls.”
Liang Peilan nodded, committing the words to memory. Then he took another bite of the thin crisp and savored it slowly.
As he chewed, he suddenly looked up at Lin Jing. “Your thin crisps are so delicious. Why don’t your family open a shop selling them?”
Lin Jing froze.
Liang Peilan continued pitching the shop next to his own family’s. “My family has a shop on the main street, in a good location. It used to be an apothecary, but my late uncle ran it into the ground. It’s been sitting empty ever since. I’ll go home and ask my father to rent it to you cheaply.”
On the carriage ride back, Tigerhead could not resist bringing the matter up again. “He’s so strange. How did he go from one thing to another and suddenly start talking about renting out a shop?”
Lin Jing, however, found it quite understandable. “He probably wants to help his family make money.”
Shen Guanting leaned against the carriage wall, listening to the two of them chatter. Suddenly, he spoke. “He should be Liang Jimin’s son.”
Tigerhead blinked. “Who?”
“Liang Jimin.” Shen Guanting’s tone remained calm. “He used to be a medical officer at the Hanlin Medical Academy. A few years ago, he treated the Former Crown Prince for colds several times. Later, one of his rivals at the academy used that as an excuse to accuse him of having too close a relationship with the Eastern Palace. They investigated him from every angle but found no solid evidence. In the end, he was still dismissed from office, and his entire family left the capital to return to their hometown.”
Lin Jing listened, somewhat dazed, and said nothing.
Yun Jianshan, on the other hand, cast a glance at his eldest disciple. “You certainly have a wide range of information. Nothing seems to escape you.”
Shen Guanting merely gave a light laugh and did not respond. His gaze, however, settled on Lin Jing.
With a little junior brother like this by his side, how could he not be well informed?
Yun Jianshan knew nothing of the secret between his two disciples. He only shook his head slowly. “Truth and falsehood become mixed together, and before long, the whole matter turns into an irreconcilable mess. Treating patients is a medical officer’s duty, yet even that can be twisted into an accusation. It’s truly absurd.”
Shen Guanting reached over and rubbed Lin Jing’s little head. “The shop is in a good location. Liang Peilan’s late uncle used to sell medicinal herbs there. After his death, the shop ceased operations and has remained closed and deserted for years. It should belong to Liang Peilan’s family. That is why his aunt has never had the deed in her hands and couldn’t rent it out, leaving it empty all this time.”
“The shop is extremely small—just a single storefront, with no courtyard or residence behind it. It cannot be used as a home, only as a place of business, which makes it difficult to rent out. The price should be low. If you’re interested, you could go take a look.”
Lin Jing committed all of this to memory and told Lin Wu everything, word for word, after they returned.
Lin Wu was stunned for quite a while after hearing him out.
For a moment, she did not know whether to marvel that the matter had somehow become connected to the imperial palace, or to marvel that she had not even gotten around to buying a food cart yet—so how had they jumped straight to a shop?
She could not help recalling Shen Guanting’s words: “If you’re interested, you could go take a look.”
He had made it sound as though she were merely going to the market to pick out a head of cabbage.
