Laifu’s barking sounded from outside again, followed by Lin Jing’s voice.
“Laifu, stop barking. It’s Sister Que’er and Tigerhead.”
The words had barely left his mouth when a flurry of footsteps approached from afar. Several children came running in as fast as their legs could carry them.
Sparrow and Tigerhead had both changed into new clothes that day—matching rosy-red padded jackets. They had run all the way there, leaving their little faces flushed bright red. Their warm caps were the same color, each trimmed with a ring of snowy-white fur. Together, they looked positively festive.
They stopped in front of Lin Wu, stood properly, and bowed in unison.
“Older Sister, auspicious wishes for the new year! May the year ahead bring you peace, good health, smooth sailing, and fulfillment in all things!”
Their voices were loud and their words flowed smoothly. Clearly, they had practiced.
Lin Wu smiled and responded, then pulled two red envelopes from her sleeves.
In those days, giving children New Year’s money was a matter of custom. For one’s own children, one hundred and twenty copper coins were strung together with a colored cord on New Year’s Eve and placed by the child’s bedside. On New Year’s Day, the string would be hung around the child’s neck, symbolizing a long life of a hundred years.
The one hundred and twenty coins Lin Jing had received were practically a fortune to him. He had carefully hidden them in a little box, having learned at a very young age that wealth was best kept out of sight.
For children from other households who came to pay New Year’s calls, however, people gave what was known as “year-following money.” The amount depended on the child’s age, with one copper coin for each year. Sparrow, for instance, was twelve this year, so she received twelve coins.
Lin Wu considered this custom very friendly to her purse—though not particularly friendly to five-year-old little Lin Jing.
“Thank you, Older Sister!” The two children thanked her in unison, then happily tucked the red envelopes into their clothes. With Lin Jing, they turned and ran off to fuss over Laifu’s kennel.
Although Laifu’s wooden house had yet to receive its New Year’s couplets, it was already full of festive cheer. A small red lantern hung on either side, each no bigger than a palm, with a sprig of cypress tucked into the top. Lin Jing had said that he wished Laifu a hundred kinds of good fortune as well.
Lin Jing held the tiny couplet paper in both hands and moved it back and forth in front of the kennel.
“I think it should go just a little higher,” Sparrow said, leaning over to look. “If it’s too low, Laifu will brush against it every time he goes in or out, and it’ll fall right off.”
Everyone agreed she had a point. Once they had worked out the proper position, they carefully brushed paste onto the paper.
“It’s a little too high. Move it a bit to the right…and down just a tiny bit?”
“Tigerhead, stop giving orders when you don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“Oh, Laifu, don’t come over yet. Wait until we’ve finished putting it up.”
“Woof!”
“Laifu says it’s fine just the way it is.” Lin Jing smoothed the couplet paper flat with his little hand.
The children stepped back two paces and admired their handiwork, completely satisfied.
Tigerhead suddenly said, “It looks great. I want to put one on my bedroom door too.”
Sparrow scoffed. “New Year’s couplets go on the main gate. Why are you joining in? Looks like you still didn’t manage to sell all your foolishness last night.”
Tigerhead refused to back down. “If Laifu’s kennel can have one, then mine can too. I sold all my foolishness! You couldn’t sell yours at all!”
Lin Jing asked curiously, “Sister Que’er, why didn’t you come sell foolishness last night?”
Sparrow gave a soft snort and raised her chin. “I’m not a little child anymore. I don’t need to sell foolishness. I’m so clever—where would I find any foolishness to sell?”
Tigerhead snorted too. “You obviously overslept. Nobody could wake you.”
“Tigerhead, shut up!”
After making enough noise to satisfy themselves, the children tidied everything in front of Laifu’s kennel. Only then did they prepare to leave.
Lin Jing looked at Lin Wu. “Can we take Laifu out to play with us? It’s so lively outside. It’ll be lonely if he has to stay in the courtyard all by himself.”
Sparrow and Tigerhead also looked at Lin Wu eagerly. Several pairs of eyes fixed on her at once.
“All right. We shouldn’t leave Laifu here to pine away by himself.” With that, she turned back into the house, brought out a leash, and fastened it around Laifu.
“But there are lots of people in the streets, and Laifu is still so small,” she cautioned as she tied the leash. “Whenever we reach a crowded place, someone must carry him. Don’t let him run around, or someone might step on him.”
“Let my brother carry him!” Tigerhead immediately chimed in. “He’s strong!”
Thinking of Young Master Shen, who had been waiting outside all alone and had now inexplicably been assigned a task, Lin Wu couldn’t help smiling.
“Laifu is so little. He barely weighs anything.”
She brought out a bamboo basket from the house as well. A small rush cushion had been placed inside for Laifu.
“If your arms get tired, put him in here. He’ll be comfortable.”
Once everything was ready, they led Laifu out through the courtyard gate and headed toward the entrance of the lane to meet the strong Young Master Shen.
Shen Guanting spotted the group from a distance. Lin Wu led the way, followed by three children. The youngest held a fluffy little puppy by the leash. Every few steps, the puppy stopped to sniff at something, only to be tugged onward again.
The whole group somehow managed to make quite a lively procession.
When they drew near, he smiled at Lin Wu.
“A Wu has come out with the whole household in tow. Such a grand reception—I’m flattered.”
“You give me too much credit, Guanting.” Lin Wu thought to herself, What whole household? We’re only bringing Laifu along in addition to yesterday.
Shen Guanting continued in an unhurried tone, “There are three of us from the Shen family, and three of you. How perfectly matched.”
“You have a keen eye, Guanting,” Lin Wu praised him in an utterly flat voice. She lowered her head and rummaged through the cloth bag she carried, then took out a red envelope.
“Guanting, auspicious wishes for the new year.” She handed it to him. “Your year-following money.”
The usually unflappable Shen family’s eldest young master was uncharacteristically stunned. He lowered his eyes to the bulging red envelope.
He reached out and accepted it. “Thank you, A Wu. This must be the thickest year-following gift in all of Huzhou this year.”
Sparrow hurriedly reminded her, “Older Sister, my brother already held his capping ceremony last year. He doesn’t need year-following money anymore! Neither Grandfather nor Father and Mother gave him any this year.”
“That’s right!” Tigerhead nodded along. “Brother Ting is already twenty-one!”
“What?” Lin Jing, still holding Laifu’s leash, looked incredulous. “When you grow up, you can’t receive year-following money anymore?”
Lin Wu smiled and shook her head. “It’s fine. I’m an elder, after all. It’s only meant to bring good luck.”
“Since it comes from an elder, I’ll accept it,” Shen Guanting said leisurely as he tucked the red envelope into his sleeve. “This is a blessing no one else could ask for.”
Lin Jing, who had been watching closely, noticed him put the red envelope away. He immediately copied Shen Guanting and clasped his hands in a respectful salute.
“Brother Ting, auspicious wishes for the new year! May everything bring you good fortune, and may all your wishes come true.”
“Thank you, Little Jing.” Shen Guanting lowered his head to look at him, then took out two red envelopes and handed them over. “One for Little Jing, and one for Little Lucky. May Little Jing have a life filled with joy and no worries, meet only good people, and find safety and peace in all that he does.”
Lin Jing had achieved his goal. He happily accepted the envelopes and tucked them into his little cloth pouch.
He patted the pouch, feeling delighted. New Year’s was wonderful. He didn’t even have to do business, and money still came in. Once he grew as old as Brother Ting, he would receive twenty-one copper coins in year-following money—sixteen more than he got now!
Thinking of that, Lin Jing felt especially hopeful about the days ahead. As he gazed at the bustling marketplace before him, even his footsteps grew lighter.
The main street was packed with people, shoulder to shoulder. Colorful awnings stretched along both sides, while vendors crowded the roadside with their stalls. Some squatted on the ground, while others stood on stools calling out their wares. Food and utensils, clothing and ornaments—everything was spread out in abundance, dazzling the eyes.
But the liveliest of all were the gambling stalls.
Every few steps, they came upon another one, each surrounded by several layers of onlookers. The prizes at the pitch-and-toss stalls were dazzling: there were sweet honey cakes, lotus root stuffed with rice, fresh fish, pork, lamb, trotters, and other foods; everyday items such as finely painted silk and paper fans, screens, whirligig lanterns, and straw mats; clothing and accessories like gilt skirts, gilt caps, collars, scarves, and hair ornaments. As for children's toys, there were more than anyone could count.
Amid the crowds, copper coins clattered in earthen bowls, followed by bursts of cheers or a chorus of disappointed sighs.
On New Year's Day, the pitch-and-toss games were open for three days. Men and women, old and young, came from all over the city—those with money came to try their luck, while those without came simply for the excitement.
Lin Jing and Tigerhead, both with money to spare, had come for the excitement as well. They hurried into the crowd and rose onto their toes to peer inside.
Sparrow followed close beside Lin Wu, pointing at the stalls and chattering away. “I heard Grandpa say that even those high-ranking officials and wealthy nobles like to play pitch-and-toss, only they don’t toss for little things like these. Precious jades and rare curios, carriages and horses, houses and land—even songstresses and dancers—people have wagered all of those. Brother Xuan once won a fine horse that way. He looked so impressive!”
As Lin Wu listened, she turned her head toward the noisy stalls. Tossing for food and household goods was nothing unusual, merely an ordinary pastime of the marketplace. But carriages, land, songstresses, and dancers—that sounded more like the behavior of spoiled young aristocrats.
Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at Shen Guanting. She suddenly remembered that the Brother Xuan Sparrow had mentioned was his friend. She also thought of the various ornaments scattered throughout his courtyard, each of them appearing quite valuable.
Although he was fond of joking and teasing and never put on any airs, he was, after all, the Shen family’s eldest young master.
Shen Guanting seemed to sense her gaze. He turned his face slightly and met her eyes.
He blinked and said with perfect seriousness, “Why are you looking at me like that, A Wu? I’ve never tossed for any of those things. I’ve always been a respectable man and never involved myself in such activities.”
“Besides, Qi Xuan won that horse nearly three years ago, and people still call him ‘Horse-Tossing Qi Xuan.’ It makes him sound like the chieftain of some bandit stronghold, which is terribly undignified. Whenever I go out, I’m embarrassed to travel with him. I’m always afraid people will mistake us for being in the same line of work.”
He sighed helplessly. “And didn’t that look you just gave me prove that you misunderstood me? I really have suffered for choosing my friends so poorly.”
“From the way you put it, Master Shen, you seem to have quite a few objections to pitch-and-toss,” Lin Wu said with a smile.
“It’s not that I object to it. It’s just that nine times out of ten, you lose. And even if you happen to win, things that come too easily aren’t necessarily treasured.” He let out a soft laugh, his gaze falling on Tigerhead and Lin Jing as they wormed their way through the crowd. “Besides, I earn every copper through hard work. I have to save it to support my family. I couldn’t bear to waste it on pitch-and-toss.”
Everything else sounded reasonable, but Lin Wu found his claim about earning “every copper through hard work” rather questionable.
“Master Shen, if the money you earn is all hard-earned, then the money I make rising before dawn and working until dark to sell pastries must count as life-earned.”
“Oh?” There was a teasing note in Shen Guanting’s voice. “And what sort of price does this life-earned money of Shopkeeper Lin command?”
“Master Shen,” Lin Wu said slowly, “the way you put that makes you sound exactly like a bandit chief.”
Instead of taking offense, Shen Guanting’s smile deepened. “Since A Wu says I’m a bandit, then I’ll stop being polite. A bandit doesn’t ask for a price. Naturally, he simply takes what he wants.”
Lin Wu: “…”
The New Year’s gift money she had given him earlier had truly gone to waste. This man clearly had no understanding of respecting his elders or showing consideration to children.
She silently pulled an oil-paper packet from her cloth bag and stuffed it into his hands.
“Here. Pastries I made by rising early and working late. Consider them road money.”
Looking at the pastries that had been thrust into his hands for no apparent reason, Shen Guanting laughed. “A Wu, you hand over this road money so readily that you make me look like a beggar asking for alms.”
Lin Wu kept a straight face. “You’re welcome. I hope the bandit chief is satisfied.”
Hurry up and eat. And stop talking.
But Shen Guanting clearly had no intention of doing as she wished. After finishing one Snow Cloud Cake, he said, “With pastries this good, even a bandit chief would grow greedy. And once he grew greedy, who knows? He might just carry you off to his mountain stronghold.”
Lin Wu bent down and picked up Laifu, who had been trying to follow Sparrow toward the pitch-and-toss stalls.
“A bandit chief like you has every rare treasure under the sun in his mountain stronghold. Why would you want my meager offerings?”
“That’s different.” Shen Guanting shook his head. “Rare treasures are dead things. A person who knows how to make pastries is alive. Take a living person back, and she can make fresh ones every day.”
Lin Wu stroked Laifu’s little head and looked helplessly at this eldest young master of the Shen family. “Guanting, it’s New Year’s Day. Can’t we simply be decent, law-abiding citizens for once? Let’s not be bandits, or ponder how bandits go about robbing people and homes.”
At that, Shen Guanting could not help laughing.
Before he had a chance to reply, Lin Jing’s voice suddenly rang out from nearby.
Lin Jing had stopped at a stall with Tigerhead and was calling out to a man crouched before an earthen bowl. “Liang Peilan!”
Liang Peilan turned at the sound of his name. When he saw Lin Jing, a smile appeared on his face. “Is that Little Jing? Have you come to play pitch-and-toss too?”
Lin Jing squeezed up beside him and shook his head, curiously stretching his neck to peer into the bowl.
“I was just about to play. Look.” Liang Peilan said this and turned back around.
When Tigerhead and Sparrow heard that the man was someone they knew, they immediately grew interested and squeezed in as well. They had spent the whole journey merely glancing at the various stalls; at last, they had found something truly exciting.
“These are the tossing coins.” The stallkeeper was a middle-aged man. He pointed to the six copper coins before him. “One coin for one toss. Six alike wins the meat.”
The tossing coins were six copper pieces, their patterns clear and their surfaces bright. “Six alike” meant that all six coins landed with either their obverse sides or their reverse sides facing up. If someone managed to toss six alike, one copper coin would win the slab of pork tied with a red cord on the stall.
Liang Peilan took the six copper coins and weighed them in his palm.
Lin Wu and Shen Guanting also moved closer, watching with interest from behind the crowd.
“Take a guess, A Wu. Do you think this young gentleman can do it?” Shen Guanting asked.
Lin Wu looked at Liang Peilan’s back. Even on New Year’s Day, he was wearing an old padded jacket that had been washed so many times its color had faded.
“Of course he can,” she said without hesitation.
With six coins, the chance of tossing six alike was only one in thirty-two—not particularly high. But since he was someone they knew, naturally she hoped he would have good luck. Even if he were trying to toss eight alike, she would still have said he could do it. She would never do something as foolish as bolster another person’s confidence while undermining her own.
At her words, Shen Guanting turned his head to look at her. “If only A Wu had such complete faith in me, I might be willing to try pitch-and-toss as well.”
Lin Wu raised her eyes to him. Just moments ago, he had been saying, “Nine times out of ten you lose,” “My luck is poor,” and “I can’t bear to part with my hard-earned money.” Now he had changed his tune entirely. As expected of Shen Guanting—he was nothing if not changeable.
“All right,” she said, the corners of her lips suddenly lifting. “I’ll certainly cheer you on. But…”
She met his gaze, smiling warmly. “If you do win, you’ll become ‘Meat-Tossing Shen Guanting.’ And that sounds even less dignified than ‘Horse-Tossing Qi Xuan.’”
Shen Guanting stuffed the packet of snow-cloud cakes back into her hands, then casually scooped Laifu into his arms.
“Eat your cakes, A Wu.” He patted the squirming Laifu. “With your mouth occupied, you won’t have time to make fun of me.”
Lin Wu lowered her eyes to the suddenly empty space in her arms and couldn’t help laughing. The two of them were truly evenly matched with Sparrow and Tigerhead when it came to trading barbs.
It seemed Lin Jing’s talent for saying astonishing things could indeed be blamed on Shen Guanting. The man always had a way of leading people astray with his words.
At last, the two of them quieted down and turned to Liang Peilan.
With a flick of his wrist, six copper coins dropped into the earthen basin with a series of clear clinks.
