The man in charge of the office smiled and asked politely,
“Miss, what’s your surname?”
“Tang,” Yunshu replied, skipping formalities.
“Miss Tang, can you draw portraits?”
“Yes,” she answered simply.
“Then please wait a moment. I’ll gather people who have seen the thief so you can draw based on their descriptions.”
“Alright.”
In front of others, Tang Yunshu instantly returned to her usual cold, quiet demeanor. Before leaving, the officer even thoughtfully poured her some tea.
After waiting a while, a middle-aged woman arrived to describe the thief. Tang Yunshu picked up a pencil and began sketching.
“Make the eyebrows thicker, the nose narrower,” the woman instructed. Yunshu followed her directions carefully, and soon completed the portrait.
“Yes, that’s exactly how he looks! Your drawing is amazing,” the woman praised.
Even the constable could not help but compliment her,
“I’ve never seen anyone capture a likeness so accurately from description alone. Your skill is extraordinary.”
After the woman left, the constable said,
“Miss Tang, could you draw a few more copies? We need to post them in many places. There was also a case in the county where the same thief might be involved; we’ll need to send a copy there too.”
“Okay,” Yunshu replied briefly.
The constable murmured to himself,
“This young lady speaks so little—fewer than ten words since she entered the office—but her demeanor is so calm and reserved.”
Tang Yunshu drew ten copies of the thief’s portrait in total. Seeing that the constable did not offer payment, she asked,
“Will there be a reward?”
The constable slapped his forehead and apologized,
“Miss Tang, my apologies. I’ll fetch the silver for you—please wait a moment.”
Soon, he returned with ten taels of silver.
“Here’s your payment, ten taels. Could you leave your address in case we need a portraitist again?”
“Oh, not convenient. If you need someone next time, just post a notice—I’ll see it. Goodbye.”
Without another word, she turned and left. The constable touched his nose, muttering,
“This Miss Tang is so cold.”
Another officer replied,
“You don’t understand—people who experience such things often have peculiar personalities.”
Outside the office, Tang Yunshu immediately spotted her father and brothers waiting across the street. She gestured for them to go ahead first. After meeting in a small alley, they went together to buy pork, cakes, and two chickens.
Yunshu also suggested,
“Father, let’s buy two sets of clothes for Grandma and Grandpa.”
“Alright, Yunshu, we’ll follow your suggestion.”
The Tang family arrived at a clothing store. Yunshu noted that the young people’s clothes were old-fashioned and unattractive, but the elderly clothes were decent. She chose a deep red outfit for her grandmother and a dark blue one for her grandfather. The fabric was fine cotton, more expensive than coarse cloth.
The two sets of clothing cost about two taels of silver—earned from Yunshu’s portrait drawings—and represented her filial devotion.
Back home, Zhao Lanzhi noticed Second Brother looking uneasy and asked what had happened.
Tang Dashan briefly recounted the events in town. Lanzhi was still shaken and worriedly asked Second Brother,
“Does it still hurt? Is the wound deep?”
“Mother, it’s not deep. I dodged a bit at the time, and everything’s been treated properly. Don’t worry.”
First Brother added,
“Father, don’t let Little Sister go to town in the future. It’s too dangerous.”
Oldest Younger Brother interrupted excitedly,
“You didn’t see it! Little Sister threw a few stones, and that madman fell to his knees begging—she’s amazing!”
“Just throwing stones won’t always work. What if it were even more dangerous? Little Sister shouldn’t go to town,” First Brother insisted.
Hearing her elder brothers’ concern, Yunshu felt a warm glow in her heart.
That evening, Tang Dashan brought the purchased pork, cakes, and a chicken to the village chief’s house. Zhao, the village chief, saw such generous offerings and said,
“Dashan, you don’t have to be so formal. I’ll accept the cakes, but the meat and chicken are too much. Take them back—you have many children, and Tangtang’s body is weak; she could use the nourishment.”
“Brother Zhao, you must accept the meat. You’ve helped our family so much over the years. This is just a small token of thanks. My daughter originally wanted to invite your family over, but as you know, our tables and chairs aren’t enough, so we didn’t.”
After Tang Dashan insisted, the village chief finally accepted the meat.
At home, Yunshu showed Zhao Lanzhi the new clothes she had bought for her grandparents.
“Oh, they’re lovely! Fine cotton, too. Your grandparents will love them. Yunshu, tomorrow we’ll go visit them—you come with me. They haven’t seen you for years and have been thinking about you. Every time we visit, they ask about you.”
“Alright, Mother. I’m feeling much better now. I’ll go with you and bring the pork, cakes, and chicken. We’ll also repay Grandma’s household’s silver.”
The next day, Zhao Lanzhi and Tang Yunshu went to Xinghua Village. The elderly couple were overjoyed to see Yunshu.
“Yunshu, sit down—you must be tired from the walk.”
“Grandma, I’m not tired. Here are the clothes I bought for you and Grandpa—please try them on.”
“Oh, you’re so thoughtful, fine cotton, too! I’m just a village granny, coarse cloth would do, but this is so soft—I’ll put it on now.”
“Old man, you try yours too, let your granddaughter see.”
Both put on the new clothes, their faces radiating happiness.
The grandmother said,
“They fit perfectly. Yunshu, you are such a filial child.” Her eyes squinted with a bright smile.
The grandfather said,
“I’m going out for a walk.”
The grandmother laughed,
“See your grandfather—off to show off to the other old men.”
Everyone laughed and chatted. They learned that the family had gone up the hill to gather herbs.
The grandmother added,
“Let’s have lunch here today, I’ll cook.”
“Grandma, will my uncles come back for lunch?”
“They won’t; they brought their own food.”
“Grandma, I’ll cook. You can chat with my mother.”
After eating at the Zhao household, Yunshu and her mother returned home.
Tang Dashan noticed,
“Why didn’t you two stay over there for a couple of nights?”
Zhao Lanzhi scolded playfully,
“I would have liked to, but if we weren’t home, you men would starve—none of you know how to cook.”
Tang Dashan just laughed sheepishly. He added,
“Tomorrow we have to start cleaning the fields—the grass has grown everywhere.”