The old man selling malt candy heard a scrawny little ge’er following him and copying his hawking calls—selling wild greens, no less, the kind found everywhere that nobody cared for.
The old man couldn't help but chuckle.
"Little ge’er, why are you hawking wild greens? Those aren't anything rare. Save your voice—you won't sell any."
Hearing this, Shen Song looked over. Aside from the Shen family and the three children including Hutou whom he had scared off, this was the first time anyone had spoken to him.
Shen Song felt a little nervous, looking at the old malt candy seller as if he were some important figure.
"Thank you for your concern, Old Grandpa, but the wild greens my family dug up are really delicious. I think I can sell them."
The old man was stunned. When had he ever shown concern for this little ge’er?
Thinking over what he'd said, could it be that this ge’er took his "save your voice" as genuine concern that his throat would get sore?
The old man had only been teasing, meaning to tell the two young fellows to stop wasting their effort—it was nothing like what the ge’er had understood.
Shen Yi'an, however, understood what the old man meant. He knew the old man meant no harm and was probably just a talkative sort, so he said nothing.
Shen Song whispered to Shen Yi'an, "Good nephew, this old grandpa doesn't even know me, yet he's concerned about my voice. I want to give him some wild greens so he can taste how delicious the ones we dug up are."
"Little Uncle, he actually wasn't showing concern for you," Shen Yi'an whispered back.
Shen Song's eyes went wide with confusion. "He wasn't concerned?"
He thought back—in the Interstellar Era, saying something like that meant concern.
Due to lifespan, lifestyle, material conditions, genes, species, and a whole host of other factors, communication between people in the Interstellar Era had long since done away with euphemism, implication, and subtlety.
Everyone said exactly what they thought.
Interpersonal interactions were very direct.
One was one, two was two.
In Shen Song's view, when the old man told him to save his voice, that meant he was concerned about his throat and wanted him to rest it—there was no other meaning.
After hearing Shen Yi'an's explanation, Shen Song felt that as an alien, he still had a lot to learn.
Still, Shen Yi'an let Shen Song grab a handful of wild greens. "Little Uncle, giving him a handful is fine. Our wild greens are tasty, and an old man selling malt candy probably isn't short of money at home. If he likes the taste, he might even come back to buy from us later."
Shen Yi'an figured the old man had a point—their wild greens weren't anything rare. If people hadn't tasted them, no matter how much they boasted, no one would know what they actually tasted like.
Shen Song thought Shen Yi'an was clever. He grabbed a handful of wild greens from his back basket and stuffed them into the old man's hands.
Even though his nephew said that wasn't what the old man meant, Shen Song still spoke honestly: "Old Grandpa, these wild greens are to thank you for your concern. I also want you to taste how delicious the ones my family dug up are. If you like them when you get home, next time you see me, remember to call me over to buy some."
The old man found himself holding a big handful of wild greens. There was a bit of mud on the roots, but the vegetables were neatly arranged and looked fresh, tender, and crisp.
"Wait a moment."
The old man called out to Shen Song and Shen Yi'an as they were about to leave. Using a small bamboo sliver, he pried some malt candy out of his worn wooden box and handed it to Shen Song.
"Don't say this old man took advantage of you—this malt candy is worth a coin these days. Here, take it and eat."
Before Shen Yi'an could open his mouth to refuse, Shen Song had already reached out and happily accepted it. "Thank you, Grandpa! Next time you come buy wild greens from me, I'll give you lots!"
The old man hadn't expected Shen Song to just take it directly. Normally there should have been some polite refusal first.
But he had intended to give it anyway, so with the ge’er accepting so readily, it saved time.
He put the wild greens in his coin box and left, carrying his shoulder pole.
Shen Song smelled the sweet fragrance of the malt candy and couldn't help drooling.
He held it up to Shen Yi'an's mouth. "Good nephew, take a bite quick. After you eat, I'll eat."
Shen Yi'an had lived twelve years since birth and hadn't eaten malt candy more than twice, and he was craving it terribly too. But he held back his craving and shook his head. "Little Uncle, you eat it yourself."
Shen Song said no way. "If you don't eat, I'll feel too embarrassed to eat it. But I really want to, so good nephew, hurry and take a bite. Little Uncle is dying of craving here!"
Shen Yi'an was stunned. His little uncle really did say whatever was on his mind.
"Then I'll take a bite."
Shen Yi'an opened his mouth, planning to just lick it a little, but Shen Song pushed it straight into his mouth, making him bite. Left with no choice, Shen Yi'an bit off half.
The malt candy was soft, melting in his mouth with pure sweetness.
If you pulled it back and forth with two little sticks, it would slowly turn white and hard, and then licking it slowly would let you enjoy it longer.
Shen Song didn't know this other way of eating malt candy and just stuck the sugared end of the bamboo splint straight into his mouth.
The moment the malt candy entered his mouth, it was so sweet Shen Song's eyes narrowed. This was so delicious!
When he made money selling wild greens, he'd buy some to bring back for Sanqiu and the others, and for Mom and Father too.
Once the malt candy in Shen Song's and Shen Yi'an's mouths had melted away, they started hawking wild greens again as they walked.
They hawked from one end of the street to the other, and no one bought anything.
Not even anyone asking the price.
With the sun sinking lower and lower, the two crouched on the ground hugging their vegetable baskets.
"Looks like we really can't sell them." Shen Song gripped the edge of his basket, feeling dejected.
Shen Yi'an had expected this. "Let's go to the Xu Family Restaurant."
"Huh? What for?" Shen Song asked with some hope. "Are we going to eat? But we don't have any money."
Shen Yi'an fell silent, suddenly understanding why Second Uncle Gu had only told him this morning and not his little uncle.
His little uncle's head was full of nothing but tasty food.
"Second Uncle Gu said if we really can't sell them, we should go to the Xu Family Restaurant and find his big brother. Uncle Zhou works as a cook at the Xu Family Restaurant. We'll bring him some wild greens. If Uncle Zhou likes the taste, he might persuade his boss to buy our wild greens."
Shen Song wasn't clear about these social dealings. In the Interstellar Era, what he saw most every day was the robot butler.
In daily life, what he saw was mostly robots too.
It didn't matter that he didn't understand—Shen Yi'an did, so he would just follow Shen Yi'an closely.
It wasn't mealtime yet, so there weren't many people in the Xu Family Restaurant. After explaining their purpose to the waiter, the two were led to a small back door.
Before long, Uncle Zhou appeared at the small door.
"Yi'an, why did you bring your little uncle here?"
Uncle Zhou looked quite old, his hair half white. But he seemed very spirited—straight-backed, tall and sturdy, with a steady air and a booming voice. Compared to people who scratched a living from the soil, his energy and vigor were on a different level.
Zhou Niandong knew that the youngest brother-in-law of the Shen family, into which his younger brother had married, seemed to be a bit slow in the head—always dull and foolish.
When the shop assistant said a young man and a ge’er from the Shen family had come looking for him, Zhou Niandong wondered who it could be, assuming it was Shen Yi'an bringing Shen Sanqiu along.
But when they met, he found it was Shen Yi'an and that dull, foolish Shen Song.
Zhou Niandong thought something must have happened at the Shen family for these two to come, and a look of anxiety crept onto his face.
But Shen Song smiled and said, "Hello, Uncle. Yi'an and I came to bring you some wild greens."
Shen Yi'an tugged at his little uncle's sleeve and whispered, "Little Uncle, you should call him Big Brother, not Uncle. The generations don't match."
Shen Song realized he had addressed him wrong and immediately corrected himself, "Big Brother Zhou."
Zhou Niandong waved his hand with a smile, first thinking that this Song-ge’er didn't seem so dull after all, then wondering why they had suddenly come to deliver wild greens.
In past years, they only ever sent vegetables, never wild greens dug from the ground.
Shen Yi'an set down the back basket and showed Zhou Niandong the wild greens inside. "Second Uncle Gu said to ask Big Uncle Zhou to take as much as he'd like. Stir-fried or used as filling for pancakes and buns, they're all wonderful."
One glance at the wild greens in the basket and Zhou Niandong understood why they had come.
Such fresh, tender wild greens were indeed fine. And seeing the basket was full, he knew so much couldn't all be a gift. From Shen Yi'an's words, it was Gu-ge’er who had sent them.
Thinking it over, Zhou Niandong asked, "Did you two come to town to sell these wild greens?"
Shen Song and Shen Yi'an both nodded.
Zhou Niandong thought to himself that this Gu-ge’er hadn't sent the children to give him vegetables at all—he was hoping he would buy some.
The wild greens in the basket did look good; their taste and texture wouldn't be bad.
If they were cultivated vegetables, they would surely sell without any trouble.
But they weren't. No matter how fresh and tender, wild greens from the fields never fetched a good price—unless they were something like Chinese toon sprouts, which could sell for a bit more.
Seeing the two children's cheeks flushed red, he knew they must have walked a long way, and seeing the basket still full, he realized they hadn't sold a single one.
"Stop delivering. I'll buy these wild greens on behalf of the restaurant. Hurry home. I hear the old magistrate in the county has been replaced, and the new one hasn't arrived yet. With no authority in the mountains, it's not as safe as before. It's dangerous late at night—don't travel in the dark."
Shen Song and Shen Yi'an were delighted to hear this and immediately began taking out the vegetables.
Zhou Niandong went inside and brought out a steelyard scale, bundling the wild greens together with hemp rope. The whole basketful came to twenty jin.
"In the county, this kind of wild green sells for one wen per jin, and the price in town is even lower. Twenty jin of wild greens—I'll give you twenty wen. Will that do?"
Zhou Niandong wasn't cheating them; that really was the market price.
In town, forget about low prices—there was hardly anyone buying at all.
Shen Yi'an knew that Big Uncle Zhou was only offering them this price out of regard for Second Uncle Gu.
Otherwise, even at this price, they wouldn't have been able to sell any. They would have had to drop it to one wen for two jin before anyone would buy.
Shen Song didn't understand prices. His mind was full of the old man selling malt candy—the little bit of syrup he'd given him, saying it was worth one wen.
And their wild greens took five big handfuls to sell for one wen.
Shen Song pressed his lips together; the sweet taste of malt candy still lingered in his mouth.
For a moment, he didn't know whether the malt candy was too expensive, or the wild greens too cheap.
But by this reckoning, he had given the malt candy old man too little wild greens. Next time he saw him, he'd have to make it up to him.
Fifty copper coins strung together with hemp cord, Zhou Niandong handed them to Shen Yi'an.
Shen Song stared curiously at that small stack of coins, thinking it looked like quite a lot.
After handing over the money, Zhou Niandong said earnestly to the two of them, "This money only buys five jin of rice at most. Your whole family would eat through it in a meal or two. Digging wild greens to sell really isn't worth it—no one in town will buy them. Restaurants don't use many wild greens either. What I bought today will last a good long while; I probably won't even finish it. Don't dig any more to sell. Over ten-some days to earn this little bit of copper—or maybe not even that—it's really not worth it."
Shen Song did the math in his head. Twenty jin of wild greens would feed their family for three or four days. And yet the money from those greens, turned into rice, would only last a meal or two?
By that reckoning, it really wasn't profitable at all.
Not to mention the time they spent digging, then carrying it all over—labor and time had to be counted too. And his mental energy as well. After spending so much, it seemed that instead of profiting, they'd taken a big loss.
Shen Song no longer thought twenty wen was a lot of money. How was that much? It was pitifully little.
Both of them nodded to Zhou Niandong to show they understood.
Shen Yi'an put the copper coins in his back basket, and he and Shen Song headed back to Shenjiagou in the glow of the setting sun.
The Xu Family Restaurant began taking customers.
A waiter came to call Zhou Niandong to start cooking, and helped him carry the wild greens to the kitchen.
The waiter said, "Uncle Zhou, you bought this many wild greens—can your family finish eating them all?"
Zhou Niandong had said he was buying for the restaurant, but in fact he was paying out of his own pocket.
He was just a hired worker; how could he make decisions for the owner?
Zhou Niandong said, "It's fine. I've looked over these wild greens—they're all very fresh and tender. The taste probably won't be bad. If the family eats them for a few extra days, we'll finish them. Oh, and for dinner tonight, if you don't mind, I'll add a stir-fried wild greens dish."
The Xu Family Restaurant provided meals, one in the morning and one in the evening.
The morning meal was eaten before customers arrived; the evening one was eaten when most of the customers had left.
What they ate was up to the cook—as long as it was within the spending the owner allowed, anything went.
The waiter said happily, "I'd think that's wonderful. These wild greens really are fresh and tender. I haven't had them in a long while, and I've been missing the taste."
The old man selling malt candy returned home and set down his carrying pole with its wooden boxes.
His old spouse, Chen Fulang, had already prepared water for washing his hands and face, so he could clean off the grime and feel more comfortable.
"Where did these wild greens in your money box come from?" Holding a handful of wild greens, Chen Fulang saw the evasive look in his spouse's eyes and knew the old man must have traded malt candy for them again.
"I told you to sell the malt candy, not trade it for things. Trading for something else would be one thing, but how could you trade it for just this little bit of wild greens? Third Son's spouse is about to give birth, and Fifth is nearly old enough to be matched. The family needs money everywhere. Tell me, you old fool, how can you still be so careless with money?"
The old man had no choice but to explain the whole story.
"You know well enough my habit of running my mouth. I just never expected that young ge’er to actually believe I cared about him, and to insist on pressing wild greens into my hands, telling me to have a taste. My conscience felt uneasy, so I gave him a bit of malt candy—not much, just that one small piece."
After hearing his spouse out, Chen Fulang found it hard to blame him after all.
"Well, then this can't be blamed on you—you ran into such a stubbornly earnest little ge’er. Never mind. I see these wild greens are quite tender. Third Son's wife has terrible morning sickness these days—he vomits up everything he eats. He went to see the doctor today, and the doctor said if this keeps up, he's afraid it won't be good. Ah, who knows why he's vomiting so badly. Let's make something light for him to try—though who knows if he'll even be able to keep it down."
Chen Fulang took the wild greens and, with a worried frown, went into the kitchen to busy himself.
Inside the room, the young ge’er rubbed his round belly, his face so thin it had lost its shape.
The sorrow between his brows was thick and impossible to dissolve. Listening to his two fathers-in-law talking outside, he could only sigh helplessly.
He wanted to eat too, but he truly couldn't get anything down…