Zhuang Yubai sighed first, setting the tone: “I just spoke without thinking earlier. I can’t remember if I’ve been to the Prefecture City or not. But it’s okay, if only one of us can go, you should go. After all, it’s your exam. As for me… just bring me back some good food.”
Zhuang Yubai comforted the other, his lips curling into a perfect smile. In his heart, he gave himself a thumbs up, thinking he was not only a money-making genius but also very… understanding, well-read, and discerning.
In every aspect, hurry up and praise me. Zhuang Yubai squatted beside the sturdy figure, lifting his innocent, watery eyes to look at Meng Zhizhang, like a little kitten eagerly waiting for a treat.
The flames flickered, and in the dim light, the intertwined shadows of the two swayed slightly.
Meng Zhizhang withdrew his gaze.
The sound of water resumed, one splash after another, adding a touch of charm to the slightly cramped space.
Zhuang Yubai didn’t get his treat. He blinked. Oh well, no praise then. It’s okay, it’s just that Meng Zhizhang is too shy to compliment people, but Zhuang Yubai still got the message.
He put away the paper, ready to stand up, when suddenly the sound of water stopped without warning.
Is it time for the award ceremony? Zhuang Yubai straightened up, and as he looked up, an oval lump of gluten was handed to him, moist and tender.
“How about this?”
“…?” Zhuang Yubai looked at the person in front of him and then at the lump of gluten, suddenly realizing, “It’s great. Well done!”
No matter what, Meng Zhizhang did a great job with the physical work, and he learned quickly. Whenever Zhuang Yubai tried to wash gluten himself, he would lose strength halfway through and never managed to make such a complete and elastic lump of gluten.
Half a moon hung in the clear sky, the night was bright, and occasionally a breeze brushed against his face, cool and refreshing.
The gluten was soaked in clear water, ready to be fried with shrimp chips in the morning. The starch water was left to settle slowly in the ventilated courtyard.
Zhuang Yubai followed closely behind Meng Zhizhang, like a sensible little tail, maintaining an appropriate distance to avoid hindering the other’s work, yet always adjusting his position to ensure they could communicate and provide emotional support.
Of course, the main topic was the ten taels of silver they would soon have in hand.
“Oh dear,” Zhuang Yubai suddenly stepped forward and tugged on Meng Zhizhang’s sleeve, “We forgot to account for a very important cost!”
“What?” Meng Zhizhang paused his hand on the sieve of starch. The paste-like wet starch was spread evenly, requiring some strength and skill.
“Labor. We didn’t account for the people doing the work.” Zhuang Yubai looked seriously at Meng Zhizhang, but quickly figured it out himself, “Never mind, we’re a small business now, you and I can handle this work ourselves.”
Zhuang Yubai thought of something else, took a step forward, and rolled up his sleeve to reveal a thin, pale arm: “I’m weak, can’t do much physical work. Brother Meng, you have to understand.”
To show he wasn’t pretending, he forced his bicep to flex, standing on tiptoe to present it to Meng Zhizhang.
Moonlight shone on the small, barely bulging muscle, even the moonlight seemed to lose its strength.
Although Meng Zhizhang’s gaze remained on the arm, he didn’t say much.
Understanding or not? Zhuang Yubai poked his forearm with a finger, “Look, it’s so thin, not much strength.”
“…” Under the cover of night, Meng Zhizhang swallowed imperceptibly.
Seeing no reaction from the other, Zhuang Yubai simply stood on tiptoe, grabbed Meng Zhizhang’s sleeve, and rolled it up as well.
Just like reading a mountain, one doesn’t like it flat. The same goes for muscles.
Under the moonlight, Meng Zhizhang’s arm was like a sturdy tree trunk, with undulating lines beneath which surged strength, each muscle like a small hill, no, like a series of small volcanoes ready to erupt, rippling with every movement, full of explosive power.
Zhuang Yubai looked down at his own arm beside it.
A small, thin, straight line, clear to the end, smooth and unbroken.
Well, it’s not unusable.
But the difference between people can sometimes be as vast as that between a kitten and a black panther.
Zhuang Yubai silently pulled his sleeve down, covering his hand.
“No worries.” A magnetic voice sounded from above.
Zhuang Yubai looked up to see Meng Zhizhang standing upright, facing him, his large figure looming over him.
“Where strength is needed, I’ve got it.”
*
Remembering that the peddler Zhang would come early to pick up the goods, Zhuang Yubai woke up earlier than usual.
The cloth ropes on his hands and feet were already untied, and he rubbed his eyes as he got out of bed.
The room was quiet, and the courtyard was quiet too.
Two large sieves of starch were set in the middle of the courtyard, already slanted with some sunlight. The lump of gluten had been changed to fresh water, placed in a cool spot, ready to be fried into golden balls at any time.
Steam rose from the stove, indicating breakfast was ready.
Zhuang Yubai rubbed his stomach, admitting that the aroma of food was the best “good morning kiss,” no, no, the best “good morning.”
He searched every corner of the house but couldn’t find Meng Zhizhang. Strange, where could he have gone so early? It wasn’t until he saw the slightly open wooden gate that he remembered the back garden.
Meng Zhizhang, dressed in coarse cloth, was using the two strong arms Zhuang Yubai had seen last night, wielding an iron fork to move clumps of semi-fermented compost from the old pile to the new one.
His sleeves were half-rolled, meticulously folded to an inch wide, snugly wrapped around his firm wrists, revealing two sections of honey-colored arms. The morning light shone on his veined skin, coating it with a hard golden texture. The veins bulged, moving like dragons in water, stirring a masculine aura.
Zhuang Yubai had seen many statues of the Greek sea god Poseidon, holding a trident, standing over vast waves, with broad shoulders and a tight abdomen, bare-chested, with well-proportioned muscle lines, celebrating the power and beauty of the human body. His gaze was soul-capturing, exuding a sense of superiority and disdain for all.
But at this moment, in this scene, Meng Zhizhang was the perfect sea god in his eyes. A living sea god in clothes, with a softer and more honest undertone.
The living sea god not only made him breakfast, prepared the shrimp chips for frying, but also came early to turn the compost pile. Truly a reliable brother!
Eager to get closer, Zhuang Yubai almost stepped into the seedbed.
The seedlings planted yesterday were standing upright, each leaf spread out, looking vibrant in the sunlight.
“Awake?” Meng Zhizhang looked over as he swung the fork, watching Zhuang Yubai wobble over, “How’s the compost turning?”
Indeed, gods always bring an inexplicable sense of pressure. Zhuang Yubai exhaled half a breath, walked closer to check the compost’s fermentation.
To be fair, the compost was in great condition, indicating the carbon-nitrogen ratio, moisture-heat state, and compost shape were all up to standard, which made Zhuang Yubai very happy, even a bit proud.
He, Zhuang Yubai, was about to become the god of composting in this time and space, easily comparable to the sea god wielding a trident.
When the peddler Zhang came shaking his rattle from the path leading to the North Mountain, Zhuang Yubai and Meng Zhizhang had already had breakfast and were sitting by the pomegranate tree in the courtyard, packing the newly made jade chips and golden balls into lotus leaves.
They hadn’t discussed the price of the jade chips yesterday, and the peddler Zhang hadn’t slept well all night. When he heard they were selling for 8 wen a pack, he thought he misheard.
“These jade chips, really 8 wen?”
“Is it too expensive, 8 wen hard to sell?” Zhuang Yubai’s heart tightened, “Then in your opinion, what’s a suitable price?”
“This should be at least a dozen wen.” The peddler Zhang weighed a pack of jade chips in his hand, “This big pack, and I still take 1 wen, can you really make a profit, young master?”
“Don’t worry, we all make a profit!” Zhuang Yubai took out the packed 10 packs of golden balls and 10 packs of jade chips, also a small half-pack of loose shrimp chips, “The jade chips are new to the market, people haven’t seen them, let them try first, if they like it, they’ll buy.”
“Don’t look at the young master’s age, he does things very steadily.” The peddler Zhang took them, full of admiration for this literary star’s cousin.
A special space had been cleared on the goods rack, and the peddler Zhang placed the lotus leaf packages one by one, securing them with a fishing net. Fortunately, the golden balls and jade chips weren’t heavy, but the fully loaded goods rack looked like a small mountain.
Meng Zhizhang handed two simple little flags to the peddler Zhang, pointing out the words one by one: “This is ‘Peddler Zhang,’ these four words are ‘Gold and Jade Full House,’ hang them on the rack as a sign.”
The peddler Zhang was stunned, not reacting for a moment. A sign, that’s something only shops and businesses hang. Although some street doctors or larger peddler stalls also have signs, those are considered reputable. This rack was inherited from his father, and he never thought it would have a sign in his hands!
He awkwardly wiped his hands on his clothes, hurriedly stepped forward to take them solemnly, “Gold and Jade Full House Peddler Zhang,” he tried saying it softly, feeling embarrassed, like introducing himself anew on his wedding night.
The two little flags stood tall on the goods rack, the wind blowing the flags, and the peddler Zhang’s smile grew wider. He took out his money pouch, calculating in his mind, a pack for 8 wen, 20 packs for 160 wen.
Meng Zhizhang, having exchanged a glance with Zhuang Yubai, stopped the peddler Zhang from counting money.
“The jade chips and golden balls together are a considerable sum, and you can certainly afford it. But since these are homemade, a bit of effort, there’s no need for you to bear so much cost. You go sell them first, and when you collect the money, pay us back the cost. This was Hu Po’s suggestion, knowing Brother Zhang’s family is about to grow and needs money, so he proposed this, don’t think we’re looking down on you.”
The literary star called him “Brother Zhang” with every sentence, making the peddler Zhang feel a bit lost. Giving him such a good business, a sign, and not letting him bear the cost, this… is there really such a good thing in the world, and it all falls on him?
The peddler Zhang felt a sourness in his heart, usually having some “tricks” for selling goods on the street, but now he couldn’t muster any of that cleverness. There wasn’t much he could do to repay them, so he silently remembered this kindness.
After sending off the peddler Zhang, Meng Zhizhang also went to the academy, taking a few packs of golden balls and jade chips with him.
The courtyard quieted down, leaving only Zhuang Yubai at home. He turned over the drying starch blocks, then went to the kitchen. He scooped out all the shrimp from the bucket, estimating just over a pound. With the sales prospects looking good, the production capacity needed to keep up.
Zhuang Yubai used all the shrimp to make several round dough pieces, enough for 20 packs of shrimp chips. Recently, Dayou was busy in the mountains and didn’t have time to help with shrimp, so a new source was needed.
Steam billowed, and the pink dough pieces emerged from the boiling water, placed one by one in a cool spot to dry.
The flour at home was also running low. Just as Zhuang Yubai was searching the kitchen for more grain, the wooden gate clattered open.
Zhuang Yubai went out to see a woman in her thirties or forties. She wore a clean and tidy coarse cloth long robe, her hair wrapped in a cloth scarf, with a plain silver hairpin inserted diagonally.
“You’re Hu Po, right? I’m Huai Ren’s mother, the boy who brought the loofah a few days ago. I ran into Zhizhang earlier, he said you were home, so I came over after finishing my chores. I have something to discuss with you.”
Author’s Note: