Xing Er was used to being arrogant outside and rarely encountered someone like Zhuang Yubai, who was stubborn and unyielding. Feeling humiliated, he wanted to teach Zhuang Yubai a lesson. But unexpectedly, a “Lohan Vajra” appeared, with fists as big as sandbags, cracking his knuckles.
Xing Er had come in a hurry today and didn’t bring any followers. He looked up at Meng Zhizhang, feeling an intense pressure like a mountain pressing down on him, which immediately extinguished his arrogance. Just as he was at a loss for how to end the situation, he suddenly heard someone shouting his name from outside the courtyard.
“Master Xing Er, what are you doing here? We’ve been looking for you everywhere!”
Xing Er thought his reinforcements had arrived and was about to straighten his back, but then he heard the person, panting, add, “You better go to town quickly, there’s a problem with the sheep you bought!”
The tone didn’t sound like good news, and Xing Er’s heart sank. Losing money was a small matter, but the livestock for the old lady’s birthday celebration—if they were dead or injured, it would be inauspicious. However, this was a good excuse to escape from this troublesome situation. If he stayed any longer, he might suffer.
Before leaving, Xing Er wanted to throw out a few harsh words, but seeing that neither Meng Zhizhang nor Zhuang Yubai seemed easy to deal with, he could only glare viciously at Niu Dayou:
“Be careful with the charcoal and firewood. If there’s any mistake, don’t blame me for not paying!”
Xing Er eventually took the package of Gold and Jade Full House with him. When he handed it over to the steward, he casually remarked, “It’s just a small rural workshop. I don’t know which inexperienced people told the madam about this insignificant thing. The madam probably just listened out of curiosity. The old lady is so noble; how could her birthday banquet be tarnished by such lowly things!”
The steward glanced with drooping eyelids, also thinking that the Gold and Jade Full House was just some street trinket, praised only by those who hadn’t seen good things. He weighed the lotus leaf-wrapped package in his hand, about to deliver it, but suddenly turned and called Xing Er back, scolding him harshly: “How did you manage to bring back a dead sheep when I asked you to buy live ones! If you keep doing things so carelessly, I’ll dock half a month’s wages from you next time. What are you standing here for? Waiting for me to make you tea?”
Xing Er returned home with a belly full of anger, only to hear his mother, Ma Pozi, scolding a little maid as soon as he entered, filling the house with cries and wails.
Ma Pozi made a living by doing makeup for people, but recently her business had almost completely dried up. Not only could she not get new clients, but even her old patrons were avoiding her.
Logically, a big event like the birthday celebration at the Wu family should be a time when they were short-handed, and her son was in good standing with Young Master Wu. In the past, she would have been able to secure a job. Now, the entire Wu family was avoiding her. She didn’t believe it and went to them herself, only to be met with cold shoulders every time.
Ma Pozi was furious and had no outlet for her anger, so she took it out on the little maid.
Xing Er, having been snubbed by Zhuang Yubai and then scolded by the steward, was also full of anger. As he entered, he saw the little maid crying and picking up the broken teacup pieces from the floor.
The little maid was thin and frail, her downcast appearance reminding him of Zhuang Yubai hiding behind Meng Zhizhang. Xing Er’s anger flared up even more, and he viciously kicked the little maid on the shoulder, cursing:
“Who are you pretending to be pitiful for! Can’t you see I’m back? Hurry up and get me some tea! All you do is cry, cry, cry, like you’re mourning! You unlucky thing!”
The little maid, already weak, couldn’t withstand his vicious kick and fell heavily to the ground. Her palm landed on a shard of porcelain, cutting a half-inch gash that bled profusely. The little maid was so scared she forgot the pain, clutching her hand as she crawled and ran out.
With no outsiders in the room, Xing Er began to complain to Ma Pozi:
“You were really out of your mind back then, going to do makeup for a living dead person for just a couple of silver coins? Now look, not only have we not had a single job in over half a month, but even Young Master Wu has been avoiding me. If it weren’t for my job still being secure, how would we survive…”
Ma Pozi pulled out a heavily perfumed embroidered handkerchief from her sleeve, half-covering her face as she cried and cursed:
“It’s all that dead ghost from the river sacrifice’s fault, taking away my good fortune! Luckily, he was sacrificed like an animal, and now his bones must have been picked clean by fish! If he were still alive, I’d skin him alive!” Ma Pozi spat on the ground, “I only hope he reincarnates as a beast, to be ridden and beaten by thousands, never to rise again, to ease this grudge in my heart.”
As the mother and son were cursing loudly in the room, a servant came to deliver a message, telling Xing Er to go to Meng Family Village immediately.
“Order 100 Gold and Jade Full House as return gifts for the birthday banquet?!” Xing Er thought he had misheard and grabbed the servant’s collar to make him repeat.
“It’s true, the old lady called the steward in and personally gave the order. She specifically instructed to use the lotus leaf wrapping, calling it Gold and Jade Full House, Lotus Harmony!”
The package of Gold and Jade Full House was just a small, shabby package. The steward weighed it carefully and decided to give it to Madam Zhao, the madam’s attendant, to mention it when the madam was in a good mood, to see if it was what the madam was looking for.
The madam was a lady raised in luxury, having managed the household for years, and had seen good things. She probably just wanted to see the Gold and Jade Full House out of curiosity. If she didn’t like it, she might blame them. It was better to avoid trouble.
When Madam Zhao delivered the Gold and Jade Full House to the madam, the old lady and several girls from the family were also present. None of them had seen the Gold and Jade Full House before, so they gathered around to open the package. Somehow, the room suddenly became lively, filled with laughter and chatter, and soon they were calling for the steward.
The servant didn’t know what exactly happened in the back courtyard. He only knew that the steward quickly ran out and immediately sent someone to find Xing Er, saying that the old lady had instructed to add the Gold and Jade Full House to the return gift list.
Xing Er listened to the servant’s disjointed explanation and asked, “Did they say when they need it?”
“The third day is the main event, and the steward said they need everything on the gift shelves in the back courtyard by the evening of the first day. He will check.”
“…That means three days!” Xing Er imitated Meng Zhizhang’s gesture of clenching his fist, thinking it looked imposing, but his fist didn’t make the cracking sound he imagined. He touched the sachet given to him by Young Master Wu at his waist, “Let’s go, to Meng Family Village now!”
This time, Xing Er was cautious and brought four or five servants, each holding a stick, swaggering to block the door of Meng Zhizhang’s house. He wanted to regain the face he had lost earlier.
*
After lunch, the weather was hot. Zhuang Yubai sat in the shade, fanning himself, watching as Meng Zhizhang skillfully sliced dough into even pieces.
Before Zhuang Yubai could praise him, the wooden gate was kicked open. Leading the charge was none other than Master Xing Er from earlier.
Xing Er signaled to a servant beside him, who stepped forward: “Which one of you is in charge? We need 100 packages of Gold and Jade Full House, ready by the first day. Got it?”
“Who are you?” Zhuang Yubai stood up from his stool, pointing his fan at the newcomers, “100 packages? Sorry! Business is booming, and orders are booked until the Dragon Boat Festival. Come back in late May!”
After saying this, Zhuang Yubai moved closer to Meng Zhizhang.
Meng Zhizhang’s knife never stopped slicing, his breathing steady, his rhythm unchanged. With each precise cut of the sharp blade, a piece of pale pink dough fell in his strong, slender hands. Zhuang Yubai felt that the person before him had the demeanor of a great general, calm and composed despite the storm within.
Xing Er seemed to be waiting for Zhuang Yubai to refuse: “Dare to challenge Master Xing Er, do you even know your own weight?”
“What are you trying to do? Breaking into a private residence in broad daylight!” Zhuang Yubai saw that the situation looked bad, and he couldn’t hide, nor could he win a fight. He suddenly remembered how Meng Zhizhang had used the law to suppress him when he first arrived, so he straightened his back and said loudly:
“According to the ‘Great Heng Penal Code,’ Volume 18, entering someone’s home without cause is punishable by forty lashes. If the owner kills you on the spot, it’s not a crime… Volume 19, carrying a stick to rob, regardless of whether there’s stolen goods, is punishable by death!”
But this tactic didn’t work on the people in front of him.
“What death and life, what are you chanting!”
“Has he gone mad? Shut up!”
The servants wouldn’t listen to his scholarly words, each one looking fierce.
A scholar encountering soldiers, reason is hard to convey. Zhuang Yubai realized that his strategy wasn’t intimidating the enemy. It seemed that if he didn’t shut up, the sticks waving in the air would soon come down on him.
Zhuang Yubai quickly tugged on Meng Zhizhang’s sleeve: “Brother Meng, say something!”
The last piece of dough fell, and Meng Zhizhang covered all the pieces with a cloth, then wiped his hands with a towel from his waist.
“There’s a book called ‘Zhuangzi’ on the shelf, find it for me.” A warm, firm hand rested on Zhuang Yubai’s shoulder.
“Now?” Zhuang Yubai blinked, gesturing for Meng Zhizhang to look at the current situation.
“Now.” His gaze was firm.
“What time is it to be reading…” Before he could finish, Zhuang Yubai was pushed into the room by Meng Zhizhang.
And the door was locked.
Zhuang Yubai walked to the window… the window was also locked from the outside!
“Brother Meng! Meng…” Zhuang Yubai was puzzled. Did he intend to fight these people? There were four or five of them, all armed, and he was just a scholar. Even if he was sturdy, a tiger fallen to the plains would still be bullied by dogs.
No way! He had to call for help. If the front door was blocked, he’d use the back door. Zhuang Yubai moved a stool and skillfully went to the north window. The last time he climbed out a window was when he mistook Niu Dayou for a robber.
The courtyard was filled with shouts of fighting, sounds of collision, and cries of pain…
Zhuang Yubai’s heart trembled with each sound. He had never seen a fight, let alone a brawl. He couldn’t tell which cries were from Meng Zhizhang, but he felt as if every blow landed on Meng Zhizhang…
It hurt!
They were the best of brothers, at least Zhuang Yubai thought so. How could he bear to see his good brother suffer?
“Brother Meng, hang in there, I’ll get help.”
Zhuang Yubai lifted his robe and climbed onto the stool, praying to every deity he knew, hoping that every blow meant for his brother would bounce back to the villains.
With a clatter, the window opened, and fresh air rushed in, making Zhuang Yubai cough twice.
He climbed out, half-kneeling on the hard windowsill, the rough frame hurting his knees. But he didn’t care about that; he was determined to save his brother.
Just as Zhuang Yubai was about to jump out, the door behind him opened with a creak.
Meng Zhizhang stood leisurely at the door, looking over with a calm demeanor. The breeze gently lifted his clothes, outlining his slender waist and long legs. The light from outside shone in, and he stood in that light, his gaze warm and firm.
Zhuang Yubai was helped down from the windowsill by a warm, firm hand. As he walked out of the room, he saw the servants kneeling in a row in the corner, grimacing and rubbing their arms and legs. When they saw Meng Zhizhang approaching, they instinctively covered their injuries and backed away, eyes filled with fear.
The once arrogant Xing Er also had a bruised face, looking like a cooked shrimp, hunched over and red-faced, being scolded harshly by someone.