The next day, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Shen Qingyue rose in the dark.
A thin scab had already formed over the wound on her forehead. Avoiding it, she splashed a few handfuls of clean water over her face in the courtyard, and that counted as washing up.
The Shen family couldn’t afford kerosene or candles, so the only light in the kitchen came from the firewood burning in the stove.
She couldn’t bear to wake Huzi up so early, so she fumbled around on her own, turning all the remaining potatoes into mashed potatoes and packing them into a clean small basin.
Then she opened the cornmeal that Shen Changshan had brought the day before and, with nimble hands, fried up more than a dozen unleavened flatbreads. She kept a few for herself and Huzi, leaving the rest in the pot.
She carried Taotao onto Madam Bai’s bed, instructed Madam Bai to bolt the front door from the inside, and told her that breakfast was left for her on the stove. Then, with Huzi yawning and rubbing his sleepy eyes, the two of them headed out.
The pair walked all the way to the willow tree at the east end of the village to wait.
Not many families in the village owned an ox cart, but Uncle Liu, who lived alone at the east end, had one.
He was too old to work the fields, so he made his living ferrying villagers to and from the town market, earning a bit of cart fare.
Quite a few people were going to the market that day. A small ox cart was packed with eight people in total, and the old yellow ox pulling it could barely stretch its legs.
The cart trundled along for half the day before finally reaching town.
Taoyang Town governed more than twenty villages, and every market day, people came and went in an endless stream.
Shen Qingyue led Huzi to a spot under a stone bridge, where the sunlight could reach and it was relatively warm, and set up their stall.
Huzi deftly opened the small basin of mashed potatoes and, following the training Shen Qingyue had given him in advance, arranged a stack of small dishes borrowed from the village head’s house to one side. Then he started hawking.
“Come and try, aunties and uncles, big brothers and sisters, little ones too! A delicacy you’ve never seen in the whole of Heshan County! Come take a look! One copper coin a dish!”
The market was in full swing, with people bustling back and forth.
Someone heard his hawking and stopped, looking disdainful.
“Kid, don’t blow your horn too loud. I, Master Chen, have eaten everything under the sun. Let me have a taste.”
The man fished a copper coin out of his sleeve and tossed it into Shen Qingyue’s arms, took the dish Huzi handed over, and skipped the chopsticks entirely, shoving the whole thing into his mouth in one bite.
“What is this stuff?” The man frowned, chewing thoughtfully—but the more he chewed, the more flavorful it became.
“Big brother, it’s mashed potatoes. But potatoes alone aren’t enough—the key is the seasoning. That’s our Shen family’s secret recipe. No one else can make this taste.”
Seeing Master Chen lingering in front of the stall for so long, others grew curious and gathered around in twos and threes.
One copper coin wasn’t much to spend, and it was worth it just for the novelty. Before long, the small basin of mashed potatoes was scraped clean.
Some people were still savoring the taste. “What’s in this? I’ve never tasted anything like it before.”
“Will you come back next market day? I want to buy some for my two little rascals at home too.”
Shen Qingyue hadn’t expected the mashed potatoes to be so popular. She made up her mind to use them to earn her starting capital on the road to wealth!
“Come back the day after tomorrow—we’ll be here again. Please do patronize us!”
The crowd gradually dispersed, and Shen Qingyue and Huzi crouched excitedly by the bridge, counting the copper coins in the bowl.
“Twenty-eight coppers.”
Shen Qingyue looked up at Huzi, wondering what the purchasing power of this era was and what level twenty-eight coppers represented.
But Huzi’s mouth hung wide open, his lips trembling. “S-Sis, those few potatoes… sold for twenty-eight coppers?!”
Judging by Huzi’s reaction, it must have been a good haul. Shen Qingyue nodded proudly. “Pretty impressive, your second sister, right?”
Huzi nodded eagerly. “Second sister, when eldest sister got married, brother-in-law’s family only brought over a hundred coppers. We’ve earned twenty-eight in just this short while—a few more times and we can buy eldest sister back.”
Shen Qingyue patted his head. “Don’t talk nonsense. Here, eat up.”
She handed Huzi one of the flatbreads she’d brought. “There’s no oil in it, so it might not taste great, but make do. After we eat, we’ll go buy some things, and your second sister will get you and Taotao some candy.”
No matter how sensible Huzi was, he was still just an eight-year-old child. Hearing there was candy to be had, he happily stuffed the cornmeal flatbread into his mouth in two or three big bites.
As she ate, Shen Qingyue planned in her head.
The most urgent thing was to buy more potatoes. There wasn’t much skill involved in this, and it wouldn’t be long before someone copied her. She needed to ride the wave and make another round of money before the new year.
She also needed to buy some oil and salt. She hadn’t had any salt these past days, and she felt weak all over.
After lunch, the siblings packed up their stall and wandered around town.
After buying a motley assortment of things, Shen Qingyue slammed on the brakes when she saw only five coppers left in her hand.
If she bought anything else, she wouldn’t even have the cart fare.
Seeing that time was about up, Shen Qingyue hurried Huzi toward their meeting spot.
Inside a window-side private room of a tavern on the street, a handsome young man of seventeen or eighteen, elegant and refined beyond compare, watched Shen Qingyue and the boy disappear around the corner, gently turning the teacup in his hand.
“Young Master.” Mo Ying pushed the door open and entered, “Mo Bei has made contact. He says this trip to Jiangnan was a trap from the start, with multiple ambushes set up ahead. You must not go any further.”
The man lowered his head and took a gentle sip of tea. When he raised his head again, his amber, star-like eyes were filled with murderous intent and ruthlessness.
“Tell Mo Bei to find a way to make it look like something happened to me. Let’s see how this stepmother, the new Princess Consort, explains herself to the old man.”
“Understood.” Mo Ying clasped his fists, “Then, Young Master, where shall we go?”
The man’s gaze drifted back to the bustling street corner.
“Naturally, we’ll find a kind-hearted villager’s home to lie low…”
When Shen Qingyue and her brother arrived at the agreed spot, the ox cart was already packed with people, just waiting for the two siblings.
Shen Qingyue and her brother quickly hugged their bamboo baskets and found a place to sit.
The cart rumbled out of town, slowly making its way toward Hewan Village.
The gentle, rhythmic rocking was the best hypnotic. Just as Shen Qingyue was about to be lulled to sleep, the wheels jolted to a stop, snapping her awake instantly. She realized the ox cart had already stopped at the entrance of Hewan Village.
After getting off and paying the fare, Shen Qingyue hoisted the heavy bamboo basket onto her back, took Huzi’s hand, and headed into the village.
It was already past noon. Taotao had finished her pancake and was playing with her little brother when she suddenly heard a rhythmic knock at the door.
Her big eyes instantly curved into crescents. “Three long, one short—Second Sister is back from the market!”
She leaped up excitedly and ran to the courtyard to open the door for her brother and sister.
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