After Grain Rain, the weather grew warmer. Su Mo was drying mugwort in the backyard—the ones she had picked a few days earlier couldn’t all be used up, so drying and storing them would allow for future use. The sunlight was good, causing the mugwort leaves to curl up, and their strong medicinal scent faded, turning into a dry, gentle fragrance.
While she was turning and drying them, Zhou Cheng arrived. He came after school, carrying his book box, with fine sweat on his forehead.
"Nian He, busy?" he greeted with a smile.
"Yes, drying mugwort." Su Mo straightened up, wiping her hands. "Brother Cheng finished school? What would you like to eat today?"
"Anything simple is fine." Zhou Cheng set down his book box and came over to look at the mugwort. "After drying this, can it still be used to make Qingtuan?"
"For Qingtuan, fresh mugwort tastes better. Dried mugwort is good for boiling water for bathing or repelling insects."
"You really know how to live well." Zhou Cheng praised, then suddenly remembered something. "Oh, these past few days, many classmates at the County School have been saying they want to eat the dishes you make. But lunch break is short, coming to East Market Street takes nearly half an hour round trip, so it’s not feasible. Someone asked me if I could help bring meals."
Su Mo paused: "Bring meals?"
"Yes." Zhou Cheng said, "Although there’s food available at our County School, that food… sigh, it’s bland and watery, really hard to swallow. Many classmates’ families aren’t well-off, reluctant to eat at restaurants outside, but they crave your dishes. I thought, if you have convenient, portable food, I could bring it for them. They’d pay a little delivery fee, and you’d have another source of income."
Su Mo’s heart stirred. This was indeed a path. With so many students at the County School, even if only a small portion bought, it would be a considerable business.
"Then… what should be brought?" she pondered. "Soupy dishes aren’t easy to carry. Dry food is too monotonous…"
"If there were rice and vegetables together, that would be ideal." Zhou Cheng said.
Su Mo’s eyes brightened: "Rice… vegetable rice?"
"Vegetable rice?"
"Yes, vegetables and rice cooked together, the rice carries the vegetable aroma, the vegetables have the rice flavor." Su Mo said, "You can use salted pork, spring bamboo shoots, broad beans, or greens and rice simmered together, all cooked in one pot. It has meat, vegetables, and rice, fragrant and filling."
"That’s great!" Zhou Cheng clapped. "But how to carry it? Using bowls, it’s easy to spill."
Su Mo thought for a moment, her eyes lighting up: "Bamboo! Yes, bamboo tubes can be used!"
"Bamboo tubes?"
"Yes, fresh bamboo tubes, cut into sections, one end with the node intact, cleaned. Rice and vegetables placed inside, add water, seal the opening with bamboo leaves, then steam. Once steamed, the bamboo tube serves as a bowl, carrying the fresh bamboo fragrance, and the rice is fragrant." Su Mo spoke more and more, feeling it feasible. "After eating, the bamboo tube can be kept for reuse or burned as fuel."
Zhou Cheng’s eyes brightened: "That’s great! Elegant and interesting! The classmates will surely like it!"
Action followed words. Su Mo called Su Dashan and Zhou Cheng to cut a tender bamboo pole—they needed new bamboo from this year, with long nodes and thin walls, making steamed rice easier to cook. She cut it into sections about half a foot long, one end with the node intact, scrubbing them clean with a brush. The bamboo tubes were green and fresh, carrying the bamboo’s clean scent.
The rice was fresh from this year's harvest, washed clean and soaked for half an hour. The salted pork was diced, along with spring bamboo shoots and broad beans, then fried fragrantly with lard. The rice was drained and mixed evenly with the stir-fried vegetables, adding a little salt—the salted pork itself had saltiness, so the salt couldn't be excessive. The mixed rice and vegetables were packed into bamboo tubes, filling them to about seventy percent, adding water just enough to cover the rice. Fresh bamboo leaves were used to seal the openings—the leaves had to be washed clean, stuffed tightly, ensuring no air leakage.
The bamboo tubes were arranged one by one in the steamer, placed on the pot to steam. The fire was brought to a boil, then reduced to medium heat, steaming for half an hour. The bamboo tubes gradually changed color in the steam, from vibrant green to deep green. The fresh scent of bamboo, mingled with the aromas of rice, pork, and vegetables, seeped out in wisps from the gaps of the steamer.
Once steamed, she lifted the lid and picked up a bamboo tube using a cloth as padding. The bamboo tube was hot to the touch, and she carefully pulled out the bamboo leaves—a burst of steam mixed with fragrance "puffed" out. The rice grains were translucent, soaked in broth, the salted pork cubes bright red, the spring bamboo shoot cubes tender yellow, the broad beans emerald green, all mixed together, glossy and fragrant.
"It's done." Su Mo smiled.
She took a small spoon and handed it to Zhou Cheng: "Try it, cousin."
Zhou Cheng accepted it, scooped a spoonful, and put it into his mouth. The rice grains were soft and glutinous, soaked in the savory saltiness of the salted pork and the fresh fragrance of the bamboo shoots. The broad beans were tender and sweet, mixed into the rice, adding texture. The fresh scent of bamboo faintly permeated the rice, not overpowering the flavors but adding an elegant touch.
"Delicious!" Zhou Cheng nodded repeatedly, "It has rice and vegetables, fragrant! The bamboo tube is also good, carrying the bamboo aroma, interesting!"
"What price would be appropriate?" Su Mo asked.
Zhou Cheng thought for a moment: "Rice, vegetables, pork—the cost is about five wen. The bamboo tubes are free, but they require effort. I think… selling for eight wen per tube isn't expensive, classmates can accept it. I'll help deliver, charging one wen per tube for delivery, you earn two wen, I earn one wen, how about that?"
"Alright." Su Mo nodded, "Then tomorrow, make twenty tubes first, you take them to try."
"Good!"
Before noon the next day, Su Mo steamed twenty bamboo tube rice dishes. The bamboo tubes were still hot, she wrapped each one with clean cloth and placed them in a bamboo basket. She asked Su Dashan to deliver them and wait briefly at the County School gate. Just as the bell signaling dismissal rang, Zhou Cheng hurried over to fetch them, carrying the basket, greeting Su Dashan, and happily heading toward the County School.
Students poured out of the lecture hall, heading toward the dining hall in groups. Zhou Cheng stood under the locust tree, set down the basket, and lifted the cover cloth.
Heat mixed with fragrance drifted out. The fresh scent of bamboo, mingled with the aromas of rice, salted pork, and bamboo shoots, spread through the air. Soon, people gathered around.
"Brother Zhou, what is this?"
"Bamboo tube rice." Zhou Cheng smiled, "Made by my cousin, salted pork with spring bamboo shoots and broad beans stewed rice, steamed in bamboo tubes, carrying bamboo aroma. Eight wen per tube, with rice and vegetables, hot."
"Bamboo tube rice? Interesting! Let me try one!"
"I'll have one too!"
"Save one for me too!"
Twenty tubes of rice sold out quickly. Those who didn't get one gathered around asking: "Brother Zhou, will there be more tomorrow?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Zhou Cheng collected the money, his face blooming with smiles, "Tomorrow at this same time, wait here!"
Lin Wenxuan emerged from the lecture hall and saw a crowd gathered under the locust tree in the distance. He had intended to ignore it, but that distinctive aroma—the fresh scent of bamboo mixed with the hearty fragrance of a warm meal—drifted into his nostrils. His steps faltered as he spotted Zhou Cheng standing at the center of the group, wearing a bright smile as he collected coins, handed out bamboo tubes, and chatted amiably with his classmates. Those classmates held the bamboo tubes, eating with evident satisfaction, praising both Zhou Cheng and the bamboo tube rice.
That vague, indescribable feeling churned within him again. It was sour, bitter, a kind of… jealousy he himself was unwilling to admit. Jealousy that Zhou Cheng could so effortlessly blend into that lively scene, jealousy of the natural closeness between Zhou Cheng and Su Mo, and even jealousy that his classmates could enjoy such a simple meal without a second thought.
He pressed his lips together and walked over. "Brother Zhou," he began, his voice somewhat cold.
The surroundings quieted slightly. Zhou Cheng looked up, his smile fading a little, but he nodded politely. "Brother Lin."
Lin Wenxuan's gaze swept over the bamboo tubes, over the meals in his classmates' hands, and finally settled on Zhou Cheng's face. "Brother Zhou is quite the businessman. However, this County School is a place for studying and understanding principles. Is it truly appropriate for you to engage in such peddler's trade here?"
The smile vanished completely from Zhou Cheng's face. He set down the copper coins in his hand and looked at Lin Wenxuan, his tone calm. "Why would you say that, Brother Lin? I'm helping my cousin by bringing meals. Our classmates get to eat hot, delicious food. It's mutually convenient. What is improper about that?"
"A gentleman seeks the Way, not food," Lin Wenxuan said, raising his voice slightly. "Brother Zhou, well-versed in the classics, should know the teachings of the sages. To spend your days preoccupied with such matters of appetite—how is that any different from a merchant?"
His words were harsh, and the area fell completely silent. Classmates holding bamboo tubes stopped eating, watching them.
Zhou Cheng was silent for a moment, then suddenly smiled. "Brother Lin speaks rightly. A gentleman seeks the Way, not food. But may I ask, Brother Lin, what is the Way we poor scholars seek through our arduous studies? Is it not so that one day we may 'establish a good life for the common people'?"
"Naturally," Lin Wenxuan straightened his back.
"Then do those 'common people' include the laborers toiling in hardship, the petty vendors struggling for their livelihood, and…" Zhou Cheng paused, his gaze sweeping the surroundings, "…and us, these poor scholars who wish to change our family's fortunes through study, yet cannot even eat a full meal in peace?"
Lin Wenxuan was taken aback.
"My cousin, Su Nianhe, uses her own skills to make clean, affordable meals so those who cannot afford restaurants can also taste good food. I help her by delivering the meals so our classmates can have a proper lunch and have the energy to listen to lectures in the afternoon. We earn an honest wage through hard work and provide substantial meals." Zhou Cheng looked at Lin Wenxuan, enunciating each word clearly. "If this is considered the work of 'peddlers and porters,' then may I ask, Brother Lin, what exactly is the 'Way of a gentleman'? Is it to put on airs and speak emptily of grand principles while turning a blind eye to the hunger and hardship of those around you?"
The color drained from Lin Wenxuan's face. His lips moved, but no sound came out. Zhou Cheng's words were like a hammer striking the shell of self-righteous "aloofness" he had always prided himself on. That shell cracked, revealing beneath it a fragile truth he himself was unwilling to face.
The surroundings were utterly silent. All eyes were on him—some surprised, some disapproving, and some… with a hint of pity.
He could no longer bear to stay. Turning abruptly, he nearly fled from the County School. Behind him, faint voices of his classmates trying to smooth things over could be heard, along with Zhou Cheng’s indifferent remark, "Forget it, let’s go eat."