Shen Qingyue was utterly annoyed with Scholar Wang, that scumbag.
Seeing he just wouldn’t leave, she directly shooed him away:
“At the academy gate, with so many people watching, please don’t disturb our business.”
Wang, noticing many classmates around, quickly put on his “gentleman” act, avoided Shen Qingyue, and stepped up to Shen Erya with a gentle yet arrogant tone:
“My mother loves sweet cakes the most. Give me a jin [about half a kilogram], nicely wrapped.”
Wang knew Shen Erya was obsessed with him. He didn’t believe that a little quarrel last time would make her truly give up marrying him.
Right now was a perfect chance for her to show her goodwill.
Anyone with sense wouldn’t take money from him without adding two extra jins of sweet cake, and say some kind words to soften the blow from last time.
If she did that, he might forgive her.
When he eventually passed the imperial exam, he could barely let her be a concubine.
Shen Erya stared at Wang, nails almost digging into her palms, a surge of bitter resentment swelling in her heart. After all these years of devoted feelings, did he really not see it?
Did he ever like her at all?
He had clearly said he’d marry her, yet only wanted her as a concubine!
The more she thought, the angrier she became. Even while doing business, she couldn’t give Wang a good face, forcing herself to squeeze out through clenched teeth:
“One jin of sweet cake is one hundred wen, please pay.”
Wang almost couldn’t hold his expression when he heard he had to pay.
“You want me to pay?” Wang took a deep breath and repeated seriously.
“If you buy sweet cakes, don’t expect them free!” Shen Erya snapped, wondering how she hadn’t noticed how thick-skinned Wang was before.
Wang was clearly trying to get her to give him sweet cakes for free, but he couldn’t say it outright.
He changed tactics, feigning helplessness:
“You know I never like taking advantage of others. If you insist on giving it to me, then to not waste your kindness, I’ll have to accept.”
Shen Qingyue rolled her eyes. How could anyone say such shameless nonsense?
Seeing Shen Erya’s face flush red, she briskly told Wang:
“If you can afford it, buy it. If you can’t, please move aside and don’t block the other students.”
The students in line grew impatient:“Scholar Wang, are you buying or not?”
Proud and unwilling to be laughed at by classmates, Wang fumbled, pulling out a hundred copper coins but hesitated so long he never handed them over.
Seeing this, Shen Qingyue snatched the coins from his hand, handed him a jin of sweet cake:
“Money first, goods after—fair for all.”
Wang watched helplessly as the coins dropped into Shen Qingyue’s money pouch.
He felt a sharp pang in his heart.
That was the hard-earned money from studying half a month!
Gone in a blink!
Having experienced Shen Qingyue’s fierceness, Wang didn’t dare pick on her, so he glared fiercely at Shen Erya instead:
“With a domineering brother like yours, you’ll never marry!”
Saying that, fearing a beating, he ran off faster than anyone.
Shen Erya angrily cursed:
“Even if I never marry, I won’t be your concubine. If you dare bully my brother, don’t let me see you again!”
Shen Qingyue patted Shen Erya’s arm, bringing her back to focus:
“He’s all talk—ignore him. We’re here to sell sweet cakes and make money.”
As the crisp sound of coins dropping into the money pouch echoed, Shen Erya’s restless mood gradually calmed.
All two basins of sweet cake were sold.
Holding the bulging money pouch, Shen Erya couldn’t hide her excitement:
“Brother, I didn’t expect we’d really sell out!”
Shen Qingyue smiled and declared:
“Pack up, let’s go home.”
They took the ox cart back to Qingshui Village.
Shen Dabiao and Liu Cuihua were already home waiting, rushing out when they heard the gate.
“Did you sell the sweet cakes?” Liu Cuihua asked expectantly.
Shen Dabiao went straight to check the wooden basin used for the cakes.
“This is the money from selling sweet cakes.” Shen Qingyue tossed the money pouch to Liu Cuihua.
Liu Cuihua went to the main room, tore open the pouch, counted the silver coins inside, growing more excited:
“Two taels of silver in small coins, plus one string of 600 wen—total three taels and six qian.”
“After subtracting the cost of glutinous rice and ingredients, we netted two taels of silver.”
Liu Cuihua couldn’t read but counted fast.
Shen Qingyue added:
“The cost of sugar-making materials and labor must also be included.”
Liu Cuihua counted on her fingers:
“Red sugar at Yipintang rose to one tael per jin. Our homemade sugar from herbal roots counts as 500 wen. Labor for making sweet cakes—30 wen per person.”
“We can still earn one tael and four qian!”
Shen Dabiao exclaimed in amazement:
“Wow! That’s more than a month’s wage for a laborer!”
His eyes locked on the shiny coins, rubbing his hands:
“I helped make the sweet cakes—should I get a share?”
“No!” Liu Cuihua pressed her hands firmly down,“This money is for Qingyue to find a husband!”
Shen Qingyue hurriedly denied:
“I’m not looking for a husband.”
She was joking—still planning to earn star coins and return to the modern world.
No mind for a husband.
If she gave birth to a child, would she stay or leave?
Liu Cuihua hesitated then tentatively said:
“If you don’t want a husband, is it… because you like women?”
Shen Qingyue blushed and quickly waved her hand:
“I don’t like women either. Can you stop guessing? I just think we should establish our career first, then start a family. Life’s finally easing up, so we should focus, not be distracted.”
“When you’ve achieved something, finding a partner won’t be a problem.”
Shen Dabiao scratched his head and agreed:
“Qingyue makes sense. We barely have enough to eat now. Once we’re better off, then we can think about marriage.”
“Besides, what reputation do we have? You know that even if Qingyue reverted to being a woman, who’d dare marry into our family?”
“Unless we buy a man from the pawnshop.”
Liu Cuihua liked Shen Qingyue more and more, raising her voice unconsciously:
“Buying a man from the pawnshop? That’d be a village joke. Who’d want a proper husband like that?”
“Before, Qingyue was a troublemaker who wouldn’t do any work and only caused problems.”
“Now, I think she’s changed a lot.”
“Maybe some young man would really want to marry her?”
Shen Dabiao’s tone grew worried:
“What change? You don’t know the mess she gets into. She nearly lost her life more than once. I think she hasn’t changed—if anything, she’s getting bolder.”
The gambling den matter, Qingyue said was over.
But he still felt uneasy.
Liu Cuihua was anxious but helpless:
“So what do you think Qingyue should do? She can’t keep pretending to be a boy forever, right?”
“How would I know?” Shen Dabiao was dazed, unintentionally bringing up old issues:
“You insisted on calling our daughter a son, otherwise, we wouldn’t have so many troubles.”
Hearing this, Liu Cuihua’s anger flared:
“How dare you bring that up now! It was you who wanted a son, and now you blame me?”
“I married you five years before having a child. During those five years, how many gossips and sneers did the whole village throw at us? You forgot?”
“Finally, I got pregnant, and the doctor said I might only have one child.”
“I said it was a son because I was afraid you couldn’t face the village. Who do you think I did it for?”
Seeing their argument intensify, Shen Qingyue quickly interrupted:
“Stop fighting! I understand your difficulties. I’m used to dressing as a boy, and if you made me wear girl’s clothes, I wouldn’t want to change.”
“Also, I want to make it clear—I don’t want to marry right now, nor do I plan to take in a son-in-law.”
“If anyone brings this up again, I’ll get mad.”