Chapter 14: Off to Set Up Shop!
“Girl, your cooking skills are getting better and better,” Professor Wen couldn’t help but sigh as he swallowed half a piece of radish.
Wen Yao quickly glanced at Datou. Seeing him entirely focused on the bowl in front of him, she finally let out a breath of relief, then kicked Wen Xiuyi under the table and shot him a glare.
Wen Xiuyi chuckled sheepishly.
A slip of the tongue.
One pot of fish soup, four people in the family, and they all ate to their heart’s content. Datou was even sitting on his little stool holding his belly, still smacking his lips as if savoring the lingering taste of the soup.
After dinner, Wen Yao soaked the rice to be steamed the next day, and Wen Jun tidied up the kitchen. Then the family sat down to go over what was left of their funds.
Between the money from selling herbs and what Datou had handed over, they had less than four hundred copper coins left, laid out right there on the table, plunging the whole family into silence.
“Dad, Bro, it’s all on you tomorrow,” Wen Yao said as she glanced from the coins to the father and son.
Wen Xiuyi patted his chest. “Don’t worry, even if my cooking’s not as good as yours, I’ve been making fried rice for decades. I guarantee every grain will be distinct, plump, and bursting with flavor.”
Wen Yao rolled her eyes without hesitation, and Wen Jun struggled not to laugh.
Decades of fried rice? Yeah, no kidding—they had eaten his fried rice for decades.
At the table, only Datou was tilting his head and looking at Wen Xiuyi with a puzzled expression.
Wen Xiuyi didn’t explain. He simply reached out to ruffle the little guy’s head. “Don’t worry, business will be booming tomorrow!”
Since it was their first day setting up a stall, Wen Yao definitely had to tag along. Not because she didn’t trust her dad’s cooking, but because she needed to see whether the fried rice would actually sell. If business was slow, they’d have to think of a way to attract customers.
The next morning, Wen Yao got up before dawn. She put the soaked rice into the steamer and packed all the ingredients they’d prepared the night before.
Wen Jun and Wen Xiuyi got up right after and loaded everything onto the cart.
Datou was woken by the smell of rice wafting into the room. After getting dressed and rubbing his sleepy eyes, he followed the aroma into the kitchen just as Wen Yao was packing all the steamed rice into the buckets.
Wen Xiuyi stood by the stove, brandishing his spatula like a pro while humming a tune that Datou had never heard before.
The little turnip-headed boy couldn’t speak, so he just stood in the doorway until Wen Yao spotted him.
She pulled Datou over to sit on a stool and used a warm cloth to give his face a quick wipe. Then she called Wen Jun over.
“Bro, give him a quick look.” As she spoke, Wen Yao held Datou’s chin. “Datou, open your mouth.”
Datou obediently opened his mouth. Wen Jun leaned in, turning his head this way and that for a while before straightening up.
Without proper instruments, it was hard to tell anything just by looking.
“Datou, say ‘ah’ for me,” Wen Jun said, sitting down in front of him.
Datou stared at him for a moment, then opened his mouth and said, “Ah.”
“Longer,” Wen Jun encouraged.
“Ah…”
“Again.”
“Ah… ah… ah…”
“Say ‘ge’—‘ge’—‘ge’…”
Datou: “…”
“Repeat after me—ge… gege…”
Datou: “…”
After trying for a while with no progress, Wen Jun gave up and left with a hand to his forehead. “This little rascal.”
Once he was gone, Wen Yao took over, but after working on it for a long time and getting nowhere, she too gave up.
The siblings huddled together whispering, while Wen Yao tried to recall how the original novel described Datou speaking.
Unfortunately, it was unclear whether the author had originally planned it this way and then forgot, or changed their mind later. In any case, Datou suddenly started speaking out of nowhere on a particular day, at a particular time.
Magical, wasn’t it?
The only thing they were sure of was that the kid would speak eventually—he just wasn’t ready yet. So they’d wait.
Breakfast that morning was egg fried rice made by Wen Xiuyi for the three of them. It was Datou’s first time seeing such a dish: every grain of rice distinct, coated in golden egg, topped with a sprinkle of vibrant green scallions—absolutely mouthwatering in both appearance and aroma.
If Wen Xiuyi hadn’t urged him to eat faster so they wouldn’t miss their trip to town, Datou might’ve actually counted the grains of rice in his bowl.
“Let’s go, to town!” After packing up, locking the house, and placing Datou on the cart, Wen Xiuyi waved a big hand and the family set off.
At that hour, most of the village was already up and about. Seeing the family’s grand setup, the villagers couldn’t help gathering in small groups to gossip.
Someone asked in confusion, “What’s Scholar Wen’s family doing now? Are they moving with all that stuff?”
Someone else scoffed, “Good riddance. Better than him staying here and corrupting the rest of the village.”
Back at the old residence, a boy about Wen Yao’s age came running home and headed straight for the elders’ room.
“Grandpa, Grandma, I saw Uncle pushing a cart with Datou and the others. They went out.”
The messenger was Wen Fa, the youngest son from the Wen family’s second branch, the same age as Wen Yao. His grandmother had told him to go out early and keep an eye on his eldest uncle’s family.
So Wen Xiuyi and his crew had barely left when Wen Fa rushed back to report.
Luo Shi got off the kang bed and stood by the door, but didn’t see anything. With all the winding roads in the village, the family was long gone.
She frowned. “Did you see what they had on the cart?”
Wen Fa shook his head.
Luo Shi beckoned him closer. Wen Fa leaned in and she whispered something into his ear. Then he took off running again.
Before long, he came back panting.
“The main door’s locked. Both rooms are locked too.”
Luo Shi nodded and dismissed him, though her mind was far from at ease.
Could the eldest really be planning to trick his children into doing something shady outside? No… right? Those were his own kids.
Meanwhile, the family of four had no idea what was happening back at the old house. They were full of energy, marching boldly toward their new life.
Once in town, Wen Yao and Wen Xiuyi pushed the cart with Datou toward the dock while Wen Jun went to pick up the wok they had ordered the previous day.
As they approached, they could see Liuzi craning his neck and looking around. The moment he spotted them, his eyes lit up and he rushed over.
“Uncle Wen, I was getting worried you wouldn’t show!” Liuzi said as he took over for Wen Yao, helping push the cart.
Their stall was already set up—tables and stools laid out neatly, all wiped clean. There was even firewood and some wood shavings stacked by the stove.
Wen Yao felt a wave of warmth in her heart. “Brother Liu, you’ve gone to so much trouble for us. You even prepped firewood—how much was it? I’ll pay you.”
