Chapter 23: Life Begins to Look Up
On the way back to the old house, Li-shi counted the fifty wen she got from Erhu’s mother and curiously asked Wen Yao, “Yao’er, does the county magistrate really care about stuff like brawls?”
Wen Yao held Datou’s hand and smiled. “Care? Please, like he’s got nothing better to do.”
Just some nonsense she made up to bluff.
Old Madam Luo shot her a look. “You’ve all got guts, huh, daring to brawl with those brutes from the Li family.”
Wen Yao pouted. “He bullied Datou first.”
Datou looked up at her and gripped her hand even tighter.
Old Madam Luo glanced down at her youngest grandson, obediently holding Wen Yao’s hand, still a little stunned from earlier when he’d nearly lunged at the Li family. That fire had really surprised her.
“Those Li kids aren’t ones to mess with. This feud is settled now. From now on, when you all go out, make sure to protect your sisters. Don’t take a loss. If something feels off, run, got it?” she instructed the grandchildren.
The younger ones weren’t too scared, but once they realized Wen Yao had just been bluffing the Li family, they did get a little nervous—though more than anything, they were impressed. Who would’ve thought Wen Yao would go head-to-head with the Li family like that?
“Aiya!” Wen Di suddenly yelped, startling everyone.
“Yao’er, the cake!” she reminded Wen Yao. They still had steamed cake in the kitchen.
“Oh no! My cake!” Wen Yao suddenly remembered and shoved Datou into Old Madam Luo’s hands. “Datou, go wait at Grandma’s. I’ll be right back!” She took off running with Wen Di.
Everyone else was confused.
Wen Ying explained, “Today, me and Big Sis went to play with Second Sis. We saw her digging a vegetable patch, and Big Sis helped her dig it out, so Second Sis said she’d make us something tasty. But I couldn’t wait and took Datou out to play, and before we even got to eat, we ended up in a fight.”
Old Madam Luo, however, caught something else. “A vegetable patch? Wen Yao?”
“Yeah,” Wen Ying nodded.
Old Madam Luo scoffed. “Her? Grow vegetables? Just like her mother. Can’t even lift a hoe and wants to grow food? Hah.”
Wen Ying nodded solemnly. “Grandma, you’re absolutely right.”
…Old Madam Luo was speechless. She hadn’t even meant it seriously.
Not long after the group returned to the old house, Wen Yao and Wen Di came back carrying a steaming basket covered with cloth.
“Ooh, that smells good.” Wen Yao had barely stepped close before Old Man Wen caught a whiff of the sweet aroma. Datou ran over eagerly to lift the cloth.
Wen Yao playfully slapped his hand away and grinned at Old Madam Luo. “Not yet. Let Grandma divide it for everyone.”
Old Madam Luo rolled her eyes so hard they nearly flipped. But with everyone watching her, she could only wave them over begrudgingly. “Bring it in already. What are you standing around for?”
“Coming!” Wen Yao darted in with the basket, followed by a trail of kids.
When she lifted the cloth, the steamed cake inside was still hot. Thankfully, they’d turned off the fire before running out, or it might’ve burned, maybe even cracked the pot.
The fragrance of the cake filled the room—it looked like slightly discolored mantou but was much fluffier, with a light, sweet aroma. When poked, the dent would bounce back.
With everyone watching eagerly, Old Madam Luo began slicing up the cake. Thankfully, there was plenty, and even with the big Wen family, each person got a palm-sized piece.
One bite—soft, fluffy, sweet with a hint of egg flavor—it was honestly delicious.
Wen Yao tried some herself and was quite satisfied. If only there were milk—it’d be even better. Milk-flavored steamed cake topped with raisins or dried cranberries, served warm… now that would be perfection.
She could buy milk from the space, but since it wasn’t available in this era, and to avoid complications, she held back.
“Not bad. Tastes better than that one you brought yesterday,” Old Madam Luo gave her most genuine approval.
Wen Yao scooted even closer to her with a grin, like they were kindred spirits. “Right? Grandma, you also thought that pastry from yesterday was trash, huh? And expensive too!”
Old Madam Luo couldn’t eat much sweet stuff and ended up giving the rest of hers to Datou, tearing it into little pieces. “So expensive, and you still bought it.”
Wen Yao kept grinning. “Well, that’s not the point. It was for you and Grandpa. No matter how expensive, it’s worth it.”
She didn’t say anything, but her expression was enough to show she was pleased.
Flattery—it works in every era.
After eating, Wen Yao took Datou and headed home. She didn’t take a single coin of the fifty wen they’d gotten from the Lis.
First, because her goal was to send a message—that her family wasn’t to be messed with anymore. Second, her second and third aunts, her uncles, and all the cousins had gotten bruised standing up for her and Datou. The money was better left for them.
That day’s business had required extra preparation, and Wen Xiuyi didn’t get back until sunset after selling out everything and buying ingredients for the next day.
At the village entrance, he noticed people were looking at him and Wen Jun strangely.
When they finally got home and saw Wen Yao and Datou safe and sound, they breathed a sigh of relief.
At dinner, Wen Xiuyi mentioned how weird the villagers had been acting. Wen Yao and Datou exchanged a look, and Wen Yao said nonchalantly, “Nothing much. We just got into a fight today.”
Wen Xiuyi had just been about to take a bite when the food dropped straight into his bowl.
“What?! You two got into a fight? Are you hurt? Did you lose? Who did you fight with?”
Wen Yao replied, “They apologized and paid us fifty wen. I gave it to Grandpa and Grandma. But our Datou—he got picked on.”
She then gave a quick summary of the day’s events.
Wen Xiuyi’s brows furrowed deeply. He hugged his youngest son tightly before speaking, “Yao’er, you did the right thing. We won’t start trouble, but we’re not afraid of it either. What happened with your mother is in the past. From now on, I’ll take care of you. Stand tall. No one gets to bully us.”
Afraid the ordeal had affected his youngest mentally, he gently reassured him, “Don’t be scared, son. You’ve still got your dad.”
Datou looked at him for a moment, then nodded and nestled into his arms.
Wen Xiuyi finally relaxed and started talking about that day’s stall business. He had Wen Jun hand over the money jar to Wen Yao. After subtracting the cost of ingredients, they had made nearly eight hundred wen in pure profit.
It was a pretty decent earning. All told, they had over a tael of silver saved up now.
With generous portions and great flavor, word about their fried rice was spreading quickly along the docks.
After some discussion, the three of them decided to increase the amount of rice they cooked. Even if they didn’t sell out at noon, it could still be sold in the afternoon.
