Yu Gousheng panicked for a moment, but quickly regained his composure. He stood silently by his bun stall, watching them approach in silence.

Yang Qingsheng spoke up first: “How much do you sell your buns for?” Yu Goushen glanced at him but still said nothing.

Yang Qingsheng frowned. “What kind of business are you running? I’m asking you for the price.”

Yu Gousheng had been picking fights with Huo Ling and Yang Qingsheng since he was a kid, but he’d never won a single one.

He took a deep breath. Though he knew exactly why the two had come, since they showed no immediate intention of fighting, he replied in a deep, gruff voice, “Five wen apiece.”

“Oh? What’s the filling?” 

“Vegetarian.”

Yang Qingsheng nodded. “Not bad. But I’m curious—what’s your connection to that vegetarian bun shop at the City God Temple? I heard you two are related.”

Yu Gousheng glanced at Huo Ling, who stood with his arms crossed, glaring at him, then tilted his head and said, “Who said that? I never said anything like that. Does that mean there can only be one bun shop in town? Does every new one that opens have to be connected to his?”

Seeing that the man wouldn’t admit it, Huo Ling spoke in a cold tone: “Goushen, we used to be fellow villagers, so let’s just chalk up the past to childish ignorance—what’s done is done. But now you’re openly stealing business from my family, and that’s just not right.”

The moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere around them froze. The three men stood in the middle of the street, clearly at odds with one another, and none of them looked like they were to be messed with. The vendors on either side silently shifted their wares to the other side, hoping to avoid getting caught in the crossfire if a fight broke out.

“I don’t understand what you’re getting at. Whose business am I stealing? Are you, Huo Lao’er, the first person in Baojia Town to sell buns?”

“Do you want me to call witnesses? Do you dare say you haven’t been speaking in vague terms, tricking customers into thinking the bun stall from in front of the City God Temple has moved here?”

Huo Ling sneered, “You even tell people you’re a mountain porter yourself. I have no idea when you picked up that trade. Not long after my father passed away, you came back to the village once and, behind my back, said that mountain porters are all short-lived wretches, cursing me to die young too.”

Yu Goushen’s face flushed red as he clenched his fists. “Didn’t you come looking for me in a blind rage that time, nearly breaking my arm? Huo Er, don’t get too cocky!”

“I have a poor memory. I settle scores the very same day, lest I forget them as time goes by.”

Huo Ling said coldly, “So I’ll consider that matter settled. Let’s keep things separate. As for what’s happening now, either you give me an explanation, or I’ll teach you another lesson.”

Yang Qingsheng chimed in from the side, “If he won’t admit it, then bring in witnesses. Does he really think we have no one in Baojia Town?”

A long while passed, and a large crowd of onlookers had already gathered.

Sun Dazhi happened to be passing by. Seeing Huo Ling and Yang Qingsheng here to settle a score, he mingled with the crowd and shouted, “This guy claimed he was a traveling vendor selling buns in front of the City God Temple. He tricked me into buying several buns—not only were they terrible, but they were half-baked!”

Yang Qingsheng looked around in surprise, his eyes asking Huo Ling: Did you really hire someone? Huo Ling shook his head slightly, but he recognized the voice as Sun Dazhi’s.

“That informant’s pretty loyal—he actually gets the job done once he’s paid.”

“Right, I’ve bought undercooked buns from his place too. When I brought them back to return them, the guy was reluctant!” 

“Last time I bought two—the bottoms were burnt—and when I asked for a replacement, he was rude about it!”

Clearly, Yu Gousheng really isn’t cut out for business—his buns are terrible, and his attitude is even worse.

Huo Ling didn’t want to get into a long argument with him. Yu Gousheng had always been like this—clearly petty and foul-mouthed himself, yet he spent his days putting on an act of being the victim, ready to explode at the slightest provocation like a firecracker.

Getting involved with him was like attracting a swarm of flies that wouldn’t go away—buzzing constantly and driving you crazy. Yu Goushen opened his mouth several times to say something, but each time he held it back, because he knew he was in the wrong.

“You’re right about one thing: I don’t care how many people in Baojia Town set up stalls to sell buns. I’m here to confront you because you’re using our name to tarnish our reputation.”

Huo Ling concluded, “From this day forward, if you still want to sell buns, go ahead and do so. But you are not allowed to call yourself a ‘relative’ or associate yourself with my stall. If I find out…”

His movements were lightning-fast. Yu Gousheng didn’t even have time to react before Huo Ling had seized his arm. With a swift tug, a yank, and a lift, he released his grip amid Yu Gousheng’s agonized screams.

“What are you yelling about? I’ve already popped it back into place.”

He’d known this move since childhood—honed through countless fights—and could dislocate and reset a shoulder in the blink of an eye. It served as a warning without leaving him any leverage.

“Dayang, let’s go. I’ll treat you to a drink somewhere.”

“Sure thing!”

As the two made their way through the crowd, Huo Ling gave a subtle nod to Sun Dazhi, who was a few steps behind. Sun Dazhi deliberately lagged behind, turning down a side street before rejoining them.

“Were you just passing by? Thanks for the help.”

Huo Ling greeted Sun Dazhi and introduced him to Yang Qingsheng.

“I just couldn’t stand watching that guy make such terrible buns. Not only is he wasting food, but he runs his business as if everyone owes him eight hundred taels of silver.”

Sun Dazhi added, “But Boss Huo, your skills are truly impressive!” 

“Just a little trick.”

Huo Ling took a few steps, then suddenly stopped and instructed him and Yang Qingsheng, “Don’t let Xiaoqi know I got into a fight today.” 

“Why not tell him? You looked quite impressive today.”

“He forbids me from fighting. Telling him would only worry him.”

After Huo Ling finished speaking, Yang Qingsheng looked utterly unimpressed, but Sun Dazhi chuckled, “You two really are close!”

The three returned to Yang’s Umbrella Shop and sat there for a while. At noon, they called Yan Qi and had a meal at a restaurant near the City God Temple.

At the table, Yang Qingsheng and Sun Dazhi took turns speaking, omitting the part where Huo Ling had dislocated someone’s arm at the end. They simply said they had presented evidence and reasoned with him.

“We won them over entirely with reason!”

Yang Qingsheng said with a straight face.

Yan Qi didn’t suspect anything amiss, though he was surprised. “I never expected it to be someone we knew.” Old and new grievances piled up, which was truly infuriating.

He sighed and said, “His buns are so terrible, I doubt he’s doing much business. As long as he doesn’t get involved with us again, let him be.”

“That’s exactly what I think. Yu Goushen has never been much of a man since he was a kid; he’ll never amount to anything.”

Huo Ling picked up a piece of sliced pork for him. “Stop just talking—eat some more.”

“I’ve already eaten plenty.”

Yan Qi muttered under his breath, but still picked up the piece of meat and ate it.

The dish was clearly deep-fried and finished with a thick sauce; it tasted quite delicious.

Yan Qi took two bites from a single piece. Seeing him eat so slowly, Huo Ling knew he was once again pondering how the dish had been prepared.

Having dealt with Yu Goushen from Chaofeng Lane, there was still the old man from Bao’er Temple left. As Sun Dazhi put it, dealing with this man would be the simplest of all.

He hired two strangers from another town to go buy some buns. While there, they pretended to recognize the old man as the rat poison seller from Tulingzi Town. They spoke in vague, suggestive terms, scaring the man into thinking the victim had come looking for him. He immediately packed up his stall and vanished for several days.

Sun Dazhi even went specifically to the courtyard where the old man had been renting a room to inquire and learned that the man had already moved out. Relieved, he went to report back to Huo Ling. Huo Ling gave him an extra fifty wen and told him outright to come to him again if there were any future matters.

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Mid-October was approaching. Though the Great Snow solar term had not yet officially arrived, another heavy snowfall had blanketed the slopes of Bailong Mountain. The snowflakes fell in sheets; stepping outside for even a moment left one covered in white.

A trip to town was out of the question, but thankfully, he had bought meat from Butcher Guo on their way back yesterday.

Huo Ling and Yan Qi took advantage of a brief lull in the snowfall during the day to visit the Qi family, carrying ten sheets of rough-edged paper for large calligraphy, a fine cut of pork with a good balance of fat and lean, and a block of hawthorn cake.

They had inquired about the going rate: hiring a scholar on the street to write large characters to their desired dimensions cost ten wen per character, as ink, paper, and other supplies were expenses—this trade required capital.

Now that they were not hiring an outsider but asking the son of an acquaintance to do the work, they could not take advantage of him.

When the Qis learned that the couple had come to ask Chunshu to write the characters—not only bringing a gift but also providing their own paper—they felt particularly honored.

“It’s just a matter of having the boy write a few characters for his aunt and uncle—why bring anything?”

Qi Laoda still refused to accept it, but Huo Ling insisted on setting it down and handed the paper to Qi Chunshu.

“Your aunt and I don’t know much about this, but the stationery shop said this kind of paper is good for writing large characters, so we bought a few sheets. Just write as you see fit—don’t worry if you mess it up. If you don’t, you can keep the extra sheets to practice your calligraphy.”

Qi Chunshu was overjoyed as he clutched the paper. Even cheap rough-edged paper cost a few wen per sheet, let alone the slightly more expensive kind he held in his arms—he had never dared to let his parents spend money on it before.

To save money, he initially spent most of his time practicing calligraphy on the ground, but his teacher told him that such practice was useless and would never produce good handwriting.

As a result, every sheet of paper he uses is now densely covered with writing, leaving not a single blank space. Now that he has new paper and can even earn meat for his family by writing, his childish vanity has been greatly satisfied.

“Uncle Huo, Aunt Yan, please have a seat. I’ll go write right away!”

Qi Chunshu had his own small room at home, which served as both a study and a bedroom. Once he went inside, no one dared to disturb him.

“Come on, let’s go inside and sit on the kang to chat.”

Pumpkin seeds and dried sweet potatoes were laid out on the kang table. After sitting down, Qi Hongmei went to fetch some dried persimmons.

Huo Ling declined, and Qi Laoda also said they were too sweet for his taste. Yan Qi, along with Qi Hongmei and Donghua, each took one, eating until their fingertips and the corners of their mouths were coated with a white frost.

After waiting for about half an hour, Qi Chunshu finally finished writing the large characters and brought them out. He had written two copies and asked Huo Ling and Yan Qi to choose one.

Huo Ling laughed, “You’re really putting us in a tough spot here.”

Qi Chunshu scratched his head, looking embarrassed. “How about the one on the right? I think I wrote that one better.” 

“Then let’s take that one.”

Huo Ling and Yan Qi had no objections; if a scholar said it was good, then it must be good. This made Qi Chunshu feel even more embarrassed.

Five characters—it might not seem like much, but embroidering them was no easy task.

Yan Qi had already prepared the fabric; all that remained was to add the characters. With everyone staying indoors during the snowy season, every household was bored out of their minds. Qi Hongmei immediately offered, “I’ll bring my needle and thread over to your place, and we’ll work on it together. With you, me, and Suping, we can finish it in two days at most. It looks like this snow is going to keep falling, so I doubt the two of you will be able to get into town tomorrow.”

Ye Suping was already quite far along in her pregnancy, and with the snow, she was afraid of slipping and falling, so she rarely went out. Most of the time, she stayed home doing needlework to pass the time. She had previously mentioned wanting to embroider the banner with Yan Qi, and now that she had an extra pair of hands to help, it was indeed much better.

“Then we’ll have to trouble you, Sister-in-law.”

“Don’t be so formal!”

Sure enough, the snow never stopped; it fell on and off, and at its heaviest, it was impossible to see the path ahead.

The oxen that pulled the cart had been brought into the barn, where they’d been peacefully munching on hay for two days. Inside the house, the heated brick bed was burning, and four dogs were sprawled all over the floor near the stove in the kitchen.

The two women and a ger were inside, intently embroidering characters, while Huo Feng and Huo Ling chopped suitable branches, sanded off the bark and splinters, and used them to prop up the fabric frames.

On the day before the fifteenth of the tenth month, the snow finally stopped. Huo Ling drove the cart alone to buy ten pounds of pork shoulder and five pounds of pork spine.

Upon returning home, he first brought the pork inside to thaw, waiting to mince it into filling, while the pork spine was stewed in a large pot with pickled cabbage, glass noodles, and frozen tofu—a meal that warmed them to the core.

After a night’s rest, before dawn, Huo Ling and Yan Qi got up to knead the dough and mix the filling. Huo Feng was the next to rise; he shouldered a bucket to fetch water, making several trips to fill the family’s water jar.

Just as they were about to leave, they woke up the youngest, Huo Ying, and asked her if she wanted to sleep or go into town. The little girl rubbed her eyes sleepily and insisted, “I’m going into town!”

Huo Feng then took his daughter to wash her face, brush her teeth, and tie her hair up. Halfway there, Yan Qi took over, undoing the crooked braid and re-braiding two neat plaits for his young niece.

The group ate buns for breakfast, leaving hot porridge and flatbreads in the pot, then loaded all their belongings onto the oxcart and set off for Baojia Town.