On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, every household was celebrating the festival.

Even the Zhao family, who were tightening their belts to make ends meet, bought a fist-sized meat filling to make a meal of meat-filled dumplings—though eating such dumplings inevitably made one feel more and more anxious the more one ate.

When Huo Ling invited Lin Changshui over and told him he could teach the two brothers the skills of trekking the mountains—provided they formally became his apprentices—Zhao Yinsheng and Zhao Chensheng were overjoyed, even going so far as to kneel on the spot and call him “Master.”

This startled Huo Ling so much that he quickly reached out, helping them both to their feet—one on each side.

“We’re only a few years apart in age; I can’t possibly accept such a grand gesture right now. Let’s wait until after we’ve offered incense, candles, wine, and food before the Mountain God’s tablet—then it won’t be too late to bow.”

Lin Changshui interjected from the side, “Why not just choose… a date today?”

Huo Ling thought for a moment and said, “Then the first day of next month.”

He added, “But we won’t officially enter the mountain until March.”

Zhao Chensheng grinned happily and nodded vigorously, saying, “We’ll do whatever Master says.”

“There’s no need to rush into addressing people differently. Until the formal ceremony, just keep calling them the same way you always have.”

Zhao Chensheng immediately corrected himself: “We’ll all listen to Second Brother Huo.”

Since the two of them had come all this way, Huo Ling didn’t rush off. He stayed behind to chat for a while with Old Mr. Zhao and his wife. As parents, they were both relieved that their two sons had secured a livelihood, yet worried about how they would manage once they were deep in the mountains.

Huo Ling had already made up his mind and had long since taken care of all the essential arrangements; now, as he went over each matter one by one, he put their minds at ease.

“My eldest sister-in-law is about to give birth. With another child coming into the family, I’m afraid we’ll be too busy to manage everything. My husband plans to stay home to help take care of things, so he won’t be accompanying me into the mountains every time like he used to. There are still empty rooms in the courtyard up in the mountains, so we’ll prepare one for Yinsheng and Chensheng to stay in for now.”

It wasn’t yet appropriate to tell outsiders about Yan Qi’s pregnancy, so he used the upcoming birth of his nephew as a cover. After all, once the time came and the news spread, everyone would figure out what was going on.

“When they accompany me into the mountains, as their master, I’ll provide room and board—they won’t have to worry about the daily necessities. However, before they complete their apprenticeship, they must give me thirty percent of the profits they earn from working the mountains on their own.”

“You even provide food and drink?”

The Zhao brothers’ mother rubbed her hands together nervously. “You have no idea how much those two can eat. This… this is so embarrassing.”

Huo Ling explained, “In every trade throughout history, when someone apprentices under a master, has there ever been a rule that they have to bring their own provisions? The mountain herding trade is no different. Although our Huo family has always passed down the craft from father to son and has never taken on apprentices before, under my guidance, we’ll do things the way they’re supposed to be done.”

This was a pleasant surprise for the Zhao family—not only would their two sons learn a trade, but it would also save them a lot of money on food expenses.

For a family like theirs, saving money was practically the same as making money.

So what if they had to give Huo Ling a 30 percent cut? After all, many apprentices don’t even get to keep a single penny of their earnings before they’ve completed their apprenticeship.

Huo Ling only wanted thirty percent—far less than they had anticipated.

After Huo Ling left, Mrs. Zhao, along with their father and the two sons, discussed the matter: “We don’t have much decent grain to offer, but we can afford a sack of cornmeal. When you go up the mountain, carry it with you—it’ll at least tide you over for a few meals. We can’t very well rely entirely on their hospitality.”

Zhao Yinsheng and Zhao Chensheng both agreed.

On the first day the pastry stall opened after the New Year, business was surprisingly brisk.

The two had been worrying at home that since every household was eating well during the Lunar New Year, people might not be tempted by street food anymore—but to their surprise, there were still plenty of customers.

“It’s been over half a month since I’ve had your buns, and I’ve actually been missing them. I tried making some myself the other day, but they didn’t taste anything like these.”

The man buying the buns ordered eight at once, explaining that there were four people in his family—two for each person—for a total of four meat-filled and four vegetarian buns.

Huo Ling had no mountain produce to sell, so he focused on taking the money and handing over the buns. Hearing this, he smiled and said, “Thank you for supporting my business. That comes to fifty-two wen, but I’ll round it down—fifty wen will do.”

“Oh my, that’s so generous.”

Anyone who could afford eight stuffed buns was certainly well-off; otherwise, fifty wen spent on fish and meat would be enough to make several hearty dishes.

However, that didn’t mean they didn’t care about the remaining copper coins; the husband cheerfully put the two wen he’d already taken out back into his money pouch.

“Wishing you a thriving business.”

“Thank you for your kind words.”

With business off to a flying start and fifty wen suddenly in his pocket, Yan Qi felt even more energetic as he made the buns.

Once he’d filled another pot, he said to Huo Ling, “Working and earning money out here is more comfortable than staying at home. During the New Year holidays, I was cooped up inside the house and on the kang all day, and my back and waist were aching.”

Huo Ling sighed helplessly, “It seems you’re just meant to work hard. Wouldn’t it be better to enjoy a comfortable life at home? You’re carrying a child now, after all.”

Yan Qi shook his head. “Born into a farming family, who isn’t destined for a life of hard work? We have to earn our keep with these two hands—who really has time to just sit around?”

He looked down to check how the buns were cooking. “As long as there’s someone to eat these buns, I can keep selling them—all the way until I’m as old as that old woman who makes sticky mouse traps. Isn’t that a blessing?”

“I suppose so.”

Huo Ling imagined the scene. “Being able to go out and do business at that age means you’re still in good health—your ears aren’t deaf and your eyes aren’t blurry.”

He pointed to the cloth banner hanging above their heads. “By then, we’ll be considered a long-established business in Baojia Town—who knows, we might even have our own storefront.”

Yan Qi glanced around; seeing that no one was paying attention to their conversation, she pursed her lips and smiled. “We really do dare to dream.”

“It doesn’t cost any money to dream.”

Huo Ling brushed away a speck of flour that had landed on Yan Qi’s cheek with the back of his hand, then turned to continue hawking his wares.

During this breakfast rush, they’d sold nearly fifty buns.

Huo Ling told Yan Qi to wash his hands and sit down to rest while he went to a nearby teahouse to fetch a pot of water to drink.

Yan Qi gulped down a few mouthfuls, wiped his mouth, and said, “I wonder how business is going over at Ming-ger’s place.”

That morning, Lin Changshui and Xiao Mingming had hitched a ride on the Huo family’s oxcart early in the morning and come together to Baojia Town to sell millet buns.

Huo Ling had originally planned to find them a spot on Temple Front Street—it wouldn’t have hurt to be right next to his own stall—but Xiao Mingming felt that baked buns and steamed buns were similar foods and worried they might interfere with the Huo family’s business, so he insisted on going elsewhere with Lin Changshui.

However, compared to stuffed buns that must be eaten fresh out of the oven, millet buns had one advantage: if you steamed a pot early in the morning, placed them in a basket, and covered them with a quilt, they wouldn’t get completely cold even after several hours had passed. Many vendors in town selling steamed buns, dumplings, and even pastries like luguo did it this way; slinging the basket over their shoulder made it convenient to hawk their wares along the street.

Huo Ling glanced into the distance but saw no sign of the Lin couple. He said, “They shouldn’t go wrong. Their buns sell for five wen for two—they’re delicious, sweet, and filling. Just look at how much people from beyond the Pass love sticky bean buns; you can tell there’s a market for this kind of food. It’s just that at the beginning, you’ll have to put in some effort to talk customers into buying them.”

Yan Qi hesitated, wanting to point out that Xiao Mingming and Lin Changshui had suffered precisely because of their lack of “salesmanship,” but he and Huo Ling really couldn’t help them with that.

Rather than worrying about this and that, it was better to focus on running their own business well.

After a brief rest, someone came to buy buns. Huo Ling stood up, picked out some that were still hot off the griddle, packed them up, and accepted thirteen wen.

“Mom, I want that bun.”

A little girl who’d been carrying an embroidered ball lantern earlier in the day walked by; she’d already started walking away, but then tugged hard on her mother’s sleeve and turned back.

“You’ve already eaten two of the candied hawthorn on a stick you asked for earlier, and your father has been picking up your leftovers all along the way.”

After the woman finished speaking, the man standing beside her chuckled, “It’s only natural for me to pick up my daughter’s leftovers—I’ve been doing it for years now. It’s still the first month of the lunar year; the New Year celebrations aren’t over yet. If you want something, just buy it.”

Huo Ling thought to himself, “Here comes another customer.” Sure enough, the family of three approached; after asking the price, they bought two buns.

Yan Qi noticed that the little girl was carrying a very pretty paper lantern and couldn’t help but take a second look.

Lanterns only look good when lit at night; made of paper, they’d fall apart if they got wet. The fact that they’d let a child carry one around in broad daylight showed just how spoiled this child was.

“Do you like that one?”

After they’d walked away, he was picking at the filling with his chopsticks, lost in thought, when he suddenly heard Huo Ling ask him. Realizing what she meant, he replied, “You mean that lantern?”

“I noticed you’ve been staring at it. If you like it, I’ll go buy one for you—they’re probably still selling them right now.”

“What would I do with that? We don’t need it. It’ll just gather dust at home, and if I take it out in public, people will laugh at me.”

Yan Qi quickly interjected, “Don’t waste your money on that. You’d be better off saving it to buy something for our kids later.”

Huo Ling didn’t respond to that, but asked instead, “When you were a kid, did you ever play with lanterns?”

Yan Qi answered honestly, “No, they only sell those during the holidays, and they’re not cheap.”

He changed the subject: “But at our age now, I really don’t think about them anymore. I know we can afford them now, but why not save the money to buy them for our kids later?”

“Then when we have kids, I’ll buy one for each of you.”

Seeing that Yan Qi genuinely wasn’t holding back because he wanted one but was trying to save money, Huo Ling felt relieved.

Yan Qi smiled. He glanced down at his stomach; three months had passed, and it was already starting to show a slight bulge—even more noticeable when he took off his shirt.

“All right, then I’ll wait for it along with this little one.”

Nearly two hours later, Xiao Mingming and Lin Changshui—who had been on Yan Qi’s mind for quite some time—finally returned. Xiao Mingming walked up to him and, before saying a word, showed Yan Qi the empty basket. Yan Qi exclaimed in delight, “You sold them all?”

Xiao Mingming gave a shy smile and explained, “We were worried they wouldn’t sell well, so we only made thirty today. At first, when people asked about the millet buns, they didn’t even know what they were, so the two of us cut one open and set it out there to show anyone who asked. Later, we realized that just showing them wasn’t enough—people still wouldn’t know what they tasted like—so we figured out a way to split them into several pieces for people to sample. We gave away ten that way, and the remaining twenty actually sold out. Some people even asked if they could buy them tomorrow.”

Ten millet buns would have fetched twenty-five wen if they’d sold them, and the cost of ingredients alone was around ten wen. Giving them all away for free certainly stung, but if we hadn’t done that, it would have been very difficult to sell something no one had ever heard of.

Huo Ling, listening nearby, said, “You can’t catch a wolf without sacrificing the bait. No businessperson makes a profit right off the bat. It’s only the first day—and setting aside the ones you gave out for samples, you managed to sell the rest. Things will definitely get better from here on out.”

Xiao Mingming nodded and said, “That’s exactly what I told Changshui—we’ll take it slow. Back home, aside from selling embroidery, I didn’t earn a single coin all day long. Now that I’m out here, even if I only make five or ten wen, it adds up to a decent amount by the end of the month—and it’s much less work than embroidery.”

Besides, if you really do the math, selling twenty items brings in fifty wen, with a net profit of about thirty wen.

Even if they only sold twenty a day from now on, there would be plenty to look forward to.

Huo Ling asked the couple to wait a bit so they could all catch the same cart back later.

Around noon, after the buns were sold out, Lin Changshui insisted on treating Huo Ling and Yan Qi to lunch.

“It’s your first day in business—why are you in such a hurry to spend your money?”

Neither Huo Ling nor Yan Qi would accept the invitation. Huo Ling said, “It won’t take long to drive the ox cart home—we can just eat there.”

Xiao Mingming, however, said, “You two are our family’s benefactors. If Brother Huo hadn’t given Changsui that advice back then, we’d never have thought of selling food—not in a million years. Now that things have worked out, how can we not show our gratitude? We certainly can’t afford anything valuable, but we can at least treat you to a meal. Brother Huo, Brother Yan Qi, please do us this favor.”

Yan Qi couldn’t help but say, “How come you’re so eloquent all of a sudden? You’re leaving me speechless.”

Xiao Mingming smiled wryly. “Maybe shouting out my wares all day today has finally opened my eyes. At first, I didn’t dare speak up, but then I thought, who would turn down money? Besides, who even knows who I am?”

If even Yan Qi couldn’t keep up, Lin Changshui certainly couldn’t get a word in either. He paced anxiously beside them, almost ready to grab Huo Ling’s arm and drag him away.

Seeing this, Huo Ling relented and said, “Alright, let’s go grab a bite to eat. Let’s celebrate our grand opening today.”

“Right, right—good luck!”

Lin Changshui gave a thumbs-up.

Huo Ling chuckled, “Look, Changshui’s speaking much more clearly now.”

Lin Changshui scratched his head and chuckled, “I—I’ll… hawk our wares too. I’ll practice more, practice.”

“That’s right. With more practice, you’ll probably get the hang of it. Just talk whenever you can—talk to people, talk to the wall.”

Huo Ling offered a few words of encouragement. Lin Changshui had been feeling a little nervous, but after hearing Huo Ling’s words, his nervousness vanished completely.

He thought back to when he was selling buns earlier that day. For a while, several people had crowded around him at once, asking for samples, inquiring about the price, and even nitpicking that the buns weren’t all the same size.

Since his husband couldn’t attend to everyone at once, he’d helped out with the conversation. At the time, it seemed no one had noticed he stuttered—or perhaps they had, but simply didn’t care.

Selling buns is different from farming or doing odd jobs—you can’t just keep your head down and work.

He pulled himself together and decided to start practicing his speech from today onward; otherwise, once they had a child, he might end up raising the child to be a little stutterer too.