Zhou Ning untied his hair ribbon, climbed into bed, pulled the covers over himself, and settled in to sleep.

Shen Linchuan wasn’t having any of it. He set his book aside—he wasn’t going to let all the effort he’d put into posing for so long go to waste. He grabbed his Fulang’s hand and placed it on his stomach. “Feel it. What do you feel?”

Zhou Ning wiggled his fingers. Shen Linchuan was fairer than him, and his skin was incredibly smooth—a few shades fairer than many young guys. Zhou Ning answered honestly, “Smooth.”

Shen Linchuan deflated again. “Didn’t you feel any abs?”

“What are abs?” Zhou Ning asked sincerely.

Shen Linchuan pulled his hand away from his stomach and felt his Fulang’s abs himself. “See? They’re those defined muscles on your stomach. You have them.”

Shen Linchuan felt his Fulang’s abs with a touch of envy. How come his Fulang had them, while after all this time training, he only had a thin layer of muscle?

“Oh, you mean that? Doesn’t everyone have them?”

In Zhou Ning’s mind, didn’t everyone have those little patches of muscle on their stomachs? His dad had them, he had them—he didn’t know about other people, but surely everyone did.

Shen Linchuan had them too, didn’t he? He’d let Zhou Ning feel them. They weren’t as defined as his, but they were definitely there.

Shen Linchuan let out an “Ah, not everyone has them! No way, yours is mine!”

So jealous! His fulang’s abs were just too beautiful—a thin layer, with long, powerful limbs. They were absolutely gorgeous!

Shen Linchuan leaned close to Zhou Ning’s ear and said, “My sister-in-law said she’d make a pair of shoes for me today.”

“Then thank her for me.”

“She asked me what your shoe size is, so I measured it out with my hand.”

“Hmm.”

Shen Linchuan bit Zhou Ning’s ear. “Do you know how I figured that out?”

Zhou Ning shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“I’ll show you.”

Shen Linchuan drew the bed curtains closed. The oil lamp outside the curtains hadn’t been blown out. Zhou Ning tried to get up to blow it out, but Shen Linchuan held him back. “No need to blow it out—you can’t see it anyway.”

Shen Linchuan demonstrated exactly how he knew the size of his Fulang’s feet. Zhou Ning was so flustered that he bit his lip, afraid to make a sound. Where on earth had Shen Linchuan picked up these teasing tricks?

After his little prank, Shen Linchuan threw on his robe and stood up. Zhou Ning’s face flushed as he blinked, “No more babies?”

Shen Linchuan tapped Fulang on the forehead. “No, we’re not ready yet. You were in pain but didn’t say anything. Go to sleep now; I’m going to read for a bit.”

Shen Linchuan feared that if he kept fooling around, his studies would fall by the wayside again. Beauty is a distraction!

Early the next morning, just as dawn was breaking, the Zhou household bustled about as usual. Shen Linchuan no longer used a shoulder pole to carry water; instead, he carried it with both hands, gradually trying to keep his arms straight as he lifted the water.

Today, they only had pork belly; the offal usually sells out in a single day. Once they reached the market, the three of them set up their stall. Shen Linchuan had just lit the firewood in the clay stove when he heard a clear, ringing voice: “Boss, I’m here to deliver your bowls!”

It was the young apprentice from the pottery kiln, delivering the bowls. Twenty earthenware bowls were a trivial business matter to him. Carrying a basket on his back, he brought them over. “Boss, I’m not late, am I?”

“No, I just set up my stall.”

The youngster grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. “Check them, boss—there are twenty-two bowls in total.”

“Weren’t there supposed to be twenty?”

“My master was worried I might break some on the way, so he fired up two extra.”

Shen Linchuan laughed too. “Your master’s not half bad to you.”

“You bet. My master taught me the craft of making bowls. I have three brothers, and we couldn’t even afford to eat—my master’s the one who feeds us.”

Shen Linchuan had finished counting the bowls and examined the engravings on the bottoms. Since they were all identical, he didn’t have to worry about being given the wrong ones. The young man had been waiting patiently while he counted.

The bowls were spotless, not a speck of dirt inside. “Did you wash them?”

“Yeah, I figured you’d need them urgently, and since you’re in the food business, I washed them all clean before bringing them over. They’re ready to use. Everything’s fine, right? I’ll head back now.”

“Wait a moment.”

Hearing Shen Linchuan tell him not to leave, the young apprentice tensed for a second. Had he done a poor job? “Sir, the bowls are all in good condition—not a single one is chipped.”

“It’s not about the bowls. Just wait a moment.”

“Mr. Shen is here—give me two servings of whatever’s in the pot.” As soon as Shopkeeper Lu saw Shen Linchuan setting up his stall, he hurried over. That pork belly is especially delicious—just one bite, and you’ll be thinking about it all night long.

“Hey, Shopkeeper Lu, hold on a sec.”

Shen Linchuan went over to the scallion pancake stall and grabbed one. “Uncle Wang, you’ve made this many already today?”

The stall owner chuckled, “I was worried it’d be like yesterday—too many people buying and I couldn’t keep up. You tell me, isn’t that frustrating?”

Today, he had specially baked twenty pancakes in advance, placing them in a bamboo basket lined with white cotton padding to keep them warm; they were still hot when he took them out.

Shen Linchuan dropped three copper coins into the man’s cash box, but Uncle Wang waved them off. “It’s just one scallion pancake—you really don’t need to pay for it.”

“We’re both in business. I can’t take your goods for free, Uncle Wang.”

Shen Linchuan took a scallion pancake. The pot on the clay stove was already simmering. He placed a piece of dried tofu inside the pancake, cut a tiger-skin egg in half and added it, and finally drizzled some meat broth over it. “Thank you. Thanks for washing the dishes for me.”

The young apprentice froze for a moment, then his eyes lit up. “Thank you, boss!”

The youngster ran off with the flatbread. That was worth several copper coins, and there was even an egg inside!

The braised pork in the pot was already hot. Shen Linchuan pulled out some of the firewood; the charcoal inside would keep it warm. Shopkeeper Lu smiled and said, “Young Mr. Shen, you’re truly kind.”

Shen Linchuan smiled but said nothing. “Mr. Lu, would you like to use your own bowl or one of mine?”

“Oh? How does that work?”

Shen Linchuan held up a bowl for him to see. “There’s a two-wen deposit for my bowl. You bring it back to get the deposit refunded.”

Mr. Lu burst out laughing. “Young Shen, you know how to do business! I’ll go home and get a bowl right away!”

While Mr. Lu was gone to fetch the bowls, Shen Linchuan had already sold several pieces of dried tofu and dried green beans, one wen each. He bought a scallion pancake from next door to eat with them, and that was breakfast taken care of.

For the children who wanted dried tofu, he skewered them on bamboo sticks so they could hold them in their hands. At just one wen each, they were a tasty snack with a hint of meat flavor.

Even without shouting out his wares, quite a crowd gathered today. Shopkeeper Lu hadn’t been able to get any dried tofu yesterday, so he’d made a point of ordering extra today—just one wen each, a real bargain.

Zhou Ning helped his father for a while before coming over to collect the coins. He’d prepared today’s shredded pork himself, and hearing people praise how delicious it was made him very happy.

He’d brought plenty of shredded pork today, and just as usual, it sold out right after the morning market ended—more than half the bowls on the stall had been used.

Shen Linchuan’s business was booming, and while he was happy about it himself, the happiest of all was Old Wang next door. Because Shen Linchuan’s stall was doing so well, it drew quite a crowd, and many people would stop by to buy a scallion pancake to go with their meal.

As soon as Shen Linchuan sold out, Zhou Da urged the two of them to head home; he knew his son-in-law still had to go home and study.

Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning packed up their things and prepared to leave. “Father, Ning-ger and I are heading home first. Don’t skimp on your lunch.”

“I’m a grown man now; I can take care of myself. You and Ning-ger should hurry home.”

Old Man Wang, the flatbread seller, teased with a smile, “Zhou Da, your son-in-law sure is a dutiful one. Young Shen, your business is doing so well—you should make more of these. You could earn a bit more silver. The morning market has barely ended, and you’ve already sold out of your pork belly.”

Shen Linchuan replied casually, “Things are too busy at home.”

The two men headed home, each carrying a basket on their backs. They took some of the goods home with them; otherwise, it would have been too heavy for his father to push all the way back alone.

Old Man Wang was still chatting with Zhou Da: “Zhou Da, your son-in-law is really capable. Just look at how good his business is. If he could sell for a few more hours, wouldn’t his whole family become well-off?”

Zhou Da chuckled, “He’s busy, he’s busy. A scholar can’t be like me.”

Old Wang kept praising Zhou Da’s good fortune. He hoped Shen Linchuan would sell for a little longer, so his own pancake business could earn a bit more.

Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning also headed home along the main road. Shen Linchuan asked, “Ning-ger, do you think we should keep our stall open a little longer? That way, we could make a bit more money.”

Zhou Ning shook his head. “Running a small business for too long will interfere with your studies. We can’t have it both ways—we shouldn’t be too greedy.”

Shen Linchuan hooked his finger around Zhou Ning’s. Zhou Ning tried to pull away. “The street’s full of people—what if someone sees us?”

“They’re blocked from view.” Shen Linchuan hooked his Fulang’s finger just as he’d wanted, then continued, “If someone eats the same thing every day and finally gets their fill all at once, do you think they’ll still want to eat it tomorrow?”

“Of course not.”

“Our business works the same way. Some people want to buy but can’t, want to eat but can’t get a taste. The more they smell the aroma, the more they crave it. Even after buying it, they haven’t had their fill—don’t you think they’ll want to buy more?”

“Absolutely.”

“That’s called scarcity marketing. It’s like keeping someone hungry—don’t you think they’ll want to eat their fill? The longer you keep them hungry, the more they’ll crave a full meal. It’s the same principle in our business. And the more people who can’t buy it, the greater our reputation will grow in the future.”

“Shen Linchuan, you’re so clever!”

Shen Linchuan was thoroughly flattered by her Fulang’s praise. “My Fulang is quite capable, too.”

On the way back, Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning discussed how much food to prepare each day. Ten pounds of pork belly could yield forty slices; dried tofu and dried green beans sold the fastest at low prices, so they’d prepare fifty of each; and twenty eggs a day. That way, they could make about six hundred wen a day.

Their small food stall operated alongside her father’s meat stall. Her father bought pigs every other day and sold pork daily; ideally, they could set up shop twenty days a month. Their little food stall was essentially a no-capital business, requiring ten pounds of pork belly each day.

Excluding days off when they didn’t set up shop, they could operate at least fifteen to seventeen days a month, which would amount to about ten taels of silver. Add in the cheap offal and pork jowls from a single pig, and they could earn roughly fifteen taels of silver a month.

Shen Linchuan rattled off the numbers to Zhou Ning, and Zhou Ning exclaimed in surprise, “We can actually make that much!”

“It sounds like a lot, but don’t forget our father doesn’t charge us for the meat. Ten pounds of pork a day—that’s at least five taels of silver a month. Without counting our labor costs, we’re only making ten taels.”

“Do we actually get paid for our work?”

“Of course. If you hired someone, you’d have to pay them copper coins, plus the tofu—and we have to set aside one tael of silver for that. Actually, when you do the math, we don’t make that much in a month.”

After Shen Linchuan finished his calculations, Zhou Ning understood everything and was even more impressed by Shen Linchuan’s sharp mind.

Still, Shen Linchuan had to go to school. Earning ten taels of silver a month was more than his father made selling pork in a single month.

After discussing it for a while, they decided to limit their business to the morning market from now on, so it wouldn’t interfere with Shen Linchuan’s studies.

Zhou Da had been selling in town until late afternoon and was now pushing his cart back home. Since his son-in-law needed some pork, a whole pig was usually sold out in just two days. With only a few scraps left, he simply pushed his cart through the villages along the way, calling out to passersby until he’d sold it all.

Zhou Da was now increasingly pleased with Shen Linchuan. While his initial kindness toward him had been due to him being his son-in-law, he now saw that Shen Linchuan was fully devoted to the household, and life at home was growing ever more harmonious.

That night, as Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning lay nestled together, the sound of rustling gradually drifted in from outside, and the two slept soundly through the night.

Shen Linchuan was used to waking up early; he always opened his eyes as soon as dawn broke. Today, however, when he opened his eyes, the room was still pitch black. The roosters in the courtyard were already crowing, and the rustling sounds outside were gradually growing louder.

It turned out to be raining—the first rain since Shen Linchuan had arrived here. Although summer had just begun, this rain was certainly as precious as oil in spring; it would save them the trouble of watering the wheat fields.

It wasn’t light out yet, so Shen Linchuan decided to linger in bed for a while. His Fulang was nestled against his neck, fast asleep. Shen Linchuan tugged at the blanket and secretly reached out to squeeze his Fulang’s beautiful pectoral muscles, waking Zhou Ning from his deep slumber.

Zhou Ning mumbled groggily, “Shen Linchuan, it’s not even dawn yet.”

“I know. Go back to sleep.”

The hand playing on his chest wouldn’t stop, and Zhou Ning was fully roused. “It’s raining.”

“Mm. We don’t have to get up so early today.”

Zhou Ning yawned and brushed his hand away from his chest. “We don’t need to fetch water today. The roads are bad, so Father definitely won’t be accepting pigs. The water in the jar is enough for today’s cooking.”

“Mm, it’s still early. Go back to sleep.”

Zhou Ning shot a slight glare at the person beside him. His husband had woken him up—how was he supposed to go back to sleep now?

Shen Linchuan teased, “Are you mad? Then I’ll let you touch me back. I’m nice to touch—smooth.”

Zhou Ning wasn’t about to pay any attention to Shen Linchuan’s nonsense. The two of them huddled in bed, whispering a few idle words to each other, while the room gradually grew bright enough to see things.

Zhou Ning couldn’t sleep either. He sat up, picked up the wooden hairpin by his pillow, and casually pinned up his long hair.

With Zhou Ning no longer lying in bed, Shen Linchuan found it boring to be alone, so he got up too. He pushed open the door and saw a wet patch on the floor—it was drizzling now.

Shen Linchuan took down the straw raincoat hanging on the wall. “While the rain isn’t too heavy, I’ll go fill the water jug.”

“Just be careful not to slip.”

Shen Linchuan didn’t want to take a day off. Without that kind of willpower, how could he possibly take the imperial examinations? He had to be fully prepared—his body needed to be in top shape, and his knowledge had to be rock-solid.

As Shen Linchuan stepped out of the main hall, mud caked his entire shoe. He frowned slightly, realizing he hadn’t packed the mud down properly. Just as he was about to head out, Zhou Ning called after him, “Put on your straw sandals; they won’t be slippery.”

Shen Linchuan’s brow finally relaxed. “Alright, that’ll save my shoes from getting dirty.”

Shen Linchuan changed into a pair of straw sandals, grabbed a wooden bucket, and headed out. Zhou Ning had risen early that day; it was a rare day off for the whole family, so he went into the kitchen to cook.

Shen Linchuan made a dozen or so trips back and forth, his straw sandals caked in mud. He rolled up his pant legs high, revealing his fair calves, and filled the tub to the brim.

He stood at the kitchen door, untied his straw raincoat, and took off his sweatband to wipe the sweat from his forehead. He still needed to practice; while he had no trouble carrying water on a shoulder pole before, carrying it by hand was still a bit of a struggle.

Zhou Ning brought over some hot water. “Wash your feet.”

Shen Linchuan quickly took off his mud-caked straw sandals, washed his feet clean, and then put on his cloth shoes.

“Making buns.”

“Mm, I got up early today to make a pot of buns.”

Shen Linchuan peered over and saw the filling was made of some kind of green vegetable, mixed with wood ear mushrooms, diced dried tofu, and small dried shrimp—the very same dried shrimp he and Ning-ger had caught in the little stream by their family’s fields.

“What kind of greens is this? Did you just go out to pick wild vegetables?”

“No, some purslane popped up in our vegetable patch, so I picked it all clean.” Zhou Ning was rolling out the dumpling wrappers with his hands. “You’d better go study—I don’t need your help here.”

Shen Linchuan leaned in and kissed his Fulang on the cheek. “You’ve been working hard, my Fulang.”

Zhou Ning didn’t even look up, just kept rolling out the dumpling wrappers with slightly stiff hands. Shen Linchuan, in high spirits, went to the main hall to read.

They’d been married for quite some time now, yet his Fulang still hadn’t gotten used to his kisses.

Once Shen Linchuan entered the main hall, he first went through a set of martial arts forms to warm up before picking up a book to recite.

Zhou Ning was making buns in the kitchen; hearing Shen Linchuan’s voice, the corners of his mouth couldn’t help but turn up.

It had been raining all day. Just after Shen Linchuan had fetched water, the rain grew heavier and heavier, not stopping until the afternoon, when orange-hued clouds appeared in the sky.

Shen Linchuan stood up and stretched; the air after the rain carried a faint fragrance of plants.

No one in the family had gone out today. Zhou Ning sat beside Shen Linchuan, practicing calligraphy, while Zhou Da was in his own room, brewing a pot of rice wine and enjoying a plate of fried peanuts—another leisurely day.

Shen Linchuan went over to check on Fulang’s homework. All he saw on the paper were the three characters “Shen Linchuan” scrawled haphazardly. Shen Linchuan chuckled, “Do you remember how to write them?”

Zhou Ning nodded eagerly, “I remember, I remember. It’s not raining anymore. I want to go out and pick some bamboo shoots.”

Zhou Ning couldn’t wait to go out. Studying was such a grueling task!

Shen Linchuan had made him practice writing large characters for nearly a whole day. Why was the brush tip so soft? His writing always ended up in a smudged mess. He had to keep his wrist suspended and use even lighter pressure—it was pure torture! He’d rather be out turning the soil!

Shen Linchuan sat down beside him, amused by Fulang’s impatience. “What bamboo shoots are you going to pick? It just rained, and the ground is all muddy out there.”

Shen Linchuan took Zhou Ning’s hand and rubbed his wrist. “From now on, when you come back from the morning market, you’ll practice writing large characters with me.”

Zhou Ning froze. “But… but I have chores to do at home! I have to wash clothes, chop firewood, and feed the chickens!”

“It’s not like you have to do those chores every day. How about we just practice writing until noon? Then you can do whatever you want in the afternoon.”

Hearing Shen Linchuan say this, Zhou Ning breathed a sigh of relief; studying and learning to read was truly torturous.

When Shen Linchuan taught him to write large characters today, he was actually quite happy at first. In the whole Dayangshu Village, only Yi-ger could read—his father had taught him. Yi-ger was going to be a doctor someday; how could he prescribe medicine to people if he didn’t know how to read?

Zhou Ning was full of energy; chopping wood, carrying water, slaughtering pigs, and working the fields were all no problem for him, yet he was stumped by this tiny brush.

He thought for a moment and said, “Learning to read is useless to me and just wastes paper. I’d rather save this paper for you to use.”

Shen Linchuan almost burst out laughing. How could he not know what his clumsy Fulang was thinking? Whatever was on his mind was written all over his face. “It’s just a few sheets of paper. Don’t we earn enough copper coins from our business to buy a few sheets of paper? What’s the matter? You don’t even want to write your husband’s name?”

Zhou Ning quickly shook his head. “I’m willing, I’m willing.”

Shen Linchuan leaned in. “You worked hard today. Here’s a kiss as a reward.”

Before Shen Linchuan could even kiss him, someone outside called out, “Big Brother! Big Brother! Are you home?”

Zhou Ning was so startled he nearly fell to the ground; only Shen Linchuan’s quick grip saved him from a fall. Annoyed that his kiss had been interrupted, Shen Linchuan’s expression darkened, but when he looked out, he saw it was an acquaintance. A smile returned to his face. “Second Uncle, what’s up?”

“Is your father home?”

“He’s in the east room.”

Zhou Da, hearing someone call out, came out as well. “Second Uncle, come on in and sit down.”

Zhou Da led Zhou Er into the main hall. Shen Linchuan’s books were still lying on the table there, so Shen Linchuan reached out to tidy them up.

Zhou Ning poured a bowl of water for his Second Uncle, then sat quietly next to Shen Linchuan without saying a word.

“Lao’er, what’s on your mind?”

“Nothing much, just dropped by to sit a while. I figured with the rain today, eldest brother probably isn’t out doing business.”

Zhou Er glanced at Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning. “Linchuan, you’ve been staying at our place for quite some time now, haven’t you?”

Shen Linchuan smiled faintly. “Thank you for thinking of me, Second Uncle.”

“We’re all family. I’m your own second uncle. If you ever need anything, just come find me. My son Youcheng is the same age as you. He passed the preliminary exams last year and often drops by our place. Since you two are the same age, you’ll have plenty to talk about.”

Zhou Da chuckled, “Right, right, right. You’re all scholars. You scholars should get together and discuss your studies. My Linchuan is a Tongsheng too.”

A hint of sarcasm played at the corners of Shen Linchuan’s mouth. His father was right there at home—why would he go to this second uncle first instead of his own father?

“Ah, that’s different. Youcheng just passed the Tongsheng exam. If Linchuan ever has any trouble with his studies, he should feel free to come ask me.”

“It’s all the same, all the same. Linchuan passed the preliminary examination even earlier than Youcheng did. Linchuan, when did you pass?”

Zhou Da didn’t pick up on the slight in his younger brother Zhou Er’s words; he simply took it as a well-meaning suggestion for Shen Linchuan to seek guidance from Zhou Youcheng.

“Father, I passed the Tongsheng exam when I was ten. Youcheng didn’t pass until he was seventeen or eighteen, so I beat him by seven or eight years.”

Shen Linchuan shot Zhou Er a sharp look. What was there to be proud of? Passing the Tongsheng exam at seventeen or eighteen—if you really compared them, Zhou Youcheng wasn’t even as clever as his original self.

Zhou Er had always been proud of his scholarly son. Since he’d passed the Tongsheng exam last year, he’d grown even more smug in the village, so Shen Linchuan’s remark left him looking rather displeased.

“Well…”

“Father, how many years has Brother Youcheng been studying?”

Before Zhou Er could answer, Shen Linchuan cut him off.

“Your Brother Youcheng was sent to town to study when he was ten. It just so happened that you passed the Tongsheng exam that same year—quite a coincidence,” Zhou Da said with a hearty laugh.