Shen Linchuan put on his straw sandals and went to fetch water; after a few trips back and forth, his feet were caked in mud.

Zhou Da had also gotten up. Shen Linchuan called out, “Dad, we won’t be collecting the pigs today, will we? The roads are all muddy.” 

“No, we’ll wait until the ground cools down and collect them tomorrow. I’m going to take a walk around the fields to check on our crops.”

Zhou Da led the mule out the door, humming a tune. Ever since he’d gotten the mule, running his business had become much easier.

While Shen Linchuan was reciting his lessons, Zhou Ning got up and tied his hair back. The morning after the rain was peaceful and serene. “Shen Linchuan, that mosquito coil works really well. Burning mugwort produces too much smoke. When you have a chance, send some over to my brother, sister-in-law, and Yi-ger.”

“Sure. I’ll also boil some mugwort, mint, and honeysuckle to make an anti-itch ointment. I’ll send that over with the rest.” 

“Okay.”

As soon as Zhou Ning got up, he went to feed the chickens. He counted the chicks in the coop—not a single one was missing. A smile spread across his face. With the rain this morning, he’d been worried the chicks might have run out, but now he saw they were all huddled under the mother hen’s wings.

After feeding his precious little chicks, Zhou Ning went to fetch water to wash his face. For breakfast, he made a few soft scallion and egg pancakes, served with crisp, refreshing pickled vegetables. Shen Linchuan really loved the scallion and egg pancakes Zhou Ning made; he ate three of them before stopping.

There was nothing to do at home today, and all three family members were there. As the sun shone, the water on the ground quickly evaporated. Zhou Da sat in the courtyard weaving straw sandals from wheat straw to wear when it rained.

Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning rolled up the bamboo blinds and sat inside writing large characters. Zhou Ning had been practicing calligraphy with Shen Linchuan for so long that his handwriting now looked quite presentable.

“Big brother, you’re home.”

Zhou Ning was concentrating intently on his writing when he heard his second uncle’s voice; his hand slipped, ruining a perfectly good character. Shen Linchuan gently tapped his fulang’s wrist. “All right, take a break and try again later.”

“Second, you’re here.”

Shen Linchuan gathered the books from the table and stepped out, smiling as he brought a few stools from inside. “Uncle and Auntie are here, and Sister Fang has come too.”

Zhou Fang reluctantly called out, “Brother-in-law.” She looked down at her embroidered shoes—the uppers were already covered in mud.

She’d said she didn’t want to come, but her father insisted she tag along, saying she hadn’t even visited her eldest uncle yet. Now look—her brand-new embroidered shoes, which she’d only worn for a few days, were all dirty.

Zhou Ning poured a bowl of tea for everyone. Aside from Zhou Youcheng, Zhou Er’s family of three had all come over, carrying gifts with them: a basket filled with homegrown vegetables, a few eggs, and a small jar of wine.

“Lao’er, you’ve come all this way—there’s no need to bring anything.”

“It’s been a while since I last came to see you, Big Brother. How have you been lately?” 

“I’m fine, nothing to worry about.”

Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning sat together without speaking, quietly listening to their father and Zhou Er chat. Things from Zhou Er’s household weren’t so easy to come by; since he’d brought a gift over, he was surely planning to ask for something else in return.

Shen Linchuan had already guessed it: the town school was due for the second-half tuition payment soon, and his “dear” second uncle had come to collect the silver.

Seeing that Zhou Er was beating around the bush instead of getting to the point, Hu Caiyun tugged gently at his sleeve. Only then did Zhou Er speak up. “Big Brother, it’s time to pay the tuition fees for Youcheng again. Just like every year, it’s eight taels of silver.”

Zhou Da, busy weaving straw sandals, didn’t respond, but his expression was less than cheerful. Every year, he contributed sixteen taels of silver toward Zhou Er’s tuition fees; when supplies like ink, brushes, paper, and inkstones ran out, Zhou Er’s family would come asking for more. All told, it amounted to no less than twenty taels of silver a year.

The family of the second son made up the shortfall themselves, saying they would handle the festival offerings on their own.

“Second Brother, how many years has Youcheng been studying in town?”

“Eight years now, Big Brother. You’ve forgotten—Youcheng passed the Tongsheng exam just the year before last, and he’s set to take the Xiucai exam next year.” 

“Eight years, huh.”

Zhou Da muttered to himself. So it’s been eight years already. His nephew’s tuition fees have gone up year after year—apparently, he’s switched to a better tutor, so the fees are naturally higher.

His family had spent thirty taels this year on a fine blue-and-white mule, yet his nephew’s tuition alone cost twenty taels a year.

After all these years of hard work, he couldn’t even afford to buy a single mule on his own.

Seeing that Zhou Da’s expression wasn’t looking too good, Zhou Er’s heart skipped a beat; he knew this time the silver wouldn’t be easy to collect. But his older brother was a soft-hearted man, which was why he’d specifically mentioned his son passing the Tongsheng exam—all those years of support hadn’t been in vain.

“I only make five taels a month from slaughtering pigs, and there are two months in the summer when it’s too hot to do business. At most, I make fifty taels a year, and half of that goes toward Youcheng’s education. With Ning-ger and me buying cloth, rice, oil, and salt, saving ten taels a year is a good year.”

“Yes, yes, yes. It’s all thanks to you, Big Brother, that Youcheng has been able to study in town all these years.”

Zhou Da shook his head. “Ah.”

Zhou Er’s heart kept skipping a beat. What did his older brother mean by that? “Big Brother, Youcheng is the only son of the Zhou family. Once he passes the imperial exams, how could he not show respect to you, his uncle?”

Zhou Er’s tone was pleading. In previous years, his older brother had handed over the silver without a word, but this year, even after he’d been talking for ages, his older brother hadn’t even moved from his seat. No need to guess—it must be that Shen Linchuan again!

“Second Uncle, hasn’t Brother Youcheng mentioned that matter to you?” 

“What matter?”

Zhou Er asked, puzzled.

Shen Linchuan snorted derisively. “Last time, Brother Youcheng brought some pastries to visit my father. Guess what? He greeted my father with the courtesy reserved for peers. My father is his uncle—what on earth was he thinking!”

“Well, well, well… I don’t really understand these scholarly matters. Eldest Brother, don’t take it to heart. He’s still just a child.”

“Father, we can’t give away this silver. Every coin in our household is the fruit of your hard labor. I know we’re broke—we can’t even support me anymore, so how could we possibly afford to support Second Uncle’s son?”

Zhou Ning also grabbed his father’s sleeve. “Father, Shen Linchuan doesn’t even have enough silver for his studies. Our family can’t be responsible for Uncle’s affairs.”

As soon as Hu Caiyun heard the two younger ones heckling her and refusing to hand over the silver, her expression instantly darkened. “We elders are speaking here—it’s not your place to interrupt! Have you no sense of propriety?”

“Of course, there’s no sense of propriety like Zhou Youcheng’s. He actually paid my father a greeting reserved for peers. Does he want to call my father his brother? I just don’t know how to address Second Uncle regarding this generational relationship—should Second Uncle call Zhou Youcheng ‘son’ or ‘third brother’?”

“You insolent brat!” Zhou Er, furious, pointed his finger at Shen Linchuan’s nose. “Eldest Brother, just look at this fine son-in-law of yours—he actually dares to insult our ancestors!”

Hu Caiyun also began to shout, “Exactly! Eldest Brother, don’t be foolish. Ever since Shen Linchuan came to the Zhou household, he’s been stirring up trouble. He’s nothing but a son-in-law by marriage. You and Ning-ger should rein him in—how can you let a mere son-in-law climb to the top of our Zhou family?”

Zhou Da slammed the shoe he was holding down on the table. “Enough!”

Though Zhou Da looked fierce, he rarely lost his temper. His sudden outburst startled Zhou Er’s family, and Zhou Er stammered, “Big Brother.”

“I’ve had enough! All these years, I’ve supported Youcheng’s education—wasn’t that for the sake of the Zhou family? Yet he looks down on me, his own uncle, who makes a living slaughtering and curing pigs. If Ning-ger hadn’t mentioned it the other day, I nearly forgot—I’ve been doing business in town for twenty years, and I’ve never once run into Zhou Youcheng!”

When Zhou Da flew into a rage, he was quite a sight to behold. It was the first time Zhou Fang had ever seen her uncle so angry; she was so frightened she hid behind her mother.

“With Ning-ger’s wedding this year, we’ve no spare silver left. Linchuan, being such a dutiful son, felt sorry for his old father and dropped out of school in town. I couldn’t very well let my son-in-law go without an education while giving silver to my nephew—that would have broken Linchuan’s heart.”

Shen Linchuan’s heart swelled with emotion as he listened. “Father.”

“Eldest Brother, this is different. Shen Linchuan is, after all, an outsider. Youcheng, however, is the blood of our Zhou family. He’s even passed the preliminary imperial examination. If you were to support Shen Linchuan in the future, can you guarantee that he won’t abandon Ning-ger, his Fulang?”

“Youcheng is different—he’s our own flesh and blood. If Youcheng ever makes something of himself, he won’t abandon you, his eldest uncle, or Ning-ger. If Shen Linchuan dares to mistreat Ning-ger, Youcheng won’t stand for it. Eldest Brother, you’re being foolish!”

Shen Linchuan listened and almost clapped in admiration. Zhou Er’s skill at twisting the truth was truly unmatched—he’d even imagined a future scenario where Shen Linchuan would abandon his husband and child.

“Father, he’s slandering me. He’s just afraid our family will prosper.” Shen Linchuan immediately turned the tables and filed a complaint.

Zhou Ning chimed in, “Father, Shen Linchuan isn’t that kind of person. It’s Zhou Youcheng who, once he makes something of himself, might look down on us just because we’re pig butchers.” 

“All right, Second Son, you two go home. Now that both families have a scholar, I, Zhou Da, don’t have the means to support more than one.”

“Eldest Brother! Youcheng has already passed the preliminary exam to become a ‘Tongsheng!’ Next year, he’ll take the exam to become a ‘Xiucai.’ You can’t let him lack the money to study—that would ruin his future!”

“If there’s no money, he can study at home like Linchuan. When Linchuan dropped out of school in town, everyone in the village knew about it—they were all whispering behind his back. I couldn’t help but hear it. Linchuan was already a son-in-law by marriage, and he was still the subject of gossip. As his father, I can’t let him feel disheartened!”

“Big Brother, how can you not tell the difference between close and distant relatives? Youcheng is your own nephew!” Hu Caiyun said reluctantly. “Shen Linchuan is also my father’s own son-in-law,” Zhou Ning retorted, refusing to back down.

Seeing that Zhou Da was adamant about not giving the money, Zhou Er grabbed Hu Caiyun, who was still trying to argue, and said, “Let’s go, let’s go.” Hu Caiyun still wanted to take the gifts on the table, but Zhou Er glared at her and said, “Go home!”

Zhou Ning quickly picked up the worthless gifts from the table and shoved them into Zhou Fang’s hands. “We don’t want them.” 

Shen Linchuan gave his husband a silent thumbs-up. Not bad!

Zhou Ning curled the corners of his mouth. “Father, you can’t give this silver to Zhou Youcheng. Shen Linchuan felt so sorry for us this year that he voluntarily dropped out of school because we didn’t have any money. You can’t play favorites.”

“I know, I know.”

Although Zhou Da was soft-hearted, he knew better than to get involved. If he really gave money to his second son’s family this time, it would truly break his son-in-law’s heart.

After Zhou Er’s family returned home, they were furious. Hu Caiyun shouted angrily, “How can Shen Linchuan be compared to our Youcheng? He’s just a Tongsheng who’s been studying for who knows how many years!”

Zhou Fang carried the items over and set them on the table. “Father, you have to figure something out. My brother can’t just stop studying, can he? I’m counting on him to pass the Xiucai exam.”

“That Youcheng really is something. He knew full well that Shen Linchuan was a tough nut to crack, yet he went and gave the man a reason to find fault with him. Now look—it’ll be hard to get any money from the eldest son’s family.”

“Enough! Stop complaining! You can’t blame Youcheng entirely for this. If anyone’s to blame, it’s Shen Linchuan. If he weren’t a scholar himself, why wouldn’t our eldest brother give Youcheng the money for his studies?”

Now look—with one scholar in each household, even a wealthy rural family can’t afford to support two at once!

“If we can’t get the money this time, we can forget about it in the future.” Zhou Er walked around the courtyard with his hands behind his back. “This won’t do. I’ll call Youcheng back from town and have Uncle Zhou come along to have a word with them.”

“Will that work?” Hu Caiyun asked.

“Why wouldn’t it work? Our Youcheng bears the Zhou surname. If he makes something of himself, the whole clan will benefit. That Shen Linchuan, on the other hand, is an outsider. Even if he succeeds, what does that have to do with the Zhou family? Uncle Zhou isn’t stupid.”

Hu Caiyun thought about it and realized he was right. Uncle Zhou was the eldest and most influential member of the Zhou clan.

If they brought Uncle Zhou in, she didn’t believe the Zhou Ning family would just hand over the money.

“Mother, you go to town and call Youcheng back. I’ll go ask Uncle Zhou to send someone.”

Zhou Er and his wife sprang into action. After all, this was several taels of silver. They’d been giving it for so many years—they couldn’t very well stop this year. Besides, the boy still had to go to school; it wasn’t as if he’d decided to drop out.

By the afternoon, Zhou Da’s family of three was all at home. Zhou Ning carried a basket over to Yi-ger’s house, bringing a few

trays of mosquito coils and cooling ointment. Yi-ger was delighted. “Ning-ger, I’ll try these out first.”

When Zhou Ning returned, he saw his father and Shen Linchuan surrounded by the crowd.

He saw Zhou Er holding Zhou Youcheng down as he kowtowed to his father. “Your eldest uncle has supported you all these years—how could you fail to respect him?”

Zhou Youcheng, his eyes red-rimmed, kept kowtowing. “Uncle, it’s my fault. Last time, in my panic, I performed the ritual incorrectly. I admit my mistake and beg your forgiveness!”

Zhou Youcheng knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly. Yet, just as he lowered his head, a flash of resentment crossed his face. He was nothing but a butcher—what right did he have to make a Tongsheng like him kowtow to him!

Zhou Ning walked over and stood beside Shen Linchuan. “Why are they here again?”

Not only had he come this time, but several of the clan’s elders had come as well. Zhou Ning frowned as he watched; they were clearly here to pressure his family. Shen Linchuan patted Zhou Ning’s hand. “It’s fine.”

Zhou Youcheng knelt on the ground and kowtowed several times in a row, his forehead covered in dirt. He wiped his tears with his sleeve. “Uncle, I was wrong.”

Uncle Zhou, leaning on his cane and trembling, tried to mediate. “Eldest son, no matter what, Youcheng is still your nephew. You’ve supported him for so many years—you can’t just cut him off like that. It’s not easy for our Zhou family to produce even a single Tongsheng.”

Zhou Da let out a sigh. “Uncle, it’s not that I don’t want to support him. We simply have no money left at home. Even Linchuan had to drop out of school in town because we couldn’t afford it. You didn’t know, did you?”

“Big Brother, don’t try to pull the wool over our eyes. Didn’t your family just buy a new mule this year? You and Shen Linchuan both run stalls in town—how could you possibly be short on money?” Hu Caiyun said.

“We spent every last penny we had on that mule,” Shen Linchuan retorted, refusing to let the other party twist the truth. Zhou Da invited several elders to sit in the main hall; Zhou Ning served them tea, and Zhou Youcheng knelt on the floor alongside them.

“It’s not that I refuse to support Zhou Youcheng—it’s just that we’ve run out of money. Look, even Linchuan is studying at home.”

Zhou Da insisted they were truly penniless; surely they couldn’t be expected to raid his own home.

Zhou Youcheng remained kneeling on the ground, wiping away tears. “Uncle, I truly was wrong. From now on, I’ll take good care of you and see you through to the end of your days!”

A sarcastic smile tugged at Shen Linchuan’s lips. With him and Ning-ger both here, why would it be his turn? His words were indeed sweeter than a song.

Zhou Da clenched his fist tightly and steeled his resolve. His son-in-law was right—with only one scholar in the family, if he showed any weakness now, he’d break his son-in-law’s heart, and the young couple wouldn’t be able to make a good life for themselves.

Zhou Da kept harping on how hard it had been for him to raise Ning-ger all these years, and how the family had no savings left.

His son-in-law would have to go to school someday, so he simply had to think of his own family’s interests.

It was only human nature. Although Uncle Zhou was old, he knew full well that the eldest son’s family had helped the second son’s family quite a bit over the years; he couldn’t just keep relying on them to help indefinitely.

Shen Linchuan snorted and said, “Brother Youcheng’s tuition is a bit too steep—eight taels of silver for half a year. I only paid a total of five taels for the entire year with Master Feng.”

“But Master Wang is a Juren; naturally, his tuition is a bit higher.”

“Then wouldn’t my father have to spend twenty taels of silver a year? Twenty taels! It’s worn him out so much over the years that he can’t even afford to buy a single beast of burden. He’s been hauling two- or three-hundred-pound pigs all by himself, running back and forth between town and the countryside. Oh, my.”

Uncle Zhou stood up. “Eldest son, if you can help, please lend a hand. It’s no easy feat for a country family to produce a scholar.” 

“Uncle, let me see you out.”

After Zhou Da saw the elders out, Zhou Er ran after him. “Uncle, you’ve got to say something! How can you bear to let Youcheng give up on his education?”

“Eldest Brother has his own struggles. Every family must make do as best they can. If he truly can’t go to school, then that’s just fate.”

As soon as Hu Caiyun heard this, she sat down on the ground, slapped her thighs, and began wailing, “Everyone, come and see! This uncle won’t help his own nephew get an education—he’s going to ruin Youcheng’s chances of going to school!”

Just as Zhou Youcheng had knelt to apologize, neighbors had already gathered to watch the commotion; Hu Caiyun’s outburst drew everyone’s attention once more.

Old Lady Shi, still clutching a handful of sunflower seeds, cracked them as she spoke: “Caiyun, you can’t force Zhou Da like this. He didn’t even let his own son-in-law go to school. Now that he’s not supporting Youcheng, he’s not showing favoritism toward anyone—he treats his son-in-law and his nephew the same. What’s that saying again?”

“Treating everyone equally,” Granny Wang chimed in. “Right, right, right—treating everyone equally.”

The villagers all felt that Zhou Da’s decision not to support Zhou Youcheng’s education was understandable. Even if they were blood brothers, Zhou Da had helped Zhou Er’s family plenty over the years.

Hu Caiyun kept crying and wailing. She had hoped the villagers would say a word or two in her defense, but to her surprise, no one took her side.

She slapped her thigh and stood up. “Shen Linchuan, is this your doing? You’ve been sweet-talking Big Brother into not giving my family any money! Ever since you arrived, you’ve been constantly sweet-talking Big Brother and Ning-ger!”

“Hu Caiyun, come on, come on. It’s just that they didn’t want your family to get meat for free.”

“Exactly, exactly. Who gets to keep taking advantage of others forever?”

Hu Caiyun’s face flushed with anger, then turned pale as she waved her handkerchief to wipe away her tears. “I can’t go on living! I can’t go on living! With Youcheng being bullied by a son-in-law from outside the family to the point where he can’t even finish his studies, what’s the point of me living anymore?”

“It’s got nothing to do with Shen Linchuan. How can you just make things up like that, Second Aunt?” Zhou Ning was instantly displeased when he heard his Second Aunt slandering Shen Linchuan.

Hu Caiyun turned on Zhou Ning and lashed out, “Just look at you! Just look! Ever since you married Shen Linchuan, you don’t even respect your second aunt anymore—you’ve even learned to talk back!”

Shen Linchuan pulled Zhou Ning closer. “Don’t pay her any mind.”

Hu Caiyun slapped her thigh and wailed, “Your second uncle and aunt have been so good to you, and you’ve forgotten it all. When your father went to town on business when you were little, it was I, your second aunt, who looked after you, washing your clothes, cooking your meals, taking care of you all those days. Have you really forgotten all that? You ungrateful wretch, you ungrateful wretch!”

The moment Hu Caiyun brought this up, Zhou Ning was furious. Even if he wasn’t the best with words, he had to set the record straight in front of everyone. Otherwise, his second aunt would keep using this as leverage to demand repayment for her kindness.

“Auntie, back then, my family ate at your house for a month. My father was worried I was too young to take care of myself alone at noon, so he sent rice, flour, and meat to your house for me to eat. When I got there, I could only eat half a bowl of rice, and I never got any meat. Yet you still made me help you wash clothes.”

Zhou Ning’s emotions were running high. Shen Linchuan pulled him close and patted him on the back. “All right, all right. Don’t get upset. Our Ning-ger really had it rough back then.”

Zhou Da fell silent upon hearing this. He hadn’t even known about this incident; it was his son-in-law who’d mentioned it while they were drinking together. Zhou Da let out a long sigh. “From now on, let’s just mind our own business.”

Although Hu Caiyun felt guilty, she was used to throwing tantrums and naturally refused to admit it. Clapping her hands, she complained about how hard she’d had it. “I worked so hard taking care of you all those days, and now you won’t even acknowledge it? There’s no justice in this world!”

Everyone in the village knew that Hu Caiyun had once taken care of Zhou Ning, but they had no idea she had even skimped on meals for the child.

Old Lady Shi let out an “Ooh, wasn’t that right around the time Ning-ger’s father had just passed away? I remember it well. Ning-ger was just a little boy, digging up grass roots to eat by the river. I even gave him a pear!”

Shen Linchuan bowed slightly to Old Lady Shi. “Thank you, Old Lady Shi. Ning-ger actually told me about that.”

“Oh, it was just a pear. It happened over ten years ago—I’d completely forgotten about it. If Hu Caiyun hadn’t brought it up today, who would have remembered?”

Hearing this, everyone realized that Ning-ger had indeed been telling the truth. “Oh my, Hu Caiyun, you were in the wrong. How much could a little child have eaten back then? You actually let the child get so hungry he had to dig up grass roots to eat.”

Hu Caiyun stubbornly refused to admit it. “Nonsense!”

Zhou Da was also startled. He knew his son had suffered in those days; afterward, the boy had refused to go no matter what, and Zhou Da had even lectured him. He never imagined he’d starve his son to such a state. The more Zhou Da thought about it, the more distressed he felt; a man of seven feet tall, his eyes suddenly welled up with tears.

“Get out! Get out!”

Zhou Da didn’t want to see his second son’s family anymore. He’d treated them well, yet they’d treated his son like this!

Old Lady Shi spat out the sunflower seed husks from her mouth. “Zhou Da, don’t take this the wrong way, but you really need to use your head. Remember when Hu Caiyun was setting Ning-ger up with those families? Look at the kind of people they were! Then she turned around and told us that Ning-ger wasn’t even that good-looking, yet he still got picked. I think she just wants to take Ning-ger away. By then, everything you’ve worked for will end up in her family’s hands.”