Thanks to HH for the kofis. Enjoy the bonus chapters!

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Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning went along to help sell the braised pork. Knowing how much his father cherished his town stall, the two accompanied him. They sold two pots of braised pork, and once they were sold out, they packed up and headed back.

Now, Old Wang was nowhere to be seen at the flatbread stall next to the meat stall; instead, his son and daughter-in-law were making the flatbreads. The young couple was hardworking, and business had been exceptionally brisk all morning.

Seeing Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning arrive, they called out a greeting. “Ning-ger’s husband is here today—is the school on break?” 

Shen Linchuan replied, “It’s been on break for a few days.”

“That’s great. You two should be able to handle selling this pork just fine.”

Since Shen Linchuan had started his studies, he hadn’t come to sell pork cutlets very often. His father usually handled the pork sales, while his husband tended the cutlet stall. Though he didn’t come by as often as before, the regular customers all recognized Shen Linchuan, and upon seeing him there today, they greeted him one after another.

The grilled pork stall was as bustling as ever; people were already lining up before the stall was even set up. Since Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning had been staying in Xinghua Village the past few days, Zhou Da hadn’t been able to manage the stall alone, so they’d skipped selling grilled pork—they hadn’t set up the stall for a few days. Now that they were back, everyone gathered around again.

Zhou Ning collected the coins while Shen Linchuan served the pork to the customers. Since everyone in line was a familiar face from the neighborhood, they chatted idly while waiting chatted a bit. “Have you heard? This year’s top scorer on the county-level exam is from our very own Qinghe Town.”

“Wow, that’s impressive! Whose family is that? How come I haven’t heard a thing about it?”

“It’s not a family from town—it’s from the countryside. I think the surname is Shen or Shen… I forget. We’re not scholars, so we don’t really pay attention to these things.”

“I know who it is. My son goes to school there. He says the family’s surname is Shen, and they’re from Master Wang’s school.”

“That’s really impressive. If he can pass the exam as a top-ranked scholar, he’ll surely pass the provincial exam sooner or later.”

The people in line chatted idly for a while, then hurriedly ordered their favorite dishes when it was their turn. Compared to which family had a son pass the imperial exams with top honors, these ordinary folks were far more concerned with what they ate and wore.

The two pots of braised pork sold out quickly. Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning packed up their things and headed home first. “Dad, we’re heading out.” 

“Alright, just hop on any oxcart going your way if you see one on the road. It’s getting hot out here.”

“We know, Father.”

Shen Linchuan and Zhou Ning headed home first; their father was still selling pork in town and wouldn’t return until the afternoon.

There weren’t many days left anyway, and knowing their father was reluctant to give up the stall he’d run for over a decade, the two didn’t tell him to stop and take a few days off—they just wanted to see him happy.

Not long after they left, a patrol officer came by. Seeing that Uncle Zhou had set up his stall today, he approached with a broad smile. “Uncle Zhou, how’s business today?”

“It’s going great, it’s going great. Officer Wang, just look at how fresh and glossy this meat is—care for some?”

“Sure, cut me two pounds.”

“Sure thing!”

Zhou Da skillfully sliced off a piece of meat, placed it on the scale—making sure it was just right, not a bit too much—and raised the scale’s beam high. “Thirty wen will do.”

Patrolman Wang often bought meat from Uncle Zhou and always got a good deal. This time, he wasn’t about to skimp; he handed over the full amount in copper coins. “Uncle Zhou, are you planning to close up shop soon?”

“That’s right, that’s right. Since I happened to run into you, Patrolman Wang, I won’t have to make the trip to the Market Bureau. I can keep this up for another three or five days. Patrolman Wang, could you help me close out these two stalls?”

“Alright, I’ll bring you the remaining market silver tomorrow.” Others might not know, but those of us who eat the government’s grain at the town hall certainly do. Who would’ve thought the butcher’s son-in-law had actually become the chief clerk? We lowly clerks can’t afford to cross him.

“Where’s Mr. Shen? Haven’t seen him in ages.”

“He came by earlier to help sell some pork. He just left with my son.” 

“Oh, I see. Well then, Uncle Zhou, I’ll be on my way.”

“Hey, hey—thanks for your trouble, Patrolman Wang.”

“No need to thank me, Uncle Zhou. It was just a small matter.”

Patrolman Wang whistled in admiration. Zhou Da’s son-in-law was quite a character. Scholars usually care deeply about saving face, let alone one who’d just passed the county-level examination as a scholar—and as the top scorer at that. Yet he didn’t look down on this small business and still hawked his wares on the street as usual. That kind of composure wasn’t something just anyone could pull off.

The patrolman walking beside him breathed a sigh of relief. “Good thing we didn’t offend him too badly back then. Otherwise, our jobs would be on the line.”

“We haven’t really offended him yet. That day, we made sure Mr. Shen’s stall couldn’t operate. If we’d been a bit harsher and shut down Butcher Zhou’s stall too, we would’ve truly alienated him completely. We’d have been out of a job long ago.”

Back then, Wu Xing, the head manager of the Wangyue Pavilion, had bribed the Market Bureau to have Shen Linchuan driven out of town; they were just lowly errand boys. Inspector Wang must still remember that day when Butcher Zhou secretly slipped him some silver to find out what was going on, and he let the information slip.

Thank goodness, thank goodness—back then, they hadn’t offended him too badly. Just a few days ago, the town magistrate hosted a banquet for this year’s newly passed scholar, and at that time, he was on edge, terrified that Shen Linchuan might say something to the magistrate. But since things have been calm these past few days, he’s finally put his mind at ease.

It made sense. The man had topped the provincial exams and was the prized disciple of Juren Wang—why would he pick a fight with small-time folk like them? From now on, one had to leave a little wiggle room in life. Fortunes change; who knew when that man might rise to prominence?

Just as Patrolman Wang was pondering this, he wasn’t paying attention and was bumped by an old hunchback carrying a load of vegetables. The plump patrolman standing next to him was also struck by the load, and he flew into a rage, shouting, “Are you blind? Can’t you see people?”

The hunchbacked old man was terrified when he realized he’d bumped into a constable. He kept bowing in apology and was about to kneel, but Constable Wang grabbed him and said,

“Old man, you’re here to sell vegetables. Next time, carry them in baskets—one basket at a time—and go get more only after you’ve sold them all.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll remember that. Thank you, sir.”

It was clear this hunchbacked old man was a street vendor. He couldn’t bring himself to rent a fixed stall—that would cost a few copper coins in market tax. Carrying too much at once made it hard to walk, and if he kept moving while selling, the Market Bureau wouldn’t collect the tax.

The hunchbacked old man thanked him and hurried off with his vegetables. The plump patrolman snorted, “Why be so polite to them?”

“Come on, brother, haven’t you learned your lesson yet? You’ve already forgotten about that incident with Mr. Shen’s stall. We really ought to steer clear of those shady deals in the future.”

The portly constable moved his lips but said nothing. After all, not everyone was like Shen Linchuan, who’d suddenly become a golden phoenix overnight.

Zhou Da was still tending to his stall. His business wouldn’t last much longer. The people coming to buy meat were all regulars, and these past few days, he’d been setting the scales high and even throwing in some scraps on the side.

At the scone stall next door, Wang’s daughter-in-law nudged her husband. “Go ask him.”

Only then did the Wang family’s son approach with a broad smile. “Uncle Zhou, I just heard you say you’re giving up this stall. Are you moving to a new location? If so, my family will move with you.”

Zhou Da let out a sigh, clearly reluctant to part with his little stall. “No, I’m just not doing business in Qinghe Town anymore. I’m going to the county seat to do business with my son-in-law.”

“Oh, so you won’t be making that pork dish anymore either?”

Zhou Da nodded. “Is your father home? Have him come by sometime to chat with me—we won’t be seeing each other much after this.”

Ever since the Wang family’s flatbread stall was taken over by the young couple, Old Man Wang had retired to his home. Though he no longer made flatbreads, he’d often bring his grandson to the market to wander around, sitting behind the stall with his feet up, chatting idly with Zhou Da.

The two stalls had been side by side for over a decade, and they knew each other’s business inside out. With the sudden move, Zhou Da was quite reluctant to part with Old Wang, who had always kept him company.

Wang’s son gave a couple of noncommittal “uh-huhs.” “I’ll have my dad come over tomorrow.”

Hearing that the Zhou family was closing both their stalls, the Wang couple grew worried. Their own flatbread stall had been doing just so-so business, but ever since the Zhou family started selling pork cuts, their business had picked up as well.

The couple no longer had to work as servants for others; his father could finally live out his days in peace; their children were well-fed and warmly clothed; and life at home had finally improved. Who would have thought the Zhou family would suddenly decide to move to the county seat?

If their business declined to the point where they couldn’t support the family, wouldn’t the couple have to go back to working for wealthy households? They wouldn’t be able to visit their children often, and the family would be torn apart once again.

Zhou Da closed up his stall around mid-afternoon and headed home, and the Wang couple also packed up and went home, their faces clouded with worry. Old Man Wang was playing with his grandchildren when he saw them and couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Wang’s son told him that the Zhou family was leaving. Old Man Wang had been smiling just a moment ago, but after hearing the news, he let out a sigh. “Well, there’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t exactly stop them from leaving. Sigh.”

Early the next morning, Old Man Wang went out to set up his stall. Zhou Da and his family had already set up theirs. The morning market was the busiest time of the day, and both families’ stalls were surrounded by crowds.

Old Man Wang sat in the back playing with his young grandson. The boy was only five years old, holding a string of fried beans he’d just bought, his face smeared with grease as he ate. After the morning market had died down, Old Man Wang went over to speak with Zhou Da. “Zhou Da, I hear you’re heading to the county seat?”

“Well, my son-in-law passed the scholar’s exam and is going to the county academy. Our whole family is moving there with him.”

Old Man Wang was delighted to hear this. “Oh my, that’s wonderful news! We’ve been neighbors for so many years—I’ll really miss you when you leave.”

“I’ll miss you too, but my son’s education comes first.”

“That’s right, that’s right.”

Old Man Wang was genuinely happy for Zhou Da, even though it meant his family’s flatbread business would have to go back to the way it was before. He’d have to keep making flatbreads, and his son and daughter-in-law would have to find work again—that was the only way to support the family.

It hadn’t been easy for Zhou Da to raise his two sons on his own all these years. Now that his family had produced a scholar, it was truly a cause for celebration, and Old Wang was genuinely happy for him.

“When are you leaving?”

“It’ll be three or five days. I still need to sell one more pig.” 

“That’s great! I’ll come by to buy some flatbreads every day for the next few days.”

Zhou Da chuckled heartily. “Once I’m gone, there won’t be anyone left to keep you company.”

“That’s for sure. Once you’re gone, who knows who’ll take over this stall? Let’s just hope it isn’t someone difficult to get along with.”

“Uncle Wang, would your family be interested in taking over this pork business? If you’re willing, you should take it over. That way, everyone can still enjoy it.”

Old Wang’s cloudy eyes widened. “Sell it? Sell it to my family?”

Zhou Da spoke up, “My son and son-in-law feel the same way. Ten taels of silver. Once you’re running the shop, you can make flatbreads and sell sliced meat—business won’t be bad.”

Old Man Wang was startled. Just ten taels of silver? That meant he could recoup the cost of the recipe in a single month!