A huge, huge thank you to WANGXIANNURSE for the kofis. We’re so sorry we couldn’t deliver on time but here it is, hope you enjoy these bonus chapters!

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Even Shen Linchuan thought his older sister-in-law had an exceptional knack for styling hair. He couldn’t resist reaching out to pinch Shen Xiaoyu’s little bun. Shen Xiaoyu tilted his tender little face upward and smiled, “Second Uncle.”

Shen Linchuan withdrew his hand, feeling a little guilty. “Never mind. Watch the road.”

Shen Linchuan was about to pinch it again when Zhou Ning grabbed his hand. “Don’t pinch it! My sister-in-law combed it specially this morning—we’re going to see the teacher in a little while.” Shen Linchuan chuckled softly and pinched his Fulang’s hand instead. If he couldn’t pinch Xiaoyu, he’d pinch his Fulang instead.

When they reached Lady Qing’s doorstep, Shen Dasao grew quite nervous. Lady Qing was truly well-versed in many things—though she’d heard some of it had been taught by other teachers—but Lady Qing could read and write, play the zither, and compose poetry. She knew more than even the wealthy young ladies and gentlemen of Qinghe Town.

Shen Dasao held Shen Xiaoyu’s hand. “Be a good boy and greet them properly when we go in.” 

Shen Xiaoyu nodded. “I know, Mother.”

Shen Linchuan stepped forward to speak with the woman guarding the gate. She went inside to report their arrival and returned shortly afterward to lead them in.

It was Zhou Ning’s first time visiting this school for gers and girls. Inside, he saw preteens—both gers and girls—all sitting quietly and properly; some were reading, some were writing, and others were playing the zither or composing music.

Zhou Ning whispered to Shen Linchuan, “When we have a little ger, we’ll send him here to study too.” 

Shen Linchuan tickled the palm of his Fulang’s hand. “Okay.”

The young lady in charge, Lady Qing, was a middle-aged woman. Adorned with pearls and jade, she exuded an exceptionally refined elegance. Shen Dasao felt as though they belonged to two different worlds compared to a rural family like theirs, and she couldn’t help but feel nervous as she spoke.

The lady in green was quite approachable. Families from the county seat often sent their children here for their first education as early as four or five years old, though generally it didn’t begin until six or seven. Shen Xiaoyu was just the right age, so she asked him a few questions, to which he answered obediently.

Shen Xiaoyu’s eyes followed the jade beads on Lady Qing’s head back and forth. “Auntie, you’re so beautiful,” he said, making Lady Qing cover her mouth and laugh. “You’re such a sweet-talking ger,” she said.

Shen Xiaoyu blushed slightly, but Lady Qing quickly put him at ease. They set a schedule for him to come to school, then had someone escort Shen Linchuan and the others out.

It wasn’t until they stepped out the main gate that Shen Dasao let out a sigh of relief. “No wonder the tuition is so expensive—I almost thought we’d stepped into some kind of immortal’s abode.” Shen Dage also felt the silver was well spent; not only was the education thorough, but the food was excellent too. His little Xiaoyu would be attending school here from now on.

After settling Shen Xiaoyu’s enrollment, they went on to arrange for Shen Hu-zi to start school. Having never attended a school before, Shen Hu-zi was full of curiosity. When they visited Shen Hu-zi’s classroom, Shen Dage and Shen Dasao were no longer as nervous, and they quickly finalized the arrangements.

Shen Linchuan was pleased as well. “Hu-zi, Xiaoyu, once you’re at school, make sure to study hard.”

Shen Xiaoyu nodded obediently, while Shen Hu-zi snorted, “It’s just reading—what’s so hard about that!”

With the two little ones’ school enrollment settled—though classes wouldn’t start for another three days—Shen Linchuan had to return to the academy the very next day. Zhou Ning accompanied his brother and sister-in-law to look for a house. Since Shen Dage planned to work as a carpenter, they needed a spacious courtyard that was also close to the children’s school.

The same real estate agent who’d helped them before was back on the case. He’d thought that since he hadn’t been able to find a storefront for them, business with the Zhou family was over—but who knew that Shen Linchuan’s older brother and sister-in-law were looking to rent a courtyard as well? Beaming with delight, he joined in the search and found a suitable courtyard that very same day. Though it was a bit run-down, it had the advantage of being spacious and not far from either the school or Shen Linchuan’s place.

Since some parts needed repairs, Shen Dage went over to the new courtyard during the day to fix things up, while still staying at the Zhou family’s place for the time being. Shen Dasao helped knead the dough for steamed buns, and the two little ones played by themselves in the courtyard.

Zhou Ning was talking to Shen Dasao. “Shen Dasao, stay here a few more days—there’s no rush to move over.” 

“Shen Hu-zi is too rowdy, and Linchuan still has to study at night. Don’t let him fall behind in his studies.”

“It’s fine. Shen Linchuan says that noise actually helps build his concentration.”

Shen Dasao laughed. “Scholars prefer quiet. Linchuan’s probably just teasing you. It’ll take a few days, anyway—the doors, windows, and roof tiles in that courtyard all need to be repaired.”

Zhou Ning smiled too. He truly loved the two children, and so did his father. These past few days, his father hadn’t mentioned the shop at all; instead, he often took the two little ones to the market to buy some snacks.

With Shen Dasao’s help, they were making twice as many cornbread buns. Zhou Ning was skilled at making soybean paste, while Shen Dasao excelled at preparing various oil-preserved pickles. Now that it was June or July, all kinds of vegetables and fruits were in season—cucumbers, chili peppers, Chinese cabbage, leafy greens, and more—all of which could be turned into oil-preserved pickles that went wonderfully with the cornbread buns.

Zhou Ning felt bad about accepting his sister-in-law’s help for free, so every day he insisted on giving her half of the money. But Shen Dasao wouldn’t have it—she kept saying that the firewood and flour were all bought by Ning-ger, and she firmly refused to take any.

Zhou Ning felt this wasn’t quite right, so he whispered to Shen Linchuan about it that night. Shen Linchuan leaned in and whispered back, “If my sister-in-law doesn’t want it, then so be it. Insisting any further would make things awkward. Hu-zi and Xiaoyu are about to start school, so Fulang will have to work hard to get them some nice fabric when the time comes.”

Zhou Ning shifted back a bit; his ear felt ticklish, and he murmured a soft “Mm-hmm. That’s a good idea.”

Zhou Ning agreed with Shen Linchuan—if he gave in again, it would create a sense of distance. It would be best to find two pieces of fine fabric for the two little ones to make new clothes when he had the time.

Since the Shen family had moved in, the courtyard had become even livelier. Shen Linchuan got up early every morning to go to the academy, while Zhou Ning and Shen Dasao went out together morning and evening to sell steamed corn buns. Zhou Da stayed home to play with the two little ones, occasionally popping over to the market to buy some snacks, which made the two kids absolutely delighted.

Shen Hu-zi, holding a dragon he’d just drawn, came running over, mumbling to himself. Behind him, Shen Xiaoyu, clutching a goldfish-shaped candy, trotted along right behind him.

“Ouch!”

Shen Hu-zi was running so fast that he bumped head-on into Old Lady Song, who was heading out with a basket in hand. Old Lady Song let out a cry of “Ouch! You little klutz, what are you running for? You’ve hit your head on your own foot. Goodness gracious.”

“Grandma, I’m sorry.”

Shen Hu-zi quickly bent over to apologize, then dashed back into the courtyard in a flash. Shen Xiaoyu was a little afraid of Old Lady Song, so seeing his brother run off, he hurried after him. “Grandpa, my brother bought some sugar art!”

Old Lady Song craned her neck to look into the Zhou family’s courtyard. The boy was indeed sturdy and endearing—his name seemed to be Hu-zi, and he really was as robust as a little tiger. If only he were her grandson.

Old Lady Song then thought of her own son-in-law. They’d been married four or five years now, and not only had he not given birth to a son, he hadn’t even had a single child yet. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. Fuming, Old Lady Song—who had originally planned to take a stroll through the market—turned back home and started scolding her son-in-law again.

Shen Hu-zi and Shen Xiaoyu were playing “catch the pebbles” in the courtyard while holding their sugar paintings. Startled by Old Lady Song’s shouting, Shen Xiaoyu dropped her pebble and ran inside. “Grandpa, they’re arguing.”

“It’s okay. Come on, Grandpa will take you for a ride on the mule.”

Shen Xiaoyu was a bit timid, and since Old Lady Song’s tirade was coming at him in a torrent of words—even Zhou Da was getting fed up with it—he simply took the mule and led the two kids out to play.

Only then did Shen Xiaoyu perk up. “Ride a mule!”

Zhou Da chuckled. He placed a saddle pad on the mule. As soon as Shen Hu-zi saw they were going to ride, he hopped up using the stirrups. Zhou Da then picked up Shen Xiaoyu, who was looking on eagerly, and lifted her onto the mule as well. “Come on, let’s go play.”

As Zhou Da stepped outside, he glanced over at the Song family’s house. Old Lady Song was in the middle of berating her son-in-law. Zhou Da shook his head—the old woman was just too harsh.

For some reason, Old Lady Song had been particularly rowdy these past couple of days. She’d start yelling and cursing before dawn, shouting from her room for the fulang to get up, fetch water, and cook breakfast—making such a racket that neither the neighbors on either side could get any peace.

Shen Linchuan was also woken up by the commotion. It wasn’t even light out yet—why was Old Lady Song shouting again? Zhou Ning tugged at the blanket. “It’s still early. Let’s sleep a little longer.”

Shen Linchuan, having been woken up, couldn’t get back to sleep, so he might as well get up. “I’m going to get up and read for a bit.” 

Shen Xiaoyu’s voice came from the side room in the east wing: “Mom, are we getting up yet?”         

“Not yet. I’m going to sleep a little longer.”

Shen Linchuan was grouchy in the morning; being woken up had put him in a bad mood. Old Lady Song had started up again these past few days—he’d have to figure out a way to put her in her place.

At breakfast, the whole family was yawning. Shen Xiaoyu held a rolled pancake in his hand, but as he ate, his eyelids began to droop. Old Lady Song woke up early and could even nap during the day, but they had to study and work—and since they didn’t sleep well at night, they were listless all day long.

Shen Linchuan shook his head. That Fulang of the Song family was far too weak; if it were a tougher man, he would’ve had that Old Lady Song under control long ago.

After finishing his meal, Shen Linchuan picked up his bookbox and headed out. Luo Qingshan also stepped out; the two exchanged a glance, both with faint dark circles under their eyes.

Luo Qingshan shook his head helplessly. “Brother Shen, it looks like you didn’t get much rest either.”

How could Shen Linchuan have slept well? He’d been studying until midnight, and before the rooster even crowed, that Old Lady Song had already woken up the whole neighborhood. It would have been a miracle if he’d managed to get any decent sleep.

In class, Shen Linchuan couldn’t stop yawning. Luo Qingshan, sitting in front of him, wasn’t doing much better either. As the teacher droned on about classical grammar up front, Shen Linchuan grew even sleepier, but he fought hard to stay awake.

After lunch, Shen Linchuan found a quiet, deserted bamboo grove to take a nap. Just as he drifted off, he was woken up again. Shen Linchuan frowned in annoyance and glimpsed several people in the grove shoving a fellow student.

“Give us a smile! You’re short on silver, aren’t you? Give us a few smiles, and these two liang of silver are yours.”

The scholar being shoved in the middle was slender and fair-skinned; if one didn’t look closely, one might mistake him for a young ger. He was clutching a filthy cat to his chest, though the cat in his arms seemed far more feisty, baring its teeth and hissing.

Sun Shiping reached out and touched the boy’s waist. “Tsk, are you a ger? Look at that figure—you’re even more handsome than most gers out there, huh!”

Sun Shiping was scratched by the cat in the boy’s arms, and his shriek only annoyed Shen Linchuan even more. 

“You little beast!”

Sun Shiping raised his hand to strike, and the calico cat, startled, leaped out of the teenager’s arms. The others kicked out at it; the cat was kicked by someone, rolled over once, let out a yelp, and ran off into the grass, vanishing from sight.

The teenager tried to chase after it but was stopped by Sun Shiping’s men. “Third Regiment, Third Regiment!”

Shen Linchuan stepped closer to say a few words; he hadn’t intended to get involved, but among the crowd, he spotted Zhou Youcheng. How had Zhou Youcheng ended up hanging out with Sun Shiping? That kick just now had come from Zhou Youcheng.

Sun Shiping slapped him across the face. “Ye Jinglan, your little bastard scratched this young master. What are you going to do about it, hmm?” 

“Let—let me go.”

Sun Shiping burst out laughing. “What’s with that way of talking? You sound just like one of those little gers. Don’t tell me you’re actually a ger who snuck in here? Guys, strip him down and see if the skin underneath his clothes is as pale as his face.”

Zhou Youcheng’s face took on a lecherous expression. No sooner had Sun Shiping finished speaking than he was the first to reach out. This Ye Jinglan really did look just like that delicate young man—it wouldn’t be half bad to have some fun with him as if he were a ger.

“Ah!”

Zhou Youcheng let out a cry and covered his hand. “Who’s there!”

The men turned around and saw someone standing behind the bamboo grove. Sun Shiping gritted his teeth. “It’s Shen Linchuan.” 

Shen Linchuan stepped out from behind the bamboo grove. “You’re keeping me awake.”

Sun Shiping tilted his chin. “So you’ve got your eye on that fake little ger, Ye Jinglan, too?”

The crowd burst into laughter. “Didn’t they say Shen Linchuan’s fulang is a butcher—a burly, rough-looking guy? No wonder Shen Linchuan has his eye on this Ye Jinglan.”

Shen Linchuan’s face remained expressionless as he raised his hand and slapped the student who’d spoken so recklessly. The student spun around like a top several times, and the laughter stopped abruptly. Everyone took a step back, afraid the slap might land on their own faces.

Zhou Youcheng had suffered his fair share of beatings at Shen Linchuan’s hands; he was the first to hide behind the crowd. Sun Shiping, on the other hand, was a brainless fool who also had a grudge against Shen Linchuan—so they sent him forward.

Sun Shiping spat out, “He’s nothing but a good-for-nothing who married into a pig-slaughtering family, living off his husband’s money. If I were you, I wouldn’t have the face to stand here anymore.”

Shen Linchuan narrowed his eyes slightly and glanced at Zhou Youcheng, who was hiding in the back. “He told you that, didn’t he? What’s the matter, Zhou Youcheng? Are you itching for a beating again? You were only able to get into Bailu Academy because my father paid for your education all these years. I’m the son-in-law of the butcher’s family—aren’t you the butcher’s nephew?”

Zhou Youcheng dreaded nothing more than having this topic brought up, especially in front of a crowd of young gentlemen. As soon as Shen Linchuan mentioned it, his face flushed crimson. “Nonsense! My education was clearly paid for by my own father! I come from a noble family with an unblemished lineage.”