Thanks to WANGXIANNURSE for the kofis. Enjoy these bonus chapters!

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Since the ox had been injured in the incident, Lan-ger didn’t dare go back and stayed hidden outside, afraid both of losing this job and of being blamed by Aunt Chen if he returned.

Aunt Chen’s family had always been so kind to him—Aunt Chen gave him food, Uncle Huzi repaired the roof of his house, and Aunt Ning gave him coins and even helped him fend off the bullies—yet he couldn’t even take proper care of the ox.

Lan-ger was still young, so he held back his tears, afraid that crying would make him even more unlikable.

Song Ning was storming home in a rage, oblivious to the tears welling up in the little boy’s eyes. He couldn’t win an argument against them, but his mother could—he’d go find her!

Before he even reached the front door, Song Ning started shouting, “Mother! Mother!”

Chen Cuihua was serving rice in the kitchen when she heard Song Ning calling. She poked her head out and asked, “What’s wrong?” 

“Mother, look! Lan-ger got beaten up, and our ox got beaten up too!”

As soon as Chen Cuihua heard this, she hurried out. She saw Lan-ger covered in bruises, his body caked in grass. She quickly circled her ox—it was the family’s lifeline, after all—to make sure it hadn’t been hurt.

Chen Cuihua had been in a pretty good mood today, but who would’ve thought that just as it was time for dinner, something would happen to her ox? How could she not be angry? “Lan’er, what happened? Tell your aunt.”

Lan’er didn’t hide anything. He lowered his head and whispered, “It was Tiedan and his gang. He… he bullied me, threw clods of dirt at me, and even hit the ox…”

Lan-ger was terrified. He dropped to his knees with a thud. “Auntie, I’m so sorry. Please don’t tell my grandpa. I’ll pay you back with all my copper coins. I—I don’t want any more coins. Just give me food to eat.”

Lan-ger’s sudden kneeling startled Song Ning. He hurriedly pulled the frail little boy to his feet. “It’s not your fault. You didn’t hit the ox. Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.”

Only then did Song Ning notice how terrified Lan-ger was; his little face had gone pale with fear. He quickly picked the boy up, patted him on the back, and soothed him:

“Don’t be afraid. It’s not your fault.”

Song Ning’s heart ached for him. His ox was fine, but the little boy had been thoroughly terrified. Those brats were truly despicable!

Chen Cuihua had also figured out what had happened. She untied the apron around her waist and led the ox out the door. “That little brat! Just wait till I skin him alive!”

Song Ning set Lan-ger down and followed after them, leading the boy by the hand. “Who else? Tell Aunt Chen.” 

Lan-ger wiped his tears. “There’s Gouwa, and Youzhu…”

Chen Cuihua led her ox to find the ringleader, Tiedan, first. At this hour, every household was either eating or cooking, and everyone was at home. Chen Cuihua didn’t stand on ceremony; as soon as she reached a house, she kicked the half-open wooden gate wide open. “You little brat, get out here!”

As soon as Tiedan saw Chen Cuihua coming with the ox, he was so startled that he quickly hid behind his father—he’d been in the middle of eating. The entire Shi family was eating in the courtyard; seeing Chen Cuihua approach, they all stood up. Mrs. Shi knew Chen Cuihua wasn’t someone to mess with, but the two families had no past grudges or recent conflicts.

“Cuihua, what’s going on?”

“What’s the matter? Look for yourself. Look at what your Tiedan did to my ox—look at the huge bump on his head. If it had been just a little off-center, it would have hit his eyeball!”

As soon as Tiedan’s dad heard his son had hit someone’s ox, he immediately yanked him out from the back. “Why on earth did you go and hit someone’s ox for no reason?”

Tiedan kept shrinking back, “I didn’t hit it, I didn’t.” 

“Bullshit! If you didn’t, why would I come find you?!”

Chen Cuihua had always been a strong-willed woman, and now that her family’s ox had been injured and Lan-ger beaten, she wasn’t about to let this slide.

Song Ning, holding Lan-ger’s hand, chimed in, “Exactly! That ox is worth a fortune—you’ll have to pay for it!”

Tiedan’s father immediately started beating him, making Tiedan howl in pain. Tiedan’s mother tried to stop him, and the courtyard descended into chaos.

Tiedan cried out, “I didn’t hit their ox—I was aiming for the blind one! It’s all his fault for standing in front of the ox!”

Just moments ago, everyone in the courtyard had been so angry they were hitting the child, but as soon as they heard it wasn’t on purpose, they stopped immediately. Tiedan’s grandmother hurriedly said, “Cuihua, look—they’re just kids playing around. It wasn’t on purpose.”

Chen Cuihua knew it would turn out this way. Since Lan-ger lived with Zhang Banxia, he was always an easy target. If she had jumped in to defend Lan-ger right away, they would not have taken it seriously; it would have been more straightforward to stand up for her own ox instead. Ugh, what a bully who picks on the weak!

“I don’t care how you hit it—the fact is, your family’s ox got hit. You tell me what to do about it! And look at Lan-ger—just look at what your boy has done to him!”

Tiedan’s grandmother laughed it off. “Kids don’t know any better. Why don’t you let Tiedan cut a few baskets of grass for you as an apology?” 

“What about Lan-ger?” Song Ning asked.

“Oh, come on, kids are just playing around. They’re bound to bump into things. If we make a fuss over every little scratch, who’s going to want to play with him in the future?”

Hearing this, Song Ning was furious. This family was just trying to sweep things under the rug—making a big deal out of nothing. It was clearly bullying him!

“No way. You must pay Lan’er some compensation!”

Tiedan’s mother immediately objected to the mention of compensation. “That’s just extortion! Zhang Banxia hasn’t even said a word. What’s Lan-ger’s connection to your family? Why should you be the one to step in?”

“We do have a connection—he tends our cattle!” Song Ning had never argued with anyone before. Though he was a bit scared, his mother was right there beside him—who could possibly bully him now?

“He cuts grass for your family—that’s all.” Tiedan’s mother crossed her arms. After all, Tiedan hadn’t knocked the ox over on purpose—what more did they want?

“Do as my husband says.”

A hand suddenly landed on Song Ning’s shoulder, startling him. He turned to see that Wei Hu had come over at some point. Song Ning’s face lit up. “Brother Wei Hu, when did you get back?”

“Just got back. Didn’t see anyone around, so I came out to look for you guys.”

Seeing Wei Hu had arrived, Song Ning felt even less intimidated. He lifted his head and glared at the man, insisting that this family pay Lan-ger some compensation.

Chen Cuihua wasn’t one to be pushed around either. She shouted that her ox had been injured—she didn’t care how it happened, as long as it was injured.

“You think a few baskets of hay will settle this? You’re dreaming! That ox cost nearly thirty taels of silver when we bought it. It’s a big, healthy beast—if it can’t get up tomorrow, you’d better buy me a new one!”

The Shi family refused to pay, taking advantage of the fact that Lan-ger was just a little boy with no parents. The courtyard echoed with shouting, and a crowd of onlookers had gathered at the gate.

Finally, the village head was called over. Each side stuck to their own version of the story, but since Tiedan had clearly struck both the ox and the boy, he couldn’t deny it. The village head, his head pounding from the commotion, said, “Enough.”

“You’ll have to pay Cuihua’s family and Lan’er’s family two bowls of rice each. If you don’t want to, you can pay in copper coins instead.”

Tiedan’s mother had no choice but to reluctantly go inside and scoop out the rice. Two bowls of rice—her family couldn’t even bring themselves to eat white rice at mealtime, and now she’d had to give away four bowls all at once!

Only then was Chen Cuihua satisfied. “You got off easy.”

After getting the rice, Chen Cuihua led her ox to the other households. Song Ning also led Lan-ger to demand justice. The children from those households hadn’t hit the ox, but they had injured Lan-ger. Each family paid two bowls of rice, and the children were dragged by their parents and smacked on the buttocks with firewood sticks a few times. Now, the kids from all those families were crying.

By the time it was all over, it was already dark, and the group hadn’t even eaten yet. Chen Cuihua snorted, “Lan’er, next time these brats come to bully you again, tell your auntie: ‘You little brats—I’ll show you what’s what!’”

Lan-ger felt a surge of emotion. “Thank you, Auntie, Uncle Huzi, and Aunt Ning.”

Song Ning ruffled his hair. “What’s there to thank me for? You’re herding my family’s cattle, and you’ve taken such good care of him.”

Chen Cuihua gave all the rice they’d earned to Lan-ger to take home. One family felt so guilty they even gave him two eggs, which Chen Cuihua also gave to Lan-ger.

The rice in the pot had gone cold, so Chen Cuihua reheated it and served Lan-ger first. “Hurry home. Your grandfather is waiting anxiously for you.”

Lan-ger walked off, carrying the bag in one hand and the basket in the other. It wasn’t until he stepped outside that he wiped away his tears. Those boys had called him a stray child with no one to care for him. He’d been bullied before but hadn’t dared tell his grandfather; today, Aunt Ning and the others had stood up for him.

Those bullies had all gotten their bottoms spanked today, and they wouldn’t dare pick on him again.

It was already pitch black outside, so Lan-ger hurried home. Before he even reached the doorstep, he saw a figure waiting for him there. “Grandpa!”

Zhang Banxia replied, “Why are you just getting back now?”

“I spent a little extra time cutting grass today, so I’m back late. Grandpa, Aunt Chen steamed some white rice today, and I even got two eggs. I’ll go fry them up!”

“Oh, oh.”

Lan-ger didn’t mention that he’d been bullied, nor did he let Zhang Banxia know about the rice he was carrying; he slipped into the kitchen and hid it away.

Although Zhang Banxia couldn’t see clearly and couldn’t tell day from night, he knew what was going on. Hearing the lively sounds of people eating next door, he knew it was getting late. After waiting a long time and still not seeing anyone return, he grew anxious and stood at the door to wait.

Chen Cuihua had stewed some soybean sprouts and steamed some rice today. When Lan-ger got home, he lit the fire and scrambled the two eggs, putting most of them in Zhang Banxia’s bowl. “Grandpa, don’t worry about me. I’m fine. Aunt Chen and the others have been very kind to me.”

“That’s good, that’s good. Don’t get too carried away playing out there—make sure you look after the ox for them.” 

“I know, Grandpa.”

Song Ning was also having dinner. He’d thought Wei Hu wouldn’t be back until tomorrow, but he returned just as it was getting dark. Song Ning served him some food. “Why did you come back so late? It’s getting dark, and the roads are hard to travel.”

“I came down the mountain at noon. Halfway there, I saw a beehive and took it down, then picked a basketful of locust flowers along the way—that’s what took me a while.”

Song Ning was quite happy to see Wei Hu back. He cleared his throat and said, “Our mother set up a small stall in town. Today was her first day.”

Chen Cuihua added, “Don’t say anything against me, but I’ve wanted to set up this stall for ages. I just didn’t have any money before. Now that I have some capital and an oxcart, running a small business won’t be too tiring.”

Wei Hu didn’t say anything more. “Mom, you should work when you need to and rest when you can.”

“Do I need you to tell me that? This pastry business only runs for a little while in the morning. From now on, I’ll be back as soon as noon passes.”

Wei Hu’s return made Song Ning quite happy. He could earn two or three taels of silver a month copying books for others, while Wei Hu, living up in the mountains, could earn six or seven taels a month. Both of them were bringing in a decent income.

Wei Hu had been out in the mountains for a few days and was filthy. Knowing that his husband was a neat freak, Song Ning boiled a pot of bathwater right after they finished eating.

Song Ning helped gather Wei Hu’s dirty clothes. As he lifted them, he noticed a hole in the sleeve. Song Ning gasped,

“Brother Wei Hu, your sleeve is torn. Did you hurt your arm?”

“Is it torn? I didn’t notice. It must have gotten snagged when I was climbing that locust tree today.”

“Then I’ll sew it up for you.”

Song Ning wasn’t very good at needlework. Though his stitches weren’t pretty, he could manage a few. By the light of the oil lamp, he sat by the bed and began sewing. When he finished, he looked at his work and couldn’t help but laugh—the stitches were crooked, and the stitches were thick.

Wei Hu came over after taking a bath in the main room, glanced down, and said, “It’s sewn up. It’s a little ugly, but don’t look down on it.”

“Not at all.”

Wei Hu couldn’t wait for everyone to know that Song Ning had sewn this for him.

It was getting late by then. After blowing out the lamp, the two snuggled close and whispered to each other. Song Ning grew drowsy as they talked, yawned, and closed his eyes. Wei Hu pulled the blanket up over him, then wrapped his arms around him and drifted off to sleep.

Early the next morning, all three were up. Chen Cuihua was running a small business now; she got up early to knead dough and prepare fillings.

Wei Hu was also heading to town today to sell game, along with locust blossoms and honey—all perishable goods. Selling them early meant these fine products wouldn’t go to waste.

Lan-ger had also arrived early today. Not wanting to delay Chen Cuihua’s business, he’d come well before dawn to lead the ox out for water and grass.

Song Ning and Wei Hu found some cheesecloth to extract the honey. The honeycomb was quite large; it filled more than half of their earthenware basin, yielding over three pounds. This honey is a fine product, worth a few silver coins.

They rinsed the honey-soaked gauze in hot tea, and by morning, everyone had a bowl of honey water.

Song Ning had just been to town yesterday, and today Wei Hu was going to town to sell game, so he tagged along. When Lan-ger returned with the ox, Song Ning scooped out some honey for him, saying, “Take this home to share with your grandfather.”

Lan-ger thanked him. While their home was still open, he hurried to the backyard to clean out the ox shed and chicken coop. Song Ning told him to rest, but Lan-ger refused; he insisted on cleaning the backyard spotlessly before taking his meal home.

This made Song Ning feel even more fond of the little boy; he was so sensible, it was truly touching.

After eating, the three of them headed to town. Wei Hu drove the oxen from the front, while Song Ning and Lan-ger sat in the ox cart—the whole family of three was going to town today.

As they passed through the village, early risers called out greetings, and many people stared at the goods on the oxcart. Daliushu Village wasn’t very big to begin with; the slightest stir would be known to everyone in the village.

“Chen Cuihua is really a go-getter—off to town again to run her little business.”

Others, envious, remarked, “Who knows if she’ll even make a penny?”

Granny Sun, passing by with a basket on her back, chimed in, “If she makes a penny, she’ll tell you all about it. If you had Chen Cuihua’s skills, your family would’ve been well-off long ago.”

Early in the morning, villagers would get up and head straight to the fields or the back mountain to work, returning home only when it was time to eat. Granny Sun had taken a liking to foraging for tender bamboo shoots on the back mountain in recent days. Though the shoots were hard to find now, her son Qiu loved them, so she got up early to search the back mountain.

“Hey, Granny Sun, weren’t you at odds with Chen Cuihua before? Why are you sticking up for her now?” 

“Who’s sticking up for her?”

Granny Sun headed home with her basket on her back. She had to hurry home to cook; she couldn’t let her son-in-law go hungry.

Song Ning and the others arrived in town. Wei Hu first carried the game to the tavern to sell it, planning to return later to sell the honey and locust blossoms.

Song Ning helped his mother set up their stall first. They’d arrived early today; by the time their little stall was up and running, the man selling baked buns next door had just rolled his cart over.

Chen Cuihua deftly stuffed the filling into the dough. Today they were selling as usual: five wen for a meat-filled pancake, three wen for a vegetarian one. Chen Cuihua began frying the cakes while calling out her wares.

Song Ning was helping out nearby. He’d thought business might be a bit slow today, but to his surprise, it was actually quite good. These butter pancakes were light and fluffy, a favorite among both children and the elderly.

Housewives and husbands who had gotten up early to buy groceries were leading their children to the morning market. Having bought some yesterday and found them delicious, they brought their kids back today to buy more; just one pancake was enough to fill a child’s stomach.

Song Ning stood up front, collecting coins. “Two vegetarian pancakes—here you go. Be careful, they’re hot.”

Early in the morning, business was brisk for everyone. Some families, too lazy to cook, bought food at the market to take home, saving themselves the trouble of cooking.

Women and men buying groceries, workers heading out early for their jobs, and kids passing by on their way to school…

Although the market entrance wasn’t crowded, this was still the busiest time of the day. Even the scallion pancake stall next door was doing brisk business; the man was working alone, with people waiting in line beside him.

Someone spotted the basket of locust flowers on his back and asked, “Are you selling those locust flowers too? How much are they?” 

“Five wen for half a catty. My husband just picked them from the mountain yesterday,” Song Ning replied with a smile.

These locust flowers are only in season for a few days. They’re hard to come by in town, so they’re considered a rare delicacy. Steamed locust flowers, locust flowers with scrambled eggs, and locust flower buns are all common dishes in local homes, but since they’re not readily available, they’re still considered a treat.

“I’ll take a pound.” 

“Sure.”

Song Ning went to the back to fetch the locust blossoms, holding a small scale to weigh them out for the customer. At five wen per half pound, they weren’t exactly cheap compared to other vegetables, but since locust blossoms don’t add much weight, the half-pound portion was more than generous.

Seeing that locust blossoms were for sale, quite a few people rushed over to buy a pound or half a pound, creating quite a commotion. Song Ning was almost overwhelmed. “Everyone, please don’t rush. There’s plenty for everyone—I’ve got a whole big basketful.”

Song Ning hadn’t expected acacia blossoms to be such a rarity. He’d eaten them in the spring; acacia blossoms stir-fried with eggs were actually quite delicious, with a distinctive, delicate fragrance and a hint of sweetness.

“Does anyone want some locust honey? My husband picked the flowers from the tree himself.”

Taking advantage of the crowd, Song Ning decided to sell some of his family’s honey on the side, saving himself a trip to the market later. There were indeed people interested in the honey, but since they had no way to carry it, they had to pass.

The locust flowers, however, were selling like hotcakes. People were packed in tight, three layers deep, all worried they might miss out. The more crowded the place, the more people loved to join the fun—even if they weren’t buying, they’d still stick their heads in to see what was being sold.

Chen Cuihua was also hawking her pancakes; with so many people around, business was booming.

Song Ning was sweating buckets selling the locust flowers all by himself when a middle-aged man walked up and shouted, “Give me all the rest.”

There was still nearly half a basket of locust blossoms left, and there were a few people in front of him waiting to buy. But the man demanded the whole lot right off the bat, which drew complaints from the women and men buying vegetables ahead of him: “You haven’t even served me yet!”

Judging by his attire, the middle-aged man looked like a steward from some household—likely out early to buy groceries for his estate. He’d spotted the locust flowers and wanted to buy some, but even that seemed too little for him.

Song Ning tried to smooth things over. “Sir, there should still be a pound or two left when it’s your turn. Do you want some more?” 

The middle-aged man looked a little displeased. “What good is a pound or two?”

“Sorry, that’s all we have left.”

“Never mind, never mind. Just give me all of it when it’s my turn.”

Song Ning weighed the orders for the few families waiting in line. Finally, he picked out some of the best small combs from what was left and gave them to the middle-aged man—a little over a pound. With just a small amount remaining, Song Ning packed up his basket. “Mom, I didn’t sell all the honey. I’ll go to the market to sell some later.”

“Alright, no rush. It’s still early.”

The middle-aged man, having overheard the conversation, came back. “Any honey left?” “Yes, my husband gathered it from the locust trees.”

Song Ning hurriedly brought out a clay bowl to show him. The honey looked excellent, so the man decided to buy the whole jar—paying four taels in silver.

Chen Cuihua quickly wrapped up two butter pancakes from the stall. “Here, have these two cakes to try.”

The man was even happier. He’d been out shopping for his employer since early morning and hadn’t even had breakfast yet. Those freshly baked, golden-brown butter pancakes looked exceptionally tempting, and the slight annoyance he’d been feeling melted away. “Thank you very much.”

The man had bought quite a lot of goods, and Chen Cuihua could tell he was a steward for some household. The two pastries weren’t worth more than a few copper coins, so she figured she might as well just give them to him.

Song Ning was quite pleased as well. With the locust flowers and honey all sold out, he wouldn’t have to wander around the market selling them anymore—it saved him quite a bit of trouble.

Song Ning went to the back to help stoke the fire with some firewood. Chen Cuihua’s face was beaming; her little stall was really bustling today.

“Madam, two meat-filled cakes, please.”

“Coming right up,” Chen Cuihua replied. “They’ll be ready in a moment. Please wait just a little while, sir.”

Song Ning took the copper coins and placed them in the cash box, helping out with the family business.

“Song Ning.”

Hearing someone call his name, Song Ning looked up and saw Bai Xiaoyun approaching with a basket slung over his shoulder. Inside were two plump heads of Chinese cabbage. Song Ning smiled, “Brother Yun.”

Bai Xiaoyun approached with the basket. “You told me yesterday that your mother was running a stall. I thought I’d drop by to buy some vegetables and see if I could find her, but I didn’t expect you’d be here today, too.”

Chen Cuihua didn’t know Bai Xiaoyun, but seeing how familiar he was with her son Ning, she greeted him warmly. “Ning, who’s this? Have you eaten yet? I happen to have some butter pancakes here—have one, and you won’t have to cook.”

“Perfect timing. I had some of your pastries yesterday, and I was craving them again today, so I came looking for them on purpose. Auntie, wrap up two meat-filled ones and two vegetarian ones for me.”

Bai Xiaoyun’s sweet talk made Chen Cuihua beam with joy. Now that the cakes in the pot had found a taker, she slipped a few more into the pot.

Song Ning also smiled as he introduced, “Mother, this is Bai Xiaoyun—the ger from the study where I copy books. He actually had some of our cakes yesterday.”

Upon hearing he was the ger from the study, Chen Cuihua grew even more enthusiastic, praising him nonstop. “So that’s the place! My Ning often says the people at the study are so generous, and that the young man there is the smartest and most quick-witted of them all.”

Bai Xiaoyun burst out laughing—who wouldn’t be pleased to be praised like that?

Song Ning smiled too. When had he ever mentioned “Brother Yun” to his mother? She always picked out the nicest things to say.