Wei Qingshan took a bite and didn’t hold back in praising Lin Yu. “Mm, it tastes even better than before.”

Lin Yu also felt it tasted much better, and the appearance had improved, too. “I’ll take some for Dong-ger to try.”

Before Lin Yu even left the house, Sang Niang had already come over with a bowl. “Yu-ger, are you cooking pig offal again? I’ve been smelling it from my house for a while now.”

The aroma today was truly overpowering. When she heard the two say it was ready, she quickly brought a bowl out. Lin Yu’s cooking skills were excellent—even though it was pig offal, the dishes he made were just as delicious as meat.

Previously, the pig offal was sold in large sections. Lin Yu discovered that cutting them into small pieces made them absorb flavor better. A layer of translucent red oil floated on top of the pot, making it look especially tempting.

Lin Yu scooped her a ladleful. “Try it. I changed the recipe a bit. See how it tastes?” Sang Niang took a bite and praised repeatedly, “Mm! It really is Yu-ger who’s got the skills—he even makes pig offal taste this good.”

Lin Yu’s eyes sparkled from the praise. While the two were talking, someone else came over with a bowl. “Yu-ger, what are you making again today? I could smell it from home!”

It was the old woman who lived behind their house. Her old man liked to have a bit of liquor. They’d bought from him a few times before. Lin Yu generously gave her a full ladle. This ladle included both offal and soybeans—enough to fill a whole bowl. Lin Yu gave plenty.

“Auntie, I changed the recipe a bit. The price is still the same—six copper coins a bowl.”

The old woman handed over the coins. “This smells even better than before. My old man just told me to hurry up and buy some for him to have with his drink.”

The old woman happily left with her bowl. Only then did Lin Yu have a moment free to scoop a bowl to take over to He Dongdong. Dong-ger liked eating this stuff, and since he had changed the recipe this time, Dong-ger would definitely like it even more.

Lin Yu carried the bowl over. When he arrived, Shi Niang was cooking, and He Dongdong was sitting in the courtyard peeling a pomegranate. “Dong-ger.”

He Dongdong saw that Lin Yu had brought him food, and his eyes lit up as he quickly stood. “Yu-ger, what are you holding? It smells amazing!”

Dongdong stood up so quickly that it startled Shi Tou, who was doing carpentry. “Slow down.”

“Try it and see how it tastes. I used a new method today.”

The hot pig offal had just come out of the pot, and even the bowl was too hot to hold. He Dongdong could smell the aroma and started drooling. Before Shi Tou could get his chopsticks, he grabbed a piece with his hand. His eyes lit up. “Delicious!”

Shi Tou quickly handed him chopsticks. “Eat slowly.”

Seeing Dongdong enjoying it, Lin Yu was also very happy. “I think it tastes better than before.”

He Dongdong’s cheeks were bulging. “More than just better—it’s absolutely delicious!”

“Chun-ger gave birth. He had a boy. Did anyone tell you?”

He Dongdong nodded. “Yeah, yeah, I heard. We’ll go visit him in three days.”

“Alright, that’s what I was thinking too. I came over especially to ask you.”

Shi Niang was still stir-frying vegetables in the kitchen. When she saw Dongdong eating, she quickly served two bowls of rice and brought them out. “Dong-ger, here, eat more with the rice. Yu-ger, you eat some too. Don’t leave. Eat here. The dishes will be ready soon.”

Lately, He Dongdong hadn’t had much of an appetite. He was eating less and less, and although he used to love meat, now he couldn’t eat fatty meat at all—he could only manage some light food. His little face had even thinned out. Shi Niang was heartbroken to see it. Now that Dong-ger had something he liked, she quickly brought out rice so he could eat a little more with it.

“Thank you, Auntie.” He Dongdong, cheeks still stuffed, took the rice bowl from her.

Shi Niang kept urging, “Yu-ger, you eat too. Auntie will have the food ready in just a moment.”

“No need, Auntie. Qingshan is still at home waiting for me to eat. I’ll head back first,” Lin Yu declined and didn’t stay for the meal.

Shi Niang quickly grabbed a few pomegranates for him. “Take these home to eat. We’ve still got plenty at home.”

Lin Yu thanked her and carried a few pomegranates back. The pomegranate tree at Shi Tou’s house was well cared for. The fruits were all as big as Wei Qingshan’s fists, sweet with a bit of tartness—Lin Yu really liked them. The last few Shi Tou brought over were already gone, and now that she had given him more, Lin Yu planned to eat them slowly.

By the time he returned home, Wei Qingshan had already finished cleaning up the pig. Lin Yu shoved a pomegranate into Wei Qingshan’s hand. “Shi Niang gave it to us. You eat first—I’ll go cook.”

In the evening, Lin Yu stir-fried pig’s blood with wild scallions and served a bowl of stewed pig offal. Wei Qingshan ate two bowls of rice with it.

The next morning, before dawn, the two of them finished breakfast and then pushed the cart toward town. On the cart was half a side of pork, a chopping board, and a bucket of stewed offal. Since they were also going to town to buy fabric and cotton, Lin Yu came along this time.

Along the way, Lin Yu helped push the cart. It was quite heavy with everything on it. Wei Qingshan, feeling distressed, didn’t want him to push, but Lin Yu just smiled and said he wasn’t tired—it moved faster when both of them pushed.

Lin Yu didn’t often come to town with Wei Qingshan because he had to take care of the pigs at home, and when he had free time, he liked to do more embroidery. His embroidery business was doing well, although the embroidered handkerchief babies hadn’t been selling much lately, as every household already had one. But there were two families with daughters getting married next year who came over asking him to help embroider wedding clothes.

As Lin Yu pushed the cart along the street market, he saw that two other stalls were boiling offal in their pots. Wei Qingshan had already mentioned that although their pig offal business had lost a bit of traffic, it still sold well.

As he passed by, Lin Yu smelled a heavy fishy stench. The offal looked pitch black, and there weren’t many people buying.

The two of them reached their stall. While Wei Qingshan was setting up, Lin Yu lit the stove. As he was busying himself, the old woman selling pancakes next to their stall greeted him, “Yu-ger came today.”

“Yeah, I had some time today, so I came along.”

Lin Yu had been there a few times before, so the old couple who sold pancakes recognized him. They especially liked the couple of Wei Qingshan and Lin Yu, because every time their pig offal sold well, their pancakes also sold particularly well.

Just as Lin Yu got the fire going, someone came over with a bowl and asked, “Is it ready? Is it ready? Give me a bowl first.”

Seeing that the stall wasn’t even fully set up yet, but people were already coming to buy, Lin Yu was very pleased. “Please wait a moment. I’ll serve you as soon as it’s heated.”

Once the fire was burning, Lin Yu poured the whole bucket of stewed offal into the pot to heat up. Those who often came to buy knew that previously, the pig offal was boiled whole, and the color was a bit dark. But today’s offal looked completely different—covered in shiny red oil and mixed with soybeans, the presentation was far better than before.

“Lin Fulang, did you change the recipe for your pig offal?”

“Yeah, try it first. If you don’t like it, I won’t take your money.”

Before long, the small pot of offal was bubbling away, and the fragrance immediately spread. Seven or eight people were already gathered in front of the stall. “Serve me first! Serve me first!”

Lin Yu scooped up a ladle for each person. The business for Lin Yu’s pig offal looked even better than Wei Qingshan’s pork sales. Watching his little husband work so deftly at the stall, Wei Qingshan couldn’t help but smile. His little husband really was amazing. “Aiyo, what’s that smell? Why does it smell so good!”

“What is it that smells so good?”

People who came to the morning market to buy vegetables smelled the aroma and came over. Seeing the line of people holding bowls and waiting, some who hadn’t tasted it stretched their necks to ask, “What are you selling? What are you selling?”

“Pig offal, want some?”

That person made a disdainful noise. “What’s so great about that stuff?”

“Shows what you know.”

The people in line ignored him. Seeing Lin Fulang scooping bowl after bowl, they started to panic, worried that it might be sold out by the time it was their turn.

Lin Yu knew that their pig offal was selling well. He’d come along a few times before, but usually people bought and left in ones and twos—unlike today, when there was a full-on line.

“Boss Wei, stop staring and slice me a strip of meat.” That man had just gotten a bowl of stewed offal and now came over to buy pork. Wei Qingshan had been momentarily distracted watching his little husband and hadn’t noticed.

He snapped out of it, refocused, and quickly sliced a strip of meat for the customer.

Today, their meat stall business was especially good—especially his little husband’s side, where he was so busy that sweat was glistening on his forehead. Wei Qingshan’s side also had many customers coming to buy meat, and the pork sold a lot faster today.

Some people, drawn by the smell, wanted to try it but didn’t have bowls. They just bought a few pancakes from the neighboring stall and had the offal ladled right onto the pancakes.

Even Lin Yu wasn’t the only one busy. The old couple making pancakes next door were also sweating buckets, and still, people were urging them, “Old man, are the pancakes ready yet? It’s almost my turn. How can I buy it without a pancake?”

“No rush, no rush—I’m almost done, almost done.”

Lin Fulang’s business was just too good today. Their pace of making pancakes couldn’t keep up with demand. The old couple was both anxious and excited. Hearing the clatter of copper coins hitting the wooden box, they hurried to speed up the pancake-making.

Yao Jinling had gone back to her natal home today. As she passed through the morning market, she caught a whiff of the smell. Thinking that her cousin-in-law was selling meat in town, she figured she might as well stop by and get a discount.

From far off, Yao Jinling saw people lining up. “What smells so good?”

As she got closer, she saw—oh—wasn’t that her cousin and cousin-in-law?

“Aiyo, turns out it’s Cousin-in-law, huh? Business is doing so well,” Yao Jinling walked forward, “Cut me a strip of pork, more fat and less lean.”

Wei Qingshan picked a nice piece for her and sliced off a strip. Lin Yu saw Yao Jinling approaching and smiled at her, “Sister-in-law is here.”

“What are you selling here, Yu-ger?”

“Some pig offal. Sister-in-law, I’ll serve you a bowl—take it home and try it.”

Yao Jinling had already put the pork into her basket. When Wei Qingshan collected the money, he didn’t reduce a single coin. Hmph, she had thought buying here would be cheaper. Zhao Dazhi was right after all—just some low-class poor relatives who can’t be shown in public.

When Yao Jinling heard it was pig offal, her expression turned to disdain. Her family was from town, after all—who would eat such stuff? But then she thought, since there was a bargain to be had, why not take advantage? She lifted her chin and pointed, “Then I’ll have some.”

Lin Yu served her a bowl of stewed offal. Yao Jinling found the smell quite fragrant and held the bowl in her hands. Lin Yu knew Yao Jinling was not good to Yueniang, but there really was nothing he could do.

He had gone to check on Yueniang a few more times after that. Yueniang said life had gotten a bit easier, but the entire family relied on her alone to do everything. The reason Lin Yu treated Yao Jinling so generously was in hopes that she might show Yueniang a bit more kindness, if only for the sake of these small benefits.

“Hey, wait a minute, I was in line first! Why did she get served first?” Someone in the line voiced their dissatisfaction.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ve been waiting so long. Why serve her first!”

Lin Yu quickly explained, “Everyone, this is my sister-in-law. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

When they heard she was a relative of the little boss, the crowd stopped making a fuss, though they were still unhappy. She already got a portion—what if there wasn’t any left by the time it got to them?

Even though some were unhappy, no one dared to make trouble. After all, standing next to the stall was his husband, tall and well-built with a knife in hand—obviously someone trained. Who would dare provoke him?

Yao Jinling, having taken advantage, still acted innocent. “What’s all the fuss about? It’s just a bowl of pig offal, why are you all so noisy?”

“Then don’t take it—just sell me that bowl instead.”

Yao Jinling gave a cold snort and walked off with the bowl. Why should she? That bowl was worth several copper coins—why would she give it up?

Even after the last bowl was served, many people still hadn’t gotten any. Many were first-time buyers, drawn in by the smell, but by the time it was their turn, it was gone.

“Little boss, why did you only make so little? It’s gone by the time it gets to us.”

“Sorry, sorry—one pig can only yield this much. Come earlier next time, everyone.”

Only then did those who didn’t get any leave reluctantly. Those who did manage to buy some were already sampling it by hand on the way home. Compared to before, the taste was even better! They had to hurry back and let their families try it.

Wei Qingshan cupped his hands and spoke, “Everyone, come earlier tomorrow. Thank you all for your support!”

From the moment Lin Yu set up the stall to the time the stewed offal sold out, not even half an hour had passed. Whether they had eaten it before or not, the fragrance was simply too overpowering—everyone wanted to try it.

Once the pot of braised offal was sold out, Lin Yu finally sat down and caught his breath. “I didn’t expect business to be this good today.”

“It’s because my little husband is amazing—everyone loves it.”

Lin Yu smiled. The previous pot of offal could probably sell for almost 200 copper coins. This time, he added soybeans—it not only tasted better but could sell for more. He estimated they’d earn around 300 copper coins. This business was much faster at earning money than embroidery.

Wei Qingshan used his sleeve to wipe the sweat off his little husband’s forehead. “You’ve worked hard.”

Lin Yu smiled and shook his head. “You’ve worked even harder.”

The old woman selling pancakes next to them also brought over a bowl of hot water for Lin Yu. “Lin Fulang, have a drink and rest.”

“Ah, thank you.” Lin Yu took a few sips of the hot water, then handed the rest to Wei Qingshan. Life was a little tough now, but hearing the clink of copper coins dropping into the money box, Lin Yu felt full of energy.

After selling out the stewed offal, Lin Yu finally got a chance to rest. The meat stall at home had also done well today—they’d already sold half of it. Wei Qingshan pulled out a pomegranate from the cart for Lin Yu. “Have something to eat. We should be able to pack up early today.”

Lin Yu sat to the side, peeling the pomegranate and eating one seed at a time. Seeing that Wei Qingshan couldn’t free his hands, he leaned over and fed him some too. The loving couple drew envious looks, and the old pancake-seller woman beside them chuckled behind her hand.

Meanwhile, Yao Jinling carried the pork home. She called out, “Dad, Big Brother, I’m back!”

Yao Mazi poked his head out. “Jinling is back.”

Yao Jinling handed the pork to her sister-in-law. “Cook this for lunch.”

She patted her clothes and went into the house. Although the Yao family lived in town and were technically better off than the peasants in the countryside, the few of them were crammed into two shabby rooms. Her father and older brother usually worked short-term labor jobs for a rich merchant’s household to help make ends meet. In truth, compared to the Zhao family, they had even less. At least the Zhao family had a few mu of land.

She had married Zhao Dazhi because of his status as a scholar. No one in the Yao family could even read a single character—they were counting on this son-in-law to pass the county-level exam so they could bask in his glory. To avoid having their daughter looked down upon, Yao Mazi even scraped together ten taels of silver as her dowry.

As soon as Yao Mazi saw her, he asked, “How’s Dazhi doing? Is he studying hard?”

“Who knows? I don’t really understand it either. He just asks me for silver every few days—if it’s not for buying books in town, then it’s for gathering with his classmates. Each time it’s no less than three to five hundred wen. I’ve already spent quite a bit of the silver I had on hand.”

“He’s a scholar, after all. And besides, paper and ink, and such are expensive to begin with. Maybe next year he’ll pass the county-level exam, and then our family will have a titled scholar lord.”

At the thought of this, Yao Mazi’s face lit up with a smile, as if Zhao Dazhi had already passed the exam and he himself was already the father-in-law of a Xiucai. When he went out, who wouldn’t give him some face?

Yao Jinling cracked open a pumpkin seed and spat out the shell with a “peh.” She hadn’t told her father, but the ten taels of silver she had brought as dowry were nearly gone. Not only did Zhao Dazhi constantly need money, but sometimes she herself wanted to splurge and eat something nice.

At noon, Yao family’s eldest sister-in-law had stir-fried some meat, along with that bowl of pig offal. Two meat dishes were set on the table. Although they lived in town, the midday meal was still coarse cornbread made of mixed grains. Even the meals at Zhao Dazhi’s place were better than this—at least she could eat steamed rice there.

But she also understood the situation at home. If not for the ten-tael dowry, she probably wouldn’t have been able to marry Zhao Dazhi. Her life at the Zhao family was still relatively good—eating and drinking well, with a scholarly husband and a little sister-in-law who served her.

The seven members of the Yao family, counting Yao Jinling’s side, all sat around the table. Yao Jinling was actually quite nice to the three children at home and picked out pieces of meat for them to eat. “Eat more. Next time Auntie comes, I’ll bring more for you.”

Yao Jinling’s eldest brother had three children, and with no land in the family, their life wasn’t easy. Even the flour they used was mixed grains. Yao Jinling thought she should carry back some rice next time to make things easier at home.

Yao Mazi took a bite of that bright red dish in the center of the table and gave a hum. “Jinling, what dish is this? It tastes pretty good.”

“Just cheap pig offal. It was brought from the Zhao family’s nephew. I heard from Dazhi that this ger lived at their place for seven or eight years and married into a poor hunter’s household. Now the two of them are butchers and sell meat at the East Market in town.”

“A butcher’s household would definitely never lack meat. Sister, don’t look down on them. I heard a pig costs four or five taels of silver. You call that poor?” Yao Jinling’s eldest brother interjected.

“Who knows? That’s what Zhao Dazhi said. I saw that the Zhao family doesn’t seem to treat the two of them too well. Zhao Dazhi said that Yu-ger is ungrateful, that he got married and grew wings, forgot the grace of being raised by their family. I think that ger seems like a gentle person. Who really knows?”

“In any case, if you’ve taken their things, treat them a little better. You never know—you might get some scraps in return.” Yao Mazi really liked that bowl of offal and ate several bites.

It had been a while since the household had any meat, and the three kids scrambled to grab the meat in the bowl.

Yao Mazi didn’t know, but how could Yao Jinling not? That Yu-ger was being so generous to her only for Zhao Yueniang’s sake. He had come by twice, but each time he didn’t even acknowledge Zhao Jiazhu or the others—only said a few words to Zhao Yueniang. Looks like she’d better treat her little sister-in-law a bit nicer. That way, maybe he would keep sending things.

The two had finished selling in the afternoon and packed up the stall. Wei Qingshan asked the old couple next door to help watch the cart for a bit while the two of them went to stroll the market.

Wei Qingshan took Lin Yu to the lamb noodle shop for a bowl of soup. Lin Yu found the flavor very fresh and tasty. When they came out, he was still savoring the aftertaste. It was delicious but a bit pricey—one bowl of lamb soup cost twenty copper coins.

After eating, they wandered the market looking for cotton sellers. Lin Yu didn’t have any winter clothes and had to make two sets this year. The two bought a bundle of cotton. Lin Yu didn’t want to buy so much, but Wei Qingshan insisted that Lin Yu make it into padded robes, so it would be warm for winter.

Cotton was expensive, and they also bought some fabric. Just like that, three taels of silver were spent. Lin Yu felt his heart ache—it was too expensive.

Wei Qingshan knew his little husband felt pained about money. While no one was watching, he rubbed his little husband’s face. “Unhappy?”

“I am happy, just… It’s too expensive. You’ll need to sell two pigs just to earn this back.”

“It’s not just for one year. Every winter from now on, you’ll need to wear it.”

Lin Yu held the cotton and smiled. Since they had bought it, he should hold it happily. “Mm!”

During the years he spent at the Zhao household, he wore the same padded coat from when he was a child. When it got too small, he altered it himself, which made the coat thinner and thinner. He hated winter the most—it was too cold, and he still had to wash clothes and cook with cold water. His hands had chilblains, and when the weather warmed up, they would itch and hurt.

To stay warm, Lin Yu would often collect spring willow catkins or autumn reed fluff to stuff into his clothes— it was better than his thin winter garments. That was how he endured eight winters. This year, he would finally wear a thick padded robe. Lin Yu held the cotton, his heart full of warmth.

On the way back, the two also picked up two buckets of pig offal from town—very cheap, just ten copper coins per bucket. It was something nobody wanted, so the butcher shop owner sold it to them at a low price.

After buying everything, the two pushed the cart back home. As soon as they got home, they started working again. Each took a bucket of pig offal and started cleaning it. Lin Yu cooked up both buckets, and the courtyard was filled with the delicious aroma.

“Tomorrow, you don’t need to go. I can handle it alone.”

“Can you manage by yourself? I saw a lot of buyers.”

“It’s fine. You just stay home and look after the pigs. I can handle it on my own.”

“How about I go with you again for one more day? I’m afraid you won’t be able to manage it.”

Wei Qingshan couldn’t win against Lin Yu, so he had to agree. It was tiring to go to town every day, and he was afraid his little husband wouldn’t be able to take it.