Chapter 31: Guilty, But Not Much

Wen Xiuyi felt as if he’d received a royal pardon and hurriedly called to his children, “Xiao Jun, Yao Yao, Daitou, let’s go home now. Don’t disturb your grandparents’ rest.” Heaven knew that if he stayed any longer, his social awkwardness would fully flare up.

In his previous life, he only had one sibling—a younger sister who stayed in their hometown with their parents. They only saw each other during holidays. There were plenty of cousins, but every time they met, all they asked was how he was doing at the Agricultural Research Institute or whether he could help arrange jobs for their children.

Help them find jobs? He couldn’t even arrange jobs for his own son and daughter. If it weren’t for those two being so capable themselves, they’d be left with nothing but cold winds to drink. Compared to socializing with relatives, Professor Wen much preferred the calm of his research lab.

The family of four made their escape from the old house as if fleeing a battlefield—though, to be precise, only Professor Wen was fleeing; the other three were a bit reluctant to leave.

Back home, the three youngsters quickly got busy again, preparing for the next day’s market. Daitou sat quietly by their side, keeping them company.

They soaked the rice and packed the braised meat into buckets. Only after everything was prepared did Wen Xiuyi sit down and gulp a mouthful of water, then asked, “Yao Yao, how should we price the braised meat?”

The marinade could be reused, so the main cost was a one-off. Pig’s head meat was ten coins a jin, pig intestines even less—fifteen coins for a whole bucket. No matter what price they set, it would be profitable. Most people at the docks were merchants and laborers; none would buy groceries there, so the braised dishes would likely only sell to those people. If the price was too high, no one would buy, but too low wasn’t good either.

“Pig’s head and pig’s ears, twenty coins per jin. Use the small plates, ten coins per plate. Pig intestines can be cheaper, ten coins a jin. Bean curd, one coin per piece. If someone wants a taste or to add it to fried rice, one coin is fair,” Yao Yao said.

With those prices, she was still making a decent profit. Anything more would trouble her conscience. From Wen Xiuyi’s observations these past few days, this pricing wasn’t expensive for the docks and fit their family’s pricing style.

So, the prices were set. Wen Xiuyi yawned, eager to head to bed. The siblings, knowing how hard he’d worked all day, quietly tidied up and went to their rooms to sleep.

Yao Yao settled Daitou in, urging him to lie down. Just as she was about to sleep, the little one suddenly sat up, staring straight at her.

The look startled her. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

Daitou pouted, then stretched out his hand, eyes full of accusation.

Yao Yao, confused, scratched her head. “You want something? What is it?”

He let out a soft “ah,” pushing his hand forward.

Suddenly, Yao Yao remembered. She smacked her forehead. “Oh! You mean the candy I promised you?”

Daitou nodded.

She had completely forgotten, but seeing the hope in his eyes, she couldn’t bear to refuse. “Close your eyes, then. I’ll show you a trick,” she said.

Daitou tilted his head in confusion but obediently squeezed his eyes shut, hand still open and ready.

Once sure he wasn’t peeking, Yao Yao slipped to the cabinet, pretending to rummage inside. In reality, she quickly ordered a bag of White Rabbit milk candy from her space. She also ordered a sheet of antique-style oiled paper, swapped the candy’s packaging, and returned to the bed. Placing the candy in Daitou’s palm, she said, “Alright, open your eyes now.”

He felt something in his hand and slowly opened his eyes, carefully cradling the oddly wrapped candy, curiosity all over his little face. He looked at the candy, then at Yao Yao, head cocked.

Yao Yao picked up a piece to demonstrate. “Like this—unwrap it, and there’s candy inside. But you can’t eat it now. It’s bedtime, and eating candy before sleep will ruin your teeth.”

Daitou watched as she unwrapped the sweet, revealing its snowy surface, then wrapped it back up right in front of him. He was so anxious he almost spoke, but his protests and squirming proved useless. Under her firm insistence, the little one finally lay down to sleep, but refused to let her take the candies away. He tucked them under his pillow, making sure his small hand could reach them at any moment.

He’d already decided—he’d eat them first thing at dawn.

Before dawn, when Yao Yao got up to steam the rice, she saw Daitou still clutching his two candies in his sleep. Mischievously, she tried to take them, only to find she couldn’t budge them without waking him. So she gave up.

She put the rice on to steam and dozed by the stove until daylight. Wen Jun and Wen Xiuyi rose as well, and the three of them packed everything into buckets and loaded up the cart as usual.

Today, Daitou was especially lively. He dressed himself and ran to the kitchen, waving his candy at Yao Yao, his big eyes blinking earnestly.

Yao Yao couldn’t help but laugh, finally unwrapping the candy and popping it into his mouth. “After you finish, go rinse your mouth,” she reminded him.

As the creamy sweetness melted on his tongue, Daitou’s eyes sparkled. He danced on the spot, too delighted to listen to a word Yao Yao said.

Wen Xiuyi, curious, asked what Yao Yao had given him. She secretly produced three more pieces, one each for the three of them.

The long-lost taste of White Rabbit milk candy—even Wen Xiuyi, who’d never had much of a sweet tooth, was moved nearly to tears. To be able to taste White Rabbit in this era was truly one of life’s great joys.

“Don’t eat too much candy—especially you two. There aren’t any dentists to fix your teeth here,” Wen Xiuyi warned, swallowing his saliva. After all, White Rabbit was irresistibly delicious.

When they’d finished, father and son prepared to leave. Just as they pushed their cart out the door, they ran into Wen Xiuzhu and Wen Xiuqing, both carrying baskets on their backs.

“Where are you two off to?” Wen Xiuyi asked.

“We’re headed to the city to sell things,” Xiuzhu replied. “Mother told us to check if you needed help and head out together.”

Wen Xiuyi nodded, remembering how, in the past, any eggs or mountain goods the family saved were always taken to the city to sell, the money going towards his education.

Looking at his two younger brothers’ complexions—so different from his own—he felt a pang of guilt. He was the eldest, yet he looked younger than either of them.

Shifting aside, Wen Xiuyi nudged Wen Jun. “Go help your second and third uncles load their things onto the cart. With their help, I’ll be fine pushing. You can just follow along.”

The two men grinned, set their baskets on the cart, one taking Wen Jun’s previous spot, the other walking beside the cart to steady the load. “Just rest, Xiao Jun. We’re here. If you get tired, hop on and we’ll push you, too.”

Wen Jun’s mouth twitched, and he waved his hands quickly. “No, no, I’ll walk on my own.”