Chapter 152 - 153: Arrangement 2
Xiao Dongzi bit his lip, trying hard to keep his tears from spilling.
Ever since Scholar Gu brought him back, he felt like he had landed in paradise.
Not only was he well-fed and warmly clothed, but he even had his own room.
Scholar Gu taught him how to read and write, and Miss Gu taught him arithmetic and bookkeeping. These were things he had never dared to dream of, things he couldn’t even have imagined.
Now, Miss Gu was even letting him learn the key secret recipes for making pastries. This level of trust, however, made Xiao Dongzi feel unsure of himself.
’Can I really live up to this trust? Will I disappoint my benefactors in the future?’
Xiao Dongzi suddenly dropped to his knees. "For the great kindness you two have shown me, I, Xiao Dongzi, swear to the heavens right here! If I ever do anything to wrong you, or if I betray you, may I, Hu Dongsheng, suffer a terrible death in every lifetime to come!"
Xiao Dongzi had never known his own surname. But Big Beard had raised him for so many years, and the moment he buried Big Beard, he took on the surname Hu for himself.
Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian, who had never seen such a dramatic display, were startled. It took them a moment to react before they hurried to pull Xiao Dongzi up. "The fact that we made this decision means we trust you."
Jin Qianqian patted his head, which made Xiao Dongzi freeze in place.
Sensing his discomfort, Jin Qianqian gently patted his back a few times. "You silly little kid. In my eyes, you’re like my own younger brother. We’ve been together for so long; can’t you trust us by now?"
Xiao Dongzi shook his head. "I trust you, Miss Gu. I just don’t dare to dream of being your brother, but I will never forget your great kindness."
Seeing him draw the line so clearly even now, Jin Qianqian didn’t press the issue. "Starting today, you’ll come with me into this kitchen. I’ll explain everything you need to pay attention to. The pastry shop will be counting on you from now on."
As she said this, Jin Qianqian felt a little ashamed. ’It feels a bit much, putting such a heavy burden on a boy who’s not even fully grown.’
Who would have thought Xiao Dongzi would be filled with excitement instead? "I’ll study with all my heart! In the future, even if someone threatens my life, I will never reveal the secret recipes."
Ancient Wen Heng tapped him on the head. "You’re overthinking it. It’s just a little secret recipe for some snacks; it’s not something people would kill for."
"But with the shop’s bookkeeping and managing the ingredients, can you handle it all?"
Xiao Dongzi nodded. "My bookkeeping is fast and accurate now. It doesn’t take much time at all. You can test me if you don’t believe me."
Ancient Wen Heng looked at his height and sighed. "You need to eat more and grow a bit taller. Otherwise, with the height of an eight or nine-year-old, you won’t be very convincing."
He was already over ten, but he was still much smaller than other kids his age.
They kept saying they should take him to Dao City for a check-up but never found the chance.
There were doctors in this county town, but they trusted Chu Dongnan more.
While things were proceeding in an orderly manner here, Deng Yuanhang rushed over with some exciting news. "We can bring our families! Mr. Wang will also be traveling with his wife and child."
"Zhou Ping thought about it and wants to bring his family too, to save himself from watching you two be all lovey-dovey."
’That’s good news,’ Ancient Wen Heng thought while mentally making a list. He then asked, "Is there a specific date?"
Deng Yuanhang said, "That’s the second reason I came by today. You should get whatever you need ready as soon as possible. In ten days, there’s an auspicious day for travel."
"You’d best go to the carriage rental to hire a horse-drawn carriage. If you have a lot of things to transport, you should let the escort agency know in advance so they can arrange for enough men."
Ancient Wen Heng readily agreed. "So, are you and Brother Zhou just going on a study trip?"
A corner of Deng Yuanhang’s mouth twitched. "This is the third reason I came. I was hoping to ask for your advice. What kinds of things are suitable to bring to the south?"
Ancient Wen Heng replied, "This region has a lot of furs and medicinal herbs. You could consider bringing some."
"I’m planning to bring some little trinkets my wife made to see if there’s a market for them over there."
"Pastries?" Deng Yuanhang frowned. "The south has countless varieties of pastries. Why don’t you bring some furs and medicinal herbs instead?"
"If you’re short on silver, Senior Brother Deng has some family funds and could lend you a little."
Ancient Wen Heng had no choice but to personally demonstrate the wondrous uses of the soap.
"Little Sister Gu is an absolute genius to have come up with such a fantastic idea!" Even if Deng Yuanhang had little to do with the domestic affairs of the inner courtyards, he knew how popular this soap would be with the women there.
He saw a few unopened, oil-paper-wrapped bars of soap bundled nearby and swept them all into his arms. "I, your elder brother, will go and promote this for you! This novel item might sell out right here in our area before you even need to take it south."
"..." Ancient Wen Heng said, "Then I thank you, Senior Brother."
＆
Ten days isn’t a long time, and Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian began to get busy.
Jin Qianqian and Xiao Dongzi went over all the handover details for the pastry shop, and they also asked Chief Li and his men to help keep an eye on it during this period.
There weren’t enough soap samples, so Jin Qianqian and Ancient Wen Heng used the time difference in their ’space’ to busily produce a large batch.
They ran to the carriage rental and hired a spacious horse-drawn carriage, also employing an old master driver, a veteran of the trade.
Since they would be gone for such a long time, a trip back to Gaoling Village was naturally in order.
"Everything is going so well, why are you running off so far away?" Li Cuicui said upon seeing them arrive, bustling about in a hurry.
Gu Yuanfeng, meanwhile, sat by the edge of the heated brick bed, quietly wiping her tears, looking at Ancient Wen Heng and his wife as if she wanted to speak but couldn’t.
Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian hadn’t expected to see Gu Yuanfeng here. ’She should be staying with her husband’s family for the winter. Has she been bullied again?’
But since she didn’t say anything, Jin Qianqian and her husband naturally wouldn’t be nosy and ask.
"Mother, don’t trouble yourself. We already ate before coming over."
"We’re leaving on a trip and probably won’t be back until spring. I’m afraid we won’t be able to spend the New Year with you, so Qianqian and I wanted to bring your New Year’s gift over first."
"You two are too formal," Li Cuicui said. Although her words were dismissive, her hand gently stroked the new cotton-padded jacket on the low table. "We’re mother and son. You’re not even spending the New Year here, so why would I chase you for a gift? I’m still wearing the clothes you made for me before. Making another new one is too wasteful."
"It’s not a waste," Jin Qianqian said, and as she spoke, she pressed a small silver coin into the old woman’s hand. "We were afraid any pastries we bought now wouldn’t be fresh for the New Year. This is so you can trouble yourself to go out and buy some treats for yourself then, Mother."
Li Cuicui looked at the two taels of broken silver in her palm and tried to push it back. "I can’t take this! You’ll be traveling, so you need to keep more silver on you. Besides, I’m just an old woman. Even if I buy pastries, I won’t need this much."
"We made an agreement when the family property was divided, and we should stick to it. This is too much."