Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The usually bustling dock was now quiet, with only a few small vendors walking along the shore and fewer boats on the canal.

"Little uncle, where is everyone?" Minghe also noticed something was amiss.

Danzi honestly pointed ahead, "Big brother, look, the people are over there."

Minghe explained, "Those are the sellers; there aren't any buyers."

After Minghe pointed this out, Danzi also noticed the difference, saying softly, "Yeah, there aren't any buyers."

Xiao Yu suggested, "Let's go ask."

"There's Grandma Liu," Minghe, a talkative child, would address strangers according to their age and gender, using titles like "Grandpa," "Grandma," "Auntie," "Uncle," "Brother," "Sister," etc.

While others called her Liu Po, he always affectionately called her Grandma Liu, always bringing a smile to her face.

Xiao Yu pushed the cart towards Grandma Liu and greeted her as usual before asking about the situation at the dock today.

Grandma Liu sighed, "Ah, it's getting harder and harder to do small business."

Xiao Yu asked, "Is it because of the refugees?"

Grandma Liu replied, "Not just the refugees, but also because of the war."

"Where is the war happening?" Xiao Yu hadn't heard anything about this.

"The southern border," she said.

Xiao Yu asked, "Is General Pei fighting there?" He recalled Zhang Wu mentioning that Pei Yanli had been injured in the north and had to rush to the southern border to fight again.

"Right, right, you've heard?" asked Grandma Liu.

Xiao Yu shook his head, "I only heard that there was going to be a war at the southern border, but I didn't know more. Has it really started?"

"Yes, it's been a month," Grandma Liu said, her face creasing more deeply. "And we've been defeated."

Xiao Yu was shocked, "General Pei was defeated?"

"Yes, it's said that after just one round of battle with the Yue people, General Pei and his close aides disappeared. The Yue people easily won and are now heading north. They will reach our area in five days. That's why you see no one at the dock; everyone's scared." Grandma Liu muttered softly, "I'll sell eggs for three or four more days, then I won't come anymore. I'll lock up my house and wait out this storm."

"Grandma Liu, who told you all this?" Xiao Yu asked in surprise.

Grandma Liu replied, "That's what everyone is saying."

Xiao Yu inquired, "Is the information reliable?"

"As the saying goes, there's no smoke without fire. I believe it's mostly true," Grandma Liu was convinced of the news.

Xiao Yu countered, "Another saying goes that there can be waves even without wind."

Grandma Liu hesitated briefly, then said, "I won’t argue about that. Anyway, I’ll sell eggs for a few more days, then I’m stopping. I’m only fifty-two this year, I haven’t lived enough. I plan to live until at least eighty. Young Master Xiao, you’d better take precautions too."

Xiao Yu thought deeply about the plot of 'The Emperor's Dream'. Although Pei Yanli didn't have the same limelight as the main character, he was extremely important in the protagonist's life and had never lost a battle. It seemed unlikely he would face trouble now. Could his arrival in the book and changing Minghe’s fate have caused a butterfly effect, altering the destinies of other characters in the book?

That seemed improbable.

He was just a minor character; it was unlikely he could influence the main characters. Besides, Minghe and Pei Yanli's paths wouldn’t cross for many years, so his presence now shouldn’t affect Pei Yanli's fate.

Unable to figure out the reason and being just an ordinary citizen, Xiao Yu felt powerless. Moreover, the true nature of war was often obscured by deceit and strategy; perhaps this was all part of Pei Yanli's plan.

He believed that the Da Jing Empire, under the protagonist’s reign, would continue to thrive and couldn't possibly be defeated by a lesser nation like the Yue. Therefore, he didn’t believe these rumors.

However, Grandma Liu and others did, and as a result, the dock was quiet all morning with only a few regular customers coming to buy buns.

"Little uncle, have you sold them all?" Minghe asked.

Xiao Yu replied, "There are still forty left." Usually, they would have returned to Jinxiu Village by this time.

"Still so many?" Minghe frowned.

"Yes, let's stay a bit longer and try to sell more buns," Xiao Yu suggested to Minghe, "Is that okay?"

"Okay," Minghe agreed.

"Then you play with your brother over there." Usually, the dock was crowded, and Xiao Yu kept Minghe close, allowing him to play only under the supervision of Xiao Fang and Grandpa Yuan, along with Jin Dabao and Tian Liu.

Today, with fewer people around and not being too busy, he let Minghe and Danzi play.

Minghe said, "But I need to help sell buns." During busy times, he would help watch the money.

Xiao Yu smiled, "Today there are fewer people, no need to watch the money, go play."

"Okay then," Minghe said. "Danzi, let’s go play with the dirt."

"Okay," Danzi agreed.

Minghe, holding Danzi's hand, walked to the side and asked, "Do you know how to play with dirt, little brother?"

"I don’t," Danzi replied softly, "Big brother, can you teach me?"

"Sure."

It seemed every child loved playing with dirt. Minghe and Danzi, armed with just a stick, poked at the ground for half an hour. Meanwhile, Xiao Yu's forty buns were still not sold out. He was thankful he had only made a hundred buns today, considering the possible impact of the refugees on business, or else there would have been even more left.

Seeing the buns getting cold and less tasty, Xiao Yu decided not to sell any more to avoid tarnishing their reputation. He called out, "Minghe, Danzi!"

"Yeah!" The two children were full of energy from playing.

"Let's go home," Xiao Yu announced.

The two children happily ran over.

Minghe asked with concern, "Little uncle, did you sell all the buns?"

"Not all," Xiao Yu replied.

Minghe stood on tiptoe, stretching his neck to peek into the bamboo basket, "How many are left?"

"Twenty," Xiao Yu answered.

"Still that many?"

"Yes." The refugees and rumors of war really impacted the common people's activities, but there was nothing to be done about it. Xiao Yu added, "It's okay, we'll take them home to eat."

"I want to eat three!" Minghe declared.

"I'll eat three too!" Danzi chimed in.

Xiao Yu nodded, "We’ll also take a few to Grandma Hao."

"I'll go deliver them!" Minghe offered eagerly.

"Danzi, go with your brother to deliver them," Xiao Yu suggested.

Danzi nodded in agreement.

The three returned to Jinxiu Village, delivering ten buns to Grandma Hao, and ate the remaining ten themselves.

The next day, Xiao Yu intentionally made fewer buns, only eighty, but still ended up with twenty leftovers.

By the third day, even sixty buns couldn’t be sold out.

Grandma Liu and some other small vendors had gone home early to hide.

The dock was eerily empty.

Unable to sell the buns in his basket, Xiao Yu turned his attention to Qingshi Town. He pushed his cart into the town, intending to be a mobile vendor, but as soon as he stopped, nearby stall owners would immediately shoo him away.

Some stall owners were particularly aggressive, almost scaring Danzi to tears.

Xiao Yu also felt that being a mobile vendor was obstructing others' business and decided to stop. He then pushed his cart out of Qingshi Town.

"Little uncle, have all the buns been sold?" Minghe asked again.

"Ten are left," Xiao Yu replied.

Minghe frowned, "What can we do about this?"

Such a little worrier.

Xiao Yu couldn't help but smile, touching the little one's smooth, chubby face, "There's always a way out of a difficult situation. We shouldn't worry; solutions are always more numerous than problems." They had overcome tougher times together; today's challenge was relatively minor.

"Then I'll think of a solution too," Minghe said, furrowing his brows in deep thought.

Danzi watched his brother, then imitated him by furrowing his brows, as if he too was pondering.

This made Xiao Yu laugh out loud.

"Little uncle, it's snowing!" Minghe exclaimed in surprise, looking at a melting snowflake in his hand.

Hearing this, Xiao Yu looked up, a snowflake swirling down onto his face, cold and refreshing. He hadn't brought an umbrella today and quickly said, "Let’s hurry back home."

"Let's go home!" Minghe and Danzi excitedly shouted.

By the time they got home, a thin layer of snow had already settled on the ground. Xiao Yu, who had worked in a southern city, hadn't seen snow for many years and felt exceptionally thrilled and happy.

Minghe and Danzi were also extremely excited.

All three of them forgot about the dismal state of their small business.

Minghe suggested, "Little uncle, let's make a snowman together."

"You know how to make a snowman?" Xiao Yu was surprised.

"I just heard about it," Minghe pointed around.

"Sure, if the snow gets thick enough, we can make a snowman and have a snowball fight." Xiao Yu hadn’t yet thought of a solution to the business problem. It seemed better to play with the kids and relax his mind for now.

"Okay!" Minghe and Danzi eagerly anticipated.

The snow kept falling, and by the afternoon, there was a thick layer. Xiao Yu and the two children, all wearing bunny-ear hats, went to the foot of the mountain to build a snowman and have a snowball fight. They played until their cheeks were red and they were panting, but their eyes sparkled with joy and their hearts felt light.

Later, Xiao Yu realized the snow showed no signs of stopping. After returning home, having dinner, and soon, both children fell asleep.

As the surroundings quieted down, Xiao Yu finally had time to think about the bun-selling business. The dock business had always been good, so good that he hadn’t thought much about the future.

Now he realized that this "good" was fragile. Not just the refugees and war, but even everyday snow, rain, or ice could prevent him from safely getting the children and the buns to the dock.

Selling buns there wasn’t a long-term plan.

With some money in hand now, maybe it was time to think about a change.

But what could he do?

Gourmet food.

Yes, the food he made had been acknowledged by many.

Why not rent a storefront in Qingshi Town and give it a try?

But what if it failed?

What would happen if the two children went hungry?

He carefully weighed the pros and cons, pondering until late into the night, and then drowsily heard Danzi softly calling, "Little uncle, little uncle."

"Hmm?" Xiao Yu slightly opened his eyes.

"Little uncle, I want some water." Xiao Yu had cooked salted vegetables for dinner, which were a bit salty, and Danzi had eaten a lot, so he was very thirsty now.

Anticipating this, Xiao Yu had placed a bowl of water on the wooden box before bed. Though it had cooled down, the people of Da Jing were accustomed to drinking cold water year-round. He asked, "Can you drink it yourself?" Like Minghe, who usually ate and drank independently, Xiao Yu hoped Danzi could also do things on his own.

"I can."

"Let me light the lamp for you."

"No need to light the lamp, I can see. Big brother says lighting the lamp wastes oil."

"..." Unsure if it was because of the snow outside the window or the approaching dawn that made the room vaguely visible, Xiao Yu said, "Then go ahead."

As Danzi was sleeping on the outside, he slowly slid off the bed and walked towards the wooden box.

Xiao Yu watched him pick up the small bowl and gulp down the water, then reminded, "Come back after you’re done."

"Okay."

Soon after, Danzi crawled back into Xiao Yu’s embrace.

Xiao Yu, hugging Danzi with one arm and Minghe with the other, continued to sleep until a sudden loud "bang" jolted him awake.

Startled, Xiao Yu sat up to see a large hole in the roof, with snowflakes pouring in.

"Little uncle, our house has collapsed!" Minghe suddenly exclaimed.

Only then did Xiao Yu realize Minghe had also woken up. Worried about other parts of the house collapsing, he quickly got up, wrapping the children in a blanket and preparing to leave, but then paused, "Where's Danzi?"