Chapter 27 Not Bedding

Chapter 27: Not Bedding Supplies

Yang Yun glanced at the small bag in Shi Zai's arms, pursed his lips, and still felt the whole endeavor was rather dubious:

"Little Bro, are we really going to pull this off?"

"A real man never says he can't! We definitely can!"

"...If we were in the palace, we'd surely be caught and given eighty lashes!"

Shi Zai shivered involuntarily, then patted the small bag on his leg and snapped his fingers:

"I told you, the Great Qing Dynasty is long gone! This is an open and wonderful new world! Don't be such a coward."

"...Alright."

"You're so reluctant. If it weren't to help you make money, I wouldn't bother bringing you along."

"...I never said I wanted to earn *this kind* of money."

"What's wrong with *this kind* of money?!"

"..."

Yang Yun puffed his cheeks, remaining silent.

If earning this money was so legitimate, why wouldn't Little Bro let him tell Big Bro? Why all the sneaking around?

Reading the pink dumpling's thoughts instantly, Shi Zai patted his shoulder, a smile playing on his lips:

"Selling these sorts of things, well, it's a bit embarrassing, isn't it?"

"Little Bro actually knows how to be embarrassed?"

"What kind of talk is that? Once you understand everything, you'll be embarrassed too, hehe."

"..."

Yang Yun was utterly speechless, feeling Shi Zai was insatiably horny. Lately, it was all he talked about. Big Bro was far too conservative—in the Great Tang Dynasty, people could marry at fourteen—yet he insisted Shi Zai was too young, leaving Little Bro so deprived he was practically drooling with desire.

Briefly contemplating the contents of the bag, tsk, it truly was something to crave.

Shi Zai's mind wandered for a moment. Ever since he saw those artifacts in the museum over half a month ago, he couldn't help but repeatedly imagine what could happen in those positions and how pleasurable it would be. He couldn't think too much about it—whenever he did, he'd get hard.

They were still in the "touching" phase. Several times, Shi Zai couldn't resist straddling him and grinding, but he was always pulled off. That stubborn man insisted on waiting until he was twenty—hey, tomorrow is his birthday! A wonderful Sunday!

The items they were selling were related to the artifacts he'd seen in the museum. Shi Zai had an excellent memory. After settling the plan with Yang Yun, he recalled the images, drew them out for him, and had him secretly use clay to shape two small figures, which were then fired in a kiln Shi Zai found.

After five busy days, it was finally done. There were five in total, all depicting the "doggy-style" position. They'd test the waters by selling these first.

Selling clay figurines was originally Yang Yun’s idea. Shi Zai had told him not to rush into making money, but he also understood the pink dumpling’s perspective. Seeing how much Shi Zai had recently earned selling griddle cakes, and knowing that Shu Yangkuo had a salary from the museum, plus earned a considerable amount by appraising artifacts for others and working privately as an artifacts dealer, Yang Yun, as part of the family, also wanted to start earning money quickly.

To give him a feeling of contribution in the family’s livelihood, Shi Zai came up with this idea.

With Yang Yun’s current skill level, ordinary little trinkets wouldn’t sell for much. But if they innovated in design, or even took a bold, unconventional approach, it would be different. Scarcity increases value, after all. Shi Zai bet there were absolutely no "sex clay figures" being sold on the market.

Although times were open now, there was no education on this sort of thing. Many people knew nothing at all. Like Shi Zai—if he hadn’t met Shu Yangkuo at nineteen, he would have stayed in the dark for several more years. How could people who knew nothing make babies? He didn’t need to, but there were those who did.

Shi Zai grew more confident and happy about his idea. They would definitely sell for a high price.

The two arrived at the park near Chunyang Square. This area wasn’t populated by wealthy people; many were migrant workers renting here. Shi Zai was sure many young people here were just as clueless as he was, so he’d get them interested and help them understand a thing or two.

He felt a sense of responsibility to spread awareness. Tsk.

It was Saturday, and bunches of young folks on break from work were wandering around here. Shy young couples walked side by side, while the more daring couples were already wrapped around each other, kissing as if no one else was around. Just as Shi Zai was watching, a small hand covered his eyes. He laughed and moved it away:

"I’m just figuring out who to sell to."

"Want me to go home and tell Big Bro?"

"If you dare blab, I’ll beat you up!"

"...Little Bro, can we really sell these? I’m scared."

Shi Zai withdrew his gaze and put an arm around the small shoulder beside him:

"Scared of what? Just wait—found our mark! Watch how it's done!"

"...Okay."

"Stay behind me, don’t get lost."

With that, Shi Zai walked toward a young man in a couple who looked three or four years older than him. He seemed very shy—he’d just brushed hands with the girl next to him and his face turned red. Hopefully, he wasn’t as conservative as Shu Yangkuo.

But, damn, he was just as bad as Shu Yangkuo—he took one look and ran off.

Shi Zai chuckled dryly and looked down. The figures they’d made only showed the position, with no explicit details. What was there to be shy about? He kept trying, but several others he asked blushed after one look, and the slightly bolder ones called him a "pervert."

Don't get discouraged, don't get discouraged.

Shi Zai changed his target audience. Those who were too shy couldn’t talk business with him. He needed to find those who were already kissing their partners—these people were bolder. Even if they already knew, they might be up for some excitement. How nice it’d be to put it by the bed... Tsk, can’t let my mind go there.

Holding the downcast Yang Yun’s hand, Shi Zai walked toward a man with tattoos on his arms:

"Sorry to interrupt, but we’re selling intimate accessories. Are you interested? They’re really interesting, and I’m the only one selling them."

"..."

The tattooed man glanced at him without speaking, but the girl next to him responded:

"Three-piece or four-piece set? Where are they? Let me see."

"...Uh, I didn’t make myself clear, haha. They’re *sex toys*, not *bedsheets*."

As soon as he said this, the girl rolled her eyes and tried to pull her boyfriend away. Unexpectedly, the tattooed man stopped, running a hand through his hair:

"Show me first."

"Great! You’ll definitely like it, hehe."

"Little bro, if you’re messing with me, you’re gonna regret it."

"Don’t worry, hahaha."

Shi Zai opened the cloth bag and took out one of the figures, which looked pretty satisfied. He had to admit, Yang Yun’s detailed carving skills were decent.

It was palm-sized. Holding it in his hand, he grinned widely:

"How about it? I sell these to others for three hundred, but for you, just two hundred and twenty. Really, I'm the only one selling these. Such items are usually kept in museums, worth a fortune you couldn't even buy with gold."

"Let me take a look."

As the item was handed over, Shi Zai sensed an opportunity and pressed on:

"Honestly, I have a relative who works in a museum. These are restricted collections—only I can occasionally get a glimpse inside, so only my brother and I can make these. Two hundred and twenty is a real bargain."

"Got any other styles?"

"Hehe, all sold out. Only this one today. If you want more, you can put down a fifty deposit, and I'll bring you something else another day. How about it?"

"Deal. Make it two hundred for this one. I'll go home to get the money. Wait here."

"Sure thing!"

Seeing the customer off, Shi Zai broke into a wide grin, already calculating in his head: one for two hundred, even if the rest sold for one fifty or one hundred, six would bring in at least eight hundred! This was way more profitable than his pancake stand!

If they could sell this many every day, in a month... they'd be rich!

Shi Zai raised his eyebrows at Yang Yun, and both of them laughed. Yang Yun finally relaxed. It seemed this world was different after all. He even started helping Shi Zai promote, bringing out the sketches they’d revised several times to show people their craftsmanship.

If they weren’t satisfied with what was in the bag, they could do a custom order too.

Just as he was explaining to someone and about to collect a deposit, the tattooed man from earlier returned, and he’d brought others with him?

When he received the call, Shu Yangkuo had just signed a commission contract with a collector. He provided appraisal, evaluation, and connected the collector with someone he’d met at Chaolin Temple for auction house contacts. If the collector’s items sold within the price range he’d suggested, Shu Yangkuo would get a three percent commission. He’d already received an advance of ten thousand, and if the auction succeeded next month, he’d get another fifty thousand.

After hearing the call, Shu Yangkuo hurriedly excused himself, rushed downstairs, grabbed a cab, and headed straight to Zhaochunyang Police Station.

Those two little rascals! He knew they’d been hiding something lately.

At the station, one was sobbing and trembling, "Don’t hit me," while the other hung his head, wiping tears, too scared to even look up. When they saw him, they made a move to rush over, but under the cold stare of the police, they both stood straight.

Any trace of anger vanished, replaced by overwhelming worry. Shu Yangkuo spoke before the officer could:

"Officer, no matter what, it's not okay to hit children. If there’s any issue—"

"What issue?! You didn’t even ask what happened before siding with your kids? What kind of parent are you? No wonder these two are running wild—must be the upbringing! Who hit them? Your little brother here said something about 'caning'—does he think he’s time-traveled or something?"

"..."

Shu Yangkuo cooled down slightly after the officer’s scolding, finally noticing neither of them was hurt—they just looked guilty. Relieved, he frowned. What had these two done to cause such trouble?

He looked away from them, took a step back, and bowed deeply to the officer.

"Officer, please calm down. They’re still young and don’t know better. Whatever it is, talk to me. I’ll discipline them at home."

"And discipline them you should! So young and already full of crooked ideas—where’d they learn to make money like this? If money had actually changed hands, with multiple offenses, they’d be facing jail time!"

Hearing this, Shu Yangkuo watched as the two flinched, one after the other. Anxious himself, he stepped forward, shielding them behind him, and listened as the officer explained the whole story.

Ten minutes later, Shu Yangkuo struggled to contain his anger as he heard the potential charges: "possibly counterfeiting cultural relics for illegal sale," "possibly distributing obscene materials," "possibly obstructing police duties." If not for their young age, genuine ignorance, and the fact that no transaction had been completed, Shu Yangkuo knew—the consequences could have been dire!

He’d repeatedly warned Shi Zai not to go to the museum to see such artifacts—not that there was anything wrong with the artifacts themselves, but for a curious young pup who understood nothing, it was too easy for him to get misguided ideas and act recklessly.

He’d thought those misguided ideas would at most be directed at him.

Never imagined this.

It was his fault—he hadn't made himself clear enough, and Shi Zai hadn't taken his words seriously.

Seeing the expression on the older brother’s face, the officer signaled for another officer to take the boys outside before speaking:

"I exaggerated a bit to scare them—I was afraid they’d go down the wrong path if not disciplined properly at their age. As their big brother, you can’t just resort to anger or avoid talking about sex education. Have heart-to-hearts with them. At this age, they’re curious—they need proper guidance."

"...Thank you, I understand."

"Don’t use those charges I mentioned to scare them at home—don't traumatize them. But do make sure to lay down the law."

After bowing again in thanks and apologizing for the trouble, Shu Yangkuo left the interrogation room. Outside, the two looked up at him with wide eyes—one timid, the other crying fearfully. Shu Yangkuo sighed softly and led them home.

In the taxi on the way back, Shi Zai couldn’t help but cling to Shu Yangkuo’s arm, looking up pleadingly.

"Big brother, we really know we were wrong. You can hit us or scold us, but please don’t be disappointed in us, okay?"