Chapter 34

Chapter 34

A dozen days can feel long or short—for Pei Mu, it was no more than the time it took him to make two trips into the mountains.

With autumn's wild bounty abundant, when Pei Mu went hunting in the hills, Zhong Yizhu followed Chen Xiaorong and Tao Geer to gather chestnuts and pine nuts. The villagers lived off the mountains, with different seasonal harvests to collect. Many people picked them to sell in town, as it was an extra source of income for rural households. So gathering wild goods wasn't a free-for-all—they had to find spots no one had picked yet.

Zhong Yizhu gathered slowly and couldn't carry much weight. Others often came back with full baskets while he only had a half-basketful. Chen Xiaorong and Tao Geer felt bad for him and wanted to share their haul with him, but Zhong Yizhu quickly stepped back: "There are only three of us in my family, we don't need much. Don't bother sharing with me."

He wasn't planning to sell what he gathered—he gathered them because he'd noticed Pei Mu loved them, so he picked them specially for him.

But Chen Xiaorong and Tao Geer were different. Xiao Rong Ge picked them to sell, and Tao Geer's family had many mouths to feed—how could he accept their offerings?

"Alright, alright, we won't give you any then."

Chen Xiaorong grabbed him just in time to keep him from tripping over a vine. Seeing that Zhong Yizhu genuinely refused, they didn't insist, but agreed to come back together the next day.

Like a squirrel hoarding food, Zhong Yizhu slowly carried his provisions home. He wasn't greedy—once he felt he had enough, he stopped going. Instead, he invited his mother to teach him how to roast pine nuts, and packed a good amount for her to take back.

After spending six days in the mountains, Pei Mu returned home to find several trays of chestnuts set out in the ventilated area.

He put down his catch and hunting gear, washed his hands, and Zhong Yizhu followed him like a puppy. When Pei Mu dried his hands, Zhong Yizhu quickly pressed a small handful of roasted pine nuts into his palm, his eyes sparkling.

"Mother taught me how to roast them—try them and see if they're good."

After days apart, Pei Mu's gaze never left Zhong Yizhu. He took a pine nut, cracked it open, and popped it into Zhong Yizhu's mouth. Before Zhong Yizhu could speak, he leaned in and kissed him.

The oily, toasty fragrance of the pine nuts filled their mouths—not burnt or bitter. Pei Mu kissed him for a long moment, then pulled back slightly, still managing to compliment him: "Delicious. Just as fragrant as the ones from the shop."

Zhong Yizhu didn't have time to feel pleased before Pei Mu scooped him up.

At the prime of their youth and vigor, their reunion was like kindling, and the fact that Zhong Yizhu had been thinking of him only added fuel to the fire.

Daylight was still streaming in. The bedroom window was closed, but the bed curtains swayed abruptly, seeming oddly intimate.

Remembering what Zhong Yizhu had said before, Pei Mu simply put him on top of himself, so the bedsheets wouldn't get dirty.

Soon, however, he discovered another advantage to this position.

Zhong Yizhu kept his eyes tightly shut, overwhelmed, and clung to Pei Mu's neck—only to have Pei Mu bite down on another sensitive spot.

Pei Mu seemed addicted, refusing to let go, teasing until Zhong Yizhu begged for mercy. By the end, Zhong Yizhu no longer cared about the sheets; he let Pei Mu arrange him however he wished. It couldn't get more embarrassing anyway.

Pei Mu acted as if he had to make up for six days' absence. Only when night fell did he finally let him go.

Zhong Yizhu was too tired to lift a finger, lying in bed waiting for Pei Mu to cook dinner.

He didn't know if other couples were like this. He felt both unable to cope and secretly pleased—but the thought was too shameful. Just the thought of it made him feel embarrassed. He pulled the blanket up to cover half his face, grateful that they were going to the county town the day after tomorrow.

For this stall, Zhong Yizhu had only prepared a little over two hundred incense pellets. Last time was Qiqiao Festival, the perfect timing for him to be daring. But for an ordinary market, he couldn't predict sales, so he estimated a rough amount to test the waters.

Zhong Yizhu rested the entire next day. On the day of Songyun County's major market, he rose early as usual and left with Pei Mu.

Pei Mu carried their goods and also carried him piggyback for a stretch. By late July, the morning air was getting colder. Zhong Yizhu said he wanted to walk to get warm, so Pei Mu set him down.

At the time, an ox cost about six to eight taels of silver. Their savings were more than enough for an ox-cart, but since they didn't farm, suddenly buying an ox would cause gossip. And with the Pei family lurking in the village, Pei Mu catching a deer to sell could be written off as luck, but buying an ox would make it obvious they were well-off.

Zhong Yizhu always remembered not to show off his wealth. He could still bear the hardship for now—there was no need to make himself a target for others.

Two hours later, they entered the city and headed straight to their stall at West Street Market.

They had figured that if Cousin Gong could help them save a spot even during Qiqiao Festival, an ordinary market day would be no problem.

But as they approached, Pei Mu's sharp eyes spotted someone already set up on their usual spot.

Not only that, but the stall was fully stocked. The cloth covering and the arrangement of goods looked painfully familiar—at first glance, he thought it was their own stall.

Zhong Yizhu also saw the situation and slowed his steps.

He remembered the man behind the stall—it was the same one who had tried to take their spot on Qiqiao Night. Back then, they thought he was just desperate for a good spot, but now it was clear he had deliberately gone after their stall.

It was still early, yet customers were already browsing. The man served them while casting a provocative glance at Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu, his smugness barely hidden.

Zhong Yizhu ignored him. He grabbed Pei Mu's wrist and walked straight to Cousin Gong, who had been signaling them.

Cousin Gong looked grim. He clasped his hands in apology: "Sorry, you two. I couldn't save your spot. That bastard must have come at midnight. When I arrived, plenty of good spots were still empty, but he zeroed in on this one."

Lowering his voice, he added: "I see he's also selling incense pellets, and he's copied your stall's setup exactly. He's blatantly trying to steal your business. These days, customers have asked me when you'd be back, and I told them—he timed it just right. Some customers came on word of mouth, mistook him for you, and bought from him." Cousin Gong spat. "That bastard's too shady."

Just then, a young woman who had been heading to a neighboring stall to look at incense pellets suddenly spotted Zhong Yizhu and let out an "Ah." Her gaze flickered between the man behind the stall and Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu, and she couldn't help asking: "Young master, isn't this your spot?"

The man behind the stall quickly put on a feigned smile and served her eagerly: "Miss, are you looking for incense pellets? I have all kinds—take a look, see which you like. Since you're a returning customer, I'll give you a discount: twenty-two coppers per pellet, what do you think?"

He had copied Zhong Yizhu's stall and spoke ambiguously, as if he had always been the one selling here, even lowering the price. Even Cousin Gong was disgusted. Worried that Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu might act rashly—especially Pei Mu, who looked formidable—he was about to clarify, but Zhong Yizhu smiled and answered.

"We've moved spots today, not here. I remember you bought lotus-scented pellets last time, miss—are you getting the same again?"

The young woman broke into a surprised smile: "Oh, you remember! Yes, I need two more to give as gifts."

She started walking toward Zhong Yizhu, but the stall-owner shouted angrily: "How dare you steal my customers like that! Have you no decency?"

He reached out to stop the woman leaving: "Miss, I have lotus-scented ones too—buy from me, I'll give you an even better price."

The woman quickly stepped back, annoyed: "I'll buy where I want! Why are you being so pushy? Touch me again and I'll call for help."

The man withdrew his hand, glaring at Zhong Yizhu with malice.

But before he could stare long, he felt as if a wild beast had fixed him in its gaze. He shifted his eyes and met Pei Mu's. Before he even realized, a cold sweat ran down his back.

Zhong Yizhu needed to get the pellets for the customer, so he tugged Pei Mu's hand to signal him to set the basket down.

Pei Mu withdrew his gaze and got to work. The stall-owner exhaled in relief but felt indignant—what was so scary? Surely that man wouldn't dare hit him in the middle of the market.

He started shouting for customers again.

Zhong Yizhu wrapped the pellets in a paper pouch and handed them to the young woman. She looked at it and beamed: "Oh, is this a printed bamboo? So pretty! I can give it as a gift just like this."

Zhong Yizhu had noticed how popular his magpie-patterned pouches were on Qiqiao Night, so he'd thought about sprucing up the packaging afterward. Plain ones felt too dull after customers had seen something nice.

But magpies weren't fitting after Qiqiao, and if he used other seasonal motifs, he'd have to come up with something for every festival. Besides, not every major market coincided with a holiday, and cutting new patterns was time-consuming. He'd been stumped until Pei Mu asked why he didn't make a fixed pattern for daily use, then add new cutouts for big festivals—that way he'd have both options.

Zhong Yizhu had been caught up in a mental rut. Pei Mu's suggestion cleared things up. Shops with big businesses in the prefectural city often used custom packaging that customers instantly recognized. He might only have a small stall, but he could start building that now.

The bamboo motif was Pei Mu's idea—it fit Zhong Yizhu's name, looked elegant, and worked for men and women alike. They tried cutting paper by hand, but it was too time-consuming. In the end, Pei Mu carved several wooden stamps, chose the best one, and used it to stamp the paper pouches. The problem was solved perfectly.

The young woman paid contentedly and left with her purchase. Cousin Gong, curious, asked: "You remember every customer who's come to your stall?"

Zhong Yizhu nodded. "I can roughly remember them."

Gong Laosi himself was a stall vendor, so of course he knew how rare this was. He clicked his tongue. "You really deserve to earn this money." Then he added gloatingly, "That bastard next to me must be fuming."

Zhong Yizhu didn't look that way. "Sorry for troubling you, Brother Gong. We'll go rent another stall; if we wait any longer, it might be hard to find one."

"No need." Gong Laosi pointed to an empty stall not far away. "Since he took the one next to me, I went ahead and picked the closest one for you. See if it suits you."

Neither of them expected Gong Laosi to go to such trouble; of course it suited them. Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu quickly thanked him and handed him the rent.

Gong Laosi had deliberately woken up early only to have someone play a dirty trick on him. Even if not for anything else, he had to retaliate to feel better.

He rubbed his hands together eagerly. "You go wait over there. I'll send all the customers who come looking for you over to your stall."

Zhong Yizhu had been holding Pei Mu's wrist all the way until they reached the stall Gong Laosi had reserved for them. Pei Mu then covered Zhong Yizhu's hand, chilled by the wind, and said softly, "Don't worry, I won't hit him."

Causing trouble at the market would get them kicked out by the patrolling constables and clerks, and they'd be banned from setting up stalls. No matter how much he wanted to hit someone, he wouldn't bring that kind of trouble on Zhong Yizhu.

Out in public, Zhong Yizhu couldn't do anything too obvious. He just quietly leaned closer to him and said softly, "I know you won't hit him. I'm telling you not to get angry. Getting angry over someone like that isn't worth it."

Although Zhong Yizhu was also angry, he knew that in business there were many who would play dirty tricks out of jealousy. This was the first time he encountered it, but he might face it many more times in the future. Wasting energy getting angry at such people was worse than finding ways to make his business even more prosperous; watching them fume and stomp around in frustration would be more interesting.

"Mm," Pei Mu replied. "Whatever you say, I'll do."

Zhong Yizhu set up his goods just as before. His stall and the counterfeit one were not too far apart. At a glance they looked almost identical; in fact, since the other stall was in the original spot, his looked more like the imitation.

He waved at Pei Mu, telling him to go sell the game he brought. "Go ahead, don't worry. No one dares to pull any tricks in the market."

Pei Mu glanced at the wooden sign Zhong Yizhu had just painted, which was resting on top of the basket. The two magpies on it were crudely drawn, but exactly the same as the paper-cut he had previously pasted on the paper bags. Below was Zhong Yizhu's writing: "Qiqiao Magpie Incense Pills – Only Here."

This couldn't even be called a provocation; it was a blatant slap in the face.

Pei Mu pushed the wooden sign further inside the stall and told him, "Wait until I come back to put it out."

Zhong Yizhu wanted to say something, but met his worried gaze and nodded in agreement.

Last time, after coming down the mountain, Pei Mu had gone to Chuiliu Town to sell game. This time he only brought one roe deer and two pheasants. Roe deer meat is lean; common folks, who don't get much fat in their diet, don't care for lean meat, but the wealthy and noble prefer it.

Pei Mu sold the two pheasants along with the roe deer, exchanging them for one thousand two hundred copper coins. He calculated in his mind the furs he had been saving lately. If he worked a bit harder, before the weather turned completely cold in two months' time, he would be able to save up for a warm cloak for Zhong Yizhu.

Even as he thought this, he didn't slow his pace. It had only been the time it takes to burn an incense stick when he returned to the market, but the crowd had already grown much larger than before.

The big fair in Songyun County was naturally much more lively than in Chuiliu Town. Not only did people from the county and surrounding villages come, but small vendors also took the opportunity to stock up. People came and went, ears filled with the sounds of questions and haggling, mixed with various hawking cries. Pei Mu couldn't help frowning and quickened his pace towards their stall.

When he got close, Zhong Yizhu was earnestly talking to a woman.

Pei Mu didn't disturb Zhong Yizhu. He slipped in through a gap beside them and sat down on the small stool Zhong Yizhu had prepared for him. He looked around, then set out the sign Zhong Yizhu had written earlier.

What Pei Mu didn't recognize was that the woman in front of the stall was the very first customer Zhong Yizhu had served when he set up his stall.

She had come to find Zhong Yizhu, and not just for the incense pills.

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Author's note: I'm back! Thank you for your comments and support~ Mwah.