Chapter 40

Chapter 40

It was early afternoon, and quite a few people had come out for a stroll after eating, making the midday market crowd the largest of the day.

Many people turned their heads at the commotion, pausing in their steps and abandoning their purchases, their eyes lit up at the drama.

Qian Jinbao, stared at by the crowd and cursed out in public by a young man, felt utterly humiliated. He grabbed the incense ball that had been thrown at him and hurled it back with force, his face darkening as he said, "Before you start trouble, you should ask around who I am. You little bastard, I was running this area before you were even born. Get the hell out of here if you know what's good for you."

His words were really nasty. The two sturdy men behind the young man immediately stepped forward, but the young man stopped them.

The incense ball struck him, but he caught it and held it up to the crowd: "Everyone, take a look! This stall is selling fake incense balls. They cheated my little sister out of her money, and now they're threatening to hit me. Is there no justice left?"

A crowd had already gathered around, and someone chimed in, "Young man, do you have proof that he's selling fake incense balls?"

He didn’t expect the young man to not play by the rules. A flicker of unease crept into his heart, yet he still stood with his hands on his hips and snarled, "What proof do you have that my incense balls are fake? Trying to scam me, are you?"

The young man shot him a glare, then pulled another paper bag from his pocket and addressed the onlookers.

"My little sister heard from our neighbor's older sister that there was a stall selling excellent incense balls at the Qiqiao Festival, so she came specifically to buy some. But when she got back, they were completely different from what the neighbor had bought earlier."

"And look—this stall still has a sign claiming 'Only Here for Qiqiao Magpie Incense Balls.' He sold my little sister fake ones! Even the wrapping paper is different, and the incense balls themselves make you dizzy if you smell them too long. My little sister saved up her embroidery money to buy these, and she ended up with a fake. She's been sulking at home for days. If I hadn't noticed, she would've swallowed this loss in silence."

The young man handed both paper bags and incense balls to the onlookers. The crowd gathered around to examine them, chattering and commenting.

"Oh, these really are different. From a distance, they look similar, but up close, the difference is obvious."

"And the scent is only somewhat alike. One of them is harsh on the nose after a while. No wonder they say it's fake..."

Qian Jinbao still refused to back down. "What's 'fake' about incense balls? Isn't it normal for each batch to have slight variations? The paper bag was made by someone I hired when I couldn't keep up, so it's a bit rougher..."

"That could be true," some in the crowd murmured, thinking he might have a point, as such situations were possible. But then the stall owner next to him suddenly spoke up and exposed him.

"He's lying!"

Gong Laosi met Qian Jinbao's vicious glare and, with a righteous expression, explained to the crowd, "The person selling incense balls here during the Qiqiao Festival wasn't him at all. He grabbed this spot early and pretended to be that seller. The young man's little sister wanted to buy from the original seller but got tricked into buying his instead."

"Whoa—"

The crowd suddenly understood. Whether the incense balls were real or fake aside, this was outright deception. How shameless!

Qian Jinbao scrambled to defend himself. "Don't believe him! He's just jealous of my business and making things up."

But then the straw-weaving stall owner on his left also chimed in, "I'll vouch for that. During the Qiqiao Festival, it was a young man and his husband setting up here. This guy saw how well they were doing, so he snatched the spot and copied them."

The young man, now fully aware of the situation, grew even angrier. He snatched the incense ball that had been passed back to him and hurled it straight at Qian Jinbao's face. "And you still say you're not selling fakes? Give me my money back!"

Qian Jinbao didn't expect everyone to gang up on him. Isolated with no one to side with, he glared in all directions but still sputtered, "This stall is set up right here! Buying and selling incense balls is a mutual agreement. Why should I give a refund?"

The crowd had already clogged the market flow, and patrolling officers rushed over to handle the situation. Qian Jinbao was about to plead his case when the young man, who had been shouting so loudly moments before, began wiping his tears.

"Sir, please seek justice for my little sister."

The young man was not old, dressed in plain cloth, with a delicate face that looked pitiful when crying—like a pear blossom in the rain. Qian Jinbao, seeing his two-faced act, was fuming. "You bastard—" But before he could finish the curse, the officer silenced him with a shout, leaving him red-faced and fuming.

A middle-aged woman nearby clicked her tongue. "Doing things like this to cheat people and then yelling at a young man... Just from his face, you can tell he's no good."

"Exactly. Saying he sells fakes isn't wrong. Who told him to steal someone else's reputation?"

"A grown man cursing a young man—what a disgrace to all men."

Bystanders who said things without thinking all joined in, hurling accusations at Qian Jinbao. For the first time, he felt the bitter taste of being unable to defend himself, utterly at a loss for words.

After hearing the full story from the young man and with the neighboring stall owners testifying, the officer ignored Qian Jinbao's excuses, ordered him to refund the incense ball money to the young man, and forbade him from displaying that sign to deceive customers.

"West Market has its rules," the officer glanced at Qian Jinbao, who was reluctantly refunding the money, and warned, "If there's a next time, you won't be allowed to set up here anymore."

Qian Jinbao's heart skipped a beat, and he forced out a twisted smile, repeatedly nodding. "I understand, sir. It won't happen again."

The gathered crowd gradually dispersed. Customers who had been sampling incense at Zhong Yizhu's stall and had run off to watch the excitement returned, still buzzing with excitement. They looked at Zhong Yizhu and asked, "I heard from the jewelry stall owner that that man was using your name? Really?"

The crowd had been tightly packed, so Zhong Yizhu couldn't see the innermost scene from his stall, only the initial confrontation. Hearing this, he didn't directly answer but said, "I did set up at that stall before, but later someone rented it long-term, so I moved here."

"So that's it! You were the one selling incense at the Qiqiao Festival, right?" Zhong Yizhu nodded. Without needing further prompting, the customer vividly recounted the entire scene, chattering like a machine gun.

But Zhong Yizhu had no time to acknowledge his storytelling skills, nor could he spare attention for Qian Jinbao's piercing stare from not far away.

Earlier, during the commotion, someone had asked where the original stall owner had gone, and Gong Laosi quickly pointed the way. So before long, Zhong Yizhu's stall was flooded with customers wanting to buy incense balls.

What goes around comes around.

With this spectacle, the fortunes of the two incense stalls instantly reversed.

Zhong Yizhu's prepared balms were already selling well, and now with many customers for incense balls, his business boomed. By mid-afternoon, he had sold out all the incense balls and balms he'd brought.

In contrast, at Qian Jinbao's stall, even though he rearranged his goods repeatedly and copied Zhong Yizhu's previous setup, he still had plenty of leftover stock.

When Zhong Yizhu and Pei Mu packed up to leave, they went to Gong Laosi to give him a jar of balm they'd specially set aside, and also took the chance to enjoy Qian Jinbao's miserable state.

As they left the market to find a shop to buy ceramic jars, Zhong Yizhu's steps were light. He reached out and quietly tugged at Pei Mu's fingers. When Pei Mu turned his gaze to him, he asked softly.

"Where did you find that young man?"

Pei Mu paused. "You figured it out?"

Zhong Yizhu replied, "You usually come back quickly after delivering game, but today you were nearly a quarter of an hour late, and you didn't tell me why."

Pei Mu hadn't planned to hide it anyway. He replied, "When I returned from the army, I traveled with people from the same hometown. One of them settled in Songyun County—his name is Yao Sheng. After coming back, he became a butcher. He recognized me when I was selling game, and he's sociable and honest. Later, when I had goods he wanted, I'd deliver them to him, so we've become somewhat acquainted."

"He's well-connected in town and trustworthy, so I asked him to help arrange this act. I don't know that young man—he's probably a relative of Yao Sheng's."

An eye for an eye, evil for evil. From the moment Qian Jinbao provoked Zhong Yizhu, Pei Mu had resolved not to let him off easy. It was only out of consideration for Zhong Yizhu's business that he had held back.

"Yao Sheng..." Zhong Yizhu thought for a moment. "Next time you bring him game, take two incense balls for that young man as my extra thanks."

He quite liked that young man's fiery temperament—able to bend and stretch, never letting himself be taken advantage of.

Pei Mu hummed in agreement and followed Zhong Yizhu into the shop.

Zhong Yizhu had previously ordered porcelain bottles from Caishi Village with ulterior motives. He couldn't yet let the villagers know about his business, so for the jars he needed going forward, he intended to buy them in Songyun County.

They still had enough spices and balm-making materials at home, so after finding a shop and buying the jars they'd need next time, they left the city early to head home.

There were less than half a month until the Mid-Autumn Festival, and autumn was deepening. By the rural path, a nameless tree had already turned its leaves red early, catching Zhong Yizhu's eye. He reached out to pick one.

Seeing that Zhong Yizhu liked it, Pei Mu broke off a small branch and placed it in his arms.

Suddenly, Zhong Yizhu stood on his tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

Clutching a piece of autumn color, Zhong Yizhu smiled at Pei Mu.

"This is your reward."

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