Chapter 58

Shen Qing replied, “Alright!” and handed a cup of hot tea to Xiao Wanling.

As for the Li family making canned fruit—without proper sealed jars, it wouldn’t keep long. Besides, fresh fruit was hard to come by this time of year.

The Li mother and daughter tried chopping firewood and made sure to walk past the Shen household on their way. But after a few days, they couldn’t keep it up.

Li Mo pulled a thorn from her hand and burst into tears. “I’m done! She just wants to work us to death!”

Mother Li was also exhausted. Seeing others buying meat, new clothes, and even riding carriages made her feel resentful. Gritting her teeth, she went to the Jin family’s shop.

There, they handed her a packet of powder and told her to slip it into food; once Xiao Wanling ate it, they’d have leverage over her.

The mother and daughter felt uneasy, but the desire for money and fine clothes pushed them forward. They headed toward the Shen residence.

Jiang Ting happened to be passing by in an oxcart. When the Shen house gate opened for her, she went straight inside.

Mother Li burned with envy. Li Wan’er treats outsiders better than her own mother. When she reached the gate, Shen Qing blocked her path.

Mother Li forced a smile. “Son-in-law, I brought chicken soup to nourish Wan’er’s health!”

Shen Qing’s face turned cold. He stepped back. “Come in, then.”

The Li women were overjoyed and quickly entered.

Only then did they notice the strange-looking oilcloth shelters in the courtyard and the glazed tiles on the rooftop—Shen’s family was clearly rich! Yet they hadn’t helped them one bit. The mother and daughter exchanged a glance, then approached Xiao Wanling to flatter her.

But as they moved closer, Shen Qing stepped in to block them.

Mother Li kept smiling. “Be sure to drink the chicken soup. It cost me a whole hundred wen.”

Her eyes drifted toward the kitchen. Hearing noises from inside, she walked over and saw several women from Qishan Village busy working.

Aunt Wu, seeing the Li women, quickly shut the kitchen door.

Suddenly, the fierce wolf leapt out, baring its teeth. Mother Li stumbled backward in fear and almost fell. She scanned the yard—there were only water vats, and Shen Qing was nowhere in sight. Xiao Wanling sat calmly at a table, writing.

Li Mo gave her mother a signal, glancing toward the vat and hinting for her to act fast.

Mother Li hurried over to the water vat. Her reflection showed a nervous face. Hands trembling, she poured the powder into the water. Some powder stuck to the edge, and she wiped it away with her sleeve.

Just then, Shen Qing returned, leading Lu Dahai and Yin Sheng into the courtyard. “Take the pastries back to the camp later,” he told them.

The two men agreed and headed toward the kitchen. Yin Sheng called out, “Anything we can help with?”

Aunt Wu replied from inside, “We’re out of water. Bring two buckets, would you?”

Yin Sheng saw the empty water buckets near the door. Turning back, he noticed the vat and began scooping water. “We need you to make things now, Aunt Wu—we’ve got drills later!”

The Li mother and daughter clung to each other, trembling. The Jin family hadn’t come yet. If soldiers ate poisoned food, they wouldn’t live to see tomorrow.

Seeing Xiao Wanling approaching, they shook even harder.

She stood in front of them. “Feeling guilty?”

Just then, Yin Sheng carried the water buckets to the kitchen. The women’s eyes followed him, their hearts nearly leaping out of their chests.

The kitchen door creaked open. The sound made them jump.

Shen Qing calmly closed the kitchen door. He turned to Yin Sheng and ordered, “Report to the authorities. Someone tried to poison us.”

Yin Sheng’s eyes widened. “Poison?!” He spun around and ran out of the courtyard.

Mother Li turned to flee, but a gleaming sword blocked her path.

Soon, the village chief and other supervisors arrived.

Lu Dahai entered with buckets and found the courtyard packed. The Li women were surrounded.

Xiao Wanling took out a pair of silver chopsticks and bent down to test the water in the bucket. One end of the chopsticks turned black. Everyone’s face changed.

Mother Li covered her face. “It wasn’t me! Maybe someone else did it!”

Xiao Wanling said coldly, “Search her. Find the powder.”

Just then, a paper packet fell from Li Mo’s sleeve. It was coated in powder. Tested with a silver needle, it turned color.

The mother and daughter collapsed to the ground—completely doomed.

The village chief declared, “It’s poison.”

Shen Qing added, “I just bought pastries to send to the camp. They poisoned the water that would’ve been used for cooking.”

The Li women were tied up and taken to the authorities. Their husbands, seeing many people leave the Shen house, wondered what was going on. Soon after, they too were chased out of Qishan Village. With no money, they headed to the mines for work.

Believing the world was out to get them, they figured they were doomed anyway. So they tried to steal from a shop and got caught by the patrol and thrown in jail with the women.

Because they’d tried to poison army supplies, the Prince of Jin was furious. He sentenced them all to exile at the border. Warning notices were posted throughout Qishan Village.

Xiao Wanling’s letter finally reached Chancellor Fu. Busy eating hotpot and drinking wine, he casually told his servant, “Send those two property deeds to Director Xiao.”

He’d already promised her that shops would hire women. Was she changing her mind again?

When the land deeds arrived, it was already the 28th of the twelfth lunar month.

All shop staff—servers, clerks, and buyers—were mostly finalized. Chen Gui, realizing he couldn’t outwit Xiao Wanling, joined the crowd at the teahouse to sign up.

Previously, the two clerks had made some silver and thought they were right to reject older or weaker women. Now Xiao Wanling was recruiting again, clearly going against them.

They stood aside, waiting for her to beg them to write the list.

But outside the teahouse, two tables were set up. Jiang Ting and Xiao Wanling sat down and started writing with ink, shocking the two clerks.

Jiang Ting didn’t recognize all the characters, but Xiao Wanling helped fill them in.

When Chen Gui stepped up, he said, “I can do deliveries and heavy lifting, and I can also make pastries and tea. I’ll take 100 cents a day.”

Jiang Ting looked to Xiao Wanling. Seeing her nod, she wrote down his name.

Suddenly, two men shoved forward, but Jiang Ting’s face turned stern. “Go to the back of the line. Women, the elderly, the disabled, and those without children have priority.”

Having had her engagement gifts returned, Jiang Ting sat upright with determination.

When the list was complete, she handed it to Xiao Wanling, who asked, “What kind of work are you looking for?”

Back in the city, Chancellor Fu had a bad feeling after his visit. He rode a carriage to Qishan Village. Seeing the long line outside the teahouse, he stroked his goatee. “What is she up to now?”

Aunt Wu came running, shouting from afar, “Jiang Ting! Fuhu Village just ordered ten banquet tables!”

Each banquet cost five taels or more. Jiang Ting stood up, beaming with joy, and joined the happy women running toward Shen’s house.

Shen Qing had taken her seat and asked the applicants, “Name? Age?”

The stone road in town was nearly complete, with piles of leftover stone on the sides. Chancellor Fu looked around, a sudden thought crossing his mind: Maybe I should buy a house here. Spend a month each winter—it’s way better than the capital.

Xiao Wanling and Shen Qing walked home together. Seeing a familiar silhouette, she thought she was imagining things.

The stone-paved road was done. Pastries and tea were moved back into the shop.

The teahouse stayed open. People from ten surrounding villages came to buy tea and cakes. Aunt Wu, Cheng Qiao’er, and others were busy all day but happily earned silver, buying warm clothes, meat, and more for home.

Word spread far and wide. For New Year banquets, people came to buy hotpot base, and the whole market smelled deliciously spicy.

Xue Cui wanted to sign up for work, but Shen Qing crossed out her name.

She tried to approach Xiao Wanling, but Shen Qing guarded her closely. If she got near, someone would carry her off.

Old Lady Liu was arranging a new marriage for Xue Cui. No matter how Xue Cui cried, Old Lady Liu didn’t budge. “You already wasted over ten taels trying to sell food. That’s enough to feed a whole family for a year!”

Afraid Xue Cui might act out and offend Xiao Wanling, Old Lady Liu even dismissed her three daughters-in-law.

Watching others wear new clothes and stay busy in good cheer, Xue Cui didn’t know what to do anymore.

Old Lady Liu took the bride price and locked Xue Cui in a room to embroider handkerchiefs.

Looking out the window, Xue Cui saw Shen Qing sitting proudly on horseback; he was a general now! Meanwhile, she was about to marry a cripple, maybe even a bedridden one who needed constant care. Her chest burned with frustration. Even a cripple would be better—at least I wouldn’t have to wait on him!

Shen Qing spent every day close to Xiao Wanling. Her cheeks were rosy, and her belly was starting to show. The day to campaign against the Prince of Qi was drawing near.

Snow had fallen outside. A brazier warmed the room. Xiao Wanling lay in bed, lazily leaning against Shen Qing’s chest.

“Did you remember them all? Retreat as the best tactic, plans within plans?” she asked.

Shen Qing nodded. “Got them!”

He held her in his arms, breathing in the scent of her hair, reluctant to leave.

In the days before departure, they stayed in the kitchen. Xiao Wanling guided him in making dried meat, rice candy, and walnut crisps as snacks for the journey. Shen Qing joked that whenever he missed her, he’d take a bite.

Xiao Wanling rested her right hand on her belly, feeling peaceful and happy like never before. She slipped a copy of the military book she had written into his bag.

Wearing his armor, Shen Qing tied the bag to his horse and rode to the village entrance, where many awaited him.

Xiao Wanling stood on the hillside, watching him mount his horse. He turned and smiled at her.

She waved as she watched him ride off with the soldiers.

Shops in the market began reopening!

Red lanterns were hung at entrances. Staff and workers swept and organized goods.

Xiao Wanling had written the recipe for the dried meat, waiting for Madam Zhang to send someone to pick it up.

The two clerks, now working as bookkeepers, still thought highly of themselves. “Madam Xiao does tea, pastries, and even hotpot base for banquets. I bet she can’t even manage the accounting.”

Aunt Wu happened to be delivering hotpot base and overheard them. She shouted, “No need to worry! We have people to handle the books!”

Younger women like Jiang Ting, Madam Shi, and Han Hui had memorized Xiao Wanling’s multiplication chants. They didn’t even need abacuses.

The two clerks scoffed. “Calculating a few cents isn’t the same as real bookkeeping. That takes years of training.”

Xiao Wanling spent her days in the teahouse. The other two shops handled deliveries of tea and pastries from their back courtyards.

One day, a luxurious carriage stopped outside the teahouse. Its curtains were made from the finest Shu brocade, with glass lanterns hanging all around. People on the street stopped to stare.

An elderly man stepped out, dressed in fine robes with a silk cap adorned with green cat’s-eye jade.

Xiao Wanling recognized him. “Master Zhi!”

The Minister of the Royal Weaving Bureau. The village head had mentioned him.

Master Zhi didn’t waste words. He handed her a letter. She could tell something serious was going on from his expression. She gestured to invite him inside.

But he waved her off. “I have urgent matters to attend to.”

Xiao Wanling was puzzled. He didn’t even stay for hotpot? Something serious must be happening in Jin City again…