Chapter Twelve: A Warm Back

“All right, I’ll take one!” Zhao Lan’er said cheerfully, her eyes lighting up at the sight of the brocade carp pattern on the handkerchief.

After giving five copper coins, Zhao Lan’er asked, “Auntie, do you have any more? I want to buy one for my mother as well.”

Zhao Lan’er seemed to be a devoted daughter, always thinking of her parents in everything.

“Yes, there are still four left. Take your pick!”

In the end, Zhao Lan’er chose another with a lotus leaf design. Lin Sangqian wanted to charge her only five coins for this one as well, but Zhao Lan’er insisted otherwise, stubbornly pressing ten coins into Liao Shuxia’s palm before dashing off with her pastries and handkerchief.

“What a sweet girl,” Liao Shuxia said with a smile. “Next time she buys from us, we’ll give her a discount.”

Three handkerchiefs remained. Liao Shuxia called out for a while, and soon several women approached. Captivated by the exquisite embroidery, they scrambled to buy.

At last, a few women left empty-handed, disappointment written on their faces.

After all, in this town, they had never seen handkerchiefs so beautifully embroidered.

Liao Shuxia pondered and promised to return in a few days to sell more, and only then did the women leave.

The family of three squatted down and began counting their coins.

They had made seventeen from selling pastries and forty-five from handkerchiefs. Now, they had sixty-two copper coins in hand!

It wasn’t much, but the three of them were as happy as could be.

“I never expected such success on our first day,” Lin Hongda said excitedly. “This is an excellent start!”

“Next time, we should bring more,” Liao Shuxia said. “I’ll embroider a couple more handkerchiefs!”

“Now that we have a little money, let’s buy some plain handkerchiefs and thread,” suggested Lin Sangqian. “We can’t always be borrowing from others.”

“That’s right.”

They found a shop selling such supplies. Plain white handkerchiefs were cheap—two for a coin. Liao Shuxia bought twenty at once, then spent five coins on plenty of thread and needles.

After shopping, they had forty-seven coins left.

“Is there anything else we need?” Liao Shuxia asked.

“No, let’s go home,” said Lin Sangqian, just as her stomach gave a loud growl.

Almost instantly, Lin Hongda’s and Liao Shuxia’s stomachs rumbled in reply, one after another.

They all burst out laughing—it was indeed time for lunch.

There was a noodle stall nearby. After a brief discussion, they decided to treat themselves and ordered three bowls of noodles, costing six coins altogether.

Once they finished, they wiped their mouths and planned to visit the restaurant where Lin Wenyuan and his two brothers worked.

But when they arrived, a young waiter informed them that the brothers had gone out to buy ingredients and wouldn’t be back until evening.

With no other choice, they started for home.

At the entrance to the town sat a little beggar, a battered bowl before him, utterly empty—not a single coin inside.

He hugged his knees, his eyes glistening with unshed tears.

Touched by the sight, Lin Sangqian hesitated, then asked Lin Hongda to give the boy five coins.

At least they could still afford a meal; this little beggar, if he didn’t get anything today, would go hungry all day.

When the boy saw coins in his bowl, he looked up at them, his voice trembling with gratitude. “Thank you, thank you!”

The family said nothing and continued on their way.

Halfway home, Lin Sangqian could walk no further, panting heavily.

Lin Hongda mercilessly teased her, then bent down in front of her.

“Come on! Let your old dad carry you home.”

Lin Sangqian’s eyes grew hot, and she quickly said, “I’m fine, I can walk myself.”

“With your tiny frame, you won’t even be able to get out of bed tomorrow if you push yourself. Come here.”

Left with no choice, Lin Sangqian climbed onto his back. With a gentle lift, Lin Hongda carried her up.

“You’re much too light,” Lin Hongda said, frowning. “You need to eat more and put on some weight.”

“Tonight we’ll make something good to celebrate!” Liao Shuxia said excitedly.

“Yes!” Lin Sangqian replied, grinning.

She lay on her father’s back. Though Lin Hongda himself was thin and his back narrow, it was incredibly warm.

“When we have more money, we’ll buy an ox cart—no, a horse-drawn carriage! Then we won’t have to walk to town anymore.”

“And when we’re doing even better, we’ll move to town! Then we can open a martial arts school, an embroidery workshop, a restaurant!”

“Hahaha, we’ll be rich!”

Just as they entered the village, they ran into Lin Shengrong and Lai Ruyu.

Lin Shengrong carried a hoe, clearly heading to the fields, while Lai Ruyu held a bundle of clothes, likely on her way to the river to wash them.

Lai Ruyu felt a surge of annoyance at the sight of the radiant family. Only recently, the third branch had lived like mice—how could they be so happy now?

But recalling the fierce demeanor of Lin Hongda and Liao Shuxia, she instinctively shrank behind Lin Shengrong.

Lin Shengrong, however, remained composed and greeted them with a smile. “Old Third, where are you off to?”

“Second Brother,” Lin Hongda replied calmly, “We went to town.”

“Oh? You went to town?” Lin Shengrong was a bit surprised.

“A bunch of paupers. What could you possibly do in town?” Lai Ruyu muttered under her breath.

Liao Shuxia heard her at once and retorted, “So? Are poor folks not allowed to stroll through town? Did you make the rules?”

“Go on, then. It’s nothing special,” Lai Ruyu sneered. “Next time, I’ll take my daughter and buy her two new dresses!”

Her words reminded Lin Sangqian that their own family really did need new clothes.

Although what they wore was clean and tidy, it was patched all over and a bit embarrassing.

But for now, they’d need to save more money.

Lin Sangqian couldn’t be bothered with Lai Ruyu, gave a lazy yawn, and said, “Father, Mother, let’s go home.”

“All right.” Lin Hongda didn’t hesitate, ushering his wife and daughter away without so much as a glance at Lin Shengrong and Lai Ruyu.

“The third branch is getting too uppity,” Lai Ruyu fumed, nearly stamping her feet. “Are they even the same people?”

“Why wouldn’t they be?” Lin Shengrong watched their retreating backs, his gaze deep and thoughtful. “They’ve certainly changed. Could it be that someone’s helping them?”

“What do you mean?”

“They were eating chicken before, and the second branch said they saw eggs at their house. Someone must be giving them things. Now they’ve been to town again—could it be they’ve found a way to earn money?” Lin Shengrong speculated.

“That won’t do!” Lai Ruyu exclaimed, flustered. “If there’s anything good, it should be ours! Why should the third branch have a good life?”

After dividing all the family property with the second branch, she had become used to seeing the third branch living in poverty, barely able to put food on the table.

But now… it seemed things were changing for the better for the third branch.