Chapter 8

The teenager standing behind the abacus raised his head slightly. Hearing Fu Baiwan’s voice, he had already frowned. Still, business was business; he couldn't just refuse to serve a customer, or he would catch a brutal earful. He swept a glance at the little baby in Fu Baiwan’s arms, recognizing her as the little sister the man had mentioned the last time. Now called Qian Sijin, the boy cast an icy look at the baby, having resolved to remain indifferent to anyone from the Fu family. Fu Qiujiu knew her fourth brother was holding a grudge, but her parents were suffering just as much. There had been no other choice back then; if they hadn't given him away, their poverty would have made it impossible to afford a doctor, leaving them to watch him die before their eyes. What parents could bear to watch their child die? They had simply gritted their teeth and given him away. Looking at her father—who was always fierce with his sons at home, yet acting as meek as a scolded puppy in front of this fourth brother—Fu Qiujiu felt she needed to do something. "Brudder... hug..." Fu Qiujiu cried out in her babyish voice, startling both Fu Baiwan and Qian Sijin. How old was she, anyway? She could actually talk! Fu Baiwan chuckled. "Sijin, your sister is calling you." People always said that blood was thicker than water and that family ties ran deep. Previously, Fu Baiwan hadn't felt it strongly, but now he had no choice but to believe it. Otherwise, why would his little daughter call him "brother" and ask for a hug? Wasn't this proof that she knew he was her own flesh and blood? Qian Sijin was thinking the exact same thing. Qian Sijin harbored resentment toward his parents, but he was a reasonable person who could tell right from wrong, knowing none of this was his younger siblings' fault. This was his first time seeing his sister. He had assumed he wouldn't feel any attachment, but seeing her sweet smile and her little arms reaching out toward him made him desperately want to hold her. Even so, he forced himself to hold back. Since he had already been given away, he wanted nothing more to do with that family. "I am not your brother." Qian Sijin’s gaze swept past Tang Xian. Though he had never gone back, everyone in the family knew he was neither little Ba nor Tianfu. Tang Xian crossed his arms and said in a deep voice, "I am not a child of your family." He made sure to clear himself of any association, sparing the teenager any misunderstandings. Qian Sijin finished packing the soybeans, weighed them, and handed the bag to Fu Baiwan. Speaking in a strictly professional tone, he said, "Eight cash per catty, twenty-four cash for three catty." Fu Baiwan counted out the copper coins, adding a few extra, and passed over the steamed buns Tian Guihua had wrapped up. "Keep the extra money for yourself, and these buns were handmade by your mother." Qian Sijin frowned. "Twenty-four cash is twenty-four cash, take the extra back. And as for the buns... I don't care for buns." Fu Baiwan sighed. He had never done a wicked thing in his life, yet in front of this son, he could never quite hold his head up. Since the boy wouldn't take the money, he had no choice but to take it back. However, this exact exchange was caught by Qian Sijin’s aunt by marriage, Zhao Xiaoyuan, who immediately blew her top. "Sijin, what is the meaning of this? You eat my food, you live under my roof, and yet you still don't understand whose family you belong to?!" "Your surname is Qian, not Fu! How dare you secretly give money to their family? Did a donkey kick your head? You really are an ungrateful little wolf with a heart of stone; our Qian family wasted a fortune raising you!" This woman... round-headed, big-eared, and with meat hanging from her face, she looked thoroughly vicious. Seeing his son berated so mercilessly, Fu Baiwan's heart ached terribly. "Mistress Qian, please don't be angry. Sijin didn't give me any money, really! This was just some pocket money I wanted to give the child, but he wouldn't take it." Qian Sijin's adoptive parents had passed away, leaving him and this shop behind. His adoptive father's younger brother, Qian Dabao, and his wife had seized the opportunity to usurp the storefront. If not for the pressure exerted by the elders of the Qian clan, Qian Sijin probably would have been driven out entirely. "True or false? Your family is so poor you had to sell your own child, yet you still have spare cash to hand out?" Zhao Xiaoyuan snatched the jar of beans, re-weighed them to confirm the three-catty amount, and then counted the copper coins in Qian Sijin's hand, bending her fingers to calculate for a long time. Satisfied that the count was correct, she snatched the copper coins right out of Fu Baiwan's grip. "Since he's already given them, why take them back? You should have done this in the first place." Qian Sijin frowned. "Aunt, give that money back to them. I don't want it." Zhao Xiaoyuan rolled her eyes at him. "Are you out of your mind? If you don't want it, are you going to keep living off me for free?" Fu Baiwan hated seeing his son subjected to such tongue-lashing; it broke his heart. "Mistress Qian, you can't really talk like that. Sijin's parents left this shop to him, and the annual revenue from this business is more than enough to support him." "Oh, my! Mister Fu, what is that supposed to mean? First you sell your son over here, then you curse my late brother-in-law and his wife to an early grave, and now you want to bring your whole family here to usurp the Qian family's property?" "Bah! In your dreams!" Fu Baiwan swallowed a surge of anger that he couldn't unleash; this woman was completely unreasonable. For the sake of his son's future well-being, he couldn't afford a falling out with her, so he could only lower his head and take the abuse. "Not a single good one among them." Fu Baiwan didn't dare talk back, but Fu Qiujiu couldn't stand it any longer. She couldn't allow the old father who doted on her to be bullied so badly by a vicious hag. Yet with her current tiny body, she couldn't beat her in a fight, nor could she win a verbal argument. What should she do? "And you! What are you staring at? Are those big eyes of yours supposed to scare someone?" Seeing that none of them dared to talk back, Zhao Xiaoyuan grew even more emboldened, dragging Fu Qiujiu into her tirade as well. Fu Qiujiu took a deep breath. Her eyes were big, and yes, that was awesome. Right at that moment, a hornet landed on a sack of rice. "Brother Hornet, could you do me a favor?" Fu Qiujiu asked mentally. The hornet was clearly surprised that a human baby could actually communicate with it. "No," the hornet replied. Fu Qiujiu didn't get discouraged. "Look at you, starving so badly you've resorted to chewing on burlap sacks. I happen to know a fantastic place that can support a whole lot of hornets." Enticed by her offer, the hornet finally nodded. It then went off to summon its friends, and within moments, a massive swarm of hornets gathered and flew straight toward the chattering fat woman. "Aieee! Aieee! Where on earth did these hornets come from? Scram! Get away! Sijin, are you made of wood? Come and help me!" Strangely enough, the hornets ignored everyone else and targeted Zhao Xiaoyuan relentlessly. The plump woman who had been lording it over them just moments ago was now fleeing in blind panic, pissing her pants and shielding her head. Seeing this, Qian Sijin started to move toward her, but Fu Qiujiu noticed and figured this fourth brother of hers was a bit soft-hearted. "Brudder... wah, wah..." Fu Qiujiu's eyes filled with tears, looking utterly wronged. Qian Sijin couldn't tell if she had been frightened by their aunt's harsh words or terrified by the hornets. He had managed to hold back from hugging her earlier, but now the little girl was weeping like rain pear blossoms, tugging mercilessly at his heartstrings. No matter how iron-hard his resolve, he couldn't resist it any longer. In the end, Fu Qiujiu got her way. Qian Sijin didn't hold her for long, afraid that if he kept holding her, he wouldn't be able to let go. "Take her away quickly. What kind of person brings a baby this small out? Aren't you afraid of losing her again?" Qian Sijin gave Fu Baiwan a gentle shove, signaling him to leave at once. Fu Qiujiu figured that her fourth brother didn't truly hate the Fu family; there was no need to rush, they could take it slow. Fu Baiwan was overjoyed. Hearing the boy speak like this told him that the youth still cared about his little sister. "Alright, then I'll be leaving for now. I'll come see you next time. Sijin, whenever you want to come home, just come. Your mother and I... we're both hoping you'll return." "Brudder..." Fu Qiujiu reminded her father, adding herself to the mix. "Right, and Qiujiu and your brothers too." "Just go already," Qian Sijin urged in a cold voice. "And those buns! Your mother wrapped them through the night. They're delicious—beef and green onion, your favorite. You have to eat them!" Qian Sijin glanced at the oil-paper package on the counter, a tumult of emotions swirling in his chest. They had only met once, and he had held her for just a brief moment, yet his mind was now completely filled with the image of the little girl calling him brother in her baby voice. In the end, amidst Zhao Xiaoyuan's shrill shrieks of agony, he took a bite of the bun. It was actually quite good. "Will someone help me?! Stop following me! Damn hornets, go sting someone else! Aiyah, you pestiferous creatures, why are you chasing me?! Stay away..." Before long, Zhao Xiaoyuan had been stung into the shape of a pig's head—a braised one, at that. She hadn't been much to look at with her round face and heavy jowls to begin with, but now she was utterly unwatchable. Tang Xian had remained silent throughout, but as Fu Baiwan gently coaxed the little baby, he spoke up in a deep voice. "Uncle Fu, don't you think those hornets appeared rather strangely?" Fu Baiwan pondered this for a moment. It certainly was a bit odd, but who could make sense of such things? Perhaps that fat hag's ugliness had offended the heavens, or she had smeared on some strange scented powder that attracted the hornets. Since Qian Sijin wouldn't accept the money intended for him, Fu Baiwan decided to take it back. Though he had promised his wife he would never let go of Fu Qiujiu, nature called. If he were alone, he would either grit his teeth and hold it or carry his little daughter along with him. But wasn't Tang Xian right here? "Tang Xian, my boy, Uncle needs to relieve himself. Could you hold and look after Qiujiu for me? Just for a moment, I won't go far. There's an outhouse right up ahead, I'll be right back. You two stay right here, don't wander off, alright?" That outhouse was filthy and stinking; Fu Baiwan certainly didn't want his little daughter to be choked by the fumes. Of course, if there were truly no alternative, he would have had to manage. Still, he couldn't just relieve himself right in the middle of the street. If he had known, he wouldn't have drunk so much water when he woke up. What could Tang Xian do? Could he possibly refuse?He nodded reluctantly, though fortunately the little dumpling was able to stand on her own without needing to be carried.

"Hurry up, then."

"Right, right, right, I'm hurrying, I'm hurrying right now." Fu Baiwan handed Fu Qiujiu over to him and trotted off.

Tang Xian once again removed the little paws that were groping blindly across his face, and said with a stern and solemn expression, "Don't touch my face again, or else... or else..."

Execution? It hadn't come to that.

Caning? Not quite either.

While Tang Xian was still pondering, Fu Qiujiu patted his face a few more times, having had her fill of fun, and then began to feign ignorance while acting coquettish, "Dian-dian."

"Can't you walk by yourself? Why do you still want to be carried?"

Fu Qiujiu thought to herself, why on earth didn't this brat know how to show a little tenderness to a lady?

At home, she wasn't even allowed to stay by herself for a moment; all her older brothers, including her oldest nephew, always wanted to hold her.

She was giving him the chance to hold her, yet he was acting ungrateful.

Even her fourth brother, who had shown dissatisfaction with their parents when they first met, was someone she could tell liked her.

Yet when it came to this young master, Fu Qiujiu loved a challenge.

She was determined to add him to her harem.

Put down on the ground, Fu Qiujiu pouted in protest.

Tang Xian kept a straight face. "Don't you cry. Even if you cry, I won't pay attention to you."

She was going to cry, she was just going to cry.

Fu Qiujiu drooped her lips. She didn't wail out loud, but let the aggrieved little teardrops fall. If the Fu family members saw this, they would definitely agree to her demands on the spot—even if she asked for stars from the sky, they would find a way to pluck them down for her.

Tang Xian: "......"

He sighed helplessly. He had always held himself to strict standards, but this little toddler was not him; she was still just a baby.

She was nothing like him; she was the apple of her parents' and brothers' eyes.

"Stop crying. If you cry again, I won't carry you."

Fu Qiujiu immediately stopped crying and reached out her plump, lotus-root-like little arms. There was no helping it—her mother's breast milk was simply too rich, and her appetite was quite good, so she had accidentally eaten her way into becoming a little chubby ball.

Tang Xian bent down, preparing to pick up the little ball of fat, but it turned out she only wanted to hold his hand.

There was no help for it; Fu Qiujiu was afraid she might crush him into something worse.

His scrawny little frame was even thinner than her eighth brother's. Her eighth brother's condition had been due to past malnutrition, while he... was tormented by poison.

Such a pitiable child.

Fu Baiwan hurried back. Even when he was relieving himself, his eyes kept darting back toward this side; whenever anyone walked past the two children, his heart leaped into his throat.

He remained on high alert, ready to pull up his pants and dash over at the first sign of trouble.

Fortunately, nothing happened at all.

...

On the way back, Fu Qiujiu merely glanced at a sugar figurine, and Fu Baiwan assumed she wanted it.

She had just been looking at the traditional craft, that was all.

"Does Qiujiu want to eat one? Daddy will buy it for you."

When it came to spending money on his daughter, Fu Baiwan was never reluctant.

After all, Fu Qiujiu was not a real infant, and she had very little interest in snacks and the like, especially since she had already tasted the candy here once.

Her eldest nephew had shoved it into her mouth without a word—it was something he had brought back from his maternal grandparents' home. Out of regard for his filial intentions, Fu Qiujiu hadn't spat it out.

Aside from sweetness, it had no other flavor; the kind of cloying sweetness that made your teeth ache and coated your throat.

"Dian-dian."

She had meant to buy them to take back for her older brothers, but Tang Xian, who was used to being addressed that way, instinctively refused.

"I'm not eating!"

But soon, he realized the little toddler's clear eyes weren't looking at him at all; he seemed to have misunderstood.

How embarrassing.

Fu Baiwan smoothly backed down, playing along. "Your brother says he doesn't want any."

Fu Qiujiu knew her old dad was reluctant to spend money, but that was entirely understandable.

She figured since it was a rare trip to town, she couldn't go back empty-handed, even if she was still a nursing baby.

She pointed to the shop behind the sugar figurine stall—the Treasure Pavilion. Inside were hair ornaments and brightly colored clothes, which looked very alluring.

"Does Qiujiu want to go over there?" Fu Baiwan looked in the direction her little body was leaning. The things in a place like that were not cheap.

However, it was still early, so Fu Baiwan planned to take his daughter in for a look. Nobody said you had to buy just because you looked, right?

Fu Qiujiu had seen the embroidery done by her second sister-in-law. The workmanship was decent, but the patterns were a bit too rustic, which was why they couldn't fetch a good price. It seemed they only earned a meager labor fee—on average, just a few copper coins a day.

She intended to come to the shops here to see what styles were currently popular, and then find a way to give her second sister-in-law a few pointers when she got back.

The shop assistant glanced at the one adult and two children. Aside from the little girl tied with small braids who was dressed somewhat decently, judging by the clothes of the other two, they certainly weren't here to buy anything.

Not buying meant they were just wandering around. The shop assistant encountered several such people a day, and even more on market days.

"Have a look yourselves, but don't go touching things. If you break anything, you can't afford to pay for it."

Fu Qiujiu looked at the styles of ready-made garments hanging on the wall and felt their embroidery skills were inferior even to her second sister-in-law's.

Look at those stitches—all different sizes.

Just this? And they called this the treasure of the shop?

Fu Baiwan ignored the young assistant's indifference. He had intended all along to bring his little daughter here just to take a look. "What does Qiujiu like?"

Fu Qiujiu didn't know the current prices, but with just the few copper coins and small pieces of silver on her old dad, he probably couldn't afford to buy a thing.

After looking around, she had originally intended to leave, but as it happened, another assistant emerged from the storeroom carrying some miscellaneous items.

Fu Qiujiu heard the two assistants talking as if the items were of no use and should be sold off if possible.

Catching sight of those scraps of fabric, her eyes instantly lit up.

"Ah-ah..." Fu Qiujiu pointed at the colorful fabric scraps, her big eyes filled with eager longing.

Small children naturally loved brightly colored things; Fu Baiwan didn't doubt it for a second.

He even felt a bit relieved. It was a good thing his little girl hadn't taken a liking to those exorbitantly expensive jade and gold ornaments, or he wouldn't have been able to afford them.

"Young fellow, are the things in your basket for sale?"

The young assistant swept a glance over him, curled his lip, and exchanged a look with the other assistant as if to say, *See? I told you they were poor ghosts.*

"You want them?"

Fu Baiwan nodded. "My little girl likes them."

"Your daughter really has a thing for liking this kind of worthless junk. It's a good thing it's just this; if she fancied something else..." The assistant shot Fu Baiwan a mocking look.

Fu Baiwan was a man who cared about his pride. "If my daughter fancies something else, I'll buy it for her too."

Seeing how cute Fu Qiujiu was and feeling a bit mischievous, the assistant deliberately pointed to the gold, silver, and jade wares displayed in the boxes on the shelf. "Little sister, do you want those?"

Inwardly, Fu Baiwan was cursing this foul brat from head to toe. How could anyone be so malicious?

Fu Qiujiu remained unmoved. She continued pointing at the fabric scraps and other odds and ends.

Fu Baiwan genuinely wanted to plant a kiss on her cheek; his daughter was just too sensible.

The miscellaneous items at the Treasure Pavilion weren't cheap either. A single basket of them cost Fu Baiwan thirty-five copper coins—enough to buy a whole bolt of cloth to make a pair of pants.

Still, when it came to spending money on his little daughter, he was generous.

Fearing he might regret it, the assistant pocketed the money and added, "No returns or exchanges! Don't come looking for us if you change your mind."

Tang Xian was a stubborn child who didn't want to hold them back. On the way back, his body began to reach its physical limit, but when Fu Baiwan asked him, he gritted his teeth and insisted he was fine and could still walk.

Fu Qiujiu rode on her old dad's shoulders, looking around, and clearly noticed that the young master was breaking out in a cold sweat.

He thought she wouldn't understand, so he didn't put on a front in front of her.

"Daddy... ah-ah..." Fu Qiujiu pointed to a large tree not far away.

Fu Baiwan was also covered in sweat, but in order to save money, he had planned to walk all the way back before eating.

If his little daughter needed to rest, then they would rest.

"Qiujiu is tired, huh? Alright then, we'll go rest over there."

Fu Qiujiu hadn't even had to use her own legs to walk, so she wasn't tired in the slightest.

Taking advantage of the moment when Fu Baiwan went down to the river to fetch water, Fu Qiujiu pulled a honey melon seedling out from her spatial dimension.

Tang Xian had his eyes closed to rest and practice his breathing, paying her no mind.

When Fu Baiwan returned and saw Fu Qiujiu clutching another weed in her hands, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Does Qiujiu want to take this home too?"

Farm folk spent all their time weeding, but he was doing the opposite—raising weeds.

Still, who could blame him when his little daughter liked it?

Naturally, Fu Qiujiu drank first, followed by Tang Xian. Fu Baiwan wasn't particular; the family all drank from the same ladle—you finished, and the next person drank.

Tang Xian, however, refused. The little milk dumpling had been drinking directly from the rim; he was not going to do that.

Wasn't that an indirect...

He declined.

When they got home, Fu Baiwan placed the basket of odds and ends on the table. He hadn't examined it closely at the shop, but now Mrs. Zhou eagerly pushed to the front to rummage through it.

Although the fabrics were nice, none of them were very large, and nothing useful could be made out of them. The more she searched, the more disappointed she became.

"Dad, these are all useless scraps! Why did you spend money buying this kind of junk?"

"Qiujiu likes it."

Fu Baiwan made no attempt to hide his doting fondness for his little daughter.

Mrs. Zhou pursed her lips. In her heart, she was thinking much the same as the shop assistant back at the store, and she muttered a few complaints aloud. "It's a good thing the little aunt likes this sort of junk. If she had liked something expensive..."

"If she liked something expensive, I'd buy it for her too," Fu Baiwan said coldly.

Seeing that his old man was getting angry, Fu Dajin hurriedly pulled his wife back a bit. "Dad, she didn't mean anything by it."

"Hmph." Fu Baiwan simply couldn't be bothered to argue.

What was wrong with a father doting on his daughter?