Fresh cuttlefish was soft and slimy, and if not prepared well, it could turn out unpleasantly fishy. But when salted and dried, it became wonderfully fragrant when stewed in soup.
In less than fifteen minutes, the soaked cuttlefish and old hen had already produced a rich, savory aroma. Just the smell alone was warm and comforting, let alone the taste when sipped.
Ji Taoyu crouched by the stove, feeding firewood into the flames, enjoying the warmth.
Huang Manjing and Yuan Huiru wrapped dumplings stuffed with lamb, planning to use the chicken broth as a base later.
The whole family worked cheerfully on the evening meal, and Ji Yangzong was in high spirits, frequently popping into the kitchen to check.
Huo Shu, however, wasn’t joining the bustle in the kitchen. Everyone assumed he was feeding the livestock, but in reality, he had returned to his room.
Huo Shu took out paper and ink, ground some ink, and wrote a letter, then sent it off at full speed before the New Year.
This year, Tongzhou saw no snow, but there was plenty of rain. The entire twelfth lunar month and the Spring Festival were damp and dreary, the weather no warmer than snowy days.
Ji Taoyu couldn’t go a day without his charcoal brazier and hand warmer. The cold and muddy roads made him reluctant to go out.
[暖手壶 (nuǎnshǒuhú): lit. hand-warming pot; fig. traditional hand warmer (typically a metal container filled with hot water or coals)]
Aside from a trip to town on Minor New Year to decorate the shop a little and help everyone buy New Year goods, he mostly stayed home.
[Minor New Year (小年, Xiǎo Nián): the preliminary Lunar New Year celebration held a week before the official Spring Festival, marked by rituals like cleaning homes, offering sacrifices to the Kitchen God, and eating sticky sweets to ensure good luck for the coming year]
It was almost like the days before his marriage—flipping through medical books, lighting his medicine stove.
With time to spare, Ji Taoyu made plenty of sun-protective ointment.
During his trip to the northern frontier, he noticed how dry and harsh the climate was. Though the girls and gers covered their faces with scarves to shield against the sun, they still got badly sunburned.
Now, he made some soothing and sun-protective ointments that could be packed into the cargo boxes without taking up much space.
Huo Shu, on the other hand, still went to town every day. Though the city was lively during the New Year, it had little to do with their shop.
The reason he kept going was that everyone now had free time, making it the perfect opportunity to train the newly recruited men at the horseback archery range. It would be best if they could learn to ride horses and drive carts, but even if not, physical training would still be good for them.
They also drilled on handling emergencies, like encountering bandits—lessons drawn from past trading experiences.
Unexpectedly, during training, two farmers, hearing about all the dangers, grew hesitant and wanted to back out.
Huo Shu didn’t stop them. After all, if they were already scared just hearing about the risks, they’d likely be the first to flee if trouble actually arose.
He only made it clear that if they wanted their signed contracts back, they would never be hired again.
After this incident, two men withdrew from the merchant caravan, but their departure caused little disruption. On the contrary, those who remained became even more resolute in their commitment.
Ji Wenliang had wanted to join the merchant team again, but his parents refused.
They said they had only allowed him to go last year because his elder brother was injured and recuperating, and his sister-in-law wanted to split the family, leaving the family in a tight spot.
Now that they had earned money, his brother had recovered, and the family was doing better, there was no need for him to take such risks again.
Ji Wenliang still yearned for adventure and sought out Huo Shu and Ji Taoyu, but the couple couldn't intervene on his behalf—this year, neither of them would be joining the caravan either.
The Ji clan members all envied the fortune Huo Shu and Ji Taoyu had made in a single year of travel, but when it came to letting their own children face real bandits, not a single parent could steel their heart enough to agree.
Thus Ji Wenliang had no choice but to reluctantly drop the matter—until he heard two men had quit, sparking his ambitions back to life like dry tinder catching flame.
He pestered Ji Yangcheng relentlessly until, finally, his father relented and agreed to let him go.
Huo Shu figured it was good that Ji Wenliang and Huo Shou got along so well—they could look out for each other on the road.
As the year drew to a close, Ji Yangzong went to the prefectural office as usual to collect the annual rewards.
When Ji Yangzong arrived to collect the annual rewards, he was met with an unexpected blow—the customary land grants had been canceled. All the village heads received only a few shriveled strips of cured meat and roughly ten catties of rice and flour—far less than previous years’ rewards.
Ji Yangzong returned fuming but dared not complain openly for fear of gossip.
Fortunately, the New Year soon arrived. Ji Yangzong invited their northern compatriots from the city over for a reunion dinner, and the lively gathering dispelled his lingering frustration.
He drank quite a bit and even gave Ji Taoyu, Huo Shu, and Huo Shou some New Year’s money.
After the New Year came a string of visits to relatives and friends. Ji Taoyu prepared gifts for the merchants they had dealings with and sent some of the seafood they’d brought back to Wu Lianhe and her son.
At Ji Taoyu’s reminder, Huo Shu, as the uncle, also gave Zhao Pan a red envelope.
Ji Taoyu spent his days in the village visiting relatives, eating until he was stuffed—unlike last year, when he had been too worried about Huo Shu’s impending journey to eat much.
Now, with his mind at ease, he wanted to indulge while he could, knowing that after the first lunar month, such feasting would be over.
But just as he returned from a feast at his fourth aunt’s house, Huo Shu told him he had to make a long trip.
“I need to go to Yuchang Prefecture. I’m not sure when I’ll be back, but I'll try to come back as soon as possible.”
Ji Taoyu was stunned.
“What’s the sudden need to go there? We don’t have any business in that area.”
Huo Shu explained, “Since we're engaged in long-term trade between the north and south—not just occasional trips—and considering that even excluding Tongzhou and the northern frontier, the route still passes through three prefectures. Trying to make the whole journey without breaking would wear men and livestock to the bone. If we set up a proper midway stop in Yuchang Prefecture—a place for caravans to rest, reorganize supplies, and relay communications. This way, we can ensure smoother operations and better coordination between both ends.”
Ji Taoyu’s frown eased slightly. Yuchang Prefecture was sparsely populated but had the most expansive terrain among the prefectures—and it was right between Tongzhou and the northern frontier.
In Yuchang Prefecture, there's a transit point where merchant caravans can indeed take a short rest, replenish their travel funds and supplies, and maintain contact with this side.
But: "Why didn’t you mention this to me earlier? How do you plan to establish it if you go there so abruptly?"
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