Chapter 386
The shop assistant was also seized, sweating profusely in panic. This was the prefect's son—he'd just shoved him. He was doomed.
"Eldest Young Master, you should go back first," Da Li said.
Guaizai glanced at Madam Huang and Huang Bingzhong, saw that they seemed thoroughly frightened, and gave a humph. Hands on his hips, looking smug as could be, his little nostrils flaring wide.
"Trying to bully Guaizai? Dream on! I told you to leave, but you just had to stay. Guaizai is an official's kid—I've got special privileges, you know!"
Madam Huang and her people felt their insides churn with dread, their faces shifting between pale and ashen.
Boss Lu wanted to build a connection and offered to give the cloth to Guaizai for free. Guaizai shook his head and said no.
Boss Lu looked a little disappointed. He tallied up the bill: fifty-nine taels, one hundred and ninety-six copper coins.
Guaizai leaned over the counter, batting his big eyes. "Boss, Guaizai bought a lot. Can you give a discount?"
Boss Lu: "..."
Just now I offered it for free and you said no. Now you're haggling.
"Just knock off the small change for Guaizai, and Guaizai will come back to buy from you next time!"
"Alright, alright, alright."
It was already a big sale, and now he'd saved over a hundred coins. Guaizai was over the moon, grinning from ear to ear all the way home, showing off his little baby teeth, as if he'd just found a treasure. He didn't need the soldiers' help—he and his little friend carried the bundles back themselves.
The onlookers outside watched the two little boys and thought: So this is the prefect's son? Why doesn't he even bring a servant? The Huang family sure picked the wrong person to mess with today.
Liuliu didn't understand. "Why didn't you take it when the uncle offered it for free?" Then they wouldn't have had to spend anything.
"That's too much," Guaizai said.
If it had been a copper coin or two, and offered for free—well, that would've been a different story.
But this was a big purchase. The man was running a business and had to make a living—it wasn't right to take it for nothing. Besides, if he took something, he owed a favor. If something happened later and they came asking for help, what then? Taking gifts put him in a bind, and eating free food made him soft. The more he took, the more he owed.
It wasn't like that time in Shunan—that was different. He'd helped the people get rid of a scourge, and they'd given him gifts out of gratitude.
When Guaizai explained it, Liuliu felt he'd learned something new. It really wasn't right to take things for free. The knocked-off change at the end was just haggling.
"Guaizai, what you said makes a lot of sense."
"Of course!" Guaizai said, his eyes crinkling with laughter. "But those two—that uncle and auntie—looked pretty scared. Do you think they'll wet their pants? If they do, that'd be hilarious! Liuliu, let me tell you, Guaizai knows this really handsome grandpa. He's an official's kid too. Every time he goes out to eat, he never has to wait in line. So awesome! Hehehe. Let them bully Guaizai—now look what happened, they got arrested by Uncle Da Li! Oh yeah, last time Father said he'd make Guaizai an official token, but he got busy and never did. When we get back, I'll ask Father about it first. Guaizai will have him make two—one for you and one for Guaizai. From now on, if anyone bullies us, we'll flash our badges and scare them to death. Now that would be cool!"
The day before, when they returned to Hezhou, Zhang Quan had done something really cool. The soldiers guarding the city gates saw them from afar, and before they could even call out for them to stop for inspection, Zhang Quan rode up, said nothing, and just raised his token. The soldiers immediately trembled and respectfully addressed him as "Sir." Liuliu had seen it all and was full of admiration for Zhang Quan—he was so impressive. Now, imagining himself doing the same thing, he felt a thrill of excitement. "Okay!
---
Guaizai and Liuliu went to the shop first to eat dried fruit with Xie Xiaoyu. Before they even got back to the residence, Da Li had already sent word.
Fang Zichen had been in the middle of some alone time with Zhao Ger—a rare opportunity, since all the little ones were out. Guaizai was away, Gungun and Dandan were in the kitchen eating meat, and the mood was just right. They were just about to make it to the bed when Da Mi came rushing in from the outer courtyard, yelling, "Master! The young master's been beaten up! Master!"
Fang Zichen: "..."
He thought about pretending he hadn't heard. Zhao Ger was breathing hard, his eyes glistening and cheeks flushed. He gave him a soft push. "Guaizai... go see what happened."
What could possibly happen?
Who in their right mind would dare lay a hand on my son?
Still, Fang Zichen went.
He opened the door and stepped out, his robes slightly rumpled, with a love bite visible on his neck. Da Mi shut his mouth immediately, face turning red as he lowered his head and dared not look.
"What's wrong?"
Da Mi replied, "The young master was beaten."
"My son was beaten?" Fang Zichen didn't believe it. "Didn't he beat someone else up instead?"
"No, the young master was the one who got hit," Da Mi said. "Master, you must stand up for the young master!"
Why does that sound like something a villain would say?
At times like this, following the usual tropes in novels, if I go cause trouble for my son, I'll definitely end up in deep trouble.
Fang Zichen paused. "Tell me the details."
Once he heard it involved the Huang family...
Interesting. Just yesterday, the deputy prefect had mentioned the Huang family to him, and today they'd already crossed his son's path.
It wasn't a big deal—his son hadn't really lost out. Fang Zichen hadn't even said anything yet when Guaizai returned.
Guaizai handed the bolts of cloth over to Feng momo and Uncle Tang, telling them to put them away and save them for the older brothers and sisters when the New Year came. Uncle Tang felt the material—fine quality, nice patterns, soft and smooth, breathable too. It would surely keep them cool in summer. When he heard it had only cost a little over fifty taels, both he and Feng momo exclaimed what a bargain it was.
Having snagged such a great deal, Guaizai wanted to show off. He and Liuliu rushed into the inner courtyard and grabbed one of Fang Zichen's legs each.
"Father, Father, Guaizai got a bargain! Guaizai wants a little red flower!"
"Liuliu wants one too!"
"Alright, alright, you'll both get one."
Fang Zichen pulled out his little stamp and gave both Guaizai and Liuliu two little red flowers each. The two little ones were overjoyed, their eyes curving into little crescent moons as they bounced around. They each gave Fang Zichen a kiss, then ran off to find Gungun and Dandan.
Aunt Liu and Uncle Liu watched with amusement, quietly thinking it was a good thing Liu Xiaowen wasn't there—if he'd seen this, he'd probably feel a bit left out.
Liuliu respected Liu Xiaowen deeply, but they weren't particularly close. Liu Xiaowen didn't really know how to entertain children—like many men in the village, he wasn't good at expressing himself. He couldn't joke around with Liuliu like Fang Zichen did, or tease him, or come up with fun games with no sense of distance or generation gap. Liuliu knew Liu Xiaowen cared for him, but he just couldn't fully relax around him—he'd act like a little adult instead, never fooling around like he did with Fang Zichen. With Fang Zichen, he was completely at ease, every bit the child he was.
Aunt Liu and Uncle Liu understood why. After all, Liu Xiaowen and Fang Zichen had completely different personalities. Their son was reserved and earnest, while Fang Zichen was naturally more appealing to children. The way he hyped up those little red flowers was no joke—they couldn't be eaten, and when stamped on the forehead the kids couldn't even see them themselves. Normally, even candy wouldn't get the children this excited, but Fang Zichen had sold them on the idea: only outstanding, well-behaved, smart, and capable kids could earn little red flowers, and whoever got the most would become a true man and a great hero. The two little ones were completely hooked, wanting little red flowers all the time.
No comments:
Post a Comment