Chapter 23

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

Song Dalang perhaps did not know that before the eldest son of the Song family went north for study, he had once given the original owner a deed, telling her to keep it safe.

The deed was drawn up while Song Miao's grandparents were still alive, with village elders, the village head, and local gentry all as witnesses; all Song family property would in the future belong only to descendants bearing the Song surname.

Song Dalang entered the Song family gate and changed to the Song surname, so naturally he could share in the money and property.

But now he has changed back to his original surname and is no longer a son bearing the family line; how could he still share in the property?

He changed his surname first, and the eldest son of the Song family died afterward; if judged by law, from the day the surname on the household register was changed, all Song family money had nothing to do with him—first it belonged to the Song siblings, and now it belongs to Song Miao alone.

The things are not his, so how could he sell them?

That deed of sale naturally no longer holds.

But those now eyeing the Song family property are clearly not ordinary people; before them, the law would likely be useless.

But no matter what, having confirmed she had legal grounds, Song Miao finally had something to rely on for her subsequent actions.

Though there were still many debts left by Song Dalang weighing on her, after all it was legitimate business—father's debts repaid by the son, a matter of natural justice—but as long as she could keep the Song family ancestral house, everything else was a small matter.

Everything could be planned for in the long run.

She let out a long sigh, and since she had no bookmark, she took several bamboo skewers and clipped them into the most important pages of the book.

While Song Miao sighed in relief here, two streets away in Tai Xue Li, Cheng Zijian took a deep breath.

Seeing the Shangshe Xuezhai ahead, Cheng Zijian held a food box in one hand and his revised essay in the other; originally hurrying along, he now stopped dead in his tracks.

There had just been wind, and quite strong.

When the wind blew, it brushed past the food box and brought out the scent inside, faint and indistinct, as if about to speak but stopping short.

He had smelled this scent before; now just a hint of it stirred up many memories. Hesitating for a moment, he could not help but find a corner, set the essay aside, and secretly lift a corner of the food box lid.

What he saw first was Shepherd's Purse Spring Bamboo Shoot Dried Tofu Shao Mai.

Unlike mutton and pork shao mai, this vegetarian shao mai had no upright, petal-like wrappers, but rather lotus-leaf-like, thin-as-cicada-wing ruffled folds.

The folds clung to the filling inside, crystal clear and translucent, revealing the emerald green color within, interspersed with diced spring bamboo shoots, bits of dried tofu, and minced wood ear, with white steam rising.

In early spring, how could a man from Fuzhou on the Jiangnan West Circuit resist this taste of spring?

He could not help but reach out his sinful hand, using a bamboo skewer to carefully pick up one vegetarian shao mai.

Shepherd's purse always had its own unique clear fragrance, bamboo shoots had a mountain wild scent, dried tofu had a bean scent, and it seemed a little Sichuan pepper oil had been drizzled in; the pepper oil flavor was not pungent, but it drew out every fragrance one by one.

When the food box was first opened, the scents of Green Onion Mutton and Green Onion Pork were too strong, making one unable to pay attention to anything else; now that this vegetarian shao mai was taken out alone, the fresh air of the forest was no longer blocked.

Cheng Zijian swallowed another mouthful of saliva, and a thought arose in his mind: Young Lady Song had left him various shao mai totaling nine, but nine is an odd number; using it as a gift, is that not a bit improper?

Why not eat one, making exactly eight?

Eight is an even number, blessings from all eight directions, even more auspicious.

An auspicious number, perfectly suited to give to a good man like Brother Han!

Thinking this, as if granted a pardon, he could not bear it for another moment; immediately he brought that vegetarian shao mai to his mouth and took a bite, extremely sparingly.

The vegetarian shao mai was not large to begin with; no matter how sparing he was, one bite had already taken half.

Cheng Zijian had wanted to eat slowly, but as soon as he bit down, a pool of juice flowed out from the extremely thin wrapper.

It was hot.

Hot and fresh!

The shepherd's purse was truly the first harvest of the season, stems and leaves very tender, with a slight taste as if there yet not there, very flavor-enhancing; the bamboo shoots were crisp and fresh, with their own unique sweetness; the dried tofu was pressed half-flat, with crevices and holes enough to absorb the juice inside, the bean fragrance blending all flavors, yet suppressed by other flavors—sometimes you could taste it, sometimes you could not, very mischievous.

And occasionally chewing on crisp, smooth minced wood ear, plus the wrapper thin, soft, tender, and moist, wrapping around the outside, its presence not strong, yet indispensable...

Early in the morning, being able to eat such vegetarian shao mai made his stomach and intestines comfortable...

Cheng Zijian cherished finishing it; his mouth was sweet but his heart bitter, feeling the craving had been hooked up at once, uncomfortable beyond endurance.

He reached out to lift the food box, originally intending to continue walking forward, but as he lifted it, his hand simply could not control itself, and he lifted the food box in front of him.

—Such a small shepherd's purse spring bamboo shoot dried tofu shao mai was merely an appetizer after all!

Young Lady Song's nine shao mai, three of each different variety; he had eaten one himself, so if Brother Han asked, what would he do when the other two varieties were still three each, but only the vegetarian filling had two left?

Why not...

By the time Cheng Zijian finally stepped into the Neishe, the food box, compared to when he set out, had quietly become much lighter.

His belly was filled with some familiar guests—glutinous rice—and some new guests—one each of the three varieties of shao mai; although he was still craving terribly, he was finally full.

When clothing and food are sufficient, one knows honor and disgrace.

Once his belly was full, Cheng Zijian's guilt grew even heavier; he no longer dared to look at the Pork Rib Clear Soup and the other shao mai, swallowing saliva while forcing himself to walk straight ahead without glancing sideways.

This time he walked to that Inner Dormitory Xuezhai again; he poked his head in to look, but the corner seat was empty, with no sign of Han Li; instead, not far inside the door, another person was standing there arranging essays on the desk.

Hearing the noise, this person turned around and looked, surprise appearing on his face, and called out: "Zijian?"

It turned out to be Cai Xiu again.

I do not know if it was Cheng Zijian's eyes playing tricks, but he always felt the other's brocade robe was already somewhat wrinkled, and when he spoke, there was a faint smell of wine in his mouth.

Cai Xiu rolled up the essay in his hand, carefully placed it aside, then turned around and asked: "Did you come today to look for a book, or to take your essay? Rest assured, I will not forget this; when I find a day to return home, I will dig out that book for you."

He added: "But as for that essay, I am truly powerless; I do not know when the Yong'an Bo household will return it, and it is not proper to urge them; if you are anxious, why not ask others, so as not to delay matters in the end."

Cheng Zijian hurriedly shook his head and said: "No, I did not come to urge Brother Cai; to be honest..."

He was about to explain his purpose when Cai Xiu glanced over and saw the food box, but smiled and said: "Zijian is truly courteous, bringing gifts every time you come; just right, I was in a great hurry this morning and could not manage to eat; getting this breakfast from you is exactly what I needed for this urgent need."

Cai Xiu spoke, stepping forward a few paces, about to take the Food Box.