Chapter 730 - 377: Shi Tou

Chapter 730: Chapter 377: Shi Tou

Adding an extra Chapter at 11 PM! Heh, finally managed to squeeze out a bonus Chapter. Thank you to all my dear readers for your continued understanding and support.

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Little Shitou cried out anxiously, "Qing’er, how can you give a scent pouch to another boy? That’s not proper!"

Zhao Qing looked at her brother in confusion and said, "But Brother Yangzi isn’t a stranger."

Little Shitou was a Scholar now, so even though he was young, he was no longer as ignorant of the ways of the world as he once was. He asked anxiously, "Why would you give him a scent pouch? He’s not your real brother, nor your master, nor your master’s senior." His sister had also given pouches to him and their parents, which was why he asked.

Blinking her big eyes, Zhao Qing said, "I like Brother Yangzi, so I gave him a scent pouch. Sister Juhua said that when you give something to someone you like, it doesn’t have to be expensive. Something you make yourself is even better, because it shows you put your heart into it."

When Juhua heard her name come up, she couldn’t help but cough. ’I can’t take the blame for leading a child astray! I’ll have to have a talk with her later. A girl, especially a growing one, can’t just give things to people so casually.’

Liu Yunlan, Mrs. He, Mrs. Yang, and the others, however, didn’t mind. They just saw it as children playing around and watched the fun with smiles on their faces.

Mrs. He even teased, "Qing’er, why did you only give one to Brother Yangzi? You should have made one for Brother Huai Zi and Brother Qingmu, too. And you like Sister Juhua so much, why didn’t you make one for her?"

Zhao Qing replied earnestly, "Sister Juhua’s needlework is better than mine, and she’s not as busy as Master—who has no time for sewing—so I didn’t make one for her. I bought her a wooden hairpin instead. Brother Huai Zi has Sister Juhua to make things for him, and Brother Qingmu has Sister Yunlan to help him. If I made things for them too, wouldn’t I be meddling in other people’s business? Hmm, Sister Juhua could make one for Brother Yangzi, too, but she’s very busy, so I’m just helping her out. This way, she has one less thing to worry about."

Her words made Mrs. Yang and Mrs. He chuckle. Grandma Liu also beamed at the little girl, finding her to be quite the clever and eccentric little sprite.

Little Shitou wasn’t buying his sister’s reasoning at all. He felt it was time he taught her some of the finer points of etiquette. ’Mom probably thinks she’s still too little and has never told her about these things. Is this not the very reason she’s making a fool of herself?’

"Making a scent pouch for Brother Yangzi is also not right! That’s also ’meddling in other people’s business.’ There are plenty of people who can make a pouch for him..."

Zhang Yang finally caught his breath. He took the scent pouch from Zhao Qing’s hand and glared at Little Shitou. "It’s just a scent pouch. She’s just a little kid, and you’re lecturing her about propriety? Are you going to teach her the Three Guides and Five Virtues next?"

Little Shitou said urgently, "Of course I should! At seven, boys and girls must not sit together..."

Zhang Yang cut him off. "But isn’t she only five? She’s only turning six tomorrow. And how old are you? You’re always running over to my house, shouting ’Sister Juhua’ this and ’Sister Juhua’ that, and no one says anything to you!"

Little Shitou was struck speechless. He glanced at Juhua, feeling that his situation was different, but he didn’t know how to explain it.

Zhao Qing paid them no mind. Seeing that Yangzi had accepted the pouch, her eyes curved into happy crescents. She said to him gleefully, "Brother Yangzi, this one isn’t very good. When my needlework gets better, I’ll make you a more presentable one."

Zhang Yang froze. He looked into Zhao Qing’s innocent, guileless eyes, then suddenly smiled and nodded. "Okay!" he said, his face growing inexplicably warm.

Little Shitou watched the two of them with dissatisfaction, feeling a headache coming on.

As Huai Zi watched the look in Zhao Qing’s eyes, his heart stirred. It reminded him of the way Juhua used to look at him when they were children, and a warmth filled his chest. ’But...’ He glanced worriedly at Zhao Qing. ’She’s so young, and the age gap between her and Yangzi is so large.’

Juhua watched Qing’er happily scamper back, and her heart melted. ’A child’s thoughts are so pure. Even if they’re a bit outrageous, you can’t bring yourself to judge them by the world’s standards of propriety. It feels like even thinking about it would be a profanity, a desecration. I’ll just have to teach her slowly, later on.’

Yun Ying clearly felt the same. She pulled Zhao Qing onto her lap and began telling her and Pu Pao stories about her own childhood. Juhua and Liu Yunlan chimed in from time to time, and the sound of their cheerful chattering and laughter soon drowned out all other conversation in the room.

As the night deepened, the lively conversation showed no signs of stopping. Juhua and Pu Pao got up and went to the kitchen to steam some dumplings. They served them with a few light side dishes, bringing them out for everyone to have a few.

Little Shitou laughed. "Sister Juhua, we all ate so much for dinner. The plan was to chat for a while to let it all digest before bed. Now you’ve brought out more food, so I guess we’ll just have to keep digesting. When we get hungry again, you can cook some more dumplings, and we’ll eat again. We might as well just stay up all night. Tomorrow morning, we can go straight into the village for New Year’s calls and eat breakfast at whichever house has the best spread."