The late spring sun cast a golden glow over the Jiang residence. The bronze bells on the eaves of the overhanging flower gate trembled softly in the wind, and tiny dust particles drifted in the filtered light. As Si Yan crossed the corridor, carrying a gilded tray, the hundred taels of official silver clinked against the box with a clear sound, startling a gray sparrow perched on a crabapple branch, which fluttered its wings and slowly dropped the petals it held onto his moon-white straight-robed shoulder.
"The little good official is back!"
Mrs. Liu, the kitchen helper, poked her head out, her rolling pin still stained with flour, her face wrinkled with a smile like a pomegranate blossom. Siyan puffed out her chest and nodded with a mature air, but as she passed the kitchen, the aroma of sweet and sour pork ribs wafting out made her swallow hard.
His "small treasury" was hidden in the accounting office in the east wing. It was a small box made of pearwood scraps. The four characters "Si Yan Money House" were carved crookedly on the lid, and the last stroke of "Zhuang" was missing a corner - it was because he accidentally cut his finger while secretly using Jiang Yan's carving knife last year. At this moment, he was kneeling in front of the rosewood cabinet, stacking silver ingots one by one, his tongue unconsciously pressing against the roof of his mouth, and the abacus beads clattering in his mind.
"Counting your treasures again?"
Su Jinli leaned against the doorframe, her plain gauze shawl fluttering in the evening breeze. The newly replaced white jade hairpin in her hair reflected the setting sun, casting a subtle shadow on the blue bricks. Si Yan hurriedly closed the lid of the box, but forgot to remove the key, and the copper teeth tinkled in the lock.
Jiang Yan approached, teacup in hand, the jasmine petals floating on the surface of the tea trembling with each step. He watched his son frantically fumbling, and suddenly remembered the first time he'd met Su Jinli outside the prime minister's residence many years ago. She'd similarly hidden her newly bought sugar painting, her ears reddening, the sugar threads stretching out in the twilight like sparkling threads.
"It's up to you," Su Jinli poked Siyan's little head, her fingertips touching the sweaty swirl of his hair. "Back then, your mother hid her private money in embroidered sachets, sewn into the lining of her cotton-padded jacket."
"Nonsense!" Su Jinli's cheeks flushed, and she snapped open her round fan, covering half her face. In the newly painted "Lady Catching Butterflies" on the fan, the hem of a lady's skirt overlapped with her own, causing a series of tiny silver bells to chime.
Si Yan suddenly remembered something and scurried back to the accounting office. When he emerged, he was clutching an abacus in his arms, its beads gleaming softly in the sunset light. "Mom, Dad, I've calculated it—" He knelt on the blue bricks, his little finger rapidly moving across the beads. "One hundred taels of silver at a monthly interest rate of one cent, that's twelve taels a year, plus twenty-three wen..."
Jiang Yan and Su Jinli exchanged glances, each seeing surprise in the other's eyes. By the time the child had finished the third count, a thin layer of sweat had formed on the tip of his nose, yet he was completely unaware. His frowning expression mimicked Su Jinli's expression when she was checking the accounts.
"Stop, stop," Su Jinli pressed his little hand, her fingertips touching the thin calluses on his palm - the result of years of using an abacus. "Lending is an adult's job, you..."
"But mother said money has to make money." Si Yan raised his face, his eyelashes casting fan-shaped shadows under his eyelids. "It's like Jinxiu Pavilion printing books. The more capital you have, the more people you can help."
Jiang Yan put down his teacup and squatted to look his son in the eye. The setting sun shone through the window lattice, gilding his dark robe. The sea and river cliffs on the corners of his robe overlapped with the lotus pattern on Si Yan's robe. "Si Yan, you have to make money in a proper way. If you lend money to the poor in an emergency, you can't ask for interest. If you lend money to merchants for cash flow, you must also follow the rules." He suddenly remembered something and pulled a copper coin from his sleeve. "Look at this coin. It's round on the outside and square on the inside. The square represents the rules, and the round represents flexibility. Both are indispensable."
Si Yan took the coin, feeling its coolness through his fingertips. He stared at the hole for a long time, then suddenly looked up. "Just like when I donate money to the charity, it's not only a good deed, but also... it counts as accumulating virtue and earning 'money'?"
Su Jinli chuckled, the smile from the corner of her eyes unable to be hidden by her fan. Jiang Yan rubbed his son's head, running his fingertips through the loose hair on his forehead. "That's about the idea."
- [Warmth in the House: Jade Calculation and Family Love]
As he was speaking, the wind carried the loud voice of Young Marquis Su: "Sister! Brother-in-law! Where is Siyan's hundred taels of silver? Uncle will check its quality for you!"
Before he could finish his words, the man had already smashed open the hanging flower door, and the toy sword at his waist hit the door frame with a loud clang. Si Yan immediately protected the small wooden box behind him, and the abacus across his chest, like a hen protecting her chicks.
"That's enough," Su Qingyao followed behind, her gilded armor brushing against the brocade box in her hand. "You only care about money. Siyan, I've brought you something good."
The moment the brocade box was opened, the warm jade color illuminated Siyan's eyes. It was a palm-sized jade abacus, with round, smooth beads threaded with silver threads, and the base carved with a lotus pattern. It was made by Su Qingyao based on the gold abacus in Su Jinli's dowry.
"Wow!" Si Yan took it carefully. The jade beads felt cool to the touch, a hundred times more comfortable than his jujube wood abacus. "Thank you, elder sister!"
Prime Minister Su walked in, twirling his beard, his ivory hut making a clacking sound in his palm. He watched Siyan toying with the jade abacus, and suddenly remembered that many years ago in the prime minister's study, Su Jinli had also held a copy of "Lessons for Women" in the same way, secretly tucking a storybook between the pages.
"Si Yan," Prime Minister Su sat down on the armchair, the rosewood legs making a subtle sound as they rubbed against the blue bricks, "you did a good job this time. You were not afraid when you were wronged, and you were not timid when you spoke the truth. This is better than your grandfather was back then." He remembered that when he was young in the Censorate, he was framed for impeaching powerful people and hid in his study for three days without daring to go out.
Si Yan nodded, half understanding, the jade abacus flickering on his knees. Su Jinli looked at the family gathered around her son and suddenly remembered the coming-of-age banquet she had held the year of her rebirth. Mrs. Liu held her teacup with a fake smile, her father stroked his beard with a cold face, her younger brother ate a snack hidden behind a pillar, and her eldest sister sat far away, her eyes filled with a distant look.
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