The madam was as happy as the sparrows in the tree, treating Yunling as an honored guest—no, as a god of wealth. She prepared a grand banquet, with singing and dancing to entertain her. The people who served her spoke softly and gently, as if afraid that if they raised their voices, they would frighten Yunling away.
Yunling was so restless that she could hardly swallow. Even eating soup made her goosebumps and her back felt cold, as if another ten or so copper coins would be stuffed into her arms at any moment, making her desperately try to get them out again.
As the saying goes, "Those who offer unsolicited kindness are either up to no good or are thieves." She'd better leave as soon as possible, lest she find herself in dire straits and screaming for help with no one to hear her.
After leaving the brothel, Yunling took out the pastries she had packed from there and ate them as she headed towards the craft street to see if her father-in-law had finished making the kapok slingshot.
The father-in-law was dozing off in a deck chair, the shop was just open and exposed, tools and wood laid out for passersby to see. He was quite carefree.
Yunling scanned the items in the shop and, upon spotting her kapok slingshot, tiptoed inside, even her breathing becoming very light, lest she exhale too loudly and blow the papers on the table to the ground, causing trouble for her father-in-law.
It took her a while to get into the shop, and just as she picked up the kapok slingshot, a voice came from outside the door.
"Taking something without asking is stealing, and we need to go to the county government to reason with them."
Yunling turned around and smiled:
"Auntie was just pretending to be asleep to extort money. I don't know how many petty thieves she's caught before."
"You are the biggest thief, openly and honestly."
Yunling ignored her father-in-law's disparaging remarks, and after looking at the kapok slingshot, she started fiddling with the small carvings on the table again.
“Grandpa, you haven’t finished carving that form yet, have you?”
"You heartless bastard, you think you can treat me like an ox just because you pay me a little money? I've been busy with this and that, and I was thinking you'd come and take a break. But look what happened! It's just like the saying goes, what you fear most is what happens. You came here, not only making a fuss, but also acting like a heartless landlord, waving a stick and making me work. It's outrageous!"
Yunling was so amused that she couldn't stop smiling. She had never seen her father-in-law talk so much before. She figured it was because he was getting old and had no one else to rely on. He was familiar with her, so he wanted to talk to her more. That was only natural.
“Grandpa, you’re wronging me. I’m not here to rush you. I was just thinking of adding some new items to the list and wanted to see how Grandpa’s progress is.”
"Oh, so you were thinking of something new. No wonder you're so smug today, unlike before when you were as dejected as a sick quail. So that's what it is."
Yun Ling raised her chin, looking smug, and said:
"Of course, I'm an unkillable cockroach. I get up from wherever I fall and I'm tough."
Seeing Yunling so confident, her father-in-law was naturally pleased. His morning grumpiness vanished completely, and he could even cross his legs and sing a few little tunes.
Yunling quickly crept up to her father-in-law and began massaging his arms and shoulders.
The father-in-law initially wanted to slap Yunling away, but perhaps due to his age, he was a bit tired from polishing the kapok slingshot these past few days. To be fair, Yunling's technique was quite good, and it felt rather comfortable to pinch her.
Seeing that her father-in-law was about to fall asleep with his eyes slightly closed, Yunling inappropriately interrupted his thoughts.
"Grandpa, which broker in this city do you think is reliable?"
"How would I know the answer to that question? I don't have a big mouth or long ears. I just work in this little shop every day to make a living. I don't have time to ask about such things."
Yunling didn't believe it. She hadn't even mentioned her "Night-Shining Jade" incident yet, and this person already knew about it. It wasn't as bad as he made it out to be, so she continued to press him:
"Although you live in this small carpentry shop, you're very observant and well-informed. Is there anything you don't know? Just tell me, okay?"
"You ask me, but I don't know either. Who knows if that brokerage shop next to the willow tree on Xiangshui Street is still there?"
"Xiangshui Street, beside the willow tree..." Yunling murmured to herself to make an impression, then said to her father-in-law, "Thank you, Grandfather."
"Go away, I didn't say anything. Don't think you can get away with this by just pinching my arm. If you're short even a single coin, I won't let you off the hook."
"Hey, if I'm being vague, no one would dare to be vague with me, Grandpa."
Yunling took out some copper coins from her pocket and placed them all in her father-in-law's hand, then said:
"Grandpa, I'll take the cotton slingshot away first. You continue to rest, and I'll come to see you again when I have time."
"Go away, go away. Who told you to look? If you don't bother me, I'll have to thank heaven and earth, pray to the gods and Buddhas, and burn three sticks of incense."
Knowing this man's temperament, Yunling didn't argue with him. She picked up her cotton slingshot, left with the words "See you when you have time," and walked away.
After Yunling left, the father-in-law stared at the copper coins in his hand and laughed. Then he clasped his palms together, closed his eyes happily, and sang a song.
**
Yunling had no idea that her father-in-law was in such a good mood. She was only thinking about finding a broker by the willow tree on Xiangshui Street. After leaving the craft street, she asked for directions and headed east. After walking for a while, she saw a big willow tree. Sure enough, there was a shop next to the willow tree. In front of the shop stood a long sign with the three eye-catching characters "Selling Young Men" written on it.
Yunling even wondered if her father-in-law had misheard her and given her the wrong location. She stopped to ask a passerby if this was indeed a brokerage shop, but coincidentally, her gaze inadvertently met that of the person inside the shop, which was quite awkward.
If she were to walk around and ask a passerby for directions, and that person inside saw her, it would make her seem unfamiliar with the area, and people would think she was easy to manipulate and difficult to deal with.
Forget it, let's just go in. If it is, that's best. If it isn't, it's not shameful. We can just say we went to the wrong place. There's nothing shameful about it.
Yunling lowered her head, took a deep breath, and then raised her head again, her face now calm. She walked into the shop and said softly:
"Young man, do you have any young ladies here who are about my age?"
Yang Yazi looked Yun Ling over again and said in a calm tone:
"Buying maids?"
As soon as the man spoke, Yunling understood the meaning of the saying "those who walk different paths cannot make plans together." Wasn't this man just like her father-in-law who had just started dealing with her?
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