The next day, Shen said to Zeng Rui Xiang: "It's cold outside and we have more people at home, so let's slaughter a few more sheep and put the meat on the snowy ground. The meat won't spoil and I find that eating mutton on snowy days is warm and cozy. The children are growing up and need to eat more meat to supplement their growth. We can also use it to entertain guests during the New Year."

  Zeng Ruixiang heard that and wanted to go find someone, Lin Kangping said: "Mom, I'm going with Qing'er to herd sheep on the back mountain. We'll pick up the eggs along the way."

  Shen looked at Zi Qing with concern and said, "Why don't we talk about it after the New Year?" Zi Qing didn't respond.

  Lin Kangping was thoughtful, carrying a basket and pushing Ziying out of the gate, holding hands with her fingers tightly clasped together, and first telling her about his experiences over the past six months.

  Originally, Lin Kangping bought 500 taels of silver tea leaves and went to Jingdezhen, where he bought 500 taels of silver porcelain. The remaining silver was used to buy silk fabrics in Hangzhou, including high, medium, and low-grade ones. David, a foreigner, took all of them, saying that Lin's goods were better than those from Guangdong Province and cheaper too, especially the exquisite porcelain. On this trip, Lin Kangping earned 500-600 taels of silver and also got some of David's foreign goods to resell in Beijing, earning another 300-400 taels of silver. So during the Mid-Autumn Festival, Lin Kangping took a boat from Beijing to Jingdezhen via the Grand Canal, transporting only porcelain this time. He had originally planned to return to Beijing by land from Guangdong Province to visit his daughter, Zi Qing. However, Wen San wanted to buy some dried seafood from Guangdong Province to bring back to Beijing for the New Year's celebrations, as they were needed in shops and restaurants. Lin Kangping thought for a moment and invested all of his family's silver into it, hiring a single boat to transport both seafood and foreign goods, and also hitched a ride on a favorable wind.

  "Qing'er, we now have over 3,000 taels of silver. Previously, we didn't have enough silver to import goods, but this time and last time, the foreign goods we brought back sold well in Beijing. I'm thinking that after the new year, I'll buy a piece of land and leave 1,000 taels of silver for you. The rest, I'll use to do business again. We now have some assets, unlike before when we only had a few dozen taels of silver and made up to over 200 taels, if we lost it, it didn't matter. Now it's different, I want to save some for emergencies. In case something unexpected happens, we won't be left with nothing, and we can quickly recover. What do you think?" Lin Kangping said.

  "Well, eggs should not be put in one basket."

  "What does it mean?"

  "If you break it all, there's nothing left to eat."

  "That's a fresh remark." Lin Kangping saw that Ziying's mood had improved somewhat and stopped. He held Ziying's face in both hands and asked, "Ying'er, aren't you going to tell me yet?"

  Ziying thought for a moment, but before she could speak, Lin Kangping hastily asked: "Don't you still trust me?"

  Ziying looked into Lin Kangping's eyes, his eyes only had her, anxiety and worry intertwined, and slowly told the ugly things that happened at the banquet that day. "Mother and grandmother are very worried, afraid that I will not be able to bear the humiliation and seek death, they are afraid that you will retreat from the engagement because of this, Father was furious at the time. The two families quarreled, Father vowed that even if he retreated a million steps, you would still break off the engagement, he would raise me for a lifetime. People outside don't know what to say about me yet? Even more ridiculous is that two people came to propose marriage, one of whom was an idiot, who asked my parents for more dowry after just a few sentences, and my parents were even more furious when they saw it." Ziying said as she imitated the scene of proposing that day again, her eyes reddening once more.

  "Nonsense, why would I back out of our engagement because of this? I asked you yesterday when I came back, why were you crying so sadly? Wasn't it because he humiliated you in public? I won't forgive him. Let others say whatever they want, after all these years. What kind of person you are, I'm not unaware. I've waited for you for so many years, and to be able to get engaged with you, I don't know how happy it makes me feel. To see you, to hold you in my arms... My heart is filled with unspeakable joy. Qinger, remember this: even if something unexpected happens, no matter what, never leave me. In my heart, no matter what, you are the best, the most beautiful."

  "You fool." Zi Qing's tears rolled out instantly, and she went forward to hug Lin Kangping. Zi Qing cried bitterly in Lin Kangping's arms for a while. Lin Kangping quietly accompanied her, hugging her, and secretly pondered in his heart. After who knows how long, he heard the shouting of Zi Xi from the mountain below.

  Zi Qing adjusted her mood, and as soon as the two entered the door, Shen Shi and Zeng Rui Xiang, as well as Zi Fu, were waiting at the entrance, all with tense faces looking at them. Zi Qing nodded, and Zeng Rui Xiang and Zi Fu both let out a sigh of relief, stepping forward to pat Lin Kang Ping's shoulder. Zi Fu looked at Lin Kang Ping and asked: "How come I feel like you're taller than last year? I remember we weren't much different before?"

  Ziying took a look and found that it had grown again. Fortunately, she had thought of this when making clothes and left some room for growth.

  Shen then hastily joined his palms together, recited a Buddhist phrase, and with a beaming smile pulled Lin Kangping's hand saying: "It's settled, good kid, we'll just wait for dinner now."

  At noon, they naturally ate stir-fried mutton, and the sheep's bones were simmering slowly on the fire. As soon as Tian saw that a sheep had been killed, he ordered Zifeng and Lin Kangping to go and pick up Autumn Jade and her family. Ziqing remembered that his mother-in-law used to love to soak dried cuttlefish, slice it and cook it with pork and chicken in a soup, so she put one into the mutton bone soup.

  After dinner, Lin Kangping said he had something to do and went out. Shen Shi hurriedly asked: "It's so cold outside, the road may still have snow, come back home early, lest we worry."

  "Mother, don't worry, he won't get lost, he'll be back after running some errands."

  Ziying sent him to the gate, saw that he had untied the reins, looked at Ziying's worried eyes, patted his face and said: "I'll be back in less than two hours, don't worry." After finishing speaking, he rode away on horseback.

  Zi Qing entered the house and heard Zi Fu say to Qiu Yu, "Little sister, I'll teach you a game that can make money. It doesn't take much, just a few dozen copper coins will do. You watch us play two rounds and you'll learn it. It's New Year's, let's have fun!"

  "Come on, a few dozen copper coins are nothing much, you think I have the spare money like you guys?" said Qiu Yu.

  Zi Fu smiled and didn't force the issue, playing with Zi Lu, Zi Qing, and Zi Shou in the hall for two rounds. Zhou Yunjiang watched intently, eager to join in, and asked Autumn Jade for copper coins, but was glared at by her. Zi Fu quickly gave up his seat to him, saying "Old Master is going to play", and Zi Qing also yielded her seat, leaving the dozens of copper coins on the table. At this moment, Autumn Jade shouted from the first room in the west wing: "Mother, come quick! Mu Mu has had an accident!"

  Tian Shi hastily ran in, scooped some hot water and personally wiped the child clean. Zi Qing suddenly remembered when Zi Xi was young, she had just arrived and was in her younger sister's room, her mother was busy with something, Zi Xi's diaper was full of poop, Tian Shi came in, turned around, fanned twice with her hand, said it smelled good and left. It was still the 5 or 6 year old Zi Qing who struggled to clean up Zi Xi. Thinking of this, Zi Qing suddenly lost interest and went to the east room to chat idly with Shen Shi.

  The sky is almost dark, Lin Kangping has not returned yet, and Zifeng is also getting anxious, pacing back and forth in the house, frequently looking outside. Ziqing saw him and asked: "Big brother, do you know where Kangping went?"

  "No, you don't know what he's going to do, how would I tell you? I just see the dark sky and can't help but worry."

  Just then, the doorbell rang and Zifeng hurried out. Shen's wife looked on and muttered to herself, "This child has never been so eager to open the door before. When did he get along with Kangping so well?"

  Zi Fu smiled and walked in with Lin Kangping. Zi Qing took a glance at Lin Kangping, apart from the mud on his shoes, there was nothing unusual about him, so she put her mind at ease and temporarily dropped the matter.

  At dinner, Shen drank the mutton bone soup and said it seemed less gamey than before, and the flavor was fresher. Everyone else who drank it also said so. Zi Qing hastily attributed it to the dried cuttlefish, seeing Shen's skeptical gaze, Zi Qing explained: "All kinds of seaweed can be used to stew bone soup, and they all taste fresh when drunk. Since they are all from the sea, I suppose there isn't much difference. Moreover, the character for 'fresh' originally has one side as fish and the other as sheep, which means our ancestors already knew that cooking fish and mutton together makes the flavor fresher."

  "I'm really curious, how come you always have such good luck? Every time you're messing around, you end up with unexpected gains." Zi Fu asked.

  "That's natural, I've always been a lucky star, you'd better hurry up and flatter me." Zi Qing said with a deliberate smirk.

  "You say you're fat and you're even more out of breath, little one. Giving you some color to dye the workshop, you dare to open it." Zi Fu saw that he couldn't bear Zi Qing's complacent look, just thinking of stretching out his hand to pinch her face, was stopped by Lin Kangping.

  "Mind your own business, I'm her brother. We were playing around when you didn't even know where you were. Now you're trying to control us? It's too early for that, Qing'er isn't even married yet."

  Lin Kangping put down his hand and said, "Big brother, what are you talking about? I'm just afraid that you'll pinch Qing'er's face sore. Girls' skin is delicate."

  "Nonsense! My sister, how can I not care?" Everyone burst out laughing and said that Lin Kangping knew so early that he was fond of Zi Qing, and it made Zi Qing's face turn bright red.

  "Zi Qing, Kang Ping, what good things did you bring back from the capital this time?" Qiu Yu asked with a smile.

  "Eating, using, wearing, and having, right? There's something you like." Zi Qing said, then went into the house to fetch a box of embroidered flowers. Inside, there were four more. She said to Qiu Yu, "Little sister, you can choose two, and I'll give the other two to second sister."

  Qiu Yu saw it and was indeed delighted, took the box and said: "That year when your second aunt got married, the flower coronet on her head dazzled many people. Now I can finally wear this coronet from Beijing too. If you ask me, why not give this pair to me as well? Your second aunt still has that other pair, besides she doesn't really like these things."

  "Little aunt, how many years has it been? It's all old news." Zi Qing scorned in her heart.

  Then Autumn Jade said she had made more than a hundred lotus-leaf pouches and would send them to Kangping another day. After chatting for a while, they sat for a bit before leaving.

  They saw off the old master, and then they played a few rounds of mahjong. Lin Kangping replaced Ziqing, who sat aside to do some needlework. The new clothes for the New Year were still missing their own touches. This time, Kangping had brought back two pieces of pure white rabbit fur from Beijing. Ziqing sewed a circle of rabbit hair onto the collar and cuffs of her cotton-padded jacket, which looked quite elegant. It seemed that the winter clothes of past lives had such styles. Ziyu saw it and liked it very much, and also asked to add some to her own cotton-padded jacket. Ziqing simply sewed some onto her mother's jacket as well. Zeng Rui Xiang also smiled and joked, saying: "Adding a circle of fur makes you look much more noble."