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On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the Lantern Festival marked the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations. As the festive mood waned, people began transitioning back to their everyday lives, pondering how to make the most of the new year ahead.
Su Zhi planned to capitalize on this festival to make some extra money by selling the remaining hawthorns from her home. Previously, she had sold some by making hawthorn cakes and roasted chestnuts, selling all the chestnuts to the local inn. With several baskets of hawthorns left, Su Zhi intended to turn them all into candied fruits on sticks, known as tanghulu, to sell at the Lantern Festival. She was confident they would fetch a good price.
Considering that each tanghulu could be made with five or six hawthorns, Su Zhi calculated she could produce several thousand of them. Recognizing that selling them alone with Shen Zi’an would be exhausting, she decided to invite others to join in the selling.
On the day of the Lantern Festival, Shen Zi’an gathered everyone early in the morning.
Su Zhi explained the plan to sell tanghulu and asked who was willing to join in this business venture.
“Dear brothers and sisters, we will provide the necessary resources for this venture. If we work together, I will pay each of you a wage. After making the tanghulu, everyone can take a certain amount to sell at the Lantern Festival. For each tanghulu sold, you can take a portion of the earnings. The more you sell, the more you earn. Your potential earnings will depend on how much you sell. This is profit-sharing. What do you think? Who is interested in joining this business?”
Su Zhi finished speaking in the hall, observing the individuals seated on either side, confident they would agree. This was a risk-free opportunity; as long as they put in the effort, they could earn money. Passing up on this opportunity would be unwise.
Li Qing’s wife widened her eyes and exclaimed, “Sister, you’re practically giving us money! This is a windfall opportunity, and if we don’t seize it, we’d be ungrateful even to the heavens!”
The others nodded in agreement, seeing this as a fantastic opportunity. Some even felt they were taking advantage of Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an, believing the profit-sharing was overly generous and suggesting they should only receive wages.
Su Zhi replied, “Brothers and sisters, there’s no need to be so polite. We’ve grown close over these days. Being overly polite would only create distance between us. Besides, there’s no guarantee the tanghulu venture will be profitable. You may end up with less in profit-sharing than the wages I pay during the day. Then you won’t feel like you’re taking advantage of us.”
Shugen’s wife chuckled and said, “Younger sister, anything you make is bound to sell well. Even a simple cabbage stew from you would taste better than what we cook. Your hands are so skilled that if you were to cook for the emperor, you’d surely be praised. Although I’m not sure what this tanghulu is, just from hearing about it, I’m convinced it must be a delicious treat.”
Li Shi also chimed in, “Exactly! Those hawthorn fruits, we all find them sour, but with you, Fourth Younger Sister, turning them into delicious pastries, you can surely create other tasty treats as well.”
Li Shi chuckled and continued, “Younger sister, after all this talk about tanghulu, why don’t you show us what it is? Before selling it to others, let us taste it first. It would be a shame not to experience it firsthand.”
Wang Shi looked surprised and asked, “Brother Shi, you’ve traveled and seen much of the world. Haven’t you heard of this tanghulu before?”
Due to his experiences as a servant and travels to various places, including time spent in the capital, Li Shi had indeed seen more of the world compared to many in the riverside village, which made him seem well-traveled in their eyes.
Li Shi shrugged and said, “I haven’t even heard of it. It’s not surprising, though. Younger sister is so talented in creating unique dishes that I’ve never seen before. To have her make something new is not out of the ordinary. I just want to experience and taste it for myself.”
Wang Shi thought similarly. She glanced at Su Zhi, grateful that they hadn’t strained their relationship with Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an over the matter concerning her sister-in-law from her maternal home. She realized Su Zhi’s intelligence and entrepreneurial skills could have benefited their family, but her pride might have made it difficult to face them again. Despite the joy of earning more money, the thought of handing it over to the public family funds made her heart ache.
Upon learning that even Li Shi hadn’t heard of this delicacy, everyone grew more excited. The novelty of the treat implied it might sell well. Like Li Shi, they were eager to see and taste this tanghulu.
Su Zhi was pleased to see everyone willing to join them in selling tanghulu. These individuals had been supportive during these days, and she wanted to ensure they enjoyed a more prosperous life. She aimed to establish the reputation of tanghulu during this Lantern Festival.
“Four sisters-in-law, let’s tidy up the hawthorn fruits together. Let the men handle their tasks.”
Su Zhi led the four women into the western room, which also had a heated kang that Shen Zi’an had prepared early in the morning. With some charcoal burning in the room, it was warm and cozy.
Several baskets of hawthorn fruits were placed in this room. Su Zhi had soaked and washed them with water from the spiritual spring yesterday. Now, each fruit looked vibrant and fresh, as if just plucked from the tree. The women were amazed and praised Su Zhi’s skill in preserving the fruits.
In her mind, Su Zhi acknowledged that without the spiritual spring’s water, the fruits wouldn’t have retained such a lush appearance. However, hawthorn fruits were easy to store, so their excellent quality wasn’t surprising.
Su Zhi demonstrated how to remove the seeds from the hawthorn fruits to the women after taking some for them to practice on.
The four women, all skilled with their hands, quickly learned the process and began working together. As they removed the seeds from the hawthorn fruits, they chatted and laughed, creating a lively and cheerful atmosphere.
Shen Zi’an and a few men, including Li Shi, worked on making bamboo skewers. Huzi and Xiaosuo played nearby, more interested in playing with the dogs, Little Black and Little White. The two children were in the garden kicking around a bamboo-leaf ball, playfully competing with the dogs while White Wolf and Big Black watched on.
By noon, the men had prepared many bamboo skewers, which they brought to the western room where the hawthorn fruits had been seeded.
After finishing their tasks, the other four couples went home for lunch, leaving Li Shitou behind to eat with Shen Zi’an. Soon after their meal, the others returned, eager to complete making the tanghulu and taste the final product.
“Sister, let’s have the sacred beast guard a bit. If she and Third Brother come, it won’t be for anything good.”
Wang Shi suggested, not wanting Sun Shi to interfere in the business. She disliked Sun Shi and didn’t want to share the profits with her.
Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an exchanged a glance. Shen Zi’an went outside and instructed White Wolf to keep watch. They couldn’t afford to have unwelcome visitors disrupting the tanghulu production.
True to their concerns, later that afternoon, Shen Ziping and Sun Shi arrived. The sight of the mythical beast startled them, and they were promptly sent away by Shen Zi’an. Both of them left feeling disgruntled, eager to make money but excluded from the venture by Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an.
Unfazed by their departure, Su Zhi and Shen Zi’an continued their work as planned. After teaching the others how to make tanghulu, when the vibrant, syrup-coated tanghulu appeared before them, everyone found them charming and tempting. They were torn between admiring their beauty and wanting to indulge in their sweetness.
“Here are the tanghulu. We can make them in large strands with six fruits or small strands with three fruits. The large strands sell for five wen, while the small ones go for two wen, using the remaining small hawthorn fruits after making the large strands.”
As everyone looked at the large and small tanghulu, they found the grand ones festive and the smaller ones equally delightful. The adults held the large strands, while Xiaosuo and Huzi each held a small strand. Even without tasting them, just holding the tanghulu gave them a unique and joyful feeling.
“Delicious! Sweet and sour!”
Huzi took a bite of a hawthorn fruit, savoring the sweet and tangy flavor. It surpassed any dessert or candy he had ever tasted. His face lit up with a smile, thoroughly enjoying the treat.
Xiaosuo also took a gentle bite and nodded with a smile.
The adults joined in, finding the tanghulu truly delicious. Their confidence in this business venture soared. After finishing their tanghulu, they enthusiastically got to work.
With everyone pitching in, they efficiently packed all the tanghulu and loaded them onto Shen Zi’an’s cart. The group was ready to head to town, excited to sell their tanghulu.