Chapter 45

On the other side, Yun Shuang and her two children had happily gathered three whole baskets of hawthorn berries. On the way home, Yun Yi bounced along cheerfully, holding tightly to her mother’s hand. Suddenly, she tilted up her little head and asked, “Mother, is Sister Pei’er going to marry someone? So when will you get married?”

Yun Shuang was stunned, glancing at the little girl with surprise. “Don’t you want your father anymore?”

Ever since she’d told them their father had gotten lost, these two little ones hadn’t stopped thinking about the man they’d never met.

Yun Yi tilted her head in confusion. “What does Mother getting married have to do with Father? Sister Nini told me her father is really far away. Because her mother married Uncle Xu, he came here—so she has two papas. But she doesn’t like the old one. She said he was mean and used to hit her and her mother. She likes her new father better.”

The Nini that the little girl spoke of had a mother—Sister Wang—whose life had been full of hardship. She wasn’t originally from Xiazhou and had arrived unexpectedly four years ago. According to her, her previous husband was a gambling addict who would beat both her and her daughter whenever he lost money. The last time, to cover his enormous debts, he even tried to sell them.

Sister Wang was a strong woman. Once she discovered his plan, she gathered all their silver and fled overnight with her daughter, eventually reaching Xiazhou at the border, where they settled down. Later on, she married a widower in the village named Xu Da—a simple, honest man who didn’t mind raising someone else’s child. Life gradually became kinder for the mother and daughter.

Yun Shuang hadn’t expected the little girl to have such open-minded ideas. She couldn’t help laughing and asked, “So do you want your original father, or a new one?”

Without hesitation, the little girl replied, “Of course, the nice papa! I haven’t even seen the old one. What if he’s mean like Sister Nini’s old papa?”

On the other side, Yun Yin couldn’t help but once again voice his distaste for their father. “That previous father was really dumb.”

It was because he never found them that so many people had bullied them. If General Jiang had been their father, he definitely wouldn’t have been that clueless. And he definitely wouldn’t have let them be bullied like that.

Yun Shuang couldn’t help but be surprised by the way these two little ones were thinking. So their father—whoever he might be—had to pass their evaluation before being officially accepted?

If Jiang Xiao truly was their biological father, just imagining that cold and serious general being scrutinized from head to toe by these two tiny inspectors made Yun Shuang burst out laughing. She grinned and said teasingly, “Alright, I promise—whoever wants to be your father will need your approval first before I marry him. How’s that?”

What comforted Yun Shuang most was that the children weren’t as desperately longing for their birth father as she’d once feared. After all, he had never been a part of their lives. For them, “father” was less about longing and more about curiosity or hope. They probably didn’t even understand what having a father really meant. And that realization eased some of the weight she’d been carrying in her heart.

The days passed quickly, and after two days, Yun Shuang’s homemade hawthorn fruit rolls were ready. She rolled one long sheet into a tube, then sliced it into strips and took them to Sister Hua’s home for a taste test.

Sister Hua had never seen anything like it. When Yun Shuang told her the snack was made from the hawthorns in the nearby woods, she was stunned—they’d only ever used those sour berries for fuel or compost!

This was the first time she’d heard they could be edible. She was still half-doubting when Yun Yi exclaimed excitedly, “Auntie Hua, hurry and try it! This is super yummy!”

If Mother hadn’t stopped her, she would’ve gobbled up the whole batch.

Only then did Sister Hua pick up a strip and pop it into her mouth. Instantly, her eyes widened with delight. That sweet-and-sour flavor, with just the right chewy texture—she’d never tasted anything like it! It was unexpectedly refreshing and stimulating to the palate. And the more she ate, the more she wanted. “This… this…”

Sister Hua stared in disbelief at the strip of fruit leather Yun Shuang called guodanpi. “Shuangniang, is this really made from those sour hawthorn berries?”

“Absolutely,” Yun Shuang replied with a smile. “Seeing that you enjoy it puts me at ease. I’ve made quite a lot—planning to take some to the county in the next day or two to sell. Today I came not only to have you try the flavor, but also to ask Uncle Li to give us a ride to town tomorrow.”

“For the return trip, he won’t need to go out of his way—I’ll find a coachman in the city to take us back.”

She didn’t dare hire just anyone. She intended to ask the Luo family to help find a reliable driver. As for the ride to town, though, she’d still need to trouble Uncle Li. Given her current means, she couldn’t afford to hire someone to come to the village just for a pickup.

Hearing this, Sister Hua looked a bit worried. “Shuangniang, these fruit rolls are delicious, no doubt. But here along the border, there aren’t many wealthy families. Ordinary folks usually don’t have money to spend on snacks. How do you plan to price them? I imagine you used a lot of sugar, and sugar’s not cheap…”

Not everyone knew, but she did—the hawthorn fruit was so tart it could make one’s teeth ache. Without a generous amount of sugar, it couldn’t possibly taste like this.

Yun Shuang chuckled. “I’m planning to sell them for eight wen per liang—about fifty grams.”

“Eight wen?!” Sister Hua looked astonished.

Even the cheapest coarse sugar cost three to four wen per liang. Even if the fruit roll didn’t use a full liang of sugar, it must have taken nearly that much. Was there any profit at that price? Even if she made something, she’d barely earn a single copper coin per liang!

Yun Shuang saw exactly what she was thinking and simply smiled. “Don’t worry, Sister Hua—I won’t be losing money. And I have my own plan.”

Selling the fruit rolls wasn’t about the profit.

Hearing that, Sister Hua could only sigh, “Just be careful, then. Doing business is never easy.”

The next day, Yun Shuang packed all the hawthorn fruit leather into two clean burlap sacks and headed for the county town with Yun Yi and Yun Yin. She had already asked Sister Hua and learned that the town held a morning market. As long as you didn’t use a fixed stall, you could simply set up and sell without needing to register with the local authorities. And even if registration had been required, Yun Shuang wasn’t worried—after all, she had a connection at the county office.

The morning market was mostly concentrated along the main street in the northern section of town. Although she had arrived fairly early, the street was already crowded with vendors lining both sides, making it nearly impossible to find an open spot. Finally, she managed to squeeze into a corner near the end of the street. Unfazed, she calmly laid down a cloth on the ground, placed her two sacks of fruit leather on top, then took out two wooden bowls and filled them with samples.

Grinning, she called Yun Yi and Yun Yin over. “Yi’er, Yin’er—it’s your time to shine! Take these bowls of fruit leather to the busy parts of the street and call out to people. Tell them they can sample for free, and if they like it, they can buy more. These bowls are for tasting only. If they run out, just come back to me and I’ll refill them. Can you do that?”

Their spot was tucked behind rows of established vendors—without active outreach, they wouldn’t be seen at all.

Yun Yi and Yun Yin instantly felt a swell of pride from being trusted and depended upon. They nodded earnestly.

Yun Shuang reminded them not to wander too far and pointed out a range where she could still see them from her stall. Smiling, she said, “Alright—off you go. I’m watching from here.”