“Third Uncle, I want to buy a shrimp paste bun.”

The little boy, looking only four or five years old, had a deep-colored birthmark on his forehead and a clean, fair face. Dressed in a light green outfit, he looked quite handsome.

He was Fu ger, the eldest grandson of the village chief’s family. With several other grandsons who were all boys, sturdy and boisterous, Fu ger being gentle and refined, seemed especially rare.

“Has Fu ger not eaten breakfast yet?” Chen Yuping handed him a bun. The boy was so cute, like a little celestial being, speaking softly with a hint of milkiness in his voice. He liked him and even spread an extra layer of shrimp paste.

Fu ger nibbled at the bun, saying, “I had a bowl of steamed egg custard.”

Liu Guixiang placed a small stool in the shade of the tree, saying, “Come, sit and eat,” and poured a cup of water for him.

“What’s that?” Fu ger asked, staring at the pot on the stove, his big round eyes blinking twice.

“Vegetable skewers, mildly spicy, fresh and tasty. Do you want to try some?”

Fu ger pulled out his small purse, which was intricately embroidered with a large character for “Fu” (fortune): “How much for a skewer?”

“One copper coin for two skewers.”

“I want six skewers, I’ll eat one.” Fu ger counted out three coins: “Third Uncle, I want to take the rest home.”

“Are you giving some to your brothers?” Dad Chen knew the village chief’s boys: “They might prefer something spicier. How about I add some spicy sauce and give you a bowl to carry?”

“Okay, thank you, Third Uncle.”

After slowly finishing the shrimp paste bun and a skewer of potato slices, Fu ger patted his little belly and waved goodbye to Third Uncle and Second Aunt with a smile.

“Fu ger, come eat some shrimp paste buns.”

“Delicious.”

“Oh, what do you have in your hand?”

“Skewers, new from Third Uncle’s place, and they’re delicious.” Fu ger smiled, his eyes sparkling with satisfaction.

As he spoke, more kids gathered around: “From afar, I thought it was Fu ger. Are you going home? Let me carry it for you, it’s so hot today. Where’s your grandpa?”

“Grandpa has something to do.”

“Is this for your brothers?” There were exactly five skewers. “It smells great, Ping ger has come up with something new again.”

“They’re really tasty. One copper coin for two skewers.” Fu ger held up two chubby fingers.

As they walked away, their chatter faded into the distance.

Liu Guixiang returned her gaze and smiled at Third Brother “Fu ger is such a good-looking child. At just four years old, he speaks so clearly and logically. I heard they plan to send him to school next spring. He’ll surely be a good student.”

“Our Qiaoniu is also growing up nicely.” Chen Yuping picked up Qiaoniu, rubbing his face against her soft cheek.

“Third Brother, I heard you’ve come up with new food again, especially affordable—two skewers for one wen?”

“Third Brother, I want two skewers. Finally, I have waited for you to sell something cheap.”

A few boys in their early teens rushed over, their foreheads glistening with sweat.

“It’s vegetable skewers.” Chen Yuping pointed at the table beside the small stove, where the skewers were arranged in bowls under a thin layer of gauze.

“We want vegetable skewers too!”

“Yes, yes, yes, it smells great! One wen for two skewers.”

They huddled together, chattering excitedly as they began to choose.

Listening to them count, Chen Yuping grabbed a skewer, cooked it in the pot, and then asked, “Want some spicy sauce? Even plain, they taste good, mildly spicy.”

“Yes, yes, yes!” they answered in unison.

Taking a bite, they exclaimed, “Not spicy at all! So delicious!”

“I didn’t know vegetables could taste this good.” One child, seeing a larger vegetable skewer, thought it should weigh more and, after some hesitation, bought two vegetable skewers.

“Let me try one, I’ll give you a slice of potato. My potato slices are really good.”

“I’ll trade you some green beans. Who wants to trade?”

“I do! I’ll trade kelp. I also have radishes, who wants to trade?”

“The vegetables are spicy, feeling spicier than the others, they’re all so good!”

The children stood in the shade, trying each other’s food, their eyes sparkling with excitement, not bothering to wipe their sweat, their faces flushed—whether from the heat or spice, who could tell?

Chen Yuping remembered his childhood. Long spicy strips for a dime, sharing with the neighbor’s older boy, and thin spicy strands for thirty cents a pack, chewy and fun to eat, taking turns, making sure no one cheated.

What he loved most were stinky dried tofu strips. He dreamed of eating a pack every day, not knowing how happy that would make him. Now that he had money as an adult, they were nowhere to be found.

Just as this group of children was leaving, another group ran up.

These were the village chief’s boys, known for being particularly sturdy. Chen Yuping looked at the group of muddy little pigs and thought, this wasn’t just ordinary sturdiness. It was a hot day, and it hadn’t rained for half a month. Where had they been playing, with not a clean spot on them?

“Third Uncle, we want to buy skewers.”

“Just like Fu ger bought, we want to buy too.”

“I want mushroom skewers, I want two mushroom skewers.”

“Third Uncle, me too! I want to dip them in more spicy sauce. I want vegetable skewers.”

“Third Uncle, I have two coins, can I get five skewers?”

Before Chen Yuping could respond, the other four children all turned their heads toward the boy who spoke, their eyes wide open in shock.

Why do you have two coins!!! And we only have one!!!

“Two coins can only buy four skewers.” Chen Yuping was amused by the five children, it was too funny.

“Then I’ll take four skewers, I want to choose myself.”

“Second Brother, why do you have two coins?”

“Right! Why did Grandpa give you an extra coin?”

“You’re not Fu ger, I don’t care, I want two coins too.”

“Second Brother, where did your money come from?”

“I helped wash dishes last night, and I washed them really well, so dad rewarded me.”

“Wow! Second Brother, you can wash dishes now? Aren’t you still shorter than the stove?”

“I want to go home and wash dishes too, I want to eat skewers.”

It’s said that three women can create a drama, but five kids together could make enough noise for five hundred ducks.

Chen Yuping watched with interest as they picked and chose, diligently trying to select the biggest skewers. Their serious expressions as if they were engaged in something very important.

After the skewers were cooked and dipped in spicy sauce, the children grabbed them and ran off, not even in a hurry to eat, rushing off without knowing where.

As soon as they left, the shade felt empty.

“It really was lively,” Liu Guixiang said with a chuckle. “Even Qiaoniu was watching them intently.”

Chen Yuping straightened the skewers that had been messed up: “When it gets noisy, it’s a headache. I still prefer Fu ger.” After a pause, he added, “I didn’t expect to be doing business with kids.”

“One wen for two skewers isn’t too expensive. I think they’ll keep coming back, it’s rare to have something to chew on.”

“Ping ger, what new food have you come up with? I just saw several kids from the village chief’s family holding skewers.”

“Just made today, vegetable skewers, one wen for two, mainly using the vegetables from the garden.”

“One wen for two?” It sounded unbelievable. “That cheap? Give me ten skewers, I want to taste the flavor.”

Chen Yuping asked, “Are you eating here or taking it home?”

“I’ll eat here.” He wasn’t polite, moving a chair from the kitchen. “Ping ger, when will you make those braised pig intestines again? I had them yesterday and can’t stop thinking about them.” After tasting a skewer, his eyes lit up: “I like this flavor, put on more spicy sauce, I can handle spicy.”

“We’re not selling braised pig intestines for now. We have to buy the intestines in town, and it takes too long without an ox cart.”

“I see, then give me a shrimp paste bun. The braised pig trotters should be ready soon, right? I’ll just hang out here for lunch, no need to go home.”

Chen Yuping stood up, saying, “I’ll go check, it should be almost done.”