Chapter 8: Sugar Painting

Cao Xi and Qin Zhao crouched at the street corner, searching for their target in the crowd.

“I heard from Shui Niu that there’s going to be a temple fair in a couple of days. Let’s go check it out then,” Cao Xi said, but when she didn’t get a response, she turned around to look at Qin Zhao, only to find him staring intently at a father and son.

The father was holding a boy about Qin Zhao’s age, and the boy was holding a sugar painting, smiling brightly. The scene was heartwarming yet striking.

“Come on, let’s go buy some sugar paintings too,” Cao Xi said, tugging on Qin Zhao’s sleeve to get him to stand.

“Don’t waste money. Our money is meant to buy a big house,” Qin Zhao replied, his mood dampened by the mention of sugar paintings.

Cao Xi broke the silence with a laugh. “Hey, you little tightwad, how much can those few coins of yours really buy? You’re not going to get a big house with that. Come on, big sister will buy you a sugar painting.”

Qin Zhao, protective of his money and thrifty by nature, had turned into a bit of a tight-fisted old man ever since Cao Xi started spending money freely. But of course, he never really made the decisions.

“How much is a sugar painting?” Cao Xi continued to pull Qin Zhao toward the sugar painting stall.

The vendor, thinking they were customers, was surprised to see two beggars in front of him. “Go beg somewhere else. Don’t get in the way of my business,” he snapped.

“Boss, you’re not doing any business right now. Just make us one, we’ll pay for it,” Cao Xi replied, unfazed by the vendor’s words, since he was the one making sugar paintings here.

The vendor raised the sugar painting scoop, a fierce expression on his face. “You filthy beggars, if you don’t leave now, I’ll beat you up,” he growled, clearly uninterested in the idea of taking money.

The vendor’s rude attitude angered Qin Zhao. “Let’s go, Cao Xi, we’re not buying. Even if we had the money, we wouldn’t let someone like him profit from it.” He was furious that a mere sugar painting seller could act so arrogantly.

Finally, the vendor looked at Qin Zhao, sneering at his small stature and fiery temper. “You think you can afford it? It’s eight wen for one,” he taunted.

When Qin Zhao heard it was only eight wen, he felt a bit reluctant, but Cao Xi, who couldn’t stand anyone bullying Qin Zhao, snapped back, “Whether we can afford it or not is up to me, not you. I don’t want to buy from you anymore. My brother is right, I won’t let people like you make money off us.” With that, she grabbed Qin Zhao and walked away.

Cao Xi said, “Don’t be upset, Qin Zhao. Let’s go buy some sugar paintings elsewhere. I’ll make one for you myself.”

When Qin Zhao heard that Cao Xi hadn’t forgotten about the sugar painting, he stomped his foot in frustration. How stubborn could she be, refusing to listen to anything he said?

Cao Xi led him to a regular grocery store where they often bought spices. The shopkeeper knew both Cao Xi and Qin Zhao well, as the only beggars allowed inside were them.

“Little brother, how much are your sugar paintings?” Cao Xi asked cheerfully.

The shopkeeper replied, “Eighteen wen for half a jin.”

When Qin Zhao heard that it was eighteen wen for half a jin, he immediately clasped his pocket, refusing to let go no matter what.

Cao Xi asked, “Can it be a little cheaper? I want to buy a jin.”

When Qin Zhao heard that Cao Xi wanted to buy a whole jin, he didn’t stop her but turned to leave.

However, Cao Xi grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back, making him obediently stand next to her.

Qin Zhao glared at Cao Xi, secretly thinking that once he grew up, he would pull on her collar every day, making her stand there obediently too.

“Alright, thirty wen then.”

The shopkeeper, knowing that Cao Xi and Qin Zhao didn’t have much money and rarely bought anything, figured this time they must have some use for it.

Cao Xi was about to agree, but Qin Zhao spoke up, asking, “Is thirty wen okay?” He looked up at the shopkeeper with his wet eyes.

The shopkeeper hesitated for a moment, before the manager, who had been calculating accounts, spoke up, “Just sell it to them.”

The manager had a little son, about Qin Zhao’s age, who was always running around with a stick, pretending to be the ruler of the martial world.

Recently, the money he had saved up had been spent, and the little shop was barely managing.

Seeing Qin Zhao looking troubled, Cao Xi smiled and said, “Don’t worry, tonight I’ll make sugar paintings for you. We’ll find some wild fruits to dip in sugar and sell them at the temple fair.”

Qin Zhao shot her a sidelong glance, thinking she was really something. She spent so much money and was still thinking about sugar paintings.

In the evening, Cao Xi found a clean stone by the riverbank, set up a small earthen stove next to it, and poured the sugar into a bowl, stirring it continuously.

“Are you really going to make sugar paintings?” Qin Zhao asked, a bit worried. Though the sugar in the bowl was pitifully small, he still feared that Cao Xi would waste it. If the sugar paintings weren’t done right, they would taste bitter.

“Don’t worry, I’ll succeed. Just wait and see,” Cao Xi reassured him.

Qin Zhao swallowed, staring at the sugar in the bowl. He was starting to want some sugar painting.

Cao Xi took a small stick and stirred the nearly red-hot sugar, then pulled some out and handed it to Qin Zhao. “Taste it, is it sweet?”

Qin Zhao took it, cautiously licking it with his tongue, his eyes sparkling with joy. “It’s sweet!” Since his parents passed away, he hadn’t had sugar.

Cao Xi used a spoon to draw a somewhat imperfect horse on the stone. In her previous life, she had worked in interior design and had some artistic skills, but she hadn’t expected sugar painting to be so difficult. Luckily, she hadn’t planned to make money from it.

Qin Zhao watched eagerly as Cao Xi carefully formed the horse shape. His anticipation grew with each stroke.

When Cao Xi finished, she handed it to him. “A one-of-a-kind horse.”

“Thank you,” Qin Zhao said, taking a cautious bite. It was sweet. He reminded himself not to stare at others eating, though, because it was too expensive.

Cao Xi smiled. “For the next few days, we won’t go begging. Let’s go pick some wild fruit first.”

Qin Zhao frowned. “Wild fruits aren’t very tasty, they’re sour and bitter.”

“But we still have plenty of sugar, right? Wild fruits dipped in sugar are really good.”

“The temple fair is in a couple of days. Let’s try selling them there.”

“Then I’ll pick more fruit,” Qin Zhao said, his big eyes narrowing into slits with excitement.

“You help me make the sticks,” Cao Xi said.

“Okay.”

Cao Xi gathered the remaining sugar into little sticks, making lollipops for Qin Zhao to eat.

Cao Xi didn’t like sweets much, so she only tasted a small bit during the process, and gave the rest to Qin Zhao.

After returning to the temple and explaining the situation to Li Feng, Qin Zhao and Cao Xi decided not to go with the others for the next few days.

Li Feng didn’t object. After all, everyone had their own goals to achieve.

When Xiao Rui saw Qin Zhao holding a lollipop, she immediately wanted one too. She trotted over to Qin Zhao’s side. “Zhao Ge, I want some candy too.”

Qin Zhao’s alertness immediately went up. No way! That was thirty wen for a lollipop—how could he give it away?

He narrowed his eyes in displeasure, turned his head, and climbed into bed, his back to Xiao Rui, making it clear he wasn’t going to speak to her.

Seeing Qin Zhao’s behavior, Cao Xi thought to herself, “With this attitude, you’ll never find a wife when you grow up.”

Xiao Rui looked at Qin Zhao’s unkind reaction, feeling wronged, and could only go find her brother.

“Next time, don’t ask him for candy,” Xiao Chuan said, holding his sister.

Xiao Rui pouted. “He’s eating candy, I want some too!”

Xiao Chuan glared at Qin Zhao’s back, his voice sharp. “He won’t give it to you. You should beg like a kind person.”

Qin Zhao, feeling challenged, turned around. “I am a kind person. This candy was specially made for me by Cao Xi, so I can’t give it to you.”

Cao Xi, who had been listening, was speechless. The way he said it made it sound like he had already given food to others.

The other children in the temple looked at Qin Zhao with envy. They all admired how his sister could do everything and how good she was at begging.

But they also noticed that Qin Zhao and Cao Xi weren’t really part of their group, and sooner or later, they’d have to separate, just like Li Feng, who was always destined to go his own way.