Chapter Eighteen: Punishment (Part One)

That afternoon, Qin lingered in the Fragrant Ink Courtyard under the pretense of studying her characters, but in truth, she did not so much as look at a single stroke. The afternoon sun was just right—its rays made the air gently warm. She had Changxing and Changsheng move the wooden couch out into the courtyard, setting it beneath the shade of the trees. The group sat together, playing a game of Five-in-a-Row—a simple and entertaining invention of Qin’s own. She had even considered creating a deck of playing cards, but thought herself too young to attempt it.

After a short while, Brother Hai, ever the self-disciplined child, returned to his room for his scheduled nap and studies. Jiang Li, seeing his cousin’s spirits undimmed, naturally could not abandon her, and so the two continued to play. When Qin grew tired, she lay back on the couch and soon drifted off to sleep. Sunlight filtered through the leaves above, casting dappled patches upon her small form, the soft glow highlighting her delicate, translucent skin, making her seem as adorable and unreal as a doll.

Jiang Li took the thin blanket Changxing handed him and gently covered his little cousin’s belly. He recalled how, when he was younger, his mother would sit by his side as he slept, gently patting him and humming a lullaby, her face glowing with tender affection. Now, he sat by his cousin’s side, patting her with the same gentle touch, his face wearing that same soft, maternal smile.

At that moment, Jiang Li felt a happiness he had not known for a long time—a happiness born of being cherished and guarded by his parents’ love, and of being able to protect those he himself cherished.

Still a child, Jiang Li tasted for the first time the joy of protecting another, and finally understood the feelings his parents must have had as they watched over him. Love, after all, is so simple—no need to overthink, to question, to search for its source. Like the love of parents for their children, it asks for no reason, seeks no cause. The seed of love is planted naturally, sprouting and blossoming in its own time, as is only right and proper.

Qin slept for a full hour before waking. When she opened her eyes, she found Jiang Li had dozed off beside her as well. Her movement as she sat up startled him awake; he rubbed his eyes and, seeing her, smiled, “You’re awake, little sister.”

“Yes. Brother Li, if you were tired, why didn’t you go back to your room to sleep?”

“With you here, of course I wanted to stay with you.”

“Cuiyu could have kept me company too. Wait, where is Cuiyu?”

Jiang Li just smiled, but before he could answer, Cuiyu came running in, cheeks flushed, laughing as she explained, “Young Master wouldn’t let this servant stay with you, so I went to the street to see what was happening.”

“There was something happening on the street? What was it?” Qin’s spirits lifted at once.

“A new restaurant, the Grand Prosperity, just opened on South Street. It’s grand and imposing. Today was its opening day—they had lion and dragon dances, set off firecrackers, it was so lively that the whole street turned out to watch. I heard Changsheng mention it, so I went along too. But when I found out the restaurant belonged to the Fang family, I lost interest right away.”

The Fang family? Qin’s excitement faded. She was young, but had heard enough from her family to know that the Fang family was the sworn rival of her own—the ones always opposing her father. In her heart, Qin cursed them: Just you wait. When I grow up, I’ll open a restaurant even bigger and grander, and put your Grand Prosperity to shame, reducing it to dust.

That day passed, and the next morning, Qin rose early, washed and dressed, ate breakfast with her mother, then met up with Jiang Li and Brother Hai, setting off for school in high spirits.

But the moment she saw Master Zhang, her mood soured. Who could feel cheerful facing someone who looked at you as if your nose and face were all wrong? It was truly bizarre. With her adorable little face, her sweet and charming ways, she was always the darling of the household. Yet with Master Zhang, none of it worked. Clearly, a pretty face was not all-powerful, and even the cutest child was not invincible.

As usual, the teacher greeted Brother Hai with warmth, praised his work effusively, and then moved to Jiang Li and Qin with a stern expression. Glancing at Jiang Li’s homework, he merely nodded. No kind words for him.

How unfair! Qin had seen Jiang Li’s handwriting—it was excellent, comparable to the work of a master calligrapher. As for Brother Hai, his writing barely resembled characters at all, but for a five-year-old, crooked lines that could be recognized as letters were already commendable. Still, even for the sake of encouragement, the teacher’s praise was over the top. Qin thought: If I just scribbled a few words, I’d leave Brother Hai in the dust.

While she was silently protesting this injustice, the teacher turned to her, gazed at the ceiling, and asked, “Qin, where is your assignment?”

Was he speaking to her? Qin wanted to stand on stilts and shout, “I’m right here! Over here!”

“Qin, your assignment?” the teacher repeated impatiently.

Only then did Qin remember—with all the fun yesterday, she had completely forgotten. She glanced at Jiang Li, who looked back at her with concern. She gave him a reassuring look, then turned to the teacher, head held high, and asked with feigned confusion, “Teacher, what assignment?”

“The one I assigned yesterday. Wenhai and Jiang Li have both completed theirs. How could you not know? Have you been lazy again, so willful and disobedient? If you do not respect your teacher’s words, how can you be taught?”

“Oh, I remember now. Teacher, you mentioned it as school was ending, but weren’t you speaking to Brother Hai? Wasn’t the assignment for him?” Qin widened her innocent eyes, all guileless childishness.

The teacher was so angry his eyes rolled—not upward, but downward this time. He finally lowered his proud head and stared straight at Qin, “You... you…”

“If you wanted me to do the assignment, you would have told me directly, wouldn’t you, Teacher?”

The teacher was struck speechless, and his blood pressure seemed about to spike. Next to them, Jiang Li was struggling to suppress a laugh, bowing his head to hide the smile he couldn’t contain.

Master Zhang stammered for a long moment before finally exploding in anger. “Qin, you are so unruly! As this is your first offense, I’ll spare you the ruler on your hand, but you must copy yesterday’s assignment twenty times—no, thirty times!”

In his agitation, he even abandoned his usual formal diction. After delivering his verdict, he stormed off, but to his credit, his anger did not make him forget his responsibilities; he continued to stand at the front, diligently pursuing his teaching.

Thirty times! Qin’s face fell at once. She had intended to argue for more leniency, but caught sight of Jiang Li signaling to her. Turning, she saw him shaking his head slowly. Brother Li was telling her to let it go. Fine, she decided, she would be the bigger person and let the teacher off this time.

At the end of the school day, Qin hurried to Jiang Li’s side, looking up at him pitifully. “Brother Li…”

He patted her head and smiled. “Who told you to be so mischievous, always contradicting the teacher? Aren’t you hungry? Let’s go eat with Auntie first. We’ll worry about your homework this afternoon.”

By then, they had reached the courtyard. A camphor tree nearby released a faint fragrance of grass and wood. The bright sun shone directly on Jiang Li’s smiling face, making it so radiant, so dazzling, as if the sunlight itself had banished all shadows and darkness.