Chen Ping'an smelled a fragrant aroma wafting out before he even stepped into the courtyard.
"Nannan, I'm home."
"Brother, you're back! Here, have a drink of water to wet your throat."
Chen Erya came out to greet him, a bowl of fresh water in her hands.
Chen Ping'an took the water and drank it all in one gulp.
"Hah! Nannan is the most considerate!"
Chen Ping'an said as he took off his Constable Uniform.
The weather wasn't too hot yet, so he hadn't sweated much. If he took the uniform off now, he could wear it again tomorrow.
Washing it every day would not only be a hassle but also wear out the fabric.
He only had two sets in total. If they were ruined, he would have to pay a fee to get a new one from the Garrison Commandant's Office.
"Nannan, were you a good girl and ate your meal today?"
"I did! I listened to you, brother. I even had beef for lunch."
"Mm. Good."
Chen Ping'an made a point of walking to the kitchen to glance at the beef.
Er...
Seeing that the amount of beef was hardly any different from what was left yesterday, Chen Ping'an's expression darkened slightly.
"You ate? Then why is there so much left?"
"Oh, uh..."
Chen Erya gave a nervous laugh, trying to brush it off.
But Chen Ping'an wasn't having it.
In the end, Chen Erya had no choice but to confess. She had eaten, it was true—but only a single small slice.
"I just wanted to save it for you, brother. You work so hard outside to earn money and support our family. You use up a lot of energy. This beef should be for you to eat, to replenish your strength."
"If I want to eat, I can just buy more! Besides, me eating and you eating aren't mutually exclusive!"
Chen Erya didn't answer. But Chen Ping'an knew what she was thinking.
'It's about the silver, of course! If we had enough, we wouldn't need to pinch pennies like this.'
Although Chen Ping'an had said he'd figured out a way to repay the fourteen taels of silver to Young Master Xiao Hu of the Tiger Head Gang, and Chen Erya believed him, the matter remained unresolved. It was a weight on her mind.
With this worry weighing on her, Chen Erya naturally had to be frugal in every way.
"I told you yesterday not to skimp on lunch. You didn't listen! Are you trying to make me angry? And another thing..."
The little girl said nothing, simply blinking her big eyes and looking up at him.
"You..."
Seeing Chen Erya's pitiful expression, Chen Ping'an's heart softened, and he let out a long sigh. The words he wanted to say were now stuck in his throat. He gently tapped her forehead with his finger, unable to bring himself to scold her further.
'In the end, it all comes down to my Monthly Allowance being too low!'
"Did you buy the pork leg I asked you to get yesterday?"
"I did! I even bought pig trotters and stewed them for you to build up your strength. Now that you're practicing martial arts, brother, you need to eat more meat."
Chen Erya said, her face beaming with joy.
A few days ago, they would never have eaten like this. Having large, meaty dishes for every meal was only because Chen Ping'an had specifically instructed it these past two days.
Chen Erya had already cooked dinner long ago. Though she was only nine, the girl was a master of all household chores. Even her cooking skills were no less than Chen Ping'an's.
Chatting as they worked, they brought the dishes to the wooden table together.
Tonight's dinner: a bowl of stewed pig trotters, a bowl of red-braised pork leg, a plate of stir-fried eggs with green peppers, a bowl of mushroom soup, and two large bowls of white rice.
Extravagant!
Utterly extravagant!
'If I could enjoy a meal like this every day, I wouldn't trade it even to become a god!'
A dinner of this quality was something that even the proprietors of shops on the streets probably couldn't afford every day.
After all, many neighboring families couldn't even afford the fine white rice they were eating, let alone large meat dishes. They could only eat coarse rice mixed with husks, rough and unpalatable. Worse still were the families with many mouths to feed, few laborers, and no special skills; even coarse rice was a struggle for them, and they had to subsist on wheat bran.
Compared to them, Chen Ping'an and Chen Erya were undoubtedly fortunate.
After all, with his position as a constable for the Garrison Commandant's Office, they would never starve and could even afford meat once in a while.
This was why Father Chen, even when he was practically bedridden, had exhausted all his energy, connections, and savings—even taking on debt—to secure a temporary constable position for Chen Ping'an.
With this position, their days of living hand-to-mouth would be behind them. Their lives would only get better and more hopeful.
However, Chen Ping'an still had to solve the problem of the fourteen taels of owed silver to the Tiger Head Gang.
"Nannan, don't you worry about the fourteen taels of owed silver. I wasn't joking yesterday, brother really has a way to handle it."
Chen Ping'an said seriously, looking into Chen Erya's eyes as they ate.
"Mm, I believe you, brother. I know you're not joking."
"Then you have to take good care of yourself. Don't let what happened today—eating only a tiny slice of beef for lunch—happen again. If we're short on household expenses, just tell me. Once we pay back these fourteen taels of owed silver, I'll still have my Monthly Allowance. Our lives will only get better. We can afford to loosen the purse strings a little on food, clothes, and other things."
Chen Ping'an spoke earnestly, and Chen Erya listened just as intently.
"I know, brother. It's just, I was thinking, even after we pay back the fourteen taels, there are still big things at home that we haven't taken care of, and they'll cost a lot of silver. I still want to save as much as I possibly can."
"What big things?"
Chen Ping'an asked curiously.
"You getting married, brother! You're already nineteen, and next year you'll be twenty—the year you come of age. I asked Granny Wang from Changqiao Lane, and she said that to marry a wife and bring her home, all the expenses would cost at least ten taels of silver!
And my brother is so outstanding, you can't just marry any ordinary wife. So, ten taels of silver isn't enough. To get you a wife, our family needs to prepare at least twenty taels. Mother died early, and there's no one else at home to plan this for you, so it has to be me."
Chen Erya spoke with a brisk confidence that showed she had given this a lot of thought. But her words nearly made Chen Ping'an spit out the mouthful of mushroom soup he had just swallowed.
"You silly girl, you're wise beyond your years!"
Despite his words, a warmth spread through Chen Ping'an's heart.
"My sister-in-law has to be gentle and beautiful, of course. So, even if you have a way to handle the owed silver, brother, we still have to save our money!"
Chen Erya said, puffing out her chest and holding her head high.
"Alright, alright!"
Chen Ping'an looked completely helpless.
He didn't try to argue with Chen Erya.
Since she had her heart set on this, words would be useless. It was better to show her through actions than to keep talking.
After dinner, Chen Ping'an didn't help Chen Erya clean up this time.
The courtyard gate was still propped shut with a piece of firewood; he needed to make a proper latch. He hadn't found a suitable piece of wood while on patrol during the day. Since he couldn't find one, he would just make one himself.
As it happened, there was a log at home that hadn't been fully chopped up, which he could fashion into what he needed.
In the courtyard, he worked on the wood with a hatchet. In the kitchen, Chen Erya washed the bowls and chopsticks.
In between their tasks, their gazes would occasionally meet. In those brief moments, they both felt an immense sense of peace and security.
'Having family by your side... this feeling of companionship is truly wonderful.'
'A feeling you wouldn't trade for all the gold in the world!'