Recaps

Xie Ning prepared food for a mountain trip and stood up to Grandmother Zhou when she challenged him for using the kitchen. Meanwhile, Zhou Jinian worked in the fields with his father and raised the possibility of dividing the household, but his father wanted to wait until the eldest uncle returned from town.

• Zhou Jinian agreed to accompany Xie Ning to gather herbs and catch fish, and Xie Ning prepared griddle cakes and shrimp paste for their trip.
• Grandmother Zhou scolded Xie Ning for using the kitchen, but he countered that he could sell the fish to buy medicine for Dad; she insisted he ask permission before cooking.
• Zhou Jinian went to the fields to help Zhou Sanfeng, while Xie Ning fed Lin Jin a cake topped with shrimp paste and considered selling cakes in town.
• Zhou Jinian told Zhou Sanfeng that Lin Jin should no longer farm because of his back, and Zhou Sanfeng said he planned to discuss splitting the household after the eldest uncle returned.

Zhou Jinian and Zhou Sanfeng agreed that the family should split the household and discussed moving to town, where Zhou Jinian could study and his parents could run a food stall. After Zhou Sifeng returned with Zhou Wenshu, Zhou Jinian examined Xie Ning’s worsening skin and told him to eat fish and shrimp while avoiding water; Xie Ning asked to go to town with him.

• Zhou Sanfeng explained that he now supported splitting the household because Zhou Jinian had become responsible and he wanted to care for Jinlang.
• Zhou Jinian suggested moving to town and earning money by copying books, while Zhou Sanfeng said he and Jinlang would sell fried dough sticks and porridge.
• Xie Ning brought fish soup to Dad and stayed quiet about Zhou Liufeng’s wife keeping most of the fish.
• Zhou Sifeng returned with his eldest brother, his sister-in-law, and Zhou Wenshu, and Lin Guihua offered to cook Wenshu a pan-fried fish.
• Zhou Jinian noticed Xie Ning’s skin had worsened, advised him to eat fish and shrimp and avoid water during the day, and Xie Ning asked to accompany him to town.

Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian went to Pool Cave to catch fish, growing more comfortable and affectionate with each other as they crossed the water together. The chapter left them resting by the pool, with Xie Ning delighted to see Zhou Jinian smile.

• Lin Guihua told Rong-ge'er to thank Xie Ning for the fish, while Zhou's Eldest Daughter-in-Law disparaged Xie Ning at dinner.
• Xie Ning rose early to decoct medicine for Father in the courtyard after Grandmother Zhou refused to let him use the kitchen.
• Zhou Jinian carried Xie Ning through the dark cave, then tied a rope to a rock so they could enter the pool.
• Xie Ning tried to carry Zhou Jinian through the water, but followed his advice and led him by the hand to the rocky bank.
• Xie Ning caught fish while Zhou Jinian practiced swimming, and they gathered enough fish to take home.
• Xie Ning rested with his arms around Zhou Jinian's legs and happily noticed when Zhou Jinian smiled.

Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian shared an affectionate moment after catching fish, then sold boiled shrimp with Zhou Sanfeng at home. The next morning they took their fish to Qingshui Town, where Zhou Jinian set prices at the market, but early customers walked away.

• Zhou Jinian kissed Xie Ning's forehead, and Xie Ning later kissed him back and invited him into the water.
• Xie Ning caught more than a dozen fish in a mountain pool, and Zhou Sanfeng helped them unload the catch.
• Xie Ning boiled shrimp in their courtyard, and the family ate them with sauce.
• Zhou Jinian borrowed an ox cart, and he and Xie Ning traveled to Qingshui Town with their fish and books.
• Zhou Jinian set up beside a pork stall and quoted prices for the fish, but several potential buyers left.

Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning sold their fish at the Qingshui Town market, collected payment for their bookshop work, and set out to find a broker. On the way, they stopped to watch a street performer, and Zhou Jinian amusedly watched Xie Ning imitate him.

• Zhou Jinian sold a fish to a well-to-do customer for eighty wen, and the customer’s purchase drew more buyers to their stall.
• Zhou Jinian traded a fish for three jin of pork belly and left their bucket with the butcher while he and Xie Ning went to eat.
• Xie Ning chose a noodle stall, listened to nearby vendors’ prices, and ate with Zhou Jinian before they headed to the bookshop.
• Shopkeeper Zhang checked their pages and paid them, leaving the couple with full purses as they went to find a broker.
• Xie Ning asked to see a street performance, and Zhou Jinian brought him to the front of the crowd, where Xie Ning mimicked the performer lifting a water vat.

Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian spent a day in town buying pastries, ordering Mid-Autumn mooncakes, and comparing rental houses before returning to the village. Meanwhile, Zhou Wenshu prepared for a festival gathering and summoned Grandmother Zhou to discuss something.

• Xie Ning pulled Zhou Jinian away from a street performer's tip bowl, and Zhou Jinian took him to buy dragon's beard candy.
• Zhou Jinian ordered three portions of mooncakes for his family, teacher, and father-in-law, then took Xie Ning to the Housing Office.
• Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning chose Upper North Alley as their likely rental, bought coarse sea salt, and headed back to the village.
• Xie Ning grew sleepy on the ox cart and slept until Zhou Jinian led him home.
• Zhou Wenshu recalled his planned Mid-Autumn gathering with academy scholars and ordered his mother to call Grandmother Zhou.

Zhou Wenshu persuaded Grandmother Zhou to give him silver for a literary banquet, while Xie Ning discussed his improving complexion and planned a new food to sell. Xie Ning settled on calling his steamed dried eggplant vegetarian jerky.

• Grandmother Zhou gave Zhou Wenshu silver for the banquet after he promised to be frugal and reminded her that passing the licentiate examination would benefit the family.
• Xie Ning asked Zhou Jinian whether his complexion had cleared, and Zhou Jinian confirmed it before examining the red lines on Xie Ning's arm.
• Zhou Jinian planned to take Xie Ning to the Pool Cave again, but told him they would not catch fish to sell.
• Lin Jin helped Xie Ning calculate a price for his steamed dried eggplant and suggested he give it a name.
• Xie Ning announced that he would call the food vegetarian jerky, and Lin Jin understood that he meant the eggplant would be sold under that name.

Lin Jin argued with Grandmother Zhou over how the family should divide the earnings from selling dried eggplants, and Zhou Sanfeng called for the household to be divided. Grandmother Zhou erupted in anger as the rest of the Zhou family gathered, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

• Lin Jin told Grandmother Zhou that he would either use household-provided eggplants and share the proceeds or buy them himself and keep the earnings.
• Grandmother Zhou demanded that Lin Jin pay for the eggplants and hand over half the money from their sale, and he refused.
• Grandmother Zhou reached for a broom and threatened to drive Lin Jin out of the Zhou family.
• Xie Ning stepped in to protect Lin Jin, and Zhou Sanfeng took the broom away and said they should divide the household.
• Grandmother Zhou shouted at Zhou Sanfeng for being unfilial, drawing the rest of the Zhou family to the courtyard.

Zhou Sanfeng confronted Grandmother Zhou over splitting the household and recalled how he permanently crippled his leg rescuing Zhou Liufeng, but his mother’s pleading stopped the dispute without a resolution. Meanwhile, Lin Jin’s family prepared vegetarian jerky to sell and planned to visit town to look at a house, with Xie Ning giving Zhou Jinian silver for the rent.

• Zhou Sanfeng demanded to split the household and reminded Grandmother Zhou that he had broken his leg carrying Zhou Liufeng home, while Zhou Jinian tried to shield him from her blows.
• Grandmother Zhou offered Zhou Sanfeng the silver back and begged him not to split the household, so he fell silent and the dispute ended unresolved.
• Lin Jin, Lin Guihua, Rong-ge'er, and Xie Ning packaged vegetarian jerky to sell during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
• Zhou Jinian told Xie Ning that the family would go to town to visit his teacher and look at a house in Upper North Alley.
• Xie Ning handed Zhou Jinian a piece of silver to rent the house.

Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning brought their dried eggplant to the crowded town market, where they struggled to attract customers until Xie Ning began selling it as vegetarian jerky along the street. The chapter ended with a curious passerby questioning its price.

• Zhou Liufeng's wife scolded their muddy five-year-old son and urged Zhou Liufeng to teach him before he started school.
• Zhou Sifeng collected vegetarian jerky, and Zhou Jinian, Xie Ning, Lin Jin, and Zhou Jinian's father traveled to town to sell it.
• The family set up at a quiet corner of the market and went nearly two hours without making a sale.
• When a steamed-bun seller walked through the market, Xie Ning decided to carry the vegetarian jerky along the street.
• Zhou Jinian caught up with Xie Ning and helped serve a customer who bought a packet.
• A passerby asked about the price, then remarked that twenty-five wen was almost as much as a jin of meat.

Xie Ning sold all the family’s vegetarian jerky at the market, exchanged the earnings for silver, and bought a courtyard house with his family. On the way home, he proposed starting a food business with fish-filled pan-fried dumplings, and Zhou Jinian agreed to support him.

• Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian sold their vegetarian jerky to eager market customers, then brought the remaining stock to their stall and sold it all.
• Xie Ning exchanged the day’s earnings for four taels of silver, and Zhou Jinian praised his success.
• Xie Ning’s family ate at the Drifting Fragrance Restaurant, viewed courtyard houses, and bought one after asking the broker to ensure its well was clean and safe.
• Lin Jin discussed selling fried dough sticks and steamed buns after they moved, and Xie Ning suggested making fish-filled pan-fried dumplings instead.
• Zhou Jinian agreed to Xie Ning’s idea, while Lin Jin remained convinced that Xie Ning brought prosperity to the family.

After Zhou Sanfeng brought home a profitable haul, his relatives tried to get recipes and ideas from Ninglang, but Zhou Jinian deflected their demands. Xie Ning prepared a new fish dish and coaxed Zhou Jinian into joining him at Pool Cave.

• Zhou Sanfeng gave Grandmother Zhou the household's share of the money he had earned selling eggplants, and she urged him to find ways to sell more crops.
• Zhou's Eldest Daughter-in-Law and Zhou's Sixth Daughter-in-Law offered to handle other crops while fishing for Ninglang's ideas, but Zhou Jinian redirected them toward their learned relatives.
• Grandmother Zhou gave Zhou Sanfeng extra coins to buy paper and ink for Zhou Jinian, while Zhou Sifeng suspected his eldest brother had previously kept some grain-sale money.
• Lin Jin cooked chili and glutinous rice sauce in his courtyard as Zhou's Eldest Daughter-in-Law and Zhou's Sixth Daughter-in-Law abandoned their attempts to use the kitchen.
• Xie Ning finished preparing the sauce and planned to catch fish at Pool Cave for pan-fried fish dumplings; Zhou Jinian teased him before agreeing to go.

Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian sold their shrimp-paste pancakes and dried mock meat at the foot of Praying for Grace Temple during the Mid-Autumn Festival. Back home, Zhou Liufeng confronted Grandmother Zhou about household expenses and demanded that the family divide the household.

• Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian set up a food stall near the temple steps and attracted customers with their shrimp-paste pancakes.
• Lin Jin and Lin Guihua brought more stock at noon and found that the baskets had sold out.
• Zhou Sanfeng returned home with a bulging purse after the successful day's sales.
• Zhou Liufeng learned that Zhou Wenshu had attended a scholars' Mid-Autumn banquet and criticized the family for spending money.
• Zhou Liufeng told Grandmother Zhou that they had to divide the household.

Zhou Sanfeng’s family joined the Zhou household division, while Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning prepared to move to town. After several failed recipes, Xie Ning made fish wontons and told Zhou Jinian he wanted to open a restaurant, and he left determined to sell wontons to support his husband’s exam ambitions.

• Grandmother Zhou proposed dividing the household and putting the family fields under Zhou Liufeng’s name until he passed the xiucai examination, but the branches argued until they agreed to divide the household evenly.
• Zhou Sanfeng’s family stayed out of the arguments, and Zhou Jinian watched Xie Ning and Rong-ge'er play together by the doorway.
• Xie Ning failed to make fish buns and pan-fried dumplings, then made tender fish wontons with Lin Jin’s help.
• Zhou Jinian noticed Xie Ning’s fingertips were red from carrying the hot bowl and soaked his hands in water before praising the wontons.
• Xie Ning said he wanted to open a restaurant, and Zhou Jinian encouraged him and explained how an honest merchant should conduct business.
• After hearing Zhou Jinian tell stories about Tofu Xishi, Xie Ning declared that he would sell wontons to support his husband.

Zhou Jinian gave Xie Ning control of the household money and grew more openly affectionate as Ninglang’s health improved. On moving day, Xie Ning’s father and brother helped the Zhou family reach their new home in Upper North Alley, where Lin Jin began carrying in the grain.

• Zhou Jinian put his money pouch in Xie Ning’s hand and told him to manage the household finances, then kissed him and planned to raise fish to keep him well fed.
• Zhou’s Sixth Daughter-in-Law quarreled with Zhou Liufeng over his books and complained that he could not cook.
• Zhou Jinian found Xie Ning practicing writing and gently kissed him after he finished.
• Zhou Jinian hired two ox carts, and the Zhou family moved their belongings with help from Xie Ning’s father and elder brother.
• Xie Dashu asked whether Xie Ning still got fevers, then embarrassed him by telling him to consummate his marriage more often and give the Zhou family a grandson.
• The group reached Upper North Alley, and Lin Jin carried the grain into the courtyard.

After moving into their new home in town, Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian shared a meal with their relatives and grew closer as husband and husband. Days later, Zhou Jinian took Xie Ning back to the village to catch fish, keeping the purpose of a bottle from the apothecary secret.

• Zhou Sanfeng set up an incense burner as the family and helpers moved into the new courtyard, and Xie Ning cooked a feast for everyone.
• Xie Dashu and Xie Yao praised Zhou Jinian for caring for Xie Ning before returning to the village.
• Xie Ning flirted with Zhou Jinian in their room, and Zhou Jinian taught him the first step of consummating their marriage.
• After several days in town, the family built a pond, and Zhou Jinian took Xie Ning back to the village to catch fish.
• Zhou Jinian bought a small porcelain bottle at an apothecary and refused to tell Xie Ning what it was for; Xie Ning followed him into the Zhou family courtyard in a huff.

Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning visited Lin Guihua, heard about Sixth Sister-in-law leaving after a fight with Sixth Brother, then went to the mountain and consummated their marriage at the water. The chapter left Xie Ning resting in Zhou Jinian’s arms.

• Xie Ning and Zhou Jinian visited Lin Guihua, who asked them to tell Xie Ning’s father that her family would accept a kind and good-natured match for Rong-ge'er.
• Lin Guihua explained that Sixth Sister-in-law had returned to her parents’ home with the baby after Sixth Brother kicked her out during a quarrel.
• Zhou Jinian carried Xie Ning up the mountain when Xie Ning could not keep up, and Xie Ning promised he would not complain about Jinian’s studies.
• At the water, Zhou Jinian drew Xie Ning close and used the porcelain bottle before consummating their marriage.
• Afterward, Zhou Jinian cradled Xie Ning until his breathing steadied.

Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning enjoyed an afternoon at the cave pool before returning to Qingshui Town, where a retired official’s grand procession delayed them at the gate. They reached home after dark and learned the official would stay in a mansion outside town.

• After Xie Ning fell asleep, Zhou Jinian caught fish in the pool, and Xie Ning later found an underwater exit while searching for shrimp; Zhou Jinian forbade him from exploring it.
• Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning returned toward town on their ox cart, where they found the gate closed to traffic for an arriving procession.
• A retired official from the capital entered Qingshui Town in lavish carriages accompanied by a long convoy, while the town magistrate and officials greeted him.
• After the crowd dispersed, Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning returned home late, poured their fish into the pond, and joined the family for dinner.
• Zhou Sanfeng said he had heard that the official would stay in a mansion outside town on East Street, reputedly furnished with gold-inlaid designs.

Zhou Sanfeng’s family opened a fish wonton stall in town, where brisk business led them to plan an expanded menu. As Zhou Jinian’s academy examination approached, Xie Ning prepared food and provisions for him and Xie Yao, who had come to stay.

• Zhou Sanfeng, Lin Jin, and Xie Ning opened their wonton stall at the entrance to Upper North Alley and sold out of filling on their first day.
• The family discussed preparing more food and adding fish wonton noodles to meet the demand.
• Xie Yao came to stay with the family so he could attend Zhou Jinian’s upcoming academy examination more conveniently.
• Xie Ning made cakes, zongzi, and shrimp rice provisions for Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao to take to the examination.
• Xie Yao tasted Xie Ning’s shrimp rice porridge and praised his cooking.

Xie Ning helped at the wonton stall and attracted the unwanted attention of Zhu Dachang, who tried to order him around. That night, Zhou Jinian held Xie Ning close before leaving for the academy examination in the county town.

• Xie Ning left home with sweet rice dumplings and went to help at the wonton stall while Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao studied.
• Lin Jin served Xie Ning hot fish soup and a roasted sweet potato as he warmed himself by the brazier.
• Zhu Dachang watched Xie Ning and had his attendant demand that he peel garlic, but Xie Ning calmly peeled some and returned home.
• Zhou Jinian climbed beneath Xie Ning's quilt and embraced him before his ten-day absence for the academy examination.

Xie Ning stayed home while Zhou Sanfeng and Lin Jin ran their wonton stall, keeping him away from Zhu Dachang, who had been harassing the family. Meanwhile, Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao prepared for the prefectural examination and joined the candidates in line on the day it began.

• Zhou Jinian made ginger soup for Xie Ning, then left with Xie Yao to travel to the examination town.
• Xie Ning helped his family prepare for the stall, but Lin Jin sent him home when he saw Zhu Dachang sitting there with two companions.
• Zhu Dachang paid for his meal and left with his companions, and Zhou Sanfeng and Lin Jin discussed opening a shop if their son passed.
• Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao stayed at the quiet Tong Family Inn to study for the prefectural examination.
• Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao went to the examination site before dawn and joined the queue with their guarantor and other candidates.

Zhou Jinian completed the prefectural qualifying examination calmly and left the examination grounds with Xie Yao. Afterward, Zhou Wenshu and Zhou Liufeng joined their classmates for a drunken celebration, while Zhou Liufeng privately resolved to pass on his tenth year of examinations.

• Zhou Jinian passed the strict entrance inspection and settled into his examination cubicle before the education commissioner announced the start.
• Zhou Jinian answered the Four Books questions, ate the provisions Xie Ning had prepared, and composed a poem on the theme of lotus.
• The education commissioner admired Zhou Jinian's composure and elegant handwriting as he inspected the candidates' papers.
• After the papers were sealed, Zhou Jinian declined Zhou Wenshu's invitation and returned to the Tong Family Inn with Xie Yao.
• Zhou Wenshu, Zhou Liufeng, and their classmates drank and talked about romantic prospects, while Zhou Liufeng resolved to pass the examination in his tenth year.

Zhou Jinian took first place in the prefectural examination, while Xie Yao placed tenth. After returning home, Zhou Jinian told Xie Ning he had become a xiucai, and his family celebrated the news.

• Zhou Jinian invited Zhou Wenshu for a drink after the examination, but Zhou Wenshu declined, knowing he had performed poorly.
• Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao waited five days for the results, then learned that Xie Yao ranked tenth and Zhou Jinian was the first-class top scorer.
• Third Zhou and his wife worried about Zhu Dachang's repeated visits and told Xie Ning to stay inside the courtyard.
• Xie Ning welcomed Zhou Jinian and Xie Yao home, then cooked fish while Zhou Jinian helped tend the stove.
• Zhou Jinian told Xie Ning that he was now a xiucai's husband, and Xie Ning celebrated before Third Zhou and his wife congratulated their son.
• Zhou Jinian carried Xie Ning to their bed after they returned to their room.

Zhou Jinian was proclaimed the top scorer in the county, prefectural, and academy examinations, astonishing the townspeople and leaving Zhou Wenshu bitter over the broken engagement to Xie Ning. The successful results made the family’s wonton stall famous, and Xie Ning began helping there in public.

• Xie Yao returned to the village, and five days later the county magistrate arrived to announce Zhou Jinian’s examination results.
• The county magistrate named Zhou Jinian the top scorer and gave him a stipend, while Xie Ning and the townspeople reacted with amazement.
• In Great Well Village, Zhou Liufeng became a scholar, Zhou Sifeng celebrated his brother’s success and his pregnant wife, and Zhou Wenshu brooded over his own failure and his family’s broken engagement to Xie Ning.
• The townspeople credited Zhou Jinian’s success to the fish dishes at the Zhou family’s wonton stall, bringing it a rush of customers.
• With Zhou Jinian’s support, Xie Ning started going out to help at the busy stall.

Xie Ning persuaded his family to open a shop in town, and Zhou Jinian helped secure a suitable property. After Master Zhu invited local scholars to a banquet at Plum Blossom Manor, Zhou Jinian set out to attend, aware that Zhu hoped to win the scholars’ favor.

• Xie Ning proposed opening a shop in town, and Zhou Jinian and Lin Jin supported him until Zhou Sanfeng agreed.
• Zhou Jinian comforted Xie Ning, and the two spent the night together.
• A messenger delivered Zhou Sanfeng an invitation from Plum Blossom Manor and a basket of eggs for Zhou Jinian.
• Zhu Dachang visited the Fragrance House, where Xiangniang hurried to accommodate him after his attendant rebuked her.
• Zhou Jinian and Xie Ning chose a shop near the market for three taels of silver in monthly rent.
• Zhou Jinian left with Xie Yao and Zhou Liufeng to attend Master Zhu’s banquet at Plum Blossom Manor.