"What? You want to pay me? "Yu Shu held the abacus and tilted her head to look at Cao Zixin who was drinking tea at the counter.
"Well, I'll give you an extra ten copper coins every day."
"Why?" Yu Shu didn't lose her mind when it came to such a good thing as a raise in salary. She didn't believe in the free lunch. She needed a reason first.
Cao Zixin said, "You see, after you came, I've hired one less waiter and one more person to do the accounting, which saves me a lot of trouble. Shouldn't I give you two shares of money anyway?"
Twenty copper coins a day was only sixty taels of silver a month. For a shop with a monthly income of dozens of taels, it was not too much to spend sixty taels of silver to hire someone to help.
Yu Shu raised her eyebrows and reached out to him, "Then, do you want to give me a part of my previous salary first?"
She meant it as a joke, but Cao Zixin nodded and said, "You can calculate it."
Yu Shu knew that he meant what he said. She hesitated for a moment, then went to the abacus and made a series of calculations. She said, "Just give me seventy copper coins. But, you took half a month's salary from me to buy pen and paper. Deduct this seventy copper coins. You can continue to pay me my salary in four days."
"We don't calculate it like this. Deduct what should be deducted and pay what should be paid." Cao Zixin put down the teapot and took out a string of coins from the money box. He untied it, counted some, peeled it off, tied a knot, and handed the rest to her.
How could Yu Shu not see that Cao Zixin intended to help her? Although she was a little unhappy to be pitied, she didn't pretend to be noble. She took the money and thanked him.
Seeing that she was willing to accept it, Cao Zixin hid the persuasive words he prepared and teased,
"You've been wearing this robe for a few years. The sleeves have almost shrunk to your elbows. I have a few old clothes. If you don't mind, I can bring them to you tomorrow. Take it back and find someone to make it smaller. You can wear it. "
This time, Yu Shu firmly shook her head and said seriously, "Your clothes are too gaudy. They are either yellow or green. I'm not used to them. When I have money, I'll ask my auntie to sew another one for me. I won't pick up your old clothes."
Her salary was earned through her hard work. If she took his clothes for free, it would be considered charity. The meaning was different. She was still a person with some principles.
Cao Zixin didn't bring it up again and continued to drink his tea. He greeted the guests when they arrived.
Yu Shu made a quick plan. She only helped when there were a lot of guests. When she was free, she asked Cao Zixin to teach her how to read. She copied all the words on a piece of paper from the Qimen. In order to prevent Cao Zixin from noticing something, she deliberately picked words that were not on the same page to ask.
When the shop closed, the kite vendor across the street was still there. While Cao Zixin was closing the shop, Yu Shu took the opportunity to bargain with the vendor. She spent 20 copper coins to buy a beautiful kite with the body of an eagle. She also asked the vendor to make a bundle of string and a handle.
Cao Zixin locked the door and saw her happily playing with the newly bought kite. He walked over and asked, "Are you going for an outing?"
"Yes, with my brother," Yu Shu told him the truth and took the opportunity to ask for leave. "Manager, can you find a day when I'm free and let me rest for an afternoon? My brother is too tired from studying every day. I want to take him out to play."
Cao Zixin thought for a moment and said, "Tomorrow. I happen to be visiting a friend. I'll close the door at that time. You don't have to come tomorrow afternoon."
"That's great," Yu Shu clapped her hands and thanked him with her white teeth. "Thank you, shopkeeper."
Cao Zixin saw her smiling brightly, revealing a sharp little canine tooth at the corner of her mouth. Her carefree look was very infectious. An idea came to him and he couldn't help raising his hand to pat her head. Halfway through, he changed his direction and pointed to the intersection and said,
"I'm going to get a pot of wine. You should go back quickly."
"Then I'm leaving. I'll come earlier in the afternoon the day after tomorrow." Yu Shu waved at him and left briskly. She didn't go home directly. Instead, she took the remaining money and went to South Street to buy a few pieces of cake. She planned to eat them on the outing tomorrow.
***
After dinner, Yu Shu sat on the bed and counted the money. Yu Xiaoxiu sat at the table and concentrated on writing. He wasn't disturbed by her clanking.
"One, one, ten, fifteen, twenty …"
Not long ago, she got one tael of silver from Second Young Master Ji, who had an affair with a concubine in her stepfather's yard. She bought some snacks and the rest of the money she had earned these days. She had fifty cents of silver and a handful of copper coins.
She would return the thirty copper coins to the old shopkeeper of the bookstore tomorrow. Sister Zhao's wontons cost ten cents of silver for two bowls. Then she would go out to play the day after tomorrow and bring twenty cents of silver and this change.
Yu Shu divided the money into two portions. She put one portion into a small bag sewn by Aunt Liu and put it into the copper jar where she usually put things. She took out the kite that she had hidden before and walked quietly behind Yu Xiaoxiu. She raised her hand and stretched it out in front of him.
"Xiaoxiu, here you go."
Yu Xiaoxiu stared at the gray eagle that suddenly appeared in front of him. He reached out to take it and touched it over and over again. He lowered his voice in surprise: "Where did you get the kite?"
Children in ancient times were not fun, especially poor people. In Yu Shu's view, the temptation of a kite was equivalent to a remote control plane.
"I bought it with my salary today. Didn't we say that we were going out to play? I can't just run errands and do nothing." She also bought pastries. She would take him to eat wontons when she came back tonight.
"Go out to play?" Yu Xiaoxiu looked confused.
"Did you forget?" Yu Shu lifted her leg and squeezed him to sit down on the bench. "Didn't we agree to go out the night before yesterday? I told our shopkeeper that I won't go to work tomorrow afternoon. Don't say that you don't want to go out."
Of course, Yu Xiaoxiu didn't forget, but Yu Shu had said many times before that she would take him out to play. Usually, it was because she did something bad and needed him to take the blame. She didn't keep her promise. After a few times, he didn't believe her anymore. He didn't expect that she was serious this time.
"What's wrong? Say something. Are you going?" Yu Shu gently bumped Yu Xiaoxiu with her shoulder.
"Yes!" Because he answered too quickly, Yu Xiaoxiu turned his head and played with the kite in his hand. He whispered, "But I don't know how to fly a kite. I've only seen others do it."
"It's okay, I know," Yu Shu reached out and put her hand on his thin shoulder. She said affectionately, "Don't be afraid. You'll learn it if you run more. I'll teach you tomorrow."
"Okay." Yu Xiaoxiu touched the kite in his hand again. He secretly confirmed that it was not fake. He was indescribably happy, but he also wanted to cry. His eyes were sore. He didn't know why.
"Then go home early tomorrow after school. We'll go out after dinner. I've asked around. There is a large open space by the river in the east of the city. We can fly a kite. By the way, did you do your homework today? Will it rain tomorrow?"
"It's sunny." Yu Xiaoxiu paused, put down the kite, and carefully picked up the pen and paper again. "I'll calculate it again."
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