Chapter 18: A Meat Bun in Sight, but Out of Reach

Hong Xiaoduo was just about to ask about the travel permit, but the projection on the wall suddenly flickered with static, and then, it was just a blank, white wall. The old man’s voice came through intermittently: "Don't be anxious, I will solve it... will solve it... will sol..."

The lingering sound was fragmented. Hong Xiaoduo rubbed her forehead in silence; she knew that old geezer was unreliable!

She had been out of the space for a long time, and the water in the wooden tub had gone cold, but Hong Xiaoduo didn't rush to get out, fearing that as soon as she stood up, she would be pulled back into the space and seen by that old curator.

Eventually, the water became too cold to bear. With no other choice, she quickly stood up, wiped herself off haphazardly, and began to put on her robes.

She didn't have a hairdryer for her hair, so she wrung it out with a cotton cloth until it was half-dry. Remembering she didn't know how to style a bun, she simply used the guest room comb to tie it into a high ponytail.

She wrapped her discarded clothes in the cloth that had held her new ones, planning to wash them with hot water after eating. There was no need to throw them away; although she still had over ninety taels of silver on her, who knew if money would be easy to earn in the future? It was better to be frugal for now.

Even though she had re-established contact with the old curator today, they hadn't managed to discuss any real business. Still, it at least showed that the old man was even more anxious to establish contact than she was. Because of this, Hong Xiaoduo’s mood was more than just a little bit better.

Opening the door, she saw two little bald girls standing there. One was wearing a pale pink dress, and the other a pale yellow one. They were clean and fair, looking right at her.

"Mother?" the two bald girls called out, looking a bit shy.

"Oh, are you Yaoguang? And you are Yuheng?" If not for their large eyes and familiar voices, she really wouldn't have dared to recognize them.

Due to long-term malnutrition, now that they were washed clean and fair, they looked even thinner, and their lips weren't very rosy.

"Hungry, aren't you? Come on, let's go to the entrance and wait for Tianshu and the others." Hong Xiaoduo tucked her bundle of clothes under her arm and walked out, holding one girl in each hand. With five boys, there were too many of them; they wouldn't be finished washing so quickly.

At the entrance, four other little bald heads in new clothes were already waiting.

Seeing Hong Xiaoduo, they approached with shy, awkward expressions.

Looking at them now, it was no wonder that boy, A-Kuan, had slandered her for kidnapping little beggars to wash them up and sell them for a good price.

Once these children were washed clean and dressed in new clothes, their features were truly handsome—they were the kind of kids you’d immediately identify as little heartthrobs. Hong Xiaoduo couldn't find the words to describe how good-looking they were.

After waiting a short while, Tianshu was the last to walk over. He stood by her side with a shy smile, still feeling a bit unaccustomed to his clean, brand-new robes.

The shopkeeper’s mother followed closely behind, wiping her tears with her sleeves as she walked.

"What’s wrong, Granny? Did they misbehave and upset you?" Hong Xiaoduo knew that wasn't the case, but she asked anyway.

"Oh, young lady, how can there be such vicious people in this world? The children are already so pitiful, yet they weren't treated well. Look at all these injuries on their bodies." The old woman wept as she reached out to pull up the sleeve of the child nearest to her.

It was no wonder she was crying; now that they were clean, the purple-red and yellow-red marks—both fresh and old—were even more visible on their arms.

The marks were all in places not easily seen, except for the fresh wound on Tianshu’s forehead.

"Old Man Tong, he’s an old man, but his heart is aching terribly too," the old woman said, two more lines of tears falling.

"Don't cry, Granny, it doesn't hurt anymore," Yuheng said, using her sleeve to help wipe the old woman's tears.

"Good child, good child." The old woman took out her own handkerchief to wipe her eyes. "I heard you say, young lady, to only trim their hair short, but they were all infested with lice and nits. I took the liberty of calling a barber from the street to shave them all bald. Otherwise, it would be useless to change into new clothes; in a few days, they’d be covered in them again. You won't blame me, will you, young lady?"

Hong Xiaoduo was not the type to be ungrateful. She quickly said she didn't blame her at all and asked how much the haircut cost so she could pay.

The old woman said it wasn't necessary; the barber charged one wen per head, which wasn't much money.

Hong Xiaoduo thanked her out loud, but she made a mental note of the favor.

Old Man Tong, who had been helping Tianshu and the others bathe, also walked out, dragging a large cloth bag. Seeing that Hong Xiaoduo and the others were about to leave, he hurriedly called out to them.

"Is something the matter, sir?" Hong Xiaoduo asked.

"Yes, there is. In this bag are the old clothes they changed out of. I’ll drag them to a deserted place and burn them. But, should these things be thrown away too? The children didn't say they wanted them, but I didn't dare decide to throw them out on my own. I thought I’d ask if they were still of any use." As he spoke, Old Man Tong held up a handful of items.

They were tags hanging on strings. The tags were made of bamboo, and it looked like something was carved on them, though it was hard to see clearly.

Hong Xiaoduo asked Tianshu what these were.

Tianshu said he didn't know. He’d had it around his neck for as long as he could remember, and whenever a new companion was added, that wicked man would make one for them to wear as well.

So that was it. No wonder none of the children wanted to keep them.

Then they didn't need them. Hong Xiaoduo was just about to say so, but for some reason, she hesitated for a moment. She took the items from the old man and asked the children if they could remember which one they had worn.

They all looked the same to her, but the children quickly identified their own.

Hong Xiaoduo thought for a moment, cut off the dirty, discolored strings, and kept the bamboo pieces, handing them back to each child to look after.

She didn't know if she was overthinking it, but she just felt that these things shouldn't be thrown away; they might be useful later.

Think about it: that wicked man hadn't treated them well, so he certainly wouldn't have had the kindness to make them pendants to wear. What was the meaning of making them wear these?

Never mind. She couldn't figure it out now, so she’d keep them and think about it slowly.

Hong Xiaoduo led the string of handsome little bald heads toward the street. She no longer had to worry about any eatery refusing them entry—unless they hated making too much money.

They were all hungry, but she didn't rush to find an eatery. Instead, she first found a medical clinic and had a doctor apply medicine and bandage the wound on Tianshu’s forehead.

The anti-inflammatory and hemostatic herbal paste she had picked by the roadside had been washed away during his bath, and the wound hadn't healed yet.

With a handsome young lady carrying a sword leading seven good-looking little bald heads, people on the street all turned to look at them.

These gazes were kind and curious, not like the previous ones filled with disgust or, in a few cases, pity. The children were still a bit unaccustomed to it and lowered their heads shyly; a few were even walking with their left hand and left foot moving at the same time.

Oh dear, what should she take the children to eat?

Hong Xiaoduo looked at the eateries, noodle shops, bun shops, and wonton stalls by the roadside, feeling conflicted.

"What do you all want to eat?" she decided to ask the children.

"Steamed buns would be fine," Tianshu said first.

"Wonton soup, it's hot and very fresh," Kaiyang added.

As the other children named their food, Hong Xiaoduo felt a pang in her heart. They mentioned things like burnt flatbreads because they were cheap, or thin noodle soup.

In short, aside from the steamed buns and wonton soup, which were somewhat normal, the rest of the food they mentioned was stuff that others would find unappealing or wouldn't want to eat. In their eyes, however, those were delicacies they had longed for for a long time.

Seeing the children frequently looking toward the steamer selling buns, Hong Xiaoduo knew what she would take them to eat.

Just as she started walking toward the bun shop, a man who looked like a wealthy young master blocked her path, smiling lecherously: "Oh my, where did this young lady come from? Bringing seven little bald heads with you, where are you going? Do you want big brother to take you all to a nice place to have some fun?"

They were only a few steps away from the bun shop. Looking at the steaming baskets filled with plump, fragrant meat buns, why did someone have to ruin a good mood?

The fire in Hong Xiaoduo’s heart flared up instantly.

They didn't notice that in a tea house nearby, two young men were sitting by the window. One was about to stand up and come over, but the other said, "Stay calm, don't be a busybody. Didn't you see she’s carrying a sword at her waist?..."