Great Tang Idyll

Volume 02

"Xiao'bao, do you see those people? They're probably the ones who bought that manor. They don't seem like they're easy to deal with. He's so hedonistic; do you think he is the son or the grandson of the royal family?"

Wang Juan's also turned her head pretending to be curious. She took a glance with her eyes widened and then she mouthed the words to Zhang Xiao'bao.

Zhang Xiao'bao had been cooperating with Wang Juan for more than a year so they understood each other really well. After that brief glance, both of them divided up the work—Wang Juan focused on observing that child and the people surrounding him, while Zhang Xiao'bao watched the behaviors of the other people on the first floor.

Just now he caught a glimpse of that woman and he read the expression in her eyes. Then, he replied to Wang Juan, "I can't tell. He's probably not a very important person. The two people Yao Chong sent aren't that scared of this child. Maybe he's a distant relative of the royal family. At least, he's not Li Long'ji's son or grandson and he's not from the family of the prince that stepped down."

"Are you sure? Li Long'ji has five brothers. He gives others the impression that he values brotherhood, yetat the same time he puts his brothers under surveillance. He's coming over; have you figured out how to deal with him? It's not easy to work with a prodigal person. Even if you give him business trades to earn money, he might not put effort into it. He just wants to take our place."

Knowing that Zhang Xiao'bao could not make accurate judgments due to the lack of information, Wang Juan became a little anxious. Although she belonged to the Wang Manor, if something happened to Zhang Xiao'bao's side, her family would try to run away too. If worst comes to worst, they could sell both manors together. However, she knew what Zhang Xiao'bao's stance was: these lands were his family's life, and he would not let others take it away.

If something happened to Zhang Xiao'bao, what else can she pursue in her life? That would be true. With him, the two of them can talk about things that only the two of them can understand. They can help each other,encourage each other, and rely on each other. If she was just by herself, the world would become gray.

Zhang Xiao'bao smiled sweetly, "Don't worry. It's good that he's a prodigal. Trickery can be used on a gentleman and bribery can be used on a villain. There are ways to deal with a young prodigal like him. Later, when we go back, we'll send out a notice to organize a game for the kids on the Zhang, Wang, and Ge manors.

The winner will get five pine flower eggs¹. I'll start making pine flower eggs when I get back. Although other people may like it, I actually dislike eating that the most. In addition to the eggs, the person will also receive a medal made from a tael of silver. The first game is a Rubik's Cube competition.

The second game will test their understanding of history. The winner will be given the same medal but it will be made of gold instead and they'll be given 50 pine flour eggs. The third game isan intelligence test; we will come up with two brain teasers. The reward will be a silver metal and 10 pine flower eggs one.

The fourth game will be a calligraphy petition. The reward is a gold medal and 50 pine flower eggs. After the four games, whoever won the most will be given a trophy. It has to be big and made of iron. The surface has to be coated with a layer of gold. It should be two meters tall, and the diameter will be half a meter. "

Wang Juan saw Zhang Xiao'bao's confident appearance and she knew that he had a plan. After she finished listening to him describe the four games, she still had no idea what Zhang Xiao'bao was trying to do.

"How does this relate to whether that guy is hedonistic or not? It is not good for the body to eat too many pine flower eggs. If you give them fifty at once and they eat all of them all by themselves, then it would be bad if they get nauseated from it." Wang Juan did not quite understand what Zhang Xiao'bao's was thinking of.

Zhang Xiao'bao looked at the waiter who was stopped the child to explain that there was no spots left upstairs, and said to Wang Juan, "The second and fourth games are prepared just for him. He is still young, so he would definitely want to play. If you don't invite him, he will force his way into the game. You have to consider what kind of education he received before. In terms of history and calligraphy, which child on the three Manor can compare to him?

For a person like him, the things he has to learn will not be ordinary. Even if he didn't like learning, he still has to pretend to learn a little bit so he must be more knowledgeable than the children on the Manor. Plus, the remaining two games are more fun, and there will be a lot of children playing with him. There is no way he could resist this kind of enticement. "

"Rubik's Cube? If this thing is made of wood, it won't be that durable, right?" Wang Juan now understood that there are unique ways to deal with hedonistic people. Rubik's Cubes were suppose to be made of plastic so it was more durable. Given the day and age, the other option was metal, but metal is too heavy so only wood can be used. However, if wood was used, the moving parts are prone to breakage due to friction.

"It depends on what kind of wood it is. We'll find some good wood, and it will last for at least a few days. As long as this thing is made, when a cube breaks or is taken apart, other people will be able to replicate the design. Kites are more prone to breakage, but many people still fly kites. How much do you think a silk kite cost? How much does a Rubik's Cube cost?"

Zhang Xiao'bao corrected Wang Juan's pragmatic thinking. When playing, people tend to ignore the cost, such as lighting firecrackers. The most important thing is to achieve the goal.

"Alright, I'll listen to you. I can play Rubik's Cube with just one hand. What you have to solve now is that those people want to go upstairs and they seem ready to force their way up. Should we let go to the second floor? If they go up, then what should be done about those two people??"

Wang Juan moved her little hand as if she was playing with a Rubik's Cube, and then she asked Zhang Xiao'bao to solve this conflicting situation.

Zhang Xiao'bao also understood that if they let that kid go upstairs, then it will be hard to explain to others. He told the waiter standing to the side, "I'm going home."

He opened his arms while talking, which suggested to the waiter to carry him in his arms. The waiter was so excited that he didn't know what to do when he saw that the Young Master wanted him to carry him. His eyes widened in disbelief, and he found another waiter. The two of them each carried a toddler while pushing the bicycle and left the restaurant. They walked nearly a hundred meters before putting Zhang Xiao'bao and Wang Juan down.

The waiter that was carrying Zhang Xiao'bao just now rushed back to the restaurant. Seeing that those people were still asking to go upstairs and were ready to fight, he said quickly, "My distinguished guests, there really are no spots left on the second floor. However, if you want to view the faraway scenery from up high, you can go to the highest level. We can set up a tent canopy up there, and you can drink and enjoy the scenery. It's just that the price..."

The wait didn't continue talking and he looked at the eleven or twelve year old child.

"We can go to the top? How much does it costs? Hurry and show me the way." The child really didn't care about the money.

"It costs one hundred taels of silver to dine up there. Do you want to go up now?" The waiter's voice trembled when he said this. It was way too expensive. If this wasn't the Young Master's instruction he would never dare to ask for 100 taels of silver.

The child looked at the people around him. When he saw that they all showed troubled expressions, he knew that none of them carried that much silver on them. He put his hand his sleeve, which obviously looked heavy, and when he took his hand back out, he was holding a pouch in his hand. He opened the pouch, and took out a few bright yellow objects from it. There was a bunny, a pony, and even a small fish. He handed it over to the waiter.

"I only have this, is it enough?" After throwing out this sentence, he walked up.

"It's enough, it's enough, but these..."

"Take good care of it. Someone will come over with silver to take back these items in exchange. If any item is missing, then say goodbye to you head."

A person among the group interrupted the waiter with a threat, and when the person scoffed at him when he followed the rest of the group upstairs.

Seeing that the group had went upstairs, the waiter did not dare to dawdle, and he ran outside with the items. He had an idea what the items were. He heard from others that when people in the palace reward people, they give out pieces of gold that are special shaped and have a symbol imprinted on it.Even if no one came to exchange it, he would not even dare to spend the gold pieces.

The waiter knew that the manager would not be able to handle a matter this large, so his only choice was to deliver it to the Young Master and see what arrangements he will make.

"People can go up to the roof top?" The woman was still thinking about the jade pendant. At the moment, she couldn't recall who would have such a thing, but she knew that it was definitely from the palace. Seeing that the people had left, she asked the waiter.

"Yes, it's possible. The rooftop has no covering, and it stands among the floating clouds. The price is a bit high so ordinary people don't go up there." The waiter was sharp-witted and knew how to answer questions.

"Young sister, since we're pretty much done eating, how about we head back earlier." The man spoke. He was thinking about the identities of those two children, and he was planning to follow behind them and see.

"Okay, we should be going now." The woman was aware of the situation now. They can investigate those people upstairs later, but the tasks that the Prime Minister's assigned to them can't be delayed. The two children were absolutely unusual. As soon as she moved, there were people that tried to protect them, so how could they be ordinary people?

The two payed their bills, and left with one person following closely behind the other person. Not all of the dishes were served yet, and the side dishes on the table were untouched. When the two of them left the restaurant to chase after them, at a far distance ahead, they saw the waiter who was given the gold pieces was talking to the two children about something. Because they were too far away, they couldn't hear the conversation, so they had to keep going forward.

After walking a few dozen steps forward, the waiter had turned around and was walking back. The two children were sitting on something odd looking, and their legs were moving extremely quickly. The roads in this area of the Manor were made well, and were pressed down really hard to make the road more flat and solid. Since it hasn't rain recently, the road was still in good condition. The man and woman wanted to go to them, but they were stopped by the waiter. By the time they got rid of the waiter and continued to chase after them, the two children and their odd ride had arrived on a little hill.

Just when the men and women were happy and thought they would be able to catch up, they did not expect that one of the toddler had something in their mouth, and when the child blew hard on it, a sharp piercing sound had spread far and wide. The Manor's little kids, who refused to answer their questions earlier on, all rushed to a place in the front.

Nearly thirty people surrounded the two little toddlers, and then they saw that the two little toddlers were sitting on top of that unknown thing and they were carried forward by others.

Seeing this scene, the man and the woman finally gave up their plans of continuing the chased. The woman looked there and said, "They're the little masters of the Zhang Manor and Wang Manor. The few restaurant guests who were eating on the first floor that stood up were the manor's residents."

The man also agreed, "Well, no wonder the two little children dared to come out to play. After a whistle sounded, everyone on the manor who heard it got into action. Look over there, the adults of the families that lived near by are outside now too."

Translator's Notes

1. Pine flower eggs

This is a type of preserved duck egg that is produced by chemically cooking the egg by soaking raw duck eggs in an alkaline mixture of clay, ash, quicklime, salt, and rice hulls. After a while, the egg white will turn clear black and chewy, while the yolk will turn creamy and greyish. The name "pine flower" comes from the pattern that appears on the peeled egg.