Chapter Forty-Eight: The Little Gourd Has Grown

At this moment, however, all the precious fish were gathered along the edge of the pond. The servants of the Gu household were astonished and whispered among themselves, pointing and gesturing in disbelief. Gu Li and the young attendant by his side were both dumbfounded, for at this time, the chubby little girl, Fubao, was holding a small fish fry in her hands, pursing her lips and blowing gently onto it.

What on earth was this? Normally, these fish stayed in the middle of the pond and were rarely seen near the shore. To see them at all, one had to take a small boat into the depths of the lotus pond. But as soon as this chubby girl appeared, the fish seemed to boil over with excitement, surging toward the bank as if in a frenzy.

“Brother, why don’t these little fish have wings?” Fubao asked, returning the fish fry to the water and poking a fat-headed carp.

The fat-headed carp could only endure it in silence. This little ancestor loved nothing more than poking him.

Fish aren’t birds, how could they possibly have wings? Gu Li was utterly bewildered as he watched the fish in the water flop about and put on a show, unable to stop himself from inwardly grumbling about his own grandfather. It was all his grandfather’s fault for buying such foolish fish!

Father Gu, for his part, silently took the blame.

“Ahem. Fubao, where is the little gourd I gave you last time?” Not wanting to continue what he considered a nonsensical conversation, Gu Li tried to change the subject. He suddenly remembered the small gourd he’d gifted her—not that he’d ever seen it on her person. Had she lost it?

“Oh, the little gourd? The one you gave me, Brother Li? It’s right here,” Fubao replied, pulling the small gourd from her sleeve.

“Brother, your gourd is really growing fast. Look, it’s already so big! I wonder when it will start to bear new gourds,” she said, holding the round little gourd in her hand.

The little gourd was indeed growing larger day by day, soon to bear even bigger fruit!

Upon seeing the gourd had grown noticeably, Gu Li was at a loss. What was going on? How could a gourd simply grow like that without being tended to? His mind raced with countless questions.

“How can this be? Why is your gourd getting bigger?” he asked in astonishment, taking the gourd from Fubao.

“It’s because of Shenshen! Shenshen said if you water the little gourd, it will grow,” Fubao replied in her childish voice, blaming Shenshen for making her brother’s gourd less cute, and pouting as she spoke.

Gu Li shook the gourd, hearing water sloshing inside.

“Shenshen? Who is Shenshen?” he asked, even more confused.

“Shenshen is just Shenshen!” Fubao answered, splashing at the water and giving the fat-headed fish another poke.

In the end, when it was time to go home, Fubao filled her little gourd with a few tiny fish fry.

The fish fry were so small as to be nearly invisible, and she left for home with Madam Meng, delighted.

Unable to make sense of the situation, Gu Li called for Gu Yun, who was away on business, to return home at once. After a round of severe questioning, Gu Yun insisted he was innocent and knew nothing.

As for Fubao, the fish fry she had tucked away in her gourd would not be thought of for a long time, and by the time anyone remembered, they would discover the fish fry inside had already undergone a most astonishing transformation. But that is a story for another time.

Bai Yulan, after staying here for a few days, suddenly felt her health had improved remarkably. She was sleeping soundly, and ever since her niece had given her that sachet, she felt invigorated and her complexion had improved. She thought that once she returned to the capital, she might replace the ginseng she was using for something even more effective.

Of course, this trip back to the capital would lead Bai Yulan to uncover a most unsavory matter, which made her all the more affectionate towards Fubao.

After a few days’ stay, Fubao’s mother took her home at last. They had been away from home for so long that even Fubao’s father seemed to have faded from memory; it was time to bring him out and let him stretch his legs.

Lin Sanlang could only lament his lack of presence in the household.

Upon returning home in a daze, he heard Old Madam Li talking about the recent troubles on the Changjiang. The news had unsettled many people. Meng Yun recalled that her own father had gone with her younger uncle and second cousin to a village near the Cangjiang, but had no idea how he was faring.