Chapter 25: The Triplet Trade Masters
If Su Yanyue was the brain behind the tea business, then the triplets considered themselves the unofficial executives—self-appointed and unchallenged.
Which is how, one fine morning, the usually peaceful village square turned into a chaotic "business school" led by three small boys with identical faces and dangerously inflated confidence.
Su Lin, the boldest of the trio, stood on a wooden crate he had dragged from behind the storage shed.
"Alright! If you wanna be rich like our auntie," he yelled, hands on his hips, "you gotta learn the TRICKS OF THE TRADE!"
A dozen village children stared up at him with wide eyes. Some had brought broken toys. Others clutched sweet potatoes like currency.
Su Rui stood beside him, holding up a piece of bark with squiggles. "This is our official trade license. Issued by… uh… Supreme Village Authority."
Su Zhi, the quiet one, held up a jar of candied plums like it was gold.
The first lesson began.
"Step one!" Su Lin barked. "Look more important than you actually are."
He wrapped a faded scarf around his neck like a merchant's sash and puffed his chest.
"Step two," Su Rui continued, "NEVER accept the first price. Even if they offer you eggs, say you want eggs plus one chicken feather!"
Su Zhi nodded solemnly. "Always look like you know a secret. People trust that."
The children nodded, scribbling on leaves or dirt with sticks.
Then came the practical training.
Su Lin dragged over a pile of rocks and declared them "premium tea stones" that "made water taste smarter." He traded three of them for a boiled yam.
Su Rui convinced a wide-eyed boy that if he wore his shirt backwards, he'd seem mysterious—and mysterious boys got better deals.
Su Zhi quietly passed out samples of plum candy and told a girl she now owed him "loyalty."
By midmorning, chaos had descended.
One child ran past, trying to sell a caterpillar as a "rare tea leaf." Another stood by the well, charging "viewing fees" for water.
A woman passing by tripped over a chicken wearing a twig crown—"a limited-edition product," according to the triplets.
---
Meanwhile, Su Yanyue was slicing ginger in the kitchen when Aunt Zhao stormed in.
"Your boys—your nephews—they've turned my daughter into a carrot merchant!"
Yanyue blinked. "A… what?"
"She's been shouting 'two carrots for one smile!' for the past hour!"
Yu Shiming, sipping tea nearby, choked and quickly looked away.
Yanyue sighed and wiped her hands. "I'll handle it."
---
She found the triplets near the well, arguing over whether sticks should count as "shares."
"Boys," she called, arms crossed.
All three froze.
Su Lin dropped the rock he'd been bartering. "We were just… empowering the youth."
Su Rui grinned. "We even paid one child! In compliments!"
Su Zhi held up a list. "We made five trades. No one cried. Much."
Yanyue raised an eyebrow. "No one cried?"
A wail erupted from behind a tree. "He sold me DIRT!"
Su Zhi lowered his paper.
She knelt, looking at them all seriously. "No more fake lessons. If you want to teach, you must learn first. Understand?"
They groaned in unison.
"But," she added with a tiny smirk, "if you behave, I might let you help package the tea for the next market trip."
Their eyes lit up.
"Really?"
"Yes. But no tricking the chickens into investing this time."
"...Deal," Su Lin mumbled.
---
And so, the triplet-run "Business Academy" closed its doors—temporarily.
But the whispers in the village had changed.
They were no longer just about the tea girl.
They were about her boys—little troublemakers with big ideas.
And in a strange way, that made Su Yanyue smile.
Because where there was mischief, there was creativity.
And where there was creativity…
There was opportunity.