Chapter 16.2: Spicy Boiled Fish

The shopkeeper’s wife glanced at the three of them, her disdain barely concealed. It was obvious she looked down on them—two men dressed in coarse, dark-colored fabric and a girl wearing patched-up clothes.

Wanqing remained composed, her expression calm as she looked around before asking, “Do you have cotton?”

“We do, but…”

The shopkeeper’s wife’s beady eyes flickered between Wanqing and Lin Heng. She was clearly wondering if they could even afford it.

Ignoring her scrutiny, Wanqing asked, “How much per jin?”

“50 wen per jin.”

Wanqing found the price acceptable and said loudly, “I’ll take 10 jin.”

The shopkeeper’s wife raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Instead, she discreetly glanced at Lin Heng.

Lin Heng immediately objected. Ten jin of cotton cost 500 wen! That amount could buy 50 jin of white rice or 150 jin of brown rice. Buying 5 jin was more reasonable.

But Wanqing had already made up her mind. She turned to her father and reasoned, “Dad, it’s not much. We have seven people in our family—this is barely more than a jin per person.”

Ignoring his protests, she asked the shopkeeper’s wife for the cheapest coarse cloth and whether she could offer a discount.

The shopkeeper’s wife shook her head. “No discounts, but I can round off the final price.”

After some comparison and negotiation, Wanqing bought 10 jin of cotton, enough coarse fabric for everyone to have a new outfit, and some sewing supplies—spending a total of 580 wen.

Of course, this wouldn’t be enough for winter, but buying too much at once would attract attention in the village. She could store more in her space, but explaining where it came from later would be tricky…

Thinking about it, Wanqing felt her space was quite useless—other than the spiritual spring water, it hadn’t been of much help. But then again, she reminded herself that just having spiritual water was already a blessing. Otherwise, her starting point in this world could have been much worse…

The shopkeeper’s wife, having rarely met such a generous customer, immediately changed her attitude. She beamed with joy, waved her handkerchief enthusiastically, and kept inviting Wanqing to come back again.

With each person’s basket now filled, Lin Heng finally said, “Qing’er, let’s go home.”

Wanqing, having shopped to her satisfaction, agreed. On the way back, she stopped at a bun shop and bought ten white flour buns. Seven were tucked away in their baskets, while the remaining three were handed out—one for each of them to eat on the road.

Just as she turned her head to glance at a nearby store, someone suddenly bumped into her. Instinctively, she turned and said, “Sorry.”

But in the very next second—her bun was snatched from her hand!

It happened so fast that her body reacted before her mind. Without thinking, she bolted after the thief.

Lin Heng and Zhiwen barely had time to process what had happened before Wanqing was already running.

The little thief was quick, darting through the crowd like a fish in water. He slipped into an alley in the blink of an eye, but Wanqing was right behind him.

Once inside the alley, with fewer people obstructing her path, Wanqing surged forward, closing the distance in an instant. She leapt at him, tackled him to the ground, and twisted his arm behind his back—elbow pointing upward—effectively pinning him down.

“How dare you steal in broad daylight! Do you have no respect for the law?”

The thief, panting hard, had barely recovered from the fall. He turned his head, surprised to see that the slender, bean-sprout-like girl had been able to outrun and overpower him.

Seeing that she was alone, he caught his breath and sneered, “It’s just a bun! Do you really have to chase me for this?”

Wanqing was furious. She had only eaten a few buns since coming to this world—how could he act like it was no big deal?

“And what gives you the right to steal my bun?”

The boy answered matter-of-factly, “Because you’re a girl. Who else am I supposed to steal from? The grown men around you?”

Wanqing: …?!

His twisted logic left her speechless.

For a moment, neither spoke. The boy, realizing he had no chance of escaping, simply lay flat on the ground in resignation. Wanqing, seeing that he wasn’t trying to attack her, loosened her grip slightly.

Sensing the shift, the thief immediately took advantage and sat up. He looked at her and said, “Relax, I won’t run. And I won’t hurt you.”

Wanqing remained wary, stepping back slightly while crossing her arms. She studied him—thin, dressed in rags, looking more like a beggar than a thief. He didn’t seem much older than her.

She asked, “How old are you? Where do you live? Where are your parents?”

The boy glared at her. “None of your damn business.”

Then, he held out the stolen bun and said, “Fine, I lost. Here’s your bun back.”

…A bun?

He still dared to call that thing a bun?

The once pristine white bun had been squashed beyond recognition in the boy’s desperate escape. His hands—who knew how long it had been since they were last washed?—were filthy, turning the white dough into something closer to black.

Wanqing was livid. Did she look like someone who would still eat that? Did she seem like the type to put that thing anywhere near her mouth?

The thief frowned. “If you didn’t want the bun, why chase me so hard?” Seeing that she had no intention of taking it, he withdrew his hand.

Why? Well, she had just reacted on instinct—something was stolen from her, so she chased after it.

But she wasn’t about to admit that to a little brat.

“It wasn’t about the bun—it was about justice!” Wanqing declared, voice full of righteousness. “Stealing and robbing should be stopped at all costs!”

For a moment, she felt a divine light shining upon her—as if she were some kind of saint.

The thief scoffed. “Pfft—yeah, right.”

“You little—!”

Before she could finish, Lin Heng and Zhiwen arrived, both panting from the chase. They hurriedly checked to make sure Wanqing was unharmed before asking what had happened.

Hearing that she had encountered a thief, both men were shocked.

Lin Heng glanced at the boy sitting on the ground. He didn’t look much younger than Zhiwen—just a scrawny, ragged youth. With a deep voice, he warned, “Son, no matter how hard life gets, you can’t resort to stealing. Today it was just a bun—if it had been money, you’d be hauled off to the authorities.”

The thief didn’t look particularly frightened, but he did nod obediently and repeatedly said, “Yes, yes, I understand.”

Wanqing, seeing that the boy wasn’t truly malicious, decided to let it go.

“That…blackened white bun is yours now.” She sighed, feeling strangely conflicted. “Go home.”

As they left the alley, Lin Heng was still lecturing. “The county town may be big, but you two shouldn’t always think about coming here just to wander around. Look at today—it was dangerous! What if that boy had a knife? One slash, and—”

Zhiwen nodded. This was his first time witnessing a robbery in the county town, and it completely changed his perception of the place.

“He wouldn’t have done that.” Wanqing said lightly.

She thought back to how, even after being caught, the boy had clutched the bun tightly. If he had wanted to, he could have just shoved it into his mouth the moment she grabbed him.

“As long as there’s still someone waiting for him at home.”

“Waiting for him?” Zhiwen didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”

Wanqing smiled. “I just mean… Mother must be waiting for us to go home too!”

She giggled and changed the subject. “Dad, let’s take the ox cart home! It’ll be faster!”