Chapter 28

Qin Fangniang was both nervous and excited, and she couldn’t stop talking about farming experiences.

This was also the first time Sang Luo had seen ancient city walls and gates with her own eyes. As they got closer, she found that they were not as magnificent as she had imagined. They were indeed simple and rustic, made of plain soil, and when Sang Luo looked up, she estimated that they were no more than five meters high.

The three large characters “Qiyang County” above the city gate were not the same as the simplified characters used in Sang Luo’s original time and space, but more like ancient traditional characters.

Fortunately, the original owner knew some characters. Although she didn’t study as much as her brothers at home, she learned some common characters while learning needlework and housekeeping from her mother. Therefore, Sang Luo didn’t become semi-literate after crossing over.

By now, it was already bright outside, and people entering the city had formed long queues. Sang Luo and Qin Fangniang hurriedly joined the queue behind, moving forward in order along with the people pushing carts, carrying loads, and carrying baskets in front of them.

There were three guards with spears at the city gate, two in charge of incoming traffic and one in charge of outgoing traffic.

“What are you here for? Show your public inspection and assessment document!”

Sang Luo quickly retrieved the document from her sleeve and handed it over.

Probably for preservation purposes or because paper was expensive, the entry and exit documents used by the common people in the county were not made of paper but rather rectangular wooden plaques. Sang Luo’s name, place of origin, family situation, and other information were all recorded on it. The guard checked it and then handed it back to Sang Luo.

Having observed how people entered the city ahead of her, Sang Luo then took out two copper coins from her sleeve and handed them over, saying, “Here are the entrance fees for me and my sister-in-law.”

She gestured to Qin Fangniang, who was standing behind her.

Qin Fangniang was a bit flustered and handed her own document to the guard. After the guard allowed her to pass, she quickly handed a copper coin to Sang Luo, saying, “My mother said that if our goods couldn’t be sold, we would have trouble paying. But I think we can sell them, so we’ll cover this ourselves.”

Sang Luo found it amusing but didn’t refuse. She accepted the coin.

She knew her own goods well enough. They wouldn’t go unsold.

Seeing Sang Luo accept it, Qin Fangniang breathed a sigh of relief.

Once they entered the county town, Qin Fangniang’s eyes were everywhere.

Entering the city at this time meant there were many people. Most of them were pushing carts, carrying loads, and having various items with them. But the most eye-catching thing was the grandeur of the county town’s buildings. Qin Fangniang muttered to herself, “The houses in this county town are really nice. In our area, only the Wang family has houses like these. Here, every household has one. It’s so grand.”

Sang Luo nodded. In her opinion, the county town couldn’t be considered grand, but compared to Shili Village, it was indeed grand.

Qin Fangniang took a few steps and then looked down at the stone-paved road. Her rough cloth shoes felt comfortable to walk on. “This road is so clean, and it’s all paved with stone slabs. How many slabs would it take?”

She thought to herself that on rainy days, walking on this road wouldn’t soak your shoes in mud. It was clean and easy to walk on.

Wait a minute—clean?

Qin Fangniang stopped in her tracks, clutching the carrying pole with both hands. She looked at the extremely clean street in front of her, dumbfounded.

She swallowed, although there was no saliva, and subconsciously looked at Sang Luo. “Sister-in-law, where do we set up our stall?”

This was different from the market in the village. There wasn’t a single stall by the roadside.

Sang Luo looked at the people in front of her who were carrying goods into the city and was about to suggest following them when she heard three drumbeats not far ahead, accompanied by loud shouts: “The market is open!”

As soon as the drum sounded, the speed of the people who had just entered the city with carts, loads, and baskets suddenly increased, and they all rushed in one direction.

It turned out that there was a dedicated market. Sang Luo quickly called out to Qin Fangniang, “Aunt, let’s follow them.”

The crowd poured into a space not far from the city gate, surrounded by buildings, which was the market specially set up by Qiyang County. The drum that had just been struck was placed on the second floor platform of a two-story building at the entrance of the market.

Looking into the market from the gate, there were already many small stalls set up, and a few residents of the county were carrying empty baskets inside. For people like Sang Luo and Qin Fangniang, who had just arrived, they were a bit late.

Entering the market also required queuing up. Sang Luo craned her neck to look ahead. At the front of the line was an old man pushing a cart. At this moment, he had stopped his one-wheeled cart at the market gate, took out a copper coin from his sleeve, and handed it respectfully to the gatekeeper holding a whip.

The gatekeeper glanced at the several cloth bags on the old man’s cart before accepting the money. He then turned around and threw the money into a copper basin behind him before handing the old man a rectangular wooden plaque about the size of a child’s hand. The old man tucked the wooden plaque into his sleeve before pushing his cart inside again.

Qin Fangniang’s lips trembled as she whispered to Sang Luo, “Why do we still have to pay for this?”

The middle-aged man in front of them turned to look at Sang Luo and Qin Fangniang and said, “It’s been a while since you’ve sold anything in the county, hasn’t it?”

He could tell they were familiar with the trade.

Sang Luo hurriedly asked for advice, “Big brother, it’s our first time here. Didn’t we already pay an entrance fee when we entered the city? Why do we have to pay again to enter the market?”

The man glanced at the gatekeeper ahead and then turned to Sang Luo and Qin Fangniang, saying, “It’s a new rule from three months ago. You have to pay a market tax to enter the market. It depends on what you’re selling. Everyday items and foodstuffs like grains and vegetables, which are not too expensive, cost one coin per person to enter the market.”

Glancing at the goods they were carrying, he lowered his voice and advised, “If you have a lot of goods, it’s fine to pay one coin. The market is bustling with people, and things sell quickly. But if you have fewer goods, you can wander the streets and alleys to sell. Just be careful not to set up stalls on the main streets. If the patrolling officers catch you, you’ll be fined five coins, or even more.”

Sang Luo understood that this was another tax imposed by the authorities.

Qin Fangniang was a bit anxious. They hadn’t even sold anything yet, but they had already paid two coins upon entering the city, and now they had to pay another two coins to enter the market. Four coins were a significant amount for farmers. It felt like throwing money away for nothing.

“Alie’s wife, let’s split up and sell our goods.”

“No rush,” Sang Luo reassured her, then asked the middle-aged man, “Big brother, is the market tax charged per person, regardless of the quantity of goods?”

The man nodded, “It’s per person.”

“How many markets like this does the county have? Do they all impose market tax?”

Seeing that she wasn’t worried about the money and was inquiring about the number of markets, the man smiled and said, “There are two; this is the East Market, and there’s another West Market on the other side of the county town. The market tax is the same for both.”

“If we sell while carrying goods, as long as we don’t set up stalls on the main paved roads, but just walk around selling, the patrolling officers won’t arrest us, right?”

“They won’t. If you want to be safe, sell in the alleys where people live.”

With this understanding, San Luo suggested to Qin Fangniang, “People in the county may not be familiar with fairy tofu yet. It’s better to sell in a crowded place like the market to make some sales. Since it’s our first time doing business, we aim for a good start. I suggest auntie enters the market, and I’ll cover the market tax for today.”

Sang Luo had an idea in mind. Qin Fangniang was introverted and shy; she might not be able to speak well while selling in the streets. Without good communication skills, it would be difficult to sell the two barrels of fairy tofu.

Qin Fangniang hesitated, “How can I let you pay?”

The middle-aged man beside them overheard their conversation about fairy tofu and became curious. He glanced at the barrels and baskets they were carrying, but one was covered with a wooden lid, and the other with lotus leaves, so he couldn’t see anything.

Seeing Qin Fangniang hesitating over one coin for the market tax, he said, “It’s okay if you don’t have money now. When you enter, just tell them you’ll pay later. If you haven’t paid the tax, the gatekeeper will give you a green card. Later on, someone will check the cards inside. After you’ve sold your goods and have money, you can come back to pay the market tax and exchange the green card for a red one.”

Understanding that they could sell their goods first and pay the tax later, Qin Fangniang felt relieved, but she still felt reluctant to spend the money.

Sang Luo had already quickly slipped a copper coin into Qin Fangniang’s hand and smiled, “Auntie, since it’s your first time doing business, you need to create a lively atmosphere. You can carry those two barrels of fairy tofu into the market to sell later. I’ll cover the market tax. Since I’m carrying fewer goods and they’re similar to yours, I’ll sell them outside, wandering the streets and alleys, to get familiar with the town.”

Qin Fangniang was astonished, “Sell both of those barrels for me?”

She felt a bit foolish. Was this Alie’s wife unable to do calculations? She gave her the surplus, so for every piece she sold, she would have to deduct half a penny.

The one-penny entrance fee was already spent, and now she had to help her pay one penny for market tax. Moreover, she gave her all the surplus goods to sell in the market, while she took the lesser part to sell outside. What was the intention behind all this?

An honest person who had never taken advantage of others in their life, she felt incredibly uneasy when someone so blatantly offered her such an advantage. She felt hollow on the inside.

“How about I take your basket and sell it while you go into the market?”

Her unease was evident in her face.

Sang Luo smiled, “Auntie, you stay here and sell. With such heavy items, you carried them for ten miles. How could I take advantage of you like this? Besides, this is just a one-time cooperation. In the future, we’ll each do our own thing. I also want to wander around and get to know the area near the West Market.”

She patted Qin Fangniang, “It’s settled then. You go ahead in line. I’ve filled these two barrels today. There are forty pieces inside. It’s hard to say who will sell out first. Regardless of who finishes first, we’ll meet at the east gate of the market.”

Without waiting for Qin Fangniang’s hesitation, she gave her most of the stuff from the basket, including the leaves and everything needed for sampling, since there was only one bamboo knife. Since she had fewer goods, she directly cut the samples and put them in another bowl, giving Qin Fangniang the bamboo knife. After thanking the middle-aged man who had just enlightened them, she left the line with her own basket and headed towards the county town.

In just that moment of hesitation, Qin Fangniang ended up holding the penny in her hand, feeling confused.

As Sang Luo left, Qin Fangniang regretted almost biting her tongue. Why was she so stingy over one or two pennies? Even if she didn’t have money on hand, couldn’t she have taken the green card first? She scolded herself for being so slow and stupid.

In the time it took to think about it, several people in front had entered the East Market. In no time, it was Qin Fangniang’s turn. She handed over the penny Sang Luo had given her and received a red card with two characters engraved on it. When she looked outside again, she couldn’t even see Sang Luo’s shadow anymore.