Chapter 21 1/2

When Ji Taoyu saw him father’s strong reaction, she felt a twinge of unease, but she didn’t deny it and simply nodded.

Ji Yangzong widened his eyes. “The villagers have privately told me that this person is not easy to get along with. He doesn’t even bother to greet people when he comes and goes, let alone respond when others greet him. So why did he take such care of you repeatedly? Could it be that this boy…”

“Father, can you please not jump to conclusions like that? Just because a man talks to me, you assume he has ulterior motives.”

Ji Taoyu hurriedly interrupted her father. “It’s embarrassing enough as it is, making people think I’m some kind of celestial beauty.”

Ji Yangzong furrowed his brow and gave Ji Taoyu a stern look. “You’re still young, and there are things you don’t understand.”

After finishing speaking, he patted Ji Taoyu’s hand and said, “Besides, my son is indeed a catch.”

Ji Yangzong continued, “Today at the gathering in the city, Li Zheng from Hongli Village asked about you. He said their second son is also of marriageable age.”

“I’ve met Li Zheng’s second son before. Although he’s not as handsome as the son from the You family, he has a decent appearance. Your father understands that scholars are good, but they have high ambitions, which ordinary families may not be able to handle. It’s better to find someone who can live a stable life.”

“That Li family’s second son is a reliable and hardworking man. He’s already built a fish pond and is making money.”

Seeing her father rambling on and on, Ji Taoyu realized he could talk more than her mother. Without waiting for him to finish, she interrupted, “I don’t understand anything. I’m going back to make medicine.”

“Oh, I know you’re still upset about You Erlang, but life goes on,” Ji Yangzong said, watching his son walk away without looking back. He quickly stood up to follow him. “Alright, alright, if you don’t want to, we won’t rush. Take your time. Don’t be mad at your father. Your mother will scold me again later…”

The next day, Ji Taoyu changed her attitude from the past few days and got up early.

She put all the ointment she had made into bottles and packed them into a box. She told Ji Yangzong and Huang Manjing that she wanted to go to the city to sell things.

In October, Ji Yangzong had to be busy with tax collection, so he had been worried that he wouldn’t have time to comfort Ji Taoyu. When he saw that she was willing to go out on her own, he felt relieved.

Of course, he didn’t stop her from going to the city. Instead, he took out some spare silver for Ji Taoyu to buy food and play with in the city.

“Your grandfather still doesn’t know about the cancellation of the engagement. It’s a good idea for you to go and inform him.”

After saying this, Ji Yangzong sighed again. “He’s sure to come to the village when he finds out.”

Huang Manjing put some food into Ji Yangzong’s bowl. “It’s not your fault. At the beginning, you did it for the sake of Little Taoyu.”

Ji Taoyu bit into a steamed bun and heard her father’s worry about her grandfather coming to scold him.

She raised her head and whispered, “Is father afraid of my grandfather too?”

“What nonsense are you talking about? How dare you laugh at your father.” Ji Yangzong pinched Ji Taoyu’s cheek and took the bun from her hand. “Eat less. If you leave some room in your stomach, you can have some wontons at the morning food stall in the city. You like those, don’t you?”

Huang Manjing slapped Ji Yangzong’s hand. “What father stops his child from eating enough?”

Ji Yangzong laughed and dispelled the gloom in the house over the past few days. He put down his chopsticks and stood up. “Alright, I have to go collect taxes early.”

As he put on his coat, he said, “Little Taoyu, if you’re going to stay at your grandfather’s house tonight, make sure to let me know in advance.”

Ji Taoyu also put down her chopsticks. “Got it.”

As Ji Yangzong left the house, Ji Taoyu prepared to leave with a small box in hand.

Huang Manjing had originally wanted Ji Taoyu to bring some cured meats to her grandfather’s house, but she thought that since he already had a suitcase, adding cured meats would be too heavy for him to carry.

So she gave up on the idea and straightened out his cloak. Looking at her son’s thin face, she said lovingly, “Have fun. Go ahead.”

“Mmm.”

Ji Taoyu carried the small box through the morning mist. Before she reached the village entrance, she saw someone walking slowly along the village road, leading a horse.

The big black horse walked slowly with its owner, occasionally lowering its head to eat a few blades of grass that hadn’t yet withered on the side of the road.

Huo Shu didn’t call out to Ji Taoyu. He stopped and waited for her to come forward, then took the small box from her hands.

Then he mounted his horse. “I’ll wait for you at the village entrance.”

With that, he rode off.

Ji Taoyu rubbed her exposed hand, which had turned red from the chilly late autumn wind, and hastened her steps toward the village entrance.

The two of them, like last time, one on horseback and the other on a bullock cart, entered the city one after the other.

When they arrived in the city, the fog was still thick. Ji Taoyu took off her hood and looked around in the mist, but she didn’t see Huo Shu anywhere.

Just as she was wondering where to find him, she heard a familiar voice behind her. “Over here.”

Ji Taoyu saw the person holding the box alone and breathed a sigh of relief. “Why only you? Where’s the horse?”

Huo Shu replied, “I sent it to the stable.”

Ji Taoyu nodded and took back her small box. “Let’s go sell my ointment first.”

Huo Shu walked beside Ji Taoyu and glanced at the box. “What ointment is this?”

“It’s for frostbite.”

Ji Taoyu suddenly remembered, “Huo Big Brother, do you get frostbite in winter? This ointment is quite effective. You can take two for yourself.”

“Maybe next time.”

Seeing that it wasn’t easy to bring the small box to the city, and giving him some would mean he had to carry them back, he declined.

“Alright.”

Following the road, the two of them went to Linhe Lane, where there were many itinerant vendors.

They were not frequent buyers and sellers in the prefecture, mostly going to the county towns from the prefecture to sell their goods. Therefore, they usually bought some popular items from the prefecture to take to the county towns.

These spontaneous small vendors may not carry as much merchandise as a large caravan of several dozen people, but the local government has policies to support them. Small vendors selling goods in the prefectural area are not required to pay tariffs.

As a result, they can still earn several thousand wen on a trip, which is a decent living for ordinary people.

“If you’re lucky, you might even encounter vendors who have just returned from the county town. They bring back some local specialties from small places. Although the county town is not as prosperous as the prefecture, it still has its own unique products. You might even find some good items at a low price.”

Huo Shu listened quietly to the soft and clear voice of the young man beside him as they walked through Linhe Lane.

On one side of the lane was a river, and on the other side were houses, most of which had small storefronts.

The shops didn’t have clear distinctions of what they sold, but they mostly sold groceries. However, there was still some differentiation in terms of clothing, food, lodging, and transportation.

The main customers were ordinary people. Some came with homemade pickles and pancakes, some brought handmade baskets and brooms, and others sold hairpins and textiles. There was a variety of goods for ordinary people.

The shopkeepers were happy to accept these goods. Items with high production costs would have high acquisition costs, making them difficult to sell, especially for small vendors like them who didn’t have large teams and had a high risk of carrying valuable items on long journeys.

“Dr. Ji!”

Huo Shu heard someone calling out from ahead. He narrowed his eyes and saw a slightly plump middle-aged man calling out to Ji Taoyu.

He came over and nodded slightly at Huo Shu before turning to Ji Taoyu. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen Dr. Ji. Do you have any goods this time?”

Ji Taoyu raised the box in her hand a little when she saw that someone had come to greet them. “I have some frostbite ointment. Will Master Ma take it?”

“Sure, sure!” The man said, “Dr. Ji’s products are good. The deworming medicine from before worked well for us. When Old Ma went to the countryside this time, some people who knew him asked if there were any other medicines available.”

The man led the two of them to his shop. “It’s almost winter, so this frostbite ointment will definitely sell well in the countryside.”

Ji Taoyu asked, “Master Ma, aren’t you doing business outside?”

“He just got back late last night after half a month. He’s resting now.”

The man poured tea for them and said with a smile, “I was just about to sort out the goods he brought back. I didn’t expect to see Dr. Ji here.”

Ji Taoyu’s eyes lit up when she heard this. She glanced at Huo Shu beside her and said, “Can we take a look at what rare goods you have?”

The man was very enthusiastic. “Of course, of course! Let me take them out. Dr. Ji, see if there’s anything you like.”

In no time, the man moved two large boxes from the corner. They were the cargo boxes carried by vendors on the go.

Ji Taoyu quickly squatted down beside the boxes and opened the lids. Inside were various items packed haphazardly.

There were local camphor wax, melon and fruit spices, and Ji Taoyu even pulled out a flat black stone-like object.

His nose was sensitive, and as soon as he took it out, he smelled a faint fragrance. “Is this ink?”

“Dr. Ji really knows his stuff,” the man said. “The ink from our city has been selling well in the past two years, and the price is high. It’s often out of stock.”

“This time, Old Ma went to Nan Yu County, the source of production, and wanted to bring some back for resale. However, the price of ink in the production area has also gone up. I won’t hide it from Dr. Ji. These were made by local farmers. Old Ma said that although they don’t look as exquisite as the ones in the shop, they still have a fragrance, and the important thing is that the price is not high. So he brought some back.”

The inksticks in the shop were carved, engraved, or embossed with gold, all of them exquisite and elegant.

These inksticks were pure and even a bit uneven, as if they were homemade.

Ji Taoyu handed one to Huo Shu and asked, “Interested? This fragrant ink leaves a lingering scent even after the ink dries. It’s not the usual oily smell but rather gentle and elegant.”

Scholars really liked it and often used it to write letters to their loved ones.

Huo Shu hadn’t read many books, so he didn’t have much knowledge about ink, paper, or inkstones. He simply judged based on practicality. However, listening to Ji Taoyu’s detailed and serious introduction, he still sniffed the inkstick under his nose. “Take a few.”

“Sure, I’ll wrap them up for you.”

Ji Taoyu continued to rummage through the box and found some medicinal herb seeds she liked. There wasn’t much else.

As they were familiar with each other, the vendor didn’t haggle with Ji Taoyu. He sold her four inksticks for 320 wen and the seeds for 10 wen.

Ji Taoyu sold her frostbite ointment for 36 wen a bottle at her grandfather’s clinic, but she bought it wholesale for 20 wen.

With ten bottles, she could make 200 wen in one go.

Huo Shu paid for everything at once, and as they were leaving, Ji Taoyu tried to give him ten wen, but he refused.

“No need,” Ji Taoyu insisted.

Seeing his insistence, Ji Taoyu said, “Then next time, you can treat me to a bowl of noodles.”

Huo Shu thought about how he had just mentioned being poor yesterday, so he said, “Sure, then you can treat me to a bowl of noodles next time.”

Seeing that he wouldn’t accept the money, Ji Taoyu reluctantly put the coins back into her purse. “Fine.”

“Shall we go directly to Sister Wu San’s house now, or do we need to buy anything else?” Ji Taoyu asked.

“Let’s buy a set of writing utensils—brush, ink, paper, and inkstone—together,” Huo Shu suggested.

Ji Taoyu thought about how they had already spent quite a bit of money on gifts, and Sister Wu San’s family wasn’t particularly wealthy, so there was no need to show off.

But then she remembered that they were going to meet the son of an old friend who had now become their nephew, so it was reasonable to prepare a generous gift for their first meeting as uncle and nephew.

She agreed and led Huo Shu to a stationery shop. She wanted to pick out an affordable set, but these items were expensive. Even a set of average quality would cost several hundred wen.

After selecting several sets, Huo Shu directly took a few options, and Ji Taoyu, afraid that he might be too extravagant, picked a more expensive set to put inside as a facade. In total, it amounted to 1,200 wen.

Ji Taoyu’s eyes widened as she jokingly thought to herself that Huo Shu might as well change his name to “Huo Moneybags.”

She shook her head in disbelief, but Huo Shu confidently walked over to the cashier.

As Ji Taoyu waited, she looked around the bookstore and suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu.

In the past, their family would often buy books and writing materials for You Lingxiao, and she had visited this bookstore before.

The items they bought for You Lingxiao were always of good quality to ensure he wouldn’t be looked down upon at the academy.

Although Ji Taoyu had never calculated how much money they had spent on You Lingxiao over the years, a visit to the bookstore always cost at least a hundred wen, which was more than what some poor families earned in a month.

She sighed inwardly and tried to push these thoughts aside, but familiar sights and objects always stirred up memories she couldn’t ignore.

Lost in thought, Ji Taoyu suddenly found an old book titled “Records of Washing Away Wrongs” being handed to her.

She looked up at Huo Shu and asked, “What’s this?”

Huo Shu glanced at the distracted Ji Taoyu and said, “It’s a gift from the bookstore. Let’s go.”

Ji Taoyu took the book and hurried to catch up with Huo Shu, who had already left.

As they walked, Ji Taoyu couldn’t help but glance at the title again. It seemed to be a collection of legendary crime-solving stories, but in reality, it was a treatise on forensic medicine. Her eyes sparkled with interest.

“Wait for me,” she called out, clutching the book to her chest before rushing to catch up with Huo Shu.

The address left by Wu Lianhe was in a lane called Xiaoshantou.