Chapter 27: The Prodigy

With Xiang Wentian’s assurance, Wen Jiuyue immediately abandoned her objections.

She brought out a pile of cold-weather gear she had painstakingly made the previous night by the kerosene lamp and placed it before Leng You and Xiang Wentian.

Wen Jiuyue’s hands were incredibly skillful. After carefully tanning all the rabbit skins, she cut and sewed a knee-length coat for Leng You. Lacking fabric for the outer layer, the raw fur was left exposed.

With the remaining skins, she made Leng You a hat and a pair of gloves, and planned to make her a pair of cotton shoes. She also made a pair of gloves for Xiang Wentian—not mittens, but gloves with separate fingers.

“Thank you, Grandma Wen! It’s so warm,” Leng You said, putting on the clothes. The warmth spread from her body to her heart.

Xiang Wentian tossed his old gloves aside and put on the new ones. The feel of the rabbit fur against his skin was both warm and comfortable.

To avoid startling Wen Jiuyue again, Leng You and Xiang Wentian waited until they were out of her sight before putting on their snowboards.

“Slow down!” Xiang Wentian cautioned Leng You.

“Got it!” Leng You planted her ski poles firmly on the ground, and her small body shot forward like an arrow.

She loved the feeling of soaring through the air, the freedom of gliding, the ability to breathe deeply and release all the stagnation within her.

Xiang Wentian followed closely behind Leng You, every nerve taut.

Gradually, his tense heart relaxed. This was the most relaxed he had ever seen her since they met.

Before this, he had accurately perceived the loneliness, wariness, hatred, and bloodlust hidden deep within her eyes.

They reached the county town only ten minutes more than the previous day.

After hiding their snowboarding equipment, Xiang Wentian picked up Leng You and knocked on Hu Liu’s door again.

“Oh! It’s you. Come in, quickly,” said the boy who had opened the door yesterday. He was unusually enthusiastic, having been instructed by Hu Liu.

“Is Uncle Hu Liu here?” Leng You asked.

“Yes, yes! Come in.” Hu Liu, hearing the commotion, greeted them with a broad smile.

Leng You looked away.

If she were truly an eight-year-old child, she would probably have been frightened to tears by Hu Liu’s ferocious grin.

“This is some roe deer meat for you. A relative gave it to us; there’s not much, but please try it,” Leng You said, pointing to the bag Xiang Wentian had placed on the ground.

“Roe deer meat? Oh my! This is a rare treat, for me? You’re too kind, too kind. Such a small gift, and you still think of me.

By the way, what brings you here today?”

Hu Liu’s smile reached his ears.

“We want to buy some cotton and fabric. Is it easy to find?” Knowing Xiang Wentian was even less talkative than she was, Leng You spoke.

“It’s not easy for others, but your Uncle Hu Liu can help!

Da Sanzi, take the two children to find Chen Mazi. Tell him they’re relatives of mine. I’ll be there as soon as I’m finished with my work.”

Hu Liu waved his hand, immediately sending his subordinate to accompany Leng You and Xiang Wentian. If he weren’t busy, he would have gone with them himself.

The man called Da Sanzi led Leng You and Xiang Wentian down the alley for more than fifty meters before knocking on a door.

After explaining their purpose, the middle-aged man who opened the door, Chen Mazi, respectfully invited Leng You and Xiang Wentian into the courtyard.

The spacious warehouse was filled with cotton, fabrics, needles, thread… Leng You wondered about Chen Mazi’s background; the completeness of his stock was astonishing.

Leng You: “How much is a foot of wide white cloth?”

Chen Mazi: “Thirty-five cents.”

Leng You: “How about corduroy?”

Chen Mazi: “Forty-two cents a foot.”

Leng You: “How much is this kind of checkered fabric?”

Chen Mazi: “Forty-one cents per foot.”

Leng You: “How much is Dacron?”

Chen Mazi: “One dollar and thirty-nine cents.”

Leng You: “How about wool Dacron?”

Chen Mazi: “One dollar and thirty-three cents a foot.”

Leng You: “How much is the Dika?”

Chen Mazi: “Two dollars and thirteen cents a foot.”

Leng You: “How much is the best cotton per pound?”

Chen Mazi: “Ninety-six cents.”

…

Chen Mazi’s prices were quite reasonable.

“Fifty feet of wide white cloth; thirty feet of corduroy; thirty feet of checkered fabric; thirty feet of floral fabric; thirty feet of Dacron; thirty feet of wool Dacron; fifty feet of Dika; five balls of thread, three black and two white; ten spools of thread, five black and five white…

Fifty kilograms of cotton!”

As if she had already prepared a shopping list in her mind, Leng You directly stated the quantities of each item she wanted.

“Y-you want… that much? Kid, you’re not joking, are you!” Even Hu Liu’s subordinate was surprised. Such a young child, reciting so many items without hesitation, seemed unbelievable to Chen Mazi.

He shifted his gaze from Leng You to Da Sanzi, seeing the same look of astonishment on Da Sanzi’s face before turning to Xiang Wentian.

He flinched. The young man’s gaze was so cold, it chilled him to the bone. Too damn scary.

He quickly looked away, not daring to look again.

“That’s a total of two hundred and ninety-six dollars and forty-five cents. Here’s three hundred dollars; you don’t need to give me change. Give me five more pounds of cotton.”

Even Leng You was surprised by her own words. Even in her past life as a top student, she wasn’t as quick as a calculator.

The calculation didn’t require any thought; it just popped into her head.

She instinctively reached for the grape-shaped birthmark on her wrist, but stopped herself.

She looked at Xiang Wentian, catching the surprise and admiration in his eyes.

“Goodness! Child, how old are you? You’re a prodigy!” Chen Mazi’s eyes bulged.

“My brother just told me,” Leng You said, exchanging a look with Xiang Wentian. Xiang Wentian’s expression was one of understanding.

This era didn’t have the same tolerance for prodigies as it would in twenty or thirty years, but Xiang Wentian clearly didn’t think so.

Also, Leng You was sure that Chen Mazi hadn’t been fully focused on her before.

“Amazing, amazing!” Chen Mazi looked like he understood, but he didn’t dare look at Xiang Wentian.

“I’ve paid you in full. We can’t carry everything today, we’ll come back tomorrow for the rest.” With Hu Liu’s backing, Leng You wasn’t worried about Chen Mazi reneging on the deal.

In fact, Xiang Wentian could easily carry all these things, but the fifty-five kilograms of cotton was too bulky and would hinder their snowboarding.

“No problem, you can come anytime.” Chen Mazi was overjoyed at this unexpected windfall and readily agreed to Leng You’s request.

In the end, they only left twenty kilograms of cotton behind.

Xiang Wentian filled a large hemp sack with fabric and cotton, and Leng You also carried a load weighing more than ten pounds.