Chapter 91: Refugees

The second stop was Yongfeng Zhai. Thanks to the hot sales of crystal preserves, the new snacks made from black sugar sent by Sang Luo were also quite popular, making her equally welcomed at Yan’s store.

Shopkeeper Yan was always polite. Every time Sang Luo came to the shop, there would always be tea and snacks served, but Sang Luo rarely discussed business matters.

This time, Sang Luo brought her two children along, which elevated the hospitality to another level. The tea and snacks served had several more varieties, with half of them clearly being favorites of children.

Shopkeeper Yan frequently invited the two children to eat snacks. Shen An and Shen Ning followed Sang Luo’s lead in everything outside. Seeing their eldest sister nodding that it was okay to try, the siblings each only tasted a piece.

Eating to one’s fill at Dongfu Restaurant was one thing, but being reserved was another.

Shopkeeper Yan didn’t know that the two children had already had a big meal at Dongfu Restaurant before coming here. He only felt that Sang Luo had good manners and had even taught her younger sister-in-law and brother-in-law very well, which increased his goodwill towards her even more.

As they were about to leave, all these snacks were wrapped in oil paper and given to Sang Luo to take back for the two children to eat.

Taking the two children out on this trip, Sang Luo inexplicably experienced the feeling of taking children around to pay New Year’s visits and receive gifts, as seen in movies and TV dramas.

As she walked out of Yongfeng Zhai, Sang Luo couldn’t help but smile. This was something she had never experienced before. Now, playing the role of a parent, she had experienced it with Shen An and Shen Ning.

With the main task completed here, Sang Luo took the two children to stroll around the county town.

As for food, there was no need to shop anymore. The two children not only ate their fill and drank enough, but also took a lot of good things back in their parcels, which were all placed in her picking basket.

Shen An and Shen Ning already felt that there was no need to buy anything else. With so many snacks and food, except for things like buns and dumplings, most of the others could last a long time, so there was no need to buy anything.

Sang Luo agreed with this sentiment. She looked at the two children, both dressed in new clothes?

Hmm, that’s not right.

Sang Luo’s gaze fell on the two small buns on Shen Ning’s head. “Come on, let’s go to the clothing store.”

Shen Ning tilted her head. “Eldest sister, we have clothes, new ones.”

Sang Luo smiled. “We’re not buying clothes, I’m buying new hair ties for you.”

The hair ties they were using had been used for a long time and had faded beyond recognition.

Shen Ning reached up to tug on her own hair tie, as if it could still be used? But, a new hair tie, bright red and especially beautiful.

Thinking of this, a hint of joy overflowed in her eyes, and she nodded!

Sang Luo smiled and led the two children straight to the clothing store.

The clothing store didn’t just sell clothes; various headbands, hair ties, and hairpins were also sold there. Even though Shen Ning was only nine years old, she was still a little girl, and little girls loved beauty.

When the shopkeeper brought out trays of various colored hair ties, headbands, and hairpins, she couldn’t keep up with her eyes. They were all good things she had never seen before.

This one was beautiful, that one was pretty, it was overwhelming.

But it was just an initial visual impact. After looking a few more times, she calmed down, and her thoughts became clearer.

It was obvious that delicate items sold in the county shops wouldn’t be cheap. She skipped over things like hairpins and directly moved on from headbands, which weren’t necessary either, and finally settled on hair ties.

There were so many colors of hair ties, at least a dozen. Shen Ning looked back and forth twice before finally pointing to the bright red one.

“Elder sister, I like this one.”

Sang Luo smiled and asked the shopkeeper to help her get it. She also asked for a watermelon-red headband before paying and leaving.

As for herself and Shen An, Sang Luo felt that bright red was strange, and floral colors were even more unnecessary. Since their clothes were plain, it was fine to make headbands from the same colored fabric.

After buying the hair ties and headbands, Sang Luo remembered another matter and asked the shopkeeper of the clothing store, “Do you know where in the county I can buy writing supplies?”

The shopkeeper was somewhat surprised to hear her ask about writing supplies but still pointed her in the right direction. “You’ll have to go to the vicinity of the former county school. There’s a shop selling writing supplies there.”

Why did he mention the former county school? Because the county school in Qiyang County had operated for a few years under the decree of the former emperor but was abolished under the same decree later. Although the current emperor had issued a decree to reopen schools at the provincial, county, and township levels, the decree hadn’t been implemented yet, so Qiyang County had not yet resumed schooling.

As a result, the children of wealthy families in the county either studied at home or went to private schools.

Sang Luo thanked the shopkeeper and, with the two children, left the clothing store to go to the former county school.

With memories from her original life, Sang Luo didn’t need to go out and buy writing supplies herself, as everything would be taken care of by servants or chosen by her father or brothers. However, the original body still knew some common knowledge, such as the so-called writing supply shops in small places, most of which didn’t specialize in writing supplies but sold incense, candles, and miscellaneous goods.

Before the Great Qian Dynasty, social classes were very distinct, and scholars were only born into specific classes. Only a few common people could read and write. Even though the emperor issued decrees to establish schools during the Great Qian Dynasty, the duration of schooling wasn’t long, and it was discontinued halfway. This situation hadn’t improved much. Therefore, apart from major cities or the capital, the consumption of writing supplies among ordinary people in the counties was very low. There wouldn’t be shops specifically selling writing supplies or bookstores. Books were mainly privately kept or copied. If you wanted to buy books, you could only do so in large cities like the capital or provincial capitals, where there were specific book markets. As for counties, they were considered non-profitable goods. Maybe there were people selling them when there was a county school, but it might not be the case after the county school had been closed for so many years.

When Shen An heard his elder sister-in-law ask about writing supplies, his heart started pounding. He had started learning to write, and he had seen books and such, so he knew what writing supplies were used for.

As soon as they left the clothing store, Shen An said, “Elder sister, are you going to buy writing supplies for us? Aren’t those things expensive? I think using a sand tray is fine. You can still write, and it doesn’t cost anything.”

Shen Ning also nodded, “I think using a sand tray to write is fine.”

Shen Ning didn’t know if writing supplies were expensive or not, but if she could use something for free, why spend money? She saw that her elder sister had only bought hair ties for her and didn’t buy anything for herself, so she felt a bit regretful about spending money.

Two hair ties and two headbands cost six cents, which could buy a piece of cloth for making tofu.

Sang Luo smiled, “I have other uses for it. You’ll know when we get back.”

After walking for a short while, they arrived at the street where the former county school was located. Sure enough, at a glance, they saw a shop selling incense and candles.

“Let’s go.” She beckoned to the two siblings.

Shen An and Shen Ning followed Sang Luo to the front of the incense and candle shop and stopped. They both had question marks on their heads. “Didn’t you say we were going to buy writing supplies? This is a shop selling incense and candles.”

Sang Luo smiled, “This is the right place.”

Leading the two children inside.

As soon as the shopkeeper saw the three of them come in, he looked Sang Luo up and down, smiling as he asked, “Miss, what would you like to buy?”

“Do you have writing supplies?”

The shopkeeper’s eyebrows twitched, and he smiled, “Yes, we do.”

Saying that, he bent down and rummaged through the cabinet, taking out a brush and an ink tablet after a while. “Miss, take a look.”

Hmm, don’t ask why there wasn’t a display of ten or more for her to choose from. It was good enough to have something to buy. As for choosing? Let’s not force it. It’s hard on the shopkeeper’s inventory, and it’s hard on her own wallet.

Sang Luo picked them up and took a look. She didn’t recognize them herself, but the original body did. They were relatively cheap sheep-hair brushes, and the ink was also low-grade ink.

Asking about the price, the shopkeeper smiled, “Thirty-five cents for the brush, and one hundred and fifty cents for the ink tablet.”

Sang Luo clicked her tongue. It seemed that the original body’s family had spent quite a bit on writing supplies in the past.

She took out two strings of money from her purse, counted out one hundred and eighty-five cents, and handed it over. The shopkeeper took it with a smile, counting it as he asked if Sang Luo needed paper and an inkstone.

Sang Luo shook her head quickly.

As for inkstones, if you didn’t care much about them, you could find a way to get them. They weren’t necessary at the moment. As for paper, although there was paper now, the output was extremely low. Apart from the

government using it more, most ordinary people couldn’t afford it.

For example, the Zhu Lizheng used by the Zhou family was paper provided by the government, and large restaurants like Dongfu Restaurant also had paper for writing contracts or receipts. Contracts might be necessary, but receipts were actually cut into small pieces to save paper. As for household registrations and the like, wooden boards were still used.

The inn’s accounting department still saves money, not to mention her, who’s just scraping by in the mountains?

After buying writing supplies, while passing by the pharmacy, Sang Luo remembered that there wasn’t much gypsum left at home, so she went into the pharmacy and stocked up on some more. Naturally, she also needed some fennel, as they made soy sauce every day, and fennel was consumed very quickly.

But considering that she was afraid people would associate fennel with soy sauce, and then further associate it with gypsum, Sang Luo bought the fennel from another pharmacy.

With that, her official business was done. Sang Luo took the two little ones around the two markets to also visit Qin Fangniang and her group, who were setting up stalls.

With a burden on her shoulder, when she entered the market, she was inevitably stopped by someone who mistook her for a stall owner. After seeing that the jar was empty and the things were miscellaneous and only for her own use, she was allowed to enter without having to pay market tax.

The two siblings had already wandered around the main street of the county, the inn, the dim sum shop, and the clothing store in the morning, and even visited the candle and incense shop where they bought writing supplies. But when they entered the East Market, it was a completely different scene, with all kinds of stalls.

It was like their big market, but not quite. The big market didn’t have so many stalls, nor did it have such a wide variety of goods sold in the East Market, which made the siblings dazzled once again.

Sang Luo found it amusing how interested they were in everything. If they looked at a food stall for a little longer, she would ask if they wanted to buy something to eat. However, no matter how much they looked, as soon as their elder sister-in-law asked if they wanted to buy something, they shook their heads vigorously!

“No need!”

There were so many snacks in the basket!

Sang Luo didn’t say much more. In the next seven or eight days, these two little ones wouldn’t be short of food.

“Okay, if you want to eat something or buy something, just let me know.”

After making a round, they arrived at Qin Fangniang’s stall and gathered to chat.

The two siblings looked around the bustling East Market and felt that everything was good and lively everywhere. However, Qin Fangniang, who was selling at the stall, and Sang Luo, who used to come often, knew that business had declined quite a bit.

Sang Luo was grateful that all three families had businesses in inns or restaurants. Nearly half of their goods were sent to inns and restaurants every day, and only half were sold at the market, which was just right.

Qin Fangniang saw Sang Luo bringing Shen An and Shen Ning over and couldn’t help but buy them some snacks. However, Sang Luo stopped her and said, “They can’t eat anymore. Look at them; their bellies are still full.”

After exchanging a few jokes, they went to the West Market and waited until Qin Fangniang and her group had sold out their goods. When they reunited in the East Market, Sang Luo bought two more jars and pulled them back with Qin Fangniang’s cart.

Just as they left the county town and hadn’t gone far, they saw a few ragged people on the mountain road in the distance. When they got closer, Sang Luo’s pupils shrank. “Wait.”

She grabbed Qin Fangniang, who was still a little stunned. When she saw the four or five people ahead clearly, her body stiffened, and her mind went blank.

Refugees!?

Qin Fangniang and Sang Luo, who had escaped hardships before, were very familiar with the look and gaze of refugees.

Sang Luo grabbed one child in each hand. “Let’s go back to the county first!”

Qin Fangniang nodded and quickly turned the cart around. The two of them hurried towards the city gate.