Xi Qingyue put away the empty bowl and said with a smile, “Drink this water to strengthen your body. If you drink more in the future, maybe you’ll become even stronger.”
“Mm, Sister, someday I’ll be able to kill a wild boar with one punch and earn silver.”
Xi Qingyue handed her a few meat buns. “Here, eat your fill first. We have plenty of silver, don’t you worry. You just enjoy yourself and have fun.”
Even if she did nothing, they wouldn’t go hungry; why would a three-year-old need to earn silver?
After they were full, Xi Qingyue hoisted the huge wild boar onto her shoulder and headed toward the end of the village. Uncle Liu’s oxcart was already waiting there.
“Oh my, Daya, you killed another wild boar? You’re incredible.” Uncle Liu couldn’t hide his shock.
“Second Uncle, I just got lucky. Since we broke ties with the family, I’ve found that my sister and I are living better and better.”
She smiled as she placed the wild boar on the oxcart, covered it with a piece of coarse cloth from her basket, then lifted Xi Weilan onto the cart, and they sat side by side.
Several people were already on the cart, and upon hearing her words, they all burst out laughing.
Uncle Liu, seeing the oxcart nearly full, drove it toward the town.
“You’re right, Daya. I reckon your life will only get better. That Second Uncle of yours is no good—does his family lack that bit of food? When your little cousin was sold off, she cried so pitifully. Sigh!” Uncle Liu sighed as he spoke.
Xi Qingyue thought of her second uncle Xi Erniu’s little cousin, two years younger than herself, and wondered where she had been sold.
As they chatted, they soon reached the town. The oxcart stopped in front of the Fuman Tavern. Xi Qingyue handed three copper coins to Uncle Liu, then carried the wild boar down. Xi Weilan jumped off the cart herself.
She waved at Uncle Liu, “Second Uncle, don’t wait for us on the way back. Lan’er and I will return on our own.”
“Girl, did you give me one extra coin?” Uncle Liu looked at the three copper coins in his hand and tried to give one back.
“Second Uncle, Lan’er and I still have the big wild boar. Three coins is just right—please keep them.”
With that, she walked straight into the tavern, while Xi Weilan crouched down beside the wild boar and watched it.
Uncle Liu smiled at Xi Weilan. “Er’er, take this. Second Uncle won’t take advantage of you.”
Xi Weilan noticed that there was one more copper coin on the wild boar. By the time she looked up, Uncle Liu’s oxcart had already disappeared.
Soon, Xi Qingyue came out from inside the tavern with the owner. Xi Weilan handed her the copper coin, “Sister, Second Uncle didn’t want it. He said it wouldn’t be fair to take advantage.”
Taking the coin, Xi Qingyue felt a mix of emotions. In the same village, some people wouldn’t take even the slightest advantage, while others sold their own children for money.
Shopkeeper Wei stared at the giant wild boar, grinning from ear to ear. It truly was over three hundred pounds.
He immediately had it weighed, then handed Xi Qingyue a pouch of silver. “Three hundred and twenty pounds in total. At the agreed rate of twenty-two coins a pound, that’s about seven taels. Here are some small ingots and loose coins—take good care of them. If you have more wild game next time, bring it here. I won’t shortchange you.”
“Of course, Shopkeeper Wei, you’re a straightforward man. The next time I catch something, I’ll bring it your way.” Xi Qingyue took the silver, beaming with joy.
Leaving the tavern, she took Xi Weilan’s hand and headed toward a herbal medicine shop.
In her basket were two ginseng roots: one thirty-year-old and the other fifty-year-old, which she had stored in her space—harvested from her own planting area. She had plenty of this kind of ginseng. Taking out two to sell would be more than enough, and the timing was perfect.
Seeing the sign of Huichun Herbal Medicine Shop, the two walked straight in without hesitation.
“Young ladies, are you here to buy some medicine?”
The shopkeeper asked politely, not looking down on them despite their young age. He had seen plenty of children buying medicine for their families and thought nothing of it.
Xi Qingyue removed her basket, took out the thirty-year-old ginseng, and placed it on the counter. “Shopkeeper, do you buy this?”
The shopkeeper examined the fine ginseng and said with a squinting smile, “Yes, we buy it. This one is thirty years old. I’ll give you fifty silver taels for it. This price won’t cheat you—if you don’t believe me, ask around. Our Huichun Herbal Medicine Shop is well-known in town for its fair deals.”
Xi Qingyue said nothing but took another one out of the basket—the fifty-year-old ginseng. “And what about this one? How much is it worth?”
“You have another one?” the shopkeeper exclaimed in surprise, picking it up with eyes shining. “Excellent! This is fifty years old. Ordinary fifty-year-old ginseng goes for about one hundred taels, but this one is clearly of top quality. I’ll give you one hundred and twenty taels—how about that?”
After speaking, he looked at Xi Qingyue with hope, afraid that she might disagree and take it away. Such high-quality ginseng was rare.
Xi Qingyue had asked about the price of ginseng on the road earlier, and now she felt the shopkeeper was honest and not trying to cheat her. She nodded. “Alright, but please give it to me in ten-tael pieces, along with some loose silver.”
The shopkeeper nodded eagerly. “Of course, I’ll get the silver for you right away.”
Soon, the shopkeeper brought one hundred and seventy taels of silver in various denominations.
As they left, the shopkeeper cheerfully called after them, “If you have any more good herbs in the future, come to me. I’ll give you the best price.”
“Sure, Shopkeeper.”
Stepping out of the medicine shop, Xi Qingyue was in great spirits. This kind of thing earned money so fast!
She happily pulled Xi Weilan along. “Come on, let’s go buy a cart. Once we have it, I’ll buy you anything you want.”
“Sister, I want lots of candied hawthorns, braised pig trotters, red bean cakes…” Xi Weilan counted on her fingers, listing each item.
“Alright, I’ll buy them all for you one by one.”
They soon arrived at the carriage and livestock market, which was nearly empty. Only a man feeding a horse was busy, along with a manager sunbathing.
The manager, seeing they were just two little girls, thought they were merely curious and looking at the horses. He didn’t chase them away and let them wander about, but then he suddenly heard Xi Qingyue’s voice.
“Manager, do you have any mules here?”
Hearing this, the manager was taken aback. So they weren’t just window-shopping.
He pointed in a direction. “That’s one right there. But where are the adults at home? This mule is a bit expensive—needs twenty taels. You can take a look, but don’t get too close.”
Xi Qingyue led Xi Weilan up to the black mule.
Seeing them approach, the black mule glanced over but paid them no reaction and seemed very gentle.
“Sister, she’s so gentle. Should we buy her?” Xi Weilan really wanted to touch it, but she was too short to reach.
Hearing the soft childish voice, the manager looked over with an amused expression. “Don’t be fooled by how docile she seems now—that’s because you two kids mean her no harm. This mule has been here for a whole year and couldn’t be sold, because she lost her temper every time a buyer showed up and scared them off.”
Xi Qingyue scanned the shed with more than a dozen horses and a few donkeys, but she still wanted that black mule.
"Manager, I'll take this mule. And could you show me a cart? The kind with a canopy."
As she spoke, she held up silver coins, and only then did the manager realize that these two children weren't playing around but genuinely intended to make a purchase.
His face lit up instantly—finally, he could sell off this mule.
"Follow me." The manager extended his hand in a welcoming gesture.
