Xi Qingyue and Xi Weilan were brought before a row of covered carts in various colors and styles.
"These carts are all available for selection. Ordinary people can use them. Take a look and see which one you like," the steward said, his manner even more cordial than before.
Xi Qingyue patted Xi Weilan on the head. "Go on, take a look and pick whichever one you like, and we'll buy it."
"Okay!" Xi Weilan happily ran to the carts, peering inside each one, walking around the outside to inspect them, and reaching out to feel the materials. Finally, she stopped at a closed cart with a bamboo-ribbed arched top and light blue fabric surrounding it.
She pointed at the cart and said, "Big Sister, I want this one."
The steward was taken aback. "Young lady, you have a good eye. This one is indeed spacious and comfortable, but it's a bit expensive. It's made with top-quality materials, durable and comfortable to ride in. It costs eighteen taels of silver."
Upon hearing this, Xi Qingyue pointed at the donkey and began to haggle. "You said this donkey hasn't been sold in a year. It's fate that we're choosing it today. Lower the total a bit more—thirty-eight isn't an auspicious number."
The steward was puzzled as to why thirty-eight wasn't auspicious, but after thinking it over, he relented. "Alright, then thirty-six taels it is. But I need to make sure your family won't come back to return it after you buy it."
"Don't worry, I make the decisions in my household. Just harness the cart for us. Here's the silver. Use the rest for fodder."
With that, Xi Qingyue handed over the silver, including a piece of loose silver in addition to the thirty-six taels.
The steward took the silver and immediately ordered someone to fetch fodder. He also personally led the donkey over and harnessed it to the cart for them.
"This donkey is usually very docile, but the one thing to note is that it holds grudges. Don't scold or beat it. It can travel sixty miles a day, and it's very steady. It can even handle mountain roads without issue, so the ride is very safe..."
As he worked, the steward kept giving them instructions, not treating Xi Qingyue and her sister like children at all.
After all, what child would come to spend so much silver on a donkey cart?
"Thank you for the reminder. We'll be careful," Xi Qingyue said with a smile.
Then, both parties signed the contract and completed the formalities.
"By the way, this contract needs to be taken to the county office within thirty days to pay taxes and obtain an official deed. If you trust me, we can handle it on your behalf, but there will be a small service fee," the steward said amiably, worried that she, being a child, might not understand the process.
Xi Qingyue smiled and nodded. "Alright, you handle it then. When it's done, deliver it to Willow Tree Village, to the big willow tree at the west end—that's where I live. If I'm not home, give it to the village head. No one else, under any circumstances."
With that, she handed the steward a piece of silver for the fee.
Xi Weilan, who had been too excited to wait, had already scrambled onto the cart. She lifted the curtain and sat happily inside the carriage.
Xi Qingyue sat down at the front, waved goodbye to the steward, and drove the cart away.
Watching their retreating backs, the steward couldn't help but sigh. "Well, who would've thought? The donkey was bought by two kids."
In this small town, oxen and donkeys were the most common items for sale. Mules were the most expensive, almost as costly as an ordinary horse. Even farmers buying oxen or donkeys were rare, so he was very curious which family these two children belonged to. He decided he would personally deliver the official deed once it was done.
The stable hand who had been feeding the horses earlier spoke up with some concern, "Manager Qian, won't those two kids get into trouble driving that cart?"
Manager Qian shook his head with a smile. "Don't worry. When I was harnessing the cart, I carefully explained how to drive it. I could tell from her movements that she's not a complete beginner. They'll be fine."
Meanwhile, Xi Qingyue and Xi Weilan were full of excitement. They drove the cart straight to a clothing shop.
What Xi Qingyue’s storage space lacked most were clothes suited to this era. The coarse cloth clothes she currently wore were terribly uncomfortable, and she had long wanted to change them.
Since she didn’t know how to tailor clothes, she had to buy ready-made garments, which cost much more than buying fabric.
Each sister picked out two sets of fine cotton robes and two sets of plain silk robes. These were perfect for summer, comfortable to wear, costing at least one tael each. But these weren’t suitable for working.
She also bought several medium-quality coarse cloth robes, each costing five hundred wen, and even some cheap coarse hemp short tunics. She bought clothes inside and out, a huge pile of them, leaving the clothing shop owner grinning from ear to ear.
"Take care, little sisters! Come again next time!" the owner said cheerfully, seeing them off at the door and watching them climb onto the cart before his smile finally faded.
"What kind of children are these? Spending over a dozen taels of silver in one go, with no adult supervising them," he muttered to himself with a laugh before turning back into the shop.
Xi Qingyue and Xi Weilan, now dressed in brand-new fine cotton robes, chatted casually—one inside the cart and one outside.
"Big Sister, these clothes feel really nice. They’re soft and I like them a lot, but they’re too expensive. One tael of silver could buy several bolts of fabric," Xi Weilan said, sitting inside the donkey cart and looking down at her new outfit, both happy and pained by the expense.
Xi Qingyue, sitting at the front driving the cart, said with amusement, "We don’t know how to make clothes. Even if we bought fabric, we’d have to ask someone to sew them, and we’d have to wait. What a hassle. For now, let’s just wear these. Next time we go to the county seat, we’ll stock up on more fabric and find someone to help us make clothes. Besides, since we’re not short on silver, we should dress comfortably."
She stopped the cart in front of a steamed bun shop. Aunt Wu, who sold the buns, recognized her and smiled. "Little girl, you look like a different person compared to yesterday! Where’s your sister? How many buns are you buying this time?"
Aunt Wu remembered them so clearly because the two kids had come the day before and bought a huge batch. It was hard to forget after just one day.
What surprised Aunt Wu even more was that the two children were wandering around town with no adult chaperone. Now they were driving a donkey cart and wearing brand-new clothes—it was really odd.
"Auntie, I’m right here!" Xi Weilan lifted the curtain and poked her head out to wave at her.
Xi Qingyue pointed at her buns with a smile. "I’ll take all your buns today. Auntie, you can pack up and head home early."
With that, she tossed over a piece of silver. Each bun cost one wen, so half a tael was more than enough to buy every bun here.
Aunt Wu happily agreed, thinking they must be daughters of some wealthy family. She quickly got to work wrapping up all the buns for them.
In no time, Aunt Wu had packed all the buns and handed her a handful of copper coins. "Here, take the change. There were only just over two hundred buns left. This is the leftover money."
Xi Qingyue pushed the coins back. "This is a deposit for tomorrow’s buns. I’ll come buy again tomorrow, and I’ll take however many you have."
Aunt Wu was thrilled at this. She pocketed the copper coins and began tidying up her stall, planning to go home and prepare to make more buns for another profitable day tomorrow.
Next, they stopped at every shop in town: the pastry shop, the oilcake shop, the flatbread shop, the braised meat shop—they bought from all of them. Xi Qingyue purchased every type of ready-made food available and stored it all in her space.
This was a habit she had developed over the years of the apocalypse: whenever she could store something, she would store as much as possible.
Afterward, she drove the cart back toward Willow Tree Village. Xi Weilan, having had her fill of novelty inside, came out and sat beside her, watching how she handled the reins.
But as the two returned to Willow Tree Village, a group of official investigators was also heading toward their village—the very same officers who had been sent to investigate the case at the wealthy Wang's estate, and their destination was none other than Xi Erniu's home.
