"The commoner...dare not." The woman known as Little Qu spoke fearfully.
"When we were young, we used to catch butterflies together. So, there is no lord here. You're still Little Qu, and I'm still the same Little Ling. How about that?"
"Okay...okay." Little Qu lowered her head.
Weng Ling reached into the bags of wheat, paying no attention to the possibility of being pricked by the wheat husks.
"I left the Lorran Domain at the age of six. I never expected that when I came back, you'd be married with a child. But why aren't you at your husband's place and instead running this shop? And where is Uncle Qu? Why didn't I see him?"
Little Qu, holding the child, looked at Night San Geng and Weng Ling curiously and sighed.
"My father was buried in the mine five years ago. As for my husband, he used to be a worker, and now he works in the mine. I run this shop, take care of the child, and supplement our household income."
Feeling guilty for not staying in Lorran Domain and instead remaining in Baiyan City, Little Qu's voice was barely audible.
"Ah, I'm sorry."
Weng Ling felt awkward and suddenly remembered something. She took out the handkerchief from her bag, opened it gently, and then blew on the intact wild berry. She handed it to the child.
"Here, I don't have much to eat, but this one is for you. It's very sweet!"
As soon as Night San Geng heard this, he covered his face and turned away.
Indeed, bright red berries are quite attractive to children. Seeing the berries in front of him, the child reached out, grabbed one, and put it in his mouth. However, after just half a second, his eyes turned red, and he turned around, hugging Little Qu, crying and drooling on the ground.
"Sour~ Sour~ Mom, it's sour! Wah..."
Weng Ling looked at the berry spat out by the child, puzzled, and then turned to Night San Geng.
"Ah, maybe that one was too small and not sweet enough. The one I ate wasn't sour, I promise!"
When Little Qu, skilled in rinsing the child's mouth, came out, the child, with a fearful expression, avoided Weng Ling. Weng Ling felt embarrassed and simply pointed to the bags of wheat in the shop.
"Well, I came here to buy some food to take back. Can you tell me the prices?"
Little Qu hesitated but nodded.
"Unshelled new wheat is 10 copper coins per catty, shelled is 15 copper coins. Unshelled aged wheat is 7 copper coins, and shelled is 12 copper coins. If you want it ground into flour, I still have some in the back. It's 20 copper coins per catty. What do you think?"
Wheat is usually ground into flour for making bread or noodles. One catty of wheat flour can make three portions of black bread, which can be sold for 30 copper coins. So, the prices in Little Qu's shop are not particularly expensive.
Weng Ling thought for a moment. "Aged wheat is for bread, and new rice is for meals. I want... 100 catties of shelled aged wheat and 20 catties of wheat flour."
After saying that, Weng Ling counted out 16 silver coins and handed them over without overpaying or underpaying.
Seeing this, Night San Geng shrugged. Weng Ling was once again preserving people's dignity.
Based on the price of wheat, he immediately gained a new understanding of the black-hearted nature of his system. Spending gold coins like copper coins!
It seemed like he had been taken care of regarding his dignity, too. With the daily wage of 7 silver coins, he used to think it was too little, but now...
Tsk tsk, he was taking advantage of others, after all.
"I also want a catty of unshelled wheat." Night San Geng suddenly pulled out a copper coin and said.
Weng Ling glanced at him, said nothing, and Little Qu curiously asked, "Are you planting seeds? If you are, the ones outside might not be good. I can help you get some from the back."
"Oh, is that so? That would be great. Not too many, just around 100 seeds," Night San Geng nodded.
With the wheat seeds packed in the small linen bag that Little Qu gave him, Night San Geng held the flour, Weng Ling carried the wheat, and they left her little shop.
"Where to next?"
"Of course, we're going to buy meat. Otherwise, what will you chew on?" Weng Ling rolled her eyes at him.
However, the later shopping experience didn't go so smoothly. It seemed that information about Weng Ling, the lord of Lorran Domain, buying supplies in Baiyan City had spread, and more and more onlookers began to follow them.
That wasn't a big deal—just some idle folks. However, what troubled Night San Geng and Weng Ling was that the shopkeepers seemed to have unanimously raised their prices.
"What? One silver coin for a pound of smoked meat? It was only 70 copper coins last time!" Weng Ling frowned at a greasy man with a leather pouch.
"Hehe, last time was last time. The market is different now, and besides, you, a lord, are not short of money. One silver coin is really not expensive. Don't you all agree?" The meat seller grinned, looking at the crowd and laughing.
"Haha, Lao Jiang is right. If it were me, I would sell it for two silver coins!"
"Blackie, you are truly cunning, but two silver coins are not expensive. I agree, haha!"
The most abundant thing in this world is people casting stones at those who have fallen into a well, especially those with short-sighted views. At this moment, they fully demonstrated the evil nature of human beings.
Weng Ling gritted her teeth. Most of these people used to be the residents of Lorran Domain, but now...
"Let's go. We won't buy it."
Weng Ling sighed, wanting to leave, but she found that Night San Geng was still standing there, unmoving. Instead, his eyes were fixed on the row of smoked meats, and he didn't blink.
"What's the matter, young man? Do you want to eat meat? This is top-quality wild boar meat. One silver coin per pound is really not expensive!"
The big man wiped his greasy knife and said, looking at the crowd.
"Is this wild boar meat?"
"Yes! I, Lao Jiang, sell the best-smoked wild boar meat in Baiyan Village. It's not me bragging, but once you leave this village, you won't find better-tasting smoked meat!"
The big man saw that more and more people were gathering around, and even some merchants were curiously approaching. He couldn't help but puff out his chest and boast, projecting his loud voice throughout the village.
"Oh, that's fine. I'll take it all..."
"You...all of it?" The big man was stunned. "There's more than 100 pounds!"
"Yes, I'll take it all. Here
, take the money."
After saying that, Night San Geng handed over the money he was holding. The big man looked at it expectantly...