Thanks to KoshkaHP for the kofis, hope you enjoy these bonus chapters!

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“We haven’t even gotten on the carriage yet!”

The Wang brothers turned green with shock, seemingly unable to grasp that they were the ones being kicked off the carriage. They waved their hands and ran after it, while Auntie Liao, who was a bit older, had already caught on and was already cursing.

“What rotten luck! Flirting with a blind man—now I have to walk all the way home. What a disaster!”

Wan Dongyang paid no heed to the frantic shouts coming from behind the carriage. He simply asked the people inside calmly, “Is it still crowded now?” 

“Not crowded at all,” several women hurriedly agreed.

“If you ask me, it wasn’t crowded at all earlier. It’s just those two busybodies causing trouble. It’s even more crowded during the autumn harvest.” Luo Wang, the young man from the Luo family who had been bickering with Auntie Liao earlier, looked at Wan Dongyang with a broad smile.

Although the road from the village to town wasn’t far, it was a different story when carrying a load on one’s back—even a single li was exhausting.

Though Wan Dongyang had a short temper, he wasn’t the kind of person who looked down on others or treated people differently based on their status. Come harvest time, he would help families short on labor haul their tax grain to the county seat, and on ordinary days, if he encountered villagers on the road, he’d give them a free ride.

He felt he was far better than those in the village who only spoke sweet words but never got anything done.

Liu Qishuang hadn’t said a word since the Wang brothers and Auntie Liao were thrown off the cart, for his shock was no less than that of the two brothers. He’d thought Wan Changqing was going to throw him off the cart, but to his surprise, it was the Wang brothers who were kicked out!

He hadn’t expected Wan Dongyang to dare do something so offensive, nor had he imagined that Wan Changqing could be so decisive—if he didn’t like a ger, he simply didn’t like him.

No, no!

It’s more accurate to say that Wan Dongyang is simply that kind of person—if he can’t stand someone, he won’t tolerate them.

So, he really hadn’t been lying. The day he sided with the Wang-ger, knowing the truth yet still taking the blame for them, was truly for Wan Changqing’s sake. Now that Wan Changqing had lost interest in the Wang-ger, he, too, would no longer tolerate them.

A silent smile blossomed at the corners of his mouth. Liu Qishuang stared unblinkingly at the back of the cart driver ahead, unable to look away for quite some time.

Villagers rarely went to the main street when visiting town; instead, they headed straight for the vegetable market, and Liu Qishuang and his group were no exception.

Wan Dongyang drove the cart straight to the entrance of the vegetable market. After the villagers had disembarked one by one, he took Liu Qishuang to pay the market fee, helped them find a spot to set out a back basket of wild greens and a back basket of milk vetch flowers, and only then did they leave.

Liu Qishuang didn’t know where Wan Dongyang was going, and he didn’t dare ask. But before leaving, Wan Dongyang had given him instructions: sell each bundle of Chinese mahogany for five wen; if any remained by noon, sell them for no less than three wen. As for the tender shoots of the milk vetch, sell them for whatever price someone offers—after all, most people don’t recognize the plant or know its benefits, and since its flavor isn’t particularly remarkable, there’s no point in trying to overcharge.

As for the flowers, if anyone asked about them, he was to first observe their attire before quoting a price. The more elegantly dressed the woman, the higher the price he should ask; he could even sell a handful for as much as ten wen.

Liu Qishuang took Wan Dongyang’s advice to heart. He crouched down at his own small stall, carefully observing how the other vendors around him conducted their business.

Spring was in full swing, and wild produce was plentiful. There were quite a few vendors selling wild goods around Liu Qishuang. Across from him was a vendor selling bamboo shoots—each one round, white, and plump, looking quite eye-catching. To his left was a vendor selling various wild greens; thankfully, there were no Chinese mahogany leaves or wild grass seeds. As for him, there was an old woman selling eggs.

But next to the old lady was a young woman selling something he didn’t quite recognize—whether it was a flower that looked like a leaf or a leaf that looked like a flower, it was thin, pale, and tender green, and quite pretty.

Poplar Town was large and densely populated, and the morning market was bustling. Liu Qishuang had just learned how to hawk his wares from the middle-aged man selling bamboo shoots across the way when customers began to arrive.

“The Chinese mahogany leaves are in season! How much are they?” The woman asking the price was a slightly plump woman in her thirties. As she spoke, she had already begun picking through the selection, clearly intending to buy.

Remembering Wan Dongyang’s advice, Liu Qishuang immediately quoted a price.

“Five wen per bunch. Pick whichever one you like—any of them will do.” The Chinese mahogany shoots Liu Qishuang and his group had gathered the previous day were all tender young shoots, with almost no stems trimmed off. They could be chopped up whole for cooking, and since they were all nearly the same size, there wasn’t much room for picking and choosing.

“A little less.” The woman’s eyes were fixed on the Chinese mahogany shoots in the back basket, and she began haggling without hesitation.

That’s just how business works—no matter the price, there has to be some back-and-forth haggling before either side is satisfied.

Seeing the woman haggling while her hand kept sifting through the Chinese mahogany shoots, Liu Qishuang didn’t back down. He just smiled, casually picked out a couple of handfuls, and pointed to the woman selling eggs next door. “Chinese mahogany shoots stir-fried with eggs are so fragrant. We only get to enjoy them a few times a year. Yesterday, my…… my husband even fell from a Chinese mahogany tree and took a nasty fall. We simply can’t do without them.”

Liu Qishuang’s face was burning with embarrassment. He’d meant to say “brother,” but the words had slipped out differently. Deep down, he knew his heart’s desire was nothing but a pipe dream, but he figured it wouldn’t hurt to indulge in a little fantasy for now.

The woman sorting the Chinese mahogany buds saw the young man suddenly blush, looking quite embarrassed. Noticing his patched clothes, she guessed his family must be struggling. She also saw that though he was so young, he was already married—yet despite being married, he wore not a single flash of color, not even the silver ornaments a married ger would typically wear on his ears or wrists. She was immediately moved with pity, so she simply picked four handfuls and put them in her vegetable basket, counting out twenty pieces of cash for him.

Liu Qishuang hadn’t expected that he’d actually made some cash. He held the copper coins in his hand for quite a while, reluctant to put them away in his purse, but when another customer came in, she had no choice but to put them away and quickly get back to work.

Running a business is no easy task, and the customers who came after the first one weren’t nearly as easygoing. Some stubborn old ladies not only haggled over prices but also turned the neatly arranged Chinese mahogany leaves into a complete mess. Liu Qishuang was struggling to handle them, but the middle-aged woman selling eggs next door told him not to worry about anything. No matter how much the customers nitpicked or tried to drive down the price, he should just keep smiling at them. Their goal was to make a sale; as long as the goods were sold, putting up with a few harsh words was no big deal.

“To sell things, you’ve got to have a thick skin. Once you’ve got a thick skin, you’ll fear nothing.” Taking advantage of a lull in customers, the woman whispered a few more words of advice to Liu Qishuang.

Liu Qishuang nodded in agreement, then shifted his gaze to the young woman standing next to the auntie.

He had been watching the transaction next door and already knew what the item was—it turned out to be elm samaras. They weren’t cheap, yet they sold like hotcakes. It was a pity he’d never seen them on the back mountain behind the village; perhaps he hadn’t ventured far enough.

While his mind was set on finding elm samaras, his hands weren’t idle.

Liu Qishuang set aside the neatly bundled Chinese mahogany shoots and houttuynia, keeping them separate from the slightly disheveled grass seeds. He planned to use the tender grass shoots as a freebie: if anyone bought Chinese mahogany shoots or flowers, he’d throw in the grass seeds—after all, no one had shown any interest in them so far.

Liu Qishuang’s sudden idea actually worked. By the time he’d given away those ten or so bundles of grass shoots, he’d nearly sold out of his wares—and it wasn’t even noon yet.

The town held a market on the 2nd, 5th, and 8th of each month. On non-market days, as noon approached, the crowds thinned out, buyers and sellers grew scarce, and the streets began to feel deserted. Liu Qishuang was eager to count the copper coins in his money pouch but dared not do so, fearing someone might snatch them away.

With one hand on his cash pouch, he looked around, hoping to see that person—and sure enough, they actually showed up.

“Not bad. Only this basket of flowers is left.” Wan Dongyang held a grease-paper wrapper in his hand and handed it over naturally as he spoke.

Liu Qishuang took it, unwrapped it, and found two large meat buns inside. He took one out and tried to give the other back, but Wan Dongyang wouldn’t take it.

“I’m already full. I bought these for you.”

“Huh?” All of them were for him? Liu Qishuang could hardly believe it—a single meat bun cost two wen.

Wan Dongyang thought to himself, Why is this Liu-ger always so slow and clueless? Just eat what I gave you—why are you staring at me with those big eyes?

“Hurry up and eat. You haven’t sold your flowers yet—let’s try moving to a different spot.”

Wan Dongyang was very decisive; no sooner had he spoken than he began gathering his things from the ground. Liu Qishuang had left home without eating breakfast that morning and was now quite hungry. He stuffed the meat bun into his mouth while mentally calculating the cost.

The filling in the bun had been stir-fried; it contained not only minced meat but also diced bamboo shoots and wild onions. With one bite, the soft, fluffy dough gave way to a fragrant, delicious filling. It was so tasty that he finished the large bun in no time.

With the large bun gone, the two left the vegetable market. Only then did Liu Qishuang remember to ask where Wan Dongyang’s cart had gone.

“A beast that big can’t just be roaming the streets—people would curse me to death. I left it in the storage area in the livestock market.” As Wan Dongyang said this, a strange expression crossed his face, and he muttered a few words under his breath.

In truth, horse-drawn carriages were permitted on the town’s streets, but only those belonging to wealthy families and equipped with sedan chairs. As for the flatbed carts from their village—whether pulled by oxen or horses—would draw scorn from passersby the moment they hit the streets, accused of dirtying the pavement.

Liu Qishuang didn’t often come to town; everything looked new and strange to him, and he took every word spoken by those around him to heart. Hearing Wan Dongyang’s words, he made a mental note: ox-drawn carts couldn’t be led onto the streets, or else they’d be scolded.

After eating one bun, his stomach was already half-full. Liu Qishuang obediently followed behind Wan Dongyang, his curious gaze wandering over the street vendors shouting their wares, the grand shops, and even the passing crowd, all while taking small, slow bites of the bun in his hand. By the time he finished his bun, they had arrived at their destination.

Wan Dongyang led him into a pharmacy.

Liu Qishuang didn’t know why they were at the pharmacy, nor did he dare interrupt Wan Dongyang’s conversation with the shopkeeper, but he did approach an apprentice standing nearby and ask about the prices of some herbs in the shop.

The apprentice looked to be only eleven or twelve years old, but he was quite friendly and answered every question. In no time, Liu Qishuang had found out the prices of pinellia ternata leaves and their seeds, and loquat leaves.

“If you have any pinellia ternata, feel free to bring it over. Whatever you have, our pharmacy will buy it all.”

“I’ll bring it over as soon as I dig it up this summer.” Pinellia ternata is extremely rare; a single plant yields only one fruit, and it’s buried deep in the yellow earth. It takes an immense amount of effort just to find a pound or two of it—no wonder the price is so high, costing well over three wen per pound.

While Liu Qishuang was talking with the pharmacy assistant, he didn’t notice the shopkeeper’s glances occasionally falling on the basket in his hands. However, since he had a question for the shopkeeper, and seeing that Wan Dongyang and the shopkeeper seemed to have settled their business, he plucked up the courage to step forward and ask.

“Shopkeeper, what medicine should someone who’s been coughing for some time take? Do you have any in your shop?” Liu Qishuang thought to himself that now that he was earning cash, he wouldn’t have to rely on his grandfather drinking only water boiled with loquat leaves; if he could take some good medicine from the pharmacy, his grandfather would recover quickly.

When he got up this morning, his grandfather was still coughing; that loquat leaf decoction probably wasn’t doing much good.

As soon as Liu Qishuang asked, the shopkeeper replied. He was a kind man and patiently explained, “We don’t have a doctor on duty here. With a cough, we need to determine the cause first. Different causes require different treatments—you can’t just take medicine randomly. Ger, you should take your family member to a clinic first, get a prescription from a doctor, and then come back to get the medicine.”

Liu Qishuang hadn’t expected seeing a doctor to be so complicated, but he also felt the shopkeeper’s words made perfect sense—medicine should be tailored to the specific ailment, and that was, after all, how doctors earned their living.

He nodded and thanked the man, thinking the matter was settled and they could leave. Unexpectedly, as they turned to go, the shopkeeper called them back, a hint of trepidation on his face. “Young man, where did you find these milk vetch flowers? Might you spare a few for an old man like me?”

“Oh, we picked these ourselves in the mountains. I’ve already sold a whole back basketful—this is all that’s left.” Wan Dongyang spoke up first, but the shopkeeper’s face immediately broke into a smile upon hearing his words.

The shopkeeper had assumed they were buying them, but to his surprise, they were selling them. Well done—if they were selling them, he could buy the whole lot.

After leaving the herbal shop, Liu Qishuang still felt a bit dazed. How had he managed to sell the flowers he’d been unable to move all morning? And at such a high price, too!

The Chinese mahogany shoots he’d worked so hard to harvest, and the flowers he’d dug up one by one from the ground—those two items combined had only fetched a little over a hundred copper coins. Yet the wildflowers he’d plucked by the handful on the way down the mountain had sold for fifty!

With Wan Dongyang by his side, he felt much less self-conscious. Liu Qishuang immediately counted the copper coins in his cash pouch—a total of 186, which meant the wild vegetables had fetched 136 wen.

Liu Qishuang regretted that Chinese mahogany couldn’t be sold every day and that milk vetch was hard to come by, but since he already had other things he wanted to sell, he didn’t dwell on it. He didn’t waste any time either; he quickly counted out eight copper coins and handed them to Wan Dongyang.

“Is this my share?” Wan Dongyang took them without hesitation. Since they’d agreed to split the cash, he might as well accept it—that way, he’d be doing a favor in exchange for payment, with no strings attached.

Wan Dongyang had already come up with an excuse in his mind, but to his surprise, Liu Qishuang shook his head the very next moment.

“No, this is for the buns. I’m treating you to today’s buns. The cash I’m giving you… How much do you want?” Liu Qishuang didn’t know how much Wan Dongyang wanted; he figured anything less than half would be fine.

Wan Dongyang never imagined that one day he’d have a young ger treat him to a meal. He laughed happily and actually tucked the eight wen away. Then he held up one finger to Liu Qishuang. Seeing his raised index finger, Liu Qishuang lowered his head slightly and tentatively asked, “You want a hundred?”

“That’s a lot.”

“Ten. Just give me ten copper coins.”

Wan Dongyang spoke up, but Liu Qishuang felt his words were a bit vague, as if she had misheard him.

Ten? He’s actually only asking for ten copper coins?