Stocking Up

After entering the apartment and closing the door, Shen Jingchuan took the old sofa out of his spatial storage and set it up. He had put everything in the apartment into storage, leaving nowhere to sit.

He looked around the old apartment where he had lived for more than twenty years. It was where he had grown up, so naturally he was deeply attached to it, but it was simply too inconvenient.

It was high up in an old, rundown building, and he knew all the neighbors. With people coming and going, it would be easy to give himself away while traveling back and forth and hiding things.

Once things had settled down on both sides, he ought to move out. But he couldn't attend to matters here just yet. He would wait until things over there were properly settled. For now, he still had to hurry back; the three girls were still keeping watch.

He opened a shopping app on his phone and browsed the online stores. There were so many styles of mirror that his eyes were dazzled: wooden frames, plastic frames, all kinds. Most cost only a few to a dozen or so yuan apiece, dirt cheap. He picked several antique-style designs and bought over a hundred mirrors in all.

He still had more than a hundred thousand yuan on hand, but he didn't dare buy too many. People passed through the stairwell every day, and he couldn't guarantee he could return to collect the deliveries at any time.

As he scrolled, he came across an acrylic flexible mirror advertised as shatterproof. It was his first time seeing such a novelty, and he didn't know whether the reflection would be clear. It wasn't expensive anyway, so he casually ordered two, each half a meter square, planning to test the waters when he went back.

After paying for all the orders, he leaned back on the sofa and considered the business at hand.

When he went back this time, he would first sell some things for silver, then simply buy a residence outright. Renting forever was no long-term solution, and owning a place would make it easier to store goods.

He reckoned five or six hundred taels of silver ought to be enough to secure a decent little courtyard house, seven or eight hundred at the very most. It wouldn't cost much.

No sooner had he finished the thought than he laughed, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Seven or eight hundred taels of silver amounted to seventy or eighty taels of gold, nearly three or four kilograms. At current gold prices, a single kilogram cost hundreds of thousands of yuan. At modern prices, that courtyard house would cost well over a million.

He had only just gotten his hands on a little money, and he'd already stopped treating money like money?

He shook his head and laughed to himself. He really was getting a little carried away.

What should he take over there? He suddenly remembered that the supermarket at the entrance to the residential complex sold small mirrors. They weren't very big, but the advantage was that he could get them immediately.

Shen Jingchuan went downstairs and headed straight for the supermarket at the entrance. He made his way to the toiletries section and found only two styles of mirror, twelve in all. None were very big; even the largest was only about twenty centimeters across.

He grabbed a basket and cleaned them out. He reckoned that even this small amount would sell for at least five or six hundred taels on the other side.

People over there favored large ones. The larger the reflective surface, the more valuable the mirror. These were a little small, and although they were a grade lower, there were plenty of them.

After leaving the supermarket, he walked along, thinking about where else he could stock up.

He suddenly remembered that a ten-yuan variety store had opened across the street a couple of months ago. It sold odds and ends for daily use, so it might have some in stock.

He turned the corner and reached it after only a few steps. Inside, he saw that there really were quite a few mirrors on the shelves.

Small round mirrors, folding makeup mirrors, small square mirrors with plastic frames, little bathroom mirrors for hanging on walls—mirrors of all sizes occupied half a shelf.

Shen Jingchuan wasted no words. He took them down one by one, not even passing over the ones tucked away in the very corner. He counted thirty-one and told the owner to pack them all up.

The owner was a middle-aged woman. Seeing him with an armful of mirrors, she stared in surprise and couldn't help asking:

"Young man, are you... opening a bathhouse or a hair salon? Why are you buying so many mirrors? And they're all different." She also wondered to herself whether she'd priced them too cheaply and run into someone stocking up.

Still, she remained helpful, finding a large cardboard box and packing them neatly inside for him.

Between the supermarket and the shop, there were forty-three mirrors in all. None looked very big, but stacked together they weighed several dozen jin.

Shen Jingchuan carried the box back and climbed straight up to the fifth floor, barely out of breath.

After setting the box down, he paused in surprise. He had exercised often before, but carrying something this heavy up the stairs would always have left him needing to catch his breath. Now it had been effortless. He didn't think much of it, putting it down to his more regular routine lately.

Once inside, he first put the entire box of mirrors into his spatial storage, then stuffed the sofa he had taken out during the day back in as well.

After tidying up, he took out the clothes he had brought back from the other side and changed into them. He checked himself over, inside and out, then willed himself across. Light and shadows flickered before his eyes, and when he found his footing again, he was in his bedroom in the other world.

Shen Jingchuan collected himself and stepped out of the bedroom. The main room was silent. A figure standing beside the table turned at the sound, dressed in a plain skirt and cloth shoes, with delicate features.

He looked at her for a moment and felt somewhat helpless. It was one of the Su Household's twin sisters, but he couldn't tell in the slightest whether she was Su Qingshu or Su Qinghua.

The two looked far too much alike. Their figures and features were identical down to the smallest detail, and even their speaking voices were nearly indistinguishable. He had seen them several times but still hadn't worked out how to tell them apart.

When the girl saw him come out, she hurriedly curtsied. "Young Master, have you finished practicing?"

Shen Jingchuan paused, then remembered he had said he was going to "practice," and nodded in acknowledgment.

"Are you hungry? I'll prepare some food right away."

He had been so excited at noon that he had drunk two bottles of beer and barely touched the food. Now Shen Jingchuan felt ravenous, and he nodded at once. "Go on."

He walked over to the table and sat down. The girl first poured him a cup of warm tea, then quietly withdrew.

She had been gone only a moment when the door curtain lifted and Xiaoyue entered, followed by another figure who looked exactly the same.

Shen Jingchuan sighed inwardly. In novels, people said having a pair of twin maids was a delightful novelty. Only when it happened to him did he find out it was nothing but trouble—facing two identical faces every day and having to guess who was who every time was truly taxing.

He absolutely had to find a way to tell the two apart for good.

While he was turning the matter over in his mind, Xiaoyue had already stepped forward and given a graceful bow. "Young Master, thank you for your efforts in practice." With that, she moved behind him and raised her hands to gently pound his shoulders and back. "Let me help ease your fatigue."

Shen Jingchuan was a little surprised. Why was this girl being especially forward today? As he wondered, the other girl stepped forward as well and stood at his side, ready to attend him.

He simply raised his eyes to her and asked, "From now on, could you sisters dress a little differently?" He pointed at the one in front of him. "You're the older sister, Qingshu?"

The girl hurriedly lowered her head and answered:

"Young Master, I am Qingshu."

"All right. From now on, wear dark clothes, and have your younger sister Qinghua wear light ones. That way, it'll be easier to tell you apart."

Su Qingshu was taken aback and replied softly, "Young Master, the clothes we have now were all given to us by Miss and Miss Yue'er. They're all light-colored..."

"All right, I understand."

Shen Jingchuan waved a hand. There was no hurry; they could buy some later.

While they were talking, the meal was brought out. Four dishes and a soup were laid out neatly. Shen Jingchuan was already famished, so he picked up his bowl and chopsticks and began wolfing down his food.

The three girls stood around the table, one serving him food, one handing him a cloth, and one ladling out soup, attending him with deft hands.

At first, Shen Jingchuan hadn't been used to having people gathered around him while he ate. After the past few days, however, he had gradually grown accustomed to having people attend him like this.