Liusheng Bookshop

After eating, Zhou Yao decided not to go to the bookshop just yet. Instead, he would first buy a carriage, which would make things more convenient in the future.

Zhou Yao first went to a carriage dealer and tried sitting in a carriage. It felt very comfortable, so he bought it for over a hundred taels of silver.

Then Zhou Yao drove the carriage to the market and bought four laying hens and four roosters. He put them on the rack on the carriage, then drove leisurely toward the bookshop.

Zhou Yao drove his carriage to Liusheng Bookshop, the largest bookshop in Stone County. When he saw the four large characters spelling out "Liusheng Bookshop," he thought that the owner must be a very interesting person.

"A passing wild goose leaves its cry; a passing person leaves their name." This Liusheng Bookshop is rather interesting. Zhou Yao smiled.

A bookshop attendant at Liusheng Bookshop saw a young master pull up in a carriage outside the shop. He hurried over with a smile and said, "Young master, welcome to Liusheng Bookshop."

Zhou Yao nodded and said to the attendant, "Keep an eye on my carriage. Here, take this. It's a tip for you."

With that, Zhou Yao tipped the attendant a string of cash. Seeing how generous Zhou Yao was, the attendant hurriedly nodded and said, "Please come inside, young master. I'll be sure to look after your carriage."

The attendant escorted Zhou Yao to the main hall of Liusheng Bookshop, then went outside to guard the carriage.

Once inside the main hall, Zhou Yao looked around at the bookshop's layout. Hmm... not bad. Its antique charm gave it a very high-class feel.

Just then, a middle-aged man walked over with a smile and said, "Hello, young master! May I ask what book you've come to buy? Or...?"

Hearing this, Zhou Yao smiled and said, "May I ask who you are?"

"Hello, young master! I'm the manager of Liusheng Bookshop, and the owner as well. My surname is Yan, and my given name is Liusheng. Yan Liusheng."

"Oh... Boss Yan, a pleasure... a pleasure..." Zhou Yao said with a smile, cupping his hands.

"Boss Yan, you chose a fine name for this bookshop! A passing wild goose leaves its cry; a passing person leaves their name! May your business prosper, Boss Yan!"

"Thank you for your kind words, young master. Hahaha..."

"My surname is Zhou, and my given name is Yao. Zhou Yao. I'm also from Stone County."

Yan Liusheng nodded and continued, "Young Master Zhou, what brings you to my Liusheng Bookshop...?"

Zhou Yao smiled and said, "Boss Yan, does Liusheng Bookshop buy storybooks?"

"Storybooks? Of course we do! Why wouldn't we?" Yan Liusheng replied.

Yan Liusheng went on to ask, "Could it be that you have a good storybook, Young Master Zhou?"

Zhou Yao smiled and replied, "Some time ago, a thought occurred to me, and inspiration suddenly struck. I wrote a storybook, but I've only written ten chapters so far. I'm still slowly working out the chapters that follow. I think writing ten chapters every fifteen days should be no problem."

Hearing this, Yan Liusheng thought, So it's a storybook that hasn't been finished yet! He felt a little disappointed.

But as the owner and manager of a shop open for business, he still needed to greet customers with a smile. So Yan Liusheng smiled and said, "Did you bring the chapters you've written, Young Master Zhou? Could I take a look?"

Zhou Yao noticed the change in Yan Liusheng's expression and gaze, but thought nothing of it. He smiled and replied, "Boss Yan, I did bring the chapters I've written. I'll get them for you right now."

With that, Zhou Yao took the first ten chapters of Dream of the Red Chamber out of his bag and handed them to Yan Liusheng.

In truth, Yan Liusheng didn't want to read the story Zhou Yao had written. If Zhou Yao hadn't arrived in a carriage and been dressed so richly, Yan Liusheng might not even have paid him any attention.

Yan Liusheng took the manuscript Zhou Yao handed him without any particular expectations. There were plenty of young masters like Zhou Yao writing storybooks throughout the Great Zhou State, and one more hardly made a difference.

After taking the manuscript from Zhou Yao, Yan Liusheng saw the large characters "Dream of the Red Chamber" written on the first page. He gave an inward hum, then began reading the first chapter.

Once Yan Liusheng started reading, he couldn't tear his eyes away. The more he read, the more astonished he became, and the more delighted he felt. This... this... this is unquestionably one of the best storybooks in the world. No... not one of them. Dream of the Red Chamber is the best storybook.

The more Yan Liusheng read, the more delighted and happy he became. From time to time, exclamations like "Wonderful! Excellent!" came from his mouth.