They called it a big city, but it wasn't all that big. Most of the shops were concentrated in one area, so it wasn't hard to look around.
There were far fewer street vendors now, and many shops were closed. Still, plenty of shops that had proper storefronts and whose owners lived in the city remained open.
Most sold cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, rice, flour, wine, and tea.
Lin Jue first asked about the prices and compared a few shops before picking out some soy sauce, vinegar, and clear oil. He also bought some dried noodles when he spotted a shop selling them. As for rice and flour, vendors from outside the city and local farmers sometimes brought some in to exchange for money so they could buy other things. It might be cheaper to buy from them, so he decided to wait until the next morning.
When they passed a pharmacy, he bought some cassia bark, bay leaves, star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, tsaoko, and angelica dahurica. Seventh Senior Brother and Junior Sister didn't know why they were buying medicine at a pharmacy while shopping for food, but they went along with him.
Before they knew it, evening was drawing near.
"That's enough shopping for today. We'll get the rest tomorrow morning. It'll be livelier then, and there'll be more to choose from."
"We'll do as you say, Senior Brother Lin."
"Don't tease me, Senior Brother."
"Haha..."
"Where are we staying tonight?"
Lin Jue looked at the sky and couldn't help asking.
"That's up to you. In the past, as long as it wasn't cold, when I came to the city with Master or one of my senior brothers—or even on my own—I usually stayed at the God of the Soil temple. The exception was when someone asked