Buying Pants

As noon approached, the scorching sun caused the temperature to rise rapidly, and the two pale, bare legs beneath someone's cloak stopped trembling.

Xian Wu glanced back at the candied hawthorn Lu Piao was offering and refused without a second thought.

"I'm not eating, thanks."

It wasn't that he thought the street stall was dirty, nor was he looking down on Lu Piao; he simply never ate anything given to him by strangers.

When a boy is out and about, he must protect himself well.

After finishing his sentence, he didn't wait for Lu Piao to keep pestering him; he turned his head and continued searching for a tailor shop along the street.

"Refusing such delicious snacks, you really are a weirdo," Lu Piao grumbled, his cheeks puffed out.

In no time at all, he had polished off both skewers of candied hawthorn.

Unlike Lu Piao, who devoured the snacks like a pig eating ginseng fruit, Nie Li ate slowly and deliberately, looking very refined.

Furthermore, he didn't smack his lips.

Heaven rewards the diligent; after continuing forward for a stretch, Xian Wu finally found a tailor shop—Wang Mazi Tailor Shop.

At the shop entrance, a little girl with two pigtails, looking about four or five years old, was playing with a rubber ball by herself.

Her chubby, rosy little face was truly adorable.

"Daddy, we have customers!" Seeing strangers approach, the little girl wasn't afraid at all; instead, she turned her head to alert the shop.

So cute. Xian Wu's heart nearly melted. If he ever got married in the future, he definitely had to have a little girl of his own.

Unfortunately...

The moment he thought of his left hand, Xian Wu's spirits instantly deflated.

With it around, a happy occasion had a high probability of turning into a funeral.

Crossing the threshold and stepping into the shop, the shopkeeper greeted them enthusiastically.

"Are you all here to buy clothes? Or are you looking for custom tailoring?"

Although the three of them looked like children and the one leading the group was dressed quite shabbily, the shopkeeper did not treat them with disdain.

"Do you have pants?" Xian Wu asked straightforwardly.

"Outer pants or underpants?"

"Outer pants."

"Long or short?"

"Long."

"Linen or silk?"

"Linen."

Before the shopkeeper could continue asking, Xian Wu interrupted him immediately.

He suspected that this shopkeeper's surname wasn't Wang, but Nie; the man was so long-winded that he was giving him a headache.

"What can this much money buy?" Xian Wu took out his meager savings from the inner pocket of his cloak.

"This little bit?" The shopkeeper glanced at Xian Wu's palm and smiled. "With these few coins, you can't even afford a pant leg."

"No way? This much money is enough to buy two pairs of pants in the North District!" Xian Wu couldn't believe his ears.

The shopkeeper curled his lip. "That's just how our shop's prices are. You'd better go ask somewhere else."

Seeing Xian Wu being looked down upon by the shopkeeper, Lu Piao became unhappy.

"Hey, are you blind? Bring out the best pants in your shop!" Lu Piao waved the hundred-yuan bill in his hand.

The corner of the shopkeeper's eye twitched, and he said politely, "I'm sorry, but even if you combine the money from both of you, it's not enough to buy one pant leg."

"Are these pant legs made of gold, or is the waistband made of gold? Why are they so expensive? Seeing that we're young, are you trying to scam us?"

Lu Piao was furious.

"A... a black shop!" Nie Li added fuel to the fire.

Seeing that the group was about to lose their tempers, the shopkeeper shook his head helplessly. "Don't argue, everyone stop arguing! There is a reason why they are expensive."

"Wait here, I'll bring them out for you to see, and you'll understand!"

After saying that, he instructed his assistant to watch the shop and turned to walk into the back room.

Before long, the shopkeeper returned carrying a pair of snow-white trousers.

He held up the clothes hanger, pinched the waistband, and introduced them proudly. "See this? The pants in my shop are made of top-quality fabric."

"How good can it be?" Lu Piao crossed his arms, closed his eyes, and asked indignantly.

The shopkeeper wasn't annoyed and began to explain, "These pants are made of high-grade silk woven from the silk produced by the Wind Snow Spirit Silkworm."

"Not only are they cold-resistant and warm, soft and silky, and breathable, but they are also extremely light in weight. They are very popular among the nobility."

"Why are the ordinary linen pants so expensive too? Can you let me see them?" Xian Wu asked.

Perhaps because there were no other customers, the shopkeeper did not refuse Xian Wu's request.

Handing the snow-white silk trousers to the shop assistant, he brought out a pair of linen trousers from the back room.

Without waiting for the shopkeeper to introduce them, Xian Wu could see that the trousers in this shop were unusually thick and heavy.

"People who buy linen trousers are generally common folk. Considering they often work in the fields, their clothes suffer from heavy wear and tear."

"Our trousers are universally made with three layers of fabric, providing both warmth and durability."

"If you buy them in winter, by the time summer arrives, they are basically worn down to just a single layer."

"Since summer is hot, you can just tear off the damaged fabric, and they work perfectly as single-layer trousers. It's both economical and practical."

Clap, clap, clap...

Xian Wu couldn't help but applaud; it was truly creative!

"I'm impressed!" Xian Wu cupped his hands in a salute. "Once I have money, I will definitely come to your shop to buy trousers."

Lu Piao couldn't help but ask, "How much for those white trousers?"

"One thousand eight hundred Demon Spirit Coins, no bargaining." The shopkeeper first held up his index finger to indicate one, then his thumb and three fingers to indicate eight.

"So expensive?" Lu Piao swallowed hard; the pocket money he had saved up over the years only totaled two thousand Demon Spirit Coins.

As expected, the lives of the wealthy were beyond their imagination.

"You two go and attend to your own business; there's no need to accompany me." After walking out of Wang Mazi Tailor Shop, Xian Wu turned to the two of them and said.

It didn't matter if he was looked down upon, but it wouldn't be good to implicate Lu Piao and Nie Li, as they were, after all, children of noble families.

Lu Piao waved his hand. "It doesn't matter. We don't have anything to do anyway, and we're just idling about. Right, Nie Li?"

Having eaten their fill, Nie Li nodded in agreement.

Just as they were about to leave, a mastiff larger than a steed came charging wildly from the street corner.

If one looked closely, they would see a pink-haired young girl riding on the dog's back.

Riding a dog with your pants wet—don't you even understand that basic principle? Xian Wu raised an eyebrow.

The three of them retreated back into the shop, preparing to avoid the brunt of the chaos.

"Who is that girl riding the dog? Isn't she being a bit too arrogant and domineering?" Lu Piao said indignantly.

The shop assistant inside said, "You don't even know her? That is Hu Yan Lan Ruo, the eldest daughter of the Hu Yan Family, one of the Seven Great Noble Families."

"That shrew..." Before Nie Li could finish his sentence, the shopkeeper covered his mouth.

The shopkeeper warned, "Don't you dare talk nonsense. Miss Hu Yan is famous for being unreasonable and difficult. If you offend her, you won't have a peaceful life for the rest of your days. Even if you don't care about your own life, I still want to keep my shop open."

"Oh, right!" The shopkeeper suddenly remembered something. He let go of Nie Li and leaned out to wave at the street. "Er Ya, get inside quickly, it's dangerous!"

Whatever you fear, that is what happens.

"Ball." The ball had rolled into the middle of the street, and the playful little girl rushed out to retrieve it.

On the other side, Hu Yan Lan Ruo was riding the giant dog, brandishing her whip and charging forward like a madwoman, completely unaware of the little girl who had suddenly run into the middle of the road.

"Er Ya!!!" The shopkeeper cried out in alarm. It was too late for him to run out and save her; if he rushed out now, both he and Er Ya would be killed.

Just as the little girl was about to be trampled into a pulp by the hooves of the Giant Mastiff, a black shadow dashed out of the door.