The afternoon sun blazed, and even the autumn heat was a nuisance.
The golden sun hung high overhead, baking everyone into a drowsy, listless stupor.
Shen Tang was like a wilted leaf of greens, slumped to one side with drooping eyelids as sleepiness slowly overtook her.
But business soon came knocking.
Knock, knock, knock!
The newcomer rapped his knuckles against the wooden stool, impatiently calling out, "You there, wine seller. Wake up. How much for your wine?"
Shen Tang's drowsiness vanished. She hooked a finger under the brim of her Bamboo Hat and tilted it up, revealing a strikingly beautiful face. When the man saw her, the impatience circling his brows faded. He stared fixedly at her face, his voice turning greasy without him even realizing it.
"Young lady, how much for the wine?"
Shen Tang looked languid. "A two-jin jar of grape wine is four hundred and fifty wen. Other wines are three hundred wen a jar. No bargaining."
Perhaps her pretty face had softened him, because the man didn't take offense at Shen Tang's laziness or her refusal to get up and greet him. But the moment he heard her prices, his eyes bulged with anger. "Well, would you look at that! You're just some street vendor. Who knows how much water you've mixed into your wine? You open your mouth and demand four hundred and fifty wen—and you call it grape wine? A peasant like you probably hasn't even seen a grape!"
Shen Tang didn't hold back. "Buy it if you want. If you don't, then leave."
The man seemed unprepared for her response.
In his experience, vendors always lowered their heads when they saw him. They either fawned over him or offered discounts, sometimes even giving goods away. No one had ever told him to get