Buying Oversized Bedding

After leaving Spirit Hall, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu headed to the market in Nuoding City to buy bedding and other necessities.

Before long, the two arrived at the market.

The market was bustling with activity. Vendors' cries rose and fell one after another, while people streamed through the streets in an endlessly lively scene.

"Wow, there are so many people!" Xiao Wu could not help exclaiming at the bustling sight before her.

"Should we look around the market first, or buy the bedding first?" Lin Qing asked for Xiao Wu's opinion.

"Of course we should look around first! Bedding is so big—it'll be hard to carry around after we buy it."

"Alright, then let's browse the market first."

With that, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu began strolling through the market.

After walking for a while, they came upon a candied hawthorn stall. Xiao Wu spent five Copper Soul Coins on a skewer and happily skipped along as she ate it.

Lin Qing did not particularly like candied hawthorn. The sweet-and-sour flavor felt somewhat strange to him, so he only bought one skewer for Xiao Wu.

Walking through the bustling crowd hand in hand, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu occasionally broke into cheerful laughter.

"Lin Qing, have one." Xiao Wu suddenly held the candied hawthorn skewer up to Lin Qing's mouth.

Lin Qing had not wanted to eat any, but seeing the expectant look in Xiao Wu's eyes, he still surrendered. He opened his mouth and gently bit off a hawthorn coated in sugar.

As he gently crushed the hawthorn in his mouth, he found that unlike the overwhelming sourness of the hawthorn from his previous life, this one tasted exceptionally sweet. He did not know whether it was because his previous life had been too bitter, while this life had brought him freedom and spared him from having to struggle so desperately; or because this sugar-coated hawthorn had been fed to him by the person before him, making its sweetness overwhelm its tartness.

Seeing Lin Qing bite into the hawthorn, Xiao Wu casually turned her head and bit off one herself. Yet her faintly flushed cheeks and the corners of her mouth, which refused to stay down, showed that her heart was far from calm.

"This one seems even sweeter than the last!" After eating it, Xiao Wu savored the taste noticeably longer than she had with the previous hawthorns.

The two walked hand in hand through the market, and before they knew it, the distance between them seemed to have grown ever closer.

After browsing the market for over two hours, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu finally ambled off to buy bedding.

"Is anyone here? Shopkeeper, customers are here!" When they reached the bedding shop and found no one inside, Lin Qing called into the store.

"Coming, coming." A reply came from upstairs, followed by the sight of a tall, thin figure jogging down the stairs.

The newcomer had a gaunt face, a long horse-like visage, and a flattering smile on his face.

"Young customers, what can I get for you?" the shopkeeper asked.

"Do you have any good-quality bedding? Take us to have a look."

"Certainly, this way."

Although Lin Qing and Xiao Wu were dressed simply, the shopkeeper did not look down on them. In his eyes, anyone who entered his shop was a customer, and no matter how much they spent, they were his gods.

Following the shopkeeper's lead, Lin Qing and Xiao Wu arrived at the area where the bedding was displayed.

"How much is this kind?" Lin Qing spotted several sets with good fabric. He reached out and touched them, finding them remarkably smooth.

"This bedding is filled with premium swan feathers, while the outer layer is woven from the finest silk among ordinary silks. The fair price is seventeen Silver Soul Coins per set," the shopkeeper introduced.

"So expensive!" Lin Qing was greatly surprised. Before leaving Dihun Village, Old John had told him that a brand-new, good cotton quilt only cost three to five Silver Soul Coins. He had not expected one to cost seventeen Silver Soul Coins here.

"Is there anything cheaper?" Lin Qing asked with a frown.

"Customer, everything in our shop is top-quality. We're practically the finest bedding seller in all of Nuoding City. And these premium materials are treasured even by the noble lords themselves. Don't you think they're worth the price?"

Although Lin Qing felt that the man had a point, he still found it rather expensive. Seventeen Silver Soul Coins amounted to seventeen hundred Copper Soul Coins, enough to cover his living expenses for a month if he was even slightly frugal.

"Lin Qing, I want that one!" Xiao Wu, who had been wandering around by herself nearby, suddenly seemed to spot something that caught her attention and pointed at one of the bedding sets as she called to him.

Lin Qing looked in the direction Xiao Wu was pointing and saw an enormous folded bedding set. It was large enough to cover an entire double bed, and it was embroidered with many carrot patterns.

The moment Lin Qing saw the carrot patterns, he understood why Xiao Wu was so excited.

When the shopkeeper saw Xiao Wu pointing at that bedding set, he immediately hurried over and eagerly introduced it. "This set is the treasure of our shop!"

This is bad! The moment Lin Qing noticed the change in the shopkeeper's expression, he realized something was wrong. But by the time he reacted, it was already too late.

"This quilt is filled with down from the Soul Beast White Feather Swan, while the cover is made from the silk of the Arctic Ice Silkworm." The shopkeeper began with the usual introduction, but when he saw that Xiao Wu did not seem especially interested, then looked at the pattern on the cover and at Lin Qing, he instantly understood.

"The pattern was designed by a master clothing designer from Heaven Dou City. Besides, such a large quilt would be a little too big for one person, but just right for two people to share."

It seemed he had struck exactly the point Xiao Wu cared about most. Without any hesitation, she blurted out, "How much is it?"

"Since the materials for this bedding all come from Soul Beasts, the price is relatively high. One set costs thirty-two Silver Soul Coins."

"Lin Qing, let's buy this one, okay?" Xiao Wu grabbed Lin Qing's arm and shook it coquettishly.

"Xiao Wu, this bedding is too large. The dormitory beds are too small, and it could drag on the floor and get dirty."

"Then we can push our beds together, and the two of us can share it, can't we?"

"Xiao Wu, men and women should keep their distance. Although we're still young, we should still pay attention to such things." Lin Qing lectured Xiao Wu with a serious expression.

"Oh, Lin Qing, honestly. I'm a girl and I don't mind, so what are you making such a fuss about? We're getting this one." Xiao Wu said.

"But..."

Seeing that Lin Qing was still hesitating, Xiao Wu immediately pressed her advantage. "Look, the bedding you liked earlier costs seventeen Silver Soul Coins per set. For changes of bedding, each person would need two sets, which comes to thirty-four Silver Soul Coins. For both of us, that would cost sixty-eight Silver Soul Coins in total."

"But this large bedding costs thirty-two Silver Soul Coins per set. Two sets for washing and changing only cost sixty-four Silver Soul Coins altogether, a full four Silver Soul Coins cheaper than buying four small sets! And think about it—two bedding sets are easier to carry than four, right?"

"Alright, then we'll take this kind." Lin Qing finally compromised. After all, both he and Xiao Wu now depended on him to support them, so naturally, he had to save wherever he could.

In the end, they chose the oversized bedding. With the bargaining skills Lin Qing had honed while struggling at the bottom in his previous life, he successfully bought two identical sets for sixty Silver Soul Coins—one with a carrot pattern and the other with a little white rabbit pattern.