Early the next morning, Rong Zheng got the pheasants, wild rabbits, and goat ready, put them all in his back basket, and headed to the village entrance. The village was far from town, a two-hour walk away, so most people chose to catch an ox cart at the entrance in the morning.
Oxen were precious these days. Only two households in the entire village owned ox carts: the village chief's family and the Ye clan elder's family.
As for the landlord's family, they used a horse carriage. The so-called ox cart was quite crude, nothing more than a flatbed cart pulled by an ox, with room for a dozen or so passengers at three copper coins per person.
In the evening, the ox carts would also wait for passengers at a designated spot, then carry them back from town to the village when it was about time.
Today, only the cart driven by the village chief's son was waiting at the entrance. Rong Zheng paid three copper coins before climbing aboard, found an empty spot, and sat down.
The other passengers looked surprised to see Rong Zheng. The village was only so big, and practically everyone knew exactly what had happened to his family. Besides, he had once been one of the village's few scholars, so he naturally attracted more attention.
Lately, rumors in the village said he hoed his fields early every morning and went hunting in the mountains in the afternoon, a complete change from his former days of drinking and despondency.
Now, seeing him looking so presentable with a basket of game on his back, they could not help seeing him in a new light and gave him more appraising looks.
Rong Zheng did not mind. He sat at ease and let them look, even politely greeting familiar elders as uncle or auntie.
The village chief's son was named Ye Tianyu. Tall and sturdy, he sat in the driver's seat and was a very talkative man.
"Rong Zheng, it's been over a month since I've seen you go to town. Looks like you've got quite a haul in that basket!"
"Brother Tianyu, I've spent this past month learning to hunt. Ah, it's hard to get started in this trade. I never did anything like it when I was studying. It took me over a month to catch even this much. Hopefully, I can just about scrape a living."
Rong Zheng sighed, taking the opportunity to give them the impression that he was a terrible hunter so they would not grow suspicious.
In truth, thanks to his foundation in martial arts, he had caught three times as much game as he had in his basket.
Considering that a scholar who had never done heavy labor could not possibly have such a bountiful haul after just one month, he could only bring a small portion to sell and keep the rest alive.
"You're only just starting. This is a pretty good haul already," Ye Tianyu reassured him.
The two chatted for a while, and the uncles and aunties on the cart chimed in too. As they talked, the ox cart arrived in town.
Compared with the impoverished village, Laiyuan Town was fairly prosperous. Shops lined the streets: money houses, taverns, restaurants, ready-made clothing shops, smithies, bookshops, teahouses, grain stores, and rouge and powder shops-too many to count, a dazzling array.
Neatly arranged stalls also stood outside the shops, their vendors calling out along the bustling streets.
Rong Zheng liked this atmosphere, so full of everyday life. He remembered the original owner's father mentioning that game fetched a good price only at large restaurants. If he could not sell it there, he would consider hawking it at a little stall on the main street.
Following his memories, he headed straight for the Delighted Phoenix Pavilion in the center of the main street, the largest restaurant in town. A glance inside revealed that it was packed with customers and noisy with chatter.
He first asked a waiter, who called the shopkeeper over to discuss matters upon hearing that he had game. Shopkeeper Li saw that all the animals were quite good. Anyone who came to eat at the Delighted Phoenix Pavilion was willing to spend on food, especially wild game, so he bought the lot: two wild rabbits, two pheasants, and one goat, for eight taels in total.
Rong Zheng accepted the money, thanked him, and prepared to leave.
Shopkeeper Li stopped him. "Whenever you catch anything good, you can bring it here. We'll take as much as you have. Don't worry, our prices are fair."
Rong Zheng was an unfamiliar face, and he wasted no words during the transaction, leaving Shopkeeper Li with a good impression and the thought that they could do business over the long term.
Rong Zheng readily agreed. Having somewhere to sell everything at once was much easier than setting up a stall.
With his earnings in hand, he decided to have breakfast at a wonton noodle shop first. He had not eaten yet today, and by now his stomach felt completely empty.
He had gotten up so early that he could not be bothered to cook. Since he was coming to town anyway, he ought to try the food here.
He found a busy stall. Since he did not know which places were worth trying, he could not go wrong following the crowd.
The steaming wonton noodles whetted his appetite. The wontons had thin wrappers and plenty of meat-a conscientious vendor indeed. No wonder so many people were crowded here waiting.
After a hearty meal, he continued along the main street. Passing a bun shop, he thought he could buy a few buns for lunch and bring some back for Ye Yun and the others too.
"Ma'am, six meat buns, please."
"Meat buns are two copper coins each. Six will be twelve." The proprietress deftly wrapped them in oiled paper and handed them over.
Rong Zheng paid twelve copper coins, put the buns in his basket, and continued on. He entered a grain shop and bought five jin of white rice. He really could not get used to eating brown rice mixed with white rice.
Brown rice was much cheaper, so villagers generally cooked the two together to save money. The original owner's family did the same. After eating it for a month, he had had more than enough.
After buying rice, he turned and went into the general store next door, buying salt, dried chilies, bay leaves, and the other seasonings one by one.
While paying, he spotted pastries on the counter and picked up a box. The marked price was twenty copper coins. Pastries were something of a luxury for farming families. Ordinary households could not bear to buy them, thinking they would be better off saving the money for meat.
The shopkeeper's abacus clacked. "That comes to sixty copper coins, sir. These pastries are delicious. Lots of people buy them. Come any later, and you wouldn't be able to get any."
"If they taste good, I'll be back!" Rong Zheng paid without hesitation.
Last came vegetable seeds. He walked to the corner at the end of the street and found the East Market Vegetable Seed Shop Uncle Liu had recommended.
"Shopkeeper, what vegetable seeds are good to plant this season?"
The shopkeeper walked to the shelves, pointed at the labeled seeds, and enthusiastically introduced them:
"Pumpkins, cabbages, radishes, tomatoes." His hand pointed to the other side. "Oh, garlic shoots and chives are very suitable too. Sir, our seeds have an excellent reputation. We have plenty of regulars. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."
Rong Zheng scooped up a handful of seeds to examine them and found them plump and nicely colored.
"Shopkeeper, I'm planning to plant three mu of vegetables. Give me some of everything you just recommended, plus chilies and yardlong beans. I'll leave the amounts to you."
"Sir, is there any kind you'd prefer to plant more of?"
"No, just divide the three mu evenly among them."
"All right, I'll give you two packets of each. Since you're buying so much, I'll throw in another packet of garlic shoots. That'll be twelve copper coins."
"Thank you."
Leaving the seed shop, Rong Zheng went to a ready-made clothing shop and bought two sturdy hemp outfits. Hunting meant moving through mountain forests, where branches could easily tear his clothes.
After some thought, he decided to buy another everyday outfit. The clothing shopkeeper courteously led him toward the section where those clothes hung.
Rong Zheng looked up. A pale blue satin robe stood out on the rack, clearly displayed as the shop's showpiece.
Gold thread edged its collar, and silver flowing-cloud patterns were embroidered over the body. To show it off to full effect, the shopkeeper had paired it with a dark blue sash adorned with a translucent white jade pendant, lending it a refined and sumptuous air.
Ye Yun came to mind at an inopportune moment. These clothes would suit Ye Yun perfectly. Ye Yun was very thin but tall, with handsome features. Wearing them, he would look like an elegant young nobleman.
"Sir? This outfit is for a ger. The men's clothes are over here."
Seeing Rong Zheng staring fixedly at a ger's outfit, the shopkeeper spoke up to remind him, then belatedly realized that perhaps he wanted to buy it for his husband and began recommending it with renewed vigor.
"Sir, are you perhaps buying it for your husband? Let me tell you, this outfit is our shop's crowning treasure. We only have three sets a month. Feel the fabric-soft and comfortable..."
When the shopkeeper mentioned "husband," the word fell into Rong Zheng's ears like a stone into water, setting off ripple after ripple.
The gers of this world looked like men, but they could marry and bear children.
Back in the modern world, Rong Zheng had never dated, devoting himself wholeheartedly to studying martial arts. As the Rong family's thirty-first-generation successor, he had begun helping his father handle affairs at a young age and had been groomed as the heir.
He had never met anyone, man or woman, who moved his heart. That did not mean he rejected love. Perhaps he simply had not met the right person.
From the very first glance, this ger named Ye Yun had quietly taken root in his heart. He had delicate, handsome features and beautiful eyes. Seeing him always made Rong Zheng happy without realizing it, and even the sight of fine clothes made him imagine how elegant Ye Yun would look in them.
There was no denying that he harbored some hazy affection for Ye Yun. Looking back, perhaps it had begun with the fabled "love at first sight."
At that thought, Rong Zheng, who had been single for twenty-seven years, suddenly felt he could not delay taking action. He needed to let Ye Yun know how he felt first. Courting someone ought to be done openly...
Then he remembered Ye Yun being beaten at Eldest Uncle Ye's home, and anger rose in his heart. He had to get him out of that kind of family as soon as possible. The person he liked deserved to be cherished. Thoughts crowded his mind.
"Sir? Sir?" The shopkeeper finally realized that after all his recommendations, the customer opposite him had actually been lost in thought. He was speechless...
The clothing shopkeeper interrupted his thoughts, and Rong Zheng said, "Sorry, I haven't married a husband yet." Perhaps I'll have one soon, though!
Turning toward the rack on the other side, he pointed at another robe. "Sorry for the trouble, but please get me that dark blue robe."
"Certainly. Our clothes are very comfortable, sir. Once you've worn them, I guarantee you'll be satisfied. We're a long-established shop. Our reputation is what keeps us in business."
The shopkeeper had an assistant wrap up the clothes. "That comes to one tael and twenty copper coins. I'll waive the twenty copper coins. Just give me one tael."
Ready-made clothes were quite expensive. In the past, the original owner's mother had bought fabric and made clothes for the whole family, saving a considerable amount.
Unfortunately, Rong Zheng had no sewing skills and could only buy ready-made clothes with an aching heart.