Chapter 172: Meeting an Acquaintance
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Su Ying looked at the crowd coming in and out of the border pass and said, “I’ll go in and take a look later. You guys wait outside the gate.”
When Tiger Might heard this, his expression changed slightly. “Madam Su, there are thousands of soldiers guarding this pass. You can’t act rashly.”
The corner of Su Ying’s eyes twitched. Did he really think that she was going to barge in?
“I won’t force my way in. I’ll think of a way to get in.”
Tiger Might wanted to ask Su Ying if she had any ideas, but in the blink of an eye, Su Ying was already walking towards the pass.
She looked at the carriages lining up and slipped under one carriage when no one was looking.
Tiger Might saw Su Ying hiding under the carriage from afar, and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. He hurriedly stepped forward to stop her, but it was already too late. The carriage started moving and reached the soldiers guarding the pass.
The guards went to the front of the carriage to question the driver. Then, they began to inspect the carriage. When he saw the guard squatting down to inspect the bottom of the carriage, Tiger Might’s fists were clenched tightly. What if…
However, to his surprise, the soldier stood up after checking the bottom of the carriage and let the carriage in as if he did not see anything amiss.
Tiger Might was astounded. It was not that he had not used this method to go through the pass before, but the guards here were very strict. They immediately found him hiding under the carriage. If he had not run fast enough, he would have been caught long ago.
He didn’t understand how Su Ying had managed to hide from the soldiers.
Of course, Tiger Might wasn’t aware that Su Ying could enter her interspatial store when the soldiers came to check She timed herself carefully and only came out again when sufficient time had lapsed, thereby successfully escaping the soldier’s search.
The carriage soon arrived at the pass, but it was still some distance from the inner town market.
After an unknown amount of time, Su Ying finally felt that the surrounding environment had become lively. The sound of pedestrians and shouts had also become more frequent.
When the carriage passed by a quiet street, she released her grip and detached herself from the bottom of the carriage.
Su Ying stood up from the ground and dusted herself off. She looked around and walked out onto the street.
As this was the town closest to the border pass, there were people from many different states. The trading here was also very prosperous. Although the streets and shops were not exquisite, there was a lot of human traffic.
Su Ying stopped a passerby and asked for the location of the rice and flour shop before heading in that direction.
“You miserable thief, don’t run!”
As Su Ying walked down the street, a man ran toward her with an anxious expression as another man ran after him frantically behind.
When she saw that the man had reached Su Ying, she slowly stretched out her leg and tripped him.
“Argh!”
The man fell hard on his face!
The person chasing him also took the opportunity to catch up. He grabbed the person on the ground and started beating him up. “You bastard! How dare you steal my money pouch? I’ll beat you to death!”
“Sir, please spare me, please spare me. I won’t dare to do it again. I won’t dare to do it again.”
The person who had been robbed took back his money pouch and was about to hand him over to the government office when the other party escaped.
“Miserable bastard! If I see you again, I’ll beat you to death!” The man turned to look at Su Ying and met her gaze. After a moment of shock, a look of joy appeared on his face.
“Madam Su?”
Su Ying had already recognized Zhang Liang the moment he caught up to her. “Old Master Zhang.”
Zhang Liang never thought that he would meet Su Ying again in his lifetime. He was very excited, but when he thought of Su Ying’s identity, he brought her to a private dining room in a restaurant.
“Madam Su, you helped me again today. I’m really grateful.”
In reality, he did not have much silver in his money pouch. What was important was his seal. This thing was as important to a businessman as the official seal of the government. If he lost it, he was afraid that someone could impersonate him.
Su Ying hadn’t expected to meet Zhang Liang here either. “Didn’t you guys settle down in Zhu Prefecture City previously? Why are you here?”
Zhang Liang said with a smile. “I’ve indeed settled down in Zhu Prefecture City. My friend in Zhu Prefecture said that there’s a business opportunity here, so I came over to take a look.”
Su Ying remembered that Zhang Liang was in the grain business. What business opportunities could there be in this godforsaken place?
When he saw Su Ying’s baffled look, Zhang Liang explained, “Madam Su, you might not know, but I have a good friend who is very learned and knowledgeable and knows practically everything. Every year, he can accurately predict the weather changes by observing the weather. He said that it would be a cold winter this year, much colder than before, so he told me to stock up on charcoal now and sell it when the demand picks up.”
“Is this place rich in charcoal?”
“Yes, the trees here are lush and the climate is suitable for making charcoal. Many of the high-grade low-smoke and long-lasting charcoal in the Chu State are transported there from here.”
Su Ying honestly didn’t know about this.
However, if he wanted to buy charcoal, it was the perfect opportunity for her. “I just made a batch of charcoal. I wonder if Old Master Zhang will accept it?”
Zhang Liang was now extremely curious about Su Ying’s exile. After some thought, he asked, “Madam Su, have you been inside the pass all this time?”
Su Ying shook her head. “No, I’m already in the northern wilderness. But in order to survive, I have to think of a way to support myself, so I figured out a way to make charcoal. Today, I brought some to sell outside the pass, but there aren’t many people trading outside the pass, so I thought of a way to come in and take a look.”
Zhang Liang didn’t ask Su Ying how she got in. He only said, “May I ask where Madam Su’s charcoal is? Can you bring me there to take a look?”
“Outside the pass.”
“Then, please wait here for a moment, Madam Su. I will go and inform my friend that I am going out of the border pass with you for a look and that I will be back in at most an hour.”
“Alright.”
As soon as Zhang Liang left, Su Ying left the place as well. She wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to replenish her supplies.
Su Ying walked to the grain shop and inquired about the price of rice and flour.
“This rice is 8 copper coins per catty, and the coarse grain is only 5 copper coins per catty. Which type do you want?” A shop assistant from the rice shop walked out and greeted her warmly.
“Do I get a discount if I buy more?”
“How much do you want?”
“All of them, including your stockpiled stocks. I don’t mind old rice as well.”
The shop assistant was stunned. He thought that Su Ying was just a stay-at-home housewife. He did not expect her to be a big customer. The shop assistant did not dare to be negligent and quickly went to look for his boss in the backyard.
The boss had obviously never encountered such a thing before. When he came out, he jogged all the way to Su Ying, afraid that he would miss this big customer. “Young lady, how much do you want?”
“How much do you have?”
“Well, our store has a lot of stock. There are 500 catties of rice, 200 catties of coarse grain, and two bags of old rice. What do you…”
“Give me the lowest price. I’ll take them all.”
“You… really want them all?”
Su Ying placed a small piece of gold on the counter. “Yes.”
The boss’s eyes widened when he saw the gold. “I’ll give you one copper coin less per catty. I can’t go any lower.”
Su Ying felt that she could accept this price, so she bought them all with a wave of her hand..
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