Wuxia: Drinking with Spring Breeze

Yang Ge knew the shop assistant at the grain store must have misunderstood.

That's why he had to go back today and buy the grain!

If he didn't return, he feared the next time the shop assistant saw him, he might report directly to the authorities…

After visiting Silver Coin, Yang Ge successfully exchanged the ten-tael silver ingot into five one-tael pieces of fragmented silver and five heavy strings of cash coins.

After all, he merely dared not show his Embroidered Guard token to a curious creature who read it as a shop assistant and pronounced it as a loudspeaker.

To Silver Coin's Shopkeeper, he had no such reservations… A person capable of being a Shopkeeper at Silver Coin might not necessarily be tight-lipped, but he was certainly sensible and aware of what mattered.

What could be said and what couldn't, Yang Ge believed the words "Embroidered Guard" would make him think twice.

Not to mention, the heavy strings of cash coins felt more substantial in his possession compared to the light silver ingots.

Listening to the "dingling clang" of copper coins clashing against each other on his body, Yang Ge couldn't help but grasp the bulging money bag at his waist, his steps becoming increasingly lighter as he walked.

Huang imitated his stride, and father and son soon developed an unrecognizable walking rhythm.

"A peck of millet is nineteen coins, a bushel is one hundred and ninety coins, ten bushels are one thousand nine hundred coins!"

"A peck of barley is thirty coins, a bushel is three hundred coins, five bushels are one thousand five hundred coins!"

"Together, that's three thousand four hundred coins!"

"A tael of silver equals one thousand two hundred coins, so three thousand four hundred coins is exactly just over two taels!"

As Yang Ge walked, he calculated the money for the grain he was about to pay. Once he figured it out, he sighed, "Earning money is like catching ghosts, spending it is like pouring water!"

Perhaps the expenditure was too painful; even the unrecognizable stride lessened considerably as he mulled to himself, 'Having bought so much grain, I'll buy less meat. A taste is enough; buying more won't keep… Maybe I should buy some young hens now, save them for later for laying eggs?'

'That way, even if meat prices rise later, with eggs to rely on, I won't be completely cut off from a protein source.'

'The old man's place is spacious; I can raise more chickens and ducks… Yes, tomorrow I'll take more chicks and ducklings there!'

The sudden rise in grain prices reminded him of the previous incident with the Xie Family.

This gave him a rather unsettling feeling; he speculated that the court might be planning to use troops against the Tartars again…

Otherwise, wouldn't the covert collusion between the nobles and the Tartars, a cover-up for their own empowerment, be exposed in vain?

As Yang Ge pondered what other supplies he needed to stockpile to manage potential political chaos, he suddenly noticed a man approaching.

The man wore a dust-grey patch-ridden garment that couldn't hide his shame, his emaciated frame made it difficult to tell whether he was in his thirties or just over forty.

A wisp of straw stuck in his hair, he pulled a cart along the street at a drifting pace, his steps so unsteady that one felt he might collapse at any moment, never to rise again.

The passersby kept their distance, continuously casting glances filled with either disgust or pity at him.

For some reason, upon seeing this man's vacant gaze, Yang Ge involuntarily slowed his pace.

He gradually stopped walking, watching as the man staggered past him, observing the cart where two figures, one large and one small, lay wrapped in mats.

"Brother!"

He suddenly spoke, calling out softly.

The man in grey continued pulling the cart, moving step by step forward as if he hadn't heard.

"Big brother!"

Yang Ge hurried a few steps and reached out to stop him.

The man in grey woodenly turned his head towards Yang Ge, his eyes reflecting no image of him, "You, you're calling me?"

His voice was so faint it seemed to carry from across a mountain; had he not been close, Yang Ge would not have heard him clearly.

Yang Ge, catching a whiff of a faint stench of decay and forcing himself not to look at the large and small figures on the cart, asked, "How much silver do you need to bury them?"

The man in the gray clothes stared at him blankly, not answering for a long time.

Yang Ge, holding Huang, did not urge him, patiently waiting instead.

After a while, the man finally replied, "Five, five hundred wen?"

Five hundred wen?

It wasn't a small amount.

But it was hardly enough to bury the adult and the child...

Yang Ge pondered for a moment and, as if rubbing his hands on his body, took out two broken silver pieces from his belt. Then, taking the man's cold hand, he said loudly, "You must pull yourself together, look forward, the days will get better!"

The onlookers, who had slowed to watch the spectacle, heard Yang Ge's unimpressive speech and scornfully curled their lips before turning away to continue walking.

The man in the gray clothes felt something strange in the palm of his hand and looked down blankly at his own hand.

"Don't look!"

Yang Ge, still holding his hand, whispered, "Take the money, properly bury them... don't thank me now. If you have the capacity later, lend a hand to those who need help, and that will be thanks enough for me."

He released the dog leash, and slowly clasped the man's cold and stiff hands, gripping the two broken pieces of silver firmly.

The man in the gray clothes couldn't help but look down and, from the silver gleam between his fingers and the strange feel in the palm, finally realized what he held.

"My benefactor!"

He choked up and grasped Yang Ge's hands tightly, his hollow eyes quickly filling with tears.

Yang Ge shook his head slightly at him and said softly, "Live well. A respected elder once told me that the living must carry on the hopes of those who are gone, live well, move forward, and never look back..."

After speaking, he forcefully broke free from the man's stiff hands, patted his shoulder, picked up the dog leash, and walked away.

The man in the gray clothes, tears streaming down his face, stood frozen, watching as Yang Ge's figure gradually disappeared into the crowd. After a while, his legs buckled, and with a "thud," he knelt on the ground, heavily kowtowing three times in the direction Yang Ge had gone.

"Tsk, such insignificant words, and yet you bow for them?"

...

Yang Ge led the way into Chaimen Street, guiding the grain shop's workers who were delivering provisions behind him.

As he walked, he comforted Huang, who hung his head low, "Don't be disappointed, next time, when daddy has earned some money, I'll definitely buy you meat..."

"Huang!"

A hoarse laughter came from ahead.

Yang Ge looked up and saw Shopkeeper Liu and Liu Mang.

The father and son pair, one tall and one short, one robust and one thin, presented a stark contrast standing together.

The short, thin one was still diligently earning money.

Providing for the tall, robust one...

Upon seeing Shopkeeper Liu, Huang's tail, dragging on the ground, perked up immediately.

Seeing this, Yang Ge simply let go of the dog leash.

Huang spread his four paws and bolted towards Shopkeeper Liu.

"Oh, Huang, you've gotten heavier; Grandpa can hardly hold you... What's this you're wearing today? Did your dad pick on you?"

Shopkeeper Liu caught Huang happily, gently patting his head and neck. Suddenly, like a magician, he produced an egg and held it before Huang, "Look, what did Grandpa bring you?"

Liu Mang stood aside with his arms crossed, rolling his eyes.