Chapter 39 The Childhood Betrothal of a Miao Girl (Part 9)

Three days later, a group of merchants on horseback visited Qingfeng Village, their horses laden with all sorts of wood...

Three days later, a group of merchants on horseback visited Qingfeng Village. The horses were laden with all sorts of wooden boxes and chests, as well as many odds and ends in leather bags hanging on either side of their necks.

When they saw the caravan, the children of Qingfeng Village rushed forward excitedly, looking at the unfamiliar Miao people who hadn't visited for three to five years.

Because they not only traded in Miao areas but also ventured into Tibet and distant India, and had a history of over a thousand years in these regions, these merchants held a very high social status in Miao areas. From daily necessities and cultural entertainment to weapons and treasures, there was nothing they lacked.

Shui Mingsheng and the manager of Qingfeng Village greeted the group of merchants and led them to the stilted house where guests stayed. Shui Mingsheng then began to discuss large-scale transactions with them.

Because the merchant's arrival was rather sudden—he decided to stop at Qingfeng Village while passing through—Shui Mingsheng only prepared one thousand Green Lantern Gu worms. These Gu worms feed on the Green Jade Bamboo, which grows abundantly throughout Qingfeng Village. They are bright, attractive, and have a subtle fragrance, making them a specialty of Qingfeng Village. Since there isn't so much Green Jade Bamboo elsewhere, selling the Green Lantern Gu worms and Green Jade Bamboo together would yield a good return.

Shui Mingsheng negotiated a price with the merchant leading the group and purchased a large number of Gu insects, including those for communication and movement, as well as defensive, offensive, and healing types, and also acquired a large amount of living supplies.

After finishing her business, she turned to the businessman for personal matters: "Do you have any other treasures here?"

The merchant smiled and said, "What would you like to buy, Chief of the Water Village?"

Shui Mingsheng not only managed the affairs of Qingfeng Village, but also engaged in business on her own, though not on the scale of a caravan. She hired people to gather medicinal herbs and search for Gu worms in the mountains, using mobile Gu worms to sell them in distant markets, earning a profit from the price difference. Over the years, she had amassed a small fortune, enough for her to indulge a little.

"What's the best thing you have here? Let me see if there's anything suitable."

Hearing this tone, the merchant knew he was about to make a great profit. He opened his ever-present gold-inlaid pouch, which, once opened, grew larger. Its true form was a Gu worm with the ability to store things. The merchant poured out everything inside, and instantly, the entire table shimmered with golden light.

Shui Mingsheng called out, "Yi Qing, come and see, is there anything you like?"

Hearing her voice, Jiang Yiqing came over from the next room.

"Mingsheng, what are you going to buy for me? I don't need these things." Jiang Yiqing couldn't bear to refuse Shui Mingsheng's kindness, but she was also really embarrassed to let her spend money.

Shui Mingsheng took her soft hand and made her sit down next to him, afraid that she wouldn't even glance at him, and then how could he present his treasures to win the beauty's favor?

Jiang Yiqing looked at the treasures: gold and silver jewelry, dzi beads, Thangka paintings, Tibetan knives, all of which were sparkling and brightly colored. She didn't know which one to look at first, but she couldn't feel any particular fondness for them.

After all, her family was in business, and she had seen all sorts of strange things when she was a child.

"Yi Qing, do you not like any of them?" Shui Mingsheng asked.

“…Um, no, it’s just that I’ve never bought these before,” Jiang Yiqing said tactfully.

Shui Mingsheng was convinced that she didn't like any of them, and looked at the merchant: "Don't you have any better treasures? It seems that my Yiqing doesn't like any of them."

"Really? These dzi beads, Thangkas, and wooden sculptures—aren't they all decorations favored by wealthy families? Each one is an antique hundreds of years old, priceless. You don't like any of these?" The merchant said helplessly, but he was indeed provoked by Shui Mingsheng's words. He added, "There are indeed treasures that everyone loves, but they are very expensive. Even if Chief Shui is the head of the village, I'm afraid he can't afford them."

"Take a look at it first," Shui Mingsheng scoffed. "Is it really as good as you say?"

The merchant's face turned red as he took out his most prized possession: a miniature black wooden box with a matching small key.

The merchant opened the box and saw a small Gu worm lying at the bottom. Except for its tentacles, which were still twitching, its whole body was motionless, and there was a "king" character pattern on its forehead.

Upon seeing this Gu worm, Shui Mingsheng's expression changed, and he asked, "You actually have the larvae of the King Gu?"

The King Gu can command all Gu worms, standing at the pinnacle of Gu worms. However, they are extremely rare and very difficult to raise. Shui Mingsheng has heard of several cases of failed attempts to raise a King Gu. Even if a King Gu dies, being consumed by other Gu worms will still greatly enhance the abilities of those Gu worms.

"Well? I wonder if the two young ladies like this treasure?" the merchant said smugly.

Shui Mingsheng frowned and said, "I'm not buying these things. You keep this Southern Red Agate, and I'll take the Thangka, the Tibetan carpet, and all the medical books you have. I'll also take the latest handbags, the newest mobile phones, and a few skincare products."

The merchant beamed with delight upon hearing this, saying, "As expected of the Water Village Chief, you're so generous. Is this for your wife?"

Jiang Yiqing tried to stop her: "Mingsheng, you really don't need to buy it..."

Shui Mingsheng said, "It's nothing rare, but if other families have it, Yiqing should have it too. Don't argue with me about this little thing, just accept it."

"What about the King Gu? Does the Water Village Chief really not want it?" the merchant asked again.

Shui Mingsheng hesitated. This thing was indeed quite rare, and with the King Gu, it would immediately become famous in Miao territory. This was more about prestige than practical benefits.

A thousand years ago, there was a last Miao holy maiden who held an insect-summoning bell, presided over sacrifices, revered the mountain god, and possessed powerful spiritual energy. She could control all the Gu insects in Miao territory, including the King Gu, but now she has become a legend. Only the King Gu has survived.

Jiang Yiqing leaned closer to examine the Gu worm, which appeared to be on the verge of death. She asked the system, "The Gu worm doesn't seem to be in good condition."

"Yes, otherwise it would have turned into a fragment of a King Gu. A King Gu in this state can only live for a maximum of six months. However, if you feed it carefully, you may be able to raise one that others cannot."

Jiang Yiqing hesitated for a moment. She looked closely and saw something flash by beneath the soft grass mat where the Gu worms were lying.

The Gu worm sensed Jiang Yiqing's presence and, as if sensing something, suddenly began to move anxiously at the bottom of the box. The merchant was surprised to see this: "What's going on? This worm seems to have been stimulated."

As the Gu worm moved, Jiang Yiqing was able to see the bottom of the box, which contained a crumpled piece of straw paper. It wasn't anything rare, but she suddenly saw a system message.

"Fragment of the Myriad Gu Inheritance" x1

The system excitedly exclaimed, "Host, this is an incredibly rare and valuable item, even more valuable than this Gu worm!"

An incredibly rare and precious item has been turned into straw paper used as a cushion for the King Gu. Or is it that the King Gu is actually protecting this treasure from being discovered?

Regardless, we absolutely must get our hands on this black box.

"Yiqing, what do you think?" Shui Mingsheng hesitated, so he asked Jiang Yiqing for her opinion.

"Buy it," Jiang Yiqing said, feigning vanity. "It's not like we can't afford it."

Shui Mingsheng exchanged a glance with her and suddenly understood what she meant. He said, "Since Yi Qing has said so, we will buy it no matter the price. We are so sincere. You won't raise the price at the last minute, will you?"

“I offer the same price to all the villages.” He said, “Don’t worry, Chief Shui, I’m in big business. The most important thing is integrity. I won’t do anything that harms others and doesn’t benefit myself. And I won’t reveal the buyer’s identity to anyone.”

"How much?" Shui Mingsheng asked.

The merchant mysteriously held up five fingers and said, "This number."

“50,000?” Shui Mingsheng asked.

"Is the King Gu only worth this much?" the merchant said. "Chief Shui, don't joke with me. Although our Miao region is not as developed as the outside world, there are still many people who make a fortune in secret. Those who can afford to buy the King Gu are all very wealthy. You can't be so stingy."

The businessmen could tell that Shui Mingsheng had some wealth, but she never showed it off, so they wanted to test her financial situation.

"1 million, that's the most I can do," Shui Mingsheng said sternly.

"No, I want 5 million." The merchant held up five fingers again and said, "That's the number, not a penny less."

Shui Mingsheng said, "I also bought your agate and other things, so giving me a discount shouldn't be a problem, right? Besides, your King Gu doesn't look very good, so it's really not fair of you to do this."

The merchant chuckled and said, "4.5 million is an auspicious number. If you agree, Chief Shui, we can exchange money for goods."

Jiang Yiqing was bad at bargaining and could only watch the two go back and forth. In the end, the merchant was sweating profusely, wondering what Shui Mingsheng had caught him by, and he directly bargained the price down to 2.8 million.

"Chief of the Water Village, you are truly ruthless. I admit defeat. You'd better protect my business. I've never done such a losing deal in my life. I really can't go any lower."

“Okay,” Shui Mingsheng agreed.

Shui Mingsheng turned to get the money, while Jiang Yiqing pretended not to care, but actually kept a close eye on the box, afraid that something might go wrong.

When Shui Mingsheng returned with a stack of money, the merchant began counting it.

After receiving the money, the merchant smiled and said, "Chief Shui is truly generous! Qingfeng Village is indeed a great village, and you are truly a heroine among women. This transaction has been extremely pleasant."

Shui Mingsheng waved his hand and said, "No problem, no problem, there will be many more opportunities to trade in the future."

After the merchant left, Shui Mingsheng asked Jiang Yiqing, "Yiqing, do you have some ideas? I think you also want to keep this King Gu."

Jiang Yiqing said, "Mingsheng, there's a piece of paper under this King Gu, and it looks unusual."

Only after she reminded him did Shui Mingsheng realize that there was such a thing. He carefully picked up the paper with tweezers and saw that it had some obscure and difficult-to-understand words written on it.

"This is ancient Miao script; even I can only make out the general shape."

"What do you mean?" Jiang Yiqing asked.

"This is the legacy of the Holy Maiden...?" Shui Mingsheng said, utterly shocked. He had just thought of the legend of the Holy Maiden of Miao territory, and now he was seeing this kind of writing?

It's unbelievable that something like this would appear here. If it's fake, then the person who made it up is really good at playing pranks. But if it's real, then it's just too incredible!

"Yi Qing, do you think this thing is real?" Shui Mingsheng asked.

Jiang Yiqing looked at the back of the scrap paper, where a map was faintly visible. However, since it was a fragment, not much of it could be seen, but a key location was marked by a red dot.

"It doesn't feel fake."

Shui Mingsheng said, "This seems to be a treasure map? Looks like we can go treasure hunting. With the addition of the Moving Gu, it's perfect timing to travel around with Yiqing outside of Qingfeng Village."

Jiang Yiqing remained silent, and Shui Mingsheng didn't say anything to persuade her to stay, but to her, every word sounded like a plea to stay.

Shui Mingsheng picked up a piece of fine red agate and said, "Yiqing, let me put this on you first. I don't know if you like it."

The dazzling red agate—no girl could resist such sparkling gems. She nodded slightly, and Shui Mingsheng leaned forward, hanging the agate around her neck, making her skin appear even whiter and more like jade. The red of the agate was hidden in the soft mound, and Shui Mingsheng's gaze was drawn to her like a magnet, unable to look away.

Jiang Yiqing learned about the currency of this world and thought that at an age when she was about to go to university, there should be no one like Shui Mingsheng who could handle the affairs of a village, was skilled in Gu magic, and could earn so much money on his own.

This is unimaginable in modern times, and even more unimaginable in ancient times. Shui Mingsheng is truly amazing.