The little girl said, "You can have it. I won't charge you for this piece."

Xu Bai waved his hand and said, "You can calculate it if you want, I don't need that little bit of money."

As Xu Bai spoke, he put the pastry in his mouth, took two bites, and exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, this pastry is so delicious! It has a rich milky flavor."

The little girl proudly said, "My grandma's pastries are naturally delicious. Because white sugar is expensive, my grandma uses some milk instead, which makes the pastries very tasty."

Xu Bai picked up another piece, chewed it a few times and swallowed it, saying, "You're right, your grandmother's pastries are very delicious. They're the best pastries I've ever eaten."

Hearing Xu Bai's words, the little girl's smile became even brighter, and her two round eyes curved into two crescent moons. Even Chen Zhaoci was infected by the little girl's smile, and his mood, which had been somewhat down because of the damp air, suddenly improved a lot.

Chen Zhaoci watched as the little girl put the pastries into two bamboo boxes and asked, "How much do these pastries cost in total?"

The young girl said, "Madam, it's thirty coins in total, but you can give me fifty coins."

Chen Zhaoci was stunned for a moment when he heard this. He didn't expect these pastries to be so cheap. Xu Bai also thought they were being sold too cheaply. He scratched his head and said, "How can they be so cheap? I have some loose silver here, you can have them all."

Xu Bai took his purse containing money off his belt and poured out the few pieces of silver inside. When the little girl saw this, she kept waving her hands and said, "No, no, Grandma won't allow it. Madam, young master, I'll take it to the inn for you. You can ask Manager Tong at the inn to break the silver."

The little girl had already picked up the two boxes, ready to return to the inn with Chen Zhaoci and the others.

Xu Bai quickly tied the purse to his belt, took the two boxes from the little girl's hands, and said, "There are men here, why do you, a girl, need to carry things?"

The young girl was surprised that Xu Bai not only helped her move her things but also said such things. After her initial surprise, she blushed and said, "Guests, you bought a lot, especially at this time of year. It's only right that I deliver them to you."

Xu Bai said nonchalantly, "I can't bring myself to have a young girl like you carrying things while I, a man, walk alongside you. Why don't you come with us to the inn to get the money?"

Before Xu Bai even reached the door, a person walked in from outside with their head down. They probably hadn't expected anyone to be buying things inside. After their surprise, they smiled and said, "Are you buying some snacks?"

Chen Zhaoci looked over and saw an elderly woman dressed in coarse cloth, her hair held up with a wooden hairpin, and her smile resembled that of the young girl.

The little girl saw the woman and said happily, "Grandma, these guests have bought all the pastries in our shop. I'll deliver them to the inn for them."

The woman paused for a moment after hearing the girl's words, then gave Chen Zhaoci a slight curtsy and said with a smile, "Thank you, Madam."

Chen Zhaoci noticed that the lady spoke politely and moved with graceful ease, and felt that she must be a person with a story. However, his most important task at the moment was to return to the inn to rest so that he could continue his journey the next day, so he did not inquire any further and said with a smile, "No need to thank me, it's your family's pastries that are delicious."

The woman took the box of snacks from Xu Bai's hand and said, "I'll take it to the inn for you."

The little girl said, "Grandma, I charged the guest fifty coins."

The woman smiled and said, "Fifty coins is just right. Qingqing, you stay here in the shop. I'll take the guests back to the inn and then come back. Shall we go home together?"

It turned out the little girl's name was Qingqing. Chen Zhaoci looked at the little girl after hearing this and felt that the name was very suitable for her. The little girl, who stood tall and graceful, was like a sunflower in the garden, waiting for the sun to rise in the morning dew. She gave people a sense of hope at first glance.

Chen Zhaoci led the way toward the inn, with the woman following behind carrying two boxes. Xu Bai tried to take them from her to carry, but the woman wouldn't let him, so Chen Zhaoci fell behind two steps and walked with her, asking as they walked, "Sister-in-law, have you always lived in this town?"

After listening to Chen Zhaoci's words, the woman pondered for a moment and said, "This town didn't exist originally. Like many towns along this border, it was formed gradually because the families of the soldiers who were stationed here lived here back then."

Upon hearing this, Chen Zhaoci naturally understood what had happened. At the beginning of the founding of the Great Liang Dynasty, due to years of war, the country was weak and the population had decreased sharply. In order to guard the border and also to promote the population growth rate, the court allowed the soldiers stationed at the border to bring their families over. Many villages and towns along the way were formed in this way.

Chen Zhaoci nodded and said, "I heard from my granddaughter that my sister-in-law learned how to make steamed pastries in the south. Is my sister-in-law from the south?"

A hint of wariness appeared in the woman's eyes, but she still replied, "Yes, my family came from the south."

Just as they arrived at the inn, Xu Bai exchanged money with the innkeeper, counted out fifty coins, gave them to the woman, and then gave her an extra twenty coins, saying, "This is for the two boxes you bought."

The woman quickly declined, saying, "I made them myself, they're not worth much."

Xu Bai said, "Just take it if I give it to you."

Upon seeing this, the woman took the money, bowed to Xu Baifu, and then left the inn.

Having bought so many pastries, Xu Bai and Chen Yuyuan each shared some, and even the guards received a few pieces. After Bai Wei ate two pieces, she said to Xu Bai, "Seventh Young Master, these pastries are so delicious! Where did you buy them? How about we buy more to take on the road tomorrow?"

Xu Bai said, "I'd like to, but the weather is so hot now, it might break if I take it on the road."

Bai Wei said, "It's okay, we'll just buy a little, enough for two meals."

Remembering the light in the little girl's eyes when she heard he was buying pastries, Xu Bai nodded and said, "It's from that pastry shop nearby. Why don't you go and tell them to make it a little earlier, so we can just pick it up and go when we leave? Oh, and remember to give them a deposit."

Chen Zhaoci said, "Bai Wei, take this tael of silver to them and tell them that we're ordering ten boxes of pastries for tomorrow."

Chen Zhaoci knew that because it was late and the market had closed, the girl had given him a very cheap price. These snacks would probably cost less than a hundred or so coins in the morning.