It was just before dawn, and the moon was bright and the stars were few.

Under the moonlight, only a shadowy figure could be seen, with no clear details of clothing or face.

The man seemed to hear the noise behind him, and stopped, standing sideways by the roadside, as if waiting for the mule cart to pass.

This scene nearly frightened Lin Gensheng, who quickly tightened the reins and yelled "Whoa!" to bring the mule cart to a stop.

After a long pause, he finally mustered his courage and, trying to appear calm, called out, "Who's up ahead?"

He was scared to death when he came out in the middle of the night to scare people.

"Oh, Uncle Lin, I am Chongyang, Fan Chongyang." The man's voice was filled with surprise.

As he spoke, he lifted his foot and walked over.

Lin Gengsheng breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Oh, it's Fan Jia Dalang. You're... going back to the academy? Why didn't you have your father take you?"

As they were talking, Fan Chongyang had already walked up to them and said, "My father went to the mountains to chop firewood yesterday and hasn't come back."

"Then get in the car. Uncle Lin is going to the county town to get a doctor for your second uncle, and he'll give you a ride."

“Then I’ll have to trouble Uncle Lin.” Fan Chongyang readily agreed.

After thanking him, he first put the book box on the cart, then got on the mule cart and sat facing Lin Momo.

"Little Sister Er Ya is here too."

"Yes. If I had known Brother Fan would be going back to the academy this morning, I would have asked you to walk with me yesterday, so you would have company on the way." Recalling his generous gift yesterday, Lin Momo had a good impression of him and was particularly friendly in her words.

"Yes, who would have thought it would be such a coincidence?" Fan Chongyang said with a gentle smile.

Seeing that the two were chatting happily, Lin Gengsheng, not wanting to be left out, chimed in: "Chongyang, you must be seventeen by now. All the boys this age in the village are already getting engaged. Hasn't your family arranged a marriage for you?"

If you can't chat, just shut up. Is this how you talk to people?

Asking about someone's marriage right off the bat is like deliberately killing the conversation.

“Grandpa said that at this age, one should focus on their studies and there’s no need to rush into marriage.” To everyone’s surprise, Fan Chongyang didn’t even change his expression and naturally accepted the reply.

For some reason, when Lin Momo heard "Grandpa said," she remembered her own words to the village chief, "My mother said," and inexplicably felt that Fan Chongyang was lying just like her.

Lin Gensheng surprisingly agreed: "Your maternal grandfather is right! Once you pass the imperial examination and become a scholar or the top scholar, you'll have plenty of marriage opportunities."

Along the way, listening to the two chatting idly, Lin Momo was able to doze off while leaning against the car's side panel.

Fan Chongyang, sitting opposite, saw the little girl nodding her head like a chick pecking at rice, a gentle smile always on her face. While quietly responding to Uncle Xu, she gently pushed the book box over for her to lean against, and stretched out her long legs to brace the book box so it wouldn't move.

As the sun rose, Uncle Xu finally arrived in the county town in his mule cart.

"Little sister Er Ya, little sister Er Ya, we've arrived in the county town."

With a gentle wake-up call, Lin Momo slowly awoke, rubbing her sleepy eyes, only to find that she had actually slept on a box, with a suspicious water stain on it.

She immediately snapped out of it and brushed her arm against it.

When she looked again, it was completely clean, and the embarrassment on her face faded.

This scene naturally fell into Fan Chongyang's view.

Ever since he saw Lin Momo, the corners of his mouth had been slightly upturned, and at this moment, the smile on his lips deepened even more.

The little girl's clothes were tattered, but much cleaner than yesterday, as if they had just been washed.

Her long hair was piled on top of her head and held in place with a wooden hairpin, giving her a tomboyish appearance; her bright eyes revealed a cleverness that made her delicate features stand out, and paired with her drab gray clothes, she was androgynous at first glance.

At this moment, Lin Momo was like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden, looking at everything with great interest.

There were quite a few people entering the city early in the morning. Some were carrying bamboo baskets, others were carrying shoulder poles, and still others were pulling carts. Their hands were not empty. They seemed to be villagers from nearby towns who were going to the market. They had all formed a long queue at the city gate. Although the queue was crooked and not very orderly, at least they were not crowding together at the city gate.

Lin, who had slept the whole way, got off the mule cart and walked beside Uncle Lin. When they passed the guards at the gate, he took out four copper coins and paid the entrance fee.

Before leaving, Master Lin gave her fifteen taels of silver.

They also gave her a purse containing copper coins, telling her to buy some food for the father and son after she went into the city.

When they left, only Old Master Lin was awake at the old house; everyone else was still fast asleep. The two travelers hadn't even had a sip of water, let alone a meal.

Lin Momo was hungry at the time, and since it was a private gift from her own master, she had nothing to be embarrassed about accepting it.

Moreover, the fifteen taels of silver were for hiring a doctor and should be used for that purpose only.

The ancients believed in the saying "a poor family but a rich traveler," and they were accustomed to carrying extra money with them when traveling, also to reassure their families.

After entering the city, on Fan Chongyang's advice, the eldest uncle left the mule cart at the city gate and pointed out the way to Huichuntang. Then the two groups of people went their separate ways, some returning to the academy and others going to fetch a doctor.

On the way to Huichuntang, when they passed a steamed bun shop, the irresistible aroma made Lin Momo's stomach rumble uncontrollably, and her feet seemed to be stuck, unable to move at all.

It smells so good!

Lin Momo's eyes were brimming with tears; she even cried because of Xiang.

This is the first time I've ever tasted such delicious steamed buns. No delicacy in the world can compare to the aroma of these steamed buns!

Turning his head, he saw that his uncle Lin Gengsheng wasn't much better off. He was staring longingly at the white, fluffy steamed bun, his eyes, as big as cowbells, seemed to be stuck on it. Not only was he unable to move his legs, but drool was also dripping from the corner of his mouth.

Lin Momo glared at her good-for-nothing uncle with disdain, and decided to buy a few steamed buns to feed him first, so that he would stop embarrassing her.

After asking the price, she generously called out to the stall owner, "Boss, give me four meat buns."

His arrogant demeanor caught the attention of the stall owner who was serving steamed buns to a customer.

Lin Momo was afraid that the stall owner was a snob who would "respect clothes before people," so she had already tucked her hand into her sleeve and secretly counted out eight coins from her spatial storage and held them in her palm.

Although she was a little reluctant, she still handed it to the boss immediately, despite the pain.

"Alright! Four meat buns for this gentleman!" Seeing that he wasn't a freeloader, the owner smiled broadly, took the money, and quickly gave him the buns.

Lin Momo took the steamed bun and was taken aback.

This steamed bun is almost bigger than her face!

She couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking how honest business people were back then, unlike in her time when steamed buns were getting smaller and smaller while prices kept rising.

No wonder the ancient saying "no merchant is not cunning" gradually evolved into "no merchant is not dishonest".

The father and son, each with two buns, walked towards the clinic, chewing on their buns and breathing out warm air.

Hmm, it's delicious, but... it's a little too hot to eat.

Lin ate her steamed buns, muttering to herself.