Another half hour passed, and the night became completely dark. The water in the wooden bucket was finally sold out, and people slowly dispersed!
At this moment, Qin Qing and his family were overjoyed as they looked at their bulging money bags!
Just as they were packing up the wooden bucket to leave, a man dressed in brocade robes walked over.
"Wait a minute, ma'am!"
Qin Qing looked up and saw that the man looked refined and had a curious expression on his face.
"Do you want to buy water too? Sorry, we're sold out!"
The man shook his head and chuckled softly.
"I am the manager of Qianjin Inn. I was just curious when I saw that you could take out three large buckets of water. The water source is now so strictly controlled by the imperial court. Where did you find it?"
After saying that, Qin Qing immediately looked at him warily. The man also realized that he had spoken too directly, so he quickly shook his head.
"Don't be anxious, madam. I was just asking out of curiosity. It's fine if you don't want to tell me. But I'd like to remind you that this is fine for today. If word gets out tomorrow that you have a water source, the imperial court will definitely come looking for you. To avoid unnecessary trouble, if you agree, I can buy out the address you mentioned in one go. I'll offer three hundred taels of silver!"
As he said this, the man's scholarly demeanor was transformed into that of a shrewd and calculating businessman!
Qin Qing was taken aback. She hadn't thought about this issue before, but the man in front of her reminded her that it was indeed not a good idea to openly oppose the imperial court.
"I understand, thank you for reminding me. However, I'm not quite sure where the water source is either. After all, I just found it on my way here, filled up some water, and came back here. I don't know the exact address."
Given the underdeveloped transportation systems in ancient times, it's understandable that she couldn't explain it clearly; not everyone can remember something after just one reading.
Disappointment flashed in the man's eyes, but he still hoped that Qin Qing would remember and come to Qianjin Inn to find him.
Watching the man's departing figure, Qin Qing couldn't help but murmur to herself.
"Qianjin Inn? Why does that sound so familiar..."
Peony couldn't help but chime in from the side.
"Is this a branch of Qianqiu Inn? I heard that the Qian family has branches all over the Qi Kingdom."
Qin Qing suddenly realized, but he just nodded and didn't say anything more.
That night, on the second floor of the inn, Qin Qing and her family sat together. The bed was covered with silver coins, which left Qin Qing completely bewildered. She couldn't even keep track of them properly! After all, modern times are all about paper money, unlike in ancient times when there were huge piles of one or two taels of silver. She couldn't even tell them apart.
Peony has been a maid since she was a child and has never learned accounting. She was at a loss when faced with so much silver. Xiao Muyue and Xiao Muxing only know how to play with silver. Their ability to do accounting is simply a pipe dream!
Just as Qin Qing was having a headache, Qin Zifeng suddenly blurted out a number!
"Five hundred and seventy-three taels and six mace!"
The air fell silent. Qin Qing stared at Qin Zifeng in surprise, Shaoyao looked incredulous, and Xiao Muxing and Xiao Muyue quickly shut their mouths when they saw that they were not speaking!
Feeling a bit nervous under the gaze of so many eyes, Qin Zifeng looked at them awkwardly, her face slightly flushed.
"Grandma, Sister Peony, why are you looking at me like that!"
As he spoke, he glanced at Xiao Muxing and realized she was looking at him too, which made him feel a little flustered.
Qin Qing couldn't help but smile when she saw this.
"Look how scared you are! But how did you know it was five hundred... um, seventy-something taels?"
"Five hundred and seventy-three taels and six mace!"
Qin Zifeng repeated the reminder again, making Qin Qing look embarrassed. It's true, older people tend to forget things…
"Ahem... Well, that's the amount of money, but how did you calculate it? Why is there six qian more? Isn't it one tael of silver per liter?"
Qin Zifeng immediately shook his head upon hearing this.
"Grandma didn't know that when the second bucket of water was almost sold out, there was less than a liter left. After Sister Peony poured it out, I charged her six qian!"
Upon hearing this, a hint of confusion flashed in Peony's eyes.
"It seems that's true. I thought it was given away for free."
Qin Qing was surprised; she hadn't expected this brat to have such a business acumen! Suddenly realizing something, she grinned at Qin Zifeng, giving the boy goosebumps...
Xiao Muxing and Xiao Muyue had never seen their grandmother act like such a... strange auntie before, and they both looked at Qin Zifeng...
After Qin Qing came to her senses, she smiled and said to Qin Zifeng.
"Good, good, good! You truly are Grandma's good grandson!"
Then, the silver was divided into several portions, and some was given to the three children to carry in case of emergency. Peony took fifty taels, and the rest was put into her spatial storage.
The little ones were overjoyed to receive their silver coins, but Qin Zifeng secretly handed his own silver coins to Xiao Muxing, his expression gentle and shy.
"I...I don't need it, you can have it."
Seeing this, Xiao Muxing didn't refuse and put their money together...
Qin Qing watched this scene silently, her lips twitching... Oh no, it seems this brat has his eye on her little cabbage, but her granddaughter is only six years old!!
Haha! People in ancient times were so precocious! They knew how to find wives for themselves when they were just teenagers, and they even knew to hand over their earnings to their wives to manage. She must be old by now!
Before dawn the next day, the family got up early, bought some steamed buns and mantou, and quickly left Yongcheng while the sun wasn't too strong...
At the same time, a man reported what he had seen the day before to the local officials. A group of people rushed into the inn early in the morning, only to find the rooms empty. The waiter knelt down to the side, terrified and in tears!
"M-My lord! I really don't know! They only booked an inn for one night, I really don't know where they went!!"
On the other side, Qin Qing sat by the carriage, listening to Shaoyao playing games with the two little ones inside. Laughter and cheerful voices could be heard from time to time, creating a very harmonious atmosphere!
In contrast, Qin Zifeng is a complete gaming black hole, and Xiao Muxing despises him to death!
In the sweltering heat, the family was safe and sound together, and she suddenly felt a sense of peace and comfort. Even though the heat was unbearable, she wished time could slow down...
Around noon, the people in the carriage got tired of playing and lay down to sleep. Qin Qing turned his head and glanced at them, then smiled helplessly and talked to the horse out of boredom.
"Horse, oh horse, how much longer until we reach the next town? Qi is such a vast country! If only we had taken the official road earlier, we wouldn't have encountered so many dangers and spent half a month traveling!"
Because they took a shortcut, the next town should be the border town, which means they can leave here. Once they reach Tianlong Kingdom, she must find Muyang, and then the whole family will go to the capital to find her two sons!
I wonder how my family is doing far away...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com