At the entrance of the West Market, a simple horse-drawn carriage slowly came to a stop.
The carriage curtain was lifted, revealing Wang Xiuxiu dressed in a plain dress with only a wooden hairpin in her hair, a stark contrast to the glamorous attire of ordinary noblewomen from royal mansions.
Lu Yunian peeked out, curiously observing the bustling market before him, his eyes filled with both excitement and a hint of unease.
"Aunt Xiu, is this the West Market you mentioned? Does Father know we're here?"
Wang Xiuxiu looked at Lu Yunian beside her and nodded, "Of course it was approved by your father. Don't be afraid, your aunt is here."
"I'm not afraid! But Auntie, why do we have to dress like this?"
Lu Yunian tugged at his sleeve, clearly not used to such simple clothing.
He was handsome with delicate features and bright, star-like eyes, and his demeanor carried an air of pampered arrogance.
Wang Xiuxiu smiled slightly and reached out to straighten his collar.
"The people coming and going in the West Market are mostly ordinary folks. If they are dressed too extravagantly, you won't be able to see the real lives of ordinary people."
"But Aunt, isn't the West Market a place that sells cheap, low-class goods? The Grand Tutor said it's a place where all sorts of people mingle, and it's not a place we should go."
Wang Xiuxiu frowned, disagreeing with the Grand Tutor's statement.
"That's because the Master was worried about your safety, which is why he never let you come into contact with these things," Wang Xiuxiu said softly. "But as someone who will one day govern a region, how can you make the right decisions if you don't even know how your people live?"
"Get off the bus, we've arrived."
He then turned to the four plainclothes guards accompanying him and whispered, "This is just a routine outing today, no need to make a fuss. Just follow from a distance and don't disturb the people."
\"yes!\"
Wang Xiuxiu took the young prince's hand and stepped down from the carriage, disappearing into the bustling crowd.
The hustle and bustle of the West Market immediately enveloped them—the shouts of vendors, the haggling of customers, and the laughter of children mingled together, and the air was filled with the aromas of various foods, some enticingly fragrant, others pungent and fishy.
"Aunt Xiu, it's so lively here!" The prince's eyes lit up, completely forgetting his initial unease.
Wang Xiuxiu held his small hand tightly and whispered, "Remember, observe and listen carefully, but don't speak rashly. You are the heir of Prince Jing, but here, you are just an ordinary child."
She led the prince through the crowded streets, deliberately avoiding areas that sold expensive items, and headed straight for the poorest corner of the West Market.
The number of beggars, peddlers carrying loads, and ragged children on the roadside gradually increased.
Lu Yunian's expression changed from initial excitement to confusion.
"Auntie, why are these people dressed so poorly? Don't they have homes?"
Wang Xiuxiu didn't answer, but pointed to a pancake vendor hawking his wares by the roadside: "Look at that uncle, he gets up before dawn to knead dough, and stands there all day, just to earn a few coins to support his family."
Looking at the vendor's rough hands and wrinkled face, Lu Yunian's eyes flashed with surprise: "Why...why doesn't he do some easier work?"
"Because not everyone has a choice," Wang Xiuxiu said, pulling him closer to the pancake stall. "Come on, let's buy one to try."
Seeing customers, the vendor immediately put on a smiling face: "What kind of pancakes would you like, gentlemen? Vegetable ones are two coins, meat ones are three coins."
Wang Xiuxiu deliberately asked, "Can you make it cheaper?"
The vendor looked troubled: "Ma'am, this is a small business, I really can't lower the price. How about you get a vegetable filling, and I'll pick out a big one for you?"
Lu Jingze watched in stunned silence.
He grew up surrounded by luxury, and this was the first time he had ever seen someone haggle over half a penny.
To his surprise, his aunt seemed quite adept at it.
The deal was finalized. Wang Xiuxiu broke the warm pancake in half and handed one to Lu Yunian: "Try it."
The young prince took a bite and immediately frowned: "It's so hard, and it tastes weird."
"This is the daily food for most people in Xishi," Wang Xiuxiu said calmly. "I have vegetable soup with every meal, but some people here might only be able to eat one pancake a day."
The young prince's eyes widened as he looked down at the half-eaten pancake in his hand, suddenly finding it increasingly difficult to swallow.
After a long silence, Lu Yunian nodded, then suddenly remembered something: "Auntie, do you come here often?"
A look of nostalgia appeared in Wang Xiuxiu's eyes. "Before I entered the government, my family wasn't well-off. Back then, I often liked to mingle with the crowds, watching the people busy with their lives, listening to them talk about everyday matters, like firewood and rice."
Lu Jingze chewed on the biscuit thoughtfully, his gaze sweeping over the diverse crowd around him.
A little girl in tattered clothes caught his attention—she was squatting in the corner, staring longingly at the food in the hands of passersby.
"She..." Lu Jingze was about to speak when Wang Xiuxiu walked over and handed the remaining half of the pancake to the little girl.
The little girl took the cake, thanked him repeatedly, and then wolfed it down.
Wang Xiuxiu crouched down and asked softly, "Where are your parents?"
"Mother is sick, and Father went to work at the docks." The little girl stopped eating her biscuit, and tears streamed down her face.
Wang Xiuxiu took some loose silver from her sleeve and stuffed it into the little girl's hand: "Don't cry, take this back to your mother to get a doctor, okay?"
The little girl's eyes lit up, she nodded vigorously, and then ran away quickly.
Standing to the side, Lu Yunian felt a sensation he had never experienced before—it turned out that outside his world of luxury, there were others living such lives.
"I will lend a helping hand whenever I can." Wang Xiuxiu straightened up, brushing the dust off her skirt. "Yu Nian, you will have far more power and wealth in the future, but more importantly, you must know how to use them wisely."
They continued walking, with Wang Xiuxiu stopping from time to time to explain various local phenomena to Lu Jingze.
She made him observe the blacksmiths sweating profusely in the blacksmith's shop, the pedantic scholars engaging in loud and pedantic discussions in the teahouse, and the patients queuing in front of the pharmacy...
Behind every scene lies a message she wants to convey.
"Yu Nian, look at that rice shop." Wang Xiuxiu pointed to a small shop with a long queue in front of it. "Do you know why so many people are waiting to buy rice?"
Lu Yunian shook his head.
"Because today is the first day of the lunar month, the rice shop owner, as is customary, will give regular customers a discount of one coin per bushel. For the rich, one coin is nothing, but for these common people, the money saved might be enough to buy half a pound more salt, or to buy a piece of cloth to make a new dress for their child."
Lu Yunian nodded seriously, beginning to understand the importance of these subtle details.
Just then, an old man carrying a load on a shoulder pole hurried past them, the pole adorned with exquisite pottery at both ends.
Out of curiosity, Lu Yunian turned around to get a better look, but accidentally bumped into the old man's carrying pole.
"Watch out!" Wang Xiuxiu's warning came too late.
With a series of crisp cracking sounds, several exquisite pottery jars slipped off the carrying pole and shattered on the ground.
The old man was shocked and hurriedly put down his load to check the damage. When he saw that several of his most valuable items had been reduced to pieces, his face turned deathly pale.
"My God!" The old man trembled as he crouched down, futilely trying to piece together the fragments. "What am I going to do... what am I going to do..."
Lu Yunian stood there, at a loss for what to do.
He had never faced such a situation before—in the Prince's mansion, even if you broke the most valuable items, all you would get in return was the servants nervously cleaning up and replacing them.
But the old man's reaction made him realize that these pottery pieces were no ordinary objects.
Wang Xiuxiu quickly stepped forward and took the old man's arm: "Uncle, are you alright? I'm so sorry, my child accidentally..."
The old man looked up, his wrinkled face filled with despair: "Madam, you don't know... these are top-quality pottery pieces commissioned by Master Zhao from the east of the city. It took me half a month to make them... Now that some of the most valuable pieces are broken, how am I going to compensate him!"
Lu Yunian then noticed the old man's hands—his knuckles were thick, covered with calluses and tiny scars, clearly the result of years of working with clay.
An unprecedented sense of guilt welled up inside him. He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
"Sir, how much are these pottery pieces worth? We'll compensate you."
The old man shook his head with a wry smile: "It's not about the money... Master Zhao needs it urgently, I can't redo it in time. Master Zhao is a high-ranking and powerful man, I can't afford to offend him..."
Upon hearing this, Lu Yunian suddenly stepped forward and unexpectedly bowed deeply to the old man: "Uncle, it's all my fault. I...I will try to find a way to help you solve this problem."
The old man was stunned, clearly not expecting this seemingly well-off young boy to apologize so earnestly.
A hint of relief flashed in Wang Xiuxiu's eyes. She then untied an embroidered purse from her waist, took out a few pieces of silver, and stuffed them into the old man's hand: "Uncle, take these first, consider them a deposit. Tell me where Master Zhao's residence is, and we'll go there ourselves to explain the compensation."
The old man, unable to refuse, finally accepted the money, tears streaming down his face: "You two are truly kind people... I, Old Tao, have been making pottery for thirty years, and I've never met such reasonable guests."
Looking at the old man's rough hands tightly clutching the few pieces of silver, Lu Yunian suddenly asked, "Uncle, how much money do you make from making these pottery pieces?"
Old Tao sighed: "To be honest, young man, this kind of delicate work earns twenty coins, but after deducting the cost of materials, firewood, and city taxes, what's left is barely enough to make ends meet."
"Twenty coins..." Lu Yunian murmured, remembering that a single pastry he usually ate cost more than that.
Wang Xiuxiu asked at the opportune moment, "Uncle, how much is the city tax?"
"A fixed three hundred coins a month, plus a ten percent cut from every transaction." Old Tao shook his head. "But this year the taxes have decreased somewhat, so we're much more relaxed."
Lu Yunian asked curiously, "Why is the tax being reduced?"
"I heard that trade has resumed in the north, and the court has more money, which has solved many problems. Just a few days ago, I heard from the neighbors that they're going to repair the main road in front of the neighborhood! Life is getting better and better!"
Wang Xiuxiu led Lu Yunian to say goodbye to the old man, and then instructed the servants to go to Master Zhao's house to discuss compensation.
Just as Wang Xiuxiu was about to take the prince to see more places, a commotion came from the other end of the market.
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