Forgive Bai Tian for his incompetence, but he couldn't figure out where the girl in front of him came from, no matter how hard he tried.
He probably hadn't seen this girl before!
Bai Yun'an raised an eyebrow and looked at her father with a strange expression, as if she also wanted to know how her father met this young lady from the capital.
The girl blocking the way had slightly red ears and looked a little embarrassed; she didn't even dare to look Bai Tian in the eye.
"My daughter, Qin Erniang, runs the Zhenmo Bookstore."
“It is normal that you do not recognize me. I had the honor of meeting you at Liuyun Pavilion last time and admired your talent. Therefore, I would like to ask your name so as to indicate the origin of the saying ‘Of the three thousand rivers, I only take one sip.’”
After Qin Erniang finished explaining the reason, Bai Tian felt that it was somewhat absurd.
I think he only mentioned it once at Liuyun Pavilion, right?
He only mentioned it once, and this little girl could hear it? She's met him once, and she can still recognize him now?
But then again, he really is handsome, there's nothing you can do about it...
"Just to indicate the source? Then just write Zhonghua! Zhong as in loyal, Hua as in beautiful."
Bai Tian was thinking about his great China all the time!
"Alright, then thank you very much, sir."
Qin Erniang became increasingly nervous, and upon learning the name's taboo, she prepared to turn and leave.
Although women in the capital city don't have as many rules and regulations in informal settings, the person opposite them was still a stranger.
I still felt embarrassed.
Bai Tian called out to her.
"Hey, Second Aunt! Does your family own a bookstore?"
Qin Erniang nodded.
Bai Tian: "So, do you sell storybooks?"
"Of course I'm selling them." Speaking of her family's bookstore, Qin Erniang frowned slightly: "It's just... these storybooks can't compare to those from Wenlanzhai. If you like storybooks, you can go to Wenlanzhai to take a look."
Bai Tian: "It's alright, can I go to your bookstore to take a look first?"
Bai Yun'an spoke up to remind him, "Dad, aren't we going home?"
"Find out what's going on and tell your mother!" Bai Tian asked Qin Erniang, "How long does it take to get to Zhenmo Bookstore?"
"It's not far, about the distance of a cup of tea."
Qin Erniang told the truth.
Bai Tian was a restless person, and he asked Qin Erniang quite a few questions along the way.
Only then did she learn that Zhenmo Bookstore was a well-established bookstore, and it was quite famous when Qin Erniang's grandfather was alive.
But after Qin Erniang's father took over, things went downhill, and now they can barely make ends meet.
Upon arriving at the shop, Bai Tian took a quick look and found that the bookstore only sold a very small portion of its books, mainly serious books, as well as some writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.
"Dad, take a look at this."
Bai Yun'an spoke up and handed a storybook to Bai Tian.
Bai Tian looked down and thought, "Hmm? This looks familiar!"
"The Legend of the Stone Monkey?"
Isn't this Jiang Dai's painstakingly adapted version of Journey to the West?
How did it end up with a different name and appear in the capital?
"This is a new storybook published by Wenlanzhai. Many people like to read it, so I bought it to take a look."
Qin Erniang was literate; there were far more literate people in the capital than in Songyuan County.
Even so, the proportion of literate people in the capital was not very high; most people listened to storytelling.
So back then, Jiang Dai never even considered publishing a book in Songyuan County. Publishing a book for the illiterate? What a joke!
"Wait, you said this is a new product from Wenlanzhai? When was it released?"
Bai Tian now only finds this matter amusing.
This book was written by his fellow townsman, so how did it become the work of Wenlanzhai?
Wenlanzhai is really clever; they make money without any investment!
Qin Erniang didn't know why Bai Tian's tone had become a little strange, but she still thought for a moment and said, "It's been a while, it started last month."
Bai Tian narrowed his eyes slightly, his mind racing with calculations.
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