"But speaking of which... does my husband still need a gift?"
"Don't you need it?" Xiao He blinked.
Xiao Ai didn't answer, but continued to ask, "You two haven't been married long, have you?"
"Yes," Xiao He admitted.
"No wonder," Xiao Ai said casually.
Xiao He couldn't help but ask curiously, "Does that mean you don't need it anymore after being married for a long time?"
"That's how it should be," Xiao Ai said calmly.
"Uh..." Xiao He suddenly asked, "Are you married?"
"No," Xiao Ai replied.
"Then how do you know you don't need it?"
"Because everyone else does it."
"Maybe I'm different from others?"
"you……"
Xiao Ai was speechless for a moment, so she stopped discussing the necessity of the matter.
"Okay, so what kind of gift are you planning to buy?"
"I don't know either, let's see."
The two walked and talked, but the topics remained very ordinary.
Xiao He showed no outward reaction, but inwardly he couldn't help but feel uneasy.
Based on her understanding of Xiao Ai, the latter didn't seem like the type to strike up a conversation with a stranger for no reason.
However, since Xiao Ai never made it clear, she didn't want to ask too directly.
"The materials market is just ahead. Do you want to buy some materials?"
"Um."
"I was just about to look at some materials, shall we go together?"
"good."
The shop assistants on the roadside watched the two walk by with curious expressions.
Their extraordinary demeanor made them hesitant to disturb them further, and they could only watch them leave without making a sound.
The underground market for building materials isn't very big; it consists of individual shops, but they all sell raw materials or semi-processed products.
"It's just a small piece, and the price is so high. I might as well dig it up myself..."
Xiao He remained silent on the surface, his gaze sweeping over the price tags.
With the authentication device, distinguishing between genuine and fake products is not difficult at all. However, the prices are generally high, which suggests that the merchants are all experienced business people who would never do business at a loss.
"This script isn't right... In a place like this, shouldn't there at least be a clueless street vendor selling this amazing artifact as junk...?"
Xiao He muttered to himself as he wandered around, but he couldn't find a single shopkeeper who didn't know the value of the goods.
Xiao Ai, who had been observing her for a long time, suddenly asked tentatively, "You're not thinking of picking up bargains here, are you?"
"Yes, it seems everyone is quite shrewd." Xiao He shook his head and sighed.
“This place is incredibly valuable, and the rent is exorbitant. Someone as foolish as you wouldn’t be able to get in here,” Xiao Ai explained, sounding like a local.
"Where are people who are usually that stupid?" Xiao He asked bluntly.
Xiao Ai replied expressionlessly: "The general public market."
"..."
-
A few minutes later, the two returned to the streets outside.
Xiao He also learned that the more upscale and prestigious a place is, the more expensive it becomes, with prices far exceeding the actual value of the goods.
It's like how clothes that cost 20 or 30 yuan at a street stall can sell for 200 or 300 yuan in a department store.
Xiao He, who was used to being "frugal and thrifty," would never spend lavishly in such a place, even if the "meatballs" he made were free.
Xiao Ai walked silently beside her, leading the way, but her heart was filled with doubts.
If Xiao He was a disguised "old monster," his stingy manner didn't seem like that of some deities who treated money like dirt.
But to say that she is actually that age as she appears to be, and that she has an "SSS" rating, is just too far-fetched...
Xiao Ai preferred Xiao He to be the latter, rather than the former.
Because only with such outstanding peers can her growth trajectory serve as a reference for oneself.
She really didn't want to wait a moment longer in order to break free from these constraints.
Xiao He, who was beside her, was unaware of what that earring meant to her, but she herself knew very well.
That was her long-held "belief".
She firmly believed that the Temple of Life could help her enter the realm of gods, but this "bottleneck" completely shattered the light in her heart.
Like many ordinary elementalists, she was just one of the millions who couldn't move forward.
When a person realizes their own weakness but has no way to overcome it, that is the greatest test that the path they are cultivating will give them.
Even though she hadn't left the Temple of Life, her heart had already left, adrift and helpless in the vast white expanse...
As she walked through the streets and alleys, the noisy and chaotic sounds interrupted her thoughts.
"Is this the place?" Xiao He asked.
"Yes," Xiao Ai replied calmly.
Seeing that she seemed somewhat resistant, Xiao He stopped and said, "It seems you don't like it here?"
“I don’t like being too close to people,” Xiao Ai admitted.
Before she could finish saying "I'll wait for you outside," Xiao He took out a transparent bead.
"Here, this is for you, thank you for the music box. I'm not very good at handicrafts, so take it and find any craftsman to make a necklace out of it."
"What is this...?" Xiao Ai took it blankly.
The moment I held it, a refreshing feeling struck my very soul.
Xiao He smiled mysteriously, knowing that he didn't need to explain, so he said goodbye and left.
Xiao Ai suddenly snapped out of her daze, watching her retreating figure disappear into the crowd, and for a moment she forgot to reply.
She clutched the bead tightly in her hand, her heartstrings gradually loosening from the shock she had just experienced.
He's certainly generous!
This is the style of someone who has lived for countless years!
Half a bead could buy the entire materials market just now, but Xiao He was unwilling to raise market prices and preferred to browse the street stalls...
"As expected of a highly accomplished senior."
"Polis...the Temple of Saintess Polly?"
"Perhaps this is my destiny!"
A glint of wisdom flashed in Xiao Ai's eyes.
...
"clang!"
"Clang clang!"
Even in a noisy environment, the sound of hammering is still extremely penetrating.
Following the sound, Xiao He finally found the mineral trading area.
"Hey! Young man! Feel free to take a look around!"
The blacksmith was a burly man in his forties. When he saw someone approaching, he greeted them without even looking up.
Xiao He's steps froze, his first reaction being that his heart skipped a beat.
The next second, she wondered if she had misheard.
Looking left and right, I didn't find anyone around who fit the description of "young man".
A feeling of guilt and fear began to grow in her heart.
"Me? You, how could you...?"
"Ah! Sorry, sorry! I didn't notice! It's a young girl! I'm so sorry! So sorry..." The blacksmith touched his bald head and said with a big smile.
“Uh…” Xiao He was taken aback.
After a long while, I silently breathed a sigh of relief.
I almost blurted out the second half of the question, "How did you figure that out?"
Just a passerby's mistaken address made him instantly become a frightened bird.
At this moment, even she herself couldn't explain why she felt this "guilty conscience."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
