Chapter 400 A Dilapidated Taoist Temple in the Tang Dynasty: The Little Female Taoist Priest (8)
Aside from these daily activities, Jiang Yue was also studying the technology and knowledge she had acquired in the previous world. Although she could access and use it at any time, it would be better to learn it herself so that she could never lose the skills. After studying for a day and seeing that no one was around, Jiang Yue returned to the ground from the wizard tower.
On the way back to the Taoist temple, seeing that the cucumbers were ready to eat, she casually picked one, rinsed it with spring water, and ate it. Rinsing it with water wasn't to wash off pesticides or anything; it was just that this was in the mountains, and birds dropping things was perfectly normal. Don't ask Jiang Yue how she knew; if she had almost eaten bird droppings, would she remember?
After finishing the meal, I picked a few more leaves. We'll have them for dinner tonight. They'll be so delicious when fried with eggs. After returning to the Taoist temple, the calico cat, which had been playing somewhere, came running back. It remembers the mealtimes better than anyone else. After feeding the cat, it tried to run away again, so Jiang Yue caught it and petted it for a while until it was almost bristling before letting it go.
The study period continued until June. The oxcart planned to go to Chang'an City the next day. Jiang Yue planned to hitch a ride and sell the things she had accumulated during this period. In the evening, Jiang Yue packed up the bamboo weaving and copied scriptures. After gathering at the foot of the mountain early the next morning, the group headed to Chang'an in a grand procession.
The phrase "vast and mighty" here is an adjective, used to exaggerate; in reality, there were fewer than ten people. After arriving in Chang'an, Jiang Yue parted ways with them and went to a bookstore to sell the copied scriptures. Before leaving, the bookstore owner handed Jiang Yue a copy of the Three Character Classic: "Daoist, this copy of the Three Character Classic is for you. This book is currently the most popular book in Chang'an. Song Lian personally wrote the preface, His Majesty wrote the postscript, and the Empress wrote the afterword. It is said to have been written by the tutor of the Marquis of Lantian County."
"Once you've read it, you'll understand. This extraordinary classic is enough to shine for all ages. It's already revered as an enlightenment classic, and printed copies are selling all over Chang'an. With your calligraphy and the content of the Three Character Classic, you'll definitely have no shortage of buyers once you copy it down."
"How about we cooperate? I'll provide the brush, ink, paper and inkstone, and the Taoist priest will be responsible for writing. After the sale, we'll split the profits 50/50."
After thinking for a moment, Jiang Yue agreed. There was no risk involved; it was basically free money. After putting away the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone that the shopkeeper handed over, she left the shopkeeper the address of her Taoist temple and arranged a time for the shopkeeper to come and pick it up. She wouldn't deliver it to him. After saying goodbye to the bookstore owner, Jiang Yue went to the place where she usually set up her stall.
Because it was summer, Jiang Yue's bamboo weaving was not only cute, but also came in a variety of colors. Because the price was relatively high, she didn't sell a single one at first. Later, a maid came in who walked with her head held high. The fabric of her clothes was also very good. Jiang Yue could tell at a glance that a big customer had arrived. In the end, she bought them all without even haggling.
After seeing off the big customer, Jiang Yue looked at the 10 taels of silver in her hand, squatted down to pack her things, and prepared to go to the West Market. She bought some snacks along the way and ate them as she walked. Before long, she arrived at the market and found that there were many more things to see. The variety of snacks sold at the roadside stalls had increased, which showed that the protagonist had not been idle for more than a year.
After buying the things, she went to the pharmacy. After all, there were some medicinal herbs that she couldn't even pick herself, and she basically had to buy them. As soon as she entered the pharmacy, the shopkeeper recognized Jiang Yue: "Daoist Master, you've arrived. Sanzi, go and pour tea for the Daoist Master."
"No, no, no, don't trouble yourself. I'm in a hurry today. Here's the order, please get the medicine for me first. We can have tea next time."
"Yes, I'll get it for you right away."
Jiang Yue would inspect every type of medicine the shopkeeper prepared. Although she came often, the matter of the medicinal herbs was minor; if any were substandard and could lead to someone's death, that would be a serious matter. After the inspection, Jiang Yue nodded to herself. The shopkeeper had a conscience and hadn't mixed in any substandard products. You know, in other places, mixing in fake or poor-quality products had become the norm.
After saying goodbye to the pharmacy owner, Jiang Yue bought some vegetables. She bought a little of some of the vegetables she didn't grow herself, just to try them out. In the afternoon, Jiang Yue looked at the list in her hand and realized she had bought everything she needed. It was time to meet up at the city gate and head home. She ate a bowl of wontons on the way, so she wouldn't have to cook dinner.
After eating, Jiang Yue went to the meeting point. When she arrived, no one else had returned yet; she was the only one who had come back. The person watching over the oxcart helped Jiang Yue put her things on the oxcart, and Jiang Yue took out two sesame cakes and handed them to him. Although he was embarrassed to accept them, he couldn't resist Jiang Yue's persuasion and accepted them anyway.
While waiting for others, Jiang Yue glanced at the Three Character Classic, memorizing it so she could easily copy it at home. It wasn't that she couldn't recite it, but the version created by the protagonist was definitely abridged. Jiang Yue memorized the abridged version after reading it once. After putting the book away, she wandered around. Most of the people parking their cars here had the same purpose as Jiang Yue and her friends.
Jiang Yue knew many of the people there, as they had escorted her back to the Taoist temple before. After exchanging greetings, she went back and waited until everyone had gathered before packing her things and setting off for home. It was late at night when she returned, but the moon was bright and the stars were few, so it didn't affect her going up the mountain at all. She left her things at the village chief's house and said she would pick them up tomorrow. She then returned to the Taoist temple alone.
The next day, I went down the mountain to carry my things back up. After putting everything away, I took my brush, ink, paper, and inkstone to my study. I wrote a few times on cheap paper first, and once I got the hang of it, I wrote until my wrist ached before stopping. After tidying up my desk, I decided not to write today, because I felt like I had lost my motivation after writing so much.
After waking up from her nap at 1 p.m., Jiang Yue carried a basket on her back to collect herbs. If she could collect them herself, she wouldn't have to spend money to buy them. When collecting herbs, Jiang Yue always followed the principles her master had taught her: to preserve the roots and seeds, make full use of them, and also to appropriately introduce and propagate them for use.
After returning in the afternoon, I processed the herbs according to their respective methods. After taking a shower and changing my clothes, I started my evening class. After class, I cleaned the yard and went to bed. The second and third days were pretty much the same: practicing calligraphy in the morning and collecting herbs in the afternoon. After a few busy days, I had collected almost all the herbs in the area.
It wasn't that all the herbs had been harvested; rather, only a few kinds were suitable for this season. The rest would have to wait until the appropriate time of year. A few days later, while Jiang Yue was processing the herbs, the bookstore clerk came over. Jiang Yue tidied up the copied books and gave them to the clerk, who then took his leave.
Taking advantage of the hot weather, Jiang Yue dried the vegetables she could. She needed to start preparing now. The vegetables that she couldn't finish would be dried into dried vegetables to eat in winter. After drying, the bamboo frames and winnowing baskets she had made before were not enough. Jiang Yue took the opportunity to weave a few more large winnowing baskets. She didn't weave too many frames, because winnowing baskets are easy to store and there was no place to put the frames.
Jiang Yue simply built a raised platform to prevent the mice from climbing up. Besides, since getting the calico cat, there have been far fewer mice in the house. These days, cats can catch mice, unlike the cat Jiang Yue used to have, which was terrified of mice.
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