Yao Yishui then asked her, "Were you having a bad time at the inn? Why do you want to come with me?"
"The people at the inn are very nice, and the manager is very nice too, but I don't want to stay at the inn for the rest of my life."
Ye Jiu knew better than anyone how difficult it was to cross social classes in ancient times. A farmer's entire life was farming, and his sons would continue farming. If she stayed at the inn, she would be a waitress forever.
So, her apprenticeship wasn't simply about getting closer to Yun Jia; she also wanted to learn a skill. She just never expected Yao Yishui to be a killer... she thought he was a doctor or something...
"You know I'm a murderer, do you still want to follow me?"
"Were you a hitman before?"
Yao Yishui smiled and said, "This little girl knows quite a lot, that's good."
"I heard from Yun Jia that you come from Miao territory. Do you know how to use the legendary Gu worms?"
Yao Yishui stretched out her hand, and suddenly the veins on her wrist bulged, and a large bulge was throbbing under her skin, which was creepy just to look at.
What do you think?
Ye Jiu wasn't scared at all; her eyes were shining!
Coach, I want to learn this!
"Can I learn it?"
Aren't you scared?
"Why be afraid? Haven't you already tamed it?"
The bulge on Yao Yishui's wrist subsided, and the Gu worm disappeared somewhere. She reached out and pinched Ye Jiu's face. "Interesting. Yun Jia was so scared when she first saw it that she cried."
"Would you take me as your apprentice? I'm obedient and easy to take care of!" Ye Jiu looked at her pleadingly, "Please."
"Then tell me, will the inn let you go?"
"I was bought. You can buy me as long as you pay me. The shopkeeper likes me, but he won't turn down money."
Yao Yishui stood up and roughly rubbed Ye Jiu's head with her hand, "Oh, is that so? Then you're quite pitiful."
So, will you buy me?
"Yes." Yao Yishui turned and went upstairs.
"Thank you!" Ye Jiu said loudly.
“You should call me ‘Master’s Wife’ now, instead of ‘you’.” Yao Yishui’s voice drifted over.
Ye Jiu stood there, stunned. It was just like that? It was a success?! She thought she would never want her no matter what.
A few gusts of cold wind slipped in through the cracks in the window, waking Ye Jiu up. She shivered and hurriedly ran to the back kitchen; she wanted to talk to Aunt Zhao about it.
Although Aunt Zhao was reluctant to let Ye Jiu go, she knew that it would be better for Ye Jiu to go with her than to stay at the inn. The woman who stayed at the inn could easily spend a tael of silver, so she must be rich. If Ye Jiu followed her to become an apprentice, he would definitely learn something real.
Aunt Zhao simply stroked Ye Jiu's head again and again with her rough, calloused hands, saying, "It's good that you're gone; it's better than staying at the inn."
The touch was so warm that Ye Jiu couldn't help but shed tears. She wiped her tears from her sleeve and said, "It's not like I won't come back. When I grow up, I will definitely come back to see you. Besides, my teacher's wife might buy a house in the capital, so I might be able to come back often."
Aunt Zhao nodded with a smile, without saying a word.
Silly child, the capital is much bigger. They're just staying at a small inn on the outermost edge of the capital. That woman must be quite wealthy; she must have bought a house in the city center. This distance of a few miles might become much more than just a few miles later, depending on what happens.
At that point, it will be difficult to even meet them.
Yao Yishui took Ye Jiu to find the innkeeper. The innkeeper was a thin woman with an ordinary appearance, but her eyes shone with shrewdness.
Upon hearing that she wanted to buy Ye Jiu, the shopkeeper's eyes widened. "Why would you want to buy her?"
"Is that not allowed?"
The shopkeeper waved his hand, "May I ask what you intend to do with her after buying her?"
"Be my apprentice." Yao Yishui raised an eyebrow. "Is there a problem?"
The shopkeeper fell silent. After thinking for a long time, she murmured, "Learning a skill is good, learning a skill is good."
"One tael of silver, and I'll give you her indenture."
Ye Jiu couldn't help but say, "Shopkeeper, you can sell me for a higher price. My master's wife has money."
When she was first bought, she was thin and small, and her mother received ten taels of silver from the shopkeeper. Now that she has grown taller and fatter and is stronger, the shopkeeper only sells her for one tael.
It was easy to tell that the shopkeeper did it on purpose.
Yao Yishui tapped Ye Jiu's forehead with his index finger, "You're so clever."
The shopkeeper didn't speak, but silently took out the indenture. "You can take her away directly. She's a good child, obedient and efficient. She's only seven years old, and there will be plenty of opportunities in the future."
Yao Yishui ignored the shopkeeper and instead asked Ye Jiu, "How much did your mother sell you for back then?"
Ye Jiu held up ten fingers. "It's a full ten taels. Could you give the shopkeeper a little more so she doesn't lose money?"
"Why are you siding with outsiders!"
“But my indenture hasn’t reached you yet. I’m still the manager’s person. This doesn’t mean I’m siding with outsiders.”
Yao Yishui pinched her cheek, "A bunch of fallacies."
She took out fifteen taels of silver from her bosom. "I will take her away and teach her well. You are good people, and I will not take advantage of you."
Yao Yishui folded up the indenture and handed it to Ye Jiu, saying, "Here you are. You are free now. Go pack your things. We'll set off tomorrow."
"Has the snow stopped?" Ye Jiu turned to look out the window, but the window was covered with thick paper, making it impossible to see what was happening outside.
"Stop it, hurry up and pack your things."
——
The snow lasted for two days and one night. They came with two people, but left with an extra child.
Ye Jiu was very excited when she woke up this morning. Yao Yishui said they were going to look at houses in the east of the city, which meant they were going to live in the capital!
I don't know where Yao Yishui found out about the house for sale, but she chartered a carriage so that the adults and two children wouldn't have to stand outside in the wind anymore. Melting snow is much colder than falling snow, and the temperature has dropped several degrees.
She was able to play in the snow outside a couple of days ago, but today she doesn't want to go out at all.
It's about three miles from this inn to the east of the city, a fifteen-minute carriage ride. The road conditions are bad, and the carriage sways and shakes constantly, making my buttocks ache.
Ye Jiu couldn't help but put her hand under her buttocks; hopefully that would make it a little bit better.
Yun Jia hadn't said a word since getting into the carriage. The carriage jolted so much that he fell onto Ye Jiu. Ye Jiu reached out to catch him and realized that his eyes were closed and his face was flushed, which didn't look like he was in good health.
She reached out to touch his forehead, and sure enough, it was burning hot!
Ye Jiu let him lean on her shoulder, "Teacher's wife! Yun Jia is sick! His forehead is so hot!"
Yao Yishui leaned closer to take a look. "Tsk, he has a fever. He must have caught a chill."
"Did he catch a cold because I took him out to play in the snow?" Ye Jiu frowned. Children do have weaker immune systems; she had been careless.
But... she touched her forehead; she was fine.
“It’s not your fault. He was born with a deficiency and his health was not good to begin with. He knew his condition but still went out to play with you. At the time, he seemed fine, so I didn’t pay attention to it. I didn’t expect that he would start showing symptoms now.”
"Then, what should we do? Will it make him stupid...?"
Ye Jiu looked down at Yun Jia's head, her head burning... She didn't know what to do.
Yao Yishui lifted the carriage curtain and called to the coachwoman, "Auntie, could you please change your route and take me to the nearest clinic first? My child has a fever and I'm in a hurry. Thank you for your help."
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