The stall owner was an old man with white hair and beard. His aged face was reddened by the sun, and his hands trembled slightly due to his advanced age.
Sitting on a small stool, she saw Qi Zhiheng's shadow cast on the ground and slowly raised her head.
Before he could say anything, Qi Zhiheng said, "Old man, why are you setting up a stall here in such a hot sun?" Qi Zhiheng saw that some of the other stalls were under the eaves, and those that weren't under the eaves at least had sunshades.
“The rent is the cheapest here,” the old man said, glancing hopefully at Qi Zhiheng. “Is there anything you need, young master? These few pieces of ore I have are quite good. They only cost one tael of silver per jin. I have more than seven jin and two taels here. You can round down the two taels.” He pointed to the pieces of ore on the stall as he spoke.
Qi Zhiheng pretended to pick up a piece and examine it: "I just need to make a dagger. These, after being refined and with a few more materials, will be just enough. I'll take everything from your stall. How much?"
"This...this is unacceptable," the old man hurriedly waved his hand, assuming that Qi Zhiheng was a young master from a wealthy family who was being kind to him because of his old age. After all, Qi Zhiheng had no use for some of the secondhand items. "You can just buy what you need; I don't want you to spend money."
Qi Zhiheng could only comfort him, "Don't worry, I can use all of these. Even if I don't need them, I can use them to give as tips."
"This...this..." The old man stammered. He was indeed short of money. His son had been bitten by a wild animal a few days ago and was in serious condition. His savings were all gone and were only enough to pay for medical expenses. Otherwise, he wouldn't be out selling things under the scorching sun.
"Including these old items, it will cost a total of forty-three taels."
"Okay! I'll take them all."
Qi Zhiheng paid the money, and the old man's hands trembled as he helped him pack his things.
Seeing his actions, Qi Zhiheng hurriedly squatted down and said, "I'll take care of it." He then lifted the four corners of the burlap, and several stones that were pressing down on the edges of the burlap rolled into the burlap, including the black stone that had been sensing something.
Qi Zhiheng wrapped up the things in his hands and said to the old man, "The sun is so scorching, you should go back early."
"When did Young Master Qi become so compassionate?" The sarcastic tone in the newcomer's voice made Qi Zhiheng uncomfortable. This man, named Chen Taohai, was one of the group of spoiled brats who hung out with Qi Zhiheng. Qi Zhiheng wasn't familiar with him and even harbored some hostility towards him.
Qi Zhiheng did not want to talk to him much, and only greeted him lightly, "Second Young Master Chen".
He just wanted to get back and study the black stone as soon as possible, and didn't want to cause any more trouble.
He turned to leave but was blocked by Chen Taohai: "Young Master Qi, what's your hurry? Do you look down on us brothers now that you've awakened your spirit body?"
At this point, Qi Zhiheng understood everything. Chen Taohai had been waiting for him here, otherwise, Chen Taohai would never have come to this kind of secondhand market, just like he always had.
"How could that be? It's just that my grandfather is pressuring me to learn some skills from him." Qi Zhiheng was now curious to see what Chen Taohai was really up to.
"It's good that you haven't forgotten us brothers. We brothers are planning to get together in the middle of next month, so don't forget to come." At this moment, another person next to Chen Taohai spoke up.
Compared to Chen Taohai, Qi Zhiheng's relationship with him wasn't bad; they were just a bunch of fair-weather friends anyway. Qi Zhiheng nodded and accepted the invitation.
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