Normally, Nanxing, being a maid, could have easily handled such a small matter as buying paper and pens. However, due to the limited resources of her family, Nanxing not only couldn't do accounting, but she could only count money up to ten copper coins, let alone find a place to buy pens and ink. Xie Yushu had no choice but to teach her little by little.
Once on the street, Xie Yushu gave Nanxing one hundred copper coins, instructing her to buy what she needed from the stalls, such as hair ties and hairpins.
Nanxing's heart pounded as she clutched a handful of copper coins. It was the first time she had ever touched so much money! She had never been to the city before, only selling eggs with her mother at the small market near their home.
This time, his father caught a pair of little rabbits in the field. They were snow-white and very cute. He thought he would go to the city to see if he could meet a rich lady or young lady who would take a liking to them and sell them for a high price. Since there were no other people at home, he took his children out for a stroll.
Unfortunately, they were unlucky. As soon as they arrived, they ran into a man riding a horse recklessly in the street. He hit and seriously injured her father and then ran away. Her whole family was terrified and surrounded her father. The rabbit also ran away!
If she hadn't met Xie Yushu, and her father had died, her grandmother would definitely have cursed her and her sister as jinxes, and there was a high chance that her mother, her sister, and she would have been sold by her grandmother!
Now that her father is still alive, and Xie Yushu is kind enough to give him ten taels of silver, the family has hope for the future. She is also fortunate enough to be by Xie Yushu's side, saving the family food. She couldn't be more content.
He was initially a little nervous because he knew nothing, but now that Xie Yushu takes him everywhere, teaches him math, and helps him buy things, he is even more grateful and vows to follow Xie Yushu for the rest of his life.
Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie accompanied Nanxing for a while. Nanxing bought two hair ties and then couldn't bear to spend any more money.
Xie Yushu said with a stern face
"I'm letting you spend money to train you to do accounting and buy things yourself. It's not a waste. If you're willing, learn accounting as soon as possible so you can help me with shopping in the future. Do you expect me to personally run around to buy everything while you stay at home enjoying yourself?"
Buy anything worth twenty copper coins or more!
Upon hearing this, Nanxing ran to a stall with a pained expression and picked out a pretty peach wood hairpin. He spent twenty-five copper coins, counted it twice (ten), then counted it again (five), and nervously asked Xie Yushu if it was correct.
"Oh right! Take another look and count how many copper coins you have left. Spend all the copper coins you have."
So, under Xie Yushu's pressure, Nanxing reluctantly bought a bag of candy balls and three feet of red cotton cloth with floral patterns.
She finally mustered up some courage and learned about the prices of many things. Things she wouldn't have dared to look at before, she now held in her arms. It felt like a dream!
Seeing Nanxing's teary eyes, Qu Xiaodie teased her.
"Your master is paying for things for you, and you're already shedding tears!"
"I, I, I just feel like life is too good, sob sob..."
"Alright, stop teasing her, let's go!"
Xie Yushu saw Nanxing's tears streaming down her face and patted her on the shoulder.
"You think this is enough to get rid of you? You're so pathetic! Stop crying! You're embarrassing me!"
Nanxing then tried to stop her tears and followed Xie Yushu to the shop that sold paper and pens.
Xie Yushu only bought a few sheets of high-quality Xuan paper. It's no wonder that poor people in ancient times couldn't afford to study; paper alone was a considerable expense. The cheapest yellow paper cost three copper coins a sheet, ordinary paper cost six copper coins a sheet, and the better paper cost fifteen copper coins a sheet.
But Xie Yushu was going to draw instructional illustrations, which might be passed down through generations, so of course she had to use the best ones.
The best Xuan paper costs fifty copper coins per sheet, and each sheet is about 60cm x 100cm. Xie Yushu bought ten sheets.
She bought another ink stick, which was quite hard. This little thing cost her eight hundred copper coins. Luckily, she had some assets now, otherwise she wouldn't even be able to afford to take on an apprentice!
After leaving the shop, Qu Xiaodie bought a bunch of snacks, which Xie Yushu paid for, of course! The group returned to the inn, where Qu Xiaodie and Nanxing ate and drank to their hearts' content, while Xie Yushu buried herself in drawing.
Xie Yushu is skilled in meticulous brushwork painting, so she did not use a brush, but painted directly with ink sticks, and even created 3D stereoscopic paintings!
Two diagrams of human muscle and skeletal structure, one diagram of human muscle distribution, one schematic diagram of human structure, and separate internal anatomical diagrams of the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys, with detailed labels for each part.
Qu Xiaodie and Nanxing weren't interested in these things. They glanced at them and said, "It's really well drawn, just like the real thing," before continuing to show off their food. Xie Yushu, on the other hand, had been drawing from the afternoon until late at night before finally finishing.
Because she painted so late, Xie Yushu didn't get up until late the next day. Qu Xiaodie said that the Liu family father and son were already waiting outside the door. After washing up, Xie Yushu asked someone to come in and give them the drawings, and instructed them to make sure they memorized all the drawings and words on them, so that she could check them next time.
The Liu father and son were greatly shocked when they took a look at the blueprints.
"Master, this is the structure of the human body, it's incredibly detailed!"
Liu Zhuoxuan was also visibly excited, as if he had found a treasure.
"Grandmaster, I promise I'll remember it perfectly!"
"Alright, then you guys go back and study. We're leaving now!"
"Master, are you leaving already? I'll send a car to take you back!"
Liu Shouye hurriedly said.
"No need, I have other things to do. I'll contact you if I need anything!"
"Okay, then!"
Seeing that Xie Yushu did not want to be disturbed, Liu Shouye and his son left with the blueprints.
Xie Yushu and the others packed their things and went to the carriage market to buy a new cart, which cost eight taels of silver.
I bought another tall donkey. There was no other way; horses were too expensive. Even a foal cost forty or fifty taels, and a good adult horse could sell for sixty or seventy taels or even over a hundred taels!
The price of an old ox ranges from 15 to 25 taels, while that of a donkey ranges from 10 to 15 taels. Right now, they live in the countryside, and donkeys are enough to pull carts. They run faster than old oxen, can pull a lot of things, and are much cheaper.
Xie Yushu picked out a top-quality donkey for only fifteen taels! It was a small, blue donkey, a little over two years old, with just the right amount of strength. It had even pulled a cart before, and it could understand human commands, such as "Giddy up," "Ooh," and "Whoa!" It could also turn corners on its own. Xie Yushu was extremely satisfied!
To get closer to the donkey, Xie Yushu, Qu Xiaodie, and Nanxing took turns feeding it a few pieces of maltose. The donkey, quite understanding, gave them a human-like smiling emoji. Nanxing exclaimed in surprise...
"This donkey is practically a spirit! I think it's smiling with its eyes narrowed!"
"Looks like all that sweet talk wasn't for nothing!"
Nanxing had previously herded her grandmother's donkey, so she could barely manage to harness it to pull a cart. She harnessed the donkey to the cart and drove to the market to buy things. For safety's sake, Xie Yushu and Qu Xiaodie didn't ride in the cart themselves, but followed it for a while to see if the donkey was well-behaved, in case it suddenly bucked and injured someone!
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