Buying new clothes at the ghost market
Tian Baozhu also abided by the agreement she had just made and did not chase after him. The two of them walked and stopped, always keeping a distance.
Those who knew them thought they were two ghost messengers, while those who didn’t thought they were two childish ghosts from nowhere.
[Map of the Underworld City]
Four big words domineeringly hit Tian Baozhu's vision. She was attracted by the wooden board standing on the side of the road. She walked past it and then took a few steps back. She stopped unconsciously to take a closer look.
The wooden board with the map of the underworld city painted on it also looked tattered and rotten.
The colors are still bright, with traces of layers of paint, and it can be seen that someone renovates it every once in a while.
Tian Baozhu leaned forward to take a look. They were now in front of the Yama Palace. The Yama Palace, which was painted in an extremely magnificent manner, and this part was in the very center of the picture.
To the north, a long, drawn route stretched almost beyond the top of the plank. That was the Yellow Springs Road. To the south, a river meandered through it, labeled "Forgetful River." Across the Forgetful River, a bridge was depicted, labeled "Naihe Bridge." At the other end of the Naihe Bridge, the characters "Ghost Market" were inscribed.
Included in the ghost market was a long and tall building sign with the word "居" written on it. Tian Baozhu studied it for a long time but couldn't figure out what it was, so he had to put his confusion aside and look at other parts.
She looked to the east and west. Near the roadside, there were signs that looked like mountains, but they didn't have specific names on them. There were many of them and they were densely packed together.
In stark contrast to this dense density lies the two-thirds blank space beyond the mountains. These areas are devoid of any drawings, and the words "Unknown Area, No Entry" are written everywhere, leaving one with a fascination for the underworld. This underworld is both simple and complex, with so many unknown places.
"Well, I remember that Lord Yama emphasized two key areas during the meeting: planting flowers and grass along Huangquan Road, and repairing Naihe Bridge to plant golden nanmu trees. Do these plants have native habitats in the underworld? If so, we should go there first. We could collect soil from the surrounding area and transplant it, which would be more suitable for its growth. I wonder if there's any compound fertilizer for sale in the underworld..."
When talking about farming, Tian Baozhu can talk to herself for a long time.
"you--"
Hei Wuchang, who had stopped in front, spoke. His voice was neither loud nor soft, and it could be heard clearly even from a distance.
"Do you really know how to farm? Do you really plan to stay and farm?"
"Ah, yes, we agricultural students are meant to farm. I didn't choose farming, but farming chose me. We can't be picky about the environment."
"You're weird."
"What's so strange about that? I'm thankful for the job. I can't just sit there and wait in line for a year."
"The clear-minded ghosts I've encountered before always tried to escape from the ghost catcher. They couldn't accept their own death and most of them struggled and resisted stubbornly."
"Oh... I don't have any worries. And there's no way to be resurrected after death. At most, I can only hope to be reincarnated."
Tian Baozhu couldn't figure out whether Hei Wuchang was talkative or not. Now she understood that he would only talk a lot about topics that interested him. He would only ask and answer questions that he wanted to ask. He would be silent if he was not interested. They were really two extremes.
For example, after he asked these questions, he walked away in silence.
This road does lead to the Ghost Market. This senior took her words to heart, and Tian Baozhu reduced his difficulty index by one star.
※※※
Along the road, as depicted in the city map, there were many mountains rising from the ground, not connected to each other. The mountains were bare rock without vegetation. The surface of the rock was densely packed, and the rows of things surrounding the mountains were not plants, but ghosts. They were squat ghosts, waiting to be reincarnated.
The ghosts had blank eyes and dazed expressions, like long-placed blocks of solidified cement, or like gray tombstones in the shape of human figures.
You can also see those ghosts looking for a place to sit. Wherever there is space, they will squeeze in and sit down. After sitting down, they will also keep their heads down in the same wooden manner.
Those who haven't found a spot need to climb over several stone hills again to find an empty spot. So you can always see a few ghosts wandering around at the bottom of the stone hill.
Tian Baozhu was originally curious about the scenery of the underworld, but after walking for a while, she became numb.
It was just as Lord Yama said, there were too many wastelands in the underworld. If the underworld was covered with lush and vibrant flowers and grass like the human world, the road would be so full of vitality... She understood why Lord Yama envied the human world, and why he became obsessed with farming after a business trip to the human world for comparison.
I took the scenery for granted before I died, but I didn't expect it to be so precious to me.
Walking across the creaking Naihe Bridge, they arrived at the Ghost Market.
The flow of people in the Ghost Market was much greater than Tian Baozhu had imagined. Unlike the ghosts she had seen on the other side of the stone mountain, the ghosts walking around the Ghost Market seemed to be in good spirits. If it weren't for the occasional appearance of a few non-human-looking underworld employees, Tian Baozhu would have almost had the illusion that this place was no different from the human world.
The ghost market, as described by the employees of the underworld, has an architectural style from the previous century. In Tian Baozhu's view, it is the style of an ancient town commercial street in the human world.
The shops in the corridor are like department stores in the early years, with a large space connected together, and each category is separated by a compartment, managed by its own owner.
The clothing shop was very spacious and the sign was very conspicuous, so Tian Baozhu found it without any effort.
Hei Wuchang was watching at the door and had no intention of going in.
※※※
"Isn't this the new generation of Lord Bai Wuchang? Welcome, welcome."
The clothing store owner came forward warmly. He had no nose, and his two big eyes and mouth were arranged in a vertical row from top to bottom. His eyes moved in sync, and when he smiled flatteringly at Tian Baozhu, his eyes curved in a smile.
Tian Baozhu asked the boss for work clothes that fit her body size. The boss said that since Tian Baozhu was the first female ghost messenger, none of the sizes in the store would fit her. Her work clothes needed to be custom-made. It would take two days for the new clothes to be made.
She could wait, but she needed to change out of the work clothes that were hindering her movements. She looked at the clothes underneath Bai Wuchang's work clothes. The clothes she was wearing before she died also needed to be changed.
I don’t know if it’s because I’m in the underworld and have mixed with the chaotic air of the underworld, so the smell is no longer noticeable.
Although the stench was no longer there, the clothes soaked in feces made them look filthy and it was completely different from what a piece of clothing should look like.
"Boss, do you sell women's clothes here?"
"If you need to buy yourself new clothes, this is not considered an expense for your work in the underworld, so you will need to pay for it separately."
Tian Baozhu took a look and saw that many of the styles were ancient costumes from the last century. The skirts of the long skirts were very long, which was different from the styles she was used to wearing. She asked:
"Boss, don't you have any newer styles that are more in line with the current times?"
"Yes. Generally speaking, they are burned down from the upper world. If someone brings you clothes, I can check for them. If I find them, you can take them away without paying any extra money."
"Someone burned it for me..." Tian Baozhu's tone became very light, "What if there wasn't one?"
"Master Bai Wuchang, maybe someone burned it for you. How about I help you check it out first?"
Tian Baozhu was reluctant to refuse her boss's kindness, so she said, "I'm just worried about wasting your time."
"It's okay, I'll read it quickly."
"Okay, then please help me check it out."
She watched as the boss took out a notebook and flipped through it page by page. After flipping through most of the book, he still found nothing.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, the boss comforted her, "There's still half of it, don't worry."
Tian Baozhu lowered her eyes, her fingers tapping unconsciously on the table.
"Master Bai Wuchang, your original surname is Tian, right? Tian... Tian, oh, got it! I saw Tian!"
Tian Baozhu's fingers suddenly stopped.
"Tian—" the boss opened the record book as wide as possible, "Tian Tiantian! Ah, no!"
Tian Baozhu sighed, and the boss obviously felt that he had not satisfied her, so he quickly searched the back.
"Ah, it's not Tian, it's Jia——"
He flipped it again.
"I don't believe we can't find it. There's more, Lord Bai Wuchang, there's more."
Boss, don't be so enthusiastic.
"Boss, that's enough, that's enough..." Tian Baozhu's smile became stiff, and she felt that she could no longer keep smiling.
"Give it to me, let me see it."
At some point, Hei Wuchang walked behind her, picked up the record book, quickly read the pages at the back, then closed it and put it down.
"Go buy it."
"Okay, boss, take me to see your other styles of clothes."
The boss said while being pushed:
"I really want to save you some money..."
"It's okay, it's okay. I have some money on me now, and I'll get paid next month."
When a first-level employee came to visit, he naturally wanted to provide service worthy of this store, but he didn't know whether Lord Bai Wuchang would like the clothes in their own store...
"Excuse me, but the items in this shop are mostly basic, without much design. They're not as fancy as the ones burned down above. There are no patterns, and none of the chiffon and bows that women like..."
"It doesn't matter. Any clothes that are suitable for walking and working, and are durable and resistant to dirt will be fine." Tian Baozhu looked through the clothes.
White is easily dirty and obviously not suitable, but black is okay; this gray one is also good, but the sleeves are too long and I have to roll them up when working. Let’s see the next one...
Tian Baozhu selected several outfits, either black or gray, a combination of short-sleeved shirts and long pants. In the fitting room, she removed her dirty clothes and her Bai Wuchang work uniform, changed into a sports lining, and put on one of the outfits.
"Okay, this is it."
"Master Bai Wuchang, won't you choose a few more sets? Don't worry, we offer more discounts if you buy more."
"That's enough. I still have work clothes to wear. This set can be regarded as transitional clothes."
Seeing that Tian Baozhu had simple needs for clothes, the boss stopped trying to sell her clothes. However, when he took the insect-shaped gold coin that Tian Baozhu gave him, he suddenly shouted "Ah!"
"What's going on, boss?"
Old Bai Wuchang, you're not going to give me money I can't use, are you?!
"Oh my God! What a rare insect-shaped coin! How many years have I not seen one? I must keep it as a treasure!" He wiped the coin with his breath - put the coin into a velvet-lined wooden box - then put the wooden box into a sturdy copper box and locked it, all in one go.
Then he sighed while finding the change:
"Ah~ It's worthy of being a treasure that only Lord Bai Wuchang has~ I've really opened my eyes today."
Tian Baozhu had no idea that this insect-shaped gold coin had such a great origin. She was even more surprised when she saw the change the boss gave her. Tens, hundreds, thousands... he gave her a seven-digit change!
"Is this gold coin worth so much money...?" she asked Hei Wuchang blankly.
"Yes, there were more in the early years."
After buying the clothes, Hei Wuchang stepped out of the store a few steps earlier. Tian Baozhu asked the owner for the location of the farm tool store and followed him out of the store. Behind them, the owner of the clothing store said warmly, "Master Bai Wuchang, we welcome you to our store often. We will notify you as soon as we have clothes for you--"
"Ha, the boss is so enthusiastic. I don't know how to respond to him. I didn't expect to be asked to bring clothes..."
"Things that happened in life don't matter anymore now that you're dead. Just reincarnate as soon as possible." Hei Wuchang replied to Tian Baozhu's embarrassed smile without any emotion.
"Yes, I understand."
※※※
The clothing store owner told Tian Baozhu that if she turned right, she would see the farm tool store.
So she kept walking, and walking, and walking to the right—
But every shop we passed by sold snacks, bed covers and quilts, and books and stationery, but there was not a single shop with the words "farm tool store" written on it.
Is it over yet? Haven’t we reached the “right turn” yet?
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