Su Yi stealthily slipped into a deserted area and vanished into her magical space. She needed to change her outfit. When visiting a place like a broker’s agency (Yahang), it was better to look prestigious to prevent the agents from judging her by her cover and treating her poorly.
Not long after, Su Yi emerged wearing a light purple dress. After putting quite a bit of effort into doing her own hair, she managed to tie it into a simple yet elegant bun, making her look exactly like a young lady from a wealthy family.
Adopting the persona of a wealthy young miss, Su Yi strolled and browsed the stalls along the way, casually picking up a few small trinkets.
The broker’s agency was located at the entrance of an alley in the city center. It took Su Yi about ten minutes to walk there. Looking up, she saw four characters written on the signboard: “Integrity Broker’s Agency.”
As Su Yi stepped through the door, she spotted a middle-aged man with a goatee who appeared to be the shopkeeper.
Seeing Su Yi’s extraordinary attire, the shopkeeper’s eyes instantly lit up. He hurriedly rose to welcome her, saying, “Young lady, are you here to look for a shop or to hire servants?”
“A shop,” Su Yi replied. “I’m looking for a street-facing property where I can set up a stove and fit at least two tables. It would be best if it comes with a courtyard attached.”
“What a coincidence! I happen to have three such properties available right now. I’ll take you to see them immediately!”
Su Yi agreed with a nod and followed the shopkeeper out the door.
“Shopkeeper, what are the prices like for these shops?”
“The prices vary depending on the location and size. I’ll give you the specific details once we arrive at each shop.”
Before long, the two arrived at the first commercial property. It was located at the end of the street. The shop looked quite spacious and was right next to some vegetable stalls, so the foot traffic seemed decent. However, the interior was incredibly dark, there were visible patches of mold in the corners, and the decor looked very outdated.
Su Yi shook her head and said, “This one won’t do. Let’s look at the next one.”
Hearing this, the shopkeeper didn’t mind. He was used to it; comparing options before buying was completely normal.
The second commercial property was near Jinxiu Pavilion. The shop was exceptionally small, and the storefront was very narrow. Su Yi took a cursory glance and rejected it outright, noting that both the location and the storefront size were poor.
It wasn’t until they reached the third property that Su Yi was finally satisfied. The shop was located right in the middle of a bustling street, adjacent to a noodle shop. The storefront was neither too big nor too small—roughly thirty to forty square meters. The window frames facing the street were spotlessly clean, without a single speck of dust. The inner room wasn’t damp at all, and there was a small courtyard in the back suitable for living in or storing goods.
The only downside was that the shop hadn’t closed down yet. It was currently run by an elderly couple selling wontons, though they were planning to shut its doors within the next couple of days to enjoy their retirement.
However, Su Yi was in no hurry. For a prime location, she could afford to wait.
Su Yi walked over to the window and looked out. The foot traffic was substantial, ranging from housewives carrying vegetable baskets to scholars bearing book bags. It was exactly the demographic she wanted; business here certainly wouldn’t be bad.
“Shopkeeper, I’ll take this one!” Su Yi turned around, her tone filled with delight as she spoke to the broker.
“Young lady, you have an excellent eye. This old couple is incredibly fair-minded, and their asking price is very reasonable. But as you can see, you’ll have to wait a few days. Once the deed is signed by the owner, we still need to register it with the government office.”
Hearing the broker’s explanation, Su Yi quickly expressed her understanding.
The old couple also chimed in, saying they would close shop within the next two days. They had delayed it only because they were reluctant to part with the place. Having run it for decades, they had developed a deep emotional attachment to it. Seeing that Su Yi was a good girl, they were even willing to lower the price slightly.
Seeing this, Su Yi stated she could wait and was in no rush. After all, a good shop was hard to come by, so it was best to secure it first. Besides, processing the paperwork at the government office would take a few days anyway.
“How much is it?”
“Five hundred taels of silver. I won’t overcharge you, since you strike me as a very likable young lady!” the old woman said straightforwardly.
“Great! Then I’ll pay a deposit first. How much will it be?”
“Two hundred taels. Young lady, when the time comes, you can just come find me directly. I will handle all the relevant paperwork for you,” the broker said.
“Alright, then I’ll trouble you with that. I plan to open a braised food shop and sell some tea as well. Could you please help me handle the business permits for opening the shop together with the deed? I’m willing to pay extra for your trouble!” Su Yi didn’t want to waste time running back and forth for permits later, so she was perfectly happy to pay extra.
“Deal. Just let me know whatever you need.” Seeing how generous Su Yi was, the broker was more than happy to run the errands.
“How long will the paperwork take? I’ll come back to find you in a few days.”
“Six days will be plenty. We can sign the transfer agreement today. Once it’s signed, the old couple will clear out the space over the next two days, and I’ll head to the government office to process the documents for you.”
“Perfect, here is the money!” Upon hearing this, Su Yi directly pulled out two hundred and twenty taels from her cloth bag and handed it to the broker.
“Then it’s a deal. I’ll see you in six days!” After speaking, Su Yi bid farewell to the elderly couple and turned to leave.
By the time she stepped outside, the sky had already grown dark.
“Oh my goodness, I have to sprint to the city gates again!” Su Yi muttered before walking briskly toward the city gates at top speed.
Su Yi didn’t want to stay at an inn. Furthermore, she had nothing left to do in the county town, so she might as well head back to her small courtyard!
Finally, just like last time, she managed to slip out right before the city gates closed.
“Phew—”
Su Yi let out a long breath. Walking relentlessly at a breakneck pace just now had caused her to break out in a sweat. She was exhausted.
“Let me drink some spiritual spring water and hurry home! Walking alone at night dressed like this… I look like a prime target for bandits. I better not run into trouble like last time. Hehe! Though I did end up robbing them in the end!”
“I’m finally alive again!” After downing a cup of spiritual spring water, Su Yi felt entirely refreshed.
“Time to keep moving! I better not run into that fat and skinny duo tonight. If I do, they’re going to get a bitter taste of my medicine!” Su Yi muttered, marching forward aggressively.
Su Yi pushed forward resolutely for another mile or two until, finally, she was the only one left on the road.
Without her noticing, the other travelers had gone their separate ways at various forks in the road. Only her petite silhouette remained, hurrying along the wide official highway.
Su Yi stood on her tiptoes to scan the distance. There was absolutely no one around.
“Now, I can finally drive home!” Su Yi’s heart eased, and her face lit up with excitement.
In an instant, a car materialized out of thin air onto the flat, wide highway.
“Alright, my little babies, hop up yourselves!” Su Yi said with a playful, mischievous grin.
As she spoke, she teleported Mimi and Da Huang directly onto the ground, opened the back passenger door, and signaled the two little creatures to jump inside.
“Su Yi, you are seriously a dog! Couldn’t you just teleport us directly onto the back seat?!” Mimi grumbled, gnashing its teeth, while Da Huang let out a series of low growls (“Hou~ Hou~“) in firm agreement with Mimi’s complaint.
After being trained by Su Yi for some time, Mimi was no longer the soft, docile, and sweet-tempered little yellow fluffball it used to be.
Seeing that Su Yi had no intention of helping them, the two little ones had no choice but to use their short legs to agilely scramble into the car one after the other.
Mimi went first, leaping into the back seat in one swift bound. Next came Da Huang. Imitating Mimi’s movement, it launched itself into the car in a single spring.
Although Da Huang was only two months old, it drank spiritual spring water every single day. Its reflexes were incredibly sharp, and it could already understand Su Yi’s words. It would even frequently emit low growls, nod its head, or blink its eyes to respond to her.
Watching her two “precious sons” scramble into the car, Su Yi giggled mischievously, thoroughly satisfied with her little prank.
Now having two driving experiences under her belt, Su Yi drove smoothly and without any obstacles beneath the star-studded night sky.
With a soft screech, the car came to a steady halt right in front of Su Yi’s courtyard.