As soon as Ding Baozhu returned to the room, Ding Baoqin could not wait to give her a big thumbs-up.
“Good job, Big Sister! Who told him he could sneak a taste of the things you made? Even I know that taking without asking is stealing. How could someone who attended the village school not know that? Truly useless!”
Ding Baozhen did not speak from the side, but she nodded in agreement. The issue was that if he had asked for it openly, they wouldn’t have refused him out of a sense of propriety. Instead, he chose to eat it stealthily, almost finishing it all, and then tried to hide it. It was simply too foolish.
Liu Ping brought over the thin porridge and other pickled vegetables at that moment. “All right, let’s eat first. You all have things to do today.”
The two girls acknowledged her. Liu Ping then served the last of the Sun Zha, which was just enough to fill a small dish. Taking a bite, the evenly sliced bamboo pieces were both tender and crisp—the unique texture belonging only to spring bamboo shoots. Pickled with oil and salt, it was refreshing and went perfectly with the grain. They immediately began slurping down their porridge.
After the meal, Ding Baozhu gave the five wen to Baozhen and Baoqin, telling them to split it so they could buy something to eat at noon. The two initially refused, but eventually accepted the money.
Once Ding Baozhen and Ding Baoqin left the house, Ding Baozhu shouldered her bamboo basket once again, placing the morels at the very bottom. After a quick word with Liu Ping, she left the house. The restless morning had finally come to an end.
On the road out of the village leading to Xiang’an Town, many vendors had already set up stalls. Ding Baozhu glanced around casually; they were mostly selling firewood, vegetables, or seasonal mountain treasures like common mushrooms and bamboo shoots. However, after passing many of them, she failed to see a second person selling morels.
It seemed she would have to find a place with more specialized purchasing power to take the ones in her hand.
As Ding Baozhu was considering this, she suddenly spotted a familiar back walking ahead. The person was carrying several cages that also looked familiar…
She froze for a moment, and once she realized who it was, she quickly stepped forward and called out: “Hey, wait a moment!”
The person ahead paused and actually came to a halt. But when he turned around and saw it was her, he instinctively frowned, looking as if he were about to leave immediately.
Ding Baozhu rushed over, catching her breath before saying, “Wait… wait. I have a question I want to ask you.”
“…Ask me?”
The man narrowed his eyes and then let out a soft, mocking laugh. “You actually know how to use words like ‘ask’? That’s rare!”
Ding Baozhu was momentarily speechless. She hadn’t expected Hunter Xu’s son to be so sarcastic. But ultimately, Hunter Xu and Ding Hong had privately arranged the childhood betrothal, and the original owner’s reputation preceded her throughout the village. Suddenly learning that he was to be her husband, he naturally would not be pleased.
Through her inquiries over the past few days, she had learned his name—Xu Ye.
The character Ye meant brilliant or radiant, yet the aura radiating from the person before her was the complete opposite of his name. Ding Baozhu didn’t know when the Xu family would come to fetch the bride, but according to Ding Hong and Liu Ping, this marriage was still going forward. She didn’t know how things would turn out when the time came.
Ding Baozhu gave a dry laugh but didn’t answer his jab, asking directly: “I wanted to ask, is there a place in town that buys ingredients? Somewhere on a larger scale.”
Xu Ye’s father was a hunter, making him an apprentice hunter. A hunter’s catch eventually needed to be converted into cash. In Xiangshan Village, aside from seeking out Ding Hong, one would naturally look for opportunities in Xiang’an Town. He surely understood these things better than she did.
Xu Ye glanced at her, his expression suggesting he was suspicious of her motives, but he answered nonetheless: “There is a three-story restaurant on the east side of town. They usually buy game and miscellaneous dry goods. You can check there.”
“Alright, thank you,” Ding Baozhu said with a smile, then added, “Are you going there to sell those as well?”
Looking at Ding Baozhu’s calm, smiling face, Xu Ye couldn’t help but be momentarily stunned. It was very different from the person in the rumors. He knew his father was close with Ding Hong, so he had seen the man and, of course, had seen his eldest daughter a few times when they were children. However, they hadn’t really met since then; anything he heard about her came from his elders.
He had been engrossed in the hunting skills taught by his father and wasn’t particularly interested in marriage. Furthermore, many girls didn’t want a hunter as a son-in-law, so the matter had been delayed until now—though he personally didn’t mind. He hadn’t expected his father to arrange a marriage so early. He wasn’t surprised it was Ding Hong’s daughter, but it happened to be the eldest one, who everyone described as tyrannical, willful, and utterly unreasonable.
Not long ago, there were even rumors of her attempting suicide to protest the marriage. Had the betrothal gifts not already been sent—meaning they might not be recoverable—he would have resisted his parents’ orders regardless. Later, Ding Hong came to their door to apologize, saying that Ding Baozhu had come to her senses after waking up and would never cause trouble again. His father’s relationship with the man was so good that he believed him completely, and they began discussing a new auspicious date for the wedding.
He knew his father wanted nothing more than to see him start a family. Moreover, if the marriage were truly broken off, it wouldn’t matter much to Xu Ye, but Ding Baozhu’s reputation would be truly ruined. He wasn’t a heartless person.
Even so, every time he met her, he still felt a trace of annoyance in his heart. But he had only seen her a few times as a child and had long forgotten what she looked like. Although they lived in the same village, his family lived in a remote area and kept to themselves, only heading out when they had game to sell. Usually, his father went out, but now that he was older, he helped out occasionally.
Meeting her frequently these past few days, he saw what she looked like now, and she wasn’t as hideous as he had imagined. Not only that, he actually thought she looked quite pleasant. She wasn’t short and petite like other girls, and there was a hint of spirited determination between her brows. Most importantly—though they had only met a few times—she wasn’t nearly as detestable as the rumors suggested.
Maybe I shouldn’t believe those rumors entirely, Xu Ye thought suddenly.
At this thought, Xu Ye’s tone softened slightly as he replied, “I’m not going there. I only caught a few small ones; the shop definitely won’t take them. So, I’m planning to just sell them on the street in town.”
Xu Ye didn’t seem to be in a hurry. It was currently the off-season for hunting, so hunters like them could only catch birds or small ground game. Even if they could sell to restaurants as they did in the past, no owner would be willing to take just a few palm-sized birds. They weren’t as valuable as large game, so he might as well set up a small stall himself. If he sold them, he’d get some money; if not, he could bring them home for his family to eat. Either way, it wasn’t a loss.
Ding Baozhu nodded in acknowledgment, but the two of them suddenly fell into a mutual silence. Although she could be said to be a girl awaiting marriage, the village didn’t have that many strict rules. Seeing her so-called fiancé now, for some reason, she only felt a trace of awkwardness. Simply put—they had nothing to talk about.
Xu Ye pursed his lips, gave a slight nod, and turned to continue walking.
Ding Baozhu carried her basket. His steps were fast and large, but she didn’t feel the need to keep up with him, so she walked behind at her own pace, occasionally looking at the vendors on either side of the road. She had done a thorough investigation of the town before, and the goods at these roadside stalls were indeed cheaper than those in the town center while being of similar quality. Aside from the limited variety, there were no major drawbacks.
Businessmen here were sharp-witted; for a while, the sounds of people calling out to her as “Young Miss” rose and fell along the road. Even Xu Ye couldn’t help but look back a few times, catching a glimpse of Ding Baozhu tilting her head and smiling as she waved her hand gently to one of the peddlers.
After the Beginning of Spring, the once-withered branches had already sprouted new leaves, and tall trees lined both sides of the main road. On the slightly swaying brown twigs, rouge-colored flower buds had sparsely bloomed, resembling the blush that rises in moments of shyness.
In the midst of this vibrant spring vitality, the apricot blossoms were opening.
Xu Ye snapped out of his daze and turned his head back down to walk forward. Yet, that moving rouge color somehow seemed to turn into little flames. He was caught off guard by a sudden lick of heat on his face; though he couldn’t see it himself, an inexplicable reddish hue appeared on his cheeks. Fortunately, the spring breeze was mild, and it soon blew the heat away.
By the time Ding Baozhu reached the town, Xu Ye had long since disappeared to set up his stall. She walked straight toward the east side he had mentioned. The streets were as lively as ever. Many pedestrians passing by were carrying baskets or containers just like her, making them targets for the businessmen.
After walking for about the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea, she saw a building in the distance that was taller than the others. That was likely the three-story restaurant Xu Ye had spoken of. As she got closer, the full appearance of the building gradually emerged.
Xiang’an Town was not very large, after all. Although the restaurant had three floors, its footprint was narrow. It couldn’t compare to a grand tavern; it was more like a high-end eatery. A plaque hung between the second and third floors with the name “Kemanlou” (Full Guest Tower). It seemed that Kemanlou was likely the largest restaurant within a radius of several miles.
Ding Baozhu paused for a second and then stepped inside.
Perhaps the eatery did not provide breakfast, as the interior wasn’t even brightly lit. Several waiters were moving tables and chairs to clean up. However, seeing someone enter, they came forward to attend to her regardless of her purpose.
the waiter smiled and said, “Young Miss, we don’t open our doors to guests until mid-morning (9:30 AM). Would you like to wait a bit?”
Ding Baozhu also replied with a smile, “I’m not here to eat. I want to sell something.”
The waiter seemed to have heard this phrase many times, and his face showed no surprise. He merely cast a suspicious and subtle glance at the basket on Ding Baozhu’s back before asking, “I wonder what you are selling, Young Miss? To tell you the truth, many hunters are willing to sell their game here, and we do accept it, but you…”
Ding Baozhu continued with a smile, “Since you buy a lot of game here, I figured you must also accept mountain treasures. I would appreciate it if you could call your manager.”
The waiter naturally understood what “mountain treasures” meant—wasn’t it just some mushrooms and bamboo shoots? People did bring such things to the door, but the shop could buy those in bulk elsewhere; they usually wouldn’t bother with small, scattered amounts. Especially with bamboo shoots, since they were currently in season, they had already purchased a batch to serve their customers.
The waiter’s mind was filled with doubts, but Ding Baozhu was a new face, and he didn’t want to lose a potential source of goods. He had no choice but to go find the manager to handle the situation. After all… this girl looked as if she had come prepared.