Arriving in Yan County, Qin Junyao first bought a highly clear bronze mirror, ink for eyebrows, and makeup powder. She then went to a clothing store and bought a set of clothes that looked like those worn by wealthy families, along with a veiled hat.
After changing, she used the makeup powder to whiten her face, making her appear pale and somewhat sickly. She then used the eyebrow ink to draw a black mark, about the size of a palm, on one side of her face. If anyone were curious enough to look closely under the veiled hat, they would likely remember the black mark and overlook Qin Junyao's original appearance.
With her preparations complete, Qin Junyao found a ox cart for hauling goods and had it taken to a secluded spot she had previously scouted.
"Stop here for a moment, sir," Qin Junyao said to the cart driver, pointing to a location she had chosen. "I'm not quite sure which alley it is. I'll go take a look."
"Alright, call me if you need anything," the driver readily agreed, not minding Qin Junyao's delay.
Entering a dead-end alley piled with discarded items, Qin Junyao took a deep breath. Before her physical body could freely enter and exit her spatial dimension, she had not wanted to sell grain for profit. Now, because of Qin Mu, she felt compelled to take a gamble, especially since she had so little silver.
She placed twenty sacks of rice, filled from her spatial dimension, onto the ground. Turning back, she called for the cart driver to help load them. As she followed the ox cart towards a street with more people, Qin Junyao's rising tension eased by half. The first hurdle of safety now depended on the second.
Qin Junyao had the ox cart driven to the front of the grain store where Grandma Qin had sold rice a few days prior. A shop assistant emerged and greeted her warmly, "What can this young lady buy today?"
"Please call your shopkeeper out. I have something to sell."
The shop assistant glanced at the sacks on the ox cart and then turned back to fetch the manager. The shopkeeper emerged, greeted Qin Junyao politely, and then opened a sack of grain. He took out a few grains, chewed them, and found they were new rice.
With a smile, the shopkeeper invited Qin Junyao into the store, intending for his assistant to move the rice from the cart inside. Qin Junyao stopped him.
"Shopkeeper, the goods won't be stolen if left outside. Let's talk first," Qin Junyao said. She then turned to the cart driver, "Sir, please wait for me a moment. It won't take long, and I'll double your fare."
"Certainly, miss. Don't worry, take your time," the driver replied, patting the ox's head.
Seeing that Qin Junyao was not an ignorant young lady, the grain store shopkeeper dismissed his initial condescension and invited her into the shop. Qin Junyao entered, looked around, but said nothing about prices.
"What is the young lady's name?" the shopkeeper asked, unable to hold back.
"My surname is Yi."
"Yi is a rather uncommon surname. Young lady Yi, is this all the rice you have, or is there more?" the shopkeeper asked subtly.
Qin Junyao cleared her throat. "The amount of rice depends on the price you offer, shopkeeper."
The shopkeeper paced, deep in thought. Customers entering the store to buy grain kept glancing their way. Qin Junyao calmly observed the types of grains and their prices in the store.
"Young lady Yi, please come inside."
Qin Junyao nodded and followed the shopkeeper to the back. The front of the grain store, which appeared ordinary, hid a different world in the back – a courtyard with a covered walkway, a rock garden, and a fish pond. Qin Junyao hesitated slightly but followed the shopkeeper forward. She had come this far, and there was no reason to turn back. She wondered why Grandma Qin had chosen this particular grain store.
"Young lady Yi, give me a firm answer. How much rice can you supply?" the shopkeeper asked, pouring tea for Qin Junyao while trying to see her expression through her veiled hat, but only managing to glimpse her chin.
"Shopkeeper, I still say the same: if your price is suitable, I have no reason not to earn this money."
The shopkeeper tapped his fingers on the table. "Anshun Prefecture City is under martial law. How did you, young lady Yi, manage to transport the rice here?"
Qin Junyao paused while holding her tea. "What do you mean by that, shopkeeper?"
"Heh heh, I apologize for being presumptuous. How about this: seventeen wen per jin. Yingfeng Grain Store will buy as much as you have."
Qin Junyao's heart stirred. Grandma Qin sold it for fifteen wen per jin. Given her personality, this price should be the highest in Yan County. For bulk transactions, prices could only be lower, not higher. This was unhulled rice, and they were suddenly offering her a high price...
"Young lady Yi?"
"It's a deal. May I ask your esteemed surname, shopkeeper?" Qin Junyao agreed to the transaction without showing any surprise.
"Hahaha, my surname is Jin."
Outside, the ox cart held over two thousand one hundred jin of rice. As per Qin Junyao's request, Shopkeeper Jin paid her thirty-three taels of silver and two thousand seven hundred copper coins. Qin Junyao gave the cart driver five hundred wen and bid farewell to Shopkeeper Jin before blending into the crowd.
"Er Zi, find someone to follow that cart driver and that person named Yi," Shopkeeper Jin instructed his assistant, watching the direction Qin Junyao had disappeared.
Surname Yi? Or was it Yi? Without showing her face, and not signing a grain agreement, was she not worried that their grain store wouldn't buy her rice, or was this a one-time transaction? Where did so much grain come from? Shopkeeper Jin's mind was full of questions. The last time, an old woman sold a hundred jin of rice. This time, a young girl sold two thousand jin. Could it be that there were routes unknown to their masters?
Qin Junyao left the grain store and wandered along the main street. First, she went to a blacksmith shop to order two iron pots and cooking utensils for the donkey cart. Then, she went to a carpenter's shop to order a removable frame for the donkey cart. There were still some miscellaneous items she wanted to buy, but she decided to wait until the frame for the donkey cart was made and bring Qin Mu along to choose them.
To improve Qin Mu's status in front of Grandma Qin, the only way currently was to enable Qin Mu to earn money. Qin Junyao had originally planned to have Qin Mu start working next year, as she and her second aunt were already very busy. Unfortunately, plans never went as expected.
With the necessary tasks completed, Qin Junyao found a clothing store and bought a few undershirts. She also changed out of her current clothes, keeping the disguise on her face. It wasn't until she left the clothing store that she realized something was wrong. Someone was following her.
Qin Junyao had a hunch that the person was from the grain store. Her first thought was that this person could not be allowed to return. The clothes she was currently wearing could easily be linked to Grandma Qin; there likely weren't many people wearing such worn-out clothes who were selling rice. Grandma Qin's distinctive red headscarf made her easy to find.
After a moment's thought, Qin Junyao made a decision. She led the person following her back towards the alley where she had previously unloaded the grain, inwardly cursing her greed. If she hadn't been tempted by the high price, why would she have gone to that Yingfeng Grain Store? This was ancient times, why had she forgotten the principle of "possessing jade invites trouble"? Qin Junyao, accustomed to a smooth life in modern times and born in a country with sound laws and stable public order, found it too difficult to grow into a well-rounded person in just two months.
The shop assistant from the grain store, Er Zi, who was following Qin Junyao, felt very excited. If the young lady ahead had problems, he could make a name for himself in front of Shopkeeper Jin, or even their master. Now, it seemed this young lady had significant problems. In his excitement, he didn't notice that they were walking into increasingly remote and sparsely populated areas. He followed Qin Junyao into a dead-end alley, and a cleaver swung towards him.
Er Zi instinctively dodged, but the cleaver still grazed his shoulder. He looked up and saw Qin Junyao, pale-faced with a black mark on her face. Her fierce gaze made him feel as though he were looking at a ghost. Just as he was about to cry out, a hand wrapped around his neck. He couldn't breathe.