"Thank you. Goodbye."
Bai Fanxian bid farewell to the elderly shop owner. In Hui'er's hands was a bag stuffed full with ten million yuan in cash. It had nearly been troublesome earlier, because Bai Fanxian was from an era ten thousand years ago. Not just a bank account—she didn't even have an ID card.
Fortunately, with her cold face that barely showed emotion and the elderly shop owner's own assumptions, he thought the young woman might want cash after refusing to provide a bank account number. So he paid in the cash reserves kept in the shop instead.
"No problem, young lady. Come again."
This was probably the old man's main purpose. Because this young woman was full of mystery. Being able to bring such valuable herbs to sell might mean she had an extraordinary background.
Building goodwill was the wiser choice.
"...Mm."
Bai Fanxian nodded lightly. As she walked out of the shop, the soft bell at the entrance signaled her departure.
The elderly shop owner sighed softly.
He looked at the hundred-year ginseng on the table, then decided to call someone instead.
"Old Zheng, I have both good news and bad news."
"The bad news is the military also wants that 50-year ginseng."
When he finished speaking, a sigh came from the other end. But before the other side could hang up, the elderly shop owner quickly stopped him.
"But the good news is I just got a 100-year ginseng. And from a source they don't know about yet."
The voice on the other end became excited. The shop owner heard commotion from the other side and also heard that the other side would come here immediately.
"Understood. Your granddaughter is like my granddaughter. This hundred-year ginseng must go to help Meiying no matter what."
.
.
.
Bai Fanxian and Hui'er were walking in the commercial district again. Both had become the unavoidable center of attention. The main reason was probably the clothes they wore.
"We should look at new clothes first..."
Bai Fanxian assessed with her own eyes. Though she didn't much care, being the constant center of attention while walking was starting to create considerable annoyance for her.
"Hui'er... let's find clothes for you first."
Bai Fanxian spoke to Hui'er, who was diligently holding the cash bag.
"Yes, my lady." The little girl answered readily.
An hour later, Hui'er was now in a neat black skirt paired with a white shirt. She wore a tiny necktie at her collar, and wore small leather shoes that matched perfectly with the short white socks.
The little girl had tried hard to refuse her lady at first, because this outfit cost 3,000 yuan. To a child like her who had grown up never handling much money, it seemed wasteful.
She only wanted cheap clothes for a few dozen yuan.
But her lady threatened her with her status. Her lady said that as Bai Fanxian's follower, she must dress well. Absolutely no one should be allowed to look down on her. So she accepted this outfit to wear comfortably and with gratitude.
Making Hui'er now look like a little secretary holding a bag for her boss. Especially since she'd bathed, dressed, and eaten Bai Fanxian's strange pills yesterday, she was full of the charm of an adorable little girl.
As for Lady Bai Fanxian, she was still in what looked like the same ancient Chinese outfit. She didn't much fancy these modern outfits. Just in terms of materials used, no outfit in the world could compare to the one she was wearing now.
But when she passed a fashion clothing store, her gaze that swept past caught on an outfit hanging at the storefront.
It wasn't even trendy fashion.
Not an expensive brand-name outfit.
Not even a complete outfit, because it was just a shirt.
And just an ordinary "t-shirt" with a cartoon design of a round brown bear face printed on the chest.
"Little Bear." Hui'er said with surprise when she saw her lady staring at that t-shirt.
"...You know it, Hui'er?" Bai Fanxian asked while her gaze remained fixed on that shirt.
"Yes... it's a very popular cartoon."
Hui'er felt a bit sad thinking of the past. Though she and her mother weren't wealthy, occasionally she could watch this "Little Bear" when the TV shop in town had it on.
"Is that so..."
Bai Fanxian walked into the clothing store. The shop owner, a middle-aged woman, startled slightly upon seeing Bai Fanxian. Because both her beauty and strange aura weren't things normal people could have.
"How much is that shirt?"
Bai Fanxian pointed to the white t-shirt with the Little Bear design.
"Uh... 150 yuan each. But won't that one be too big for that child?"
The aunt who owned the shop answered nervously, but still kindly suggested when seeing Hui'er's frame running in after. Because the shirt the young woman pointed to was adult-sized.
"...I'll buy them to wear myself."
"..."
The lady and her little servant emerged to walk on the main street again after some commotion. Because after Bai Fanxian saw that besides that t-shirt, the rack also had "Little Bear" t-shirts in many other colors and poses—dozens more.
So buying out the entire rack occurred before little Hui'er's eyes.
There were also various colored shorts for wearing at home.
Of course, they also had small "Little Bear" prints on the thighs.
But what made Hui'er smile broadly again was when she learned from the shop owner that children's sizes were available, Bai Fanxian didn't hesitate at all to sweep them up too. Making the two now have dozens of sets of home clothes that could be changed without repeating colors every day.
Though the pattern repeated, because there was only one...
Dozens of outfits would naturally be troublesome to carry. But after leaving the clothing store, Bai Fanxian managed to send them all into her dimension unseen. Only leaving the cash bag in Hui'er's hands because she found it convenient for spending.
"Hui'er, what kind of house do you like?"
Bai Fanxian asked Hui'er as they walked together. Making Hui'er look at her lady with confusion and ask back:
"Are you buying a new house, my lady?"
Bai Fanxian nodded. "The room you went to yesterday isn't very suitable for living. And I've already taken everything out."
She didn't mention that she'd stored the entire "room."
"I don't really know much about houses..." Hui'er answered shyly. Before, she'd lived with her mother in just a tiny rat hole in the slums. Never had a chance to live in a big house.
"Is that so..." Bai Fanxian didn't reproach the little girl and even patted her head gently. "Then is there an inn in this city? Tonight we'll stay at an inn first."
"Do you mean a hotel, my lady?"
Hui'er asked without understanding.
"What is a hotel like?"
"A hotel is..."
The two spent some time understanding each other. Once Bai Fanxian was certain the hotel Hui'er mentioned was similar to the inn she knew, they both headed straight to find the nearest hotel.
Because Hui'er had wandered all over this city before, she was very familiar with some routes. She guided Bai Fanxian to the best hotel in the city. But that made them finally leave the commercial district area.
A street full of cars was what lay before them. Though the sidewalks were filled with beautiful buildings and shops, the cars on the street captured Bai Fanxian's attention quite well.
"I was going to ask you. Those are vehicles of this era, right?"
Because she could sense ordinary people's presence filling those boxes. There was also something running underground carrying many people and moving quickly.
"Yes, my lady. They're called cars. They're very comfortable to ride and fast too." Hui'er herself had ridden in cars occasionally when her mother was still around.
"Is that so?" Bai Fanxian stopped paying attention to them. She only thought that if her inventor companion could see the technology of this era, it would be quite wonderful.
They arrived at an intersection with a crosswalk. Many people were waiting to cross the street. Hui'er pointed to the other side—a beautifully decorated building dozens of stories tall—and said that was the "hotel" she mentioned.
Bai Fanxian nodded. She was also waiting at the crosswalk like others. Because Hui'er said it was what everyone did—wait for the light to be red before crossing this street.
Though Bai Fanxian's outfit stood out, no one paid much attention because nowadays strange clothing was everywhere. And they didn't look at faces much unlike the pedestrian street earlier because this was a main road.
The green light changed to red. Cars on the street gradually stopped until completely still. People waiting at the crosswalk began crossing this main street normally.
Bai Fanxian walked along with the people, with Hui'er following closely behind.
"Kyaaa!"
In the middle, several women's panicked screams rang out simultaneously as if unplanned. Because there were two black cars, chasing each other at full speed. When they reached the point with the red light, they swerved right into another lane urgently. The car behind followed without letting up.
And because of this haste, the driver didn't notice that ahead, among the cars stopped at the red light, was a group of people crossing the crosswalk!
Panicked sounds rang out all around because it happened extremely quickly. By the time they realized, the front car was already at close range from the group crossing the crosswalk.
Though the driver tried to brake, it was too late. A car driving at that speed—braking in such a short distance was impossible. Making that car skid and about to crash into the group!
But most importantly, the person closest to that car was a little girl holding a bag and looking at the car rushing toward her with wide eyes.
Hui'er!