Chapter 7: A Donkey and the Path Ahead
Once inside her room, Yan Tangtang sat on the edge of the bed for a moment, catching her breath. Soon after, she slipped back out to surreptitiously check if any of the neighboring rooms were occupied.
The inn was a modest two-story building attached to a small tavern; the ground floor served as the dining area, while the upper floor housed the guest rooms. In a small town like this, the rooms were generally only rented out when travelers passed through. As fate would have it, she currently had the entire upper floor to herself. From what she had observed downstairs, the tavern was bustling with patrons, keeping the two young waiters occupied. It was unlikely that anyone would suddenly come wandering upstairs.
Relieved, she returned to her room to reorganize her belongings.
First, she took the original tattered clothing of the host, the former Yan Tangtang, and placed them inside her Storage Pouch. This bundle was precious; it was the only physical legacy left by the original owner of this body. She made a silent vow to find a place of natural beauty to bury these items, a way to offer a symbolic burial and bring peace to the original soul. While her own new clothes were replaceable, these were not.
However, she knew she had to carry at least one physical bundle while traveling. A child wandering the roads empty-handed would look suspicious, and she couldn't risk anyone guessing she possessed a spatial artifact.
Consequently, she decided to keep her two new sets of clothes in a small traveling pack. Next, she had to manage her funds. The thirty-five silver coins she had received as change at the garment shop would suffice for immediate expenses, so she tucked those into her pack. She then examined her money notes: one for five gold leaves, one for three gold leaves, one for a single gold leaf, one for five silver taels, and one for a single silver tael. If anyone were to see a child holding such high-denomination money notes, they wouldn't hesitate to rob her on the spot.
Yan Tangtang held the money notes, deep in thought. Her low-grade storage pouch currently held two thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine gold bars in addition to the original clothes; it could only manage to store these money notes for now. But how could she exchange them? She had spotted a money exchange shop while wandering the town, but the problem was the logistics of the physical currency.
While the money notes occupied almost no space, the actual coins were a different matter. Nine gold leaves wouldn't take up much room, but six hundred silver coins—the equivalent of six silver taels—would form a bulky, heavy bag.
She wouldn't be able to carry such a weight. Moreover, walking out of a money exchange with a heavy sack of silver would be like shouting to the world, "I have money, come and rob me!"
After much deliberation, she decided to exchange only the nine gold leaves. That amount could be tucked inconspicuously into her pack, and gold was far more valuable than silver for long-term travel. As for the silver money notes, she could only pray they would be honored in the next city.
"Phew... I didn't think managing money would be this difficult," she grumbled.
She tucked the gold leaf money notes into her breast pocket and lingered in the room for a while, eating some of the provisions she had brought from the village. Finally, she headed back downstairs.
She informed the innkeeper that she was going out for a while and would pay for the room now, confirming that she would return to sleep that night. The innkeeper accepted readily; his upstairs rooms were almost always vacant, and as long as there was money to be made, he was satisfied. The room rate was thirty copper coins per night. Yan Tangtang produced one of the five silver coins she kept in her sleeve. The innkeeper happily handed back her change: a money note for five hundred coppers, another for three hundred, one for a hundred, and a string of seventy physical copper coins.
Yan Tangtang: "......"
I don't want more money notes!!
Regardless, she couldn't carry nearly a thousand copper coins, so the money notes had to suffice. She took the money and left, unaware of the innkeeper's lingering gaze. Seeing her with her pack slung over her shoulders like a makeshift knapsack, he wondered if this young master had run away from home at such a tender age.
He didn't dwell on it, however. He had his money, and that was all that mattered.
Yan Tangtang returned to the carter to settle her fare. Afterward, she turned back toward the center of town and headed straight for the money exchange.
With a sullen, haughty expression—the very image of a spoiled, short-tempered young master—she marched inside and demanded to withdraw the nine gold leaves.
The clerks were taken aback to see a child withdrawing such a sum and began to ask questions. Their inquiries were quickly silenced by Yan Tangtang's sharp shout: "Is this young master's business any of your damn concern?!"
Chastened, they processed the request. She stowed the gold leaves into her pack with an air of practiced indifference and walked out.
Behind her, the men began to whisper.
"I'm certain that little master ran away from home, haha!"
"I've heard of teenagers running away, but these days, do they start even when they're only knee-high to a grasshopper?"
They shared a laugh at the expense of the "runaway."
The object of their gossip was currently entering a shop that sold dried meats. She purchased three hundred coppers' worth of supplies and casually asked the shopkeeper if there was a bookstore in town.
The meat seller looked at her with the same suspicion as the others but, pleased with the large sale, politely informed her that there were none. Yan Tangtang felt a pang of disappointment.
She had hoped to find a bookstore to buy travelogues or maps—anything to gather intelligence on the geography of this world. Since she hadn't found one during her scouting, she had to rely on the shopkeeper's information. He told her there was one in Ren City, which was larger and far more bustling than this town.
As she pondered how to reach Ren City, she found herself near the livestock market. The street was lined with oxen, pigs, chickens, and donkeys for sale.
Her eyes landed on a sturdy, small-statured donkey, and she began to calculate rapidly. She had initially hesitated about hitching a ride or joining a caravan to Ren City because she didn't trust anyone. Traveling to another city meant leaving the town's safety, and encountering other travelers in this era was purely a matter of chance. Who could guarantee the safety of a lone child on a deserted road? Perhaps traveling alone was better. It wasn't as if she had many safe options anyway.
Determined, she decided to first confirm the direction of Ren City before entering the market. However, she didn't dare ask just anyone. A child with a pack asking for directions to another city was practically an invitation for someone to follow and rob her once she left the gates.
In the midst of her worry, she spotted an old beggar sitting in a corner and an idea struck. She walked over to the old man and dropped fifteen copper coins into his bowl. Startled by the large amount, the old man looked up, though his eyes were clouded with age, especially at close range.
Before he could begin his string of blessings, Yan Tangtang cut him off with a whisper.
"Old man, do you know which way leads to Ren City?"
The old man's corner was secluded; even if she spoke a bit louder, others wouldn't hear. He thought for a moment before answering slowly.
"Ren City? That would be to the southeast..."
His voice trembled with age, and he looked so pitiful that Yan Tangtang felt an urge to give him more. However, she suppressed it, not wanting to invite unnecessary risk. She thanked him politely and turned back to buy her donkey.
The donkey she had eyed was a young one, not yet fully grown. She didn't need a large, mature beast. The owner initially asked for ten silver coins, but Yan Tangtang wrinkled her nose in disdain.
"Stop treating this young master like a clueless tourist! I'm a local. I'm just buying a young donkey to visit my grandparents on the other side of town, and you're asking for ten silver coins? Why don't you just become a bandit and rob people on the road instead!"
The owner chuckled inwardly. It seemed this "silver-spoon" young master had quarreled with his family and was running off to his grandparents' house. Though he was embarrassed at having his overcharging called out, he didn't take a child's bark to heart.
"Fine, fine. Little master, give me eight silver coins then."
"Four."
"You!..."
The owner was stunned; he had never encountered such aggressive haggling. The "brat" stared him down with a fierce scowl. He feigned anger in return.
"Little master, I'll give you my final price: seven silver coins! Not a copper less!"
"Four!"
The owner bit his lip. The man and the child stared each other down for a long time before the adult finally spoke.
"Six coins. I won't go any lower!!"
"Only four!!"
The owner's face turned red with frustration. He had only wanted to squeeze a bit of extra money out of a rich kid. Why was this so difficult? And why was this "young master" haggling like a seasoned merchant? Argh!!
"Five!! I absolutely cannot go lower than that!"
"Three silver coins and five hundred coppers?" (Three and a half coins).
The owner reached his breaking point.
"I'm not selling! I won't sell to you! Go away! Get out of here!!"
Startled by the shout, Yan Tangtang yelled back.
"If you want me to go, I'll go! Why are you screaming at this young master?!"
She turned away, making a show of looking at other donkey sellers. But as she moved on, the previous owner came running after her.
"Come back! Come back! Four coins! I'll give it to you for four! That's the actual market price; I can't go any lower than that!"
Hearing the owner's gritted teeth behind her, Yan Tangtang allowed herself a secret smile before turning around.
She wrinkled her nose at him. "If you had just agreed earlier, we wouldn't have had to waste so many words."
After exchanging four silver coins for the little donkey, she asked the owner to prepare the harness so she could ride it. Though he was still fuming, he complied.
As she mounted the animal, things were a bit clumsy. She didn't know how to ride, and the donkey was still a young foal, unaccustomed to being ridden. Their steps were awkward and uncoordinated. Nevertheless, she was thrilled to own her very own mount.
She had originally planned to spend the night in town, but since it wasn't even noon yet, she decided to set out immediately.
As she left the small town, heading toward the southeast, she couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement.
Her long adventure had truly begun with this first step.