Chapter 15 Borrowing Books_1

Xiaoquan, stunned, watched from the sidelines. How had his sister-in-law managed to accumulate so much money? He would have to challenge her to another round of gambling later! His luck was turning!

After finishing their meal, Liuliu prepared to leave. Shopkeeper Wang even had a takeaway order put together for her, carried in a wooden bucket containing a small pot of old hen soup, a few stir-fried dishes with sliced meat, and a bowl of fish.

Such an arrangement, small in cost but large in impact, was Shopkeeper Wang's clever tactic. He could cultivate goodwill this way by showing kindness to a clever and capable girl. If she came to work for him, his profits would certainly increase. Treating her well ensures they are grateful and will not share their experiences with other restaurants. Once a new dish was introduced, rival restaurants would certainly look for ways to replicate it. But it would take time, and their versions, made only by observing the original, would be just a tad bit inferior.

The moment they stepped outside, Xiaoquan, with flattery all over his face, asked Liuliu, "Sis, how about another round of gambling?"

Liuliu jumped. She hoped Shopkeeper Wang hadn't heard him. Although she was capable of winning at gambling, the story she told about her skills was completely made up.

"Quiet! We need to leave quickly!" Liuliu glanced back, relieved that no one was nearby.

"Alright, alright," Xiaoquan responded, misunderstanding and assuming Liuliu agreed to his gambling proposal. He promptly picked up the takeaway and cheerfully headed towards the gambling house.

Liuliu's mouth twitched in annoyance, but she held her tongue for the moment. Carrying the pork her brother had given her, she followed Xiaoquan, at least until they were halfway down the street.

"Xiaoquan, where are you planning to go?" Liuliu asked, exasperated. Would this unlucky boy never stop gambling?

"Sis, look how good our luck is today! We turned a tael of silver into twenty, and you somehow managed to make a hundred taels out of sheer nonsense. Think about how exciting it would be if we gambled one more time with a hundred taels—we could win two hundred taels in an instant!" Xiaoquan responded, eyes sparkling with anticipation.

"You want to gamble?" Liuliu asked.

"Of course, I do! Don't you want to win money?" Xiaoquan retorted. If the old matron were here, she might have joined him in gambling. But with Liuliu in charge, why on earth would she ever listen to him?

"Go home! If we gamble again, we could lose all the money we have. What then?" Determined, Liuliu decided to help Xiaoquan quit gambling from this point onwards.

"We won't lose. Today's our lucky day!" Xiaoquan insisted on gambling.

"I already said no gambling, and I meant it. Don't blame me if I have to drag you by your ear!" Furious that reasoning hadn't worked, Liuliu decided to resort to more drastic measures. He needed to understand she meant business.

"Sis, you don't have the right to pull my ears!" Xiaoquan was displeased. He had tolerated it once at the gambling house, but it was different now. On what grounds was his sister-in-law going to pull his ears again?

"Oh, and why not? Because I am your sister-in-law, and older sisters must be respected as though they are your mother. Do you understand?" Liuliu's eyes glared menacingly, her aura overpowering.

"But, but my mother never pulled my ears." Frightened by Liuliu's outburst, Xiaoquan whimpered, but he still tried to explain himself.

"Well, she's your mother, and I'm not! I'll punish you if you don't listen. Now, follow me!" With that, Liuliu adopted a no-nonsense attitude. She began to walk back, occasionally glancing at the shops, thinking of buying some books to help ease Xiaoquan's defiance and also gain some knowledge about this era.

Liuliu led Xiaoquan into an alleyway and soon came upon a bookstore. Without another word, she walked in, still carrying the pork.

"I'm sorry, but you can't bring meat in here!" One of the bookstore attendants hurried to stop Liuliu. The books there were expensive, and if her pork were to stain them, she'd have to cover the damages. If the customer didn't pay, it would come out of the attendant's pockets instead.

Still slightly surprised, Liuliu handed the pork to Xiaoquan: "Hold this and wait for me outside." She then turned back to the bookstore attendant and asked, "May I come in now?"

"Thank you! Yes, of course! Please," replied the attendant, now more courteous.

Upon stepping inside, Liuliu realized books were definitely a luxury; they were too costly. She nevertheless bought the essential titles: "Historical Mirror", "Chronicle of the Heavenly Dynasty", "Book of Rites", and "Laws of the Heavenly Dynasty". These four books alone cost her eight taels of silver. As she flipped through them, she understood why they were so expensive. They were all handwritten copies. Blast it! Where's the printing technology? Now there's a business opportunity!

Wait a minute, how exactly does movable type printing work? She wasn't entirely sure, but she did know the process involved carving a template and laying it out before printing. Nevertheless, was she capable of carving it? After all, the carving needed to be done in reverse, so that the printout appeared right way up. She resigned herself to figure it out when she had more time.

Liuliu had intended to buy some school books for Xiaowen, but she didn't know what he was studying, and the books were incredibly expensive. If she bought the wrong ones, it would be a waste. Plus, Xiaowen could read the books she had just bought. She purchased additional writing paper, brushes, and ink, which cost her another four taels. She had spent twelve taels in total, enough for a common family to live off for half a year. Indeed, it appeared that only the wealthy could afford an education.

Seeing Liuliu buy in bulk, the attendant courteously packed it all into a rugged cloth bag for her. Looking at this bag, Liuliu realized that it was the equivalent of a modern plastic bag but more environmentally friendly and reusable. Despite their high prices, the bookstore's service was quite considerate.

Gripping the rugged cloth bag, Liuliu stepped outside, where an impatient Xiaoquan was waiting: "All set, let's head home."

"Let me see how many books you bought?" Xiaoquan handed the piece of pork back to Liuliu and took the bag from her.

"Wow, sis! Why did you buy all these books? How much did they cost? You can't even read, why did you buy them?" Xiaoquan exclaimed in shock. He was secretly regretting all the money spent on unnecessary books when they could have used it for gambling. However, he didn't dare to say that aloud.

"Who says I can't read? Even if I couldn't, who says I couldn't buy them for Xiaowen to read?" With a roll of her eyes, Liuliu begrudgingly recognized the fact that she didn't know how to read since the original owner of her body was illiterate. She would have to rely on others to teach her how to read these books. This was really frustrating. But if she didn't want to turn into a demon, she'd have to suck it up and learn.

"Xiaowen doesn't even read these books! Except for the 'Book of Rites', none of what you bought is required at the academy. Xiaowen is currently studying the 'Four Books and Five Classics'. If you bought these books, isn't that a waste of money? You might as well have given the rest of the money to me!" Xiaoquan shared his thoughts, revealing his underlying desire to use the extra cash for gambling.

"You can read?" Liuliu's face lit up. Regardless of his intentions to gamble, here was a ready-made teacher who could easily teach her what she needed to learn. Since she recognized traditional characters already, although she was not adept at writing them, how could she not learn? It was simply necessary for her to avoid becoming a demon.

"Of course, I can! Everyone in our family can read!" Xiaoquan responded with a proud face. This was indeed a matter of pride, as the Yang family were the only ones in the entire village who could read.