Chapter 24

Wooden furnishings shop.
After leaving the magic pill shop, You XiaoMo brings his four hundred and forty gold pieces to a shop selling wooden furnishings on a different street. When he first heard the price the manager quoted, he was very excited. He considered selling the remaining magic pills in his magic bag to him but was a little apprehensive about selling too many at one time. So after some consideration, he decided to save them for his next trip down the mountain. But this will also depend on how much the magic herb seeds costs. If four hundred and forty gold pieces is not sufficient, he will go back and sell them all.
The wooden furnishings shop, like its name suggests, sells articles made from poplar, mahogany, birch and other types of wood. There is only one wooden furnishings shop in the whole of He Ping town. The shop is very big, taking up three shopfronts. Above hangs a very big sign. Very conspicuous. You XiaoMo notices it immediately when he gets there.
Numerous brand new cupboards are displayed, in all sizes. There are also many dividers inside the cupboards. They are made from poplar-like wood, appearing to have a shiny finish. There are a few attendants in the store but they are all serving customers. But with his sharp eyes, You XiaoMo sees a rather lonely figure standing in a corner.
“Dong Jiu, a customer is here. Why are you not quickly attending to him?”
Before he could open his mouth, the attendant nearest to him calls out to that person with a disparaging tone. One can faintly detect some disdain and contempt. The person in the corner jumps in shock as if he didn’t expect that he would be called. When he looks up, You XiaoMo sees a very young face. At first glance he looks to be not older than fifteen years old. More like a twelve or thirteen year old boy. Very thin as if suffering from malnutrition. When he smiles shyly, two small dimples are faintly discernible. Dong Jiu walks up to You XiaoMo.
Rubbing his hands, he asks You XiaoMo hesitantly, “Dis… distinguished guest. Good morning. Are you here to buy wooden furnishings?”
Unexpectedly, the attendant other snorts *chi*, mocking him softly, “Visiting a wooden furnishing shop, of course it is to buy wooden furnishings. Are you telling me he’s here to buy magic pills?”
Dong Jiu flushes in embarrassment. You XiaoMo figures it’s better to let it be and points at the cupboards by the wall on the right.
“How much are those?”
Dong Jiu freezes for a moment. This is probably the first time someone goes straight for the price without first asking about the quality.
He stammers, ” Tho… those are made from top grade wood with exquisite workmanship. So they are a little more expensive than the ones outside. The small one is one gold and fifty silver pieces. The big one is three gold pieces. They can also be custom made.”
“Then, I would like the big one. Oh, how many ready-made pieces do you have?”
You XiaoMo calculates the costs, one for three gold pieces is not costly. He can afford to buy a few to store magic herbs and magic pills. This trip down the mountain, he also plans to buy various necessities. He does not plan to put them in his room, but in his dimension. He had already decided that when the magic herbs he plants are matured, he won’t store them in the magic bag. Although magic bags are convenient, they are not secure. If he were to lose them or if someone discovers them, he can’t bear to imagine the consequences.
“Oh right, do you have complete sets or wooden furnishings?” You XiaoMo turns around to ask as the thought crosses his mind.
Dong Jiu has never met someone so straightforward in his life. Even is there was, they would have been snatched away by other attendants. Furthermore his reaction and eloquence is not as good as others so he has always been at the bottom in terms of monthly sales. This encounter makes him feel as he is dreaming.
“Distinguished guest, would it better if you list out the things you want to buy? Then I can check for you and tell you which ones we don’t have. How about it?” Dong Jiu asks cautiously.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.” You XiaoMo smiles while nodding.
He then lists out all the wooden furnishings he wants to add. He discovers that this fellow called Dong Jiu actually has a pretty good memory. After only hearing it once, he could repeat everything back to him without a single mistake. Luckily everything he wants to buy is in stock. You XiaoMo buys so many things, totaling above twenty gold pieces.
Since it is a considerable sum for the wooden furnishings shop, it attracts the attention of the shop manager. Seeing that Dong Jiu had hooked such a big customer, he smiles from ear to ear. He then joins forces with Dong Jiu to bring out all the things You XiaoMo wanted. Because You XiaoMo has a magic bag, once the things were sorted out, they just put them directly into the bag. Much less trouble than moving them out. Then the manager adds up the prices, a total of twenty six gold pieces. You XiaoMo has the funds, and the things he is buying are all necessary items, so he doesn’t feel pain spending the money. After all, he now has a source of income.
Leaving the wooden furnishings shop, You XiaoMo doesn’t know the kind of fortune his appearance had brought to Dong Jiu. The attendant that happily gave up this money making opportunity to Dong Jiu is so vexed that he almost chews his teeth to bits. He had seen that You XiaoMo was dressed plainly so he had assumed that he wouldn’t bring much business. It just so happened that Dong Jiu was unoccupied, so he let him have the customer just to watch him make a fool of himself. He never expected that it would turn out to be a big fish. Unfortunately he also no chance of getting back at Dong Jiu since the manager now regards Dong Jiu in a new light.
At the same time, Lin Xiao is going through a crisis of life and death.