Chapter 23: Wind and Rain

Chapter 23: Wind and Rain

"Brother Zhang" was a man of pride, never conceding in spending money!

Not buying is not human!

Not buying is being a jerk!

If I don't buy now, I won't sleep well at home!

Early purchase, early enjoyment; no purchase, no enjoyment!

"Smack—" "Brother Zhang" slapped down half a string of coins. "Give me four bags!"

And added with an air of extravagance, "The remaining thirty coins, keep them. Buy yourself some pastries!"

Change, twenty coins!

It's twenty coins in change!

Xianjin screamed inwardly!

Half a string of coins, five hundred coins; four bags, four hundred and eighty coins; should give back twenty coins...

Xianjin pursed her lips, speechless, glancing at Qingcheng Mountain Courtyard not far away.

The educational level of this mountain courtyard isn't up to par!

"Brother Zhang" paid and drew a number. Zhou Ergou matched it and took out four kraft paper bags. Xianjin respectfully handed them to "Brother Zhang." "Would you like to open them now? Or when you get home?"

"Open them now!" The crowd watching the spectacle cheered.

"Brother Zhang" rubbed his hands, took the paper cutter from Xianjin, and opened the first bag, pulling out sheet by sheet!

Bamboo paper... Bamboo paper... Bamboo paper... Bamboo paper... Bamboo paper... Bamboo paper...

The first six sheets were all bamboo paper.

Layers upon layers of people gathered around, dozens of eyes staring at "Brother Zhang" as he pulled out the paper. Some troublemakers laughed, "What a loss! A sheet of rough-cut paper only costs two or three coins! Zhang Wenbo, the great young master spent one hundred and twenty coins on rough-cut paper! Hahahaha! If your father knew, he'd surely beat you to death when you get home!"

Zhang Wenbo's face turned red, his neck stiffening. "What nonsense! My father would only hit me two or three times at most! He wouldn't dare beat me to death!"

Xianjin: ...

Such a weak retort.

Zhang Wenbo didn't stop pulling out the paper, nine sheets, all bamboo paper.

Manager Dong couldn't help but grip the corner of Zhou Ergou's clothes tightly.

Zhou Ergou was puzzled. "...Isn't it all good that they're rough-cut paper? Aren't we making a pure profit?"

Manager Dong exclaimed, "Profit my foot! The first one opened was full of losing goods! With our five hundred bags, who else will buy them?! We're stuck with them!"

Manager Dong's face paled with worry. Looking at Xianjin again, the girl's expression was calm, her smiling eyes and lips looking warm and harmless.

She's really holding it together!

Manager Dong sighed in admiration.

Zhang Wenbo's face flushed red as he pulled out the last sheet of paper.

The last sheet was a narrow, light purple paper slip.

Xianjin let out a long breath in her heart, exaggerating her tone. "See what it says!"

Zhang Wenbo read aloud, "One six-foot sheet of gold-sprinkled xuan paper!"

Xianjin smiled. "Congratulations, congratulations! It's a very fine piece of paper! Your family's New Year greetings and poems are sorted for this year!"

Raising her voice, addressing the crowd, "Due to the limited size of the kraft paper bags, larger sheets of good paper are placed inside in the form of various paper slips. Gentlemen, if you draw a color card, please bring the numbered kraft paper bag and the color card to the Chen Ji Paper Shop on Shuixi Street for redemption!"

"If you're busy, our Chen Ji also offers door-to-door delivery service. Send someone to inform us, and we'll deliver the paper to your residence anytime—If there's anything else you want to buy together, do let us know in advance, and we'll prepare everything properly."

Taking advantage of his good luck, Zhang Wenbo opened the remaining three bags.

Four bags in total, thirty-one sheets of rough-cut paper, three sheets of jade edition, three sheets of double tribute, two sheets of Orchid Pavilion silkworm paper, and one most valuable gold-sprinkled six-foot xuan paper.

There were scholars among the crowd who had come from humble beginnings in the countryside and had never seen so much good paper before.

Every time Zhang Wenbo opened a bag, it elicited a chorus of "Wow"s.

It felt very much like the scent of rice.

Having basked in enough attention, Zhang Wenbo shared the rough-cut paper and one sheet of Orchid Pavilion silkworm paper with "Heart Much Relieved," gave the jade edition and double tribute to "Old Man" Brother, then took out another half-string of coins to buy four more bags, confirming with Xianjin repeatedly, "...Will you still be here at noon?"

Xianjin smiled warmly. "Yes, yes, yes! Whenever you want us to be here, we'll be here. The Qingcheng Mountain Courtyard has a holiday on the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth month, so we'll be here until then, but we only have five hundred bags each day, as you know. This paper business is different from others. Other things, once bought, are consumed; but our paper, once bought and used well, can be seen for generations to come!"

Xuan paper has the reputation of lasting a thousand years.

Zhang Wenbo nodded vigorously, delighted. "...I'll send a servant home to fetch more money—My father might even reward me with a few more strings of coins when he finds out I'm spending money on paper!"

Xianjin's smile became even more sincere, praising him genuinely. "Wind and rain, Chen Ji awaits you!"

At the outermost edge of the crowd, a low, muffled laugh sounded.

"Baoyuan, what are you laughing at?" asked the man next to the deep laughter.

The man called "Baoyuan" had a broad forehead, flat top, eyes like lacquered dots, extremely thick eyebrows, a straight nose, fair skin, a tall and slender figure, and a moderate amount of bone mass and frame, making him pleasing to the eye and extremely likable.

Appearing amiable, his words carried a subtle edge.

"I laugh first at the cunning of a child, second at the student's naivety, and third at the petty skills that bring joy."

Qiao Bao-yuan, whose real name was Qiao Hui, lifted a mountain academy cloth bag identical to Zhang Wenbo's, with thick brows and eyes, yet an expression as light as a feather. "Look, how happy our Bo'er is."

The scholar beside him chuckled in agreement. "With six feet of Xuan paper and several other fine sheets, he has every reason to be delighted. Regardless of anything else, Chen Ji Paper Shop's paper is top-notch, albeit expensive. He hasn't even passed the provincial examination, and he rarely gets to use such quality paper."

Qiao Hui shook his head. "This account can't be settled in detail."

Four bags, 480 cash coins, five cash for each piece of paper, thirty-one pieces totaling 155 cash, Jia Gong and Yuban papers of the same grade at ten cash each, totaling sixty cash, two Lan Ting silkworm paper sheets at forty cash, and the most valuable six-foot speckled gold Xuan paper at thirty cash. In total, it amounted to no more than 280 cash.

Zhang Wenbo had paid an extra 200 cash, buying himself a moment of joy.

Chen Ji's "blind bags" didn't sell paper; they sold the thrill of impulse buying, the suspense of opening them, and the regret or ecstasy following the reveal.

In short, "blind bags" sold sensations and addiction.

The more you bought, the more you wanted to buy; the more you opened, the more you wanted to open.

Always believing that the next bag would contain something better.

By the end, purchasing "blind bags" wasn't about the quality of the paper but the pursuit of uncertainty.

It was akin to gambling.

The only difference was that it offered the possibility of recouping your losses.

Even making you feel like you hit the jackpot.

Qiao Hui crossed his arms, observing from a distance through the crowd the person in charge inside the tent—a young girl unfamiliar to him.

Almond-shaped jaw, long, upward-slanting eyes, small pale lips—a distinctly cool appearance, yet exuding a vibrant, upward-striving vitality.

A strange conflict and beauty.

"Weren't the Chens supposed to send their third master back to Jing County?" the scholar whispered. "Why does this girl seem to be in charge?"

Qiao Hui retracted his gaze, picked up his book bag, and yanked the scholar's headband back into place. "Why can't a girl be in charge? You're truly old-fashioned! Let's go! The teacher is fierce; if you're punished, you'll have to write three hundred passages on rough paper!"