The liveliest parts of Luzhen were far inferior to Luo City, but there were still a few prosperous streets.

“Did you see how envious those other maids looked when we came out?” At the entrance of a rouge shop, Lu Ju peered inside while turning back to speak to Mo Zi, Bai He, and Xiao Yi.

“What’s there to be envious of? We came out to buy things for Miss. Oh right, we shouldn’t just think about our miss—there are also the two madams. As for Miss Wei Six—” Bai He had previously sent fragrance pills to Miss Wei Six and been proudly and coldly rejected, so now she hesitated.

“The two madams are one thing, but let’s forget about that Miss Wei Six from the Wei family. Only when facing her own aunt does her face show any trace of humanity. Usually she looks at everyone coldly—a complete ice beauty.” Away from home, Lu Ju’s mouth had free rein to say whatever she wanted.

“Miss Wei Six just doesn’t like getting close to people she’s not familiar with.” Bai He always looked at the good side of everything and everyone.

“Bai He, what do you want to buy?” Mo Zi had no comments about Miss Wei Six, only knowing that when she stared at Second Master Xiao, she didn’t match the description “ice beauty” at all.

“I want to buy some seasonings, flour, and ingredients, in case Miss can’t get used to the food on the boat.” Bai He was responsible for Qiu Sanniang’s stomach.

“Lu Ju, are you looking at rouge for yourself or for Miss?” Mo Zi asked Lu Ju.

“I know there are places selling deerskin. I want to look around and see if there’s really good quality to sew Miss a coat. The capital is in the north—I’ve heard people say the winter snow there can be taller than a person.” Though Lu Ju seemed mischievous, she also had a sense of propriety in doing things.

“Then why are you looking at a rouge shop?” Xiao Yi, who had been glancing left and right, suddenly spoke.

“I’m looking at the deer-patterned headbands—the style seems quite fresh. Where am I looking at rouge?” Lu Ju pulled Bai He inside. “Bai He, help me see if it’s good or not?”

“We only have two hours. How about this—we split up?” To be honest, with Bai He and Lu Ju covering food, clothing, housing, and transportation, Mo Zi couldn’t think of anything she needed to buy.

“Mm—that works well. Lu Ju and I will go together, and you and Xiao Yi go together. But we should also leave some time to eat a meal. Let’s just meet at that restaurant in one hour.” Bai He truly was the most considerate one.

“Miss punished me with no meals for three days.” Mo Zi remembered her “criminal status.”

“Miss punished you saying you can’t eat meals, not that you can’t eat dishes.” Xiao Yi relayed Qiu Sanniang’s words, then added her own understanding. “Eating buns is also fine.”

Pfft—Mo Zi laughed out loud. Wasn’t this splitting hairs and exploiting loopholes?

“Xiao Yi, you’re really clever.” Lu Ju’s eyes brightened. “That’s right. Miss said you can’t eat—meals. Just eat noodles instead.”

“You’re all very clever, but when Miss said can’t eat meals, she actually meant can’t eat anything.” Mo Zi had enough backbone not to want to exploit this loophole.

“I didn’t say it, Miss said it.” Xiao Yi earnestly “betrayed” Qiu Sanniang. “She also said that even if she doesn’t let you eat, Bai He and Lu Ju will secretly save food for you.”

“I knew our miss isn’t that kind of master. If she really wanted to punish you, why would she let you come out shopping with us? Now that Xiao Yi’s said this, it’s even clearer—basically just don’t eat in front of Miss.” Bai He was truly happy that Qiu Sanniang wasn’t angry with Mo Zi. “Miss has always been hard-mouthed but soft-hearted. Mo Zi, you also need to restrain yourself in speaking from now on. We’re maids—we can’t talk back to our master like that.”

Mo Zi smiled and just nodded without speaking.

So, after confirming the time and place to meet, the four split up and went their separate ways.

But very quickly, Mo Zi discovered she had chosen the wrong teammate. She had originally thought that being in a group with Xiao Yi meant she wouldn’t have to follow Bai He or Lu Ju, those two women who loved shopping, and run her legs off. But she forgot that although Xiao Yi didn’t love shopping, she loved wandering to places where people couldn’t see her. Having walked for less than half an hour, Mo Zi’s attention was caught for a moment by the exquisitely crafted wooden water bucket in front of a tea pavilion. When she turned her head, she discovered Xiao Yi had disappeared. Just as she was about to look for her, the overcast gray sky suddenly began raining quite heavily again.

“Miss, this rain will continue for a while. Why not come in and have a cup of spring tea? Two copper coins per pot.” A kindly old man with a graying beard smiled and called out to Mo Zi.

The tea pavilion had a table at each of its four corners. In the middle was a simple open-fire stove with one person brewing tea and another steaming cakes. A person-height green gauze cabinet had shelves holding teapots, teacups, and saucers, along with clean white porcelain urns labeled with red paper and black characters for peanuts, melon seeds, sesame cakes, and other small snacks to accompany tea. Right outside the tea pavilion was a well, beside which sat a large wooden basin filled with clear water.

Not having looked carefully before, she now saw this tea pavilion was very clean and bright, and the tea-selling old man was sincere. Moreover, it wouldn’t be right to just shelter from the rain without doing any business. Mo Zi patted the raindrops from her shoulders and walked inside.

“Old sir, then please give me a pot of spring tea and a bowl of steamed cake.” Since Qiu Sanniang allowed her to cheat, there was no need to be falsely proud. Miss Wei Six constantly put on proud airs whether necessary or not—she didn’t think there was any benefit to doing so.

“Coming right up! Miss, please sit anywhere. It’ll be ready shortly.” Expecting two copper coins worth of business but getting six copper coins instead, the thin old man was quite cheerful.

Considering her female status made it inappropriate to sit by the roadside, Mo Zi walked to the other side. The east corner table was already occupied by two people, so she sat at the west corner table.

Before long, the old man brought the teapot and teacup to her table, then brought over the steaming hot cake.

“Miss, are you out alone?” The old man was the type of shopkeeper who loved chatting with customers.

“No, I came with three sisters, but they’re buying things in shops up ahead.” Mo Zi used her chopsticks to split open the rice cake. Crystal-clear red bean filling flowed out, releasing a sweet fragrance. Following the principle that people who could make delicious food couldn’t be too bad-hearted, she didn’t mind chatting with the old man for a bit.

“That’s good then.” The old man returned to the stove, placed a small cup of tea leaves in a strainer, and slowly picked out the scorched leaves. “Our town hasn’t been very peaceful lately. Miss, it’s best not to go out alone.” Truly kind-hearted indeed.

“Old sir, what do you mean by that?” Mo Zi thought of the refugees outside the town. “Are you referring to the people who escaped from Yuling?”

“Exactly. When people need to survive and are pushed to desperation, they’ll do anything.” The old man shook his head. “Though they’re also quite pitiable.”

“You needn’t worry. I saw checkpoints set up outside the town with many soldiers standing guard, blocking people outside. It shouldn’t affect the townspeople.” Mo Zi spoke of what she had witnessed with her own eyes.

“Miss doesn’t know—there are now over ten thousand refugees outside the town. How can a thousand soldiers block them? Quite a few who arrived early have already started begging in the west town, annoying the residents there terribly. Two days ago, someone was even robbed. I think it’s only a matter of time before those outside force their way in.” The old man’s finger trembled as he picked scorched leaves. “By then, I don’t know if this pavilion of mine will be smashed. This is my entire livelihood.”

“Old sir, you’re not describing refugees but rioters.” Mo Zi’s identity as a Yuling person was now very strong, so naturally she wanted to defend her countrymen. “If not for the war between the two nations, they would also be law-abiding common people of Yuling. Escaping here, they only seek a place to shelter and food to fill their bellies—they won’t harm the innocent.”

“I can see Miss is kind-hearted. But even a cornered dog will jump over a wall—what can people do when driven mad by hunger? I imagined myself as one of those people outside the town and felt that to survive, I’d be willing to do anything.” The old man had operated his tea pavilion for a lifetime and had seen much of human nature.

“Shouldn’t the local authorities find a solution?” Mo Zi knew Luzhen wasn’t a fortified defense city. “The naval forces let them in, so they must have plans to settle them.”

“The authorities?” The old man chuckled, revealing teeth yellowed like scorched tea leaves. “Little miss is naive. One or two hundred people would be fine. But over ten thousand people needing to eat—the authorities have no solution either.”

“But when disasters strike various places in the Great Zhou, aren’t there over ten thousand people affected? The authorities open granaries to distribute grain, and the court also provides relief silver—they all get through the difficulties well. Hua Zhou has many fish and rice regions. As long as the various prefectural offices work together with one heart, solving the refugees’ food and clothing isn’t impossible.” One person’s strength is minuscule, but a nation’s strength can overturn the heavens.

“Miss, let me ask you one question.” The old man was getting more spirited talking with Mo Zi.

“Old sir, please ask.” Mo Zi set down her chopsticks, having eaten half the rice cake.

Neither of the two speakers noticed that the people at the east corner table who had been drinking tea and talking had stopped their movements, and one man who had been sitting with his side to Mo Zi had even looked over.

“Two poor villages. One suffers a fire that burns all their winter grain. The other village, though unaffected by disaster, only has enough winter grain for their own villagers. The entire disaster-stricken village runs to the other village demanding grain. If they give it, the other village’s people will have a hard winter—some of their own village’s elderly and children might not be properly cared for. So tell me, should this grain be given or not? The two villages normally each take care of themselves—no one helps anyone.” Of course the old man was posing a hypothetical, meaning to explain that Yuling and the Great Zhou were two nations, with no obligation for the Great Zhou to provide relief to Yuling. “I said before that those refugees are pitiable. But they’re Yuling people. If our Hua Zhou authorities open granaries to distribute grain to them, what if later Hua Zhou’s common people suffer disaster and there’s no official grain for relief—what then?”

“Old sir, I also understand what you’re saying. How about this—I won’t directly answer your question. Let me just tell you a story instead.” Mo Zi had a bellyful of stories that spontaneously emerged from her mouth at appropriate times, which her brain couldn’t stop even if it wanted to. “A long, long time ago, in a small village there was a household that raised two chickens, one pig, and there was also a mouse. Of course, the mouse wasn’t raised by the farmer. One day a guest came to the farmer’s home, so the farmer slaughtered the two chickens. The mouse saw this and was very frightened, so it ran to tell the pig that the chickens had been killed by the master. But after hearing this, the pig felt it didn’t matter—the ones who died were chickens, not it. When it was almost New Year, the farmer started feeding the pig lots of delicious food every day. The pig ate happily, eating until it was too stuffed to move every meal. The mouse advised it to eat less and told the pig to leave the farmer’s home together, but the pig simply wouldn’t listen. Very quickly, the pig grew fat and large. As a result, on New Year’s Eve, many guests came to the farmer’s home, and the farmer slaughtered the pig.”

The tea-selling old man’s mouth fell open with a cry of surprise.

The person at the east corner table who had originally been facing away from Mo Zi turned around.