28: Social skills

Su Ming and Zhao Rui walked on the street paved with bluestone slabs.

The book stall behind them and the cold, aloof youth named Xu Qing faded away with the crowd.

Zhao Rui was still somewhat absent-minded, like a puppet whose soul had been extracted, mechanically following Su Ming's footsteps.

In his mind, two sentences echoed repeatedly.

One was what Xu Qing said: "Some were hand-copied by classmates at the County School; since there was nowhere to consign them, they were left here for my father to sell."

The other was what Su Ming said: "Studying is not just for examinations."

Did students at the County School actually need to rely on copying books to earn a few coins?

Studying, not just for examinations? Then what was it for? Zhao Rui's worldview was turned upside down by these two sentences, leaving him in a state of Chaos.

"Disciple, well done." Lin Yu's voice sounded lazily, breaking the tranquility in Su Ming's mind. "The preliminary anchor point for interpersonal relationships has been established. That kid named Xu Qing is a potential stock worth long-term investment."

Su Ming gave a mental "Hmm," without stopping his pace.

"However..." Lin Yu changed the subject, "Establishing external connections alone is not enough. Fortresses are most easily breached from within. Our 'base area' must also be well maintained."

"Base area?" Su Ming was puzzled.

"That is your home, and your Master Zhou." Lin Yu's voice was filled with craftiness. "Who was responsible for you being able to enroll in the County School today?"

"Master Zhou." Su Ming answered immediately.

"Exactly. You saved money on accommodation and food this time; how much travel money is left?" Lin Yu guided him.

Su Ming quietly touched the money pouch in his bosom and calculated: "I spent ninety wen on books, and there are eight hundred and fifty wen left."

"Over eight hundred wen! A huge sum!" Lin Yu exclaimed exaggeratedly, then became serious, "But, disciple, money is just a lump of copper when held in your hand. Spend it, spend it on the cutting edge, and by the time we come to Qingshi Town next time, we will probably have received the first proceeds from papermaking!"

Lin Yu's inner monologue, however, was a different story: "Oh my, my little ancestor, if you carry over eight hundred wen on you, I won't be able to sleep peacefully. What if you get robbed on the road, or you lose your head and fight someone to the death? Who would I go to for justice? Hurry up and convert it into 'fixed assets', specifically 'human relationship assets' that can generate long-term benefits. That is the safest investment!"

Su Ming stopped, looked back at Zhao Rui, who was still dazed, and pulled him under a slightly quieter roof eaves by the street.

"Master, what do you mean?"

"I mean, we need to do some shopping." Lin Yu's voice carried a tone of pointing out the country, "This is called 'human relationship investment', and it is an extremely important part of 'The Way of Cautious Survival'. Spend a little money to get big things done, maintain the most critical relationship network with the least cost, and let you live securely and comfortably in the village. This is more important than anything!"

"Then... what should we buy?" Su Ming was ignorant of these things.

"Listen to my instructions." Lin Yu cleared his throat and began to issue orders.

"First, Master Zhou. He is the guide who led you to the threshold of becoming a scholar, and he is also a major reliance for you in the village in the future. We cannot neglect him. Go to the dim sum shop and buy a decent box of pastries. Then go to the grocery store and weigh two taels of leaf tea. It doesn't have to be very expensive; the thought is what counts. This is called 'respecting the teacher and valuing the Dao'."

"Second, your father. He likes that dry tobacco. Go to the tobacco shop and buy him a pack of the best tobacco shreds. Let him show off in front of his old friends when he smokes it, saying, 'This was bought for me by my third son in town.' This is called 'filial piety', and it will also make him support you more firmly."

"Third, your mother and sister-in-law. Women are the most practical. Go to the fabric store and tear off two feet of wear-resistant blue cloth; the color should be dark to hide dirt. Let your mother make an apron, or sew sleeve covers for your sister-in-law; both are good. This is called 'consideration'."

"Fourth, your eldest brother. He is the head of the family and under a lot of pressure. Let's buy something substantial. Go to the butcher shop and cut two catties of pork belly so he can satisfy his cravings and add some oil to his diet."

"Finally, your second brother." Lin Yu's voice paused, carrying a touch of solemnity, "He dared to fight for you; this is a friendship forged in life and death. Ordinary gifts seem distant. You must put your heart into it. I observed that the blade of his firewood axe is rolled. Go to the blacksmith shop and buy him a high-quality whetstone. Tell him that good steel must be used on the cutting edge; once the blade is sharpened, chopping wood and hunting will be less strenuous and safer."

After Lin Yu finished speaking, Su Ming had already outlined scenes in his mind.

His father holding the new tobacco, revealing a rare smile in the sunset. His mother and sister-in-law holding the new fabric, complaining about wasting money, but their eyes full of joy. His eldest brother and second brother eating delicious pork belly, their mouths full of grease.

That weight was much heavier than the nine hundred wen itself.

"Okay, Master, I have noted it all down." Su Ming nodded heavily.

He turned around and saw Zhao Rui staring at him blankly.

"Zhao Rui, I'm going to bring some things for my family. What about you?" Su Ming took the initiative to speak.

"I..." Zhao Rui opened his mouth, a trace of confusion and embarrassment on his face, "I... my father doesn't lack anything..."

"Your father is the Village Head, so naturally he doesn't lack anything. But is what you bring back the same as what your father buys himself?" Su Ming learned Lin Yu's tone and said a philosophical sentence.

Zhao Rui was choked by these words, his face flushed red, and he lowered his head.

"Let's go, let's go see together." Su Ming didn't say any more and pulled him towards the busiest East Market in town.

The East Market was bustling with noise, the sounds of hawking, bargaining, and children's laughter mixed together, full of the lively atmosphere of the world.

This atmosphere made Zhao Rui come back to his senses a little.

Su Ming followed Lin Yu's instructions and first found the dim sum shop.

The Waiter in the shop saw two half-grown children wearing coarse cloth clothes and didn't even bother to lift his eyelids.

"What are you buying?"

"Excuse me, I would like to see the hibiscus cakes over there." Su Ming pointed to a box of exquisitely packaged pastries on the counter.

The Waiter glanced at him sideways: "Thirty wen a box, no bargaining."

"Disciple, don't buy this." Lin Yu's voice sounded, "All show and no substance, pleasing to the eye but not to the taste. Ask him if there are any freshly baked jujube cakes; just wrapping them in oil paper is fine. It's affordable, the portion is sufficient, and the taste is good. We are giving gifts, not packaging."

Su Ming followed the advice: "Shopkeeper, do you have loose jujube cakes? I want freshly baked ones."

The Waiter then looked at Su Ming properly. Seeing that he spoke clearly and didn't look like an ordinary village child, his attitude improved slightly: "Yes, ten wen a catty. How much do you want?"

"Two catties."

The Waiter deftly wrapped two large packages with oil paper and handed them over. Su Ming paid twenty wen and carefully put the pastries into his cloth bag.

Zhao Rui, who was on the side, watched with complex eyes. Whenever he came to town before, his mother would always buy him the most expensive hibiscus cakes, and he would reluctantly eat a bite or two.

Next were the tea shop, tobacco shop, and butcher shop.

Everywhere Su Ming went, he listened to Lin Yu's analysis in his mind before speaking calmly. He didn't say much, but he could always ask the right questions, neither appearing timid nor like a sucker.

When cutting the meat, he specifically asked the butcher to pick good pork belly with a mix of fat and lean, and he sweet-talked, praising, "Master, your knife skills are really deft." The butcher was happy and even gave him a small piece of large bone.

Zhao Rui followed behind like a shadow. He watched Su Ming skillfully dealing with the owners of various shops, and his heart felt like a five-flavor bottle had been knocked over.

He discovered that he had never really known this boy from the same village.

In the past, the Su Ming in his eyes was just a silent, somewhat stubborn bookworm.

But today, he saw Su Ming arguing reasonably at the entrance of the Literary Treasure Studio, saw his respect for a poor scholar like Xu Qing, and now he saw his shrewdness and meticulousness when shopping for his family.

There was something in him that Zhao Rui couldn't name—a kind of seriousness and dedication to life.

Finally, they arrived at the fabric store.

The proprietress of the fabric store was a shrewd woman, her eyes rolling around. Seeing Su Ming and Zhao Rui, she greeted them enthusiastically.

"Two young gentlemen, what kind of fabric do you want to tear off? Is it for your mother or sisters at home?"

"Shopkeeper, I want to see that kind of green homespun cloth, something sturdy and wear-resistant." Su Ming said.

The proprietress immediately led them to a row of fabrics: "Young gentleman has a good eye. This blue cloth is the most durable, and it won't be worn out even when working in the fields. Fifteen wen per foot."

"Fifteen wen?" Su Ming frowned; this price was higher than he expected.

"Disciple, look at her eyes." Lin Yu reminded, "Her eyeballs are rolling around, the quoted price is inflated. This cloth is worth twelve wen at most. Bargain with her!"

Su Ming took a deep breath, mimicking the way his father usually bought things, reached out to touch the fabric, and looked at it against the light.

"Shopkeeper, your fabric is good, but this color... it's a bit too dark. We farmers don't really pay much attention to it. If it's ten wen per foot, I'll take three feet."

"Oh my, young gentleman, you are bargaining too hard!" The proprietress cried out, "Ten wen and I will lose money! Fourteen wen at most!"

"I just came from the butcher shop, and the best pork belly is only fifteen wen a catty." Su Ming said unhurriedly, "Your fabric can't be more expensive than meat, right? Eleven wen, no more, and I'll buy it from you."

Zhao Rui was stunned.

He never thought that buying things could be like this, back and forth.

The proprietress saw that Su Ming had the posture of "if you don't sell, I'll leave," and looked at Zhao Rui, who looked like he was from a wealthy family, next to him, and gritted her teeth: "Fine, fine, I'm afraid of you! Twelve wen, the lowest! Consider it making a friend with you, young gentleman!"

"Deal." Su Ming readily took out the copper coins.

He tore off three feet of cloth, costing thirty-six wen.

Walking out of the fabric store, Su Ming felt his back sweating.

"Master, I..."

"Well done!" Lin Yu praised unreservedly, "You have my style back in the day! Remember, walking in Jianghu, in the 'Way of Hiding', you shouldn't spend an extra copper coin where you should save, and you shouldn't blink when spending a hundred taels of silver where you should spend. This is called using good steel on the cutting edge!"

Su Ming let out a long breath, feeling that he had learned another trick.

They finally found a blacksmith shop at the corner of the street.

The sound of "ding-ding-dang-dang" from the blacksmithing and the rushing heat wave made Zhao Rui subconsciously step back.

But Su Ming walked in.

A bare-chested brawny man was hammering a piece of red-hot iron billet, sparks splashing.

"Master, excuse me." Su Ming waited for his hammer to fall before speaking, "I want to buy a whetstone."

The brawny man put down the hammer, wiped his sweat with a cloth hanging around his neck, and asked in a muffled voice: "What kind of knife are you sharpening?"

"A firewood axe, and a small skinning knife used by hunters."

The brawny man looked at Su Ming and picked out a gray-green long stone from a pile of stones in the corner: "This one, Qinggang stone, fine texture, quick to produce slurry, the blade sharpened is sharp and durable. Fifty wen, no second price."

Su Ming picked up the whetstone. It felt heavy in his hand, the stone surface was smooth, and he could feel the fine granular texture.

"Disciple, this is the one." Lin Yu said, "This blacksmith is an honest man, no exaggeration. This stone is enough for your second brother to use for ten years."

"Okay, I want this one." Su Ming paid the money and solemnly wrapped the whetstone up.

Thus, the shopping was completed.

Su Ming calculated: twenty wen for pastries, fifteen wen for tea, twenty wen for tobacco, thirty wen for pork, thirty-six wen for cloth, fifty wen for the whetstone, totaling one hundred and seventy-one wen.

The money pouch was a little lighter, but the cloth bag was stuffed full.

When walking out of the blacksmith shop, Zhao Rui suddenly stopped and said in a low voice: "Su Ming, you... wait for me."

After speaking, he blushed and turned to run into the dim sum shop just now.

A moment later, he ran out carrying a box of hibiscus cakes wrapped in an exquisite paper box, with a trace of unnatural embarrassment on his face.

Su Ming looked at him and smiled.

The two didn't say anything more and walked side by side towards the city gate.

The sunset was setting, pulling their shadows very long.

"Disciple, how was the harvest today?" On the way back, Lin Yu's voice carried a hint of a smile.

"I learned a lot." Su Ming said sincerely.

"Remember, what we spent is not money, but human relations, it is bonds." Lin Yu concluded, "Every gift you send out will weave a safety net for you in places you can't see. It can let you study with peace of mind in the village, let your parents worry a little less, and let your brothers have a little more affection. This net is stronger than any armor. This is the essence of 'The Way of Cautious Survival'—unobtrusive, moisturizing things silently."

Su Ming gripped the cloth bag containing the gifts tightly, and that weight became incredibly solid at this moment.