During the Grain Rain season, the sky was slightly overcast. Jiangling experienced a light rain, turning the tile walls a deep gray as the water slowly dripped from the crevices, pooling into streams on the ground. Black clouds gathered overhead, and the cold wind blew, causing people's straw hats to flutter.
Xu Zhen leaned on a low wall for a while, noticing that there weren't many people outside. She took a stack of Xuan paper from home, rolled it up, and tucked it into her bosom before leisurely heading to Yunmo Fang.
Yunmo Fang was a bustling bookshop known for its quick turnover; it was said that as long as you paid, they could sell any book for you. A few days ago, Xu Zhen had written a popular science book about flowers, birds, and fish, introducing common plants and animals in Jiangling, detailing which were poisonous and which were edible. In an era without the "Compendium of Materia Medica," this was a rare and valuable book.
Unfortunately, sales were not great. Out of twenty copies, only five were sold, and the remainder were returned once the term expired. Today, she brought ten copies of "Guidelines for Success in Imperial Examinations," hoping that this book, similar to modern exam preparation guides, could bring her some wealth.
Unexpectedly, as soon as she entered Yunmo Fang, she heard a noisy commotion. After consigning her books to the shopkeeper, she followed the sound of the disturbance.
At the alley by the back door of Yunmo Fang, a servant in dark blue clothes stood with arms akimbo, shouting, "Beat! Beat them for me!"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The sound of a rattan whip echoed, and a pool of dark red blood spread on the ground.
At first, Xu Zhen thought they were beating a stray dog, perhaps because it had bitten someone, so she hesitated to intervene. However, after watching for a while, she suddenly realized that the gray mass wasn't dog fur but tattered clothing. Inside the clothes was a frail person, lying face down, with hair as dry as straw, messy and covering their back, stained with blood.
The one being beaten was a child, seemingly seven or eight years old. This was unacceptable!
Xu Zhen was startled and approached to ask, "What's going on here?"
The group paused to look at her, and the leading servant, recognizing Xu Zhen, stopped directing the beating and glanced at her.
Upon recognizing Xu Zhen, he explained, "This child stole books."
Xu Zhen replied, "Just for stealing books, why are you acting as if you want to take her life?"
The servant righteously responded, "This child stole several books, has no money to repay, and no family. Isn't it fair to take her life as payment?"
Xu Zhen couldn't bear it and quickly said, "Stop, I'll pay for her."
The group stared at her in disbelief, seemingly surprised that someone could be so foolish.
Xu Zhen asked, "How much?"
The leading man, after sizing her up and doubting she had much money, casually replied, "Ten taels!"
Xu Zhen nearly fainted. Ten taels?! After nearly three years since she had arrived in this time, she had painstakingly saved ten taels through odd jobs and writing. Now she was expected to hand it all over?
