Since yesterday, she had maintained the same expressionless demeanor, as if keeping everyone a thousand miles away. Other than brief glances during interactions, Qin Ke hadn't had the chance to properly look at her. Perhaps to hide her scar, she let a lock of hair fall deliberately across her temple to cover that part of her face.
But in Qin Ke's opinion, even disfigured, she was far more pleasing to the eye than most people.
"What are you staring at?"
Anyone being watched so intently would notice.
"I'm just gaining a deeper appreciation for the phrase 'beauty that can feed the soul.'"
Propping his chin on his hand, Qin Ke looked at her lazily and couldn't resist teasing.
Who would have thought that Lu Youqing's expression would darken instantly? She glared at him.
"Are you mocking me?"
"Ah!?"
Qin Ke was completely caught off guard. But seeing her turn her head away, as if trying to hide from his gaze, he finally realized the misunderstanding. Embarrassed, he coughed lightly and hurried to explain:
"I really didn't mean it like that. What I meant was—beneath the flesh, everyone is just bones. After a hundred years, we're all nothing but dust. A person's beauty lies in their heart, not in something as shallow as appearance. And… how do you know you won't recover someday?"
He blinked, waiting for a reply, unsure if she was still angry.
Her head, which had been turned away, slowly rotated back. Without lifting her gaze, her slender fingers stirred the wontons in her bowl as she resumed eating. She didn't even look at him.
Somehow, despite her silence, Qin Ke sensed something unexpectedly adorable—aloof, awkward, even a little tsundere.
After that, he didn't dare speak nonsense again, afraid another stray remark would offend her. So he turned back toward the bustling street, watching the hurried passersby.
"Um… we only have a few hundred coins left. My thought is to buy some rice, flour, oil… the essentials. Everything else can wait until we have more money. Do you have any objections?"
"I'm someone you bought. What to do, what to buy—it's your decision. Don't ask for my opinion."
After eating, Lu Youqing covered her face again. Her voice was calm and flat.
Raised in a society built on freedom and equality, Qin Ke still hadn't adapted to the concept of buying and selling people. In his mind, he and Lu Youqing were equals. They were living together now; naturally, decisions should be made together.
He explained this to her honestly, exactly as he believed it.
Looking up at Qin Ke's earnest expression—those clear, sincere eyes—Lu Youqing could tell he truly meant what he said. She bit her lip and asked cautiously:
"You… really mean that?"
"Of course."
What was completely natural to Qin Ke was rare in this era. Even though the Great Yan dynasty had once had a reigning empress—who improved gender equality and allowed women to take imperial exams—the court was still overwhelmingly dominated by men.
Few women received education. Even in noble families, girls were taught how to run a household, not to study the classics like their brothers.
If noble girls had it that bad, how much worse must it be for rural girls?
Lu Youqing half believed him, half doubted him. She no longer trusted anyone easily—but that didn't stop her from testing his limits.
"Then how do you plan to earn money? You said you want to farm, but this amount of money isn't enough to buy seeds."
"Uh…"
Qin Ke awkwardly rubbed the hem of his sleeve and answered the part he could answer:
"I already have seeds. I don't need to buy any. As for earning money… I haven't figured that out yet."
None of his modern skills were useful here.
Suddenly, Lu Youqing—who had been walking beside him—stopped.
Noticing she was no longer at his side, Qin Ke turned back and found her standing before a bookstore. He quickly walked two steps backward.
"What's wrong? Do you want to go inside?"
"No." She shook her head. "I wanted to see if I could take on some copying work. That way I could earn a little money."
"Then let's go ask."
Seeing her nervousness, Qin Ke simply took her hand by the wrist and led her inside.
The bookstore was quiet at this hour, almost empty. Rows of books lined the shelves, and the shopkeeper looked listless behind the counter.
"Boss, do you accept book copying work here?"
The shopkeeper gave Qin Ke a once-over. His coarse farmer clothing clearly marked him as someone uneducated. His tone became perfunctory:
"Yeah, we do. But the handwriting must be neat. Not just anyone qualifies."
"It's not for me. It's for… my wife."
Qin Ke paused slightly before the last word, stealing a glance at Lu Youqing.
She didn't seem bothered by the introduction. Her eyes were fixed on the brush, inkstone, and papers displayed on the writing table, as if drawn to them.
The shopkeeper followed her gaze and smirked.
"Write a few characters first. Let me see."
Lu Youqing selected a brush from the rack, lifted her sleeve with her left hand, and began writing in smooth, uninterrupted strokes. The shopkeeper, who had dismissed her at first, leaned forward in surprise as soon as he saw her graceful motion.
Even from the few characters she wrote, her control was obvious—powerful, continuous, yet refined and elegant. Even Qin Ke, who had zero knowledge of calligraphy, could tell her skill was extraordinary. He silently rubbed his chin.
Great. Now he was even more curious about her past.
"Oh! This young lady's calligraphy is excellent! You may choose between storybooks, classics, or poetry collections—whichever you'd like to copy."
The shopkeeper's attitude changed instantly, his face beaming.
"The classics."
"For first-time workers, the rule is a five-tael deposit before you can take home the book and paper."
Qin Ke clicked his tongue. He'd known from TV dramas that books used to be expensive—but he hadn't expected this expensive.
"Forget it. Let's go."
Hearing the requirement, Lu Youqing finally realized she had been too hasty. Her family had always owned many books, so she had forgotten how inaccessible they were to ordinary people. The root problem was simply that her knowledge of common life was limited.
The shopkeeper, sensing her skill, tried lowering the deposit to keep her, but even then, Qin Ke couldn't afford it.
He had dragged her into the shop, but she was the one pulling him out.
A single coin can defeat a hero, indeed.
Even when they later bought rice, flour, and oil, Qin Ke's mood didn't recover. He mentally bumped "earning money" much higher on his priority list.
---
Currently at chapter 54 for advance chapters
https:// ko-fi.com/rabi08