Chapter 35
“You don’t have to thank me.” Chu Qingzhi pointed at the horse. “Hurry up and bring this horse to be treated. It’s about to die.”
The shopkeeper said gratefully, “To be honest, I knew that this horse was sick, so I locked it in a stable alone. I didn’t expect it to be stolen by a thief. Fortunately, you stopped them.”
Chu Qingzhi said politely, “It’s nothing. Take the horse back.”
The shopkeeper waved his hand and said regretfully, “To be honest, Miss, I’ve been raising horses since I was young. This horse hasn’t eaten or drunk for more than half a month. If I take it back, it won’t live for long. Why don’t I give it to you? If it can survive under your care, it will be good. If it can’t, dig a pit and bury it.”
In his opinion, this horse was bound to die. The little girl in front of him was very kind. He might as well let this horse be taken care of by her while it was still alive. Even if he took it back to the stable, he would not have time to take care of it, and it would only die in pain.
Chu Qingzhi was very surprised. “Shopkeeper, are you joking? Or are you serious?”
The shopkeeper said, “I’m serious. Take it away.”
“Thank you, shopkeeper.” Seeing that the other party was not joking with her, Chu Qingzhi decisively reached out to hold the reins. It was for free. How could she refuse?
The horse followed Chu Qingzhi obediently.
This horse was very tall, but it was sick. Its skin was rough and it looked dispirited. It did not look good. If the horse was healthy, it would cost at least 500 taels of silver, equivalent to a BMW. It was simply a dream to get one for nothing.
As expected, one had to be kind to be rewarded. Chu Qingzhi was overjoyed.
On the way back, Chu Qingzhi gently stroked the horse’s head with her palm and sent some spiritual power into its body to help it recover. At night, she would find some herbs for it to eat and it would slowly recover.
The horse felt Chu Qingzhi’s love and became even closer to her.
…
In the camp at the outskirts of the capital.
The luxurious carriage stopped at the entrance of the camp.
The coachman jumped out of the carriage and placed the ladder beside the carriage. Then, he stood respectfully at the side.
The curtain was lifted and a young man in blue alighted. The young man had a faint smile on his face and he looked very smart.
He was holding a box in his hand, which was covered by white fog on the surface.
He got out of the carriage and walked straight into the army camp.
When he arrived at the largest tent in the army camp, the young man cleared his throat and said, “Brother Jinghong, I’m here.” Tang Jinghong’s voice was crisp and strong. “Come in.”
Fan Jingxu lowered his head slightly, lifted the curtain, and walked in. “Oh, everyone is here. That saves me the trouble of looking for you one by one.”
There was a large sand table in the middle of the tent. A few generals were standing around and discussing something. Behind them, more than ten lieutenants stood and listened attentively like students.
Fan Jingxu opened the box. “This is something I bought for you. Take one for yourself.”
As he spoke, he first took one and handed it to Tang Jinghong. Then, he took one for himself and placed the box in the hand of a general.
Li Dingjun had never seen an ice cream bar before and was very curious. “General, what is this? It’s so cool.”
Fan Jingxu blinked. “This is an ice cream bar. Try it.”
Tang Jinghong glanced sideways. Wasn’t this what the little girl in the village sold? How did Fan Jingxu find it?
Li Dingjun quickly took one. In this hot weather, eating cool things was the most comfortable. “Where did you buy it? I’ve never seen it before.”
Fan Jingxu said casually, “It’s at a stall by the roadside. I found it by chance.”
The remaining generals quickly took one. Fan Jingxu had bought enough, so everyone had a share.
“It’s cool. I want to eat another one.”
“Ice is expensive. It’s already good enough to have one.”
“That’s right, that’s right. Hurry up and eat. It’ll melt later.”
Fan Jingxu waved his hand. “It is not expensive. The orange-flavored one is sold at ten copper coins while the white one is sold at five copper coins. I was also surprised at that time. Someone actually didn’t take the opportunity to make a fortune out of it. That person is really stupid.”
“Indeed, indeed.”
“If it were me, I’d definitely sell it for thirty copper coins.”
“You profiteer.”
Tang Jinghong listened to everyone chatting and ate the ice cream bar silently. His thoughts slowly drifted away.
…
In the Chu family of the county.
Chu Qingzhi’s adoptive mother, Wang Peifang, saw a few servants gathering around and eating something. She had never seen the thing before. “What are you eating?”
The servant girl was shocked and quickly hid the ice cream bar behind her. “Madam, we’re eating at an ice cream bar.” Wang Peifang frowned. “What is ice cream bar?”
The servant girl slowly took out the ice cream bar from behind and handed it to Wang Peifang. “This is the ice cream bar.”
Wang Peifang held the ice cream bar in her hand and looked at it. Then, her eyes lit up. It was ice. This was expensive. “Where did you buy it?”
The servant girl stammered and did not know if she should say it.
Wang Peifang berated, “Speak.”
The servant girl lowered her head and whispered, “I bought it from Miss.”
Wang Peifang was stunned for a moment before saying angrily, “That girl is gone now. You’re not allowed to call her Miss anymore.”
The servant girl quickly replied, “Yes, Madam.”
Wang Peifang suddenly came back to her senses. “Wait, are you saying that Chu Qingzhi sold this ice cream bar?”
The servant girl replied, “Yes.”
Wang Peifang lowered her eyes and pondered. That wild girl was weak and stupid. How could she make such a thing? “If I find out that you lied to me, I will sell you.”
The servant girl knelt down. “Madam, everything I said is true. It’s really… Chu Qingzhi who sold it. If you don’t believe me, I can bring you to take a look tomorrow.”
Wang Peifang still did not believe her. “Alright, bring me there tomorrow.”
The servant girl quickly replied, “Yes, Madam.”
…
When Chu Qingzhi returned to the village, she met a gossipy woman called Li Jiamei.
“Aiyo, Qingzhi, did you buy a horse?” Li Jiamei couldn’t stop looking at the horse, but when she saw that the horse was covered in injuries, she was very puzzled. “Why did you buy a horse that was beaten up so badly?” She deliberately lowered her voice. “Is it because it’s the cheapest?”
Chu Qingzhi glanced at Li Jiamei. “It was injured by the horse stealer. I saw that it was pitiful, so I bought it.”
Thinking that Chu Qingzhi must have made a lot of money selling ice cream bars, Li Jiamei became jealous. She asked softly, “How much money is it?”
In the eyes of the commoners, a horse was just like a BMW in the eyes of modern people.
Chu Qingzhi thought for a moment and whispered, “It was for free. Do you believe me?”
When Li Jiamei heard this, she couldn’t help but roll her eyes at Chu Qingzhi. How could a horse be free?
“Do you think I’m a fool?”
Chu Qingzhi quickly clarified, “Auntie Li, you’re exaggerating. I’m telling the truth.”
Li Jiamei was angry. “I might as well believe that there are ghosts in this world.” With that, she turned around and left angrily.
Chu Qingzhi didn’t mind and continued to walk home with the horse.