I trade in both worlds

Afraid of being left behind, Xu Qiwei lay on her shoulder aggrievedly, looking at Xu Tiantian who was sleeping soundly in the backpack.

Xu Xu turned and walked towards the alley with fewer people. Xu Ziqing followed closely behind Xu Xu, holding the twins.

The two of them quickened their pace and walked around the alley for a long time before arriving at Shunlai Building.

Xu Ziqing panted and asked for a private room, and told the shopkeeper to wait for Xu Ziqi to come and take him to the room.

After Xu Xu and the others walked away, Xu Ziqi staggered towards Rende Hall, carrying two cotton and linen handbags.

Rende Hall was deserted at this time, probably because it was the New Year. Everyone was rather cautious and didn't want to see a doctor in the first month of the lunar year unless it was absolutely necessary.

He pushed aside the thick door curtain and walked into the pharmacy, only to see Doctor He and Shopkeeper Zheng sitting by the stove chatting. A pot of hot tea was stewing on the stove, emitting a faint aroma.

Xu Ziqi looked at the pastries in his hand. They had forgotten to count them as Shopkeeper Zheng’s. Now that they had met, they decided to give the pastries in their hand to Shopkeeper Zheng first.

As for Chen San, I’ll buy some at the market and send it to him later.

"Oh, Xu boy, you're here." Doctor He saw Xu Ziqi standing at the door at a glance and quickly stood up to greet him.

Xu Ziqi walked into the medicine shop with a smile and handed the cakes in his hand to Doctor He and Shopkeeper Zheng: "Shopkeeper Zheng, Doctor He, I came here specially to wish you a happy new year. I wish you good luck and success in the new year."

Doctor He took the cake and said, "Oh, I hope you can grow like this, with new things every year."

Shopkeeper Zheng also stood up and took the cake, and said with a folded hand: "May all your wishes come true from now on, and may you live a healthy life."

Hearing this, Xu Ziqing was particularly glad that he had looked up various New Year greetings online yesterday. Otherwise, he would have been unable to say anything except "Happy New Year".

After the polite words, Doctor He said, "Come, come, come, sit down, sit down and talk."

Shopkeeper Zheng also warmly invited Xu Ziqi to sit down. The three of them sat around the fireplace, enjoying cakes and hot tea while chatting about the joy of the New Year.

While chatting, Shopkeeper Zheng suddenly mentioned the capital. Xu Ziqing looked at him with shining eyes: "Shopkeeper Zheng, was the journey from Youzhou to the capital smooth?"

Before Manager Zheng could speak, Doctor He asked curiously, "Why, are you going to the capital?"

Xu Ziqi explained with a smile: "I exchanged some things with the foreign vassal before, and wanted to take them to the capital to sell."

Seeing that he didn't take the initiative to mention what he was selling, Manager Zheng and Doctor He didn't dare to ask.

Manager Zheng nodded in understanding: "You can find an escort agency and hire a few escorts to take you there. Although it's a peaceful year now, it's hard to predict what might happen on the road. Just be prepared."

After he said that, Xu Ziqi hesitated a little: "Will there be robbers on the road?"

Shopkeeper Zheng was stunned for a moment, then smiled and shook his head: "There were wars in the early years, but in the past two years, the imperial court has sent troops to suppress the bandits, and they have been mostly cleared up. Guoyue County to the capital is relatively peaceful."

Xu Ziqi nodded. Although he possessed the wisdom and courage of a modern man, his understanding of road conditions and public security in this ancient world was limited after all.

After hearing what they said, he felt that hiring a bodyguard was indeed a safe approach.

Xu Ziqi continued to ask: "Does Manager Zheng have any escort agencies to recommend?"

"The largest escort agency in Youzhou, and also the largest escort agency in the county, is Hongbang Escort Agency." Shopkeeper Zheng said, "It's just expensive."

Doctor He heard this and said slowly: "Although Hongbang's escorts are more expensive, this escort agency is safe and reliable, and the escorts' skills are also well-known."

He said gratefully to Doctor He and Manager Zheng: "Thank you for your reminder. I will go to the escort agency to ask later."

Doctor He and Manager Zheng smiled at each other and expressed their appreciation for Xu Ziqi's willingness to listen to advice.

Xu Ziqi continued to ask Manager Zheng and Doctor He for some tips on traveling and suggestions on choosing escorts.

Before they knew it, the three of them had been chatting for almost an hour.

Seeing that it was getting late, Xu Ziqi was afraid that Xu Ziqing and the others would get anxious waiting, so he quickly stood up and said goodbye to Doctor He and Manager Zheng.

"Doctor He, Manager Zheng, it's getting late and I have things to do. Thank you for your guidance today. I will come to visit you again when I return from the capital."

Doctor He and Shopkeeper Zheng also stood up and walked him to the door of the store.

Doctor He earnestly warned: "Xu boy, you must be careful and cautious on the road. We are waiting for your safe return."

Xu Ziqi smiled and nodded, said goodbye to Doctor He and Manager Zheng, walked out of Rendetang, looked around for a while, and saw a small stall selling cakes not far away.

He walked over and weighed two kilograms of date paste cake and two kilograms of osmanthus cake, then turned around and walked quickly towards Chen San's house in the back alley.

Xu Ziqi walked through the narrow alley and came to the entrance of Chen San's house.

Before he even entered the door, he heard laughter and lively voices coming from inside.

The door of Chen San's house was wide open, and he saw several tables set up in the yard.

Xu Ziqi guessed that the Chen family was treating guests to dinner today.

Although it is not yet time for dinner, the yard is already crowded with people and is very lively.

He straightened his clothes, picked up the cakes, and walked into Chen San's yard with a smile.

People in the yard were standing or sitting, chatting and laughing, and there were a dozen children of all ages chasing and playing.

Xu Ziqi immediately saw Chen San sitting in the middle of the yard, talking to several guests.

"Brother Chen San, Happy New Year." Xu Ziqi walked forward and bowed.

He handed the cake in his hand to Chen San and said, "I came here specially to wish you a happy new year today, but I didn't expect you were busy."

Chen San looked at Xu Ziqing in surprise, and was stunned for a moment. He took the cake and laughed: "Mr. Xu is here, come in and sit down, come in and sit down."

Xu Ziqi waved his hands quickly and said, "No, no, Brother Chen San, you are busy. I will go back first and come back in a few days."

Without asking, he knew that Xu Ziqi came to ask about the pass.

I heard him say when I was applying for a travel permit before the New Year that he planned to go to the capital after the New Year.

Chen San quickly stopped him and said softly, "Your pass has been prepared. Come in with me to get it."

Hearing this, Xu Ziqing was delighted and gave him a thumbs up: "Brother Chen San, you are very efficient."

Chen San smiled and said modestly, "No, no, it just happened that the government office needed to stamp it, so I did it together."

After saying that, he turned around and walked towards the inner room with Xu Ziqi.

Xu Ziqi raised his eyebrows. It seemed that Chen San had connections.

I had heard Xu Xu talk about the process of applying for a road permit before. When I came to Chen San, I just skipped the submission of application and supplementary documents and got the stamp directly.

Chen San took out a small wooden box from the kang cabinet, opened the box, took out two folded pieces of paper and handed them to Xu Ziqi.

"This is your pass, take it." Chen San reminded: "Don't forget to bring it with you on the road, otherwise you will get into trouble."