Immortal Road Worry-Free - Chapter 13:
For the first time, Bai Yushuang walked among the people instead of above them.
She moved slowly through the marketplace, her gaze alive with quiet wonder.
Every sound, every color, every scent seemed new to her the chatter of vendors,
the clatter of wooden wheels, the perfume of steamed buns mingled with the sharp tang of herbs.
People turned to stare. She wore a plain robe of soft blue, unadorned yet immaculate,
her bearing calm as still water. There was something in the way she walked,
graceful yet detached, that made her seem untouched by dust or noise.
And her face—serene as dawn mist, luminous as moonlight on snow.
When she stopped, the crowd seemed to pause with her.
It was as though a spirit from the heavens had stepped briefly into the mortal realm.
At the far end of the street stood Li’s Apothecary, its wooden sign swaying gently in the wind.
The old shopkeeper was in the middle of discussing medicine
ratios with a regular customer when, from the corner of his eye,
he noticed a stranger entering the shop.
Bai Yushuang approached the counter without a word.
The shopkeeper straightened at once, his voice almost reverent
as he asked what she required.
The chatter of the shop faded into silence.
Every pair of eyes turned toward her.
She reached into her sleeve and drew out a small cloth pouch.
When she opened it, three pearls the size of walnuts rolled softly into her palm.
Each one glowed faintly with the light of the moon, its surface smooth and flawless.
A quiet gasp rippled through the onlookers.
The shopkeeper’s eyes sharpened. He swallowed his surprise,
coughed lightly, and lowered his voice.
Was she offering to sell them?
Bai Yushuang nodded.
He studied her again this woman of otherworldly beauty,
whose presence filled the modest room like moonlight in a cup and dared not be careless.
With a respectful smile, he invited her to the back room to speak in private.
The room was small but clean, furnished with old wood and scrolls of medicinal sketches.
Bai Yushuang laid the three pearls on the table once more.
Even in the dim light, they shimmered like drops of frozen starlight.
The old man picked one up between his fingers, turning it beneath the glow of a candle.
His voice trembled with restrained excitement.
Deep-sea pearls, he said at last, smooth and lustrous,
likely from a hundred-year clam. Their quality is beyond anything I have seen,
even in the great city’s jewel houses. I can offer you a fair price no tricks.
Bai Yushuang’s voice was calm. Name your price. If you speak truthfully, I will agree.
He hesitated, calculating, then said: fifty taels for each. One hundred and fifty taels in all.
Enough silver to buy a house, hire servants, and live comfortably for years.
Bai Yushuang appeared to ponder this for a moment before nodding once.
Agreed.
The old shopkeeper quickly fetched the silver from a chest and presented it with both hands.
He added warmly that if she ever had more of such treasures,
she would always be welcome.
She accepted the money, replying simply, Fate decides such things.
Then she rose to leave.
He followed her to the doorway, watching as her pale figure merged into the crowd.
Within moments, she was gone, as if she had never been there at all.
The customers whispered among themselves, their voices full of awe and curiosity.
Who was that woman? Where had those pearls come from?
The shopkeeper only shook his head and murmured under his breath,
Beyond understanding… truly beyond understanding.
With her newly gained silver, Bai Yushuang bought several sets
of simple mortal garments and a few everyday items.
She rented a small room at an inn, its paper windows fluttering in the wind.
Sometimes she sat by the tea house on the corner,
listening quietly as townsfolk gossiped about harvests,
weddings, and neighbors’ quarrels. At night she slipped silently into bookshops,
reading every scroll and manuscript she could find,
absorbing the mortal world’s stories and knowledge.
By day she walked the streets, observing life unfold like a painting in motion.
One afternoon, as she strolled past the northern street,
a commotion reached her ears raised voices, a faint sob.
She looked up.
Ahead stood a modest wooden building with a sign that read Jiren Medical Hall.
At the foot of its stone steps knelt a small figure Xiaochun.
The girl’s face was streaked with dust and tears, her eyes swollen from crying.
She clutched a tattered bundle in her arms and begged in a voice grown hoarse.
Please… my father is very ill. He coughed bl00d this morning.
I beg you just send the physician to take a look…
The steward at the doorway, a heavyset man with
a bored expression, waved her off impatiently.
How many times must I tell you? No money, no doctor! We’re not a charity hall!
But Xiaochun did not give up. She untied her bundle,
revealing a small handful of freshly picked herbs and a single wild pheasant.
I have these… please, they’re worth something…
The man gave a short laugh.
A pheasant for medicine? Ridiculous. Get out of the way!
His hand shot forward, shoving her.
Xiaochun fell hard against the steps, the herbs scattering like green tears across the ground.
The pheasant tumbled a few feet away.
When she crawled to gather them, the steward kicked the bird aside with a sneer.
And in that instant, Bai Yushuang’s eyes darkened.
The air seemed to still around her as she took a single quiet step forward
The mortal world, radiant and cruel in its first light, unfolded before her.