Chapter 13: Into Jinzhou

The caravan set out from Anshan Station. Because of their slow pace, they camped outside at night and reached Niuzhuang Station the next day.

After a brief overnight rest, the caravan continued on.

During the daytime, Ning Su saw long, strip-like structures on the mountains and beside the road that seemed like miracles. She was extremely curious the entire way.

The caravan leader explained to her: that was the Great Wall, the Liaodong Great Wall.

Perhaps everyone in the caravan was used to the sight, but Ning Su felt it was the most spectacular human construction she had ever seen in her life.

Along the way, the caravan stopped for her so she could touch the bricks of the Great Wall.

Half an hour later, the caravan continued on. It took several days to pass through Xining Fort, cross the Shuangtaizi River to Xiping Fort, and then travel on to Panshan Station.

They had entered a region of military tension. They frequently encountered checkpoints and roving cavalry patrols.

Every soldier who saw the caravan stopped them for inspection.

They had sharp eyes. Even with just a glance, they could spot the “barbarian” in the convoy.

The people of this country usually called those from outside Liaodong “barbarians.” In recent years, as more people came from overseas, some in the Central Plains had also begun to call all foreigners “barbarians.”

The soldiers were lenient toward people from the Central Plains, but once a “barbarian” was involved, they became tense.

After a cursory check of the others’ travel permits, they focused their inspection on the white-haired, golden-eyed girl in the convoy, demanding to know her origins. To their surprise, Ning Su produced a travel permit.

“A travel permit from Weiyuan Fort Station?” the cavalry soldier found it odd. Why would a station issue a travel permit?

It bore the official seal of the station. The permit was issued by the station manager, who was an official, however minor, still an official, not a commoner.

It was very strange. If one wanted to accept it, it could be considered valid. But if one wanted to be picky, it could also be deemed noncompliant.

Ning Su’s travel permit was essentially a letter of guarantee from Weiyuan Fort Station, endorsed by the highest local authority there.

In the end, none of the soldiers they encountered along the way made further trouble.

After all, if anything went wrong, they could hold the manager of Weiyuan Fort Station accountable.

The caravan turned southwest, heading in the general direction of the capital.

Finally, they reached Jinzhou. It was the first time the caravan had truly approached a city, yes, approached, not entered. It was also the first time Ning Su had ever seen a “town” like those she had read about in books.

To the caravan, the city seemed somewhat dilapidated. As a place contested by armies, its economy had never developed properly.

To Ning Su, the city was as bustling as the books described, with crowds of people everywhere.

And this was just the city gate.

Since entering the city required paying taxes, the caravan did not go in. They found an inn outside to stay.

The caravan leader explained their actions to Ning Su, joking that while the upper levels had policies, the lower levels had countermeasures.

If they paid taxes in Jinzhou and then again when entering the pass a few days later, that would be painful.

So merchants preferred to rest outside the city. Those with a business sense naturally knew to set up shops outside.

After settling down outside Jinzhou, they rested for a night. The next morning, the group went into the city together.

Since they were not carrying any goods, they only needed to pay the minimum entry fee. It was not much, not even a burden for the common people near Jinzhou.

But if they had been carrying goods, it would have been different.

Whether they brought fish, vegetables, or books, there would always be a tax for them.

Several soldiers guarded the gate, standing much straighter than those at Weiyuan Fort.

For ordinary people, they would let them through after a few glances.

When it came to Ning Su, the soldiers took a longer look. They thoroughly checked her travel permit and even called over the captain on duty at the gate.

In the end, they let her go. The captain advised her to go to the government office to get a proper permit.

As soon as she left, the captain immediately spoke to a soldier. The soldier put down his weapon and ran into the city, disappearing somewhere.

The captain stood on the gate tower, thoughtfully watching her retreating figure.

Meanwhile, the caravan leader and the other merchants temporarily disbanded, letting everyone do as they pleased for the rest day.

After disbanding, the leader spoke with Ning Su. “Do you have any money?”

Ning Su took out a heavy money pouch from her sleeve. Just as she was about to open it, the leader quickly stopped her and told her to put it away.

“Ah, I forgot to tell you at the inn.” The leader slapped his forehead, as if blaming himself for his carelessness.

Like a father, he took out a relatively flat money pouch from his own chest and pulled out a round object. “Do you know what this is?”

Ning Su shook her head.

The leader slapped his face again, annoyed that he hadn’t explained things clearly at the inn. Holding the small round object, he said, “This is called a copper coin. This is one wen. Got it?”

Ning Su nodded.

The leader then took out a small gray-black stone from the pouch and said softly, “This is called silver. This is two qian, worth about two hundred copper coins. Remember?”

Ning Su nodded again.

The leader continued, “If you use silver, the shopkeeper will weigh it with a balance and then cut off a piece. You can use copper coins or silver to buy things. Got it?”

Ning Su nodded again.

Seeing her completely ignorant expression and noticing the curious glances from nearby passersby, the leader sighed. “Forget it, I’ll take you around. Don’t wander off. Where do you want to go?”

Then, like a father, he led her from one gate to another. Along the way, it was buy, buy, buy, eat, eat, eat, then buy more, eat more, and then eat like crazy from the south gate to the north gate.

Jinzhou’s cuisine was somewhat similar to that of the Central Plains. This was the Liaodong region, with both Jurchen and Central Plains culinary habits. The two blended together to create some very unique foods.

For instance, the “hu geng” (thick soup) that the caravan often ate when camping in the wild. The street vendors in Jinzhou had turned it into an art, mixing several kinds of meat and seafood, creating something with great color, aroma, and taste, still called hu geng.

Some vendors also sold fried foods, which was a novelty. Ning Su had never eaten anything so oily. Even the leader couldn’t help eating a lot.

The most expensive thing here was not meat snacks, but vegetables.

After eating their fill, the leader was too full to walk and wanted to find a place to rest.

Just then, they passed a bookstore. Ning Su stopped at the entrance.

The leader introduced the bookstore, a place selling books. Seeing that Ning Su was interested in browsing, he found a spot to rest and wait for her.

Ning Su picked up a copy of “Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms.” The bookseller quickly tried to make this rare sale.

“This is a novel. The content is extremely exciting. Everyone who reads it marvels at the wonderful plot,” the bookseller said, trying to sound cultured.

Ning Su flipped through it for a long time. The bookseller coughed several times.

She shot him a glance, her golden eyes carrying a hint of displeasure, as if blaming him for being too noisy.

She continued reading.

The leader, at the store entrance, quickly pulled the bookseller aside and took out his money pouch.

In the end, Ning Su bought the first five volumes of “Popular Romance of the Three Kingdoms” but not the rest.

She also found a dusty set of “New Collected Comprehensive Mirror of Ancient and Modern Mathematical Treasures” in a corner, authored by Wang Wensu. She didn’t know him, but she bought the first four volumes.

The bookseller tried to haggle, wanting to sell her the whole set at a discount.

If she only bought the first four, who would buy the rest?

After much talk, he finally sold all twelve volumes to her at a reduced price.

As she was leaving, she spotted a lonely book in the corner: “On Farming” by Ma Yilong.

She picked it up, curious.

The bookseller quickly explained why a book printed last year, 1547, was gathering dust alongside a mathematical work from decades ago. Simple: no one in Jinzhou bought it.

Since it was only one volume, not as thick as the others, Ning Su bought it on a whim.

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