"Mom, Dad, I was going to tell you that Innkeeper Zhu will be bringing his people over tomorrow to trade with us. We will sell a batch of our mythical animals and food. We can't store them all. Not to mention that we can use some cash for other goods!" said Cheng Xiao Xiao nonchalantly.
"Innkeeper Zhu?" Cheng Biyuan paused and asked suspiciously, "Xiao Xiao, didn't you imprisoned their beacons? Why is he bring people over? Are you saying that his master are sending someone?"
"No, dad, let me tell you what happened?" And she carried on to tell them the entire encounter.
Mrs. Cheng nodded, "Since they have begged for mercy and showed an intention to make things right, we should let bygone be bygone. It never pays off to have more enemies and is always better to be able to resolve issues amicably."
"Exactly. We still have the Ning's to deal with. If we add on those behind Innkeeper Zhu, even if we have nothing to be afraid of, it will still cause us a lot of trouble. As such, we should trade with them amicably tomorrow!" Cheng Biyuan also agreed that this was a good resolution.
Cheng Xiao Xiao smiled, "That being said, we have the upper hand now. We can't let them take advantage of us. We had to sell our mythical animals for cheap in the past; we won't need to do that anymore. We should raise the price up, higher the better!"
"What do you mean the higher the better? We still need to have buyers!" laughed Mrs. Cheng. But she was happy, after all, the future of the family lied with her daughter.
The three of them discussed how to price their animals for the next day, chit-chatted for a little bit, then returned to their respective quarters for some rest.
Ever since she has started cultivating, Cheng Xiao Xiao rarely slept on her bed. Normally she just stayed and cultivate in the dimension.
After breakfast the next day, the two deacons and Innkeeper Zhu came by the Cheng's. This time they were much more cautious than they were before, and very respectful to the Cheng's family member. All the arrogance from the previous time was gone.
Happy with this change, Cheng Biyuan showed them into their courtyard. Naturally, they had even more respect for the quiet Chen Xiao Xiao. In addition to the respect, a hint of fear could also be detected.
This time Cheng Xiao Xiao had no intention to interject; she left it all up to her father.
The helper villagers arrived and noticed the visitor at the Cheng's. They greeted them from outside the courtyard and headed toward the back of the house. Cheng Xiao Xiao followed them to check out the situation.
Liu Danhang was the happiest person of all when she showed up. He liked to walk next to her, even if she didn't speak to him at all. He was ecstatic, like he had just found some treasure.
Look at them, the four men nearby all sighed inwardly. They have already noticed yesterday that the Cheng's had no intention of setting them up. Especially maiden Cheng, she was cold toward him. She had no interest in him at all.
It didn't look like Liu Danhang stood a chance here.
Of course, they also understand that Cheng Xiao Xiao was truly out of his league. She looked like someone from a noble family. Walking next to her just made him looked like her servant.
Of course nobody verbalized any of these thoughts. It wasn't their place to do so. When they arrived at the well, they started working without further exchanges.
Except for Liu Danhang, he looked solidly at the person in front of him. He looked like he had something to say, but didn't know how to formulate his thoughts.
Even though Cheng Xiao Xiao didn't look at him, she still had a pretty good idea of how he looked. And at the same time, she had made up her mind to lay things out with him. It wasn't a good thing for him to wander around in front of her all the time either.
Chatted with the four older men for a bit, Cheng Xiao Xiao turned and walked into the bamboo forest. Liu Danhang wasn't going to let this opportunity goes to waste and followed her in.
After dozens of steps into the bamboo forest, one could still see the villagers retrieving water from the well through the bamboos, but Cheng Xiao Xiao didn't care. She stopped and looked at the person who followed her in, "Okay, you can speak your mind now."
"Xiao Xiao, you knew I had something to say to you?" asked Liu Danhang, surprised.
"Ugh…." Cheng Xiao Xiao was speechless. That was only too obvious, but she nodded at him.
A simple smile, Liu Danhang scratched the back of his head, "Xiao Xiao is so smart!"
"What do you want to say to me?" Cheng Xiao Xiao looked at him, it was hard to dislike him also. She wasn't sure what she could do.
Liu Danhang blushed after she asked him a second time. Shyly he casted a quick glance at her before he summoned all his courage and said, "Xiao Xiao, I really like you!"
"I know," replied Cheng Xiao Xiao nonchalantly, nodding.
Seeing her emotionless expression, even the simple Liu Danhang finally understood. He looked disappointed. His lips moved, but he didn't say anything.
"I have no older siblings, just young ones. If you don't mind, I will treat you like an older brother, what do you say?" Afterall, Cheng Xiao Xiao didn't want to hurt him, that was all she could do.
"Brother!" Liu Danhang paused and looked at the cool Cheng Xiao Xiao. He nodded, "Xiao Xiao, I will always treat you like a younger sister, and not let anyone hurt you!"
After saying that, Liu Danhang turned and leave. His back straight, his strides large. He walked out of the bamboo forest in no time.
Looking at him leaving, Cheng Xiao Xiao couldn't help but to say, "He looks foolish, but he's smart. I hope he can find someone more suitable for him in the future!"
"Young mistress, he's not that bad!" said little Yuteng with a smile, appearing out of nowhere.
Cheng Xiao Xiao shook her head, "I have no feelings for him. He's just a friend. If I want to look for a boyfriend, at the very least I should feel my heart beat raised and my face flustered when I see him, wouldn't you say?"
"Heart beat raised and face flustered?" asked the confused little Yuteng, blinking her watery eyes, "Young mistress, what kind of feeling is that? Wouldn't that be some kind of illness?"
"Ugh…" Cheng Xiao Xiao smacked her own forehead. Why would she expect a fairy to understand that? "Yes, it's an illness, and a serious one!"
"But why?" The curious fairy continued to press.
"No reason, you will understand that some day!"
"Really, young mistress, I want to find out more about it now!"
"Ugh, I can't help you there!"
"Why not?"
"You keep asking me, but I don't have answers!"
Cheng Xiao Xiao randomly chitchatted with little Yuteng while on her way home. When she arrived at home, there was nobody in the courtyard. She could hear a lot of ruckus coming from the direction of the ranch. Cheng Xiao Xiao had Yuteng returned to the dimension while she headed toward the sound.
"Miss Cheng, you are here!" greeted Innkeeper Zhu with a big smile, cupping his hands.
She casted a look at him and thought about it for a second, "After this sale, we will reach out to you when we want to make another transactions. No need to keep coming back!"
"Well, that…." He couldn't make that decision so he looked at Deacon Bai.
Deacon Bai walked over after hearing the conversation, smiling he said, "Miss Cheng, we will wait for your notice; however, we may reach out with some questions before then, I hope that will be alright!"