Transmigrated into a Grandpa, Embracing the Laid-Back Life-Chapter 64: Not Going to the Zhou Family

The mule cart entered the gates of Qingshi Town, plunging headlong into a bustling, colorful painting.

The clamor of voices, the rumbling of cart wheels, the cries of street vendors, all mixed with the aroma of food and the musky smell of livestock, rushed toward them.

This thick, earthy atmosphere of daily life washed away the last lingering traces of the cold and fear from the mountains and forests.

Old Qian drove the cart, skillfully navigating familiar paths to bring them to the town center's mule and horse market, where they settled the remaining fare.

"Xiao Ming, thanks to you, this old man's life was pretty much snatched back from the jaws of death." Old Qian clutched the copper coins, his hand still trembling, his gaze at Su Ming filled with gratitude and lingering fear. "If you ever need anything in the future, just send word. As long as I'm still in town, Old Qian will come running whenever you call."

Su Ming nodded. "Take care on the road, Old Qian."

Old Qian drove the empty cart away, leaving only Su Ming and Zhao Rui standing there with their respective luggage.

Zhao Rui let out a long sigh of relief. The deathly pallor of one who has just escaped disaster rapidly faded from his face, replaced by the arrogance and impatience of someone returning to a familiar environment.

He patted the dust off his clothes, frowning. "Finally made it. Su Ming, come on, let's go to my aunt's house. You helped that Zhou Yulin so much last time, they definitely won't make us stay in that awful place from last time again."

Su Ming picked up his bundle but didn't move his feet.

"We're not staying at the Zhou family's," he said, his voice very calm.

"Why not?" Zhao Rui's volume immediately shot up. "If we don't stay at my aunt's, where will we stay? Sleep on the street? Let me tell you, the inns in town are ridiculously expensive!"

"Disciple, well done! Absolutely must not go!" Lin Yu's voice rang in Su Ming's mind, carrying an unprecedented seriousness. "That old scoundrel Zhou Kang is brimming with malice. Last time at the County School office, he was already trying to trip you up. Now you want to deliver yourself to his doorstep? Tired of living? That's not moving into a relative's house; that's moving into a wolf's den! His house is full of prying eyes and loose tongues. How would you cultivate the Aura Concealment Art? How would you hide your secrets? Remember, one of the core tenets of the Way of Survival is to stay far away from all potential sources of threat!"

Su Ming ignored Zhao Rui's bluster, simply asking calmly in return, "Have you forgotten what happened at the County School office?"

Zhao Rui's face instantly flushed a deep, purplish red.

Of course he hadn't forgotten. That look of being treated like garbage, and that Registrar Qian's shift from arrogance to obsequiousness, were still vivid in his mind.

"That... that was because my uncle didn't know we were coming! If he knew, he definitely wouldn't have acted like that!" Zhao Rui stubbornly defended, though his voice grew much smaller.

"We're here to study, not to live under someone else's roof." Su Ming hoisted his bundle and started walking. "Finding an inn to stay at is quieter and will save us a lot of unnecessary trouble."

Zhao Rui watched Su Ming's retreating back, then looked at the bustling crowd around him. A strange sense of panic surged within him again. The experience in the mountains and forests made him completely unwilling to act alone right now.

Gritting his teeth, he could only pick up his book box with reluctance and hurry to catch up.

"Fine, an inn it is! Don't come crying to me about the price when you see it!"

Su Ming led the way, not heading toward the bustling main street, but turning into a relatively secluded alley.

They passed an inn that looked clean and bright, with tall horses tethered out front. Su Ming didn't even bat an eyelid.

Zhao Rui watched with longing eyes, wanting to speak up several times, but Su Ming's silent, resolute back kept him from doing so.

Finally, deep in the alley, Su Ming stopped in front of a shop with a narrow front. The four characters "Fu An Inn" on the signboard were somewhat peeling.

A shop assistant dressed in a simple short jacket was dozing with his head on the counter. Hearing movement, he lazily looked up.

"Staying the night?"

"Yes. The cheapest room, how much per night?" Su Ming asked.

The assistant looked them up and down—one in coarse cloth clothes, the other in slightly better material but travel-worn—then curled his lip and held up three fingers.

"Thirty wen."

"What? Thirty wen!" Zhao Rui knew prices were high but hadn't expected them to be this much higher than he'd imagined. His family's money didn't grow on trees either. "This dump, thirty wen for one night? That's enough to buy a used book!"

Su Ming acted as if he hadn't heard the protest. He fished out thirty copper coins from his robe, carefully counted them, and placed them on the counter.

"One room."

The assistant took the money and tossed over a wooden token. "Second floor, the room at the end."

With that, he put his head down and went back to sleep.

Zhao Rui was so angry he stomped his foot, but there was nothing he could do. He could only follow Su Ming up the creaking stairs to the second floor.

The room was indeed small, just enough for one bed, one table, and one chair. The furnishings were simple, but the room was bright and clean. The floor and bedding were indeed tidy, without the expected musty dampness. Pushing open the window, they could see clothes drying in the backyard, carrying a faint, clean scent of soapberries.

"Is... is this place even fit for human habitation?" Zhao Rui threw his book box on the floor, his face full of disgust. "Even the quilt feels damp!"

Su Ming ignored him. He placed his bundle on the table, took out his waterskin for a drink, then began organizing his things. His movements were neither hurried nor slow, exuding a calmness that seemed out of place in this environment.

Zhao Rui complained for a while, but seeing Su Ming persistently ignore him, he also found it boring. He plopped down on the bed, which emitted a groan of protest under his weight.

He looked at Su Ming, a jumble of conflicting feelings in his heart. This youth, younger than himself, could sense danger early in the mountains, was so experienced at finding lodging in town, and didn't even blink when paying—it was as if everything was part of his plan.

It made Zhao Rui feel both trust and a strong sense of irritation.

Night fell. Faint noises of revelry drifted in from outside the inn, but inside the room, only a dim rapeseed oil lamp was lit.

Su Ming poured all his money onto the bed.

Twenty gleaming white silver ingots, plus the few taels of silver his family had given him, and some leftover copper coins from last time.

Under the lamplight, the silver ingots emitted a cold, alluring glow.

Su Ming picked up one ingot, feeling its weight in his palm.

Zhao Rui, leaning against the headboard, saw this and snorted disdainfully. He fished out a bulging money pouch from his own robe and dumped it onto the bed.

With a clattering sound, the silver inside was double Su Ming's amount.

"My dad gave me forty taels," Zhao Rui said, as if showing off. "He said studying in town has big expenses, and I shouldn't suffer. We don't need to stay in this dump at all. We could go to the best 'Yuelai Inn' in the east city; it's only a hundred wen a day!" As if he hadn't been the one complaining about thirty wen being expensive earlier.

Su Ming didn't look at him. He just gathered his own money and put it away, leaving only one broken silver tael and a few dozen copper coins out.