Governor He needs to increase taxes and achievements from passing caravans, and General Meng also requires military supplies, so even without a letter from Bai Shan, the two would never allow such a bandit gang to exist.

Both of them stared at the wealthy man, especially General Meng, who had killed countless enemies and guarded the border for many years. His aura and murderous spirit were far superior to that of Assistant General Nie and Bai Shan. So, even though he said nothing, the wealthy man couldn’t help but feel terrified and shivered slightly.

General Meng sat imposingly, listening as Governor He began to question him.

Manbao and her group leisurely arrived in a small town. It was a fairly prosperous town, though dusty and not as beautiful as the small town they had come from with Dayu.

Dayu proudly said, "That’s natural. Our town has great feng shui. Not only can we grow fruits and barley, but we can also grow wheat. Our big brother says that if the weather is good in the future, we should clear some land to try growing rice."

Thinking about the white rice he had eaten with Zhou Man’s group recently, Dayu licked his lips and said, "Rice is indeed delicious."

Manbao also thought rice was tasty, feeling a sudden pang of hunger. She turned to Bai Shan and said, "I want to eat rice balls."

Bai Shan smiled and said, "Once we find a place to stay, we’ll have Sister-in-law He make them for you."

Dayu immediately asked, "What are rice balls?"

"Rice balls are simply rice formed into a ball."

Dayu looked skeptical, "It’s all rice. What’s the difference between forming it into a ball or not?"

Seeing that they wouldn’t tell him, he huffed, "If you won’t tell me, I’ll go ask Sister-in-law He."

Manbao said, "Don’t go scaring people. Rice balls are just rice with a little bit of salt on them. What’s the big difference?"

Only then did Dayu refrain from going to find Sister-in-law He.

Sister-in-law He was the only person from the small town willing to travel with them, but she was very afraid of people like Dayu. It’s said she was once a concubine of a merchant passing through the small town, but when the merchant found a gemstone he liked but was short on money, he sold her to someone in the small town.

That family was well-off, but the man’s life was short. Within five years of Sister-in-law He entering the household, he fell ill and died. She didn’t bear any children, and luckily, the mistress was kind, not selling her again but also not providing for her without expecting anything in return. She was given a place to live but had to earn her own food and drink.

Sister-in-law He knew some cooking and could barely make a living in the small town by washing clothes for others. She always wanted to return to the Central Plains, but even following behind traveling merchants required a considerable amount of travel expenses.

She had no money.

She had thought of other ways, but for eight years, she couldn’t trust those willing to take her, and the ones she barely trusted were unwilling to take her.

Zhou Man’s group was the only one she completely trusted so far, so when Steward Li hinted that their caravan needed a cook, she immediately volunteered.

However, she was still a bit afraid of the people from the small town, especially those like Dayu from the Town Leader’s residence. She avoided them whenever possible.

Manbao could see her fear, so she didn’t let Dayu’s group scare her.

There were inns in the small town, but they weren’t large. Their group needed to split into three inns to stay, and all the buildings were single-story with small doors and windows.

Steward Li, along with two others, walked around the entire small town before deciding on the accommodation, picking three adjacent inns.

This indicated how small the town was, even smaller than Dayu’s town, but it was indeed bustling, with many people inside, and stalls lined the streets, filled with goods. Many customers were selecting items.

Here, Manbao and her group finally saw the caravans.

However, these caravans seemed to be coming from elsewhere and wanted to enter the pass. There were also Han people, but more were the high-nosed, deep-eyed people from the Western Regions.

Therefore, when Manbao and her group appeared in the small town, they attracted attention, with many people looking their way.

Originally, this small town frequently saw all kinds of people; it shouldn’t have been so surprising. But since Zhou Man and her group didn’t look like merchants, everyone couldn’t help but pay them more attention.

Manbao and her group curiously looked back. There were many foreigners in the capital too, not to mention the students who looked different at the Imperial Medical Office. But it was her first time seeing so many people with such distinctive features gathered together.

Since people were looking at her, she confidently looked back. Both parties found each other intriguing, so the issue of manners didn’t matter.

As she looked at people, she also glanced at the items on the stalls and discovered it was practically a large-scale barter market.

Most people were bartering goods, with only a few using silver or gold to buy things.

The stalls were mostly filled with furs and fabrics, as well as porcelain and various grains, particularly beans.

Soybeans, black beans, red beans... all sorts of beans.

After looking around, Manbao reined in her curiosity and followed Steward Li into an inn.

Steward Li said, "We arrived early. I’ve estimated the time, and if we wait one more day, they should catch up by tomorrow evening. The day after, we can head out early."

Bai Shan nodded, reminding him, "Prepare more food and water. Tomorrow, we’ll look at camels."

"Yes."

There were camels for sale in the small town, and the scale was not small. Keke liked these creatures that had no records.

Manbao also liked them because documenting them could earn her a lot of points. So, she personally selected them, and with Keke’s scanning, she could barely distinguish which ones were more robust through comparison.

Manbao, under its guidance, chose six camels. The reason for not choosing more was that Steward Li quietly mentioned that it was enough; buying more would be too costly.

Manbao stroked one of the camels and said, "We’ll sell it when we return from the Western Regions."

The shopkeeper beside them laughed and said, "Miss, if you want to sell camels later, you can come to us again. We’ll definitely offer a fair price."

Manbao asked, "Will you buy it back at the original price?"

The shopkeeper’s face stiffened slightly, and he laughed, "Of course, it would depend on its quality."

If they bought it back at the original price, where would they make their profit?

Dayu, beside them, also liked camels but lamented that the small town was poor, and his big brother was unwilling to engage in such business. It was too costly, and if they couldn’t sell them, they would serve no other purpose.

He rolled his eyes and said to Zhou Man, "You could bring them back to our small town and sell them to us."

Manbao glanced at him and said, "Can you buy them at the original price?"

Before Dayu could answer, Bai Shan said, "Let’s talk about this later. We haven’t even reached our destination, so why are we always thinking about what to do afterwards?"

The shopkeeper beside them couldn’t hold it in anymore and said, "If the camels aren’t damaged, we can definitely discuss the price."

Manbao realized something and nodded to him, saying, "Let’s discuss this when we return."