Chapter 9 Another Astonishment​​

"How should I address you, Elder Sister?"

"My surname is Qin, given name is also Qíng, like the 'qíng' in 'qíngtiān' (clear sky/sunny day)." Qin Qing remained seated on her scooter, looking up at the girl who called herself Sānniáng. Seeing her inquisitive look, Qin Qing was puzzled. "What is it?"

"What is your birth order in your family?" Sānniáng asked.

"My parents only had me. You can call me Qíngqíng. My friends and elders call me that," Qin Qing smiled. "And you? What's your name? Your given name, I mean."

"Everyone calls me Sānniáng." Sānniáng blushed slightly, murmuring the words and not elaborating further.

Seeing her reluctance, Qin Qing didn't press. She patted the scooter's rear seat. "Want a ride? I'll take you for a spin."

"Hmm?" Sānniáng looked at the strange seat, curious. "How?"

"Sit down and you'll see," Qin Qing chuckled, gripping the handlebars. Watching Sānniáng cautiously sit down behind her, she called out to the steward, "I'm taking your Young Mistress for a short ride. We'll be right back. Don't worry."

With that, she started the scooter.

The girl behind her lurched, almost falling off. Qin Qing immediately called out, "Hold on tight!"

Sānniáng instantly wrapped her arms around Qin Qing's waist.

The scooter zipped forward. The guards surrounding them instinctively drew their swords, but Steward Liu raised a hand, stopping them.

"Steward Liu, the Young Mistress is in danger!"

Steward Liu frowned, watching the two figures speed away. "With such skills, if she truly meant harm, you couldn't stop her. Don't provoke her. Avoid unnecessary trouble."

The vehicle sped forward, quickly disappearing around a bend. But before the onlookers could grow overly concerned, they saw the figures reappear from around the bend. Soon, the scooter was clearly in view again.

"So amazing! Faster than a carriage!"

"I'll take you for another spin," Qin Qing said. She turned the scooter right in front of everyone and rode off again with the girl. This time, she went a bit further before returning shortly after.

Watching the guards sheathe their swords somewhat sheepishly, Qin Qing couldn't help but smile.

Back at the carriage, Sānniáng jumped off the scooter, noticeably more animated than before. She looked at Qin Qing excitedly. "Where are you from? I've never met anyone like you, nor seen such a strange carriage."

"Let's just say I'm not from around here," Qin Qing leaned against the scooter, observing this genuine child of antiquity. "Where are you all heading?"

"I am going to be wed," Sānniáng lowered her head. "My father arranged a match. The other family is wealthy and powerful. Marrying there will protect me and safeguard my parents."

Qin Qing straightened up. "How old are you?"

"I'm already seventeen. My mother treats me well; she let me stay home a few extra years," Sānniáng replied quietly, then looked up at Qin Qing, a smile reaching her eyes. "Meeting you today is wonderful. In all my life, I've never met someone as special as you."

Qin Qing glanced at Sānniáng, then at the tense group watching her, and knew she couldn't change this outcome. Especially since Sānniáng had said the marriage would protect her parents.

She instinctively wanted to give Sānniáng something. But the thought had barely formed when a prompt flashed before her eyes.

Apart from goods confirmed by the vending machine, she couldn't trade anything else to the locals. The boiled water she'd offered before was an exception; strictly speaking, it wasn't a tradable commodity.

"This is for you," Sānniáng handed Qin Qing a hairpin. "I hope we may meet again."

It was a hairpin crafted entirely of gold. Gold was valuable currency in any era; such a pin was undoubtedly expensive.

Qin Qing held the golden hairpin in her left hand and grasped Sānniáng's hand with her right, speaking softly, for Sānniáng alone to hear: "Then I give you a promise. If you ever need help in the future, you can find me in the Sunset Woods anytime."

"Sunset Woods," Sānniáng murmured softly, gripping Qin Qing's hand tightly in return. "If I ever have the chance, I will come find you."

...

Qin Qing watched Sānniáng climb back into the carriage and depart.

After waving goodbye, Qin Qing couldn't help but feel a pang. At the same age, Sānniáng would probably be a high school senior in the modern world, where dating might be considered "puppy love."

But even in the modern world, girls that age could have children. At least in Sānniáng's heart, this marriage offered protection for herself and her parents, which counted as something positive.

Encountering this dampened Qin Qing's desire to explore. She rode her scooter a little way down the road after the carriage had moved off.

On one side, an ancient carriage; on the other, a modern electric scooter. Both vehicles, yet worlds apart.

Qin Qing stored the scooter away and mentally confirmed "Return to Store."

In the next second, she vanished from the equally ancient road, as if she had never been there.

Simultaneously, the carriage that had traveled some distance came to a halt.

"Sister Qíngqíng..." Sānniáng jumped down from the carriage, only to find the road empty and silent.

"Young Mistress, she might not have been human." Steward Liu also stared at the deserted road, a flicker of shock passing through his eyes. Only moments had passed, yet the person had vanished. No one could believe someone like that was ordinary.

"I wanted to tell her my name," Sānniáng murmured, filled with disappointment. "I wanted to tell her that though everyone calls me Sānniáng, I do have a name. My name is Qīngwǎn..."

"Young Mistress, we must depart. We cannot delay." Steward Liu's face hardened.

Sānniáng nodded and turned back into the carriage.

Outside, Steward Liu could be heard reprimanding the guards. Like Sānniáng, they were stunned by the sudden disappearance of a living person.

Soon, the carriage set off again.

Qīngwǎn lifted the carriage curtain, leaned against the window frame, and gazed back at the empty road. Only when the road was completely out of sight did she finally withdraw her gaze.

Leaning back in the carriage, Qīngwǎn closed her eyes.

Not long before, for the first time, she had felt what it meant for the wind to be... free.

...

"Celestial Master!"

Qin Qing's sudden appearance startled the person exchanging goods at the vending machine. The stone in their hand clattered to the ground.

"It's fine, carry on," Qin Qing walked closer. "Ask if you have any trouble. Don't be afraid."

"None, Master. This thing is very easy to use. Thank you, Celestial Master." The person bent down, picked up the stone with trembling hands, placed the white stone into the small slot, and quickly received a packet of instant noodles.

Qin Qing glanced at the transaction info on the vending machine. "You've been saving stones?"

"Yes," the person replied timidly, voice shaking. "The Celestial Master said goods exchanged could spoil... we... we didn't exchange all of them. If the Celestial Master has need, all the stones are yours."

"That's not what I meant. I wasn't clear before. Let me set up a public account for you," Qin Qing said, navigating the vending machine's interface. Soon, a public account was created. "You all eat together now, so you don't need individual accounts. Use this one public account. Go bring all the stones over."

The person didn't question it at all, immediately nodding and running off to fetch the stones.

Moments later, not only were the stones brought back, but a whole group followed. They showed no objection to Qin Qing taking the stones; their expressions were willing.

Qin Qing didn't elaborate. She beckoned them closer. "This is the public account. Place the stones here."

She finished speaking, and all the stones were dumped into the intake bin.

"Ten stones total. Fifty dollars," Qin Qing announced, then suddenly realized something, looking up. "Do you all recognize numbers?"

Unsurprisingly, everyone shook their heads.

One elderly man stepped forward, bowing respectfully. "Celestial Master, this humble one is literate. But the characters on this celestial device are exceptionally unusual. I truly cannot recognize them."

"That's simple. Come here," Qin Qing beckoned him forward. Once he was close, she tapped a button on the machine's top right corner. "This is the font conversion. You use traditional characters? Tap this... See? Recognize it now?"

The old man peered at the screen and immediately nodded, delighted. "I recognize it!"

"Good. Study this. Familiarize yourself. Though Arabic numerals are simpler to learn. Tap here to switch. Compare and learn," Qin Qing didn't teach in detail; those literate in ancient times were generally intelligent and could figure it out. She moved to the vending section. "Same here. Tap 'Public Account'. The balance is shown. Fifty dollars remain. For now, you can use it this way. Operate via the public account. Understand?"

"Understood! Many thanks for the Celestial Master's guidance." The old man bowed deeply again.

"Good," Qin Qing withdrew her hand and let everyone practice using the machine before speaking again. "The balance in this account is visible to you all. Any of you can come exchange for instant noodles using this account. Later, when you start eating separately, each person can open their own account. But the machine will take a photo each time instant noodles are dispensed, so you know who took it."

Saying this, she tapped to open the transaction log. A row of photos immediately appeared.

Strangely, however, nearly every photo captured an awkward or anxious expression, likely due to the nervousness and caution people felt facing the strange machine.

The photos appeared, and everyone gathered around the vending machine instinctively stepped back.

Before Qin Qing could react, they had all knelt down.

"Celestial Master!"

Qin Qing: "..."

Perhaps showing the photos wasn't necessary. Given their current situation, they wouldn't dare sneak extra noodles even if given a hundred chances.

"Do you all know how to use it now?"

"Yes."

"We understand."

"Many thanks, Celestial Master! Your great virtue and kindness... We shall serve you like oxen and horses to repay your grace!"

"That really isn't necessary," Qin Qing felt awkward seeing them prostrate. She rubbed her nose. "I have matters to attend to. Carry on and live well."

With that, she immediately turned and retreated into her supermarket.