Chapter 32: Good Fortune Comes

In the past, her family used to say that in the blink of an eye, a child could disappear.

Jiang Dai didn’t believe it then, thinking it was an exaggeration.

Now, she no longer thinks it’s an exaggeration.

Just moments ago, the physician was inside treating her feverish second child with acupuncture, while she waited outside with her third child.

Then, she felt someone bump into her, and the child in her arms was gone.

She went outside to search, but after a quick look around, she couldn’t find him. When she returned to check on the physician treating her second child, he was gone too.

“After I finished the acupuncture, the child just ran off,” the old physician said, already attending to the next patient.

He didn’t seem too concerned about the child running off.

“The child isn’t foolish. He seemed quite clever to me. He can find his way home,” the physician reassured her. “You’re just worried sick. What, are you going to tie a rope to your children to keep them close?”

A child waiting nearby chimed in, “I saw it just now!”

The old physician asked, “Saw what?”

The child replied, “I saw an adult leading a child on a leash, like walking a dog.”

If it were any other time, Jiang Dai would have laughed at such a comment. It’s one of the joys of modern parents: teasing their kids!

But now, Jiang Dai only felt immense regret for not keeping her second and third children close.

Jiang Dai pleaded with the old physician, “If the child comes back, could you keep him here for me?”

“Alright, alright, don’t worry,” the physician replied.

Jiang Dai was truly panicked and anxious.

After getting the physician’s response, she turned and ran outside to search for her two children.

As someone from the Modern Era, she was genuinely afraid of her children being abducted. Perhaps in the eyes of these ancient people, children running around freely was normal.

But in Jiang Dai’s time, children never left their parents’ sight.

Moreover, Jiang Dai was not very old in her original world and had come to this unfamiliar world without any memories.

Jiang Dai couldn’t understand why she suddenly felt a flood of grievances welling up inside her.

Why did she have to transmigrate?

She couldn’t practice medicine, couldn’t cook, couldn’t farm, and didn’t even have a Dimensional Space.

In the bustling street, Jiang Dai stood alone in the center, watching the people pass by, feeling out of place, like a child lost and forgotten by the river of time.

“Mother!”

A clear, childish voice cut through the crowd, like a shooting star across a dark sky, lighting up her eyes.

The young girl rushed over but didn’t hug her. Instead, she tugged at her clothes with a sense of boundaries.

Jiang Dai looked down at the little girl by her side and saw Bai Tian waving at her from a short distance away.

And there was her eldest son, with a stern face, glaring at the rope as if it were his enemy.

Jiang Dai couldn’t hold it in any longer, and tears began to flow.

“Mother, don’t cry, don’t cry!” Juanjuan stood on tiptoe, trying to console her mother but didn’t know how.

She turned to her father for help, “Father, Mother is crying.”

The little child was anxious and flustered, looking as if she might start crying along with her mother.

【Why is everyone crying! Oh my, oh my! How do I comfort them!】 Bai Tian was in a panic. He had never comforted anyone before!

And now there were two crying, one big and one small, and both were girls. How was he supposed to comfort them?

In his haste, he couldn’t help but run over.

Bai Yunqi, who was tied to a rope, wasn’t paying attention, and with his father’s sudden start, he stumbled and almost took off.

“It’s alright, Father is here.” Bai Tian patted the little girl’s head, first calming the child.

Then he looked at Jiang Dai and lowered his voice, “What’s wrong? Is there something bothering you? Tell me.”

Jiang Dai sobbed, “Da Mao and Er Mao are missing…”

Bai Tian thought: 【Damn! Those two kids…】

Juanjuan: The brothers have run off again.

Bai Yunqi looked down at the rope tied around his waist, “I told you, only tying me up would lead to problems.”

But no one paid him any attention.

“The second one was getting acupuncture, so I waited outside with the third one. Suddenly, someone bumped into me, and I felt the third one’s hand slip from mine. I turned to look, and he was gone.”

“Then I searched outside but couldn’t find him, so I quickly went to look for the second one, but he was gone too.”

Bai Tian took a deep breath.

He really hadn’t expected the seemingly honest second and third children to cause such trouble.

“You said… they’re usually so obedient and not in good health. They wouldn’t run off on their own. Could it be that someone abducted them…”

Bai Yunqi: …

【So, when I run off, it’s because I’m mischievous, but when those two run off, it’s because of abductors???】

【This mother really doesn’t know the mischievous nature hidden beneath her two sons’ honest appearances!】

Juanjuan nodded silently. She didn’t dare say she heard her brothers’ inner thoughts.

But her mother was crying.

“Mother, maybe the brothers went to find some silver! We’ve changed our names, and the Immortal will bless us!”

This was the best Juanjuan could come up with after racking her brains.

“Yes, yes, don’t cry, don’t cry. Let’s go find the kids. You don’t remember the past, but those two were quite the troublemakers before!”

Bai Tian wiped Jiang Dai’s tears and quickly started looking for the children.

Meanwhile, he tightened his grip on the rope he was holding.

Bai Yunqi, being pulled around: …

When will this ever end!

Shiwei Restaurant

The shopkeeper looked at the small, shabbily dressed boy in front of him and kindly asked, “Child, have you lost your parents? Or are you here to buy some food?”

Bai Yunan glanced at the polite shopkeeper before him. He found this place much more agreeable than that Zhenxiu Restaurant from earlier. He had been kicked out as soon as he stepped into Zhenxiu Restaurant.

“My family has a secret seasoning. Sprinkle it on the meat before roasting, and the aroma is irresistible. Just one bite and you’ll be hooked,” Bai Yunan said, taking out a small paper packet containing a bit of BBQ Powder and handing it to the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper looked at the small packet in his palm and the tiny amount of powder, then back at the boy. He didn’t underestimate the child, knowing that an ordinary kid wouldn’t dare to cause trouble at Shiwei Restaurant.

“Alright, let me have a look.”

The shopkeeper first lowered his head to sniff the powder, immediately feeling a peculiar yet intoxicating sensation in his nose. His eyes lit up as he pinched a bit of the powder and tasted it. Instantly, he understood the boy wasn’t exaggerating. The powder had a salty flavor with a hint of sweetness, incredibly savory, and the small granules inside offered a unique taste when bitten into.

Seeing the shopkeeper’s amazed expression, Bai Yunan knew it was time to speak up. “Tasting it like this doesn’t do it justice. If you have meat, sprinkle this on just before it’s done roasting. That’s when it’s truly delicious!”

“Alright, young friend, come with me!”

Following the shopkeeper to the kitchen, Bai Yunan guided the cook to sprinkle the BBQ Powder on the meat. The shopkeeper quickly tasted it and found it to be the best roasted meat he had ever eaten. It was far superior to just using salt, even better than the peppered roast he had tasted in Capital City!

“How much of this powder do you have, young friend?”

“Not much, only two liang,” Bai Yunan said, taking out another paper packet and opening it in front of the shopkeeper. “This seasoning is a family secret, made by gathering rare plants from the mountains in all four seasons and mixing them. It takes a lot of time.”

In truth, it was just a 100-gram packet of barbecue seasoning from his Dimensional Space. He could only afford to take out one packet at a time.

“Indeed, such a delicious and magical seasoning should be rare.”

The shopkeeper looked at the child before him. “Could you sell all two liang to us?”

Bai Yunan nodded. “Sure! How much are you offering?”

The shopkeeper tentatively offered, “I’ll give you a fair price, not taking advantage of your youth. How about four hundred wen?”

Bai Yunan didn’t have much concept of money; who needed money in the Apocalypse? But he knew he could push the price higher. Without speaking, he started to put the packet away and turned to leave.

The shopkeeper quickly said, “Four hundred and fifty wen!”

Bai Yunan stopped and looked back at the shopkeeper. “My mother said if I don’t sell it for One Tael of Silver, I shouldn’t go home. Shopkeeper, do you think I can go home?”

Shopkeeper: …

Such a refreshingly unique way to raise the price.

“Alright, alright, one tael it is. Then… if you have more in the future, could you sell it to us again? As for Zhenxiu Restaurant…”

Bai Yunan chuckled, “Sure!” He didn’t mention that he had been to Zhenxiu Restaurant and was kicked out.

“You are straightforward, young friend!”

Bai Yunan accepted the One Tael of Silver and turned to leave. He needed to hurry back, unsure when his Second Brother would finish his acupuncture. Hopefully, with his Second Brother keeping their mother occupied, she wouldn’t notice his absence.

As for how he got the One Tael of Silver, Bai Yunan had already thought of a plan. He would just say he found it! After all, he had just changed his name recently; he could claim it was a stroke of good luck.