Will's sister came out.
"Oh, it's oak! I heard you've been managing a farm lately, doing a great job!"
"No, no, it's all thanks to the Lord's kindness." Oak didn't dare to speak casually and could only offer a perfunctory reply.
"Oak, you don't come here often! It's been over two years, this is your first time here! Is something good happening?"
"No, no, I didn't dare to bother you before, but I really have no choice today. I'd like to buy a few of those tree root stools you have." Oak pointed to the tree roots in the yard.
When Sister Will heard that Oak wanted to buy a tree root stool, her expression changed immediately. After all, anyone would be happy if someone offered to give them copper dragon coins.
"Oak, you're so close by, why are you bothering us? Look how far it is from Xia Taoyuan Village to here! Come in and have a drink of water. What are you doing standing outside?" With that, she pulled Oak into the house.
Upon entering the house, Oak saw Will learning to read at the long table. He was incredibly envious, firstly of the beautiful long table in the hall, and secondly of the paper Will was studying.
After we sat down, Will's sister brought us a glass of boiled, cooled water. It was one of those old-fashioned wooden cups, the kind used in castles, but those cups are no longer available.
The department store that used to sell everything still had some, but it's no longer available. It's probably because the castle made a lot of those and sold some. Wood is very valuable now, so they don't use wood to make cups anymore.
Oak held the exquisite cup, a touch of envy rising in his heart. He always seemed a step behind others in everything he did, and now he couldn't help but reflect that perhaps he really wasn't active enough.
If Miss Adelaide went to his house, there was nothing to drink, and she would feel rather embarrassed to take his broken bowl.
"Oak, what brings you to our house today?" Will put down his quill and looked up at Oak from across the long table.
"Well, I was looking to buy a few tree root stools, and I happened to hear that you had some, so I came right away." Oak looked at the quill pen and paper on the table.
"Oh, Oak, you'll need to talk to my sister about that."
Oak withdrew his gaze. He didn't talk about the stool, but instead thought about learning to read: quill pens were easy to find, ink could be bought at the All-in-One Department Store, but paper was a problem. The All-in-One Department Store only had the kind of paper that the people in the territory used to wipe their butts, and that paper was really good for wiping their butts.
That was a real treat. Now, that kind of paper is often out of stock; it sells out as soon as it appears. I also bought some oak paper for home use, but while it's great for wiping your bottom, it's terrible for writing. Ink gets stained everywhere.
The kind of paper Will uses is good for writing, but only the lord has it. The lord will distribute some to those who need it. Since he can't read, the lord has already categorized him as one of the people who don't need it.
"Oak, oak, oak, didn't you want to buy a tree root stool?" Sister Will called Oak several times, but Oak seemed not to hear her.
"Ah! Yes, yes, I was just thinking about something. How much are your tree root stools?" Oak quickly asked, snapping out of his thoughts.
"Oak, we're from the same village. You know how difficult it is to dig up these tree root stools. After digging them up, they need to be trimmed. The knife I just bought broke. How about this? I'll give you sixty copper dragon coins each. What do you think?"
What do you think? I think it's not good; it's too expensive.
But Oakwood certainly wouldn't say, "It's a bit expensive. Can you lower the price? I know digging this is hard work, but I don't earn many copper dragon coins a day. I can't even afford a stool. And I need to buy at least four. Do you think the price can be reduced a bit?"
"Oak, it's not that I'm not giving you less, it's just that it's too much trouble. Here's what I'll do: fifty-five copper dragon coins, I'll deliver them to your house."
Will's sister really went all out; sending such a big guy over was still a bit of a hassle. Ox carts weren't allowed in the village; they had to be pushed there by manpower.
"Alright then! That's settled then, I'll wait at home." Oak wasn't much of a bargainer.
Will's sister beamed with joy.
"Don't worry, you can just wait at home."