Quick Transmigration: Why did you provoke him? He's love-struck!

Chapter 299 Towards the Golden Palace (3)

Yan Zhen stayed at the inn for two days, and through chatting with the innkeeper and merchants from all over the country, he gained a basic understanding of the world.

The country is called "Ji Kingdom". Its capital is in the north, while the town where she lives is in the south, under the jurisdiction of Ningzhou, and is a thousand miles away from the capital.

Having gained a preliminary understanding, Yan Zhen began to make the next plan.

She planned to leave Ningzhou and head to Yinzhou in the central region of Ji State.

Firstly, being far away from Ningzhou would prevent Xie Zhao from finding them.

Secondly, Yinzhou is a prosperous and warm prefecture with convenient transportation and abundant resources.

If you want to accumulate enough capital to rival Xie Zhao in a short period of time, there is only one way—to do business.

Although merchants had a low social status in the state of Ji, money could still make the devil turn the millstone.

With enough money, there are countless things you can do.

With a clear goal in mind, Yan Zhen began to take action.

She spent five taels of silver to smooth things over and hired a guarantor to vouch for her, successfully obtaining the travel permit.

Her name on the travel permit was changed to "Cao He".

Yan Zhen not only changed his name to male, but also bought two sets of men's clothing, dressing himself up as a man from head to toe.

In this era, few people travel far from home, and even fewer women do.

Although this body has an ordinary appearance, as a woman, the dangers she encounters when going out are multiplied, unlike the convenience of being a man.

The original owner was already tall and muscular, with dark and rough skin. When he changed into men's clothing and tied up his hair, he looked perfectly natural.

Yan Zhen, using the identity of "Cao He," set off on horseback.

The journey from Ningzhou to Yinzhou is over 700 li. On the second day after Yan Zhen set off, he witnessed a robbery by mountain bandits.

The family that was robbed was a merchant family that had moved away. The bandits stole their gold and silver, and the entire family, including their maids and servants, more than twenty people in total, were killed.

Realizing that the world was far more dangerous than he had imagined, Yan Zhen became more vigilant and on the fourth day, he caught up with a large caravan escorted by a security escort agency.

The caravan leader was a tall, strong man in his mid-twenties, accompanied by a beautiful young woman in her late teens.

Yan Zhen observed for half a day and concluded that the woman seemed to be the man's younger sister. The man protected her very well, and even when the caravan stopped to rest, he did not allow anyone else to get close to her.

Realizing that the man doted on his sister, Yan Zhen deliberately approached him, fabricating a reason that "his younger sister had gone to Yinzhou with her husband to do business, and wrote that her husband often beat her, so he was going to Yinzhou to stand up for his sister." This quickly won the man's favor.

The man's name was Jiang Ming, and Yan Zhen was eloquent and always spoke to Jiang Ming's heart. In less than half a day, the two became sworn brothers.

Jiang Ming was also going to Yinzhou on this trip, and happily invited Yan Zhen to accompany him.

They traveled with the caravan, stopping frequently along the way, and encountered two groups of bandits, both of whom were driven away by the escort agency.

After traveling for another six or seven days, Yan Zhen arrived in Yinzhou without incident.

After having my travel permit checked at the city gate, I entered the city. The streets were wide and clean, with tall buildings on both sides. The street vendors were selling a wide variety of goods, and the prosperous and wealthy atmosphere of the great state was palpable.

Yan Zhen bid farewell to Jiang Ming.

After spending a few days together, Jiang Ming felt a deep sense of kinship with this "Brother Cao." When he learned that she was leaving, Jiang Ming was very reluctant to part with her. They exchanged hometown addresses and agreed to correspond in the future.

Yan Zhen casually left him a fake address that didn't exist.

In this era without telephones or WeChat, amidst the vast sea of ​​people, the chances of seeing each other again after today's parting are almost zero.

After saying goodbye to Jiang Ming, Yan Zhen wandered around most of the city before finding an inn to stay at.

She plans to rent a courtyard house in the city.

But she was new to the area and unfamiliar with the people and place. Renting a house in this era was not as convenient as it is now. In order to avoid being ripped off and wasting time, she decided to find a house through a "broker".

Yan Zhen expressed his intention to rent a room to the innkeeper, and the next day, the Ya people came to his door.

This ancient-style real estate agent was a young man in his early twenties who enthusiastically introduced Yan Zhen to several courtyards with high rents, all of which she rejected.

Yan Zhen laid out her conditions directly—she didn't have a big budget, and she didn't care if the house was old, small, or in a remote location, as long as it was habitable.

After hearing this, the broker's attitude instantly cooled down. Fortunately, his professionalism was still good, and he recommended a house to Yan Zhen that met her requirements, but checking in would require courage.

The house was in the most bustling southern part of the city, in a great location and with a large area, but someone had died there.

The homeowner was a cloth merchant. His whole family lived here peacefully until his unmarried daughter was raped by some hooligans when she went out. After returning home, she hanged herself.

The homeowner was heartbroken after losing his beloved daughter. Before moving out, he wanted to sell the house, but because it was a haunted house, he couldn't sell it no matter how much he lowered the price. He had no choice but to list the house for rent through a real estate agent.

Two years ago, some newcomers rented the house because of its low price, but the sound of a baby crying at night scared them so much that they didn't even want their deposit back and moved out overnight.

The story of the house being haunted spread like wildfire, and now no one dares to ask anymore.

After listening, Yan Zhen waved his hand and said, "Come on, take me to see."

When Yan Zhen arrived in the south of the city with the broker, he immediately took a liking to this courtyard house.

The location is excellent, with good lighting, ventilation, and orientation. There are several osmanthus trees and a well in the yard.

It had been two years since anyone had lived there, so the yard was overgrown with weeds and the furniture inside was covered with a thick layer of dust.

Yan Zhen walked around the various rooms and asked, "How much is the rent for this house?"

The broker held out a hand: "Only five hundred coins."

"Three hundred coins, I'll rent it."

The broker shook his head: "Three hundred coins won't do. If no one has died here, the monthly rent for this house would be at least five taels of silver."

“But people have died here, and it’s haunted.” Yan Zhen said with a smile, “If you rent it to me, the landlord will not only receive three hundred coins a month, but also have someone look after the house for him. If you don’t rent it to me, this house is not even worth three hundred coins.”

The man frowned.

Yan Zhen patted his shoulder and coaxed him gently: "A house only has life when people live in it. I'm strong and healthy with plenty of yang energy. Maybe if I stay here long enough, I can drive away the vengeful spirits in the house and dispel the rumors of it being haunted. Once I move out, you can rent it to someone else for five taels of silver. Isn't that a sure thing?"

The broker weighed the options and agreed: "Alright, come with me to sign the contract."

When signing the rental contract, Yan Zhen, who was illiterate, copied the strokes of "Cao He" on the road sign and copied them onto the contract.

After paying, Yan Zhen bought cleaning tools and rolled up his sleeves to start clearing the weeds in the yard.

Having worked in the fields for so many years, the original owner was quick and agile, and her strong body seemed to have inexhaustible strength. In less than an hour, Yan Zhen cleaned the huge courtyard spotless.

Having lived for over a decade in the last century with a sickly body, Yan Zhen sincerely felt that a healthy body was more important than a beautiful appearance.