Infinite Professions from a Pearl Collector

The village wasn’t large, but its defenses were quite thorough.

Thick, rammed-earth walls encircled the entire village, making it look like a small earthen fort. Watchtowers had been built atop the walls, where several men carrying Long Spears paced back and forth, vigilantly scanning their surroundings.

The walls also bore talismans painted in red pigment. Though the brushwork was simple, they seemed to faintly exude a strange, inexplicable power.

Chen Ye knew well that in these deep, remote mountains, overrun with Demon Ghosts and wild beasts, a village couldn’t survive a single night without such protection.

The moment he drew near, the men on the watchtower immediately spotted him.

"Halt! State your business!" a sharp cry, heavy with suspicion, rang out from the wall.

Chen Ye stopped in his tracks, glanced up, and answered in a weary voice, "Don’t be alarmed, friend. I’m just a traveling peddler hoping to rest my feet in the village and see if you folks need to trade for anything."

His appearance, coupled with the creaking carrying pole on his shoulder, was certainly convincing.

The men on the wall exchanged glances, apparently conferring.

After a moment, a burly man who looked like their leader shouted down at him, "Stay right there! We’re coming down to have a look!"

Before long, the village’s wooden gate creaked open, and several men carrying choppers and Long Spears emerged cautiously, surrounding Chen Ye.

The burly man in the lead sized Chen Ye up, his gaze as sharp as a knife, as if trying to discern something from his expression.

"A peddler? Where are you from?"

"I came from Qingzhou Prefecture, heading into the mountains, selling a few trinkets to get by," Chen Ye answered truthfully.

The burly man glanced at the pole on his shoulder. It was hung with rattle-drums, needles, thread, and the like—the standard wares for a peddler.

He stepped forward and lifted the lid of Chen Ye’s wares chest. Inside were various trinkets: patterned cloth, combs, mirrors, and so on.

The burly man rummaged through the contents but found no contraband, such as weapons.

Chen Ye’s heart was in his throat, terrified they would dig all the way to the bottom. Luckily, their inspection wasn’t very thorough; they only gave the contents a cursory glance.

"Alright, it seems he’s really a peddler." The burly man nodded, the suspicion on his face finally lessening considerably. He waved to the men behind him. "Open the gate."

The others let out a collective sigh of relief. Instantly, their expressions toward Chen Ye shifted from wary to welcoming.

"Quick, come in, come in!"

"We finally have a peddler! My wife’s about to run out of needles and thread!"

Chen Ye was a bit taken aback by their sudden warmth, but he hoisted his carrying pole and followed them into the village.

Shortly after entering the village, Chen Ye was swarmed by villagers who had heard the news, their eyes all gleaming as they stared at the pole on his shoulders.

"Peddler, how much for this cloth?" a middle-aged woman asked, pushing through the crowd and pointing to a piece of red patterned fabric.

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"Young man, do you have any candy figures? I’d like one for my grandson!" said an old woman, holding a snot-nosed toddler, her face full of hope.

The children went wild, crowding around the small pinwheels and rattle-drums hanging from his pole, practically drooling.

Looking at the lively scene, Chen Ye chuckled. "Please, everyone, no need to rush. I have plenty for all. You can buy my wares with silver, or you can trade for them with mountain goods. Pelts, medicinal herbs, things like that are all fine."

The villagers were even more delighted to hear they could trade with mountain goods.

For people like them, who had long resided deep in the mountains, silver was a rarity, but the mountains were teeming with game and herbs.

Soon, the trading began.

Chen Ye’s main goal wasn’t to make a profit, so he was quite generous in his trades.

For a single wolf pelt, he would trade several feet of cloth plus a comb.

For a single herb of decent quality, he would trade a packet of needles and thread and a few sweets.

Seeing how agreeable he was, the villagers were overjoyed, thinking this young peddler was a truly decent fellow.

The trading continued until sunset. By the time it was over, Chen Ye’s wares chest was more than half empty, but in its place was a pile of valuable goods—all sorts of precious pelts and medicinal herbs.

Just then, an old man with white hair, leaning on a cane, walked over. He said to Chen Ye with a friendly smile, "Young man, it’s getting late. The mountain paths are treacherous at night. Why don’t you stay in our village for the night?"

This was exactly what Chen Ye had hoped for. He quickly nodded in agreement. "That would be wonderful."

Night fell, and wisps of smoke from cooking fires rose from the mountain village.

The hospitable villagers quickly prepared a clean room for Chen Ye. It was simple, but the bedding was fresh, smelling of sunshine.

The village chief’s family went a step further, preparing a banquet and inviting Chen Ye to join them.

The table was laden with wild game unique to the mountains: golden-brown roasted rabbit, wild boar stewed until it was falling apart, and a pot of fragrant soup simmered with some unknown variety of mushrooms. The aroma was tantalizing, enough to make anyone’s mouth water.

"Young man, don’t stand on ceremony. Make yourself at home," the village chief said, raising a coarse earthenware bowl filled with their homemade rice wine. "We don’t have much to offer, just what we get from the mountains. Please, eat your fill."

"You’re too kind, Village Chief. This is far better than what I usually eat." Chen Ye also raised his bowl, touched it against the chief’s, and drained it in one gulp.

The wine was potent, leaving a trail of fire as it went down his throat, but the aftertaste was rich and mellow.