Chapter 12. You asked him if he wanted these things replaced...

Qin Ren patted the things in front of him. "Ask him if he wants these things replaced. If he doesn't want to, then forget it. I don't have any more food on me."

It wasn't that Qin Ren didn't want to give him more food; it was just that he really didn't have that much left.

Upon hearing this, Liu Qingyue immediately looked at the middle-aged man, "We don't have any more food. Do you think we can exchange these for something else?"

The middle-aged man pointed to three of the packages and asked, "What...what are these?"

Liu Qingyue asked Qin Ren, "What are these three packages?"

The sugar, salt, and soda crackers were all removed from their original packaging by Qin Ren and are now stored in plastic bags.

When Liu Qingyue asked him this question, Qin Ren replied, "Salt, sugar, biscuits."

Liu Qingyue: "This is sugar, this is salt, and this is biscuit...?"

Both Liu Qingyue and the middle-aged man knew about sugar and salt.

I don't really know much about cookies, but since it's called a biscuit... it must be edible.

Salt prices in Nanning have always been high; it used to cost ten coins per pound.

Now that the world is in chaos, the price of salt is even higher.

They had asked in a town before, and there the government-issued salt cost thirty coins per pound.

Sugar is even more expensive now. Normally a pound of sugar costs eighty coins, but now it is estimated to be two or three times that price.

Of course, compared to salt and sugar, his Ganoderma lucidum is definitely more expensive.

However, these are chaotic times, and even the most expensive Ganoderma lucidum cannot be eaten as a staple food.

Salt and sugar are different. Salt can be used to replenish electrolytes, and not eating it for a long time will cause health problems.

Just a small bite of sugar can restore a lot of energy.

And those cookies, they look like they'll taste pretty good too.

After thinking it over, the middle-aged man decided to switch with Qin Ren.

They didn't know how long the war would last, and given their current health, food was the most important thing.

Qin Ren thought he wouldn't change it, because Ganoderma lucidum was such a precious medicinal herb, and the food he gave him wasn't much at all. But to his surprise, he still changed it.

It seems the situation here is more serious than he imagined. There's a town nearby, but the other side hasn't taken the medicinal herbs there to exchange for food.

Either there's no food left in the town, or... the town has been overrun by rioters.

Just like the town Qin Ren and Liu Qingyue had seen, there were hardly any locals left. Many of the houses were empty, and their contents had been moved out.

After the uncle left with his things, Qin Ren packed up and continued on his way with Liu Qingyue.

Because the injury on the sole of his foot was bandaged, Liu Qingyue didn't feel much pain when walking. However, he couldn't walk continuously; he had to rest for a while after walking for a period of time.

Qin Ren felt this wouldn't do; they were moving too slowly.

It's already past four in the afternoon, and they have to leave before dark. They're walking slowly like this, and they don't know when they'll find the door.

Qin Ren looked at Liu Qingyue and said, "Come here, I'll carry you on my back."

Liu Qingyue was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, and then quickly waved her hand.

"No need, no need, I can skip the rest."

"It's alright, come on up. We need to find a way back to my place before dark."

Liu Qingyue had an injury on her foot and was not suited for long-distance travel.

Also, Qin Ren had given all his food to the father and son, so it wasn't convenient for them to stay there any longer.

Qin Ren needed to go back to convert the gold and herbs he had into cash, and also to go to town to buy more food.

After hesitating for a while, Liu Qingyue blushed and climbed onto Qin Ren's back.

Qin Ren's back was broader and stronger than he had imagined, and he suddenly felt very safe lying on it.

Strangely enough, although he hadn't known Qin Ren for very long, he trusted Qin Ren implicitly.

Qin Ren gave him the impression of being someone who looked fierce and scary, but was actually very kind and patient.

Such people don't make a good first impression, but the more you get to know them, the more you trust them.

In order to carry him, Qin Ren had to hang his backpack in front of him.

And so, with a person on his back and a backpack hanging in front of him, he walked forward quickly.

After walking for almost an hour, Qin Ren finally found a post station.

Before entering the post station, Qin Ren made a point of looking back to make sure no one was around before the two of them entered together.

They entered through the gate inside the post station, and Qin Ren was already very tired by then.

Liu Qingyue is very light, probably only about 80 pounds. Qin Ren is so tired carrying her, mainly because he hasn't fully recovered from the car accident.

The two returned to the basement through the passage, one after the other. Qin Ren rested on the thief's small bed for a while before carrying his backpack out of the basement.

Seeing this, Liu Qingyue felt a little embarrassed, knowing that Qin Ren must be exhausted from carrying him.

He remembered how good Qin Ren had been to him, and he would give Qin Ren lots and lots of gold when they found his father and mother.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Qin Ren went to the kitchen after coming out of the basement.

He's very tired right now and doesn't really want to cook.

But considering they only ate some instant noodles for lunch, it wouldn't be good for their health if they didn't eat dinner either.

With that in mind, Qin Ren still mustered his energy and cooked six poached eggs.

He ate four himself, the little thief ate two, and then ate some other things, and that was how he finished his dinner.

When Qin Ren brought the fried eggs over, Liu Qingyue was smelling her own scent.

Seeing Qin Ren approach, he frowned and asked, "Can I take a shower?"

Qin Ren nodded upon hearing this, "Tomorrow, it'll be warmer during the day, then you can take a shower."

Actually, she can take a bath now, but Liu Qingyue doesn't know how to use modern things, so Qin Ren will have to accompany her.

Qin Ren was really tired, which is why he coaxed him and told him to take a shower tomorrow.

Actually, you don't need to shower so frequently in winter.

In central or northern regions, winters are still quite cold.

In the south, the weather is hot, and when it's hot, you sweat easily, so you do need to wash frequently.

But for people like Qin Ren, in winter, let alone sweating, it's a miracle if they don't shiver from the cold.

In this kind of weather, without sweating and with layers upon layers of clothing, it's impossible to be very dirty.

Liu Qingyue knew that things were different now than before; many disaster victims in their area couldn't even get enough to eat, so he shouldn't worry about such trivial matters. Besides, Qin Ren wasn't forbidding him from washing, he was just asking him to wait a day, so he happily agreed.

Liu Qingyue: "Okay, then I'll trouble you, brother."

Qin Ren: "No trouble at all."

After returning to his bedroom, Qin Ren did not rest immediately.

He called Chen Yangxuan and asked him to come over the next morning.

He wants to sell the gold, so he needs to find a way through Chen Yangxuan.

If you take gold without a certificate to the city to sell, the price will be driven down very low.

Chen Yangxuan's family was in the business of reselling goods. They used to frequently go to the villages below to resell things, so he naturally got to know many wealthy bosses.

Qin Ren wanted him to help sell the gold, since there wasn't much of it, and it wouldn't matter if it passed through Chen Yangxuan's hands.

Qin Ren had already decided that he would say the gold belonged to his grandmother.

Because Grandma passed away early and Grandpa got old, they forgot about the gold.

Qin Ren discovered the gold because he found it in his grandmother's cupboard while tidying up.

Fortunately, the gold wasn't very pure, so no one would doubt that it was something from when Grandma was young.

Qin Ren specifically chose to sell the gold through Chen Yangxuan, not only because he trusted him, but also for another important reason.

That is, Qin Ren wanted the villagers to know that he had found his grandmother's gold and exchanged it for tens of thousands of yuan, so he was not short of money for the time being while recuperating in his hometown.

So he stays at home for long periods of time without working, and no one thinks there's anything wrong with what he's doing.

At the same time, it will save other uncles and elders from worrying about him and coming over to bring him things from time to time.

They come over frequently, and Qin Ren isn't home, which arouses suspicion.

...

The next morning, Chen Yangxuan came over happily.

As soon as he entered the door, he said to Qin Ren, "Your grandma is the best. She left you such a large sum of gold. You'll be able to live a more comfortable life from now on."

Qin Ren: "Not much, just a few gold beans and a pair of earrings."

When Chen Yangxuan saw the gold, he said, "It's not much, but it's better than nothing. With the price of gold so high these days, this should be enough for eighty or ninety thousand."

Qin Ren: "These don't have certificates, and their purity isn't high. Will asking you to help sell them cause you trouble?"

"No, no, I've helped a few old ladies sell gold bracelets and necklaces before. As long as the items aren't stolen or robbed, there won't be any problems."

"That's good."

The gold in Qin Ren's hand was neither stolen nor robbed; it was an escort fee given to him by Liu Qingyue.

Their arrival was perfectly legitimate, and there was absolutely no way there could be any problems.

Chen Yangxuan knew that Qin Ren was short of money, so he took the gold and left immediately.

As he left, he said to Qin Ren, "It will probably take four or five days. I'll transfer the money to you then."

"I'm not in a hurry, you go ahead and do your work."

"Okay."

After Chen Yangxuan left, Qin Ren locked the door from the inside and blocked the gaps in the door with clutter before going to the basement to call Liu Qingyue out.

Liu Qingyue followed Qin Ren out and entered the room next to the main hall.

The bathroom and toilet in Qin Ren's house are separate.

Qin Ren's family used to have a dry toilet, but after Qin Ren started working and became wealthy, he replaced it with a modern toilet.

The toilet and bathroom should have been placed together, but Grandpa Qin Ren felt that a bath is for bathing and a toilet is for using the toilet, and the two places should not be in the same room.

He felt that no matter how clean the toilet was, it would still be dirty and smelly inside. Qin Ren thought that this place was mainly for the old man to live in, so he did it according to his wishes.

A note from the author:

----------------------