"Don't we have a policy for Chocobos? First-time settlers can get preferential food purchases. I thought I'd save some time and give you a certificate first. I'm currently out of the gum shells produced in the shelter, so you can use this white paper first. Keep it safe, as it's very troublesome to get a replacement. Come back here to exchange it after the Sun Moon is over."
Ningxia naturally thanked him profusely, and agreed with Song Minghua to leave the day after tomorrow before turning back to the trading point.
"Sister, do you have someone up there? You got it here in the blink of an eye." Xiao Zhang was so surprised that he couldn't close his mouth. Originally, he thought these people were smelly and had no background. He relied on his good professional ethics to work, but he didn't expect that the real people were secretive.
Ningxia didn't want to say more, and Xiao Zhang also tactfully shut up.
“What’s the current exchange rate?”
"That depends on what you exchange it for."
"cigarette."
Xiao Zhang was a little surprised when she heard that, and immediately explained, "We don't accept leaf tobacco, only tobacco before the buds. We also have grades, but not as detailed as before. We only have mid-range, high-range, and low-range. What kind of cigarettes are you holding?"
Ningxia handed over the half-opened pack of cigarettes she had bought salt with. Xiao Chen took it and examined it carefully to make sure it wasn't damp. Then she said to Ningxia confidently, "Sister, these are high-end cigarettes. The grains you can exchange them for now include wheat, wheat flour, corn, potatoes, and sorghum. The exchange rates are different for each. Let's see which one you want to exchange for."
"What is the exchange rate between wheat and wheat flour?" Ningxia was a little nervous as she only had four and a half bags left.
"One stick of your high-end cigarette can be exchanged for 1 kilogram of shelled wheat and 1.5 kilograms of shelled wheat. If it is ground wheat flour, it will be 0.8 kilograms of wheat flour. But since this is your first time settling in Chocobo, there is a 50% discount, which means you can exchange it for 2 kilograms of wheat and 1.6 kilograms of wheat flour." Xiao Zhang found a large booklet and quickly gave the answer.
"What about potatoes and corn?"
"One cigarette can be exchanged for 3 kilograms of potatoes, so half the price is 6 kilograms. One cigarette can be exchanged for 2.5 kilograms of corn, so half the price is 5 kilograms. If you want to grind it into flour, the price is another matter."
Ningxia frowned, "Is the price difference so big?"
Xiao Zhang smiled good-naturedly, "The production volume is different. Sister, I suggest you exchange all the supplies you can. There will be no discounts after the first purchase."
Ningxia stood there with her mind racing. It was early July now, and there was still at least a year between the next spring planting and harvest. This meant she would have to endure a whole month of scorching sun and snowy weather with her two children before she could harvest the crops, not to mention whether she could have a good harvest.
Even if they pick wild vegetables to eat, each person needs to prepare at least 15 kilograms of food per month. For three people, that's 540 kilograms of food per year. Even if the consumption in Lieyangyue is not large, 500 kilograms is still needed.
Four and a half packs of cigarettes only had about ninety cigarettes. Ningxia pondered over this and took out a dried fish from her bag and handed it over. "What's the exchange rate for this?"
Xiao Zhang took it and examined it. "It's a good thing, but sister, it's not worth exchanging it for staple food. I suggest you use it to exchange for seeds and groceries. Sister, can you tell me if these are the only two supplies you have?"
Ningxia nodded.
After understanding the situation, Xiao Zhang spoke directly, "Sis, since you've just settled down, you must be short of various supplies. Exchanging fish for daily necessities is quite cost-effective. It's almost the Fiery Sun Month, and no daily necessities are as valuable as food. There are discounts, but they're not as big as the food. You already have more than four packs of cigarettes, so exchanging some more coarse grains should be enough to get you through the first year."
"But how can I take it away?"
"Sister, are you waiting to go with the garrisoned soldiers who are leaving the day after tomorrow?"
Ningxia was alert, "How did you know?"
Xiao Zhang smiled nonchalantly, "The day after tomorrow, all the soldiers heading to the various forest areas will be leaving. Since you live in a forest area, there's no reason not to take this ride. If you didn't know this news, the people in the Government Affairs Office would be laid off."
"Yes, what's the problem?"
"No problem, sister. Just carry all the things for them. It usually takes several days to get to the forest area. You can just cook a few meals for them along the way!"
"Will it work?"
"Why not? The military and the people are one family."
Ningxia nodded in understanding.
"Sister, have you decided what to change?"
Ningxia calculated again and again in his mind, and then he said thoughtfully, "Then please give me 16 kilograms of wheat flour, 240 kilograms of potatoes, and 100 kilograms of corn. How much is the cost of grinding the corn into flour?"
"After the discount, one cigarette weighs 4.5 kilograms, so we can just deduct 0.5 as the processing fee."
Ningxia's heart was bleeding, but she had to take it. She couldn't eat potatoes every day.
"Then let's exchange it for 50 kilograms of cornmeal." There were still more than 20 kilograms of miscellaneous grains in the bag, and the nearly 20 kilograms of fine grain flour and glutinous rice flour that he had exchanged when he set out had not been touched at all. Ningxia felt a little relieved, as long as he could get through the first year, it would be fine.
Xiao Zhang took out an abacus and clattered away for a while. "Sister, the total payment is 87 cigarettes. I'll make the decision privately, so you can pay 85."
Ningxia nodded. She estimated that what she had bought was about right, with only a few left. She didn't plan to exchange it for food. She still had several dozen pounds of dried fish on her, and with the ones she had just exchanged, it added up to about 500 pounds. It was no problem to save some. Besides, they weren't living in the mountains, so why should they worry about not having food?
"Xiao Zhang, what's the exchange rate for sugar?" Ningxia had been craving sugar for a long time, and the two children also liked it. They had been eating sugary soup all the way, and there was less than half a pound left of the sugar they had exchanged.
"That depends on what you want to exchange. We only have honey and cane sugar here. If it's honey, your five remaining cigarettes won't be enough to exchange for half a pound of it."
Ningxia nodded, expressing her understanding. After all, bees nowadays aren't as docile as they used to be. Not only are they difficult to raise, but they're also quite wild, and the cost is indeed high. "Where's the sucrose?"
"Sugar cane is much cheaper, one cigarette costs half a pound."
Ningxia was really surprised. "I can exchange three catties of salt in Xuanwu, but only half a catty of sugar?"
"Sister, Xuanwuzhou Degong relies on salt for their livelihood. They have so many salt wells. Sugar is different. Nowadays, all machines can't be used. It's all made by hand, and the raw materials need to be carefully cultivated, so the price is naturally high."
Seeing Ningxia still hesitant, Xiao Zhang continued, "Your cigarettes are high-end and well-preserved. If you want lower-quality ones, two cigarettes might not even be worth half a pound."
“Isn’t there a discount on sugar?”
"Sister, this is a scarce commodity. There are no discounts, and there is a purchase limit. The maximum is 20 kilograms per year. More than that is not available."
Ningxia had no choice but to grit his teeth and buy two kilograms. As a result, there were not many supplies left to exchange. Only those few fish were worth something. The rest, such as dried eggplant, wild garlic, and dried chili peppers, were worthless at all.
As for the dried fruits harvested by the monkey group, Ningxia had no intention of exchanging them. Both children liked to eat them, and there were no other snacks for them. It would be too painful to exchange them.
Ningxia thanked the forest ranger named Chen Xiang again and again in her heart. If she hadn't found those few packs of cigarettes in his cabin, her family would have starved to death.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com