Chapter 5: Buy, buy, buy! Money can be earned back when it runs out.
Ten minutes later, when Lu Xuan came out again, the three wild boar stomachs he had been holding had been exchanged for one tael of silver.
He had previously read in some articles that the more boils a wild boar had inside its belly, the more valuable it was, but after watching other science videos, he realized that this claim had no factual basis.
Those boils are tissue proliferations or cysts that occur when wild boars eat venomous snakes. I've never heard of the more cysts a boar has, the more valuable it is.
Sure enough, when the pharmacy owner saw the wild boar stomach today, he only priced the three stomachs according to their size, and did not quote an outrageously high price of tens or hundreds of taels just because he found a boil inside the large stomach.
However, Lu Xuan was still quite satisfied with earning an extra tael or two.
After all, if it were sold solely at the price of offal, the meat, which weighs less than five pounds and is from the water, would only fetch a maximum of forty coins, a difference of twenty-five times.
With the money in hand, Lu Xuan immediately started shopping.
He first went to the grain and oil shop and bought fifty catties each of refined rice and refined flour, which cost him three taels of silver. Then he went to the grocery store next door and bought five catties of rapeseed oil and two catties of salt, which cost him another four hundred and sixty coins.
While lard is fragrant, using it to stir-fry all dishes inevitably makes them too greasy, so vegetable oil is also essential.
In Lu Xuan's memory, most ordinary people in ancient times ate lard, the kind of lard that they made by rendering pork fat themselves. Very few people ate vegetable oil, and it was very expensive.
The products of this era were far more abundant than Lu Xuan had ever known. He had asked the shopkeeper in Baisong Town before and learned that it was because the dynasty's overseas trade was relatively developed, and many new species had been introduced from overseas.
This is also good news for Lu Xuan, meaning that he can satisfy his own preferences as much as possible in terms of food.
Next, Lu Xuan went to the cloth shop and bought one bolt of cotton cloth in three different colors. Each of the four family members received two pairs of new shoes, which cost a total of one tael of silver.
The fabric shop happened to be selling ready-made clothes, and Lu Xuan wanted to change out of his patched and slightly too-small clothes as soon as possible. So he bought a dark-colored ready-made garment and had the embroiderer at the fabric shop alter the sleeves and trousers on the spot before putting on the new clothes.
The modified clothes had fitted cuffs and trouser legs, making Lu Xuan look exceptionally capable. Coupled with his nonchalant attitude, as if he didn't care about anything, he immediately caught the attention of the viewers in the live broadcast room.
[The streamer looks so much more handsome after changing his clothes!]
There's an old saying, "Clothes make the man, and a saddle makes the horse," and it's so true!
[The streamer's features aren't strikingly handsome at first glance, but they're really pleasing to the eye; the more you look, the more charming he becomes! I love it!]
No one dislikes flattery. Lu Xuan smiled as he looked at the praise in the comments, and then said, "Being handsome comes at a price. This outfit is much more expensive than the fabric itself."
A bolt of cloth enough for four sets of clothes costs only 320 coins, but the ready-made clothes he bought cost 500 coins, more than tripling the price.
For ordinary families, it's definitely more cost-effective to buy fabric and make their own clothes; buying ready-made clothes is simply a waste of money.
So what?
He just wants to change into his new clothes right away, is that a problem?
Even during the apocalypse, he never deprived himself of food or clothing, let alone here.
Money can be earned back when it runs out.
After that, he went to the butcher's stall and bought some pork belly and ribs, and then went to the pastry shop and bought two pounds of sugar and four boxes of pastries, which just made him spend all the remaining money.
The viewers in the live stream were twitching at the corners of their mouths; the streamer really hadn't left a single penny.
[It's like seeing my own moonlight reflected in Lu Xuan. *facepalm* (image).]
[Don't streamers keep some money for emergencies?]
Making money is so easy... oh, it certainly seems that way for streamers.
[...Those with power can indeed do whatever they want!]
The audience felt a pang of envy, but in reality, compared to being stingy and calculating over a few coins, they found Lu Xuan's attitude of spending whatever he had very satisfying.
Since it's not their own money being spent, they don't feel bad about it afterward, and it even feels good to see it go. After a moment of regret, they quickly shout in unison: Buy it! Buy as much as you want!
Lu Xuan: ...It's all gone. We'll talk about it next time.
-
When she got home, Lu Qing was first surprised by his new look, and before she could even marvel at it, she was shocked by the hundred pounds of fine rice and flour he showed her.
"Why did you buy so much refined rice?!" Lu Qing gasped, feeling a little dizzy. "How much money did this cost? With our family's means, we can just eat brown rice. This much refined rice could buy enough brown rice for us to eat for a whole year."
Lu Xuan frankly said, "Brown rice doesn't taste as good as refined rice, I can't eat it."
Lu Qing was speechless for a moment.
Fine rice that costs thirty coins a pound is naturally tastier than brown rice that costs five coins; the price difference is obvious.
For so many years, we've been eating brown rice at home. Why can't we eat it now?
Seeing that Lu Qing was eager to go to town right now to return the refined rice and replace it with brown rice, Lu Xuan comforted her, "We've already bought it, so don't worry about it. I can afford to support you all. From now on, our family will only eat white rice."
Lu Qing was both amused and exasperated. "What nonsense are you talking about? How could we afford to eat like that every day?"
There were four of them in total, and they would eat at least 300 catties of rice a year. If they ate coarse rice, they would earn less than two taels of silver a year. If they ate refined rice, they would earn more than ten taels.
Lu Xuan had no intention of dwelling on such a trivial matter. He rummaged through a pile of things and pulled out a bag of candy and a box of pastries, handing them to Lu Chen, who had been staring at him expectantly. "Here, have some."
Lu Chen grinned happily and said loudly, "Thank you, brother!"
After saying that, she eagerly opened the pastry box, picked up a piece, and was about to take a bite when she suddenly remembered something and handed the pastry to Lu Xuan, saying, "You eat first."
Lu Xuan raised an eyebrow, did not refuse, and stuffed the whole pastry into his mouth in one bite.
Lu Chen's pair of dark, bright eyes widened instantly, filled with shock, as if to say: How could you eat it all!
The audience burst into laughter.
[Younger brother: I only let you take a bite, not eat it all! Give me back my snack! QAQ!]
[The streamer is so mean, deliberately teasing the child.]
Raising children is meaningless if you don't play with them, hahaha.
[It reminded me of my childhood, when I was 'played'/manipulated' by my mother, a painful memory.]
Faced with Lu Chen's resentful look, Lu Xuan didn't feel embarrassed at all, and even deliberately raised his chin slightly to indicate: "Another one."
Lu Chen instinctively hugged the pastry box in his arms, but remembering that it was originally bought by his brother, he reluctantly let go, took out another piece, and offered it to Lu Xuan. His big eyes clearly said, "Do you really want to eat this? Do you really, really want to eat this? Do you really, really want to eat my share?"
His pitiful yet adorable appearance made Lu Chen's lips curl into a smile. He reached out and pinched his cheek, saying, "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. Keep it for yourself."
To be honest, for modern people who have eaten a lot of good food, the pastries sold in the small town taste really average. They have a rough texture, are too sweet, and are cloying.
Even after experiencing the devastation of a resource-scarce apocalypse, Lu Xuan, who came from a privileged background, still found it difficult to adapt to the food.
Seeing Lu Chen savoring the food with small, precious bites, and not forgetting to share a piece with Lu Qing as well, Lu Xuan thought that next time he had the chance to go to a bigger town, he would buy some even better food for the Lu family to try.
Lu Qing only broke off a small piece to taste before letting Lu Chen keep it for himself, while gently stroking the several bolts of cloth in front of her, saying, "Why did you buy so much cloth?"
She had originally wanted to comment on his ready-made clothes, but then she thought that the price of fine rice was much higher than that of a ready-made garment. Besides, the clothes did look very good on her brother, and she really couldn't make them herself, so she didn't bring it up.
Lu Xuan glanced at Lu Qing.
Lu Qing wore a brown dress today, with loose sleeves secured by straps for ease of movement, and her hair was styled in a high bun, looking both neat and simple.
But no matter how neatly it looks, it can't hide the fact that the dress has long been faded from washing and has several patches that can't be concealed.
Lu Qing disagreed verbally, but her hands were reluctant to leave the fabric, and her eyes revealed a hint of fondness. It was clear that despite her heartache, she really liked the item.
Lu Xuan said, "The clothes at home have been worn for several years and it's time to change them. You can wear the light yellow cloth, my brother-in-law and I will wear the navy blue ones, and Lu Chen will wear the white cotton cloth. Find a skilled craftsman in the village to make the undergarments."
Lu Qing frowned slightly, "I can do it myself, there's no need to find someone else to do it."
Lu Xuan shook his head and said, "Making clothes is hard on the eyes. I have my own family, so we don't need that little bit of money for handicrafts. Let's find some families in the village who are struggling financially and let them earn some money for their household expenses."
Upon hearing this, Lu Qing felt gratified by her brother's intentions and also thought it made sense. "Then I'll go find someone later."
After handing the cloth to Lu Qing, Lu Xuan carried the rice, flour, oil, and salt to the kitchen.
The reason I didn't let Lu Qing take some back separately was because I knew she wouldn't accept it given her personality. After all, they often ate together, so there would always be some for Lu Qing and her brother-in-law Lei Yan.
When Lu Xuan arrived at the kitchen, he saw that in addition to a jar of freshly made lard, there was also a basket of eggs, two pieces of cured meat weighing at least four or five pounds, and a bowl of slightly dark-colored pickles.
He raised an eyebrow and asked Lu Qing, "Who sent these things?"
Lu Qing slapped her forehead and explained, "It was given to us by Sister-in-law Zhang and the village chief. You gave them more than 20 jin of meat at once, and they felt embarrassed to take it for free, so I accepted it on your behalf."
Lu Xuan thought for a moment and said, "I just happened to have bought some extra pastries. I'll send some to the Zhang family and the village chief's family later."
In the post-apocalyptic world, the survivors are wary of each other and indifferent to one another. He had long since become accustomed to minding his own business and not meddling in others' affairs.
But this is not the apocalypse, and there are no zombies. To start a new life, you need to gradually integrate into the local life, and some interpersonal relationships still need to be maintained.
Seeing that he even considered these social obligations, Lu Qing felt even more that her younger brother was truly remarkable. She smiled and said, "Both families have taken good care of us, so it's only right that we repay them in kind."
After putting his things away, Lu Xuan prepared to deliver the gift.
Sending only candy and pastries felt a bit meager, so I decided to also bring the wild rabbit that I had planned to cook for my family that evening. I sent one to the village chief's family and one to the Zhang family, which was just right.
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