After resolving the major issue of money, Song Anxin finally felt relieved. However, she wasn't in a hurry to go back. Instead, she led Lin Fengshou to the main street of the county.
"Mother, where are we going? Aren't we going back to Grandma's house to pick up my eldest brother and sister-in-law?" Lin Fengshou asked.
"Okay, let's go buy some grain and flour first," Song Anxin replied.
She still remembered that the rice, flour, oil, and salt at home were all gone, and she didn't know how her two sons ate at home at noon. However, Sister-in-law Lin knew that they had brought Zhang Mei to the county for medical treatment, so she would definitely not let them go hungry.
Song Anxin looked up and saw Chen's Grain Shop, so she went inside. It was the largest grain shop in the county, with all kinds of rice, flour and seeds, and the prices were fair.
Song Anxin looked at the prices listed: rice was 12 coins per jin, wheat flour was 6 coins per jin, millet was 3 coins per jin... dark flour was 2 coins per jin, buckwheat flour was 1 coin per jin...
These prices may not be particularly expensive, but they are definitely not cheap for farmers at the bottom of the social ladder.
"Auntie, what would you like to order? Our shop guarantees to weigh out the full amount for you." The young shop assistant rushed forward to greet them as they entered, showing no disrespect despite their shabby clothes.
Song Anxin was very satisfied, but that "auntie" really made her want to vomit blood. Oh well, she was a mother-in-law herself.
Song Anxin, having already calculated the cost, said, "Then please weigh out twenty catties each of rice and wheat flour, ten catties of millet, and ten catties of buckwheat flour and wheat flour in total."
Farmers rarely can afford white rice; they mostly eat quinoa, buckwheat, dark flour, and other coarse grains. He simply couldn't get used to it; she wanted to eat pure white rice.
The young waiter hadn't expected that this poorly dressed woman was such a big customer. Luckily, he hadn't neglected her; the shopkeeper had taught him well not to judge a book by its cover.
The young man happily agreed and went to weigh the grain.
Lin Fengshou was stunned: "Mother, why did you buy so much grain? Do we even have any money left?"
The Lin brothers never knew how much money their family had; they only knew that their family was very, very poor.
"There's not much left, but even if there isn't much left, we still need to eat our fill."
As the saying goes, food, clothing, shelter, and transportation are all important, and there's a reason why food comes first. Only when you're well-fed can you have the energy to do other things.
Lin Fengshou remembered that he had eaten a lot at both last night and today. It felt good to be able to eat his fill, and he didn't want to go hungry anymore. He felt that his mother was right.
The shop assistant quickly weighed the grain and carefully showed it to Song Anxin. Song Anxin thought to herself that it was a good thing she brought Lin Fengshou with her, otherwise she really wouldn't have been able to carry these forty catties of grain by herself.
Lin Fengshou looked quite thin, but he was surprisingly strong. Forty pounds of grain were like lifting a chick in his hands.
Song Anxin promptly paid the money, a total of four hundred and two coins. The shopkeeper even rounded it down to four hundred coins.
Song Anxin went to the butcher shop and bought a pound of pork and two pounds of pork fat. Pork cost 15 coins per pound, while pork fat was more expensive at 20 coins per pound. She also bought half a pound of salt and nearly half a pound of sugar, which cost her another 85 coins.
He had brought nearly half a tael of silver, but now he only had sixty-eight coins left. Song Anxin felt a pang of heartache, realizing he hadn't bought much. Although the items seemed like a lot, his family was large, and he had four young boys who were still growing.
Lin Fengnian went from being surprised to being numb. When did his family suddenly acquire so many things? But his mother still seemed a little unsatisfied with what she had bought.
Song Anxin did feel a little unsatisfied; there were still clothes to be had, and the clothes on herself and the four boys were almost covered in patches.
He didn't even know what kind of clothes they were; he seriously doubted that he could just smear some dirt on his face and start begging on the spot.
Oh well, it's my fault for being broke right now. But he still remembered Zhang Mei. If she had to smear some dirt on herself before begging, then Zhang Mei could just start begging right away.
Her clothes were patched just as many times as hers, and she had been beaten to the ground by Zhang Daniu, so she was covered in mud and dust, not to mention her bruised face.
Song Anxin immediately headed towards the fabric shop, with Lin Fengshou following behind, carrying large and small bags. He thought to himself that his mother really wanted to buy something.
“Fengshou, we won’t buy clothes for you brothers today. Your sister-in-law Zhang Mei just arrived at our house. We can’t let her come in without a decent set of clothes, can we? I’ll buy you clothes when your father receives his pension.”
Lin Fengshou hadn't expected it to be for his sister-in-law, and immediately said, "Mother, it's alright. The clothes we're wearing are fine. Once we get the money, you don't need to buy us any more. You can buy them yourself."
Song Anxin knew that these children were filial, and she didn't have to tell them, but she absolutely wanted them to feel that she cared about them.
Song Anxin walked into the fabric shop, where fabrics of various colors and materials were displayed on both sides. The cheapest was coarse cloth, which was made of linen, and that was what Song Anxin was wearing.
If I buy fabric, I can't sew a garment in a short time. Fortunately, this shop also sells ready-made clothes. They certainly don't have ready-made clothes made of coarse cloth like this. Poor people usually sew their own clothes.
Song Anxin secretly clicked her tongue at the prices of these ready-made clothes, which ranged from several hundred coins to several taels of silver. Song Anxin cried inwardly, because there wasn't a single one she could afford.
What to do? How can I let my new bride come into the house dressed like this, all ragged and shabby?
The shop assistant, probably sensing Song Anxin's thoughts, said, "Auntie, do you want to buy ready-made clothes? You can take a look here; we have some slightly cheaper cotton ready-made clothes."
Song Anxin followed the shopkeeper's hand to look at a corner. Hmm, it was indeed a little cheaper. Even a women's set without any patterns would cost 80 coins, which she still couldn't afford.
The shop assistant could tell from the woman's expression: "Actually, Auntie doesn't necessarily have to buy ready-made clothes. Buying fabric and sewing them yourself is just as good. You can tell from your expression that you're very skillful."
No, buddy, you've flattered the wrong person. The original owner was not good at needlework at all; her patches were all crooked and messy. Of course, she herself was even less capable of it.
Song Anxin still thanked the enthusiastic waiter: "Thank you, young man. I'll come again another day."
The shopkeeper, who had been keeping an eye on things in the shop, saw that Song Anxin was about to leave and called out, "Sister-in-law, wait a moment."
Song Anxin turned around and saw the shopkeeper take out a set of light red cotton clothes from behind the counter. There were also a few daffodils embroidered on the chest, which was very beautiful.
"This is a dress that a customer ordered from our shop a while ago. The embroiderer somehow sewed it too small, and the customer didn't want it."
"I bet this lady isn't buying these clothes for herself. Is it for your daughter or granddaughter? Do you think she can even fit into them?" The shopkeeper pushed the clothes out to Song An for inspection.
Song Anxin was extremely satisfied with the outfit; Zhang Mei was very petite and would definitely be able to fit into it.
"Shopkeeper, I'll take this dress. How much would you like it for? I really can't afford it if it's too expensive," Song Anxin said honestly.
Upon hearing that he could finally sell the garment, the shopkeeper immediately smiled and replied, "Sister, if you really want it, just give me 60 coins for the cost price. I haven't charged you a single penny more."
Song Anxin was overjoyed when she heard this. The cotton cloth would cost at least ten coins per foot, and it would take about six or seven feet to make a full-length dress for an adult woman. Moreover, it was already sewn and had a beautiful floral pattern. She was definitely making a profit. The shopkeeper really hadn't lied to her.
The two immediately exchanged money for goods.
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