Chapter 24
In a short while, at the entrance of Sanli Village, women from several families hurried home, and then hurried out of their homes with bowls in their hands, followed by two or three children, trying the food, it was very lively.
Of course, not everyone is willing to spend money to buy food. Some people just want to bring their children to try the food for free and have no intention of buying anything after trying it.
Some of them really didn't buy it, while others couldn't resist their children's greed after tasting it, so they discussed with their acquaintances who were reluctant to buy it, and the two families bought one together.
Each person pays one cent, and the money can be shared among the two families, which is enough to buy another dish.
At this first stop, Sang Luo sold a total of six pieces of divine tofu for twelve cents. Chen An put his hands in his pockets, tightly grasping the handful of copper coins, fearing that he would lose some and someone would take them away.
When they walked a little further in, the people living a little further inside the village had already seen what was happening here. When Sang Luo walked over, she didn't even have to bother shouting, as someone came forward to ask.
"What are you selling, young lady?"
It was still the same introduction plus free tasting routine, and it went smoothly. Who could refuse free food? All the restaurants were breakfast restaurants, and the seasonings were ready-made, so it was not hassle at all.
After selling a few more pieces, a woman tried them but didn't buy anything, and she didn't leave. It was not until Sang Luo was about to go in that the woman said, "Young lady, can you trade this for something?"
As for bartering, Sang Luo was already used to it: "Of course, but it depends on what you are exchanging for."
The woman asked, "What would you like to exchange for?"
Sang Luo didn't even think twice: "Food is enough."
The vegetables don't last long, so they're not needed for the moment. She still has to pay for cloth and other things, but of course money is more convenient to use, and she's not in a hurry to use the cloth anyway.
When the woman heard that she could exchange grain, she hesitated and asked, "How do I exchange soybeans with you?"
That’s right, soybeans are food at this time.
Bean rice was the main food of ancient people in Sang Luo's original time and space. The beans here are of several kinds, and soybeans are one of them. It is the same in this time and space. Not everyone in the countryside can afford white rice. Most people eat it mixed with other food. The poorer ones even eat beans as their staple food.
Sang Luo really didn't know the price of soybeans at that time, so she said vaguely: "You can give me two cents according to the price of soybeans."
The woman pursed her lips, but finally nodded: "Okay, wait a minute, I'll go measure the soybeans."
When the woman measured out the soybeans, Sang Luo saw that it was half a liter. So soybeans were four cents per liter?
She thought that seven cents per liter of millet was about the same, and she didn't have a cloth bag to put it in, so she took out the piece of linen she brought with her, wrapped the beans in it, tied it up, and put it back in the basket.
One person opened an account and exchanged soybeans for the head. He was reluctant to buy it at first, but after his own child polished it, he was tempted and exchanged it for another two pieces.
At this moment, there were only two pieces left of the sixteen pieces of magical tofu that Sang Luo brought out today.
I sold fourteen pieces of magical tofu for twenty-two cents, and one and a half liters of soybeans, which should be enough to buy meat and sauce.
There is a butcher shop further ahead. Sang Luo thought about walking further in, selling the two pieces of meat, and then going back to the butcher shop and grocery store to take a look. This trip for the day would be a success, and she could go home.
However, before she could move to the next spot, she was stopped by someone when she passed by a butcher shop.
"Tofu lady!"
Tofu lady???
Sang Luo was stunned for a moment before she realized that it was her who was being called. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw a fat woman quickly walking out of the room behind the butcher shop.
Still an acquaintance.
Who else could it be but the big sister who grabbed the third share yesterday?
"Tofu lady, here, here."
The fat woman was very happy to see Sang Luo. She came out from behind the meat counter while greeting her. She first looked at the clay basin in Sang Luo's hand. When she saw that there were still two pieces of meat, her cheeks were dimpled with smile.
"Didn't they say they would sell it in the next episode? Why are you here today?"
Sang Luo was not embarrassed and smiled and said, "I wanted to buy some lard and meat at the market, so I made some and brought them up."
"Buying meat?" The fat woman smiled when she heard it, and pointed to the butcher's counter at the back with her chin: "This is my mother's butcher's shop. Come on, come on, ask my father to cut any meat you want."
"It turns out that my sister-in-law's family runs a butcher shop. My sister-in-law is so lucky."
Who eats the best these days? Apart from the rich, the butchers are the best among the common people in the countryside.
The fat woman obviously agreed with Sang Luo's words. She was smiling and in a very good mood.
She looked at the pottery basin in Sang Luo's hand and said, "You came at the right time. I was thinking about this. Sell these two pieces to me. It will be a good opportunity for my parents and brothers to have a taste too."
She bought it yesterday and took it back to her husband's house. Today she went back to her parents' house to buy some meat. She happened to see Sang Luo selling this magical tofu. She had to show her filial piety to her parents and brother and sister-in-law. She also prevented her sisters-in-law from thinking that she only took things from her parents' house to her husband's house.
Sang Luo was of course happy to do so. She smiled and said, "Okay, sister-in-law, you are a returning customer. These are the last two pieces. I will give you a few smaller pieces as a gift."
"Thank you, that's great." The fat woman liked to be thanked, especially when she had it, which no one else had. She felt very happy spending the money.
She asked Sang Luo to wait a little while, and went in with a smile on her face to get a bowl of tofu. When she came out and took the tofu, she told her father that this was a young lady she knew well, and asked him to help her pick a good piece of meat. Then she said hello to Sang Luo, and took the two large bowls of the delicious tofu she had just bought and went in to sell them to her mother and sisters-in-law.
The butcher dotes on his daughter. Otherwise, his daughter, who would not be able to get married, can go back to her parents' home from time to time to bring some meat to her husband's home for a snack. When his daughter says that this is a familiar young lady, he becomes particularly easy to talk to.
"What kind of meat would you like to buy, young lady?"
Sang Luo asked about the price of meat.
The butcher smiled and said, "It depends on which type it is. Fatty meat is more expensive, while lean meat is cheaper."
Sang Luo looked at the butcher's table. Just like in modern times, the meat was also classified. She pointed to a piece that was 70% fat and 30% lean and asked, "What about this one?"
The butcher took one look and said, "For making lard? This costs 18 coins per pound."
Chen An pinched the copper coins in his hand. They were so expensive. They were going to be gone before they even got warm.
The little guy felt distressed but didn't say anything. He just listened to his sister-in-law regarding matters at home.
Sang Luo thought for a moment and said, "Please cut me half a pound."
The butcher responded with a smile and weighed the meat in his hand. When he weighed the meat, it was exactly half a pound, no more, no less.
This skill of his hands is also a unique one.
After the weight was weighed, the butcher took a piece of pork liver from the butcher counter, cut off a small piece, about two taels, tied it with the meat with a straw rope, and handed it to Sang Luo: "Since my daughter knows you, I'll give you a piece of pork liver."
The butcher heard and saw clearly that the young lady gave his daughter several pieces of the magical tofu. Pork liver is not expensive, so he was doing his daughter a favor.
This was a pleasant surprise. Sang Luo thanked him hurriedly and looked at the pork shanks piled up in a corner of the butcher's counter, which had been chopped until only a few pieces of meat were left. She thought of the radish she had exchanged for from home and asked the price.
"Pancake bones? They don't have meat, but they are delicious when used to make soup. They're one penny each. Would you like one?"
One penny is a good thing for nutrition, economical and affordable. However, Sang Luo looked at the meat and liver in her hand and thought: "Next time, these are enough for today."
The butcher nodded: "Okay, just come over when you want to buy some."
Sang Luo agreed with a smile and wanted to put the pork into the backpack, but suddenly she remembered that she didn't have a kitchen knife at home. She only had a bamboo knife, which was fine for cutting tofu, but meat? ? ? What a joke.
He quickly handed over the meat and liver in his hand and said, "Uncle, could you help me cut the meat and liver?"
In the butcher's puzzled look, Sang Luo smiled a little embarrassedly: "We just separated, and we haven't had time to buy many household items yet. We don't have a kitchen knife at home."
The butcher then understood and asked Sang Luo how to cut it, and did as she asked.
This time I couldn't use straw ropes to tie them, so I simply left the two clay basins empty. I borrowed water from the butcher's house to wash the basins and put all the food directly into the basins.
Seeing how many delicious foods they had bought, Shen An and Shen Ning were so excited that they wanted to ask their sister-in-law to let them carry the basket, but they were too embarrassed to do so in front of the butcher, so they held back.
He took out the copper coins he had collected this morning from his pocket and handed them to Sang Luo.
Sang Luo took it, counted out nine coins and handed them to the butcher, put the remaining seventeen coins into her sleeve pocket, and thanked the butcher again. Seeing that the fat sister-in-law was not there, even though they had sold things to each other twice, it was not convenient for her to call someone to say goodbye. She asked the butcher uncle to turn around and help convey her thanks, and then she said goodbye.
Chen Ning still remembered what her sister-in-law said yesterday that eggplants must have sauce, so she turned around and asked Sang Luo: "Sister-in-law, are we going to buy sauce now?"
Sang Luo nodded: "More than just sauce, let's buy some vinegar."
Vinegar is a good thing. It can remove the fishy smell when cooking fish and add flavor to cold dishes. Even when making bone soup, adding a drop or two of vinegar can help dissolve the nutrients in the bones better.
As he spoke, he led the two children to the grocery store across the street.
The grocery store owner still remembered Sang Luo and the others, so when he saw her coming, he asked with a smile, "What would you like to buy today, young lady?"
Soy sauce and vinegar are the most commonly sold items in the shop. They are placed in the most convenient and eye-catching position in the cabinet. Sang Luo saw them at a glance and said, "I want to buy some soy sauce and vinegar. I wonder how much it costs?"
When the shopkeeper heard that he was buying soy sauce and vinegar, he asked, "Did you bring your own jars? If you did, the soy sauce is one penny and two tablespoons, and the vinegar is one penny and twenty cents."
The so-called jiao is also a unit of measurement here, and the measuring tool is the same as the long-handled wine grapes used to measure liquor in the countryside today.
Sang Luo naturally didn't have a jar, so she ended up buying some soy sauce and vinegar in earthenware jars from the grocery store, the smallest kind. The two jars cost her a total of twelve cents.
With the remaining five cents, Sang Luo bought a small jar the size of a palm to store the boiled lard.
It’s not that she didn’t want to buy a bigger one, but the money she had was only enough to buy one the size of a palm. However, they didn’t have a lot of lard to store at the moment, so it was enough for the time being.
What’s a pity is that Sang Luo was originally planning to buy a needle today, and the piece of cloth she got in exchange needs to be hemmed before it can be used, otherwise it will fall apart after a while.
But I don’t have enough money, so I can only wait until next time.
This time Shen An and Shen Ning got what they wanted and carried the basket with the pork, because the heavier pots and pans were moved by Sang Luo to her own basket.
When they left Sanli Village, the two children were so happy that they were floating in the air.
What Sang Luo was thinking in her heart was that there was not much food left at home. If they ate three meals a day and only cooked porridge, which was only two and a half liters of rice, it would not last them for a few days.
We have to make money to buy food.
But if I make sixteen pieces of magic tofu and bring them to Sanli Village tomorrow, will I be able to sell them?
Sang Luo knew very well that it was impossible, at least it would not be as smooth as today, and it would take a lot of effort to sell all the goods.
Today's sales are very good, that's because everyone wants to try it out. If you come tomorrow, it may not be so good. Sanli Village is richer than other neighboring villages, but it's limited. It's okay to come once every three or five days, but it's not realistic to come every day.
Sang Luo couldn't help but cast her eyes towards the dirt road leading to the county town. Uncle Youtian said yesterday that the county town is three miles away from Sanli Village. The spending power of farmers in the countryside is limited, but people in the county don't think that two cents of food is expensive.
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