Chapter 31
“Mental strength!” Jiang Zhi explained, “If your mental strength is strong, you won’t feel so uncomfortable when you use the ability of clairvoyance in the future.”
Jiang Shu still didn't understand: "A-Zhi, what are you talking about spiritual power?"
"I don't know how to say it either."
Ginger Tree: ...
"No, Ah Zhi, you're not going to use me as an experiment, are you?"
Why are you speaking such obvious truths!
Jiang Zhi remained expressionless: "No, but I have a feeling that this kind of practice can enhance our ability to use our superpowers."
Jiang Shu looked at her suspiciously, but finally believed her and said, "Okay, I'll give it a try."
He took a tree fern back with him.
When Grandma Jiang learned that the group had returned, she specially prepared an extra meal.
Jiangzhi then realized that the family didn't serve lunch at noon.
Her face was contorted with emotion. "Grandma, didn't we exchange a lot of grain at home? Why are we still saving it?"
She remembered that her father and uncle went out yesterday and exchanged a lot of barley.
Whenever she had a spare moment these past few days, Grandma Jiang would pick out the barley with moderate toxins.
Jiang Zhi just checked and there are at least seventy or eighty catties of edible barley, and the grain jars are full.
Grandma Jiang knew her granddaughter was worried about them, so she smiled and said, "You've already eaten breakfast. We're all at home and haven't done any work, so we won't go hungry."
“That won’t do. My sister-in-law and second aunt are spinning silk every day, and second uncle is making furniture. You also do laundry and cook. It’s all physical work. If you don’t eat, your stomach will be ruined.”
Grandma Jiang waved her hand, "We've been eating like this for years, we're used to it."
Jiang Zhi pursed her lips and didn't say anything more.
She didn't intend to argue with Grandma Jiang. To put it bluntly, the reason her grandmother was like this was because of poverty.
It seems that if I want to live a good life, I still need to work harder to earn points.
Jiangzhi: "Grandma, don't we still have dozens of kilograms of sugar at home? Why don't we get something else to eat?"
“Those low-toxicity sugar cubes are a good thing, just like the barley you got. Your grandpa and mom said that since the barley isn’t being sold, there’s no need to sell those sugar cubes either. We can keep them and brew a pot for the family every now and then, so we don’t have to keep going to the clinic for relief injections.”
The sugar cubes currently kept at home were made from cotton aphids with low levels of toxins, and the resulting sugar cubes also contain low levels of toxins.
After all, they still have plenty of time to stockpile grain, so they're not in a hurry to sell the low-toxin grain.
Now that our family is better off and we don't lack food, our health has become the primary concern.
Those with moderate toxicity only weighed 7 or 8 pounds left.
Grandma Jiang thought that since these things were so precious, she would treat the children to them from time to time.
Jiang Zhi knew that Grandma Jiang was used to being frugal, so she didn't say anything more.
Grandma Jiang plans to continue cooking oyster mushrooms. Although they're not very oily, she thinks that cooking them in soup with barley will make her throat feel better.
She shooed Jiangzhi out: "Go and talk to your second aunt and the others. I heard that a night market is opening at the big square tonight. You young people can go and check it out."
night market!
Jiang Zhi's eyes lit up.
I never expected the base to have a night market!
Jiang Zhi suddenly felt a little distracted—maybe she could take advantage of the situation and snag a bargain.
Jiangzhi couldn't stay still any longer and ran straight back to the hall.
As soon as I entered, I heard Jiang Shu and the others talking about the night market that evening.
As Xu Na skillfully pulled the silk from the lotus stem, she said, "The radio mentioned it a couple of days ago. We were building a house at the time, so we didn't mention it to you. If I hadn't heard the radio today, I would have almost forgotten."
Yuan Ying: "Yes, it's a pity that we don't have anything worthwhile to offer right now, otherwise we could have traded it for some practical furniture."
According to the two people, the night market also allows bartering.
Jiang Zhi found a stool and sat down: "What kind of things are usually there?"
“There’s a wide variety of things, you can find anything. Actually, it’s quite nice to stroll around the night market.” Yuan Ying said, “Many people don’t know the uses of mutated plants, but there are always people who try them out. You can learn something new by seeing what they bring out to sell. For example, the weeds we use to weave mattresses were discovered by someone who tried them out.”
Wu Xiu also replied with a smile, "Yes, sometimes you can still see items from before the cataclysm, but they're very expensive."
This is not surprising. Some people were lucky enough to live near the base before the disaster, and as soon as the base was built, they moved their undamaged belongings from their homes to the base.
Of course, the first group of people to arrive at the base were also among the relatively wealthy ones.
At this moment, Jiang Si raised her little hand, "Auntie, I also know what they sell there! I've been there twice!"
Jiang Zhi asked with a smile, "Then, Sisi, what else do you think is available for sale?"
"They even sell books there!"
Jiang Zhi was somewhat surprised, "A book?"
Jiang Si nodded vigorously, "So many books!"
Jiang Zhi looked at Wu Xiu, her eyes asking inquiringly—didn't the base collect all the books?
Even before Jiang Zhi came to the base, she had heard on the radio that the base was preserving the flame of human culture.
Those who have books in their possession must unconditionally hand them over to the base.
This is the duty of the base residents.
Wu Xiu explained with a smile, "This child doesn't know, those weren't for sale, they were displayed by the base officials."
"Those who want to watch can sit there and watch for several hours, but it's not free. You have to pay a deposit first, and you have to pay two points for watching for one hour."
Jiang Zhi understood. She probably accepted it as a token gesture because she was afraid the reader wouldn't cherish it.
Xu Na said, "I heard that the newly built library at the base is almost finished. When that happens, I'll be able to go to read books more often."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Si quickly exclaimed, "Auntie, I want to go read books too!!"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu chuckled and playfully pinched Jiang Si's nose. "Can you understand it?"
Jiang Si pouted, unconvinced, "Brother can teach me! Brother used to be a very good student."
Jiang Sui was a little embarrassed by the praise, "I... I don't know much either. I went to check it out last time, and the base doesn't have all the elementary school textbooks..."
Jiang Zhi's heart skipped a beat, "Sui Sui likes to read?"
Jiang Sui nodded, "I like it!"
Jiang Zhi: "Then I will write down the textbook knowledge I remember for you."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Sui's eyes lit up. "Really, Auntie?"
Jiang Zhi nodded.
Xu Na smiled and said, "That's right! Your Aunt Azhi has always been number one in her class from elementary school to university."
Jiang Si clapped her hands happily, "That's great! Sisi wants to study too!"
Jiang Shu complained, "What time is it? Why are you all thinking about studying? Can't you think about what to do tonight?"
His words made everyone laugh.
Jiang Shu asked longingly, "Auntie, when does the night market actually start?"
He couldn't even remember the last time he went shopping.
"From 6 PM to 11 PM. The power supply to the night market base is always delayed so that everyone can trade smoothly."
Jiang Shu asked expectantly, "Do you sell snacks?"
As expected of a foodie!
Wu Xiu said with a smile, "Yes, quite a lot, but everyone is reluctant to use up the ingredients, so the taste is just so-so."
Jiang Shu wasn't disappointed, considering the conditions were what they were. He then asked, "What kind of food do you have? Is there any drink?"
“Yes, all of them,” Wu Xiu said. “Once at the night market, I saw someone making a drink from tamarind. At that time, your uncle and brother hadn’t had their accident yet, and the family bought it for the two children and Xiao Na. It was sour and actually sold very well.”
Jiang Shu swallowed hard, not wanting to make any money.
Drinks...
He hasn't had a drink in a long time...
Jiang Zhi seemed to be deep in thought. "Why sell things at the night market?"
Yuan Ying rolled the extracted silk into bundles and said, "Just register at the base store. A stall will cost about 30 points to rent."
30 isn't expensive.
Yuan Ying: "A-Zhi, what do you want to sell?"
Jiangzhi voiced her idea: "Don't we still have some unsold candies at home? How about we boil them into a pot of water and set up a stall to sell them?"
Upon hearing this, Wu Xiu quickly said, "No, no, your grandmother knows what those things are like. If we take them and sell them without permission, the old lady will be angry."
Jiang Zhi didn't refute, but asked, "Second Aunt, how many points did those sour fruit juice vendors charge for a cup before?"
Yuan Ying: "It seems to be 12 points per cup, and there's no need to prepare cups. People bring their own bowls and cups to fill the cups, so the cost looks very low..."
Jiang Shu asked curiously, "Second Sister-in-law, is that juice really that bad?"
Xu Na said somewhat embarrassedly, "It was really hard to drink, not sweet at all. I didn't finish it myself, so I gave it to your second brother."
That sounds really awful.
Jiang Shu thought his sister's idea was feasible. "If people can buy something that tastes this bad, then let's make some sweet soup. Wouldn't everyone be fighting over it?"
Jiang Zhi said, "It doesn't need to be cooked too sweet. Just cook a small piece in a pot, and then buy some sour fruit to cook together. It's delicious to have a sweet and sour taste on a hot day."
Yuan Ying was very interested: "What Azhi said seems to make sense..."
Xu Na also did the math, "One bucket of water can sell about 100 cups, and each cup is worth 12 points, so one bucket would be worth 1,200 points... After deducting costs, there's a profit of over 1,000... With such a large flow of people at the night market, we might be able to sell two or three buckets..."
Jiang Shu was thrilled. "Sell! Let's sell sweet and sour fruit juice!"
Jiang Si's eyes sparkled. "Uncle, can we drink it too?"
Jiang Shu picked her up and said, "Of course you can drink as much as you want!"
He turned to Jiang Zhi and said:
“Azhi, Grandma loves you the most, go and talk to her.”
At this moment, Grandma Jiang walked in: "What did you say? I heard everything."
Seeing this, Jiang Shu immediately shamelessly approached and said, "Grandma, since you heard it, why don't you support us? Even if we can't sell them all, we can still drink them ourselves."
Grandma Jiang tapped his head impatiently: "Whose belly is so big that they can drink a whole bucket of water?"
"Alright, I didn't say I disagreed. You can take a pound of moderately toxic sugar and mess around with it. Just so you know, if you can't sell it this time, don't mess around with it again!"
“It’ll definitely sell!” Jiang Shu winked at Jiang Zhi, “Right, Zhi?”
“I knew Grandma was the most open-minded,” Jiang Zhi chuckled, linking arms with the old lady Jiang. “Grandma, don’t worry, we won’t cause any trouble.”
Seeing that the old lady Jiang was being coaxed by the brother and sister to a smile, Wu Xiu and Yuan Ying couldn't help but chuckle.
The old lady never knew what to do with these two lovable idiots.
"Go away, you two young masters, stop trying to make me happy. Hurry up and eat. We can continue this nonsense after you finish eating."
Everyone was preoccupied with their own thoughts, so they ate their lunch hastily.
Jiang He and Jiang Wen were making furniture in the yard and didn't hear what the others were thinking.
Jiang He: "What's wrong with you guys?"
Jiang Si is small, but she can't keep secrets.
"Second Uncle, I know! My aunt said she's going to sell sweet and sour water tonight!"
Not to mention Jiang He, even Jiang Hai was stunned. "What sweet and sour water?"
Wu Xiu then recounted what the group had been discussing.
Jiang Hai laughed upon hearing this, "That's a great idea, I agree, it's just a bit rushed."
Wu Xiu smiled and said, "It's alright, there are many of us, we can make it in time if we're quick."
Currently, only Jiang Shan and his wife, along with Grandpa Jiang, are not at home, so we have enough people to help out.
Wu Xiu: "And there's not much to prepare. We have a cart, so we can just take it over there. The only problem is that we don't have the right grapes, so it won't be convenient to repackage them for people."
The grapes Wu Xiu mentioned were similar to the grapes used to be sold for wine. The grapes came in different sizes, with the smaller ones weighing half a pound and the larger ones weighing a pound.
Jiang He said, "That's easy, I'll make one after we finish eating."
Jiang Shu quickly interjected, "Second Uncle, make two, one 200 ml and one 500 ml."
Jiang He smiled and agreed.
After lunch, the family got busy.
The water tank was just filled this morning, and now it's almost empty because of making sugar water.
Jiang Hai and Jiang Wen were responsible for fetching water.
Wu Xiu then tried to use his connections to see if he could buy some sour fruit.
Jiangzhi and her siblings, along with the old lady, are washing a wooden tub.
This wooden bucket was originally intended for storing pickled wild vegetables, but Jiang He had just finished making it and hadn't even had a chance to use it before the brother and sister started messing with it.
Jiang Shu took the two large wooden tubs that had been washed out to dry in the sun. "Second Uncle, these tubs won't leak, will they? What if the syrup spills all over the ground before we even sell them?"
Grandma Jiang smiled and said, "Don't worry, it won't leak out. I just went to the Zhang family to exchange two lotus leaves. I'll put them in the bucket to line it, and there won't be a single gap!"
The mutated lotus leaves are ridiculously large; one leaf can cover the entire bucket.
Xu Na suddenly had a brilliant idea: "That's it! We can cut up lotus leaves and make cups!"
Jiang Shu was a little confused: "How do you make a cup?"
"It's super easy!" Xu Na smiled as she tore off a small piece of lotus leaf and rolled it into the shape of an ice cream cone. "Look, isn't it both pretty and perfect for holding syrup?"
Grandma Jiang slapped her thigh, "It really is! I must say, it's quite beautiful. Xiao Na is so clever!"
Xu Na was embarrassed by the praise, "The textile shop where we get jobs has people picking lotus stems every day. Sometimes they bring the lotus leaves back to use as mats. I brought back a few yesterday."
Grandma Jiang was delighted to hear this. "Good, good, good. Take a small pot of sweet soup with you later so they can have a taste too. That way, we won't feel guilty taking it."
Jiang Shu clicked his tongue in amazement: "Indeed, the wisdom of the working people is boundless!"
"What's the big deal? Life these days is pretty much the same as it was back then. We have limited resources, so we just try to find other things to replace them. We can always get by." Grandma Jiang started boiling sugar water and put a small piece of sugar in after the water boiled.
Upon seeing this, Jiang Shu couldn't help but exclaim, "Grandma! You've put in far too little! How can it taste good?"
Grandma Jiang shrugged: "What do you know! How many people can afford sugar water these days? This concentration is enough for them to savor."
Ginger Tree: ...
This old lady has the potential to be a shrewd businesswoman...
The sugar cubes quickly melted in the water. Jiang Zhi used chopsticks to pick up a little and tasted it. It was mild and not unpleasant to drink.
Jiang Shu, however, was quite disgusted. "What's the difference between this and plain water? Grandma, could you add another piece of sugar?"
Jiang Zhi served two small bowls to the two children.
Jiang Si took a small sip carefully and exclaimed, "Auntie, it's so sweet!"
Jiang Sui gulped down a few mouthfuls, "Great-Grandma, it's so delicious! Just like the candy Auntie gave me, so sweet."
Grandma Jiang glanced at the ginger tree with a smug look.
Ginger Tree: ...
These two unlucky kids have never eaten fine food before!
Jiang Shu patted the two little ones' heads with pity.
Grandma Jiang couldn't stand it anymore: "Go away, go away, don't get in the way. When you have time, go with your aunt and ask if any family has any sour fruit, and buy one or two."
Jiang Shu muttered, "One or two... Grandma is being too stingy. How can the juice she makes taste good?"
He had barely finished speaking when Wu Xiu returned.
Grandma Jiang asked, "How is it? Did you buy it?"
"I bought them." Wu Xiu placed several reddish-brown bean buds, about the size of bananas, on the stove and couldn't help but say, "These people really know how to raise prices. They were only three or four points each before, but now that the night market is coming, they've actually raised them to 10 points each!"
In other words, these four sour fruits cost 40 points!
Grandma Jiang felt a pang of heartache. "These people, they really are..."
When Jiangzhi saw this so-called sour fruit, she realized what it was.
It turns out to be tamarind fruit, which I ate when I was a child.
The mutated tamarind fruit is so sour it can make you shiver.
This stuff is a matter of luck, but once you find it, you can find it in huge quantities. Plus, it's so sour that it doesn't taste good no matter what you cook it with, so not many people are willing to eat it, and it's not expensive.
Grandma Jiang asked, "Did they know we were going to make tamarind?"
"I know, I reckon a lot of people will be selling fruit juice this time."
Upon hearing this, Grandma Jiang immediately became worried: "Will we be able to sell them tonight?"
Jiang Zhi smiled and said, "Grandma, don't worry. We added sugar, and everyone will definitely like this sweet and sour taste in this kind of weather. Sugar is so expensive on the market now, I guess no one is willing to use it like we do."
Grandma Jiang turned her head and thought about it, and realized it was true!
If it weren't for these kids causing trouble, she would never have been willing to use the candy.
"Alright, we've come this far, we have to make it work!"
Jiang Shu said, "It would definitely sell better if we put some ice on it in this kind of weather!"
Grandma Jiang was amused by his naivety. "If there were ice, we wouldn't need to sell this sweet water; we could just go and enjoy ourselves!"
Grandma Jiang was very quick and efficient. She turned around and washed the tamarind fruit, picked out the seeds, and scooped out the reddish-brown fibers from the pods and soaked them in the sugar water.
Jiang Shu secretly tasted a tamarind fruit, and it was absolutely divine!
That tiny bite almost killed him!
Then……
He saw his grandmother throw a whole tamarind fruit into the pot with such fresh, clean skin.
Ginger Tree: ...
This...this is drinkable?!
Jiang Shu shuddered and, taking advantage of Grandma Jiang's inattention, put another piece of sugar into the pot.
Grandma Jiang found the crowd in the way and waved them away, saying, "Alright, alright, you can go do your other things. I'll take care of this place."
have to!
Judging from this, the old lady isn't going to make up her mind not to let them touch the pot of sweet soup.
The group had no choice but to return to the hall and cut lotus leaves with Xu Na.
Jiang He's two wooden grapes were also ready.
"Look, I made this from memory, I don't even know if it's enough to weigh."
Jiang Zhi took the wooden spoon. The handle was straight, and the spoon body was shaped into a hemispherical shape by Jiang He, which looked very pleasing.
"Second Uncle, your cooking skills are amazing! You finished it in such a short time?"
Jiang He smiled.
Jiang Shu: "Let's do an experiment and see if one spoonful can fill the lotus leaf cup."
As Jiang Shu spoke, he instructed Jiang Sui, "Sui Sui, go and fetch a basin of water."
Jiang Sui went off excitedly and soon brought in a basin of water.
Jiang Shu picked up a lotus leaf that had been cut into a rectangle, rolled it into an inverted triangle shape like an ice cream cone, and then filled a small wooden scoop with water and poured it in. "It's not full, Second Sister-in-law. Our lotus leaf is a bit too big. We need to make it smaller."
Then she tried the larger grapes, which hold about 500 ml. A spoonful of water poured into the lotus leaf cup was just right.
Jiang Shu tested the water chestnut leaf repeatedly until he finally found the right size.
One spoonful of small grapes requires a lotus leaf cup that is 10 cm long and 6 cm wide, while one spoonful of large grapes requires a lotus leaf cup that is 15 cm long and 10 cm wide.
After testing, Xu Na and Yuan Ying cut the lotus leaves according to these two dimensions.
Soon, several thick stacks of lotus leaves of different sizes were made.
Wu Xiu also thought it was feasible. Looking at the experimental products all over the ground, she felt extremely distressed: "Luckily, these lotus leaves are free, otherwise we would have suffered a huge loss."
Yuan Ying: "That's right, the store we bought from before always asked us to bring our own cups."
Xu Na said with a smile, "We have lotus leaf-patterned dresses, so we can sell them for a higher price then."
Yuan Ying took two sheets to practice with and found that if she wasn't careful, the leaves that were easy to roll up would easily fall apart.
"There's still a risk. What if they accidentally spill it and then ask us for compensation?"
It's actually quite possible!
Wu Xiu panicked, "What should we do? We can't just not use them, can we? These kids have spent a lot of time on this today."
Yuan Ying: "Sister-in-law, don't worry, just use some porridge paste to stick it together."
Upon hearing this, Xu Na exclaimed happily, "Mom, that's a great idea!"
"Okay, there's not much time left. I'll go cook some porridge right away," Wu Xiu said, and hurried off to the kitchen.
Upon hearing this, Grandma Jiang immediately hissed with heartache, "Why do you still need to cook porridge? Isn't that wasteful?"
Although the old lady expressed her heartache, she did not stop it.
After the porridge was cooked, Yuan Ying asked Jiang Zhi and the others, "Speaking of which, how should we price this sweet and sour drink?"
Jiang Si spread out five fingers: "50 points!!"
Yuan Ying almost spat it out.
She couldn't help but chuckle: "This is too expensive! Who would be willing to spend so many points on a drink? Would you be willing to spend them?"
Jiang Si blew on her hair and hesitated for a long time, "...I can't bear to part with it."
Everyone laughed.
"One pound of brown sugar costs 80 points. To boil two buckets, you'll definitely need two pounds. Add in the sour fruit and highland barley, and the cost will be around 200 points."
When you calculate it like this, it's quite painful.
However, each bucket contains about 50 liters, and if both buckets can be sold out, the profit is quite considerable.
Jiang Zhi did some mental calculations and suggested, "A spoonful of small grapes is about 300 ml, so let's sell them for 12 points. A 500 ml serving of large grapes will sell for 18 points."
Yuan Ying hesitated: "Won't it be too expensive?"
Although they added sugar, the price was still a third more than other fruit juice vendors.
Jiang Zhi: "Night markets aren't open all the time. Although they're a bit expensive, people are used to a simple diet and want to improve their lives. Otherwise, life wouldn't be very interesting."
Hearing Jiang Zhi say that, Yuan Ying felt relieved. "That makes sense."
Jiang Sui called out to Jiang Zhi from outside, "Auntie, come and see! Dad has modified the cart!"
As the group went outside, they saw Jiang Jun sitting in a wheelchair. He had installed detachable sideboards on the flatbed cart, and several supports had been added to the bottom of the cart.
Looking at the dramatically changed cart, Jiang Shu exclaimed, "Wow! Brother, this looks so practical!"
Jiang Jun explained with a smile, "I was afraid of bumping into people at night, so I just put in a few extra footrests."
The two buckets of sweet and sour water were quickly boiled. While they were still steaming hot, Grandma Jiang kept stirring them with a stick to cool them down as quickly as possible.
On the other side, the porridge was also ready. To make it thicker, Wu Xiu cooked it to be more viscous.
At this point, everything was almost ready.
Grandma Jiang waved to everyone, "Come, come, all of you come and try it, see if the taste is right."
"Wait!" Jiang Shu grabbed a few lotus leaves and ran over. He then used rice grains to stick the leaves to the edges in a very professional manner. After securing them, he used a grape to scoop out a small cup and a large cup from the two buckets of sugar water.
He gave the smaller cup to Jiang Si, saying, "It's the Jiang family's custom to give the smallest cup first."
Then he took the large cup in his hand.
Wu Xiu laughed uncontrollably, "Big Tree, you're the youngest in your generation, A-Zhi, how come you're drinking first?"
“Aunt, you don’t understand. Ah Zhi doesn’t know anything about food. If you want to taste something, you have to let me, a food expert, taste it.”
As Jiang Shu spoke, he took a sip.
It's sweet, but with a strong sour aftertaste that washes away the cloying sweetness of the syrup. Combined with the refreshing fragrance of lotus leaves, it has a unique flavor.
Grandma Jiang asked anxiously, "How is it?"
Jiang Shu didn't answer, but tilted his head back and gulped down the water.
After the last sip of sweet soup slid down his throat, Jiang Shu smacked his lips contentedly, "Delicious!"
Grandma Jiang was immediately delighted. "Then the ratio is just right. I told you not to put too much sugar. Look, I only added a little over half a pound, which is just right."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shu choked a few times and quickly asked, "Grandma, which bucket did you cook the freshest one?"
Grandma Jiang pointed to the bucket closest to her.
Jiang Shu silently shifted his gaze to Xiao Jiangsi.
The cup in her hand was the real deal—a sweet and sour drink with only half a pound of sugar in it…
Jiang Shu smiled and squatted down. "Sisi, drink up, it's delicious!"
Jiang Si swallowed hard and looked at Jiang Sui.
Jiang Sui quickly said, "Sister, drink first, just leave a sip for me."
Wu Xiu laughed and said, "Drink up, drink up, there's still so much left."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Si immediately took a big gulp of water.
She was immediately overwhelmed by the sourness, but forced herself to swallow it, her little face scrunched up in a grimace.
"Great-Grandma, it's so sour!"
Grandma Jiang was startled. "How could it be sour? Both buckets contain the same amount!"
She took the sweet and sour water from Jiang Si's hand, took a sip, and almost spat it out.
"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey—"
The sweetness of the sugar was completely masked by the sourness, and it even tasted somewhat bitter.
You know, she only put in one sour fruit!
Wu Xiu quickly asked Jiang Shu, "Big Tree, what's going on? Didn't you say it was delicious? Are you lying?"
Yuan Ying also scooped some out to taste, but it was from Jiang Shu's bucket. "The one I drank from tasted just right!"
Everyone immediately looked at Jiang Shu.
Jiang Shu scratched his cheek and had no choice but to admit, "I put an extra piece of candy in there when Grandma wasn't looking."
Grandma Jiang was both annoyed and amused. "You rascal, you didn't even tell me what would happen if it was too sweet?"
Jiang Shu: "You can add water, right? See, it's fine now, isn't it?"
Grandma Jiang had no choice but to add sugar cubes to the other bucket of sweet and sour water.
After several attempts, I finally got the sweet and sour water to taste just right.
Time quickly came to five o'clock in the afternoon.
Grandpa Jiang has also returned.
Grandma Jiang: "Why are you back so early today?"
After putting away his medicine box, Grandpa Jiang said, "Isn't there a night market today? Nobody's in the mood for treatment anymore; everyone's just thinking about getting a good spot later."
Unlike Liang Sen's clinic, Grandpa Jiang's clinic does not treat external injuries; he only treats patients who are ill.
At that time, medical care and medicine were scarce, so the benefits of acupuncture became apparent. In addition, his fees were cheap, so many people sought his treatment.
Jiang Si ran over and asked, "Great-Grandpa, how many points did you earn today?"
Grandpa Jiang chuckled and pinched her nose. "It's not much, just enough for you to buy snacks tonight."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Si cheered, "Great! Great-Grandpa, I don't want to buy food, I want to read comic books. Can I read for two hours?"
Grandpa Jiang laughed heartily, "I won't hand over the points today, you can spend them all!"
He transferred some points to each child. Jiang Zhi looked at it and saw that it wasn't much—thirty-five points.
But the four siblings, plus Xu Na and two children, have a total of over two hundred points.
That's quite a lot of money.
Grandpa Jiang glanced at them and asked, "Where are Qingyun and Dashan?"
Grandma Jiang said, "Qingyun called earlier to say that the clinic had to work overtime and she would be back late today. She also transferred some points to me so that we could buy more food when we saw it. Dashan went out this morning, saying he had some errands to run, and he hasn't come back yet, but he just called back and said we don't need to wait for him to finish eating."
Grandpa Jiang understood. The night market was held in the main square, and every year at this time, some unexpected events would occur, making the clinic busier than usual.
At this moment, Wu Xiu said with a smile, "Mom and Dad, let's eat first, the porridge will get cold later."
Grandpa Jiang went to wash his hands. "Why are you eating so early today?"
Grandma Jiang scolded, "It was those kids who came up with the idea to set up a stall tonight and earn some points. Look, they've been busy all afternoon, and now they have to go register early to reserve a spot—oh dear, did we not sign up?!"
The old lady asked the last question while looking at Wu Xiu.
You need to register and get a license to set up a stall at the night market.
Wu Xiu was startled!
"Oh no! I was so busy with all this that I completely forgot to register!"
The deadline for registering to set up a stall at the night market is noon! That means even if they register now, it will be too late.
Everyone was at a loss: "What should we do now?"
It's not their fault. The night market is only open once or twice a month, and the Jiang family has never signed up for it over the years.
Seeing everyone's disappointed looks, Jiang Hai said, "I see that the Zhang family next door is also going to set up a stall. Let's go over and ask if we can team up?"
A stall costs 50 points per night, but some people are so successful that they can sell their goods in no time. At this point, the original stall owner will rent out the stall to reduce costs, and the base will turn a blind eye. Over time, this has led to the situation of stalls being shared.
Hearing this, everyone's hope was rekindled, and Wu Xiu slapped his thigh, "I'll go ask right now!"
"Wait a minute," Grandma Jiang ladled out a small bowl of sweet and sour water for her, "Take this over there. If all else fails, tell them we'll cover two-thirds of the stall fee!"
Wu Xiu responded and took the things to the Zhang family's door.
She knocked on the door for a while before a wary voice came from inside, "Who is it?"
"Sister Zhang, I'm from the Jiang family next door. I'd like to discuss something with you."
There was a rustling sound coming from inside the house, and soon the door opened.
Aunt Zhang was seven or eight years older than Wu Xiu, but she looked younger. "What's the matter?"
"I heard your family is setting up a stall tonight too..."
Before she could finish speaking, Sister Zhang immediately asked defensively, "How did you know we were going to set up a stall?"
Wu Xiu choked, "I heard about it."
Aunt Zhang scrutinized Wu Xiu's face for a moment, and remembering that Jiang Shu often brought her delicious food, she asked, "Yes, that's right. What do you want to do?"
Wu Xiu thought to herself that this old woman was really hard to talk to, but said aloud, "We also wanted to set up a stall, but we were so busy with what we wanted to sell today that we forgot to register. We were thinking of sharing a stall with you, is that alright?"
Wu Xiu understood that the Zhang family was different from the Jiang family. The Jiang family had more laborers, and although they had fallen on hard times before, they could turn their lives around if given a chance.
Zhang Ji was the only son in the Zhang family during their prime years, so they couldn't be too cautious.
Seeing that Sister Zhang hesitated, Wu Xiu handed her a small basin of sweet and sour water, saying, "We make this this afternoon. It's sweet and sour, so let your kids try it. I guarantee they'll love it."
At this moment, the two children from the Zhang family looked over timidly from inside the house.
Aunt Zhang finally answered, "You're planning to sell this?"
Wu Xiu smiled and said, "Yes, we plan to bring a cart. What do you sell? We can put it on the cart together."
Aunt Zhang didn't answer, but said, "Okay, but if your family takes up a lot of space, you'll have to pay two-thirds of the stall fee."
Wu Xiu didn't hesitate; she was also worried that Sister Zhang might disagree. "No problem!"
Sister-in-law Zhang: "We're getting ready to leave, you guys hurry up too."
After saying that, Sister Zhang went inside.
It's only 4:30, but it's worth going early to grab a good spot.
Having received confirmation from the Zhang family, Wu Xiu and her family began preparations after she returned home.
There wasn't much stuff. Several men carried two large buckets of sweet and sour water onto a cart, and Jiang He specially nailed four wooden stakes to secure them.
Thick lotus leaves were piled up to one side.
Two large barrels took up most of the space.
Jiang Jun said with a smile, "I'm in charge of watching the house today, so I won't be going. You guys have fun."
Jiang Zhi frowned disapprovingly, "It's not easy to have a lively time like this, how boring would it be to stay at home?"
Jiang Jun: "It's inconvenient for me to be like this, and you won't be able to take care of everyone if there are too many people."
Seeing that Jiang Jun said this, Jiang Zhi had no choice but to give up.
Jiang Si, holding Jiang Jun's hand, said sweetly, "Dad, what do you want? I'll buy it for you. Great-Grandpa gave us over thirty cents!"
Jiang Jun touched her little face: "You can buy whatever you like, I don't need anything."
Just then, Zhang's son, Zhang Ji, knocked on the door.
Jiang Sui ran to open the door and saw Zhang Ji standing awkwardly outside.
He rubbed his hands together. "My mother said we're leaving soon, and she asked me to come and ask if you're ready."
Grandma Jiang quickly said, "Alright, alright, bring out all your things, I'll have them take them over together."
As they were talking, Jiang Hai and Jiang He had already carried the cart out.
Then they saw that Sister Zhang and her family were already waiting at the door.
They carried little, just two small baskets, which were covered with cloth.
Wu Xiu said with a smile, "You don't have much stuff, so bring it all up."
The Zhang family was on high alert, so they didn't help with the work. After Zhang Ji and his wife loaded the baskets onto the cart, they prepared to set off.
Hearing the noise, Ma Yanhong from next door hurried out to see what was going on. When she saw the two families walking together, she couldn't help but mutter, "Really, when did the Jiang family and the Zhang family become so close?"
This time, she didn't hide, and greeted the two families: "Oh, are you setting up a stall today? What are you selling?"
"These are just some low-class foods," Wu Xiu replied with a smile. "We're on our way there now. Sister Ma, please come and visit sometime."
Then, under Ma Yanhong's intense gaze, the group headed towards the main square.
Not only them, but many people were carrying things and heading towards the same destination.
Jiang Shu whispered to Jiang Zhi, "It's really lively. I wonder if we can buy anything good."
He then gave her a knowing look.
Jiang Zhi: "We'll talk about it later."
This time, the entire Jiang family, except for Jiang Jun and Grandpa Jiang, came out.
Grandpa Jiang said he was tired from working all day and wanted to rest, so he wouldn't go.
But everyone knew that Grandpa Jiang was worried that Jiang Jun would be uncomfortable staying at home alone.
In order to get a good spot, Zhang's wife planned to go ahead with Wu Xiu and the others, leaving the men pushing and pulling the carts behind.
"Don't you keep anyone at home?" Wu Xiu asked Zhang's wife.
Aunt Zhang said calmly, "My family doesn't have anything valuable, and we don't have much to eat, so I won't keep it."
Jiang Zhi noticed that the three children from the Zhang family, who were about four or five years old, had also brought several small stools.
Wu Xiu said, "Sui Sui, you're the older brother, help your younger siblings carry their things."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Sui went to help.
Aunt Zhang's expression softened considerably. She took out a small packet of something wrapped in leaves and gave it to Jiang Si, who was standing next to her.
Jiang Si didn't dare to take it, but instead looked at Wu Xiu.
Wu Xiu then said, "Sisi, why don't you thank Grandma Zhang?"
With the adult's approval, Jiang Si smiled and said, "Thank you, Grandma Zhang!"
Sister-in-law Zhang smiled slightly. "Good girl."
When the ginger shreds were opened, everyone was stunned by what was inside.
It turns out to be sunflower seeds!
This is a real gem; ordinary people would never come across it.
Unexpectedly, the Zhang family was quite lucky to find melon seeds, and a lot of them at that.
This stuff isn't usually worth much, since most people don't have the spare cash to buy snacks.
But selling them at the night market is a different story.
At this time, everyone is just there to join in the fun and have some fun, and these sunflower seeds are the perfect snack.
If those two small baskets of melon seeds can be sold, it will be a considerable income for the villagers.
Jiang Si had never seen this before and was at a loss as she held the small bag of mutated melon seeds.
The three children from the Zhang family couldn't help but swallow hard.
Judging from its appearance, it's obvious that it's never been eaten before.
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