Liu Yumin said, "Let me take a look at the medical book first, and I'll see how it goes."
The old man tactfully took out the books. These were all old objects, treasures in the eyes of those who knew their value, but those who didn't would find them unappealing, even as firewood. Naturally, his family's treasures were reserved for those destined to be with him. Fortunately, the fortune teller gave him a divination, saying that he would meet a benefactor today.
Liu Yumin flipped through the book and became more and more engrossed in it. Although she might not fully understand the contents, it would be wonderful if the prescription could be developed and the country's current diseases could be controlled to a certain extent!
Tan Fuya, who was watching from the side, didn't understand, so she negotiated with the old man: "Sir, how much do you want to sell it for?"
The old man didn't ask for an exorbitant amount: "I only need 300 catties of refined grain, 300 catties of coarse grain, two cans of milk powder and two cans of malted milk powder. If you have an old hen, that would be even better. I don't want any money. I also have a few medical books at home, which I'll give to you."
Now that the country's food control has become stricter, it's hard to buy fine grains even if you have money. There are several children in the family who need nutrition, and one baby needs to be breastfed. The mother doesn't have enough milk, and the baby gets an upset stomach after eating porridge. The doctor said to give the baby formula, but they have no way to get it. They can only try their luck here. If it weren't for the bad harvest, they wouldn't be asking for so little. These things are considered outrageous, and he is very uneasy.
"That's not expensive," Tan Fuya asked. "We don't have that much stuff with us. You come with me to Master Xin's place, and he'll pay for it for us first. Will you be able to take it back?"
The cauldron reached her waist, but luckily the old man's box had wheels, so it wasn't difficult to push. The two women probably couldn't move it, so they would have to ask someone for help.
The old man happily replied, "Yes, my son will come to pick me up in a bit, and he can take me home."
Having Master Xin as a guarantor is certainly a good thing. Although Master Xin organized this antique market, he also set rules that he generally does not act as a guarantor for anyone. He only gives face to people who are familiar with him. If someone can get Master Xin to act as a guarantor, they can come here to pick up their items in several installments without attracting attention.
Before Liu Yumin could say anything more, Tan Fuya said, "Little sister, we get along very well. This is a gift for you. Don't refuse it. Just take good care of Nannan in the future."
Liu Yumin naturally disagreed: "How could I take advantage of you, sister? I'll pay for it myself, and I'll give you the goods in cash. Don't argue with me about this."
A relationship can only last if there is give and take; she is not the kind of person who takes advantage of others.
Seeing that the two were about to start fighting, the old man said, "Why don't we make a deal first, and you can discuss it privately?"
He's still waiting for something to save his life! Whoever gives him the thing is giving it anyway; he can figure it out himself when he has time.
The two also felt it wasn't appropriate, so the three of them went to find Master Xin together. When they arrived at Master Xin's courtyard, Liu Yumin didn't follow. Opening an antique market must be crossing the line of national laws, and she didn't want to get involved. She pretended that she didn't know anything about what was going on inside the house.
Once inside the house, Tan Fuya spoke directly to Master Xin, who naturally agreed and reminded her, "Madam Fu, please think carefully. Many things in ancient medical prescriptions are hard to find now."
Most importantly, Western medicine is now prevalent, and traditional Chinese medicine is no longer valued.
Tan Fuya said, "I understand that, Master Xin. I didn't bring this much stuff with me this time. I'd like to ask you to pay for it first, and I'll pay you back. You can see how much these are worth."
Master Xin patted his chest and assured her, "Don't worry, Madam, I'll take care of this. Is there anything else that Madam Fu has her eye on? I'll send it over tonight."
Tan Fuya hesitated. She had her eye on quite a few things, but with Yu Min around, she was afraid that Yu Min would also think she was a heartless capitalist who had so much money to exploit ordinary people.
Master Xin also began to worry. He knew that the old lady had brought a friend today. Since the friend was someone he could trust, and the friend didn't seem to be poor, he wondered if the old lady's identity was a bit sensitive.
He gestured to his men to take the old man out and get things done; there couldn't be any mistakes in Master Fu's matter.
Mr. Xin asked directly, "Mrs. Fu, we've known each other for quite some time now, so just say what you want to say! Is he/she your friend...?"
Tan Fuya said, "Don't worry, Mr. Xin, my friend is fine. It's just that his identity isn't suitable for contacting you. I'd like to ask you to keep an eye out for ancient medical books in the future. You can decide on the price yourself. If you find anything good, you can contact Sister Xu directly."
Mr. Xin had no problem with it: "There are several nice sets of jewelry this time, Mrs. Fu. I specially reserved them for you, what do you think..."
In times of chaos, gold is valued; in times of prosperity, jade is valued. Right now, he only wants to collect gold as a precaution. Having experienced a period when 100,000 yuan could only buy a pound of rice, even though his life is now stable, he is not very confident about currency. Gold is only available to a few large families, who are his key partners.
Tan Fuya knew she couldn't resist beautiful jewelry, so after hesitating for a moment, she said, "Send it to the Fu family secretly!"
Taking the opportunity, Master Xin said, "I also received several fine inkstones. I wonder if Master Fu..."
Since she had already bought so much, Tan Fuya didn't hesitate: "Just send it all over! My husband only wants the best quality items, let him choose for himself."
Master Xin assured him, "It's absolutely top-quality; anything less wouldn't be sent to Master Fu."
Zhu Fanfan, who was outside, heard everything clearly. She didn't know how her grandmother and this Uncle Xin knew each other. However, in the early days of the People's Republic of China, there was a severe shortage of supplies, but capitalists and landlords were not suppressed so severely. She didn't expect that the antique business was not restricted.
Suddenly she felt like she could hear faint footsteps, very light, but it seemed like they were walking this way. Could there be something wrong with her ears?
The voices were getting closer, and it sounded like there were quite a few people. Were they planning to double-cross her? If she encountered something like this, she could only suffer in silence. How could she warn them?
The loud baby's cry made the people inside quickly talk things out, and Tan Fuya hurriedly came out: "Little girl, why are you crying?"
Liu Yumin took out a baby bottle: "It's just the right temperature to warm it up for her; she can drink it now."
After saying that, they took out the formula and were about to feed the baby. They were also afraid that the baby would go hungry, so they prepared the formula and kept it warm in hot water so that the baby could have milk at any time.
Zhu Fanfan became even more anxious. What time is it? Why are you still drinking milk? Get out of here! These three weak women should get as far away as possible. In a fight, weapons don't care about anything. What if they get hurt by mistake?
Seeing that Fanfan was shaking his head from side to side and refusing to eat, Liu Yumin wondered if he had wet himself. Fanfan resisted, even though he was a baby, he refused to be exposed in front of outsiders.
Liu Yumin was puzzled: "It's not wet."
Fanfan is usually very well-behaved and easy to take care of, so why is he being disobedient today? Is he not used to being outside? He said to Tan Fuya, "Sister Fuya, why don't we go back? Maybe Fanfan doesn't want to stay outside anymore."
Yes, yes, she doesn't want to stay here anymore, let's go!
Tan Fuya said, "Thank you for your help, Mr. Xin. We'll take the child back first."
Master Xin readily agreed: "The child is the most important thing, Madam Fu. You can go back now. I'll have my brothers deliver the things over."
Suddenly, a whistle blew urgently, and a henchman ran over and said anxiously, "Boss, a group of people are approaching. We need to get out of here right away."
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