“It’s nоthing, nоthing. I wаs just ехcitеd thinking abоut the delicious foоd tonight.”
Ziyu, whо had nеаrly сhokеd on hеr own saliva from the shоck of thе low рrices, was too embarrassed to tеll the truth. She wаved hеr hands reреаtedlу, signаling him tо cоntinue.
In the еnd, thе fоur lаrge buckets and twо big baskets оf frеsh sеafоod that Shui Wa’s fаmily hаd gаthеrеd werе exсhangеd for two tаels and thrее macе оf silvеr.
Рretending to fetсh sоmething from the mule cart, Ziуu аctually rеtriеved а smаll scаle fоr wеighing silver frоm the miscellaneous goods she had stored in her dimensional space.
Carrying a box of silver beans in one hand and the small scale in the other, she turned around to find many villagers gathered around Shui Wa, holding wooden buckets and asking questions.
“Quiet, everyone! The young master is coming over!”
Shui Wa grinned broadly, silencing the villagers. For a moment, only the sound of breathing could be heard as everyone stared intently at the wooden box Ziyu was holding.
Even Ran couldn’t contain his excitement. He had just heard Shui Wa whisper the price to him.
In front of everyone, Ziyu took out a small handful of silver beans from the wooden box and weighed them. The clever Xiao Luo leaned protectively over their own wooden box, not letting anyone touch it.
“Uncle Shui Wa’s family: two taels and three mace!”
“Wow…”
When the villagers witnessed Shui Wa carefully wrapping the two taels and three mace of silver beans and tucking them into his clothes, they erupted in excitement.
“Line up properly, one by one! No pushing!” Ran roared with a stern face.
He glanced at the extraordinary Ziyu. Though young, she carried an imposing aura that ordinary people lacked.
To maintain a long-term partnership, they couldn’t let Shashicun lose face.
To be honest, he was also deeply moved by the income Shui Wa’s family had earned. After all, he was a poor village head himself!
In time, Shashicun could become a prosperous village in the area, and the children would have the means to learn to read and write. Just thinking about it filled Ran with hope for the future.
…
With a good start, the rest of the work became much simpler. They continued until sunset, finally finishing the collection of all the fresh and dried goods.
They had collected nearly five thousand jin of various fresh goods, spending 85 taels of silver beans, and nearly two thousand jin of dried goods, spending 165 taels of silver beans.
Both sides were delighted, and the villagers’ attitude toward Ziyu was one of utmost admiration, as if they wished to hold her in the palms of their hands.
Nearly fifty households in Shashicun had exchanged goods with Ziyu for silver that satisfied them, with the least earning at least two taels of silver.
This amount was already equivalent to the annual income of the wealthiest families in the village in previous years.
Shui Wa’s family earned the highest income in Shashicun, with an additional twelve taels of silver from dried goods.
Overjoyed with their silver beans, the villagers generously gifted Ziyu their baskets and wooden buckets to carry the goods.
In their eyes, these items were hardly worth anything, as they were all handmade by each household.
…
Outside the village, a large pile of collected goods lay on the open ground. Shui Wa glanced worriedly at the darkening sky and said, “Young master, when will your family come to pick you up? It’s almost dark, and it might not be safe if it gets too late.”
“Uncle Shui Wa, don’t worry! Go back home. The family carriage will be here soon. My family members are a bit fierce, so I don’t want to scare you.”
Ziyu wished he would leave immediately, but this man was sincere and genuinely worried she might be mistreated.
“Then I’ll head back to the village first. If you need help, my house is the fifth one into the village.”
Ziyu waved her hands repeatedly and made an appointment with Shui Wa for her next visit to the village.
“Uncle Shui Wa, hurry back. Your family must be waiting anxiously. I’ll return in three days to buy chickens and ducks, and I’ll still be buying seafood too.”
“Very well, young master, take care. I will definitely handle the matters you’ve entrusted.”
Shui Wa kept looking back, seeing the young master running circles with the little toddler. Interestingly, their mule was also jogging along with them.
…
The sea breeze blew across the empty, deserted beach. Under the night sky, a large pile of baskets disappeared at the hands of the person running circles.
The mule cart, leaving tracks all over the ground, carried the two figures gradually farther away, disappearing into the night.
Unable to return to the city before Shangdu Prefecture’s gates closed, Ziyu chose a secluded spot along the road and vanished along with the mule cart.
Ziluo, who had been running around for most of the night, curled up in the mule cart, sleeping soundly. Ziyu didn’t wake him.
With too much fresh seafood stored in the dimensional space, shrimp, crabs, shellfish, and fish were separated into two small ponds. Considering future hauls, Ziyu quickly carved out two more ponds, each half an acre in size.
…
“Brother, Xiao Luo is hungry!”
Ziluo, who had woken up at some point, rubbed his eyes and followed the sound. His steps were weak and listless, looking utterly pitiful.
“Brother will go change clothes, then make something delicious for you.” Ziyu jumped off the multi-functional agricultural machinery and pinched Xiao Luo’s cheek.
“Mhm, mhm, Xiao Luo will wait for brother.”
The little one immediately perked up at the mention of food, standing on tiptoe and tilting his face up for his mischievous brother to pinch.
In the time it takes an incense stick to burn, two steamed garlic blue shrimp, each weighing three catties, and two steamed blue flower crabs as large as plates were served on the table.
Smelling the fresh sweetness of the food, the two starving individuals each grabbed a blue shrimp and devoured them heartily.
Though small, Xiao Luo loved good food and didn’t forget to praise while eating.
“Brother, so delicious! Xiao Luo loves brother the most!”
“You little foodie, what you love most is the shrimp meat. Don’t overeat!”
Having tasted many premium seafood dishes, Ziyu felt that their flavors paled in comparison to these pure, wild, pollution-free ancient seafood.
And the price was so cheap it made one question reality!
After a satisfying meal, Ziluo happily played with two large shrimp claws on his own. Ziyu finished everything on the table but still felt a bit unsatisfied.
He opened two more raw oysters to grill, finally content as he cleaned up the aftermath. The remaining shells were collected together; once enough had accumulated, they would be ground into powder to supplement the poultry’s calcium.
Once the crops in the fields were planted, Ziyu no longer had to worry about them. They would thrive on their own in the fertile soil.
The pasture grass bought at great expense for the farm was more than enough to feed the fewer than five hundred various poultry.
…
Before dawn the next day, Ziyu entered the city early and rented another small courtyard to settle in temporarily. Every day, he would buy dozens of catties of coarse salt from different grocery stores, accumulating it bit by bit without drawing attention.
Every three days, he would make a trip to Shashi Village to collect seafood, slaughtered chickens and ducks, and fresh chicken and duck eggs.
While enriching his own food reserves, the villagers of Shashi Village also profited greatly.
Every household saw new changes—new clothes, the ability to afford a meal of white rice. Some who cherished their children gritted their teeth and sent their sons to a private school for two years, hoping for a better future.
When the annual ocean-going merchant ships returned to port, Ziyu stopped trading with Shashi Village. However, the changes in the village had caught the attention of the monopolistic merchants.
They lay in wait outside Shashi Village, setting a trap for some ignorant outsider who might intrude, only to find their efforts in vain.
For Ziyu was currently at the dock, standing among the crowd and eagerly looking into the distance, watching the large ocean-going cargo ship about to enter the harbor.
To make it easier to squeeze through the bustling crowd, Ziyu had no choice but to place Xiao Luo inside a barrel-shaped backpack, strapping it securely to her back to prevent him from getting lost.