739 salted duck eggs sold out instantly. Su Tian looked at the emptied shopping cart, beaming with joy, and immediately said her thanks: “Thank you all for your support. If you enjoy them, I’ll sell more next time. If there are any quality issues, just request a refund.” Someone even mentioned the “monkey tickets.” Su Tian replied, “If all goes well, I’ll show you the monkey tickets in the next live stream.” No one in the livestream kept asking about monkey tickets, leaving Su Tian slightly embarrassed but polite; she smiled, made a few casual remarks, waved her hand, and said, “That’s it for today’s livestream. See you next time!” As soon as she finished speaking, the screen went black—livestream ended.
Su Tian breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly checked the backend, staring at a string of numbers: 7,316.1 yuan. Covering her mouth, she was afraid she might scream from excitement and wake her sleeping parents. One livestream had earned her over seven thousand yuan—she could hardly believe it. Even after Xiaoba took half as commission, there was still 3,658 yuan left. Deducting the cost of 221.7 yuan, Su Tian actually received 3,436.3 yuan. Wow! Livestream selling really works! If Xiaoba had a physical store, Su Tian almost wanted to hug it and give it a kiss.
“When’s the next livestream?” Xiaoba replied: [Up to you. If you can deviate from your life path and meet the conditions, you can livestream.]
With over three thousand yuan, Su Tian wasn’t in a rush to start another livestream. That was enough for her to spend for a while. Besides, most nearby salted duck eggs had been bought up, and the newly cured ones weren’t ready yet, so it was fine to livestream next month. For now, the priority was to get the monkey tickets. That night, Su Tian even woke up laughing in her sleep. She had earned money. For the first time in her life, the money she earned was in her own hands, and no one could control it.
What Su Tian didn’t know was that the egg she had specially boiled for Qin Yan to roll on his red, swollen forehead was eaten by his younger sister. After Qin Yan returned from the wedding, he helped at the Guo family, and when things settled, he drank the wedding wine and went home with his mother and sister. His forehead injury wasn’t red but still swollen. Qin’s mother asked about it, but he brushed it off.
Qin’s younger sister saw it and, concerned, brought some medicinal wine: “Brother, let me put some on, it’ll heal faster.” Qin Yan initially wanted to refuse, but seeing his younger sister’s pleading expression, ten years his junior, he couldn’t say no and let her apply it. While she was doing so, she noticed something in his chest pocket and asked, “Brother, what’s in your pocket?”
Qin Yan remembered, took out the egg, and handed it to her. Seeing it, his sister’s eyes lit up: “Why isn’t it red? I didn’t see any eggs at our cousin’s house today either.” Red eggs are traditionally eaten at celebrations. This egg wasn’t from Su Lili’s family, so it wasn’t a red egg.
“Is it from the bride’s family?” Qin Yan thought of Su Tian, feeling slightly awkward. Even though he hadn’t done anything wrong, he felt uneasy meeting her gaze.
“Brother, when will you get a wife? I want to eat wedding food again. Cousin Zhiwei is remarried already; when will I get a sister-in-law?”
Qin Yan gave her a cold look. His mother tapped her and said, “You’re already 20; it’s time to get married. Tomorrow, I’ll take you to see a girl. If you like her, you can marry her while I’m still able to help with the grandchildren.”
Qin Yan refused: “I have to go on a trip tomorrow. Don’t worry about it. I’ll find someone myself.” He left without listening to his mother.
The next morning, Huang Guifang came early to check if the salted duck eggs were still there. Seeing the baskets empty, she thought someone had broken in. Waking Su Tian, she asked, “The salted duck eggs are all gone! Did someone steal them last night?”
Still sleepy, Su Tian reached under her pillow, took out the money she had for her mother, and said, “They were sold. You were all asleep while people came to pick up the goods.”
Huang Guifang looked at the stack of money, each bill crisp and complete. After deducting the previous 50-yuan deposit, there was still over 170 yuan left. Her hands trembled—this was the first time in her life she had earned so much.
“Tiantian, is this really ours?” Huang Guifang excitedly shook Su Tian awake. “Do you want to do it again next time? I can go to your grandmother’s house to collect more salted duck eggs—your grandmother has quite a lot!”
“Collect, collect, collect… Mom, can you let me sleep a little?” Su Tian had been so excited last night that she stayed up late and was exhausted now. Unfortunately, her mother wasn’t the considerate type. Seeing the sun high in the sky and her daughter still wanting to sleep in, she immediately dragged her up.
Su Tian: “……” Darn it!
Su Tian sorted through her memories from her previous life. She didn’t need to worry about the salted duck eggs anymore—Huang Guifang, motivated by the money they had earned, would handle them, which reassured Su Tian.
Su Tian planned to go to the salt market, aiming to get the monkey tickets. If she didn’t go, someone else might get them. It was still the 1980s, and going out required an introduction letter and tickets. After much persuasion, her parents finally gave her an introduction letter. With a few salted duck eggs, rice balls, and some homemade steamed buns in hand, she set off. Huang Guifang even gave her ten yuan, telling her to keep an eye on it and not spend it recklessly.
Su Tian nodded and set off with her provisions. She didn’t have a car yet, so she would have to transfer vehicles to reach the salt market. Luckily, her timing was good—just as she reached the main road, she found a vehicle headed to the salt market. Showing her introduction letter, she bought a ticket and got on. The vehicle was crowded, and Su Tian had to stand the whole way. By the time she reached the bus station, her legs were nearly useless, and the salted duck eggs had been crushed.
She told people she was visiting her aunt but had no intention of troubling her. Her aunt had a large family, and staying there meant sleeping on the floor. Now that she had money, she could stay at a guesthouse—comfortable, convenient, and no floor-sleeping required. How nice!
Knowing her purpose, Su Tian didn’t wander around. In the afternoon, she visited several post offices trying to buy monkey tickets, but the staff all shook their heads—everything was sold out; they had none left. Su Tian regretted that she had been reborn too late. If she had camped outside the post office before the tickets were released and stocked up, she wouldn’t have missed out entirely.
With no tickets available at the post offices, Su Tian had no choice but to stake out near Guo Zhiwei’s family compound—the monkey tickets she wanted were there.