She didn’t know they were called lollipops. Seeing that they looked as pretty as fruit candies, she assumed they were just fruit candies on sticks.
“Is that so? If they taste good, eat a few more. I’m going back to the dormitory now and won’t disturb your work.” After leaving the hospital, Bai Lu pulled out a lollipop. Even through the transparent wrapper, she could smell its sweet fragrance.
Bai Lu peeled one and put it in her mouth; the taste was indeed excellent. She remembered that in her past life, children loved these. During the New Year, every household had them on the table. A jar contained 108 sticks and retailed for fifty cents each, meaning 108 sticks would cost fifty-four yuan. However, on the “Myriad Realms Mall,” they only cost thirty Mall Coins.
It seemed that items in the “Myriad Realms Mall” were indeed more affordable than those in supermarkets. When she had time, she should place more orders and store them in the “Myriad Realms Warehouse.”
Back at the dormitory, Bai Lu gave Wen Nuan a handful of lollipops as well.
Wen Nuan was overjoyed. “Thank you.”
Once the other nurses finished their shifts, they all took their lunch boxes to the canteen for dinner. After dinner, they chatted, tidied up their things, and washed up. Night fell quickly, and everyone went to bed to rest.
Bai Lu waited until everyone was asleep, then took a flashlight and got out of bed. She went to the toilet at the end of the eaves, and after confirming no one was inside, she closed the door and stood against it. She quickly opened the “Myriad Realms Mall” and began studying it again.
Since she was currently eating and living at the hospital, she didn’t actually need to buy much. Moreover, if she bought something too unusual, people would notice immediately. She simply wanted to understand the “Myriad Realms Mall” better; the more she knew, the more prepared she would feel.
She remembered that she had already contacted her middle school deskmate, Xu Lebao, about selling dried wild mushrooms. However, she currently didn’t have a single bit of dried mushroom left. That wouldn’t do. She needed to ask Zhao Yonghong to help her collect more.
But her current funds weren’t enough to buy many mushrooms. She had to convert the Mall Coins from the “Myriad Realms Mall” into the currency of this era first. Consequently, Bai Lu began searching the “Myriad Realms Mall” for essential daily supplies of this era: rice, flour, oil, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar.
The rice in the “Myriad Realms Mall” came in various specifications. She chose the cheapest one: a fifty-jin bag for 94 Mall Coins. Converted, it cost less than two yuan per jin. She spent 1,880 Mall Coins to buy twenty bags of rice, totaling one thousand jin. Afterward, she spent 499 Mall Coins to buy two hundred jin of dried noodles.
She stopped buying items after that. She decided to sell the rice and noodles first to exchange them for cash, then go to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative to buy a bottle of liquor. This way, she would gain another 200,000 Mall Coins and wouldn’t have to worry about prices anymore.
At this time, rice was fourteen cents per jin, so one hundred jin cost fourteen yuan. Bai Lu knew that ordinary families might not be willing to spend so much money at once on an entire bag of rice. However, repacking a hundred jin of rice into one-jin bags was too much trouble for her, and she didn’t have a large enough space to do it. Therefore, she didn’t waste time looking for individual buyers. The next night, she rode her bicycle straight to a private restaurant and asked the owner if he wanted rice. If he did, the price would be fifteen yuan per bag.
She was delivering the goods personally and charging a one-yuan labor fee; that wasn’t excessive, was it?
Bai Lu originally thought the deal wouldn’t be easy to strike, but to her surprise, the owner wanted it. He even asked how much she had, saying he would take it all.
Bai Lu had only brought one bag of rice on her bicycle; the rest were stored in the “Myriad Realms Warehouse.” She couldn’t exactly conjure them up in front of the owner, could she? So, after taking the money for the first bag, she gave the owner an address and told him to bring the money there to pick up the rest of the rice.
By the time the owner arrived with a wooden cart, Bai Lu had already brought out all the rice. The owner handed the remaining 285 yuan to Bai Lu and began loading the bags onto the cart. Once finished, he approached Bai Lu and asked, “Comrade, is the amount correct?”
Bai Lu nodded. “It’s correct.”
“Comrade, do you have anything else?” the owner asked in a low voice.
Bai Lu’s interest was piqued. It wouldn’t be bad to have a long-term trading partner. Furthermore, she felt the owner was a good person who paid promptly, which made it easier for her to convert her Mall Coins into usable cash.
“What is it that you want, boss?”
Hearing this, the owner frowned and complained, “There are too many restaurants in this small town. If you don’t have something unique, it’s really hard to stand out. Several restaurants in town have already failed and closed down. I suspect mine will be next.”
“I have traveled far and wide, seen many good things, and established many connections. I can certainly obtain unique items.” Bai Lu, wearing a men’s wig and men’s clothing, gave a faint smile. “Do you want seafood? If your restaurant adds seafood, it will be the only one in town or even the county. Won’t all the customers flock to your place then?”
“Seafood?” The owner’s frown deepened. “It sounds good, but I’ve never even seen it, and I don’t know how to cook it.”
“What if I provide the cooking methods?” She could just buy a comprehensive seafood cookbook from the “Myriad Realms Mall.” This would guarantee the owner made a fortune while allowing her to do the same.
“Alright, I’ll give it a try,” the owner nodded.
As the owner was about to push the rice away, Bai Lu added, “Boss, could you help me buy ten bottles of [XX] liquor at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative tomorrow? When I deliver the goods in a few days, you won’t need to pay; just exchange the liquor with me.”
“Sure.” The owner agreed to Bai Lu’s terms and pushed the rice away.
Bai Lu waited until the owner was far off before riding away on her bicycle.
Exchanging three hundred yuan in cash in a single night made Bai Lu overjoyed. The thought that she could have two million more Mall Coins in two days—and how much cash that could be converted into—made her feel excited.
The following night, Bai Lu went to see Zhao Yonghong, who lived next door to Jin Jialiang’s house. She gave Zhao Yonghong twenty yuan and asked her to help collect another hundred jin of dried mushrooms. For every hundred jin collected, Zhao Yonghong would receive a five-yuan reward. Naturally, Zhao Yonghong had no reason to refuse. She repeatedly promised Bai Lu, “Nurse Bai, don’t worry! I will definitely help you collect the best mushrooms. Your relatives definitely won’t find fault with them.”
“Then I’ll leave it to you, Auntie.” After concluding the deal with Zhao Yonghong, Bai Lu went to Jin Jialiang’s empty house next door. Jin Jialiang was not around during this time, so even if she stayed there, no one could say anything.