Gu Nianzhi handed the pheasant to Gu Nian’an, then lifted the massive snake’s corpse herself and led him down the mountain.
It was still noon, and the blazing sun soon had both of them drenched in sweat.
“Let’s rest for a bit,” Gu Nianzhi said.
She stopped Gu Nian’an, and the two set the prey down and sat beneath a large tree to cool off.
Gu Nian’an stared at the enormous snake, excitement bubbling in his chest.
So much meat… how long would it take to finish all of it?
Although he was afraid of snakes, to a farming family that hadn’t eaten meat for years, this was a great tonic!
As long as it was meat, he wanted to eat it.
“Sis, how are we going to deal with this snake?” he asked.
Though he really wanted to eat it, thinking about their current situation made him hold back.
If they could sell it for money, they could buy grain and live comfortably for a while.
Gu Nianzhi looked at the pheasant and the snake together and immediately thought of a dish—Dragon-and-Phoenix Chicken.
She wasn’t sure whether this era had such a dish, but since they had hunted the ingredients, they might as well try selling them at a tavern.
That way, she could also gradually bring supplies out of her space to support the family.
“We’ll sell them in town,” she said.
Hearing that the snake would be sold, Gu Nian’an felt a little regret at not getting to eat it—but he was even happier inside.
Now they could finally buy grain!
After resting enough, the siblings continued on their way.
They didn’t return to the village, but headed straight for town.
Walking to town took two shichen—about four hours. Even riding an ox cart cost two copper coins per person.
They had no money, so they carried the snake and pheasant on foot.
The original owner of Gu Nianzhi’s body had been to town twice before, so she remembered the road—though it was exhausting.
By the time they reached town, Gu Nianzhi felt sharp pain in the soles of her feet. She had clearly walked too long.
Seeing two children carrying a snake corpse and a pheasant, passersby stopped to stare.
It was Gu Nian’an’s first time in town. With so many people pointing and whispering, he grew terribly nervous.
Gu Nianzhi had planned to find a tavern to sell the prey, but after walking only a short distance, someone stopped them.
“Little girl, where did you get that snake?”
The speaker was a middle-aged man dressed luxuriously—clearly from a wealthy household.
Gu Nianzhi steadied herself and replied warmly,“Sir, we hunted it in the mountains—a big snake and a wild chicken. It took a lot of effort.”
Hearing that the snake had been hunted by them, the crowd didn’t quite believe it.
Such a thick snake would frighten even grown men—how could two children dare to kill it?
Seeing the disbelief, Gu Nian’an grew anxious.
“We really did hunt it! My sister was even wrapped up by the snake—we had no choice but to smash it with stones!”
When they heard that the girl had been coiled by the snake, fear appeared on many faces.
They looked at the snake’s head—indeed, it had been smashed to pieces.
Only then did everyone believe them.
How pitiful.
So young, yet already risking their lives to hunt—clearly driven by hardship at home.
The middle-aged man’s expression softened with pity.
“You two haven’t had it easy. How about this—two hundred copper coins for the pheasant, and one tael of silver for the snake. What do you say?”
Gu Nianzhi weighed the price.
Seeing no reaction of surprise or disapproval from the surrounding crowd, she knew this was likely the market rate, so she agreed.
The man’s servant took the prey. After receiving the money and thanking him, the siblings headed to the grain shop.
Inside, with money finally in hand, Gu Nianzhi clenched her teeth and bought three jin of polished rice.
Gu Nian’an’s heart bled beside her.
Polished rice cost twenty coins per jin; coarse rice cost only five. Back at the Gu household, they couldn’t even eat coarse rice—now that they had money, they were eating polished rice straight away!
Wasn’t this too wasteful?
A worry far beyond his age appeared on Gu Nian’an’s small face.
Seeing this, Gu Nianzhi laughed.
“An’an, this is the age when you’re growing. You can’t eat coarse rice every day—it’ll stunt your height.”
Gu Nian’an looked at her skeptically.
“But all the uncles in our village grew up eating coarse rice, and they’re strong!”
Gu Nianzhi just smiled and didn’t argue.
Now that she could earn money, eating coarse rice every day was impossible!
The three jin of polished rice cost sixty copper coins. If the three of them were careful, even cooking porridge occasionally, it would last several days.
Next, Gu Nianzhi went to the butcher’s stall.
As soon as they arrived, the butcher greeted them enthusiastically.
Fat pork: thirty-five coins per jin.Lean pork: twenty coins per jin.Big bones: five coins each.
Since they didn’t even have cooking oil at home, Gu Nianzhi bought three jin of fat pork and two large bones—for a total of one hundred fifteen coins.
With thirty-five coins left from selling the pheasant, she took Gu Nian’an to a general store to buy salt.
Salt cost twenty coins per jin. When they told the shopkeeper they only had thirty-five coins, he gave them two jin and then scooped out a small handful.
Gu Nianzhi: …This shopkeeper was surprisingly fair.
With so many purchases—and having been hungry all day—the siblings hurried home, imagining the fragrant pork they’d soon eat.
They finally arrived before nightfall. Madam Liu was anxiously waiting at the door.
“Mother! We’re back!” Gu Nian’an shouted happily, hugging a bundle of salt as he ran over.
Seeing what the child carried, Madam Liu asked in surprise,“Where did you get salt?”
“Mother, not just salt—there’s rice and meat too!” Gu Nian’an boasted proudly.
This was something Big Sister had earned together with him! He’d helped kill the snake too!
Madam Liu took the sack of rice from her daughter’s hands. Beside it was a large chunk of fatty pork wrapped in banana leaves.
Heavens!
Had these two little brats stolen money from the old household?!
They’d already stolen scallions from there yesterday!
Her face went pale.
If Old Madam Gu found out, they’d surely be tormented again!
Seeing her worried expression, Gu Nianzhi explained,“We earned this by hunting in the mountains. We spent two hundred copper coins, and there’s still one tael of silver left.”
As she spoke, she handed the silver to Madam Liu.
Hearing that the children had gone up the mountain again, Madam Liu’s heart leapt in fear.
“Didn’t I say not to go? Why did you go again? If anything happened to you, how could I go on living?”
She scolded them nonstop. The siblings didn’t dare talk back—but their hearts felt warm.
She didn’t care how much money they earned—only about their safety. That alone showed how important they were to her.
After a while, Madam Liu finally calmed down and returned the silver to Gu Nianzhi.
“This is money you earned with your lives. Mother won’t take it—keep it yourselves.”
Gu Nianzhi thought that having silver on hand would give her a legitimate excuse to take supplies out of her space, so she didn’t refuse.
“An’an gets a share too.”
She took out five hundred copper coins and handed them to Gu Nian’an.
Seeing this, Gu Nian’an shook his head like a rattle drum.
“No, no! Big Sister buying rice and meat for me is already happiness enough. I don’t want your money!”
Only two days after leaving, he had eaten fish. On the third day, polished rice and pork.
Such days were something he wouldn’t have dared imagine before.
Now, Gu Nian’an wished for only one thing—that these days would last a little longer.
He truly loved the feeling of having a full belly.