After leaving the grain shop, Li Suisui remembered the promise she had made to Li Xia.
She went to the general store and spent one copper coin to buy two small pieces of malt sugar.
Passing by the meat stall, she suddenly froze.
Her mouth watered.
The pork she had once scorned in her previous life had now become a delicacy she longed to sink her teeth into.
She still had 19 copper coins left from selling fish, and 3 of the 5 copper coins Wang Xiulian had given her. Altogether, she had 22 coins—enough to buy a pound of meat.
Li Erzhu was sick, and Wang Xiulian was pregnant. It was indeed time to supplement their nutrition.
After a moment of self-motivation, Li Suisui marched boldly toward the meat stall.
The shopkeeper was a middle-aged man, chubby-faced with big ears, and a simple, honest smile.
“Little lady, what kind of meat do you want? Tell me, and I’ll slice it for you.”
“What’s the price of pork now?”
Better to ask first; after all, her copper coins were limited.
“Fat pork is seventeen coins per jin, pork belly fifteen, and lean meat just thirteen.”
The fat pork was too fatty—she couldn’t eat it.
Pork belly would do. It could satisfy her, Li Erzhu, and Wang Xiulian all at once.
“I’d like half a jin of pork belly. Is seven coins okay?”
“Alright, for a first-time customer like you, I’ll give you a little discount.”
Even though it was only half a coin off, the shopkeeper’s friendly words made Li Suisui happy.
Her eyes wandered and landed on the pork back fat on the cutting board.
The family’s oil container was long empty. People couldn’t live without oil.
“Uncle, how much for the back fat?”
“Twenty coins per jin. How much do you need?”
“Any discount?”
“How much do you want? If you buy more, I can give you a lower price.”
“I’ll just take half a jin. I’m buying a little now, but I’m a potential customer. I’ll buy from you again in the future.”
“Then I’ll reduce it by one coin—nine coins for you. Deal?”
A full coin and a half saved—that was equivalent to three pieces of malt sugar. Right now, every copper coin counted.
“Deal, thank you, Uncle.”
“You’re a sweet little girl. Remember next time you buy meat, come to my stall, and I’ll give you another discount.”
“Alright, Uncle. Do you have any big bones? I didn’t see any.”
“Big bones? Sold out long ago. If you want some, you’d better come earlier next time.”
She had hoped to find some bargains at the meat stall, but there were none. Big bones were cleaned thoroughly and sold for two coins each. By the time she came, there were none left.
Many poor families couldn’t afford meat. They bought a big bone to cook with vegetables for flavor.
As for pig intestines, though cheaper than meat, they were still around eight or nine coins per jin. Properly cleaning and cooking them with spices made them tasty, but Li Suisui, despite knowing the recipe, didn’t have the conditions or energy to handle them right now.
With her purchases complete, she slowly made her way toward the parked ox cart, carrying over twenty jin of goods.
When she arrived, several people were already on the cart—the familiar faces from the morning. The triangular-eyed woman was there too.
Li Suisui had originally planned to ignore her, but the woman approached her.
“Well, little girl, selling fish has made you rich, huh? You’ve bought so much—let me see what you got.”
Li Suisui hated people touching her things. “What are you trying to do? Couldn’t grab fish this morning, now you want my stuff?”
Hmph. Li Suisui wasn’t an easy target. She wouldn’t be bullied.
“You little brat, how dare you talk to me like that?”
“I talk this way. I don’t know you, so why should I let you touch my things?”
The triangular-eyed woman felt both angry and envious. If only the girl had been obedient this morning and sold her the grouper, all these goods would have been hers now.
Fuming, she tried to take matters into her own hands, planning to forcibly snatch the goods.
“Enough. I’ve tolerated you for long enough.”
Li Suisui raised her hand. Smack! It landed on the woman’s hand.
“Ouch! You little brat dare hit me? I’ll beat you to death!”
Li Suisui wasn’t backing down. Though she didn’t shout, her hands continued to press into the soft flesh around the woman’s waist.
The fight happened so suddenly that everyone on the cart was stunned, only managing to intervene moments later.
“What happened between you two? How did this turn into a fight so fast?”
The triangular-eyed woman pointed at Li Suisui, furious. “This little vixen is outrageous! She won’t show me her things and even hit me!”
“Why should I show you my things? What right do you have to touch them?”
“Oh, everyone, please judge this! This little girl hit me and won’t admit she’s wrong! Who raised her to be so shameless? How will she ever get married like this?”
“Who are you to tell me who I can marry? Mind your own business.”
Another woman on the cart tugged at Li Suisui. “Little girl, don’t argue. Don’t make a scene—it’ll ruin your reputation.”
Li Suisui wanted to shout, To hell with reputation! But she knew in this era, reputation was everything. Ignoring it wasn’t realistic.
Another woman tried to reason with her, so she held back.
But the triangular-eyed woman wouldn’t let it go, constantly berating her and making her agitated.
Damn it. If I can’t fight back, then I’ll cry.
“Help! Someone’s trying to steal my things! They didn’t get them, and now they keep yelling at me! Somebody please help me, or report this to the authorities—I demand the officials do justice!”
Her cry silenced the surrounding crowd and even quieted the triangular-eyed woman.
Moments later, the woman exploded in rage.
“You little brat! Now you want to involve the authorities too? You’re really asking for a beating!”
“Waaah… everyone heard it! She tried to steal from me and hit me! Look at the scratches on my face and hands—they’re from her! And now she wants to keep hitting me! Please, good people, report this to the officials!”
In her memory, people in this era feared the authorities—but she didn’t.
Besides, she was in the right today. She wasn’t afraid to go to the magistrate.
From behind came the woman’s scolding again: “Do you think the officials have nothing better to do than listen to your petty troubles? Go ahead and shout all you want—nobody will help you report it, and even if someone does, the magistrate won’t care.”