“Alright!” the shopkeeper agreed generously. Small stools didn’t sell for much anyway, and were often given as free add-ons. He quickly carried four stools and placed them on the cart.
Having bought the small beds she liked and even received useful freebies, Huawanyi was very satisfied. With these, she no longer had to worry about the children crawling around inside the carriage.
Now she needed to buy vegetables. Morning produce was the freshest, and there was also more variety.
She drove the ox cart to the street where vegetables were sold. Vendors were already squatting on both sides, calling out their wares, while a few women were casually picking through goods.
Huawanyi took on the air of a housekeeper from a wealthy family, acting with full confidence and authority.
The first stall was an old man selling eggs. In front of him were two large baskets of eggs, and he sat waiting for customers.
“How much are your eggs?” Huawanyi asked without getting off the cart, her tone slightly superior.
Seeing she was addressing him, the old man eagerly replied, “Madam, one egg costs one copper coin!”
Huawanyi didn’t want to take advantage of poor farmers. As long as the price was fair and the goods were fresh, she wouldn’t be picky.
“I’ll take them all. Count how much it is.”
“Yes, yes!” the old man said joyfully. He hadn’t expected such a generous customer and quickly began counting.
“Madam, there are 136 eggs in total, so 136 copper coins.”
Huawanyi paid and had him load all the eggs into the carriage before moving on to the next stall.
“How much are these radishes?”
“One copper coin per jin!”
“I’ll take them all!”
Seeing such a big buyer, nearby vendors rushed over with baskets and bundles.
“Madam, take a look at my greens! Freshly picked this morning, still covered in dew!”
“Madam, look at my eggplants…”
“Madam, my cabbages…”
“Madam, my eggs are big and good…”
Huawanyi raised her hand to stop their chatter.
“Alright, alright. Quiet down. Line up one by one. As long as it’s fresh and the price is fair, I’ll take it all!”
She thought for a moment and added, “Also, whoever is selling chicken or pork, bring it over and I’ll take it too—but make sure all the feathers and hair are completely removed. Not a single strand left!”
“Alright!”
“I’ll go tell my nephew! He sells pork on the next street!”
“I’ll inform my neighbor—he sells chickens!”
The vendors quickly lined up and whispered among themselves. The more meticulous ones even picked out a few wilted leaves, terrified of offending the wealthy customer and losing the sale.
Some quick-witted ones ran off to notify relatives and friends. If there was a chance to make a sale, they all wanted a piece of it.
Huawanyi hadn’t expected this effect—it actually saved her the trouble of going stall by stall.
She placed more than ten large baskets in the carriage. Any acceptable produce was directly put inside, to be collected into her “bathroom space” later when no one was around.
After spending the whole morning there, she basically cleared out the entire street’s vegetables. She bought over a thousand eggs, and several hundred jin each of pork and chicken from the nearby streets—enough for the coming months and the journey of fleeing famine.
After leaving the street, Huawanyi drove the cart to a quiet place and went into the bathroom space to check on the babies.
The two babies were awake but not crying. They lay in the bathtub, looking around curiously.
Huawanyi washed her hands, nursed them, and changed their sleep diapers. After eating and feeling comfortable, they obediently lay there playing with their fingers.
She casually ate a bowl of noodles before going out again—there was still more shopping to do.
She went to a general goods shop and bought many large and small jars, bowls, basins, and containers for storing food and soup in the future.
Thinking the babies might get bored, she also picked out a few toys for them.
Even though she knew it wouldn’t rain, she still bought an umbrella and a large sheet of oilcloth just in case.
She stored all the baskets into the bathroom space. Inside, they were stacked to the ceiling, maximizing every inch of space. Only a small amount of room was left, and she had spent quite a bit of silver—but that was fine. She was rich now, and spending money on food wasn’t wasteful; it was reasonable consumption.
Next, she went to the largest tailor shop in town. Last time she hadn’t shopped enough, and there were still many things she needed.
After careful selection, she bought matching bedding for the two small beds: quilts, blankets, a mattress, mosquito net, pillows, bed sheets, and a straw mat.
Then she moved on to clothes.
This shop had a much larger selection than the previous one, with beautiful patterns that made her want to buy everything. She restrained herself since space was limited and only bought what was necessary.
For the babies, she bought five belly wraps each and three sets of thin long-sleeved outfits each. Summers next year would be very hot, so thicker clothes wouldn’t be suitable.
For herself, she bought three sets of fine cotton summer clothes, and couldn’t resist adding a fourth set due to how light and elegant they were.
Since New Year was approaching, she also bought two sets of bright red cotton outfits for each baby, with matching little hats—very festive.
She also picked up a straw raincoat outfit and a pair of straw shoes for preparedness.
Seeing thicker-soled cloth shoes, she bought two pairs as well, thinking they would be useful for the long journey ahead.
Finally, she saw a veiled hat (mì lí) with a gauze curtain around it and bought one.
The shopkeeper, seeing how generous she was, even gave her six embroidered handkerchiefs and, at her request, two extra headscarves.
After leaving the tailor shop, she went to the next stop.
Weapons for self-defense were also necessary. From a blacksmith shop by the roadside, she bought two kitchen knives, a dagger, and a hoe.
The hoe wasn’t for farming—she chose it because its long handle could be used as a ranged weapon and was more intimidating than a knife.
When paying, she also noticed a small stove in the corner and bought it along with a small pot and a basket of charcoal, thinking it could be useful for cooking on the road.
Unable to think of anything else she needed for now, she drove to the braised pork shop from last time and bought out all their remaining pork knuckles again.
The shopkeeper remembered her this time and even gave her a discount, along with several jars of pickled vegetables.
Since she had already eaten noodles from the stall before, she decided to go back there again. She first fed the babies in the bathroom space, then washed two large jars she had just bought and placed them in the cart.
She returned to the noodle stall and called out to the owner.
“Boss, cook noodles and fill these two jars. Add meat and fried eggs. Make them tasty—and be quick!”
The noodle stall owner looked at the two giant jars with a complicated expression.
This customer was really strange—both extravagant and picky at the same time. But he didn’t dare say anything. He quickly called his wife over, and together they carried the jars down and began kneading dough and cooking noodles.