sjar Chapter 6: A Fairy Helps Us
Chapter 6: A Fairy Helps Us
Tian Tian woke up around 5 a.m., which is the beginning of the Mao hour.
As it turned out, Lu Tao and Tian Xiang had already prepared the morning vegetable soup before her.
Tian Tian glanced at the sleeping Tian Jinghe, and carefully got out of bed, but as soon as she moved, Tian Jinghe immediately opened his eyes.
"Second sister hasn't left yet, she won't abandon you," Tian Tian quickly told him.
"Second sister, go wash up first, you can sleep a little longer."
After hearing Tian Tian's words, Tian Jinghe closed his eyes in relief.
While Tian Tian and her brother were washing up and eating breakfast, Lu Tao and Tian Xiang went to the foot of the mountain to dig up a few more kilograms of dandelions.
Since we're going to the county, we should dig as much as possible.
Lu Tao was worried and kept giving the siblings a series of instructions...
Tian Xiang stood to the side, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.
By the time the siblings finally set off properly, it was already Chen Shi (7-9 AM).
The wisdom of the working people is truly not to be underestimated. Lu Tao casually tied it up, and Tian Xiang's clothes became a cloth bag. By tying the two sleeves together, it could be carried around.
But Tian Tian didn't carry it for very long...
About ten minutes after leaving the village, Tian Tian pulled Tian Jinghe to a stop.
The villagers who got up early to travel had already set off, and there was no one on the road at this time.
Tian Tian untied the cloth bag and placed it on the ground.
Tian Jinghe blinked his big eyes and looked at her, puzzled.
Tian Tian pulled him to her side and squatted down. "Jinghe, your second sister has a secret to tell you."
Tian Jinghe nodded repeatedly.
"After my second sister threw herself into the river, she met a fairy."
"The fairy said that our family was too pitiful, so she was willing to help us."
“She was willing to pay a high price for the wild vegetables we dug up.”
Tian Jinghe excitedly grabbed Tian Tian's hand, his eyes sparkling as if asking if it was true.
Tian Tian tasted the dessert, then brought up the system.
Tian Jinghe couldn't see the system; he just stared at Tian Tian, who was like a fairy in his eyes.
"System detection: Wild dandelion, eight coins per catty, totaling twelve catties and five ounces, for a total of one hundred coins."
The dandelion in the cloth bag disappeared, and one hundred copper coins appeared.
Tian Tian immediately looked at Tian Jinghe, but to her surprise, Tian Jinghe showed no surprise or fear, only a face full of joy.
"Jinghe, no one will believe this if we tell anyone, so you have to keep it a secret for your second sister, understand?"
"Don't even tell your mother and eldest sister."
Tian Jinghe was puzzled: why couldn't he tell his mother and eldest sister?
Tian Tian explained, "Because...the fairy didn't want too many people to know about this, otherwise, she wouldn't have helped my second sister."
"Can you understand?"
The reason she told Tian Jinghe about this was twofold: firstly, she needed someone to cover for her, and secondly, because Tian Jinghe was not good at talking, she wasn't worried about him revealing it.
"Let's go to the county." Tian Tian put the silver into her bosom, put her empty cloth bag back on, and led Tian Jinghe away lightly.
We still need to go to the county, at least to find out the prices of various items.
*
Following the original owner's memories, the siblings walked and rested intermittently, taking four or five hours to reach the county.
The county was more prosperous than Tian Tian had imagined. There were many small vendors on both sides of the street, and behind the vendors were shops and people's houses.
The siblings looked around curiously, curious about everything.
"Rice cake, fragrant rice cake, two coins each."
"Freshly baked rice cakes."
Street vendors called out their wares, and the rice cakes in the wooden buckets emitted an enticing aroma.
The siblings had left early and walked such a long way that they were already hungry.
Tian Jinghe swallowed hard, but obediently looked away.
Tian Tian pulled him over and said to the vendor, "Give me four rice cakes."
After giving the vendor eight coins, Tian Tian took the rice cakes and led Tian Jinghe to a shady spot by the roadside.
"Two for each of us." Tian Tian gave Tian Jinghe two rice cakes.
The rice cake was only the size of her palm; one wasn't enough to fill her up.
Tian Jinghe held the rice cake, brought it close to his little nose, sniffed it again and again, but just wouldn't eat it.
Tian Tian was hungry; she had already finished a rice cake.
She roughly knew what Tian Jinghe was thinking. "Eat up, Jinghe. When we go home, your second sister will bring some for Mom and your eldest sister."
Tian Jinghe then forced a smile and eagerly stuffed the rice cake into his mouth.
The rice cake was smooth, sweet, and delicious—something he had never tasted before.
"Mmm..." So delicious.
"Do you like to eat it?" Tian Tian asked.
Tian Jinghe nodded. How could he not like such delicious food?
Tian Tian pulled her hand away and ruffled his dry, yellowish hair. "Once things get better at home, you can eat as much as you want."
After finishing the rice cake, Tian Tian took Tian Jinghe to the pharmacy.
A wooden sign hangs at the entrance of the pharmacy, listing the medicinal herbs purchased that day.
Coptis chinensis, 80 to 100 wen per catty; cloves, 50 to 60 wen per catty;
Phellodendron bark, thirty coins per catty; Sophora flavescens, thirty coins per catty;
Forsythia, 20 coins per catty; Angelica dahurica, 20 coins per catty.
Perilla and goji berries were 10 coins per pound, mulberry leaves were 5 coins per pound, and dandelion was 1 coin per pound.
Dandelions are really cheap; five pounds of fresh ones can be dried to make one pound of dried ones, which only costs one coin.
Tian Tian didn't know the prices of other medicinal herbs, but she had bought mulberry leaves before; it seemed to be 15 yuan per jin (500 grams).
If it's wild, it'll be even more expensive.
From this perspective, it's more cost-effective to sell wild vegetables and medicinal herbs to the system.
Go to the grain shop again. The price of fine rice is fifteen coins per catty, ordinary rice is ten coins per catty, and brown rice mixed with gravel and sand sells for five coins per catty.
Flour is also divided into refined white flour and yellowish flour. Refined white flour costs 20 coins per pound, yellowish flour costs 15 coins per pound, and the inferior flour costs 10 coins per pound.
Much more expensive than the system...
Tian Tian didn't buy it.
Tian Jinghe looked at the grain shop with longing and reluctance.
Seeing this, Tian Tian covered his ear and said, "Buying rice in the county is too heavy. Before we go home, I'll buy some with the fairy."
Tian Jinghe immediately smiled.
They still had to walk all the way home, so Tian Tian didn't dare to wander around for too long. After asking about the prices of medicinal herbs and rice, she led Tian Jinghe to the Chu family's restaurant.
When they set off in the morning, Tian Xiang hesitated to speak.
Although Tian Xiang didn't say anything in the end, Tian Tian guessed that she was worried about the child.
Lunchtime had just passed and dinnertime was not yet approaching. There were no customers in Chu Xing Restaurant, only three or five waiters wiping the tables and chairs.
A woman was sitting by the door, holding a child in her arms.
There was a cradle next to her, in which lay an even smaller child.
The one in her arms was Chu Qian, and the one in the cradle was Chu Yao.
This woman must have been hired by the Chu family specifically to take care of the children.
Seeing that the two children were doing well, Tian Tian breathed a sigh of relief for Tian Xiang.
"Jinghe, let's go buy rice cakes for Mom and my eldest sister."
He bought four more rice cakes, which Tian Jinghe tucked into his arms, grinning like a silly little fool.
On the way back to the village, I met a fellow villager, Liu Xianglan, the wife of the Feng family who lived in front of Lao Tian's house.
"Oh, it's Tian Tian."
"Why is it just you two siblings?"
"Hey, mute... no, Jinghe, what are you carrying in your arms? Let your auntie see."