Chapter 24

In a short while, at the entrance of Sanli Village, women from several households hurried home, only to return moments later with bowls in their hands, followed by two or three children each. The scene of people trying the samples was quite lively.

Of course, not everyone was willing to spend money on food; some merely brought their children to enjoy the free taste without any intention of buying. Among them, some truly didn't buy, while others, unable to resist their children's cravings after tasting, teamed up with neighbors to split a single serving. At one wen per portion, splitting it between two families was enough to add a little something extra to their meal.

At this first stop, Sang Luo sold a total of six blocks of "fairy tofu" for twelve wen. Shen An kept his hands tucked deep into his pockets, clutching the handful of copper coins tightly, terrified that they might fall out or be snatched away.

As they moved further into the village, families living further from the entrance had already witnessed the commotion. By the time Sang Luo reached them, she didn't even need to hawk her wares; people proactively approached her to ask, "Young lady, what are you selling?"

The routine of introduction followed by free tasting proceeded smoothly. Who could refuse a free treat? Since it was still the time of day when families were preparing their morning meals, seasonings were readily available, making the tasting effortless.

After selling a few more blocks, one woman tasted it but neither bought any nor walked away. Only when Sang Luo prepared to move on did the woman speak up: "Young lady, can you trade for this with goods?"

Sang Luo, already quite accustomed to the idea of bartering, replied, "Of course, but it depends on what you are trading."

The woman asked back, "What are you willing to accept?"

Sang Luo didn't hesitate: "Grain will do."

Vegetables didn't keep well, so she had no use for them right now, and she would have to pay extra for cloth. Money was certainly more convenient, and besides, she wasn't in urgent need of fabric anymore.

Hearing that she accepted grain, the woman hesitated for a moment before asking, "If I trade with soybeans, how would that work?"

Indeed, soybeans were considered a staple grain in this era. "Bean rice" was a primary food for commoners in Sang Luo’s original time, and it was the same here. Not every rural family could afford white rice; most mixed it with beans, and for the poorer ones, beans were the main staple.

Not being entirely certain of the current price of soybeans, Sang Luo replied vaguely, "Just give me an amount equivalent to two wen based on the market price."

The woman pursed her lips, but eventually nodded. "Alright, wait here, I'll go measure the soybeans."

When the woman returned with the measured soybeans, Sang Luo took a look—it was half a sheng. So, soybeans were four wen per sheng? That seemed about right, given that millet was seven wen per sheng. Lacking a bag, Sang Luo took out the piece of hemp cloth she had brought, wrapped the beans, tied it, and placed it back in her basket.

Once the precedent for trading with soybeans was set, others who had been hesitant were swayed by their children’s persistence, and she traded away two more blocks. By now, only two of the sixteen blocks of fairy tofu remained.

Having sold fourteen blocks for twenty-two wen and one and a half sheng of soybeans, she had likely earned enough to buy the meat and sauce she needed. Further ahead was the butcher shop. Sang Luo decided to walk a bit further to sell the remaining two blocks, then visit the butcher and the general store to wrap up her errands for the day.

However, before she could move to the next spot, she was called out as she passed the butcher shop.

"Tofu lady!"

Tofu lady? Sang Luo paused, realizing the call was meant for her. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw a plump woman hurrying out from the room behind the butcher shop. It was an acquaintance—the same woman who had snatched the third sample the day before.

"Tofu lady, over here, here!" The plump woman was delighted to see Sang Luo. As she beckoned, she rounded the butcher's counter, her eyes immediately scanning the pottery basin in Sang Luo's hands. Seeing two blocks remained, her cheeks creased into two dimples.

"Didn't you say you wouldn't sell until the next market day? Why come today?"

Sang Luo smiled, not at all embarrassed. "I wanted to come to the market to buy some lard and meat, so I made a little extra to bring along."

"Buying meat?" The plump woman laughed and gestured with her chin toward the butcher's table behind her. "This is my parents' shop. Come, come, just tell my father what meat you want and he'll cut it for you."

"So your maiden home runs the butcher shop! You are truly blessed, sister." In these times, aside from the wealthy, the most well-fed people in the countryside were the butchers' families. The plump woman clearly agreed, beaming with joy.

She looked at the pottery basin and said, "You came just in time. I was just craving this. Sell these two to me; I'll have my parents and brothers try some too." She had taken home her purchase the day before, but today she was back at her parents' house to buy meat. Running into Sang Luo was a stroke of luck—it was the perfect chance to treat her parents and siblings, and prevent her sisters-in-law from thinking she only took from her maiden home to her husband's.

Sang Luo was happy to oblige. "Of course! You're a returning customer, and since these are the last two, I'll throw in a few smaller pieces as a bonus."

"A bonus? That’s wonderful." The plump woman loved bonuses, especially ones that were exclusive to her.

She asked Sang Luo to wait, then happily went inside to get a bowl. When she returned, she handed the tofu to her father, introducing Sang Luo as an acquaintance and asking him to select the best cuts of meat for her. Then, she took her two large bowls of fairy tofu inside to please her mother and sisters-in-law.

The butcher was fond of his daughter—otherwise, she wouldn't be able to return home so often to bring meat back to her husband's family. Since she called Sang Luo an acquaintance, he was exceptionally accommodating. "Young lady, what kind of meat would you like to buy?"

Sang Luo asked for the prices. The butcher laughed, "It depends on the cut. The fatty meat is a bit more expensive; the lean meat is cheaper."

Sang Luo glanced at the counter. Like in the modern era, the meat was sorted. She pointed to a cut that was seventy percent fat and thirty percent lean. "How about this one?"

The butcher took one look and said, "For rendering lard? That will be eighteen wen per jin."

Shen An squeezed the coins in his hand. So expensive! They had barely warmed up and were about to disappear. The little boy felt a pang of heartache but remained silent, knowing to follow his elder sister-in-law's lead in family matters.

Sang Luo thought for a moment and said, "Please cut me half a jin."

The butcher agreed with a smile, weighed the meat, and cut exactly half a jin. It was a master's touch. Once weighed, the butcher took a piece of pig liver from the counter, sliced off a small piece—about two liang—and tied it along with the meat using a straw rope. He handed it to Sang Luo, saying, "Since you're an acquaintance of my eldest daughter, I'll gift you this piece of pig liver."

He had heard and seen everything; Sang Luo had given his daughter several extra pieces of fairy tofu. The liver wasn't expensive, and this was his way of returning the favor for his daughter’s sake.

This was an unexpected surprise. Sang Luo thanked him profusely. She then noticed the pork bones piled in the corner, stripped almost bare, and remembering the radish she had traded for, asked about the price.

"The marrow bones? There isn't much meat on these, but they make a fragrant soup. One wen per piece. Would you like one?"

One wen for a nutritious, economical ingredient was a great deal. However, after looking at the meat and liver she already had, Sang Luo decided, "Next time, perhaps. This is enough for today."

The butcher nodded. "Fine, just come by whenever you need more."

Sang Luo agreed with a smile. She was about to put the meat into her basket when she suddenly remembered that they didn't have a kitchen knife at home—only a bamboo knife, which was fine for tofu but useless for meat.

She handed the meat and liver back to the butcher, looking a bit embarrassed. "We just separated from the main family, and we haven't had time to buy kitchen utensils yet. We don't have a real knife at home."

The butcher understood immediately. After asking how she wanted it cut, he processed the meat for her. Now that it couldn't be tied with straw, Sang Luo washed the two pottery basins with the butcher's water and placed the meat directly inside.

Shen An and Shen Ning were so excited to see all the good food that they wanted to carry the basket, but they held back out of respect for the butcher. Shen An took the coins from his pocket and handed them to Sang Luo. She counted out nine coins for the butcher, tucked the remaining seventeen into her sleeve, and thanked him once more. Since the plump woman wasn't around, she asked the butcher to convey her thanks, then took her leave.

Shen Ning remembered what Sang Luo had said about needing sauce for the eggplant, and asked, "Sister-in-law, are we going to buy the sauce now?"

Sang Luo nodded. "Not just sauce; we'll buy some vinegar, too." Vinegar was a versatile ingredient—it removed the fishy smell from fish, added flavor to cold dishes, and even helped extract nutrients from bones when making soup.

As they walked to the general store across the way, the shopkeeper recognized them. "What would you like to buy today, young lady?"

Sauce and vinegar were the most common items, placed in a convenient, prominent spot on the counter. Sang Luo spotted them immediately. "I'd like some sauce and vinegar. What are the prices?"

The shopkeeper asked, "Did you bring your own jars? If you brought your own, sauce is one wen for two large ladles, and vinegar is one wen for two measures."

Sang Luo didn't have any jars, so she ended up buying the smallest jars filled with sauce and vinegar from the store, which cost twelve wen in total. With the remaining five wen, she bought a palm-sized jar to store the rendered lard. It wasn't that she didn't want a larger one, but she only had enough money for a small one, which would suffice for now.

The only regret was that she had intended to buy needles to hem the piece of cloth she had traded for, otherwise, it would soon fray. But since she was out of money, that would have to wait for next time.

This time, Shen An and Shen Ning got their wish and carried the basket with the pork, as the heavier pottery basins were moved to Sang Luo’s own basket. As they left Sanli Village, the two children were so happy they seemed to be walking on air.

Sang Luo, however, was preoccupied with the fact that their grain supply was running low. At their current rate of eating—even if they only cooked porridge—two and a half sheng of rice wouldn't last long.

She needed to make money to buy grain. But could she sell another sixteen blocks of fairy tofu in Sanli Village tomorrow? She knew clearly that she couldn't—at least not as easily as today. If she came back immediately, it wouldn't sell as well. Sanli Village was wealthier than its neighbors, but only to an extent. Visiting every three to five days was fine, but daily was unrealistic.

Sang Luo couldn't help but cast her eyes toward the dirt road leading to the county town. Uncle Youtian had mentioned yesterday that the county town was only three miles past Sanli Village. Rural folk had limited spending power, but people in the county town wouldn't find a two-wen snack expensive.