Chapter 16: Selling Grain from the Space

Lin Luoluo had Lin Er hire carts and ox-carts, as many as possible. She led the other four people out of the city first.

They arrived at a secluded place they had passed earlier, checked to make sure no one was around, and then Lin Luoluo took out half of the grain she had stored in her space. She had originally planned to take it all out but worried it might attract too much attention. After doing all this, she waited for Lin Er to bring the workers to carry the grain.

When Lin Er arrived with the workers, the carters and workers he had hired to help move the grain were stunned when they saw the piles of grain that resembled small mountains. Soon, their faces were filled with joyous smiles.

“Master,” Lin Er stepped forward and bowed.

Lin Luoluo nodded at him and turned to the others. “Start moving it!”

A strong man, dressed in rough clothes, summoned the courage to approach and asked nervously, “Uh… excuse me, sir, I’m Chen Daniu. I was wondering if I could buy some of this grain?”

The man bowed to Lin Luoluo, nervously twisting the edges of his clothing as he stammered out his question.

Lin Luoluo noticed his nervousness and smiled slightly.

“Of course,” she said.

She then turned to the others and spoke loudly, “Once all the grain is moved into the city, if any of you need some, you can get a token from Lin Er and buy it at a priority rate.”

“Thank you, sir!” The workers were excited to hear this, and their efforts became even more diligent.

More than a dozen carts—both horse-drawn and oxen-drawn—were used, and it wasn’t until it was dark that all the grain had been moved.

Once the grain was delivered, the workers took tokens from Lin Er and went home to discuss the purchase of grain with their families, relatives, and friends.

When Lin Luoluo returned to the inn, the magistrate had been waiting for some time. After receiving the report from his subordinates that a large quantity of grain had been brought into the city, he couldn’t wait and came to the inn himself.

Seeing Lin Luoluo, the magistrate was somewhat surprised. Although she was wearing men’s clothing, he could tell at a glance that she was a woman. He hadn’t expected such a young girl to have so much grain.

“Little girl, are you their master?”

Lin Luoluo raised an eyebrow. Looks like this disguise isn’t too successful after all! I was spotted immediately.

The magistrate, dressed in official robes, was greeted by Lin Luoluo with a bow.

“Your Excellency, I am indeed the one,” she replied.

“How much are you selling the grain for?”

“Your Excellency, I have been fond of jade since childhood. You may pay with jade pieces or silver, as you prefer. Rice is 4 wen per jin, coarse grains are 3 wen per jin. How much would Your Excellency like to buy?”

“It seems you’ve had a busy afternoon. Why don’t you rest for a moment, and I’ll return to discuss the matter with my subordinates? We can then finalize the amount,” the magistrate suggested.

“Your Excellency, please!” Lin Luoluo nodded and gestured for him to go.

After the magistrate left, Lin Luoluo rubbed her growling stomach and asked, “Uncle Zhong, do we have anything to eat?” Although she had eaten a bit on the cart, she was still starving.

“Yes, yes! I anticipated that you’d be hungry, so I had the kitchen prepare some food!”

Uncle Zhong hurriedly called for the inn’s attendants to bring the food.

When the magistrate returned to the government office, he had the accounts room tally up the silver, while he personally retrieved a number of jade ornaments and silver notes, which he packed into a box and brought to the front hall. He then met with the accounts staff and headed back to the inn.

By the time the magistrate arrived at the inn, Lin Luoluo had just finished her meal.

“Your Excellency, this way, please!” Lin Luoluo led him to an empty table and asked the attendant to serve tea.

“Have you reached a decision on the amount of grain?” she asked.

“Twenty thousand jin of rice, five thousand jin of wheat, and fifty thousand jin of other coarse grains. I wonder if you have that much?” the magistrate asked.

Lin Luoluo furrowed her brow. She had planned to sell some grain to the local shops and citizens tomorrow, but the magistrate wanted thirty thousand jin right away. That left very little of the grain she had just brought in. After a moment of thought, she agreed.

“Alright, Your Excellency, have you brought enough men to transport it? Should we start moving the grain now?”

“Yes, we will transport it tonight. Please check if the jade and silver are enough.”

Lin Luoluo had Uncle Zhong bring someone knowledgeable to appraise the jade, and after calculating the total amount required for thirty thousand jin of grain, she told the magistrate to take back any excess silver.

Lin Luoluo then had the silver moved to her room and stored it in her space. Afterward, she led the magistrate and his group to start moving the grain.

It wasn’t until late at night that all thirty thousand jin of grain was transported to the government office.

After everyone left, Lin Luoluo yawned and took more grain from her space for the next day’s sale. She stored it in the warehouse and instructed Lin Er to guard it before going to rest.

The next day, Lin Luoluo handed over the grain-selling business to Uncle Zhong and went with Lin Da to the City God Temple to see the children.

On the way, she bought a few hundred buns to send to the temple.

When they arrived at the City God Temple, most people had gone out, leaving only some elderly people and children behind, as well as the children who had registered the day before. They were waiting in the temple for Lin Da.

When the bold little girl from yesterday saw Lin Da walk in with a handsome young man, she rushed up.

“Big brother, you’re here!” she smiled up at Lin Da.

Her smile was innocent, and Lin Da subconsciously patted her head, smiling as he said, “Yes, I brought my master to meet you.”

The girl turned to look at Lin Luoluo, and at once realized she was a woman. She tilted her head, thinking for a while, unsure whether to call her “big sister” or “big brother.”

“Big sister, big brother, hello!” the girl said.

What kind of greeting is this? She’s calling me both ‘big sister’ and ‘big brother’. Lin Luoluo twitched her mouth in amusement.

“Call me big brother,” Lin Luoluo crouched down and said to the little girl.

“But you’re clearly a big sister!” the girl replied.

Lin Luoluo was a little annoyed. She had been seen through by the magistrate, but even this little girl could tell? She felt a bit frustrated.

“How did you figure it out?”

“We had a sister in our village who often wore men’s clothing to go out and play, so I could tell right away,” the girl explained.

“Alright! Please bring everyone who registered yesterday over here.”

At Lin Luoluo’s request, the girl ran to gather the others.

Lin Luoluo addressed the group, saying, “Yesterday, Lin Da already explained everything. You have one last chance to change your mind. Those who want to stay, step to the left; those who don’t, step to the right.”

As soon as she finished speaking, everyone stepped to the left.

“Very well, there’s no turning back now.”

Once they were done, the buns arrived, and everyone started eating. Lin Luoluo also gave plenty to the elderly and other children.

“Once you’re full, pack your things and follow me,” she instructed the group of fifty or so people.

When they were ready, Lin Luoluo took them to buy a few sets of clothes and shoes, along with some quilts.

Back at the inn, she booked two large rooms, one for men and one for women. She had Lin Da and Chun Tao take the children to wash up.