Chapter 21: I’ll Take You to Pick Something Good  

Amaranth greens were not rare; on the contrary, they were very common and often appeared on people’s dining tables in the summer.  

In early spring, a handful of seeds would be scattered, and by early summer, amaranth greens could be harvested and eaten.  

These greens grew quickly. When picking them, only the tops were plucked, leaving the roots intact. In just a few days, new tender leaves would sprout again.  

Every household only needed to plant a small patch to have enough to eat throughout the summer.  

In the entire Hongqi Production Brigade, no family went without planting amaranth greens.  

Since everyone grew more than they could consume, no one would bother venturing into the deep mountains to dig for wild amaranth.  

To most people, these wild greens might not have been anything special.  

But Su Ruanruan was different.  

Were these just wild greens?  

Of course not!  

They were money!  

Before Su Ruanruan had transmigrated, society had developed rapidly. People’s living standards had generally improved, and eating well was no longer a difficult task.  

In stark contrast to this era—where people struggled to get their hands on meat—back then, with an abundance of fish, meat, high sugar, high fat, and high salt in daily diets, most people were overweight, and their overall health was not great.  

To improve their well-being, many chose to eat more whole grains and wild vegetables, hoping to use this method to become healthier.  

Especially in big cities, fresh wild vegetables were even more expensive than meat.  

Su Ruanruan did not expect to sell these wild greens at the price of meat, but even the smallest profits added up. If she could sell dozens of pounds of wild vegetables, she could still earn a hundred or so yuan.  

On Pinduoduo, the prices of rice, white flour, or dried noodles were extremely cheap. With a hundred yuan, she could buy a hundred pounds of white flour.  

But in the 1970s, ordinary flour cost 18 cents per pound.  

However, that was the price with ration tickets.  

Without grain tickets, buying flour on the black market would be even more expensive—up to around 20 cents per pound.  

If she bought 100 pounds of flour and sold it on the black market, she could make 20 yuan.  

Twenty yuan was no small amount.  

An average worker in the city might not even earn that much in a month.  

Twenty yuan was definitely not insignificant!  

And all Su Ruanruan needed to do was dig up dozens of pounds of wild vegetables to exchange for twenty yuan in this era. The deal was simply too good to pass up.

Looking at the wild vegetables on the ground, Su Ruanruan felt that she had discovered the secret to getting rich. She didn’t waste any more time standing around and immediately squatted down.  

After digging up a stalk of bitter greens, Su Ruanruan lifted her head and said to Fu Wenjing: “I’m going to dig for wild vegetables here. You can walk around nearby.”  

Fu Wenjing nodded and reassured her: “I’ll just look around the area and won’t go far. You can dig without worry—there’s no danger at all.”  

His words were spoken with absolute confidence, and Su Ruanruan did not feel that he was exaggerating in the slightest.  

At this moment, Su Ruanruan had only one thing on her mind—how she could secretly stash away some of the wild vegetables she dug up without Fu Wenjing noticing.  

Watching Fu Wenjing walk off to the side, Su Ruanruan quickly dug up another stalk of bitter greens. This time, instead of putting it into her basket, she placed it in her shop inventory and directly added it to the shelves.  

As soon as she did, the inventory showed a count of “1” for bitter greens.  

Seeing that lonely “1.” Su Ruanruan couldn’t help but smile.  

It seemed that the warehouse function could indeed be used as a storage space.  

In the future, if she had anything inconvenient to leave outside, she could simply list it in the shop and store it in the warehouse.  

As long as she did not authorize it for sale, the items could be stored indefinitely, making it a very safe option.  

For the rest of the time, Su Ruanruan divided the wild vegetables she dug—half went into her basket, and the other half was stored in her shop: “Taojinjin.”  

She listed several other types of wild vegetables as well, though she did not set any prices for them just yet.  

The pricing would have to wait until she got back and gave it careful consideration.  

After all, she had painstakingly dug up each and every plant, and they were truly organic and pollution-free. She absolutely could not sell them too cheaply.  

Digging for wild vegetables was not an easy task. One had to squat for long periods and keep their head lowered.  

After a while, back pain, neck strain, and sore legs were inevitable.  

From a distance, it might have seemed like the wild vegetables grew in dense patches, but once she started digging, she realized that they were scattered among the weeds, with gaps between them.  

Every few stalks she dug up, she had to pick up her basket and move to a new spot with her trowel in hand.  

The summer afternoon sun was scorching, and the temperature was high.  

Fortunately, the trees in the mountains grew thick and lush. While they did not completely block out the sky, they came close.  

Dappled sunlight filtered through the gaps between the leaves, but it wasn’t harsh enough to make her dizzy or uncomfortable.

After squatting for so long, standing up suddenly made Su Ruanruan feel a little dizzy.  

She had no idea how long she had been digging. But when she finally stood up again, she realized that her basket was nearly full.  

If her basket was packed with wild vegetables, then the shop’s warehouse must have at least the same amount!  

Su Ruanruan was delighted. Having gathered so many wild vegetables, this trip was definitely worthwhile.  

Just as she was feeling happy, she heard footsteps approaching from a distance, getting closer.  

Turning her head, she saw Fu Wenjing striding toward her.  

As soon as he got close, Su Ruanruan noticed the basket on his back.  

It was the same basket as before, but there was a clear difference between when it was empty and when it was full.  

Right now, it was weighed down heavily, obviously filled to the brim.  

Curious, Su Ruanruan leaned in and asked: “Why is your basket so heavy? What’s inside?”  

“Just some wild chickens and rabbits. I caught a nest of rabbits earlier—let the small ones go and kept three big ones. I also hunted two wild chickens.”  

There were already four wild chickens from before, and now with these two, that made six in total.  

Plus three large rabbits.  

And an entire basket of wild vegetables.  

Their harvest today was truly abundant!  

Su Ruanruan’s eyes curved into crescent moons with joy. “Our baskets are completely full. How about we head back?”  

“Not so fast.” Fu Wenjing said with a smile, bending down to pick up the basket from the ground. “I’ll take you to pick something good.”  

“What is it?”  

“You’ll find out when we get there.”  

He was keeping it a secret!  

Su Ruanruan’s curiosity was piqued, but since Fu Wenjing refused to tell her, she had no choice but to follow him.  

Deep in the mountains, everything looked the same to Su Ruanruan. No matter which direction she turned, she couldn’t tell east from west.  

But Fu Wenjing, walking ahead, seemed to have an internal compass. He navigated the terrain with ease, taking turns left and right without hesitation.  

Finally, after several twists and turns, he came to a stop.  

At that moment, Su Ruanruan didn’t even need him to explain—she immediately understood what they had come to pick.  

Wild kiwis!  

Kiwis were known as the “king of fruits.” and wild kiwis were even rarer, richer in nutrients, and, of course, more expensive.  

Before she transmigrated, Su Ruanruan had bought them a few times, and each time, she had been completely won over by their taste.