Chapter 8: Going Shopping at the Black Market

Big Fat Niu chuckled, “Sure! My name is Big Fat Niu, what about you, big sister?”

Iron Orchid, “My name is Iron Orchid, Iron as in blacksmith, Orchid as in the flower, and Orchid as in the bird.”

Big Fat Niu gave her a thumbs up, “That’s a good name, it sounds very elegant, it suits your image.”

Iron Orchid: …

If he knew she was hitting people with an iron pot, would he be scared and turn around and run away?

Iron Orchid blushed, “Hehe… you’re flattering me…”

Before revealing her true identity, she had to pretend, otherwise she would scare people away.

As they were talking, a tall and thin man wearing a black hat walked over from a distance. He looked around cautiously, his eyes locked on Big Fat Niu, and he quickly walked over.

“You’re Big Fat Niu, right?”

“Yes, yes, it’s me!” Big Fat Niu nodded quickly and smiled, “You’re pretty good, you found me right away.”

The tall and thin man, “Your friend said you’re as fat as a pig, of course, you’re easy to find.”

Big Fat Niu almost spat out a mouthful of blood: … That’s harsh, bro.

Iron Orchid wanted to laugh, she tried her best to purse her lips into a Donald Duck expression, so she didn’t laugh out loud.

Hold it in! She still had something to ask of him!

Big Fat Niu chatted with the tall and thin dealer for a few words, then introduced Iron Orchid to him.

“This is a big sister I know, Iron Orchid, she’s a very honest person, she also wants to buy things from you.”

The tall and thin dealer nodded at her, “Hello.”

Since someone was willing to buy, he wouldn’t refuse.

“Hello.” Iron Orchid smiled and greeted him.

Next, Iron Orchid and Big Fat Niu followed him to a warehouse in the suburbs.

The tall and thin dealer specialized in selling beef.

Big Fat Niu wanted to buy some beef bones to make soup for his grandma to replenish her health. But the supply and marketing cooperative only received beef once a month, and it was impossible to get any, so he had to buy it from a dealer.

Beef was a rare type of meat, and beef bones were sold together with the meat, they were more expensive than ordinary meat, 1.3 yuan per jin, and they also needed ration coupons.

The black market sold food without coupons, but the price was three or four times higher than the supply and marketing cooperative.

So the dealer’s price was 4 yuan per jin.

Big Fat Niu wasn’t short of money, he bought 5 jin of beef bones directly.

He also recommended to Iron Orchid, “Big sister, this beef looks good, it’s obviously freshly slaughtered, do you want some?”

Iron Orchid nodded, “Yes, I love to eat beef bones.”

Beef bones not only replenish protein but also nourish blood, they are very suitable for replenishing the body. And the dishes made with them are very fragrant!

Iron Orchid’s mind immediately came up with many ways to cook beef bones. Beef bone stewed with radish, beef bone soup noodles, pan-fried beef bones, braised beef bones, beef bone porridge, etc.

The more she thought about it, the more excited she became, her mouth almost started to water.

Iron Orchid’s heart was pounding, she bought 30 jin of beef and beef bones! Anyway, the space could preserve freshness, it wouldn’t go bad no matter how long it was stored.

This bold act directly shocked Big Fat Niu.

“Holy cow, big sister, you’re hiding your talents, you’re much more generous than me!”

Iron Orchid laughed, “You’re not bad either.”

Big Fat Niu left after buying the beef bones, he was eager to go home and make bone soup for his grandma.

Iron Orchid wasn’t in a hurry to leave:

“Brother, I want to buy some other things, do you have other channels?”

“Yes, what do you want?”

For such a big customer, the tall and thin dealer naturally wanted to make friends.

“I have a buddy who works in the black market on the east side, how about I take you there to find him?”

Iron Orchid chuckled, “Sure, I’d appreciate it!”

Having someone familiar to take her to the black market meant she wouldn’t have to worry about risks or getting ripped off. This trip was a success!

…

An hour later, they arrived at the entrance of the black market on the east side. Two burly men guarded the entrance, everyone had to show their ID and pay a 2 jiao entrance fee to enter.

The dealer’s buddy happened to be one of them. Iron Orchid got a free pass, even the entrance fee was waived.

The dealer had something to do and had to leave first, so he entrusted Iron Orchid to his buddy.

“Brother Fang, don’t underestimate this girl, she’s very generous, take good care of her.”

Brother Fang’s mind immediately became active when he heard this. Taking someone familiar to the black market to buy things, if they bought a lot, he could get a commission.

Along the way, Brother Fang diligently introduced the situation inside to Iron Orchid.

“Big sister, this is your first time at the black market, right? Don’t be afraid, just buy boldly, we have someone backing us up.”

It was 1975, the control over private transactions was not as strict as before, and there were fewer people checking.

Iron Orchid felt a lot more at ease.

She was also planning to plant some things in the space and sell them later. The jade pendant space only had daytime, no night, and the time flow was twice as fast as the outside world.

That meant that for every two hours she spent inside, only one hour would pass outside. Such a unique environment, coupled with that fertile black land, was perfect for growing food.

Buying grain and vegetable seeds didn’t require ration coupons. But Aunt Ma was here today, so Iron Orchid didn’t buy any, otherwise, it would be hard to explain if she was asked.

Iron Orchid planned to go to the supply and marketing cooperative again tomorrow.

Knowing that she wanted to buy chicken, Brother Fang immediately took her to a stall.

“This old hen raised by this grandma is very fat, the price is reasonable.”

Iron Orchid asked, a hen was about 4 jin, it cost 15.5 yuan, no coupons needed. That meant 1 jin of chicken was 3.8 yuan.

At the supply and marketing cooperative, 1 jin of chicken cost 1 yuan and needed a coupon, so the black market price was three times higher.

“Girl, this old hen is delicious for making chicken soup, if it didn’t lay eggs, I wouldn’t be willing to sell it.”

The old lady selling chickens said as she grabbed two chicks from the bamboo basket, “If you buy the old hen, I’ll give you these two chicks for free!”

The yellow chicks were the size of a palm, flapping their little wings, they were adorable.

Iron Orchid touched their fluffy little heads, her heart melted.

“I’ll give you 20 yuan, the extra few yuan, you can sell me the chicks.”

“Girl, these chicks are not easy to raise, they’re easy to die, you don’t need to waste your money.”

The old lady was obviously honest.

Iron Orchid, “It’s okay, I have someone at home who can raise them.”

Her jade pendant space had such a large patch of green grass, it was perfect for raising some chicks.

Chicks were a bit more expensive than eggs, 3.5 jiao each.

The old lady gave her 13, plus the 2 she gave before, a total of 15.

That’s how it was.

Iron Orchid spent 20 yuan to buy a clucking old hen and a bunch of chirping chicks.

The old hen was tied with a rope, so it was easy to carry, but the lively chicks were not easy to carry.

The old lady only had one bamboo basket, and there were still chickens to sell, she couldn’t take them out.

Iron Orchid couldn’t put them in the space in front of people.

She was a little worried.