The vendors at the market knew that this market was a collaboration with the Northwest Military Region. When they saw the unfamiliar face of Gu Jianing, dressed in a military coat, they immediately realized she was a new military wife. They were very welcoming to her, and upon seeing her beautiful face, their first impression of her was excellent. After all, people naturally love beautiful things.

“Young lady, I’ve got radishes, cabbage, and tomatoes here, all freshly picked from my own field today. What would you like?”

Gu Jianing noticed that there were many vegetable stalls. She walked up to one run by an elderly couple, who eagerly greeted her as she approached.

“How much are these?”

After inquiring about the prices, Gu Jianing bought a good amount of each item. These vegetables could last a while in the winter.

She continued browsing the market, purchasing several bags of dried shiitake mushrooms, vermicelli, a bag of potatoes, and even several blocks of tofu from a tofu vendor…

It seemed that the vendors noticed Gu Jianing was buying a lot and not haggling much, so they saw her as a big customer.

Many of the farmers running stalls enthusiastically called out to her as she passed by, hoping she would buy from them.

Gu Jianing indeed saw many things she wanted to buy, but she was worried about how she would carry everything back.

“Don’t worry, the market has people with carts who can help deliver your purchases to the military compound for just ten cents,” someone quickly offered a solution when they heard Gu Jianing muttering to herself, and even pointed out where the carts were.

Gu Jianing saw a group of carts gathered together. At first, she thought they were selling carts, but it turned out they were for transporting goods.

Now she could shop without worry.

Seeing the fresh, lively fish at the fish stall, Gu Jianing didn’t hesitate and asked for several large black carp to be caught. Buy!

At the poultry stall, she bought two chickens. As for chicks, she didn’t buy any—she didn’t know how to raise them and had no plans to.

Seeing piles of potatoes, she bought half a bag.

There was even a pork stall. Well, pork belly, ribs, lean meat—she bought it all!

Gu Jianing also noticed someone selling wild cordyceps at a very cheap price.

These were the same cordyceps that would sell for a fortune in the future. But in this northwestern region, cordyceps seemed to be a specialty.

Without hesitation, Gu Jianing bought all of them. She planned to keep some for herself and send some to her parents and her maternal grandparents.

The cordyceps were being sold by a pair of siblings, around ten years old. They had dug them up from the mountains and decided to try selling them, hoping to exchange them for some rice or flour.

However, no one had been willing to buy them before—not even to take a look.

But now, a fairy-like sister had come and bought everything. They were overjoyed.

By the time Gu Jianing finished shopping, her purchases had filled an entire cart.

“Sister, we have other herbs at home. Would you like them?” Seeing how much Gu Jianing liked the cordyceps, the little boy, Qin Tian, gathered the courage to ask.

The siblings were from a nearby mountain village. They lived with their ailing grandmother, who was the only family they had left. With the young and the old in the family, they couldn’t work in the fields. Fortunately, their grandmother had taught them a lot about herbs.

So, they often went into the mountains to gather herbs and sold them at the county’s traditional Chinese medicine hospital. However, the prices were always heavily discounted, and the journey took at least four hours. In cold weather, the road was freezing and covered in snow, making it unbearable.

That’s why the siblings loved the monthly market on the tenth. It was closer to their village, and if they could sell their herbs, the prices were fair and not heavily discounted.

If they could sell the herbs, they could buy rice and flour for their family. Their grandmother had been sick recently and needed fine grains.

They also had a secret wish—to save up money to go to school.

“Yes, I’d like that…” Gu Jianing listed the names of some herbs. “If you have these herbs, bring them to me. I’ll buy them, along with the cordyceps.”

As soon as Gu Jianing finished speaking, Qin Tian and Qin Qing’s eyes lit up. “Sister, we have those herbs at home right now. Can you wait for us? We’ll go back and get them.”

Qin Tian rubbed his gloved hands together. The gloves were worn out, revealing a few fingers. His lips were pressed together, and his eyes looked at Gu Jianing cautiously. Qin Qing’s eyes were also filled with hope, as if Gu Jianing was their only hope.

Gu Jianing had always liked children, and seeing the siblings, she could tell their family situation wasn’t great.

“Sure, I’m not planning to leave the market yet. Go and get them. I’ll wait here. I’ll take as much of those herbs as you have,” Gu Jianing said generously.

The siblings’ eyes instantly brightened. “Thank you, fairy sister! We’ll go get them now.”

With that, the siblings ran off like the wind, heading in a certain direction.

Gu Jianing watched their retreating figures, her expression softening.

She agreed partly because she wanted to help the siblings, but also because she genuinely needed those herbs.

Soldiers often had to carry out missions and train in harsh environments. In this era, medical resources were scarce, and conditions like stomach problems, back pain, spinal issues, and rheumatism were common among soldiers.

Even Sheng Zexi had them.

Sheng Zexi hadn’t mentioned it to her, but when she had scanned him after binding him as a patient, she discovered it.

When she asked, Sheng Zexi admitted that almost all soldiers suffered from these ailments.

After hearing this, Gu Jianing fell into deep thought.

These issues might be bearable when they were young, but they would cause suffering in old age.

So, Gu Jianing used 10 points each in the system’s exchange shop to purchase formulas for rheumatism ointment and stomach-protecting pills.

These two formulas were the most expensive in the shop but also the most effective. According to the descriptions, they were developed 100 years in the future.

Of course, there were cheaper options with lesser effects, but Gu Jianing ultimately chose these two.

Now that Sheng Zexi was her husband, she wanted to take care of him. So, she needed to prepare the rheumatism ointment and stomach-protecting pills.

But the points…

Looking at her pitiful remaining 4 points, Gu Jianing felt an urgent need for her sister-in-law to get pregnant and for Sheng Zexi’s infertility to be cured so she could earn 300 points.

Points were valuable—once spent, they were gone.

The herbs she had just listed were the ones needed to make the rheumatism ointment and stomach-protecting pills.

She had been worrying about how to get the herbs, but now she had met these siblings. It was a perfect match—mutually beneficial and killing two birds with one stone.