Su Ling looked at the girl who had barged in and nodded seriously, her expression mysterious.  

“I have everything here. Do you want to buy something?”  

Wang Zhaodi felt inexplicably nervous. She couldn’t quite grasp the situation.  

In her past life, she had worked day and night to earn money for her son’s medicine. The backbreaking labor had long since bent her spine. Even if she knew how convenient life would be decades later, she never imagined a shop like this would appear now.  

So, the shop owner might also be from the future.  

“I… I can’t afford anything.”  

Wang Zhaodi glanced around casually, her eyes immediately landing on the gleaming white refined rice.  

Suppressing her hunger, she couldn’t help but think of someone she had seen on the road earlier.  

That person seemed to be a hidden old professor. He and his wife had been living in Dawang Village, and no one had reported them.  

If they were reported, there would probably be a reward…  

Wang Zhaodi shook her head violently. Even if she reported them, the money wouldn’t end up in her hands. Besides, she’d have to be insane to report two elderly people. No matter how poor she was, she would earn her living cleanly.  

And this life was different—she had a chance to break free from them.  

“Boss, are you hiring? I can do anything. Even one cent a day is fine,” Wang Zhaodi pleaded, looking at Su Ling.  

Su Ling studied Wang Zhaodi, who was even thinner than the average child, and shook her head helplessly.  

“I’m not hiring, but I do buy things. If you have anything valuable, you can bring it here for me to appraise.”  

Wang Zhaodi lowered her head. What valuable things could her family possibly have? Her father had already sold everything for alcohol. The only reason they still had anything left was because the heavy snow kept him indoors.  

And her mother had just given birth to another sister.  

After three sisters in a row, they finally had a bloodsucking little brother.  

Her family was so poor that her brother’s house and car were bought with money earned by his three sisters.  

Her brother had even said to her face, “If you weren’t so pitiful, I wouldn’t tolerate you skipping out on supporting Mom and Dad.”  

Wang Zhaodi wanted to spit at the thought. What “support money”? It would all end up in his pockets anyway.  

“Then, boss, I’ll be going.”  

Just as Wang Zhaodi turned to leave, the door opened again.  

Wang Baozhu bounced in, tiptoed, and handed something to Su Ling. “Sister Su, this is for you. I dug it up myself.”  

Su Ling looked at the ginseng in her hand in surprise and silently transmitted a message to Huahua: “Can Baozhu just dig up as many of these as she wants?” 

Huahua replied telepathically: “She’s the lucky, fortune-blessed female lead, a literal koi fish!”

Wang Zhaodi was also stunned. “How did you dig up ginseng in such heavy snow?”  

Wang Baozhu grinned. “I’m just that good! Sister Zhaodi, are you going to school next year?”  

Wang Zhaodi pressed her lips together and nodded firmly. She would go.  

Su Ling handed the ginseng back to Wang Baozhu. “Ginseng is very valuable. You should give it to your family, not just hand it to anyone, understand?”  

Wang Baozhu pouted but took the ginseng back.  

Wang Zhaodi couldn’t help but glance at Su Ling.  

If that was the case, this shop owner was probably a good person. At least she didn’t have to worry now.  

And wait—their little mountain actually had ginseng? Could she dig some up to earn money too?  

“Oh, right, Sister Zhaodi!” Wang Baozhu chirped happily. “My mom said she’ll sew me a little school bag!” She was overjoyed—she was finally getting new clothes. “She also said she’d make me new clothes.”  

Huahua hopped onto the glass counter, its legs still not quite closing properly.  

It transmitted to Su Ling: “A five-year-old thinks she’s just sharing her joy, but her words can hurt sensitive people. Though sensitivity isn’t a flaw—it’s just how their environment shaped them.”

Sure enough, Wang Zhaodi lowered her head, her eyes red, on the verge of tears.

Su Ling called Wang Baozhu over. “Baozhu, take the ginseng home quickly and give it to the adults, okay?”  

“I don’t have any,” Wang Zhaodi suddenly spoke up, her voice trembling. “I don’t have new clothes, or a school bag. I don’t even have enough to eat.”  

But this was only temporary. She would have them someday.  

“If you don’t have money, what can you do? Can you still go to school?” Wang Baozhu looked at Su Ling sadly. She wanted to go to school with Sister Zhaodi.  

“Sister Su, is there anything we can sell to earn money? What about snow?”  

Wang Baozhu thought the snow outside was so plentiful—if only they could sell it!  

[Ding—New Koi Novel Mission: Collect Snow. The More, the Better.]

Su Ling: !  

Huahua immediately transmitted a message: “This might be related to the next world. The next world is probably short on water.”

Su Ling took a deep breath. “I’m buying snow!”

Wang Zhaodi was startled.  

Buy snow? What for?

Su Ling’s expression was serious. “I need snow—lots of it. One tightly packed basket for two cents. Since both of you are here, I’ll hire you to spread the word. For every person you notify, I’ll give you a pound of cornmeal.” 

Wang Zhaodi’s eyes lit up. “I’ll go right away!”

Wang Baozhu was equally excited. “Me too! When I earn money, I’ll buy candy!”

After seeing them off, Su Ling turned to Huahua. “Does this count as following the plot’s positive direction?”

Huahua nodded. “I’ve received energy from it.” 

Su Ling: Perfect!

“Host, list the wristwatch in the system’s marketplace,” Huahua reminded her.  

Su Ling opened the marketplace and, under Huahua’s guidance, set up an online shop. She listed the recently acquired wristwatch.  

Almost instantly, someone placed a bid—100,000 yuan.

The buyer even left a message: “Shop owner, if you have more vintage items like this in the future, I’ll take them all.”  

Su Ling: “100,000?! It’s that valuable?!” 

She quickly replied to the buyer, saying she might occasionally list similar items later.  

“I knew that watch had to be a collector’s item. Otherwise, why would the system price it at 100 yuan despite its condition? It’s no fool.”

Huahua licked its paw smugly. “Bow before me, host.”

Su Ling stared at her account balance, which had just skyrocketed from less than 100 yuan to 100,000, feeling like a daydream had just come true. No wonder the system had been willing to recycle that watch!  

No wonder Huahua had said doing business across worlds would be profitable—this was where the real money was!  

“Huahua, do you want a cat tree? Whatever kind you like, I’ll buy it!” 

She had money now!  

“No need for a cat tree, but get me a scratching post.”

“You got it!”

Su Ling immediately bought ten scratching boards, then started browsing the marketplace. She could slowly stock up her little shop now—everything a general store in this era would sell, she’d get.  

Huahua: “Host, you should also rent a snow-collecting machine and place it outside the shop. When people deliver snow, they can dump it directly into the machine. It’ll automatically record the amount, and you can check the records at the counter. It’ll also prevent fraud.”

“Good idea.”

Su Ling rented the machine first. Since the delivery location was set in this period’s world, the monthly fee dropped to just 10 yuan. She placed it right beside the shop entrance.  

The tall, stainless-steel machine stood there, its small roof shielding it from the snow. At waist height was the input chute.  

Su Ling tested it by shoveling a small amount inside.  

Soon, text appeared on the machine’s display, accompanied by a voice announcement:  

[Store Owner Su Ling: One shovel. Does not meet settlement criteria.]

As long as it worked, Su Ling was satisfied. She returned to the shop and continued restocking.  

Meanwhile, Wang Zhaodi and Wang Baozhu rushed home to spread the news before gradually informing the rest of the village, starting with the village chief’s relatives.  

In this blizzard, they finally had a way to earn money.  

Su Ling: Exactly. Only when people can earn money will they spend it. Currency needs to circulate.