Chapter 9

When Yun Ying saw the three of them talking so excitedly, her own longing for the caves grew stronger.

She tugged at Lin Kexin’s arm and whispered,

“Kexin, I want to live in a cave too…”

Lin Kexin smiled teasingly at her words.

“Aren’t you afraid of ghosts anymore?”

Yun Ying’s little face instantly flushed bright red. She pinched Lin Kexin’s arm in mock anger.

“Hmph, if you’re not afraid, then I’m not either! Worst case, I’ll just come sleep in your room at night!”

That really was Yun Ying’s plan—if she ever got scared, she’d just sneak into Lin Kexin’s cave to share the kang. Better to sleep with one person than twenty all crammed together, right?

“Alright, alright. If there really are ghosts, I’ll protect you!”

Lin Kexin patted her chest boldly, as if to say she was strong enough to keep her safe.

Laughing and chatting, the group arrived at the brigade office. Yun Ying had to work today and couldn’t take leave, so she repeatedly reminded Lin Kexin,

“Kexin, don’t forget—help me apply for a cave too. I want to live right next to you…”

“Got it, don’t worry!”

After promising her, Lin Kexin went inside with Wei Dongming and Li Tao.

The brigade leader was busy when they arrived, but seeing three unfamiliar young faces, he immediately set aside his work.

“And you are?”

“Hello, Brigade Leader. My name is Wei Dongming, this is Li Tao, and this is Lin Kexin. We’re the new educated youth who arrived last night!”

Wei Dongming introduced them politely.

“Oh, welcome, welcome!”

Hearing they were new educated youth, the brigade leader’s tone became even warmer.

“Are you here to collect your grain rations? Hold on, I’ll check the list…”

He began rifling through some papers.

“Brigade Leader, the grain isn’t urgent. We actually came to discuss something else,” Lin Kexin said with a gentle smile.

“Oh? What is it? Go ahead.”

The brigade leader stopped what he was doing, motioned for them to sit, and waited for her to continue.

“Well, Brigade Leader, behind the female dormitory there’s a row of cave dwellings. We were wondering if they could be allocated to us?”

“Caves?”

At that, the brigade leader paused, studying their eager expressions. After a brief moment of thought, he said,

“You’re new here, so you may not know. Those caves haven’t been lived in for at least a decade. If you want to stay there, they’ll need repairs.”

“We’ll cover the repair costs, of course. We’d just need your help to find laborers. Don’t worry, whatever it costs, we’ll pay!”

They had already discussed this on the way. The cave walls had some cracks, but a layer of mud mixed with wheat husks would fix it. The wooden doors needed to be rebuilt, but nothing else was too serious.

Li Tao didn’t have money, and had been ready to give up, but Lin Kexin had offered to front his share, letting him pay her back later with grain. Li Tao, feeling indebted, promised to fetch her water and firewood in the future.

“That works,” the brigade leader nodded. “You can hire villagers for the repairs—twenty cents a day, plus two meals. Out here in the countryside we may not have much, but dirt and wheat husks we’ve got plenty of.”

After sorting out the details, the three left the brigade office feeling satisfied.

“The wooden doors are no good. I’ll go with Taozi and ask around the village, see if anyone has spare boards we can trade for,” Wei Dongming suggested.

“Sounds good. I’m heading into town today to pick up some things I had sent. I’ll also see if I can buy an iron pot. If we move out on our own, it won’t be convenient to keep borrowing from the youth dormitory,” Lin Kexin said, already with her own plan in mind.

After a brief discussion, they split up to handle their tasks.

Lin Kexin went to the village entrance to wait for the ox cart. It would take half an hour to reach town. Since she had money, she naturally wouldn’t go on foot.

When she arrived in town, she pulled a scarf from her pocket and wrapped herself up tightly before slipping quietly into a narrow alley.

In her past life, she had dealt with the black market often.

In fact, it was that man who had ruined her who had first told her about it.

Lin Kexin stopped in front of a large wooden door at the end of the alley. She knocked three times, paused for a minute, then knocked four more times…

Soon, the door creaked open from the inside, revealing a bearded face.

“Who are you looking for?”

“Do you want to go to Peach Blossom Island? I’ve got a boat,” Lin Kexin replied calmly, speaking the code. Her bright eyes peeked out from under the scarf, and she handed over the two dimes she had prepared.

“Come in.”

The bearded man, hearing the correct code, opened the door wide and stepped aside to let her in.

After a quick turn, she entered another world.

The black market was bustling, packed with people. Stalls lined the narrow lanes, selling everything imaginable. The crowd was noisy and chaotic.

Everyone was bundled up tightly, only their eyes showing. There were stalls selling eggs, wild game, pork, beef… and even ration tickets.

Lin Kexin knew exactly what she was after and headed straight for the grain seller.

That stall was larger than the others, occupying the only room in the back courtyard. A board by the door listed the day’s prices:

Today’s grain prices:
Wheat: 0.25 yuan/jin
Rice: 0.23 yuan/jin
Corn: 0.1 yuan/jin

Lin Kexin found the prices acceptable. Though slightly higher than the supply co-op’s, there was no need for ration coupons here.

Carrying her shoulder bag in hand, she stepped inside. A burly man lounged in a chair, clearly resting.

“Hello, do you buy grain here?”

One glance was enough for her to recognize him—this was Yan Dao, the second-in-command of the black market.

“We buy,” he said, rising slowly from his chair.

“What kind of grain do you have, and how much?”

Lin Kexin wasn’t intimidated by his fierce appearance. Beneath her scarf, her lips curved slightly.

“Wheat and corn. Both.”

She laid out the samples she had brought for him to inspect.

Yan Dao picked up a few wheat kernels, rolling them in his palm before popping them in his mouth to chew. He then studied the glossy corn kernels, silently impressed by their quality though he didn’t show it.

“Not bad. How much do you have?”

Lin Kexin sat down casually in a chair, her brows arched, her tone relaxed and cheerful.

“How much can you take?”

That question unsettled Yan Dao.

He frowned, sizing up the girl in front of him—barely reaching his chin—and yet she spoke with such boldness.

“I can take plenty. The real question is whether you have that much.”

He straightened his back, refusing to let himself be outdone by a slip of a girl.