Chapter 21 A sudden turn of events

Ji Tangtang had studied that novel carefully and knew about some of the special policies of this era. So she understood Liu Jianfeng’s attitude. After all, if this kind of thing wasn’t handled well, he could really get caught and held accountable. For him, it wasn’t worth taking such a risk for someone he didn’t know.

She took out the wild fruits she had prepared earlier from her basket, along with a bundle of wild vegetables, and handed them to Liu Xuemei.
“These are the wild fruits I promised you, and these big-leaf chives are an extra gift. I won’t make things difficult for you.”

Liu Jianfeng glanced at the basket filled with bright red fruits—he couldn’t even name them—but he more or less understood what was going on. His pregnant younger sister must have craved them, and had made some sort of arrangement with this woman in private. At this time of year, fruits were hard to come by. Being able to bring out so many was not easy. He suddenly felt a bit embarrassed in front of Ji Tangtang.

“I don’t have much fine grain to spare. Flour is 0.18 yuan per jin, rice 0.13 yuan per jin, and it’s one jin of grain for one jin of ration ticket. Altogether, I can let you have 8 jin of flour and 5 jin of rice. Do you have the money and tickets ready?”

“I have both.”

Ji Tangtang had thought buying fine grain would fall through, but unexpectedly, things had turned around. She was delighted, handed over the money and tickets, and said in a low voice:
“My family lives in the mountains, and all we have left is coarse grain. Someone at home is sick, so I wanted to trade for some fine grain for them to eat.

My family doesn’t have fine grain, but we don’t lack other things. We often hunt wild boars, rabbits, and other game in the mountains. If you know anyone who needs that, we could trade.”

Hearing this, both Liu Jianfeng and Liu Xuemei’s eyes lit up. Their jobs were good, so their family’s standard of living was better than most, but meat tickets were strictly rationed each month, and they were always short of meat.

Liu Jianfeng said, “If you can bring meat, I can convince some colleagues to trade their allotment with you. Meat would be priced at market rates, and if it’s not enough, we’ll make up the difference.”

But Ji Tangtang thought about how all the game she brought out grew up eating spiritual herbs and plants from the secret realm, and contained spiritual energy that nourished the body. If she sold it at market rates, she’d be at a loss.

“It can’t be at market rates. My meat has to be priced higher. The animals we hunt come from deep mountains—dangerous to hunt—and the game there feeds on rare plants with medicinal value. Eating it nourishes the body.”

Liu Jianfeng’s first reaction was that this was absurd. A rural woman trying to jack up the price?

“If you don’t believe me, ask your sister. See if she felt anything different after eating the wild fruits I brought.”

The only reason she was doing business with them now was because her cultivated fields hadn’t yet yielded rice. Otherwise, she wouldn’t bother with these losing trades.

“No wonder! I was wondering why I had no morning sickness this afternoon—it must have been because of your wild fruits!” Liu Xuemei’s grievance was forgotten as she looked at Ji Tangtang with joy.

Ji Tangtang said, “There are a lot of these fruits. If you can’t finish them quickly, you can preserve them with honey or sugar. The effect will weaken a lot, but there will still be some benefit. But don’t keep them longer than half a month, or the effect will be gone.”

Liu Xuemei nodded repeatedly. “They won’t last half a month. I’ll finish them all in a few days.”

“As for the meat, think it over first. I’ll be leaving for now.”

Ji Tangtang put the flour and rice Liu Jianfeng had prepared into her basket and was about to go. But Liu Xuemei didn’t want to see her leave so soon. She anxiously said:
“Qing-jie, when will you come again? Even if my brother doesn’t believe you, I do. Just set a price for the meat, and I’ll trade with you. Fine grain, or anything else.”

Ji Tangtang smiled. “In a few days. If I come, I’ll look for you.”
Then, remembering she was still using the appearance given by the disguise pill, she added:
“Sometimes it’s inconvenient for me to come to the city. My apprentice may come in my place.”

“What’s your apprentice’s name? How will I recognize her if she comes?”

“My apprentice’s name is Ji Tangtang. Easy to recognize—she’s pale, good-looking, you’ll recognize her at once.”

She praised herself without a shred of embarrassment. As a peach blossom spirit, she had always loved beauty. The body she was in now only resembled her original looks by about half, and in her eyes, couldn’t compare to her past life. But once her soul fully fused with this body, her looks would slowly shift back to her original appearance. It was only a matter of time.

Liu Xuemei didn’t take it too seriously, thinking this was just a master praising her apprentice, much like her own mother always told her she was the prettiest girl. She was only curious what kind of skills this woman had, to have taken on a disciple. But since they had just met, and Ji Tangtang had already left with her basket, it wasn’t appropriate to ask more.

Liu Jianfeng noticed his sister staring longingly in the direction Ji Tangtang had left, and poked her forehead. “You really believe her?”

Liu Xuemei unhappily pushed his hand away. “She gave me wild fruits at noon, and after eating them all afternoon I had no nausea. I feel wonderful today—why wouldn’t I believe her?”

“I think that’s just coincidence.”

Liu Jianfeng didn’t believe a word of it. What nonsense—that wild game that ate rare mountain herbs would have special nourishing effects. Meat was meat; of course it nourished the body. He’d never heard such ridiculous claims in his life.

But since his sister wouldn’t listen, he gave up and picked up the basket helplessly.
“Let’s go. Time for dinner.”

Although Liu Xuemei was married, her family still doted on her. She often came back home for meals, and now that she was pregnant and her husband was away on business, she had simply moved back in with her parents.

That night, Madam Liu stir-fried eggs with the big-leaf chives Ji Tangtang had given. In those days, eggs and meat were rare treats for most families, but the Liu family was relatively well-off, and with their daughter pregnant, Madam Liu had managed to trade for eggs to nourish her.

This dish was often made recently, and everyone had grown a bit tired of it. But tonight, the chives-and-egg dish was completely different. As soon as it hit the wok, a rich aroma filled the kitchen—so enticing that even Liu’s father, who usually never entered the kitchen, rushed in twice to ask what delicacy was being cooked. When told it was just the usual, he didn’t believe it until the dish was finally served.

When the food was set on the table, everyone’s chopsticks immediately reached for the chives-and-egg.

As soon as she tasted it, the eldest sister-in-law said in surprise, “This chive-and-egg tastes especially good today.”

Liu’s father nodded in agreement.

Liu Xuemei gave her elder brother a triumphant look. “See? I told you she’s not a liar. Even the vegetables she gave are different—her meat must be even more special.”