Chapter 009: Stocking Up Again! An Old Acquaintance in the Black Market

Qin Xiaoran stood in front of a discreet little shop. When she saw the much younger version of a familiar face—the lady boss—she broke into a genuine smile.

Wonderful, it really was Sister Liu!

In her past life, after returning from the countryside, she lost her job due to poor health and was cast aside by the Wang family. Left to fend for herself, she came to the black market hoping to find odd jobs to earn a bite to eat, but met rejection everywhere.

It was Sister Liu who had taken her in, letting her work at the shop, and only then was she able to survive.

She remembered Sister Liu once saying that she had opened this shop very early on, though it had closed a few times over the years. But thanks to her honesty and good reputation, loyal customers kept coming back, and in the end, she had managed to keep the shop running.

She hadn’t expected such luck—today, the shop was open.

Qin Xiaoran stepped inside. The younger-looking Sister Liu, who had been dozing at the table, immediately stood up and greeted her warmly.

“Little sister, what do you need? I’ve got everything you could want. Even if I don’t, I can get it for you in a couple of days!”

Hearing that familiar accent, Qin Xiaoran’s eyes softened with a trace of a smile. She began listing the items she wanted.

Fifty catties of rice, fifty catties of millet, fifty catties of flour, fifty catties of cornmeal, fifty catties of sweet potato flour, fifty catties of bran…
Thirty catties of corn oil, five catties of salt, five catties of sugar, three bottles of soy sauce, three bottles of bean paste…

The boss lady froze in shock at such a large order, forgetting to even take notes until Qin Xiaoran repeated herself.

Grinning from ear to ear, Sister Liu also recommended a number of other things. Qin Xiaoran agreed to everything she thought useful.

By the end, the bill came to 203 yuan.

Leaning lazily against the doorframe, Qin Xiaoran casually looked around.
“Boss lady, I’ve bought so much from you—why don’t you knock off the change?”

Sister Liu was already smiling so hard her mouth wouldn’t close. She quickly said, “Little sister, even if you didn’t ask, I’d have rounded it down for you! I’ll even deliver it myself. Just tell me where.”

Qin Xiaoran thought for a moment and gave her an address near the old family estate.

That whole area was filled with mansions, but now mostly abandoned, deserted, and desolate. Delivering goods there usually wouldn’t attract attention. She avoided giving the actual old house’s address in case someone did see—this way, she would at least have an explanation.

“Deliver it to the back gate of this address at seven o’clock tonight. Just drop it off and leave.”

“Of course, of course, I’ll make sure it gets there!”

Qin Xiaoran hesitated a moment, and Sister Liu patted her chest firmly.
“Don’t you worry, little sister. I, Liu Chunhua, do honest business. I’ve never cheated anyone—you can ask anyone around here! If you’re still worried, you can pay half now and the rest on delivery.”

Qin Xiaoran came back to her senses, pulled out 200 yuan, and handed it over.

Sister Liu quickly counted the money with practiced fingers, tucked it away, and greeted her with another broad smile.
“Little sister, anything else you’re looking for? I can keep an eye out, or recommend other places to you. I’ll make sure you’re satisfied.”

She had her own thoughts.

A customer spending like this was bound to need more things. Even if she didn’t have them, she could refer her to friends and still gain favor. Most importantly, she wanted to build ties with this “big client.” Spending 200 yuan at once was the equivalent of her profits for half a year—if she asked around a little and got her to buy something more, that might mean a whole year’s earnings in one go.

Qin Xiaoran considered for a moment.
“I also need to buy a batch of seeds and ration coupons—grain seeds, vegetable seeds, and about twenty to thirty of each type of ration coupon.”

Many things could be bought at the black market, but sometimes she wouldn’t have the chance to go—or it would be too risky. Stocking up on ration coupons for emergencies was a smart move.

Seeds were even more valuable—she needed them for planting in her spatial farmland.

Sister Liu thought a moment.
“I do have some coupons, just not so many or so complete. I’ll give you all I’ve got at a discount. As for buying so many types and quantities, I know a place—but the prices are usually ten to twenty percent higher than street stalls.”

Qin Xiaoran sighed, knowing this couldn’t be helped.

She bought what Sister Liu had, then followed her to the coupon seller. She spent several dozen yuan more for a whole crate of assorted ration coupons.

Grain coupons, meat coupons, liquor coupons, sugar coupons, cigarette coupons, soy sauce coupons, fermented tofu coupons, vermicelli coupons, cloth coupons, shoe coupons, soap coupons, bicycle coupons, sewing machine coupons, diesel coupons…

Everything imaginable was in that wooden crate, filling more than half of it.

Some were cheap, others expensive, and with such large quantities, she spent another hundred-plus yuan.

Though she tried to keep a low profile, people noticed. On their way out, someone quietly approached them.
“Want some high-end goods?”

Curious, Qin Xiaoran asked, “What kind of high-end goods?”

The man whispered mysteriously, “Depends on what you’re after—luxury watches, fine liquor, gold and silver jewelry, fancy candies, malted milk powder… everything you can imagine.”

Sister Liu frowned at the man’s shifty demeanor, but since her “big client” looked interested, she kept quiet.

Qin Xiaoran thought of something. In this era, many precious items like gold, jade, and artwork were sold cheaply, only to skyrocket in value a few years later. Buying them now to stockpile would be worthwhile.

But for now, she didn’t have enough money. That would have to wait.

So instead, she asked, “Do you have candy right now?”

Candy was small, portable, good for quick energy, tasty, and useful for winning over children. Definitely worth storing.

The man’s eyes lit up. “Yes, yes!”

“How much?”

“Over three jin of fruit candy and more than one jin of milk candy.”

“The price?”

“Fruit candy, two yuan a jin. Milk candy, five yuan a jin.”

Qin Xiaoran frowned slightly. “Too expensive.”

Even without ration coupons, that was overpriced. Big White Rabbit milk candies with coupons cost just over two yuan per jin, and some fruit candies were under one yuan. This man had nearly doubled the price.

He tried to persuade, “Not expensive, not expensive at all! My goods are top quality.”

In fact, they were pricier than other sellers’—but since he’d seen how much she had spent on coupons earlier, he assumed she had money. He hadn’t raised the price outrageously, just a bit higher, and thought she’d accept it.

But Qin Xiaoran and Sister Liu clearly disagreed. After bargaining back and forth, they bought the candies at the normal black market rate, spending ten yuan in total.

The vendor took the money grudgingly and left.

Qin Xiaoran then followed Sister Liu to the seed shop. She bought dozens of jin of grain seeds and several jin of vegetable seeds. Seeing flower and tree seedlings, she bought plenty of those too.

She carried what she could, and Sister Liu offered to deliver the rest along with the earlier goods.

Qin Xiaoran sincerely thanked her, leaving two yuan for delivery.

Sister Liu politely declined at first but eventually accepted, and told her to always come to her first when buying things in the black market—she promised Qin Xiaoran would never be taken advantage of.

Qin Xiaoran bid her farewell and left the black market in good spirits, clutching her remaining thirty yuan.