Chapter 22 A Rough Start

Qin Zimu was completely captivated by the bowl of steaming dumplings in front of him.

The white, plump dumplings, shaped like half-moons, were piled high in the bowl, sprinkled with finely chopped green onions.

He couldn’t wait to pick one up and put it in his mouth. With a gentle bite, the savory aroma of pork, along with the broth, instantly filled his mouth.

The dumpling wrapper was thin and chewy, the filling was savory and juicy. Qin Zimu’s mouth was burning, but he couldn’t bear to spit it out.

Zhou Dazhu, being older, was more restrained than Qin Zimu in his eating habits.

But by the end, both of them had finished every last drop of broth.

Dumplings were not a rare delicacy for Qin Ruo, they were just ordinary food for her to fill her stomach.

After finishing their dumplings and paying the bill, Qin Ruo stopped and turned to Zhou Dazhu as they left the noodle shop.

“Dazhu, I’m going to Taihe County later, do you want to come with me?”

Zhou Dazhu’s eyes lit up, he had never been to Taihe County.

He didn’t know what the prices were like there, and he was actually quite tempted.

Today, besides the mushrooms he had picked, he also brought some dried goods that he had picked and dried in the mountains.

“The prices in Taihe County will definitely be higher. But I can’t guarantee that you’ll be able to sell your things in Taihe County, you might even lose your travel expenses.”

Qin Ruo added, she wanted to test Zhou Dazhu’s courage and decisiveness.

She was always a person who liked to plan ahead, hunting wouldn’t be a long-term solution, she had to see if Zhou Dazhu could be of use.

Zhou Dazhu thought for a moment and quickly made up his mind.

He gritted his teeth and decided to go to Taihe County with Qin Ruo.

The worst-case scenario was that he couldn’t sell his things, and he would have to carry them back to Datong Township to sell.

At most, he would have to walk back, which would only cost him five coins.

After making the decision, Qin Ruo took Zhou Dazhu and Qin Zimu to find a carriage to Taihe County, paid the fare, and headed straight for their destination.

The road from Datong Township to Taihe County was much flatter, and the carriage was much faster than the donkey cart.

It was the first time they had ridden in a carriage, Zhou Dazhu and Qin Zimu were both a little excited, they sat in the carriage and looked around curiously, talking in hushed tones.

About half an hour later, they arrived in Taihe County.

Qin Zimu and Zhou Dazhu jumped off the carriage first, their eyes widened at the sight before them.

Taihe County was a world apart from Datong Township.

The streets were neat and clean, shops lined both sides, restaurants and wine shops were bustling with activity.

Even in winter, the streets were still crowded with people coming and going.

The cries of vendors rose and fell.

Food, supplies, clothing, everything you could imagine.

“Sister, sister, this is Taihe County, there are so many people!”

Qin Zimu looked left and right, everything seemed new and exciting to him.

Qin Ruo’s heart was touched, although the original owner had been here many times, she had impressions of Taihe County.

Even in her previous world, she had been to many ancient cities, they were basically the same.

But actually stepping onto the streets where ancient people lived was a different experience.

Every brick and tile here had an indescribable charm.

Zhou Dazhu was also excited, the worry that had been hanging over his heart all the way here finally settled.

Along the way, he had observed that there were also vendors selling mushrooms and dried goods on the streets.

The prices were almost double those in Datong Township.

The quality of the things others were selling was not as good as his, and his heart settled.

Zhou Dazhu found an empty spot and set up his stall.

Not long after, a purchasing manager from a wealthy household bought all his goods.

Besides the half pound of mushrooms they had eaten last night, he had sold a total of twelve pounds. And he sold them at twenty-five coins per pound, for a total of three hundred coins.

As for the more than ten pounds of dried wild bamboo shoots, he also sold them for over three hundred coins.

Zhou Dazhu held the copper coins in his hands, as if he were dreaming.

He had originally thought that if he could sell these things for three or four hundred coins, it would be good enough.

The people who came to Datong Township for the market were all from the surrounding villages.

There were many people selling mountain goods, it wasn’t anything rare.

Actually, in the winter of the Great Sheng Dynasty, besides the ordinary cabbage stored in the cellars of ordinary people, there weren’t any fresh vegetables.

Fresh mushrooms were still quite popular.

Looking at the clothes of the pedestrians in Taihe County, you could tell that their spending power was not on the same level as Datong Township.

Qin Zimu’s basket of mushrooms was also sold.

Besides the ones they ate and the ones they left at home, he only brought ten pounds.

When he handed the two hundred and fifty copper coins to Qin Ruo, he felt like his feet were floating.

He had never held so much money in his life.

Qin Ruo didn’t plan to sell the game here, she was going to take it to the Fumanlou in Taihe County.

After packing up their things, Qin Ruo took Qin Ziyan and Zhou Dazhu towards East Street in Taihe County, the most bustling street.

Not long after, they arrived at the Fumanlou, and there was a constant stream of customers coming to eat at the entrance of the restaurant.

Relying on the original owner’s memory, Qin Ruo walked along the narrow alley and arrived at the back yard of the Fumanlou.

When she arrived at her destination, she didn’t see Chen, the purchasing manager.

There was only a slightly fat middle-aged man in a blue cotton padded jacket, who was checking the ingredients that had just been delivered with a few workers.

Qin Ruo put down her basket, walked over, and smiled slightly, “Is Mr. Chen here? My surname is Qin, I’m from Changhe Village, I’ve come to deliver ingredients to the Fumanlou. Please let Mr. Chen know and ask him to come over and check them.”

The middle-aged man turned his head and looked at Qin Ruo and her group, frowned, put down his work, and walked over.

He waved his hand impatiently at Qin Ruo, “Mr. Chen was transferred to another place half a month ago. Delivering ingredients? Go! Go! Go! The Fumanlou has enough ingredients for today, take your things to another place!”

The new manager, surnamed Zhang, knew Qin Ruo.

Before Mr. Chen left, he had instructed him that if a girl surnamed Qin from Datong Township came to cooperate with them on mountain goods and game, they should continue as usual.

They had been cooperating for many years, and the other party was an honest person. Every time she delivered ingredients, they were very fresh and popular with the diners.

Qin Ruo remained calm, smiling, “Manager Zhang, we came all the way from Datong Township, we had a verbal agreement with Mr. Chen before…”

“That was before, this is now. However, seeing as you came all this way, I’ll reluctantly accept your things…”

Zhang said, stepping forward and flipping through the things in the basket.

He could tell at a glance that the game Qin Ruo brought was top-notch.

But Zhang deliberately wanted to lower the price, so he deliberately frowned, “But, this batch of goods isn’t very good.”

“Let’s see. Sixty coins for a wild chicken, this roe deer is five hundred coins, I’ll give you five hundred coins for it. The remaining two rabbits are just a bonus.”

Qin Ruo almost laughed, what kind of deal was this?

Did he think she was a fool? In Datong Township, wild chickens were sold for ninety coins each, why would they only sell for sixty coins in Taihe County?

As for the roe deer, it weighed over thirty pounds after being cleaned.

Five hundred coins? And he wanted two rabbits for free?

It was clear that he was trying to lower the price, Qin Ruo didn’t say anything, she turned around, picked up her basket, and left.

Zhou Dazhu and Qin Zimu silently picked up their baskets and followed behind.