Chapter 24 – Preparing for the Stall

Shen Nian asked her to go to the yamen (government office) the next day to inquire about the necessary procedures for setting up a stall. If she planned to sell goods regularly, it would be best to register a case with the yamen.

Xia Tian had initially thought that many villagers set up stalls during market days, so she could just follow their lead.

But Shen Nian told her that if she intended to sell goods long-term, it wouldn’t be the same as the temporary stall setup for market days. It would be better to register with the yamen.

In case any problems arose, she could seek official help.

Xia Tian nodded in agreement. It made sense.

It was still better to follow the local residents’ advice.

After their conversation, the two washed up and returned to their rooms to rest.

Before going to bed, Xia Tian reviewed her plans for the next day to ensure she didn’t forget anything, then fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, she got up early, had breakfast, washed her clothes, and prepared lunch for Shen Nian. Only then did she leisurely head out.

Today, she was just going to scout the roads, buy some spices and pork intestines, and try making braised food in the evening to see how it would turn out for the market.

Since she wasn’t in a rush, she didn’t take Uncle Liu’s ox cart but walked to the town alone.

It wasn’t a market day, so the town was relatively quieter, but it was still lively.

Xia Tian first went to the yamen and confirmed that if she intended to sell goods regularly, she would indeed need to register.

After registering, the yamen would assign her a fixed stall, and she would also need to pay a five-cash management fee every time she set up.

Fortunately, the management fee was only collected when setting up the stall, not in advance.

That was a relief, as she wouldn’t have to pay fees on days when she couldn’t attend.

After confirming the details, she decided to go ahead and register her stall while she was there.

She paid a deposit of a few coins, and the yamen officials recorded her information, giving her a slip of paper. She could bring it back with her when it was time to set up.

The slip of paper indicated the fixed location of her stall, but it only mentioned the street and the building number without specifying the exact spot.

Since there were many stalls on the street, Xia Tian thought it would be good to ask the yamen staff to show her the location so she could find it when she came to sell.

She slipped a few copper coins to the official in charge, who, seeing that she understood the situation, arranged for a yamen runner to take her to the location.

Xia Tian thanked him and followed the runner to check out the stall.

Along the way, Xia Tian asked the runner casually, “Brother, do you know if the stall is fixed to one location, or can I set up anywhere on this street?”

“It can’t be moved once it’s marked. You can only set up in the designated spot,” the runner replied.

“Then, if I don’t set up on a particular day, will the spot still be saved for me, or can someone else use it?”

Since she lived far away, she worried that if she arrived late, someone else might occupy the stall, so she wanted to clarify.

“If someone else takes it, it’s fine. You can still set up when you arrive, but it’s best to come early,” the runner explained patiently.

Xia Tian understood – the stall was fixed, but if she came too late and someone had taken the spot, she would have to handle it herself.

“Thank you, Brother, I understand,” Xia Tian said sincerely.

After some time, they arrived at the location. The stall area was on the same street as the market, so there would be no shortage of foot traffic.

The runner pointed to the location, which was near the intersection of two streets, and it was a good spot.

Xia Tian slipped a few more copper coins to the runner, thanked him, and walked around the area.

Most of the stalls here sold food—buns, wontons, and noodles—but she didn’t see any selling braised food.

This made Xia Tian feel more at ease.

Now that the stall was confirmed, she needed to prepare materials.

She went to the spice store and herb shop to gather all the ingredients for the braised food. She didn’t buy too much, just enough for about a month.

Some of the spices were medicinal herbs, which weren’t available in the regular spice shops.

After buying the spices, Xia Tian didn’t rush to the butcher’s shop. Instead, she went to the fabric shop.

She was still wearing the patched-up clothes from her original body.

If she was going to start selling food, it would be better to dress neatly and decently.

That way, she would look cleaner as well. Xia Tian went to the Jin Xiu Fabric Shop, where she had been before, and picked out two pieces of coarse fabric – one wine-red and one sky-blue.

She planned to make two outfits so that she could alternate between them.

After placing the fabric in her basket, she went to a general store to buy needles and thread. She had cut Shen Nian’s clothes last time but hadn’t sewn them yet.

But now that she was going to sell food, she figured she wouldn’t have time to sew, so she might ask Sister Yao to help with that for a fee.

Seeing the oil paper on the counter reminded her that in ancient times, there were no plastic bags, so everything was wrapped in oil paper. She bought a stack of oil paper for twenty copper coins.

She also saw wooden bowls and chopsticks for sale, so she bought ten pairs of chopsticks and ten wooden bowls, spending another twenty copper coins. These would be used for customer tastings.

Once Xia Tian had everything she needed, she planned to head to the butcher’s stall to buy some pork intestines.

On the way, she secretly placed the items in her space to prevent them from absorbing any smells.

She covered the basket with a torn cloth, so as long as no one looked inside, no one would know whether the items were in the basket or in her space.

When she reached the butcher’s stall, there wasn’t much meat left.

Since she had left late and it was almost noon, most of the good cuts had already been sold, leaving only leaner meat behind.

Fortunately, pork intestines weren’t as popular, so she bought two sets for twenty copper coins.

She also bought a pair of pig’s feet for fifteen copper coins.

She had planned to buy a pig’s head as well, but unfortunately, it was already sold out.

Since this was just a trial run, Xia Tian didn’t want to buy too much.

She bought two pounds of lean meat to cook for dinner and was about to leave.

As she passed the tofu stall, she saw dried tofu for sale, so she bought two pounds for ten copper coins.

She figured that braising this would taste just as good as meat.

Now that everything was prepared for the stall, Xia Tian decided to braise the food at home tonight and bring it to the market tomorrow. That way, she wouldn’t have to cook at the stall and could save time.

She didn’t need to start a fire, which made things much easier.

Having bought everything she needed, Xia Tian stopped by a noodle stall and ordered a bowl of plain noodles, taking her time to finish it before heading home.

It was already about 2 p.m. by the time she returned home. She greeted Shen Nian, then quickly went to the carpenter’s house in the village to order a table, wooden buckets, and a large wooden basin.

She wouldn’t be using fire at the stall, but she couldn’t just put everything on the ground either. A table would make it look cleaner.

The wooden buckets and basin would be used to store the braised food.

The carpenter already had the items ready, so Xia Tian ordered a square wooden table, two wooden buckets, and a large wooden basin, paying for them and arranging for them to be delivered to her home.

She would check later to see if anything else was missing and buy additional items if needed.

Time was getting late, so she hurried to prepare the intestines and pig’s feet, starting the fire to braise them.

Shen Nian watched as Xia Tian busied herself, not interrupting her but quietly sitting in the yard, peeling bamboo.

Since Shen Nian’s health had improved, he had developed a great interest in bamboo weaving and spent his time weaving baskets, small stools, and other items in the yard.

At least he had something to do, which was good for passing the time.

Xia Tian braised the pig intestines, then looked at the time. It was getting late, so she quickly started preparing dinner, using the vegetables in the garden to stir-fry some bok choy, cook some lean meat with chili, and make an egg drop soup. The meal was served with rice.

After dinner, she reduced the heat and continued braising the food, allowing it to absorb more flavor.

Xia Tian took the fabric to Sister Yao, asking her to help sew the clothes. She offered ten copper coins for each piece.

Sister Yao happily agreed.

Thinking ahead, Xia Tian realized that tomorrow, when she went to the market, Uncle Liu’s ox cart would definitely be crowded with people.

She went to Uncle Liu’s house to let him know, asking him to pick her up in the morning since she had a lot of things to carry. She promised to pay him double.

The next morning, Xia Tian got up early, prepared breakfast for Shen Nian, and warmed it up in the pot. She quickly ate as well.

Around 5 a.m., Uncle Liu arrived. Xia Tian loaded the table, wooden buckets, and wooden basin onto the ox cart, along with a small stool that Shen Nian had woven.

She covered the wooden buckets with lids, putting only a small amount of food inside, and placed the rest in her space. When they arrived, she would quietly transfer the food into the buckets.

Once everything was loaded, they set off for the village entrance.