Stockpiling for an Exiled General Through My Store's Back Door

Chapter 52: Chapter 52: Bought a Truckload of Packages

After eating and drinking her fill, Hua Buwan planned to take a walk around the town before heading back to open the supermarket.

She lived in an ancient town. The streets were paved with stone, and after years of weathering, they had long become pitted and uneven to walk on. The houses flanking the roads were mostly one- or two-story stone buildings; there were no high-rises in sight. In the middle of these structures sat an ancestral hall, bordered by a large open space in front. Whenever the townsfolk held banquets, they would set up in this very clearing.

The only people Hua Buwan really knew in this town were her maternal grandparents. She wasn’t close to the other families, so she had never participated in their communal feasts. Since her grandparents passed away, the townspeople still recognized her, but no one ever bothered sending banquet invitations to a young girl like her.

The early morning sun was gentle, casting a comfortable warmth on her face. Hua Buwan couldn’t help but stretch out her arms, bathing in the sunlight. Occasionally, people would pass by on bicycles or electric scooters, and she would step aside to let them through. When she saw kids walking their dogs, she stopped to play with the pets for a while. She also offered smiling greetings to the elderly folks sitting in front of their doors playing chess.

Naturally, those who recognized Hua Buwan would strike up a conversation.

”Isn’t this Old Man Lin’s granddaughter? Why aren’t you opening the supermarket? Taking a stroll over here?”

”Come over to my place for tea when you’re free!”

”We’re butchering a chicken tonight. Do you want to come over for dinner?”

”This girl is just so pretty. Do you have a boyfriend yet? My relative’s kid just graduated from college, which is perfect...”

At first, Hua Buwan answered the elders’ questions obediently. However, once the topics started venturing into dangerous territory, she hastily excused herself, claiming she had deliveries waiting at the supermarket. She beat a hasty retreat, slipping away from the gossip zone as fast as her legs could carry her.

After running a good distance, Hua Buwan finally stopped and took a few deep breaths. ”PHEW! That was close.”

When her grandparents were still alive, they were always talking about setting her up on blind dates. Now, these enthusiastic elders wanted to arrange things for her too. She didn’t want to discuss this topic with them; she felt she was still much too young. She was only twenty-two. What was the rush? She would think about it when she met the right person.

Upon returning to the supermarket, Hua Buwan opened the doors for business.

There weren’t many customers. The elderly mostly bought daily necessities like oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea, while the younger people picked up snacks and daily supplies. The business was decent enough—more than enough to support her in her old age, though getting rich from it was impossible.

After sitting for a while, a call from the courier came in. Hua Buwan waited at the entrance to welcome the arrival of her multitude of packages. She had ordered shelving units to be placed in her spatial dimension, an electric razor, a new phone, various medications, supermarket restocks, and a few small items that would be useful during the exile journey.

The deliveryman looked at Hua Buwan standing by the door with a face full of doubt. He lowered his head and repeatedly checked the delivery manifest. ”Miss, you didn’t place the wrong order, right? You bought all this? This entire truckload belongs to you.”

Hua Buwan scanned the truck full of goods and smiled awkwardly. ”Yeah, it’s all mine. Just help me unload it. I’ll find someone to move it inside later.”

No wonder the courier was looking at her like that. It was probably the first time anyone in this small town had ordered a whole truckload of packages. As for the supermarket restocks, those were delivered directly by the manufacturers, a completely separate shipment from this courier’s.

Hearing that he didn’t need to carry everything inside, the deliveryman’s expression softened considerably. With Hua Buwan’s help, he unloaded everything, had her sign for it, and left without looking back.

Hua Buwan carefully checked her surroundings. Once she was certain no one was around, she reached out and stored everything into her spatial dimension, planning to organize it all once she was back inside the supermarket.