Reborn with a Space: Building a Fortune Amidst Famine

Chapter 73: 73 left

”Hey, I’m telling you, don’t sell those three little lambs. Aren’t you planning to raise them next year?”

Yuanyuan gritted her teeth. ”Okay, I won’t sell the three little ones. I’ll hire someone to help feed them.” After all, she’d have to hire someone to raise the ewes too.

”I’ll take these two sheep as well. I’ll give you a hundred for the ram and eighty for the ewe.”

Yuanyuan knew Old Yang was offering a good price, so she nodded, ”Alright, take them away today.”

Next year will be 1957, and by the end of the year, the communal cooperative will be established, and nothing will belong to us anymore.

After Old Yang had eaten his fill, he took out the money, handing over four hundred for the pigs, a hundred and eighty for the sheep, and eighty-four for the chickens and ducks together. He gave fifteen for the goose.

Yuanyuan looked at the six hundred and eighty yuan on the table, and, with a heavy heart, she put it away.

The chickens, ducks, and geese were caught and their legs tied. They were placed in five baskets.

The pork was also loaded onto the cart. ”Uncle Yang, you can take the pig’s blood too. I’ll just keep a few pieces.”

Old Yang wasn’t overly polite, and he tied the two sheep to the back of the carriage. ”Girl, I’m off. If you need anything, come find me.”

Yuanyuan nodded and patted the ram’s head. ”Sorry, I can’t take care of you anymore. I really feel bad about it.”

Old Yang watched with a smile. This girl really has a soft heart.

In fact, he didn’t know that the sheep were like a companion to her.

Yuanyuan knew that sheep have a natural lifespan, and who knows what next year will bring. She decided never to give the animals Spiritual Spring Water again, so it wouldn’t hurt her heart.

Yuanyuan saw tears fall from the ram’s eyes, and the little ewe bleating beside it.

Yuanyuan’s eyes turned red. She ran into the house, took out one hundred and eighty yuan, and handed it to Old Yang. ”Uncle Yang, I’m not selling these sheep anymore. I can’t let them go, so I’ll hire someone to raise them with me.”

Old Yang chuckled, accepting the money, ”Alright.”

He didn’t expect this girl to be like this—finally behaving like a child.

She led the two sheep back to the pen, where the ewe leaned over, rubbing against Yuanyuan’s legs.

She patted the sheep’s head. ”I’ll take care of you.”

Yuanyuan had considered not venturing out earlier, but she thought if she didn’t go now, it would only become troublesome to travel later.

But seeing these sheep looking at her, she decided to stay put. She’d just bear some hardship and not go far away, instead just wandering nearby and returning every day to feed them.

Old Yang and his apprentices left. Yuanyuan felt the house was much quieter. She wasn’t really used to it.

In the afternoon, she was at home peeling corn, and Old Yang had given her an iron tool for removing corn kernels.

Still, it was quite painful for her hands. Luckily, her hands were calloused. If they were like they were in her past life, she probably wouldn’t be able to peel even a few cobs.

The rubber gloves were useless. Then she remembered she had brought over the corn sheller machine from home.

Yuanyuan had a silly grin on her face, recalling storing everything her grandma had used after her passing. Now she had the energy to work.

Alone in the west room, she cranked away by candlelight, working until eleven o’clock.

This level of labor was trivial for her.

The next day, she only had to feed the sheep, and her tasks were greatly reduced. The whole day was spent cranking corn.

The results were very gratifying. Yuanyuan stayed home for five days, finishing shelling the corn from two acres.

Because she’s a bit of a perfectionist, the corn cobs were neatly stacked in the wood shed, just like the stacks of corn in the bins. Smiling at her achievement, she felt very happy.

Now there was nothing to do at home; tomorrow she’d head to the county. The pig offal and braised pork still needed friends to help cook it.

Lying on the heated kang bed, she thought maybe she’d skip the braised pork and just buy more from the place, filling the three enamel bowls with lids.

The next day at eight, she arrived in the county and went straight to the restaurant to find the chubby chef.

”Girl, come back in the afternoon to pick it up.”

She didn’t want to interrupt the lunchtime work. ”Chef, I’d like to buy ten servings of that braised pork like last time.” It was better to tell him now so he could prepare, right?

”Ten servings?”

”Yes, I just love your braised pork.”

”Alright, I’ll have someone go buy the meat. If it’s available, I’ll sell it to you. If not, it’ll be ready tomorrow.”

”Alright.” Yuanyuan left with a smile. She didn’t believe for a moment she wouldn’t get it, given her luck.

With nothing else to do, she decided to wander around the train station.

But first, stop by the Shi Family’s place to check. She wasn’t sure if the elderly were still alive.

Arriving at the Shi Family’s door, it seemed it had been unoccupied for a long time. She sighed—people’s lives are truly fragile.

Her good mood was gone in an instant.

She wandered to the grocery store. Browsing around, she bought two bolts of fabric, one earth yellow and one blue, to make herself two coats.

The shop owner was trying to sell her something else, and she noticed a bolt of pure cotton fabric that looked quite decent, with a bit of elasticity. It would make excellent thermal underwear.

”Boss, can you bring down the price for this fabric?”

”Little girl, this fabric really can’t go any lower. I’m offering you the lowest price since I can tell you’re going to buy a whole bolt.”

”Boss, how about this: how many bolts do you have? If I buy them all, how much would you charge?”

”All of them? Each bolt is fifty meters, and I have two here. If you really want them, I’ll give them to you for seventy-eight yuan in total.”

”Seventy-five.”

”At that price, I really wouldn’t earn much.”

”Boss, small profits but quick turnover, right?”

”Alright, I’ll sell them to you. Little girl, come back next time, and I’ll give you a discount.”

Spending money brightened Yuanyuan’s mood considerably.

She left the grocery store with four bolts of fabric, found a small alley, and once she ensured no one was around, she stored them in her space. From the space, she took out two large aluminum basins and three enamel bowls.

Heading towards the train station, it was still bustling with people. Yuanyuan strolled around, bought two kinds of seeds, found a spot to sit down, and watched people come and go as she munched on them.

She hadn’t had such a carefree moment in a long time, so it was quite interesting to watch the people passing by.

Time flies here. She checked the time and saw it was almost eleven, so she headed back to the restaurant.

She wasn’t in a rush, so she ambled along, taking twenty minutes for the walk.

Arriving at the restaurant, there were quite a few diners. No seats were available, and Yuanyuan started to worry that the braised pork would be sold out. So she found a server and reserved ten servings, filling up the three enamel bowls.

Though many were dining, few were only having braised pork, because it was quite pricey.