Transmigrated To Ancient Time: Thrive With An Auction System!

Chapter 80: Aged Vinegar

With each other’s company, both Yao Zhi and Fu Chen’an did not notice the passage of time as they chatted, and soon it was their turn.

Standing at the counter, Yao Zhi looked at the brownish lumps in the sacks and asked, ”Uncle, do you have any salt for sale?”

When the attendant heard her question, he scrutinized her for a moment before pointing at the sacks in the counter and saying, ”This is the salt sold in our store.”

Hearing this, Yao Zhi was stunned.

The attendant assumed she was from a mountainous area and had never seen salt before.

Pointing at the brownish lumps, he said, ”This is coarse salt. It costs 250 wen per tael.” Then, pointing at the grayish lumps, he added, ”This is fine salt. It costs 750 wen per tael.”

The moment Yao Zhi heard this, her eyes widened in shock. One tael was equal to 40 grams. The price of salt was so high!

She leaned closer and took a sniff. Instantly, she was hit by a pungent odor similar to smelly feet, with a hint of bitterness. Judging by the smell and appearance alone, she was certain this was the legendary, unrefined, coarse salt of ancient times.

When the attendant saw her deep frown, he slapped the counter and said impatiently, ”Miss, if you don’t want to buy anything, don’t block the way. There are many people waiting behind you.”

Hearing this, Yao Zhi turned around and met several unhappy gazes. She did not want to use this kind of salt, so she had to replace it with something else.

”Uncle, do you have soy sauce?” she asked.

The attendant frowned and replied, ”We don’t have anything called soy sauce, but we do have fermented soybean paste.”

Yao Zhi looked at the soybean paste and realized it was an unfinished form of soy sauce. After thinking for a moment, she asked, ”Uncle, how do you sell it?”

”It’s 50 wen per tael.”

It was cheaper than salt, but still not cheap. Taking out her money pouch, Yao Zhi said, ”Uncle, give me 2 tael of soybean paste.”

The attendant nodded and reached out. Shortly after, Fu Chen’an handed him a small earthen jar. Using a ladle, the attendant scooped the soybean paste into the jar and weighed it.

Yao Zhi paid 100 wen and left the store. After they had walked for a while, Fu Chen’an finally asked, ”Wife, why didn’t you buy any salt? Didn’t you say we were almost out of salt?”

Just thinking about the bitter taste of the coarse salt made Yao Zhi shake her head quickly. After a moment of thought, she asked, ”Husband, can we visit another store and check their seasonings?”

Although he did not understand why his wife wanted to visit another store, yet refused to buy salt, Fu Chen’an still nodded. They walked for half an hour before he pointed to a small shop at the corner of the street and said, ”Wife, that’s a seasoning store.”

Looking at how deserted the area was, Yao Zhi felt doubtful. However, with her husband accompanying her, she was not worried about being attacked.

After entering the store, she realized that it did not sell salt at all. Besides several large vats placed along the sides, there were multiple sacks arranged on bamboo shelves.

When the middle-aged owner saw them, his eyes lit up, and he greeted them with a smile. ”Welcome, customers. What can I get for you?”

Compared to the previous store, this one offered much better service. Yao Zhi looked around and asked, ”Uncle, do you have any salt?”

The shop owner’s smile faltered slightly when he heard Yao Zhi’s question. He forced a smile and said, ”Young lady, you are joking. Salt trading is controlled by the government. My store is small, and I don’t have permission to sell salt.”

Hearing this, Yao Zhi nodded and asked, ”Then what do you sell here?”

”Although my store doesn’t sell salt, we have soybean paste, vinegar, millet wine, ginger paste, sesame powder, and some aromatic herbs,” he said while showing the products.

”Young lady, you can take a look first and decide what you want,” he added.

While she listened to the store owner’s explanation, Yao Zhi took a look at the goods. Compared to the products sold in the modern era, these goods could be said to be crudely made.

She turned to the store owner and asked, ”Uncle, can I have a taste of these seasonings?”

Even though the store owner found her words puzzling, it was rare for his shop to have new customers, so he agreed readily. ”Of course, I will get a spoon.”

Soon after, the store owner returned with a small wooden spoon. ”Young lady, which seasoning do you want to taste?”

Yao Zhi pointed at the vinegar and said, ”Uncle, I want to taste the vinegar.”

The store owner nodded, poured a little bit of vinegar into the spoon, and handed it to her. Before she tasted the vinegar, Yao Zhi took a sniff. Compared to modern vinegar, the vinegar made in this era had a trace of an earthy scent besides the sharp acidic scent.

After smelling the vinegar, she tasted it. Besides the sharp, tangy taste, there was a hint of faint malty notes, a sign that the vinegar was made from millet. After the tangy taste, there was a hint of sweetness that came from sugar and a smoky, umami taste.

Only aged vinegar would be able to produce the smoky, umami taste. The layers of flavour were richer compared to the one-dimensional vinegar made in modern times.

She nodded with satisfaction and asked, ”Uncle, how do you sell this?”

The store owner was confident in his goods’ quality and replied, ”Young lady, this vinegar is made using my family’s secret recipe. You can’t find the same flavor in other stores. This vinegar is not only flavourful but also cheap. It’s only 18 wen per tael.”