Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Repeatedly checking the backend data, the collection just won't increase. It's so disheartening, begging for more collections, sob sob.
Removing the grass covering the top of the backpack, Liu Qingxi carefully took out the Cicada Monkey and placed it on a few large leaves she had picked up from the road. To be honest, it looked quite unappealing.
Liu Qingxi felt a bit embarrassed; it was really difficult to sell something like this.
The shouting from nearby vendors was incessant: "Come and see, fresh vegetables, very cheap, just a penny for a big handful!"
"Homegrown eggs, come get them while they last!"
Listening to the calls of others, Liu Qingxi felt a bit out of place. In her past life, she had sold things before and even called out to attract customers, but to shout like the nearby vendor Auntie was something she found hard to do.
After quite some time, Auntie had already sold several bundles of vegetables while their goods remained untouched. Even if someone glanced over, it was just a casual look before they turned away; who would buy something that looked so dark and unrecognizable?
Moreover, everyone wasn't very wealthy and typically only bought necessities.
Continuing like this wasn't a solution. Liu Qingxi noticed the sun getting higher; if they couldn't sell anything soon, they would have to go home. At this point, what did she have to lose?
People were almost starving; she decided to go all out. Liu Qingxi imitated others: "Come and see! Delicious and crispy roasted meat! It's very cheap! Don't miss out as you pass by!"
The first time she shouted, she felt a bit shy and her voice was small. After that first attempt, it became much easier.
Sure enough, calling out worked: "Little girl, what kind of roasted meat is this? I can't tell what it is!" a curious middle-aged man asked.
"Uncle, this is something my brother and I found in the mountains when we were starving. We caught some and roasted them. To our surprise, it tasted pretty good! We were hoping to trade it for a few Copper Coins to buy some noodles!"
Liu Qingxi replied enthusiastically. The roasted Cicada Monkey legs had fallen off and were hard to recognize in their original form. Naturally, she wouldn't disclose what it was; after all, this thing was too common. If everyone knew what it was, would there still be any left for them to sell?
However, there had to be a good excuse to convince everyone that it was edible, so they spun this lie. Generally, people in the town rarely went up the mountain and wouldn’t verify it.
"Really? Can that dark stuff be eaten?" It wasn't just him who was skeptical; several others who had been drawn over shared the same thought.
"Uncle, it’s really edible. We've eaten a lot already. Why don’t you give it a try?" Liu Qingxi handed each person one piece. To get others to accept it, they definitely needed to let them taste it; after all, catching them off guard wasn’t too difficult.
Fearing they wouldn’t eat it, Liu Qingxi signaled for them to remove the slightly dark outer skin. Once they saw the golden-brown meat inside, a few watched as Liu Qingxi fed Liu Qingyan a piece. After Little Guy enjoyed chewing and swallowing it, they hesitantly put some in their mouths.
Unexpectedly, despite its unappealing appearance and small size, once the meat was in their mouths, its tender texture and unique fragrance proved to be quite good. "Not bad. Little girl, how much do you sell this roasted meat for?"
Even if it tasted great, they wouldn’t openly admit it or show any particular desire for it.
Taking advantage of the earlier conversation, Liu Qingxi roughly understood the purchasing power of a coin in this era. Nearby, Auntie had a bundle of vegetables that weighed several pounds but only cost one coin. Her own product seemed too expensive and likely wouldn’t attract buyers.
From the chat with Uncle Auntie, she learned that in this era, meat cost around ten coins per pound, which was a fortune for an ordinary family!
"Uncle, although our meat pieces are small, they are very fragrant! We went through a lot of trouble to find them on the mountain; it's five coins per pound!" With her mind racing, Liu Qingxi offered this price, which was about one-third of pork.
"Little girl, that's a bit expensive!" It was still the same middle-aged man speaking. Although it was tasty, nothing could compare to pork—fatty pork stir-fried in a pot smelled heavenly.
Rather than spending five coins on this meat, he would rather buy a few taels of fatty pork to satisfy his cravings.
Upon hearing this price, the others shook their heads and left. Their families weren’t well-off; spending one or two coins was acceptable, but five coins per pound felt too pricey.
Only this uncle continued to inquire. However, since someone was asking questions, it was progress. Liu Qingxi saw hope: "Uncle, it's not easy for us to come here either. With five coins, you can only buy three or four taels of meat at home; if you cut them into larger pieces, no one can even get two pieces each.
But with five coins for my product, everyone can enjoy themselves and satisfy their cravings—what a bargain!" Drawing on her past experience selling goods, she boldly said this.
"Girl, how about you lower the price a bit? If you do that, I’ll buy a pound for three coins. What do you think?" In truth, he wasn’t really there to buy meat; he just happened to stop by.
After such a long time with only this one person showing interest in buying, Liu Qingxi didn’t want to let the opportunity slip away. So she took another step back: "Uncle, how about this? You’re my first customer today; would four coins per pound work? My brother and I are orphans and just want to make some extra money with this!"
Seeing Liu Qingxi looking pitiful, the middle-aged man thought about the small amount of money involved. It wasn't that he couldn't afford it; the two children didn't seem to be lying either. "So be it," he decided, "I'll buy a pound, just to do a good deed."
"Alright, I want a pound!"
"Sure thing, sir! Please wait a moment!" Liu Qingxi happily accepted the silver coins and wrapped a package of Cicada Monkey in a large leaf.
However, a problem arose. She didn't have a scale, and the nearby vegetable sellers were all pricing by the bundle, indicating that scales were quite rare. Realizing this, Liu Qingxi looked helplessly at the man in front of her. "Sir, how about this? I don't have a scale either. Can you see if this is enough for a pound? If it's not enough, I can add more."
Understanding the situation of the siblings, the man didn't say much but felt somewhat awkward. He couldn't take advantage of the two children, yet he was reluctant to feel like he was losing out.
At that moment, a cheerful voice came from nearby. "Little girl, if you trust me, let me help you estimate!" It was the Auntie selling vegetables.
"Great, thank you so much, Auntie!" Liu Qingxi was relieved to find a solution and didn't want to miss out on this business opportunity.
The vegetable-selling Auntie had a straightforward demeanor. She reached out and weighed it in her hands before addressing the middle-aged man. "Brother, I've been selling vegetables here for many years. Not to brag, but my estimating skills are definitely reliable; you won't be at a loss!"
After speaking, she added a few more pieces into the package. "There you go! That's definitely a pound—no more and no less. Please take it!" The Auntie confidently handed over the package of Cicada Monkey.
The man weighed it himself and realized that the vegetable-selling Auntie wasn't lying. He prepared to turn and leave.
Liu Qingxi quickly called out to him, "Sir, please wait a moment!"
Comment 0 Comment Count