"Shopkeeper, I'll take one hundred catties of White Rice, one hundred catties of Old Rice, one hundred catties of white flour, and one hundred catties of cornmeal."
As he spoke, Cheng Zongyang glanced over the shop's wares. He spotted a large jar on the bottom shelf of a wooden rack, labeled with a piece of red paper bearing the two words "Brown Sugar." He turned to the Shopkeeper and asked:
"What's the price of brown sugar right now?"
Cheng Zongyang was making his purchases in a well-stocked rice shop that hadn't closed for the day yet.
The rice shop sold more than just rice; it also carried oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and other staples. You could have called it a general store.
The Shopkeeper beamed, immediately signaling his clerk to start weighing the goods while he answered Cheng Zongyang's question.
"Brown sugar is rather expensive right now. One hundred cents a catty. How much do you need?"
Hearing this, Cheng Zongyang glanced at the brown sugar and frowned. "Shopkeeper, this is unrefined brown sugar. Why is it so expensive?"
The Shopkeeper glanced at Cheng Zongyang, his smile fading slightly. "It's only cheap because it's the unrefined stuff," he said flatly. "Mid-grade is two hundred cents a catty, and high-grade is three hundred. You want those instead?"
Cheng Zongyang was inwardly astonished.
He remembered that just two months ago, the unrefined sugar was only fifty cents a catty. The price had already doubled!
The price hike was staggering.
The unrefined version was just the most common dregs left over after all the sifting and grading.
But considering the current market, the importance of sugar, and the complexity of its production, the price increase was understandable, even for the lowest grade.
After all, most families couldn't afford brown sugar anyway. He thought for a moment, then said:
"Not much. Just give me ten catties for now."
"Alright. Erhu, add ten catties of brown sugar!" the Shopkeeper immediately called out to his clerk.
"Got it!" the clerk, who was weighing rice by the door, called back.
The Shopkeeper was already making his abacus clatter. A moment later, he chuckled and announced the total to Cheng Zongyang.
"The White Rice is eighty cents a catty, for a total of eight taels; the Old Rice is fifty-five cents a catty, for five taels and five mace... and with the brown sugar... your total comes to twenty-two taels and five mace."
Cheng Zongyang sighed inwardly.
'Prices have skyrocketed. If it weren't for the money from selling that brown bear, I really couldn't have afforded all this!'
After paying, Cheng Zongyang loaded the goods onto a wooden stretcher, tied them down with vines, covered them carefully, and then dragged the stretcher away.
Once in a deserted corner, he transported the goods into the Wilderness World, then headed to other shops to continue his shopping.
As the silver in his pouch dwindled, the amount of grain inside the Wilderness World grew.
Finally, feeling a great sense of relief, Cheng Zongyang hurried to leave the County Town before the gates closed for the night.
The road was crowded, and while many people eyed his purchases, the Firewood Knife and Bow and Arrow he carried served as a powerful deterrent.
As for Martial Artists, they wouldn't deign to rob someone for such a small amount of grain.
Cheng Zongyang ducked into a patch of woods and stored his weapons in the Wilderness World. Once he reached the forest behind his house, he retrieved the grain, tied it to the stretcher, and headed home.
'This grain is what I bought with the money from the snake meat; I have to show this to my parents. I'll keep the rest hidden for now.'
As dusk fell, Cheng Zongyang returned to the village by a small path. No one knew he had left, and no one knew he was back.
"Dad, I'm back." Just as he reached the doorway, Cheng Zongyang saw Cheng Guanghai sitting there.
Cheng Zongyang knew his father didn't usually sit idly by the door. He must have been waiting for him.
"Good, you're back. Hurry and bring that inside."
Cheng Guanghai looked his son over, nodding slightly when he saw he was unharmed. Under the cover of darkness, he quickly helped move the grain inside the house.
Dinner was already on the table. As soon as Cheng Zongyang stepped inside, his little sister rushed out from the main room, yelling:
"Big Brother, come eat! There's lots and lots of meat!"
"Okay, I'll be right there," Cheng Zongyang replied with a smile.
When Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family saw her son return, the worried look she'd worn all day finally vanished. She quickly placed a basin of water by the well and asked with concern:
"Hurry and wash up. You must be hungry, right?"
"I'm fine," Cheng Zongyang replied with a smile, adding, "Mom, this isn't my first time going to the County Town. There's no need to worry."
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family chided, "You silly boy, the roads aren't safe these days. You have to be careful. Don't act so nonchalant about it."
"Yes, I understand," Cheng Zongyang said, not wanting to argue with his mother.
'This is just how they show they care. Arguing is pointless and would only hurt their feelings.'
He washed his hands and face, then poured the dirty water into a large wooden bucket set aside for that purpose, to be used later for watering the vegetable garden.
At the dinner table, Cheng Zongyang handed the remaining one tael and six mace of silver to his mother, who was scooping rice, and said simply:
"The snakes I caught today sold for twenty taels and twenty cents. I used most of it to buy and stock up on rice, flour, oil, salt, and sugar."
Then, he turned to his father and said:
"Dad, I paid back the silver coins we owed Second Uncle. I calculated it based on today's grain prices. Since prices have gone up, it came out to two taels and five mace. This is what's left over."
Cheng Guanghai knew his son must have gone into the Inner Mountain, but he couldn't let his wife find out. So he just smiled and said:
"Sounds like your luck was good today. Did you run into many people in the mountains?"
Cheng Guanghai only briefly touched on the matter of the repayment.
That was just his nature; being in debt weighed heavily on his mind, and he was always thinking about it. He was naturally pleased that his son had handled it. Moreover, his son's judgment was clearly maturing. He was truly becoming the pillar of the family.
"That's because our son is capable! Didn't you see how many villagers came back empty-handed?"
Sitting to Cheng Guanghai's right, Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family didn't know the real story behind his success; she was simply overjoyed at her son's haul for the day.
'This much grain is enough to last us more than half a year.'
With that, she took the money and went to her room to put it away safely.
The two little ones paid no mind to the adults' conversation, happily gnawing on pieces of snake meat.
"There were quite a few people," Cheng Zongyang said, continuing his chat with his father as he placed more food onto his younger siblings' plates.
"Tell me more," Cheng Guanghai asked, his voice full of concern.
His own family responsibilities forced him to stay home or try his luck in the Outer Mountain, so he was extremely wary about his son venturing into the Inner Mountain.
"In the mountains, I ran into a Hunter Corps formed by men from other villages. They banded together to go deep into the mountains and had a great haul. I was following them when I stumbled upon a Snake Cave. I used a combination of Sedative and a fire attack to wipe out the whole nest."
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family came back out, and having heard her son's story, she sat down and interjected:
"With food so scarce these days, why would they let you have so many snakes?"
Cheng Zongyang laughed. "Mom, if you knew what their haul was, you'd understand why they weren't interested."
"What was it?" Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family's curiosity was piqued. Beside her, Cheng Guanghai also stared intently at his son.
As a Hunter himself, he was naturally interested in bounties from the mountains.
"A Black Panther, ginseng, a Reishi Mushroom, and a bear. With a haul like that, we probably wouldn't have cared about the snakes either."
"That much!" Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family was stunned. "How much money would all that be worth?"
But Cheng Guanghai frowned and asked, "Those two are dangerous beasts. How many men did they have...?"
And so, the family ate and made small talk, listening to Cheng Zongyang's stories from the mountains. The scene was filled with happy chatter and laughter, and it filled Cheng Zongyang's heart with a deep sense of contentment.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK...!
Suddenly, a knock at the door made everyone pause.
"Who could that be? Coming at dinnertime, of all times," Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family grumbled under her breath.
"I'll get it," Cheng Zongyang said to his mother, putting down his chopsticks and getting up to head outside.
Mrs. Zhou of the Cheng Family immediately had her husband and younger son clear the table, leaving out only some rice, flatbread, pickled vegetables, and a simple soup.
The summer sky grew dark late, and it wasn't completely black out yet.
At the doorway, Cheng Zongyang opened the door to see a woman with slightly prominent cheekbones, dressed in thin clothes, her body somewhat bloated from malnutrition. She was leaning hesitantly against the doorframe.
Seeing who it was, Cheng Zongyang was a little surprised. "Aunt Chunhua, what brings you here? Please, come in."
Cheng Zongyang stepped aside, holding the door open.
The Cheng Family were considered outsiders, having lived in the village for only twenty-some years. Combined with their house's remote location, they weren't close with many people.
This Aunt Chunhua, from the Chen Family, was also an outsider. She didn't live far from them, and they were familiar enough to be on visiting terms.
Most importantly, Aunt Chunhua's husband had once saved Cheng Zongyang's life!