Chapter 37: Trading for Old Goods

“Your uncle said there would be a two-hour break at noon from now on, and there’d be even more free time in the evening. I can totally handle this myself, riding our Sanbao, I can go anywhere!” Yan Lao’er remembered what his daughter said earlier about making full use of Sanbao’s abilities.

Now that he thought about it, the idea came naturally.

“Whether the trades happen or not doesn’t really matter. The key is that the stuff has a source. Plus, we’re helping the villagers get rid of things they don’t need.” The more Yan Lao’er thought about it, the more right it seemed. He quickly sought his daughter’s approval. “Dabao, am I right?”

“Absolutely right, Dad! Actually, I had another idea this morning. We should make big communal meals. It would save time and labor, and avoid waste. But then I thought… some people eat more, some eat less. It’s hard to fairly measure who takes more or less.” Yan Yu felt the logistics of rationing would be too complicated, so she gave up. Otherwise, pooling all the supplies for centralized management would’ve been much more efficient.

“Two liang of flour coupons for one steamed bun,” Li Xuemei said.

Yan Yu: ???

Yan Lao’er explained, “Back at the old communal canteen, two liang of flour coupons would get you one big bun. We won’t ask for coupons—just let them bring their own flour. Oh, and water too.

Wait, let me calculate… doesn’t have to be too big, about 6.7 buns from a jin of flour…”

Li Xuemei and Yan Yu stared at him eagerly.

This was a knowledge blind spot for the mother and daughter—they could only rely on Yan Lao’er to figure it out.

“One jin of flour and half a jin of water makes about seven buns,” Yan Lao’er concluded. “It’ll just cost us some firewood.”

“We can definitely do this steamed bun trade,” said Li Xuemei. “While steaming buns, we can also boil water—a big pot every day, enough for everyone to drink.”

That morning, she saw that the villagers were drinking raw water, which wasn’t good and could easily make people sick.

If they had to boil water themselves, some would probably find it too much trouble.

“Then one jin of flour plus one jin of water equals buns and boiled water,” Yan Yu thought for a moment and told her dad, “You need to steam a pot first to show them how big our buns are.”

Yan Lao’er: “Alright, wait till I show them my skills.”

…

Handing over the cart-driving task to Eldest Nephew, Yan Lao’er started weaving through the crowd.

He needed to get a sense of what supplies the villagers had brought with them.

After asking around, by the time noon break came, Yan Lao’er found some old sourdough starter and started kneading dough with loud thuds.

The villagers were stunned.

Who’s that?

Yan Lao’er?

He knows how to cook?

Yan Huaiwen stayed calm. After all, eating and living together along the way, no family secret could stay hidden for long.

While waiting for the dough to rise, Yan Lao’er gave his brother a heads-up and rode off on Sanbao.

Plenty of villagers were out gathering firewood or wild grass nearby, but riding a cow—Yan Lao’er was absolutely the only one.

The village’s most dazzling guy!

“Sanbao, any villages nearby? There are? How far? Oh wait, you’re bad at answering that… alright, how about this—moo once for one kilometer, twice for two kilometers.”

Sanbao mooed five times.

Got it. Five kilometers.

Not far at all—especially considering what he was riding.

“Sanbao, scan the surroundings. Run free when there’s no one around. When there are people, slow down and don’t blow our cover.” Yan Lao’er strapped himself onto the cow’s back, full of swagger. He was about to experience off-road cow riding.

“Giddy up!”

…

A wild sprint, leaping across the hills and fields, pure adrenaline…

By the time Sanbao finally slowed down, Yan Lao’er was about to puke.

Never, ever again would he let Sanbao have free rein.

Running was fine, but leaping over obstacles? What the heck!

Feeling completely drained, Yan Lao’er unfastened himself.

Leading the cow by the rope, he walked into the unfamiliar village.

“Auntie, I’m here to trade old goods. First time in your village. Anything you need?”

“Old goods?” The old lady looked skeptical, but seeing he came riding a cow, she felt reassured—at least he didn’t look like a chicken thief.

“Yep! Don’t underestimate old stuff—they’re still usable. Cheap and practical.”

“How do you sell?”

“Trade for money, for grain, for other stuff—it all works. Depends on what you want and what you’ve got. We bargain, both sides agree, and that’s that.” Yan Lao’er smiled sincerely.

“Let me see your goods first.” The old lady glanced behind him for a long time. “Nothing there… where’s your stock?”

“Auntie, you see, your village’s a bit remote. I came this time just to check out the road. If you need anything, just tell me. I’ll go back and look for it. If I find it, I’ll come back.”

“Our village is far from the county town, true enough. Peddlers don’t like coming here. And I’ve never heard of anyone trading old goods before. Are you sure you’re not a scammer?”

“Auntie, you’re killing me with that! With this drought and no rain, life’s hard for everyone. I came all this way just to earn a little to survive. How could I scam you? Look at you—sharp eyes, clearly not someone who’d get tricked!”

The old lady was pleased, a smile creeping onto her face.

“You’ve got that right! My eyes are bright as day! Sigh! Heaven’s not being kind, and you’ve got it rough too. My grandson broke a bowl the other day. If you’ve got one, bring it next time. But it’s second-hand, so it better be cheap.”

“Clay bowl? Rough porcelain? Which do you want, Auntie?”

“Rough porcelain, for my little grandson.”

“What do you want to trade for it?”

“I’ve got some veggies in my back garden, I’ll give you some.”

“That’s great!” Yan Lao’er was pleasantly surprised. “Auntie, does your household have plenty of water? Want to trade for that too?”

If she could still grow veggies in this weather, she definitely had enough water.

“No way, not water. Definitely not,” the old lady said firmly.

“Alright, Auntie, I’ll head back and fetch the bowl.” Yan Lao’er turned to leave.

The old lady watched him go far down the road, then slapped her thigh, “Aiya! I forgot to tell him to bring more stuff next time. That fool, making a special trip just for a single bowl.”

On the way back, with experience gained, Yan Lao’er instructed Sanbao to run steady—no more jumping nonsense.

Under the blazing sun, dripping with sweat, he kept grumbling to himself.

How did I end up like this?

Why does it feel like there’s no end to the work?

What did I do to deserve taking on all this responsibility???

Before he could figure it out, Sanbao had already trotted right up to their cart.

That homing feature—unmatched.

Spot on!

“Found a village. An auntie wants to trade a rough porcelain bowl. Generous—she’ll give veggies!” Yan Lao’er showed off happily.

“Homegrown? Can we trade for some water too?”

Yep, father and daughter thought alike.

Yan Lao’er shook his head. Even getting a few green veggie leaves wasn’t easy. He hadn’t expected it to go this well.

Yan Yu handed her dad a steamed bun. They hadn’t lit a fire at noon—just ate the leftovers from before.

They’d only boiled a small pot of water.

Yan Lao’er ate the bun with water, quite content.

“We don’t have spare bowls,” Li Xuemei said as she tidied the kitchen, knowing exactly what they had.

“Other families must have extras. You guys pick some light, easy-to-carry items. I’ll take them all over and see what else I can trade.”

Diligent Yan Lao’er, running under the scorching sun.

(End of Chapter)