Chapter 285: Shopping Spree at the Grand Market

Originally, there weren’t that many people gathered around Yan Lao’er’s stall.

But that didn’t last long, thanks to the Song Family’s Eldest Son-in-law, who sold candied hawthorn skewers and happened to be standing right in front of Yan Lao’er’s booth.

He usually roamed the market, selling as he walked, a bundle of glossy, sugar-coated fruits skewered onto a stalk of grass.

After receiving a few pointers from Yan Lao’er, his candied skewers were no longer just the traditional kind. Instead, he began mixing wild fruits of all kinds—different colors, shapes, and sizes.

The moment these fresh, colorful skewers appeared, they instantly caught the attention of every child in the Grand Market.

They chased after him wherever he went.

Today, he had returned to restock. Business was booming, and the Song Family’s Eldest Son-in-law was grinning from ear to ear.

As soon as he got back to base camp, before he could even find his wife, his own son latched onto his leg.

“Dad, I want grilled fish! Can you buy me one, please? I’m begging you, I really want it!”

Just like every other kid begging their parents for candied fruit, his own child was no different when it came to cravings.

They were all the same.

Parents were like debtors from a past life, repaying their dues in this one—and probably still wouldn’t finish paying them off in the next.

“Maizhong, didn’t you just eat that marinated egg from Yan Family’s Xiao Er? You had the big chicken egg, the small quail egg, and this morning you had two steamed buns and egg drop soup… You still have room?”

The Song Family’s Eldest Son-in-law was a particularly kind and patient man.

That was one reason why so many kids liked to follow him around. He never shooed them away, and if he saw them drooling too hard, he’d even break off a skewer of candied fruit and share it with them.

“Don’t fight, one each. Sweeten your mouths.”

The kids couldn’t explain it, but they just really liked the man who sold candied fruit.

Now, watching him talk to his son without yelling or scolding, they found it fascinating.

They all turned to look at the boy named Maizhong.

Their eyes zeroed in on his belly.

He ate all that? And his stomach didn’t explode?

Also, what was a marinated egg? What was grilled fish?

They glanced around and soon caught a delicious aroma wafting through the air.

Their eyes followed the scent to a long stretch of stone slabs, where golden grilled fish were laid out. Several kids squatted in front of the stall, holding fish wrapped in leaves, tearing into them with noisy slurps, their mouths glistening with oil.

It looked mouthwateringly good!

With a whoosh, the kids swarmed over, eyes glued to the grilled fish.

Then they noticed the kids squatting and eating had copper coins on them. After finishing, they could pay and get another.

The kids who were still standing pouted and ran off, upset.

Soon, they returned, dragging their reluctant parents along, who had no choice but to pay up.

Yan Lao’er helpfully chimed in, “Copper coins are fine, but I’ll take other things too—grain, eggs, chickens, ducks, geese, sheep, dogs, pigs… all good. If it’s worth more, I’ll give you change in coins.”

Some folks who had been hesitant before perked up at the mention of bartering. Realizing this was a major buyer, they rushed home and brought back their livestock.

When Yan Lao’er saw someone bring a sheep, he couldn’t help but swallow a mouthful of saliva.

The sheep around here were incredibly tasty—grass-fed, no feed. Anyone who’d tried them knew.

He had experience buying sheep, and he knew the going rates. As long as the weight was right, he was confident.

And with Granny Rong overseeing things, he had zero worries about being shortchanged.

After all, she probably considered grocery shopping part of her household duties.

Granny Rong was a pro when it came to inspecting livestock. In no time, she pulled out silver shards and copper coins from her own pouch and made the payment.

Yan Lao’er blinked.

Wait, why are *you* paying?

Before he could ask, the family who sold the sheep made a big purchase—ten grilled fish, plus a braised fish dish with Zhuyu powder and tofu cubes.

Yan Lao’er had already anticipated that the saucy braised fish wouldn’t be easy to carry, so he’d asked Qi Wu to carve out dozens of wooden bowls. Well, “bowls”—they were really just chunks of wood hollowed out.

Fortunately, the buyers didn’t mind. In fact, they liked them. The bowls held plenty of sauce and tofu, and they felt like they were getting their money’s worth for just eighteen copper coins.

As for the grilled fish, one copper coin each, or ten for eight coins—what a deal!

Most importantly, they’d sold their sheep for a good price. Buying all that grilled and braised fish felt practically free. They were thrilled!

No need for advertising. Soon, more people started bringing over goods to trade.

Yan Lao’er simply handed his coin pouch to Granny Rong and let her manage the transactions.

Granny Rong had already scoped out the Grand Market earlier. She had the prices memorized.

She knew exactly what each vendor had shouted out before, and whether they were now trying to raise their prices. No one could fool her.

Word spread quickly through the Grand Market: there was a woman here who didn’t speak much, but whatever number of copper coins she gestured with her fingers, that was the exact amount she’d pay—not a coin more.

And the poultry and livestock she bought? All top-notch. Anything that looked sickly, old, or scrawny? She wouldn’t even touch it.

She didn’t even need to feel them up—just one look, and she knew.

It was uncanny!

Yan Lao’er figured that all this livestock was basically food reserves—premium quality, self-preserving, and ready to eat whenever. Super convenient.

He still had plenty of money on hand, so why not stock up and raise some at home?

But before long, villagers started coming over to chat, asking him to help buy more.

They were tired of wild duck eggs. Now they wanted chicken eggs, goose eggs…

That was Yan Lao’er’s interpretation, anyway. In reality, the villagers just wanted to raise some productive poultry. Low effort, decent returns. And if they didn’t sell them, they could always eat them themselves.

Yan Lao’er mentioned it to Granny Rong.

She didn’t say a word. But behind her, the sounds of chickens clucking, ducks quacking, geese flapping, and sheep chewing on the stalls grew louder and louder.

Nearly everyone who sold poultry that day ended up visiting Yan Lao’er’s stall.

They were curious about the scholar’s younger brother.

They watched him grill fish, watched him hustle between several pots…

Unaware that he was being observed, Yan Lao’er was fully immersed in his work.

Busy, but happy.

Business was booming!

Both the grilled fish and the braised fish were selling like hotcakes.

The Qi brothers were gradually getting the hang of things. Yan Lao’er shouted loudly to draw in customers, took payments, handed over grilled fish, and passed out wooden basins filled with steaming braised fish…

His happiness was simple: having something to sell, making a profit, feeling the weight of real copper coins clutched in his hand, strung together, heavy and solid.

“Look how happy my dad is.”

Yan Yu carried a large basket, which had originally been in Li Xuemei’s hands before she passed it off to her.

Daya had even more—one basket in hand, another strapped to her back.

The three women were ready to explore the Grand Market.

Yan Yu had left her marinated egg stall in the hands of the Young Scouts.

Some were in charge of buying eggs, others handled the money and kept records. A few of the greedier kids had even organized a team to scout the area for quail eggs…

Perfect. Clear roles, everyone doing their part.

Yan Yu had officially become a hands-off boss.

It was the Grand Market, after all—it only happened once a month!

How could they not take it seriously?

Li Xuemei had handed her steamed bun stall over to someone else too.

Same with Daya—she’d freed herself up just for this.

They walked through the bustling Grand Market.

Everywhere they looked, there were simple, honest, down-to-earth agricultural goods.

“As long as it’s food and the price is fair, we can buy it,” Li Xuemei declared, setting the tone for their shopping spree.

(End of chapter)