54 Chapter 54: Li Family’s Tofu Stall
When his daughter came over, she had told Qin Dazhuang to reserve two catties of fatty meat for the daughter of the Li family.
There was still a lot of meat in his stall, enough for her two catties.
“Oh, thank you, Uncle Qin!” Big Girl Li quickly thanked him.
Then, she didn’t really sit down. She quickly took out some money and gave it to Qin Dazhuang.
“28 copper coins, Uncle Qin. Please check!”
Qin Dazhuang simply glanced at it and asked Big Girl Li to put it into the money basket.
“Here it is!” Then, he cut off a slab of fatty meat and gave it to Big Girl Li.
Big Girl Li was very happy.
“Thank you, Uncle Qin!” She thanked him sweetly, then took the meat and put it into her backpack.
Seeing the tofu in her backpack, Big Girl Li then remembered something.
She quickly took out a piece of tofu and handed it to Qin Xiaoyao.
The tofu was in a bowl, and it didn’t look small.
“Sister Sanya, this is for you!” she said with a big smile.
Qin Xiaoyao was caught by surprise and did not reach out to take it.
“Gosh, just take it! My parents gave it to you!”
“Take it. Then I have something to discuss with you.” Big Girl Li said.
“What thing?” Qin Xiaoyao glanced at the tofu in Big Girl Li’s hand, but she still didn’t take it.
In truth, she wanted to eat tofu badly.
However, she didn’t want to accept a reward without doing anything…
Seeing this, Big Girl Li took a step forward and put the tofu into Qin Xiaoyao’s backpack, ignoring her gaze.
“Something good!” she said.
“My parents heard about your family selling straw sandals, so they also want to get some from you to sell at their tofu stall.”
“As for the price, let’s go with the price you gave to the grocery store. Three copper coins for a pair. What do you think?” Big Girl Li looked up and smiled at Qin Xiaoyao.
Qin Xiaoyao was shocked.
Seeing her own father grinning and nodding at her, she thought of the tofu stall that Big Girl Li’s parents were running. It was quite far from his father’s meat stall, so the competition shouldn’t be too big.
Thereafter, she nodded.
“Sure! How many pairs do Uncle Li and Aunt Li want?” she then asked Big Girl Li.
Big Girl Li’s eyes lit up.
“Let’s start with ten pairs to give it a try. If this business is good, we’ll add more later.”
“Anyway, we’ll be coming to town once every two days, so we can send the goods over at any time to replenish the stocks.”
Qin Xiaoyao thought for a moment and nodded.
“There’s no need to wait for the next time. I’ll give you ten pairs right now. You two send it to them, so there won’t be any delay today or tomorrow!” Qin Dazhuang suddenly said.
Big Girl Li’s face was filled with joy.
“Thank you, Uncle Qin!” she gushed out her thanks immediately.
Seeing this, Qin Xiaoyao understood that she had brought too many pairs of straw sandals this time, so she agreed as well.
And so, Qin Xiaoyao and Big Girl Li took out the straw sandals from the wicker basket.
After counting out ten pairs, Big Girl Li paid Qin Dazhuang 30 copper coins. Then, she took the straw sandals and left with Qin Xiaoyao.
The two of them walked for a while in the market on West Street and finally arrived at the tofu stall.
When the elder Li couple saw the two of them, they smiled.
They were exceptionally polite to Qin Xiaoyao.
After learning about the situation, the couple gave their daughter 30 copper coins and put the straw sandals up for sale.
“I heard yesterday that Big Brother Qin is helping your family to sell straw sandals. The quality of the straw sandals is good and cheap. Now that I look at it, the skill is really good!” Aunt Li caressed a pair of straw sandals with a smile. The more she looked at them, the more she liked them.
Her own pair of straw sandals had just been worn out, and it was the right time to change a pair.
If they sold the rest at the stall, even if they only sold four or five pairs a day, they could still earn a few more copper coins, right?
“You flatter me, Aunt Li. We’re just country bumpkins, trying to earn a few copper coins with our skills.”
“It’s not that complicated to weave these straw sandals. Aunt Li, I’ll bring you more if your side sells out!” Qin Xiaoyao said with a laugh.
“Oh, good!” Aunt Li quickly agreed.
Then, she looked at her daughter and quickly asked Qin Xiaoyao about the two of them selling Chinese yams and Chinese Toon shoots.
The reason she asked was that Aunt Li thought her daughter was exaggerating things just to make her happy.
Qin Xiaoyao looked at Big Girl Li with a smile and corroborated her words.
“That is indeed the case.”
Aunt Li’s eyes lit up.
“A catty of Chinese yam is six copper coins? Are you really… really selling Chinese Toon shoots for five copper coins per tael?” She still couldn’t believe it.
Qin Xiaoyao nodded with a smile again.
...
“It’s true. However, these two things are very scarce. I don’t think we’ll be able to sell it for a long time.”
Only then did Aunt Li’s shocked expression disappear.
Then, she suddenly took a step forward and held Qin Xiaoyao’s hand.
“My dear girl, you’ve really grown up! My family’s Big Girl…” As Aunt Li said this, she turned back to look at her daughter again.
“I have to thank you for your support and care!” she patted Qin Xiaoyao’s hand, visibly moved.
Qin Xiaoyao was surprised by Aunt Li’s affections, and she turned around to look at Big Girl Li.
“What are you saying, Aunt Li? Big Girl works with me, so her share is what she deserves. It’s not really about who’s taking care of who.”
“Besides, in the entire Brook Falls Village, only Big Girl and I came from Mountain Spring Town. Surely we have to take care of each other?”
Aunt Li nodded as she listened, and the way she looked at Qin Xiaoyao grew increasingly more fond.
After thanking Qin Xiaoyao effusively again, she then allowed the two of them to leave.
On their way back, Qin Xiaoyao saw a shop selling farmer’s chili sauce and pickled cabbage, so she bought some to bring back.
...
After that, she bought some other ingredients before returning to Qin Dazhuang’s stall.
Big Girl Li had some money and also bought some things.
Therefore, by the time they returned to the meat stall, they had almost bought everything they needed.
Without further delay in the market, the two of them carried their backpacks, picked up their tools or carried them on their shoulders, and bade farewell to Qin Dazhuang.
Then, on the way out of town, they passed by a shop that sold candy and pastries. The two of them happily went to weigh some candy before leaving town.
When they arrived at the city gate, they saw an ox-cart waiting for passengers not far away from the road. Qin Xiaoyao didn’t want to head that way, but she was pulled back by Big Girl Li.
“We’ve agreed to take the ox-cart back!” Big Girl Li pulled Qin Xiaoyao towards the ox-cart.
“Goodness! We have sold everything we brought! It’s fine to walk back!” Qin Xiaoyao replied.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to take the ox-cart, but didn’t Big Girl Li see the fear and disgust in the eyes of the driver on the ox-cart?
“No way! I don’t want to walk back!” Big Girl Li didn’t even look at Qin Xiaoyao. She continued to pull her towards the ox-cart.
Finally, they reached an ox-cart.
“How much is it to go to Brook Falls Village per person?” Big Girl Li asked the young man in charge of driving the ox-cart.
The young man took one glance at Big Girl Li and Qin Xiaoyao, who was standing beside her. The disgust in his eyes quickly overpowered his fear.
“I’m not going there,” he said outright.
Why didn’t these two big sisters take a look at their own body sizes?
If he really carried these two, how could he take on other customers?
Big Girl Li girl was shocked, and then she frowned.
“There’s no one on your ox-cart. Aren’t you just waiting for a customer here? Why aren’t you going?” she asked the young man with displeasure.
The disdain in the young man’s eyes deepened.
“I said I’m not going there!” he shot back, too lazy to explain.
“Hey!” Big Girl Li’s temper flared up, and she rolled up her sleeves.
Qin Xiaoyao saw the situation was spiraling out of control and quickly pulled her back.