Era: After foreseeing the future, I changed my fate using spatial abilities.

Chapter 79 Willing
"I will give you a batch of grain and reserve funds regularly. You need to use these to buy some antiques and books for me. Of course, gold, silver jewelry and jade are also acceptable."

"Ok?"

Is it not reselling but exchanging or buying?

This is much easier than reselling, and carries less risk.

If you're bold enough to trade on the black market, even if you get caught as the buyer, the worst that can happen is that the goods are confiscated and you have to pay a fine. At worst, you'll be sent to a labor camp for a year or two.

If the seller is caught, they'll be immediately punished.

To be on the safe side, you can avoid the risks of the black market and instead hunt for treasures at junkyards, secondhand markets, and rural villages.

The quick-witted Xiao Qiao instantly grasped the key point, and his misty eyes suddenly brightened, sparkling with light.

"Do we have to go to the black market? Is there a monthly limit on the number we can exchange?"

"There's no requirement, it's up to you. I'm just offering this idea. As for the quantity you can exchange, that's up to you, because it's linked to your wages."

She has all these things, but she wouldn't complain about having so many that they'd bite her hand.

It is better to teach people to fish than to teach people.

It would provide the three of them with something to do to support themselves, and it would also increase the inheritance for her future descendants. There's nothing wrong with that.

"I'll give you one for every item you bring back from Taobao..."

The current price of gold at banks is 20 per gram, and it's even harder to estimate the price of antiques and rare books.

After thinking for a moment, Suning continued, "I'll give you ten percent of the market value."

For example, a gold ring weighs five grams and is worth one hundred. Ten percent would be ten dollars.

If we can receive two or three items each month, wouldn't that be equivalent to a month's salary for a regular factory employee?
If you can be more diligent and visit more places every day, especially in more distant communes and teams, you might be lucky enough to collect ten items.

That's a hundred dollars...

hiss~
"I'll do it!"

Xiao Qiao thought about the matter over and over again, even considering which communes and production teams to visit and which remote villages to go to.

This is much better than risking your life to follow Brother Leopard into the black market!
Once we've paid back enough money, we can not only send Xiaotong to school, but also buy Xiaofeng a job and save up for his future wife.

"Comrade Su, I'm willing to do this job!"

Seeing the three young men looking excited and eager to get started, Su Ning nodded and added, "The items are secondary; people are the most important. If we lose them, so be it. Don't worry, I won't ask you for compensation."

Having said all that, Xiao Qiao immediately understood her intention. In an instant, her nose stung with tears, and she hurriedly lowered her head to hide her reddened eyes.

This is an effort to help them, while also carefully considering their self-esteem.

Perhaps what she said didn't matter to her at all; it was just an excuse they made up because they needed a job to support themselves.

Xiao Qiao didn't know if her guess was right or wrong, but even if she was being presumptuous, the fact remained that she had given them a way out.

"Xiaofeng, Xiaotong!"

"thump--"

The moment Xiao Qiao knelt down, the two brothers behind him quickly followed suit and knelt down as well.

Before they could kowtow, Su Ning, who was being tried to be sent away again, quickly said, "If you don't get up quickly, I'll regret this!"

"Shh-"

Each one reacted faster than the last; before the words were even finished, Xiao Qiao and the other two jumped up.

……

As the sun gradually disappeared into the clouds, the evening glow on the horizon also faded away.

Before nightfall, Suning, pushing a bicycle full of things, led the furniture factory workers back to the small villa, carrying a whole cart of furniture.

Xiao Qiao, who was waiting in the yard, led his two younger brothers to clear away the weeds and branches that had been an eyesore.

Seeing her make such a big show of things, they were all a little at a loss for what to do.

Having been older and experienced more, Xiao Qiao was the first to regain his senses and hurriedly went to greet him.

"Sister Ning, let me help!"

"Me too! Me too! I'll help too!"

After the furniture was arranged and the workers left one after another, the youngest son, Yan Tong, secretly cried several times as he looked at the brand-new home.

"Sister Ning is so kind, no, she's the absolute best!"

"What? You're not a bad person anymore? Who kept saying that people are the most annoying?"

"Hey buddy! Shut up! When did I ever say that..."

"Okay, okay, I admit I was wrong before. I was wrong. Sister Ning is not a bad person, she is the best person."

Brother Qiao said, "A real man admits his mistakes and corrects them!"
Yan Tong, her eyes red and her face flushed, sheepishly admitted her mistake. Looking back at their room, she saw not only a wardrobe and desk, but also the large bed she had always dreamed of…

It's a bed, with a cotton quilt, a blanket, and a pillow—it's a proper bed!

It's not a haystack, nor a bed made of stones and bricks, nor a bed haphazardly made of wooden blocks!
"This guy is so kind, it feels like a dream."

Tang Feng stroked his prickly short hair and laughed, "Don't worry, the big bed you want will still be there when you wake up."

"Ok!"

The two of them glanced at Su Ning, who was talking business with Brother Qiao, their eyes filled with deep gratitude and a hint of barely concealed longing: If only she were truly their sister!
Or they'd be several years younger and become Sister Ning's son—they'd be willing!
Su Ning, who is already being pressured to become a mother at such a young age: There's no need for that.

……

The animal had just carried the two bags of grain that were on the bicycle into the storage room on the second floor with Xiao Qiao.

It's called a storage room, but it was actually used as a small study on the second floor before. The brothers just used it to store some of their belongings that they had collected from various places.

Apart from the bedroom, living room, and kitchen, which have a few basic pieces of furniture, the rest of the space remains empty.

"Open it and take a look."

Nodding, Xiao Qiao did as she said, squatting down and opening the two sacks of grain one by one.

When you see that the rice inside is pure white with not a single pebble or grain of sand, you'll find it like the finest rice, a find even on the black market.

Even Xiao Qiao, who tried her best to remain calm and composed, couldn't help but gasp and asked uncertainly, "Sister Ning, are you sure you really want to use these to exchange for it?"

"Not so sure."

"what?"

Secretly, she wanted them to use the money to buy things, which would be easier to carry and safer, while the food would be for their own consumption.

However, this is just her idea; how they actually do it is up to them.

After all, whether on the black market or in the countryside, grain is easier to trade than money.

Su Ning handed him a small canvas bag, saying, "This is the reserve fund. The food and money are all here. How you operate it is up to you, but the premise is that safety is the top priority."

He stiffly took the bag she handed him, and as expected, he saw a large black bag wrapped in coils inside.

This was the first time Xiao Qiao had looked at her so seriously.

She's only two years older than me, so what kind of environment and background could raise someone like that?

She appears aloof and distant, yet her actions are so warm and loving.

"Aren't you afraid we'll take the stuff and run?"

Do I look like an idiot to you?

"Hehe, it's exactly the same."

Xiao Qiao grinned, laughing so freely for the first time, but then choked up and quickly turned away to wipe her eyes.

"Don't worry, Sister Ning. Even if you're naive, I'm not. One deal can't compare to a long-term business!"

He spoke seemingly nonsensical words, yet his eyes grew ever clearer: I can spend my entire life proving whether your trust was right or wrong.

"These should be enough for you for two or three months. I'll see how it goes when I get back to Hunan and send you more."

Ignoring his disrespectful words, Su Ning threw the notebook and pen she had prepared beforehand at him, pretending to be fierce.

"Make sure you record this carefully. If there's even one discrepancy when I check the accounts next time, you'll have worked for nothing for a whole year!"

"Yes!"

He feigned a scared expression, but Xiao Qiao had a sincere smile on his face. "Don't worry, Sister Ning, I won't let you down."

"Neither do we!"

"Sister Ning, I'll definitely find you the best and most beautiful treasure!"

"Well then, I'll thank you in advance?"

Looking at the time, Su Ning glanced at the three of them one by one with a gentle smile. "It's getting late, I'll head back to the hotel now. My address is in the notebook if you need anything."

"Sister Ning, let me take you."

"I'm going too!" "Then let's go together!"

Without refusing their kindness, Su Ning chatted with them as they went downstairs.

……

In the long alley outside the Little Red Building, under the flickering streetlights, four figures of varying heights were visible.

This was the very beginning of their relationship, yet it took them a lifetime to end.

(End of this chapter)