I survived the famine by scavenging and supported my family.

After picking up the child from the guesthouse, the family of four began to explore the county town.

Although the prices of food and water have risen, the prices of other necessities have not increased much.

Walking wears out shoes, so Ning's mother saw some straw sandals for sale by the roadside. She asked the price and found they were five coins, which was cheaper than usual.

Ning's mother inquired about the reason and found out that it was because of the rising price of grain. City dwellers had to find other ways to earn more money. Those who knew how to weave baskets wove baskets, and those who knew how to make straw sandals made straw sandals.

With more people coming, the price of straw sandals dropped somewhat.

After hearing this reason, Ning's father sighed deeply.

For 500 coins, Ning's mother bought 100 pairs of shoes wholesale, enough for the whole family to wear for a while.

Straw sandals were bought, and cloth shoes for everyday wear also needed to be bought, fifty pairs per person. Ning's mother prepared enough for everyone.

Despite the hot weather, cotton prices haven't risen much. Thinking about the previous cold snap, Ning's mother bought three pairs of quilts by herself.

They hadn't gone far when they were already full of stuff, so they found a place to put the blankets and shoes, while Ning's mother continued shopping with the bag in hand.

The baskets were very useful. There wasn't much space to store things, so we relied entirely on the baskets. When Ning's mother saw the sturdy baskets, she bought thirty of each size, including large, medium, and small ones. She also bought about ten small baskets for holding steamed buns.

We no longer have to worry about where to repackage the supplies.

Buy one hundred burlap sacks and one hundred cloth sacks to pack the grain that Zhao Ningning has taken out of her space.

Buy fifty basins and buckets as well. Wooden basins and buckets can leak if not properly maintained, so it's better to be prepared.

In Heqing County, Ning's mother also discovered a wonderful treasure—a large wooden basin with a lid, which looked like a water tank.

If you put this thing in your car, no one would be able to tell how much water it can hold.

Ning's mother was amazed. She measured the dimensions and bought enough to fit in two carriages.

With this purchase, Ning's mother bought almost all the stock in the carpenter's shop. The shopkeeper was overjoyed and gave Ning's mother two small stools for free.

This reminded Ning's father, who asked the shopkeeper if they had planed wood sticks that would be convenient for setting up a tent.

The shopkeeper, having made such a big sale today, didn't want to cheat this one shop. He simply directed them to a general store that sold the product.

Ning's mother had the shopkeeper unload the pots and buckets into an alley, then put them into her spatial storage before heading off to find a general store.

Upon entering, all four of them felt that all the general stores they had visited before paled in comparison.

The shops I'd been to before all sold needles, thread, soy sauce, vinegar, salt, and everyday household items, but this one was quite different.

They sell tents, tarpaulins, thick hemp ropes, wooden wedges, straw hats, raincoats, flints, fire starters...

It's clearly a shop that few people usually come to buy from; the tent was covered in a layer of dust.

When the shopkeeper saw someone coming, he was first surprised, but then he warmly welcomed the customer in.

When Ning's mother went in, it was like a sweeping operation. Four tents arrived, and she also bought ten sets of tent poles as spares. She bought a hundred wooden wedges wholesale, but Ning's mother didn't have time to carve them.

Buy ten oilcloths; they are very useful for covering things and you can't do without them.

There were also water bladders here, and Ning's mother bought thirty of them in one go. When she saw that there were also bamboo tubes for holding water, she tested them and found that they didn't leak, so she bought thirty of those as well. She thought that using bamboo tubes to drink water in front of others wouldn't cause any trouble.

The straw hat and raincoat are not needed at the moment, but according to the description in the original book, the female protagonist will encounter a flood later and will need to buy them sooner or later.

Buy! Buy them all!

While she had the money, Ning's mother bought as much as she could, and then looked for a place to stuff it all in.

Ning's mother only stopped when the system indicated that "there's no room left even if you try to squeeze it in."

It was Zhao Ningning's turn.

The family found out about a blacksmith's shop and bought whatever kind of knife could cut things, up to the purchase limit.

Seeing a small iron pot here, Ning's mother asked if a handle could be added. The shopkeeper readily agreed and told them to come and pick it up later.

They ordered three small iron pots and the family continued on their way.

With no shortage of food, Ning's mother strolled into a regular general store and bought some needles, thread, and fabric scraps. She also purchased three earthenware pots and a small earthenware stove there.

She truly missed the modern tin stoves, which were quick and convenient to use.

However, the ceramic stove is also nice. They have a large one here. Ning's mom compared it and found that it was just the right size to put her newly bought small iron pot.

Finally, I bought a few changes of clothes, and that was the end of it.

After buying everything, a hundred taels were deducted from the price list, and the items only cost a dozen or two hundred coins. But once the quantity increased, the silver was spent like water.

Before returning to the inn, Ning's father saw a snack shop still open and hurriedly pulled Ning's mother, calling out, "Lanxiang, buy some snacks for the children."

Ning's mother scolded, "Don't drag the child into it if you want to eat it yourself."

Zhao Ningning quickly covered for her father, "Mom! We've been shopping all day, consider this a treat!"

She did nothing but help carry things; everything that Ning's mother couldn't fit in her space was put here with her.

Zhao Ningning couldn't even imagine how chaotic the elevator lobby outside her own home must be.

Ning's mother turned her head and saw that Zhao Ningning and Zhao Qi were covered in sweat. She felt relieved and said, "Buy them!"

Ning's father took out ten taels of silver and led his child into the store to buy snacks.

Grain prices are rising outside, and they're rising here too. Fortunately, there are few people buying snacks. Ten taels of silver only bought fifteen catties of candied fruit and dried fruit, and thirty catties of various kinds of melon seeds.

Enough for the whole family to kowtow to for a long time.

Zhao Ningning popped a dried plum into her mouth and contentedly took her mother's hand as they walked toward the inn.

Before arriving at the inn, Ning's mother took out a bag of grain from her spatial storage, weighing about fifty pounds, and had Ning's father carry it.

Regardless of how they eat in private, they must have these grains on the surface.

Back at the inn, the four of them took a shower in turn. After filling the ice pot with ice, Zhao Ningning was so tired that she lay down on the bed and drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up again, I was awakened by a fragrance.

The braised pork belly was emitting a faint aroma on the table. As soon as Zhao Ningning got up, she saw Ning's mother take out the cutting board and place it on the inn's table, and was cutting the braised pork belly with a knife.

There were some pancakes that had been baked earlier placed next to them, and two of them already had meat sandwiched inside.

—Are they making roujiamo (Chinese hamburger)?

No wonder it smells so good! The cleaver carried the aroma of the roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) directly into the air!

Thinking of the taste of roujiamo (Chinese hamburger), tears streamed down Zhao Ningning's face.

After washing her face in her room, Zhao Ningning opened the refrigerator and inspected the fruits in the crisper drawer—picking out passion fruit, oranges, pineapples, watermelons, apples, tangerines, and lemons.

Zhao Ningning took the honey out of the refrigerator door and busied herself in the space.

She's going to make fruit tea for her family!

After brewing the oolong tea base, Zhao Ningning added ice to cool it down and reduce the astringency. She then washed and chopped the fruit, placing it all in a large kettle.

After all the fruit has been added, cut the passion fruit open and scoop the seeds and juice into the kettle with a spoon. Finally, add the tea base, fill the kettle with water and honey.

After mixing, Zhao Ningning took a sip herself first. The various fruit flavors went through her mouth in turn, and finally came the sourness of citrus and passion fruit. It was so delicious!

Zhao Ningning first gave herself a thumbs up before taking this "masterpiece" out of the space.

Seeing the fruit tea that Zhao Ningning had prepared, Ning's mother nodded, "I was just discussing with your dad what to drink later, and I didn't expect you to have prepared fruit tea."

"It's hot!" Zhao Ningning put the fruit tea on the table, poured a cup for her mother first, and brought it to her lips so she could taste it.

Ning's mother exclaimed, "It tastes delicious!"

"What about me? What about me?" Ning's father came over.

Zhao Ningning had no choice but to pour him a glass as well and hand it to him. Ning's father drank it happily, and after finishing it, he wanted more, but Ning's mother stopped him.

We'll eat some biscuits later, and then drink this after we finish eating.

Zhao Ningning poured her brother a cup of tea, and then her mother put the whole pot of fruit tea into her spatial storage.

The roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) was ready. Ning's mother was worried that it would be too monotonous, so she took out a few cucumbers, smashed them, and made a cold salad. The family sat around the round table, eating the roujiamo and the cold salad at the same time.

After finishing the meal, take a sip of fruit tea, and the heat in your body will temporarily subside, leaving only a refreshing feeling.

After finishing her meal, Zhao Ningning wanted to lie down, but her mother insisted on pulling her up so she could walk around the room for a bit.

In the afternoon, Ning's mother went out and found He's mother, and gave them a bag of grain.

He instinctively refused. She and Zhou Jian went out to buy grain early this morning, but after queuing for half a day, they couldn't even buy a single grain of rice.

She knows how difficult it is to buy food these days.

If a daughter's family could buy it, it would have required either great effort or a lot of money.

How could she accept it?

"Here you go." Ning's mother was strong and threw the grain bag into the house. "Just don't tell anyone. This grain didn't cost much."

She was telling the truth; the grain was bought back at the price of a dozen or so coins per kilogram.

"You and Xiao Jian need to eat well on the way so you can travel safely," Ning's mother advised. "There's still a long way to go to the prefectural city!"

Yes, it will take at least another day to get there.

Ning Ma didn't bring much grain this time, mainly because many people were thinking of finding a place to stay in the prefectural city. As for what the situation would be like in the prefectural city—we'll see when the time comes!

After delivering the grain, Ning's mother quietly returned to her room, only to find a mother and daughter, one big and one small, standing at the door.

Ning's mother was startled. When they turned around, she realized that the person standing there was Er Shun's wife, whom they had met once before.

When Er Shun's wife saw Ning's mother, she immediately knelt down, and two lines of tears fell simultaneously with the movement.

"Lanxiang...please save our family."

"Get up, get up first."

Ning's mother rushed to help the person and knocked on the door. Inside, Zhao Ningning and the others were drinking the leftover fruit tea after they had finished eating. Hearing the knock, Zhao Ningning first put the kettle into her spatial storage, and then Ning's father asked from the doorway.

"Who?"

"It's me, the child's father," Ning's mother called softly from the doorway.

She usually didn't like to call herself that. There must be other people outside the door. Ning's father immediately understood, "Wife, I'll open the door for you right away."

After checking one last time to make sure there were no problems inside, Ning's father opened the door.

Sure enough, two familiar faces from the same village were standing outside the door.

Ning's mother came in first, then pulled Er Shun's wife and her daughter in with her.

There was a window at the back of the room, which was always open. There was only a faint fruity smell inside. Er Shun's wife was preoccupied with Xi Er Shun and didn't think too much about it, assuming that the smell was coming in from outside the window.

Wiping away her tears, she said, "A few days ago, I encountered a villain. Luckily, Lanxiang took a knife for me, which saved me from being harmed by that thief. I haven't yet repaid this life-saving grace."

As she spoke, she knelt down with a thud and kowtowed three times with a loud thud.

Ning's mother couldn't bear to see her like that, so she quickly went to help her up.

"Why are you being so polite? Anyone would have helped if they saw this!"

More than what happened before, Ning's mother was curious about her purpose. "You just said you wanted me to save you, what's the matter?"

Did they see that her family bought grain? And want to borrow some?

Or do you want to borrow money to buy grain?

Er Shun's wife wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and said, "My Er Shun was beaten on the head before. He was almost fully recovered, but today my father-in-law insisted that he go out in the sun to queue up to buy food."

"I didn't let him go, I told him to sit on the side, but I never expected... I never expected he would still faint!"

"The doctor said he needs to continue taking his medicine. I do have some money; it's what the village head gave me last time..."

Er Shun's wife recounted the story in detail.

Last time, because of her meritorious report, the village head secretly slipped her ten taels of silver and told her to keep it safe. Whether she kept it or handed it over to the public treasury was up to her and Ershun to decide.

She found an opportunity to talk to the man, and Er Shun told her without hesitation to hide the money and not to tell anyone.

If we hand it over to the public, it will only be ruined by Old Man Xi and Xi Dashun.

They can keep it for emergencies.

They had money, but they were worried about how to get it out. Er Shun was still unconscious, and her father-in-law refused to pay for his treatment. Er Shun's wife was extremely worried. Suddenly, she remembered Zhou Lanxiang, who had saved her, and hurriedly brought her daughter to find her.

He hesitated for a moment at the door, just as he was thinking of giving up, Zhou Lanxiang returned from outside.

After hearing this, Zhao Ningning and her family were also somewhat worried.

They don't know medicine, otherwise they could go and help them... wait!

Zhao Ningning quietly tugged at her father's sleeve and whispered, "Dad, didn't you learn some knowledge about medicinal herbs before?"

Ning's father nodded, "Oh... I think that's true."

Zhao Ningning said, "You're like this..."

After a loud discussion, Er Shun's wife was so excited that she told Ning Ma which doctor it was and stuffed the money into her hands.

Ning's mother told Er Shun's wife to go back first, and that they would go over to "treat" Er Shun later.

"Ningning is so quick-witted. I want to be like that when I'm little." Ning's dad chuckled.

"Stop laughing and get out of here." Ning's mother urged him to leave.

Ning's father went out with the money in his pocket, wandered around the clinic for a while, and came back pretending to pass by the dormitory. When he saw the unconscious Er Shun, Ning's father exclaimed "Oh dear!"

He called out to Ershun, but Ershun didn't wake up. Ning's father got anxious and gave Old Man Xi a good scolding.

Old Man Xi: ?

What are you talking about me for? I didn't knock him out, he was just stunned by the sun!

After the condemnation, Ning's father said: Ershun had helped him carry water in the village before, and he couldn't bear to see Ershun lying unconscious like this.

Since he happened to know a little about herbs, Ning's father volunteered to buy a packet of medicine for Ershun, ran off to "sell" it, and personally squatted in the kitchen to cook the medicine.

After it was cooked, Ning's father personally watched Ershun drink it until Ershun slowly woke up, at which point Ning's father grinned with his big teeth.

He said he had finally repaid Ershun's kindness.

Yi-soon, who had just woken up and knew nothing: ?

When Er Shun's wife saw her husband wake up, she was so happy that she cried. Ning's father, having accomplished his mission, went back to his room to explain how he carried out his "conspiracy."