A lonely, unlucky military officer with a stubborn fate insisted on marrying me.

With the money and letter of introduction safely tucked away, Lin Yinyin left the brigade headquarters without further delay.

As Lin Yinyin passed by Old Man Lin's house, she could still faintly hear the old couple cursing in the yard, and a smile appeared on her lips.

That bowl of porridge mixed with bloody phlegm—Old Man Lin was frugal his whole life, and even if he suspected the taste was off, he would never have been willing to throw it away.

As for the water tank at the brigade leader's house, although it might be diluted, the contagiousness of that sputum is 100%. As for who will ultimately get infected, that depends on their own fate.

She dared not slow her pace, much less wait until dawn to continue. The captain was only momentarily stunned; given his temperament, he might become enraged once he recovered. If she were in his shoes, she would nip the danger in the bud.

It was completely dark by then, with only sparse starlight shining on the dirt road. Lin Yinyin walked along, her steps uneven, unaware that a gaze had been following her for a long time.

Lin Yinyin's feet quickly developed blisters, but she didn't stop until the outline of the town appeared in front of her. Then she chose a large old locust tree on either side of the street and nimbly climbed up it, intending to rest for a while.

When I opened my eyes again, it was already dawn.

With a thought, Lin Yinyin took out a towel, a toothbrush cup, a toothbrush, and a water glass.

In her previous life, resources were scarce, and her space was always empty, with only two daggers left for self-defense.

But things are different now. She "sweeped away" a lot of supplies from Lin Dayong's house, the brigade leader's house, and Widow Liu's house. But it's not enough, far from enough.

She wanted to hoard everything—enough food, enough clothes, enough supplies—she never wanted to go hungry again. So, the first thing she did upon arriving in town was to shop, shop, shop!

After making up her mind, she quickly slid down from the tree branch, intending to brush her teeth and wash her face, but she paused when she saw the military water bottle under the tree.

Could it be him?

"Oh well, whatever!" It's a free water bottle anyway, and she's not going to drink the water! Who knows if it's been spiked?

Lin Yinyin took out cornbread and sandwiched braised pork knuckle in it, enjoying a delicious breakfast. Just as she finished eating, she glanced up and saw two women walking towards her not far away.

They all carried bamboo baskets, which were covered with coarse cloth, and walked very quickly.

It was just dawn, and the supply and marketing cooperative hadn't opened yet. They were carrying baskets full of sediment, and they were acting suspiciously. Were they going to the black market?

The moment the thought popped into Lin Yinyin's head, she perked up and, without delay, immediately followed.

She walked very lightly, always maintaining a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

Following the two into the town center, and turning into two narrow alleys paved with bluestone slabs, the scene before her made Lin Yinyin sigh inwardly—truly, "the greatest hermit lives in the city."

This black market was hidden in a residential area just one street away from the supply and marketing cooperative. The entrance was an inconspicuous wooden door, with a man smoking a cigarette standing by the door as a lookout. If it weren't for the two women following them, outsiders would never have been able to find this place.

Lin Yinyin didn't rush in, but instead hid behind the wall at the alley entrance, peeking out to observe.

After observing for a while, seeing that there were more and more people in the black market, Lin Yinyin grabbed a handful of dirt from the roadside, smeared it on her face, and went inside.

As soon as Lin Yinyin entered the black market, she was attracted by the aroma of wheat.

With her keen sense of smell, she immediately spotted the elderly woman squatting by the wall.

"Auntie, how much is one of these steamed buns?" Lin Yinyin immediately went over and drooled as she looked at the white steamed buns in the bamboo basket.

The older woman looked up at her dirty face, but didn't seem to mind.

Anyone who comes to the black market has some kind of disguise.

He answered immediately, "No tickets needed, 7 cents each, made with real white flour."

"7 points is a bit expensive."

Lin Yinyin rubbed her hands together, pointed to the basket full of steamed buns, and said, "Auntie, how many are there in this basket? Six cents each, I'll buy them all!"

The handkerchief in the woman's hand fell to the ground with a "thud," her eyes widening. "What did you say? There are 90 in this basket! Are you sure you want them all?"

"Sure!"

She had a total of 343 yuan. 80 yuan came from her sister, 90 yuan from Lin Dayong's family, 102 yuan from the brigade leader's family, 3 yuan was compensation from the brigade leader, and the remaining 68 yuan belonged to Widow Liu. She never imagined that Widow Liu had saved so much money all by herself!

Lin Yinyin took out 5 yuan and 4 mao and handed it over, saying, "Auntie, I'll take all these steamed buns!" She then grabbed a steamed bun and stuffed it into her mouth.

"Your steamed buns smell so good! They're so fluffy and soft, I could eat ten in one sitting!"

"Oh dear, young lady, eat slowly, don't choke!" The older woman took the money, and seeing how ravenously she was eating, her heart softened. "Don't you have anything to put in your food? Here, take this bamboo basket; it'll be convenient!"

With a steamed bun still stuffed in her mouth, Lin Yinyin mumbled a thank you before trying to get closer to him.

"Auntie, you're familiar with the black market, you must know where to find good stuff, right? I'd like to buy some rare items, could you give me directions?"

The older woman beamed with delight, "What do you want? The best-selling items on the black market right now are cornmeal, dark flour, and dried sweet potatoes. These don't require coupons and are even cheaper than at the supply and marketing cooperatives by one cent. Everyone's scrambling to buy them!"

"No, no!" Lin Yinyin shook her head like a rattle drum. She starved to death in her previous life, and now that she has money, how could she possibly wrong herself?

"Auntie, I need wheat flour, brown sugar, honey, eggs, and preferably malted milk powder and cured meat. Milk would be even better!"

The older woman understood immediately.

This girl is terrified of being hungry; she only buys the most expensive and best things!

She lowered her voice: "I know a place that sells brown sugar mooncakes, but they're expensive, 26 cents each, no coupons required. There's also a place that sells malted milk powder, but they have limited stock, you have to grab it!"

"Brown sugar mooncakes?!" Lin Yinyin's eyes lit up.

She grabbed the older woman's arm and shook it, her voice sickeningly sweet, "Auntie, wait a minute! I'll take this basket of steamed buns to my brother first, and then you can take me to buy mooncakes, okay?"

"OK!"

Lin Yinyin carried a bamboo basket and turned into the empty alley. With a wave of her hand, the entire basket of steamed buns instantly entered her spatial dimension. She then ran back empty-handed.

The older woman, unsuspecting, led her deeper into the alley, stopping in front of a man carrying a round bamboo basket: "Old Fu, this is my niece. She wants to buy your brown sugar mooncakes. Can you give her a discount?"

The man called Lao Fu glanced at Lin Yinyin and sighed, "These mooncakes are really generously filled, only 26 cents each."

"Two mao and five fen each, and if you give me the basket, I'll take them all!"

"What?" Old Fu was stunned. This was enough for two days' worth of his sales!

"Girl, I have 100 of them."

Lin Yinyin didn't say anything, but simply took out 25 yuan and handed it over, then slung her bamboo basket over her shoulder and left. At the same time, she didn't forget to pull the old woman aside and give her two mooncakes, saying, "Auntie, thank you for showing me the way!"

The older woman smiled when she saw Old Fu still standing there in a daze. This girl is really generous.

Lin Yinyin was also very happy, and she took two brown sugar mooncakes and started eating them.

Sweet, creamy, and soft—it's so delicious! She could eat five more.

But my stomach is too full. Five steamed buns and three mooncakes are already stuffing me!

After seeing the old lady off, Lin Yinyin began her "sweeping mode".