Ordinary observers in fast time travel

Chapter 1283 Great Victory
The people of Jingzhou Prefecture are in a state of panic recently, simply because the imperial court has once again imposed a grain requisition.

"This war has been going on for two years now, when will it end?" The people complained bitterly. The harvest was bad, and their families had long since run out of grain. In order to pay the grain tax, they had no choice but to harvest the grain in the fields that was not yet fully ripe and hand it over.

"What a disaster! I was hoping for a bumper rice harvest this year—" The old farmer tremblingly took his sickle to cut the rice.

"Waaah~" the farmers sobbed silently.

The wind began to rise, bending the rice paddies in the fields. "Whoosh~" The sound of the wind seemed like the rice paddies were weeping.

The wind grew stronger and stronger, bending the rice paddies and bringing in patches of dark clouds. Soon after, a heavy rain began to pour down from the sky.

"Father, it's raining, hurry home."

"Quickly, bring the rice."

The torrential rain quickly drove the people home. Only the still-green rice in the fields remained, enduring the relentless pounding of the rain.

In the Jingzhou government office, Prefect Wan looked at the torrential rain, a sense of unease rising in his heart. Suddenly, a dark figure appeared in the pale rain, drawing ever closer.

"Tap tap~" The sound of light footsteps mixed with the patter of rain came, and suddenly, "Splash!" A dark figure rushed out of the rain, which turned out to be a yamen runner.

"My lord!" The yamen runner wiped his face and bowed to Prefect Wan. "The sudden rain has disrupted the grain harvest."

Prefect Wan sighed, "You've worked hard. Let's leave the office early today. As for the matter of collecting grain, I'll discuss it with the other officials first."

The next day, Shi Jia received a report from Cui Niang that government officials had come to collect sweet potatoes. Shi Jia was puzzled. She had already paid her grain tax, so why were the officials still coming to collect sweet potatoes? And why were they collecting sweet potatoes in her restaurant?
With a mix of trepidation and excitement, Shi Jia hurried to the restaurant.

The yamen runner who came to collect the sweet potatoes was someone Shi Jia knew. The runner didn't exchange pleasantries with Shi Jia and went straight to explaining his purpose.

"Master Li, how many sweet potatoes do you have left?" the constable asked.

“Only a little over a thousand catties remain,” Shi Jia said. “Six hundred catties have already been ground into a paste.” She pointed to several large vats in the yard.

The constable nodded. "Hmm, how about selling these eight hundred catties of sweet potatoes to the government office?"

Shi Jia nodded, "Yes, it is my honor to be able to contribute to the court." Most importantly, the people don't have to harvest the rice early, so this winter won't be so hard to get through.

Yes, as the yamen runner just mentioned, the government has decided to levy grain instead of rice, and instead collect sweet potatoes. They came to the restaurant because Shi Jia had collected most of the sweet potatoes from the villagers in the mountains.

However, this means her eatery can no longer just sell hot and sour noodles; she'll have to offer other dishes as well, otherwise she won't be able to survive until next year's sweet potato harvest.

But what does it matter?

As Shi Jia watched the constables carry away the last basket of sweet potatoes, he looked away and turned to see two anxious faces.

“Master, the yamen runners have taken all the sweet potatoes, so what about us—” Cui Niang was a little worried that they would be sold.

"It's alright. Just clean the restaurant thoroughly these next few days and change the water. We'll start making the vermicelli in a couple of days," Shi Jia said. "How's your cooking?"

“Master, Sister Ning used to be in charge of cooking at home.” Cui Niang nudged Aunt Ning’s arm.

"Okay, I'll come over tomorrow to teach you how to cook. You should learn well," Shi Jia nodded.

"Yes, boss, I will definitely study hard," Aunt Ning promised.

"Alright, you guys get back to work." Shi Jia left the restaurant and went to the blacksmith's shop. The iron pot she ordered a few days ago was finished, and she was going to pick it up. She would also buy a few strainers from the bamboo weaver and order a set of tableware from the ceramics shop. Hmm, she would have the craftsman draw the shop's name and design on it.

Once the tableware is ready, the restaurant should be able to open.

The torrential rains of the past few days finally stopped, and the sun blazed overhead, turning the earth a dazzling white. As if celebrating this fine weather, news of the great victory in the north spread swiftly throughout the land. In an instant, the gloom that had hung over the people from the grain requisitioning was swept away, and the streets and alleys of the prefectural city were filled with the joy of the people.

The war is finally over.

At this joyous time, Shi Jia's restaurant also quietly opened for business.

"Grand opening special! All purchases today are 50% off!" In front of the restaurant, several neatly dressed children loudly proclaimed the slogan, enthusiastically greeting passersby.

Perhaps it was the store's discounts that attracted people's attention, or perhaps it was the great victory in the north that made people happy. In any case, Shijia's store was packed with people in less than an hour after it opened.

Shi Jia was so engrossed in tossing the wok in the kitchen that she lost all sense of time. When she finally put down her wok, the streets were already brightly lit.

"Huh? Why isn't it curfew time yet?" Shi Jia sat wearily on the stool, eating her dinner without any appetite.

Sitting opposite her were Wang Tieshan, Wang Tiehua, the little guy, and Xiaocao.

Wang Tieshan said, "Sister-in-law, the curfew has been lifted tonight. The prefect said that to celebrate the great victory in the north, the curfew will be lifted for three consecutive days starting today."

"Mmm-hmm." Wang Tiehua nodded vigorously, her face full of anticipation.

"Want to go shopping?" Shi Jia asked.

Wang Tiehua was a little embarrassed.

Shi Jia wanted to ask her if she wasn't tired, but seeing how excited the child was, she felt there was no need to ask. She said, "After you finish eating, take Xiaocao and Niuniu home. If you're not tired, go for a walk."

Wang Tiehua opened her eyes wide.

"Tieshan, you stay with Tiehua."

“Okay.” Wang Tieshan nodded. He wasn’t interested in the night market, but since his sister liked it, he would go and have a look.

Shi Jia glanced at Cui Niang, who was still busy, and asked, "Cui Niang, have you eaten yet?"

"Not yet, let's eat after we finish cleaning up," Cui Niang said. "Master, do you think the North has really settled down?"

"What? You don't believe me?"

"Yes, it just feels a little unreal," Cui Niang said, her eyes gradually welling up with tears. "Those damned northern barbarians... my family..."

Cui Niang's voice choked with sobs as she spoke haltingly, words only she herself knew.

Shi Jia ate silently without saying a word, waiting for Cui Niang to finish crying and calm down before saying, "I'll give you and Aunt Ning a reward of 50 coins today. After you finish eating, go out for a walk."

Aunt Ning, who was carrying two bowls of rice out, was stunned. What happened? Why did the employer give them a reward?

"Thank you so much, sir!" Cui Niang said happily. Aunt Ning also quickly expressed her gratitude.

Shi Jia nodded, put down her bowl and chopsticks, and walked to the counter. She still needed to calculate today's income and expenses. Sigh, so tiring. Running a shop is really too tiring.

She suddenly felt a pang of nostalgia for the days when she worked as a cook in the Wan household.

She shook her head; she couldn't be a cook forever. She did enjoy cooking, but she didn't like cooking all day long.

Cashier, cook, and waiters—Shi Jia, supporting her back, counted on her fingers that she needed to hire at least three more people.

I'll go to the dental clinic tomorrow!