Marrying a childless superior, she became pregnant and lived a carefree life in the 1970s.

Chapter 64 The Qin siblings' long-term cooperation
While waiting for the siblings, Gu Jianing strolled around the food stalls and ate some snacks.

Meanwhile, Qin Tian and Qin Qing, the siblings, rushed home. As soon as they entered, they headed straight for the room where they kept their herbs and began searching for them.

When Grandma Qin heard the commotion, she started calling for help.

"Is it Xiaotian? Has Xiaoqing returned?" The old man lay on the kang (a heated brick bed), his voice weak and feeble, accompanied by a cough. On the stove beside him, Chinese medicine was being decocted.

Grandma Qin knew that today was the market day, which was held three times a month, and it was her grandchildren's favorite day.

I was saying a couple of days ago that I was going to take the cordyceps I had saved up to sell, but how come I'm back so soon?

Could it be that someone else came in?

But Grandma Qin thought it was unlikely. She could tell that it was her grandson and granddaughter making noises, as if they were in a great hurry to run away.

"Has something happened?"

Did they come back because nobody wanted to buy cordyceps?
The thought of her two young children, unable to attend school, and constantly hungry, having to go to the mountains in the cold, snowy weather to find herbs to sell and buy food for them, made Grandma Qin feel distressed.

If she weren't afraid that if she died now, her two young children would be bullied, she would have hanged herself with her belt long ago.

As she thought about it, Grandma Qin was overcome with grief, and tears were about to fall.

Just then, Qin Qing ran in.

The little girl rushed to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), her dusty face beaming with joy, her voice filled with excitement and exhilaration.

"Grandma, Grandma, my brother and I met a fairy sister! She's such a kind person..."

Qin Qing, who is rather shy in front of outsiders, is a chatterbox in front of Grandma Qin. Her words aroused Grandma Qin's curiosity, and the tears that had not yet fallen stopped.

"What happened? Who did you run into?"

Qin Qing quickly recounted how Gu Jianing had bought all their cordyceps.

"...She also needs other herbs. My brother and I have most of them here. We'll come back now, find them, and take them to her."

"Grandma, you haven't seen her. She was a really beautiful and lovely woman, just like a fairy. She was a very, very good person."

At this moment, Qin Tian, ​​who had already found several bags of herbs, also ran in. He squatted down in front of Grandma Qin's kang with bright eyes. "Grandma, after we sell the herbs, we can buy grain. I saw that there are quite a few people selling grain at the market today."

"Alright, alright, you've met some good people. Hurry up and go, don't waste any time. Be sure to thank them properly, okay?"

"Grandma, we know."

Qin Tian poured the Chinese medicine out of the stove and placed it aside. "Grandma, remember to drink it once it has cooled down a bit."

"Then my sister and I will go deliver the herbs."

The siblings were still worried about Gu Jianing, who was waiting for them at the market. They were afraid she would wait too long, or that she would leave.

"Okay, go ahead, go ahead, Grandma remembers."

Without lingering, Qin Tian and Qin Qing each left home with two bags of herbs larger than themselves.

As Grandma Qin watched their small figures disappear into the distance, tears finally streamed down her face.

However, a glimmer of hope appeared in my heart, though I felt sorry for the two children.

Meanwhile, as Qin Tian and Qin Qing, siblings, were carrying several bags of herbs back to the market, Gu Jianing was at a mutton soup stall, buying a bowl and drinking it.

A large bowl containing plenty of tender, stewed mutton. The mutton seller was a middle-aged man with excellent skills in stewing mutton, and the mutton didn't taste gamey at all.

In the dead of winter, a bowl of hot, nourishing mutton soup warms you right up. It's just that it's a bit pricey!

At this stall, only Gu Jianing is eating right now. Others who pass by smell the aroma, which is indeed very fragrant, incredibly fragrant, and it's meat!
But it's too expensive, and not many people are willing to buy it.

Those who bought some only bought a little; they didn't dare to buy more.

As Gu Jianing ate, she chatted with the uncle and learned that the sheep had been hunted by his family on the mountain.

She also learned that the control over supplies on the mountain was not so strict in this area. It wasn't that everything on the mountain belonged to the public; if you could find something on the mountain, it was yours.

Especially in winter, when supplies are scarce, those who go up the mountain to find things are usually from families that are not well-off.

We can't take away even the little bit of food they managed to find in the dead of winter.

Wouldn't that mean people would starve to death?

So, we just turned a blind eye.

Gu Jianing learned that the market situation in the Northwest was generally quite favorable.

She thought it was fine this way.

"Sister, we've brought all the herbs you requested."

Just as I finished the last bite of mutton soup, I heard a child's innocent voice beside me.

Turning around, she saw two children carrying woven bags that were even bigger and heavier than their own, their bright eyes staring at her.

It seems they came running; they haven't even caught their breath yet.

"You guys ran back and forth?" They're back in such a short time.

Qin Tian put down the heavy bag and said cautiously, "I'm afraid you'll have to wait too long."

Gu Jianing's heart softened immediately. She took the woven bag and looked at the herbs inside. They were dried very well and were of good quality.

While looking at Gu Jianing, he asked, "How much do you sell these for?"

Qin Tian and his sister exchanged a glance, then cautiously quoted a few prices. These prices were lower than what they usually sold at the market, because they were afraid that if the prices were too high, Gu Jianing would not want the product.

Gu Jianing knew the approximate price and knew that the price offered by the siblings was already quite cheap, and that the herbs were of good quality.

“Okay, then let’s go with the price you mentioned.” Gu Jianing agreed without haggling.

Qin Tian and Qin Qing exchanged a glance, and smiles unconsciously appeared on their lips. "Thank you, sister, thank you. Don't worry, we've prepared these herbs very well."

"So it was you who made this up..."

The atmosphere among the three of them was quite good. After chatting for a while, Gu Jianing learned about the two little ones' family background, which was just as she had imagined.

They lived in poverty, with only a sick old woman to depend on for survival. The knowledge of finding and processing herbs was taught to them by their old woman.

It's their means of survival.

"If you have any more herbs later, collect them for about a week and send them to the Northwest Military Region. Just tell the soldiers on guard duty to look for Battalion Commander Sheng's wife." Considering that she might need the herbs later, and since the siblings had left a good impression on Gu Jianing, she decided to cooperate with them long-term as a way of helping them out.

"Really? That's wonderful, sister, thank you so much."

(End of this chapter)