The Daily Life of a Down-on-Hard-Life Medicine Girl Supporting Her Family

Chapter 11 Receipt for Payment
Knowing she was exceptionally beautiful, Chunnuan grabbed some soot from a pot, rubbed it evenly on her hands, and then applied it to her face, instantly turning her face dark black.

Others want to be fair-skinned, but my sister has to pretend to be ugly.

Seeing this scene, Chun Ning felt heartbroken and secretly vowed to grow up quickly, shoulder the burden of the Xiao family, and make things easier for her older sister.

It's another three miles from home to town.

Because the flower cakes were fresher when they were first fried, they quickened their pace, almost running, and were so tired that Chunnuan refused to stop.

Looking at her older sister like this, Chun Ning secretly made a mental note of it.

The dock was now bustling with activity.

"Sugar-coated fritters".

Pea cakes

Douhua (tofu pudding)

"Cold mung bean jelly and cold noodles"

"Paoba"

"Baozi and Mantou"

People came and went, carrying loads on their shoulders, baskets on their backs, and buckets of water, their shouts echoing incessantly.

Every now and then someone would ask about the price and whether it was good. The vendors would stop and introduce their products, saying that theirs was the most authentic and that if it wasn't good, they would give it back to the customer... They said so much, but their main goal was to get the customer to spend money.

“We need to start promoting it,” Chunnuan said in a low voice. “If we don’t promote it, no one will know what we’re selling.”

"How should we shout?"

“Sell…” Chunnuan opened her mouth to shout, but Chunning quickly stopped her.

"Sister, tell me how to call out to them, but don't say anything."

Looking at her younger brother's resolute eyes, Chunnuan felt a lump in her throat. He was trying his best to protect himself from the public eye.

"Flower cakes, fresh flower cakes, fragrant and crispy fresh flower cakes." Chunnuan secretly observed that the steamed buns were one coin each, and she thought her flower cakes were even more fragrant than the steamed buns, only smaller. A pack of flower cakes contained ten, and selling them for five coins shouldn't be too much.

“Chun Ning, you should shout at the children or young women.”

This isn't as filling as steamed buns or mantou; it's just a snack.

"Alright, elder sister, just watch."

Chun Ning took a deep breath and shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Flower cakes, fresh flower cakes, fragrant and crispy fresh flower cakes!" Chun Ning shouted, causing a group of people to turn their heads to look at him.

When have any cultured person who has studied the classics ever been so embarrassed?
Her fair face flushed bright red.

I'm a little worried about the warmer weather in spring.

Unexpectedly, Chun Ning seized the opportunity and shouted several more times.

He even called out to a woman with a child, "Madam, buy some flower cakes for your child as a snack. They're freshly fried and delicious."

It was indeed delicious. After frying it in the spring, the whole family ate one, and they all exclaimed that they had never eaten such delicious flower cakes before.

"no need."

The woman was a little embarrassed. She was just a rural woman and had never been called "Madam" before. This made her a little panicked, so she quickly took her son's hand and left.

Chun Ning...did I scare her away?
"Brother Chun Ning, you have to be careful who you sell to." Luo Xiaogang couldn't stand it and offered a friendly reminder: "Look at her, she's wearing patched clothes, and five coins can buy half a pound of flour. She would never be willing to spend money to buy snacks for her child."

Chun Ning paused for a moment, then nodded, indicating that she had learned something.

It turns out that sometimes, knowing how to judge a person can be quite useful.

Chunnuan watched from the side and saw that Chunning had indeed learned to judge people by their appearance, and she was also very good with her mouth, calling everyone "Madam," "Miss," and "Mrs." She even called the old woman with a face full of wrinkles "Big Sister," which made her very happy, and she happily paid for the money.

Most importantly, Chun Ning was self-taught and even opened a package for people to taste. After tasting it, the children all begged the adults to buy some.

Seeing that Chun Ning and Luo Xiaogang had finally opened for business, a group of people surrounded Chun Ning to buy their packages, one, two, three, four... Chun Ning smiled... Things will get better eventually.

"excuse me."

Suddenly, two men walked out of the crowd. The one in the lead was burly and dark-skinned, a head taller than the other men. "Third Master is here."

"Third Master, I have already paid the money."

As he spoke, he took out a piece of paper with a stamp on it and presented it to her with both hands.

Wherever he went, everyone carefully and quickly produced their payment receipts, but Xiao Changfu would just glance at them and leave without lingering.

He stopped in front of Chun Ning.

"Where did you come from, kid?"

"Third Master, I am a child from the Luo family in Shuikou Village, An'nan Town." Luo Xiaogang remembered Chunnuan's instructions not to say that they were from the Xiao family. The Xiao family had been driven out by the powerful Xiao clan and had a grudge against them.

"Coming to the docks to do business? Don't you know the rules?"

"Third Master, I just sell some flower cakes. Third Master, how much do you want? You name it, you name it."

Sister Chunnuan had previously instructed that if the amount was small, then pay it; if the amount was large and we still couldn't come up with it, then we should leave quickly.

Xiao Changfu glanced at the banana leaf-wrapped contents in Chun Ning's small basket and frowned.

"Third Master, these are homemade fried flower cakes. Please try them."

Chun Ning was seething with hatred, but she knew he dared not hate her, so she quickly handed a packet of flower cakes to Xiao Changfu: "They taste delicious, please try them."

Xiao Changfu weighed the things in his hand and suddenly laughed.

"Go pay the money. You'll earn twenty copper coins a day working at Xiao's Wharf."

"Ah, oh, okay!"

Chun Ning and Luo Xiaogang quickly asked, "Where do we pay?"

"Kids, don't you know? It's right in the inn, Sixth Master is collecting money there. Remember to make sure you get a receipt."

There were helpful people nearby offering guidance.

"Okay, thank you very much."

Luo Xiaogang glanced at Chunnuan, whose heart was bleeding, but she still nodded, signaling them to go and pay.

What a powerful and influential family the Xiao clan is!
They could have easily robbed it, but they chose this "civilized" method: drawing a circle on the ground and charging twenty coins to sell small items at the dock.

Touching the thirty-five coins she had just received, and looking at the dozen or so packets of flower cakes left in her small basket, Chun Ning was filled with resentment but had no choice but to compromise.

Luo Xiaogang once said that if they didn't pay, he would throw the goods into the river.

These are all my sister's hard work!

The two ran to pay the money and came back with a slip of paper stamped with a red seal. Chunnuan looked at it and saw that it read: Xiao's Wharf, April 8th.

Just then, Xiao Changfu, a burly man with dark skin, appeared again.

"Third Master, have you paid?"

Luo Xiaogang also followed their example and showed them the receipts.

"Remember this in the future, don't make me interfere." Xiao Changfu said coldly, "If I have to manage everything, how can I handle it?"

"Yes, yes, I'll remember that, kid."

Looking at Xiao Changfu's back, Xiao Chun Ning wanted to spit on him!
But he had to endure it.

"Flower cakes, flower cakes, fresh flower cakes..."

Chun Ning quickly composed himself and started enthusiastically hawking his wares. He had to sell all the cakes to repay his sister's hard work.

Chunnuan watched from the side, sighing inwardly: Making money is really hard!

According to her plan, she could sell this small basket for about a hundred coins, and then use it to buy some necessities for her family. However, unexpectedly, someone else came along and sold it for twenty coins.

The real profits were handed over to the Xiao family; all the hard-earned money ended up in the pockets of bandits.

Everyone says businessmen are cunning; how can they make money if they aren't?
(End of this chapter)