Courtyard houses: Those who are capable are rewarded, and many children bring many blessings.

"Comrade, what's your surname?" Niu Dazhuang asked as they exited the farmers' market.

"No need for formalities, my surname is Jin. Young man, you look unfamiliar, but I come to this market every day!"

"Comrade Jin, it used to be my family's elders who came!"

"Oh, I see, which village is it from?" Comrade Jin was quite talkative.

"Niujiazhuang, you've come to the right place to buy wolf pelts." The two chatted for about the time it takes to smoke a pipe before arriving at the backyard of the state-run restaurant.

The current town of Changping County consists of only one main street, where most of the businesses are concentrated.

"Master Wang, come out and take a look. Don't tell me the goat meat isn't fresh today," Comrade Jin called out from the kitchen doorway.

As the sound faded, a middle-aged man, wearing a white apron around his waist and holding a kitchen knife, walked out.

"Jin Youlai, what are you yelling about? Whatever you buy, I'll cook that dish."

"Don't you always complain that the meat delivered from the slaughterhouse isn't fresh? Look at today's wild goat meat, isn't it fresh?"

Niu Dazhuang quickly put down the basket.

The chef, holding a cleaver, picked up a piece of wild goat meat and glanced at it: "Your eyesight is good today." He then looked at Niu Dazhuang: "Don't let this comrade down!" After saying that, he turned around and went back to the kitchen to get busy.

At this moment, another person came out from the kitchen, wearing a Zhongshan suit with a pen stuck in his pocket.

He continued, "Comrade Wang, your thinking is unacceptable. We're now in a joint venture. As the company's manager, my heart is in the middle; I can't harm the collective interests, nor can I allow our farmers' interests to be damaged. It's a fair trade!"

Then, to Jin You, he asked, "What price are you offering?"

Jin Youlai said irritably, "Eight cents a pound, no coupons needed. Why don't you come to the market with me tomorrow, so I don't have to tell you again when we get back?"

"Comrade Jin, don't be upset! I have the right to supervise what you buy!" The government representative also looked at the wild goat meat in Niu Dazhuang's basket.

"Okay, issue the invoice at this price. Zhang, weigh it."

"53 jin! That's 42 yuan. Young man, go ahead and collect your money!" The government representative said, issuing a receipt and handing it to Niu Dazhuang.

Niu Dazhuang took the money and returned to the farmers' market.

Rice costs 31 cents without a coupon, and flour costs 38 cents without a coupon. If you have a coupon, it's 20 cents cheaper per pound.

Niu Dazhuang doesn't have a ticket, so let the high price be. As long as he can buy it, that's fine. The money he earns from that wild goat is enough for a worker's monthly salary.

30 jin of flour costs 11.4 yuan, and 30 jin of rice costs 9.3 yuan. Let's eat refined grains first before worrying about stockpiling food for famine relief.

I packed some food and made another trip to the traditional Chinese medicine shop. I haven't been venturing deep into the mountains lately, but getting some sleeping potion to poison wild pheasants in the nearby mountains would be a nice change of pace.

This kind of sleeping potion is a family secret recipe; it's colored, odorless, dissolves in water and alcohol, and works quickly. These are all the original owner's memories.

Once outside the county town, the number of people decreased, and with a thought, the basket was stored in the space of consciousness.

Walking over thirty li (approximately 15 kilometers) would take more than three hours, even for someone with good physical strength like Niu Dazhuang.

"While the ticket system isn't strictly enforced yet, I need to get a bicycle. Otherwise, in another year or so, even if I have the money, I won't have the tickets, and I won't be able to buy one," Niu Dazhuang thought to himself.

With a bicycle, it was easy to travel back and forth after going to Beijing. With a clear goal, Niu Dazhuang was even more motivated.

Most of the time spent coming to the county town was spent on the road...

Halfway there, snowflakes began to fall from the sky, and Niu Dazhuang quickened his pace. By the time he got home, the snow on the ground was already a thick layer.

Before entering the village, he took the basket out of his spatial storage again.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, he heard his wife trying to persuade Qin Huairu to stay: "Sister, the snow is so heavy, I'm worried about you going alone. Anyway, there's nothing else to do, why don't you stay with me for a few days?"

"Oh, no, it's alright, it's not far."

"That brat Yue Ru only cares about herself. I'd feel a little more at ease if you two went back together."

At this moment, Niu Dazhuang lifted the curtain and entered the room.

Qin Xueru quickly grabbed a small broom and brushed the snow off her husband, then took the basket from his back: "None of them are trustworthy. Next time, check the weather before you go out. It's not like we're going to run out of food!"

"I'm fine. Has Yue Ru taken a liking to her? Where is she?" Niu Dazhuang shook the snow off his body and looked into the inner room.

"Deshui just came to deliver a message. The two of them went out for a stroll, and ended up in Qinjiawa. Deshui came back alone. Looks like they've hit it off."

Qin Huairu stood awkwardly in the inner room.

"Dazhuang, tell me about my sister, she insisted on going back today!"

"Go back? Go back where? Hey you in the inner room, if you go back today, what will outsiders say about us? Just stay at my house, we won't miss your food!"

"Yes, sister. Not to mention others, my mother will nag me to death if she finds out I couldn't keep you here in this heavy snow. Dazhuang, go inside and warm up for a while, I'll heat up some food for you right away."

"I already got two free meals at your house last time, and I even had a nice lunch today. Nobody's rich." He said, taking out a dollar from his pocket and placing it on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

Niu Dazhuang happened to see this. Not wanting to have any physical contact with his wife in front of her, he teased, "Auntie, what do you mean by this? Do you think my house is a roadside inn? Take it back right now."

Qin Xueru, who was heating up food in the outer room, also heard this and said from there, "Sister, it's not good for you to be so formal!"

Qin Huairu noticed that Niu Dazhuang was giving her a wicked smile, so she put the money away again, thinking to herself, "Consider this compensation for me."

She also made up her mind that she would absolutely not drink tonight! So as not to give this bad man in front of her another chance!

"Alright, then I'll trouble you for another night."

Just then, Qin Xueru came in carrying a bowl of warmed mutton offal soup and five steamed buns. She placed them on the kang table. "You're always so formal," she said. "How can I ever ask you to buy things for me in Beijing again!"

After saying that, she turned to Dazhuang and asked, "Why do you always buy refined grains?"

Niu Dazhuang was already sitting cross-legged on the heated kang: "Xueru, from now on our family will eat refined grains, don't worry, you won't go hungry."

"Dazhuang, this isn't how you live. Let's save up some money and buy you a rickshaw in a couple of years. That way, it'll be easier for you to travel back and forth."

"Hehe, honey, we're thinking the same thing, but this isn't the way to save money, so don't worry about it. Auntie, want some more?"

Qin Huairu wasn't idle either; she picked up her needle and thread and helped sew shoe soles.

"No, I haven't even had lunch yet. Running around? What do you mean, running around?"

"Dazhuang is going to Beijing next year too."

"Oh, Grandpa Niu found him a job?"

"No, let's go check out Beijing first. There's no rush for work. We'll live in the same compound then!" Niu Dazhuang said calmly.