Courtyard House: Starting by inheriting the tradition and suppressing the barbarians.

Excuse me! Excuse me, comrade in front, please make way!

There was a middle-aged, overweight man wearing dark blue overalls and a cotton hat.

I stopped on the ice, panting, on a slightly worn-out old bicycle.

The fat man had a bright red nose, but his eyes were sharp as he scanned the fishermen on the ice.

Finally, his gaze locked onto the iron bucket at Li Xuan's feet.

"Wow! Goodness!"

The fat man's eyes lit up instantly. He parked his car and ran over in a few quick steps.

I looked down into the bucket and almost cried out in surprise.

"This grass carp must weigh five or six pounds, right? And this carp, its color and quality are absolutely stunning!"

The fat man rubbed his hands together excitedly, looking up at Li Xuan: "Young comrade, did you just catch all of these?"

Li Xuan glanced at the other person, looking at their clothes and appearance.

In addition, seeing how urgently they were searching for supplies, I knew what was going on.

"I caught it. And you are?"

"I am a purchasing agent from the logistics department of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill. My surname is Wang."

Without wasting any words, Wang, the purchasing agent, simply pulled out his work ID and flashed it.

"Young comrade, our factory is having a banquet recently, and the leaders have given a strict order to include some meat."

"It's the dead of winter, and the meat processing plant needs ration coupons. I'm so worried about it, my mouth is covered in blisters!"

Are you selling these fish?

Upon hearing that it was "Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill," Yan Bugui's ears immediately perked up.

That's a factory with tens of thousands of employees!

It's very juicy and flavorful!

Li Xuan smiled slightly: "Sell, of course I'll sell."

"However, Comrade Wang, these fish of mine are all freshly caught wild, large catches. What do you think of the price..."

"The price is negotiable!"

With a grand gesture, Procurement Manager Wang announced, "The current purchase price is 30 cents for small fish and 35 cents for large fish."

"I see your fish are all big and fresh, I'll charge you 40 cents a pound!"

"I'll take as many as you have! How about it?"

Four cents a pound!

Yan Bugui, who was standing next to him, gasped in shock, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

Pork is only seven or eight cents a pound now, but this fish is almost half a pound more than pork!

He could only sell the small fish he caught at the pigeon market for a maximum of 25 cents!

"Okay, then it'll be four cents."

Li Xuan readily nodded.

This price is indeed fair, and could even be considered a premium.

After all, in this era of scarcity, as long as there was stock, the price was negotiable.

"Come on, step on the scale!"

Wang, the purchasing agent, took out a large scale and two large nets from the back of the bicycle.

Li Xuan didn't hesitate; after keeping a few, he poured the rest of the fish from the bucket directly into the net.

This made Wang, the purchasing manager, grin from ear to ear.

The bucket already looked full, but when I emptied it, I discovered there were two huge creatures underneath!

Especially that wild blackfish, it looked fierce and powerful.

"Okay! Okay!"

Purchasing Wang skillfully hung the weight on the scale, causing the scale beam to rise high.

"The total is... forty-eight catties and six ounces!"

"Young man, I'll give you a exact fifty jin! To make it a lucky number!"

Wang, the purchasing manager, was also a shrewd person. She noticed that although Li Xuan was young, he had a calm and composed demeanor.

Moreover, someone who can catch so many fish in the dead of winter must be quite skilled; I'd like to befriend them.

Fifty jin, at four mao per jin, that's twenty yuan!

These days, a first-class worker's monthly salary is only twenty-seven yuan and fifty cents!

Li Xuan's work in one afternoon was almost equivalent to what others did in a month!

"Thank you, Brother Wang," Li Xuan said without hesitation.

Wang, the purchasing agent, took out a stack of ten-yuan bills from his pocket, counted out two brand-new ten-yuan bills, and handed them to Li Xuan.

But after thinking for a moment, he took out a few more receipts from his shirt pocket and stuffed them in.

"Young man, I see you're not working yet, are you?"

"Here, these food coupons are for you, consider them a bonus!"

"If you catch another big catch like this in the future, just send it to the steel mill's logistics department and come find me. No need to wait in line!"

"Okay, you'll definitely get priority when we have stock."

Li Xuan took the money and tickets and put them in his pocket.

These days, money is easy to earn, but tickets are hard to come by.

This purchasing manager really went all out to secure supplies.

The transaction was completed. Wang, the purchasing manager, happily hung the two nets of fish on the handlebars and the back seat of his bicycle and pushed the bicycle away.

It's a bit heavy, but it will be a great achievement when I get back!

Only Yan Bugui remained, his face blank with shock.

He stared at the two brand-new ten-yuan bills in Li Xuan's hand, his eyes almost bursting with bloodshot veins!

The sour feeling in my heart was even worse than eating ten pounds of lemons.

Twenty yuan!

That's twenty yuan!

Yan Bugui taught diligently for a month.

I got scolded by the principal and upset by the students, and in the end, I only made a little over thirty yuan a month.

This kid is something else! He just sat there for a while, moved his fingers, and earned almost half a month's salary!

And those food ration coupons!

"Li...Li Xuan!"

Yan Bugui swallowed hard, his voice trembling.

He forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, "You've struck it rich!"

"Well...you see, Uncle San's family has a lot of people, and they're struggling to make ends meet."

"The secret recipe for that dough you just made..."

His mind is now filled with that magical dough.

If he could get his hands on the recipe, wouldn't Yan Bugui be able to earn twenty yuan a day?

Why be a teacher then? Just quit and go fishing!

Li Xuan looked at Yan Bugui's greedy face and couldn't help but chuckle.

"Uncle, I already said it's just regular dough. Maybe the fish is hungry today."

"It's getting late, I'm taking my younger siblings home now, you can continue fishing."

After saying that, Li Xuan didn't give him a chance to argue and turned to leave with Xiao Tian and Xiao Yu.

"Oh dear! Oh dear! This child, how can he not understand how to respect his elders at all!"

"To have good things and not know how to share them—that shows a very low level of moral awareness!"

Yan Bugui stomped his feet in anger as he watched Li Xuan's departing figure, his heart filled with resentment.

"No way! This kid is definitely up to something!"

"I need to go back and think this through carefully. I absolutely have to find out how to make this money!"

……

After leaving Shichahai, Li Xuan did not go straight home.

With money in hand and a few tickets, it was natural to go and spend some money.

He took his younger brother and sister-in-law and went straight to the nearby supply and marketing cooperative.

Upon entering the supply and marketing cooperative, a unique aroma, a mixture of soy sauce, vinegar, face cream, and candy, wafts towards you.

Inside the counter, the saleswoman was knitting a sweater, seemingly indifferent to everyone.

"Brother, it smells so good!"

Xiaoyu stared at the candies in the glass display case, unable to move away.

Li Xuan smiled, walked to the counter, and generously snapped a large 10,000 yuan note.

"Comrade, give me half a pound of the best milk candy!"

"Two more pounds of pork belly, please! Do you have the kind that doesn't require a coupon?"

The sales clerk was about to roll her eyes, but her attitude immediately improved when she saw the large ten-yuan note.

"We have milk candy!"

"As for meat, the unplanned pork just arrived today, it's a bit pricey, 80 cents a pound, no coupons required."

"Okay, two pounds, please! The fatty kind!"

Li Xuan waved his hand.

In this era of oil scarcity, fatty meat is a good thing, as it can both satisfy cravings and render oil.

After buying meat and sugar, Li Xuan went to the seed counter.

"Comrade, give me a bag of each of these vegetable and grain seeds."

"Both of them?" The sales clerk was taken aback.

Yes, I want them all.

"I have a big yard at home, so I want to plant some things," Li Xuan said casually, making it up.

In fact, these seeds were prepared for the Purple Cloud Space.

There are thousands of acres of fertile land in the space, but the spiritual spring alone is not enough; you need to plant the seeds to reap a harvest.

Li Xuan was finally satisfied after buying common seeds such as wheat, corn, cabbage, and radish.

When Li Xuan left the supply and marketing cooperative, he was carrying meat in his hand, sugar and seeds in his pocket, and had a huge sum of money—more than ten yuan—left on him.

Xiao Tian and Xiao Yu had milk candies in their mouths, their eyes narrowed into slits from the sweetness, and they skipped and hopped all the way.

"Brother, this candy is so sweet! Sweeter than Chinese New Year!"

"Sweet is just right."

Li Xuan patted their heads, looking at the bustling street scene, his heart filled with boundless pride.

This is just the beginning.

With the Purple Cloud Space, they earned their first pot of gold.

Li Xuan wants to lead his family to live a decent life in this era of scarcity!

As for those beasts in the courtyard house?

Hmph, if they dare to be jealous and reach out, I'll chop off their claws!

......