Reborn in 1985, starting from the mountains of Northwest China

He opened the cloth bag, inside was a stack of crumpled papers and a few silver dollars.

He rummaged through them and pulled out a copper coin from the bottom. It was polished until it shone, and it looked like an old thing.

"Take this to the teahouse at the east end of town and find Old Liu. Show him this and tell him I want to see that person."

Zhao Ergou took it and examined it from all angles.

Why doesn't his brother go by himself? Should he go instead?

But Zhao Ergou didn't ask.

"Brother, will that person see us?"

Zhao Guofu remained silent for a while.

"Yes. If he wants that land, he'll have to see us."

He carefully put the cloth bag away, placed it back in the cabinet, and closed the cabinet door.

"Go ahead. Tomorrow morning, the earlier the better."

Zhao Ergou nodded and carefully tucked the copper coin into his pocket.

"Brother, what about Chen Feng...?"

"Let's put Chen Feng's matter aside for now."

Zhao Guofu interrupted him, "This is weird, I always remember in my dreams that the first time we went there, we got the money back, and that silly boy was happy with that money for days..."

"I wonder what kind of medicine this kid took to get like this?"

Zhao Guofu also felt something was off, and the way that kid hit people didn't seem like a fool.

He planned to inquire again tomorrow. Although things had gone wrong, he might still be able to find a reason to save his family's lives if that important person got angry.

Seeing that Zhao Ergou was still in a daze, Zhao Guofu blew out the lamp.

"Alright, your brother doesn't understand either, let's just rest here for today!"

Zhao Ergou lay down in the dark, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. His mind was a jumbled mess of images: Chen Feng's actions followed by his brother's words.

"Brother, who exactly is that person?"

In the darkness, no one answered.

Zhao Ergou rolled over and faced the wall.

The next morning, before dawn, Zhao Ergou took the copper coin and went out.

He walked in a hurry, and his wrist was still sore, so he wrapped a strip of cloth around it several times and hung it around his neck.

As I was leaving, I ran into Zhao Defa.

Zhao Defa was clutching his ribs, his face still pale. When he saw him, he was stunned for a moment.

"Ergou, where are you going so early?"

Zhao Ergou mumbled a reply: "Go to town to buy some medicine."

After saying that, he lowered his head and walked away.

As Zhao Defa watched his retreating figure, he felt that something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Meanwhile, in Chen Feng's kitchen, steam was rising.

Lin Xiutian got up before dawn, took out the braised large intestines from the previous night, and cooked a new pot.

Chen Feng tended the fire, watching the broth in the pot bubble and simmer, filling the entire house with its aroma.

Xiaoshan and Xiaoyue also got up, leaned on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and peered longingly into the kitchen.

"Mom, when can we eat?"

Lin Xiu poked her head out from the kitchen: "Wait, this is for selling, you can't eat it."

Xiaoshan and Xiaoyue pouted, looking unhappy.

Chen Feng smiled, scooped a small piece of scrap from the pot, cut it in half, blew on it, and stuffed it into the mouths of the two children.

"Your father loves you all."

Xiaoshan and Xiaoyue chewed, their eyes narrowed into slits.

Lin Xiu glanced at him and smiled.

"You spoil them."

Chen Feng didn't reply. He took the large intestine out of the pot and put it on the cutting board to dry.

It's bright red, oily, and has a wonderful aroma.

He cut off a small piece and tasted it.

Soft and tender, flavorful, and perfectly seasoned.

"It's done."

Lin Xiu leaned over and took a bite, her eyes lighting up.

"It smells even better than last night."

Chen Feng nodded: "After being sealed up all night, it's even more flavorful."

There were a total of two large intestines, which shrank considerably after being braised; I estimate they'll weigh about 1.7 or 1.8 pounds.

Cut it into pieces. At one yuan per pound, each piece is two ounces, so you can cut it into about nine pieces.

Eight portions are sold, and one portion is given to someone else to try.

The cost is 50 cents, plus 20 cents for the main ingredient, totaling 70 cents.

One serving sells for two cents, eight servings can sell for one dollar and sixty cents, making a net profit of nine cents.

He put the large intestine into a clean basket, covered it with a white cloth, and took some bowls and chopsticks, preparing to go out.

Lin Xiu saw her to the door.

Come back soon.

Chen Feng nodded and walked out with the basket in his hand.

As I walked to the alley entrance, I ran into Chen Jun.

Chen Jun was also carrying a basket containing several cornbread buns.

"Fengzi, want to go to town? I'll go with you."

Yesterday, before leaving, Chen Jun learned that Chen Feng was messing around with pig intestines. He thought that Chen Feng had always been full of clever ideas, so he decided to go and help him out.

Chen Feng was stunned: "Second Brother, you're really going?"

"If I said I'd help you set up your stall, would I lie to you?"

Chen Feng walked ahead, with Chen Jun following behind, chatting idly.

"Fengzi, how did you practice those moves last night?"

Chen Jun still wanted to know where his younger brother learned these skills; they were truly astonishing.

Chen Feng paused in his steps.

"I haven't practiced. I was just in a rush."

Chen Jun looked at him with suspicion, but seeing that he really didn't want to talk about it, he didn't ask any more questions.

When we arrived in town, the market was already bustling with activity.

Chen Feng found a spot to the side, put the basket down, and lifted the white cloth.

The aroma of braised pork intestines wafted out immediately.

The old man selling wontons next to me sniffed and turned to look at me.

"Hey, what are you braising? It smells so good!"

Chen Feng smiled. "Large intestines. Uncle, want some?"

The old man waved his hand: "It's so early in the morning, I can't eat that."

But his eyes still couldn't help glancing this way.

Chen Feng wasn't in a hurry; he just sat there and waited.

Chen Jun stood to the side, watching the people coming and going, feeling a little anxious.

"Fengzi, why isn't anyone buying?"

Chen Feng smiled and said, "What's the rush? It's only just been set up."

As soon as he finished speaking, a middle-aged woman wearing a blue cloth jacket walked over, stopped in front of the stall, and sniffed.

"Is this braised pork intestines?"

Chen Feng stood up: "Yes, it's fresh out of the pot, would you like to try some?"

He cut a small piece and handed it over.

The middle-aged woman took it, put it in her mouth, chewed it, and nodded: "The taste is alright. How much?"

"Two cents a serving."

The middle-aged woman thought for a moment and said, "Give me one."

Chen Feng deftly opened a lotus leaf package and handed it over.

The middle-aged woman took it, paid the money, and left.

Chen Jun's eyes lit up when he saw the two cents.

"Fengzi, we're open for business!"

Chen Feng smiled and put the money away.

But once it opened, it was like opening a hole; for a long time, no second penny slipped in.

There were many people coming and going, and many turned their heads to look at the smell, but only one person actually stopped to buy it.

Some people asked the price, shook their heads, and left.

Some simply don't even ask, just glance at it and leave.

Chen Jun was so anxious that he kept rubbing his hands together.

"Fengzi, what's going on? Doesn't this smell pretty good?"

Chen Feng wasn't in a hurry. He leaned against the wall, watching the people coming and going with a smile.

"It's normal that people don't recognize you the first time."

As the sun rose higher, more and more people gathered at the market.

But Chen Feng's stall was still sparsely populated.

Five servings were sold in one morning.

Five portions, one dollar in the account.

Chen Feng counted the remaining portions; there were three left.

They claimed they had almost recouped their investment, and the rest was profit.

If it doesn't sell, it's all for nothing.

Chen Jun looked at the basket, then at the sun, and felt a little discouraged.

"Fengzi, how about we lower the price?"

Chen Feng shook his head: "It's not cheap. This thing takes a lot of time to clean up, so it's not worth it if it's cheap."

He paused, then said, "Wait a little longer."

Just then, the old man selling wontons next door packed up his stall and came over with two bowls of wontons.

"Young man, are you still not sold out?"

Chen Feng stood up: "Uncle, are you closing up shop?"

The old man nodded and placed two bowls of wontons in front of him.

"Come on, try my cooking."

Chen Feng was taken aback: "Uncle, how could I...?"

The old man waved his hand: "Don't be so polite. You've been here all morning, we're practically neighbors. Have a taste, have a taste."