The little one's purse connects the two worlds, turning a desolate village into a paradise.

"Auntie, is this the cheapest rice in the store?" Ya Ya asked the shop owner, pointing to a large burlap sack of rice with a promotional sign stuck in the doorway.

"Yes, this is Komachi rice from Northeast China. It's soft, sticky, and delicious. It's 1.5 yuan per jin (500g), and there are discounts for bulk orders!"

Ya Ya pointed to the noodles stacked next to her, "And what about this? How much is it?"

"Jin Kai noodles, one pack for 1.5 yuan, a whole box of 10 jin for 12 yuan."

The rice shop owner didn't underestimate her because she was so small. She had seen this little one buy eggs across the street twice before, and each time she bought them by the tray. She patiently answered all of Ya Ya's questions.

Ya Ya looked at the pile of rice and noodles and was a little troubled. She wanted to buy a lot, but she couldn't carry it all.

Staring at the white rice, she hesitated for almost a minute before cautiously looking up at the shopkeeper. "Auntie, I bought a lot. Could you please put it on this for me and then help me push the cart to that alley?"

Ya Ya pointed to a narrow path she had seen when she came over.

She noticed that the road was almost deserted; after walking a few steps, she was out of sight.

The proprietress peeked in the direction the woman was pointing and saw that it was only a few dozen meters away. It was probably too small for a child to push, and there were steps to climb over the steps from the shop entrance. Anyway, it wasn't far, so she nodded in agreement.

Ya Ya's little mouth kept pouting upwards. With Auntie's help, she could buy a lot!

She pointed to the noodles on her right: "Auntie, I want two boxes of these noodles."

Then he looked at the white rice bag with the promotional stickers, "I want a bag like this filled to the brim with rice."

The proprietress took a deep breath. "This burlap sack weighs eighty pounds! If you put it in your car, it'll crush it!"

Ya Ya stared intently at the white rice, a rare treat that even during the New Year in the village! Here, it only cost 1.5 yuan per pound, and this huge bag wasn't even worth as much as a handful of tree leaves.

We must buy them; we need to fill the cellar to the brim!

Hearing the landlady's question, she hesitated for less than a second before whispering a small lie, "It's okay, Auntie. I made an appointment with the uncle in the village. He'll come to pick me up at the alley entrance later and help me carry things."

The proprietress finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, good that you understand. Auntie will move them over there for you. Two boxes of noodles and a whole bag of Komachi rice. If you buy extra rice, it'll be 1.3 yuan per jin, so it'll be 132 yuan in total. Do you have anything else in the store? Millet, yellow millet, sorghum rice."

Ya Ya glanced around and saw the familiar corn. "Auntie, how much is this corn?"

"It's 3 yuan a pound, want to buy some? It's good for the stomach when made into porridge, and it's suitable for both the elderly and children."

Ya Ya's mouth dropped open. The millet they were eating was twice as expensive as polished rice here!

"No, no, no need, thank you Auntie. Please help me move my things over there, thank you!" The little purse started to heat up, and Ya Ya stopped looking around and quickly took out her money to pay.

They gradually became familiar with the measurement and usage of modern currency, and became increasingly adept at it.

The rice shop owner called her husband to get up, and the couple helped Ya Ya carry a full sack of rice, two boxes of noodles, and a small cart to an open space against the wall in the alley.

He tightened the rice bag again, stacked the two boxes of flour on the cart, and left only after making sure everything was alright.

Ya Ya's little purse was getting hotter and hotter. She quickly held onto the stroller, raised her other hand and tightly gripped the full bag of rice, then closed her eyes and shook it.

At Granny Liu's house, a fire was still burning in the stove, and light shone into the room, making it dimly lit. The village chief, Zhao the hunter, and Fang Tiesheng sat at the only small table in the room, while Granny Liu sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

The group estimated the time; Ya Ya was about to return. They all perked up and sat up straight.

In a flash, Ya Ya suddenly appeared in the open space of the room, holding the handle of a small cart in one hand and a bag almost as tall as her in the other, which looked frighteningly heavy.

After Ya Ya regained her balance, she saw the four familiar adults, and her eyes crinkled with a smile. "Grandpa Village Chief, you've been waiting for me again! Grandma, I'm back!"

Grandma Liu was observant and noticed at a glance that Ya Ya's little shoes had all been changed. The black shoes on her feet looked sturdy, which made her feel relieved. Little Ya Ya finally knew how to buy herself new things.

"By the way, Uncle Zhao, the chick you gave me is missing. I've been looking for it for a long time but haven't found it." Ya Ya said softly when she saw Hunter Zhao and suddenly remembered the missing wild pheasant.

"The chicken is here, it's kept in the yard," Hunter Zhao quickly told Ya Ya, afraid she would feel guilty.

"We probably can't bring live animals over. Kill them and prepare them tomorrow before you bring them over," Fang Tiesheng said, stroking his beard.

Upon hearing this, Ya Ya realized that Xiao He Bao wouldn't let her bring any live animals. Her mother must know that pheasants weren't allowed over there and was protecting her from them!

"No need, Grandpa Fang. Auntie said that pheasants are protected animals where they live. If you catch one, you'll be fined, and it seems to be illegal. You can't bring them or kill them."

The people in the room were all stunned for a moment, looking at each other.

Hunter Zhao frowned slightly: "Protected animals, fined?" He had been hunting for most of his life and had never heard of catching pheasants being illegal, let alone any animal being a "protected animal".

Fang Tiesheng kept this in mind and wrote it down on paper when it was light.

He made a special note recording the magical place that Ya Ya went to.

"Ya Ya, are you tired? What did you buy this time? Why don't you let Grandma help you wash your hands and face before bed?" Grandma Liu helped Ya Ya comb her messy, flyaway hair.

When asked what she bought, Ya Ya perked up.

She's gotten used to this biological clock these past few days, getting plenty of sleep every night, so she's not sleepy at all right now.

She wiggled her little feet. "A grandma bought all the wild vegetables today, and Ya Ya wandered around for a long time and bought so many things!"

He patted the large sack beside him as he spoke.

"This is rice, 80 jin (40 catties)! Pure white rice!"

"What? White rice? 80 jin?!" The four adults in the room gaped in astonishment.

Grandma Liu's hand trembled, and she almost couldn't support Ya Ya.

Last time, that kind aunt gave us two pounds of rice. We stewed it with kudzu root and ate it for several meals. We thought that being able to eat such good rice was the greatest blessing in our lives. But what did we hear now?

Ya Ya brought back 80 jin of white rice?

Is this big bag full of...?

The village chief jumped up from the stool, walked a few steps to the sack, and pressed his hand down.

It's heavy, hard, and has a real, substantial weight.

His fingertips were trembling slightly.

With trembling hands, he untied the rope on the bag, while Fang Tiesheng and Zhao Hu stared intently at the village chief's movements.

Once the knot was loosened, the village chief lifted the bag opening upwards and then rolled it down.

A full bag of snow-white, glistening rice was suddenly displayed before everyone's eyes.

It's not the kind of brown rice with broken husks, yellowish and grayish, not the coarse wheat bran that burns your throat, not the small and yellowish broken grains, but the fine, round, white, and clean grains of top-quality rice!

Hunter Zhao recalled the prices at the grain store in town before the New Year: wheat bran was 130 wen per shi, brown rice was 600 wen per shi, and polished rice was 900 wen per shi.

This big bag is worth at least a string of cash!

They don't deserve to eat such good rice every meal!

"Darling, don't you have bran or brown rice over there? Such good rice, how much does it cost... It's such a waste for us old bones who are about to die to eat such good food..."

The village chief was a little reluctant to spend the money. It wasn't that he didn't want Ya Ya to spend it, but he felt it wasn't worth wasting it on these old folks.

Ya Ya blinked her big eyes, "I didn't see any bran, only millet, but millet is twice as expensive as polished rice, so I didn't buy it. This rice is the cheapest!"