The vegetable-selling auntie next to them offered some advice.
She came both morning and evening since she didn’t have much else to do—whatever she could sell was money in her pocket. She wasn’t into square dancing like the other old ladies; her creaky old bones couldn’t handle all that twisting and turning anyway.
Might as well sell vegetables instead.
Over time, she’d gotten to know the other vendors, and they’d chat for the whole morning.
It was a good way to earn a little cash and pass the time.
“Thank you, Auntie! This is our first time setting up a stall, so we didn’t know. We’ll remember for next time.”
So that’s how it was. From now on, they’d only come in the mornings and skip the evenings.
But since they were already here today, they might as well wait a bit longer—anything they sold was a win.
They’d brought 10 bundles of wild greens total.
After a long while, they managed to sell three bundles.
Not bad at all—that was 30 yuan earned~
At least Lin Xiaohe was very satisfied. Thirty yuan could buy a lot of things.
“Alright, let’s pack up and head back. We’ll keep the rest for ourselves.
Tomorrow morning, we’ll pick fresh ones to sell—we can’t sell these not-so-fresh ones to others.
You take the basket and wait for me at the grain and oil shop. I’m going to buy some more sugar—I’m not sure if Yuya’s family wants sugar, but we can bring some over and see.”
She planned to bring some more goods over tomorrow to trade for more honey. This time, she wouldn’t give it away—she’d keep it for the family. She’d heard honey was nourishing and good for their parents’ recovery.
“Okay, Sis. What are you buying?”
“Just some sugar.”
“Got it.”
Walking alone to the supermarket, Lin Xiaohe felt a little nervous. She was used to having her sister by her side—chatting with her made everything feel safe.
Being on her own all of a sudden was actually a bit unsettling.
She half-walked, half-ran to the supermarket, bought another 10 yuan worth of sugar, and hurried back to the grain and oil shop.
At the grain and oil shop
Yuan Zhiqiang had done some careful probing and confirmed that it was indeed wild rabbit and wild chicken.
He quickly pulled the child aside.
“Xiaogu, you must tell your sister when you get home—you absolutely cannot sell these things! Wild chicken and wild rabbit aren’t items you can sell!
They’re protected animals now. If anyone finds out you’re selling them, you could get in real trouble.”
Yuan Zhiqiang deliberately made it sound serious, just to make sure the kids remembered—this really wasn’t something to mess with!
Xiaogu was both shocked and scared, her eyes wide open, her voice stammering. “O-okay… Uncle, I… I’ll remember.”
That was terrifying—selling wild chicken and rabbit could land you in jail?!
Protected animals—why did they need protecting?
Xiaogu couldn’t wrap her head around it. Not at all.
“Other things should be fine. It’s just wild chicken and wild rabbit—don’t bring them here to sell again.
Most of the animals up in the mountains are considered protected now. No one’s going to bother you if you catch them for your own table, but selling them is a different story.”
Yuan Zhiqiang added a few more words of caution. Though these things couldn’t be sold, occasionally someone would still bring wild chicken or rabbit to the market. But enforcement had gotten stricter over the past couple years—last time someone got caught, they were fined a hefty sum.
Not everyone got caught, but you never knew—better safe than sorry.
“Uncle, what’s a ‘protected animal’? Why do they need protecting?” Xiaogu genuinely didn’t understand.
“Protected animals are animals that are becoming rare. We can’t let people keep catching and eating them, or they’ll go extinct—and then there won’t be any of that animal left.”
Yuan Zhiqiang gave a simple explanation—it was perfectly normal for a child so young not to understand.
“Ohhh, so that’s what it means.”
“Xiaogu!” Lin Xiaohe jogged over to the grain and oil shop. “Uncle, I’d like 20 jin of rice—do you still have the 1-yuan-per-jin kind?”
“Yes, I’ve got quite a bit left in the back.”
Yuan Zhiqiang went to the storeroom and brought out another bag. These were approaching their expiration date—about two or three months left.
He’d sorted them out over the past couple days and planned to sell them cheap by the entrance.
“This bag is exactly 20 jin. Take this one. As a return favor—since you kids brought us all those things—you can’t pay for this rice.”
Lin Xiaohe held out the money, but he wouldn’t take it.
“Just that jar of honey alone is worth a pretty penny. Don’t be polite—just take it.”
Yuan Zhiqiang refused flat out and pushed the money back.
“Alright, you two should head home now. It’s getting late—two kids like you out at night isn’t safe.”
After watching them walk off, his wife pulled up on her electric bike.
Chen Fang immediately spotted all the things on the table. “Wow! When did you buy all this?”
“I didn’t buy it—those two little girls brought it over. All good stuff! There’s even a jar of wild honey—the kind you can’t even buy in stores!”
“For real! That’s wonderful!” Chen Fang’s face broke into a huge smile. “Wild honey sells for over a hundred yuan a jin. Tell me you paid them—you can tell they’re struggling. We can’t just take things for nothing.”
“The girl wouldn’t take the money. I figured since she won’t take cash, we could give them something instead.
I just don’t know what they need.”
Chen Fang frowned. “Let’s think about it tonight. Oh—did you get those bags I asked you to pick up?”
“Ah, I almost forgot—they’re in the storeroom.”
“Then don’t forget to give them to those two girls tomorrow. They’ve got it tough—out there making a living at their age.”
“Will do. I won’t forget tomorrow.”
…
Back home, Lin Xiaohe got busy cooking. The meat had been sliced at noon but never stir-fried.
For the chicken legs to absorb the flavor, they’d need to simmer a while—so she put those on first.
She made a few cuts into the thickest parts of the meat.
She added a bit of lard to the wok and fried the chicken legs.
Then she tossed in some dried chilies, chopped garlic, poured in a splash of soy sauce, added water, and covered it to braise.
Lin Xiaohe was still young and didn’t know how to make anything too complicated.
There were also three fish. The blackfish was still lively and could stay in the bucket for another day. But the two small palm-sized fish had long since died—they’d go bad if not cooked soon.
She gutted them expertly, removing the innards and discarding them.
After scraping off the scales and giving them a quick rinse, she’d pan-fry them and make a fish soup.
Two dishes and a soup—every single one had meat.
It was the best meal Lin Xiaohe had ever eaten in her life.
“Xiaogu, come here!”
“Coming, Sis. What’s up?”
“There’s no water at home. I’m going over to the other side to get some. Keep an eye on the pot—don’t add any more wood.
If it’s about to cook dry, add a little water—just don’t let the meat burn.”
“Okay, I’ve got it! I definitely won’t let the chicken legs burn.”
As she spoke, Xiaogu was practically drooling—it smelled so, so good!
Lin Xiaohe wasn’t very strong either—it took her two trips to carry a single bucket of water home.
Luckily, even though she always appeared in the same spot, she didn’t have to go back there to return—she could just close her eyes and think of home. That saved a lot of effort.
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