Lin Xiaohe’s eyes lit up—this was great! Salt was super cheap over there!
“Got it, I’ll remember. I’ll bring salt tomorrow.
Oh, and here’s what I’m thinking—I’ll come pick up the goods in the morning, and you tell me what you want. Then I’ll bring the stuff over in the afternoon.
How does that sound? If that doesn’t work for you, you can let me know in advance.
I can buy things the day before and bring them over the next morning.”
Lin Xiaohe hadn’t thought of this earlier—it only came to her as they were talking.
“Bring the goods in the morning, and bring us what we want in the afternoon,” Shen Shan said. No rush.
“Alright, it’s settled then.”
“Done.” Shen Shan headed home with his daughter, who was practically bouncing with excitement. He needed to talk this over with the family.
They couldn’t mess this up—this was too good an opportunity. They’d have to be careful, meticulous, and only pick the best greens.
They’d dig the wild greens in the morning and clean them by the river.
The mushroom pickers would head out early too, picking only fresh ones that hadn’t opened their caps yet.
All of this needed to be discussed beforehand.
Lin Xiaohe took her sister and dug up two more yams, then hauled a bucket of water home.
The village wells were far from the ancestral hall—one at each end of the village, with the hall in the middle. It was much easier to bring water over from the other side.
They’d barely made it home and caught their breath when they heard someone outside.
“Is Xiaohe in?” Lin Xia was furious—her liver ached with anger. What kind of mess was this?
“Yes! Second Aunt, come in and sit for a while!” Lin Xiaohe hurried to open the door. She really liked this aunt.
“No, no, it’s getting late and my kids are waiting at home.
I came to see your parents. I wouldn’t have even known if your aunt hadn’t told me—nobody sent word!”
If it hadn’t been for someone showing up at her door in the dark last night to say the family was in trouble, she wouldn’t have rushed back today. And after talking with her sister-in-law, she’d learned just how much had happened.
In Lin Xia’s heart, her blood brother wasn’t as close as her third brother. She was a proud, strong-willed person.
She liked to fight for everything, compete for everything.
But her blood brother was the type to play both sides and act innocent.
At first, Lin Xia had fought against Qian Sancao and shared whatever she gained with him. But over time, she came to see what kind of person he really was.
So she started looking out for herself.
She’d held a cleaver to her own neck and forced the family to send her to middle school.
Half her time at school went to studying, the other half to building connections.
And it paid off—before she’d even graduated, she knew of several places hiring.
She ended up at the supply store, married a fellow counter clerk, and settled in town.
“That old bastard is truly heartless. No matter what, you’re still his own son. How could he just ignore you?”
Lin Xia’s eyes reddened at the sight of the couple lying in bed. “If you need anything, send Xiaohe to find me. When I was trying to go to school, you fought alongside me against that old hag.
Now that I’m better off, I’m not going to abandon you.”
“Sis, we’re doing fine now. You know me—I’ve always tinkered around and made connections in the black market. We’re not going hungry.
You just take care of yourself. Are you done with your month of confinement?”
“I’m not done, but I had to come back and see. The family’s fallen apart like this.”
Lin Xia rolled her eyes helplessly. “If you need anything, just have Xiaohe come and tell me.
I brought some grain today. I’ll bring more next month.”
“Really, we don’t need it. Look at us—our faces are rosy, not like we’re starving.
You gave birth to twins—keep it for yourself. You need the nourishment more than we do. Those two little ones are counting on you.”
Liu Yuexiu had barely spent any time with her sister-in-law. By the time she’d married into the family, Lin Xia was already married.
They only saw each other during holidays.
And Lin Xia never stayed for meals—just a quick visit to check in.
She still felt a little awkward around her.
Lin Xia looked over the adults, then the kids. She really couldn’t see any signs of extreme hunger—their complexions were actually fairly healthy.
They were all skinny, yes, but their coloring wasn’t bad.
“Alright, since you say so, I won’t bring anything over for now. The kids are waiting at home, so I’ll head off. I’ll come back to check on you in a while.”
With that, Lin Xia hurried back to the county.
First to the commune, then to the town, then to the county—it was a long trip. Over an hour one way.
If she didn’t leave soon, she’d be traveling in the dark.
“Alright, Xiaohe, see your aunt out.”
Lin Xiaohe walked her aunt to the gate. “Auntie, take care. Here’s a little something for you.”
She quickly tossed a bag into her aunt’s bike basket and bolted.
Lin Xia reached out but couldn’t catch her.
This kid—always so polite. In times like these, she was still giving her things!
When she got home, Lin Xia opened the bag to see what was inside. Her eyes nearly popped out—half a bag of brown sugar!
At least half a jin!
This stuff was hard to come by these days. She’d barely scraped together half a jin for her month of confinement after begging everyone.
Third Brother’s black market connections must be solid. But why hadn’t she heard about it before?
Lin Cai: There was nothing to hear about. How would you have heard?
Lying in bed, Lin Cai felt the weight on his shoulders growing heavier. Once he recovered, he really would have to build up these black market connections for real.
“Oh, so much brown sugar! Xia, where did you get this?”
Her mother-in-law, Cai Juhua, stared wide-eyed in shock. When she’d needed brown sugar, she’d practically begged on her knees and ended up paying a high price on the black market.
“My third brother gave it to me. I went back today to check on things—my eldest brother and sister-in-law had a falling out, but that’s nothing compared to this.
My third brother and sister-in-law both had their legs crushed by a roof beam. What kind of luck is that? Misfortune never comes alone.
It’s already a famine year, and now this.”
Cai Juhua sighed too. “That’s going to be rough. Wait—you said the brown sugar was from them. If things are that tough, why are they giving you brown sugar?”
“They said Third Brother has some connections in the black market. He got it from there.”
Cai Juhua’s eyes lit up. “That well-connected? Could we pay them a little for their trouble and have them help us get some things?”
Her family was fairly well-off—her husband and son both had factory jobs.
She’d traded her own position for two temp jobs for her daughter-in-law and daughter.
Even though temp wages were lower—about 20-something yuan a month—it was still decent. They had plenty of money. The problem was that in times like these, money alone couldn’t buy you what you needed.
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