Chapter 17 Purchase
This was the first time he had travelled so far, and Qin Mian's feet were in so much pain that he almost couldn't feel it. He had originally hoped to run into a car that was heading towards town, but he was unable to do so even when he saw the small town's gray walls. There were pedestrians coming and going, some carrying baskets or carrying loads of vegetables, fruits, handicrafts, etc., and were hoping to sell them for a few coins in the town. Others were taking carriages, ox-carts, donkey carts, and carriages, entering and exiting. There were also the sheep and pigs that were rushing to the town to sell, and the sheep and pigs were bawling as if they were having a fight.
Qin Mian rubbed his stomach. Since Lei Tia would listen to him, he would not ask, and pulled him into a noodle shop. Actually, he wanted to eat rice more than anything else. However, he knew that rice was more expensive, so he could only endure it.
He found an empty table and sat down, saying loudly, "Boss, two bowls of vegetable noodles."
Lei Tia suddenly said, "Two bowls of minced meat noodles."
"Alright!" The smile on the boss' face became even more enthusiastic.
An indescribable feeling welled up in Qin Mian's chest. He raised his head and saw that Lei Tia had opened his mouth to speak, and was afraid that he would say the words "you are my wife" in front of everyone, so he spoke first. His tone was a bit helpless, and a bit depressed, "I know!"
Lei Tia asked indifferently: "Know what?"
Qin Mian turned his head and did not look at him, he stared at the waiter cooking the noodles and calmly said: "Nothing."
The pot was steaming hot. The waiter scooped up the cooked noodles and put them into a bowl. With his other hand, he quickly added the shredded meat, chopped onion, and the prepared tofu into the bowl. Finally, he added a spoonful of soup to the top and the fragrance immediately became stronger.
"Esteemed customers, your noodles are here, please enjoy."
Qin Mian looked at the shredded meat in the bowl and counted silently. Six. Comforting himself that talking was better than nothing, he picked up all the shredded meat with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth before eating the noodles. A bowl of noodles was not full yet, so Lei Tia reckoned that he did not feel full at all. Saving money doesn't mean you have to go hungry. He called out boldly, "Two more bowls!" It was easy to mistake him for a nouveau riche.
The other customers in the restaurant looked at him strangely. Some of them even muttered, "What are you shouting for? It's only two bowls of noodles, not two bowls of white jade soup."
The corner of Lei Tia's mouth raised into an almost undetectable curve.
Four bowls of noodles cost twelve cents. The most important thing was that after coming here for so long, he finally had his second taste of meat. Despite the meat being tough and firewood, Qin Mian was still satisfied with his meal.
After eating his fill, Qin Mian did not immediately go to purchase them, but instead, walked around the town, looking left and right from time to time. Lei Tia followed beside him in silence, without a trace of impatience, and didn't ask him why.
This made Qin Mian secretly admire his good temper, did Lei Tia not suspect that he was intentionally teasing him?
Of course not. The two of them were too tight on money, so they had to think of a way to make money. Qin Mian just wanted to see if there were any business opportunities in the town.
After he finished shopping, Qin Mianxin started counting the things he needed to buy. He first went to the grocery store to buy oil and salt. There were no oil or salt tanks in the house, and the general store also had some for sale. Two cans of sixty cents, five pounds of salt, twenty-two cents a pound, and two pounds of oil for twenty-four cents in total.
"2 taels each for pepper."
The shop assistant was confused. "There are pepper? What is pepper?"
Qin Mian was startled. Is there no pepper in this world?
"Then, two taels of pepper and one catty of soy sauce." After Qin Mian finished speaking, he swept his eyes across the store. The products here looked relatively complete, and he bought a spatula, ten plates of vegetables, a soup bowl, ten rice bowls and ten pairs of chopsticks.
The shopkeeper had been behind the counter the whole time, and seeing them buying more things, he walked over and said enthusiastically: "Little brother, what else do you need? Pick whatever you want. "Our store basically has everything."
Qin Mian looked at the rice bag beside him. The bags were open so customers could see what was inside.
Qin Mian asked, "How much are the rice and noodles?"
Four cents for corn flour, one pound for wheat flour, one pound for sorghum flour, one pound for millet flour, one pound for brown rice, two cents for brown rice, and one pound for fine rice.
Qin Mian's gaze reluctantly moved away from the rice and landed on the wheat flour. Just as he was about to speak, Lei Tia, who had been silent to the point of almost making people forget about his existence, spoke out, "Ten kilograms of rice."
The owner was afraid that Qin Mian would go back on his words, so he immediately instructed the shop assistant, "Pack this up."
Qin Mian did not refuse, "Five kilograms of corn flour, two kilograms of wheat flour, and five kilograms of sorghum flour."
The manager beamed. "Alright."
Qin Mian selected a tea set. Two porcelain cups were used to rinse his mouth, a kitchen knife, three washcloths, a sewing bag and a jar of soap powder, as well as other random items.