Chapter 23: Smooth Sailing Business

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

The next morning, Bai Xue woke up early and made a pot of sorghum porridge with the leftover chicken soup from last night. The family had another full meal.

“Xue, if we eat like this, will that bit of food last until the end of the year?” Bai Daliang finally could not help but ask.

“Dad, my brothers, and sisters are too skinny and lack nutrition. If we don’t eat well, we might fall sick one day. Won’t we still have to spend money then? Moreover, Mom is in confinement and she can finally breastfeed. If we don’t feed Mom well, what will the two babies eat? Even if we have the money to buy milk powder, we don’t have milk powder stamps! Besides, we don’t have the money to buy milk powder! Don’t worry, I’ll think of a solution to the food problem!”

“You’re still a child. What could you possibly do? Why don’t I go to the captain’s place to see if I can borrow some food!” Bai Daliang was worried.

If they ate sparingly for the past two days, it would be enough to last them for more than 10 days. However, his eldest daughter was right. He was worried. The price of food was worth its weight in gold these days and he was powerless.

“Who has surplus food at a time like this? Don’t go, Dad. Don’t make things difficult for the captain! Every family doesn’t have enough to eat now. If they borrow from the captain like you, what will happen?”

Bai Daliang sighed deeply.

“Alright. Dad, Mom, I have to visit the old lady in town and check on her, so I have to go first!” Bai Xue said as she walked out.

“Xue, are you sure about going alone? I’ll get your second uncle to accompany you.” Bai Daliang shouted from behind.

“I’m fine by myself! Second Uncle picks firewood every day. How can he have time? Don’t worry, Dad!” Bai Xue walked out of the inner room and shouted.

“Big Sis, I’ll go with you!” Bai Ruchuan jumped down from the north “Big Sis, I’ll go with you!” Bai Ruchuan jumped down from the north brick platform bed and ran out.

“Don’t go. If you’re not afraid of the cold, go and pick up some firewood. The firewood is almost gone!” Bai Xue instructed.

“Alright then!” Bai Ruchuan gave up on the idea of following her.

Bai Xue finally got rid of everyone and went on her way alone.

After leaving the village, she promptly found a place to hide and entered the interspatial supermarket.

She took a box of cigarettes and removed its packaging. She found a jar used for making pickled vegetables from the shelf where kitchen utensils were placed and filled it with 10 catties of white wine. Also, she took a small bag of loose tea leaves.

She went to the clothing area and found thermal pants. She took off all her clothes and put on thermal pants before putting on her old clothes.

She found a warm sweater and put it on. After putting on a pair of black snow boots, she walked out of the interspatial supermarket and headed toward Pingyang Town.

After walking for more than two hours, she was so tired that she wanted to curse. She had never exercised so much before. The host’s body was thin and weak, and she was exhausted.

When she finally arrived at the state-owned restaurant, it was only 10 o’clock in the morning. It was not mealtime yet, so there were not many people around.

After entering the restaurant, the same waitress was inside. The moment she saw Bai Xue, she was not as patronizing as before. Instead, she quickly went into the kitchen and called Chef Wang out.

“Are you here? Come, come, have a cup of hot water to warm up!” Chef Wang walked out happily and personally poured her a cup of hot water. He led her to a table near the counter.

The waitress stood at the kitchen door and looked over. Fortunately, Bai Xue did not bring the things over directly. She packed them and placed them in her interspatial supermarket.

“Uncle Wang, I’m here to see you!” Bai Xue gave Wang Cheng a meaningful look.

Wang Cheng instantly understood and turned around to look at the waitress.

The waitress immediately returned to the kitchen and gave them some privacy.

Wang Cheng called the shots in the state-owned restaurant.

“I found a few people who want to buy cigarettes and wine. How much did you bring?” Wang Cheng whispered.

“How much do they want?” Bai Xue asked.

“They didn’t even give me a number. They simply gave me money to reserve the products. How about selling the white wine for $10 a catty?” Wang Cheng asked. He could get 10% of the profits, so he definitely wanted to sell it for a higher price.

At the supplies cooperative, they could buy one catty for $0.50. $10 was twenty times the price.

The white wine that Bai Xue took out from the interspatial supermarket was definitely better than the ones in this era.

“Sounds good! Uncle Wang, you decide! I brought 10 boxes of cigarettes! They are from the capital and are worth a lot, so we can sell them for $10 a pack! I have 10 catties of wine. Also, I have two catties of tea leaves!” Bai Xue spoke in a nonchalant tone.

However, Wang Cheng could not remain calm when he heard that.

This was incredible! Bai Xue had 10 packs of cigarettes, so he could earn $10 in commission. 10 catties of wine could earn him $10. She even had two catties of tea leaves.

“How much do you want to sell the tea leaves for?” Wang Cheng raised his voice a little, but he believed that the waitress would not dare to eavesdrop.

“$10 for 1.5 ounces!” Bai Xue said without blinking.

Tea was expensive to begin with, and the tea she had was a high-quality product. This kind of tea leaves was unavailable even in the county’s supplies cooperative. $10 per for 1.5 ounces was completely reasonable.

“Okay, okay!” Wang Cheng only nodded and agreed excitedly!

In his heart, he calculated that two catties of tea were worth $200, so he could earn $20. This meant he could earn $40 from this transaction alone. His monthly salary was only $38. Just this one transaction alone had exceeded his day job’s salary.

Who on earth was this young woman?

Wang Cheng scrutinized her shabby clothes and looked down and saw the brand new snow cotton shoes on her feet. His heart skipped a beat. The girl probably came in disguise. Her family must have a powerful backer! In the future, she was no different than his boss. She could also provide him with food supplies and let him earn money while he was at it.

“Give me a minute. It’s almost time for lunch. I’ll quickly send the things to you before anyone comes!” Bai Xue stood up and walked out as she spoke.

“Chef Wang, who is this little girl? Is she a relative? Why is she here to see you again?” After Bai Xue left, the waitress in the kitchen walked out.

“My niece! Why? Do you have a problem with her coming to the restaurant to look for me?” Wang Cheng asked calmly.

“Of course, not. I just asked casually! I’ll go clean up the kitchen first!” The waitress, Jiang Meili, was 22 years old

This job did not come easy, so she did not dare to offend this chef for fear of being fired and she quickly ran away.

Bai Xue went out and quickly returned with cigarettes, wine, and tea. In her hand was the cloth bag that Wang Cheng had given her previously. She took out the things inside and put the red candle the size of a baby’s arm back into the interspatial supermarket, not daring to take it out.

“Uncle Wang, here’s the stuff. Please put them away safely!” When Bai Xue entered the restaurant, Wang Cheng was still sitting at the table waiting for her. She quickly handed the things to him.

Five catties of wine were quite heavy.

“Alright then! I will put it away now. One moment, please!” Wang Cheng picked up the things and walked out. Bai Xue had no choice but to sit down and take a sip of the water that Wang Cheng had poured for her.

After a while, Wang Cheng walked back, panting. There was nothing in his hands anymore.

“I’ll give you the money for the cigarettes and alcohol first. I wasn’t expecting the tea, so I don’t have any buyers lined up yet. How about I pay you next time?”

“Sure, no problem!” Bai Xue knew it was important to trust her business partners, so she answered readily.

“Here are five catties worth of food stamps, $40 in industrial stamps, one catty’s worth of sugar stamps, cloth stamps for ten feet of fabric, and 2 cans worth of milk powder stamps! Those are all the stamps I managed to get including $200 in cash!”

As he spoke, he took out the money and stamps.