The provincial capital?

Anqing County was under the administration of Fengxian City, which bordered the provincial capital, Shangdu.

Shangdu, as the provincial capital, was not especially far from Anqing County. Still, ordinary county residents rarely went there unless necessary. Farmers usually sold produce in nearby towns.

Even going to the county seat to sell goods was uncommon, let alone traveling to the provincial capital.

From that perspective, it was hard to know where Xia Xiaolan found the courage.

“I think the egg business in Anqing County can still last a few more days. Why rush to Shangdu?” Zhou Cheng asked.

He was bold himself and had no objection to Xia Xiaolan’s decision. He just didn’t understand it.

Xia Xiaolan enjoyed talking with intelligent people. After her rebirth, the first person she could communicate with effortlessly was her uncle Liu Yong. The second was Zhou Cheng.

He didn’t believe reselling eggs could continue indefinitely in Anqing County. He had even judged it would last only a few more days.

Xia Xiaolan didn’t hide anything.

“I want to check out the market in Shangdu. I brought something else today that doesn’t sell well in Anqing County.”

Zhou Cheng took her bicycle and looked into the baskets behind it.

One basket held eggs covered with straw. The other was lined with waterproof lining, inside which something squirmed.

“Eels?”

He smacked his lips.

“Good stuff.”

Xia Xiaolan had clearly selected them carefully. Each yellow eel in the basket was about as thick as a man’s thumb. Prime season, when the flesh was rich and firm, comparable to a twenty-jin grass carp.

In the hands of a skilled cook, eel could be even tastier than fish.

“These don’t sell well in Anqing County, but how did you—”

He stopped mid-sentence.

He had wanted to say she always chose troublesome businesses. Reselling eggs was already exhausting, and now she wanted to sell aquatic products too.

But remembering what he’d heard yesterday, that Xia Xiaolan had been driven from home with nothing, relying only on her uncle while the Xia family wished her ill... he swallowed the rest.

Easy money required capital and connections, and Xia Xiaolan had neither.

The thought made him uncomfortable.

It wasn’t that he believed the rumors. It was like when he first saw the scar on her forehead. She looked so delicate, how could she endure such hardship?

Xia Xiaolan smiled and didn’t press him.

“Collecting eggs is collecting eggs, picking up some eels along the way isn’t much trouble. I’ve been saving these for a few days. Someone brought twenty jin last night, so I’m taking them to the provincial capital to try my luck.”

“Do you know the way there?” Zhou Cheng asked.

That struck her weak point.

The “Xia Xiaolan” of this life had never seen much of the world. The farthest she’d ever been was Anqing County, she had never gone to Shangdu.

“Well, I’ve got a mouth under my nose. I’ll just ask along the way.”

Road signs weren’t as common as in later times, but as long as she headed in the right direction, she could ask for directions.

Zhou Cheng didn’t know whether she was naive or simply brave. People avoided traveling far not only because transportation was inconvenient and money was tight, but also because the roads weren’t entirely safe.

On long trips like the ones he and Kang Wei made from Beijing to Shanghai, no one ever traveled alone, bandits were common. Doze off for a moment, and both person and vehicle could disappear. Still, after the nationwide anti-crime crackdown that began that summer, public security had improved.

Thinking about Xia Xiaolan traveling alone between Qijing Village and Shangdu every day, Zhou Cheng found himself reluctant to leave Anqing County.

“Let’s go. I know the road, I’ll take you today.”

“Brother Zhou, don’t you have things to do? This is too much trouble for you.”

Zhou Cheng lied without hesitation. “Kang Wei went to visit a relative nearby and drove the truck away. We can’t leave today anyway, so I’ll go to Shangdu with you. Anqing County’s tiny and boooring.”

He stretched out the word boring, sounding like a spoiled young master.

Xia Xiaolan laughed helplessly.

Zhou Cheng had already taken hold of the bicycle handlebars.

“Hop on. I’ll give you a ride.”

He patted the front crossbar. The thought of sitting there, practically in his arms, made Xia Xiaolan wave her hands quickly.

“I’ll sit in the back!”

“It’ll be a bit bumpy, hold on tight.”

His face was perfectly serious, as if he had no intention of taking advantage of her, making her wonder if she was overthinking.

With large baskets on both sides of the rear seat, Xia Xiaolan had to bend her legs upward. When the bicycle jolted, she nearly fell backward and instinctively wrapped her arms tightly around Zhou Cheng’s waist.

It was late summer, and Zhou Cheng wore only a single shirt. Even through the fabric, he could feel the softness of her touch.

Since she couldn’t see his expression, Zhou Cheng let the corner of his mouth lift.

“Hold on tight!”

The delight in his voice was impossible to hide.

Xia Xiaolan pressed her lips together, feeling as though she were being teased by a handsome young man.

---

By the time they reached Shangdu, two hours had passed. Zhou Cheng had waited on the road without breakfast, and his stomach was already growling. Xia Xiaolan had eaten a little leftover food before leaving.

“Come on, let’s eat first.”

Shangdu’s streets were wider than those of Anqing County, with taller buildings lining both sides. The city was much larger overall, impossible to explore in a short time. It was also livelier.

In Anqing County, small vendors still acted cautiously, but in Shangdu they sold openly.

One entire street was devoted to food.

Lamb stewed noodles, meatball soup, doumo, spicy pepper soup, soup dumplings, baiji buns, countless local snacks filled the street.

There were also hand-pulled noodles, porridge, soy milk, and fried dough sticks, foods found across the country.

Dishes from all over China were sold here.

Xia Xiaolan took a deep breath. Her whole body cried out with hunger.

In her previous life, she had worked relentlessly while young, skipping breakfast or eating only to fill her stomach without caring about taste. Later, when she had money, she was even busier and as her metabolism slowed, she limited herself to a cup of coffee each morning to maintain her figure.

And after that… she became the penniless Xia Xiaolan who wanted to eat but couldn’t afford to.

The lively scene stirred something in her. While working hard in the 1980s, perhaps she should treat herself better.

“Brother Zhou, what do you want to eat? My treat.”

Seeing her in such a good mood, Zhou Cheng smiled. When she smiled, she was especially beautiful. Her bright, expressive eyes seemed full of emotion, lifting his own spirits.

“How much money do you even have? Showing off generosity! In Beijing, we don’t let girls treat us. The day you bought noodles, Kang Wei was scared silly.”

As he spoke, he pulled her into a shop selling donkey-meat soup.

“Ever had donkey meat? Lamb’s a bit heating in this weather. Let’s get donkey-meat soup and a basket of soup dumplings. We can ask the owner about Shangdu while we eat.”

Dragon meat belongs in heaven, donkey meat’s good enough for us here on earth.

Xia Xiaolan wasn’t picky. Aside from snakes, insects, and rodents, she’d eat most ordinary foods.

She had tasted donkey-meat soup during business trips to Shangdu in her previous life, but none had tasted this good. The steaming bowl wasn’t gamey or greasy. Each bite brought tender donkey meat, with celery and scallions floating on top, rich in flavor.

In later years, even herbs like scallions and celery grown in greenhouses lacked such intensity. She finished a large bowl of soup and a basket of dumplings by herself.

Zhou Cheng ate more a bowl of soup, two baskets of dumplings, and a serving of lamb stewed noodles from the neighboring shop. After eating, asking for information was easier.

Hearing that Xia Xiaolan sold eggs and eels, the shop owner laughed.

“Go to the end of the street, there’s a stall selling eel-shredded noodles. On busy days they use over ten jin of eel. Turn right past this street and you’ll find the farmers’ market.”

Anqing County was tiny, even with workers from two factories, consumer demand was limited.

Shangdu was different.

While Zhou Cheng held the bicycle, Xia Xiaolan went to ask the eel-noodle vendor whether he wanted eels. After glancing at the basket, he immediately bought fifteen jin.

Pork cost 1.4 yuan per jin, while eel sold for 1.1 yuan per jin. In the county, few people would spend fatty-pork money on eel.

But Shangdu was the provincial capital. Even noodles costing seventy cents a bowl, topped with eel shreds, had customers who could afford them.

Eels were profitable. Xia Xiaolan bought them in the village for eighty cents per jin and earned thirty cents profit per jin. They were sturdier than eggs during transport, too. She immediately decided to stop selling eggs and focus on eels.

The business could last another two months before November.

Seeing her excitement, Zhou Cheng quickly reminded her to calm down.

“You still need to find big buyers. One noodle stall can’t take all your stock.”