Chapter 109: Chapter 100: Plan to Go to the Provincial City

When Xiao Man got home from school that afternoon, Grandma showed her a roll of colorful little coupons. She explained that Grandpa had gotten them from Secretary Mo. Some needed to be returned, while others, like the yarn coupons, did not. After all, you still had to pay for the items themselves; with a coupon, pure wool cost an extra 18 yuan per pound!

Grandma said they should go to the co-op and buy plenty of fabric so everyone could have two new outfits for autumn and winter. Xiao Man could even have a couple of extra ones made. If cotton was available, they would buy some to make padded winter jackets. If they didn’t have enough cloth coupons, they could find the salesclerk from last time and pay her a small fee to help them get more.

Her days fell into a rhythm: going to school, doing chores at home, studying her medical books and the acupuncture technique, practicing Five Animals Qigong and Tai Chi Boxing in the morning and evening, and entering the Treasure Pearl Space to meditate... Time flew, and in the blink of an eye, it was Sunday.

Grandpa drove the ox cart, taking Grandma and Xiao Man to the commune for market day. Unlike their last trip, today was an actual market day. The road was bustling with people coming and going—some on bicycles, some driving ox or horse-drawn carts, and others on foot. Adults and children mingled in a lively and boisterous crowd.

The market street was even more crowded. After Grandpa parked the ox cart, he and Xiao Man helped support Grandma, and it took a great deal of effort to squeeze their way to the co-op. Inside, especially on the second floor, it was relatively less crowded, so Grandma and Xiao Man decided to stay there while Grandpa went downstairs to look around by himself.

Just like last time, Grandma and Xiao Man followed their hearts and bought a huge pile of things. When Grandpa returned and saw their "spoils of war," he didn’t say a word, but the look on his face clearly expressed two words: "You win."

The family of three each got two pairs of shoes for autumn and winter, plus long johns and thermal underwear to wear as base layers. They bought the fabric for their winter clothes and gave it directly to the sewing team at the fabric counter to be tailored; they could come pick up the finished garments next Sunday.

They bought pure wool yarn in blue and gray. Xiao Man then noticed coiled bundles of cotton thread for sale that didn’t require coupons. She asked the salesclerk what they were for. The clerk explained, "They can be used for quilting, and some people like to knit undershirts and long johns for babies with it. It’s breathable, absorbent, and not scratchy like wool." Hearing this, Xiao Man bought three bundles.

People in the South didn’t typically wear padded cotton pants, though woolen ones were common. Xiao Man, however, hated acrylic yarn that crackled with static, so she decided she’d knit cotton pants to wear instead.

As for a new quilt for Grandpa and Grandma, Grandma said they didn’t need to buy one, insisting their old one was still plenty warm, but Xiao Man insisted. They also picked up some daily necessities, including face creams like Snowflake Cream, Friendship, Pechoin, and Yashuang. They were very cheap at only twenty cents a box and smelled wonderful. Xiao Man doubted she would use them, but Grandma wanted to buy them for her, so she agreed. Besides, Xiao Man also thought the little boxes were quite cute.

Xiao Man had wanted to look around some more to see if she could find a picture frame for sale; the family portrait they took last time still wasn’t hanging on the wall. "No need to buy one," Grandpa said. "I’ll make one for you when we get home."

The food pavilion was too crowded, so they decided against squeezing in for rice noodles. Instead, Grandpa bought them some fried bean-paste rice cakes and dry rice noodles. He also had two pounds of pork cut for them. After carrying all their purchases to the ox cart in a few trips, they headed straight for home.

On the way home, they saw many more people still heading to the market. Grandpa remarked that it seemed like more and more people were coming to market day. Xiao Man chuckled inwardly. ’Oh, Grandpa, there will be even more next year, and more still the year after that. In the future, people won’t even care about market days. As long as they have money in their pockets, they’ll come into town whenever they feel like it!’

Once they reached a less crowded part of the road, Grandpa climbed onto the ox cart as well. He asked Xiao Man how much they had spent in total that day. Now that the family was out of debt, Grandpa had entrusted all their money to Grandma.

Xiao Man deliberately stayed silent. As she expected, Grandma answered, "With all the things we bought, it must have been over two hundred yuan. But we needed every single thing, and since we have the money, we might as well buy what we need now to save ourselves multiple trips. What? Are you starting to regret it?"

Grandpa chuckled. "Of course I’m willing, of course. These are all things we need, so naturally, we should buy them. It’s all thanks to our Xiao Man’s good luck, finding that Purple Ganoderma on the mountain. That brought in a large sum of money, and those parasitic plants sold for a high price too. You want me to find more, but those parasitic plants are very rare. You can’t just find them whenever you want. Um, look, we have enough money now. Why don’t I take you to the provincial city to get your eyes treated, Ayue?"

"I don’t think it’s that hard," Xiao Man said. "I found them twice in the same patch of woods! And as for that Purple Ganoderma, maybe if you take me up the mountain next time, Grandpa, I’ll be able to find more!"

’There are tons of them in the forest inside the Treasure Pearl Space!’

Grandpa lightly patted Xiao Man’s head. "I’ve spent my entire life in these mountains, and I’ve only come across parasitic plants a handful of times. I’ve never even seen a Purple Ganoderma. You just had a stroke of luck. The parasitic plants, well, I can see that. I don’t usually look up in the trees, but you kids are always climbing them, so you’re bound to find some. But this Purple Ganoderma, that truly comes down to luck and destiny! The two you picked were old, yet they were incredibly fresh. Mr. Sun said they’re a top-quality medicine lead, comparable to a Centennial Ginseng from the North! Usually, a treasure like that is guarded by some dangerous, venomous creature—if not a poisonous snake, then a scorpion. Why do they guard it? Because they want to eat it! So, if you hadn’t stumbled upon those two Purple Ganoderma, they probably would have been gone in another year or two!"

A wave of fear washed over Grandma, and she pulled Xiao Man into a hug. "You didn’t run into any poisonous snakes or scorpions that day, did you?"

Xiao Man comforted her. "No. I just saw that the dead tree looked rotten, so I thought there might be mushrooms underneath. When I moved a piece, I only saw the reishi grass. I didn’t see any snakes or scorpions!"

"In this weather, most snakes stay in their holes," Grandpa said. "There could still be scorpions around, though. It’s a good thing you didn’t run into any. Maybe what was guarding the Purple Ganoderma wasn’t a scorpion. Since you’re so determined to study medicine, Xiao Man, you must learn to identify herbs. From now on, I’ll take you into the mountains with me more often. Gathering herbs isn’t as simple as just reaching out and picking them. There are a lot of details to it, and I’ll explain them to you as we go."

Xiao Man readily agreed, nodding repeatedly, and Grandma breathed a sigh of relief.

Then Grandpa brought up another important matter. "Now that our family has some money, I think we should prepare to take your grandma to the provincial city to get her eyes treated. When we get back, I’ll work even harder to save up for Xiao Man’s tuition and dowry."

Xiao Man’s face lit up. "Yes, let’s take Grandma to the provincial city to get her eyes treated! But can we wait until my winter break so we can all go together as a family?"

Grandpa was stunned. "You want to go too? Then what about the piglets? I was thinking I could ask Second Granny Qiu to come stay with you at night. You’d be on your own during the day, but with the piglets for company, you shouldn’t be afraid."

Xiao Man grumbled inwardly, ’Grandpa, just how much do you love those piglets that you want them to be my companions!’

Just then, Grandma spoke up. "Let’s not go to the provincial city yet. The weather is getting so cold. I’m perfectly fine staying at home. I don’t like the idea of wandering around outside in this freezing weather!"

’Wandering?’ Xiao Man thought. ’What an interesting choice of words from Grandma!’

Grandpa cleared his throat. "Ayue, we’re going to get your eyes treated. We’ll have a place to stay. How is staying in a hospital ’wandering’?"

"It would still be inconvenient. Besides, I wouldn’t feel right leaving Xiao Man home all by herself. What if I need surgery and have to stay in the hospital for a long time? What if we couldn’t even make it back for the New Year? What would Xiao Man do then?"

Grandpa was dumbfounded. "But... but your eyes have to be treated, don’t they?"

"We’ll do what Xiao Man said. We’ll wait until she’s on break, and we’ll all go together! We can ask Second Granny Qiu or Snowflake’s mother to help look after the house!"

"Alright. We’ll wait a little longer, then. When her school break starts, our whole family will go to the provincial city together!"

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