Buying Groceries (Part 1)

She hadn't realized just how difficult his situation truly was.

She shook her head silently, resolving to repay the debt as quickly as possible.

"Young man, it's been a while! What do you need today?"

The grocery store owner, having just finished lunch, was resting behind the counter.

Seeing Huo Tianzhou, he stood up with a smile, "Should I prepare the usual for you?"

Huo Tianzhou always bought the same amount of rice and grain, and his distinctive appearance made him memorable to the owner.

This time, however, Huo Tianzhou didn't nod in response as he usually did.

Instead, he turned his head to look at Liang Hongyu.

Taking an ox cart to town was a hassle, so Liang Hongyu considered their needs for the next few days.

She looked at the store's rice and grain and said to the owner, "Five pounds of polished rice, ten pounds of brown rice, and five pounds of flour."

The shopkeeper, while asking the question, had already walked out from behind the counter and prepared to bag the rice as he usually did.

He paused for a moment after hearing her request and turned around to Huo Tianzhou for confirmation.

This young man had never bought polished rice before, and the amount of brown rice he usually purchased was also small.

Liang Hongyu, who had previously managed to sell a snake for two taels, still felt this wasn't enough after hearing the shopkeeper's reaction.

Huo Tianzhou, however, nodded his head reassuringly to the shopkeeper.

Seeing that Huo Tianzhou hadn't brought a rice bag, the shopkeeper went back to get one from behind the counter, "I won't charge you for the bag this time. Just remember to return it next time. And don't come shopping empty-handed again. Other shops might charge you several coins for a rice bag…"

Huo Tianzhou stood by listening to the shopkeeper's grumbling, while Liang Hongyu went to the shelves with condiments.

She picked up a bag of salt wrapped in paper and then chose a bottle of seasoning.

"Salt is eight coins per bag, and the porcelain bottle contains five-spice powder that just came in. It's a bit more expensive, at thirty coins."

Noticing Liang Hongyu's simple attire, the shopkeeper explained what was inside, worried she might not know.

The ingredients for five-spice powder were not cheap, and it required a lot of effort to prepare.

Liang Hongyu nodded her head in agreement, then suddenly remembered something, "Do you have ginger?"

"Yes, I'll get it for you."

Seeing that Liang Hongyu didn't react much to the price of the five-spice powder, the shopkeeper turned around and fetched a basket filled with fresh ginger.

The ginger had been harvested a while ago and didn't look very appealing.

Liang Hongyu picked out two large pieces.

Few people bought ginger here, and the shopkeeper had struggled to sell the batch he had.

Seeing her interest, he happily packed the ginger for her, "Since you're buying a lot, I'll round down the price for you. Twenty coins for the ginger."

The selection of spices here was limited.

If there was ginger, buying some would help remove the fishy smell when cooking meat.

Liang Hongyu didn't expect ginger to be so expensive, but it wasn't the season for planting ginger; otherwise, she would have considered growing some by herself.

The polished rice in the shop wasn't of the best quality, but it was priced at ten coins per pound.

Brown rice was seven coins per pound, and flour was five coins.

The shopkeeper took out his abacus, but by the time he finished calculating, Liang Hongyu had already counted the money and was waiting to hand it over.

He accepted the money and counted it once, exactly two hundred and three coins.

He looked up at Liang Hongyu with a changed expression.

It was rare to see someone who could calculate sums without an abacus and not make a mistake.

In modern times, anyone who has gone through nine years of compulsory education could handle this kind of arithmetic easily.

Liang Hongyu felt uncomfortable with the shopkeeper's sudden admiring gaze, so she packed her things and left.

Huo Tianzho also looked surprised but he kept silent.

After collecting his thoughts, he followed her.

"Liang Hongyu?"

As they walked down the street from the grocery store, Liang Hongyu was thinking about what else she needed to buy when she heard her name being called.

Standing a few steps away at the entrance of a tavern was a tall, sturdy young man with a sun-tanned complexion wearing dark work clothes.

When he saw her look over, he walked briskly towards her.

"I wasn't mistaken. You've recovered from your illness?"

Gong Banyun said with a smile as he approached her, looking Liang Hongyu up and down.

Just a few days ago, when he visited, Liang Hongyu had been unconscious in bed.

He had planned to visit her again but was surprised to run into her here.

Gong Banyun was one of the few friends of the original Liang Hongyu.

He had visited her recently, and Liang Hongyu had intended to let him know about her recovery.

"I've been well for a couple of days. I came to town to buy some things and was just about to find you," Liang Hongyu said with a smile.

"As long as you're better. Losing the dock job is unfortunate, but I'll keep an eye out for you," Gong Banyun replied.

Liang Hongyu's illness had come suddenly, and there were plenty of people ready to take over the work at the docks.

Even though Gong Banyun had a minor supervisory role, there wasn't much he could do.

"I'm planning to try hunting in the mountains first," Liang Hongyu declined his offer with gratitude.

"Hunting, huh... well, alright," Gong Banyun frowned thoughtfully, "But you've never hunted before. I'll still keep an eye out for you."

Gong Banyun, who liked to wander around when not working, was there to fetch some wine for someone.

After a brief chat, he went back to his task.