Time Travel: Female Cannon Fodder of the Republic of China

Nanny Lin turned her body and patiently explained to Ai Shutong, "Princess, you are not the head of the household, so you don't know how expensive firewood, rice, oil and salt are. Take our household for example. Firewood, charcoal, coal, rice, flour and salt cost twenty-three or four dollars a month."

"We don't have electricity at home, so we have to buy candles every month, which costs at least three dollars a month. And for your clothes, you have to make at least one set a month, and sometimes two or three sets. On average, it costs five or six dollars a month."

"You wear clothes, and the servants have to wear clothes too. Two sets of clothes per person per season, all made of cheap cotton cloth, one dollar per month is enough."

"Besides that, since last year, people from the government office have been coming to our house frequently. We have to pay four yuan a month for security and water treatment fees."

"The monthly payment for the Prince's Mansion is thirty taels, which can be exchanged for forty dollars. These are all used up."

"Not to mention the car fare, rouge and powder, and the money for the good food that the princess often has to eat, and the utensils."

"I have to sell a few pieces of embroidery every month to supplement my family income. Even so, I still haven't saved enough money to buy two pieces of jewelry for Gege."

"Alas! Things have changed in the past two years. If my family had some solid crops before and two taels of silver every month, life wouldn't be so tight."

After listening to Nanny Lin's chatter, Ai Shutong concluded that her monthly payments were now not enough to cover her expenses, and she had to pay into the bank.

Okay, you have a plan, and I have a ladder to cross the bridge.

"I understand. In addition to my expenses, there are other people's expenses. I think we can cut down on the number of people and save some money."

"Kick Sang Shen out. I don't think she's any use to me. I have to waste my money to keep her. It's a big loss."

Nanny Lin looked at me with pity, as if I were a fool.

Ai Shutong couldn't help but ask, "Am I wrong?"

Nanny Lin: "Sang Shen was sent by your mother. If you drive her out, what will you do if your mother sends someone more powerful?"

Ai Shutong gritted her teeth and said, "Sell her."

Nanny Lin: "The indenture is with your mother. How do we sell it?"

Ai Shutong: "We will sell the kidnappers the same way they sold the kidnapped people."

After hearing this, Nanny Lin was shocked, "Gege, who told you this? How did you know about the kidnapper?"

Ai Shutong looked at her helplessly, "You often nag me in my ear, telling me to stay well and not go out, because if I go out I will be kidnapped by kidnappers."

"I've got calluses on my ears from hearing it, who told me that?"

Nanny Lin looked thoughtful. "People with illegal household registration are not worth much. Are you sure you want to sell her?"

Ai Shutong waved her hands and said, "Sell it, sell it."

You really can't blame her for being cruel and ruthless. Sang Shen is too hostile to her, and keeping her is like raising a tiger to harm yourself.

"Since you have no money, then give me the ginseng that Madam Du brought last time. I'll take it to the medicine shop to ask the price and see if I can exchange it for some money."

No matter what she said, she must get the money today.

Nanny Lin looked at the little princess in front of her with a worried look on her face, "Princess, that's a hundred-year-old ginseng, saved for life. It's easy to sell it, but it's hard to buy it again."

Ai Shutong said, "I'm only twelve, and I'm still far from being an old lady. You don't need to keep it to save my life. If you keep it, who knows who will benefit from it."

As he said this, he looked at Nanny Lin meaningfully.

Nanny Lin was shocked, and her heart was in turmoil. She thought to herself that the princess might think she was selfish. It was really unfair. She was doing this for the princess's good...

It seems that I really care too much.

He sighed, turned and left the house, and after a while came back with a red lacquered box. Ai Shutong took the box, opened it and took a look.

Yes, yes, it’s the hundred-year-old ginseng.

"Please lend me two dollars, Madam. I'll pay you back after I sell the ginseng."

Nanny Lin was terrified. "My princess, you are embarrassing me. What's the use of borrowing? Everything in this mansion is yours. I'll get it for you right away."

After dinner, Ai Shutong left the house through the side door without even changing her clothes.

One is born, the second is cooked.

When we arrived at Yongxing Street, we called a rickshaw.

“Which pharmacy nearby is the most reliable?”

The young driver said, "Miss, there is a Heniantang in Caishikou, which is a big pharmacy. It has a good reputation, but it's a bit far."

Ai Shutong affirmed, "Let's go to Heniantang."

Before reaching Caishikou, Ai Shutong saw a large pharmacy on the side of the road called Jundetang.

He immediately asked the driver to stop.

"Wait a minute, I'll go to Junde Hall and come back soon."

After getting off the rickshaw, Ai Shutong went straight to Junde Hall, where an old man with a white beard was taking someone's pulse and five people were queuing up to get medicine.

Seeing that there were few people around the old man with white beard, Ai Shutong walked straight over to him.

After the old man wrote the prescription, he looked up at Ai Shutong, nodded, and motioned for her to sit down.

Ai Shutong didn't hesitate and sat down on the stool.

The old man asked, "What's wrong?"

Ai Shutong: "I'm not here to see a doctor, I'm here to sell medicinal herbs. Do you sell century-old ginseng?"

The old man said calmly: "Take it, as long as it's good, our price is very fair."

Ai Shutong took out a red silk from her handbag, opened it and handed it forward, "How much can you give for something of this quality?"

The old man's eyesight seemed to be not very good. He leaned closer to the ginseng and asked, "Can I take a look at it?"

Ai Shutong pondered for two seconds and nodded, "Okay."

The old man took the red silk and looked at it, then sniffed it.

"Thirty-four dollars."

Ai Shutong shook her head and took the ginseng back. "This is a hundred-year-old ginseng, and you only give me this little. I won't sell it to you."

The old man pondered for a while, then looked up and said, "This price is not low. Most pharmacies can't give you this price. If you think it's too little, I'll give you another dollar. How about thirty-five dollars?"

Ai Shutong shook her head again.

The old man with white beard: "This is the highest price I can offer. If it doesn't work out, you can look somewhere else."

Ai Shutong politely said goodbye to the old man, went out, got on a rickshaw, and headed towards Heniantang.

After a while they arrived at Heniantang. The fare was fifty cents. Ai Shutong clutched her handbag with a distressed look, thinking they were so poor.

Henian Hall is about one-fourth the size of Junde Hall. There are only two middle-aged doctors working inside. There are also many people queuing up to buy medicine. I roughly counted them and there are about twelve or thirteen of them.

She found a doctor's office with few patients and waited in line.

It was her turn more than half an hour later.

Without waiting for the doctor to speak, Ai Shutong asked directly, "Hello, does your pharmacy sell 100-year-old ginseng?"

The doctor was not surprised at all, mainly because there were too many people coming here to sell precious medicinal materials, most of whom were bannermen who could not make ends meet.

"Yes, did you bring it? Let me take a look first."