I traveled back to ancient times, but I was able to lie down and relax.

Dinner was eaten in the main room.

After the meal, Liu Nanjia pulled the two of them aside to take stock of all their current assets.

First, let's calculate the money. There's 60 coins they earned from collecting herbs, plus one string of cash they received from the family division, totaling 1060 coins.

He immediately spent some more money to buy medicine for his younger sister.

Yesterday at noon, I missed taking one dose of medicine. In the morning, Dr. Li insisted on not charging me for the dose he gave me, but in the end, he charged me 130 coins.

So they now have 930 coins.

There were 50 jin of grain. Liu Nanjia estimated that, based on the three of them's appetites, if they ate sparingly and also included the wild vegetables they could find, it should be enough to last them two months.

"Brother, I want to raise a few chickens in the backyard so we can have eggs to eat regularly," Liu Nanjia discussed with her brother.

Meat and milk are too expensive to afford, and relying on catching wild rabbits in the mountains is too unreliable.

Therefore, eggs are the easiest food for them to obtain to supplement their protein intake.

The three siblings are still growing, and they can't just eat vegetables and whole grains.

Liu Yanxi agreed, "Okay, I'll build a fence in the backyard tomorrow."

“Then I’ll go to town tomorrow to buy some.” Liu Nanjia was very satisfied with her brother’s reaction.

“I can feed the chickens from now on!” Liu Sirou said.

After discussing what they needed to buy the next day, the group went back to their rooms to sleep.

The next morning, after having breakfast, Liu Nanjia went to town with Aunt Wang. This matter had been agreed upon the day before.

The nearest town to Dushui Village is Anping Town, located to the west of the village. Villagers usually go there to buy things.

The journey wasn't far, and more importantly, to save money, Liu Nanjia and her friends walked there.

After walking for about half an hour, we arrived at the town.

Anping Town isn't large, but it's quite lively. The main road is lined with all sorts of shops selling everything imaginable. Some shops even have vendors calling out, "We've got some new dishes today, come and take a look if you're passing by!"

Aunt Wang had been here quite a few times and was fairly familiar with the place. She took Liu Nanjia to the grain and oil shop first, not to buy grain, but to buy salt and oil.

There was no other way; seasonings were scarce these days, and if even these two were unavailable, Liu Nanjia would find it difficult to swallow.

During her time here, every meal was torture for her; she had to eat to survive.

When asked, Liu Nanjia was shocked.

She knew that salt was expensive at this time, but she didn't expect it to be this expensive, costing 60 wen per jin.

After hesitating for a long time, Liu Nanjia finally bought half a pound of vegetables with a heavy heart, because she really couldn't stand the tasteless vegetables anymore.

Then I bought another pound of oil. I couldn't bear to buy lard because it was too expensive, so I bought sesame oil instead. Although the taste is not as good, I have no choice but to make do with it now.

There were also condiments such as soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar available at this time, and Liu Nanjia bought a little of each.

I also bought some Sichuan peppercorns and dogwood. I don't have any chili peppers, so I'll mainly rely on them to add spiciness now.

When Liu Nanjia finally left the grain and oil shop, she had spent a total of 70 coins, which made her feel very distressed.

Aunt Wang also clicked her tongue in amazement, "Nan Jia, why did you buy so many kinds of seasonings? Soy sauce is enough for everyday use."

“These things are durable. I bought them all today, so it looks like I have a lot,” Liu Nanjia replied.

“We haven’t been able to eat properly for the past two years, and we can’t buy meat often, so I was thinking that at least we should make the food taste better.”

Liu Nanjia wasn't wrong; that's exactly what she thought.

But more importantly, she was used to the wide variety of modern cuisine and simply couldn't stand the bland food she used to eat at the Liu family's house; the difference was too great.

Now that I can make my own decisions, I naturally want to improve things as much as possible.

Aunt Wang didn't say anything more after hearing this, and led her to find a place to buy chickens.

There were no shops in town that sold chickens, so they went to the market to look for some.

This market area is specifically designated for street vendors. Villagers from nearby areas often push their carts here to sell their goods, paying only a stall fee.

So you can find all sorts of things for sale: vegetables, eggs, handicrafts, handkerchiefs, and wild game hunted from the mountains.

They arrived at a good time today; there happened to be a chicken stall nearby.

Aunt Wang led Liu Nanjia over and started asking the price: "Young man, how much are your chickens?"

The vendor was quite enthusiastic, "It depends on what you want to buy. A young hen that can lay eggs is 50 coins each."

"50 coins? That's not cheap," Aunt Wang thought the price was a bit too high.

“My chickens are all very well raised. And the ones that lay eggs are indeed more expensive. If you want to kill them for food, then buy a rooster, it will be cheaper.”

After some haggling with the vendor, Aunt Wang finally bought two hens and four chicks for 110 coins.

Liu Nanjia couldn't help but sigh, "Money is hard to earn, but it's so easy to spend it."

Afterwards, the two of them bought some things that Aunt Wang needed.

Liu Nanjia hesitated for a while at the butcher shop, but still couldn't bear to sell the meat. However, all of them needed to replenish their bodies, so in the end they spent 10 coins to buy some bones to make soup when they got home.

She actually wanted to buy paper, pens, and books, but when she asked, she found out that a thin book cost more than 100 coins, which scared her so much that she left quickly.

On the way back, Liu Nanjia asked Aunt Wang in detail how to raise chickens, especially chicks, as she had never raised them before and was afraid that she might accidentally kill them.

The two chatted about raising chickens as they walked back to the village.

Back home, Liu Yanxi was clumsily preparing dinner.

Seeing his clueless expression, Liu Nanjia burst out laughing.

"Brother, let me do it. You go and settle the chickens I bought."

She also repeated the points that Aunt Wang had told her to pay attention to.

Liu Yanxi scratched his head, feeling a little embarrassed, and took Sirou to settle the chicks.

Yes, Liu Sirou has been taking medicine for two days and is feeling much better.

She fell in love with the fluffy little chicks as soon as she saw them and insisted on making a home for them herself.

Tonight's dinner was even more lavish than yesterday's.

Although it was just bone broth with not much meat, it was still different from the vegetarian dishes I used to be able to eat.

The staple food is still wild vegetable pancakes, but today we have oil and salt, so the taste is much better.

Liu Yanxi and Liu Nanjia ate with shining eyes, praising Liu Nanjia to the point that she became a little embarrassed.

I thought to myself, if they were to taste modern cuisine, they would rave about it.

While eating, Liu Nanjia told them about her experiences in town that day. If Liu Sirou hadn't been completely healed, they would have wanted to go too.

After discussing the prices in town and how much they had spent that day, the three of them sighed together, lamenting that they had so little money.

Including the vegetables I bought at the end, the total cost was 200 coins.

This is even without having bought many things yet.

It seems that money is very important no matter where you are.