An Ning arrived at the alley where the goods were sold and knocked on the door in a specific pattern.

"KNOCK... KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK."

"CREAK—"

"Brother Fatty! The Beheading Sis is here—here here here—here here here here here—"

The underling who opened the door had let the wrong words slip out. Scared witless, he simply launched into a song and dance for An Ning.

His expression was exaggerated, his arms and legs flailed about, and his singing was thunderous.

Outside, An Ning took a step back and glanced skeptically at the door number. It was the right one.

’Then this must be some special quirk of the person inside.’

"Excuse me, please let me through. I’m looking for Fatty."

Just then, Brother Fatty himself ran out of the house and planted a kick right on the butt of his singing and dancing underling.

"Go back and practice! You’re an embarrassment! Is this the kind of performance you put on for our esteemed guests?!"

"Sorry, Brother Fatty! I’ll go practice!"

The two put on a well-rehearsed act, making it look incredibly real. Brother Fatty didn’t expect An Ning to actually believe it; he was just using this as a way to smooth things over.

But who would have thought he’d run into the relentlessly direct An Ning?

"His performance could indeed use some work. His voice cracked in several places."

"Hehehe, you’re funny. The little lady has a great sense of humor."

An Ning walked into the courtyard, leaving Brother Fatty with a look on his face like he was questioning his own existence.

"What brings you here today? You got more goods?"

"No. I’m looking for you."

An Ning, who had her back to Brother Fatty, suddenly spun around and stared straight at him.

Behind her, Brother Fatty instinctively straightened his back. Nowadays, just the sight of An Ning made his neck ache.

They had all inspected the wounds on those wild boars. Every single one was a clean cut, made with a single strike. There was no hesitation, no nicks—the cuts were perfectly smooth.

’With that kind of strength, she could probably knock me flat with one finger.’

"If you need something, little lady, just say it. I’ll help if I can."

Brother Fatty’s attitude was extremely friendly, though he definitely wouldn’t help with something he couldn’t handle.

"My surname is An. Could you stop calling me ’little lady’?"

An Ning wasn’t used to people calling her that. She continued, "I want to buy some ration coupons from you."

"Ration coupons? A small matter, a small matter! Mr. An... just a moment."

Brother Fatty had finally found a somewhat suitable form of address. He turned to find the coupons, which really wasn’t a big deal for him.

Less than two minutes later, Brother Fatty came back out holding a wooden box, which he placed on a stone table in the courtyard.

"Mr. An, take a look. Pick out whatever you need."

An Ning stepped forward. The box on the table was filled to the brim with coupons.

She sifted through them, placing all the ones she wanted on the table.

"How much for these?"

An Ning had no intention of taking them for free.

’Her teacher had once said that if someone seeks no profit, their true ambitions must be immense.’

’So, it was better to stick to a simple exchange of benefits.’

And Brother Fatty, being able to run a business like this, was naturally no fool.

"Let me see, I’ll add it up for you."

Brother Fatty picked up the coupons from the table and inspected them from top to bottom, not missing a single one.

"How about this, just give me one hundred yuan. I owe a lot of my success with today’s batch of wild boars to you, Mr. An. Let’s keep this relationship going. If you get any more good stuff in the future, I hope you’ll bring it to Brother Fatty."

An Ning had no idea how much the coupons were worth, but thinking about her family’s work points for an entire year, she nodded at Brother Fatty.

"Alright. I forgot about the ginseng you mentioned. I’ll go look for some on the mountain in a couple of days."

It wasn’t until she was in the courtyard that An Ning remembered she was supposed to look for ginseng.

"That would be great! If you ask me, if anyone can find ginseng, it’s gotta be Mr. An."

The two completed their satisfying exchange. An Ning took the coupons, left the courtyard, and headed for the supply and marketing cooperative in town.

When she entered the cooperative this time, An Ning headed straight to the second floor as if she knew the place well.

She knew from her last visit that the big-ticket items were on the second floor.

As luck would have it, An Ning once again ran into the man with the kind smile who had helped her pick out a gift last time.

The thought of gifts reminded her that she still hadn’t given the fountain pen she’d bought to Jiang Xia.

But Lin Cuihua had said he’d already been thanked, so An Ning was still thinking it over.

"Comrade, what are you looking for today? Everything up here requires coupons."

"I know."

An Ning looked around, then pointed to a bicycle and asked, "How much is this?"

The cooperative director, Zhu Jianshe, was surprised that An Ning would ask about a big-ticket item right away.

"That’s a Phoenix brand, 28-inch frame model. One hundred seventy-five yuan. But you need a bicycle coupon. You can’t buy it without one."

An Ning nodded and said directly, "I’ll take one."

"Huh—what?"

Zhu Jianshe looked at An Ning in disbelief. ’Did she say she wanted one?’

"I’m buying it. I have the coupon."

An Ning pulled the coupons from her pocket and waved them at Zhu Jianshe. His jaw nearly dropped as he stammered, "Good, good, good."

"I’ll write you a receipt right away."

"Wait. I also want two watches—one men’s and one women’s. And those large iron barrels. I’ll take two of those, too."

Zhu Jianshe never imagined that a village girl in slightly tattered clothes could have such financial means.

He had already been a bit shocked when she bought a thank-you gift last time. This time, his jaw was about to hit the floor.

Regardless, An Ning got the few things she needed.

A Plum Blossom watch for eighty yuan, a men’s watch for one hundred twenty, and the large iron barrels An Ning needed—she got them all.

Finished with the second floor, An Ning went downstairs.

She went to the daily necessities counter. Liberation-brand rubber shoes—one pair for each of the men in her family, for working in the fields.

Scented soap for washing hands, thirty cents a bar, and laundry soap, thirty-six cents a bar. She bought two of each. No more need to use soap beans or plant ash for laundry.

Not only that, but she also bought a jar of Friendship brand vanishing cream for both Lin Cuihua and Zhou Guifen.

An Ning spent money like water, making many people both envious and jealous. ’Does her money grow on trees?’

Whether it grew on trees was unknown, but for An Ning, earning it certainly hadn’t been difficult.

An Ning also bought a few undergarments for herself and two pairs of socks for everyone in her family. As for outerwear, they had fabric at home, so she couldn’t buy any.

She had promised Lin Cuihua she wouldn’t buy useless things.

After buying the daily necessities, An Ning also bought white sugar, rock sugar, and brown sugar—a jin of each.

Luckily, she also found a butcher’s stall with a few large soup bones left, which still had quite a bit of meat on them. An Ning bought the whole lot to take home and gnaw on.

An Ning did one last lap around the cooperative, felt she had bought pretty much everything, and then pushed her newly registered bicycle out the door.

A full basket was slung over her back, while a pipe and two large iron barrels were tied to the back of her bicycle. She had just lifted one leg to get on.

"Go to hell!"

A disheveled woman with hair in her face rushed forward, holding a bottle of unknown liquid, and tried to splash it on An Ning’s face.