Wang Cuilan and Pei Baoshan are both very familiar with this sort of thing.

A few days ago, they had already talked to the butcher and asked him to set aside some beef for them.

As luck would have it, there was some available today.

Beef is rare to come by, so they bought more of it than mutton.

Both types of meat are heavy, carried by Jiang Ran and Pei Huai.

Once they bought these, the main items were settled.

After buying the mutton and beef, they also got some pork.

Additionally, seeing fresh fish for sale, they bought a few.

The fish heads could be used for soup, and the meat could be made into fish balls, ensuring nothing would go to waste.

The character for "fresh" combines fish and sheep, and using them together in soup makes the base exceptionally delicious.

Although meat is best for hotpot, they couldn’t just eat meat alone.

Fortunately, there were plenty of dried goods for sale too.

Various kinds of mushrooms, picked in autumn and then sun-dried and sold.

They picked what they liked, also buying some day lilies and sweet potato noodles.

At this time, most sweet potato noodles were thin, making them more flavorful and tastier when cooked.

While buying, they didn’t think it was too much.

But once they finished and looked, they were surprised to find their baskets were all overflowing.

With so much bought, they wouldn’t finish it today, or even in the next few days.

Luckily, the cold weather turned the outdoors into a natural freezer.

Any leftover meat could be stored in the snow.

With their shopping done, they planned to head back.

On their way back, they passed by the cat and dog market, hearing lots of barking and meowing.

Back in their village, they often saw cats and dogs.

After moving to beishi, they saw plenty of dogs but rarely cats.

Hearing a cat’s meow suddenly caught Jiang Ran’s attention.

She had always liked cats but previously didn’t have the time or energy to care for them.

Now things were different, with a large courtyard and family around, they could definitely have a few cats.

As the thought emerged, Jiang Ran chuckled to herself.

She truly was thinking like a wealthy family, not just about one cat, but several.

But with this idea, Jiang Ran decided not to deny herself.

If she wanted a cat, there was no need to hold back.

Just as she intended to head over, she noticed Pei Jing also gazing at the market, his eyes shining.

Seeing Pei Jing like this, Jiang Ran had just one thought.

As expected of mother and son, they think alike!

The group headed straight to the cat and dog market.

Upon entering, they saw all sorts of cats and dogs.

The cats and dogs for sale were mostly local breeds.

Even after walking a few meters, Jiang Ran didn’t spot any expensive breeds.

But that wasn’t important.

Cats are all adorable, and the breed doesn’t matter.

Jiang Ran liked cats, not because of their pedigree.

Catching her eye was enough.

During this cold winter, there weren’t many newborn kittens.

Most for sale were a few months old, along with some adult cats, perhaps being sold just for profit.

Here and there, two or three litters of kittens had just reached one month old, kept in cardboard boxes lined with old clothes, huddled together inside.