Chapter 2: Going to the Market

Lunar calendar, October 12th, coinciding with the bustling market day of Shiliyinying Township.

“Tofu~~~”

“Cabbage’s cheap now!”

“Radishes, freshly dug big radishes!”

On the coal-dust-covered road, thick with yellow grime, the crowd surged tightly among the stalls.

Voices hawking goods, bargaining calls, the chopping of meat, the ringing of bicycle bells—all blended into an endless hum.

Big Brother strode forward, carrying a woven basket on his shoulder, using sheer force to part the crowd.

His fierce and grim visage rivaled that of Li Kui or Zhang Fei, inspiring fear and silence from the onlookers, many even stepping aside at a distance.

Yu Yang pretended not to recognize him and quietly followed behind, admiring Big Brother’s commanding presence while scouting for an empty stall.

Fortunately, by midday, some farmers who had sold out their vegetables began stacking bricks and packing up to leave.

Yu Yang beckoned Big Brother to a vacant spot near a restaurant. As soon as they set down the basket, someone called out.

“Isn’t that Yu Yang?”

“Hey, Second Uncle, here at the market!”

“Yeah! Hey, where did you get those soybean sprouts? It’s deep winter; they just can’t grow here.”

Yu Yang had prepared a story on the way and casually replied, “There was an accident on the westbound highway. I happened to be gathering firewood nearby and rescued the driver.”

The East Mountain area where Shiliyinying lies loves building roads.

To the west of the Yu family village, a newly finished highway had just opened.

When it was being built, the village was ecstatic, hoping their hometown would be well-connected.

The land acquisition was smooth, and simple villagers even volunteered to help lay the roadbed.

But once completed, the highway left only a bridge tunnel three meters high.

And whenever the wind blew or rain fell, the tunnel would flood to a meter deep.

Yu Yang continued, “I pulled the driver out. His truck was broken beyond repair, so to thank me and mitigate his losses, he asked me to sell these bean sprouts.”

“I tell you, these are out-of-season vegetables, shipped to Walmart in the capital for the officials’ tables.”

Second Uncle and the curious crowd gathering around the sprouts were stunned speechless.

One young woman nearby asked with curiosity, “What’s Walmart?”

“It’s a big foreign supermarket chain in the capital where city folks shop. There’s also Metro, Carrefour, and RT-Mart.”

Yu Yang didn’t want to get bogged down in details since he wasn’t sure if those stores still existed in the capital now. “Anyway, these are premium goods. If you don’t buy today, you won’t have another chance until summer.”

“How much?”

“See those? Each piece is about the size of two palms, only two yuan.”

“Two yuan? I’d rather buy two meat buns to satisfy my hunger.”

“Meat buns you can buy anytime. But if you miss these, you’ll have to wait till summer.”

Yu Yang held up the fresh green soybean sprouts. “New Year’s is near, relatives will come over. When setting the table, just drop a chunk of lard into the wok, sprinkle scallions and red chili, stir-fry briefly with a few slices of garlic—ah, the flavor, the texture! Especially in winter when there’s barely a hint of green. That’s what I call ‘having face’!”

“You speak straight from the heart,” Second Uncle said, handing over the money on the spot.

In 1998, two yuan still held considerable purchasing power.

You could buy two baskets of small meat buns or four pounds of steamed bread.

Not like in another timeline, where it might cover just one bus ride or two steamed buns.

But scarcity makes value.

In winter, these lush green sprouts were truly worth the price.

Yu Yang wasn’t worried about people’s ability to pay. At worst, he could take Big Brother to the town or even to the county to sell.

Of course, Second Uncle’s money had to be collected too.

Otherwise, if word got out, with relatives nagging, the whole township might come running to ask for handouts.

After Second Uncle left,

the restaurant owner nearby, watching the scene, squeezed through the crowd and said, “By chance, I have a few tables tonight. Give me ten yuan’s worth.”

Yu Yang promptly picked out five large pieces and handed them over.

Soon, the young woman who had asked about Walmart unfolded a handkerchief and counted two one-yuan coins.

“My boyfriend just came back from working in the northeast. I’ll fry a dish for him tonight.”

“That’s love. Next year, you’ll be blessed with a chubby baby.”

“Give me a piece too.”

---

Yu Yang busied himself for a while. Seeing the growing crowd but fewer buyers, he had Big Brother shoulder the basket and venture deeper into the market.

They found a vacant spot near a mutton soup shop and resumed hawking.

After a while, the mutton shop owner bought a large bag to take away.

This repeated at the pickled vegetable stall, the donkey meat restaurant, the corner building eatery...

By the time they reached the market’s midpoint, all four woven baskets were sold out.

Yu Yang checked a nearby barber’s clock; it was not yet two in the afternoon.

Rubbing his hungry belly, he counted the money in the baskets.

The bean sprouts covered a heated kang bed about six square meters in area, torn into squares roughly 20 by 20 centimeters, totaling 150 pieces.

At two yuan each, the earnings reached three hundred yuan.

“This is just the beginning!”

Elated, Yu Yang spent ten yuan on ten meat buns, planning to eat half now and save the rest for the evening.

Unexpectedly, after only a few steps, Big Brother devoured them all single-handedly.

“Hey, give me fifty yuan’s worth of meat buns.”

“Freshly made, you’ll have to wait a bit.”

While waiting, Yu Yang bought several carrying poles and scouted for a dozen large woven baskets.

Bean sprouts aren’t like bean sprouts.

Bean sprouts are a tangled mess; you just toss them into a basket.

Bean sprouts must not be compressed; they need to be layered, or they look unappealing.

With the large baskets, Big Brother could make bamboo trays of various sizes to stack the sprouts from the bottom up, layer by layer, making them easier to take out when selling.

“Better get some plastic wrap too, so we can make sure buyers store the sprouts in their cellars and they stay fresh for three to five days.”

Unfortunately, after wandering around, Yu Yang only found plastic sheeting used for warming cotton seedlings.

But it was toxic and unsuitable for preserving food.

“Looks like I’ll have to make a trip to the county after all.”

Returning to the fried meat bun stall, fifty buns were packed into two plastic bags.

Yu Yang bent down, counting the money in the basket: “One, two, three...”

When he reached forty-two, someone greeted him.

“Hey, Sanyuan, here at the market?”

Sanyuan was Yu Yang’s childhood nickname.

Legend has it that on the day he was born, a big monk came begging. To please him, Grandpa gave the monk three jin of grain coupons and three yuan in cash.

The monk beamed and said the child was destined to be connected with the number three, bestowing the name Sanyuan.

Grandpa understood upon seeing the three yuan and passed the nickname down to the boy.

In another world, the rustic nickname gradually became a memory with growing age, schooling, and working in the city.

Hearing it again now sent a small thrill through Yu Yang.

He put down the grain coupon and looked over.

It was none other than his own uncle, Yu Lao Liu.

“Uncle Liu, haven’t gone home yet?”

“Just strolling. How’s your bean sprout business?”

“Not bad. Shouldn’t take long to pay off the debts.”

“Really?” Uncle Liu glanced at the two large bags of meat buns. “Why so many?”

“To celebrate after asking two technicians to help with sprout soaking,” Yu Yang patted Big Brother’s shoulder. “They deserve a treat.”

“Technicians for soaking sprouts?”

“What’s most important in the 21st century?”

“What?”

“Talent!”

“???”

“Let’s go.”

Yu Lao Liu watched Yu Yang leave, took a drag from his dry tobacco roll, his eyes slightly glazed, muttering, “Can soaking sprouts really be that profitable?”

The meat bun stall owner’s wife, kneading dough nearby, looked up and said, “Didn’t you see that half basket full of grain coupons?”

---

“With my years of experience, that’s at least three hundred yuan,” the meat bun vendor pouted.

The fried dough stick vendor shook his head, “I saw it too. He’s not selling just sprouts, but lush green bean sprouts, palm-sized pieces at two yuan each. That’s easily over a thousand yuan a day’s profit.”

“Wow!” The meat bun couple exclaimed in unison.

Yu Lao Liu’s eyes widened instantly.

---

Back at Yu family village, it was already three in the afternoon.

Several elderly were sitting at the village entrance, basking in the sun.

The bank’s sedan was still missing its wheels.

The bank had called the township police, who brought two officers.

One officer, seeing Yu Yang, approached and asked, “What’s your business here?”

“His name is Yu Yang, nickname Sanyuan, from our village,” nearby Second Granny replied, tapping her shoe sole.

“And him?” The officer pointed at Big Brother Zhao Qian.

“Don’t know,” she said with a sigh. “Look at his build, like a young ox—honest and trustworthy.”

Yu Yang was about to make something up when Big Brother spoke first, “I’m Zhao Qian, a vegetable deliveryman.”

The officer was curious, “Vegetable delivery?”

“Yeah, to Walmart in the capital.”

“What’s Walmart?”

“A foreign big supermarket chain in the capital where city folks shop. There’s also Metro, Carrefour, RT-Mart.”

Yu Yang: “???”

Was this really just improvised on the spot?

The officer fell silent for a moment, then asked, “Why come here?”

“Truck overturned on the west highway.”

“How did it happen?”

“Don’t know, just flipped while driving.”

“What about the truck?”

“The sedan’s okay except it lost four wheels. I’m the unlucky one—after the crash, I woke up and the frame was gone.”

Bank staff at the scene found it hard to believe, “Is Shiliyinying really that chaotic?”

Grandpa San, squatting in a corner smoking, nodded, “You bet. At the junction of three provinces and four cities, criminals from neighboring provinces often come, steal, and run. No one catches them, or else the saying wouldn’t exist.”

“What saying?”

“Once you enter Shiliyinying, except for ambulances and hearses, no vehicle leaves intact.”

The bank staff was shocked, “Not even police cars?”

“You think that’s why they come on foot? Not even riding bicycles?”

The officer felt awkward, “It’s not that bad. Our public security is pretty good.”

Changing the subject, he asked Big Brother Zhao Qian, “Do you have ID?”

Zhao Qian pulled out a printed ID with handwritten additions.

“From Beihe?”

“Yes. I have a colleague from Nanhu. We both deliver vegetables to the capital and currently stay at Yu Yang’s house.”

“Do you know Yu Yang?”

“No, after the crash, he saved me.”

The officer didn’t ask why no report was filed, but instead asked, “What are your plans now?”

“Truck’s gone, most of the vegetables stolen. We don’t dare go back immediately. We’ll take it step by step.”

“Alright, you two come to the Shiliyinying police station soon to get temporary residence permits.”

“Understood, officer.”

Watching Big Brother answer smoothly, Yu Yang recalled his earlier reticence and felt that his brother had gained much insight from this trip.

He decided immediately to take Second Brother out for a stroll tomorrow.