Chapter 11: An Unexpected Encounter with Dai Hengxin

Once Ye Yubin finished speaking, Xiao Yingchun asked with a beaming smile, "When is the fastest batch you can get to me? I need them urgently over there."

Ye Yubin glared at her. "I'll go check for you right now to see exactly how much stock is left."

Ye Yubin went into the house and emerged shortly after with three boxes. "All the current stock is here. Take these back first, and I'll deliver the rest to your convenience store in three days, okay?"

"Great! Thanks, Uncle Ye. How much is it in total? Should I pay you now?"

Ye Yubin glared at her again. "What's the rush? We'll settle the bill all at once after I restock."

"Alright! Uncle Ye, I'll be off then..."

As Xiao Yingchun picked up the three boxes of medicine to leave, Ye Yubin called out to her again. "If you carry them like that, you won't be able to see the road! I'll deliver them to you on my bike."

"Hehehe, thanks, Uncle Ye..." Xiao Yingchun readily allowed Ye Yubin to load the medicine onto his electric scooter and accompanied him back to the supermarket.

After placing the three boxes of medicine in the warehouse and saying goodbye to Ye Yubin, Xiao Yingchun went to the distillery to find Uncle Wu.

Uncle Wu had just sold three hundred catties of strong liquor to Xiao Yingchun yesterday. Seeing her again today, his face lit up with a smile. "What? Little Xiao, are you buying more wine?"

Xiao Yingchun smiled back. "My friend said your wine is good and asked me to come help buy some more. This time, I need two thousand catties."

For a crowd of ten thousand people, if everyone had about two taels, that should be roughly enough, right?

Uncle Wu doubted his hearing. "Two thousand catties?"

Xiao Yingchun nodded. "Something stronger."

If the alcohol content was too low, people would drink more. It was better to have a higher proof so that two taels per person would be sufficient.

Uncle Wu's face flushed with excitement. "This one is fifty-six percent. Why don't you taste it and see if it's good?"

Xiao Yingchun waved her hands repeatedly; she had no interest in alcohol.

The stuff burned all the way from the mouth to the stomach—what was so good about it?

Uncle Wu didn't push. He charged ten yuan per catty. Xiao Yingchun had him pack it into plastic buckets to be delivered to the convenience store, then she headed home first.

She had previously called to order instant noodles and needed to be home to receive the delivery.

Once the supermarket doors were open, Xiao Yingchun pulled out a lounge chair and sat by the entrance, beginning her life as a shopkeeper.

It was a cloudy day, and there was a breeze at the entrance, so it wasn't too hot.

She pulled out her phone to scroll through videos, only to be stunned to find that most of the content being pushed to her consisted of ancient antiques, silver ingots, jewelry, and similar items.

It seemed she had been captured by the big data after searching for the prices of silver and gold ingots online earlier.

Xiao Yingchun mused: *Big data really knows me.*

After selling a few packs of cigarettes and some bottles of water midway through, she was intently looking up the prices of ancient jewelry when she suddenly heard a surprised male voice: "Beauty, is that you?"

Xiao Yingchun looked up and was startled to find a tall, handsome man wearing gold-rimmed glasses standing before her, looking down at her.

It was Dai Hengxin, the pawnshop owner.

Dai Hengxin's face was full of pleasant surprise. "Do you live nearby? Why haven't I seen you before?"

Xiao Yingchun pointed toward the urban village. "Are you from around here too?"

*I haven't seen you either!*

Dai Hengxin shook his head. "My grandfather lives here. I'm here to visit him, but I didn't expect to spot you at a single glance."

"Who is your grandfather?"

"His name is Zhao Jiping."

Alarm bells rang in Xiao Yingchun's heart: *Oh crap, Dai Hengxin is actually Grandpa Zhao's grandson!*

If Dai Hengxin asked Grandpa Zhao about her, she would likely be exposed.

After all, the elderly in the urban village knew everyone's situation. Her parents were just ordinary people; where would they get family heirlooms like gold and silver ingots to pass down?!

Xiao Yingchun gave a forced laugh and offered a half-hearted warning: "Everyone in the village knows each other, so don't go telling people that I'm selling things to you."

"Okay." Dai Hengxin agreed without a second thought and proactively explained, "In our line of work, the most important thing is keeping a tight mouth. I won't go poking around where I shouldn't."

Xiao Yingchun nodded, though she wasn't entirely reassured. "Then I can rest easy."

Seeing that Xiao Yingchun had nothing more to say, Dai Hengxin nodded and took his leave.

Now, Xiao Yingchun lost even the desire to scroll through videos, staring blankly at the road.

What should she do with the subsequent gold and silver ingots?

Should she still sell them to Dai Hengxin?

What if someone asked where she got these things?

What if the police came knocking? How would she explain it?

She had money in her pocket, but she didn't dare cash it in.

*Who understands this kind of pain, fam!*

Xiao Yingchun scratched her head.

It wasn't until Uncle Liang's delivery truck pulled up to the convenience store that Xiao Yingchun snapped out of it. "Uncle Liang, you're here..."

"Open up, I'll put them in the warehouse for you." Uncle Liang skillfully reversed the truck, aligning the rear with the warehouse entrance.

Xiao Yingchun opened the door and let him load the instant noodles and water inside.

While waiting for Xiao Yingchun to settle the payment after unloading, Uncle Liang wiped his sweat and shared the latest news.

"I heard those four are planning to sue your aunt. They all came by yesterday, right? Nothing happened, did it?"

After verifying the amount, Xiao Yingchun transferred the money to Uncle Liang.

"What could happen? I made myself clear and showed them the contract. They had nothing left to say."

Uncle Liang hesitated, but finally spoke up: "They didn't say you'd order from them in the future?"

Xiao Yingchun looked at him in surprise. "How did you know?"

Uncle Liang gave an awkward laugh. "Someone told me."

Xiao Yingchun nodded, not avoiding the topic. "We've had a relationship for years. If I need anything, I'll definitely come to you first. If you don't have it, I'll ask them."

There was no reason she couldn't even ask. After all, there was no exclusive supply contract.

Uncle Liang nodded. "I understand! I understand."

Though he said he understood, his face remained awkward.

Without further explanation, Xiao Yingchun pointed to her phone. "I've transferred the payment. I'll call you next time I need something."

"Alright! I'm off then..."

After Uncle Liang left, Uncle Wu's wine arrived and was all placed in the warehouse.

With everything ready, Xiao Yingchun estimated the time was right, closed the front door, hung a sign that read "Owner Out, Call if Needed," and opened the back door.

The Spacetime Supermarket was open for business once again.

Not long after, Fu Chen'an entered, carrying a box of gold ingots.

Meeting Fu Chen'an's gaze, Xiao Yingchun proactively pointed to the items she had placed by the back door.

Both small flatbed trolleys were full: boxes of instant noodles were stacked high, and buckets of wine were lined up.

The rest were also beside the trolleys.

Fu Chen'an didn't take the goods first; instead, he handed the gold ingots to Xiao Yingchun to confirm the quantity.

Three hundred taels of gold would serve as the payment for this batch of medicine and wine.

Xiao Yingchun expressed her satisfaction and told Fu Chen'an, "Don't give me silver in the future. I only want gold ingots, and they must be whole, without dents or deformities, and with official stamps."

Fu Chen'an agreed immediately. "No problem."

From this house seizure, a total of hundreds of thousands of taels of silver and thousands of taels of gold had been confiscated from the wealthy households.

It was enough to buy goods from the Spacetime Supermarket many times over.

The instant noodles were easy to count, but the two thousand catties of wine exceeded his expectations. "One bowl of this per person and it'll be gone. Can I ask for more?"

Xiao Yingchun didn't explain; she simply opened one of the buckets and poured a little out. "Want a taste?"

Fu Chen'an took a sip, and in the next second, his facial features crumpled into a grimace.

The wine was too strong; he hadn't been prepared.