Yunyi observed the older sister’s expression. Noticing she harbored no ill intentions, Yunyi asked, "How much do you want?" Upon hearing Yunyi’s tone, the older sister suppressed the surprise on her face, glanced around, and then asked softly, "Do you have ten pounds?" Yunyi nodded. "I’ll bring it to you in a bit." As soon as these words were out, the older sister’s face broke into a beaming smile. "Little sister, you’ve really helped me out a lot." Yunyi raised her hand to stop her. "Seventy cents a pound, non-negotiable." The older sister pondered for a moment. "Okay, I’ll go prepare the money now." She had never eaten wolf meat before, but she’d heard that if it wasn’t prepared well, it could be very gamey. However, there were no other options available right now. If her younger brother’s wedding ceremony lacked any meat, she feared it wouldn’t just be a matter of falling out with her own elder brother and younger brother; it would also be difficult to explain to the Yue Family. She couldn’t afford to worry about all that now. Yunyi pointed in the direction of a nearby alley. "Wait for me there in fifteen minutes." The older sister nodded joyfully, turned, and went back to her workstation to ask for leave. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel•fire.net After all, she couldn’t bring the meat to her workplace—if people asked questions, it would be hard to explain. She thought it best to deliver the meat to her parents’ home first, so her family wouldn’t have to worry about not having meat for the wedding feast anymore. Yunyi had already planned to sell the wolf meat on the black market today. After all, she had quite a lot of it stowed away in her space—thirteen wolves from two hauls, totaling nearly nine hundred pounds of meat. However, only five of the wolf pelts were intact. Three had some damage, but it wasn’t a big issue. Two others were severely damaged, but she figured she could patch them up and line them with cloth to use as makeshift quilted mats. The rest were unusable, but Yunyi didn’t plan to throw them away. They could still be cut into shoe insoles. She intended to do this when she found the time. When the time was about right, she slung her basket onto her back and made her way to the alley. The older sister was already waiting there. The exchange of money for goods went smoothly. Yunyi also took the opportunity to ask about the locations of black markets in the county town. The older sister, grateful for the wolf meat, willingly divulged everything she knew, telling Yunyi the locations of the two black market spots she was aware of. She also explained that one of them was accessible during the day, while the other only had people trading there at night. It was only when Yunyi found the place that she understood the saying, "The most dangerous place is the safest place." This particular spot was not far from the Public Security Bureau. It was just two alleys away. Yunyi didn’t go in right away but observed from a distance for a while. She noted that they even had secret codes for entry; after being verified, one had to pay a dime as an entrance fee. After taking a look around inside, she found there wasn’t the slightest smell of meat. That explained why the older sister from the post office wasn’t picky about the wolf meat. There were vendors selling homespun coarse cloth. Thinking of Yuan Yuxun and his grandfather, Yunyi bought enough of two different colors for them each to have two sets of clothes. Then she also purchased some needles and thread. Seeing someone selling cotton-padded shoes, she bought two pairs each for the grandfather and grandson. She planned to make them look worn so she wouldn’t have to make new ones herself. Upon noticing someone selling buckwheat flour, she bought three pounds and casually asked, "Uncle, do you have any buckwheat seeds?" The man looked up at Yunyi, reached into the basket behind him, and took out a small cloth sack. He opened it and placed it in front of her. "This is all I have. Is it enough?" Yunyi glanced at it. It wasn’t much, barely two handfuls. However, it was enough for her, since she didn’t have much space to plant anyway. She was just thinking of adding some when making dough, so if they had guests over, it wouldn’t stand out so much. She had previously planted some wheat, rice, sorghum, corn, and soybeans in her space. They were almost ready for harvest, which would free up room to plant other things. She hadn’t planted much, but it was enough for her own needs. Plus, she had made a delightful discovery a few days ago: when planting in the crevices of her space, she didn’t need to consider plant spacing. She could plant them close together without affecting the yield. Of course, she still needed to conduct further experiments to confirm this. Seeing that mung beans were for sale, she bought some of those too. Finding nothing else she needed, she was about to leave when she heard low, angry cursing from nearby: "You little rascal! I told you it’s no good, yet you still won’t leave!" Yunyi looked in the direction of the voice. She saw a teenage boy being pushed to the ground. A CLINKING and CLANKING sound came from the torn cloth bag he was holding.