Chapter 17: Barter ( 1 )

Chapter 17: Barter ( 1 ) The young man turned to Yao Zhi and asked, "Miss, where did you get these grains?"

"Why? Is there something wrong with them?" Yao Zhi asked in confusion.

This rice shouldn’t have any problem since she bought it from the system’s shop. She had also eaten it before. Not only was it safe for consumption, but it also tasted very good.

The young man leaned closer to her and whispered, "Miss, I meant to exchange coarse grains with you. These grains are too expensive."

Although he was illiterate, he knew that grains of this quality were not something a commoner like this woman could get. Even if she told him it was tribute grain, he would believe her.

"You didn’t say coarse grains, so I thought you wanted rice," Yao Zhi frowned.

When he heard this, the young man stared at her for a moment before asking, "Miss, do you have more grains?"

Meeting his gaze, Yao Zhi shook her head and said, "That’s all I have."

The young man was disappointed when he heard Yao Zhi’s words. He had planned to exchange these grains for coarse grains later. With this quality, he would be able to exchange at least ten jin of coarse grains for one jin of rice.

Noticing his calculating gaze, Yao Zhi frowned and said, "If you don’t want it, then we can forget the trade."

Seeing that she was wary of him, the young man quickly said, "Miss, the price of this rice is several times higher than coarse grains. It’s unfair for you. How about I give you five more jin of meat?"

Yao Zhi didn’t believe in free lunches, so after hearing his offer, she already guessed his intention. She pretended to be naïve and nodded. "Then I won’t be polite. Thank you!"

The young man was relieved to see her agree and added, "Miss, if you have more grains in the future, remember to find me in this place."

"Okay."

While she agreed readily, Yao Zhi had already made up her mind to disguise herself so this man wouldn’t recognize her next time she came to the border market.

Half an hour later, the young man finished slicing the meat jerky and weighed it for her. After wrapping the meat with oil paper, he handed it to her and said, "Please come again next time, Miss."

Yao Zhi placed the meat in her bamboo basket and nodded. After leaving the stall, she used the bamboo basket as a cover and stored the meat jerky into her warehouse.

She strolled for another fifteen minutes before she saw a carriage parked at the end of the road. Unlike other merchants who promoted their goods actively, the owner of the carriage sat to the side with his eyes closed.

Feeling curious, Yao Zhi walked over. The moment she saw the goods on the carriage and the wooden stall, her eyes lit up.

While she was looking at the goods, the owner suddenly said, "Miss, these are the spices and seeds I obtained from the island across the sea. They’re rare and expensive, so I only accept barter."

Yao Zhi checked the seeds for a moment and asked, "Sir, do you have any specific item you want?"

Hearing this, the owner finally opened his eyes and looked at her. He observed her for a moment before saying, "I only want medicine."

"Medicine?" Yao Zhi was taken aback by his words.

After a moment of pause, she said, "Sir, what kind of medicine do you want?"

"My wife was poisoned when she was young. When the weather is too hot or too cold, her illness flares up, and she has trouble breathing. Sometimes, she faints and convulses when her illness gets worse."

Yao Zhi thought for a long time and asked, "Sir, when your wife convulses, does she clench her jaw and foam form at her mouth?"

When the man heard this, his eyes lit up instantly. "That’s precisely so! Miss, do you have the medicine to cure her illness?"

From the symptoms, it seemed that the owner’s wife was suffering from epilepsy. There was no cure for epilepsy, but they could prevent the seizure with medication.

Yao Zhi shook her head and said, "This illness has no cure. At most, we can only prevent the seizure."

When the stall owner heard this, the light in his eyes dimmed. But after a moment, he regained his composure and asked, "Miss, do you have any way to prevent the seizure?"

"From what I heard before, besides taking medicine, having enough rest, avoiding skipping meals, avoiding excess alcohol, and maintaining a healthy, balanced life could prevent seizures," Yao Zhi replied.

The owner nodded and said, "Thank you for sharing this information with me, Miss."

"I can’t help with your wife’s illness. Do you want anything else?" Yao Zhi asked.

The owner’s main purpose in coming to the border market was to find a way to treat his wife’s illness. Since there was no cure for the illness, he said, "I don’t have anything I want. If you want to exchange, you can show me your items."

Since the owner had no specific request, Yao Zhi pulled away the fabric covering the eggs and said, "I only have this. Do you want it?"

The owner looked at the chicken eggs in the basket and said, "While the size and quality of these eggs are better than the ones sold by others, it’s still not enough to exchange for my things."

Hearing this, Yao Zhi thought for a moment and reached into her sleeve. Using her sleeve as a cover, she took out a piece of soap bar from her shop’s warehouse.

"How about this?" she asked.

As a wandering merchant, the owner had seen a lot of things. With just one look, he could guess that the blue block was a soap bar.

Reaching out, he took the soap bar and observed it closely. Unlike the soap bars sold in the major cities, this one had a smoother surface and a faint floral fragrance.