Chapter 5: The Butterfly Effect of Altering the Plot

Everyone knows a deal is a one-time transaction; you can’t say “next time” this time.

But since it’s better to deal with a smiling face, Lin Xiang smiled beautifully and called him “brother,” thanking him for his hard work. Compared to the couple who stubbornly refused to pay more and even called him shameless, this made Huang Laizi feel much better.

After all, he was no stranger to being scolded by the villagers for his shameless behavior.

So what if that was the case? If they had the guts, they could learn from him!

If he could earn this shameless money, then he deserved it!

“Fine! I’ll sell you two tablets!” Huang Laizi accepted Lin Xiang’s twenty cents with a hint of revenge and handed over the two anti-inflammatory tablets in front of the couple.

“Thank you, Brother Huang! I’ll have my brother thank you another day!” Lin Xiang took the medicine and hurried off.

As expected, the couple was not satisfied. “You sell her one dime each, but charge us fifteen cents per tablet? Isn’t that cheating?”

“So what? She’s polite! I’m happy to sell to her for a dime!” Huang Laizi said matter-of-factly.

The couple’s expressions changed repeatedly before finally giving in and paying.

“Alright! Fifteen cents it is!”

But the next moment, Huang Laizi gloatingly said, “Now it’s not fifteen cents anymore, it’s twenty!”

There was another round of bickering.

*

Lin Xiang held the two tablets.

One was bought for Lin Yun, since the book said he would have a fever for three days. She feared one tablet wouldn’t be enough, so she bought an extra for emergencies.

After walking for more than ten minutes, someone behind her called out, panting.

“Miss, wait.”

Turning around, it was the couple holding the child earlier.

“Miss, you have two anti-inflammatory tablets. Could you sell us one? The child is seriously ill; it’s been two days, and he’s burning up. We’re really desperate,” the man said, noticing Lin Xiang’s better mood now.

After all, they had been trounced earlier.

They didn’t know the original owner and knew she wasn’t from the same village.

The Lihua Brigade included four or five nearby villages, the farthest being over ten miles through the mountains, so not everyone had seen each other.

Seeing the child’s flushed face, Lin Xiang felt compassion.

Since she was able to buy tablets at eleven cents each thanks to the couple’s scolding of Huang Laizi, she could easily make a few cents reselling one.

But as she reached for the medicine, Lin Xiang remembered something.

Her eyes darted. “I can sell you one, but it’ll be fifteen cents a tablet…”

The same price as Huang Laizi, but from Lin Xiang, it was somehow more acceptable.

Just as they were about to pay, Lin Xiang added, “If you have any money-making news to share, I can sell it to you at eleven cents a tablet.”

The two were stunned. Could one bit of information save them five cents?

But money-making news? Who knew? They’d have to find out themselves!

“Miss, we…”

“I mean information about things that can make money, but you can’t handle yourselves,” Lin Xiang said. “Think carefully.”

According to the book, the male lead’s rural area wasn’t too remote—only about a few dozen miles to town. Hitching a ride on an ox cart cost about ten cents.

The male lead occasionally got day jobs in town, earning about one yuan for a day’s work, but he was reluctant to spend on transport, so he’d walk or hitch the ox cart, turning a two-day trip into a job that netted less than a yuan.

These jobs were rare and highly sought after, even the male lead didn’t get many chances despite his good reputation.

So getting useful information from the couple was better than saving five cents.

The couple racked their brains to come up with something worth five cents.

Just as Lin Xiang was about to give up, they finally remembered a piece of news.

“There is! Half a month ago, we went to town to sell mushrooms and heard that the state-run restaurant was looking for chefs who knew Western cuisine, something to serve foreigners. But that was half a month ago—we don’t know if they’re still hiring.”

Western cuisine?

She knew how to cook that!

Before coming here, Lin Xiang had been a food blogger with over three million followers on short-video platforms.

But after arriving here, even the most skillful cook struggled without ingredients.

“Thank you.”

Lin Xiang didn’t waste any more time, handed over the medicine to the couple, took the dime, and continued towards the Lin family.

She wanted to make money. According to the timeline in the book, it was the period when the college entrance exam was being reinstated, educated youth were being approved to return to the city, and although the reform and opening-up policy hadn’t been officially announced, many foreign investors were already inspecting and looking to develop the market here.

The state-run restaurant hiring Western cuisine chefs was a clear sign.

Whatever the case, she had to check it out. Was she really going to end up farming?

By the time she returned to the village after going back and forth, it was already two or three in the afternoon, and the sky darkened, signaling rain.

Lin Xiang gently shook the feverish, dazed Lin Yun. “Brother, wake up. Take your medicine before sleeping.”

Lin Yun groggily opened his eyes and saw Lin Xiang’s concerned gaze, almost thinking it was a dream.

After all, he had never known the familial love he longed for since childhood.

He obediently drank water and took the medicine.

*

Lin Xiang wanted to turn things around for him, using disinfectant to clean his wounds.

Lin Yun’s mother entered. “You foolish girl, you really bought him medicine? What about the rest of the money?”

She was afraid Lin Xiang had spent an extra penny.

Lin Xiang returned the money. “Here it is. Mom, we don’t have much money, do we?”

Lin Yun’s mother immediately said, “What do you think? How much could there be? These two yuan took a long time to save! It’s all because of you—during the New Year trip to town, you either buy this or that; how could we save any money!”

Got it— the original owner was also a spendthrift.

Just then, someone called from outside, “Aunt Lin!”

Lin Xiang saw a woman enter wearing a white shirt, black cotton pants, and black-rimmed glasses.

“Oh, Liu Zhiqing, what a surprise!” Lin Yun’s mother immediately stood up.

“I heard Lin Ge was ill, so I came to bring medicine.” Liu Pei’s gaze fixed on the burning red-faced man, her eyes filled with concern and shyness.

Lin Xiang was about to say no need when Lin Yun’s mother warmly took the medicines and supplies from Liu Pei.

“Liu Zhiqing, you’re too kind! Lin Yun is usually strong and healthy; we don’t know how he suddenly fell ill! But he’s asleep now. When he wakes up, I’ll be sure to tell him you came to see him!”

Lin Yun, half-conscious, heard the noise.

Lin Yun’s mother chatted warmly with Liu Pei for a while, then saw the impending rain and saw her off.

After Liu Pei left, Lin Xiang frowned. “Why did we accept so many things again?”

All these things would have to be returned when Lin Yun woke up!

Lin Yun’s mother put her hands on her hips and tapped Lin Xiang’s head. “You stubborn girl, listen—I just heard that you beat up Wen Zhiqing earlier. How are you going to get along with him now?”

“That Wen Zhiqing isn’t a good person!” Lin Xiang muttered. “I don’t like him now!”

Better to cut ties quickly—best never to have anything to do with him again.

Lin Yun’s mother sighed and sat down. “This afternoon, the brigade held a criticism meeting for Wen Zhiqing. All his affairs with the village girls came out. That’s one thing, but I thought, you know, Liu Zhiqing isn’t bad! She likes your brother, you can tell. I heard her parents are teachers in the county town, and together they earn twenty yuan a month! And she’s their only daughter. If your brother marries her, wouldn’t their families become one? Life would be good!”

Lin Xiang: ???

Wait, since things didn’t work out between her and Wen Siyuan, now they were trying to set up Lin Yun and Liu Pei?

But the book never mentioned Lin Yun’s mother wanting to matchmake Liu Pei and Lin Yun.

Could it be that she had changed the storyline, causing a butterfly effect?