Chapter 1154: Black Market Harvest

She applied a makeup look so drastic that neither Xiao Fu nor Xiao Mu would recognize her, climbed out the window of the guesthouse, took out from her space the bicycle she had stored earlier, and headed straight for the place she had investigated.

To be honest, if she hadn't had her strength to rely on, she wouldn't have dared venture out this late in such an unfamiliar place.

After all, the current law and order wasn't like that of the future.

Locals called the black market "Tian Guang Xu," meaning a market that opened at dawn and disbanded at sunrise—so Liu Chuxue had braved her exhaustion to come here; arriving at this hour meant the market had just opened, giving her ample time to sell the items in her space.

As she neared the location, she put the bicycle back into her space.

She found a concealed spot to observe today's secret entry signal, then pulled a bamboo basket from her space, paid ten fen, and slipped into the black market without incident.

Wow, honestly, this black market wasn't small at all—it must have been an abandoned warehouse somewhere.

After circling around, she actually found some good items: at an unremarkable stall, she spotted several rare ancient texts. The vendor didn't want money—he only accepted coupons and grain. Liu Chuxue naturally couldn't let this pass; after intense haggling, she paid ten jin of rice for them.

Then she saw someone selling Maotai—some bottles even bore the Golden Wheel brand's "Three Great Revolutions" label, with the back inscription reading: "Under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party after liberation, we carried out the Three Great Revolutionary Movements." It was said the name changed to Five-Star brand only after 1983; behind them stood newly released 2023 Feitian Maotai, and Liu Chuxue's heart raced with excitement.

To calm herself, she pinched her thigh hard—thankfully she'd arrived early; if she'd come even a little later, these bottles would have been snatched up entirely by alcohol addicts.

She forced down her excitement and stepped forward, lowering her voice: "How much for this liquor?"

The man looked up at Liu Chuxue: "Twelve yuan per bottle, no coupons needed."

In department stores, Maotai was eight yuan per bottle and required coupons; she'd stockpiled a few bottles when she still had coupons. This man was asking twelve yuan—clearly leaving room for negotiation: "How many do you have total?"

The man hadn't expected her to ask about quantity instead of haggling immediately; he sized her up, then said: "Besides these, there are two more bottles in the sack behind me—eight bottles total."

Liu Chuxue said directly: "Ten yuan per bottle. I'll take them all."

The man was desperate for cash, and these bottles were something he'd taken from his father-in-law's stash—he feared being discovered if he stayed out too long. Though this price wasn't his ideal, it was fair; after some hesitation, he finally said: "Alright."

Liu Chuxue hadn't expected him to agree so quickly—she'd thought there'd be some back-and-forth, but he was surprisingly cooperative.

She used her spiritual force to scan the area—thankfully, a pillar blocked the view, and few had noticed. She swiftly pulled out the money: "Count it."

As she handed over the cash, she already began placing the bottles into her bamboo basket. After counting the money, the man handed her the sack behind him: "Check it. If everything's fine, we're done."

Liu Chuxue never let anyone walk away without inspection—what if something was wrong? She'd be furious.

After confirming the bottles inside were genuine "Three Great Revolutions" Maotai and all were intact, she nodded: "Done."

The man, upon receiving her confirmation, stood and walked away. He thought: Today's luck was truly good—this money would let his younger sister marry in style, finally giving his family some face. As for his father-in-law discovering his hidden liquor missing? With so many people in the house, he'd just deny it outright.