Chapter 9 Consolidation

The world fell silent, and Shen Yunfang began to ponder her five-year plan once again.

Having arrived in this era, Shen Yunfang felt the first issue she needed to address was the problem of food and clothing; if she wasn't fed and warm, no matter how ambitious she was, she wouldn't be able to accomplish anything.

And in this era of scarcity, ensuring a full stomach and warm clothes was by no means a simple matter.

Thinking of what she had seen in the cellar at noon, her stockpile of grains would only suffice for about ten days to half a month, but what after that? Continue freeloading off relatives? She wasn't that shameless. Besides, it wasn't a sustainable solution.

The immediate solution was to find a way to buy some grain. After all, she still had dozens of yuan, which, given the current purchasing power, would be enough to feed her on cornmeal for several years.

However, buying grain wasn't so easy. Not to mention that every household was short on food, even those with enough wouldn't dare to sell it openly.

Fortunately, this body had a few relatives here; between freeloading meals and selling her some grain, she figured most people would understand which was the better choice to make.

But relying on purchasing grain to get by was not a long-term plan either. As an orphaned girl, continuously spending money on grain would attract unwanted attention. Therefore, to fundamentally solve her food problem, she had to become self-reliant.

This year was already a write-off, but starting from next year, she would have to make good use of the family's private plot and the backyard, planting as much grain as possible.

"Yunfang, are you asleep?" Shen Yingxue's voice drifted over from afar.

Shen Yunfang pretended not to hear and continued thinking, not even opening her eyes.

Still, this was not enough; she planned to raise a few more chickens next year and a couple of pigs. Selling them at the end of the year would mean money, ensuring that what she had wouldn't run out.

Considering she could barely feed herself yet wanted to raise so many livestock, it meant she needed to find additional sources of income and cut costs.

Shen Yunfang opened her eyes and looked at the mountain before her. With such a vast mountain, she should be able to find a place to cultivate some land in secrecy. As for the risk of discovery, she felt it wasn't a big deal. As long as she picked a secluded and distant area, it was unlikely to attract attention, especially since the commune members were busy with labor every day and didn't have time to roam the mountains. Even the children in the village were warned about the dangers of the mountains and rarely ventured in.

Plus, with her current job of herding sheep, she could stay out of sight all day without arousing suspicion.

Alright, she had a plan to increase income; next was cost-cutting.

Feeding pigs and chickens with grain was neither economic nor sensible, so she had to think of ways to produce her feed.

In her previous life, her parents ran a breeding farm, and she remembered some of the formulas for pig feed. But finding all the ingredients wouldn't be possible at this time; she would have to make do with simple mixtures, which would at least be more cost-effective than feeding haphazardly.

Her first five-year plan was basically formed. In the next five years, because of the constraints of the era, getting rich was unlikely, so her goal was to maintain a low profile, feed and clothe herself properly, and save a little.

After all, at any time, medical expenses would still require money, so having not a penny to her name was out of the question.

"Yunfang, I've already cut a basketful of greens, and I'm taking them home now. Are you sure you can manage alone?" Shen Yingxue returned, her back loaded with a basket full of greens.

Shen Yunfang opened her eyes as if she had just awoken, "It's alright. I herd sheep every day, all by myself, haven't you seen that I'm still fine? Just take care of your matters; don't worry about me." Oh, why isn't there a law that says anyone who disturbs another's peaceful sleep deserves death?

Shen Yingxue left, and after a short while, she returned.

Each time she came back, she would talk to Shen Yunfang for a bit, both before leaving and coming, which was incredibly annoying to Shen Yunfang. She was lucky she wasn't sleeping, or she would have slapped her already.

Shen Yingxue was a smart child and obviously noticed Shen Yunfang's reluctance, though she had her own difficulties which forced her to cling to Shen Yunfang. She didn't know what she had done to offend her, causing such a drastic change in Shen Yunfang's attitude.

But for now, her priority was to cajole her into a better mood so she could go study.

In the afternoon, Shen Yunfang lay on the grass, carefully planning for the days ahead, feeling the gravity of the situation.

If she didn't prepare early, she would continue to endure the miserable days of not having enough to eat or wear.

When her thoughts were a muddled mess, she faintly heard the sound of a gong coming from the direction of the village...

Shen Yunfang remembered, at this time, going to work and getting off work, it all counted when her uncle rang the broken gong in the production team.

It was time to get off work now.

She stood up happily, but because she stood up too abruptly, and she was already malnourished, her blood didn't circulate quickly enough, and she felt dizzy and wobbled as she got up.

"Are you alright, Yunfang?" Shen Yingxue happened to look over and quickly rushed to her side, asking with concern.

"I'm fine. I said I'm still weak, but I'll be better in a bit." Fortunately, Shen Yunfang was quite familiar with such situations and had strong self-adjustment abilities. She bent over for a while and soon recovered.

Then she picked up her little whip that she'd set aside, pulled the rope around the neck of the lead sheep, and led the flock back to the village in a grand procession.

Seeing Shen Yunfang walk away like that, Shen Yingxue wanted to open her mouth to call her, but after thinking about it, she decided to let it be. Seeing that her own basket was nearly full, she hurried down the mountain as well.

On the way back, different from the morning, walking from the foot of the mountain to the production team was like crossing the entire village, and as it was quitting time, Shen Yunfang and the flock encountered many villagers.

"Yunfang, are you feeling any better?" The one who spoke was a plump woman in her forties or fifties.

"Oh, Auntie Wang, I'm almost well," Shen Yunfang thought for a moment before recognizing the woman speaking to her; she lived next to her own home and was a close neighbor. She was a kind person and usually took good care of her.

"Yingxue, you went to dig wild vegetables, eh? You're so capable."

"Heh, Yunfang is just lucky, with a fiancé who's a soldier and an uncle who's a team leader, herding sheep..." A woman who looked like a young wife said with a smile that wasn't really pleasant.

"Enough of that, aren't you tired of saying these things day after day?" A man next to her chided with obvious impatience.

"Hey, wait for me, what's wrong with what I'm saying, did I say something wrong..."

Shen Yunfang watched the couple walk off one after the other, and remembered they were from Wang Hengjun's family. The young wife was gossipy and liked to be provocative, and she had often mocked Shen Yunfang.

"Don't mind her, that's just the way she is," Auntie Wang consoled her understandingly, "You're heading to the brigade office now, aren't you? Better hurry along then."

"Yes." Shen Yunfang responded, somewhat dumbfoundedly, to the continuous waves of conversations.

Shen Yingxue came up to Shen Yunfang's side, full of concern, "Yunfang, don't take it to heart. Sister Cuiying is just jealous of anyone who has it better than her, you..."

Shen Yunfang didn't want to listen to her go on about how others looked down on her and how only Shen Yingxue was her friend.

Seeing that the sheep had already gone some distance ahead, she hurried to catch up.

Shen Yingxue stamped her foot in frustration behind her and then followed.

By the time she arrived at the production team, Shen Yunfang had more or less matched the faces of the villagers to the names in her memory, estimating that the next time she saw them she wouldn't be so bewildered.

Yes, Shen Yunfang was a bit slow when talking, which made others see her as somewhat slow-witted. She knew this, but she also knew it was necessary to have such moments. She was human, not a deity; she too needed time to adapt. She believed that next time, she wouldn't be the same.