TNIBFT -Chapter 13 For Money, Throwing Away Shame

The landlady looked Ye Tian up and down with suspicion.

Seeing his bruised face and shabby clothes, her impression of him immediately worsened. If it weren’t for his calm yet respectful attitude and the sincerity in his eyes, she would have already dismissed him as a beggar.

“Give it a try. If it doesn’t work, you don’t have to pay. It’s just a bowl of clear soup—you won’t lose anything.”

With a guiding tone, Ye Tian took the small packet of pepper powder from Xiao Jiang and handed it directly to the landlady.

The landlady looked troubled and turned to the man who was wrapping wontons.

The two fell into a stalemate.

At the stall, the customers at the two tables eating wontons turned their heads curiously.

Feeling everyone’s gaze, Xiao Jiang lowered his head, growing even more anxious. Not only had he failed to do what Ye Tian asked, but it also seemed like their pepper powder wouldn’t sell at all.

“Don’t be afraid!”

Ye Tian ruffled Xiao Jiang’s hair and whispered, “You’ve still got your dad. I have a way.”

Ignoring the embarrassment, Ye Tian thought of the livestream sales scenes from his previous life—some streamers could make over a hundred million in a single day. That proved such sales techniques worked. His face flushed hot.

For money—damn it, who cares about dignity!

He immediately raised his voice, “Miss, don’t underestimate this small packet of seasoning. It contains thirteen kinds of traditional herbs. In the past, only nobles could use something like this—even if you had money, you couldn’t buy it. Don’t believe me? Give it a smell.”

His expression was exaggerated yet sincere.

He had only had some broth last night, not a single bite of fish, and hadn’t eaten anything all day. Not just Xiao Jiang craving meat buns—even he had nearly drooled from hunger earlier.

To fill their stomachs, Ye Tian pulled out all the stops.

Decisively, he opened a packet of pepper powder, poured some into his palm, and handed it to the landlady.

Then he walked straight over to the man wrapping wontons and poured some into his hand as well. Ye Tian could tell—the man didn’t talk much, but he was the one who made the decisions at this stall.

Seeing that the customers at the other tables were also curious, Ye Tian generously poured some for them too, though it pained him. He said, “Brother, this stuff is valuable. If I didn’t see you as someone special, I wouldn’t even bear to give you a sample.”

“Go on, take a sniff. One whiff and it hits you—don’t you feel your whole body warming up, your mouth going dry, and everything suddenly relaxing?”

“Not 998 today—just three copper coins! Three coins and you can take it home. There isn’t much of this left—we’ve already sold hundreds of portions in the west of the city. If you don’t want it, I’ll be leaving!”

Xiao Jiang stared at Ye Tian wide-eyed.

Why did his words flow so smoothly? They even sounded kind of interesting.

The stall owner and the landlady sniffed it, then fell silent. Normally, someone trying to sell things at their stall would’ve been chased away immediately. But now, holding the mysterious powder in their hands—and with Ye Tian being so friendly—they couldn’t quite bring themselves to drive him off.

After Ye Tian’s enthusiastic pitch, a burly man at another table spoke up loudly, “This stuff’s not bad. How much is it?”

Ye Tian’s eyes lit up with joy.

He hurried over and took out a two-liang packet of pepper powder. “You’re my first customer—three coins for this pack. And I’ll throw in the remaining half-pack for free.”

“Don’t underestimate how little it looks—just add a bit each time you make soup or stir-fry, and it’ll last you a whole month.”

“Forget the price—just tell me, is the effect good or not?”

The burly man added the pepper powder into his steaming soup. Instantly, the peppery aroma spread. He eagerly picked up his large porcelain bowl. “Hoo…” He blew on it, then took a sip under everyone’s watchful eyes. His eyes immediately lit up. “It really is good stuff. Give me a pack.”

As he spoke, he fished out three copper coins from inside his padded jacket and handed them to Ye Tian.

“You silly kid, what are you standing there for? Thank the uncle!”

Ye Tian nudged the stunned Xiao Jiang. Only then did Xiao Jiang snap out of it. Looking at the three copper coins in the man’s hand, his heart pounded wildly.

This was the first time—earned honestly, without stealing or taking.

Not begging, not relying on others’ charity—this was money earned through his own ability. Xiao Jiang swallowed excitedly, took the copper coins with both hands, and said softly, “Thank you, uncle.”

So as long as one put in effort and care, life wasn’t actually that hard.

“I’ll take a pack too.”

A customer at another table waved at Ye Tian. He stepped forward, took out a small packet of pepper powder, and handed it over. “Three wen. The free ones are gone now. If you buy a large pack, I’ll only charge you five wen. It has half again as much as the small pack, so you won’t lose out.”

The young man thought for a moment, then smiled. “Alright, I’ll take a large one.”

Another five wen earned.

Watching Ye Tian collect the money, Xiao Jiang tilted his little face up at him. Though Ye Tian’s face was still bruised and swollen, he spoke and laughed with ease, carrying an indescribable confidence. Looking at him now, he was actually quite handsome.

Xiao Jiang’s gaze was full of admiration.

“Hey, young man.”

“Come here for a moment.”

The wonton stall owner stood up and waved enthusiastically at Ye Tian.

His attitude was completely different from before, like night and day.

Ye Tian smiled and walked over.

The owner said, “Young man, if I buy in bulk, can you give me a better price?”

The owner’s wife also smiled. “Yes, little brother. Selling to us saves you trouble too. In this cold weather, you wouldn’t have to run around with the child.”

The owner had already figured it out—adding this powder to the soup gave it a spicy kick, instantly making an otherwise ordinary bowl of wonton soup stand out. Two customers had already bought it, which meant there was a market for it.

“No.”

Ye Tian shook his head and refused outright.

Xiao Jiang, who had heard everything clearly, widened his eyes in disbelief. Ye Tian was turning down money—what was he thinking?

But Ye Tian understood the owner’s little scheme perfectly. Across the street was a bun shop; if he sold the pepper powder to them, this owner definitely wouldn’t be happy.

Still, he needed to make money quickly—and also buy more spices to improve the flavor layers of the pepper powder. Time was tight, but selling cheap was out of the question.

Ye Tian said with some difficulty, “This stuff is hard to come by. Look, even the bun shop owner is watching me. If you don’t want it, I’ll head over there.”

He smiled.

Then he turned to Xiao Jiang as if about to leave.

“Let’s talk, let’s talk!”

The owner rushed out from behind the simple stove, grabbed Ye Tian, and said with a smile, “We’ll take it all.”

“I was just discussing it with you—after all, we’re a small business.”

The owner tried to play poor.

Ye Tian said, “You know this is a unique product. Even if you don’t keep it for your own use, you can sell it to customers. Add just one more wen, and you’ll earn more than you do now.”

The owner’s eyes lit up, and he clapped in approval.

For the remaining eighty packs—sixty small packs at three wen each, and twenty large packs at five wen each—the owner was so overwhelmed doing the math he almost needed all four limbs.

Beside him, Xiao Jiang said in a soft, childish voice, “Two hundred and eighty wen. Uncle should give my dad two qian and eighty wen.”

After speaking, Xiao Jiang shyly glanced at Ye Tian.

That single “Dad” made Ye Tian’s heart bloom with joy—he knew he had finally gained Xiao Jiang’s approval.

Ye Tian immediately praised him, “As expected of my son—just as capable as your father.”